388 NATATORES. MERGUS. SMEW. 



Male. black ; the occiput, and part of the occipital crest, being 



of the same colour. Head, neck, breast, and under 

 plumage, pure white. The back, and the two crescents, 

 which advancing, partly encircle the lower neck and 

 breast, black. Shoulders, and part of the lesser wing- 

 coverts, white. Scapulars white, and greyish -white, 

 margined on the outer webs with black. Secondaries 

 and middle wing-coverts deep glossy black, with a nar- 

 row fringe of white. Sides and flanks with transverse 

 zigzag lines of black. Upper tail-coverts bluish-grey. 

 Tail the same, and graduated. Quills brownish-black. 



Female. Much less than the male bird. Head, crested occiput, and 

 hinder part of the neck, reddish-brown. Throat and 

 sides of the upper part of the neck, white. Lower part 

 of neck, breast, sides and flanks, ash-grey. Back, sca- 

 pulars, upper tail-coverts, and tail, deep grey, inclining 

 to clove-brown. Middle part of the lesser wing coverts 

 greyish-white. The rest of the wings (with the excep- 

 tion of the secondaries and greater coverts, which are 

 bordered with white) deep greyish-black. Legs and bill 

 deep grey. 



Young. The young of both sexes are similar to the adult female. 

 At the second moult the males indicate, by a few black 

 feathers, the commencement of the patch on the side of 

 the face ; the back also becomes varied with black ; and 

 appearances of the two crescents are discernible. 



