MAEECA AMERICANA. 



(AMERICAN WIGEON.) 



Canard Jensen, Buff. Hist. Nat. Ois. ix. p. 174 (1783). 



Anas americana, Gmel. Syst. Nat. i. p. 526 (1788). 



Anas tvigeon, Bonn. Encycl. Meth. i. p. 129 (1790). 



Mareca americana (Gmel.), Steph. in Shaw's Gen. Zool. xii. pt. 2, p. 135 (1824). 



Anas (Boschas) americana (Gmel.), Nutt. Man. ii. p. 389 (1834). 



Marica americana (Gm.), Swains. Classif. of B. ii. p. 366 (1837). 



Mareca penelope, |3. americana, Bias. List B. Eur. p. 21 (1862). 



Anas {Mareca) americana, Gm., Reichenow, Orn. Centralbl. 1882, p. 20. 



Figures notabiles. 



D'Aubent. PL Enl. 955 ; Wils. Am. Orn. viii. pi. lxix. fig. 1 ; Audubon, Orn. Biogr. iv. 

 pi. cccxlv.; id. B. of Am. vi. pi. ccclxxxix. 



J 1 ad. fronte et vertice medio albis fere immaculatis : capite reliquo cum collo albido, dense nigra maculato : 

 regione temporali plus aut minus viridi-Eenea : jugulo grisescenti-vinaceo : pectore cum abdomine 

 medio albo, lateribus vinaceis, minime fusco undulatis : subcaudalibus velutino-nigris : corpora supra 

 griseo, fusco et fulvido undulato, uropygio fere nigra : alis nigro-fuscis, speculo alari nigra, dimidio 

 basali splendide viridi : cauda nigro-fusca : rostra plumbeo, versus apicem nigra : pedibus plumbeis : 

 iride fusca. 



? ad. M. penelopce similis, sed capite et collo magis albidis nee rufescenti tinctis. 



Adult Male (Duenas). Crown and forehead white, unspotted; sides of the head and the neck dull white, 

 closely speckled with black ; behind the eye a dark black patch, tinged with metallic green and slightly 

 speckled with white ; upper parts generally grey, finely vermiculated with black, and in places tinged 

 with rufous ; rump blackish ; primary quills greyish brown, paler on the inner webs ; secondaries deep 

 black, slightly glossed with bottle-green, the elongated inner secondaries dark grey on the inner web 

 and velvety black margined with dull white on the outer web ; upper wing-coverts white, excepting 

 near the carpus, where they are dark greyish ; upper breast and flanks rufescent vinaceous, the latter 

 vermiculated with black ; rest of the underparts white, except the under tail-coverts, which are velvety 

 black: bill greyish plumbeous, black towards the tip ; legs light bluish plumbeous; iris brown. Total 

 length about 19 inches, culmen 1*6, wing 1055, tail 5 - 0, tarsus l - 45. 



Adult Female. Not unlike the female of M. penelope, but may be distinguished by having the light parts 

 on the head and neck whitish instead of reddish brown ; the wing-pattern is the same as in the male, 

 but the white is interrupted with grey ; the greater coverts frequently lack the black tips, the speculum 

 is faint, and the black stripes of the inner secondaries are replaced by brown. 



Young in down {fide Ridgway). Above dark olive with a sepia tinge ; a spot of pale greenish fulvous on 



