﻿RUDDY 
  DUCK. 
  63 
  

  

  Erismatura 
  jamaicensis 
  (Gmel.)- 
  Ruddy 
  Duck. 
  

  

  Breeding 
  range.— 
  The 
  principal 
  summer 
  home 
  of 
  the 
  ruddy 
  duck 
  is 
  

   in 
  the 
  upper 
  Mississippi 
  Valley 
  and 
  the 
  contiguous 
  portions 
  of 
  central 
  

   Canada; 
  it 
  is 
  rare 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  Alleghenies; 
  breeds 
  regularly 
  from 
  

   Maine 
  to 
  northern 
  Ungava; 
  rare 
  visitant 
  in 
  Newfoundland; 
  nesting 
  

   rarely 
  south 
  to 
  Massachusetts 
  (Cape 
  Cod) 
  and 
  probably 
  in 
  Rhode 
  

   Island 
  (Sakonnet); 
  tolerably 
  common 
  in 
  southern 
  Ontario, 
  -Michi- 
  

   gan, 
  and 
  Wisconsin, 
  and 
  probably 
  breeds 
  casually 
  in 
  Ohio 
  and 
  Illi- 
  

   nois. 
  West 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  it 
  breeds 
  regularly 
  to 
  southern 
  Min- 
  

   nesota 
  and 
  northwestern 
  Nebraska 
  and 
  rarely 
  in 
  Kansas. 
  The 
  breed- 
  

   ing 
  range 
  then 
  dips 
  strong^ 
  to 
  the 
  south 
  in 
  the 
  mountains 
  through 
  

   Colorado 
  to 
  northern 
  New 
  Mexico 
  (La 
  Jara 
  and 
  Stinking 
  Spring 
  

   lakes), 
  central 
  Arizona 
  (Stoneman 
  Lake, 
  altitude 
  6,200 
  feet), 
  southern 
  

   California 
  (Los 
  Angeles 
  County), 
  northern 
  Lower 
  California 
  to 
  about 
  

   latitude 
  31 
  c 
  , 
  and 
  probably 
  northwestern 
  Chihuahua 
  (Pacheco). 
  The 
  

   breeding 
  range 
  on 
  the 
  Pacific 
  slope 
  extends 
  north 
  at 
  least 
  to 
  central 
  

   British 
  Columbia 
  (Cariboo 
  District); 
  in 
  the 
  interior 
  to 
  Great 
  Slave 
  

   Lake 
  and 
  Hudson 
  Bay 
  (York 
  Factor}^). 
  The 
  above 
  is 
  the 
  normal 
  

   breeding 
  range, 
  but 
  this 
  species 
  has 
  the 
  peculiar 
  habit 
  of 
  establishing 
  

   colonies 
  far 
  to 
  the 
  southward. 
  Such 
  colonies 
  have 
  been 
  discovered 
  at 
  

   Santiago, 
  near 
  the 
  southern 
  end 
  of 
  Lower 
  California, 
  in 
  the 
  Valley 
  of 
  

   Mexico, 
  at 
  the 
  Lake 
  of 
  Duenas, 
  Guatemala, 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  islands 
  of 
  Cuba, 
  

   Porto 
  Rico, 
  and 
  Carriacou. 
  The 
  breeding 
  season 
  of 
  these 
  isolated 
  

   colonies 
  bears 
  no 
  relation 
  to 
  the 
  usual 
  breeding 
  time 
  in 
  the 
  bird's 
  

   ordinaiy 
  range. 
  In 
  northern 
  North 
  Dakota 
  the 
  earliest 
  eggs 
  are 
  

   deposited 
  the 
  first 
  week 
  in 
  June; 
  in 
  Manitoba 
  and 
  Saskatchewan 
  incom- 
  

   plete 
  sets 
  were 
  found 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  June; 
  the 
  same 
  date 
  — 
  the 
  middle 
  

   of 
  June 
  — 
  marks 
  the 
  deposition 
  of 
  the 
  eggs 
  in 
  central 
  Colorado. 
  The 
  

   first 
  half 
  of 
  June 
  may 
  be 
  said 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  usual 
  time 
  for 
  the 
  beginning 
  

   of 
  nesting. 
  On 
  Cape 
  Cod, 
  Massachusetts, 
  downy 
  young 
  were 
  taken 
  

   August 
  17; 
  in 
  northern 
  New 
  Mexico 
  September 
  IT; 
  in 
  southern 
  Lower 
  

   California, 
  November 
  16; 
  at 
  Lake 
  Duenas, 
  Guatemala, 
  in 
  June; 
  while 
  

   in 
  Cuba 
  and 
  Porto 
  Rico 
  eggs 
  were 
  taken 
  in 
  November, 
  and 
  on 
  Carriacou 
  

   Island 
  in 
  January. 
  

  

  Winter 
  range. 
  — 
  In 
  its 
  choice 
  of 
  climate 
  and 
  environment 
  the 
  rudd}^ 
  

   duck 
  varies 
  widely. 
  While 
  many 
  individuals 
  retire 
  in 
  winter 
  to 
  the 
  

   southern 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  range, 
  to 
  southern 
  Lower 
  California, 
  Tepic, 
  Valley 
  

   of 
  Mexico, 
  Oaxaca, 
  and 
  central 
  Guatemala, 
  others 
  remain 
  as 
  far 
  north 
  

   as 
  southern 
  British 
  Columbia. 
  The 
  northern 
  limit 
  in 
  the 
  Rocky 
  

   Mountain 
  region 
  is 
  Arizona 
  and 
  New 
  Mexico; 
  the 
  species 
  does 
  not 
  

   seem 
  to 
  remain 
  through 
  the 
  winter 
  in 
  northern 
  Texas, 
  but 
  at 
  this 
  

   season 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  in 
  southern 
  Illinois, 
  Penns3<lvania, 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  

   Massachusetts, 
  and 
  even 
  to 
  Maine. 
  During 
  the 
  winter 
  the 
  ruddy 
  duck 
  

   has 
  been 
  recorded 
  in 
  the 
  Bermudas, 
  the 
  Bahamas 
  (New 
  Providence), 
  

   4510— 
  No. 
  26—06 
  5 
  

  

  