128 
ANATIDJE. 
is a favourite place of resort, and one day in particular, during a 
very severe snow-storm, they were literally in thousands there ; — 
the surface of the river exhibited one living mass of them. For 
many seasons before and after those, pochards were very scarce. 
In the winter of 1847-48, the chief wild-fowl shooter in the 
bay obtained only a couple, and, during some other winters, none 
at all. Occasionally they associate with scaup and tufted ducks. 
They appear the second of the Fuligula — after the scaup, and 
before the tufted duck — and generally arrive by the latter end of 
October ; but December* is usually the earliest winter month in 
which they are met with in quantity. January or February, espe- 
cially the former, is the height of their season. They generally 
take their departure in March, throughout which month, until the 
25th, they were here in 1836 : — about two dozen Fuligula , believed 
to be of this species, were seen on Bally drain Lake, on the 15 th of 
April, 1832. On the same day of that month, in 1850, one was 
obtained near Lurgan. 
Pochards, as well as scaups and tufted ducks, fly at the dusk 
of the evening, like the wigeon, to the sea-banks to feed, but at 
a later hour. I have known several of the two first-named species 
to be brought by the flowing tide within range, and shot from the 
barrel in which a fowler was awaiting the flight of wigeon. Po- 
chards and scaups, when wounded on their feeding-banks, run very 
fast, assisted by their wings, and, when pursued, always move 
towards the water, in the hope of being the better able to save 
themselves by diving. A wild-fowl shooter gives an amusing 
account of the chase of a pochard. He had at one shot wounded 
two or three, and, as he thought, killed four. The most active of 
the wounded was first looked after, as it was hurrying with all 
speed towards the water, which was distant. The shooter followed 
as quickly as he could, knee-deep, through the soft muddy 
banks, until weakness and want of breath rendered him unable to 
move a step farther. The bird, fortunately for him, stopped at 
the same time, perhaps equally requiring to “ draw breath.” So 
* In this month they were once plentiful, when other Anatidce were scarce. 
