78 Hall, No/es on Ducks. [ ,sf "oct. 



20 feet high in the air in the next instant. One " Blue-wing " 

 will make as much noise as a whole flock of any other Duck. 

 There is a hum in the wing as it rises. The males have a form 

 of play by rising 15 to 20 feet directly above where they were 

 swimming, and very quickly. They immediately fall back to 

 their swimming position. 



Anas superciliosa, Gmelin (Black Duck). — This species and 

 the Teal are the first to pair and nest. Both young and 

 adult love to fish about the lilies and " pussy-tail " weeds in 

 search of shrimps and little " yabbies," A flock will get in close 

 order to fish by themselves and not in conjunction with the 

 Coots as some other Ducks do. By adopting this mass method 

 they generally " bustle " the shrimps as the Pelicans do the 

 beach fishes. When travelling a boat through the lagoon waters 

 the shrimps and bream jump out because of fright. The birds 

 appear to purposely frighten the shrimps in the shallow waters. 

 The Cormorants will catch above as well as below when hunting 

 in this way. On 29th April, 1907, as many as 300 Cormorants 

 of mixed species were hunting in mass upon the weedy lagoons, 

 where many Duck were also. The Black Duck is about the 

 heaviest for its size, and invariably realizes the highest market 

 price (Melbourne). 



Nettioti castaneum, Eyton (Teal). — As with the Black Duck, 

 it is the earliest of the local species to pair and nest. In 

 their feeding grounds they prefer plenty of mud in which to 

 paddle their bills. They feed largely upon a small red beetle, 

 which they pick from the blades of water weeds. No liking is 

 shown for spiders. 



Nettion gibberifrotis, S. Mlill. (Grey Teal). — I could not decide 

 the species when on the wing. 



Dendrocycna arcuata, Cuvier (Whistling Duck). — Evidently 

 a rare species in this locality, for during the last 8 or 9 years 

 only one flock has been seen (50 birds). About 30 years ago 

 they were numerous, and it was a common sight to find them 

 camped upon the dead limbs of the red gum trees. This is a 

 very quiet Duck. 



Aythya {Nyroca) australis, Gld. (White-eyed Duck). — This 

 is one of the two species known as Widgeon or Hard-head 

 It fishes in conjunction with the Coots {Fulica australis). A 

 flock of say lOO will find a large flock of Coots and watch them 

 disturbing the shrimps in order to secure a share. The Coot 

 collects its food below the surface, while the Hard-head catches 

 the shrimp as it jumps in the air. The Hard-head catches two 

 to the Coot's one. This is a diving Duck, and probably the 

 only one that resorts to this method. The Coots appear to do 

 all the work. Mussels form another food, which is found in the 

 clayey banks of the river, into which the Ducks plunge their 

 beaks, below the water surface. They prefer timbered lakes. A 

 loud squawk is their signal to rise quickly. 



