Vol. XL']
1923J
General
Notes.
527
It is not often that a Scaup Duck can be seencloselyenoughin life to
make out the color of the reflections on the head.
When such a case does
occur, however, it seemsentirely possiblethat a person seeing a Greater
Scaup,with its head turned toward him, would seeviolet reflectionsand
identify it as the Lesser. One might also easily imagine a casewhere an
observer seeing a Golden-eye in such a position would make out violet
reflections. The spot in front of the eye, from its foreshortenedappearance, might be easily imagined crescentic, and the bird thought to be
Barrow's Golden-eye.
Plumagesof immaturebirdshave not beendescribedfully or completely
in most text-books. In some casesthese plumagesdiffer enough from
the adult to make mistakesfor someother speciespossible. In December
1921, I was hunting Ducks on the PenfieldReef at Fairfield, Conn. I was
particularly anxiousto get a ScaupDuck, a bird that was lesscommonon
the reef than the Scotersand Old-squaws. Finally I sawa bird approaching with black neck and upper breastand lower parts abruptly white. I
felt no doubt at all that this was a Scaup Duck, and as it flew almost
directly over my head I took careful aim and shot it. The bird I picked
up, proved a youngmale Surf Scorer.
Few books describethe plumages of young males of Surf and White-
wingedScoters. While not sopurely white beneathas is the Scaup,they
neverthelesshave much the same appearancewhen flying toward an
server. They seemto wear this plumagethroughoutthe first winter, for
I have seen birds in it in May. I puzzledfor a number of years over a
young male White-winged Scorer I had once seenunder rather unusual
circumstances. Its descriptionremained unnamedin my note-bookfor a
numberof years,for noneof the booksI possessed
describedthis plumage.
Finally, when I happenedto shoota bird in this plumage,the mystery
was solved.--ARETASA. SAUNDERS,
Fairfield, Conn.
Ducks useful in Arkansas as Scavengers of Red Rice.--At
least
$150,000a year is saved to Arkansas rice growersby migratory wild
Ducks feeding on red rice, according to an e•imate furnished to the
BiologicalSurvey by the Board of Directors of the ArkansasRice Growers'
CooperativeAssociation. In that Sta• the Ducks are so beneficialthat
every effort is made to attract them on their way south. The present
early closedseasonand an evensmallerbag limit are protectivemeasures
stronglyapprovedin Arkansas.
The control of the growth of wild or red rice is one of the greatestdif•
ficultiesincidentalto rice culture. The land becomeseasilypollutedwith•
red rice which is scatteredon the groundwhenthe goodrice is cut, and
comesup in the next crop in the spring. Many of the red grains are forced•
below the surfaceof the groundby wagonwheelsand the feet Ofthe horses
and men, when the bundles of good rice are hauled out to be threshed.
Although thousandsof Blackbirdsuse the rice fieldsfor feedinggrounds
when migrating, they do not get the grains that are covered with water
528
Auk
General
Notes.
[July
or mud. The Ducks, however, which live in the wet fields in winter, sift
out this buried wild rice, to the great advantage of the rice grower.
Rice fields are usually drained before the grain is cut, and the Ducks
wouldfly overthesedry fieldswereit not for the custom,rapidly increasing,
for those who have learned to use the Ducks, to pump water into the cuts
betweenthe leveesso as to attract migrating Mallards which sooncomein
by the thousands. Under theseconditionsit is said that the Ducks do
not feed on the shockedrice. They feed on the groundrice and clean it
all up in three or four days.
While instances of damage to rice by wild Ducks are on record for
Arkansasand Louisiana such damagehas occurredunder extraordinary
conditions,as when scarcity of labor or other causeshave delayed the
harvest until the full migration of Ducks was under way and the fields
submergedby winter rains. This happenedduring the war but probably
will not be allowed to occur again to any extent.
While damage is spor-
adic, the good done by the wild Ducks is a yearly benefit of which it is
hopedrice growersthroughoutthe SouthernStates will avail themselves.
All that it is necessaryto do is to get the cropout of the fieldsin season,
flood the groundwhen the Ducks first come,and protect them as long as
they stay. With the help of thesebirdsred rice will .become
a rarity
insteadof a commonand persistentweedasat present.--W. L.
U.S. BwlogicalSurvey,Washington,D.C.
The Harlequin
Duck in Massachusetts.--On
February 22, 1923,
in companywith Mr. CharlesClark of Medfordand Prof. F. E. Saunders
of CambridgeI observed a Harlequin Duck (H•strionicushistrionicus)off
Eastern Point, Essex County, Massachusetts.The Duck permitted a
closeinspectionthree timesand was observedin flight and on the water.
The bird wasquitetame and thoughflushedtwiceit flewbut a shortdistanceand returnedto the rockypoint whereit wasfirst observed.
There are but few records of this rare Duck in this state.
There are
threerecords,
anda possible
fourthfromthis county.--CuAR•.rsB. F•.OYD,
Auburndale, Mass.
Occurence of the Barnacle Goose on Long Island.--I
arrived at
my officenearFarmingdale,L. I., on the morningof November28, 1922,
and found that Mr. H. J. Hutchinson, one of my assistantshad just shot
a Gooseon our pond. Being on the point of leaving, I wrote down a
description
of the bird in detail. A coupleof dayslater I wasableto look
it up with Mr. A. C. Bent and foundthat it wasa male BarnacleGoose
(Branta leucopsis)in fine plumage. It was then too late to secureit as a
specimen.Mr. Hutchinsonreportedlater that whenhe pluckedit one
wing seemedto have beenbadly bruised. It is quite likely that it had
struckoneof the numerousguy wiresor ropesaboutour plant during the
night, asit wasflyingby. This wouldaccountfor its presence,
alone,on
our small pondwhichis but 450 feet. long and situatedabout six miles
inlandfrom the Great SouthBay.--F. C. WILLARD,Far•iagdage,L.