ANATID^J. 507 



of a red head. The bill is pale blue, the nail black ; 

 irides yellow ; the head and neck are black, glossed 

 with green ; the breast and collar at the back of the 

 neck black ; the back and scapulars white, pencilled 

 with black (rather more boldly so than the Pochard) ; 

 the lesser wing-coverts are black, minutely pencilled 

 with white ; the greater wing-coverts and tertials are 

 black, sparingly speckled with white ; rump and 

 upper tail-coverts black; primary quills black, 

 tinged with brown ; secondaries white, tipped with 

 black, forming a white speculum ; tail dark greyish 

 dusky, flanks and belly white ; under tail-coverts 

 black ; legs and toes bluish black ; webs still darker. 

 The female differs considerably: there is a white 

 patch surrounding the bill, broadest on the upper 

 parts (Yarrell seems to say that this is only the case 

 in old birds) ; the head and neck are dusky brown ; 

 breast and a collar at the back of the neck brown 

 the feathers on the lower part of the breast are 

 margined with white ; back and scapulars dark 

 dusky, freckled with white ; lesser wing-coverts the 

 same, but with less white ; the greater coverts dark 

 lead-colour ; there is a white speculum on the 

 secondaries, the tips of the feathers lead-colour; 

 primary quills and tail dark dusky, tinged with 

 brown ; belly and flanks white, hinder part of flanks 

 and under tail-coverts dark dusky, some of the 

 feathers freckled with white. The young birds are 

 much like the females. 



