SYEOCA. 459 



Fuligula ferina, Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xii, pt. 2, p. 193 (1824) ; 

 Blyth, Cat. p. 306 ; Davids. $ Wend. S. F. vii, p. 93 ; Hume, ibid. 

 p. 496 ; id. Cat. no. 968 ; Hume $ Marsh. Game B. iii, p. 247, pi. ; 

 Legge, Birds Ceyl. p. 1090, note ; Butler, S. F. ix, p. 438 ; Reid, 

 S. F. x, p. 84 ; Davidson, ibid. p. 326 ; Taylor, ibid. p. 531 ; 

 Barnes, Birds Bom. p. 412 ; Hume, S. F. xi, p. 346. 



The Red-headed Pochard, Jerdon ; Burdr-nar, Ldl-sir, H. j Ldl- 

 muriya, Beng. ; Cheun, Nepal ; Thordinynam, Manipur. 



Coloration. Male. Head and neck rufous chestnut ; base of 

 neck all round, with upper back and upper breast, glossy black ; 

 back, scapulars, tertiaries, and sides of body finely vermiculated 

 with black and greyish white ; lower breast and abdomen the 

 same, but with the dark vermiculation growing fainter on the 

 upper abdomen ; lower back, rump, upper and under tail-coverts, 

 .and vent-feathers black ; tail dark brown ; wing-coverts grey, 

 more or less vermiculated with white ; primaries greyish brown, 

 darker at tip and on outer webs ; secondaries grey, more or less 

 vermiculated with white on outer webs. 



Female. Head, neck, upper back, and upper breast rufous-brown, 

 blackish on crown, mixed with white to a varying extent on sides 

 of head, throat, and fore neck ; back and scapulars grey, vermicu- 

 lated with black, but less distinctly than in the male ; the wing- 

 coverts are sometimes vermiculated, sometimes grey throughout; 

 rump and upper tail-coverts black, indistinctly speckled with grey ; 

 tail and quill feathers as in male ; lower parts sullied white ; 

 flanks, lower abdomen, and under tail-coverts brownish and 

 vermiculated. 



Bill bluish grey, the tip and base black : irides orange-yellow ; 

 legs bluish grey (Jerdon). 



Length of male 18*5 ; tail 2*25 ; wing 8*5 ; tarsus 1*5 ; bill 

 from gape 2'2. Female a little smaller, wing about 8. 



Distribution. Throughout the Palaearctic region from the British 

 Islands to Japan, breeding chiefly in the western part of the 

 north temperate zone, and migrating south in winter. This 

 Duck visits Northern India in large numbers, and is found in the 

 Peninsula as far south as Bellary, though less common to the 

 southward, but it has not been obtained in Mysore or farther south, 

 nor in Ceylon. It has recently been recorded from Northern 

 Burma near Mandalay, and it is far from rare in Assam and Manipur. 



Habits, <Sfc. The Pochard arrives in India in the latter half of 

 October or beginning of November, and leaves in March, as a rule. 

 Its favourite haunts during the day are in large jheels (broads) or 

 tanks with open water in the middle. On these it occurs generally 

 in large flocks, less often in very small parties or singly. It may 

 also be found on rivers or on the sea-coast. Pochards swim and 

 dive well, but walk badly. They generally sit on the water when 

 resting, not on land, keeping the body low and the neck drawn 

 in. They feed largely by night, but also in the day, and obtain 

 much of their food, which is chiefly vegetable, by diving. Their 

 flight is strong and accompanied by a peculiar rustling sound ; 



