CAROLINA DUCK 47 



the outer one coppery red on outer web. Primaries gray, tipped with metallic blue, and on the outer 

 web silvery white. Tail greenish black, the feathers wide and rounded. 



Bill yellow at base, passing to a dark red area which extends forward as a line along edge of culmen. 

 Remainder of culmen whitish except a large black patch between the nostrils and the whole of the nail. 

 Lower mandible black. These colors, especially the red, fade more or less after the breeding season. 

 Legs and feet dull yellowish to chrome yellow with the webs and joints blackish. Iris bright orange- 

 red; in spring carmine-red, fading somewhat in summer. Eyelid crimson. 



Wing 450-485 mm.; culmen 35; tarsus 35. 



Weight up to 1 pound, 15 ounces (0.89 kilograms). 



Adult Female: Plain-colored all over except for metallic reflections on upper side and metallic-blue 

 secondaries. The upper surface is olive-brown; under parts white; flanks brown; chin and throat 

 white, as well as a ring around the eye and a line along base of culmen. The white eye-ring extends 

 back as a posterior white eye-patch. Occiput metallic greenish to copper-colored; axillars barred. In 

 captivity old females have been known to assume almost complete male plumage, as often happens in 

 other species of ducks (Finn, 1916a). 



The female cannot be confused with any other duck save the female Mandarin, from which it may 

 be distinguished by its wide white peri-ocular ring, darker occiput, barred axillars, and the absence 

 of a very distinct white band along base of culmen. 



Iris dark brown and edge of lid bright yellow. Bill black. Feet darker than those of the male. 



Wing 230 mm.; tail 103; bill 30; tarsus 32. 



Weight when fat, up to 1 pound, 7 ounces (0.65 kilograms). 



Immature (Juvenal) Male : Very much like eclipse of old male, but the white on throat and cheeks 

 less well developed. The whole of the lower parts, including the abdomen and under tail-coverts, is 

 streaked and spotted with brown, and the tail-feathers are blunt at the tips. 



Young males can be told from females of similar ages by the presence of the white V-shaped patches 

 on the face and neck. 



Immature (Juvenal) Female : In the first feather the female shows no white line at the base of the 

 bill and a poorly marked peri-ocular white patch. The light streak above the eye and the post-orbital 

 dark streak (remains of downy plumage) are still visible. At a later stage the white eye-patch appears 

 and sometimes a considerable area of dirty white on the lores. The under parts are mottled as in the 

 young male. At the age of six or seven weeks, even before the primaries are fully developed, the 

 females are easily separated from the males by the absence of the white V-shaped patches below the 

 eye and on the sides of the neck. The first tail-feathers are blunt at the tips. 



Young Male in Autumn: Changes to adult plumage are sometimes visible in young of the year by 

 the second week of September. These consist of a few wine-colored feathers on the breast, vermicu- 

 lated flank feathers, and dark purple scapulars. Some new tail-feathers may appear at this time. 

 Progress to maturity is rapid after the beginning of October, but the young male is at least a month 

 behind the old male in attaining winter plumage. Captivity-bred birds are somewhat later than wild 

 ones. 



Male in Eclipse Plumage : In this plumage there is a superficial resemblance to the adult female but 

 the white V-shaped patches on the cheeks and sides of the neck are always prominent. The abdomen 

 is no longer white but more or less mottled and streaked with brown. The peri-ocular white eye-patch 

 and the white fine at the base of the bill of the female are both practically absent. A small blackish or 

 metallic-green patch is apt to be retained between the eye and the base of the culmen. Males begin 



