118 FALCATED TEAL. 



latter with rust yellow borders; tail feathers black brown, with scarcely 

 visible whitish borders; the wings are duller than in the old female; 

 upper wing coverts grey brown, and the lesser and middle often 

 marked at the points with blackish borders. The tips of the greater 

 wing coverts, which have a well-formed speculum, are not clear 

 white, but only greyish white; the speculum has a dull greenish 

 lustre; primaries unicolorous black brown, somewhat lighter on the 

 inner webs of the upper parts." 



"The advanced but still youthful clothing of the young male has 

 a great resemblance to the female in the same seasonal dress, especially 

 the under parts; the head, throat, lower part of back, rump, upper 

 tail feathers and coverts are precisely the same; while the shoulders, 

 upper parts of back, and wings are distinct; on the shoulders and 

 lower part of the throat especially are found unicolorous black brown 

 feathers, with rust yellow borders. The feathers on the upper part 

 of the back, which are black brown, are mixed with some having 

 yellow borders, and others with very delicate waved bands or spots. 

 These marks are like those on the old male, but differ in colour, 

 being blackish grey or dark grey and white in waves; the cross bands 

 in old ones are much more numerous and decided." The wings of 

 the young male differ from those of the female in having a strong 

 green polished speculum, and a clear grey on the upper part of the 

 wing. 



The young of A. falcata, whether male or female, are distinguished 

 from the old birds by having a shorter and stouter beak, having the 

 basal half somewhat flattened, and from the nostrils keel-shaped, which 

 last mark is lost in the old bird. This difference in the size and 

 form of the beak in young birds, accounts for the discrepancies in 

 some of Dr. Schrenck and Middendorff's specimens. The female's beak 

 is sometimes as long or longer than that of the male. 



My figure is taken from- a very fine male specimen in breeding 

 plumage, from the Amoor, kindly sent me by Mr. Tristram. The 

 e^^ is from a specimen in my own collection. It was sent me 

 by Schliiter, of Halle, having been taken by Dr. Drybowski in 

 Siberia. 



The adult male has also been figured by Brandt, Descript. et Icon. 

 Anim. Rossic, pi. 3; and the adult female by Midden dorff, Sibirische 

 Reise, vol. ii, pi. 21, fig. %. 



