Part 5

Other Name.—Marsh Tern.

Description.—Size small; tail short, forked. Adults in summer: Head and underparts black, save under tail-coverts, which are white; upperparts gray; bill and feet red. Adults in winter and immature: White, with pearl-gray back and wings and dusky spots on head; bill and feet dusky. Length: 10 inches.

Range in Pennsylvania.—Irregular as a migrant throughout the Commonwealth; more frequently seen than other Terns about marshes and on small bodies of water; usually seen between April 25 and September 30. Though it is thus to be seen in midsummer irregularly, it is not known to nest in Pennsylvania at the present time.

The adult Black Tern, as it courses about a marsh or pond, is a beautiful, buoyant creature. Its flight is swallow-like. It is probable that this species nests occasionally along the Lake Erie shore, or at some of the larger lakes wherever there are marshy shores.

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANT Phalacrocorax auritus auritus (Lesson)

Other Name.—Shag.

Description.—Four toes all webbed together; bill long and strongly hooked at tip; tail stiff and moderately long; plumage thick and firm. Adults in breeding plumage: Glossy greenish black, save on back which is dark gray, each feather being margined with lighter gray; two filamentous tufts of black feathers on back of head; neck with thin sprinkling of silken white feathers during period of courtship; bill blackish, marked at base with dull yellow; sack under bill yellow; eyes bright green. Immature and adult in winter (the plumage usually seen in Pennsylvania): Without crests, and whole plumage brownish black, somewhat mottled beneath, and with light area on throat; eyes grayish green, not bright green. Length: About 30 inches.

Range in Pennsylvania.—A migrant found principally along the larger water-ways from about March 20 to May 10 and from September 15 to November 15. It is occasionally seen in winter when the water is free of ice.

Cormorants sit low in the water so that, while swimming, their tails do not show as field-marks, but their long necks, large heads, and the strongly hooked bills distinguish them at a considerable distance. In flight their wings beat regularly.

The bulky, wide-winged White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) is occasionally noted as a straggler in Pennsylvania. It is white, with black wing-tips, and is so noticeably equipped with long bill and throat-pouch that it can hardly be confused with any other species. Its four toes are all webbed together, as in the Double-crested Cormorant. Additional records of this species are desirable.

MERGANSER Mergus merganser americanus Cassin

Other Names.—Shelldrake; Goosander; Fish Duck; Sawbill; American Merganser.

Description.—One of the largest of the ducks; bill long and narrow, with teeth on both mandibles. Adult male: Head and upper neck greenish black; lower neck, patches in wings, and underparts white; belly suffused with salmon-pink, noticeable in some individuals; back, shoulders, and wings black; rump and tail gray; bill and feet red; eyes bright red. Adult female: Head, with two large crests, and neck rich brown, marked with white areas in front of eye and on chin and upper throat; upperparts ashy gray; patch in wings, and breast and belly white. Length: 25 inches.

Range in Pennsylvania.—A fairly common and regular migrant along the larger waterways and sometimes on the smaller streams from about March 15 to April 20 and from October 1 to December 1. It frequently occurs in winter when the water is free of ice.

The mergansers are all expert fishermen and like to fish in swift water. They dive easily and their serrate bills help them to hold their slippery prey.

The female Merganser is difficult to distinguish from the female Red-breasted Merganser; in the present species, however, the white area on the chin and upper throat is sharply defined, whereas in the Red-breasted species the chin and throat are not white, but of a brownish color, paler than the rest of the head.

RED-BREASTED MERGANSER Mergus serrator Linnæus

Other Names.—Shelldrake; Fish Duck; Sawbill.

Description.—Male, with long, graceful crest of fine feathers; female with double crest, as in the female Merganser. Male: Head and upper neck glossy greenish black; lower neck, patch on upper chest, patches on wing, and underparts white; back black; rump and tail grayish; breast reddish brown, mottled with black, and on sides marked with a striking double row of black and white feathers; sides finely barred with blackish; legs, feet, and eyes red. Female: Head and neck rufous brown, grayish on crown and crest; throat not white, but of paler brown than rest of head; back grayish, washed with brown; underparts white, sides marked with brown; bill and feet brownish; base of lower mandible reddish; eyes, brown. Length: 22 inches.

Range in Pennsylvania.—A fairly common and regular migrant, principally along the larger waterways, appearing somewhat later in spring than the preceding species and disappearing earlier in the fall.

It is said that the Red-breasted Merganser is less frequently seen along the smaller streams than is the larger Merganser. Both species eat fish and therefore are not considered as of much value for food.

HOODED MERGANSER Lophodytes cucullatus (Linnæus)

Other Names.—Shelldrake; Fish Duck.

Description.—Bill long and narrow, with teeth on both mandibles. Male: Head, neck, back, and tail black; a high, fan-shaped crest on head strikingly marked with white; speculum white; sides rufous, finely barred with black; breast and belly white; eyes bright yellow. Female: Dull brown, somewhat brighter on the thin crest, and grayer on head and neck; upper throat, belly, and speculum white; eyes brown. Length: 18 inches.

Range in Pennsylvania.—Fairly common and regular as a migrant from March 25 to April 15 and from October 25 to December 10. It has been noted in summer locally, so there is a possibility that it nests, though there are no definite records at present.

The male Hooded Merganser is one of our most striking birds and cannot easily be confused with any other species. The Hooded Merganser may be found along a quiet stretch of a small stream where the handsome males, at rest, do not display their high crests. In such mood the head has much the appearance of that of the other species of Fish Duck—thin, long, and snake-like. When rising, the birds beat their wings with amazing rapidity, the white speculum in the wings flickering brilliantly. This species is not so often found in swift water as are the Merganser and Red-breasted Merganser.

MALLARD Anas platyrhynchos platyrhynchos Linnæus

Other Names.—Gray Mallard; Wild Duck.