32 



along the coasts of Scotland and on the Faroe Islands, off Northumber- 

 land. It is a great diver, the food consisting of shell-fish and crusta- 

 ceans. Five to eight eggs of green colour (see British Bird Egg Cabinet, 

 drawer 16) are laid in a nest made of the stems of plants, grass and 

 seaweed, usually situated among coarse herbage on low islands. During 

 incubation, a lining of down, plucked from the breast of the female, 

 is gradually added. The males take no part in incubation, and the 

 ducks are left by the drakes directly they begin to sit. The group 

 exhibits the provision usually made for securing the nest by having it 

 lodged in the middle of a rooted coarse plant, so that though built of 

 light material in an exposed situation, it is held securely. 



Case 194. 



TEAL {Nettion crecca). 



This species, which is the smallest of our British ducks, is more 

 abundant during the winter months than in summer, but it breeds in 

 almost every county in Great Britain and Ireland. In Lancashire all 

 suitable heath-lands serve as breeding sites. At the duck decoy at 

 Hale, an average of about 460 Teal are annually captured. It frequents 

 fresh water, and feeds on the seeds of aquatic plants, grain, worms, 

 slugs and insects, and the flesh is much esteemed as food. The nest, 

 placed in tufts of coarse grass or heather on the borders of lakes or 

 morasses, is composed of dry grass and leaves, lined with blackish 

 down. Eight to fourteen creamy white or pale buff eggs (see British 

 Bird Egg Cabinet, drawer 13) are laid early in May. 



Case 195. 



MALLARD or WILD DUCK {Anas boscas). 

 Local name : Mere Duck. 



This species was formerly more numerous in the British 

 Islands than at present. A certain number still remain to 

 breed, but they are comparatively few in proportion to the 

 number of winter visitors. Several hundred are taken every year 

 in the large decoy at Hale. The food consists mainly of grain 

 or seeds, worms, slugs and insects. The Mallard is an early 

 breeder, and the nest, composed of grass, lined with down, is usually 

 placed on the ground, near the margin of rivers or lakes, but often at a 

 considerable distance from water. The eggs are a dull greenish grey 

 colour (see British Bird Egg Cabinet, drawer 11), and the male does 

 not participate in the incubation. The Mallard is the undoubted 

 origin of the many varieties of our domestic ducks. 



