Chapter XVI: Part 16

You have now before you another of our Ducks, which at least equals any of the rest in the extent of its migrations. Braving the blasts of the north, it visits the highest latitudes in spring, and returns at the approach of winter, spreading over the whole country, as if it seemed not to care in what region it spends its time, provided it find abundance of water. Now propelling itself gaily, it may be seen searching the pebbly or rocky bottom of the Ohio, or diving deep in the broad bays of Massachusetts or the Chesapeake. Presently it emerges with a cray-fish or a mussel held firmly in its bill. It shakes its head, and over its flattened back roll the large pearly drops of water, unable to penetrate the surface of its compact and oily plumage. The food is swallowed, and the bird, having already glanced around, suddenly plunges headlong. Happy being! Equally fitted for travelling through the air and the water, and not altogether denied the pleasure of walking on the shore; endowed with a cunning, too, which preserves you from many at least of the attempts of man to destroy you; and instinctively sagacious enough to place your eggs deep in the hollow of a tree, where they are secure from the nocturnal prowler, and, amid the down of your snowy breast, are fostered until the expected young come forth. Then with your own bill you carry your brood to the lake, where under your tender care they grow apace. The winged marauders, rapid as their flight may be, cannot injure you there; for while your young ones sink into the deep waters, you arise on whistling wings, and, swifter than Jer Falcon, speed away.

In South Carolina the Golden-eye is abundant during winter, when it at times frequents the reserves of the rice-planters. I have also met with it on the water-courses of the Floridas at that season. From these countries westward and northward, it may be found in all parts of the Union where the waters are not frozen. It is seldom seen on small ponds entirely surrounded by trees, but prefers open places, and on the Ohio is generally found in the more rapid parts, on the eddies of which it dives for food.

This species exhibits a degree of cunning which surpasses that of many other Ducks, and yet at times it appears quite careless. When I have been walking, without any object in view, along the banks of the Ohio, between Shippingport and Louisville, I have often seen the Golden-eyes, fishing almost beneath me, when, although I had a gun, they would suffer me to approach within an hundred paces. But at other times, if I crawled or hid myself in any way while advancing towards them, with a wish to fire at them, they would, as if perfectly aware of my intentions, keep at a distance of fully two hundred yards. On the former occasion they would follow their avocations quite unconcernedly: while on the latter, one of the flock would remain above as if to give intimation of the least appearance of danger. If, in the first instance, I fired my gun at them, they would all dive with the celerity of lightning, but on emerging, would shake their wings as if in defiance. But if far away on the stream, when I fired at them, instead of diving, they would all at once stretch their necks, bend their bodies over the water, and paddle off with their broad webbed feet, until the air would resound with the smart whistling of their wings, and away they would speed, quite out of sight, up the river. In this part of the country, they are generally known by the name of “Whistlers.”

I have observed that birds of this species rarely go to the shores to rest until late in the evening, and even then they retire to secluded rocks, slightly elevated above the surface, or to the margins of sand-bars, well protected by surrounding waters. In either case, it is extremely difficult for a man to get near them; but it is different with the sly Racoon, which I have on several occasions surprised in the dawn, feeding on one which it had caught under night. Yet, on some of the bays of our sea-coasts, the Whistlers are easily enticed to alight by the coarsest representations of their figures in wooden floats, and are shot while they pass and repass over the place to assure themselves that what they see is actually a bird of their own kind. This mode is successfully followed in the Bay and Harbour of Boston in Massachusetts, as well as farther to the eastward.

The Golden-eye is rarely if ever seen in the company of any other species than those which are, like itself, expert divers; such, for example, as the Mergansers, or the Buffel-headed Duck: and it is very rare to see all the individuals of a flock immersed at once. Sometimes, when suddenly surprised, they immediately dive, and do not rise again until quite out of gun-shot. When wounded, it is next to impossible to catch them; for their power of remaining under water is most surprising, and the sooner one gives up the chase the better.

The Golden-eye Ducks manifest a propensity to adhere to a place which they find productive, and that to a most extraordinary degree. One day, while approaching the shallow fording-place of Canoe Creek, near Henderson, in Kentucky, I observed five Whistlers fishing and swimming about. They allowed me to advance to within a few yards of the shore, when, swimming close together, and shaking their necks, they emitted their rough croaking notes. Not being desirous of shooting them, I slapped my hands smartly together, when in an instant they all went down, but suddenly rose again, and running as it were over the water for about ten yards, took flight, passed and repassed several times over the ford, and alighted on the large branches of a sycamore that hung over the creek, at no greater distance from where I stood than about twenty yards. This was the first time in my life that I had seen Golden-eyes alight on a tree. I waded to the opposite side, and gazed upon them with amazement for several minutes. When on the eve of pursuing my course, one of them, gliding downwards with nearly closed wings, launched upon the water, and at once dived. The other four followed one after another, somewhat in the manner of Pigeons or Starlings, as if to ascertain whether some danger might not still exist. I left them at their avocations, and soon after met a family of country people going to Henderson, one of whom asked me respecting the depth of the ford, to which I replied that the water was low, and added that they should be careful lest some ducks that I had left there might frighten the horses on which the women were. The good folks, with whom I was acquainted, laughed, and we parted.

