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FULTGULA FERINA— LINN. 



RED-HEADED DUCK. 



Rcd-licndcd Duck, Anas fcrina, Wilson. 



filgula fcrina, Lionap 



Ftiligula fermn, Sw. & Rich. 



Rtd- cadcd Duck or Pochard, Nuttall. 



Rcd-licadcd Duck, Fuligula forma, Audubon. 



Specific Character— Bill bluish, toward the end black, and about 

 two inches and a quarter long; irides yellowish-red. Adult male 

 with the head, which is rather large, and the upper part of the 

 neck all round, dark reddish-chestnut, brightest on the hind neck ; 

 lower part of the neck, extending on the back and upper pait of the 

 breast, black ; abdomen white, darker toward the vent, where it is 

 barred with undulating lines of dusky ; flanks gray, closely baned 

 with black, scapulars the same ; primaries brownish-gray, seconda- 

 ries lighter ; back grayish-brown, barred with fine lines of white j 

 rump and upper tail coveits blackish-brown : tail feathers grayish- 

 brown, lighter at the base ; lower tail coverts brownish-black, ra- 

 ther lighter than the upper. Length twenty inches, wing nine and 

 a half. Female about two inches smaller, with the head, neck, 

 breast, and. general color of the upper paits brown, darker on the 

 upper part of the head, lighter on the back; bill, legs, and feet, 

 similar to those of the male. 



With us the Red-headed Duck is not as common as many other 

 species, and is seldom seen in numbers west of Babylon, being 

 chiefly confined to the eastern part of the South Bay, where it is 

 sometimes seen in company with the Canvass Back, feeding on the 

 stems of the same plant, the latter preferring the roots, being more 

 tender and juicy, which imparts to its flesh a delicate flavor. The 

 Red-headed Duck is also excellent, commands a high prici in our 

 markets, and is frequently sold to the inexperienced as Canvass 

 Back, which it so closely resembles that the deception is easily 

 practised upon those avIio have never compared the species. It is 

 readily identified by the difference in the color of its eyes, as well 

 as by the form of its bill. 



