104 
ANAS SUPERCILIOSA 
Young in Doivn: In general appearance very similar to, and not always to be distinguished from the 
Mallard. Crown very dark, eye-stripe darker and more prominent than in Mallard. A small black 
area at angle of jaw indicates the jaw-stripe in the adult and is not present in the iVIallard nor in 
the American Black Ducks. This last appears to be the best character. Legs and bill darker than in 
Mallard. 
DISTRIBUTION 
Sumatra 
Java 
Celebes 
Moluccas 
The Black Duck inhabits .Vustralia and Polynesia, is a common species, and as far as is now known, is 
essentially resident in the localities where found. It is rarely found north of the equator, but seems 
to be not uncommon in the Pelew Islands, whence it has been reported by Tetens (fide 
Finsch, 1875) and Kubary (fide Finsch, 1875). Its westernmost limit is Sumatra where 
it was found in the central part of the mountain range at Alahan Panjang by the INIid-Sumatran 
Expedition, and where it was discovered to be common about Korinchi Peak and Korinchi Lake 
(Robinson and Kloss, 1918). It seems to be a well-known bird in Java (Boie, Leyden 
Museum; Junghuhn, Leyden Museum; Vorderman, 1883; Hartert, 1901-02; Konings- 
berger, 1915). It has been met with in the Kangean Islands (Mathews, 1914-15) and also in Lombok 
at altitudes up to 12,000 feet (Everett, Meyer and Wiglesworth, 1897; Ilartert, 1896a), in Flores 
(Leyden Museum), in Sumba (Riedel, fide Salvador!, 1882; Hartert, 1898), not rarely in Savu 
(Hartert, 1897) and in Timor (MUller, Leyden Museum; Wallace, Salvador!, 1882). So far it 
has never been found in Borneo, but it is quite common on Lake Posso, central Celebes 
(Sarasin, ^de Meyer and Wiglesworth, 1898) and at Paloppo (Koningsberger, 1915), 
and is also knowm from Maros in southern Celebes (Platen, fide Meyer and Wiglesworth, 1898). It 
is remarkable that in the Moluccas it is known only from Burn (Forbes, British Mu- 
seum) where, according to Stresemann (1914a) it is common. Considering its occur- 
rence in the Pelew Islands and in New Guinea, it must inhabit other islands in the Moluccan 
archipelago. So far as I know it has not been recorded from Timor Laut nor from the Aru group. 
New nor have I found any evidence of its occurrence in Dutch New Guinea though there can 
Guinea be little doubt of its presence there. It has been reported from German New Guinea 
for Huon Gulf (A. B. Meyer, 1884) and has been found on the Admiralty Islands (Rothschild and 
Bismarck Hartert, 1914) as well as on New Hanover (Cabanis and Reichenow, 1876) and in the 
Archipelago Bismarck Archipelago at Torin (Dahl, 1899). W. Meyer (1909) reports a duck resem- 
bling the present species as common in the Bismarck group and it is said to breed at Karavat. 
There is, ho'wever, some reason to suppose the birds are migratory in this region. In British New 
Guinea the species was found on the Laloki River (Goldie, fiide Ramsay, 1879), at Port Moresby 
(Stone, fide Salvador!, 1882) and at South Cape (Ramsay, 1879). Sharpe (1878) states also that it 
occurs in southeastern New Guinea. Ramsay (1879a) has recorded its occurrence in the Louisiades, 
and Hartert (1899) says it has been found on St. Aignan in the same group. It is known also from 
the Solomon Islands (Ogilvie-Grant, 1888; Woodford, 1890, p. 58) where it was found 
rare on Ugi and St. Christoval (Ramsay, 1882) but common on Ysabel (Rothschild and 
Hartert, 1902). Tristram (1894) found it also on Santa Cruz. Layard (fide Wigles- 
worth, 1891) met with the species in the New Hebrides, and Tristram (E. L. and E. L. 
C. Layard, 1878) has recorded it for Aneiteum Island in the same group. In the Loy- 
alty Islands it has been found in Lifu (Layard, fide Wiglesworth, 1891) and in New 
Caledonia it is a common bird (E. L. and E. L. C. Layard, 1882; Sarasin, 1913). 
In Australia the Blaek Duck is found in all sections and is almost everywhere common. Carter 
and Mathews (1920) state that it is abundant and breeds in southwestern Australia, but according 
to C. G. Gibson (1909) it is rare in Belladonia. Very likely it is rare not only in the 
desert regions of western Australia but also along most of the south coast south of the 
great Victoria Desert. It would be useless to record all the very numerous reports of the occurrence 
Solomon 
Islands 
New 
Hebrides 
Loyalty Ids. 
New Cale- 
donia 
Australia 
