Ducks booting 101 



a speed possessed only by a teal. Another minute 

 and they have passed; the rush of their wings 

 told how closely they came ; but no one but an 

 old hand could have stopped one. The next 

 flock follow, the gunner rises in time, and they 

 sheer off, crowding together in an attempt to 

 turn; but a well-placed shot drops several birds. 

 So they come on until dark, when the soft 

 whistling overhead tells of ducks still looking 

 for a spot to feed and spend the night in 

 peace. 



The male blue-winged teal in his full spring 

 dress is one of our beautiful water-fowl. The 

 delicate brown speckling of the breast, the light 

 blue and white of the wing, and the soft violet of 

 the head, with a face of white, make a pleasing 

 combination. In this plumage he is seen in 

 April and May, but not commonly on the eastern 

 coast, the journey north being along the water- 

 courses of the interior. We found large numbers 

 of them near Tampico. It was late April, and 

 they were mated but still in small flocks. Undis- 

 turbed and tame, they gathered at the water's 

 edge on the shores, keeping company with the 

 yellowlegs and other waders ; if alarmed, they ran 

 along the flats with the speed of a plover, or 

 springing up they settled at a safer distance. 



The blue- winged teal undoubtedly breeds spar- 

 ingly far south on its range, but most abundantly 



