BAY AND SEA DUCKS 
201 
The Ducks of the genus Marila possess to some extent the habits 
of both the River Ducks and true Sea Ducks. They are divers in deep 
water, but along the shores or in shallow water they are also ‘dabblers.’ 
On the Atlantic coast the Redhead is a Bay Duck, and feeds in salt 
and brackish water; but in the West it inhabits prairie sloughs and 
lakes. When feeding on wild celery its flesh is equal to that of the Can- 
vasback, indeed, by the discriminating it is considered slightly superior, 
being as much finer as the bird is smaller than its more famous cousin. 
147. Marila valisineria (Wils.). Canvasback. Ad. cf. — Head and 
neck rufous-brown, chin and crown generally blackish; breast and upper 
back black; rest of back and generally wing-coverts finely barred with wavy 
lines of black and white, white lines wider; belly white; lower belly more or 
less finely barred with black; upper and under tail-coverts black; sides 
white , much more lightly barred with wavy black lines than back, or even 
entirely without bars. Ad. 9. — Head, neck, upper breast, and upper back 
cinnamon, throat lighter, and, with front parts of head, more or less washed 
with rufous; back grayish brown, feathers more or less barred with wavy 
white lines; belly white or grayish white; sides the same or grayish brown, 
generally marked like back. L., 21*00; W., 9*00; Tar., 1*60; B., 2*40. 
Remarks. — This species is sometimes mistaken for the Redhead, to which 
it bears a general resemblance. The males of the two species may be distin- 
guished (1) by the color of the head and neck, which is rufous in the Red- 
head and rufous-brown in the Canvasback; (2) by the generally blackish 
chin and crown of the Canvasback, these parts in the Redhead being colored 
like the rest of the head; (3) by the difference in the markings of the back, 
wing-coverts, and sides; and (4) by the difference in the size and shape of the 
bill, as shown by the accompanying measurements. The females of the two 
species may be at once distinguished by the color of the back, which in the 
Canvasback is finely barred with wavy white lines, markings which do not 
appear on the back of the female Redhead. 
Range. — N. A. Breeds from cen. B. C., Fort Yukon, Great Slave 
Lake, and sw. Keewatin s. to Ore., n. Nev., Colo, (rarely), Nebr., and s. 
Minn., winters from s. B. C., Nev., Colo., Ills., Pa., and w. N. Y. s. to cen. 
Mex. (Jalisco) and the Gulf coast; in winter formerly abundant, now less 
so, in Md., Va., and N. C.; occasional s. to Fla., and casual in the West 
Indies, Bermuda, and Guatemala; in migration n. rarely to N. B. and N. S. 
Washington, rare W. V., Oct. 15-Mch. 25. L. I., rare T. V., Oct. 20- 
Feb. 11. Ossining, rare T. V., Oct. Cambridge, rare T. V. N. Ohio, toler- 
ably common T. V., Mch. 20-Apl. 10, Oct. 1-Nov. 25. SE. Minn., uncom- 
mon T. Y. 
Nest, of reeds, lined with gray down, in reeds, or tules over water. Eggs, 
6-10, (often with eggs of the Ruddy Duck or Redhead added) “rich grayish 
olive or greenish drab of a darker shade than is usually seen in the eggs of 
other species” of Ducks, 2*48 x 1*75 (Bent). Date, Heron Lake, Minn., 
May 9, 1886, adv. 
While the fame of the Canvasback has no doubt been unduly sung 
by the epicure, there can be no question that from the sportsman’s 
viewpoint it is king among the Ducks. Pursued for the market and as 
game, it has decreased alarmingly, but in recent years, thanks to more 
stringent and better enforced laws, and particularly to the abolition 
of spring shooting, its numbers appear to be increasing. 
In October, 1910, ten thousand Canvasback were estimated to be 
on Heron Lake, Minnesota. They were feeding on the wild celery 
which nearly covers the bottom of this shallow body of water, and, 
