THE EIDER DUCK.

Press, Volume LIII, Issue 9364, 13 March 1896, Page 2

THE EIDER DUCK.

Sanger in the Illustrated Sporting mnd Dramatic Neics. While in Norway recently on. a fishing expedition, I was delighted to find the eider duck, which at one time was terribly harried even in Scandinavia, enjoying ample protection in every- district. It was a great pleasure to see considerable flights of these beautiful and extremely valuable ducks— even upon a well-frequented fiord like the Hardanger—enjoying their freedom everywhere, without the least symptom of molestation. In some districts within the Arctic circle, such as the Dunvser of Finmarken, large quantities of down, yielding quite a considerable sum annually, are gathered. The eider duck, well named by Linnaeus Anas JffioHmima, sometimes also called St. Cuthbert's duck, nests in large companies upon islands and holms of the tiorde and jagged coast line of Norway, Lapland, Greenland, Iceland and Spitzbergen. , The nesting season is early in June ; five or six eggs are-.laid, and often twelve or fifteen eggs contained in a single nest may be found hatching Under two females. The duck plucks the eof s> down from her breast, and lines her nest/and covers her eggs -with, it. This is carefully removed by the peasants, who visit the nesta regularly , during the period of six or seven weeks in which the hatching process is going forward. It is said that tha male, after the down of ths' female has been removed, comes to his wife's assistance and covers the eggs with down from his own breast. A female will give about half a pound of down. There are few i more charming and characteristic sights on the Norwegian fiords than these beautiful black and white ducks, floating peacefully upon the great inland tidal waters.that ecar so strangely the Norwegian coast line. Half a pound of eider down means a great deal more than it sounds, when its extraordinary lightness and elasticity are remembered. I believe it is a fact that less than an ounce of down will easily fill a good sized hat.