208 GAME BIEDS OF CALIFORNIA 



The nest, wliich in California is nsually coniposetl of tules, is 

 placed near the water's edge or, more often, directly above the water 

 of some deep, sluggish stream, lake or pond. Shields {in Davie, 1889, 

 pp. 77-78) says there is evidence that this dnck prefers the abandoned 

 nests of Coots for nesting purposes, to those constructed by itself. In 

 several instances he took eggs of this species from what appeared to 

 be rehabilitated Coots' nests. In one case seven eggs of the Ruddy 

 Duck were found in a Coot's nest from whieh, a few weeks pre- 

 viously, a set of eggs of the Coot had been obtained. Sharp (1907, 

 p. 86) found six nearly hatched eggs of the Ruddy Duck in a Coot's 

 nest near Escondido, San Diego County, June 5, 1906. 



Ingersoll (1884, p. 15) tells of a number of nests which he found 

 near Santa Cruz : 



The nests were usually built uear the center of the tules, and just above 

 the water, which was two or three feet deep, and were inaccessible except 

 by wading, as the tules were too thick to allow a boat to pass through them. 

 The nests were all constructed of dry tules; those forming the lining were 

 picked into fine shreds and slightly mixed with down of the parents. Nests 

 were from eight to fifteen inches high, and ten to twelve in diameter. The 

 cavity varied in size as much as the nests, but not in proportion to them, as 

 the highest and most firmly built of any T saw had a cavity that was only 

 large enough to hold two eggs in the first layer, and so shallow that the three 

 other eggs it contained were above the level of the nest. This nest also 

 varied from the others in having a slight covering of tules over the eggs. 



Two other nests found by Ingersoll on June 26 contained nineteen 

 eggs each. The eggs in these nests were arranged in three layers. 

 Nests of the Ruddy Duck are but sparingly lined with down and 

 sometimes it is lacking entirely. The eggs of the Ruddy Duck are 

 always recognizable. They are extremely large for the size of the 

 bird, more rounded than most other duck's eggs, and of a uniform 

 dull white color. The thick, rough-surfaced shell is peculiar to the 

 eggs of this duck. The shape varies somewhat from short ovate to 

 elongate ovate. Twenty specimens from California average 2.52 by 

 1.82 inches. 



According to Brooks (1903, p. 280) tlie young are very precocious 

 and dive for their food soon after hatching, a habit not found in the 

 young of other ducks, which take their food from the surface of the 

 water for several weeks. Ingersoll (loc. cit.) surprised several families 

 away from the tules, in which the parents invariably sought shelter, 

 leaving the young to look out for themselves. The young were unable 

 to fly but could dive and swim well. 



During the winter Ruddy Ducks are sometimes seen in small 

 flocks numbering up to ten or twelve individuals, these forming a 

 compact company. But more often they are to be seen singly or in 



