SHOVELER. 
Anas ceypeata. 
Le Souchet. 
Shoveeer. 
Lin . Syst. i. p* 2 0 0. 19. 
Brism Orn. vi. p* 3 29. 6. PL 3*. 
Buff- Ois. p . 191. 
Raii Syn. p . 143 * 9 . 
Zw/. 2 8 0. Aft. 485. 
Lath . GtfW 5/W. 5 0 9. 5 5. 
This bird is less than the Wild Duck ; the form of the bill being remark- 
ably broad at the end, and spreading like a spoon, indicates its manner of 
living, which is on worms, aquatic insects, the lame of the libellula, or dra- 
gon fly, 8cc. The edges of the upper and lower mandibles are very much 
pectinated, and shut close into each other, by this means it suffers the water 
and mud to pass through these laminae, and at the same time secures its 
food : it will likewise catch tipulae and other flies, which pass in its way 
over the water, with great dexterity. 
1 he plumage of the female is like that of the common Wild Duck, ex- 
cepting that the coverts of the wings are the same as those of the Drake ; she 
is a trifling degree smaller. 
She forms her nest among tufts of rushes in the most retired and inac- 
cessible places, laying from ten to twelve eggs, of a pale rufous colour. They 
run and swim as soon as they burst from the shell, at which time their bill 
is almost as broad as their body, and they constantly rest it on their breast, 
as its weight seems to oppress them. Their parents seem very much at- 
tached to them, and guard them against every appearance of danger. This 
biid is rather of a savage and gloomy disposition, and is not without some 
difficulty reconciled to domestication. 
rhcy aie not very common in England, neither is it certain that they 
bleed with us, though they are known to do so in the marshes in France; 
the\ aie found in most parts of Germany, Sweden, and Norway, and 
breed m every latitude of Russia, especially in the north, as far as Kamts- 
chatka; they are likewise met with in North America, at New York, and 
Caiolina, during the winter season. 
