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ORD. III. GEN. XI. DUCK. 



SPE. III. MALLARD. 



PL 247- 



Anas bofchas. Lin. Syjl. I. p. 305. 



Le Canard fauvage. Brif. Oni. VI. p. 318. 



The mallard, or common wild duck, weighs between two and three pounds. The bill 

 is a dull orange, {haded with green ; its nail, black : eye, dark brown : head, and neck, 

 a ftiining dark blue green : round the lower part of the neck is a white ring : the breaft 

 is a chefnut brown : the back, grey, brindled with minute dots of black, and fhaded with 

 brown : the belly, paler, but brindled as the back : vent white : rump, dark gloffy green : 

 tail, greenifh black, the four middle feathers curling upward, which is peculiar to the 

 male of this fpecies : on the wing coverts is a tranfverfe white ftreak, edged with a fecond 

 of black, below which is a large violet green ftiining patch : legs, faffron colour ; webs, 

 black. 



The female is of a pale reddifh brown colour, fpotted with black ; and of a dirty 

 white on the belly. 



This fpecies, from which our domeftic ducks have originated, breeds in almoft every 

 part of England, on the fides of retired frefli waters and rivers, or near them, lays about 

 fourteen eggs, and fits twenty-eight days. The neft is formed of any foft materials near 

 at hand ; and the female plucks the feathers and down from her own body, to cover the 

 eggs, when (he is abfent from the neft. In winter they affemble, and fly in company. 

 The greater part of the prodigious numbers of thefe and others of this genus, that are 

 taken in our decoys, are bred in the very remote parts of Europe, and vifit us about the 

 firft or fecond week in Odtober, remaining throughout the winter, fome feeding in the 

 fea, and creeks adjoining, others ufing our frefli waters only : not but in very tempcftu- 

 ous weather the fea ducks are driven for (belter to the inland waters. For the egg fee 

 PI. LV. 





