The Cinnamon Teal 



Taken on Big Bear Lake 



A CALIFORNIA NEST 



Photo by Wright M. Pierce 



for generations, it is a far different matter with our champion of the West. 

 For him we are not ashamed to confess a fresh interest and a kindling 

 of desire. Whether our attitude be that of sportsman, bird-lover or 

 student, surely no more alluring spectacle could be afforded than that of 

 a flock of these brilliant chestnut-colored ducks when they rise suddenly 

 from a wayside pond at break of day. It is as though fragments of the 

 rich red earth, from which we are all made, had been startled by the 

 impact of the sun's rays upon the water, and were fleeing toward heaven 

 — earth, air, fire, and water, all in one burst of momentary splendor. 



It is only idle folk, however, who can afford finery, and since it is the 

 drake who has nothing to do, he wears all the fine clothes. The female, 

 save for her blue-gray wing-patches, is the plainest-looking body imagi- 

 nable, and she so closely resembles the female of Q. discors, that we 

 seriously wonder if their own mates can always distinguish them. I 

 have seen Blue-wings and Cinnamons associating together during the 

 mating season, and the males appeared to regard each other with jealousy, 

 as though they really feared confusion of brides. 



A favorite play on the part of these Teal at mating time is leap-frog. 

 A bird will vault into the air and pass over another's head and down 



1773 



