19-1 NATURAL SISTOEY. 



In the second group of the Wild-fowl are the SWANS (Cygnus), remarkable for their extremely 

 long necks, which exceed the length of the whole body. Their short legs, which are placed rather far 

 backwards, render the Swan's movements on land awkward and ungainly, but in the water their 

 motions are graceful in the extreme. Their food consists of vegetable substances and weed, which 

 they search for under the water, their long necks enabling them to dip down below the surface and to 

 reach their food at considerable depths. In most of the Swans the windpipe enters the bony portion 

 of the sternum, and performs several evolutions before passing to the thorax. The Whooper, or Wild 

 Swan, visits England in the winter, when it is frequently killed both on the sea-coast and inland. 

 On the tidal harbours of the south coast it consorts with Brent Geese and Ducks, and several are often 

 obtained by a successful sportsman with a punt gun. The Swans breed in high latitudes, but the tame 

 species which frequents the rivers and lakes breeds on the eyots and shores, and makes a very large nest 

 on the land, in which sometimes as many as six eggs are deposited. The latter are of large size and 

 of a greenish colour. When the young are hatched they are covered with a greyish down, and both 

 parents display great affection for their offspring, the males being particularly pugnacious, and driving 

 off any intruder who may approach their domain. They fight with their wings, with which they deal 

 tremendous blows, often breaking the wing of their adversary. In Australia a peculiar species occurs, 

 the Black Swan (Cygnus atratus), but perhaps the handsomest of the genus is the Black-necked Swan 

 (Cygnus nigricollis) of Antarctic America. Both these southern species show a marked contrast to 

 the northern Swans, which are white when adult. 



In the next group occur the true DUCKS, of which the Common Wild Duck (Anas boscas) is the 

 type. This well-known species is one of the most widely distributed of this wide-ranging family, for 

 it occurs not only all over the northern portion of the Old World, extending to China and Japan, 

 but it is also met with in North America, as far south as Mexico. The Wild Duck breeds in many 

 parts of the United Kingdom, and where not disturbed does not betray any great fear of man. 

 The nest is placed on the ground, often at some distance from the water, and in one instance the 

 writer remembers having come across a Duck sitting on nine eggs at least half a mile from the lake 

 where numbers of others were breeding. It is strange that the sitting bird should expose her young 

 brood, even if they should be safely hatched, to the risk of capture by a fox or other wild animal 

 on their way to the water. The nest in question was placed in a small wooded dell, and was 

 overhung by a bush, which would have effectually concealed it had not the old bird betrayed its 

 presence by flying off. The Mallard is a much more handsome bird than the Duck, and both sexes 

 -closely resemble the common Duck of the farmyard. In summer, however, the male bird loses its 

 rich plumage, and dons a dress like the female, only resuming its beautiful colours again in August. 

 A good decoy, where many Wild Ducks are to be seen, is often a pretty sight, the birds swimming 

 about in pairs, when the fine plumage of the male contrasts with the more sober colour of his mate. 

 At times they may be seen tail uppermost, searching below the surface for their food, which consists 

 of worms, grass-seeds and roots, mollusca, insects, small reptiles, and little fish. On being approached 

 they fly off with a sonorous quack, that of the female being the louder. During the breeding season 

 the males consort much together, and on taking flight mount high in the air and circle round some 

 distance before again settling down. The female evinces great attachment to the young, and may 

 often be seen attended by her little brood, who on the approach of danger manage to conceal them- 

 selves most adroitly, while the mother will feign lameness, or pretend to be wounded, in order to 

 draw away the intruder from the whereabouts of' her brood. In the same group as the Wild Duck 

 are also contained the Sheldrakes, Shovellers, and the Teal, besides several other genera. 



In the fourth group of the Ducks are the SCOTERS (CEdemia) and EIDERS (Somateria), etc., which 

 have the hind toe lobed, and the same peculiarity of the hind toe exists also in the next group, the 

 MERGANSERS. In the la.tter birds the bill is very long, and more slender than in the other groups. 

 They are mostly birds of northern regions, occurring in both the Old World and the New ; and two 

 species, the Goosander (Mergus castor) and the Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator), breed in 

 the north of Scotland, though they occur more frequently in winter, at which season they are shot, 

 not only on the harbours of the coast, but also on inland lakes arid rivers. Both species are migratory, 

 visiting India in the winter, but in the Southern Ocean there is one species (Mergus australis) 

 which has as yet only been met with in the Auckland Islands. The beautiful Smew (Merguhis 



