THE BIRDS OF MESOPOTAMIA. 
657 
214. Scaup. Nyroca marila. 
Nyroca marila (L.). (Fauna Suecica, Ed. 2, 1761, p. 39 — Lappland). 
Zarudny records it as a rare winter visitor to the Karun area. It is not likely 
that this species, which much prefers salt water in winter, will be found in the 
Mesopotamian marshes and lakes. 
215 White=eyed Pochard. Nyroca nyroca. 
Nyroca nyroca (Giild.) (Nov. Comm. Petrop., 14 pt. 1, p. 403, 1770 — 
S. Russia.) 
The White-eye must be a common duck in winter but there are hardly any 
records of it. Logan Home says many were seen and a few shot on the 
Euphrates inundations, and Zanidny gives it as a winter visitor. 
216. Golden Eye. QIaucion clangula. 
Glaucion clangula (L.). (Syst. Nat. Ed. x, p. 125, 1758 — Sweden). 
This is not a common duck ; occasional birds are to be seen frequenting the 
rivers, singly or quite a small party together ; Ludlow saw a flock and shot one 
at Hit ; Thornhill obtained a male at Hanna on March 20th and there are odd 
records from the Tigris, Euphrates and Shat-al-Arab. 
217. Smew. Mergus albellus. 
Mergus albellus (L.). (Syst. Nat. Ed. x, p. 129, 1758 — Smyi-na). 
This species too is uncommon ; a few are recorded from the Tigris and Shat-al- 
Arab in winter, and like the Golden-eye it would seem to prefer the rivers to 
the lakes ; it occurs singly or in quite small parties. The acuity of vision of 
these and other species which obtain their living in the waters of the rivers 
must be very great, as the water is so loac^d with silt that to the human eye it 
appears quite opaque. 
Two specimens were obtained near Amara by Cheesman and Bagnall in Febru- 
ary and December, and two by Buxton at Amara. 
[The Goosander has been recoi-ded as having been seen fairly commonly on the 
Tigris by Meinertzhagen (Ibis, 1914). No other records of this species are to 
hand and no specimens have been obtained. The Merganser (M. serrator) has 
been obtained at Bushire but not so far in Mesopotamia.] 
218. StifMail Duck. Erismatura leucocephala. 
Erismatura leucocephala (Scop.) (Annus. 1, Hist. Nat., p. 65, 1769 — N. 
Italy). 
A rare duck in Mesopotamia ; one was obtained by Hobkirk at Gurmat Ali 
on April 21st ; another near Kut by Thornhill on February 6th and a third on a 
jheel (Abu Jisra), 70 miles north of Baghdad, on March 23rd, 1920, by Major 
Chrystall ; possibly one or two others were obtained. 
219. Flamingo. Phoenicopterus ruber. 
Phcenicopterus ruber antiquorum, Temm. (Man. d’Orn. 2, p. 587, 1820 
— Europe). 
The Flamingo is a not uncommon resident and in some favoured localities it 
may be said to be abundant, such as in the marshes round Museyib. But almost 
anywhere where suitable inundations exist some may be seen in any month of 
the year, the flocks moving about locally according to the varying conditions of 
the marshes. Doubtless many move away to their nesting haunts in the breed- 
ing season, but a good many non-breeding and immature birds remain behind. 
According to Gumming it breeds on the Koweit side of the head of the Gulf, 
whence I believe he obtained from the Arabs many eggs which are now in the 
Karachi Museum. 
The Flamingo is generally distributed throughout our area. 
