report of few jersey state museum. 
u t 
The hooded merganser, gad-wall, ring-neck, ruddy duck, 
shoveller, snow goose and swan, are everywhere less common, and 
are quite rare on the Hew Jersey coast, while the following are 
mere stragglers: English widgeon, harlequin, American and 
king eiders, lesser snow, blue and white-fronted geese and black 
brant. 
Many of the rare species on our coasts and bays are stragglers 
from the west, where they are plentiful; such are the shoveller, 
snow, lesser snow, blue and white-fronted geese and black 
brant, while the mallard is much more plentiful in the west than 
in the east. 
American Merganser; Goosander; Shelldrake; Sawbill— 
{ Merganser americanus ). 
A slightly crested, slender-billed, dark-green-headed, fish duck, with the 
hack and wings black and white, the tail gray, and the under parts, including 
breast, buff-white. The female is reddish-brown-headed, gray-backed and 
whitish-bellied, with a white patch on throat and White speculum. 
Breeds in northern United States northward. Winters south to Texas. 
Common transient on the coast and Delaware river. A few remain all winter. 
Red-breasted Merganser—( Merganser serrator ). 
A common, crested, dark-green-headed, reddish-breasted, fish duck, with the 
back made up of white, black aud gray. The female has the head and upper 
neck cinnamombrown, the back gray and the- breast and belly white. The 
speculum is white and the throat whitish. 
Breeds in northern United States northward. Winters in southern United 
States. Found on coast. Some remain during winter. A few remain all 
summer and breed. 
Hooded Merganser— (Lopliodytes cucullcdus ). 
A small, strongly crested, fish duck, with black and white head, black back, 
white belly and cinnamon-red sides. The head and neck are black, except a 
large, central, fan-shaped! part of the very flat high chest, which is white. The 
female is smaller, has a smaller, rusty-brown crest and a grayish-brown back, 
with nearly white belly and grayish breast. The other fish ducks prefer run¬ 
ning, dashing waters, this one the quiet pools and lakes; the others are fishy, 
but this is palatable. 
Breeds in North America. Winters in southern part. Not abundant. 
Mallard— (Anas boschas). 
A large, brilliantly colored, bright-green-headed, chestnut-breasted duck, 
with a white ring around the lower neck. The belly and sides are nearly 
white, barred until many fine, wavy lines of black; the back is brown; upper 
tail coverts black and some of them recurved. The speculum is rich purple, 
bordered by both black and white bands. Female very different, except the 
speculum. This species is far more common in the interior than on the coast. 
Breeds in northern hemisphere at large. Winters in temperate regions. 
Quite common during migration on New Jersey coast. 
