The Pintail migrates northwards in flocks, and reaches its Arctic breeding grounds as soon as the ice begins to break up, crowding on the little pools and narrow belt of open water, on the sides of the rivers, and filling the air like swarms of bees. A few pairs remain in the British Islands for the summer. Swampy moors, and the banks of lakes and ponds, are the favourite nesting-places of this Duck. The nest, made upon the ground amongst herbage, or under the shelter of a rock or bush, is composed of dry grass, withered leaves, sedges, and rushes, and lined copiously with down. The eggs are from six to ten in number, and are pale buffish-green, smooth, but lustreless. These are laid in May. The Pintail is by no means a noisy bird; a low chattering may be heard from a flock whilst feeding, a soft quack when the bird is alarmed; whilst the drake, during the season of courtship, utters a deep clük, preceded by a hiss, and followed by a low grating note. Outside our islands the Pintail has a very wide distribution, breeding in the Palæarctic and Nearctic regions, and wintering almost to the Equator.
Of the remaining five species of Ducks belonging to the present sub-family, which are either regular visitors to our islands, or residents in them, none can fairly be classed as being typically marine in their haunts. The well-known Mallard Anas boschas, the Teal Anas crecca, and the Shoveller Anas clypeata, visit the low-lying coasts, especially during severe weather, but they are all eminently fresh-water species, and form no dominant feature in the bird-life of the coast. Still less familiar to the sea-side naturalist are the Gadwall Anas strepera, and the Garganey Anas circia. The former species is rare in our islands, even during winter, whilst the latter is a summer visitor only, excessively local, but breeding sparingly in the Broads District, where, from the peculiar note of the male, it is known as the “Cricket Teal.” We will, therefore, pass on to a study of the next sub-family, which contains birds eminently marine in their habits and economy.
DIVING DUCKS
These birds, described somewhat ambiguously by certain authorities as Sea Ducks, for all the species are by no means exclusively marine, yet all are expert divers, form a fairly well-defined and homogenous group, or sub-family, termed by systematists, Fuligulinæ. They are characterised by having a pendant lobe, or membrane, attached to the hind toe, and by their anteriorly scutellated tarsi. All the Ducks in this sub-family habitually dive for their food, and their movements in the water are remarkably agile. The sexes generally present considerable difference in colour, the males, as usual, being the most handsome and conspicuous. The young are always hatched covered with down, and soon able to accompany their parents on the water. The females have a single moult in autumn, but the males a partially double one. Diving Ducks, in fact all species in the family, in first plumage, closely resemble the old female, and acquire the adult plumage after the first autumn moult. We will deal first with the resident species, as being constant features in the bird life of the coast and sea.
EIDER DUCK
No Duck is more thoroughly attached to the sea than this species, the Anas mollissima of Linnæus and Latham, but the Somateria mollissima of most modern ornithologists. Unfortunately it is somewhat restricted in its distribution, only breeding in one locality on the English coast, occurring more or less accidentally elsewhere. Ireland is not even so fortunate, for no nesting station is known round the entire coastline of the island. The Eider Duck is a decidedly northern bird, and is found, if somewhat locally, round the coasts of Scotland, extending to the outlying islands, including St. Kilda, where I have taken its nest. To most people, perhaps, the down of the Eider Duck, in the form of a coverlet, is more familiar than the bird itself. Although somewhat clumsy in appearance, the male Eider is a singularly handsome and conspicuous bird – conspicuous, one might say, when standing on the rocks or paddling about the still water near the shore, but even in a very moderately rough sea the bird is detected with difficulty, especially at a distance, for the white crests and dark waves effectually harmonise with, and conceal, its striking piebald plumage. The two predominating colours of the male Eider are black and white, the latter occupying most of the upper surface, the former most of the