126 



DAFILA. PINTAIL. 



Generic Character. 



Rostrum mediocre, basi 

 inerme, subcylindricum, 

 lineare, apice ungue parvo 

 ornato : mandibulae lateri- 

 bus laminato-dentatis. 



Nares basales, sub-ovales. 

 Cauda elongata, acuta, rec- 

 tricibus sedecim instructis. 



Beak medial, its base un- 

 armed, subcylindric, linear, 

 its tip furnished with a 

 very small hook : the man- 

 dibles with their edges la- 

 minato-dentated. 



Nostrils basal, sub-oval. 



Tail elongated, acute, fur- 

 nished with sixteen fea- 

 thers. 



DAFILA. Leach in Brit. Mus. Collection. 



1 HE Pintail is readily distinguished from the other 

 genera of this stirps by the superior length of its 

 tail, the two middle feathers of which are greatly 

 elongated, particularly in the male : its beak is nar- 

 rower than in the Shoveler, and longer than that of 

 the Wigeons and Teals. But one species is known, 

 belonging to this genus, whose manners, so far as 

 known, are detailed in the following pages. 



