RIVER DUCKS 



(132) Anas platyrhynchos Linn. 



(Lat., duck; Gr., flat beak). 



MALLARD ; GREEN-HEAD ; 

 WILD DUCK. /I (f. cT — Plumage 

 shown by the lower bird. Bill green- 

 ish. Iris brown. Legs orange. Spec- 

 ulum purple. Long upper tail cov- 

 erts recurved. Ad. 9 — Shown by 

 the upper bird. Legs orange. Bill 

 orange and black. Plumage similar 

 to but lighter and more buffy than 

 that of Black Ducks; speculum always 

 bordered by white and outer tail 

 feathers edged with light buff. L., 

 23.00; W., 10.50; T., 3.50; Tar., 1.90 

 B., 2.00. Nest — Of grass, among 

 rushes or weeds; si-x to ten bull 

 eggs. 2.25 X 1.65. 



Range — Northern Hemisphere. 

 Breeds in the northern half of United 

 States and Canada. Winters from 

 Md. Ind. and Alaska southward. 



the excellence of their flesh and the fact that they are the 

 ancestors of the common domestic ducks, they are justly 

 regarded as one of the most valuable of all birds 



Mallards belong to that class of ducks known as "River 

 Ducks" as distinguished from "Sea Ducks." The former 

 secure food, largely vegetable, by dabbling in the shallow 

 water on the edges of ponds or marshes, or by "tipping" 

 where the water is of a depth to allow them to reach bottom 

 without going entirely under water; on the other hand, 

 sea ducks can get food in deep water. 



Any marsh or pond-hole, however small, is regarded as a 

 favorable nesting site by Mallards. The cozy, feather-hned 

 nest is usually located several yards from the water's edge, 

 concealed among weeds or brush. The drakes take no part 

 in incubating the eggs or in caring for the ducklings that 

 appear after a period of about twenty-eight days; instead 

 they go into temporary exile and undergo a double moult. 

 The first moult, occurring in June, leaves the drakes garbed 



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