lower; the head, however, is variously marked with black, white, and pale green. The female is dark chestnut-brown, variegated with brownish-black. The Eider Duck is so thoroughly sea-going in its habits, that it rarely even flies over the land, except to reach its nest, and will rather follow the windings of the coast than cross even a narrow headland. In our islands it is practically sedentary, only wandering south a little way during winter. Its favourite haunts are rocky islands and coasts, where bays and quiet fjords offer it a haven of safety. The Eider is not so gregarious as many other Ducks, but it may be seen in parties all the year round, the drakes keeping company on the sea while their partners are on their nests, and when these latter come off them to feed, all join into a scattered company. The male bird is exceptionally wary at all times, but the female during the nesting period, becomes absurdly tame in districts where not persecuted, often allowing an observer to stroke her gently whilst she sits upon her eggs. The food of the Eider Duck consists of minute marine insects, crustaceans, and shellfish, especially mussels and small crabs. Most of this food is obtained by diving, the Eider being marvellously expert at this, not only descending to a great depth, but remaining for a long time below. A favourite method of feeding with this species is to draw shorewards with the tide. It may be watched gradually swimming towards the land in some sheltered bay, feeding as it comes, until the very edge of the breakers is reached. Then comes by far the prettiest sight of all, as the bird swims through each mighty wave just before it turns over and breaks upon the beach, floating light as a foam fleck on the huge rollers, now high up on the white crests, then momentarily lost to view in the green glassy depths. If alarmed on these occasions, the Eider generally swims quickly out from shore, but if further pursued or fired at, it instantly takes wing, rising from the water with little splash, and flying rapidly and steadily just above the surface to a safer refuge. The Eider is a day feeder, abroad at dawn, and continuing its labours well into the dusk. As a rule the Eider is a very silent bird. The usual note is a somewhat low kurr, but in the season of courtship the male utters a cooing sound when paying his addresses to his mate, as he swims round and round her, guarding her from the attentions of rivals. This cooing noise may be heard for a long distance across a quiet loch, especially, as often happens, if several drakes are together.
The favourite nesting places of the Eider Duck are low, rocky islands, well covered with marine vegetation, such as campion, thrift, and grass. Late in spring the flocks begin to separate more into pairs, although the immature non-breeding individuals may be observed to continue gregarious all the summer, and not to visit the nesting stations. The laying season is in May and June. The female alone selects a site for and makes the nest, the male rarely, if ever, visiting the spot, although he keeps in attendance on the sea near the islands, and joins her when she comes to feed. The nest is made upon the ground, sometimes amongst the dense beds of campion, sometimes in a crevice of the boulders, or on a ledge of rock. Occasionally, as I remarked at St. Kilda, it may be placed on the top of cliffs hundreds of feet above the sea. It is large and well made, consisting of coarse grass, dry seaweed, heather, and bits of dead vegetation, profusely lined with down and a few curly feathers from the body of the female alone. This lining gradually accumulates as the eggs are laid. Numbers of nests may be found close together, especially where the birds are tolerably common, as, for instance, at the Farne Islands, where, by the way, the Eider is known as “St. Cuthbert’s Duck.” The eggs are from five to seven, or rarely even eight, pale olive-green or greenish-gray in colour, and smooth and wax-like in texture. In many places the Eider is jealously protected for the sake of its precious down, especially in Iceland and Norway, and the taking of the eggs or down by unauthorized persons is an offence punishable by law. Outside our limits, the Eider inhabits most of the coasts and islands of the North Atlantic. The much rarer King Eider, Somateria spectabilis – an occasional visitor to the British Seas – claims a passing reference, for it is by no means improbable that the species actually breeds within our limits.
