DECOY DUCKS. 75 



siclerable number of their companions back with 

 them to the decoy in the morning. When a decoy 

 gets stale that is, when there, are no new comers, 

 but the same birds day after day, though in great 

 abundance, they are hard to take, and fail to be 

 attracted as wished. This state of affairs is more 

 likely to happen at an inland decoy than at one 

 near the coast. At such a pool feeding the birds 

 up the pipes will sometimes be found more successful 

 than the use of a dog, however clever he may be at 

 his trade. The old habitues, that have frequented 

 the water daily for weeks, soon learn to regard the 

 antics of a dog with indifference, and show him 

 the contempt they no doubt think he deserves. A 

 batch of freshly-arrived Duck or Teal, on the other 

 hand, will often follow him at once, the latter at 

 times quite foolish in their hurry to see the strange 

 animal that dodges round the screens. Teal are by 

 far the easiest of all fowl to delude ; Diving Ducks 

 (such as Pochards, Goldeneyes, and Tufted Ducks) 

 the most difficult ; these latter being seldom or never 

 taken, however numerous they may be. Their 

 presence on the pool is a trouble to the decoyman, 

 for their restless, uneasy movements disturb the 

 serenity of Ducks and Teal. Wigeon are also 

 very shy, though far less so than are the Divers. 

 The proportion of Wigeon taken in decoys is very 

 small compared to the multitude of Duck and Teal 

 captured. But Wigeon should always be welcome 

 to the use of a decoy pool, for their clear, loud 

 whistle seldom fails to attract fowl of a more 

 valuable kind that happen to be flying overhead en 

 route for other resorts. 



