1911] Sicarth: Alaska Expedition of 1909. 41 



Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus. Mallard. 



By far the most abundant species of fresh-water duck in 

 southeastern Alaska. Flocks of mallards were seen from the 

 steamer in Wrangell Narrows on April 8 ; and thej^ were exceed- 

 ingly abundant about Kupreanof and Kuiu islands, April 10 to 

 May 6. At this time the flocks usually frequented the heads 

 of the numerous little bays and inlets, where they were feeding 

 on the fish spawn in the shallow water. A few mallards were 

 seen at Coronation Island, and at the various points visited 

 along the west coast of Prince of Wales and Dall islands; but 

 they were almost invariably single drakes which acted much 

 as though their mates were on the nest somewhere near by. Very 

 few were seen at any of the more southern mainland points 

 visited, and they did not again become common until Thomas 

 Bay was reached. At this place (August 13 to 23), they w^ere 

 abundant, in small flocks of ten or twelve, feeding in the 

 numerous ponds and streams which intersected the meadows 

 and tide-flats in all directions. At Port Snettisham also (August 

 24 to September 2), mallards were abundant, feeding in tide- 

 flooded meadows, where the grass stood nearly waist high. On 

 the Taku River, in September, a few flocks were seen, but they 

 were not numerous. 



Two adult males secured at Kupreanof Island, April 14 and 

 15 (nos. 9910, 9911) are in perfect nuptial plumage, and present 

 no obvious points of difference from the few more southern 

 breeding birds available for comparison. A male bird, presum- 

 ably adult (no 9912), taken at Port Snettisham on August 31, 

 is just molting from the summer eclipse plumage. The body 

 is much the same as in other male birds, but the whole head 

 and neck is streaked and speckled with brown with but a 

 few scattered green feathers. Other male birds, shot about 

 the same time but not preserved, were indistinguishable from 

 females in their markings, and the sex could only be determined 

 by dissection. These I took to be birds of the year, still in the 

 immature plumage. Ducks shot at this time were all excessively 

 fat, and as they were also molting, and covered with pin feathers, 

 it was almost impossible to preserve specimens. 



