Wild Ducks and Duck Decoying. 209 



birds well within shot. Being a keen sportsman 

 and fowler his fingers tingled to touch the 

 trigger which should bring the rare prize to his 

 hand. He was quite unaware of any other 

 presence when a couple of shots awoke the 

 echoes of the valley, and the ducks floated 

 lifeless upon the water. When the white smoke 

 lifted from the brush and reeds it showed the 

 head and shoulders of a keen sporting friend of 

 the first observer, and a beautiful drake now 

 adorns the collection of each. The tufted 

 duck is a prettily-marked species, and has the 

 feathers on the back of the head elongated 

 into a drooping crest. The upper plumage 

 generally is black, flashing with green, bronze, 

 and purple lustres, and the under plumage white. 

 Although numbers of tufted ducks breed upon 

 fresh water in this country, the great majority 

 are only winter visitants, coming in October and 

 leaving again in March. It rarely congregates 

 in flocks, but is mostly found in scattered 

 squadrons about shores and channels. Norfolk 

 and Nottingham are the counties where the 

 tufted ducks are known to breed, and here 

 on decoys or in parks they find favourite 

 retreats. The nest is made under a clump of 

 grass or rushes, and from ten to thirteen eggs are 

 laid. 



Eider-ducks are among the most interesting 

 of our sea-birds. Three species are found in 



p 



