COMMON SIIELD-DUCK. 
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Channel, off the south coast, in small parties of two or three or twice that numher. In January 1881, after the 
disastrous gales that caused so much loss had swept over that part of the country, I shot an immature 
drake at sea, off Lancing in Sussex, on the 22nd of the month. The colouring of the soft parts was as follows : 
Upper mandible a dirty light red tint, with pale shade of orange showing here and there, black ring round 
nostril, the nail dusky and a dark line round it. Lower mandible dirty livid flesh-tint. Legs, webs, and toes 
livid flesh-colour, very pale ; nails pale horn-tint. On the 28th another was obtained off Shoreham ; this was an 
immature duck, smaller, and the plumage not so brightly tinted. The colouring of the soft parts was almost 
precisely similar to that exhibited by the young drake. 
To procure specimens of Sheld-Ducks in the most beautiful plumage, the adult birds must be obtained just 
before the breeding-season. After attending to the young and entering the burrows or holes in which their 
nests are placed, the feathers become worn and dirty by the constant rubbing against the sand or mould. 