COMMON SCOTER
Of all the hordes of Ducks that pour southwards in autumn, down the western coasts of Europe, and find a winter resort in the British Seas, the present species, the Anas nigra of Linnæus, the Fuligula nigra of many writers, and Œdemia nigra of others who regard the Scoters as generically distinct from the Pochard and allied forms, is certainly by far the commonest. It is known on almost all parts of the coast as the “Black Duck.” Few other Ducks are so absolutely marine as the Scoter; no weather is bad enough to drive it ashore, and it seldom visits the land at all, except for purposes of reproduction. It is a gregarious bird, and so large are some of its gatherings off the British coasts, that it literally blackens the sea with its numbers. To see such a mighty host of birds rise en masse from the water is a most imposing, nay, even a thrilling sight. The Common Scoter begins to arrive with us in September, and the migration continues right through the following month. The return passage begins in April and lasts into May. All the birds, however, do not pass northwards, for flocks of immature Scoters frequent British waters through the summer, whilst a few pairs of adults are even known to breed in the north of Scotland. The Scoter is found most abundantly off our eastern coasts, from the Orkneys to the Goodwins, and thence, but in smaller numbers, along the English Channel. The western districts are not visited so plentifully, the flat coasts of Lancashire, the north of Ireland, and the Solway area being its principal resorts. This Scoter is an adept diver; in fact, almost all its food is obtained in that way. Like the Eider the Scoter is fond of working shorewards with the tide, feeding as it comes, and retiring from the land again when its appetite is satisfied. The food of this Duck consists in winter chiefly of molluscs and crustaceans; but in summer the leaves, roots, and buds of aquatic plants are eaten, as are also insects. The Scoter flies well and rapidly, and is not unfrequently seen in the air, especially when in flocks. These sometimes circle and gyrate for some time after they are flushed before settling on the sea again. The usual note of the Scoter is a harsh kurr, modulated into a more musical sound by the drake during the pairing season.
Even during the breeding season the Common Scoter does not retire far from the sea. Its favourite breeding grounds are by the lakes and rivers amongst dwarf-willow and birch-scrub, and an island is always preferred. The nest is a mere hollow in the ground, into which is collected a little dry herbage. This, however, is plentifully lined with down before the female begins to sit. The bird is a late breeder, the eggs not being laid much before the middle of June. These are six to nine in number, grayish-buff in colour, smooth in texture, and with little gloss. Only one brood is reared, and the female alone appears to take the entire duty of caring for the ducklings. I should here remark that the adult male Scoter is uniform bright black, with the exception of an orange-coloured stripe – said to vary considerably in extent – along the central ridge of the upper mandible. The female is nearly uniform dark-brown. The Scoter is an inhabitant of Arctic Europe and West Siberia, visiting more southern latitudes in winter.
VELVET SCOTER
Although this species, the Fuligula fusca of ornithology, is a regular winter visitor to the seas off the British coasts, it nowhere approaches in numbers the preceding species. It may be readily distinguished from the Common Scoter by its very conspicuous white wing bar, and less observable white spot under the eye; otherwise it closely resembles it in general colouration. The Velvet Scoters that visit our seas are generally observed mixed with the gatherings of the Common Scoter. The habits of the two species are much alike in some respects, very different in others. Thus it exhibits the same skill in diving for food, and obtains it under very similar conditions; its flight is equally rapid and well sustained; it seldom visits the land, and is, when on it, just as clumsy and waddling in its gait; its food is similar; its migrations take place at much the same periods. On the other hand, the Velvet Scoter is not such a strictly maritime species, being frequently found on inland waters, and even, during winter, is partial to wandering up tidal rivers and visiting lakes. Its breeding-places are also, as a rule, much farther from the sea, and the nest is not unfrequently found at long distances from any water at all. Odd pairs of this Scoter are occasionally met with in our area during the summer, and it has been suggested that the species even breeds within the British limits; no direct evidence, however, is forthcoming.
This Scoter is a late breeder, its eggs not being laid before the end of June, or even early in July. Although migrating in flocks, the birds appear to separate into pairs as soon as the summer quarters are reached. The duck and drake keep close company as usual, until the eggs are laid, after which the latter leaves his mate to bring up the brood alone. The Velvet Scoter breeds in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe and Asia, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and winters in temperate latitudes. The breeding-places are chiefly situated on the tundras, amongst scrub or coarse vegetation, near the rivers and lakes. The scanty nest of dry grass and dead leaves is often made under some bush, and, before incubation commences, is lined with down from the body of the female. The eight or nine eggs are greyish-buff in colour, smooth, and with little gloss. As soon as the young are capable of flight, a movement south is made.
