FALCATED TEAL 
165 
very noisy and it was very interesting to watch him and listen to him. He had two 
separate whistles, each frequently uttered, but each very distinct; each of these 
whistles had its own particular gesture, each gestme very pronounced, even ludi- 
crous in appearance, but very distinct. Besides these I heard two other separate 
whistles, one without any gesture, but these were not frequent and the courting 
display I considered to consist of the two separate whistles and attitudes first de- 
scribed. The drake kept up this courting display till I left home in March and no 
doubt continued it after that. The duck was very quiet and unresponsive and there 
was no nest in 1918. 
“In January, 1919, the conduct of the drake was the same, but the duck was 
clamorous and made loud harsh noises. She nested in the spring and reared four 
birds, two drakes and two ducks. 
“In January, 1920, all three drakes were noisy and demonstrative, but only the 
old duck was so. The two young ducks were quiet as their mother had been the first 
year. The old duck either nested very late or had her first nest destroyed and nested 
again, for it was not until late in July that she appeared on the water with a brood, 
of which only one, a duck, was reared. The two young ducks did not nest in 1920. 
“In January, 1921, the same courting display began, but this time all three ducks 
were noisy and demonstrative. At this time for some weeks the three pairs of Fal- 
cated Ducks were the most noisy and amusing birds on the ponds; and being very 
tame the courting display could be watched as near as two or three yards distance; 
indeed the appearance of a spectator seemed sometimes to start a display. The 
youngest female, that reared in 1920, took no part or interest in the proceedings. 
“At the moment of writing, June 12, 1921, no brood of Falcated has yet appeared, 
but certainly one and probably more than one, of the ducks has a nest.” 
W. H. St. Quintin (1917) describes one of his females who laid five eggs in June, 
1916. The nest was disturbed and three of the eggs broken, but the remaining two 
were placed under a hen, apparently on June 12, and were hatched on July 3. Others 
were reared on the same estate in the summer of 1918, and were allowed to grow their 
wings and escape (London Field, vol. 133, p. 12, 1919). Mr. Blaauw tells me he has 
never bred this duck and it has never been reared in the London Gardens. At Kew 
Gardens a male crossed with a female Gadwall {Anas strepera) and produced young 
(Finn, 1917). 
In this country the species was very rarely brought over until about the year 1909, 
when I saw ten or fifteen pairs in the yards of a dealer, G. D. Tilley, of Darien, 
Connecticut. If I remember correctly, these were offered at about $35.00 or $40.00 
the pair. Of late years more have been imported through the markets of San 
Francisco, so that the price has not been exorbitant. Some that I purchased in the 
spring of 1921 were only $15.00 per pair. The New York Gardens obtained them 
during and before the War for about the same figure. In the years 1919-20 thirty 
