INSTINCT Al^D REASON IN DOGS, ETC. 241 



the site of a former nest, like the rook, the raven, 

 and the hawk ; but wild ducks are remarkable for 

 local attachment to previous nesting-places. I 

 have proof of that fact in numerous instances now. 

 With only two excej)tions, there are the usual 

 nests as last year. I account for the two excep- 

 tions by deeming that the two ducks thus missing 

 fell to the gun in the last shooting season. Con- 

 sidering that one hundred and seventeen duck and 

 teal fell on my first day at the wild fowl, the 

 flights must have taken pretty good care of 

 themselves to have lost so few of the nesting or 

 home birds. 



Now, Nature never, that I am aware of, usually 

 assigned to birds more than some very curious 

 instincts in regard to nesting and other habits ; but 

 here we have an instance of a duck reasoning on the 

 cause of losing, or danger to, her eggs, and of the 

 most actual forethought in providing against the 

 calamity ; not scraping a mere dent in the ground, 

 as other wild ducks do when they are on the 

 instant of depositing an egg^ but hnowing that 

 the place is ivet, and liable also to be too luet, 

 methodically building up an unusual nest by reason 



and forethought that mere instinct of nature had 

 VOL. I. R 



