A Wild Duck Trap 



411 



American Merganser. A large box with sides of strawboard, in which holes 

 were cut for observation and for the lens of my Grafiex, made me an excellent 

 blind. This was pushed out to the edge of the ice February 15, disturbing but 

 a few of the flock, which now had increased to more than 500. I had but just 

 concealed myself when a bunch of Scaups came back, circling around, and my 

 camera caught a female Scaup coming to the water on a turn, wings fully 

 extended, feet wide apart, with the toes spreading the web to the utmost 

 as she back -pedaled to the water. Then came the Canvasbacks, circling again 

 and again, a few dropping in each time around, their wings forming a parachute 

 as they neared the water and the toes turning up as they tobogganed into it. 



We made several attempts to feed the Ducks with wheat, corn, and chopped 

 cabbage. This was thrown out into the water, and while we did not see them 

 feeding, I think that they did get some of the corn and wheat. One day I 

 took a dead Golden-eye from one of the fish-lines that was let through the ice 

 near the channel. It was hooked through the wing, evidently having struck 

 the hook while searching for food. 



Sometimes a large flock of the Ducks would sit out on the ice in the middle 

 of the lake for days at a time, and one day we went out to them. As we drew 





AMERICAN SCAUP (FEMALE) ALIGHTING IN A FLOCK OF SCAUPS AND CANVASBACK 

 DUCKS. BRANCHPORT, FEB. 15, 1912 



near, all flew away except a female Scaup. She was too weak to fly and we 

 carried her home and fed her some minnows and scraps of beef. The first 

 minnow was forced down her throat, and as soon as she swallowed it she became 

 ravenous, picking at our fingers and clothing, and took the minnows from our 

 fingers the moment they were offered; however, the feeding came too late, and 

 she died the next day. 



