224 NYROCA ERYTHROPHTHALMA 



GENERAL HABITS 



I have already given my reasons for uniting Nyroca nationi and Nyroca erythroph- 

 thalma of South America, and Nyroca brunnea of Africa, under one species, which 

 as now considered has a curious range somewhat analogous to that found in the 

 case of the White-faced and the Fulvous Tree Ducks. 



This is a typical diving duck related both to the Pochards and to the Scaups, and 

 probably more or less intermediate between these two groups. It has affinities also 

 with the White-eye, but in the field, as I saw it, it gives the impression of being a 

 surface-feeder and not a diving duck at all. It has a long rakish body and it rises 

 lightly from the water with the ease of a Mallard. It lacks entirely, the compact, 

 chunky look of a Scaup in flight and it leaves the surface without splashing even on 

 calm water. 



Not much is known of its more intimate life-history in spite of the fact that a good 

 deal has been written of its distribution and its appearance in various stages of plum- 

 age. It is a fresh-water duck and in Africa does not seem to occur on the shadier 

 rivers or streams but always on open water, though not necessarily on especially 

 deep waters for it is partial to marshes as well. It is found also about the mouths of 

 the larger rivers. In Venezuela, Dr. W. H. Osgood writes me that he found these 

 ducks in a lake at Lagunillas which was really a large, open swamp at tide-level, full 

 of floating vegetation and surrounded by mangroves. This place was swarming with 

 water birds of many kinds, ducks, rails, coots, jacanas, screamers and herons. 



Wariness. The Southern Pochard is usually considered a wild and wary species, 

 at least in comparison with other tropical or southern-hemisphere ducks. This is the 

 case when the birds are in flocks, but when in pairs they act, of course, in a different 

 manner. One writer thought that they were not quite so shy as the Maccoa Duck, 

 meaning probably secretiveness rather than wildness (Bryden, 1893; Reichenow, 

 1900; Sharp, 1904; Stark and Sclater, 1906; W. L. Sclater, 1912). Neumann (1898) 

 speaks of their never leaving the surface of the water by flight, but only by diving, 

 when approached. Perhaps these were moulting birds. I know that in the Crater 

 Lakes of Uganda, some of which had perhaps never been shot, I found them excep- 

 tionally alert and extremely hard to approach in a native dug-out canoe. They al- 

 ways jumped long before the Yellow-bills {Anas undulata) or Hottentot Teal. Even 

 when flushed down -wind they would not come up- wind past the canoe as most diving 

 ducks will, but sheered away out of shot in no time. It took a lot of long-distance 

 shooting to collect the specimens I wanted. All the other ducks except the White- 

 backs were extremely tame. 



Diving. They obtain most of their food by diving at moderate depths, although 