SCAUP DUCK
This Duck, the Anas marila of Linnæus, or Fuligula marila of modern naturalists, derives its trivial name from its habit of frequenting the “mussel-scaups,” or “mussel-scalps,” and is tolerably abundant round the British coasts during winter. The adult male is distinguished by having the head and neck black, shot with metallic-green and purple, and the back and scapulars vermiculated with white and black. The general colour of the female is brown, shading into grayish-white on the belly, whilst a broad white band extends round the base of the bill. Scaup Ducks begin to arrive off our more northern coasts in September, but not until a month later in the south. They begin to leave us again in March, and the migration continues through the whole of April into May, the bird thus being one of the last Ducks to retire north in spring. Although by no means unfrequently met with on inland waters during migration and in winter, the Scaup Duck is, for the most part, a dweller on the sea, resorting, by preference, to bays, estuaries, and the mouths of large rivers, especially where a considerable amount of mud is left bare at low water. It is gregarious at this season, often congregating into large flocks, and not unfrequently associates with other Sea Ducks, notably with Wigeon and Pintail. It is a most expert and ready diver, spends most of its time upon the water, and appears always to prefer to dive, rather than to fly, in avoiding pursuit. If compelled to take wing, it rises with much splashing: but, when once fairly in the air, is capable of rapid flight, the quickly-beating pinions making a whistling or rustling sound. The food of the Scaup Duck consists largely of molluscs, but crustaceans and marine plants are also eaten by this species. When thus diving for food, the bird often remains below for a minute at a time. It feeds much at night, and passes pretty regularly from its usual haunts by day to its feeding-places. The note of this Duck is a most harsh and discordant scaup, but during flight or courtship a hoarse and grating kurr is uttered.
The Scaup Duck arrives at its Arctic breeding-grounds with the break-up of the ice. The bird may probably pair for life, as the sexes keep close company all the year. Even at its breeding-grounds it is a social bird, many pairs nesting in a small area, and collecting at certain spots to feed. Its breeding-grounds are on the Arctic tundras, near the rush-and-grass-fringed lakes, amidst the thickets of birches, junipers, and willows. The nest is placed under a bush, or amongst herbage on a bank, and is merely a hollow lined with dry grass and sedge and dead leaves. To this, however, the usual lining of down is added. The eggs, from six to nine in number, are greenish-gray, and of smooth texture. The female, as usual, takes sole charge of the young. The Scaup Duck inhabits, during summer, the Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and America, drawing southwards in winter almost to the tropics.
TUFTED DUCK
This species, the Anas fuligula of Linnæus, and the Fuligula cristata of most modern ornithologists, is a fairly common winter visitor to the British coasts. It is not so exclusively a marine species as some of the other diving Ducks, being often met with on inland waters during that season. The Tufted Duck derives its name from the bushy crest or tuft of feathers growing from the top of the head, and drooping down over the back of the neck on the male. The head, neck, and crest are glossy black, shot with purple and green; the upper parts, the breast and the under tail coverts, are black; the remainder of the underparts and the alar speculum are white. In the female, the black is replaced by dark brown, and the white with brownish-gray: the white speculum remains. Many Tufted Ducks breed, and are apparently resident in our islands in certain inland districts; but the majority of the birds that occur round the coasts are migrants from the north. This Duck begins to arrive off the British coasts towards the end of October, and continues to do so into November. It remains in our area until the following spring, passing north in March and April. Its principal haunts are the more low-lying coasts, especially in the vicinity of estuaries and mud-banks. It is gregarious enough at this season, some of the flocks consisting of many thousands of birds. In its habits generally, it very closely resembles the Scaup Duck, a species whose company it often keeps. It swims in much the same low manner, dives with equally marvellous adeptness, and shows the same propensity for keeping well out to sea during the day, coming shorewards and into shallower water at night to feed. It rises from the sea in the same apparently laboured way, striking the water with its feet – the splashing thus made by a flock of birds being audible for a long distance. Its alarm note during winter is a harsh kurr, but the bird is not a very noisy one. The food of this Duck consists of molluscs, small fish, and the roots, stems, leaves, and buds of various water plants – all of which is obtained by diving, the bird sometimes remaining beneath the surface for as long as a minute.
The Tufted Duck retires to inland waters for the summer, its favourite resorts being meres, lakes, and marshy grounds full of small ponds. A partiality is also shown for small pools on heaths, or fairly well-timbered ground. This Duck probably pairs for life; in the breeding season it is certainly social, many males consorting together, and many females making their nests within a small area. The nest is usually made in a tussock of sedge, beneath a bush, or amongst rushes and coarse grass, and is a mere hollow lined with a little dry vegetation, and an abundance of down from the female. The eggs are usually from eight to ten in number, and greenish-buff. They are laid, according to locality, from April to June. The female alone brings up the young. Outside our islands, the Tufted Duck breeds in the Arctic or temperate parts of Europe and Asia, visiting the southern portions of those continents, as well as North Africa, during winter.