About four o’clock, as I was returning, with a fine Turkey-cock slung to my back, I met the same party, who told me that, “sure enough,” the ducks were at the ford, and I was likely to have “a good crack at them.” There they were when I went up, and I forced them to fly off; but as I was proceeding, and not more than fifty yards beyond the creek, I heard their splashings as they again alighted. In the course of a fortnight I visited the place several times, but never missed finding these five ducks there. This led me to inquire as to the cause, and, having undressed, I waded out barefooted, and examined the bottom, which I found to be composed of rather hard blue clay, full of holes bored by cray-fish. But to make myself quite sure that these creatures formed the attraction to the Ducks, I watched an opportunity, and shot two of the latter, the examination of which satisfied me on the subject.

I had long before this been convinced, that an abundant supply of food afforded a powerful attraction to migrating birds, and on this subject you may remember my remarks in the articles of the Wild Turkey and Passenger Pigeon, in the first volume of this work; but I had not then, nor have I since, seen so strong an instance of pertinacity in attachment to a particular spot.

The flight of this species is powerful, extremely rapid, and wonderfully protracted. It passes along with a speed equal to that of any of the Duck tribe, and I believe can easily traverse the space of ninety miles in an hour. The whistling of its wings may be distinctly heard when it is more than half a mile distant. This statement may be found to be in contradiction to those of probably every previous writer, for it has been a general opinion, that the greater the extent of wing the more rapid is the flight, which is anything but correct. On flying from the water, they proceed for a considerable distance very low, not rising to any height until they have advanced several hundred yards.

The only nest of the Golden-eye which I have examined, I discovered, on the 15th of June, on the margin of a small creek about eight miles from Green Bay. The female left it, probably to go in search of food, whilst I was sitting under the tree in which it was, thinking more of my peculiar situation than of birds of any kind, for I was almost destitute of ammunition, and bent on returning to my family, then in Louisiana. How exciting are such moments to the ardent observer of Nature! In an instant, hunger, fatigue, even the thoughts of my beloved wife and children, vanished; and in a few minutes I was safely lodged on the tree, and thrusting my arm into the cavity of a large broken branch. Nine beautiful, greenish, smooth eggs, almost equally rounded at both ends, were at my disposal. They were laid on some dry grass of the kind that grew on the edges of the creek, and were deeply imbedded in the down of the bird. Not being then aware of the necessity of measuring or keeping eggs, I roasted them on some embers, and finding them truly delicious, soon satisfied my hunger. While I was eating them, the bird returned, but no male was to be seen. Whether many of these birds breed within the limits of the Union I cannot tell. Dr RICHARDSON says they are abundant in the Fur Countries, and Dr TOWNSEND states, that they are plentiful on the Rocky Mountains and along the north-west coast of America.

Of the changes which the young males undergo, nothing is known beyond the fact, that the young of both sexes resemble the adult female, until the approach of the first spring, when their general migration northward removes them from our observation.

At the approach of spring, I have observed this species swell the throat and the feathers of the head, and emit their rough croaking notes very frequently. The males at this period become very pugnacious, though, after all, they remove northward together, preceding the females for at least a fortnight. They usually spend the autumn and the earlier parts of winter separate from the females. These birds have, like the Goosanders, a habit of shaking their heads violently on emerging from the water Their flesh is fishy, and in my opinion unfit for being eaten, unless in cases of excessive hunger. The food of this species, while on fresh water, consists of fish of various kinds, mollusca, young frogs, tadpoles, crayfish, and, I believe, some kinds of grass. When on salt water, they feed principally on bivalves and fishes of different species.

ANAS CLANGULA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 201.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 867. Male.

ANAS GLAUCION, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 201.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 867. Female and Young.

GOLDEN-EYE, ANAS CLANGULA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. viii.
p. 62, pl. 67, fig. 6.

FULIGULA CLANGULA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 393.

CLANGULA VULGARIS, COMMON GOLDEN-EYE, _Richards. and Swains._
Fauna Bor.-Amer. vol. ii. p. 456.

COMMON GOLDEN-EYE, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol ii. p. 441.

Adult Male in winter. Plate CCCXLII. Fig. 1.

Bill shorter than the head, deeper than broad at the base, gradually depressed toward the end, which is rounded. Upper mandible with the dorsal line straight and sloping to the middle, then slightly concave, and finally decurved; the ridge broad and rather concave at the base, narrowed between the nostrils, convex towards the end, the frontal angles long, the sides erect at the base, sloping and convex towards the end, the edges soft, with about fifty lamellæ, the unguis oblong and decurved. Nostrils medial, linear, pervious, nearer the ridge than the margin. Lower mandible flattened, ascending, nearly straight, a little curved at the base, the angle long, rather narrow, the dorsal line very slightly convex, the edges with about fifty lamellæ, the unguis broadly elliptical.

Head large, compressed. Eyes of moderate size. Neck short and thick. Body compact, much depressed. Feet very short, placed far back; tarsus very short, compressed, having anteriorly in its whole length a series of small scutella, and above the outer toe a few broad scales, the rest covered with reticular angular scales. Hind toe very small, with a broad free membrane beneath; anterior toes longer than the tarsus, connected by reticulated membranes, having a sinus on their free margins, the inner with a narrow, lobed, marginal membrane, the outer with a thickened edge, the third and fourth about equal and longest, all covered above with numerous narrow scutella. Claws small, slightly arched, compressed, obtuse, that of first toe very small, of third largest, and with an inner thin edge.

Plumage dense, soft and blended; feathers on the fore part of the head and cheeks very small and rounded, on the upper and hind parts, linear and elongated, as they also are on the lateral and hind parts of the upper neck, so that when raised they give the head a very tumid appearance, which is the more marked that the feathers of the neck beneath are short. Wings small, decurved, pointed; the outer primaries pointed, the first generally longest, the second slightly shorter, in some specimens a little longer, the rest rapidly graduated; the secondaries incurved, obliquely rounded, the inner much elongated. Tail short, graduated, of sixteen feathers.

