THE GADWALL. 769 
when the mother is obliged to leave, a coverlet of down may be neatly and 
quickly drawn over the whole. This downy spread appears to serve a treble 
purpose: it both retains the natural warmth of the eggs and excludes the rays 
of the sun, which are over-ardent at times, and it effectually screens the eggs 
from observation. 
The bird’s — be- meee Ley 
havior when sur- = 
prised depends alto- 
gether upon the 
stage of incubation 
reached. In gener- 
al, the bird sits 
close until discoy- 
ered) aiter that, if 
the eggs are fresh, 
the duck may flee 
upon sighting her 
enemy a hundred 
yards away; but if 
the eggs are near 
hatching, she will 
endeavor to lead 
the investigator 
astray by painfully 
dragging herself 
thru the grass. If 
too much harassed, 
however, she will 
desert her eggs out- 
right rather than 
wait for what she 
regards as an in- 
evitable doom; and 
the same remark 
will apply to al- 
most any of the 
Photo by the Author 
NEST AND EGGS OF THE GADWALL 
AN INCOMPLETE SET 
nesting ducks. 
Gadwalls’ eggs are of the creamy type, and thus closely resemble those 
of the American Wigeon; but are easily distinguishable from those of 
Shovellers, which have a greenish tinge. Complete sets vary from eight to 
thirteen, but eleven is the normal full clutch. 