POCHARD
This handsome Duck, the Anas ferina of Linnæus, and the Nyroca or Fuligula ferina of modern writers, is another winter visitor to the British Islands, where, however, it breeds locally, and in somewhat limited numbers, thus coming within the category of our resident species. In some districts the male of this Duck is known as the “Red-headed Poker,” the female as the “Dunbird” or “Dunker.” The colours of this Duck are very distinctive. The head and neck of the male are rich chestnut; the back scapulars and flanks are white, finely-pencilled or vermiculated with black; the gorget and tail coverts are black; the under-surface grayish-white; the quills brown. The female has the head and neck reddish-brown, the chin white, and the remainder of the plumage much browner and more dingy than in her mate. The Pochard is by no means exclusively a marine Duck; in fact, this species appears to be as much attached to fresh-waters as to the sea. Unfortunately, there is one thing about most of these Sea Ducks which does much to detract from their interest, and that is, they cannot readily be observed from the shore, and appear upon our seas at a season when the elements render the coast least attractive. Most of these Ducks lie well off the land, where the wild-fowler alone is tempted to follow them; or if approaching the shore more closely, it is generally during rough tempestuous weather, when all but the enthusiastic naturalist and the gunner prefer to remain warm and comfortable at home. The Pochard is no exception in this respect. It arrives along our coasts in October, and remains with us until the following March. It is thoroughly aquatic in its habits, rarely visiting the land, feeding both by day and by night (chiefly the latter), and often flying for considerable distances, about dusk, to waters where food is abundant. Although its flight, at first, is slow and laboured, it soon becomes very rapid, and the quickly-beating wings make a rustling sound very characteristic of this species. The Pochard is another expert diver, and by this means obtains most of its food, visiting the bottom and bringing up masses of weeds to eat them on the surface. On the coast its food largely consists of crustaceans and molluscs, as well as marine plants. The note of this species is a loud and harsh kurr.
The haunts of the Pochard in summer are large and open sheets of water, surrounded by a luxuriant growth of sedge, rush, iris, and similar plants, or situated on higher ground clothed with heath, gorse, and coarse grass. It is a social bird during the breeding period, several females often nesting close together. The nest is always made near fresh water, and in many cases absolutely floats on rafts of fallen and rotting vegetation several yards from the bank, or rests in some tussock surrounded by shallow water. A bed of iris, or a crown of rushes, is another favourite spot. It is made of dry grass and fragments of any aquatic vegetation obtainable, and lined with down from the female’s body. The eggs – usually from eight to twelve, sometimes more – are brownish-gray. As is usual among Ducks, the female alone brings up the numerous family. This Duck is widely distributed over many parts of Europe, Northern Asia, and North America, the birds of the latter continent being regarded by some ornithologists as a distinct species.
GOLDEN-EYE
Misled by the variations of colour, due to age, sex, or season, in this species, Linnæus described different examples of it under the names of Anas clangula and A. glaucion; whilst even in our own day the females and immature birds are known as “Morillons,” and regarded as distinct from the much-rarer adult males or “Golden-Eyes,” which are locally termed “Rattle wings” or “Whistlers” from the noise produced by the wings during flight. The Golden-Eye forms the type of the well-marked genus Clangula of Fleming and of Boie, and is known to most modern ornithologists as C. glaucion. The male is a singularly striking and beautiful bird, with the general colour of the upper parts black, shot with metallic-green tints on the head, which is adorned with a small, yet distinct, drooping crest; with a large white patch at the base of the bill under each eye, and with the drooping, elongated scapulars, and the underparts, white. The female is much less conspicuous, the black being replaced by dark brown, the elongated scapulars are wanting, and the spot under the eyes only faintly indicated. The white double alar speculum is, however, very strongly marked in both sexes. The Golden-Eye is certainly more addicted to fresh-water than the sea, and in most cases only quits these inland lakes and ponds, when continued frost compels it to do so. It then prefers such coasts as are low-lying, especially delighting in estuaries. It usually arrives in the British Islands in October, and remains in them until the following April or May. It is not so gregarious as some of the other Ducks, and generally assembles in parties rather than in flocks, the larger gatherings being caused by exceptional circumstances. Its habits very closely resemble those of allied birds. It is seldom seen on the land, and there walks with the waddling gait peculiar to most Ducks; on the water, however, it is active and graceful enough, swimming well, and diving with great celerity, usually seeking by this means to escape from danger. The note of this Duck is a low croaking kurr, uttered both when the bird is flying and when at rest. Its food consists of crustaceans, molluscs, small fishes, and various water plants and weeds. Most of this is obtained by diving; and whilst a flock of birds is feeding, several individuals keep watch, all never diving together.
