THE GUN AT HOME AND ABROAD 
tipped with white; under wing-coverts pale greyish -brown, edged with 
whitish ; axillaries mottled with the same colours ; tail like that of the 
male. Total length about 17*5 inches; bill 1*3 inch; wing 9*5 inches; 
tail 3 *7 inches; tarsus 1 *5 inch. 
General distribution. — ^The wigeon is widely distributed over Europe 
and Asia, breeding in the more northerly parts of its range up to about 
70° N. latitude. It nests in Iceland, the Faeroes, abundantly in Scandi- 
navia, Finland and North Russia, also in the islands of Kolguev and 
Waigats, and in decreasing numbers in Denmark, Holland and North 
Germany, while eggs have been taken in France and on the lower valley 
of the Danube. In Asia its breeding range extends from about 71° south 
to about 51°, nests having been found in the Baikal basin. During October 
and November it passes through Central Europe and visits the whole of 
Southern Europe and North Africa as far south as Abyssinia, while 
stragglers reach Greenland, the Atlantic coasts of North America, es- 
pecially Virginia and North and South Carolina, also Madeira and the 
Azores. Eastwards on migration it passes through Turkestan and Mon- 
golia, wintering in Persia, India, Burma, China, Japan and even the 
Sunda Islands, and it has been recorded from the Marshall Islands. Some 
cross Bering Sea to the Aleutian Islands and Alaska, and the wigeon 
is not uncommon on the coast of California. 
Distribution in the British Isles. — In the British Isles, though the count- 
less numbers of wigeon seen on the coasts in autumn and winter are 
visitors only, a considerable number remain to breed in the Shetland and 
Orkney Islands and in many parts of Scotland, also occasionally in the 
north of England and Wales. In Ireland there is no actual proof of its 
having bred, but it is possible that a few pairs may nest there. 
Nest and eggs. — ^The nest is usually placed near water among coarse grass, 
rushes or heather, and is composed of dead grass, thickly lined with down 
from the breast of the female. The eggs, generally from seven to ten in 
number, laid in May and June, are cream -colour, sometimes faintly 
tinged with green, and measure about 2 *1 by 1 *4 inches. Incubation 
lasts from twenty -four to twenty -five days. 
The food in the early part of the autumn consists chiefly of aquatic plants, 
insects and molluscs, which are consumed by day, but in winter the 
wigeon becomes nocturnal and feeds largely on Zostera marina. The 
flesh is excellent. It has been known to breed with the mallard, pintail, 
gadwall and teal. 
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