386 
The Australasian Book of Poultry. 
there is a large crescentic marking of white, which is shaded by a broader marking of black behind it. The 
sides of the body underneath the wings are marked with fine undulating parallel lines of black on a ground 
colour of pale drab, the flanks being marked with wide half-circles of white, each shaded with black. The 
sides of the vent are of a light claret colour ; the tail coverts of a hairy-like formation at the sides ; these are 
a deep black, tinged with yellow. The back is a bronzy green colour, the scapulars green, black, and purple 
intermixed ; tail pointed of a blackish green colour on top, but a duskier shade underneath ; the wing speculum 
blue and green ; the legs and feet a pale reddish colour ; the claws strong and hooked. The Drake of this 
variety also assumes the garb of the Female during three or four months of the year. The head of the Duck 
is also surmounted by a smaller crest than the Drake ; the throat and head being similarly marked with 
white as in the Drake ; the head and neck are of a dark drab colour ; the breast, a darkish brown, marked 
with white spots ; the hack and part of the wings a glossy brownish bronze. The brighter the sheen of green 
and gold over the Duck's body colour the more it is esteemed. The wing is marked with a spot exactly like 
the Male, but not so resplendent. In their wild state they generally form their nests in the hollow of trees, 
and, as a most peculiar and striking characteristic, when the young are hatched the parent bird carries them 
down to the water. This is done by the Duck taking the young one by the wing or back of the neck with 
her bill to the foot of the tree, then leading them to the water. 
Whistling Ducks are of great beauty and have a habit of perching on trees, being known in some 
locations as Tree Ducks. The two principal varieties of these are the White-Faced and Red-Billed. The 
former is a very ornamental bird. The head from the base of the bill under the jaw and behind the eye is 
pure white, the back of the head and neck black, the black also extending under the throat, below this 
again there is a patch of pure white, the bill is black with a leaden colour at the tip or point, the front of 
the neck is a rich chestnut, the lower part of the neck towards the back being shghtly pencilled with black, 
the sides of the breast are also pencilled with black upon a light brown ground colour, the centre of the 
breast and belly is black, thighs black, the centre of the feathers on the back and wings is of a dark brown 
colour edged with a lighter shade, tail black, and the legs and feet of a leaden colour. The Duck is similar 
to the Drake in marking, but not of the same brilliancy. 
The Red-Billed variety is considered to be the most attractive of the Tree Duck or Whistling tribe. 
The head from the base of the bill is brown, shading into a darker brown stripe over the back of the head 
and upper neck, the bill is red, the cheeks and throat a drab colour, the bottom part of the neck and upper 
part of the lireast a brownish drab colour, the breast and thighs black, the back and wings a dark glossy 
brown, the tail black, the feathers around the vent are black with white spots ; the feet and legs of this 
variety are of a pinky flesh colour. The Duck as in the White-Faced runs a little smaller than the Drake, 
the feathering being a shade or two duller, though similar in the markings. 
Australian Wild Duck. — This bird is known in diff'erent localities as the " Wild Duck," " Black 
Duck," "Brown Duck," and " Buff-eyebrowed Duck," and may be found in vast numbers in favourable 
situations throughout Australia, Tasmania, Fiji, New Zealand, New Guinea, etc. They are delicious eating, 
and much sought after for sport, and during the season may be obtained at most poulterers' shops. It 
frequents lagoons, rivers, swamps, and waterholes, and at times in spots in the bays along the sea coast. It 
is generally and popularly called the " Black Duck," but this is a misnomer, the ground colour of the 
plumage being a dark brown, the balance of the plumage ranging from buff to white, with the exception of 
the wing-coverts, which are of a bright steel-blue colour. The species is a very early breeder in this Colony 
(N.S.W.), especially if the months of February and March are wet, often commencing at the end of March 
and continuing until the latter part of the year. The nests are made in various positions, and are composed 
of a rough structure of dried grasses, twigs, etc., mixed with the downy feathers plucked from the breast of 
the parent bird. Sometimes the nests are found among the long grass, weeds or rushes, growing at or near 
the water's edge, at others in the hollow of a stump adjacent to the water, and occasionally, but not often, 
among the herbage growing on the plains. The eggs laid at a batch ,vary in number from seven to twelve, 
