380 



A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



one with several subspecies. Europe, America, Asia, one with 

 reduced wings and similarly coloured sexes on Auckland Islands 

 south of New Zealand has been generically separated. 



Key to species of genus Mergus. 



r Entire head and upper-neck black with or 

 without green gloss .... 2 



Head and neck black with exception of 



middle of crest which is white 

 Upper-part of head rufous or brown 3 



Head and neck white with exception of 

 large black spot in front of eyes and on 

 sides of occiput ...... 



f Under-parts from neck uniform white or 

 -{ salmon-colour M. merganser, <$ ad. 



M. cucullatus, 6* ad., p. 393' 



M. albellus, 6* ad., p. 389 



^ Jugulum ferruginous spotted with black M. serrator, $ ad. 



J AW upper wing-coverts grey or brown 4 

 \ Median upper wing-coverts white 

 /Sides of neck rufous .... 5 

 \ Sides of neck brownish-grey . . . M. cucullatus, $, 



/Upper-parts ash-grey M. merganser, 2, 



\ Upper-parts brown-grey .... M. serrator, 2, 



p. 380 

 , p. 385 



M. albellus, 2, p. 390 



p. 394 

 p. 381 



p. 386 



MERGUS MERGANSER 



325. Mergus merganser merganser L. — THE GOOSANDER. 



Mergus Merganser Linnaeus, Syst. Nat., ed. x, i, p. 129 (1758 — Europe, 



Restricted typical locality : Sweden). 



Mergus merganser Linnaeus, Yarrell, iv, p. 488 ; Saunders, p. 471. 



Description. — Adult male. Winter and summer. — Crown, nape 

 and sides of neck bottle-green, in some lights tinged amethyst 

 (occipital feathers considerably elongated) ; fore -part of crown, 



lores, cheeks, chin, throat and fore- 

 neck dull black, all except chin and 

 throat glossed greenish ; lower-neck, 

 upper-mantle and outer scapulars 

 bordering wing white, when fresh 

 suffused pale salmon- colour, some 

 feathers bordering lower-mantle ver- 

 miculated ash - brown and some 

 tipped black ; rest of mantle 

 and most scapulars black, lower 

 scapulars black-brown or sepia ; back and rump ash-grey, 

 feathers with dark shafts and more or less tipped or vermicu- 

 lated white, vermiculations most pronounced at side of rump ; 

 patch on either side at root of tail white, feathers finely vermicu- 

 lated brown ; upper tail-coverts ash-grey with central shaft- 

 streaks or shadings of ash-brown ; remaining under-parts white 

 (in life suffused pale salmon colour), sometimes some flank-feathers 

 and some upper tail-coverts faintly vermiculated dusky-brown ; 

 axillaries and under wing -coverts white, those covering primaries 



The Goosander {Mergus m. merganser). 

 Bill of adult male. 



