24 ARRIGONI DEGLI ODDl. 



forehead and crown as far as tlie nape, of a biiffisli iinl 

 mixed ivilh brown and black, Ibo basos of Ihe feathers 

 being of Ibis lint and in some also the mi(Klloof lbom,tbis 

 colour is slip,btly vinaceoiis towards tbe forcboad, tbis 

 band is equal, as lo space, to that of cf Pintail and it is 

 relieved by Ihe colour and design of the other parls of the 

 head ; throat and sides of neck dark-black with a velvet y- 

 tint of metallic-gTeen, here and there appears, if atlenti- 

 vely observed, a brown ish hue, the feathers being black 

 only at the top, brownish in the middle and whilish at the 

 bases ; nape velvety-black gloss on the middle, on the 

 sides and in all the extension metallic-green with slight 

 pnrplish shades extended also on the sides of head and 

 round the eye ; the head hastwo large spots : the first, the 

 larger, is diffused on the cheeks occupying all the space 

 between the eye, cheeks and bill ; Ihe second, instead, is 

 extended only aroiind the auricular region and not vei-y 

 low; these spots are divided by a brownish-black band, 

 with few shades, which starts from the eye and is united 

 to the dark colour of the sides of neck ; the two spots are 

 yellowish-white with small brownish dots round the bill, 

 as for the remainder they are unicoloured; scapulars 

 blackish with whitish zig-zags more visible on the longer 

 ones and with a large velvety-black spot towards the top 

 on the outer webs, the central pari all along the feather 

 in the larger ones is brownish and the black spot on the 

 outer web is further from the apical part; the zig-zag 

 colour on the posterior centre of the neck is very delicate 

 and resembles rather that of Pintail, as is also that on 

 the back and rump, whilst, instead, the upper tail-coverts 

 are of the same tint as that observed in many semi-adult 

 specimens of Wigeons ; the zig-zags on the sides of breast 

 and Hanks are here and there interrupted by a vinaceous 

 hue as is commonly seen in the cf Wigeon ; sides and 

 fore-neck and part of breast vinaceous-pink, lighter at the 

 top of feathers, so that the colour seems undulated, the 

 tint is richer on the neck and sides while in the middle 

 the lighter and almost whitish-pink which occupies the 



