34 THE FOWLER IN IRELAND. 



or less dominant, and though just out of the shell, 

 they will hide and dodge into shelter, such as tufts 

 of grass, on seeing a human form. ' 



As an instance of how Ducks will breed when 

 protected, I may here relate that in Col. Purejoy's 

 demesne, near Cappawhite, co. Tipperary, on a pond 

 of but four acres, three hundred " flappers " can 

 often be counted by the middle of July. The old 

 birds do not, however, lead their broods out from the 

 wood in which the water is situated till they are of 

 some size, for the Pike snap up the tiny ducklings 

 at a sad rate. On this pond, in an hour's shooting 

 with three guns, seventy-eight fowl, consisting of 

 Duck, Wigeon, Teal, Pintail, Shoveller, Pochard, 

 and Goldeneye, were killed in January, 1876. 

 Since that year the early flighting has fallen off, the 

 best bags being forty-five in 1879, and thirty-eight 

 in 1880. Before 1876, fifty was an ordinary morn- 

 ing's sport, and sometimes more. Though so many 

 Teal are shot on this water, and the facilities for 

 nesting are so favourable, they are never known to 

 breed near or bring their broods to it ; perhaps they 

 instinctively fear the Pike (which abound), or they 

 may object to the companionship of Duck on these 

 occasions. 



The only uniformly coloured variety of a pure bred 

 Wild Duck I ever saw is an albino in my collection, 

 which was shot on the coast of co. Cork in December, 

 1 880. It is about half as large again as a white " call- 

 duck," which I at first supposed it to be. I, how- 

 ever, sent it to Mr. Harting for inspection, and he 

 considered it an albino wild Mallard. He tells me 

 he never knew an instance of an albino Wild Duck 



