220 THE BIRDS OF SHERWOOD FOREST. 
clothed with ivy, when a cheeping and rustling over- 
head induced him to withdraw a few steps and stand 
still. He had hardly done so when a wild duck flew out 
of the ivy, some height up the tree, holding a young one 
in her bill; this she put down on the bank of the stream, 
which was about a hundred yards from the tree, and 
then, returning to the nest, conveyed the remainder, one 
by one, in the same manner until thirteen were safely 
placed on the bank. Here she brcoded them for a 
few minutes, and then with much apparent fondness led 
them down the bank into the water, where they were 
speedily darting about with the utmost liveliness, 
This incident clearly illustrates how the difficulty of 
conveying the young from a height, or from a distance, 
is overcome, and I have little doubt of its being the com- 
mon practice. 
A large piece of water at Houghton, known as the 
“Decoy,” was many years ago used as such, and a great 
number of wild ducks were annually captured there ; 
but it has long fallen into disuse. 
In May, 1855, I accidentally met with the nest of the 
Garganey (A. querquedula) in a small patch of furze, 
at no great distance from water. I did not see the 
birds, nor was I aware that they visited us. The nest 
was formed of dry grass, with a thick lining of down, 
and contained three addled eggs, and the broken shells 
of the others, which had been successfully hatched, their 
buff colour and size rendering them readily distinguish- 
able from any allied species. My identification of them 
was confirmed by an experienced collector, who was with 
me at the time. 
The Teal (A. crecca) is a constant winter visitor, 
occurring rather numerously on Thoresby Lake. The 
