BIRDS OF MASSACHUSETTS. 395 



the north, where it associates with the eider and other ducks, 

 and lingers as long as the cold leaves the waters open ; but 

 when the ice begins to form upon the Arctic seas, it migrates 

 toward the south in search of food, and is then seen regularly 

 and abundantly on the shores of Massachusetts ; the young 

 sometimes resorting to the fresh waters, while the old birds 

 keep near the sea. They are lively and animated in their 

 motions, and so noisy in conversation, that they are sometimes 

 called old wives. They are expert in flying, diving and 

 swimming ; their food consists partly of the animal and partly 

 of the vegetable productions of the sea. The caravans which 

 pass along our coasts are large, and their noise can be heard at 

 a great distance, kept up for hours in morning and evening, 

 and also in calm, foggy weather. This bird is elegant in its 

 appearance, but not held in much estimation as food. Its down 

 is said to be equal to that of the eider, but the quantity is not 

 so great. 



The Goosander, Mergus merganser, is found in winter on 

 the fresh lakes, rivers, and seacoast of the United States. 

 They are seen here in small companies, continually diving in 

 search of food. In April most of them disappear, and do not 

 return till November. The extent of their breeding range is 

 not known ; but it is ascertained that some of the young are 

 reared in Pennsylvania, and yet it is evident, from their habits, 

 that the Arctic regions must be their more familiar home. 

 Audubon describes the goosander as breeding in Massachusetts, 

 and entitled to be set down as a constant resident within our 

 bounds. 



The Red-breasted Merganser, Mergus serrator, is another 

 resident in the north, which, when the waters there are sealed 

 with ice, comes to the United States in search of food. Wil- 

 son speaks of it as brought to the Philadelphia market, from 

 the banks of the Delaware, and as much more common than 

 the preceding in the United States. Like the former, it has 

 an extensive breeding range, its nests having been found in the 



