304 THE GOOSANDER OR MERGANSER. 
THE MALES are considerably larger and heavier than the 
females. - ihe followne are the neta particulars of adults of 
both sexes :— 
Males.—Length, 25'0 to 281; expanse, 35°6 to 408; wing, 
10°95 to 12'1; tail from vent, 4°8 to 59; tarsus, 1°81 to 2°03 ; bill 
from gape, 277 tO) 2:02 weight, 2, \bs: 12 10zs) tossing Gaza: 
Females.—Length, 22'9 to 25°0 ; expanse, 34°5 to 37°8; wing, 
98 to 10°95 ; tail from vent, 4°6 to 5°65; tarsus, 1°68 to 1°83 ; 
bill from gape, 2'25 to 26; weight, 2lbs. to 2 lbs. 10 ozs. 
The bill is, according to age, a brighter or duller, lighter or 
deeper red, almost vermilion in some, a cinnabar or deep 
blood red in others. The nail, and a broader or narrower stripe 
along the culmen, from the nail to the forehead, brownish 
black, dusky or black. In some this stripe is only indicated. 
There is often more or less of dusky on the lower mandible, 
which in some its entirely of this colour, but in others almost 
wholly orange. 
The irides, brown in the young, grow redder with age, and 
in old males become a deep red with scarcely a tinge of brown. 
The legs and feet, including the webs, are bright vermilion in 
the old of both sexes, perhaps rather duller in the females, and 
reddish orange in younger birds. The claws greyish or horny 
white, brownish or reddish towards their bases. 
THE PLATE is on the whole fair, but the rufous on the side of the 
female’s head wants toning down a shade with brown. The 
pale yellow tinting on the upper part of the wing of the male, 
which should be pure white, is a too faithful, truly Chinese, 
copy of grease stains on the specimen sent to be figured. 
In life, when at rest, the male never shows so much of the 
erey of the lower back and rump as the picture does. The 
young birds are like the female, but have rather smaller crests. 
The plate does scant justice to the crest of the adult female, 
which is fav longer than in the adult male, and in one specimen 
now before me fully three inches in length. 
We get in February young males just like old females, and 
with comparatively long crests, but with velvet black feathers, 
breaking out in the interscapulary region and tiny black feathers 
beginning to peep out on the throat. 
In July and August the old males have assumed a dress very 
like that of the female, but they are distinguishable at once by 
their greater size, white wings, much as in their normal plumage, 
much darker interscapulary region, dusky lores, and a dark 
band round the base of the neck immediately below the 
chestnut of the upper neck. 
In fresh specimens the whole white plumage of the neck 
and lower parts of the male is often overspread with a beauti- 
ful salmon, at times pinker, at times more buffy, but this almost 
wholly disappears in skins. 
