THE BOOK OF MIGRATORY BIRDS 155 



keeping homing pigeons, all at once missed a pair from 

 his loft, and after diligent search the culprits were found 

 at the rear of the dwelling-house, the male cooing its 

 love-song, whilst the female covered a couple of eggs, and 

 in close proximity in fact, only an inch or two distant 

 was the domestic cat, fondling, in a curled-up position, 

 her progeny of five kittens. Perfect harmony prevailed, 

 and the young pigeons were duly hatched, and took to 

 themselves wings. 



Speaking of peculiar bed-fellows, I discovered a nest 

 near the Lough last year containing fourteen eggs, six of 

 which were that of the mallard duck, and the remaining 

 eight were partridge eggs, presided over by the hen 

 mallard. It was, to the naturalists, a great disappoint- 

 ment when the nest was eventually harried, for it would 

 be hazardous to speculate on the composition of the 

 brood. 



The question has often been asked, "Does the mallard 

 duck breed in captivity?'* The best solution is centred in 

 the fact that at the present time, on this island, what is 

 termed the common duck (hen mallard) is sitting hard on 

 ten eggs. This bird is one of five that have been winged, 

 or in some other way captured, and the little flock, with 

 wings clipped, go about similar to the ordinary farm-yard 

 duck, and they are prolific in the matter of egg-production 

 similar to the ordinary farm-yard duck, though the eggs 

 are laid in batches, as though intended only for 

 incubation. 



