Dr. C. W. Townsend evidently considers that both male 
and female can be identified,, and, in commenting upon a 
personal record made at Lynn in 1919, 4 says: “I was first 
attracted to the Barrow’s Golden-eye by the lack of white 
on the sides. In place of the great white patch on the wings 
and flanks of the Whistler,—a field mark noticeable at a 
great distance,—a horizontal row of four or five white dots 
or squares marks the wing coverts of the Barrow’s Golden¬ 
eye. The elongated crescentic white marks on the head of 
the latter species distinguish it from the Whistler with its 
round marks. ... I have been able to identify two female 
Barrow’s Golden-eyes among some Whistlers in the Back 
Bay Basin by their smaller and yellow bills.” 
Mr. Allan Brooks, in his “Notes on Some American 
Ducks,” 5 considers the male Barrow’s Golden-eye easily 
identifiable at any distance at which one can distinguish 
one species of duck from another. He also emphasizes the 
blackness of the male as contrasted with the male of the 
common species, and calls attention to the row of white 
dots on the wing as a valuable field mark. In speaking of 
the female and young he sweeps away all the accepted field 
marks as to color of bill and feet, and in their place gives 
only a series of points to be seen and measured in the labora- 
toiy. It is interesting to note that Mr. Brooks seems to be 
the only writer of those quoted who has had an extended 
and familiar acquaintance with the species in the field. 
From my reading of the authorities quoted above, and 
from my own field experience, I have come to the conclusion 
that the male Barrow’s Golden-eye can be readily identified 
in the field by any reasonably careful observer within the 
distance necessary to identify ordinary species of ducks, 
but that the female and young cannot be identified with any 
degiee of certainty. It seems to have been demonstrated 
that differences in the size and color of the bill and in the 
color of the feet are not dependable as a basis for identi¬ 
fication. 
4 Townsend, C. W.: Supplement to the Birds 
setts, p. 58-59, 1920. 
s Brooks, Allan: Auk, vol. 37, p. 356-365, 192 
Essex County, Massachu- 
28 
