British Sea Birds :: CHAPTER V. DUCKS, GEESE, AND SWANS.

CHAPTER V. DUCKS, GEESE, AND SWANS.

Ducks—Characteristics—Non-diving Ducks—Characteristics of—Changes of Plumage—Sheldrake—Wigeon—Pintail Duck—Various other species—Diving Ducks: Characteristics—Changes of Plumage—Eider Duck—King Eider—Common Scoter—Velvet Scoter—Scaup Duck—Tufted Duck—Pochard—Golden-Eye—Long-tailed Duck—Mergansers—Characteristics and Changes of Plumage—Red-breasted Merganser—Goosander—Smew—Geese—Characteristics—Gray Lag Goose—White-fronted Goose—Bean Goose—Brent Goose—Bernacle Goose—Swans—Characteristics—Changes of Plumage—Hooper Swan—Bewick’s Swan.

Most of the species contained in the present chapter can only be described as Sea-birds during winter. In summer they are chiefly inland species, and resort to fresh waters. Again, the majority of these birds do not breed within the limits of the British Islands; they are winter visitors from more northern lands, and return to those lands in spring. Still there are a few species resident in our area eminently marine in their habits, and forming constant and pleasing features in the bird-life of the coast. United, the Ducks, Geese, and Swans form the well-defined family AnatidÆ, which may be readily divided into half-a-dozen sub-families, all but one of which are represented at some time of the year on our seaboard. The most important external characteristics of the birds in this family are the peculiar laminated bill, the short legs, the webbed feet, and the dense compact plumage. The family is almost cosmopolitan in its distribution.

NON-DIVING DUCKS.

Representatives of no less than three of the four sub-families into which the Ducks have been divided by systematists, are found on the British coast-line. Each sub-family contains some thoroughly marine species. We will deal first with the AnatinÆ, containing the Sheldrakes and non-diving Ducks. The birds in this sub-family are distinguished from all others by having the tarsus scutellated or plated in front, and by having only a narrow membrane attached to the hind toe. A peculiarity about these Ducks is that they never dive for their food. This is obtained only in shallow water, by submerging the fore half of the body and dabbling and probing amongst the mud and weeds. In the Sheldrakes the sexes are nearly alike in colour, but in the remaining species there is usually considerable difference in this respect, the males or drakes being handsome, showy birds, the females or ducks brown and comparatively sombre-looking. The Sheldrakes moult once in autumn, the remaining species the same, but the drakes of these latter change their small feathers twice, once in early summer and once in autumn. The young are hatched covered with down, and able, to a great extent, to shift for themselves.

SHELDRAKE.

This remarkably handsome species, the Anas cornuta of S. G. Gmelin, and the Tadorna cornuta of most modern naturalists, is a resident on such parts of the British coasts as are suited to its needs. Unfortunately, continued persecution has driven this beautiful Duck from many a haunt along the coast, and it is now almost entirely confined during the breeding season to the more secluded districts, or to such places where man may accord it some measure of protection. Low sandy coasts, and extensive dunes by the sea, are the favourite resort of the Sheldrake; and, owing to its secretive habits and exceptional wariness, it is a species that may be very easily overlooked. During the breeding season, an observer may wander for hours up and down the haunts of this Duck without seeing a single bird. Once seen, however, it is easily identified—no other bird along the coast more readily. The harlequin arrangement of the colours is more eccentric, perhaps, than beautiful. The bill, to begin with, is crimson; the head and upper neck are dark metallic-green; the lower neck is white, and below this is a broad band of bay or chestnut; the rump, upper tail coverts, and tail (except the tip, which is black), part of the secondaries and innermost scapulars, the wing coverts, the sides of the belly and the flanks, are white; the remainder of the wings and outermost scapulars, and a broad line from the breast to the vent are black; the alar speculum is green; the tarsus and feet are pink. At a distance the bird looks like a patchwork arrangement of black, white, and red, which becomes even more pronounced when it takes flight, and in a slow, Heron-like way, with measured beats of the wings, passes out to sea, or down the coast to more secluded haunts. During the breeding season, this Duck frequents the sand dunes on the English coast, but is rare and local in the south; in Scotland it is commoner, and may be met with in almost all places suited to its requirements, including the Hebrides. In Ireland, however, it becomes local and uncommon, although widely dispersed. When the young are reared the bird becomes more widely distributed, but even then its preference for the sand makes it still local. The Sheldrake is known by many provincial names, among which may be mentioned “Burrow Duck,” “Bergander,” and “Shell-duck.” The origin of this Duck’s colloquial name is somewhat obscure, although Willughby and Ray attribute it to the bird’s strongly-contrasted plumage—“sheld” being the East Anglian equivalent for parti-coloured.[5] The Old Norse name for this Duck was skjÖldungr, from skjÖldr, a piebald horse. The Sheldrake is certainly a social bird, but can scarcely be termed a gregarious one. Small parties may be seen feeding in the shallows or swimming in the sea. The bird obtains its food either whilst wandering along the shore—its gait is more elegant than that of most Ducks, owing to the comparatively longer legs—or when swimming in water just deep enough for it to reach the sandy bottom, when the fore part of the body is submerged, and the hind quarters held almost perpendicular. This food consists chiefly of sand-hoppers, crustaceans, molluscs, and small fish; but on shore the bird also eats grass, stems and leaves of aquatic plants, and worms. The Sheldrake rarely wanders far from the sea, its visits to the land seldom extending beyond the dunes or the rough saltings. The note of this Duck is a harsh quack, but in the pairing season an oft-repeated tremulous cry is uttered, and when the young are abroad a guttural kurr is heard.

The breeding season of the Sheldrake begins in April or May. Although instances of this bird breeding some distance from the coast are on record (Stevenson’s Birds of Norfolk), its ordinary nesting-places are never far from the sea. Its favourite breeding-grounds are sand dunes, links, flat sand-banks, and small islands in sea lochs, firths, or estuaries. The bird is not very social at this period, and although many pairs may occupy a comparatively small area of coast, each seems to keep closely to its own particular domain. The nest is made at the end of a burrow, a rabbit hole being frequently selected; but sometimes the bird is said to excavate one for itself, in which case it follows a nearly circular direction. Sometimes the nest is ten or fifteen feet from the entrance, and in places where rabbits are numerous, it is often an almost hopeless task to discover it, one burrow running into another in bewildering perplexity. At the end of the burrow a rude nest of dry grass is formed—a rabbit’s nest is not unfrequently utilised—which, as incubation advances, is thickly lined with down from the parent’s body. Few nests are more difficult to find; sometimes the parents will betray its whereabouts when one bird relieves the other; but, as a rule, the male is seldom seen near it, and both sexes are remarkably cautious in leaving or visiting it. The eggs are usually from six to twelve, but as many as sixteen have been known. They are creamy-white in colour, smooth and polished in texture. The down in the nest of the Sheldrake is a beautiful lavender-gray. The young are soon taken to the beach after they are hatched, where the little creatures are remarkably active in catching sand-hoppers.

WIGEON.

Of all the more typical birds in this sub-family, the present species, the Anas penelope of naturalists, is by far the best known along the coast. The male bird is a very pretty and conspicuous one, in his beautifully pencilled back and flanks, and distinguished from afar by his bright buff forehead and crown, and white wing coverts. The female is much less showily coloured. The Wigeon arrives upon our seaboard, from the Arctic regions, in vast numbers every autumn, and from that time forward to the following spring resides with us. This autumn migration of the Wigeon begins late in September, and lasts well on into November. The birds begin to leave us again in March, and most have departed by the end of the following month. The Wigeon, whilst with us, is one of the most gregarious of the Ducks, and flocks of vast size may sometimes be observed in our shallower seas close inshore, in estuaries and bays, but perhaps more frequently further out at sea. These birds obtain most of their food at night in such localities where they are subjected to much persecution, as often happens, for their flesh is valued as an article for the table, coming landwards at dusk, and retiring to the open sea at dawn. The flight of this species is rapid, yet almost noiseless, and the bird may sometimes be seen gliding down from the air to the water on stiff and motionless wings, but flapping them rapidly just as it drops, tail first, into the sea. Its note is highly characteristic, a shrill, far sounding mee-ow, or wee-ow. The food consists of grass, buds, and leaves of aquatic plants, grass wrack, crustaceans, and molluscs. Many Wigeons are caught in the flight-nets on the Wash, a locality which is, or used to be twenty years ago, a favourite resort of this Duck.

