MALLARD. 563 



unperceived, with a gourd, basket, or large earthen vessel over his head, 

 cautiously moving up to his neck in water amongst the unsuspicious Ducks 

 and dragging them under the surface one by one without disturbing the 

 rest, lu some places the skin of a Pelican is used as a helmet, the ducks 

 being so used to mingle with those birds as to allow such an object to 

 approach them without suspicion or fear. As many as twenty Ducks are 

 sometimes caught on a single trip with such a cunning device. 



The Mallard may be distinguished at all ages from other European 

 Ducks by its alar speculum, the predominating colour of which is purple. 

 The fully adult male in nuptial dress agrees with the Shoveller in having 

 the head and neck black with greenish and purple reflections, but the white 

 band between the neck and the upper breast is narrowed to a ring which 

 does not extend to the scapulars nor quite meet on the back of the neck. 

 The back is brown, shading into grey on the wing-coverts, and into almost 

 black on the upper tail-coverts, the longest of which are curled upwards at 

 the tips ; the scapulars are more or less vermiculated, and the alar speculum 

 is emphasized by narrow black submargins and broader white margins. 

 The underparts below the white ring are brownish chestnut on the upper 

 breast, shading into greyish white finely vermiculated with dark grey on 

 the belly and flanks ; the under tail-coverts are black, faintly glossed with 

 green and purple. Bill olive, black at the tip; legs and feet reddish 

 orange ; irides brown. The general colour of the underparts of the adult 

 female is dark brown, each feather having a brownish-buff margin ; the 

 wings are similar in colour to those of the male ; the underparts are buff 

 streaked with dark brown except on the chin and upper throat. Young in 

 first plumage closely resemble adult females, but the males are somewhat 

 darker in colour. Males in their first nuptial dress are much duller in 

 colour than adults. 



Adult males in moulting-plumage resemble adult females, but are some- 

 what darker in colour. Young in down have the upper parts dark brown, 

 with nearly white spots on the wings, scapulars, and sides of the rump. 

 The underparts are pale brown, palest on the belly, and shading into buff 

 on the throat. They have a buff stripe over the eye, a dark brown stripe 

 through the eye, and a dark spot on the end of the ear-coverts. 



The Summer Duck, Anas sponsa, a common North-American species, 

 has been included in the British list ; but as it is frequently kept on orna- 

 mental waters, there is no reason to suppose that it has ever occurred on 

 our islands in a wild state. 



The Bimaculated Duck, Anas bimaculata, is also included by some 

 writers as a British bird, but is now generally admitted to be a hybrid 

 between the Mallard and the Teal. 