Bill black. Iris bright yellow. Feet orange-yellow, webs dusky, claws black. Head and upper part of neck deep green, changing to purple in certain lights. Back, posterior scapulars, inner secondaries, edge of wing, alula, primary coverts, primary quills, and four or five outer secondaries, black,—the back being darker and glossy, the wing-feathers tinged with brown. An elliptical patch between the base of the bill and the eye, lower part of neck all round, sides of the body anteriorly, the lower parts generally, the scapulars, excepting their margins, which are black, a large patch on the wing, including many of the smaller coverts, some of the secondary coverts, and six or seven of the secondary quills, pure white. The basal part of the secondary coverts black. Axillar feathers and lower wing-coverts dusky; the elongated feathers of the sides have the inner, some of them also their outer margins black, that colour in those of the innermost covering the whole inner web. The feathers on the legs, and along the sides of the rump dusky. The tail brownish-grey.

Length to end of tail 20 inches, to end of wings 17-1/2, to end of claws 20-1/4; extent of wings 31-1/2; bill along the ridge 1-5/8, from the angles 2, along the edge of lower mandible 2-3/12; wing from flexure 9; tail 4-1/2; tarsus 1-5/12; hind toe (6-1/2)/12, its claw (2-1/2)/12; second toe 1-9/12, its claw (3-1/2)/12; third toe 2-1/4, its claw (4-1/2)/12; fourth toe 2-4/12, its claw 3/12. Weight 2 lb. 4-1/2 oz.

Of another male, length to end of tail 19-1/2, to end of claws 21-1/2, to end of wings 17; extent of wings 31.

Adult Female. Plate CCCXLII. Fig. 2.

The female is much smaller. Bill dusky, a portion at the end, not however including the unguis, dull yellowish-orange. Eyes and feet as in the male. Head and upper part of neck dull reddish-brown. Lower part of neck and the sides of the body brownish-grey, the feathers margined with pale grey. Upper parts greyish-brown, much darker behind; tail brownish-grey; wings brownish-black, seven of their coverts, excepting at the bases, white, the smaller coverts lighter and tipped with greyish-white; the legs and sides of the rump greyish-brown.

Length to end of tail 16 inches, to end of wings 15, to end of claws 17-1/4; extent of wings 28; wing from flexure 8-1/2; tail 3-1/4; bill along the ridge 1-3/8, from the angles 1-3/4, along the lower mandible 1-(5-1/2)/8; tarsus 1-(3-1/2)/8; hind toe 5/8, its claw (1-1/2)/8; middle toe 2-(2-1/2)/8, its claw 3/8; outer toe 1/8 longer; inner toe and claw 2. Weight 1-3/4 lb.

An adult male examined. The tongue is 2 inches long, fleshy, papillate at the base, with two series of lateral filaments, a deep median groove, and a thin semicircular tip, as in many other ducks. The œsophagus is 10 inches long, of moderate diameter, dilated towards the lower part of the neck to 1/2 inch; its walls very thick; the proventriculus with numerous oblong glandules. The stomach is a large and powerful gizzard, of a roundish form, 2 inches long, and of equal diameter, its lateral muscles very large, and upwards of half an inch thick; its epithelium rugous. The intestine is 6 feet 1 inch long, its diameter varying from 5 twelfths to 4 twelfths; the rectum 4 inches long; the cœca 3-1/4 inches in length, their greatest diameter 2-1/2 twelfths. The contents of the stomach a soft mass of a reddish colour, in which are distinguished small mussels and remains of fishes, with some vegetable fibres.

The trachea is 9 inches long, for 4 inches narrow, its diameter being about 4-1/2 twelfths, and its rings, which are 60 in number, cartilaginous; it then forms an ovato-oblong expansion, which, when drawn out, is 2-1/2 inches long, and 1 inch in breadth, and is formed of ossified and flattened rings, narrower behind, placed obliquely, and about 30 in number; it then contracts to a diameter of 5 twelfths, and has 16 free rings, but below this the rings, 25 in number, become united or blended, and gradually expand into a vast irregular cavity, having a broad bony frame in front, membranous behind, and separating to the distance of 1 inch, the bronchi, which are large, the right one much larger and longer than the left, and composed of 20 rings, all of which are almost complete and cartilaginous, excepting the two upper. The rings of the left bronchus, also about 20, are more incomplete.

Now for conjectures. These enormous dilatations are intended for strengthening the voice. But the voice is not strong in this duck. Well, then, they are receptacles of air, to enable the bird to keep longer under water. But the bird does not keep longer under water than many other ducks, and besides, the female, which has no such dilatations, dives as well as the male.

One use at least is this. A comparison of the windpipe of an American Golden-eye, with those of two Scotch ones, shews that the so-called _Clangula Americana_, is in this respect precisely similar to the _Clangula chrysophthalma_. Their digestive organs are also the same; and American skins compared with European skins, exhibit no differences of the slightest importance. Some individuals, especially males, have much larger bills than others, but this happens in the birds of both countries, and the Golden-eye is not singular in this respect. _Clangula Americana_, therefore, requires a better elucidation than the appendage of a “Nob,” before it can be admitted as a species.

RUDDY DUCK.

_FULIGULA RUBIDA_, BONAP.

PLATE CCCXLIII. MALE, FEMALE, AND YOUNG.

Look at this plate, Reader, and tell me whether you ever saw a greater difference between young and old, or between male and female, than is apparent here. You see a fine old male in the livery of the breeding season, put on as it were expressly for the purpose of pleasing the female for a while. The female has never been figured before; nor, I believe, has any representation been given of the young in the autumnal plumage. Besides these, you have here the young male at the approach of spring.

