378 Manual of the Game Birds of India, 



more than two together, more frequently 

 single birds. I watched a fine old male 

 one day, for a long time, feeding by 

 himself in the middle of a small lake, 

 but always safely out of shot ; he was 

 diving strongly and vigorously, dashing 

 himself under the water, where he re- 

 mained a considerable time. Their 

 peculiar attitude in the water, along with 

 their short, broad, pale-blue bill, gives 

 them a most quaint appearance." 



Mr. J. Whitehead observed this Duck 

 in Corsica. He writes : — " The first of 

 these curious Ducks I shot on 14th April ; 

 it was a male. On the 7 th May, in 

 the same pond, I noticed two males and 

 three females. The males were rushing 

 after one another, every now and then 

 stopping short beside the females, and 

 hoisting their very peculiar tails straight 

 in the air, spreading out every feather to 

 its utmost, until the tails looked exactly 

 like a hand with all the fingers spread 

 out. They were still in the same place 

 on 28th May and, no doubt, had nests." 



Canon Tristram tells us that on the 

 Halloula Lake, in Northern Africa, "we 

 found two nests of the White-headed Duck 

 {Erismattira mersa) among the sedge, 

 containing, the one three, the other eight 