The evidence for this Duck having bred in Scotland, is neither reliable nor conclusive. The Golden-eye breeds throughout the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and America, up to the limits of the growth of trees: its winter range extends to the tropics. It retires to its northern summer haunts with the first signs of spring. The favourite breeding resorts of this Duck are tracts of more open forest country, where the woods are full of swamps and lakes, and the timber contains plenty of holes. The nest is usually made in a hollow tree, in a hole in the trunk, or in a hollow branch, sometimes as many as thirty feet from the ground; whilst the partiality of the bird for a tree near a waterfall, or running stream, has been noticed by more than one observer. The nest consists entirely of the down plucked from the female’s body. The ten or twelve eggs are laid in May or June, and are bright green in colour. The nest-hole is never made by the Duck itself. The peasants of Northern Scandinavia place hollow logs in suitable places on the tree-trunks, which the Golden-Eyes appear readily to avail themselves of, and from which the eggs and down are systematically taken. The young are conveyed to the ground, one by one, pressed between the female’s bill and her breast. The male is not known to assist in the task of incubation, but may possibly do so.
LONG-TAILED DUCK
This beautiful and remarkably elegant species, the Anas glacialis of Linnæus, and the Fuligula or Harelda glacialis of modern writers, is another winter visitor to the British seas. It is only of somewhat rare occurrence in our southern waters, but northwards, off the Scotch coasts, it becomes more frequent, and in certain localities – notably the Hebrides, and the Orkneys and Shetlands – even abundant. In the latter islands it is locally known as the “Calloo”; in other parts of Scotland the clear, gabbling cry of this Duck has been freely translated into the words “coal-an’-can’le-licht.” To many American gunners the bird is known as “Old Squaw,” from its oft-repeated cries. The male bird is singularly graceful in appearance, his long, black central tail feathers projecting five inches beyond the remaining white ones. The head and neck are white, but on either side, below the ears, is a dark brown circular patch; the gorget and the upper parts generally are black, against which, however, the long, elongated white scapulars are very conspicuous; the underparts, below the gorget, are white. The female is much less showy, the black parts in the male being dark brown in this sex, and the white parts are suffused with brown; the elongated scapulars are wanting. During exceptionally severe weather the Long-tailed Duck sometimes approaches our coasts in unusual numbers, and in districts where it is generally a scarce bird. This Duck is a late migrant, seldom reaching even our most northerly coasts before November. It returns north in April. It is strictly marine in its haunts during winter, often wandering long distances from land, and approaching the shore usually under pressure of stormy weather. Then it shows a decided preference for rock-bound coasts, frequenting the creeks and inlets which afford a considerable amount of shelter. The Long-tailed Duck is gregarious at this season, like most of its kind, although the flocks are seldom or never so large as the gatherings of Scoters and others. Its flight is remarkably quick, the long tail making the bird look extremely elegant. It is also an expert diver, disappearing as quick as thought, and often going for long distances beneath the surface, like a Grebe or a Shag. It obtains most of its food by diving, and, like the Eider, often comes shorewards with the tide. It feeds in deeper water, too, than many of its allies, as much of its prey is captured, not at the bottom, but floating in the sea. This food consists of small molluscs, crustaceans, minute marine animals, insects, and water plants, and weeds. Its note may be described as a loud cal-loo-oo.