96 FEATHERED GAME 



Lakes and other large inland waters. On the 

 coast line they rarely penetrate into the tide 

 water and aestuaries, choosing rather the 

 ledges rising from the deep water and the 

 rocky shores of remote and seldom-visited 

 islands well ont from the mainland, where all 

 undisturbed they may live their happy and in- 

 nocent lives. As for their coloring we might 

 almost say that no two are marked alike, the 

 depth of color and its arrangement being sub- 

 ject to wide variation in different specimens. 

 In general their upper parts are irregularly 

 splashed with black and white and dark brown, 

 with some patches of light red or chestnut. 

 Below, mostly white, but black on lower throat 

 and breast. Crown streaked with black and 

 white. Forehead, cheeks, side of head, throat 

 and nape white. On the side of the neck black 

 and white in irregular patches. Back, rump 

 and upper tail coverts white, with a dark patch 

 through central line of rump and tail coverts. 

 Tail white with dusky patch near tips of the 

 feathers, these finally tipped with white. Scap- 

 ulars, secondaries and wing coverts mottled 

 with black and chestnut. Some of the greater 

 coverts white^ often making a crossbar of this 



