GOLDEN EYE. 
435 
NAT A TORES. 
ANA TIBJB. 
GOLDEN EYE. 
Fuligula Vulgaris. 
PLATE CXIX. FIG. I. 
The eggs of a duck were brought to us whilst in Nor¬ 
way by a boy, who said that lie had taken them from a 
hole in a tree. This surprised us a good deal; but far 
more so when, upon going to the place, we found the hole 
was merely that of a woodpecker, and so small, that I 
should have thought it quite impossible for a bird so large 
as a duck to enter. It was about twelve feet from the 
ground, and about a foot in diameter inside, the entrance 
so narrow as hardly to admit the hand, and lined with the 
soft down of the bird. This we examined very closely, 
being exceedingly anxious to ascertain the species, and 
hoping to find some feather by which we might identify it, 
but in vain. The boy had told us upon our first inquiries 
—at least so we understood him—that after having taken 
in succession five eggs from the nest, the bird had forsaken 
it; we had cross-questioned him in every way, and were 
about to relinquish any further hope of ascertaining the 
species, when it turned out, through the still persevering 
queries of Mr. Hancock, that the absence of the poor bird 
was owing to the boy having taken it upon the nest and 
carried it home for dinner. To his home we therefore 
followed him, in hopes that some of the feathers might 
still be in existence, which to our great joy we found to 
be the case, together with the wings of the murdered 
bird ; and from them we readily ascertained that our 