A few Wigeons remain in our Islands to breed, frequenting the northern counties of Scotland, including the Orkneys and the Shetlands, but the vast majority return to the Arctic regions to do so. Its favourite nesting-places are scrubby woodlands, swamps, and heaths, clothed with coarse herbage, studded with lakes and tarns, and intersected by streams. Although not gregarious at this period, the numbers of nests found scattered over a small area, suggests at least a social tendency. The nest is usually made close to the water-side, amongst heath or grass, or sheltered by a little bush, and is made of dry herbage and leaves, warmly lined with down plucked from the body of the female. The six to ten eggs are cream- or buffish-white, smooth in texture, but with little gloss. These are laid in May.

PINTAIL DUCK.

This elegant species, the Anas acuta of LinnÆus, by some modern writers generically distinguished as Dafila acuta, is, next to the Wigeon perhaps, the most abundant of the non-diving Ducks upon the coast. Like that bird it visits the British seas in some numbers in autumn, returning north in spring. From the extreme length of the two central upper tail coverts, which project two inches or more beyond the tail, this Duck has been termed the “Sea Pheasant” in some districts, although in others the name is applied to the Long-tailed Duck—a member of the next sub-family. The male is distinguished by his brown head, shot with bronze tints, black nape, and white stripe on either side of the neck, which runs into the white underparts; by the green speculum emphasised above with pale chestnut, and below with white, and finely pencilled black and gray upper plumage: the long pointed black scapulars, broadly edged with dull white, are also a noteworthy feature. The female is much less showily coloured, mottled-brown above, and grayish-white below, but the brown tail feathers, obliquely barred with white, readily distinguish her from allied species. The favourite haunts of the Pintail, during its sojourn with us, are the shallow estuaries, especially on our eastern and southern coasts. It arrives on our coasts chiefly in October and November, and leaves them in April. The Pintail is a remarkably gregarious species, congregating in large flocks during winter, and it has been observed that many of these gatherings are composed exclusively of male birds. It is a shy and wary bird, feeding principally at night, visiting the land or the shallows at dusk, and when so engaged, sentinels are generally on the look-out, ready to give the alarm. It obtains its food by dipping the fore half of the body under water, and exploring the mud with its bill; but sometimes stubbles and meadows near the sea are visited for the purpose. This food consists chiefly of aquatic plants, grass, insects, worms, molluscs, and crustaceans. This Duck swims well and buoyantly, looking very graceful on the water; it rarely dives, even when wounded; whilst on the ground it walks with long neck extended and tail raised. The Pintail flies well and rapidly, the wings making a peculiar and easily recognised swishing sound.

The Pintail migrates northwards in flocks, and reaches its Arctic breeding grounds as soon as the ice begins to break up, crowding on the little pools and narrow belt of open water, on the sides of the rivers, and filling the air like swarms of bees. A few pairs remain in the British Islands for the summer. Swampy moors, and the banks of lakes and ponds, are the favourite nesting-places of this Duck. The nest, made upon the ground amongst herbage, or under the shelter of a rock or bush, is composed of dry grass, withered leaves, sedges, and rushes, and lined copiously with down. The eggs are from six to ten in number, and are pale buffish-green, smooth, but lustreless. These are laid in May. The Pintail is by no means a noisy bird; a low chattering may be heard from a flock whilst feeding, a soft quack when the bird is alarmed; whilst the drake, during the season of courtship, utters a deep clÜk, preceded by a hiss, and followed by a low grating note. Outside our islands the Pintail has a very wide distribution, breeding in the PalÆarctic and Nearctic regions, and wintering almost to the Equator.

Of the remaining five species of Ducks belonging to the present sub-family, which are either regular visitors to our islands, or residents in them, none can fairly be classed as being typically marine in their haunts. The well-known Mallard Anas boschas, the Teal Anas crecca, and the Shoveller Anas clypeata, visit the low-lying coasts, especially during severe weather, but they are all eminently fresh-water species, and form no dominant feature in the bird-life of the coast. Still less familiar to the sea-side naturalist are the Gadwall Anas strepera, and the Garganey Anas circia. The former species is rare in our islands, even during winter, whilst the latter is a summer visitor only, excessively local, but breeding sparingly in the Broads District, where, from the peculiar note of the male, it is known as the “Cricket Teal.” We will, therefore, pass on to a study of the next sub-family, which contains birds eminently marine in their habits and economy.

DIVING DUCKS.

These birds, described somewhat ambiguously by certain authorities as Sea Ducks, for all the species are by no means exclusively marine, yet all are expert divers, form a fairly well-defined and homogenous group, or sub-family, termed by systematists, FuligulinÆ. They are characterised by having a pendant lobe, or membrane, attached to the hind toe, and by their anteriorly scutellated tarsi. All the Ducks in this sub-family habitually dive for their food, and their movements in the water are remarkably agile. The sexes generally present considerable difference in colour, the males, as usual, being the most handsome and conspicuous. The young are always hatched covered with down, and soon able to accompany their parents on the water. The females have a single moult in autumn, but the males a partially double one. Diving Ducks, in fact all species in the family, in first plumage, closely resemble the old female, and acquire the adult plumage after the first autumn moult. We will deal first with the resident species, as being constant features in the bird life of the coast and sea.

EIDER DUCK.

No Duck is more thoroughly attached to the sea than this species, the Anas mollissima of LinnÆus and Latham, but the Somateria mollissima of most modern ornithologists. Unfortunately it is somewhat restricted in its distribution, only breeding in one locality on the English coast, occurring more or less accidentally elsewhere. Ireland is not even so fortunate, for no nesting station is known round the entire coastline of the island. The Eider Duck is a decidedly northern bird, and is found, if somewhat locally, round the coasts of Scotland, extending to the outlying islands, including St. Kilda, where I have taken its nest. To most people, perhaps, the down of the Eider Duck, in the form of a coverlet, is more familiar than the bird itself. Although somewhat clumsy in appearance, the male Eider is a singularly handsome and conspicuous bird—conspicuous, one might say, when standing on the rocks or paddling about the still water near the shore, but even in a very moderately rough sea the bird is detected with difficulty, especially at a distance, for the white crests and dark waves effectually harmonise with, and conceal, its striking piebald plumage. The two predominating colours of the male Eider are black and white, the latter occupying most of the upper surface, the former most of the lower; the head, however, is variously marked with black, white, and pale green. The female is dark chestnut-brown, variegated with brownish-black. The Eider Duck is so thoroughly sea-going in its habits, that it rarely even flies over the land, except to reach its nest, and will rather follow the windings of the coast than cross even a narrow headland. In our islands it is practically sedentary, only wandering south a little way during winter. Its favourite haunts are rocky islands and coasts, where bays and quiet fjords offer it a haven of safety. The Eider is not so gregarious as many other Ducks, but it may be seen in parties all the year round, the drakes keeping company on the sea while their partners are on their nests, and when these latter come off them to feed, all join into a scattered company. The male bird is exceptionally wary at all times, but the female during the nesting period, becomes absurdly tame in districts where not persecuted, often allowing an observer to stroke her gently whilst she sits upon her eggs. The food of the Eider Duck consists of minute marine insects, crustaceans, and shellfish, especially mussels and small crabs. Most of this food is obtained by diving, the Eider being marvellously expert at this, not only descending to a great depth, but remaining for a long time below. A favourite method of feeding with this species is to draw shorewards with the tide. It may be watched gradually swimming towards the land in some sheltered bay, feeding as it comes, until the very edge of the breakers is reached. Then comes by far the prettiest sight of all, as the bird swims through each mighty wave just before it turns over and breaks upon the beach, floating light as a foam fleck on the huge rollers, now high up on the white crests, then momentarily lost to view in the green glassy depths. If alarmed on these occasions, the Eider generally swims quickly out from shore, but if further pursued or fired at, it instantly takes wing, rising from the water with little splash, and flying rapidly and steadily just above the surface to a safer refuge. The Eider is a day feeder, abroad at dawn, and continuing its labours well into the dusk. As a rule the Eider is a very silent bird. The usual note is a somewhat low kurr, but in the season of courtship the male utters a cooing sound when paying his addresses to his mate, as he swims round and round her, guarding her from the attentions of rivals. This cooing noise may be heard for a long distance across a quiet loch, especially, as often happens, if several drakes are together.

