BIRDS. 320 
white ; the breast purple, and the lower part of the body 
white; and the legs are dusky. The young of both sexes 
are grey, and continue in this plain garb till the month of 
February 5 after which a change takes place, and the 
plumage of the male begins to assume its rich colourings, 
in which, it is said, he continues till the end of July ; 
and then again the feathers become dark and grey, so 
that he is hardly to be distinguished from the female. 
The Wigeons commonly fly in small flocks, during the 
night, and may be known from others by their whistling 
note, while they are on the wing. These birds quit the 
desert morasses of the north on the approach of winter, 
and as they advance towards the end of their destined 
southern journey, they spread themselves along the shore?, 
and over the marshes and lakes, in various parts of the 
continent, as well as those of the British isles ; and it is 
said that some of the flocks advance as far south as Egypt. 
The Wigeon is easily domesticated in places where 
there is plenty of water, and is much admired for its 
beauty, sprightly look, and busy frolicsome manners: yet 
it is generally asserted that they will not breed in confine- 
ment, or at least that the female will not make a nest and 
perform the act of incubation ; but that she will lay eggs, 
which are generally dropped into the water. 
