THE OOLOGIST 



29 



rarely migrating this far south, these 

 are the only two records I have of any 

 in this locality for 12 years, when one 

 was killed here that winter. 



O. S. Biggs, 

 San Jose, 111. 



Because He Advertised in The Oologist 



This has been an unusually good 

 season for taxidermists, all those of 

 my acquaintance reporting plenty of 

 work, and I belive this is not due to 

 an abundance of game but the con- 

 dition of the country. When the 

 country is prosperous it helps the 

 taxidermist as well as everyone else. 



Preserving of wings of game birds 

 for hat trimmings has been in much 

 demand this year. Of the wings I 

 have received the largest number 

 were ducks, and Mallards were 

 favored, also there were breasts of 

 geese, pheasants, etc., as well as tails 

 of the latter, and all because fashion 

 dictates it. Any other season would 

 only bring about a dozen pair, but 

 when they are "in style" it makes a 

 big difference. 



M. J. Hoffman, 

 1818 Bleecker St., Brooklyn, N. Y. 



Ducks and Other Water Birds of Lake 

 Worth, Texas 



We had plenty ducks on the lake 

 from October to the last of November, 

 We will have a few more, but the 

 most of them are on the coast by 

 now, as I have reports from there. 

 They say the coast is full. Many 

 ducks were observed and notes taken 

 during the last two months. The 

 flight of ducks was not as good this 

 fall as last year, except one kind of 

 ducks. They were the Wood ducks. 

 I saw as many as fifty in a bunch 

 and many small bunches. I have 

 been close enough to them in the 

 brush to hit them with a fishing pole. 

 1 had them to fly down on me and 



nearly light in the boat. They were 

 very tame and I did not have any 

 trouble getting close to them. There 

 was one certain pair of Wood ducks 

 that spent the summer and to Novem- 

 ber here on a small creek which run 

 into Lake Worth. I think they would 

 have been there yet if the hunters 

 had not shot at them so much. I 

 think but cannot be sure, that they 

 raised here. Several times I have 

 observed birds in the creek which ap- 

 peared to be young ones. I have 

 watched the old ones very closely 

 but have never noticed them fly from 

 a tree. They feed along the banks on 

 Pin Oak acorns. I have observed 

 them feeding and they kept squawk- 

 ing at each other as if to be talking. 

 Another duck that was plentiful this 

 season was the Ruddy duck. They 

 gave the hunters plenty shooting and 

 sport. I have shot into a bunch of 

 fifteen, and the whole bunch would 

 dive instead of flying, then they would 

 appear one at a time in all directions 

 before I would have time to shoot, 

 they would all be under again. They 

 are quick and long winded. I have 

 wounded them and then it took sev- 

 eral shots to get them, and then dive 

 for 200 feet or more. When they 

 come up all you can see is just a 

 little of the back and head, then un- 

 der they go again. A good many mal- 

 lards showed up but as they light and 

 feed in thick over-flowed timber they 

 were very difficult to get. The Shov- 

 elltr ducks were here, but it was sur- 

 prising to see so many females and 

 hardly any males. Pintails were 

 scarce, not very many observed. A 

 few Hooded Mergansers were ob- 

 served. The Gadwalls were plentiful 

 and were here from October to No- 

 vember. Widgeons were as plentiful as 

 ever. Green Wing Teals were scarce. 

 But plenty Blue Wings showed up 

 early. 