The Ruddy Duck is by no means a rare species in the United States; indeed I consider it quite abundant, especially during the winter months, in the Peninsula of Florida, where I have shot upwards of forty in one morning. In our Eastern Districts they make their appearance early in September, and are then plentiful from Eastport to Boston, in the markets of which, as well as of New York, I have seen them. On the Ohio and Mississippi they arrive about the same period; and I have no doubt that they will be found breeding in all our Western Territories, as soon as attention is paid to such matters as the searching for nests with the view of promoting science, or of domesticating birds which might prove advantageous to the husbandman.

My friend Dr BACHMAN informs me that this species is becoming more abundant every winter in South Carolina. In the month of February he has seen a space of the extent of an acre covered with it. Yet he has never found one in full summer plumage in that country. It is equally fond of salt or brackish and of fresh waters; and thus we find it at times on our sea-coast, bays, and mouths of rivers, as well as on lakes and even small ponds in the interior, or on our salt marshes, provided they are not surrounded by trees, as it cannot rise high in the air unless in an open space of considerable extent. At the time of their arrival, they are seen in small flocks, more than from seven to ten being seldom found together, until they reach the Southern States, where they congregate in great flocks. When they leave their northern breeding-grounds, some proceed along the coast, but a greater number along our numerous rivers.

The flight of the Ruddy Duck is rapid, with a whirring sound, occasioned by the concave form of the wings and their somewhat broad ends, the whistling sound produced by other species having more pointed and stiffer quills, not being heard in this, or only in a very slight degree. They rise from the water, with considerable difficulty, being obliged to assist themselves with their broad webbed feet, and to run as it were on the surface for several yards, always against the breeze, when it blows smartly. The strength of the muscles of their feet enables them to spring from the ground at once. When they are fairly on wing, they fly in the same manner as most of our travelling ducks, sustain themselves with ease, and are apt to remove to great distances. They alight on the water more heavily than most others that are not equally flattened and short in the body; but they move on that element with ease and grace, swimming deeply immersed, and procuring their food altogether by diving, at which they are extremely expert. They are generally disposed to keep under the lee of shores on all occasions. When swimming without suspicion of danger, they carry the tail elevated almost perpendicularly, and float lightly on the water; but as soon as they are alarmed, they immediately sink deeper, in the manner of the Anhinga, Grebes, and Cormorants, sometimes going out of sight without leaving a ripple on the water. On small ponds they often dive and conceal themselves among the grass along the shore, rather than attempt to escape by flying, to accomplish which with certainty they would require a large open space. I saw this very often when on the plantation of General HERNANDEZ in East Florida. If wounded, they dived and hid in the grass; but, as the ponds there were shallow, and had the bottom rather firm, I often waded out and pursued them. Then it was that I saw the curious manner in which they used their tail when swimming, employing it now as a rudder, and again with a vertical motion; the wings being also slightly opened, and brought into action as well as the feet. They are by no means shy, for I have often waded toward them with my gun until very near them, when I cared not about shooting them, but was on the look-out for a new Rail or Gallinule, along the margin of the ponds. They are often seen in company with Teals, Scaup Ducks, Gadwalls, Shovellers, and Mallards, with all of which they seem to agree.

My opinion that the males of this species lose the brightness of their spring dress before they return to us in autumn, is founded on the occurrence of multitudes of males at that season destitute of the garb in question, and my examination of many for the purpose of determining their sex and ascertaining that they were old birds. In February 1832, I saw immense flocks of Ruddy Ducks about an hundred miles up the St John’s in Florida. They would start from the water, as our schooner advanced under sail, patting it with their feet, so as to make a curious and rather loud noise, somewhat resembling the fall of hail-stones on the shingles. Their notes are uttered in a rather low tone and very closely resemble those of the female Mallard. They afford good eating when fat and young, and especially when they have been feeding for some weeks on fresh waters, where their food generally consists of the roots and blades of such grasses as spring from the bottom of rivers and ponds, as well as of the seeds of many gramineæ. When on salt marshes, they eat small univalve shells, fiddlers, and young crabs, and on the sea-coast, they devour fry of various sorts. Along with their food, they swallow great quantities of sand or gravel.

At St Augustine, in Florida, I shot a young bird of this species immediately under the walls of the fort. Although wounded severely and with one of its legs broken close to the body, it dived at once. My Newfoundland dog leaped into the water, and on reaching the spot where the bird had disappeared, dived also, and in a few moments came up with the poor thing in his mouth. When the dog approached I observed that the duck had seized his nose with its bill; and when I laid hold of it, it tried to bite me also. I have found this species hard to kill, and when wounded very tenacious of life, swimming and diving at times to the last gasp.

In the Fauna Boreali-Americana, the tail of the Ruddy Duck is said to be composed of sixteen feathers, and in NUTTALL’s Manual of twenty; but the number is eighteen.

RUDDY DUCK, ANAS RUBIDA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol. viii. p.
137, pl. 71, fig. 5. male; pl. 130, fig. 6. young male.

FULIGULA RUBIDA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of United
States, p. 390.

FULIGULA RUBIDA, RUDDY DUCK, _Richards. and Swains._ Fauna
Bor.-Amer. vol. ii. p. 455.

RUDDY DUCK, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 426.

Adult Male in summer. Plate CCCXLIII. Fig. 1.

