256 
ZOOLOGY. 
The Shoveller or Micoine is rather abundant on the Pacific coast, where I have obtained 
specimens both at San Francisco and Puget Sound.—S. 
The shoveller seems to be only a winter visitor in the Territory, arriving in October and 
leaving with most of the winter ducks in March or April.-—C. 
CIIAULELASMUS STREPERUS, (Linn.) Gray. 
Gadwall; Gray Duck. 
Anas ttrepera, Linn. Syst. Nat. I, 176C, 200.— Gmblin, I, 520.—Lath., Ind. II, 1790, 849.— Wilson, Am. Orn. 
VIII, 1814, 120; pi. Ixxi —Bon. Obs. 1825, No. 257. —Aud. Orn. Biog. IV, 1838, 353: pi. 348. — 
Ib. Syn. 378 .—Ib Birds Amer. VI, 1843, 254 ; pi. 383 .—Temminck, Man 11,838 (European.) 
Anas ( Ohauliodus) slrepera, Swainson, F. Bor. Am. II, 1831,440. 
Anas ( Boschas) tlrepera, Nutt. Man II, 1834, 383. 
Baird, Gen Rep. Birds, 782. 
Sp. Ch.— Male: Head and neck brownish white, each feather spotted with dusky; the top of head tinged with reddish. 
Lower part of neck, with fore part of breast and back, blackish, with concentric narrow bars of white, giving a scaled appearance 
to the feathers. Interscapular region, outermost scapulars, and sides of the body finely waved transversely with black and white. 
Middle wing coverts chestnut, the greater velvet black, succeeded by a pure white speculum, bordered externally by hoary gray, 
succeeded by black ; crissum and upper tail coverts black. Longest tertials hoary plumbeous gray. Innermost scapulars with 
a reddish tinge. Inside of wing and axillars pure white. Bill black. 
Female with the bill dusky, edged with reddish. Wing somewhat like that of the male, but with the chestnut red more restricted. 
Length, 22; wing, 10.50; tarsus, 1.64; commissure, 2 04. 
Ilah .—North America generally, and Europe. 
This bird is found sparingly on Puget Sound. In 1854 I was fortunate enough, through the 
kindness of George Gibbs, esq., to obtain a beautiful specimen of the adult male in perfect 
mature plumage, which was killed in the vicinity of Port Townsend, Puget Sound. A beautiful 
specimen of this species I saw in March, 1857, in the interesting collection of Mr. Gruber, an 
enthusiastic taxidermist residing in San San Francisco. In both specimens (Mr. Gruber’s and 
my own) the chestnut-red patch on the wing is strongly marked. 
In following the line of the survey of the proposed northern route for a Pacific railroad across 
the continent, most of which fell between the 46th and 48th parallels of north latitude, our 
party passed through the breeding grounds of vast numbers of ducks. Minnesota, as its Sioux 
name implies, means the “land of water,” ( 'Minne , water, sota, land or country,) and so, indeed, 
it is. For 250 miles west of the Mississippi river we were scarcely ever out of sight of some lake 
or pond, and frequently within the scope of our vision might be seen between 15 and 20 lying 
around us in different directions, varying in size from that of small pools to that of lakes a mile 
or more in length. These lakes, all were more or less adapted as breeding places for many 
species of this family, and, from the numbers of ducks found upon them, their natural advantages 
did not seem to be neglected. The species were principally mallards and teal, although the 
gadwall and several others were not uncommon.—S. 
MARECA AMERICANA, (Gmel.) Stephens. 
Baldpate ; American Widgeon. 
Atias americana, Gmelin, Syst. Nat. I, 1788, 526.— Wilson, Aua. Orn. VIII, 1814, 86; pi. Ixix.— Bon. Obs. No. 
259 .—Aud. Ora. Biog. IV, 1838, 337; pi. 345 —In. Syn. 1839,279. 
Mareea americana, Steph. Shaw’s Gon. Zool. XII, ii, 1824, 135—Sw. F. Bor. Am. IT, 1831,445.— Bon. List, 1838 — 
Baihd, Gen. Rep. Birds, 783. 
.-Inas ( Boschas ) americana, Nuttall, Man. II, 1831, 339. 
