26
Back Bay Basin,
Boston, Mass.
1909.
Feb. 27 
(No 26)
Whistler courtship
Solitary drakes take no part in it
  The more elaborate of the ceremonials of courtship
above described were seldom if ever performed this morning
by solitary males, even when accompanied by females;
nor did they occur when females were absent or far
removed. Indeed I witnessed them only when at
least two or three, oftenest four or five, and sometimes
as many as nine, drakes were in rather close
association with one or more females. Often the males
would collect about a female in a rather scattered
group and entertain her for minutes at a time
by their grotesque actions and peculiar love calls.
Whenever this happened the female remained, for the
most part, comparatively inactive and apparently
quite indifferent to the attentions of her showy
admirers although she might occasionally single
out and obviously encourage one of them by approaching
Drakes collect about females.
Behaviour of female when courted 