SEA. FOWL IN NOVA SCOTIA — GILPIN. 141 



in Buffon's time, the royal waters of Versailles, as the " A Cana- 

 densis." There are people still alive who recollect that the 

 Brants bred in abundance in St. Mary's Bay when they were 

 children. I scarcely need say that none are found breeding there 

 now, or scarcely alighting, except in some years. This power in 

 the individual bird of prolonging its existence by altering its 

 breeding grounds must perpetuate its race, whilst other races 

 having attachments stronger to one place have died out, and are 

 still, during our own time, diminishing. 



Of the next family of true duck or fresh water fowl, with the 

 exception of the black or blue wing duck, and wood duck, which 

 curiously enough, are resident, consisting of the mallard, pintail, 

 widgeon, the teals and shovellers, they may be said to be rare ; 

 never to abound in market, to appear during fall and win- 

 ter, and chiefly to be found in private collections or in note 

 books of naturalists. Thus I note " Mallard, young male, no 

 white collar, shot Sept. 1875, Cole Harbor, near Halifax — J. M. 

 Jones." Pintails rather more numerous. Halifax Museum. 

 Young collections, — Mr. Downs and Mr. Egan, males full plu- 

 mage. Of the teals, blue winged, male full plumage, shot Jan'y ; 

 1880, Halifax; green winged teal, Halifax market, 12 Dec, 1871. 

 male, full plumage, myself ; English teal, (Q. netion), very rare, 

 mounted by Mr. Downs, with American, to show the difference 

 of species; widgeon, female, full plumage, Jan., 1880, Halifax, 

 Mr. Egan ; and a shoveller, exceedingly rare, shot at Digby by 

 my son ; and shot, April, 1879, Halifax, male in full plumage. 

 Mr. Egan. From these extracts we find this family rare in 

 individuals, and occurring during winter sometimes, and then in 

 full plumage. Whilst those birds thus make our Province a 

 casual visiting place, it is singular that the biue-winged duck, a 

 true type of the fresh water duck, with its long and low bill, 

 slender neck, legs bi ought forward, a poor diver but good walker, 

 so closely allied to these genera in all these respects, should be a 

 resident, in company with the wood duck, nearly as closely allied 

 also, yet it is so. Down in the salt marshes bordering the river 

 ■mouths, just above tide way, we find him nesting in May. In 

 August, the mower with his scythe cuts the young brood scarce- 



