17O ORNAMENTAL WATERFOWL. 
Male.—Above pale slaty-brown; whole head barred 
across with narrow blackish bands; middle of back rufescent, 
with the centres of the feathers black and narrowly margined 
with brownish ochraceous ; rump paler; a broad alar-speculum 
black, with a margin of ochraceous above and below, and a 
bronzy-green blotch in the centre; wing-feathers slaty, the 
margins of the secondaries on each side pale rufous; abdomen 
whitish, breast and belly distinctly spotted with black; bill 
yellow ; culmen and tip black ; feet horn colour. 
Salvadori describes it thus :— 
‘* Male.—Head and upper part of neck greyish-brown, thickly 
barred with narrow blackish bands; lower back, wings, and upper tail- 
coverts uniform greyish-brown ; breast and under-parts whitish, the former 
more or less tinged with reddish ; upper wing-coverts brown grey; under 
wing-coverts brown grey, but the central ones and axillaries white ; tail 
brown grey; ‘bill wax-yellow, with culmen and nail black ; iris carmine (or 
wood-brown, Durnford); feet grey blue’ (Phillipi).” (Abridged from 
Catalogue of Birds, vol. xxvii). 
Female.—Similar, but duller and somewhat smaller. 
Young.—Duller, and markings on head and breast less 
distinct, especially on the latter. 
Egg.—Reddish cream colour; five to seven in number. 
Sclater and Hudson (“Argentine Ornithology ”). 
SHARP-WINGED OR MEYEN’S TEAL. 
(Nettium oxypterum. Querguedula oxyptera). 
Very similar to the Yellow-billed Teal. This bird inhabits 
Peru and Chili, and has not, I believe, as yet, formed part of 
any living Zoological Collection. The wings are long and 
pointed ; the beak narrow and somewhat long, of a yellow 
colour with black centre streak ; the general colour a pinkish- 
buff, mottled with darker shade ; legs lead colour ; flight feathers 
long, reaching to tip of tail; eye ruby red. 
