AND NEIGHBOURHOOD. 189 



heads as if to see what had become of their companions, 

 and were both brought to bag. When feeding in 

 fresh water, the Pochard is good food, but, of course, 

 the flesh deteriorates in quality by a residence on the 

 sea-coast or tidal estuaries. The call of the Pochard 

 is a low guttural whistle, but they have also a rattling 

 croak, generally, in my experience, uttered not on 

 rising alarmed from the water, but as a warning to 

 their companions when travelling in the air. I have 

 occasionally seen considerable numbers of this species 

 on the Broads of East Norfolk, and in some marshes 

 in Queen's County ; the Pochard is in fact a well- 

 known bird throughout the United Kingdom, and is 

 more or less common at certain seasons in most of the 

 countries of Europe and in North Africa ; I met with 

 it in abundance on the Tagus near Lisbon, rarely in 

 Andalucia, commonly in Sardinia, Sicily, and Tunis, 

 and I have received specimens from Cyprus. Never 

 having seen a nest of wild Pochards in situ, I leave 

 the description of it to other authors ; in captivity 

 the eggs are generally from 6 to 9 in number, they 

 are of a greenish tinge, and large for the size of the 

 bird. This species thrives well in semi-domestication, 

 but the young are very difficult to rear. 



189. SCAUP. 



Fuligula marila. 



This species, although much less common with us 

 than the Pochard, cannot be called very rare on the 

 Nen. I have many records of its occurrence in 

 various parts of our valley between Peterborough and 

 Northampton, and Ave or six have been obtained. 



