Ring-necked Duck 55 
Distribution.—Breeding from Michigan and central British Columbia 
northwards to Alaska; wintering south of this to Panama and the 
West Indies, and specially on the Atlantic from Delaware to Florida. 
In Colorado the Lesser Scaup seems to be more abundant than the 
larger form ; it winters at Barr Lake and perhaps elsewhere on the 
north-eastern plains, while Drew met with it occasionally in winter 
in San Juan co. It is, however, most abundant and widespread as 
a transient on migration, arriving fairly early in spring—Loveland 
March 8—19th ; it is also reported from La Plata co. (Morrison), Fort 
Lyon (Thorne), Salida April 17th (Frey), El Paso co. (Aiken), Longmont 
October (Henderson), and Breckenridge (Carter). A mounted female 
in the Aiken collection, taken as late as May 3rd at Falcon, not far 
from Colorado Springs, was probably a late migrant. 
Habits.—This Duck, also frequently known as the 
Black-head or Blue-bill, takes its most usual name from 
the sand-banks called scaups or scalps, on which it feeds 
when on the sea coast in winter. In Colorado it is chiefly 
known as a transient, when it alights on lakes or reservoirs 
to rest during its northward and southward journeys. It 
is a great diver and feeds chiefly on mollusca which it 
procures in this way, though it is also fond of grain and 
wild rice. 
Ring-necked Duck. Marila collaris. 
A.O.U. Checklist no 150—Colorado Records—Aiken 72, p. 210; 
Morrison 89, p. 165; Cooke 97, pp. 56; 06, p. 48; Henderson 03, 
p. 224; 09, p. 226; Warren 09, p. 13; 10, p. 79; Felger 09, p. 281. 
Description.—Male—Head and neck all round, except the white 
chin, black glossed with purple; a ring of dark chestnut round the 
lower-neck ; fore-breast and upper-parts black, glossed with greenish 
and purplish; below white, finely mottled on the sides and lower 
abdomen with dusky ; under tail-coverts black ; wings with a silvery 
speculum ; iris yellow, bill black, with the base and a subterminal 
band bluish-grey, legs slaty. Length 17-75 ; wing 8-0; tail 2-5 ; culmen 
1-9; tarsus 1-25. 
The female has the head and neck umber-brown with whitish 
cheeks and chin, a white eye-ring and no collar; rest of the 
plumage dusky brown, becoming white on the lower-breast and 
abdomen ; speculum grey as in the male. 
Distribution.—Breeding from Wisconsin and Manitoba to Athabasca 
Lake and west of the Rockies from Oregon to British Columbia ; in 
