LIFE HISTORIES OF NORTH AMERICAN WILD FOWL 153 



Mrs. Florence Merriam Bailey (1919) describes it more briefly, 



thus : 



When I arrived only two pairs were in evidence, the puffy little drakes 

 looking very cocky and belligerent, suggesting pouter doves with their air of 

 importance and the curious muscular efforts by which they produced their 

 strange notes. When I first saw one perform, not knowing about his tracheal 

 air sac, I thought he might be picking at his breast or have something stuck 

 in his throat and be choking. With quick nods of the head that jerked the 

 chin in, he pumped up and down, till finally a harsh guttural cluck was emitted 

 from his smooth, blue bill. Often in doing chin exercises the little drakes 

 pumped up a labored ip-ip-ip-ip-u-cluck, cluck, producing it with such effort 

 that the vertical tail pressed forward over the back, as if to help in the 

 expulsion, afterwards springing erect again. 



Nesting. — In the deep-water sloughs of North Dakota we found the 

 ruddy' ducks nesting in abundance ; the ideal conditions found here 

 are to be found in many places throughout the west, where the nest- 

 ing habits of the species are probably similar. In these large sloughs 

 there are extensive tracts of tall reeds, bullrushes, or flags, often 

 higher than a man's head and growing so thickly that nothing can 

 be seen through them at a little distance. In these excellent hiding 

 places the ruddy duck conceals its nest, and so well is this done that 

 even after the nest has once been located it is extremely difficult to 

 find it again. The nests are basketlike structures, well made of the 

 reeds, bullrushes, or flags, closely interwoven; the material always 

 matches the surroundings of the nest, so sometimes the nest is made 

 of the dry stalks only and sometimes partially or wholly of the green 

 material, producing a very pretty effect. The nest is built up some 

 7 or 8 inches above the level of the water, which is often more than 

 knee deep, and attached firmly to the growing reeds; a sloping pile 

 of reeds is usually added as a stairway leading to the nest, down 

 which the duck can quickly slide into the water on the approach of 

 danger ; and the growing reeds above are often arched over the nest 

 in such a way as nearly to conceal it. There is no lining in the nest 

 except a few finer bits of reeds and flags ; and what little down is 

 found there may be more accidental than an intentional lining. From 

 such a well-concealed nest the departure of the duck could never be 

 seen; she simply slides into the VN^ater and slinks away like a grebe. 

 The female is particularly shy during the breeding season and 

 seldom shows herself near the nest. 



The man who found the first ruddy duck's nest must have been 

 surprised and puzzled, for he would never suppose that such large 

 eggs could belong to such a small duck. W. H. Collins (1881) 

 mistook the fi-rst eggs of this species that he found at St. Clair 

 Flats for brant's eggs, because the ruddy ducks kept out of sight 

 and some brant happened to be flying about the marsh. But the 



