60 BIRDS OF NORTH CAROLINA 



congregate in great numbers. Being universally esteemed as choice birds for the 

 table, it is little wonder that this species has long been domesticated. Our tame 

 ducks, however, rarely exhibit the fine appearance of plumage and activities so 

 characteristic of their wild kindred. The Mallard is supposed not to nest in North 

 Carolina, although one need not be greatly surprised to find a pair of cripples thus 

 engaged. A reliable farmer of Guilford County reported that he found a Mallard's 

 egg late in the spring of 1909 on a creek bank much frequented by the birds just 

 before their departure for the season. The weight of a wild Mallard is about two 

 and one-half pounds, and exceptionally large and well-conditioned specimens will 

 sometimes tip the scales at three pounds or more. 



FIG. 34. MALLARD (adult male). 



A favorite among fresh-water duck shooters, the Mallard comes readily to decoys, 

 but usually it is a suspicious bird, and the blind and the decoys should be properly 

 placed and the gunner well hidden and motionless to insure success. 



43. Anas rubripes (Brewster). BLACK DUCK. 



Ads. Top of head rich fuscous, slightly streaked with pale buffy; sides of the head and 

 throat pale buffy, thickly streaked with blackish; rest of underparts fuscous-brown, the 

 feathers all bordered by ochraceous-buff; back slightly darker and narrowly margined with 

 buffy; speculum rich purple, bordered by black, and, at the end only, narrowly by white. 

 L., 22.00; W., 11.00; Tar., 1.75; B., 2.20. 



Remarks. Always to be distinguished from the female Mallard by its darker colors and 

 smaller amount of white in the wing. 



Range. Eastern North America, breeding somewhat more southerly than the Mallard. 



Range in North Carolina. Whole State in winter, and apparently also breeds in portions 

 of the coastal region. 