The favourite nesting places of the Eider Duck are low, rocky islands, well covered with marine vegetation, such as campion, thrift, and grass. Late in spring the flocks begin to separate more into pairs, although the immature non-breeding individuals may be observed to continue gregarious all the summer, and not to visit the nesting stations. The laying season is in May and June. The female alone selects a site for and makes the nest, the male rarely, if ever, visiting the spot, although he keeps in attendance on the sea near the islands, and joins her when she comes to feed. The nest is made upon the ground, sometimes amongst the dense beds of campion, sometimes in a crevice of the boulders, or on a ledge of rock. Occasionally, as I remarked at St. Kilda, it may be placed on the top of cliffs hundreds of feet above the sea. It is large and well made, consisting of coarse grass, dry seaweed, heather, and bits of dead vegetation, profusely lined with down and a few curly feathers from the body of the female alone. This lining gradually accumulates as the eggs are laid. Numbers of nests may be found close together, especially where the birds are tolerably common, as, for instance, at the Farne Islands, where, by the way, the Eider is known as “St. Cuthbert’s Duck.” The eggs are from five to seven, or rarely even eight, pale olive-green or greenish-gray in colour, and smooth and wax-like in texture. In many places the Eider is jealously protected for the sake of its precious down, especially in Iceland and Norway, and the taking of the eggs or down by unauthorized persons is an offence punishable by law. Outside our limits, the Eider inhabits most of the coasts and islands of the North Atlantic. The much rarer King Eider, Somateria spectabilis—an occasional visitor to the British Seas—claims a passing reference, for it is by no means improbable that the species actually breeds within our limits.

COMMON SCOTER.

Of all the hordes of Ducks that pour southwards in autumn, down the western coasts of Europe, and find a winter resort in the British Seas, the present species, the Anas nigra of LinnÆus, the Fuligula nigra of many writers, and Œdemia nigra of others who regard the Scoters as generically distinct from the Pochard and allied forms, is certainly by far the commonest. It is known on almost all parts of the coast as the “Black Duck.” Few other Ducks are so absolutely marine as the Scoter; no weather is bad enough to drive it ashore, and it seldom visits the land at all, except for purposes of reproduction. It is a gregarious bird, and so large are some of its gatherings off the British coasts, that it literally blackens the sea with its numbers. To see such a mighty host of birds rise en masse from the water is a most imposing, nay, even a thrilling sight. The Common Scoter begins to arrive with us in September, and the migration continues right through the following month. The return passage begins in April and lasts into May. All the birds, however, do not pass northwards, for flocks of immature Scoters frequent British waters through the summer, whilst a few pairs of adults are even known to breed in the north of Scotland. The Scoter is found most abundantly off our eastern coasts, from the Orkneys to the Goodwins, and thence, but in smaller numbers, along the English Channel. The western districts are not visited so plentifully, the flat coasts of Lancashire, the north of Ireland, and the Solway area being its principal resorts. This Scoter is an adept diver; in fact, almost all its food is obtained in that way. Like the Eider the Scoter is fond of working shorewards with the tide, feeding as it comes, and retiring from the land again when its appetite is satisfied. The food of this Duck consists in winter chiefly of molluscs and crustaceans; but in summer the leaves, roots, and buds of aquatic plants are eaten, as are also insects. The Scoter flies well and rapidly, and is not unfrequently seen in the air, especially when in flocks. These sometimes circle and gyrate for some time after they are flushed before settling on the sea again. The usual note of the Scoter is a harsh kurr, modulated into a more musical sound by the drake during the pairing season.

Even during the breeding season the Common Scoter does not retire far from the sea. Its favourite breeding grounds are by the lakes and rivers amongst dwarf-willow and birch-scrub, and an island is always preferred. The nest is a mere hollow in the ground, into which is collected a little dry herbage. This, however, is plentifully lined with down before the female begins to sit. The bird is a late breeder, the eggs not being laid much before the middle of June. These are six to nine in number, grayish-buff in colour, smooth in texture, and with little gloss. Only one brood is reared, and the female alone appears to take the entire duty of caring for the ducklings. I should here remark that the adult male Scoter is uniform bright black, with the exception of an orange-coloured stripe—said to vary considerably in extent—along the central ridge of the upper mandible. The female is nearly uniform dark-brown. The Scoter is an inhabitant of Arctic Europe and West Siberia, visiting more southern latitudes in winter.

Although this species, the Fuligula fusca of ornithology, is a regular winter visitor to the seas off the British coasts, it nowhere approaches in numbers the preceding species. It may be readily distinguished from the Common Scoter by its very conspicuous white wing bar, and less observable white spot under the eye; otherwise it closely resembles it in general colouration. The Velvet Scoters that visit our seas are generally observed mixed with the gatherings of the Common Scoter. The habits of the two species are much alike in some respects, very different in others. Thus it exhibits the same skill in diving for food, and obtains it under very similar conditions; its flight is equally rapid and well sustained; it seldom visits the land, and is, when on it, just as clumsy and waddling in its gait; its food is similar; its migrations take place at much the same periods. On the other hand, the Velvet Scoter is not such a strictly maritime species, being frequently found on inland waters, and even, during winter, is partial to wandering up tidal rivers and visiting lakes. Its breeding-places are also, as a rule, much farther from the sea, and the nest is not unfrequently found at long distances from any water at all. Odd pairs of this Scoter are occasionally met with in our area during the summer, and it has been suggested that the species even breeds within the British limits; no direct evidence, however, is forthcoming.

This Scoter is a late breeder, its eggs not being laid before the end of June, or even early in July. Although migrating in flocks, the birds appear to separate into pairs as soon as the summer quarters are reached. The duck and drake keep close company as usual, until the eggs are laid, after which the latter leaves his mate to bring up the brood alone. The Velvet Scoter breeds in the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe and Asia, from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and winters in temperate latitudes. The breeding-places are chiefly situated on the tundras, amongst scrub or coarse vegetation, near the rivers and lakes. The scanty nest of dry grass and dead leaves is often made under some bush, and, before incubation commences, is lined with down from the body of the female. The eight or nine eggs are greyish-buff in colour, smooth, and with little gloss. As soon as the young are capable of flight, a movement south is made.

SCAUP DUCK.

