BLUE- WINGED TEAL. 183 



The female has the head, neck, and all the upper parts, dusky- 

 brown, the feathers more or less broadly edged with pale reddish- 

 brown; the throat, cheeks, and a band behind the eyes, yellowish- 

 white, spotted with black ; the speculum as in the male, and the 

 under parts yellowish-white. 



The well known Teal is one of the most abundant as well as 

 the earliest of the visitors to India. I have seen it early in Septem- 

 ber, and it is late before it leaves the country. It frequents 

 both tanks and rivers, often in immense nocks, and its flight is 

 amazingly rapid. Large numbers are netted or caught in various 

 ways to supply the Tealeries. It is a strictly night-feeding species 

 and about sunset flocks may be seen and heard flying in different 

 directions to their feeding grounds. Its geographical distribution 

 is similar to that of most of the Ducks of this sub-family, and it 

 breeds in northern and temperate regions. 



The next species is placed under Pterocyanea, Bonap., differing 

 in having the points of the lamellae just visible, and the bill slightly 

 broader in proportion making an approach to the Gadwalls. 



22. Querquedula circia, Linnjeus. 



Anas apud Linn^us— Blyth, Cat. 1781— Sykes, Cat. 221, — 

 Jerdon, Cat. 383— Gould, Birds of Europe, pi. 364— A. quer- 

 quedula, Linn, 



The Blue-winged Teal. 



Descr. — Male, crown, occiput, and a line down the back of the 

 neck, umber-brown ; over each eye a band of pure white, pro- 

 longed down the sides of the neck ; cheeks and upper part of 

 the neck chesnut-brown, with fine longitudinal streaks of white ; 

 back brown, glossed with green, the feathers edged with ashy and 

 yellowish-brown ; scapulars long and acuminate, black, with a 

 broad central white streak ; wing-coverts bluish-ash ; speculum 

 greyish-green, bordered above and below by a white bar ; tail 

 dusky-grey, the feathers edged lighter ; upper tail-coverts yel- 

 lowish-white, spotted with black ; chin black ; lower part of the 

 neck and breast pale fulvous, w T ith crescent-shaped black bars ; 



