32 SPATULA RHYNCHOTIS 



Young IN First (Juvenal) Plumage are said to be similar to the female but duller and darker. The 

 young males according to Buller have the "punctations" on the sides more conspicuous. 



Downy Young: Specimens not available. Published descriptions do not compare this species with 

 young of the Common Shoveller. 



DISTRIBUTION 



The New Holland or Australian Shoveller is on the whole a rare bird and is practically confined to 

 eastern Australia and New Zealand. It seems to be very rare or unknown in the central and western 

 . . .. parts of Australia. Carter (1904) took one near Winning and heard of another taken on 



the Minilya River, in the vicinity of Northwest Cape. W. B. Alexander (1923) reported 

 it from the Swan River region. It is also said to have occurred once on Lake Muir (Carter, in Mathews, 

 1914-15). In the southwest a specimen was taken near Hunter River, Bremer Bay (W. B. Alexander, 

 1916). There is no evidence of its presence in northwestern Australia nor in the North Territory of 

 South Australia, excepting for the fact that S. A. White (1914) found it along the Finke River and on 

 Lynds Creek, far in the interior. But it occurs in eastern Queensland and has been found breeding at 

 Duaringa (Barnard, in North, 1913). Broadbent (1910) has recorded it from as far north as the Her- 

 bert River, but Berney (1907) says it is very rare about Richmond. Ramsay (1877) lists Wide Bay as 

 among the localities where it is found. 



In New South Wales its appearance seems to be very much subject to meteorological conditions, 

 for it occurs only during the rains. It is rare in the northwest (D'Ombrain, 1921). North (1913) says 

 it is fairly common on the Bogan, Macquarie and Lachlan Rivers, and he quotes Savidge as saying 

 the same for the Ulmarra swamps. Cox and Hamilton (1889) state that it is rare in the Mudgee dis- 

 trict. Ramsay (1877a) has recorded it for the Richmond and Clarence River district and R. Hall 

 (1909) found the species breeding on the Murray. Sometimes it is present there in large flocks. In 

 Victoria it nests commonly about Lake Boga (A. C. Stone, 1912), but it is said to be very rare in the 

 vicinity of Melbourne (Batey, 1907). In the southeastern part of South Australia it is, in places, 

 moderately common. S. A. White (1914) found a few near Dalhousie. He also found the species 

 fairly common on Lake Alexandrina (fide Mathews, 1914-15). Mellor (fide Mathews, 1914-15), how- 

 ever, did not find it a common bird on Lakes Alexandrina and Albert. 



Gould (1865) speaks of it as abundant in Tasmania and on the islands of Bass Straits, but this 

 q, . statement is contradicted by Legge (1905) who says it is nowhere plentiful in Tas- 



mania and was only occasionally seen on Great Lake. 



The Australian Shoveller has occurred outside of Australia in New Caledonia (Marie, 1877; E. L. 

 and E. L. C. Layard, 1882). In New Zealand it is nowhere a common bird, and is not known from 

 New the northernmost parts of North Island (Buller, 1888). The species has been found on 



Zealand Auckland (Hutton, 1870; Buller, 1888) and on the Chatham Islands (Travers, 1872). 



GENERAL HABITS 



This Shoveller, which is very closely related to the Common Shoveller, is found in 

 the brackish swamps near the coasts as well as the fresh-water lakes and lagoons of 

 the interior of eastern Australia and New Zealand. So far as known, it does not differ 

 in habits from other members of the genus. The general plumage pattern of the male 

 reminds one very much of the American Blue-winged Teal and also of the Mallard. 



Wariness. Australian writers class this species as among the more wary of the 

 ducks (North, 1913; R. Hall, 1909; A. C. Stone, 1912), but this is quite at variance 



