DUCKS. 



DUCKR 



Sw., or Baikal Teal of meihodisU, u precisely m bird which intervenes 

 between UMM two sub-ftrnera. Kwntially a Teal, it differ* from all 

 otherm I hare rat MBO in the superior length of its tail, the feathers of 

 which are a full inch longer than the under-covera ; while the con- 

 vexity of the bill, from being greater than in the common Teal, 

 Nhlfalm its dots approximation to Da.tla, Proceeding thus by 

 analyst*, we And several foreign species which may be either called 

 Teal or Ducks. The Botdkai /arowu, Sw., is more especially a bird 

 of thi. deriptjon. It is closer allied to the Mallard than to any 

 other of the group : this is indicated by the more depressed form of 

 the bill, and the white collar round the neck ; the nape also is very 

 conspicuously crested, a peculiarity found in no other group of the 

 gratis. To this and to the curled tail of the tame duck we shall 

 presently advert. Having now reached what appears to be the 

 typical form of Botfkat, we see that nature as usual again departs 

 from it The bill of the Mallard u throughout more depressed than 

 that of the common Teal. This depression in fact, from being greater 

 than that of the Gad wall, or of the Pintail, obviously assimilates more 

 to the Shoveler. The affinity however appears remote, since the 

 lamin*; of the Mallanl are concealed, while those of the Shovelers are 

 conspicuously projecting. If therefore the affinity wan immediate, it 

 could only be demonstrated by a species having the bill of the com- 

 mon duck, but with the laminae projecting. Now such a species is 

 actually the Blue-Winged Teal of North America, In which these 



BUI of Blue- Winged Teal (Bvickat ii$nrt). 



lamina; project nearly as much as in the Oadwall, while the upper 

 mandible exhibits that peculiar sinuosity towards the base which is 

 seen in no other ducks besides the Shovelers. If this affinity required 

 any further support, it U placed beyond doubt by the fact mentioned 

 in the 'General History of Birds,' that the plumage of the New Holland 

 Sboveler, excepting the white facial crescent, ig precisely the same as 

 that of the Blue- Winged Teal, the very bird which thus unites the 

 sub-genus Botchot to that of JLnot, and completes* the circle of the 

 whole group." 



Blc.\V,n,J Tl (Ottekmt JtKvrl). 



S. domestic*, the Common Mallard, or Wil.l Duck. Both sexes of 

 thu beautiful bird are so well known that either description or figure 

 would be superfluous. It is the Canard Sauvage of the French -Capo 

 Verde (the male), Anitra (the female), (lermano, and Paperooe, of the 

 Italians; Wild* Elite and Oemcinc Kate of the Germans; Kthin- 

 neewn Hbesshecp of UM Cm Indiana ; Stock-Duck -.f U,.- Hudson's 

 Bay rr.id.nU ; and Cors Hwyad, Garan Uwyad, and Hydnwy, of the 



V'.. ! 



The weight of the wild Mallard is usually about two pounds and a 

 half. The abundance of the bird at one time in I'.nt on may be 

 judged of from the following pawage in Pennant :" Amazing 

 numlOTD of lim-ks. widgeons, and teals are taken : by an account sent 

 us ot the number raught, a few winters past, in one aouon, and in 



only ten decoys, in the neighbourhood of Waiufleet, it appeared to 

 amount to 81,200, in which are included several other species of 

 ducks ; it is also to be observed that, in the above particular, widgeon 

 and teal are reckoned but as one, and consequently sell but at half 

 the price of ducks. . . . The account of the numbers here mentioned 

 relates only to those that were sent to the capital It was customary 

 formerly to have in the fens an annual driving of the young ducks 

 before they took wing. Numbers of people assembled, who beat a 

 vast tract, and forced the birds into a net placed at the spot where 

 the sport was to terminate. A hundred and fifty dozens have been 

 taken at once ; but this practice being supposed to be detrimental, 

 has been abolished by act of parliament." Selby observes upon thin, 

 that the same district at the present time does not produce perhaps 

 a dozen broods in the year. 



Bill of Mallard (Boidiai domntica}, Swainnon. 



Mr. Waterton has pointed out that the duck and the drake are 

 clothed in the same plumage only for a very short time in the 

 summer. Mr. Selhy's observations on the change of plumage are 

 referred to under the account of the Pintail. 



The trachea of the Mallard has at its lower extremity a labyrinth 

 much jlarger than that of the Qadwall, but not unlike it ; the tube 

 does not differ much in diameter throughout its length. 



The Wild Duck is widely spread over a considerable portion of the 

 globe. Few of the temperate and arctic regions are without it 

 Temminck places its habitation in the northern countries, and 

 observes that it is known as a bird of passage nearly throughout 

 Europe, haunting rivers, lakes, and marshes. Prince C. L. Bonaparte 

 (' Specchio Comparative ') mentions it as very common near Home in 

 winter. 



The Wild Duck feeds on fishes, fry or spawn, slugs, wator-insecta, 

 aquatic plants, their seeds, and all sorts of grain (Temminck) 

 insects, worms, slugs, and all kinds of groin, ic. (Selby.) 



" In a natural state," says Selby, " wild ducks always pair, though 

 in a state of domestication they are observed to be polygamous. The 

 pairing takes place towards the end of February or beginning of 

 March, and they continue associated till the female begins to sit, 

 when the male deaerte her, joining others of his own sex similarly 

 situated ; so that it is usual to see the mallards, after May, in small 

 flocks by themselves. About this time also they begin to undergo 

 the changes of colour that assimihit.- them in a great degree to the 

 female, and which is retained till the period of the autumnal or 

 general moult The care of the young thus devolves entirely n|,,n 

 the duck, and is not partaken by the mole, as Wilson and others 

 appear to think ; and this fact I have hod frequent opportunities of 

 vending, as many wild ducks annually breed upon the edges of our 

 Northumbrian moors, and the young broods are of courxu Iriqaeatlj 

 under inspection as they descend the rivulets to th. ],,,, > 

 parts of the country. The nent of the wild duck in generally iu:i.|"' 



m some dry spot of the marshes, and nt Car (V whk-h 



she can lead her progeny as soon as hatched. It is composed of 

 withered grass and other dry vegetable matter, and usually concealed 

 from view by a thick bush or some very rank herbage, though other 

 and very dissimilar situations are occasionally chosen, as several 

 instances have been recorded where they have dfpoMteil tli.-ir eggs on 

 the fork of a large tree, or in some deserted nest Such on instance 

 once occurred within my knowledge, and near my own residence, 

 where a wild duck laid her eggs in the old nest of a crow, at least 

 thirty feet from the ground. At this elevation she hatched her 

 young ; and as none of them were found dead beneath the tree, it is 

 presumed she carried them safely to the ground in her bill, a mode 

 of conveyance known to be frequently adopted by the Eider-Duck." 

 Montagu ('Ornith. l>irl.' Su|.|.l.i *ays, "We have been assured by a 

 person of umloiil.-. that a half-domesticated duck made a 



nest in Uuiuford Tower, hatched her young, and brought them down 



