back 2-2/12, along the edge of lower mandible 2-3/12; tarsus 1-8/12,
middle toe 2, its claw 4/12; wing from flexure 11, tail 5-1/2. Weight
2 lb.
Adult Female. Plate CCXXVII. Fig. 2.
The Female, which is much smaller, has the upper parts variegated with
brownish-black and light yellowish-brown, the margin of the feathers,
and a mark on each side of the shaft being of the latter colour;
the speculum is dusky green, margined behind with white; the primary
quills greyish-brown. The lower parts are of a light brownish-yellow,
the sides variegated with brown, the bill is black, the iris brown,
the feet light bluish-grey.
Length 22-1/2 inches, extent of wings 34. Weight 1 lb. 9 oz.
THE GREEN-WINGED TEAL.
_ANAS CRECCA_, LINN.
PLATE CCXXVIII. MALE AND FEMALE.
Nothing can be more pleasing to an American sportsman, than the arrival
of this beautiful little duck in our Southern or Western States.
There, in the month of September, just as the sun sinks beneath the
horizon, you may find him standing on some mote or embankment of a
rice-field in Carolina, or a neck of land between two large ponds
in Kentucky, his gun loaded with number four, and his dog lying at
his feet. He sees advancing from afar, at a brisk rate, a small dark
cloud, which he has some minutes ago marked and pronounced to be a
flock of Green-winged Teals. Now he squats on his haunches; his dog
lies close; and ere another minute has elapsed, right over his head,
but too high to be shot at, pass the winged travellers. Some of them
remember the place well, for there they have reposed and fed before.
Now they wheel, dash irregularly through the air, sweep in a close
body over the watery fields, and in their course pass near the fatal
spot where the gunner anxiously awaits. Hark, two shots in rapid
succession! The troop is in disorder, and the dog dashes through the
water. Here and there lies a Teal, with its legs quivering; there,
one is whirling round in the agonies of death; some, which are only
winged, quickly and in silence make their way towards a hiding-place,
while one, with a single pellet in his head, rises perpendicularly
with uncertain beats, and falls with a splash on the water. The
gunner has charged his tubes, his faithful follower has brought up
all the game, and the frightened Teals have dressed their ranks, and
flying now high, now low, seem curious to see the place where their
companions have been left. Again they fly over the dangerous spot,
and again receive the double shower of shot. Were it not that darkness
has now set in, the carnage might continue until the sportsman should
no longer consider the thinned flock worthy of his notice. In this
manner, at the first arrival of the Green-winged Teal in the Western
Country, I have seen upwards of six dozen shot by a single gunner in
the course of one day.
I have often thought that water-birds, ducks for example, like
land-birds which migrate in flocks, are very apt to pass over
the place where others of the same kind had been before. Pigeons,
Starlings, Robins, and other land-birds are often observed to do so;
while Curlews, Cormorants, Plovers, Ducks and Geese, are similar
in this respect. The first object in view with such species is to
remove from one part of the country to another, as every one knows;
and as to reach a place of safety abundantly supplied with food, is
the next object, you may perhaps join me in concluding, that, to the
spot or district in which birds have once been and spent a season,
they are ever afterwards inclined to return. Well, the Green-wings
are known to follow each other in flocks, sometimes consisting of a
few families, sometimes of many hundred individuals, particularly in
autumn, when old and young leave the north to avoid the rigours of
its dreary winter. In spring, again, many species both of land and
water birds perform their migrations, either singly or in smaller
groups, the males departing before the females, and in some cases the
young keeping by themselves, an arrangement perhaps intended for the
greater dispersion of the species.
In Louisiana, the Green-winged Teal is named _Sarcelle d’hiver_, while
the Blue-winged species bears the name of _Sarcelle d’été_, although
the latter remains only some weeks in that country after the departure
of the former. Its general name, however, is the “Green-wing”: and
a poor name in my opinion it is, for the bird has not more green on
its wings than several other species have. Indeed, very many birds
are strangely named, not less in _pure_ Latin, than in English,
French, and Dutch; and very many are every year receiving names still
stranger than those they bore. For my part, I am at present a kind
of conservative, and adhere to the old system until I see the mud
raised up by the waders subside, when I may probe my way with more
chance of success.
