136 
BIRDS OF NEW MEXICO 
AMERICAN SCAUP DUCK: Nyr6ca mania (Linnaeus) 
Description. — Length: LS-20 inches, wing 8.2-9, bill 1.8-2.2, greatest width 
of bill .8-1, least width .7-.9. Bill short , broad and flat at end, with hooked nail; 
speculum white in all plumages. Adult male in winter and breeding plumage: Head 
neck, and foreparts black , head glossed with green , back and shoxdders gray from fine 
wavy black and white lines—vermiculations; belly 
white , sides faintly scored with black; upper and 
under tail coverts black; axillars white; iris yellow, 
bill bluish with black nail, legs and toes lead color, 
webs blackish. Adult male in post-nuptial eclipse: 
Head dull brownish black, grayish on cheeks, neck 
with gray collar, nape and mantle vermiculated 
like back, flanks white, vermiculated with brown 
(Millais). Adult female and young (adult female 
very variable; inner primaries white): Black 
replaced by brown, yellowish brown on breast; 
belly white; base of bill encircled with white, or with 
two white spots; iris dark yellow; bill dull blue or 
grayish; toes lead color, webs blackish. 
Comparisons. —The female Scaups and some¬ 
times the Ring-necked are the only American ducks 
partly or wholly encircling the base of the bill 
From Handbook of Western Birds 
Fig. 17. American Scaup Duck 
having a distinct white band 
(Forbush). (See p. 138), 
Range. —Northern part of northern hemisphere. In North America breeds 
from Aleutian Islands, Bering Sea and northern Alaska along Arctic coasts of Canada 
south to Hudson Bay, and central Alberta (cripples and non-breeding birds seen in 
summer in British Columbia); winters mainly on coasts of United States, on the 
Pacific from Aleutians to southern California; on the Gulf—Louisiana and Texas 
almost to Mexico; on the Atlantic coast from Maine to Florida. Fewer winter in 
the interior—on the Great Lakes and in the southwest—Colorado, Utah, Nevada, 
Arizona, and New Mexico. 
State Records. —On September 4, 1913, a large flock was seen near Koehler 
Junction, Colfax County (Kalmbach). On November 27 and 28, 1916, both the 
American Scaup and the Lesser Scaup were observed at Elephant Butte Lake by 
Willett, at such close range that the distinctive colors of the head were plainly 
seen. The Scaups were not so plentiful as the Lesser Scaups. 
Additional Literature.—Bent, A. C., U. S. Nat. Mus. Bull. 126, 207-216, 
1923. 
LESSER SCAUP DUCK: Nyroca affinis (Eyton) 
Description. — Length: 15-16.5 inches, wing 7.5-S.2, bill 1.6-1.9, greatest 
width of bill .8-.9, least width .6-.7. Speculum white in all plumages. Adult male 
in breeding plumage. Foreparts black , head glossed with purple (which may also 
appear greenish); back and shoulders gray from fine wavy black and white lines— 
vermiculations— belly white; sides strongly scored with black; iris yellow, bill bluish 
with black tip, feet plumbeous. Adult male in post-nuptial eclipse: “Black dulled 
and white of back virtually obsolete” (Hollister). Adult female and young: Black 
replaced by brown, yellowish brown on breast; belly white; base of bill encircled 
with white or with two white spots; iris yellow, bill and feet like male but darker, 
Comparisons. —Great care should be taken in identifying the two Scaups by 
the color of the head, for at different angles purple may look green. The female of 
