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THE STORY OF THE DUCKBILL. 
out of the way spots are constructed their burrows; each of which usually 
has one entrance opening beneath the water, and another above the water- 
level, hidden among the herbage growing on the bank. The burrow runs 
obliquely upwards from the water to a great distance—sometimes as much 
as fifty feet—into- the bank; and ends in a chamber, lined with grass and 
other substances, where the young are produced. 
Two eggs are laid at a time, enclosed in a strong, flexible, white shell, 
measuring about three-quarters of an inch in length, and two^thirds of that 
in diameter. They resemble the eggs of birds in the large size of their yolk, 
of which only a small portion goes to the formation of the embryo, while the 
remainder serves for its food. When first hatched, the young are blind and 
naked, with the beak very short, and its margins smooth and fleshy, thus 
forming a nearly circular mouth, well fitted to receive the milk ejected from 
the glands of the mother. The duckbill feeds on various small water animals, 
such as insects, shell fish and worms, which it obtains by probing with its 
beak in the mud and sand near the banks; the food being first stored in the 
large cheek-pouches, and afterwards devoured at leisure. The large front 
paws are the chief agents in swimming and diving. On land these creatures 
move somewhat awkwardly, in a shuffling manner; and when reposing in 
their nests curl themselves up in a ball-like fashion. The natives capture the 
duckbill, by digging holes with sticks into- the burrow from the ground above 
at distances from one another, until they light upon the terminal chamber. 
