SEA DUCKS 



(146j Marila americana 



{Eylon). id., charcoal?}, 



REDHEAD; POCHARD. Ad. d' 

 — As shown. Bill dull blue with 

 black band at end. Iris j-ellow. 

 Black feathers of breast shading 

 into white under parts; back gray, 

 finely barred with dusky; speculum 

 light gray. Ad. 9 — Grayish-brown 

 darker on the back and whitening 

 on the bellv. L., 19.00; \V., 9.50; 

 T., :,.oo; B., 1.85. Notes — Ylo\- 

 low, rapid croakings. Egg.': — Si.\- 

 to twelve, birffy-white, 2.40 x 1.70. 



Range — Breeds from southern Wis. 

 and Cal. north to B. C. and Sask. 

 Winters from Md., 111. and B. C. 

 southward. 'In migrations along the 

 Atlantic coast south of Labrador. 



(145) RUFOUS-CRESTED DUCK 

 (Netta rufina). An European species; 

 accidental in eastern United States. 



little ducklings scramble out and drop into the water or 

 are carried down in the bill of their mother. 



The flight of Wood Ducks is swift and straight when in 

 the open, but they can thread their way through woods 

 with as much ease as pigeons or owls. 



REDHEADS belong to the sub-family known as sea ducks 

 (Fuligulinae). By sea ducks, it is not meant that the species 

 in this sub-family are exclusively maritime, for many of 

 them most often frequent fresh water just as some of the 

 so-called river ducks often resort to salt marshes or even 

 the open sea. They are externally characterized by having 

 a broad flap or lobe on the hind toe. They are excellent 

 divers, capable of going to great depths to secure mussels 

 or other shellfish upon which they largely subsist. 



Redheads nest abundantly in some of the Western States 

 and in that great duck region from Minnesota northward. 

 During migration they are regularly found on the Atlantic 

 coast south of Labrador. They fly in a broad V-shaped line, 

 usually at quite an elevation, and swiftly. They usually 



90 



