402 THE GAME BIRDS AND WILD FOWL 



Habits The migrations of the Eing-necked Duck are by no means the 



least interesting portion of the bird's life history. In northern Minnesota this 

 species is widely known as the "Fall Duck," doubtless, because it is so abundant 

 in that area during the fall or autumn migration. Its passage up the Mississippi 

 Valley in spring takes place during March and April : the return migration is 

 performed during October and November. According to Wilson this Duck shows 

 more preference for inland waters than the open sea. Most meagre details of 

 the habits of the Eing-necked Duck have been recorded, but they doubtless do 

 not differ much from those of allied species. The favourite haunts of the Eing- 

 necked Duck seem to be streams and lakes rather than the open coast. It does 

 not appear to be anything like so gregarious during winter as its Old World 

 representative the Tufted Duck, the flocks consisting of a dozen or twenty 

 individuals — perhaps a brood and its parents. To the wild fowlers of Long 

 Island this Duck is widely known as the " Bastard Broad-bill," a term indicating 

 the popular belief that the bird is a hybrid. Like kindred species, the Eing- 

 necked Duck obtains most of its food by diving in deep water ; but it also seeks 

 for sustenance by dabbling amongst the roots of grasses and other vegetation on 

 the banks. Its food consists of aquatic insects, snails, worms, small fishes, frogs 

 and the buds, seeds and leaves of various plants. It swims well and buoyantly, 

 and, like the Scaup, is said to keep raising its head, erecting the bushy plumage 

 of the occiput and uttering a note similar to the " sound produced by a person 

 blowing through a tube." It rises from the water or the land with little effort, 

 and its flight is rapid and often lofty, the individuals of a flock frequently 

 scattering when disturbed. During winter small parties of Eing-necked Ducks 

 frequently associate with allied species, and these may often be seen flying quite 

 close to the surface of the water. The flesh of this Duck is described as being 

 of excellent quality, according to Audubon, tender and juicy, and without that 

 fishy flavour that generally renders most "Black Ducks" almost uneatable, 

 especially when shot off salt water. 



Nidification. — I find but little recorded of the nesting habits of the Eing- 

 necked Duck. Its favourite breeding- grounds appear to be in the vicinity of 

 lakes and rivers. The bird is decidedly sociable during summer, and more than 

 one observer has remarked several pairs breeding in company. The nesting 

 season begins in May, the more northern breeding individuals being of course 

 the latest. The nest, usually well concealed, is generally placed amongst reeds, 

 dense grass and other vegetation on the margin of the water, sometimes in a 

 bog, and is made of dry grass and leaves, to which down and feathers are added 

 as the period of incubation advances. The eggs, ten or twelve in number, are 

 described in Messrs. Baird, Brewer and Eidgway's standard work on the birds of 

 North America, to which I am largely indebted for my account of this species, 

 as greyish ivory-white, sometimes the greyish tinge being replaced by buff. They 



