TEAL. 217 



among furze or heather. It is formed of a considerable quantity of herbage, and is 

 lined with down and feathers. 



The eggs are from eight to fourteen in number, and are one inch and three-quarters 

 in length, by one inch and a third in breadth. They are of a buffy white colour. 



In illustration of the fact that the nest is often placed at a distance from water, 

 we extract the following from Mr. C. St. John's tour in Sutherland : — "As we were 

 out driving the other day, a Teal came fluttering out of the dry ditch by the road 

 side, and for above a hundred yards continued flying and running under the horse's 

 feet. I found that she had a number of young ones unable to get over the wall, so 

 we helped them into the adjoining wood. They were a long distance from the water, 

 and had very rough ground to pass over to reach it. I remember exactly a similar 

 circumstance happening to me in Ross-shire, when I also saved the lives of a young brood of 

 Teal by lending them a helping hand. These instances prove that, notwithstanding the 

 instinct of birds, which generally enables them to keep their young out of harm's way, 

 they occasionally get them into a situation, not only of difficulty, but where any dog 

 or mischievous boy coming along might destroy the whole brood." 



The adult male has the "beak nearly black; the irides, hazel; forehead, and a naiTOW 

 band over the top of the head, rich chestnut brown ; at the gape and upwards, along the 

 base of the upper mandible, and from thence high up over the eye, and then backwards 

 towards the occiput, there is a narrow line of buff; from the lower edge of the eye to 

 a point below and behind the ear coverts, another narrow line of the same light colour; 

 all the space from the eye between these two lines, and extending backward to the 

 occiput, forms a broad patch of rich glossy green. Cheeks and sides of the neck, below 

 the under light-coloured line, rich chestnut; back of the neck, scapulars, and upper part 

 of the back, a mixture of black and white, in narrow transverse lines; the longest of 

 the scapulars and the tertials, dark brown ; all the smaller wing coverts, ash brown ; the 

 large coverts tipped with white, forming a bar, two or three of the higher coverts 

 having their white tinged with bay; primaries, dark brown; the secondaries forming a 

 speculum of velvet black, green, and purple, tipped with white; lower part of the back, 

 dark brown; upper tail coverts, almost black, edged with rufous; tail feathers, pointed, 

 dark brown. The chin, black ; front of the upper part of the neck, chestnut ; lower part 

 of the neck in front, partly covered with circular spots of black, on a ground of white 

 tinged with pale purple; breast and belly, white; sides and flanks, barred with narrow 

 black and white lines ; central under tail coverts, velvet black ; lateral tail coverts, delicate 

 buff-colour, with a narrow band of velvet black at the base; under surface of tail 

 feathers, ash gray; legs, toes, and membranes, brownish gray." 



The female has the whole of the head speckled with dark brown, on a ground colour 

 of light brown; upper part of back and scapulars, dark brown, each feather with two 



