THE RUDDY SHELD-DTJCK. 263 



than north and in Shetlands very rare, and very doubtful if ever 

 nested. In winter, numbers increased by immigrants and some 

 evidence for emigration of breeding birds. 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Breeds in northern Europe, from about 

 latitude 70° in Norway and 51° in Urals to France and even Spain, 

 and on salt -lakes of south Siberia and central Asia, also in eastern 

 Asia, west of Caspian and Black Seas. On migration south to Medi- 

 terranean and north Africa, as far as tropic of Cancer, to north 

 India, Burmah, Japan, China, and Formosa. Casual Iceland and 

 Fssroes. 



Genus CASARCA Bp. 



Casarca Bonaparte, Comp. List B. Eur. Airier., p. 56 (1838 — Monotype 

 C. rutila =ferruginea). 



Much like Tadorna, but bill quite different ; culmen scarcely con- 

 cave, nearly straight, nail wider, nearly equal to half width of bill 

 and only bent downwards, not recurved. 4 species, 1 Palsearctic, 

 1 southern Africa, 1 Australia, 1 New Zealand. 



CASARCA FERRUGINEA 



299. Casarca ferruginea (Pall.)— THE RUDDY SHELD-DUCK. 



Anas ferrtjgixea Pallas, Vroeg's Cat., Adumbratiuncula, p. 5 (1764 — 



Tartary). 



Tadorna casarca (Linnaeus), Yarrell, iv, p. 347 ; Saunders, p. 421. 



Description. — Adult male. Winter and summer. — Fore-head and 

 crown cream-buff or warm burl, in some fore -head pale cinnamon- 

 rufous ; nape pale cinnamon -rufous shading to deeper on lower- 

 nape ; black ring varying in 



depth individually round ^ 



lower -throat ; mantle cin- /^ 



namon -rufous ; scapulars ^* 



mostly same but some cin- ^^-^ / f&£\ 



namon-butT, some vermicu- ^sf''y f s< ^&' 



lated dusky or hair-brown, (T~ "" %^ 



some lower ones slate -grey ^^^ _ ^^nrrrrr ^^ 



suffused and vermiculated r^ — -^™^- 



cinnamon -rufous towards a. ^*"* n ****~^ 



tip, Others With inner Webs TheRuddy She ld-Duck (Casarca/em^nea). Maleadult. 



blackish or pale slate and 



outer webs pale greyish -white or white ; back cinnamon -rufous or 

 cinnamon -buff, feathers finely vermiculated black ; rump and upper 

 tail-coverts black with dull green gloss ; lores and cheeks cream-burl, 

 in some lores suffused cinnamon-rufous ; chin, throat and sides of 

 neck pale cinnamon -rufous ; breast, sides of body and flanks cinna- 

 mon-rufous ; belly and vent chestnut ; under tail-coverts cinnamon- 

 rufous (in some chestnut) ; axillaries and under wing -coverts white ; 

 tail black glossed green ; primaries and their coverts black glossed 

 dull green ; secondaries black-brown, outer webs bright metallic- 



