Democratic Sentinel, Volume 18, Number 9, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 March 1894 — QUEER NESTS FOR DUCKS. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

QUEER NESTS FOR DUCKS.

Made of Rushes and Hung; on Poles In the Marshes. The water-fringed village of Grouw, in Friesland, North Holland, is remarkable for two things—cheesesand ducks. The lakes which ftinge the village on three sides are thick with bulrushes and water grass, and afford excellent cover for wild ducks and other aquatic fowl. To promote the comfort of the former and at the same time facilitate the collection of their eggs the villagers construct

nests of the form shown in the accompanying illustration. The nests are made of plaited rushes, and are hung on poles driven into the soil or perched between the forks of trees. Above each coterie the owner of the nests fixes pieces of colored cloth, which enable him to readily distinguish his ne*ts from those of his neighbors. These bits of bunting are useful also to the birds, who invariably keep to their own nests. The owner goes each morning in his boat to the nesting ground, thrusts his arm into the bottle-shaped nests, and collects their contents for the , market.

DUCK NESTS IN HOLLAND.