178 



THE WIGEON. 



superincumbent body of the bird. On this the female 

 lays her eggs ; nor could she well procure a better 

 or a softer substance for them. 



Trifling as an attention to the feathered tribe may 

 seem, still it has its sweets for those who love to 

 lead a rural life. I generally observe that visiters 

 who come here are always anxious to have a sight 

 of the birds which take up their abode in this se- 

 questered valley ; and they listen with evident signs 

 of pleasure to the cries of the nocturnal wanderers 

 of the air. It is not above a week ago that I heard 

 the heron screaming, the wigeon whistling, the barn 

 owl screeching, and the tawny owl hooting, in rapid 

 succession. The moon was playing on the water ^t 

 the time, and the air was nearly as warm as summer. 

 I thought of times long past and gone, when I was 

 enjoying nature's richest scenery in the interminable 

 forests of Guiana. 



NOTES ON THE HABITS OF THE WIGEON. 



From the month of May to that of October, we 

 know nothing of the haunts and economy of this 

 cheerful and familiar stranger ; for he always takes 

 his leave of us in spring ; at which time he is sup- 

 posed to proceed to distant regions of the north, 

 where ornithologists have never yet dared to ven- 

 ture. 



