202 
ANATlDiE. 
Adult male, winter and summer — bill black as far as nos- 
trils ; the nail black ; band across the intervening space, pale rose 
colour; eye amber; tarsi and toes, dark lead colour, darker 
still upon the joints ; membranes and claws nearly black. 
Adult female, winter and summer — bill deep dusky brown, 
with slight indications of a paler band ; eye brownish yellow ; 
tarsi and feet as in adult male, but dingier. 
Male in first winter, similar to adult female in bill, tarsi, and 
feet, but with the eye brown. Early in spring the band on 
the bill begins to change rapidly to brownish pink, and the eye 
becomes yellowish brown. Perfect plumage is attained by the 
end of May. 
The rose colour of the bill begins to fade as early as twelve 
hours after death, and at the end of a week (supposing the skin 
to be in process of drying) it is bright brownish red ; afterwards 
it becomes pale reddish brown, and lastly pale brown. 
When on the wing, the drakes may be easily distinguished 
at a distance by their white heads, and when nearer by their 
great length of tail; the Calloo is, however, not a bird given to 
flying very high. In the water, the bird sits in the manner 
common to most Ducks, that is, with the neck slightly contracted 
and the head thrown a little back ; but the males — especially 
when alarmed — have a habit of raising the tail rather high, in 
the same way that a Magpie does when walking over wet grass. 
In diving to feed, they will stay under water for about fifty- 
five seconds on an average, when not apprehensive of danger; 
otherwise the time of submergence is much shorter. 
I have often noticed the oesophageal glands in this species 
as both numerous and large, many of them being about the size 
of a split pea. The magnitude of the cutaneous veins is also 
somewhat remarkable, and the pulmonary vessels are large. 
On one occasion in December 1868 a Calloo was brought to 
me from the bay of Ilagdale in a very peculiar state of plumage, 
having a few large black spots upon the breast. 
