THE PINTAIL. 299 



patch on side of neck in some lights glossed green or bronze -pink ; 

 sides of body and flanks vermiculated blackish-grey and white ; 

 breast and belly white ; lower-belly and vent white finely freckled 

 and vermiculated dusky-grey ; under tail- coverts black, some 

 mottled and long ones bordered white ; axillaries white with brown 

 shafts ; coverts at edge and bend of wing and under lesser coverts 

 mouse-grey, rest of under wing-coverts white freckled dusky-brown ; 

 central pair of tail-feathers black, next pair with outer web black, 

 inner web grey, shading to buff at border, others with outer webs 

 blackish-grey edged white, inner webs mouse-grey, remainder 

 mouse -grey paler on inner webs and edged light buff ; primaries 

 sepia, paler on inner webs ; secondaries sepia with broad white tips 

 sometimes suffused light pink-cinnamon on outer webs (two outer- 

 most and inner webs of middle secondaries usually freckled buff just 

 above white tips), remaining secondaries with outer webs metallic - 

 green, in some lights glossed bronze-pink with a subterminal border 

 of velvet-black, innermost light mouse-grey with broad black 

 shaft-streaks, one bordering speculum with inner web sepia, outer 

 black with a light grey streak next shaft ; primary- coverts and 

 bastard-wing as primaries but median and lesser primary- coverts 

 mouse -grey with dark shaft-streaks and buff frecklings ; greater 

 coverts mouse-grey with broad cinnamon tips and frecklings, absent 

 on inner ones ; median and lesser coverts mouse -grey with dark 

 shaft -streaks. This plumage is acquired by a moult of body, tail 

 and innermost secondaries Aug. to Jan. 



Adult male. Eclipse. — The body-feathers are first moulted 

 followed by wings and tail June to Aug. May be confused with 

 juvenile male rather than adult female, from latter at once dis- 

 tinguished by absence of broad buff edges to feathers of upper-parts, 

 while under-parts are not so heavily spotted and streaked as in 

 juvenile. Crown as adult female ; centre of nape ash-brown, 

 feathers with buff tips and barrings ; feathers of mantle, back and 

 rump blackish-grey tipped greyish -olive, many barred and freckled 

 white or buff ; short scapulars as mantle but darker, mostly tipped 

 buff, rest black or black-brown with light mouse -grey edges and 

 tipped buff ; upper tail- coverts sepia irregularly barred and edged 

 buff or cream ; rest of head and neck as adult female ; feathers of 

 upper-breast with irregular markings of sepia and ashy-white more 

 or less concealed by broad buff fringes ; sides of body and flanks 

 sepia, feathers with broad irregular U-shaped light buff or white 

 bars and with broad white fringes, many freckled, spotted and more 

 or less vermiculated white ; lower -breast and belly white or ash- 

 white, feathers mostly with oval spots of sepia or dusky-brown (in 

 some merely shaded pale dusky or freckled same) ; lower-belly and 

 vent more or less heavily marked dusky-brown, feathers broadly 

 tipped white or buff and irregularly barred and vermiculated white ; 

 under tail-coverts white, irregularly marked or freckled sepia ; 

 central pair of tail-feathers black-brown or sepia, next pair sepia 

 edged buff, inner webs mouse-grey, all feathers broader at tip than 



