The Cinnamon Teal 



also, they profit by the handiwork of the Redhead, either sharing quarters 

 with the rightful owner, or endeavoring to dispossess her after her basket 

 is woven. But for the most part, this Teal nests on the dry ground where 

 the grass or herbage is thick, and not too far removed from water. Mead- 

 owlands and marshy "swales" are, therefore, favorite places, and the 

 gathering of the hay crop is always attended by anxiety and loss on the 

 part of these birds. 



Any collector will come upon 

 these lowly nests in the course of a 

 few hours' tramping, but if one wishes 

 to hasten operations a little, or to 

 arrive at a knowledge of general 

 conditions prevailing, the method 

 of dragging must be used. This is 

 accomplished by two workers, each 

 holding the end of a long rope and 

 sweeping it slowly over the grass or 

 weed-tops. The bird flies from un- 

 der the rope in great terror, but she 

 is never, in our experience, so fright- 

 ened that she will not return. It is 

 only by the use of some such whole- 

 sale method that one may discover 

 the high proportion of loss due to the 

 depredations of "vermin," — minks, 

 weasels, coyotes, and other four- 

 footed offenders. I once knew of 

 some semi-wild hogs which had 

 formed an incurable habit of robbing 

 ducks' nests. Swimming with ease 

 and "hiding out" upon the islands 

 through the day, these renegades 

 would sally forth at night upon their 

 nefarious quest; and they wrought 

 with almost infallible precision in the 

 ravaging of the breeding ducks of the 

 Los Banos country that season. 



These and countless other dan- 

 gers threatened serve to develop in 

 the nesting Teal a nearly correspond- 

 ing measure of sagacity. Two in- 

 stances of this evolution of intelli- 

 gence may not be amiss. 



Taken in Washington Photo bv the A utlwr 



NEST AND EGGS OF CINNAMON TEAL 



1775 



