WILD FOWL 
WIGEON 
MARECA PENELOPE 
(Plate XXVIII, Fig. 5) 
Mareca Penelope, Gould, Birds Europe, v, pi. 359 (1837) ; Dresser, Birds Europe, vi, p. 541, 
pis. 432, 433 (1876) ; Hume & Marshall, Game Birds Ind., iii, p. 197, pi. 26 (1880) ; Lilford, 
Col. Fig. Brit. Birds, part xv, pi. (1890) ; Salvadori, Cat. Birds Brit. Mus., xxvii, p. 227 (1895) ; 
Saunders, III. Man. Brit. Birds, p. 437 (1899) ; Millais, Surface-feeding Ducks, p. 38, pis. xiv- 
xix (1902). 
DULT male. — ^Forehead and crown buff, rest of the head and 
neck chestnut, minutely spotted, especially on the sides 
/ of the face, chin and middle of the throat, with black; 
f upperparts and scapulars finely vermiculated with 
/ black and white, becoming whitish on the upper tail- 
.JL coverts; chest vinaceous-buff ; breast and belly white; 
under tail-coverts black; wing-coverts mostly white; primary quills 
and their coverts brownish -black, secondaries similar, but mostly black 
and metallic green on the outer web, the latter colour forming a speculum, 
bordered internally by a black band formed by the tips of the greater 
secondary -coverts ; the outermost of the long innermost secondaries 
have the outer web white; in the rest the outer web is black, narrowly edged 
with white; under wing -coverts grey, finely vermiculated with white; 
axillaries white, slightly mottled with grey; tail dark grey, the outer 
feathers edged with whitish. Iris dark brown; bill bluish lead -colour 
tipped with black ; legs and toes dark brown. Total length about 19*5 
inches; bill 1*5 inch; wing 10*5 inches ; tail 4*5 inches; tarsus 1 *6 inch. 
Adult male in eclipse-plumage, — ^Entire head and neck chestnut, spotted 
with black ; rest of the upperparts black, barred with rufous ; chest, 
sides and flanks dull chestnut, the first named more or less barred with 
black; under tail -coverts white, barred with black. 
Adult female. — General colour above brown, the mantle barred with 
rufous -buff, the scapulars margined with the same colour, and the lower 
back and rump edged with whitish ; top of the head and nape black, irregu- 
larly barred with pale rufous; the sides of the head, throat and fore -neck 
whitish -buff, thickly spotted with black; chest and flank -feathers pale 
reddish-brown; breast and belly white; under tail -coverts white, barred 
with black; wings brownish -black, most of the coverts and secondaries 
335 
