p 350: ,)l
S M E W OR WHI T E N UN.
MBBBUS ALBELLUS, LI N K .
1'I.ATK CCCX1. VU, MJLI » M EEHIII.
T^IC Smew is a bird of extremely rare occurrence in the United
States, insomuch that it must be considered merely as a transient or
accidental visitor. Indeed 1 Have felt sfrong misgivings on reading
W I L S O N ' S ; article on this; species, and cannot but think,.thjiit he is mistaken
whc.ii he states that it " is much more common, DB the coast of
• Kew England than farther south," and again " In the ponds of New
England, and some of the lakes in the State .of New York, where the
Smew is frequently observed—Sow,, although I have made diligent
inquiry, not. only in New England, but in every jiart of our country
where X thought it likely that .the Sinew might occur,•«£ have not
met with any person well acquainted with birds of this family, who has
saen it.. WILSON, in short, was in all probability misinformed, and it
is my opinion that his figure was made from a stuffed Kuropean specimen
which was then in l'cale's Museum in Philadelphia, and that he
had taken the Butfel-beadod Duck, seen ai.a distance, for this species,
as X am aware has been the «ago with other individuals.
The only specimen procured by me was shot by myself on Lake
Haratariu, not far from New Orleans, in t i e winter of 1819. It was an
adult female in lino plumage. How it had wandered so fur south is an
enigma to me ; but having found it., and made a drawing of it on the spot,
I have taken the liberty to add one of the other sex from an equally
fine specimen. After ail, the Smew can; scarcely be considered as
belonging to the American Fauna, any more, than our Fork-tailed Hawk
can with propriety be called .a denizen M| England; and in this I am
supported by all the great navigators ofi our Arctic Seas, such as Ross,
P A R R Y , and FBAXKUS, none of whom, nor any of their companions,
ever met with 4 single individual of this beautiful bird.
S M E W OR W H I T E NUN.
361
mkro,.s mm™*: M*»- m <m<i p- hu l - 0 r , l i l h - v o 1 ' i i :
I H i ^ ^ H SWPPW :of Birds of Ciiiujil Suit.»,• 3911. .
SHEW or WHJTI : Ê L M N AWM-I-US,.!™.. Amor. Oruith. vol. viii. p. 126,
pi, 71, %. -1. Main.
Ttiii tixtcv, or WHITK S i s, XuttiU, M'aimai, vol. ii, p. 467.
«ii Adult Mali?' •• Mat e BCÇXLVI I e l'ig. L
Hill rather shorter than the headj straight, rather slender, a little
higher than broad at the base, tapering, somewhat cylindrical toward
tlic 'cud. Upper mandible with the dorsal outline sloping gently and
slightly ébâcàve'to the middle, then straight, at the tip decûrWd; thé
ridge rather broad and'lhit at the base, then- convex, the sidefe¥loping
at the ba.se, convex toward the end, the edges serrate beneath, with
about f'ortv slightly reversed, compressed, tapering, tooth-like lamellae,
the miguVÏIÎiptical, much curved. Nasal groove 'oblong, sub-basal,
filled by a soft membrane ; .nostrils oblong, submclial, direct,, pervious.
Lower mandible with the angle very narrow and extended to" the obovate,
veryfenVêi ungms, thf* sides roi^dèa, with a long groove, the
! | i | » t with about sixty perpendicular sharp lamella'.
Head of mo d e r a t e - o b l o n g, compressed. Neck of moderate
| , . u g lh: Body full and depressed: Ftiet placed far behind, extremely
short : tibia liaro for »'quarter of an inch ; tarsus extremely short, much
compressed,' anteriorly cïvèrèd with «"sériés of very smajl scutolla,
and anotlier row on the lowerMUr bxtérnally, the sides reticulate'.
Hind toe-Verf sflTall, with an inferior free membrane ; anterior toes
double the length 6f the tarsus ; the second shorter than the fourth,
which: fe nearly as long as the third ; all contfèeted by reticulated webs,
of which the outer § deeply;emarginate. Claws short,, considerably
curved, c omp r e i i , acute, that o f the middle toe with a thin inner edge.
Plumage full, soft,; 'blended ; feathers of the head and upper
part of the hind neck very slender, and elongated along th.: median line'
into a narrow dccurved crest, ; those of the shoulders o«ovate: and
abrupt, of ' t h e rest of the upper pans ovate; of the lower elliptical.
Wings very short, narrow, ; curved, and pointed ; primaries narrow, tapering,
the first Scarcely longer than the second, the rest rapidly graduated^'
fecondari'f^hort, narrow, rounded, the inner tapering to an
obtuse point. Tail short, graduated, of sixteen rather narrow, tapering
feather^. *
Kill dark greyish-blue. Iris bright red. Feet livid biue, claws dusky.