518 Annals of the Carnegie Museum. 



this duck arrives from the south, but it is counted a rare bird in the 

 spring. The local birds seem to leave early in September, but indi- 

 viduals, perhaps migrants from more northern localities, have been 

 seen as late as October 19 (1901). In 1900 the only occasion upon 

 which it came to our notice was on November 10, when we secured a 

 female which a gunner had killed in one of the ponds. Upon skin- 

 ning it proved to have wounds in both wings near the tip, which had 

 healed, leaving a swelling. This may perhaps account for the late date 

 of its occurrence. 



29. Aythya americana. Redhead Duck. 



A regular migrant, most numerous in the fall, but never abundant. 

 In the spring of 1900 we found them with the flocks of Scaups and 

 Golden-eyes on Erie Bay, and like these they were wild and difficult of 

 approach. The first were noted March 29, and the last April 7, 

 although doubtless these limiting dates included but a fraction of the 

 period during which the species stays (a specimen in Mr. Sennett's 

 collection dated April 21, 1875, would at least indicate as much). 

 They reappeared in the fall on October 13, and were seen at frequent 

 intervals up to November 17, and probably remained still later. On 

 December 9, 1902, the writer saw some Redheads that had been killed 

 on the bay within a few days. Mr. Bacon contributes the following 

 observations: "Soon after the first of October (October 6, 1894; 

 October 3, 1901), and with the first flight of 'deep water' ducks 

 come the Redheads. They are wary and are seldom killed in any num- 

 bers. Several fall seasons I have known a flock of at least one hundred 

 of these birds to feed week after week in the western end of the bay, 

 and only an occasional one was killed. They remain well into No- 

 mveber, while one was once taken as late as December 15 (1900), and 

 I have seen a record of a specimen shot January 2, 1903. This spe- 

 cies prefers the waters of the lake or bay, but, like the Scaups, occa- 

 sionally a bird drops into the ponds. ' ' 



30. Aythya vallisneria. Canvas-back Duck. 



The Canvas-back is one of the rarer ducks, and was detected by us 

 only during the fall migration of 1900, when it was the last of the 

 ducks to put in an appearance. Mr. Worthington killed a single bird, 

 a female in moulting plumage, over decoys at Crystal Point on No- 

 vember 13. Two others, also females, which we examined were killed 

 by gunners on November 16, one in Horseshoe Pond (said to have been 



