CHESTNUT-BREASTED TEAL 
257 
Victoria 
National Museum has specimens from Bathurst and Tamworth. Sometimes it is common in the 
ponds in Sydney itself (A. S. Le Souef and Macpherson, 1920) and it is common to the extreme 
southeastern part of the country. 
In Victoria the species was formerly common (North, 1913) and it still seems to be so in certain 
districts such as Gippsland (Bennett, in North, 1913) though not plentiful about Mel- 
bourne (Keartland, in North, 1913). Miss Cheney called it frequent in the Wangaratta 
district (1915). 
It is far less known in South Australia, where it does not breed commonly (Mellor, in Mathews, 
1914-15). It has been reported from Kellidie Bay, Eyre Peninsula (R. Hall, 1910) and South 
the U.S. National Museum has specimens from Port Lincoln and Kangaroo Island. Australia 
On King Island, Bass Straits, the species seems to be a not uncommon nesting bird (A. G. Camp- 
bell, 1905) and the same is true of Tasmania, where it has been met with in numerous 
localities (Gould, 1865; Littler, 1910; Legge, 1905; Holden, in North, 1913). 
Hutton and Drummond (1905) state that it breeds in the North Island of New Zealand, but that 
it is only occasional in the South Island (this probably refers to Anas gibberifrons) . I New 
know of no specific records excepting the one given by Buller (1905) for the Aorere Zealand 
River, where a pair were taken on June 1. 
Tasmania 
GENERAL HABITS 
We know little of the habits of the Chestnut-breasted Teal, partly because it is a 
rare bird through most of its range, and partly because it has been so generally con- 
fused with the Slender or Gray Teal. The chief differences in the appearance and 
habits of the two species are as follows : in the first place, the present species is larger 
in both sexes, and the adult males have a strikingly brilliant sex-plumage. The male 
Chestnut-breasted Teal never has the bony frontal knob found in all old male speci- 
mens of the Gray Teal. Repeated experiments have shown that the present species 
breeds perfectly true, and all the males attain to full plumage in four or five months. 
When crossed with the Gray Teal, Blaauw {in litt.) found the resulting males to be 
intermediate between males of the two species (see under Hybrids) . 
A full discussion of the confusion and controversy concerning this and the next 
species is given by Mathews in his sumptuous work on Australian birds. I believe, 
in common with most others who have looked into the question, that he is entirely 
wrong in thinking that the female of this species ever, except perhaps for pathologi- 
cal reasons, assumes the male plumage. 
The principal characteristics of the present species in the field are : its preference 
for the coastal regions, or, in the interior, its liking for high rocky shores, a trait 
which has given it the name of Mountain Teal in certain localities. It is also said 
to frequent large sheets of water in preference to swamps and morasses. The two 
species are only accidentally fovmd together, and the nesting haunts seem to be 
quite distinct. 
Wariness. It is said to be extremely wary and difficult to shoot, especially in- 
land where it is much sought for by sportsmen (North, 1913). 
