162 H. LE"niS — NOTES ON BIRDS 



however, in their work on 'The Birds of Devon' (p. 221), take a 

 different view. They state : " This pretty American species is 

 frequently kept on ponds and ornamental waters, and as it breeds 

 freely (my specimen I take to be a bird of the year) and roams 

 about the country at will, it appears to us that it is as much 

 entitled to a place in the British list as other introduced and 

 naturalized species, such as the Egyptian goose, mute swan, and 

 pheasant. All these would soon be exterminated did they not 

 receive protection, and they are not reallj ferce tiaturce.'^ Audubon, 

 in his 'Birds of America,' says : " The summer duck confines 

 itself entirely to fresh water, prefening at all times the secluded 

 retreats of the ponds, bayous, or creeks which occur so profusely in 

 our woods. The flight of this species," he adds, "is remarkable 

 for its speed, and for the ease and elegance with which it is per- 

 formed." It " passes through the woods, and even among the 

 branches of trees, with as much facility as the passenger pigeon." 

 He further states : "I never knew one of these birds to form a nest 

 on the ground, or on the branches of a tree ; they always seem to 

 prefer the hollow broken portion of some large marsh, the hole of 

 our large woodpecker {Picus principalis), or the deserted retreat of 

 the fox-squirrel ; and I have frequently been surprised to see them 

 go in and out of a hole of any one of these, when their bodies, 

 while on the wing, seemed to be nearly half as large again as the 

 aperture within which they had deposited their eggs." 



2. The Pintail Duck i^Dafila acuta). — A male bird of this species 

 was procured at Tring, on the 14th of February, 1892, and a 

 female pintail at Marsworth Reservoir, on the 3rd of October. 



As I can find no mention in our ' Transactions ' of this bird 

 having been obtained in Hertfordshire, I regard it as a species new 

 to this county, and have accordingly added it to our list. I am 

 rather surprised that I can find no mention of this slender and 

 handsome duck in any of the late Mr. Littleboy's notes on birds, 

 for, referring to the last edition of YarrcU's ' British Birds ' (vol. 

 iv, pp. 380, 381), I find it stated that " it is a regular visitor to 

 this country, and is one of the first among those species which are 

 taken when the decoys begin to be worked in October. It remains 

 here through the winter till spring, and is obtained by wild-fowl 

 shooters on the coast, as well as by fenmen on the rivers and lakes 

 of the interior. It does not appear to linger long in the northern 

 portions of our islands, and cannot in fact be called abundant there ; 

 but along our southern shores and estuaries it is not uncommon." 

 "The flight of this species," he also says, "is extremely rapid." 

 Montague says: "The notes of the pintail are extremely soft and 

 inward; the courting note is always attended with a jerk of the 

 head; the other greatly resembles that of a young kitten." 



3. The Long-tailed Dfck {Harclda glacialis). — A young long- 

 tailed duck was procured at Marsworth Reservoir on the 28th of 

 October, 1892. 



I can find no mention of this duck having been recorded on any 

 previous occasion in our ' Transactions,' so that I have great pleasure 



