222 THE SHELDUCK AND SURFACE-FEEDING DUCKS 



the Warblers, that our conceptions of the part played by sexual selec- 

 tion must be modified. Mr. Bonhote's observations on the mallard, if 

 borne out in the case of wild birds, will tend to show that the display 

 serves primarily to express the desire for pairing. 



Both sexes seem to take part in the choice of a nesting-site, which 

 varies much. As soon as she begins to sit the female plucks down 

 from her breast wherewith to cover her eggs during her brief 

 absences, thereby keeping them warm and concealing them from 

 prowling enemies. But Mr. Millais asserts that little or no down is 

 used when the nests are made near water ; he also remarks that 

 when sitting she places leaves and sticks on her back to still further 

 mask her most wonderfully protective coloration. She is a most 

 devoted mother, save at dawn and dusk never leaving her eggs. 



The male takes no part in the task of brooding the eggs, but he 

 remains near the sitting hen, at any rate during the greater part of 

 her onerous task. But by degrees his visits become less frequent, 

 and finally he goes away with other males, and holds aloof from his 

 mate till the autumn. 



The young take to the water as soon as hatched, and here they 

 display extraordinary skill and agility in catching flies and other 

 insects. They are jealously guarded by the female, who is a some- 

 what stern parent. On occasion she will elect to nest in a pollard 

 willow, or even amid the branches of oak and elm, using as a founda- 

 tion for her nursery the deserted nest of a crow or hawk. When the 

 young hatch out the mother secures their descent not by transporting 

 them but by inducing them to jump from the nest to the ground, a feat 

 which is invariably accomplished without injury, owing probably to 

 the lightness of the body and the length and elasticity of the down. 

 While in health, at any rate, every care is taken to assure their well- 

 fare. Gulls are vigorously buffeted, and the fond mother will even 

 challenge and defeat the hawk. From the inclemency of the weather 

 she protects them with her own body, protecting them from rain by 

 spreading her wings over them, and from cold by drawing them under 



