48 THE BOOK OF MIGRATORY BIRDS 



puts on its bravest attire, we have few British birds to vie 

 with him. His helm is of brilliant metallic green. A 

 white gorget parts his morion from the ruddy chocolate of 

 the breast, chestnut-brown is his mantle, and brilliant 

 orange his legs and feet. He walks erect, and with none 

 of the awkwardness of his tame relation. His sex is indi- 

 cated by the four lyre-shaped middle feathers of the tail, 

 which curl upward and outward. A somewhat curious 

 chapter can be filched from the book of Nature upon the 

 courting of duck and drake. We put him in the second 

 place, because the maid makes the wooing. She is sombre 

 of hue, while he, clad in all the glories of colour, remains 

 to be approached. She sails round him, uttering cooing 

 notes of love ; while he, to all appearances indifferent, acts 

 the part of a coquette, avoiding her advances. She 

 redoubles her efforts, swimming round him, and occasion- 

 ally lowers herself in the water until only the head and neck 

 are visible. Reciprocal feelings eventually being estab- 

 lished, the pair go through a series of seemingly concealed 

 figures, advancing, retiring, bowing their heads, and 

 uttering notes of endearment. This is preliminary to the 

 construction of a nest, which is usually placed in the midst 

 of a tuft of rushes, in the hollow of an old tree stump, or 

 occasionally in a pollard tree, twenty or more feet from 

 the ground. This is more especially the case when there 

 are many four-footed enemies about. The drake takes no 

 part in the nest-making; all these duties are performed by 

 his mate. When the nest is finished, she lays from ten to 

 twenty eggs usually about a dozen and as soon as she 

 begins to sit, plucks the down from her breast to prevent 

 the eggs from getting cold while she is away from the nest, 

 which she never leaves until forced to do so by the pangs 

 of hunger. Even then she carefully conceals her treasures 

 by putting herbage over them, as she may have to fly 

 many miles in search of food. The drake does not assist 

 the incubation in any way. He goes to his club with 

 other drakes, only occasionally flying round overhead and 

 quacking loudly. This seems to be done less with an idea 



