194 ORNAMENTAL WATERFOWL. 
betraying so little fear and shyness on the approach of man, as to present a 
singular contrast in this respect to the other members of the family. Its 
peculiarly light plumage renders it very buoyant on the water ; its flight is 
very powerful, and it passes through the air with great quickness, like the 
Green-necked Duck and Shoveler, with both of which species it is frequently 
found in company. The sexes are so perfectly similar that they are not to 
be distinguished with certainty ; the male, however, is generally the larger of 
the two.” (From Gould’s ‘ Birds of Australia.”) 
“*It may be described as dark above and light coloured underneath, 
where are numerous dark-brown fasciz, the markings being narrow or broad 
as the case may be. The somewhat broad bill is greenish or bluish-grey, 
eyes reddish-brown, and feet variable in colour from green to yellowish- 
brown. The bird takes its common name from a singular oblong mark of 
rose-pink behind the eye. 
“* Mr. Gregory Bateman’s observation regarding the Pink-eared Duck 
was that it generally laid during September or October, or according to the 
amount of rain, depositing its eggs in the deserted stick-nests of Ibises, 
Herons, &c., which old structures the duck abundantly lines with down. 
In fact no other species of duck’s nest Mr. Bateman was acquainted with 
contained such an abundance of down.” (Campbell’s ‘‘ Nests and Eggs of 
Australian Birds.”) 
Male.—Size about equal to that of a Pintail; top of head 
greyish-brown ; sides of head and chin whitish; a dark line 
from the back of each eye passes round to the back of the neck ; 
neck, breast, and under-parts whitish-grey, barred with fine brown 
lines ; under wing-coverts white ; primaries brown, edged with 
white ; tail brown ; under part of body barred ; behind the red 
eye is a small oblong patch of bright rosy pink. 
Female.-—Similar to male, but somewhat smaller ; the 
pink spot present in both sexes. 
It is worthy of remark that Eyton states that the eye spot 
is wanting in the female, but Salvadori remarks that he found 
it in all the females examined by him. 
My notes are taken from the stuffed specimen in the 
British Museum. 
