THE DUCK BILE 
29 
The wonderful duck-like mandibles into which the head is 
prolonged are sadly misrepresented in the stuffed specimens 
which we generally see, and are black, flat, stiff, and shrivelled, 
as if cut from shoeleather. No one would conceive, after in- 
specting a dried specimen, how round, full and pouting were 
once those black and wrinkled mandibles, and how delicately 
thev had been coloured while the animal retained life. Their 
natural hue is rather curious, the outer surface of the upper 
mandible being very dark grey, spotted profusely with black, 
and its lower surface pale flesh-colour. In the lower mandible 
the inner surface is flesh-coloured, and the outer surface pinky 
white, sometimes nearly pure white. 
Having now glanced at the general form of the Duckbill as 
it is in life, and not as it is in museums, we will pass to the 
habitation which it constructs. 
Being a peculiarly aquatic animal, the Duckbill always makes 
its home in the bank of some stream, almost invariably at those 
wider and stiller parts of the river, which are popularly called 
ponds. There are always two entrances to the burrow, one 
below the surface of the water, and the other above, so that the 
animal may be able to regain its home either by diving, or by 
slipping into the entrance which is above the surface. This 
latter entrance is always hidden most carefully under over- 
shadowing weeds and drooping plants, and is so carefully con- 
cealed that the unaccustomed eyes of an European can very 
seldom find it. 
When the grasses, &c. are put aside, there is seen a hole of 
moderate size, on the sides of which are imprinted the footmarks 
of the animal. By the dampness and sharpness of these im- 
pressions, the natives can form a tolerably accurate opinion 
whether the creature is likely to be at home or not, as in the 
former case, the footmarks which point upwards are fresher and 
wetter than those which point downwards. While digging out 
the Duckbill, they occasionally pull out a handful of the clay, 
inspect the marks, and then fall to work afresh. From this hole 
the burrow passes upwards, winding a sinuous course, and often 
running to a considerable length. From twenty to thirty feet 
