THE OOLOGIST. 



153 



Black Duck. 



Anas obsGura Gm,, Sjst- Nat. I; 1788, 541. 



DESCRIPTION. 



Sp. Ch. Size, large. Form, robust. Color. Adult male Dark-brown througliout streaked 

 on head, neck, and abdomen with pale reddish-yellow; and feathers of remainder of body, espec- 

 ially below, edged with yellowish. Under wing coverts, axillaries, and tips of secondai'ies, white. 

 Speculum, green with violet reflections, surrounded by black. Feet, greenish -yellow. Iris, 

 brown. Bill, greenish-brown. Adult female and Young. Similar, but paler. Nestlings Above, 

 including stripe behind eye, yellowish-brown, with several spots of bufly-yellow. Beneath, pale 

 bufly-yellow. 



OBSERVATIONS. 

 Readily known by the universally dark colors. Florida specimens are not only smaller in 

 size, but are lighter in color than Northern birds, the number of tail feathers is less, and there are 

 longitudinal streaks above of yellowish in males. Distributed, in summer, throughout Eastern 

 North America, from Labrador to Texas ; winters from Massachusetts, south. 



DIMENSIONS. 

 Average measurements of specimens from North America. Length, 22 50; stretch, 35-80; wing, 

 10-50; tail, 3-38; bill, 190; tarsus, 1'85. Longest specimen, 24-00; greatest extent of wing, 37-50; 

 longest wing. 11-00; tail, 3'50; bill, 2-10; tarsus, 2-15. Shortest specimen, 81-00; smallest extent of 

 wing, 34-00; shortest wing, 1000; tail, 3-13; bill, 1-75; tarsus, 1-60. 



DESCRIPTION OF NESTS AND EGGS. 



Nests, placed on the ground in marshy places, composed of grass, weeds, etc. Eggs, six to ten 

 in number, elliptical in form, and greenish-brown in color. Dimensions from 1-40 x 2-25 to 1-75 x 

 2-35. 



HABITS 



The Black Ducks are, perhaps, the 

 most abundant of the River Ducks in 

 our section, and I have always found 

 them common and breeding, in suitable 

 localities, wherever I have been, be- 

 tween the Gulfs of St. Lawrence and 

 Mexico. In the North, however, these 

 birds are migratory, for although speci- 

 mens occur quite commonly in Massa- 

 chusetts all winter, they are birds which 

 breed further north, and are noticeably 

 larger than those which live with us in 

 summer, and which have retreated fur- 

 ther south during cold weather. In 

 Central Florida, I discovered a local 

 race which is very yellow in color, and 

 which is constantly resident in the 

 State, where they are remarkably abun- 

 dant. I found them breeding on Indian 

 River, the nests being placed on the 

 drier portions of the marshes, in grass 

 which was about eighteen inches high. 

 The eggs were deposited during the 

 first and second weeks of April; then 

 about the first of May, I would fre- 

 quently see flocks of little downy duck- 

 lings, following the female, but unless 

 I took care to conceal myself, I did not 

 enjoy watching these little families 

 long, for as soon as the parent became 



aware of my presence, she would emit 

 a chuckling note, when away they 

 would scamper, helter-skelter, into the 

 nearest grass, where it was impossible, 

 upon the most careful search, to dis- 

 cover a single young. I once surprised 

 a brood, when they were some distance 

 from any place of shelter, for they had 

 ventured out upon the mud of a creek, 

 at low tide, and I chanced to come out 

 of the high grass, just in front of them. 

 The old Duck appeared to comprehend 

 the situation at once, for she came di- 

 rectly toward me, driving her brood be- 

 fore her, hoping to engage my attention 

 by a display of bravery, while the young 

 escaped into the sheltering vegetation 

 behind me; but placing my gun on the 

 ground, I stooped down and grasped 

 two of the little fellows, as they were 

 running past. The diminutive duck- 

 lings uttered shrill cries when they were 

 captured, which drove their parent 

 nearly frantic, for regardless of possi- 

 ble consequences, she dashed about in 

 front of me, with ruffled feathers and 

 half closed wings, often coming within 

 a foot of me, at the same time, quack- 

 ing loudly. This out cry attracted the 

 attention of the drake, but he did not 

 approach very near, merely circling 



