SOUTHERN POCHARD 



NYROCA ERYTEROPHTHALMA (Wied) 

 (Plate CI) 

 Synonymy 

 Anas capensis Lesson (nee Gmelin), Traite d'Ornith., p. 632, 1831. 

 Anas erythrophthahna Wied, Beitrage z. Naturg. Brasil., vol. 4, p. 929, 1832. 

 Fuligula capensis Smith, Cat. South African Mus., p. 36, 1837. 

 Nyroca brunnea Eyton, Monograph Anatidse, p. 161, pi. 23, 1838. 

 Fuligula mariloides Blyth (nee Yarrell), Journ. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, vol. 12, p. 180, 



1843. 

 Nyroca capensis Pucheran, Revue et Mag. Zool., ser. 2, vol. 2, p. 548, 1850. 

 Aythia cap>ensis Bonaparte, Comptes Rend. Acad. Sci. Paris, vol. 43, p. 651, 1856. 

 Fuligula brunnea Gurney, Ibis, ser. 1, vol. 6, p. 355, 1864. 

 Fuligula nyroca A. Chapman (nee Giildenstadt), Travels in South Africa, appendix, 



p. 423, 1868. 

 Fuligula nationi Sclater and Salvin, Proc. Zool. Soc. London, p. 522, 1877. 

 Fuligula meridionalis Hartert, Katalog Vogelsamml. Mus. Senckenberg. Naturf. 



Ges., p. 233, note, 1891. 

 Aythya capensis Shelley, Ibis, ser. 6, vol. 6, p. 478, 1894. 

 Nyroca nationi Salvadori, Cat. Birds British Mus., vol. 27, p. 353, 1895. 

 Nyroca erythrophthahna Salvadori, Cat. Birds British Mus., vol. 27, p. 353, 1895. 



Vernacular Names 

 English: Southern Pochard, Brown Pochard, South African Pochard, Nation's 



Pochard, Red-eyed Pochard, Cape Pochard. 

 German: Braune Tafelente, Afrikanische Tafelente. 

 French: Fuligule d'Afrique, Puligule aux yeux roux. 

 Dutch: Bruine Eend. 

 Spanish: Pata. 

 Rhodesian Natives: Choso, Idada. 



DESCRIPTION 



Adult Male: Head and upper neck black with a purple or coppery gloss; sometimes there is a white 

 spot on the chin. Mantle black, scapulars black, very finely freckled with dark brown. Back, rump, 

 upper tail-coverts and tail black, with some freckling on the upper back. Lower neck and breast 

 black with iridescent sheen. Abdomen and under tail-coverts brown-black, without the iridescence 



