412 TEN YEARS IN SWEDEN. 



shoulders grey-white, watered with black ; wing feathers 

 dark grey ; speculum large, violet green on both sides, 

 fringed with black and white ; upper breast dark chest- 

 nut brown ; the rest of the under plumage finely watered 

 with black, on a grey- white ground ; rump and the four 

 crooked tail feathers, which are peculiar to the mallard, 

 black. This is the plumage of the mallard during the 

 whole year, except about the months of July and 

 August, when he lays aside his fine livery, and then 

 rather resembles the female, whose dress at all times is 

 pale reddish grey-brown, with black transverse and long 

 streaks, and a much less brilliant speculum. Beak in 

 male yellow-green ; legs orange-red. In. female, beak 

 greenish grey. The young resemble the female, and 

 the young males may be known from the females by the 

 black back, without the rusty brown feather edges. 

 Commonest of all the ducks throughout the whole of 



Scandinavia during the breeding season. Egg 2 in. 3 1. 



long, 11 in. broad ; light clay green. The weight of a good 



mallard here will be 4a lb. ; of a wild duck, scarcely oilb. 



261. A. ACUTA, L. Stjert And. The Pintail. D. F. 



Length 2 ft. ; tarsus 1 in. 61.; beak 2 in. 2 1. long, 

 5J broad. Male, except just during the summer, when 

 they resemble the females, head and neck dark purplo 

 brown ; a white stripe down the sides of the neck, 

 which is longer and slenderer than in any other duck ; 

 breast white ; the middle and sides finely watered with 

 grey and white ; back wavy grey ; scapulars long and 

 fine, velvet black, with white edges; tail long and 

 pointed, 7 in., extending 5 in. beyond the closed wings; 

 the middle feathers black ; speculum green, purple and 

 grey-brown, in front with a rusty red, behind with 

 black and white, bands ; beak long and small, lead- 

 coloured ; legs black-grey. The female is brown-black 

 above, covered with dark wavy streaks ; under parts 

 yellowish, with brown and white transverse bands ; tail 

 pointed, but the two middle feathers scarcely longer 

 than the others. 



