BUDDY DUCK 



207 



ber of other distinctive characters can be seen. The upper tail coverts 

 are extremely short and leave the eighteen stiff, narr6w-webbed and 

 pointed tail feathers almost without covering. The bill is broad and 

 slightly turned upward toward tip and bears a conspicuous "nail." 

 It is not longer than the head. In spring and early summer the males 

 have the whole neck and back a uniform chestnut or reddish brown, 

 a distinctive feature. The brightly plumaged males in spring carry 

 on various complex courting antics, in which the spread tail figures 

 conspicuously. Brooks (1903, p. 280) records that while watching 

 the curious antics of the male, through a binocular at very close 

 range, he was struck with the peculiar formation of the head, there 

 being distinct elevations over each eye resembling those on a frog's 

 head. These were evidently caused by inflation from inside the skin. 

 The breeding season of the Ruddy Duck extends from the first of 

 May to the end of July or even later (see table 11). 