The Green-winged Teal is a fresh-water bird, being rarely met with
in marine bays, creeks, or lagoons, where, however, it may sometimes
spend a few days. It is accordingly enabled to feed with its body
half-immersed, in the manner of the Mallard and several other species,
for which purpose it is furnished with a comparatively long neck. Its
food consists principally of the seeds of grasses, which are collected
either when floating or when still adhering to their stalks, small
acorns, fallen grapes or berries, as well as aquatic insects, worms,
and small snails. I have never found water lizards, leeches, fishes,
or even tadpoles in their gizzards. The food of this bird being thus
more select than that of most other Ducks, its flesh is delicious,
probably the best of any of its tribe; and I would readily agree with
any epicure in saying, that when it has fed on wild oats at Green
Bay, or on soaked rice in the fields of Georgia and the Carolinas,
for a few weeks after its arrival in those countries, it is much
superior to the Canvass-back in tenderness, juiciness, and flavour.
Indeed, the Green-wing is as much superior to the Canvass-back, as
the European Quail is to the Capercailie, or the Sora of the Delaware
to the Scolopaceous Curlew of the Florida Ever Glades.
On land, the Green-wing moves with more ease and grace than any other
species with which I am acquainted, excepting our beautiful Wood
Duck. It can run at a good rate, without entangling its webbed feet,
as many others do; and in this, too, there is a marked difference
between fresh-water and salt-water Ducks, as one may very readily
perceive. On the water, also, it moves with great ease, at times
with considerable rapidity, and when not severely wounded, is able
to dive in a very creditable manner. On wing it has no rivals among
Ducks. Our two smaller Mergansers, however, are swifter, although they
exhibit none of the graceful movements every now and then shewn by
the Green-wings, when coursing in the air over and around a pond, a
river, or a large wet savannah. They rise from the water at a single
spring, and so swiftly too, that none but an expert marksman need
attempt to shoot them, if when starting they are many yards distant.
While feeding, they proceed in a close body along the shores, or
wherever the water is so shallow that they can reach the bottom
with ease. In savannahs or watery fields intersected by dry ridges,
they remove from one pool to another on foot, unless the distance
is considerable; and in effecting the transit, they run so huddled
together, as to enable a gunner to make great havock among them. When
the cravings of hunger are satisfied, they retire to some clean part
of the shore, or a sandbar, where they rest in perfect harmony, each
individual composing its dress, and afterwards, with wings slightly
drooping, placing its breast to the sun. There they remain for an hour
or more at a time, some sound asleep, some dosing, but rarely without
a trusty sentinel watching over their safety. In this manner they
spend the winter months in the Southern and Western Countries. There,
indeed, they are far more abundant than in our eastern districts, just
because the climate is milder, the human population more dispersed,
and the damp fields, meadows, and savannahs more abundant.
The migrations of this species are performed more over the land than
along the borders of the sea; and it is probable that its principal
breeding-places are in the interior of the fur countries; as it has
been met there by Sir EDWARD PARRY, Sir JAMES ROSS, Dr RICHARDSON, and
other intrepid travellers. Some, however, remain on our great lakes,
and I have seen individuals breeding on the banks of the Wabash, in
Illinois, where I found a female with young, all of which I obtained.
It was not far above Vincennes, and in the month of July. On Lakes
Erie and Michigan, nests containing eggs have also been found; but
these may have been cases in which the birds were unable to proceed
farther north, on account of wounds or other circumstances, or because
of the early period at which they might have paired before the general
departure of the flocks, a cause of detention more common in migratory
birds than people seem to be aware of. These opportunities, few as
they were, have enabled me to see the kinds of places in which the
nests were found, the structure of the nest, the number, size, and
colour of the eggs; so that I have in so far been qualified to draw
a comparison between our Green-winged Teal and that of Europe.
The Green-wings leave the neighbourhood of New Orleans in the end of
February; but in the Carolinas they remain until late in March, at
which time also they depart from all the places between the Atlantic
and the States of Kentucky, Indiana, &c. Farther eastward I have seen
this species as late as the 9th of May, when I shot a few not far
from Philadelphia. As you advance farther along our coast, you find
it more rare; and scarcely any are met with near the shores of the
British provinces. In Newfoundland and Labrador, it is never seen.
