NATATORES: ANATID^. 265 



seres, which have the bill with transverse lamellae along 

 the edges ; and Gaviae, which have the bill without lamellae. 

 The first of these is represented by the great group of 

 Anatidae. 



ANATID^E, OR DUCK FAMILY. This family comprises 

 swimming birds whose jaws have transverse lamellae, the 

 upper mandible ending in an obtuse rounded nail, and a 

 groove running along both jaws to the nail. They are 

 numerous, and found in all parts of the world. 



The Genus Cygnus Swans has the neck very long. 



The American Swan, C. americanus, Sharp., of North 

 America, is fifty-five inches long, and the wing twenty- 

 two inches ; the adult pure white, the bill and legs black ; 

 the tail has twenty feathers. The young are brown. 



The Trumpeter Swan, C. buccinator, Rich., of Western 

 North America, is sixty inches long, and the wing twenty- 

 four inches ; the adult pure white, the bill and legs black ; 

 the tail has twenty-four feathers. Its notes are more 

 sonorous than those of the preceding. 



The Red-billed Swan, Anas olor, Gm., and the Black- 

 billed Swan, A. cygnus, Gm., belong to Europe. The 

 former is the original of the domestic Swan. 



The notion that the Swan sings on the approach of 

 death is erroneous. 



The Genus Anser has the lamellae of the upper man- 

 dible projecting below the edge as points. 



The Snow Goose, A. kyperboreus, Pallas, of North Amer- 

 ica, is thirty inches long, and the wing about sixteen and 

 a half inches ; color pure white ; bill and legs red. 



The White-fronted Goose, A. Gambelli, Haiti., of North 

 America, is twenty-eight inches long, and the wing about 

 sixteen and one third inches ; color grayish ; forehead 

 white, bill and legs red ; the tail has sixteen feathers. 



The Brown-fronted Goose, A.frontalis, Baird, of the in- 

 terior of North America, closely resembles the preceding. 



