316 
ANAS ACUTA 
Persia 
India 
China 
winters on the southern Caspian (Radde, 1886) and in Kuhistan, Kirman and the Seistan (Zarudny, 
1911; Baker, 1919). In southern Persia it w’inters in the Mesopotamian and Zag- 
ross regions (Zarudny, 1911) and in southern Afghanistan about Kandahar it is 
common (O. B. St. John, 1889). Zarudny (1911) states that it winters in southern Baluchistan also, 
but Meinertzhagen (1920) says only a few winter at Quetta. North of Persia it is stated by Dre.sser 
(1876) to winter in northwestern and southwestern Turkestan, by which he refers in general to 
the region along the Syr-darja River, even to the Aral Sea. It may be that it winters through- 
out the mountainous regions north of Afghanistan, that is in Buchara, Samarkand and Ferghana, 
but I must confess that the extension of its wintering range down the entire Syr-darja valley to the 
Aral Sea seems somewhat doubtful. It has, however, been found in February on the Naryn River 
(Laubmann,1913) and in the Tien-shan at Tschinas in early March, at Ulan-ussu in September, and 
at Angssi in February (Pleske, 1892). The fact that so many of these birds start north in February 
from Persia and India makes it extremely difficult to interpret simple dates without further informa- 
tion. I believe in this region it winters as far north as the Tien-shan, for in Kashmir it is common 
in winter (Adams, fide Hume and Marshall, 1879) and according to Hume, quoting Scully, it is 
common in the Himalayas as well as south of them. In India it appears to be 
locally common everywhere, though in the Deccan it is somewhat rare. It winters 
south, however, even to Ceylon (Legge, 1880). Eastward it is common in northern Siam and upper 
Burma (Hume and Marshall, 1879; E. W. Oates, 1883), very abundant in Arakan (Hopwood, 1912), 
common in the South Shan States (Bingham and Thompson, 1900; Rippon, 1901) but rare in south- 
ern Tenasserim (Baker, 1908) though it has been found at Moulmein (Hume and Mar-shall, 1879). 
Farther to the east the species winters throughout southern and central China, whence 
it has been recorded for Yunnan (R. C. and Y. B. Andrews, 1918), Hainan (Hume and 
Marshall, 1879), Hong-kong and Amoy (Vaughan and Jones, 1913; R. Swinhoe, 1860), Swatow and 
Foochow (La Touche, 1892), Formosa (R. Swinhoe, 1863) and Ningpo (R. Swinhoe, 1873). In the 
interior it is said by Styan (1891) to be abundant on the lower Yangtse from Hankow to the delta, 
and La Touche (1922) records it as common at Shasi, Hupeh, in wdnter. Seebohm (1884) has re- 
corded it from Kin-kiang on the Yangtse, and E. H. Wilson (1913) found it far in the interior of 
western China at Kiating, Szechwan Province. The species does not seem to winter as far north as 
Peking, but is found in Korea about Seoul in mild winters (C. W. Campbell, 1892). 
In Japan it winters commonly in the south (Blakiston and Pryer, 1882), apparently 
north even to Tokio and beyond (M’Vean, 1878), but hardly in the extreme north of Nippon 
or on Yezo. On the islands of the Pacific the species has been found on Tanegashima in the Loo- 
choo group and it apparently winters quite numerously and regularly in Luzon, 
Philippines (R. C. McGregor, 1909). There are four or five records of its occurrence in 
northwestern Borneo, whence the British Museum possesses specimens from Bintulu, 
Labuan and Sarawak, and the Sarawak Museum has a specimen taken at Kapit Fort. 
In 1886, Tristram (1886) recorded the occurrence on Sydney Island, Phoenix group, of a Pintail which 
he called Dafila modesta. Salvador! (1895) confesses he is unable to distinguish the specimens from 
some examples of Dafila acuta, but on account of the locality he is loath to identify the two as being 
one and the same species. It seems highly probable, however, that these specimens are true Pintails, 
when one takes into consideration the reports of enormous flights of ducks over the ^larshall Islands, 
first recorded by Schnee (1901), and later discussed by Reichenow (1901). These flocks, appearing off 
Jaluit each year in October and May, are said to consist of Pintail, Green-winged Teal, Baldpate 
and Canvas-back, and their destination is undetermined. Consider, also, that the Pintail is common 
Hawaiian in winter throughout the Hawaiian group (Henshaw, 1902; R. C. L. Perkins, 1903; 
Islands g g Wilson and Evans, 1890-99) and that these islands are only 10° of longitude 
east of the Phoenix and 30° east of the Marshall Islands, and we have a fairly convenient stepping- 
stone across the Pacific to the North American continent. 
Japan 
Philippines 
Borneo 
