DUCK 



1873 



DUCK 



materials, lined with down from their breasts. 

 The nests are placed usually on the ground near 

 the water, sometimes in a bushy field farther 

 back and in case of some species in a hollow 

 tree. All the cares of the family fall upon the 

 mother, although the father duck is a devoted 

 lover. For four weeks she must remain on the 

 nest almost continuously. Then, after the 

 downy ducklings break through the shell, they 

 are led by the mother to the water as soon as 

 they can travel. For six weeks or more after 

 hatching they are unable to fly, and she must 

 guard them carefully, for snapping turtles, 

 water-rats, snakes, pike and various hawks are 

 dreaded enemies. 



Wild Ducks. These birds can be divided 

 into two classes, the sea ducks, which obtain 

 their food by diving to great depths, and the 

 river ducks, which breed in shallow water. 



Sea Ducks. Species belonging to this class 

 live not only in seas, but are also found inland. 

 Unlike river ducks, they have a webbed hind 

 toe, appear in large flocks and feed by day. 

 Sea ducks are usually not so good to eat as 

 river ducks, for most species feed on fish, lizards 

 and tadpoles, which makes their flesh coarse 

 and not agreeably flavored. The best-known 

 species of sea duck, however, the canvasback, 

 is highly valued for the table. It feeds chiefly 

 on the bulbs of eelgrass, known as wild celery. 

 It is that food which makes its flesh tender and 

 gives to it the exceptional flavor which makes 

 it so well liked. 



The canvasback breeds in the Northern 

 United States and Southern Canada. In Octo- 

 ber large flocks migrate southward as far as 

 Central Mexico and the Gulf coast. About 

 Chesapeake Bay they are especially numer- 

 ous at that time of year, and when large wedge- 

 shaped masses of continually-flapping wings are 

 seen the sportsmen begin to plan days of duck 

 hunting. When the birds reach a chosen spot 

 for resting they wheel round and round before 

 settling, looking first for lurking danger in the 

 rushes. 



Other sea ducks are the eider, well known 

 and valued for the down which makes our pil- 

 lows so comfortable and our coverlets so soft 

 and warm (see EIDER DUCK) ; the redhead, much 

 like the canvasback, and by many as highly 

 esteemed; the greater and lesser scaups, which 

 frequent bays and river mouths, preferring salt 

 or brackish water, but which are also good 

 food-birds; the finely-flavored ring-necked 

 ducks, the edible golden-eyes, the rankly-fla- 

 vored oldsquaws and buffleheads, the gay-plu- 

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maged harlequins, the dark-colored, inedible 

 scoters and the ruddy ducks, which are inter- 

 esting for their queer tails of stiff, pointed 

 feathers, bare to the base. The latter are easily 

 taken, and large numbers find their way to the 

 markets. 



River Ducks. Perhaps the most important 

 of all ducks is a species of river duck, the mal- 

 lard, for from it many domestic varieties have 

 been derived. The male mallard, or drake, has 

 deep-green plumage on the head and neck. A 

 white collar separates the green from the dark- 

 chestnut breast. The rest of the body is gray- 

 ish-brown above, whitish below, and the four 

 middle feathers of the tail are recurved. Some 

 tame ducks have nearly the same plumage as 

 this handsome wild one. Others vary greatly, 

 being generally duller or pure white. In flocks 

 of about fifty, mallards and other river ducks 

 are found feeding on small grassy ponds, or on 

 lakes or rivers, where wild rice, eelgrass and 

 rushes are thick. In duck-hunting seasons 

 painted wooden ducks or live ducks are an- 

 chored in the water by sportsmen to serve as 

 decoys. These lure other ducks within range 

 of the gunners' hiding places among the rushes 

 (see DECOY). 



The excellently-flavored mallards are .found 

 principally throughout the central parts of 

 America, but a species just as desirable, the 

 black, or dusky, duck, is found on the Atlantic 

 coast. Other species of river ducks are the 

 beautiful gray gadwall, which is comparatively 

 rare; the handsomely-colored baldpale, as good 

 to eat as the canvasback, for it eats the samo 

 food in fact steals it from them; the fine 

 table ducks, the shovellers, which have spoon- 

 shaped bills; the delicious long-tailed pintail, 

 and the little green-winged, 6/uc-uv'n;/- '/ and 

 cinnamon teals. The teals weigh but little 

 over a pound, but are highly prized for their 

 flesh and are regarded as great delicacies. They 

 are easily approached, but are very rapid 

 fliers, therefore difficult to hit on the wing. 

 Unlike other species of duck, such as the mal- 

 lards and canvasbacks, the teals drop suddenly 

 down to the water and do not wheel about 

 looking for danger. The most beautiful of all 

 American ducks is probably the many-colored 

 wood duck, whose numbers decreased so rapidly 

 that the Federal migratory bird law provided 

 for a closed season on them until 1918 (see 

 GAME, subhead Game Laws). 



Domestic Ducks. Some of the favorite do- 

 mestic ducks in America are the white Peking, 

 introduced from China; the large, white, excel- 



