(Spatula clypeata)
The shoveler, or spoonbill, as they are commonly called, is also an
early duck upon our ponds; they, too, breed throughout the mountains
of our hunting grounds. When they first arrive on our ponds they are
very fat and finely flavored, but they soon become poor of flesh and
lose the flavor brought with them from their mountain homes. And then
they are generally let pass undisturbed by the discriminating
sportsman.
=Color=--Male--Head and neck, green; breast, white, shading into rusty
chestnut toward the abdomen; lesser wing-coverts, blue; speculum,
green, with white border; legs, orange red.
Female--The female is much smaller than the male and lacks all its
high coloring. The general color is buff, mottled with brown;
wing-coverts and speculum, same as the male.
=Nest and Eggs=--The nest, which is a rude affair, generally contains
from seven to ten eggs of a light buff color.
=Measurements=--Total length of the male, about 20 and the female, 18
inches; wing, 9 to 9-1/2; bill, about 2-1/2 to 2-3/4 inches, and very
broad at the end.
[Illustration: PIN-TAIL OR SPRIG (Spatula acuta)]