This Duck, the Anas marila of LinnÆus, or Fuligula marila of modern naturalists, derives its trivial name from its habit of frequenting the “mussel-scaups,” or “mussel-scalps,” and is tolerably abundant round the British coasts during winter. The adult male is distinguished by having the head and neck black, shot with metallic-green and purple, and the back and scapulars vermiculated with white and black. The general colour of the female is brown, shading into grayish-white on the belly, whilst a broad white band extends round the base of the bill. Scaup Ducks begin to arrive off our more northern coasts in September, but not until a month later in the south. They begin to leave us again in March, and the migration continues through the whole of April into May, the bird thus being one of the last Ducks to retire north in spring. Although by no means unfrequently met with on inland waters during migration and in winter, the Scaup Duck is, for the most part, a dweller on the sea, resorting, by preference, to bays, estuaries, and the mouths of large rivers, especially where a considerable amount of mud is left bare at low water. It is gregarious at this season, often congregating into large flocks, and not unfrequently associates with other Sea Ducks, notably with Wigeon and Pintail. It is a most expert and ready diver, spends most of its time upon the water, and appears always to prefer to dive, rather than to fly, in avoiding pursuit. If compelled to take wing, it rises with much splashing: but, when once fairly in the air, is capable of rapid flight, the quickly-beating pinions making a whistling or rustling sound. The food of the Scaup Duck consists largely of molluscs, but crustaceans and marine plants are also eaten by this species. When thus diving for food, the bird often remains below for a minute at a time. It feeds much at night, and passes pretty regularly from its usual haunts by day to its feeding-places. The note of this Duck is a most harsh and discordant scaup, but during flight or courtship a hoarse and grating kurr is uttered.

The Scaup Duck arrives at its Arctic breeding-grounds with the break-up of the ice. The bird may probably pair for life, as the sexes keep close company all the year. Even at its breeding-grounds it is a social bird, many pairs nesting in a small area, and collecting at certain spots to feed. Its breeding-grounds are on the Arctic tundras, near the rush-and-grass-fringed lakes, amidst the thickets of birches, junipers, and willows. The nest is placed under a bush, or amongst herbage on a bank, and is merely a hollow lined with dry grass and sedge and dead leaves. To this, however, the usual lining of down is added. The eggs, from six to nine in number, are greenish-gray, and of smooth texture. The female, as usual, takes sole charge of the young. The Scaup Duck inhabits, during summer, the Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and America, drawing southwards in winter almost to the tropics.

TUFTED DUCK.

This species, the Anas fuligula of LinnÆus, and the Fuligula cristata of most modern ornithologists, is a fairly common winter visitor to the British coasts. It is not so exclusively a marine species as some of the other diving Ducks, being often met with on inland waters during that season. The Tufted Duck derives its name from the bushy crest or tuft of feathers growing from the top of the head, and drooping down over the back of the neck on the male. The head, neck, and crest are glossy black, shot with purple and green; the upper parts, the breast and the under tail coverts, are black; the remainder of the underparts and the alar speculum are white. In the female, the black is replaced by dark brown, and the white with brownish-gray: the white speculum remains. Many Tufted Ducks breed, and are apparently resident in our islands in certain inland districts; but the majority of the birds that occur round the coasts are migrants from the north. This Duck begins to arrive off the British coasts towards the end of October, and continues to do so into November. It remains in our area until the following spring, passing north in March and April. Its principal haunts are the more low-lying coasts, especially in the vicinity of estuaries and mud-banks. It is gregarious enough at this season, some of the flocks consisting of many thousands of birds. In its habits generally, it very closely resembles the Scaup Duck, a species whose company it often keeps. It swims in much the same low manner, dives with equally marvellous adeptness, and shows the same propensity for keeping well out to sea during the day, coming shorewards and into shallower water at night to feed. It rises from the sea in the same apparently laboured way, striking the water with its feet—the splashing thus made by a flock of birds being audible for a long distance. Its alarm note during winter is a harsh kurr, but the bird is not a very noisy one. The food of this Duck consists of molluscs, small fish, and the roots, stems, leaves, and buds of various water plants—all of which is obtained by diving, the bird sometimes remaining beneath the surface for as long as a minute.

The Tufted Duck retires to inland waters for the summer, its favourite resorts being meres, lakes, and marshy grounds full of small ponds. A partiality is also shown for small pools on heaths, or fairly well-timbered ground. This Duck probably pairs for life; in the breeding season it is certainly social, many males consorting together, and many females making their nests within a small area. The nest is usually made in a tussock of sedge, beneath a bush, or amongst rushes and coarse grass, and is a mere hollow lined with a little dry vegetation, and an abundance of down from the female. The eggs are usually from eight to ten in number, and greenish-buff. They are laid, according to locality, from April to June. The female alone brings up the young. Outside our islands, the Tufted Duck breeds in the Arctic or temperate parts of Europe and Asia, visiting the southern portions of those continents, as well as North Africa, during winter.

POCHARD.

This handsome Duck, the Anas ferina of LinnÆus, and the Nyroca or Fuligula ferina of modern writers, is another winter visitor to the British Islands, where, however, it breeds locally, and in somewhat limited numbers, thus coming within the category of our resident species. In some districts the male of this Duck is known as the “Red-headed Poker,” the female as the “Dunbird” or “Dunker.” The colours of this Duck are very distinctive. The head and neck of the male are rich chestnut; the back scapulars and flanks are white, finely-pencilled or vermiculated with black; the gorget and tail coverts are black; the under-surface grayish-white; the quills brown. The female has the head and neck reddish-brown, the chin white, and the remainder of the plumage much browner and more dingy than in her mate. The Pochard is by no means exclusively a marine Duck; in fact, this species appears to be as much attached to fresh-waters as to the sea. Unfortunately, there is one thing about most of these Sea Ducks which does much to detract from their interest, and that is, they cannot readily be observed from the shore, and appear upon our seas at a season when the elements render the coast least attractive. Most of these Ducks lie well off the land, where the wild-fowler alone is tempted to follow them; or if approaching the shore more closely, it is generally during rough tempestuous weather, when all but the enthusiastic naturalist and the gunner prefer to remain warm and comfortable at home. The Pochard is no exception in this respect. It arrives along our coasts in October, and remains with us until the following March. It is thoroughly aquatic in its habits, rarely visiting the land, feeding both by day and by night (chiefly the latter), and often flying for considerable distances, about dusk, to waters where food is abundant. Although its flight, at first, is slow and laboured, it soon becomes very rapid, and the quickly-beating wings make a rustling sound very characteristic of this species. The Pochard is another expert diver, and by this means obtains most of its food, visiting the bottom and bringing up masses of weeds to eat them on the surface. On the coast its food largely consists of crustaceans and molluscs, as well as marine plants. The note of this species is a loud and harsh kurr.

The haunts of the Pochard in summer are large and open sheets of water, surrounded by a luxuriant growth of sedge, rush, iris, and similar plants, or situated on higher ground clothed with heath, gorse, and coarse grass. It is a social bird during the breeding period, several females often nesting close together. The nest is always made near fresh water, and in many cases absolutely floats on rafts of fallen and rotting vegetation several yards from the bank, or rests in some tussock surrounded by shallow water. A bed of iris, or a crown of rushes, is another favourite spot. It is made of dry grass and fragments of any aquatic vegetation obtainable, and lined with down from the female’s body. The eggs—usually from eight to twelve, sometimes more—are brownish-gray. As is usual among Ducks, the female alone brings up the numerous family. This Duck is widely distributed over many parts of Europe, Northern Asia, and North America, the birds of the latter continent being regarded by some ornithologists as a distinct species.

GOLDEN-EYE.