Bill as long as the head, a little higher than broad at the base, depressed and widened toward the end, which is rounded. Dorsal outline straight and declinate to the nostrils, then direct and slightly concave, the sides sloping and concave at the base, broadly convex toward the end, the edges soft, with about forty short erect lamellæ internally on each side, the unguis linear-oblong, suddenly decurved and directed backwards, its lower part transversely expanded and serrulate. Nostrils in an oblong depression covered with skin, medial, rather small, linear oblong, pervious. Lower mandible flattened, a little recurved, its angle very long and narrow, the laminæ about a hundred and forty and extremely small, the unguis oblong.

Head rather large, oblong. Eyes of moderate size. Neck short and thick. Body full, much depressed. Legs short and placed rather far behind; tibia bare for a short space; tarsus very short, compressed, with an anterior series of small scutella, an outer short series going to the fourth toe, the rest reticulated. Hind toe very small, with a free inferior web; anterior toes very long, slender, the middle toe double the length of the tarsus, the outer almost as long, the inner considerably shorter, and having a broad lobed margin; the webs reticulated. Claws rather small, slender, compressed, slightly arched, acute.

Plumage dense, blended, on the upper parts very soft; on the fore part of the head stiffish; on the lower parts with a silky gloss, and stiff, having the extremities broad, and the barbs strong and pointed. Wings very short, of moderate breadth, concave, pointed; primaries tapering, the first longest, obliquely rounded. Tail short, much graduated, of _eighteen_ stiff, narrow feathers, of which the shaft is very strong, and runs out in a flattened concave point.

Bill and edges of eyelids greyish-blue. Iris hazel. Feet dull greyish-blue; webs inclining to dusky; claws greyish-brown. Upper part of the head and nape deep bluish-black, that colour running to a point about the middle of the neck; a large white patch on each side of the head, from the bill to behind the ear, narrowed on the throat. Neck all round, and all the upper parts, as well as the sides of the rump, rich glossy brownish-red or chestnut; the lower parts greyish-white, tinged with brown, and marked with transverse interrupted bands of dusky. Wing-coverts, quills, and tail-feathers, blackish-brown.

Length to end of tail 14-3/4 inches, to end of wings 12-1/2, to end of claws 15, to carpal joint 7-3/4; extent of wings 21-1/2; wing from flexure 6-1/4; tail 3-1/2; bill along the ridge 1-5/8, along the edge of lower mandible 1-5/8; tarsus 1-1/4; hind toe and claw (4-1/2)/8; inner toe 1-3/4, its claw 1/4; middle toe 2-3/8, its claw 3/8; outer toe 2-3/8, its claw 1/4. Weight 1-3/4 lb. Average measurements of six individuals.

The black on the head of the male is sometimes marked with a few white feathers.

Adult Female in summer. Plate CCCXLIII. Fig. 2.

The plumage presents the same characters as in the male. The bill is of a darker greyish-blue; iris as in the male; feet darker. The top of the head, and all the upper parts, are dark reddish-brown, minutely dotted and undulated with dusky; wings and tail as in the male; lower parts duller than in the male, but similarly marked; the throat, and a band from the base of the upper mandible to beneath the eye, brownish-white.

Male one year old. Plate CCCXLIII. Fig. 3.

Bill, eyes, and feet as in the adult. A similar white patch on the side of the head; upper part of head and hind neck dull blackish-brown; throat and sides of the neck greyish-brown; lower part of neck, dull reddish-brown, waved with dusky; upper parts as in the adult, but of a duller tint; lower parts greyish-white.

Young in December. Plate CCCXLIII. Fig. 4.

Bill dusky; iris hazel; feet yellowish-green, webs dusky. All the upper parts dull reddish-brown tinged with grey, and barred with dusky; wings and tail dark greyish-brown. Cheeks, fore part and sides of neck, and all the lower parts, dull yellowish-white, undulated with dusky; as is the rump above; the lower tail-coverts white.

The tongue of a male is 1 inch 8 twelfths long, and of the same general form as that of the Fuligulæ, but a little more dilated at the end. The œsophagus is 1/2 inch in diameter until its entrance into the thorax, when it contracts, and again expands to 6 twelfths, to form the proventriculus, of which the glandules are oblong, small, and very numerous, occupying a space of 2-1/4 inches in length. The stomach is a strong gizzard, of a roundish form, 1 inch 5 twelfths long, 1-1/2 inch broad; its lateral muscles very large, and about 8 twelfths thick; the epithelium confined to two round spaces 1/2 inch in diameter, opposite the lateral muscles. The intestine is 5 feet 1-1/2 inch long, its diameter varying from 5 twelfths to 3-1/2 twelfths. The rectum is 2 inches 10 twelfths long; the cœca 4 inches 2 twelfths their greatest diameter 2-1/2 twelfths.

In another male, the œsophagus is 7-1/2 inches long; the stomach 1 inch 5 twelfths long, 1 inch 6 twelfths broad; the intestine 5 feet 11 inches long; the rectum 2-3/4 inches; the cœca 4-1/8 inches, their greatest diameter 2-1/2 twelfths.

The trachea is 5-3/4 inches long. The thyroid bone is comparatively large, forming an expansion 7 twelfths long, 5 twelfths broad. At its upper part the trachea has a diameter of 3 twelfths, about the middle enlarges to 4 twelfths, and so continues nearly to the end, when it contracts to 2 twelfths. The last ring is very large, being formed of five or six united rings, of which the last two or three are split; but there is no expansion or tympanum as in other ducks. The muscles are as in the other species of this family. The bronchi are of moderate length, with about 15 half rings.

LONG-LEGGED SANDPIPER.

_TRINGA HIMANTOPUS_, BONAP.

