The pochard is nineteen inches in length, and two feet and a half in breadth, and weighs about one pound thirteen ounces. The bill is of a dark lead-colour, with the tip and sides near the nostrils, black: irides fine deep yellow: the head and neck are of a glossy chestnut, joined to a large space of sooty black, which covers the breast, and is spread over the shoulders: the lower part of the back, rump, tail-coverts, and vent, are also black: the rest of the plumage, both above and below, is wholly covered with prettily freckled, slender, dusky threads, disposed transversely in close-set zig-zag lines, on a pale ground, more or less shaded off with ash, and deepest on the wing-coverts. The primary quills are brown, with dusky tips; the secondaries lead-colour, tinged with brown, and slightly tipped with dull white. The tail consists of twelve short feathers, of a dark-brownish ash, which have also a hoary grey appearance: the legs and toes are lead-colour, shaded and dashed with black. This species is without the beauty-spot on the wings, and has altogether a more plain and half-mourning kind of look than others of this tribe. The specimen from which the above figure was drawn, was shot at Axwell-park, in the county of Durham: the description was taken from one shot in January, near Holy Island. The former differed from the latter in wanting the black on the rump and vent, and in some other slight variations in the shadings of its colours.
The head of the female is of a pale reddish-brown; the breast is of rather a deeper colour; the coverts of the wings plain ash-colour; the back marked like that of the male; the belly ash-coloured.
These birds leave the north on the approach of winter, and migrate southward as far, it is said, as Egypt, in Africa, and Carolina and Louisiana, in America. They arrive in the marshes of France about the end of October, in tolerably numerous flocks; and considerable numbers of them are caught in the fens of Lincolnshire during the winter season, and sold in the London markets, where they and the female wigeons are indiscriminately called dunbirds, and esteemed excellent eating. It has not yet been discovered whether any of them remain to breed in England.
The pochard is of a plump, round shape, and its walk is heavy, ungraceful, and waddling; but when on the wing they fly with greater rapidity than the mallard, and in flocks of from twenty to forty, commonly in a close compact body, whereby they may be easily distinguished from the triangular-shaped flocks of the wild duck, as well as by the difference of the noise of their wings.
The few attempts which have been made to domesticate this species have failed of success. They do pretty well where they have plenty of water, but it is said that they cannot bear walking about on hard, pebbly ground.—Bewick.
Pock, s. A pustule raised by the small pox.
Pod, s. The capsule of legumes, the case of seeds.
Point, s. The sharp end of any instrument; a string with a tag; headland, promontory.
Point, v. To sharpen, to forge or grind to a point; to indicate, as dogs do to sportsmen; to show.
Pointer, s. Anything that points; a dog that points out game to sportsmen.