Misled by the variations of colour, due to age, sex, or season, in this species, LinnÆus described different examples of it under the names of Anas clangula and A. glaucion; whilst even in our own day the females and immature birds are known as “Morillons,” and regarded as distinct from the much-rarer adult males or “Golden-Eyes,” which are locally termed “Rattle wings” or “Whistlers” from the noise produced by the wings during flight. The Golden-Eye forms the type of the well-marked genus Clangula of Fleming and of Boie, and is known to most modern ornithologists as C. glaucion. The male is a singularly striking and beautiful bird, with the general colour of the upper parts black, shot with metallic-green tints on the head, which is adorned with a small, yet distinct, drooping crest; with a large white patch at the base of the bill under each eye, and with the drooping, elongated scapulars, and the underparts, white. The female is much less conspicuous, the black being replaced by dark brown, the elongated scapulars are wanting, and the spot under the eyes only faintly indicated. The white double alar speculum is, however, very strongly marked in both sexes. The Golden-Eye is certainly more addicted to fresh-water than the sea, and in most cases only quits these inland lakes and ponds, when continued frost compels it to do so. It then prefers such coasts as are low-lying, especially delighting in estuaries. It usually arrives in the British Islands in October, and remains in them until the following April or May. It is not so gregarious as some of the other Ducks, and generally assembles in parties rather than in flocks, the larger gatherings being caused by exceptional circumstances. Its habits very closely resemble those of allied birds. It is seldom seen on the land, and there walks with the waddling gait peculiar to most Ducks; on the water, however, it is active and graceful enough, swimming well, and diving with great celerity, usually seeking by this means to escape from danger. The note of this Duck is a low croaking kurr, uttered both when the bird is flying and when at rest. Its food consists of crustaceans, molluscs, small fishes, and various water plants and weeds. Most of this is obtained by diving; and whilst a flock of birds is feeding, several individuals keep watch, all never diving together.

The evidence for this Duck having bred in Scotland, is neither reliable nor conclusive. The Golden-eye breeds throughout the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and America, up to the limits of the growth of trees: its winter range extends to the tropics. It retires to its northern summer haunts with the first signs of spring. The favourite breeding resorts of this Duck are tracts of more open forest country, where the woods are full of swamps and lakes, and the timber contains plenty of holes. The nest is usually made in a hollow tree, in a hole in the trunk, or in a hollow branch, sometimes as many as thirty feet from the ground; whilst the partiality of the bird for a tree near a waterfall, or running stream, has been noticed by more than one observer. The nest consists entirely of the down plucked from the female’s body. The ten or twelve eggs are laid in May or June, and are bright green in colour. The nest-hole is never made by the Duck itself. The peasants of Northern Scandinavia place hollow logs in suitable places on the tree-trunks, which the Golden-Eyes appear readily to avail themselves of, and from which the eggs and down are systematically taken. The young are conveyed to the ground, one by one, pressed between the female’s bill and her breast. The male is not known to assist in the task of incubation, but may possibly do so.

LONG-TAILED DUCK.

This beautiful and remarkably elegant species, the Anas glacialis of LinnÆus, and the Fuligula or Harelda glacialis of modern writers, is another winter visitor to the British seas. It is only of somewhat rare occurrence in our southern waters, but northwards, off the Scotch coasts, it becomes more frequent, and in certain localities—notably the Hebrides, and the Orkneys and Shetlands—even abundant. In the latter islands it is locally known as the “Calloo”; in other parts of Scotland the clear, gabbling cry of this Duck has been freely translated into the words “coal-an’-can’le-licht.” To many American gunners the bird is known as “Old Squaw,” from its oft-repeated cries. The male bird is singularly graceful in appearance, his long, black central tail feathers projecting five inches beyond the remaining white ones. The head and neck are white, but on either side, below the ears, is a dark brown circular patch; the gorget and the upper parts generally are black, against which, however, the long, elongated white scapulars are very conspicuous; the underparts, below the gorget, are white. The female is much less showy, the black parts in the male being dark brown in this sex, and the white parts are suffused with brown; the elongated scapulars are wanting. During exceptionally severe weather the Long-tailed Duck sometimes approaches our coasts in unusual numbers, and in districts where it is generally a scarce bird. This Duck is a late migrant, seldom reaching even our most northerly coasts before November. It returns north in April. It is strictly marine in its haunts during winter, often wandering long distances from land, and approaching the shore usually under pressure of stormy weather. Then it shows a decided preference for rock-bound coasts, frequenting the creeks and inlets which afford a considerable amount of shelter. The Long-tailed Duck is gregarious at this season, like most of its kind, although the flocks are seldom or never so large as the gatherings of Scoters and others. Its flight is remarkably quick, the long tail making the bird look extremely elegant. It is also an expert diver, disappearing as quick as thought, and often going for long distances beneath the surface, like a Grebe or a Shag. It obtains most of its food by diving, and, like the Eider, often comes shorewards with the tide. It feeds in deeper water, too, than many of its allies, as much of its prey is captured, not at the bottom, but floating in the sea. This food consists of small molluscs, crustaceans, minute marine animals, insects, and water plants, and weeds. Its note may be described as a loud cal-loo-oo.

The Long-tailed Duck breeds in the Arctic regions of Europe, Asia, and North America, above the limits of forest growth, and, possibly, as far north as land exists. During summer, it frequents inland pools and lakes; odd pairs taking possession of the former, many pairs congregating on the latter. The birds arrive in the Arctic regions with the break-up of the ice, congregating in the pools amongst the floes. The nest is usually placed in some sheltered nook, amongst birch and willow scrub, in long grass, or on the drifted rubbish by the banks of the subsided rivers. It is little more than a hollow, lined with down. In this, during June or early July, from seven to twelve buffish-green eggs are laid by the female. It is a most remarkable fact that the drake of this species assists the duck in bringing up the young, but not, so far as I can learn, in incubating the eggs. During the whole breeding season this Duck is remarkably tame, loth to take wing, and swimming out into the centre of the lake for safety, if threatened by danger. The winter migrations of this Duck are not very extended, the Mediterranean Basin, perhaps, marking the extreme southern limits.

MERGANSERS.

The Mergansers are a well-defined little group of fish-eating Ducks, forming the sub-family MerginÆ. They are characterised by their slender, narrow bill, furnished on both upper and lower mandible with saw-like lamellÆ or denticulations. The head is always more or less crested; in most other respects they resemble the Diving Ducks, all the species seeking for their food by diving. The sexes differ in colour of plumage, but not, perhaps, to such a marked extent as in some other divisions of the AnatidÆ. Six species of Mergansers are known to science, of which four are included in the British list—one as a rare visitor from North America. Of the remaining two species, one inhabits South America, the other the Auckland Islands. The young, as usual, are hatched covered with down, and able soon to follow the female to the water. In their moulting and progress to maturity they resemble preceding species.

RED-BREASTED MERGANSER.

This handsome sea-bird, the Mergus serrator of LinnÆus and most modern ornithologists, is unfortunately a winter visitor only to English waters. In Scotland and Ireland, however, it is one of the most familiar coast birds all the year round. The Red-breasted Merganser cannot readily be confused with any other Duck. The crested head and upper neck are black, shot with green and purple, the lower neck and upper breast are buff, streaked with black, the feathers on the sides of the breast having broad black margins, the flanks are strongly vermiculated with black, the back is black, vermiculated with gray on the lower portions, the inner scapulars are black, the outer ones white, the speculum is white, barred with black, and the underparts (except the flanks) are white. The female has the head and neck reddish-brown, and the upper parts brown, the black-bordered feathers on the sides of the breast are absent. Although found in many inland districts, the favourite resorts of the Red-breasted Merganser are wild, rocky coasts, such as contain plenty of quiet bays and creeks, and lochs studded with islands. Waters where the bottom is sandy or rocky, are preferred to those in which it is composed of mud. Many birds of this species visit our coasts for the winter from more northern haunts, whilst some of those dwelling in Scottish waters draw southwards at that season. This Merganser is more or less gregarious, and may be met with in flocks out at sea, or during rough weather sheltering nearer the land in lochs. Early in spring, and onwards through the summer, the Red-breasted Merganser lives closely in pairs, flying and feeding in company. I have noticed that this bird visits certain spots to feed very regularly, according to the state of the tide; almost to the minute I could depend upon certain pairs passing certain spots on their way to these feeding-grounds. I know of few prettier sights than the actions of a pair of Mergansers in some quiet, deep sea loch in early summer. The birds swim side by side close inshore below the rocks, first one diving, and then another, rarely, if ever, both descending at the same time when feeding; but when engaged in courtship, the drake will pursue the duck, and splash about in the water in a most uproarious way, often diving after her in the eagerness of his chase. The bird swims well, if rather low in the water, and dives head foremost with a leap just like the Shag. The food of this species consists largely of fish, but crustaceans, crabs especially, and molluscs are also devoured. Most of this food is obtained whilst diving, each capture being brought to the surface to be swallowed, the bird drinking after doing so, and not unfrequently rising three parts out of the water and flapping its wings. The note is a guttural kurr, heard chiefly during flight. The bird flies well and rapidly when once free from the water, but often flaps along the surface for several yards before that is accomplished.

