354 THE GAME BIEDS AND WILD FOWL 



Family ANATID^E. Genus DAFILA. 



Subfamily 



PINTAIL DUCK. 



DAFILA ACUTA (Linnceus). 

 PLATE XXXV. 



Anas acuta, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. p. 202 (1766) ; Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B. iii. p. 534 (1885); 



Dixon, Nests and Eggs Brit. B. p. 229 (1893) ; Seebohm, Col. Pig. Eggs Brit. B p. 



38, pi. 13 (1896). 



Querquedula acuta (Linn.), Macgill. Brit. B. v. p. 65 (1852). 

 Dafila acuta (Linn.), Dresser, B. Eur. vi. p. 531, pis. 430, 431 (1873) ; Yarrell, Brit. 



B. ed. 4, iv. p. 380 (1885); Lilford. Col. Fig. Brit. B. pt. xiii. (1890) ; Salvadori, 



Cat. B. Brit. Mus. xxvii. p. 270 (1895) ; Sharpe, Handb. B. Gt. Brit. ii. p. 287 (1896). 



Geographical distribution British: The Pintail Duck is a fairly 

 common winter visitor to our area, but breeds sparingly in Scotland and Ireland. 

 It passes the Shetlands on migration, but winters in the Orkneys, and has occurred 

 in every county of Scotland, although it becomes rarer in the west, especially in 

 the Hebrides. It is also far from uncommon on the west coast of England, but 

 becomes more plentiful on the east and especially the south coasts. It is rare in 

 the north of Ireland, but from Galway and Meath southwards it is a regular 

 winter visitor. Eggs of this species have been obtained by Mr. Harvie-Brown 

 on Hysgeir, off the south coast of Skye, and I have every reason to believe that the 

 bird breeds sparingly in the Firth of Forth. More recently (1898) nests have been 

 found on Loch Leven by Mr. W. Evans. Hancock states that it formerly bred 

 in the now drained Prestwick Car, in Northumberland. In Ireland, according to 

 Sir E. Payne-Gallwey, several pairs breed at the duck preserves at Abbeyleix, in 

 Queen's County, and he has observed females with their broods on Loughs Mask 

 and Corrib, in Co. Galway. It may also breed in some parts of Coimemara. 

 The Pintail is a fresh-water species, and often frequents inland pools as well as 

 the coast. Foreign : Circumpolar, Palaearctic and Nearctic regions ; Oriental and 

 extreme north of Neotropical regions in winter. It breeds throughout the Arctic 

 regions of Europe, Asia, and America at least up to lat. 70, for in the valley 

 of the Yenisei Mr. Pophani met with it up to lat. 72. In Europe it breeds 

 much less abundantly south of lat. 60, although it does so sparingly in North 

 Germany, and Eussia as far south as the Caucasus in the east, and the Carmargue 

 in the west ; whilst in Siberia it is said to breed as low as lat. 50, which is 

 practically the whole of that country south of lat. 72. It passes down the coast of 



