56 
It is tolerably plentiful in Orkney, but has not been 
seen in Shetland. It frequents the inland lakes 
more than the sea-shore, and leaves these islands 
early in the spring. It is extensively dispersed 
over the continents of Europe and Asia, and not 
less so over that of North America. A few have 
been found breeding as far north as Iceland. The 
nest is placed among reeds and thick herbage. The 
eggs, from six to ten in number, are of a greenish 
white colour. 
DUCK, COMMON POCHARD. 
ANAS FERINA, Temm. 
The Pochards arrive on our coasts in the end of 
October, when some betake themselves to marshes 
and pools, the others remaining in the bays and 
estuaries. It is found also in the Orkney and 
Shetland Isles, in Denmark, in Sweden, and in 
America, where they are common. It departs in 
March and April, betaking itself to the Arctic 
regions to breed, except a very few which are 
said to remain in Norfolk and Yorkshire for that 
purpose. The nest of the Common Pochard has 
been seen in Holland, placed among the rushes or 
other coarse herbage. The eggs, of a buffy white, 
are from ten to twelve in number. 
