DUCKS 57 



River near Stockton in May contained a larger proportion of 

 insects, including two beetles, a grasshopper, an ant, and a 

 weevil, and fragments of seeds of the gum tree (Nyssa) . 



REDHEAD: Nyroca americana (Eytori).t 



/State records. — The redhead occurs commonly, though 

 somewhat irregularly, as a winter visitant. Avery, in 1890, 

 stated that it had not been seen for 8 or 10 years, although 

 formerly common in the Cypress Slough, near Millwood, on 

 the Warrior River.J 



It is reported to occur sparingly at Muscle Shoals in the 

 Tennessee River, and at Orange Beach, and frequently in the 

 bays around Mobile, where one was killed, November 7, 1915. 

 According to Mr. C. N. Hinderer, it has once been taken at 

 Montgomery. In Mississippi Sound it is considered a com- 

 mon winter resident. Around Coffee Island, near Coden, on 

 November 12 and 23, 1915, I saw redheads in some numbers 

 and secured several specimens. One was taken, also, near 

 Bayou Labatre, January 20, 1916. 



General habits. — This species is a deep-water, diving duck, 

 frequenting both fresh-water lakes and the salt waters of the 

 coastal bays. It is found in flocks, often of considerable size, 

 and is very swift of wing, flying rather high in a wide, 

 V-shaped line. Although a suspicious bird, it may often be 

 decoyed within range, and being of large size and excellent 

 quality is much prized by hunters. Elliot states that the red- 

 head feeds much at night, especially if the moon is shining; 

 he says, also, that this species is often robbed of its food by 

 widgeons which attend the redheads and snatch much of the 

 grass and roots brought by them to the surface.* 



Food habits. — McAtee records this speciesff as feeding on 

 wild rice, wild celery, pondweeds, and coontail (Ceratophyllum 

 demersum), and Audubon states that it consumes acorns, 

 beechnuts, snails, tadpoles, and small fishes.** The birds 

 taken in Alabama had been feeding on the leaves, stems, and 



tMarila americana of the A. O. U. Check-list; for change of name see Froc. Indiana 

 Acad. Sci., 1920, pp. 106-118 (1921). 



lAvery, W. C, Amer. Field, vol 34, p. 584, 1890. 



•Elliot, D. G., Wild Fowl of the United States, pp. 166-157. 1898. 



ttMcAtee, W. L., Bull 206, U. S. Dept. Agr., p. 24, 1916 ; Bull. 465, pp. 20-21, 1917. 



••Audubon, J. J., Ornith. Biog., vol. 4, pp. 198-199, 1838. 



