REDHEAD (continued) 
3. Upper Wing Coverts: 
(a) Greater coverts (over tertials): narrow and ragged, 
or new coverts that are grayer and more heavily 
flecked than surrounding feathers 
‘Lesser and/or middle coverts: lightly flecked to 
barely discernibly flecked --------------------------- Immature Male 
(b) Greater coverts (over tertials): narrow and 
ragged,or rounded but similar in color to 
surrounding coverts 
Lesser and middle coverts: entirely unflecked ------- Immature Female 
Ce a 
CANVASBACK 
Tertials of the adult plumage usually have rounded tips. On 
male birds, heavy vermiculation causes them to appear white. On 
female birds, they are iron gray and flecked with white near their 
tips. Tertials of the juvenile plumage are usually frayed to a 
pointed tip, iron gray, and lightly vermiculated to heavily flecked 
on males, but plain or faintly flecked near the tips on females. 
The greater coverts of adults are broadly rounded. Those of. males 
are so heavily vermiculated as to appear white, while those of females 
are iron gray and heavily flecked with white. Juvenile greater coverts 
are narrower, squared, often frayed to a point over the tertials, and 
often indistinctly edged with white over the secondaries. Those of 
males vary from heavily to lightly flecked while those of females vary 
from plain to barely discernible flecking. The: middle coverts of adults 
are broadly rounded and "smooth". On males, these are vermiculated so 
as to appear white. On females, they are iron gray and heavily flecked 
with white particularly near their edges. Juvenile middle coverts are 
narrower and somewhat squared. On males, these are lightly vermiculated 
to heavily flecked, giving an overall appearance of heavily frosted gray. 
On females, these are plain or faintly flecked and the wing appears gray 
or brownish-gray. 
During the hunting season, immature birds often replace both the 
juvenile tertials and tertial coverts with first winter feathers. For 
a given sex, these new feathers are indistinguishable from those of 
adult birds but markedly different from the juvenile greater and middle 
coverts which are retained. 
29 
