140 ANSEEES NETTION 



and Eglington, Sportsm. S. A. p. 128, pi. xii, fig. 65 (1892) ; Bryden 



Oun and Camera, p. 407 (1893). 

 Nettion hottentota, Ourney, in Andersson's B. Damaral. p. 340 (1872). 

 Anas hottentota, Fleck, Journ. Ornith. 1894, p. 381. 

 Nettion punotatum, Salvadori, Cat. B. M. xxvii, p. 265 (1895) ; W. L. 



Sclater, Ibis, 1899, p. 115 [Inhambane] ; Dates, Cat. B. Eggs, ii, p. 



172 (1902). 

 Querquedula punctata, Shelley, B. Afr. i, p. 172 (1896). 



Description. Adult male. — Crown very dark brown, sharply 

 defined from the whitish sides of the face and throat by a clearly 

 marked line running from the base of the bill below the eye ; sides 

 of the neck white, thickly mottled with black'; mantle, breast and 

 under parts light brown of a fawny tinge, spotted with blackish- 

 brown centres to the feathers, which become on the middle of the 

 abdomen and under tail-coverts a mottling and barring ; middle of 

 the back and tail-feathers black, sides and upper and under tail-coverts 

 finely mottled fawn and black ; wings bronzy-green, the primaries 

 and their coverts black ; secondaries bright green on the outer web, 

 forming the speculum, largely tipped with white, and with a sub- 

 terminal black band dividing the green, and white ; under wing- 

 coverts black, the longer ones and the axillaries white. 



Iris black ; bill along the culmen black, the triangular portion at 

 the sides below the nostrils turquoise, lower mandible leaden, legs 

 turquoise inclining to leaden. 



Length (in flesh) 14 ; wing 6 ; tail 2-50 ; culmen 1-45 ; tarsus I'O. 



The female resembles the male, but is somewhat duller in colour ; 

 the young bird is fawn coloured below without spots or bars. 



Distribution. — The Hottentot Teal is found in North-east and 

 South Africa, extending from Shoa through Uganda and Nyasaland 

 to Cape Colony. It also occurs in Madagascar and Southern 

 Angola. In South Africa it is by no means common, though 

 apparently rather widely spread, but it has not hitherto been 

 recorded from Ehodesia or the Zambesi Valley. 



The following are localities : Cape Colony — Zak Eiver, inFraser- 

 burg division, September (Burchell, type), 100 miles north-west of 

 Cape Town, i.e., VerlorenViei in Piquetberg? (Smith), Port Elizabeth, 

 rare (Brown) ; Natal — near Newcastle, November (Butler), Basuto- 

 land (Bowker in S. A. Mus.) ; Transvaal — Potchefstroom, common, 

 November (Ayres) ; Bechuanaland — Okavango and Lake Ngami, 

 July, August (Fleck), Botletli Eiver (Bryden) ; German South-west 

 Africa— Oman bonds (Andersson), only in rainy season (Fleck) ; 

 Portuguese East Africa— Inhambane, September (Francis). 



