Hiding under a bank, crawling into a musk- 

 rat hole, worming a way under a bunch of 

 ^Zcf/IdDuck dead grass or pile of leaves, clinging to a 

 root under water, swimming around and 

 around a clump of bushes just out of sight 

 of his pursuer, diving and coming up behind 

 a tuft of grass, — these are some of the ways 

 by which I have known a black duck try to 

 escape when I was looking for him. 



With the first sharp frost that threatens 

 to ice over the ponds in which they have 

 passed the summer, the inland birds betake 

 themselves to the seacoast, where there is 

 more or less migration all winter. The great 

 body of ducks moves slowly southward as 

 the winter grows severe; but if food is 

 plenty they winter all along the coast. It 

 is then that they may be studied to the 

 best advantage. 



During the daytime they are stowed away 

 in quiet little ponds and hiding places, or 

 resting in large flocks on the shoals, out of 

 reach of land and danger. When possible, 

 they choose the former, because it gives 

 them an abundance of fresh water, which is 



