TUFTED DUCK.
however, the drake showed signs of lite, ntid after a vain attempt to rise disappeared below the surface.
As I raw be was bard bit and the water was without a ripple and as elear as glass, escape wai evidently
impossible, so taking a 12-bore I stood up and awaited bis appearanee in order to administer the ipiielus.
After Watching for a minute or two some bubbles were noticed coining to the surface, and on shoving up to
the spot, I could plainly see him at the depth of about three or four feet struggling violently with his
head held down as ir in a noose. In a few moments he was quiet, hanging like a criminal, only in the
inverse manner, caught by the neck. While skimming along close to the weeds at the bottom his
bead must have become entangled with some of the long twining strands, and unable to free himself he
had naturally succumbed to drowning.
The old drakes of this species do not, as a rule, arrive in any numbers on the Norfolk waters till severe
weather has set in; on the 1th of February, 1873, several won observed during tiie day on the open
parts of lliekling Uroad and also on the Sounds. While making our way slowly homewards in the
punts through the broken ice, ns dirknrss was setting in, a large Hock of black and while Pokers* were
heard passing overhead. Judging their whereabouts by the sound of their noisily beating pinions, I
•rod both barrels of a heavy 10-horo and a couple wen beard to crash down on to the ice. One bird
had fallen within a few yards of the beats, and being diidy visible on the rough snow-crusted ice, was
easily reached and proved to he a remarkably perfect Tufted drake. The second fowl appearing to have
dropped into some thick cover near a small island, was left for the night, and on reaching the spot shortly
after daybreak on the following morning a Goldcncye drake in full plumage was discovered lying on
the ice among the reeds.
During the intense culd in January 1881, several flocks of rafted Ducks came under my observation,
passing along the Sussex coast, about half or a quarter of a mile at sea off Shoreham and Lancing, making
their way towards the west. Small parties also and single birds frequented the harbour and the lower
pools in the river Adur, alighting when a chance was offered, though hut little rest could lie obtained,
owing to the number of gunners lining the banks adjoining the towing-path. The food to lie obtained
in the large pools of brackish water inside the shingle-banks near Lancing were also a great attraction ;
though repeatedly tired at and driven out to sea, they were sure to return and settle down again after
having swept round the spot to ascertain whether any danger was to be apprehended. On the loth and
again on the 17th, the day preceding the terrible gale and snow-storm that caused such destruction to
bird-life, I was afloat in the gunning-punt, and remarked that although some hundreds of this species
must have passed, only a single male in full plumage came in view, flying straight out to sea from the
harbour, apparently disgusted with the inhospitable reception met with inland. So severe was the frost on
the days wo were out in the Channel, that tin- Rangoon oil used to clean the action of the big gun
froze in cakes on the metal, and the pin filling into the socket of the sliding IIHHI had to he kept in
working-order by a constant application of paralfme. A lew showing the various curious stages of
immature plumage were shot about the pools and backwaters in the sall-marslies during the lirsl few
days after the slorm; these, however, merely indicated the usual changes gone through licf/nre arriving
at maturity and need no description in these pages.
While sho"ting along the coast in the west of Sussex in the winter or 1*71, I explored the estuarii-s
and creeks about lloshnm and Emsworlh, and also the channels loading to Chichester harbour, and remarked
that the Tufted Duck was spoken of by the puutinen and shore-gunncrs orthe district as the Covey Don.
• (loldoneyes and Tufted Duct, often join in comnnnv when on Ihe NORFOLK [trends, and are considered by the Incnl pinners nr.,I
marnlimen to belong to one nnd Ihe same BJANFSJ the bird* comjia-iug ths various Hi. MAS. ench and nil known among the shooting II—Sllj
of the di-triel • black and white Token.