364 A SPRING AND SUMMER IN LAPLAND. 



The golden eye (A. clangula, Lin. ; "knip and/ 5 

 Sw.; " ts choadge," Lap.); and this was, perhaps, 

 as common as any duck here. I never took the 

 nest of the golden eye from the ground, always in 

 "holkar" or tubs set up in trees, or in hollow 

 trees themselves. The egg of the golden eye 

 varies very much in colour and size; and it is 

 remarked here, by the old settlers, who watch the 

 habits of this bird closely, for its eggs afford them 

 a good supply of food, that the old birds always lay 

 the fewest, finest, and largest eggs (and this, I 

 think, holds good with most birds) . An old golden 

 eye, they say, will rarely lay more than five eggs, 

 whereas a young bird will lay as many as fifteen. 

 When fresh taken, I think the egg of the golden 

 eye one of the handsomest of all European ducks' 

 eggs. 



The tufted duck (A. fuligula, Lin. ; " viggen," 

 Sw. ; "lilla lorte," Lap.), although I never saw 

 it here, is said occasionally to breed in this neigh- 

 bourhood ; but local names puzzle one, and in this 

 district they call two species of duck "viggen;" 

 for instance, the tufted duck is the " sma viggen ;" 

 the scaup the " stor viggen," or large viggen. 



The scaup (A. marila, Lin. ; " hvit buk," Sw. ; 

 or white belly ; "fjeltak," Lap.) was not uncom- 

 mon, and I have met with them breeding both in 

 the low grounds and on the fell meadows. The 



