82 



RED-BREASTED MERGANSER 



rival, chiefly on dry spots of ground in the islands; lay from eight 

 to thirteen white eggs, the size of those of a duck; the nest is 

 made of withered grass, and lined with tlie down of the breast. 

 The yomig are of a dirty brown like young goslins. In October 

 they all depart southward to the lakes, where they may have open 

 water. 



This species is twenty two inches in length, and thirty two in 

 extent ; the bill is two inches and three quarters in length, of the 

 color of bright sealing wax, ridged above with dusky; the nail 

 at the tip large, blackish, and overhanging; both mandibles are 

 thickly serrated; irides red; head furnished with a long hairy 

 crest which is often pendent, but occasionally erected, as repre- 

 sented in the plate; this and part of the neck is black glossed with 

 green ; the neck under this for two or three inches is pure white ; 

 ending in a broad space of reddish ochre spotted with black, which 

 spreads over the lower part of the neck and sides of the breast ; 

 shoulders, back, and tertials deep velvetty black, the first marked 

 with a number of singular roundish spots of white; scapulars white; 

 wing coverts mostly white, crossed by two narrow bands of black; 

 primaries black, secondaries white, several of the latter edged 

 with black; lower part of the back, the rump and tail coverts 

 grey speckled with black; sides under the wings elegantly crossed 

 with numerous waving lines of black; belly and vent white; legs 

 and feet red; the tail dusky ash; the black of the back passes up 

 the hind neck in a narrow band to the head. 



The female is twenty one inches in length, and thirty in ex- 

 tent ; the crested head and part of the neck are of a dull sorrel 

 color ; irides yellow ; legs and bill red, upper parts dusky slate ; 

 wings black, greater coverts largely tipt with white, secondaries 

 nearly all white ; sides of the breast slightly dusky ; whole lower 

 parts pure white; the tail is of a lighter slate than the back. The 

 crest is much shorter than in the male, and sometimes there is a 

 slight tinge of ferruginous on the breast. 