Its migrations southward, I am satisfied, extend beyond the United
States; but their extreme limits are unknown to me. I have seldom
seen it associate with other species, although I have frequently
observed individuals on a pond or river not far from other Ducks. It
is more shy than the Blue-winged Teal, but less so than most of our
other fresh-Water Ducks. Its voice is seldom heard during winter,
except when a flock is passing over another that has alighted, when a
few of the males call to the voyagers, as if to invite them to join
them. Before they depart, however, they become noisy. Combats take
place among the males; the females are seen coquetting around them,
and most of the birds are paired before they leave us.
In the few instances in which I found the nest of this bird, and they
were only three, it was not placed nearer the water than five or six
yards, and I should not have discovered it had I not first seen the
birds swimming or washing themselves near the spot. By watching them
carefully I discovered their landing places, and on going up found a
path formed, in a direct line among the rushes. In two cases I came
so near the nest, as almost to touch the sitting bird as it rose
affrighted. While it flew round me, and then alighted on the water, I
viewed the nest, with perhaps more interest than I have felt on most
occasions of a like nature. On a scanty bed of the bird’s own down
and feathers, supported by another of grasses, intermixed with mud
and stalks of the plants around, raised to the height of four or five
inches, I found seven eggs in one, nine in another, and only five in
a third. They were all found in the month of July, and not far from
Green Bay. The average measurement of the eggs was an inch and three
quarters by an inch and three-eighths. They were much rounded, of
a dull yellowish colour, indistinctly marked with a deeper tint, as
if soiled. In one of the nests only the eggs were fresh. I took two
of them, which I afterwards ate. Having planted a stick as a mark
of recognition, I visited the nest three days in succession, but
found that the bird had abandoned it; while those of the other two
nests, which were not more than about a hundred yards distant, and
whose eggs I had handled quite as much, although I took none away,
continued to sit. No male birds were to be seen during my stay in that
neighbourhood. I concluded that although the eggs may be touched or
even handled and lifted from the nest, yet if they were all replaced,
the bird did not take umbrage; but that should any of them be missed,
some strong feeling urged her to abandon the rest. Again I thought
that as incubation had just commenced with this bird, she cared less
about her eggs than the other two whose eggs contained chicks.
Having met with the young of this species only once, at a time when
I was less aware of the necessity of noting observations in writing,
I am unwilling to speak of their colours from recollection. All I can
say is that I had great trouble in catching four of them, so cunningly
did they hide in the grass, and so expert were they at diving.
ANAS CRECCA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 204.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 872.—_Ch. Bonaparte_, Synops. of
Birds of the United States, p. 386.
ANAS CRECCA, _var._ AMERICAN TEAL, _Swains. and Richards._
Fauna Bor. Amer. part ii. p. 443.
GREEN-WINGED TEAL, ANAS CRECCA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith. vol.
viii. p. 101. pl. 70. fig. 4.
AMERICAN TEAL, _Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 400.
Adult Male. Plate CCXXVIII. Fig. 1.
Bill almost as long as the head, deeper than broad at the base,
depressed towards the end, its breadth nearly equal in its whole
length, being however a little enlarged towards the rounded tip.
Upper mandible with the dorsal line at first sloping, then concave,
towards the ends nearly straight, the ridge broad and flat at the
base, then broadly convex, the sides convex, the edges soft, with
about fifty-five lamellæ. Nostrils subbasal, near the ridge, rather
small, elliptical, pervious. Lower mandible flattish, with the angle
very long and rather narrow, the dorsal line very short, straight,
the sides perpendicular with about 130 lamellæ.
Head of moderate size, compressed. Neck of moderate length, rather
slender. Body full, depressed. Wings rather small. Feet short, placed
rather far back; tarsus short, compressed, at its lower part anteriorly
with two series of scutella, the rest covered with reticulated angular
scales. Toes scutellate above; first toe very small, free, with a
narrow membrane beneath; third longest; fourth a little shorter;
the anterior toes united by reticulated webs, of which the outer is
deeply sinuate; claws small, curved, compressed, acute, the hind one
smaller and more curved, that of the third toe largest, and with an
inner sharp edge.
