274 BAY, SEA OR DIVING DUCKS 



dark brown. Body. Back, scapulars and rump, dark greyish brown, almost black 

 on middle of back and rump, feathers of back sometimes with lighter edgings; 

 chest, sides and belly, ashy grey; breast, dull white, greyish at rear; feet, purplish 

 grey. Tail, sooty grey, often with slight whitish tips and edgings; upper and under 

 coverts, sooty grey. Wings. Lesser and middle coverts, dark greyish brown; greater 

 coverts, also dark greyish brown but usually with white spots on outer webs of 

 one or more central feathers, the central feathers sometimes almost all white with 

 dark tips; primaries, blackish brown secondaries, outer ones, blackish brown, inner 

 ones, white; tertials, dark greyish brown; lining, mottled whitish and brown; 

 axillars, mottled dusky and white. 



JUVENILE. In first autumn the sexes are alike and resemble the adult female 

 except that the colours are duller and browner and the white cheek-patches arc 

 smaller. In young male the upper feathers of the sides are narrowly edged above 

 with dusky. Young male is larger than young female. The young male soon shows 

 a more conspicuous white head-patch and larger head but progress to maturity 

 is slow and even by spring the plumage is only partially adult and the wing still 

 immature; the head of young male shows large white patch, but few of the purple 

 head-feathers have developed. By second autumn after the summer moult both 

 sexes are fully adult. Wing of Both Sexes. As in adult female but greater coverts 

 of young male with more white than in adult female. 



SPECIMEN IDENTIFICATION 



MALE. WINTER PLUMAGE: General effect: A very small duck, with a large black- 

 and-white head, white body and black back. Chief distinguishing features (a) hind 

 toe with lobe, (b) very small size, (c) puffy, dark head, with triangular, white head- 

 patch, (d) wing, centrally white. 



The male is difficult to confuse with any other duck. 



AUTUMN AND JUVENILE PLUMAGE: See "Descriptions." 



FEMALE. General effect: A very small, dark-backed, white-breasted duck. Chief 

 features (a) and (b) same as in male, (c) white speculum, (d) white face-patch 

 behind eye. 



The male and female Ruddy Duck are almost as small, and in their drab 

 winter plumage bear a superficial resemblance to the female Buffle-head. The 

 females of Scaup and Harlequin are also drab -co loured, white-breasted ducks, but 

 are much larger. 



FIELD MARKS 



ON THE WATER. The Buffle-heads are among the smallest of the ducks 

 and are only slightly larger than the little Teals. The male appears largely 

 white, with an enormous black head marked 

 with a conspicuous white, triangular patch. Ex- 

 cept for the white patch on hand, the male looks 

 like a small edition of the Golden-eye. The 

 male Hooded Merganser with its prominent white 

 crest and similar size is often confused with 

 the male Buffle-head, but its darker body, black 

 neck, and pointed bill will separate. The tiny, 



dull-coloured, female Buffle-head will be recognized by its diminutive size and puffy, 

 brown head, with white face-patch; the white speculum is seldom noticeable on 

 the folded wing. The female, at a distance, looks like a miniature female Golden-eye. 