The Red-breasted Merganser breeds in May, the eggs being laid during the latter half of that month, and the first half of June. Although not gregarious during this period, it is, at any rate, social, for several pairs may be found nesting very close together, if keeping somewhat to themselves. An island is always preferred to the mainland. The nest is placed under a rock or bank, in a rabbit burrow, or amongst dense heather and gorse at no great distance from the water. In many cases the eggs are laid upon the bare ground, in others a few dry vegetable fragments are collected into a slight hollow, but a plentiful bed of down gradually accumulates around them. From eight to twelve olive-gray eggs are laid, upon which the female alone sits. The male, however, is in attendance on the water near by, and the duck joins him there during the short periods that she leaves her charge to feed and to bathe. If alarmed, the hen bird slips off very quietly. When the young are hatched the drake retires to moult, and the female brings them up unaided. Outside our islands this Merganser is widely distributed over the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America, drawing southwards in winter.

GOOSANDER.

As this beautiful Duck, the Mergus merganser of ornithologists, not only occurs in some numbers in British waters as a winter visitor, but breeds sparingly within our limits, it has some claim to be included in the present volume, although it cannot be regarded as a very striking feature in coast bird life. It is also far less exclusively marine than the preceding species. The Goosander is an even more handsome bird than the Red-breasted Merganser, and is the largest species in the present sub-family. The colours of the male are arranged in a most effective and strongly-contrasted way. The head and neck are dark metallic-green, the breast is a delicate and beautiful pink, the upper parts and the wings are black and white, the under parts below the breast white. The female has the head reddish-brown, the upper parts grayish-brown or pale chestnut, the lower buffish-white. In its habits and in the haunts it frequents, the Goosander very closely resembles its smaller ally. When, in winter, frequenting the coast it delights in the bays and fjords, but occasionally wanders to less precipitous shores, notably estuaries and the mouths of tidal rivers. It is a remarkably agile bird in the water, swimming and diving with equal ease, but on the land its movements are ungainly, the bird wriggling along with its breast almost touching the ground, in a very Diver-like manner. In diving, it often descends to a great depth. Although not often seen much on shore, it possesses the Cormorant-like habit of basking on some rock jutting from the water, sitting with its body upright and wings half expanded. Its food consists of fish, crabs, molluscs, and aquatic insects. Most of this is obtained whilst the bird is diving.

The Goosander, in our islands, is as yet only known to breed in a few localities in the Highlands. Its eggs are laid during April and May. Its favourite nesting haunts are open, swampy forests, containing lakes and rocky streams. The nest is generally made in a hole in a tree, but crevices in rocks, or cavities in exposed tree roots by the water side, are sometimes selected. But little nest is made, although when the full clutch of eggs is deposited a thick and abundant bed of down surrounds them. The eggs are from eight to twelve in number, creamy white and glossy. It is not known whether the drake assists in the duty of incubation. The Goosander has a wide geographical range, which extends over Arctic and North temperate Europe, Asia, and America, and more southern areas during winter.

SMEW.

This species, the Mergus albellus of systematists, is not only the smallest of the Mergansers, but by far the least common in British waters. Its visits are chiefly confined to the eastern coast line of England and Scotland and the south coast of England. Even in these areas adult males—from their strongly-contrasted black-and-white plumage locally known as “Nuns”—are much more rarely met with than females and young birds, called by the gunners of the east coast “Red-headed Smews.” Unfortunately, the male Smew is a bird that does not approach the coast much, and the female, from her duller colouration and small size, is readily overlooked. Lastly, it is the least maritime of the family. The male Smee or Smew, in nuptial plumage, is black and white—some of the former colour displayed in curious crescentic markings on the shoulders and in front of the wings, the elongated crest is pearly white, emphasised by greenish black, and the flanks are finely vermiculated with gray. The female has the head reddish-brown. During winter the Smew is gregarious, living in flocks of thirty or forty individuals, mostly immature. It prefers the more open water at some distance from shore, seeking to evade pursuit by swimming, but, if fired at, diving at once and reappearing far out of danger. When feeding most of the birds dive at once, rising in scattered order, but soon bunching together as each bird swims to a central rallying point. The Smew does not visit the land much, and even sleeps upon the water. It is a most accomplished diver, descending to great depths, and using its wings to assist it through the water, which it traverses with as much ease as a Cormorant or an Auk. Upon our coasts its food consists principally of small fishes and crustaceans. Its note is a harsh kurr, but at its breeding grounds it is said to utter a bell-like call, hence in Northern Asia it has been called the “Bell Duck.”

The Smew breeds in the forest swamps of the Arctic regions, making its nest in a hollow fallen log, or in a hole in a tree or stump. The eggs are laid upon the powdered wood, but are eventually surrounded with a quantity of down from the body of the parent. The seven or eight eggs, creamy-white in colour, are laid late in June or early in July. The ducklings are said to be conveyed to the water by the female in her bill.

GEESE.

The Geese form an extensive and well-defined sub-family of the AnatidÆ termed AnserinÆ. They are distinguished from their allies by having the lores covered with feathers, and the tarsus reticulated back and front. The Geese differ further from the Swans, in having a relatively longer tarsus, and much shorter neck; and from the Ducks by their short, robust, subconical bill. Geese frequent both land and water, inland districts as well as the coasts and seas. The sexes do not present such striking contrasts of colour as in the Ducks. Geese moult once in the year, in autumn. The distribution of the sub-family is almost a cosmopolitan one, but the New World contains the greatest number of species. Half-a-dozen species are more or less abundant visitors to our islands in winter, but one species only breeds within our limits, and even this has been extirpated from most of its ancient haunts. These half-dozen species divide themselves into two distinct groups, four of them consisting of the Gray Geese, and two the Black Geese. The birds in the former group are the least maritime in their haunts, visiting the land to feed, whilst those in the latter division are inseparably associated with the sea during their sojourn in our area. As the former group contains the familiar “Wild Goose”—which is the original stock from which the farmyard Goose has been derived—we will deal first with the species contained in it.

GRAY LAG GOOSE.

