46 INDIAN' DUCK;;. 



times b}"- two difFerent persons, are really the egos of the Pink-headed Duck, 

 but at the same time it must be admitted that they are eggs which no one 

 versed in oology could, without ])ositive i)roof, have accepted as pertaining 

 to this species." 



All obserA'ers who have recorded their observations otherwise tjian 

 anonymously concur in stating this duck to l)e one of enclosed waters, and 

 it seems to prefer such as are well coveretl with jangle and weeds of sorts 

 and surroundcil l)y high grass, forest, &c. It is probal)ly found sometimes 

 on the open river, but this only in the cold weather and very rarely even 

 then. As a rule, it collects in Init small i)arties, and I should think, very 

 probably, that these are only of the members of one family, though two 

 or three of these may now and then join together. Its flight has been 

 descrilx'd as fast and powerful, and its voice as a musical edition of the 

 Mallard (^1. hoscas). 



Ai^ regards its food, there seems to l)e nothing on recoi'd beyond 

 Mr. Shillingford's note on tlie gizzard of a bird he cxaiiiiiUMl and found 

 to contain '"half-digested water-weeds and various kinds of small shells.''' 

 This is, howcAcr, important, as it shows that it is both an animal and a 

 vegetarian feeder. 



Most writers call this a shy and wild bird, but my father fE. B. Baker), 

 who knew the bird well, did not consider it to be either a particularly wary 

 or wild bird, though of a very shy retiring disposition. I remember when 

 I first came out to India, some twenty-five years ago. he had several of these 

 birds' skins amongst his collection of Maldah bird-skins : but all these have 

 been either lost or destroyed, and it is now so long since I last saw them 

 that I camiot speak with certainty of the variations they showed in their 

 ]ilumage. 



Most of these ducks had been shot by him when shooting with the late 

 . AV. Reily and some of the Shillingfords in Maldah and Purneah. At the 

 end of a day's slioot, when ])romiscuous firing had l)ecome the order, one or 

 two of these ducks would often l)e added to the bag. getting n\) in front 

 of the line of elephants as they worked through comitry in wliich there 

 were any small jiools and jhils. 