PLATE CCCXLIV.

I have often spoken of the great differences as to size and colour that are observed in birds of the same species, and which have frequently given rise to mistakes, insomuch that the male, the female, and the young, have been considered as so many distinct species. The Long-legged Sandpiper has been treated in this manner, and has latterly reappeared under the name of _Tringa Douglassii_, in the Fauna Boreali-Americana of my friends RICHARDSON and SWAINSON. BONAPARTE was, in truth, the first who described this bird; and although some differences might be found between his specimen and the _one_ described in the work just mentioned, they are trifling compared with those which I have observed between seven or eight individuals all procured from the same flock at a single shot. It is strange that neither BONAPARTE nor SWAINSON have mentioned the sex of their specimen.

On the morning of the 4th of April 1837, while seated among the drift wood that had accumulated on the southern shore of the island of Barataria, forty miles from the south-west pass of the Mississippi, and occupied in observing some Pelicans, I saw a flock of about thirty Long-legged Sandpipers alight within ten steps of me, near the water. They immediately scattered, following the margin of the retiring and advancing waves, in search of food, which I could see them procure by probing the wet sand in the manner of Curlews, that is, to the full length of their bill, holding it for a short time in the sand, as if engaged in sucking up what they found. In this way they continued feeding on an extended line of shore of about thirty yards, and it was pleasing to see the alacrity with which they simultaneously advanced and retreated, according to the motions of the water. In about three quarters of an hour, during all which time I had watched them with attention, they removed a few yards beyond the highest wash of the waves, huddled close together, and began to plume and cleanse themselves. All of a sudden they ceased their occupation, stood still, and several of them emitted a sharp _tweet-tweet_, somewhat resembling the notes of _Totanus solitarius_; immediately after which seven birds of the same species passed close to me, and alighted near those which I had already watched. They at once began to feed, and as I thought that the first flock might join them, and that I might lose the opportunity of procuring specimens, in sufficient number, I fired and killed eleven. The rest flew off, and were joined by the second group, the whole flying to windward in a compact body, and emitting every now and then their sharp _tweet_, _tweet_, until out of sight and hearing.

My son JOHN obtained several of these birds on the same island while they were feeding on the margins of a fresh-water pond; and we saw them on almost every island and bay on our way to the Texas, where we also procured some on Galveston Island.

The flight of these Sandpipers is rapid and regular. They move compactly, and often when about to alight, or after being disturbed, incline their bodies to either side, shewing alternately the upper and lower parts. On foot they move more like Curlews than Tringas, they being as it were more sedate in their deportment. At times, on the approach of a person, they squat on the ground, very much in the manner of the Esquimaux Curlew, _Numenius borealis_; and their flesh is as delicate as that of the species just named. In the stomach of several individuals I found small worms, minute shell-fish, and vegetable substances, among which were the hard seeds of plants unknown to me. I suspect that in summer and autumn they feed on small fruits and berries, though of this I have no proof.

Among those which we procured, I found the differences in the colour of the plumage quite as great as in _Scolopax noveboracensis_, some of the younger birds being yet in their winter dress, while the older had already assumed a reddish colour on the cheeks, the top of the head, and the breast. The females were all larger than the males, and differed from each other not only in the markings of the plumage, but also in the length of the bill, to the extent of a quarter of an inch, and of the legs, to a still greater extent. Whether or not this species assumes a uniform reddish tint in the breeding season, such as is observed in the Pigmy Curlew, _Tringa subarquata_, I am unable to say, although I am much inclined to think that it does.

Their passage through the United States is very rapid, both in spring and autumn, Some few spend the winter in Lower Louisiana, but nearly all proceed southward beyond the Texas.

TRINGA HIMANTOPUS, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of
United States, p. 316.

TRINGA DOUGLASSII, _Swainson_, DOUGLAS’S SANDPIPER,
_Richards. and Swains._ Fauna Bor.-Amer. vol. ii. 379.

TRINGA HIMANTOPUS, SLENDER-SHANKS SANDPIPER, _Richards. and
Swains._ Fauna Bor.-Amer. vol. ii. 380.

LONG-LEGGED SANDPIPER, AUDUBON’S STILT SANDPIPER, and
DOUGLASS’ STILT SANDPIPER, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p.
138, 140, 141.

Male in Spring. Plate CCCXLIV. Fig. 1.

Bill much longer than the head, very slender, subcylindrical, very slightly decurved, compressed at the base, the end rather depressed, considerably enlarged. Upper mandible with the dorsal line almost straight, being very slightly decurved towards the end, the ridge narrow, convex, flattened towards the tip, the sides sloping, with a narrow groove extending nearly to the end, the edges rather blunt and soft, the tip decurved. Nostrils basal, linear, pervious. Lower mandible with the angle long and very narrow, the dorsal line straight, towards the end slightly deflected, the sides sloping outwards, with a long narrow groove, the tip a little broader.

Head small, oblong, compressed. Eyes small. Neck rather long. Body slender. Feet long, very slender; tibia bare for an inch; tarsus long, slender, compressed, covered before and behind with numerous small scutella; hind toe very small, the rest of moderate length, slender, the second very slightly longer than the fourth, the third very little longer; short basal webs, running out along the margins, that between the third and fourth toes larger. Claws rather long, very slender, slightly arched, tapering, compressed.

