THE pocn.vnD.J 



BY FIELD, AVOOD, AND AVATEK. 



[the widgeox. 



such is tho form and shortness of the wing of 

 pochards, that they cannot ascend again from 

 tlieso littlo inclosurc3 if tlicy would ; besides, 

 tho numbers wliich aro usually knocked into 

 those pens, preclude all chance of escajio from 

 tliom by the wing. A decoy-man will some- 

 times allow the haunt of dun-birds to be so 

 freat, that the whole surface of tho pond will 

 be covered with them previous to his attempting 

 to take one. Upon such occasions he bespeaks 

 nil the assistance he can get, to complete the 

 slaughter by breaking their necks. AVhen all 

 is ready, the dun-birds aro roused from the 

 pond ; and as all wild fowl rise against the 

 wind, the poles in that quarter are unpinned, 

 and fly up with the nets at the instant the dun- 

 birds begin to leave the surface of the water, 

 so as to meet them in their first ascent ; and 

 they are thus beat down by hundreds. At 

 the pond of Mr. Baxton, at Goldhanger in 

 Essex, as many pochards have been taken at 

 one drop as filled a waggon, so full as to require 

 four stout horses to carry them away ; and the 

 lower birds in the pens have been known to be 

 killed and pressed entirely flat, from tho num- 

 bers of their companions heaped up above them 

 by the fatal stoppage of the poles and nets. 

 The few attempts made to domesticate the 

 pochard have been hitherto unsuccessful. They 

 do tolerably well where there is plenty of water, 

 but cannot bear walking about on bard, pebbly 

 grounds." 



The pochard leaves the northern regions at 

 the commencement of winter, and directs its 

 course southward. It is said that it frequents 

 Egypt, also the entire section of the Holy 

 Land ; and is very numerous in some of the 

 lakes and marshy districts in America, espe- 

 cially in Carolina and Louisiana. In France 

 it makes its appearance about the month of 

 October, in large flocks ; and about the same 

 period it may be found in all the low and fenny 

 districts of Grreat Britain. 



In shooting this bird, especially in a severe 

 snow-storm, accompanied with a hard frost, it is 

 found not to be so difficult to bring to the ground 

 with tolerably sized shot as some other wild 

 fowl ; it is, however, always a matter of difficulty 

 to get within range of it, for it is very shy, and 

 remarkably quick in recognising an enemy, 

 when it immediately takes wing to some safe 

 retreat. 



THE WIDGEON. 



This well-known bird is the Anas Fenelope 

 of Liimajus, and has a length of about twenty 

 inches, a breadth of from two to three feet, 

 and a weight of about twenty-two ounces. 

 The bill is an incli and a-half long, and narrow, 

 with its outer edges serrated. The upper 

 mandible is of a dark leaden hue, tipped with 

 black. The crown of the head is very high and 

 narrow, and is of a cream colour, with a small 

 spot of yellowish white under each eye. The 

 rest of the head, tho neck, and the breast, aro 

 of a bright rufous chestnut, faintly freckled on 

 the head with black spots, and darkest on the 

 chin and throat, and tinged with a vinous 

 colour. A baud, composed of beautifully waved 

 or indented narrow ash-brown and white lines, 

 separates the breast and neck. Tho scapulars 

 and back are marked with similar feathers, 

 as are also the sides of the body under the 

 wings, even as low as the tliighs. These, how- 

 ever, are paler. The belly, to the vent, is white, 

 and the ridge of the wing and adjoining coverts 

 arc of a dusky ash-colour, approaching to 

 brown. The great coverts are brown, fringed 

 with white, and tipped with black, which forms 

 a border to the changeable green beauty-spots 

 of the wings, which are likewise bordered on 

 the under side by the deep velvet black tips of 

 the secondary quills. The exterior webs of 

 the adjoining quills are white ; and those next 

 the back, which are very long, are of a deep 

 brown, fringed with yellowish white. Tho 

 greater quills are brown ; the vent and upper 

 tail-coverts are black. 



During the night, whilst widgeons are 

 taking their course through the air, they may 

 be distinguished from other wild fowl by the 

 peculiar whistling note they use. They have 

 been domesticated, and are generally much 

 admired on account of their liveliness and 

 beauty. 



On the approach of frosty weather, they 

 leave the desolate regions of tho north, and 

 direct their course to the south, breaking into 

 detached and diverging lines, and spreading 

 themselves along the shores, and over the 

 morasses and lakes of different countries. 

 Large numbers of them are found in the East, 

 particularly in Egypt, and in the islauds of 

 the Mediterranean. They remain in these 



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