CHAPTER XIII. 



March 19 March 25. 



THE WOOD DUCK. 



Order Anseres Family^ Anatidae 



Subfamily Anatinae Genus Aix 



bill, 1.40. 



Species Aix sponsa 



Length 18.50 to 20.00; wing, 9.00 to 9.50; 

 Migration North, March ; south, November. 



"Nothing impaired with clean and ruddy leg 



Through every plash he wades, with chattering beak 



Fishes the miry shallow as he goes; 



In quest of snail or slug, or winding worm; 



Or launching from the shore his feathered feet, 



Pilots his dames along the flooded dike." 



The family Anatidae contains about two hundred species, 

 and members of it are found in all parts of the world. It in- 

 cludes five sub-families, namely: 1. Merginse composed of the 

 Mergansers or fish-eating ducks; 2. Anatinae, the pond or 

 river ducks ; 3. Fuligulinae, the bay or sea ducks ; 4. Anserinae, 

 the geese; and 5. Cygninae, the swans. The familiar external 

 characteristics of the family are a large flattened bill, covered 

 with soft epidermis rather than horn, and with sides armed 

 with lamella or small teethlike processes ; the tongue is fleshy 

 with dentated margins; the wings are moderate; the feet are 

 near the center of equilibrium ; the anterior toes joined by a 

 web ; and the neck is long. The wood or tree duck, aix sponsa, 

 belongs to the sub-family anatinae, composed of the pond or 



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