Domestic Encyclopædia (1802)/Teal

TEAL, the Common, or Anas creca, L. a bird of passage, frequenting lakes, ponds, and fenny places: it is about 14 inches in length, has a green spot on the wings, and is marked with a white line, both above and below the eyes.

The Teal commonly associates with wild ducks; being also taken together, and sold in our markets. The former birds subsist on grass and weeds, growing on the margin of ponds, sometimes on the seeds of rushes; and, though occasionally eating small fishes, yet their flesh is much esteemed. They construct their nests in April, among rushes, on the edges of ponds: the eggs are of a size similar to those of pigeons, but of a greasy-white colour, and marked with small hazel spots.