fl II ITE-WINGED SCOTER 



199 



winter months, it seeks fresh water situations for nesting. Near Fort 

 Anderson and on the Barren Grounds of Arctic Canada, MacFarlane 

 found this Scoter breeding in numbers, in both open and wooded 

 situations. The nests were always near fresli water. They were 

 placed in depressions in the ground at the bases of small trees and 

 contained no other lining than feathers and down. Five to eight eggs 

 constituted a set in the nests examined. Nests with eggs were found 

 on various dates between June 14 and July 3 (Baird, Brewer and 

 Ridgway, 1884, II, pp. 96-97). 



Bent (1902, p. 171) and Job (1890, pp. 163-164) have both found 

 White-winged Scotei-s nesting in North Dakota. The nests were 

 placed on small islands and were admirably concealed, usually under 



Fig. 28. Side of bill and head of male White-winged Sfotei. 

 Natural size. Location of white spot behind eye is indicated. 



small bushes. The nests were lined with dry leaves, sticks, soil, and 

 other available material, but on the whole were the poorest in con- 

 struction of any duck nests which they examined. No down seemed 

 to be added until the sets were complete. Eight nests found by Job 

 {loc. cit.) on June 27 (1898) contained 14, 13, 10, 10, 7, 6, 1, and 

 eggs, respectively, and all the eggs were fresh, which shows that the 

 breeding season of this species is about the latest of all the ducks. 

 There is an earlier record of downy young found near Fort Yukon, 

 Alaska, on June 23 (1866) (Cooke, 1906, p. 61). 



In California the White-winged Scoter is exclusively a salt water 

 duck. It frequents the open bays and waters adjacent to the outer 

 beaches, but we know of no instance of its appearing on fresh water 

 here, even on ponds but a short distance from the beach. All species 

 of scoters are probably most active at night, for during the day they 

 often lie floating out in the center of a bay and remain asleep there 

 for hours. At such times they may be closely approached, but usually 



