14 THE DUCK 



and westward, soon spreading themselves over every 

 part of our coasts where their food, sea-grass (Zosiera 

 marina) is to be found. It is the sea-grass which 

 gives the widgeon that somewhat rank flavour so 

 repellent to many people, a fact evidenced by the 

 highly palatable quality of the flesh of a bird which 

 has been living for several weeks on fresh water and 

 feeding upon inland grasses. Such a bird is fully 

 equal to a fresh-water mallard for the table. Widgeon 

 are very much more numerous than any other kind 

 of duck known to the coast gunner. The widgeon is 

 often called locally the ' whe-oh ' or half-fowl. In 

 wild-fowling parlance, widgeon are known as cock 

 and hen, instead of male and female, or duck and 

 drake ; while, locally, ' a couple ' of widgeon, as of 

 teal, means four birds. Widgeon feed to a large extent 

 by day. 



Food : vegetable, sea-grass on the coast, meadow 

 grasses inland. 



THE MALLARD {Anas boschas] 



The mallard, a surface-feeding duck, may be recog- 

 nised by its resemblance to the common domestic 

 duck, of which it is the ancestor. Mallard breed in 

 every district of our islands where they find condi- 



