184 
BIRDS OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS. 
ANAS BOSCHAS. Linn. 
Mallard. 
Adult Male . — Head and neck, glossy green; ring around the 
lower part of the neck, white ; breast, purple-chestnut ; wing-coverts 
tipped with white and black. 
Length 24, wing 11. 
A very marked species, easily recognized by its large size and 
green head. 
The Mallard is a regular winter visitant, frequenting the inland 
lakes and ponds. It is a very handsome duck, and is much sought 
after by sportsmen, as it affords excellent eating. Audubon, in 
writing of this species says, “ The flight of the Mallard is swift, strong, 
and well sustained. It rises either from the ground or from the 
water at a single spring, and flies almost perpendicularly for ten or 
fifteen yards, or if in a thick wood, until quite above the tops of the 
tallest trees, after which it moves horizontally. If alarmed, it never 
rises without uttering several quacks; but on other occasions it 
generally leaves its place in silence. While travelling to any dis- 
tance the whistling sound of their wings may be heard a great way 
off, more especially in the quiet of the night. Their progress 
through the air I have thought might be estimated at a mile and a 
half in the minute ; and I feel very confident that when at full speed 
