THE AMERICAN BLUE-WINGED TEAL. 283 



Adult male near Scarborough (Yorks.), Nov., 1851 (J. Evans, op. c, 

 1852, p. 3472). One stated to have been shot Hurstbourne Park 

 (Hants.) about 1840 (A. Fellowes, op. c, 1880, p. 70). 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Replaces Anas crecca crecca in North 

 America, winters in parts of United States and as far south as 

 Lower California, West Indies and even Honduras, accidental in 

 Hawaii, Bermudas, and Greenland, once Japan. 



ANAS DISCORS 



304. Anas discors L.— THE AMERICAN BLUE-WINGED TEAL. 



Anas discors Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. xn, i, p. 205 (1766 — Carolina to 



Virginia). 



Querquedula discors (Linnaeus), Saunders, p. 434 ; Yarrell, iv, p. 391 



(in text). 



Description (Plate 6). — Adult male. Winter and summer. — Fore- 

 head, lores and crown black-brown ; in front of eye somewhat 

 crescentic patch of white extending almost to throat and more or 

 less outlined black-brown ; chin and throat dark sepia ; cheeks, 

 sides of neck, nape and fore -neck deep plumbeous, in some lights 

 glossed pale magenta -pink ; mantle and upper scapulars sepia 

 glossed dull green, feathers narrowly edged and with crescentic 

 and U-shaped irregular markings of buff (those of lower-mantle 

 sometimes more or less uniform) ; some scapulars olive-brown 

 glossed blackish -green with buff shaft -streak, some with outer 

 webs more or less pale blue ; back and rump olive-brown glossed 

 dull green, feathers with lighter edges (in some edged pale slate - 

 blue) ; on either side of rump patch of white ; upper tail-coverts 

 black-brown glossed dull greenish-black ; breast, belly and vent 

 deep pink-buff, in some pale russet spotted profusely black-brown ; 

 towards centre of breast spots tend to coalesce giving a distinctly 

 barred appearance ; sides of breast and flanks deep pink- buff with 

 larger spots of black- brown, lower flank-feathers barred black- brown 

 or sepia ; under tail -coverts black ; axillaries white ; under wing- 

 coverts white, at edge and bend of wing dusky-brown ; tail-feathers 

 sepia faintly edged light buff ; primaries sepia, paler on inner webs ; 

 secondaries sepia, outer webs sometimes tipped white, middle ones 

 metallic blue-green on outer web forming speculum, innermost 

 secondaries sepia glossed olive, outer webs velvety blackish -green, 

 shafts more or less brownish -white ; bastard-wing and primary- 

 coverts sepia, but median and lesser primary- coverts tipped pale 

 blue ; greater coverts white with sepia bases, some spotted with 

 sepia on inner webs, inner ones sepia tipped pale blue, innermost 

 sepia tinged dull green, outer webs more or less shaded pale blue 

 towards tip ;* median and lesser coverts pale blue. This plumage 



* There is considerable individual variation in coloration of greater 

 coverts ; distal halves of outer and middle feathers are usually pure white, 

 but in some (apparently adult males) inner webs have oval sepia spots. 



