30 ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY. 



grass -stems and down picked from the parent's breast composes 

 the nest, and if the eggs are left, they are carefully hidden in 

 the loose material. Messrs. H. J. and C. E. Pearson, who 

 found the species breeding in Iceland, write as follows : 

 " We found eggs from the 2oth of June to the i8th of July, 

 most of the nests being placed on islands. On the 2Dth of 

 June we flushed the bird from a nest of six eggs, which was 

 several hundred yards from the water, on a bare hill-side of 

 black sand. There was no material in the nest except down, 

 the black colour of which would form a perfect protection when 

 the Duck covered the eggs with it in the ordinary course. 

 Not one of the many nests observed was placed in a hole, but 

 they were often in a hollow between two mounds of grass. In 

 such situations the outer part was always of grass, and the 

 bird carefully covered the eggs with the material on leaving, 

 sometimes forming a splendid imitation of an old nest. The 

 only safe rule was to put your hand well to the bottom of 

 every nest, whether it looked fresh or old." 



Eggs. Six or seven in number ; clay-brown to greenish- 

 grey, or dull green. Axis, 2-0-2-25 inches; diam., 1*5. 



Down. Very dark, deep chocolate-brown, almost blackish, the 

 filamentous tips also dark brown ; in the centre a small star 

 or " eye " of white. 



THE HARLEQUIN DUCKS. GENUS COSMONETTA. 



Cosmonetta, Kaup, Natiirl. Syst. p. 196 (1829). 

 Type, C. histrionica (Linn.). 



A single species, the Harlequin Duck, constitutes the genus 

 Cosmonetta^ and the characters of the genus are given by 

 Count Salvador! as consisting mainly of the peculiar pattern 

 of plumage which is displayed by the species in question* 

 This is, however, so remarkable that recognition is easy. The 

 Harlequin Duck belongs to the section of Diving Ducks, in 

 which the primaries are nearly uniform and show no light 

 "mirror," as in the Pochards, while there is no perceptible 

 crest, and the bill is conical and tapers almost to a point. 



