11 4 THE COMMON TEAL 



a way that the weight of the frame sinks the figures to their proper 

 depth ; the skiff is then dressed with sedge or coarse grass, in an 

 artful manner, as low as the water's edge ; and under cover of this, 

 which appears like a party of ducks swimming by a small island, 

 the gunner floats down to the very skirt of a whole congregated 

 multitude, and pours in a destructive and repeated fire of shot 

 among them. Sometimes the ducks are stalked from a boat hidden 

 by reeds. In some wild districts, particularly in Scotland, wild 

 ducks may often be shot without these subterfuges, especially 

 when the land rises suddenly to the shores of a lake or loch which 

 the duck frequents. In some salt-water lochs wild duck are numer- 

 ous, though they are not much good for table ; and if one takes a 

 gun, when fishing, one generally gets fair sport during the day when 

 one least expects it. 



The COMMON TEAL (Querquedula crecca), Fig. 73, is included with 

 the Anatinse or True Ducks and is the smallest of British ducks. 



FIG. 73. THE COMMON TEAL. 



The' head is coloured chestnut-brown above, the sides being of 

 greenish hue on their upper parts and rich brown below, the two 

 colours being separated by streaks of buff colour. The chin is 

 nearly black ; the back is greyish-white, mottled with dark streaks ; 

 the wings exhibit brown and purplish hues, and the tail is of a 

 blackish-brown tint. The female is a general sombre brown in 

 colour. The length of these birds is about 15 in. 



The teal sometimes breeds in this country, but the greater num- 

 ber fly northwards in summer. It arrives in Britain in September 

 and inhabits lakes and marshes. The nest is built of leaves and 

 grasses, the eggs numbering from eight to ten, and being coloured 

 a dirty or brownish white. The teal feeds mostly in the night, and 



