424 HISTORY OF 



back marked with narrow black and white undulated lines, but 

 best known by its whistling sound ; lastly, the Teal, which is 

 the smallest of this kind, with the bill black, the head and upper 

 part of the neck of a bright bay.— These are the most common 

 birds of the duck kind among ourselves : but who can describe 

 the amazing variety of this tribe if he extends his view to the 

 different quarters of the world ? The most noted of the foreign 

 tribe are the Muscovy Duck, or, more properly speaking, the 

 Musk Duck, so called from a supposed musky smell, with naked 

 skin round the eyes, and which is a native of Africa ; the Bra- 

 zilian Duck, that is of the size of a goose, all over black except 

 the tips of the wings; the American Wood Duck, with a variety 

 of beautiful colours, and a plume of feathers that falls from the 

 back of the head like a friar's cowl — These, and twenty others, 

 might be added, were increasing the number of names the way 

 to enlarge the sphere of our comprehension. 



All these live in the manner of our domestic ducks, keeping 

 together in flocks in the winter, and flying in pairs in summer, 

 bringing up their young by the water-side, and leading them to 

 their food as soon as out of the shell. Their nests are usually 

 built among heath or rushes, not far from the water, and they 

 lay twelve, fourteen, or more eggs, before they sit : yet this is 

 not always their method ; the dangers they continually encounter 

 from their ground situation, sometimes obliges them to change 

 their manner of building ; and their awkward nests are often 

 seen exalted on the tops of trees. This must be a very great 

 labour to perform, as the duck's bill is but ill formed for build- 

 ing a nest, and giving the materials of which it is composed a 

 sufficient stability to stand the weather. The nest, whethei 



a shorter tail, and wedged ; the body is varied with blackish, raffous and 

 gray ; the back is black ; collar and lower part of the belly white. 



The Golden Et/e—Chie&y breeds in Italy : it has a large head and thick 

 body ; the neck short ; and the bill broad, elevated towards the point, of a 

 black colour, and is, if measured from the angles of the mouth, about an 

 Inch and three quarters long; the head, when variously exposed to the 

 light, appears black, purple, and green, with a fine shining silky gloss ; it 

 has a white spot on each side of the mouth ; the eyes are of a fine gold col- 

 our ; the neck, breast, and belly, white ; the space between the shoulders 

 and the back is black ; the wings of a fine beautiful mixture of black and 

 white ; the tail near three inches long ; the legs short, of a, yellowish col. 

 our ; the toes pretty long, and more dusky. It has a disagreeable fishy 

 taste ; they are sometimes, but very rarely, taken upon the English coast. 



