94 
FRANK FORESTER’S FIELD SPORTS. 
mouth, and another at the interval of an inch; it then bends 
largely down to the breast-bone, to which it adheres by two 
strong muscles, and has at that place a third expansion. It 
then becomes flattened, and before it separates into the lungs, 
has a fourth enlargement, much greater than any of the former, 
which is bony and round, puffing out from the left side. The 
intestines measured six feet; the stomach contained small 
clams and some glutinous matter; the liver was remarkably 
large.” 
THE VELVET DUCK. 
Fuligula Fusca .— Vulgo, White- Winged Coot. 
This species is very abundant along the coasts of the Atlantic, 
from Georgia westward to Nova Scotia. It is a very indiffer¬ 
ent bird, tough and fishy ; but it is so hard a bird to kill that its 
slaughter is considered a test of skill among fowl-shooters, and 
it is on that account somewhat eagerly pursued. 
“ This* and the preceding are frequently confounded together 
as one and the same species, by our gunners on the sea-coast. 
The former, however, differs in being of greater size; in having 
a broad band of white across the wing; a spot of the same 
under the eye ; and in the structure of its bill. The habits of 
both are very much alike; they visit us -only during the winter; 
feed entirely on shell-fish, which they procure by diving ; and 
return to the northern regions early in spring to breed. Th ey 
often associate with the Scoters, and are taken frequently in the 
same nets with them. Owing to the rank, fishy flavor of its 
flesh, it is seldom sought after by our sportsmen or gunners, and 
is very little esteemed. 
“ The Velvet Duck measures twenty-three inches in length, 
and two feet nine inches in extent, and weighs about three 
pounds; the bill is broad, a little elevated at the base, where it 
* In Wilson’s American Ornithology the American Scoter —Fuligula Ame¬ 
ricana —immediately precedes his notice of the Velvet Duck. 