This fine bird, the type of the genus Anser, and the Anser cinereus of most modern writers, claims distinction not only as being the origin of the domestic race, but as the one species indigenous to the British Islands. For nearly a hundred years, however, the Gray Lag Goose has ceased to breed in its old haunts, the English Fens; it continues to breed, yet very locally, in the Hebrides, and in certain parts of the Highlands. Its domestication must extend to a very ancient date; yet captivity, beyond increasing its size and its fecundity, has caused but trifling variation in its colour. The bird, therefore, must be too familiar to every reader to require any description here. Once apparently so common, the Gray Lag Goose is now one of our rarest birds, a fact of great significance to the student of the geographical distribution or dispersal of species. The derivation of one of this bird’s trivial names—Lag—has given rise to much speculation, until Professor Skeat[6] apparently solved the riddle by suggesting that the word—which is an equivalent for late—applied to the bird’s habit of lagging behind to breed in the Fens, after other migratory Geese had departed north. A few Gray Lag Geese locally appear, chiefly on our eastern seaboard in winter, and it is more than probable that, normally, most of these birds are the individuals still continuing to inhabit the British Islands. These birds generally resort to the coast, frequenting sand-banks and low islands during the day, as a safe retreat in which to rest and sleep, coming landwards again at dusk to feed. This Goose, although gregarious during winter, seldom or never consorts with other species, although ready enough to mingle with its tame descendants on the stubbles and pastures. Where not persecuted, this Goose is a day feeder: but incessant shooting has caused it to vary its habits in this respect, and to defer its visits to dangerous grounds until darkness has set in. It shows little partiality for water, only resorting thereto when alarmed, or during the helpless period of its moult, when its quills all drop out together and incapacitate it for flight. It swims well and buoyantly, however, and when wounded has been known to dive. The flight of this species is both rapid and powerful, the birds usually forming into Vs or Ws to perform their journeys. The call-note is a loud, far-sounding gag-gag, variously modulated on different occasions. Its food consists largely of grass and tender grain plants, but grain of all kinds is sought, together with various buds and leaves.

The Gray Lag Goose breeds early, in some localities the eggs being laid in March or April, a month later in the more northern districts. It is a social bird at this period, and numbers of nests are often made close together. Its breeding grounds are secluded moors and swamps. The huge nest, made on the ground, is placed amongst heath or dense vegetation, and is composed of branches of heather, dry grass, rushes, bracken, turf, and so on, and lined with down. The six or eight eggs are creamy-white. The gander keeps guard close to the nest, whilst the goose incubates the eggs; and when the young are reared a move is usually made seawards.

WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE.

This Goose, the Branta albifrons of Scopoli, but the Anser albifrons of most modern writers, is a winter visitor to our islands, not only local in distribution, but much more abundant in some years than others. It may be readily distinguished from the preceding species by its orange-yellow bill, white face (a narrow and varying line of white feathers round the base of the bill), and broad black bars across the belly. It is, perhaps, most abundant on the Irish coasts, those of the south and south-west of England coming next, whilst on the east coast—a region so famous for Wild Fowl—it becomes rare. In Scotland its principal resorts are in the Outer Hebrides. The habits of all these “Gray” Geese are very much alike. During winter the present species is gregarious, and passes with great regularity from the sand-banks, where it rests and sleeps, to the more inland pastures where it feeds. Its food, flight, and actions generally resemble those of allied birds. The note is said to be more harsh and cackling than that of the preceding species, hence the name “Laughing Goose,” applied in many places to this bird.

The White-fronted Goose breeds in the Arctic regions, and was met with by Middendorff breeding in great numbers on the Siberian tundras. The nest was a mere hollow at the summit of a grassy knoll, lined with down. The eggs, from five to seven in number, are creamy-white.

BEAN GOOSE.

This species, the Anas segetum of Gmelin, and the Anser segetum of modern ornithologists, is locally distributed round the British coasts during winter, but of more general occurrence on passage, especially in autumn. The Bean Goose may be distinguished from the two preceding Geese by the colour of its bill, which has only the central portion orange-yellow, the base and the nail being black. This species arrives in our area during October and November. It is gregarious during winter, congregating in flocks of varying size, which wander about considerably, influenced by the exigencies of the weather and the supply of food. These gatherings are difficult to approach. During the day the Bean Geese come inland to search for their food, on the stubbles and newly-sown grain lands. A long-continued frost will keep them to the coast; but during spells of open, yet rough and stormy weather, they prefer to remain in inland haunts, from which, however, they soon depart at the sign of a coming frost. When feeding, Bean Geese generally station sentinels to guard the flock by giving timely notice of the approach of an enemy. Their food consists of grass, grain, tender shoots of grain, and the roots of various plants. During night, when they are certainly more easily approached, they repair to sand banks and low islands, or to the open sea, where they sleep and preen their feathers. This Goose swims well, but rises from water in a somewhat laboured manner. Its note is the familiar gag-gag, variously modulated according to circumstances.

The Bean Goose breeds on the Arctic tundras, beyond or near the limits of forest growth, across Europe and Asia, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The nest is made early in June, amongst the tall grass and sedge of an islet on one of the tundra lakes, or on rising ground on the bank, and is merely a hollow, into which is gathered a little dry grass and a quantity of down from the body of the parent. In this nest three or four creamy-white eggs are laid. As soon as the young are half-grown, the Bean Geese begin to collect into flocks again, and to complete their moult. Like other Geese, at this time they are very helpless, being incapable of flight, as the quills drop out suddenly, and nearly all together.

Allusion must here be made to the Pink-footed Goose, the Anser brachyrhynchus of Baillon, long confounded with the Bean Goose, and perhaps only sub-specifically distinct from it. As pointed out by Mr. Cecil Smith, the characters mainly depended upon to distinguish this bird from the Bean Goose—pink legs and central portion of the bill—are not constant; but this may be due to accidental reversion. A more important difference, because apparently constant, is the bluish-gray colour of the upper wing coverts. These, however, are questions that do not come within the scope of the present volume, and must be left to the more advanced students of birds. The Pink-footed Goose is a tolerably common winter visitor to our islands, especially to the eastern districts. Its habits are not known to differ in any important respect. But little is known of its habits during the breeding season. The nest is said to be made on low rocks near the sea, or on higher cliffs in the fjords some distance inland. The four or five eggs are creamy-white.

BRENT GOOSE.

The “Black” Geese differ in many important respects from their allies the “Gray” Geese, and are generally separated from them under the scientific terms of Bernicla or Branta. These birds are characterised by their short, sub-conical bills, in which the lamellÆ are concealed, or nearly so, and by the general dark colour of the plumage, relieved by white, or, in some cases, various strongly-contrasted colours. Two species are British, in the sense of visiting us during winter. The first of these the Brent Goose—the Anser brenta of Brisson, and the Bernicla brenta of modern naturalists—is by far the most common and widely distributed of the Geese in our islands, but it exclusively confines itself to the sea. It may be met with off almost all parts of our coast-line, but is most abundant along the east and south. The adult bird may readily be distinguished by the general black colouration of the breast and upper parts, relieved by small white patches on the sides of the neck, the pale margins to the wing coverts and mantle, and the white upper tail coverts. The lower parts below the breast are dark slate-gray, many of the feathers having paler margins. Young birds, however, do not display the white neck patches. The Brent Goose is seldom seen in any numbers on our seas before October; but from that date onwards vast flocks continue to arrive, and the bird continues abundant until the end of the following March. Certainly some districts are far more favoured by this species than others. In my own experience I may name the Wash, where I have seen this Goose in such enormous packs as densely to cover many acres of mud-flat; whilst their noisy clamour, in the still hours of early morning, could be heard for a mile or more across the wide, desolate salt-marshes. The Brent Goose passes its time either on the sea or on the muds. It is remarkably gregarious, young and old congregating together, wary and watchful always, and never allowing a close approach on the land. So densely do the birds pack, that a disturbed flock taking wing looks as though the very surface of the mud or sea were rising in one solid, inseparable mass. The principal food of this Goose consists of grass, wrack, and laver. On certain mud-banks these plants grow very thickly, and to these the Brents resort as soon as the tide recedes sufficiently for them to reach and to tear up their favourite food. In studied order the birds advance, feeding as they come, sentinels remaining on the look-out in turn, until all are satisfied, or the incoming tide covers their food-plants. Then back, in a solid mass, they go towards the open sea, or to some low bank, there to rest and preen their plumage, and to wait until another tide has ebbed, and left exposed their pastures. This bird, for the most part, is a day feeder; but during moonlight nights it will visit the exposed banks, doubtless the tide having considerable influence on its habits in this respect. The flight of this Goose, if rather laboured, is powerful and well-sustained; and during its progression the birds often form into Vs or Ws, or some other lineal pattern. The note of the Brent Goose is a loud, oft-repeated, and variously-modulated hank or honk, uttered, not only when the bird is on the ground, but during flight.

