12 THE BIRDS OF MONTREAL. 



24. Red-breasted Merganser. (Shell- drake ; Saw- 



bill ; Fish-duck.) M. serrator. (Linn.) 

 " Transient Visitant," common. This is the 

 species which sometimes proves so troublesome to 

 duck-shooters when shooting over decoys, as two 

 or three of these ducks occasionally will alight on 

 the water just out of range of gunshot and appear 

 to be acting as sentinels, or as a warning to other 

 kinds of duck to give the decoys a wide berth. But 

 this fact is well known to experienced sportsmen, 

 and a few shots are wasted on such occasions to 

 scare them away, as they are not wanted for the 

 table by those who know them. It is likely that 

 the mergansers and scoters are responsible for the 

 bad taste of the people who say they don't care for 

 wild duck, as they find them too fishy or strong- 

 tasting. Observed in our markets April 23, and at 

 Lake St. Peter November 1. I saw a male speci- 

 men April 28, 1893, at Lake of Two Mountains. 



Genus Lophodytes. Reichenback. 



25. Hooded Merganser. (Saw-bill ; Fish-duck.) L. 



cucullatus. (Linn.) 



" Transient Visitant," scarce. The mergansers 

 are not sought after by market-hunters, as they are 

 considered too fishy for the table, but this beautiful 

 little duck, with its erect crest, is not allowed by 

 sportsmen to escape without a shot, as it makes a 