Plumage very soft, blended; the feathers somewhat distinct on the back. Wings very long, pointed; primaries tapering, the first longest, the second slightly shorter, the rest rapidly graduated; outer secondaries slightly incurved, obliquely sinuate on the outer web towards the end, the inner web rounded; inner secondaries very narrow, tapering, reaching to three-fourths of an inch of the longest primary when the wing is closed. Tail of moderate length, nearly even, but with the two middle feathers exceeding the rest by two and a half twelfths of an inch, of twelve narrow, rounded feathers.

Bill black. Iris brown. Feet dull yellowish-green, claws black. The upper parts are brownish-black, the feathers margined with reddish-white, the edges of the scapulars with serriform markings of the same; rump and upper tail-coverts white, transversely barred with dusky; tail light grey, the feathers white at the base and along the middle. Primary quills and their coverts brownish-black, the inner tinged with grey, the shaft of the outer primary white, secondaries brownish-grey, margined with reddish-white, the inner dusky. A broad whitish line over the eye; loral band dusky; auriculars pale brownish-red; fore part and sides of neck, greyish-white, tinged with red, and longitudinally streaked with dusky; the rest of the lower parts pale reddish-brown, transversely barred with dusky; the middle of the breast and the abdomen without markings. Dimensions of five individuals.

Length to end of tail, 8-3/4 8-1/4 7-3/4 8 7-1/2
wings, 9-1/4 8-3/8 8-1/2 8-3/4 8-3/4
claws, 11-1/4 10-5/8 10 10-1/2 10-7/8
Extent of wings, 16-3/4 16 15-1/2 17 16

Weight of an individual, 2-3/4 oz.

Female. Plate CCCXLIV. Fig. 2.

The female is considerably larger, but otherwise resembles the male. Dimensions of five individuals.

Length to end of tail, 10-1/2 11 9-1/4 10-3/4 8-1/2
wings, 11 10-3/4 11-3/4 11-1/2 10-1/8
claws, 13-1/4 12-1/2 11-1/2 12-3/4 11-3/4
Extent of wings, 18 16-1/2 16-7/8 16-1/2 17-3/4

Weight of two individuals, 4 oz., 3-3/4 oz.

The winter plumage differs considerably; the bill, iris, and feet, are as above. The upper parts are brownish-grey, the head narrowly streaked with dusky; the rump as in summer; the scapulars plainly margined with whitish; the quills as in summer. The band over the eye lighter, the loral space grey; the fore part and sides of the neck greyish-white, longitudinally streaked with grey, the sides similar, and with the lower tail-coverts barred with grey, the rest of the lower parts white.

Length to end of tail in a male 9 inches; extent of wings 16-1/2; wing from flexure 5-1/4; tail 2-4/12; bill along the ridge 1-6/12, along the edge of lower mandible 1-7/12; bare part of tibia 1; tarsus 1-7/12; hind toe and claw (4-1/2)/12; middle toe (9-1/12)/12, its claw (2-1/2)/12.

The roof of the mouth is flat, with three rows of papillæ. The tongue is 1 inch 5 twelfths long, emarginate and papillate at the base, very slender, concave above, tapering to a point. The œsophagus is 4 inches long, very narrow, its diameter 2 twelfths. The proventriculus is oblong, 7 twelfths in length, 3-1/2 twelfths in diameter. The stomach is a strong gizzard of a roundish form, compressed, 8 twelfths long, 7-1/12 twelfths broad; its lateral muscles large, its epithelium very dense, thick, longitudinally rugous, and of a reddish-brown colour. The intestine is 12-1/2 inches long, its anterior part 2-3/4 twelfths in diameter, the hind part 1-1/2 twelfth. The rectum is 1-1/2 inch long; the cœca 11 twelfths long, 1 twelfth in diameter, obtuse.

The trachea is 3 inches long, slender, its diameter at the upper part 1-3/4 twelfths, gradually diminishing to the lower part, where it is 1 twelfth. The rings, about 110 in number, are slender and unossified, the two last divided. The bronchi have about 15 half rings. The contractor muscles are thin, the sterno-tracheal slender; and there is a pair of inferior laryngeal muscles going to the first bronchial rings.

In another individual, the intestine was 13-1/4 inches long, the rectum 1-1/2 inch, the cœca 1 inch.

The contents of the gizzard in both were fragments of shells, small black seeds, and much sand and gravel.

AMERICAN WIDGEON.

_ANAS AMERICANA_, GMEL.

PLATE CCCXLV. MALE AND FEMALE.

This lively and very handsome Duck is abundant during winter at New Orleans, where it is much esteemed on account of the juiciness of its flesh, and is best known by the name of _Zinzin_. In the Western Country, and in most parts of the Eastern and Middle States, it is called the _Bald Pate_. Early in September it enters the United States by their northern extremities, as well as from the Texas; and in both these regions it is now well known to breed in nearly equal numbers. Those which retreat south-westward remain along the coast and in the interior of the Floridas, as well as all that portion of the Gulf of Mexico extending to the mouths of the Mississippi, where they remain until the latter part of April, sometimes even until the middle of May, as they have but a comparatively short journey to perform in order to arrive in Mexico in time to breed. On the coast of the Atlantic they keep in the marshes in company with various species of the same family, being in a manner indifferent as to their associates. During early spring, in Louisiana, they are often seen alighted on extensive plains that have very little water on them.

While advancing along the shores of the Bay of Mexico, in April 1837, I and my party observed this species in considerable numbers; and during the whole of our stay in the Texas, we daily saw and very frequently procured Widgeons. There they were found in ponds of brackish water, as well as in the fresh-water streams. Before we left that country they were all paired, and I was informed by the Honourable M. FISHER, Secretary to the Texian Navy, that a good number of them breed in the maritime districts, along with several other Ducks, and that he annually received many of the young birds. Their manners at this time fully proved the correctness of the statements of all those who spoke to me on this subject. Indeed my opinion is that some of these birds also propagate in certain portions of the most southern districts of the Floridas, and in the Island of Cuba, as I have seen Widgeons in the peninsula in single pairs, in the beginning of May.

