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water wliei'ever tliey can nnd it. They feed on aquatic insects, larva? 

 and wild rice ; and doubtless make considerable havoc amongst the 

 spawn of fish. Although much shorter in the body, specimens may 

 sometimes be found almost as heavy as a black duck. The flesh is 

 destitute of the fishy flavour peculiar to the sheldrakes ; still it is much 

 inferior in this respect to any of the nou-'livers. These birds are 

 eKceedinglv wary and hard to get at. The run-at-the-dive dodge is the 

 best mode to approach theui. I am not aware of their breeding here. 

 The male golden-eye — only to be found in full plumage in the spring — 

 is beautifully white underneath, with black wings and white beauty spot. 

 The head is dark green with a small white spot on each side at the root 

 of the bill. The female is bluish black on the back, white belly and 

 head of dark dusky brown. The buffle-head ( Glangula albeola) is the 

 smallest of the divers. The male is elegantly mar]ced. The belly is 

 dusky white, quite silky in appearance. The wings and back are black. 

 The head is purplish green, with a large white spot on each side. The 

 legs and feet are of a delicate flesh-colour. The female is simply black 

 and white with small white sputs on the head. These elegant little 

 ducks are excellent eating. They are so fat that in the United States 

 they are balled " butter balls." The buffle-head is a good diver. Like 

 the bluebill, it prefers broad open water to creeks or small streams. 

 The American widgeon ( Mareca americana) is a handsome bird of the 

 non-diving variety. It is slightly larger than the wood duck. The 

 male bird has elegant plumage of a creamy red colour on the sides and 

 front of the breast. The belly is white, and from a white spot on the 

 top of the head it gets the name of " baldpate." The female is gi'ey on 

 the back, sides and breast of a reddish hue, and belly white. They are 

 rare here in spiing, and not at all numerous in the fall. I saw a very 

 fine specimen which was shot by Mr. Whitcher at Lochaber Bay last 

 fall. The flesh is highly esteemed. The c:reater bluebill (Fuligida 

 marilaj and the lesser bluebill (FuUgula affmis) are both to be met 

 with in considerable numbers on the Ottawa in the fall, although very 

 few of either kind are to be seen in that river or its tributaries in the 

 spring. Both varieties are short and thick-bodied, white bellied in part, 

 dark brown on the back and breast. They may easily be distinguished 

 by the blue colour of their bills. They are expert divers, and feed on 



