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Show 428 AVES. black; vinous-colou r·cd breast; red head; pale forehead; the wing white, green, and black. The capsule is rounded, moderate, and very bony.(l) There are several small species designated by the general name of TEAL • .!ln. querquedula, L.; La Sarcelle ordinaire, Enl. 946, and the old male, .!ln. circia, Frisch, 176; Naum. 47, f. 66 and 67. (The Garganey Duck.) A grey ground, reticulated with black; a white line round, and at the end of the eye, &c. Common on ponds, &c. Its capsule is a pyriform enlargement. .B.n. crecca, L.; La petite Sarcelle; Enl. 947; Frisch, 174; Naum. 48, f. 68, 69; Wils. VIII, lxx, 4; Brit. Zool. pl. 2. (The Com· mon Teal.) Finely striped with blackish; the head red; a green band at the corner of the eye edged with two white lines, &c. The capsule resembles a pea.(2) MERGus, Lin. The genus of the Mergansers comprehends those species in which the bill, thinner nnd more cylindrical than that of the Ducks, is armed along its edges with small pointed teeth resembling those of a saw and directed backwards; the tip of the upper mandible is hooked. Their carriage and even plumage are those of Ducks, pro· perly so called; but their gizzard is less muscular, and their intes· tines and creca shorter. The inflation of the lower larynx in the males is enormous, and partly membranous. They live on lakes and ponds, where they are very destructive to fish. Three species are found in France during the winter, whose variations of plumage have induced some naturalists to increase the number. It is said that they breed in the North among the rocks or reeds, and Jay a great many eggs. Merg. merganser, L.; Le Harle vulgaire; Enl. 951; Naum. I, c. 61, f. 93, Brit. Zoo]. pl. N; Frisch, 190; Wils. VIII, lxviii, I (The Goosander), is the size of a Duck, and has red feet and a bill of the same hue. The head of the old male is of a deep green, the feathers on its summit forming a sort of toupee; the mantle is black, with a white spot over the wing; under· (1) Add .!ln. rutila, Pall. Nov. Com. Pctrop., XIV, xxii;-.!ln. cana and cruarca, Brown, Ill. 4 L and 42;-.!ln. precilorhyncha, Indian Zool. pl. xiv;-the Jf:nBen (.On. americana), Enl. 955, Wils. VIII, lxix, 4;-the Marec (.!ln. baltame:nsis), Catesb. 93;-.!ln. obscura, Wils. VIII, lxxii, 5;-.!ln. arcuata, Gm. or paturi, Spix, C. (2) Add, .!ln. discm·s, Enl. 966 and 403;-An. manillensis, Sonner. Voy. J, pl.lv. PALMIPEDES. 429 neath and the neck, white, slightly tinged with rose-colour. The young and the females-Merg. castor, Enl. 953; Frisch, 191; Naum. 61, f. 93, B, are grey with a red head. Merg. serrator, L.; Harle lzuppe; Enl. 207; Edw. 95; Naum. I, c. 61, f. 90; Wils. VIII, lxix, 2. (The Red-breasted Merganser.) Bill and feet red; the body variegated with black, white, and brown; head of a black-green; a pendent tuft on the occiput. The young and the females,-Harles noirs, H. a manteau noir; Naum. 62, f. 95, have a brown head. M. albellus, L.; La Piette; En I. 449; Frisch, 172; N aum. 63, f. 97; Brit. Zool. pl. N. I; Wils. VIII, xci, 9. (The Smew.) Bill and feet blue; body white, varied with black on the mantle; a black spot near the eye, and one on the occiput. The young males and the females,-Merg. minutus, mustelinus, &c. Enl. 450; Brit. Zool. pl. N. 2; Naum. 63, f. 98, are grey with a red head.( 1) {1) Among the Mergansers foreign to Europe, the only ones well ascertained are theM. cucullatus of Carolina, Enl. 935 and 936, and theM. brasiliensis, Vieill. Gal. 283. |
