76 
CAPERCALZIE. 
This noble species is not much inferior in size to a turkey ; weight 
sometimes twelve or thirteen pounds, but more frequently seven or eight; 
length, two feet eight or nine inches. The bill is above two inches 
long, very strong, the upper mandible much convex and hooked, the 
point hanging over the under mandible very considerably when closed, 
as in birds of prey, and projecting over the sides, not meeting at the 
edges, as in most birds, by which means it can cut its food like a pair 
of scissors ; the colour yellowish ; irides hazel. The nostrils are 
covered with dusky feathers ; over the eye is a bare red skin, and under 
the eye a spot of white feathers. The head is dusky, a little dashed with 
ash-colour ; the feathers on the chin and throat are dusky black, and 
long : the neck dark ash-coloured, finely speckled with dusky ; the breast 
is of a fine dark glossy green ; the rest of the under parts black, with 
spots of white, most about the thighs and vent ; the wing coverts and 
scapulars chesnut-brown, finely speckled with dusky, at the junction of 
the wing to the body is a little white ; greater quills dusky. Secondaries 
like the coverts, slightly tipped with white ; the lower part of the back, 
rump, and upper tail coverts, ash-colour, marked with innumerable 
small undulated lines and specks of black ; the two outer rows of 
feathers covering the tail are greatly longer than those in the middle, 
and gradually lengthening, the under ones reaching nearly to the end of 
the tail ; these are seven or eight in number, lying immediately over 
each other ; their ends are white, making as many white bars on each 
side ; the tail is considerably rounded, consisting of eighteen black 
feathers, marked with a few spots of white on the sides ; the legs are 
covered with brown hair-like feathers ; the edges of the toes strongly 
pectinated ; claws dusky and blunt. 
The female differs exceedingly, both in size and colour ; weight about 
four pounds. Bill dusky ; head, neck, and back, are barred with tawny 
red and black ; the throat tawny red ; breast pale tawny, with some 
white spots on the upper part ; the belly barred with pale tawny and 
black, the feathers tipped with white ; scapulars tipped the same ; quill- 
feathers dusky, mottled on the exterior webs with light brown ; the 
tail is of a dark rust-colour, barred with black, and tipped with white. 
This sex is described, by some authors, to have but sixteen feathers 
in the tail, whereas the male has eighteen. This variation must have 
been occasioned by the loss of some not noticed, for we have never seen 
an instance where the sexes differ in this particular; *and from further 
examination, we are enabled to assert that both sexes have the latter 
number.* It is a strong character, that seems to divide birds of apparent 
similitude, as in the cormorant and shag, and many of the duck tribe, 
the females of which so frequently resemble each other. 
