OF NOKTHUMBEELAND AND DURHAM. 151 



eDcl of April, 1856 ; they were paired at that time. These had 

 probably been driven from Prestwick Car by the draining opera- 

 tions that were then going on. A specimen, a mature female, 

 was shot on the JSTewcastle Town Moor, on the 2nd of August, 

 1873, by 3tlr. Eobert Duncan, Jun. 



On the l7th of May, 1873, I took a nest of eleven eggs of this 

 species at Loch Spynie, near Elgin. Several other nests have 

 been taken there, both before and since that date. This Duck 

 seems to have been as regular a breeder in that locality as it 

 was at Prestwick Car ; unfortunately, these two breeding sta- 

 tions no longer exist, both having been drained. 



The late Mr. Charles St. John, who was desirous of obtaining 

 the Shoveller for domestication, made the attempt by setting 

 eggs, taken at Spynie in 1850 and 1851, under the common fowl. 

 In both instances the young were hatched, but lived only a few 

 days. Mr. St. John kindly sent me specimens of these downy 

 Ducklings. The crown of the head and all the upj)er parts are 

 of a dark dusky brown ; immediately above the thighs there is 

 an indistinct pale spot at each side ; the cheeks and forehead are 

 yellowish, with a dusky streak in the centre of the latter, and a 

 similar streak passes in front of and behind the eye ; a small 

 spot of the same colour marks the position of the ear; all the 

 under parts are obscure white. The bill is a very good minia- 

 ture representation of that of the adult, but is a little less ex- 

 panded laterally at the tip. It is stated in Yarrell's "History 

 of British Birds" that the bill at this stage does not at all exhibit 

 the peculiar characteristic of the adult : there is surely some mis- 

 take in this observation. 



147. ANAS, Linnfms. 



42. Maxlaed, oe Wild Dtjck. A. boschas, LinncBus. 

 Anas hoschas, Bewick, Hist. Brit. Birds, Ed. 1847, II., 288. 

 Yarrell, Hist. Brit. Birds, Ed. 2, III., 264. 



A common resident. It bred regularly at Prestwick Car ; and 

 its nest is to be found wherever there is a suitable locality in 

 the wilder districts of the two counties. 



