Show i l ii j L Lf d f p iti S r S b aing sL- sL iveL Ina THE MERGANSER WILD DUCK i One of the most beautiful of wild ducks with its dark glossy green head rich salmon colored breast and strongly strong strong- ly marked wings its voracious fish- fish eating habits make the useless useless useless use use- less for food and thus an object but little troubled by sportsmen A large number of ot local names such as the goosander goosander goosander goo goo- sander the shell shelldrake drake saw bill diving goose the have attached themselves themselves themselves them them- selves to this large handsome swimmer swimmer swimmer swim swim- mer that studiously avoids man even though no sportsman would trouble him and that eludes pursuit by the most remarkable feats teats of diving and swimming Eating is the object in life Ufe for tor the M Merganser r ans r who frequently frequently frequently fre fre- swallows a a. fish so large that I it can not descend into the stomach but must remain partially In the distended distended distended dis dis- tended throat until digested piece piece- meal But this process Is so rapid as asto asto asto to always leave the bird with a voracious voracious voracious vora vora- cious appetite and drive it to desperate desper desper- ate rashness to secure Its prey Swift currents with deep pools where the fish hide bIde and foaming cataracts where they leap are the delight of the Merganser whose marvelous diving and swimming enable them to take heavy J old ld hasa has lins toll from the finny tribes ea tures a no terrors for these tough c cand the Icy and they swim as nimbly I in waters waters rivers of the north as in th e at e a a aThe of the They lid d t kill as flash and are as difficult t f the w water ter witch itself keeper Only the most guileless hOt ck In will look at any saw billed ies indi- indi market the market the serrated mandU mandl ay as a 0 fish eating cating that the organ is used r makes chopper and fish food Rev neve ev I good game meat vain and nd The drake is a bu but t dP deserts selfish Mr bird and nn Immediately Inv ll six to the neighborhood when th the e i 1 beIng twelve creamy buff eggs alles then hatched All the domestic aides I j once fall tall upon the devoted mother hamber paddled after a brood says and lain in the Nature Libra re jg e almost though several times they we et they within reach of my landing ke re e them eluded every effort to kept Throughout the chase the mini several close to the young birds an atAr if the e ca- ca A times Umes swam across the bow y atten atten- noe in her efforts to draw otter coffer fler her her- lion tion from the brood and and to scope self as a sacrifice for their t I i |