110 LAMELLIROSTRAL SWIMMERS — ANSERES. 



The markings of the head are the same in both sexes, the black stripes being duller, and the 

 light ones approaching nearer to white in the female. The upper light stripe is a superciliary one, 

 extending from the upper basal angle of the bill to the side of the occiput ; the next is a sub- 

 orbital one, beginning at the lower lialf of the basal outline of the maxilla, and extending back to 

 a little farther than the upper stripe ; this is bounded below by a dusky stripe of about equal width, 

 beginning at the lower or basal angle of the maxilla, and reaching back us far as the light stripe. 



Different individuals vary more or less in the shade of colors : the male from Lake Champlain, 

 described above, is the most dee])ly cohu-ed specimen in the whole series. The Wisconsin speci- 

 men is exactly like one (No. 52856) from Tepic, Western Mexico ; both are unlike Jamaican 

 females, which differ from the male described merely in paler colors. An adult male from Tepic 

 (No. 58818 ; A. J. Grayson) also differs from the Jamaican male in very noticeable points of colora- 

 tion. The ferruginous borders to the feathers of the dorsal region are much broader and more 

 regular, and the transverse bars of this color seen in the other specimen are entirely absent ; the 

 neck and jugulum are paler ferruginous than the back markings, instead of deeper ; the lower parts 

 are nearly white. The white speculum on the wing also appears to be much larger. It measures 

 as follows : Wing, 5.10 inches ; tail, 4.20 ; culmen, 1.35; tarsus, .90 ; middle toe, 1.90. 



Should these difl'erences hold good through a large series of specimens, the birds from the two 

 regions would be separable as geographical races. 



The Nomonyx dombiicus is a West Indian and South American species, and acci- 

 dental only in North America. Two instances are on record of the occurrence of this 

 bird within the limits of the United States. The first was on the Vermont shore of 

 Lake Champlain, where an adult male was obtained ; the other took place several 

 years afterward, in Jefferson Co., Wis. The specimen then taken was a female, 

 and was procured by Mr. L. Kumlien, of Bussyville. We have no record of the 

 circumstances attending the capture of either specimen. 



This species is found in several of the West India Islands, and in the northeastern 

 portions of South America. Professor A. Newton was confident that he met with this 

 species in St. Croix ; stating that in 1857 he found a large lagoon in that island, situ- 

 ated near its eastern end, frequented by a small flock of what he had no doubt 

 were birds of this species. He first saw them on the 9th of March, sitting motionless 

 on the water ; and he again met with the same kind in May. On this occasion the 

 birds were present in considerable numbers, swimming quite low, so that the hinder 

 part of the back appeared to be beneath the surface. On the 15th of June he again 

 had a good view of these Ducks ; but did not succeed in procuring any specimens, by 

 means of which he could make sure of their being of this species. 



Leotaud mentions this Duck as being one of the birds of Trinidad, where it is by 

 no means rare. While to a certain extent it seems to be migratory, some are always 

 present on that island. It is social in its habits, and seems more disposed than any 

 other Duck to keep to the water. Its flight is rapid, but is not so well sustained 

 as that of most of the other kinds. When it is on the land it keeps in an upright 

 position, its tail resting on the ground. Its movements on dry land are embarrassed 

 by its claws, which are placed so far back as to disturb its equilibrium. Its flesh is 

 excellent, and is held in high esteem in that island. 



Mr. William B. Lee (" Ibis," April, 1873) mentions obtaining a single specimen 

 on the banks of the Gato River, in the Argentine Eepublic. He found it a very 

 expert diver, and watched its movements in a deep part of the river, in which it was 

 diving, and where, on each occasion, it remained under the water for a long time. 



Colonel Grayson states that he met with a number of pairs of this species — about 

 fifty in all — in Western Mexico, in the neighborhood of Tepic, where they were fre- 

 quenting a small lake, or rather lagoon, as late as the month of June. They were 

 evidently preparing to breed in that locality ; and the females he shot were found to 



