EUROPEAN TEAL. 



'"PHIS well-known resident of the northern portions of 

 the Old World bears a very close resemblance to 

 the Green-winged Teal of our own land. It is only a 

 straggler within our limits, individuals having been 

 taken occasionally on the northern part of the Atlantic 

 coast, waifs probably from Greenland, where it is some- 

 times found, which have wandered down our shores in- 

 stead of taking their legitimate route to the Eastern 

 Hemisphere. The European Teal also occurs at times 

 in the Aleutian Islands, and Mr. Turner procured a 

 specimen on Atkha. It is probably a summer visitant 

 to that chain of islands, and may breed there. Although 

 I have never met with this species alive in North 

 America, I have frequently seen it in the markets of New 

 York hanging with other ducks procured along the 

 shores of Long Island and other near points upon the 

 coast. While possessing a number of differences more 

 or less pronounced from the American species, it is 

 mainly recognizable by the absence of the conspicuous 

 white bar on each side of the breast, which is an especial 

 feature in the plumage of our Green-winged Teal. In 

 the Old World this Teal is generally distributed from 

 the British Islands to China and Japan. It can be do- 

 mesticated without difficulty, bears confinement well, and 

 breeds readily if suitable locations are provided for it. 

 It is a very pretty species, and does not differ in economy 

 and habits from our own bird. 



