gargaiJey. 179 



stone as tlieir authority for its *' occasionally breeding in 

 Norfolk ; " and even Messrs. Gurney and Fisher, in 

 1846, do not add anything from their personal know- 

 ledge. General authors about the same period either 

 quote the above authorities, or are even less informed on 

 the subject. 



Very late in February, or early in March, just as 

 the fowl which have wintered with us are taking their 

 departure, the " summer teal," as it is generally called 

 in the Broad district, puts in an appearance, and soon 

 settles to nest. At this time it is tolerably abundant where 

 found, but is very local. It is singular that where the 

 garganey most abounds, a locality which for obvious 

 reasons it is not desirable to indicate too precisely, the 

 teal is a rare bird ; but at Eanworth the latter species is 

 common enough. The summer teal is also met with in 

 smaller numbers in several other localities in the Broad 

 district, and I have frequently seen it not many miles 

 from Norwich. On the other side of the county Mr. J. 

 H. Gurney, jun., and myself believed we saw this species 

 at Wretham, in 1882 ; but, in 1884, it was fully iden- 

 tified by Lord AYalsingham, at Tomston mere, near 

 Merton, where it is perfectly safe from molestation. 

 I have already said that a pair were shot at Hockwold 

 in 1817. On the coast it is not often met with, but 

 it has been shot, according to Mr. Dowell, on the Salt- 

 house and Blakeney salt marshes. In the latter locality 

 on the 27th April, 1857, Mr. Dowell killed a pair 

 of these birds, the female of which contained an egg. 

 Mr. Norgate has given me a note of a garganey killed 

 at Beeston Eegis, on April 7th, 1863 ; and of a female 

 and male shot at West Lexham, on the 21st and 22nd 

 July, 1865, respectively. It thus appears that this 

 species is widely, though sparingly, distributed over the 

 county. 



A note in the late Rev. T. J. Blofeld's interleaved " Yar- 

 rell " (kindly lent me by Mr. T. C. Blofeld), states that the 

 garganey breeds frequently on his estate, and describes 

 the nest as deeply cup-shaped, composed of grass, and 

 lined with a quantity of down from the parent bird, 

 remarkably warm and snug, and adds, " in every 

 instance within my memory it has been placed in a tuft 

 z2 