Plumage dense, soft, blended. Feathers of the middle of the head and
upper part of hind neck, very narrow, elongated, with soft filamentous
disunited bands, of the rest of the head and upper part of neck very
short, of the back and lower parts in general broad and rounded. Wings
of moderate length, narrow, acute; primaries strong, curved, tapering,
second longest, first scarcely shorter; secondaries broad, rather
pointed, the inner elongated and tapering, as are the scapulars. Tail
short, rounded and acuminate, of sixteen acuminate feathers.
Bill black. Iris brown. Feet light bluish-grey. Head and upper part
of the neck chestnut-brown; a broad band, narrowing backwards, from
the eye down the back of the neck, deep shining green, edged with
black below, under which is a white line, which before the eye meets
another that curves forward and downward to the angle of the mouth;
chin brownish-black, as are the feathers at the base of the upper
mandible. Upper parts and flanks beautifully undulated, with narrow
brownish-black and white bars; anterior to the wings is a short broad
transverse band of white. Wings brownish-grey; the speculum in its
lower half velvet-black, the upper bright green, changing to purple,
and edged above with black, behind margined with white, before with
reddish-white. Tail brownish-grey, the feathers margined with paler;
the upper coverts brownish-black, edged with light yellowish-grey.
Lower part of neck anteriorly barred as behind; breast yellowish-white,
spotted with black, its lower part white; abdomen white, faintly barred
with grey; a patch of black under the tail, the lateral tail-coverts
cream coloured, the larger black, with broad white margins and tips.
Length to end of tail 14-3/4 inches, to end of claws 15-1/4; extent
of wings 24; wing from flexure 7-1/2; tail 3-1/4; bill along the
back 1-7/12, along the edge of lower mandible 1-9/12; tarsus 1-2/12;
middle toe 1-6/12, its claw 5/12. Weight 10 oz.
Adult Female. Plate CCXXVIII. Fig. 2.
The Female wants the elongated crest, and differs greatly in colouring.
The head and neck are streaked with dark brown and light red, the
fore neck whitish; the upper parts mottled with dark brown, the
anterior feathers barred, the posterior margined with yellowish-white.
The wings are nearly as in the male, but the green of the speculum
is less extensive; the lower part of the fore neck is tinged with
yellowish-red, and mottled with dark brown, as are the sides; the
rest of the lower parts white.
Length to end of tail 13-3/4; to end of claws 1-1/4; extent of wings
22-1/2. Weight 10 oz.
The differences between the American and European specimens are so
small that I can find no good reason for considering the birds of the
two continents distinct. The American Teal has a white band before
the wing, which the European bird has not, while the latter has the
greater part of the outer webs of most of the scapulars white, there
being none of that colour on those of our bird. The proportions and
size are similar; and if the two birds are really distinct species,
I do not know upon what circumstances specific distinctions are to
be founded.
THE SCAUP DUCK.
_FULIGULA MARILA_, STEPH.
PLATE CCXXIX. MALE AND FEMALE.
The opinion, derived from WILSON’s account of the Scaup Duck, that it
is met with only along our sea coasts, in bays, or in the mouths of
rivers, as far as the tide extends, is incorrect. Had WILSON resided
in the Western Country, or seen our large lakes and broad rivers
during late autumn, winter, or early spring, he would have had ample
opportunities of observing thousands of this species, on the Ohio,
the Missouri, and the Mississippi, from Pittsburg to New Orleans. I
have shot a good number of Scaup Ducks on all these rivers, where I
have observed them to arrive early in October, and whence they depart
between the 1st of March and the middle of April. I have not, however,
seen any in small creeks, lagoons, or ponds. When they arrive on the
western waters, they are seen in flocks of from fifteen to twenty
individuals; but in a few weeks these flocks are joined by others, for
which reason the species is named in Kentucky the “Flocking Fowl.”
They are, however, seldom seen close together while on the water,
and they rarely associate with other birds.
The Scaup Duck seems to float less lightly than it really does, its
body being comparatively flat. It moves fast, frequently sipping
the water, as if to ascertain whether its favourite food be in it.
