DECOYS. 65 



noise of any kind sufficiently loud for the ducks 

 to hear without alarming them may direct their 

 attention toward the decoys, and so prove the 

 means of turning them ; but for such ducks as 

 may be called readily, of course an imitation of 

 their call-note is better. 



Thirty decoys, at least, are needed for canvas- 

 back shooting, and as many as two hundred and 

 fifty are often used — the more the better. For 

 mallard shooting, twenty wooden ones are sufficient 

 to carry, as dead ones may be stuck up at any 

 time. Though a few canvas-back may pro- 

 perly be used with mallard decoys in mallard or 

 redhead shooting to increase the show of the 

 flock, it is seldom, or I may almost say never, de- 

 sirable or advantageous to use the mallard decoys 

 for canvas-back, as they do not feed together and 

 have no desire to associate. For Western duck- 

 shooting, but three, or at most four, different 

 varieties of duck decoys are needed, all other ducks 

 decoying to some one of these kinds as well as 

 to their own. Mallard and canvas-back are the 

 kinds most especially required, while redhead and 

 blue-bill decoys may be advantageously used. 

 And here I will endeavor to arrange the decoys 

 as needed for the different varieties. 



