(Plate XVI.) 
THE GOLDEN-EYE OR WHISTLER. 
Bucephala clangula (Linn.) Cones, 
The short, stout, compact body, short neck surmounted by the 
thickly-plumaged head, and all the manners of this duck, unite it 
with the Gufile-Head, and it is naturally classified in the same 
genus. Curiously enough, it also is culled in the Indian lan¬ 
guage of the natives of the Hudson's Bay country, according to 
Richardson, “ Spirit Duck,' Irom its surprising agility in disap¬ 
pearing at the twanging of a bow-string, or the instant before. 
They are half inclined to think there is something uncanny about 
the quick and prudent little bird, — that it owes its safety to a 
secret understanding with supernatural powers. 
It seems to be a common summer resident of the fur coun¬ 
tries, reaching the marshes of Alaska even by the beginning of 
May. Richardson says that there they delight more in the rivers 
and fresh-water lakes than in the vicinity of the sea, where they 
remain in small parties of ten or a dozen individuals, sometimes 
entirely by themselves, often in company with their congener, 
the Buffle-Head, keeping up an immense clamor during the whole 
of the breeding-season, and feeding " on fish, aquatic insects, mol- 
lusca, et cetera.' 
The breeding range ol this handsome species extends from the 
lakes of northern Maine to the Arctic Ocean, throughout the 
whole breadth ot the continent ; also in Lapland, Sweden, and 
Norway, wherever the wooded and swampy districts which it pre¬ 
fers are present. 
“The nest of this species is built in a hole in a tall dead tree, 
ot in the top of a tall stub, which is hollowed sufficiently for its 
reception. The pines and hemlocks often die; and standing lor 
years the bark drops oft, then the limbs, until the body is at last 
left, a single straight, smooth, white shaft, often from forty to fifty- 
feet high, and two or three feet thick at its base. At last in a 
lierce storm or gale the shaft either breaks off close to the ground, 
or at sometimes the height of twenty or more feet, leaving, in the 
top that remains standing, a huge rent, sometimes a foot or even 
more in depth. In this the Golden-Eye nests,— building of grass, 
leaves, moss, and down from its breast, a warm structure in which 
she lays irom six to ten eggs. These are generally very rounded 
in form, of a greenish-blue color, and average from 2.40 by 1.75 
inch to 2.36 by 1.7S inch in dimensions.” 
Building in such elevated places, the question arises, as in the 
case oi the Wood Diick, How are the fledgelings got down to the 
water? I do not know that any explanation has been given other 
than the observations of a Lap clergy man, recorded several years 
ago, who saw the parent-bird conveying its young, to the number 
of five or more, hut one at a time, Irom the nest to the water, each 
being held under the bill, supported by the neck of the mother, 
In Norway the peasants sometimes put up boxes with a suitable 
entrance, and thus secure the eggs of the W histler, which eagerly- 
takes advantage of the accommodation. 
The vigorous " whistle ” of its swift wings strikes the sports¬ 
man’s ear in those November days when the first chillv winds 
bring Irom their iar northern rendezvous the great army of wild¬ 
fowl that populates our more temperate waters during the winter. 
Although not so abundant as some other ducks, the Whistler is 
well known to all our gunners, and goes under a variety of names, 
such as Golden-Eye, Whistle-Wing, Great-Head, and Garret, the 
applicability of which is plain. It is rather more common, per¬ 
haps, in the interior than along the coast, and the tlesh of those 
shot on fresh water is certainly' better, owing to their food being 
largely the seeds of aquatic plants, wild rice, etc., while those liv¬ 
ing at tide-water subsist upon fish, marine plants, and insects, small 
shell-fish. etc. In Europe, where this hire! is also a common winter 
resident, It is charged with destroying large quantities of salmon 
ova. Judging from a comparison ol the accounts of gunners, 
the Whistler is also more easily secured in the interior. Its ex¬ 
traordinary shyness and vigilance on the coast causes it to sus¬ 
pect decoys and similar devices which are generally effective with 
other ducks, and its lofty flight keeps it out of range. In stormy 
weather, however, Giraud mentions that it takes refuge with com¬ 
panions in coves, and is then more readily killed, Speaking of 
its behavior in England, Colquhoun insists upon the great caution 
required in shooting it from the shore of the pond or stream 
where it is feeding. “ If. without seeing an enemy, he is at all 
alarmed while diving near the shore,, he will probably swim out 
to a considerable distance, reconnoitering all the time, and mak¬ 
ing a noise something like a single note of the hurdy-gurdy-. 
You may perhaps expect his return, and wait for him; but al¬ 
though he may remain about the same place, making these calls 
and apparently careless, he is all the time very suspicious; and 
I only once or twice in my whole experience knew him to re¬ 
turn to the spot where he was first discovered. Should he get 
sight of you, there is no hope, even if he does not take wing, 
which he most likely' will. 