Then turning its head and glancing on either side to assure itself
of security, down it dives with all the agility of a Merganser, and
remains a considerable time below. On emerging, it shakes its head,
raises the hind part of its body, opens its short and rather curved
wings, after a few flaps replaces them, and again dives in search
of food. Should any person appear when it emerges, it swims off to
a considerable distance, watches every movement of the intruder, and
finally either returns to its former place, or flies away.
These birds are fond of large eddies below projecting points of land,
but frequently dive in search of food at a considerable distance
from them. When in eddies they may be approached and shot with less
difficulty than when in any other situation. If wounded only, they
are not easily secured; in fact, you need not go after them, for by
diving, fluttering along the surface, and cutting backward and forward,
they generally elude pursuit. Between Louisville and Shippingport,
on the Kentucky side of the Ohio, the shores are from ten to fifteen
feet high, and rather abrupt when the waters are at their ordinary
level. The Scaup Ducks are fond of diving for food along this place,
and there, by coming directly upon them unseen, till you are almost
over them, you may have the very best opportunities of procuring
them. They are not worth shooting, however, unless for sport or
examination, for their flesh is generally tough and rather fishy in
flavour. Indeed I know none, excepting what is called _an Epicure_,
who could relish a Scaup Duck.
They appear to experience some difficulty in getting on wing, and
assist themselves on all occasions, either by meeting the current or
fronting the wind, while they also use their broad feet as helps. When
danger is near, they frequently, however, prefer diving, which they
find as effectual a means of security as flying. As they usually feed
at some distance from each other, it is amusing to see them go off,
as they emerge from the water in succession, and to watch them when
they collect again, and when, after flying for a long time in circles,
now high then low over the water, they all realight. These habits,
and the toughness of their sinewy bodies, render it rather difficult
to shoot them. Although flat-billed, they dive to a considerable
depth, and when they have reached the bottom, no doubt furrow the
mud, in the manner of the Shoveller (_Anas clypeata_), although the
latter performs this action while floating on the surface, with its
head and neck alone submersed, as it swims over the shallows.
The food of the Scaup Duck I have found to consist of small fry,
crayfishes, and a mixture of such grasses as here and there grow along
the beds of our rivers. I never found any portions of testaceous
mollusca in the gizzards of those obtained on our western waters,
although even there they might meet with abundance of these animals.
When these birds are travelling, their flight is steady, rather
laborious, but greatly protracted. The whistling of their wings is
heard at a considerable distance when they are passing over head. At
this time they usually move in a broad front, sometimes in a continuous
line. When disturbed, they fly straight forward for a while, with less
velocity than when travelling, and, if within proper distance, are
easily shot. At times their notes are shrill, but at others hoarse and
guttural. They are however rarely heard during the day, and indeed,
like many other species, these birds are partly nocturnal.
At the approach of spring the Drakes pay their addresses to the
females, before they set out on their journey. At that period the
males become more active and lively, bowing their heads, opening
their broad bills, and uttering a kind of quack, which to the listener
seems produced by wind in their stomach, but notwithstanding appears
to delight their chosen females.
The Scaup Duck varies materially as to size at different ages. Some
wounded individuals which I kept, and which were birds of the first
year, were much larger and heavier at the end of a year; and I
agree with my learned friend NUTTALL, that specimens may be procured
measuring from sixteen and a half to eighteen, nineteen, or twenty
inches in length.
On the Atlantic coast I have met with this species from the Gulf of
Mexico to the Bay of Fundy, and my friend THOMAS MACCULLOCH has told
me that they are not unfrequent at Pictou in Nova Scotia. Farther
north I saw none; and their breeding places are yet unknown to me.
ANAS MARILA, _Linn._ Syst. Nat. vol. i. p. 196.—_Lath._
Ind. Ornith. vol. ii. p. 853.
FULIGULA MARILA, _Ch. Bonaparte_, Synopsis of Birds of the
United States, p. 392.—_Swains. and Richards._ Fauna Bor.
Amer. part ii. p. 453.
SCAUP DUCK, ANAS MARILA, _Wils._ Amer. Ornith, vol. viii.
p. 84. pl. 69. fig. 8.—_Nuttall_, Manual, vol. ii. p. 437.
Adult Male. CCXXIX. Fig. 1.