224 



THE CANADIAN SPORTSMAN AND NATURALIST. 



the rough legged buzzard, Archibuteo lagopus, 

 Brunn. abound everywhere. The turkey buz- 

 zard, Cathartes aura, L., is not uncommon 

 but as yet I have no proof that they nest here. 

 One of our characteristic birds is the prairie 

 chicken or sbarp tailed grouse, Pedioecetes 

 phasianellus, Baird. ; it is abundant all over 

 the prairie, builds on the ground by the edges 

 of bluffs and lays about twenty rather small 

 eggs ; the ruffed grouse, Bonasa umbellus, L., 

 is also common in the bluffs and nests just as 

 in Ontario. The kildeer plover, JEgialites 

 vociferns, L., the least sandpiper, Tringa, 

 minvtilla, Vieih, the snipe, Gallinago Wilsbni, 

 Teiinii. ; the woodcock, PMlohela minor, Gray, 

 are all quite common. The large and fine 

 godwit, I/imosa Hudsonica, Lath., is common, 

 also the upland plover or gualie, Actiiurus 

 Bartramius, Vieih, is very common, building 

 in clumps of grass, and laying about five large 

 spotted eggs. The two cranes — the sand hill, 

 Grus Canadensis, L., and ihe whooping, Grus 

 Americana, L., are common and their nests 

 are often found. Wild geese are very numer- 

 ous in spring and fall but usually breed further 

 north. This is par excellence the country for 

 wild ducks, they are more numerous here than 

 robins are in Ontario. I have found the 

 mallard, dusky duck, pintail, gad wall, widgeon, 

 green-winged teal, blue-winged teal, shov- 

 eller, wood duck, red head, canvas back, buhie 

 head, long-tailed duck, goosander, hooded 

 merganser, all breeding here. The mallard 

 and the teals are the most common and their 

 nests are frequent along the margin of ponds, 

 and in midsummer flocks of young ducks are 

 seen disporting themselves in every pond. The 

 white pelican, Pelecanus trachyrliynchus, Lath, 

 is often seen and breeds around Shoal Lake and 

 other localities to the north. I -noticed a 

 species of tern, Hydrochelidon lafiformis f Li- 

 very common about ponds, hovering over the 

 water and occasionally darting down and com- 

 ing up with a water lizard. They make a 

 great row when their nests are approached, 

 flying around one's head and nearly striking. 

 It is enough to scare one to see it coming 

 swiftly through the air direct for one's face, 

 with its mouth wide open and deafening one 

 with its most unearthly screaming. 



NESTS OF THE WILD MALLARD IN 

 ST. CLAIR FLATS. 



There are evidently several species of duck 

 which reside and nest in the St. Clair Flats. 

 Nests of some of these species have been so far 



discovered. I have remarked a peculiarity in 

 the building seasons which seems common to 

 all wild ducks, especially when the male and 

 female are swimming off in front of my boat, 

 that the female is always the first to give signs 

 of alarm, the male never takes wing first, but 

 waits until his mate has started. The mallard 

 is very noisy during its nesting season, and 

 this is remarkable for some time before she 

 commences incubation. The drake and duck 

 are then restless, flying from place to place 

 about the vicinity of the nest; both will then 

 quack loudly while on the wing. I found two 

 nests of the mallard (Anas bochas) last season. 

 The first nest was discovered on May 23, 1882. 

 1 was in a canoe rounding a point of St. Ann's 

 Island, when I heard a splashing of water 

 behind where I passed, caused by a female 

 bochas, acting in a strange way, as if wounded, 

 making off from the nest, by partly swimming 

 and attempting to fly, until about forty yards 

 distant, she took wing and flew a few hundred 

 yards, alighting in a pond I thought if that 

 duck has a nest in this locality, she has 

 certainly exposed her treasure by her un- 

 necessary mimicry. I then forced the canoe 

 into the grass, and on stepping out to search, 

 found its nest in a thick bunch of grass, which 

 almost encircled and covered it so closely as 

 to completely hide the eggs. The nest was 

 on the highest part of the point, which was 

 about twelve feet wide. The structure was 

 not bulky, being constructed principally of 

 fine dead grass. The lower portion was wet, 

 and the eggs (nine in number) were not more 

 than two inches above the water. The eggs 

 are bluish drab; they were neatly hidden in 

 the nest with soft down and fine dry grass. 

 Average size 1:] x 2}- inches. Incubation was 

 advanced, but by making a ] inch hole, and 

 with the use of an embryo hook and scissors 

 they were saved for my cabinet. The second 

 set of mallard eggs were obtained on the 5th 

 of June, by Mr. Keays and myself from a nest 

 found on Walpole Island, which is separated 

 from St. Ann's Island, by Johnson's channel, 

 one of the mouths v of the Eiver St. Clair. The 

 place chosen was higher and dryer than that 

 in which the former one, was found, being 

 situated about thirty yards from the channel. 

 That morning's oological search with the use 

 of. the boat was successful, but in the after- 

 noon, Mr. Keays was on shore hunting among 

 the long grass, when a female mallard flew up 

 a short distance from where he stood. After 

 looking about a short time, the nest containing 



