DUCKS, GEESE, AND SWANS. 193 



male bird is a very pretty and conspicuous one, in 

 his beautifully pencilled back and flanks, and dis- 

 tinguished from afar by his bright buff forehead and 

 crown, and white wing coverts. The female is much 

 less showily coloured. The Wigeon arrives upon 

 our seaboard, from the Arctic regions, in vast 

 numbers every autumn, and from that time forward 

 to the following spring resides with us. This 

 autumn migration of the Wigeon begins late in 

 September, and lasts well on into November. The 

 birds begin to leave us again in March, and most 

 have departed by the end of the following month. 

 The Wigeon, whilst with us, is one of the most 

 gregarious of the Ducks, and flocks of vast size 

 may sometimes be observed in our shallower seas 

 close inshore, in estuaries and bays, but perhaps 

 more frequently further out at sea. These birds 

 obtain most of their food at night in such localities 

 where they are subjected to much persecution, as 

 often happens, for their flesh is valued as an article 

 for the table, coming landwards at dusk, and retiring 

 to the open sea at dawn. The flight of this species 

 is rapid, yet almost noiseless, and the bird may 

 sometimes be seen gliding down from the air to the 

 water on stiff and motionless wings, but flapping 

 them rapidly just as it drops, tail first, into the sea. 

 Its note is highly characteristic, a shrill, far sounding 

 mee-ow, or wee-ow. The food consists of grass, 

 buds, and leaves of aquatic plants, grass wrack, 

 crustaceans, and molluscs. Many Wigeons are 



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