ANAS STREPERA. 221 



about the 25th of April ; but are so molested by egging that it 

 is a wonder that any young are brought up. 



Wing-spot purple ; tail of sixteen feathers ; bill rather longer than 

 head. 



Male. Head and neck green ; four central tail-coverts black, lengthened 

 and curled upwards. 



Female. General colour brown. 



Male in summer. Resembles female. Length 21 inches. 



238. Anas strepera, Linnaeus. The Gadwall. 



" This species is as scarce near Tangier as Fuligula rujina, 

 the - Red-crested Pochard ; and their appearance, which takes 

 place between February and March, is irregular and uncertain." 

 Favier. 



The Gadwall, on the Spanish side of the Straits, cannot be 

 termed a common bird. I only met with them on a few 

 occasions : one shot at flight on the 26th of November, 1869, 

 another shot at flight on the 22nd of December, 1871, at 

 Tapatanilla, and three others killed there in February 1874, are 

 my only personal experiences ; but I have seen them in Seville 

 market in February and March. 



Lord Lilford informed me that he saw ten or twelve Gadwall 

 at the lakes of Santa Olaya, in the Goto de Donana, in the early 

 part of May, and considered that they were breeding, although 

 he was unable to discover a nest then; afterwards they were 

 found breeding there. He also informed me that the local name 

 there was " Frisa " a word which signifies coarse cloth or 

 frieze, probably from grey colour. The Portuguese name given 

 by Arevalo for this Duck is " Frisada." 



The note of the Gadwall, in winter, is a hoarse croak, by 

 which they can be distinguished at " flight." 



Wing-spot white ; bill shorter than head, and narrowing slightly towards 

 tip. General colour grey. 



Male. Chestnut on shoulder of wing. 

 Female. Brown and grey. Length 20 inches. 



