126 ANSEBES DENDROCYCNA 



mouth, June (Ayres), Durban Harbour (Woodward) ; Transvaal 

 near Potchefstroom, rare, November (Ayres and Barratt) ; Bechu- 

 analand Okavango River and Lake Ngami (Andersson), Botletli 

 River (Bryden), Nocana, July (Fleck) ; Rhodesia Upper Zambesi 

 (Bradsbaw and Holub) ; Portuguese East Africa Zumbo (Alexan- 

 der), Inhambane, December (Francis, in S. A. Mus.). 



Habits. This Duck is gregarious, occurring in flocks usually of 

 considerable size on the lagoons and streams along the coast and 

 up some of the more considerable rivers, such as the Zambesi and 

 Okavango. Though not a regular migrant its numbers appear to be 

 reinforced in these districts during the rainy season, or in the case 

 of the Lake-regions, during the annual inundations in the winter ; it 

 is then to be met with in very large flocks. 



Its voice is a clear sibilant whistle, generally heard when the 

 birds are on the wing in early morn or late at night. These ducks 

 appear to be somewhat stupid and to be easily caught ; their flesh 

 is very good eating. 



The Woodwards, as also Nicolls and Eglington, state that this 

 species perches on trees ; this, however, is contradicted by Reiche- 

 now and von Heuglin, who both distinctly assert that they have 

 never observed this habit. Nothing appears to be known about the 

 breeding of this species in South Africa, but there are eggs from 

 Madagascar in the British Museum ; they are glossy and cream- 

 coloured, and measure about 2-0 x 1*5. 



/ 



616. Dendrocycna fulva. Whistling Duck. 



Anas fulva, Gmel. Syst. Nat. i. p. 530 (1788). 



Dendrocygna fulva, Holub & Pelzeln, Orn. Siid-Afr. p. 328 (1882) ; 



Fleck, Journ. Ornith. 1894, p. 380; Salvadori, Cat. B. M. xxvii. 



p. 149 (1895) ; Shelley, B. Afr. i. p. 171 (1896) ; Reichenow, Vog. Afr. 



i. p. 126 (1900). 



Description. Adult. Head, neck and below throughout pale 

 rufous-brown, almost white on the chin and throat, darkest on the 

 crown, the hinder feathers of which are slightly crested ; a narrow, 

 almost black line runs down the back of the neck ; wings and back 

 black, the feathers of the upper back and scapulars broadly tipped 

 with rufous-brown ; lesser coverts and feathers along the edge of the 

 wing maroon ; upper and lower tail-coverts white ; tail black. 



Iris dark brown ; bill bluish-black ; legs slaty- blue. 



