192 BRITISH SEA VBIRDSiy 
comparatively small area of coast, each seems to 
keep closely to its own particular domain. The 
nest is made at the end of a burrow, a rabbit hole 
being frequently selected; but sometimes the bird 
is said to excavate one for itself, in which case it 
follows a nearly circular direction. Sometimes the 
nest is ten or fifteen feet from the entrance, and in 
places where rabbits are numerous, it is often an 
almost hopeless task to discover it, one burrow 
running into another in bewildering perplexity. At 
the end of the burrow a rude nest of dry grass is 
formed—a rabbit’s nest is not unfrequently utilised 
—which, as incubation advances, is thickly lined 
with down from the parent’s body. Few nests are 
more difficult to find; sometimes the parents will 
betray its whereabouts when one bird relieves the 
other; but, as a rule, the male’is seldom seen near it, 
and both sexes are remarkably cautious in leaving 
or visiting it. The eggs are usually from six to 
twelve, but as many as sixteen have been known. 
They are creamy-white in colour, smooth and 
polished in texture. The down in the nest of the 
Sheldrake is a beautiful lavender-gray. The young 
are soon taken to the beach after they are hatched, 
where the little creatures are remarkably active in 
catching sand-hoppers. 
WIGEON. 
Of all the more typical birds in this sub-family, 
the present species, the Axas Penelope of naturalists, 
is by far the best known along the coast. The 
