“Female.—Upper parts dark brown, each feather with a pale margin; broad superciliary stripe whitish; a dusky band behind eyes; sides of head and neck whitish, streaked with black; chin and throat white; feathers of the lower fore neck blackish, with whitish edges; breast and abdomen white; sides, vent, and under tail-coverts white, with brown-black spots; wings grayish brown; a dull metallic green speculum, bounded anteriorly and posteriorly by two white bands; under wing-coverts brown, margined with white, the greater ones pure gray, the central ones, like the axillars, white. Size smaller than that of the male.

“Young in first plumage resemble the females, but are darker and more suffused with rufous on the breast.

“‘Adult males in molting plumage closely resemble adult females, but are darker in color, and may be distinguished by the brighter alar speculum.’ (Seebohm.)

“‘Downy nestling resembles that of the mallard, but it is smaller, and has a broad unbroken buff streak above the eye, and a well-defined dark streak through the eye.’ (Yarrell.)” (Salvadori.)

In immature plumage this species is likely to be confounded with Nettion crecca and must be determined with care. The adult males of the two species are very different.

Genus SPATULA Boie, 1822.

This genus is characterized by the peculiar bill which is twice as wide near the tip as at the base; sides of upper mandible turned under near tip.

163. SPATULA CLYPEATA (Linnæus).
SHOVELER.