But very little is known of the nidification of the Brent Goose. It breeds in the highest Arctic latitudes, selecting, if possible, an island near the coast, making a rude nest in some hollow in the ground, of dry grass, stalks of plants, and moss, and warmly lined with down. The four or five eggs are creamy-white in colour. The gander keeps watch and ward near the nest, whilst the goose incubates the eggs. By the end of July most of the Brent Geese begin to moult, and during some part of the time they are quite incapable of flight. At this critical period they keep closely to the sea. Mr. Trevor-Battye, in his interesting book, Icebound on Kolguev, gives a graphic description of the way the Samoyeds capture the Brent Goose whilst it is incapable of flight. Instinctively aware of their helplessness, the Geese endeavour to get to the sea, and on it congregate in large flocks, until their quills have grown. But the Samoyeds cleverly surround them—often taking advantage of a dense sea-fog to do so—and quietly drive them into a netted enclosure on the shore, where they are killed at leisure. One of these grand “drives” witnessed by Mr. Trevor-Battye resulted in the capture of upwards of three thousand Brents! A form or variety of the Brent Goose, with the under parts below the breast nearly white, is commonly found consorting with birds of the typical colour. It is the Bernicla glaucogaster of Brehm, and, as far as is known, breeds only in the Nearctic region. It is not known to differ in its habits from the more typical form.

BERNACLE GOOSE.

This somewhat larger species, the Anas leucopsis of Bechstein, and the Anser leucopsis of most modern naturalists, is a fairly common winter visitor to the British coasts, where it is most abundant on the western littoral, from Cornwall up to the Hebrides. Unlike the Brent, the Bernacle Goose frequently wanders inland to winter on large sheets of fresh-water. This Goose is readily distinguished by its white cheeks, and much lighter underparts below the breast. Owing to peculiarities of distribution, rather perhaps than to choice, the Bernacle Goose frequents more rocky coasts than its ally. It is also just as gregarious, but owing to the nature of its food is more of a land species, and certainly more nocturnal in its habits. Although frequenting sand-banks and mud-flats to sleep and to rest, it does not obtain much food upon them. Its food is principally composed of marsh grass, and to obtain this it comes up from the sea to the saltings, and the banks of lakes and tidal rivers. Its flight and actions generally very closely resemble those of the Brent Goose. The note is similar. Nothing is known of the breeding grounds or the nesting habits of the Bernacle Goose. It has, however, been known to breed in confinement. The eggs are creamy white.

SWANS.

These large and handsome birds form the small but well-defined sub-family CygninÆ. They may be distinguished from all other species in the AnatidÆ, by having the lores, or space between the eye and the base of the bill, bare of feathers, and by their reticulated tarsus. In this sub-family, as in the AnserinÆ, the sexes are nearly alike in colour. Swans moult only once in the year, in autumn. The young birds—known as Cygnets—are hatched covered with down, and able to swim. In first plumage they are uniform grayish-brown; and, unlike the Geese, they appear not to undergo any moult during their first autumn, but after the moult, which takes place in their second autumn, they acquire the pure white plumage of the adult. Although this sub-family contains but seven species, probably all referable to one genus, its distribution is wide, embracing the PalÆarctic, Nearctic, Neo-tropical, and Australian regions. Besides the Mute Swan, two other species are British, in the sense of visiting our area to winter.

HOOPER SWAN.

This fine bird, the Cygnus musicus of Bechstein, as well as of most modern ornithologists, is a tolerably common winter visitor to the British Islands, frequenting inland waters as well as the coasts. It is of more frequent occurrence in Scotland, than in England or Ireland. The Hooper—sometimes rendered Whooper—or Whistling Swan, both names being derived from the bird’s notes, may be distinguished from its two British allies by having the basal portion of the bill extending below the nostrils, yellow. Like many other species that visit us during winter from the high north, its numbers vary a good deal in different years, according to the mildness or severity of the winter in regions lying directly north or north-east of our area. In periods of long continued frost, great numbers of this Swan collect off certain parts of our coasts, driven seawards from inland waters. This Swan is rarely seen in British waters before October or November, whilst in some years it does not make its appearance in certain localities before mid-winter. Its spring migration northwards lasts through April and May. Whilst on passage the flocks of this species form into some rectilinear figure and fly at vast heights. GÄtke remarks, that at Heligoland this Swan is seen most frequently during long-continued frost, flights of ten, twenty, or more, passing in long rows, one behind the other, uttering their loud clanging cries as they go. The flight of this species is rapid and regular, the swish swish of the long wings being heard for a long distance, and the bird’s long neck outstretched. There are few more graceful birds on the water than the Mute Swan, with its arched neck and raised plumes, yet the Hooper is even ungainly looking, the neck being held straight. Hoopers are shy and wary birds, and generally keep well out from shore, except when feeding. The food of this Swan is mostly of a vegetable nature, aquatic plants and grasses, but insects and molluscs are also eaten. Its note sounds almost like the short blast of a trumpet, uttered in succession.

The Hooper Swan breeds in the Arctic regions of Europe and Asia, its favourite resorts being the islands in the deltas of the great rivers that flow into the northern ocean, or on the banks of the great lakes on the tundras, or beside one of the many creeks or inlets spreading out from the main rivers. This Swan pairs for life. The huge nest is composed of coarse grass and other herbage, piled up on the ground, and often increased in bulk as incubation proceeds. The eggs, from three to seven in number, are creamy-white in colour and rough in texture.

BEWICK’S SWAN.

Long confused with the preceding Swan, the distinctness of the present species was recognised by Yarrell, who named it Cygnus bewicki, in honour of Thomas Bewick, naturalist and engraver on wood, known to most readers as the author of the British Birds and British Quadrupeds. Bewick’s Swan is only a winter visitor to the coasts and inland waters of the British Islands, spending the summer far away in the Arctic regions of Europe and Asia. The habits of this Swan are very similar to those of the preceding species. The bird may be distinguished from the Hooper by its much smaller size, and by the yellow patch at the base of the bill being much less in extent, never extending below the nostrils. Bewick’s Swan is perhaps not quite so maritime as the Hooper, preferring the large inland sheets of water, and more or less sheltered lochs and fjords, to the open sea. It is seen in greatest numbers in Ireland and Scotland, and during severe winters visits us in greatest numbers. At these times some of the flocks are remarkably large, numbering hundreds or even thousands of individuals. Its food is not known to differ from that of the preceding species; its flight is equally rapid; and its note, short and musical, has been syllabled as tong. Imposing as these birds are, and by no means rare, they can scarcely be classed as very prominent features of the bird-life of the sea, so far as ordinary observation goes.

Bewick’s Swan reaches its Arctic summer haunts towards the end of May. Although its eggs have been obtained on the islands in the deltas of the Petchora and the Yenesay, these were taken by unscientific observers. Mr. Trevor-Battye, so far as I know, was the first naturalist to see the nest and take the eggs of Bewick’s Swan, on the island of Kolguev. This nest—of which he gives a beautiful figure[7]—he describes as a mound, about two and a-half feet high, and four and a-half feet in diameter at the base, perfectly smooth, and tapering to the circular top, which was not more than two feet across. It was made of little bunches of green moss, with a few scraps of lichen, and a little dry grass pulled up with the moss. The cavity at the top was lined with dead grass, mixed with a little down. This nest contained three eggs. These are smaller and whiter than those of the Hooper.

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