Their retrograde movements in spring, like those of other species, depend much upon the temperature or the advance of the season; and those which proceed northward set out on their journey much earlier than those which move in the opposite direction, the former departing from the middle of March to the 20th of April. Their first appearance on the waters of the Ohio takes place late in September or early in October, when they at once throw themselves into the ponds of the interior, and there remain until the waters are closed by ice, scarcely any betaking themselves to the rivers, unless to repose on the sand-bars. They are there, however, less abundant than nearer the sea-coast, and usually associate with Pintails and Teals, but rarely with Mallards or Dusky Ducks. Whilst in those retired ponds of the forest, from one to another of which they roam in quest of food, they are less noisy than most other species, even than the Pintails, and in this respect resemble the Blue-winged Teals, whose notes are feeble and delicate. Those of the Widgeon are a soft whistle somewhat similar to the word _Sweet_, enunciated as if produced by a flute or a hautboy, and in my judgment not at all like the _hew hew_ spoken off by WILSON. They are less shy in those retired places than most species, or are to appearance less aware of the danger of allowing the sportsman to approach them.

In feeding they immerse their neck and the anterior part of the body, generally swimming closer together than other Ducks, in consequence of which habits they are easily neared and often shot in great numbers at a single discharge. During their stay in those districts they feed on the roots and seeds of grasses, water-insects, beech-nuts, small fry, and leeches, and are not so delicate as an article of food as those procured in the rice-fields of South Carolina, or in the plantations of Louisiana and Florida. On their return in spring (for in mild winters they remain all the season in Kentucky), they generally continue until the end of April, and usually pair before they depart; which induces me to believe that numbers of them breed within the northern limits of the United States, although I have not heard of any having actually been seen doing so.

On the lakes near New Orleans, as well as on the Chesapeake, they are not unfrequently found in company with the Canvass-back Ducks. WILSON mentions their being partially supplied with food by the industry of the latter; but they manage very well in most parts without such assistance. When in full security, the Bald-pates feed at all hours of the day; but in thickly inhabited parts of the country, they usually seek for food at night or early in the morning.

The flight of this species is rather swift, well sustained, and accompanied by the whistling sound of the wings usual in birds of this family. They move in flocks of moderate size, and without much care as to the disposition of their ranks, being sometimes extended into a front line, sometimes in single file, frequently mingled confusedly, and flying at a moderate height, whether over the land or over the water. When they are first started, they fly almost perpendicularly, in a hurried and rather irregular manner. They walk prettily and with ease. After heavy falls of rain in our Southern States, they often alight in the corn fields, in company with other Ducks, where the ploughed earth, being quite moist and soft, yields them an abundant supply of worms and insects, as well as grains of corn, pease, and other equally nutritious substances.

Dr RICHARDSON informs us that this species breeds in the woody districts of the Fur Countries, up to their most northern limits, in latitude 80°; and Dr TOWNSEND states that it is abundant on the Columbia River; but he has not furnished me with any account of its breeding, and I have not had an opportunity of observing it during the season of propagation, as I left the Texas without having found a nest or young.

ANAS AMERICANA, _Gmel._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 526.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 861.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of
Birds of United States, p. 384.

AMERICAN WIDGEON, ANAS AMERICANA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol.
viii. p. 86, pl. 69, fig 4.

MARECA AMERICANA, _Stephens_, AMERICAN WIDGEON, _Richards.
and Swains._ Fauna Boreali-Americana, vol. ii. p. 445.

AMERICAN WIDGEON, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 389.

Adult Male. Plate CCCXLV. Fig. 1.

Bill nearly as long as the head, deeper than broad at the base, depressed towards the end, the sides nearly parallel, the tip rounded. Upper mandible with the frontal angles short and obtuse, the dorsal line at first sloping, then concave, at the end decurved, the ridge broad and flat at the base, then broadly convex, the edges soft, with about fifty-five internal lamellæ, the unguis obovate, curved abruptly at the end. Nostrils sub-basal, lateral, near the ridge, oblong, pervious. Lower mandible flattened, its angle very long and rather narrow, the dorsal line very short, slightly convex, the edges soft, with about seventy lamellæ.

Head of moderate size, oblong, compressed. Neck rather long, slender. Body elongated and slightly depressed. Feet very short; tibia bare for about a quarter of an inch; tarsus very short, compressed, anteriorly with two series of scutella, the outer shorter, the rest covered with reticulated angular scales; toes obliquely scutellate above; first very small, free, with a narrow membrane beneath; third longest, fourth considerably shorter, second shorter than fourth; their connecting webs entire, on the edge crenate; the second or inner toe with a membranous margin. Claws small, slightly arched, compressed, rather acute; the hind one very small and more curved, that of the middle toe curved outwards, and having the inner edge dilated.

Plumage dense, soft, blended. Feathers of the head and upper neck oblong, small, those along the crown and occiput longer; of the lower parts ovate, glossy, with the extremities of the filaments stiffish. Wings rather long, little curved, narrow, pointed; the first quill longest, the next scarcely shorter, the rest rapidly graduated; secondaries very short, broad, obliquely rounded; the inner elongated and tapering; the tips of the filaments of the outer web of the first primary are separated and curved a little outwards. Tail short, rounded and pointed, of sixteen feathers, of which the middle pair are more pointed and project considerably.