MERGIDJ5. 417 



longitudinally with blackish-brown. The interscapulary region 

 and upper back, the extreme sides of the breast and scapulars, 

 velvet-black ; outside the scapulars and between these and the 

 wing there is a conspicuous patch of long white feathers ; the 

 primaries and their coverts (which latter are darkest), the shoulder 

 of the wing and lesser-coverts just above the carpus, blackish- 

 brown ; the rest of the lesser and median-coverts pure white ; the 

 secondary greater-coverts black, all, except the first three, very 

 broadly tipped with white, but leaving a portion of their black 

 bases visible below the white median-coverts, thus forming the first 

 black bar across the white of the wing ; the secondaries are black, 

 all, except the first three, very broadly tipped with white ; ter- 

 tiaries white, conspicuously margined with black, except the last 

 three, which are black ; axillaries pure white ; rest of the lower 

 parts white, with, in life, a beautiful salmon or buffy tinge which 

 disappears in the skin ; flanks white, vermiculated with greyish- 

 black ; middle and lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts, 

 white, with very delicate and close veraiiculations of dull black, 

 producing a grey effect ; tail dull brown ; lower wing-coverts 

 white. 



The female has the entire crown, occiput and crest brown, with 

 more or less of a dull rufous or chesnut tinge, and rather ashy 

 towards the forehead ; sides of the head and neck all round pale 

 dull brownish chesnut ; chin white ; throat albescent ; breast and 

 entire lower parts white or pinkish-white in life, only at the base 

 of the throat and crop the grey -brown bases of the feathers show 

 through to a certain extent like hidden bars; interscapulary 

 region, mantle, lower back, rump and upper tail-coverts brown ; 

 most of the feathers with paler margins ; quills dusky-black ; 

 secondaries and their greater-coverts black, all but the first three 

 broadly tipped with white ; tertiaries blackish-dusky, paling 

 anteriorly, whitish towards the tip ; the innermost mostly white, 

 with a black outer margin ; tail like the back. 



Both sexes from the above description resemble the Goosander, 

 but may be distinguished by their small size, and in proportion 

 to their length much thinner bills. Humes Stray Feathers, Vol. 

 IX, p. 268. 



The Red-breasted Merganser is a very rare cold weather visi- 

 tant to the Mekran and Kurrachee Coast. 



GENUS, Mergellus. 



Bill shorter and somewhat wider than in Mergus, the tip much 

 less hooked ; teeth numerous and prominent in the lower mandible ; 

 of small size ; pied, black and white ; tail of 16 feathers. 



Mergellus albellus, Lin. 



973. Jerdon's Birds of India, Vol. II, p. 818, Butler, Guzerat ; 

 Stray Feathers, Vol. IV, p. 31 ; Murray's Vertebrate Zoology 

 of Sind, p. 310 ; Game Birds of India, Vol. Ill, p. 293. 



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