(ANDEAN GOOSE.)
+Chloëphaga melanoptera+, _Burm. La-Plata Reise_, ii. p. 513
(Cordilleras). +Bernicla melanoptera+, _Burm. P. Z. S._ 1872, p.
365; _Scl. et Salv. P. Z. S._ 1876, p. 362; _iid. Nomencl._ p.
128.
_Description._--White; wing-feathers black; scapulars and tail
greenish black; greater wing-coverts externally purplish, forming
a speculum; smaller wing-coverts white; anterior scapulars spotted
with brown, posterior scapulars brown with a greenish tinge: whole
length 30·0 inches, wing 17·5, tail 6·5. _Female_ similar, but
smaller.
_Hab._ Andes of Peru, Bolivia, and Northern Chili.
Dr. Burmeister met with this fine Goose on the Rio Blanco in the
province of San Juan, within the confines of the Argentine Republic.
It is an inhabitant of the high Andes of Peru and Bolivia, and is also
found throughout the central provinces of Chili, descending to the
plains in the winter. Its native name is "_Piuquen_," and it is said to
be so abundant on a lagoon near the Portello Pass between Mendoza and
Santiago that the spot is called "Valle de los Piuquenes."