DUCKS, GEESE, AND SWANS. 193 
male bird is a very pretty and conspicuous one, in 
his beautifully pencilled back and flanks, and dis- 
tinguished from afar by his bright buff forehead and 
crown, and white wing coverts. The female is much 
less showily coloured. The Wigeon arrives upon 
our seaboard, from the Arctic regions, in vast 
numbers every autumn, and from that time forward 
to the following spring resides with us. This 
autumn migration of the Wigeon begins late in 
September, and lasts well on into November. The 
birds begin to leave us again in March, and most 
have departed by the end of the following month. 
The Wigeon, whilst with us, is one of the most 
gregarious of the Ducks, and flocks of vast size 
may sometimes be observed in our shallower seas 
close inshore, in estuaries and bays, but perhaps 
more frequently further out at sea. These birds 
obtain most of their food at night in such localities 
where they are subjected to much persecution, as 
often happens, for their flesh is valued as an article 
for the table, coming landwards at dusk, and retiring 
to the open sea at dawn. The flight of this species 
is rapid, yet almost noiseless, and the bird may 
sometimes be seen gliding down from the air to the 
water on stiff and motionless wings, but flapping 
them rapidly just as it drops, tail first, into the sea. 
Its note is highly characteristic, a shrill, far sounding 
mee-ow, or wee-ow. The food consists of grass, 
buds, and leaves of aquatic plants, grass wrack, 
crustaceans, and molluscs. Many Wigeons are 
N 
