FULIGULINJE. OIDEMIA. 179 



the upper parts dark brown, transversely lunulated with light 

 red. Young nearly similar to the female. 



This species has been met with very rarely in Shetland 

 and Orkney, but nowhere else in Britain. In many parts of 

 the arctic regions of both continents it is, however, abundant. 

 The nest and eggs are similar to those of the common species, 

 but the latter are smaller. 



Ring Duck. 



Anas spectabilis, Linn. Syst. Nat. i. 195. Anas spectabi- 

 lis, Lath. Ind. Ornith. ii. 845. Anas spectabilis, Temm. 

 Man. d'Ornith. ii. 851. Somateria spectabilis, Black-backed 

 Eider, MacGillivray, Brit. Birds, v. 



GENUS CXXX. OIDEMIA. SCOTER. 



The species of this genus are of large size, although in- 

 ferior to the Eiders, to which they seem to approximate in 

 some respects. They have the body very bulky and much 

 depressed ; the neck of moderate length and thick ; the 

 head large, oblong, compressed. Bill nearly of the same 

 length as the head, as high as broad at the base, depressed 

 and flattened toward the end, which is rounded ; upper man- 

 dible with a prominence at the base above, and two lateral 

 protuberances, the dorsal line rapidly sloping to beyond the 

 nostrils, then somewhat concave to the unguis, which is 

 very large and broadly elliptical, the ridge broad and flat- 

 tened at the base, broadly convex toward the end, the edges 

 thin, with the lamellae not projecting ; lower mandible with 

 the crura rearcuate, the unguis very large and broadly el- 

 liptical. Mouth of moderate width ; anterior palate broadly 

 concave, with a median prominent line, on which are some 

 tubercles, and from thirty to forty marginal lamellae ; tongue 

 large, fleshy, with numerous basal papillae, a deep median 

 groove, two lateral series of bristles, and a thin rounded 

 tip ; esophagus wide ; stomach a powerful gizzard of a 

 roundish form, with very large lateral muscles, longitudi- 

 nally rugous epithelium, and thick grinding plates ; intes- 

 tine of moderate length, wide ; coeca rather long, narrow. 

 Trachea with two abrupt bony expansions, one at the up- 

 per larynx, the other roundish and flattened ; lower larynx 

 large, but symmetrical ; bronchi wide. Nostrils elliptical, 



