624 CLAXGULA COSMONETTA 



snails, worms, &c., and in the winter when off the sea-coast on 

 .small shell-fish, shrimps, &c. Like the Golden-eye it is a tree- 

 breeder, nesting in hollow trees and deposits 8 to 10 eggs 

 which are buffy or yellowish white and measure about T98 

 % 1-46. 



COSMONETTA, Kaup, 1829. 



865. HARLEQUIN DUCK. 



COSMONETTA HISTRIONICA. 



Cosmonetta histrionica (Linn.), Syst. Nat. i. p. 204 (1766) ; (Naum.), xii. 

 p. 199, Taf. 318 ; (Hewitson), ii. p. 433, pi. cxviii. fig. 2 ; (Gould), 

 B. of E. v. pi. 381 ; Dresser, vi. p. 609, pi. 442 ; (Andub.), B. Am. 

 vi. p. 374, pi. 409 ; Salvador!, Cat. B. Br. Mus. xxvii. p. 395 ; Tacz. 

 F. 0. Sib. O. p. 1176 ; (Ridgway), p. 107 ; Saunders, p. 457 ; Lil- 

 ford, vii. p. 121, pi. 51 ; Clangula torquata, Brehm, Vogelfang, 

 p. 385 (1855) ; (Gould), B. of Gt. Brit. v. pi. 32. 



Canard histrion, French ; Kragenente, German ; Tomauiarsuk, 

 Oreenl. ; Straumond, Icel. ; Stromand. Dan. and Swed. ; 

 Tschernaya~polossataya-0otka t Russ. ; Shinori-gamo, Jap. 



$ ad. (Greenland). A large patch in front of the eye, and a spot 

 on the ear-coverts white ; a broad stripe through the middle of the crown 

 to the nape black, bordered with white ; from above each eye to the nape 

 a broad rusty-red stripe ; rest of head and neck blackish blue, marked with 

 a long white stripe on each side of the neck ; breast, back, and lesser wing- 

 coverts deep dull blue ; wings, tail, and rump black, the inner secondaries 

 and scapulars marked with white ; speculum glossy purple ; on the lower 

 neck an interrupted white collar, and another in front of the wing ; under 

 parts brown, tinged with blue-grey ; flanks chestnut- red ; under tail-coverts 

 black, with a white spot on each side ; bill deep lead-blue, the nail lighter ; 

 legs brown ; iris dark brown. Culmen 1'3, wing 8*0, tail 4*25, tarsus 

 1-4 inch. The female is greyish brown, paler below ; forehead and at the 

 base of the bill brownish white ; a white patch in front of the eye, and 

 one on the ear-coverts ; breast and abdomen closely marked with white. 

 In the late summer the male has the plumage much duller, the speculum 

 dusky brownish grey, with a slight metallic gloss ; under parts greyish 

 white, spotted with greyish brown, the flanks and under tail-coverts nearly 

 uniform greyish brown. 



Hob. Greenland, Iceland ; of rare occurrence in Great Britain 

 and continental Europe ; Eastern Siberia and Kamchatka, 

 visiting Japan in winter ; Northern North America, migrating 

 in winter south to the Middle United States, the Ohio valley, 

 and the coasts of California. 



