238 NYROCA FULIGULA 



of the Scaup except by its smaller size. The windpipe is uniform in caliber through- 

 out its length. 



Food. Most of the food is obtained from the bottom at moderate depths (two 

 to six feet) but this does not mean that a great deal may not be picked up on the 

 surface in summer, or even caught in the air while swimming. The young probably 

 get their first food from the surface but it is known that some of them dive when only 

 a few hours old (S. E. Brock, 1912). I have found no very careful analyses of stom- 

 ach contents, merely lists of animal and vegetable material, which do not give a very 

 accurate picture of the proportions of the different sorts of food. The chief diet con- 

 sists of aquatic animals of various kinds: fresh-water mussels and snails, insects, 

 frogs and tadpoles. Probably a much larger proportion of animal food is taken than 

 is the case with the better class of diving ducks (the true Pochards) but in winter 

 there is found besides mussels and the larvae of insects, many seeds of Polygonum 

 aniphibium, P. persicaria and P. lapathifolium, as well as Rumex and pond-weeds 

 (A. J. Jiickel, 1891). 



Those from fresh water in Ireland contained seeds of several species of plants, 

 soft vegetable matter, insects of various kinds, among them Notorieties or water- 

 boatmen, and some minute bivalve shells (Pisidium). In one were larger snail- 

 shells. The salt-water feed in Belfast Bay was made up of minute mollusks of the 

 common sorts (W. Thompson, 1851). 



In the Philippines they feed on small fresh-water mollusks and the larvae of frogs 

 (R. C. McGregor, 1909), while fish spawn and various insects and their larvae have 

 been mentioned (Saxby, 1874). On Loch Leven in Scotland the food (in autumn?) 

 consisted of mollusks: Cyclas cornea, Limnaea peregra (W. Evans, 1896). 



Courtship and Nesting. Pairing with its attendant display may take place 

 rather early in the spring, at least as early as March in western Europe, although 

 these activities are often more or less delayed and interrupted by weather conditions. 

 S. E. Brock (1912) found odd pairs consorting together in Scotland as early as late 

 January, but it was late February before "sexual influences" began to show ap- 

 preciable outward effect on the birds. The display itself is not particularly note- 

 worthy and has been well described by S. E. Brock (1912), Wormald (1914) and 

 Gerald Legge (in Millais, 1913). 



My own notes give it as follows : the head is stretched up stiff and straight and as 

 the call is given (a soft liquid whistle of several syllables) it is brought down quickly 

 while the whole body shivers a little. This display is not at all impressive and the 

 crest is not raised to a noticeable degree. It appears, however, that several good ob- 

 servers have seen the drake carry out more action than this, for besides the upward 

 toss of the head and bill (which is also characteristic of the female) the male does at 



