Part 19

Nest.—Concealed in long grass, lined with feathers; 5 to 8 buffy eggs (2.75 × 1.85); June.

Range.—Breeds from North Dakota and Newfoundland northward; winters in the northern half of U. S.

SURF SCOTER 166. Oidemia perspicillata. 20 in.

Male black with a white patch on top of the head and another on the nape; eye white; bill red, white and yellow, with a large black spot near the base. Female a uniform grayish brown, lighter below, with a whitish patch in front of each eye; young birds are like the female but also have a white patch back of the eye. That they are very abundant is apparent from the size of a single flock seen by Nelson about 10 miles out to sea from St. Michaels, Alaska; it formed a continuous band for about 10 miles in length and from a half to three-quarters of a mile in width. All the “Coots” have heavy bodies, making it rather difficult for them to rise from the water, along which they run for a few yards before springing into the air.

Nest.—A feather lined hollow on the ground, like that of other ducks; eggs creamy buff (2.40 × 1.70).

Range.—Breeds from Newfoundland, Manitoba, and British Columbia northward; winters south to Virginia, Ohio and California.

RUDDY DUCK 167. Erismatura jamaicensis. 15 in.

Bill short, broad, with an upturned appearance; tail feathers very narrow, stiff and pointed. Male in summer, with black crown, whitish cheeks, throat and belly, and reddish-brown back, breast and sides. In winter, the cheeks are duller colored and the back mixed with grayish. Female with crown, back and sides grayish; cheeks showing traces of white as on the male. These ducks are very sprightly, either in the water, on land, or a-wing. Their flight is very rapid, their stiff, short wings producing a buzzing sound that gives them the local name of Bumble Bee Coot. They have a great variety of names referring to some character of their form, such as Broad-bill Dipper, Bull-neck, Bristle-tail, etc.

Nest.—Of grasses or rushes, lined with down, placed in tall grass near the water or in clumps of rushes growing out of the water; 6 to 12 grayish eggs (2.40 × 1.75), very large for the size of the bird; June.

Range.—Breeds in the interior of northern U. S. and in Canada; winters in southern United States.

LESSER SNOW GOOSE 169. Chen hypeboreus. 25 in.

Plumage entirely white; ends of primaries black; top and back of head sometimes tinged with rusty; bill and feet red; eye brown. This variety is like the next, which is the bird commonly seen in the East, although the Lesser Goose is found east to the Mississippi Valley.

GREATER SNOW GOOSE 169a. C. h. nivalis. 33 in.

Snow Geese travel in large flocks, the same as do the Canada Geese, led by an old male that has traveled the airy road many times before. At times, flocks are seen on the prairies, so large that they give the ground the appearance of being covered with snow. They are very wary and will all take flight at the first alarm.

Notes.—Usually silent, but they sometimes “honk.”

Nest.—Of grasses, sometimes, but not always, lined with down; 5 to 8 buffy white eggs (3.40 × 2.40); June.

Range.—Breeds in the Arctic regions; winters on the South Atlantic coast.

BLUE GOOSE 169.1. Chen cœrulescens. 28 in.

Head and neck white, often tinged with rusty on the face; underparts brownish-gray. Young birds are similar but the head is brownish; bill and feet reddish; eye brown. This handsome goose is found only in the interior, but a few accidental birds have been taken on the Atlantic and two on the Pacific coasts. While it is not an abundant species, flocks of twenty or thirty are often seen in the Mississippi Valley. They are sometimes seen with Snow Geese, but for the most part keep by themselves. On their march to their breeding grounds they branch off from the routes chosen by the Snow Geese, and turn to the eastward, breeding east of Hudson Bay, while the white geese are found chiefly to the westward.

Nest.—A grass-lined depression on the ground; eggs deep buff color (2.50 × 1.75); June.

Range.—Breeds in the Hudson Bay region and in Labrador; winters on the west coast of the Gulf of Mexico, migrating through the Mississippi Valley.

AMERICAN WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE 171a. Anser albifrons gambeli. 28 in.

Forehead, white; head and neck gray; underparts mixed black and white; feet yellow; bill pinkish; eye brown. These geese reach the U. S. on their return from the Arctic regions about the first of October; they are very abundant on the Pacific coast and fairly common in the Mississippi Valley, but are rare on the Atlantic coast. They are very noisy birds and in some sections of the country are known as Laughing Geese. From being shot at so frequently, they are very wild and difficult to approach, sentinels being stationed to give alarm if danger approaches, when they are feeding.

Notes.—A confused honking, likened to laughter.

Nest.—Of grasses on the ground, usually in marshes; nearly always lined with down from the breast of the female. The four to nine eggs are buffy (3.00 × 2.05); May, June.

Range.—Breeds in the Arctic regions, chiefly west of Hudson Bay; winters south to the Gulf coast and Calif.; rare on the Atlantic coast.

CANADA GOOSE 172. Branta canadensis. 38 in.

The best known and most widely distributed of our geese. In the northern states they are always eagerly looked for in the Spring, for their arrival is a sure indication that the backbone of Winter has broken. Their familiar honking is heard long before the thin, wavering, black, V-shaped line appears on the horizon; as it draws nearer, the volume of sound increases, resembling the baying of a pack of hounds, and at last, the flock sweeps overhead with deafening cries; large birds, with long necks fully outstretched, wings beating the air in unison, and all following the leadership of one bird in their journey over their invisible path.