1890 
Florida , 
Suwanee River. 
Mar 20-Apr . 1,1890 
1/Yh •k/V'/C 
Common along the entire course of the river to within two 
or three miles of its mouth, as well as throughout all the con- 
necting creeks. It seemed to me to be shyer here than at the 
north, invariably flying the moment it caught sight of us, or 
heard the least sound which we made in rowing or paddling. On sev- 
eral occasions, we started the birds from the upper branches of 
tall trees bordering the water. As a rule, they were in pairs, but 
on one occasion I saw five together, two drakes and three ducks. 
bird killed about March I5th haci an egg in the overduct, ready 
for the shell, from which I inferred that they were laying at about 
this time . These southern Wood fucks seemed to rne to be noisier 
fift •% -f 
than the northern birds. Their notes however are in -n©- way simi- 
lar. When swimming, they nodifesi. their heads emphatically at each 
stroke of the foot very much in the manner of a Coot, but this 
is not invariably the case. On several occasions when they dis- 
covered us a long distance offl, they would swim ashore and run 
off into the woods instead of taking wing. Tjiey were usually 
found when feeding in or near large beds of bonnets. 
