LIFE HISTORIES OF iSTORTH AMERICAN WILD FOWL 17 



eggs were at the bottom of this cavity. Down could be seen protruding 

 through a small hole in the stub, a few inches above the eggs. 



John G. Millais (1913) says of the breeding habits of this species 

 in Iceland : 



Barrow's goldeneye arrive at their breeding places about the end of March, 

 in flocks, and at once proceed to pair. I have been unable to discover any 

 ornithologist who has seen the courtship display of this species, but I have 

 little doubt that when we are able to procure specimens alive from Iceland, 

 and keep them in good health, we shall find that it is much the same as 

 that of the common goldeneye. The nest is usually placed in a hole in the 

 bank of a stream flowing into a lake, in a hole in the lava rocks close to 

 the water, or on some low Island under bushes of dwarf willow, dwarf 

 birch, amongst coarse grass or low scrub, such as Empetrum nigrum or 

 Azalea procum'bens. I found two nests just tucked in under large 

 stones, and not 2 feet above the level of the stream. They are also said to 

 nest in the turf walls of the sheep shelters. 



He also quotes Riemsclineider as saying : 



The nest was always placed in more or less of a hollow, in natural hollows 

 of the rocks, in covered-over cracks in the lava, or, as already mentioned, 

 in the outer walls of peat shelters, erected for sheep, where a few blocks 

 of peat have been taken out to form a nesting place, and even, and that 

 not seldom, inside the shelter, in which case the food rack or a place like 

 it would serve as a nesting place ; as exit for flight the door of the shelter 

 would in such a case be used. Such customs have given rise to the Iceland 

 names for the species. In the natural hollows, holes in the rocks, fissures, 

 etc., the nest is placed now in the foreground, now so far inside that you 

 could not reach to it from the entrance opening, but were obliged to lift 

 off the stones covering it for this purpose. Whilst as a rule the position of 

 the nest is to be found approaching the level of the surface of the ground, 

 I saw a nest in the Kalvastrond which was built in a hollow in the lava 

 at more than twice a man's height. In the nest trough, which was formed 

 to begin with in the food racks of the stalls, by pulling together dry grass 

 stalks and other remnants of food round the nest, there was a very ample, 

 delicate lining of whitish down, which had a very small admixture of fine, 

 dry parts of plants. The eggs, 12 to 15 in number, and only exceptionally 

 more, are distinguished from other ducks' eggs by their pure, blue-green 

 color, are rather bulgy in shape, and have a smooth, not very shining shell. 



From the above accounts it will be seen that the Barrow golden- 

 eye prefers to nest in hollows; the absence of suitable trees in 

 Iceland forces it to select other cavities; but in this country it 

 seems to nest in situations similar to those chosen by the conunon 

 goldeneye and, like that species, it lines the nest cavity with pure 

 wliite down, scantily at first, but more profusely as incubation ad- 

 vances; probably no otker material is brought into the cavity, but 

 undoubtedly whatever material it finds there is not wholly removed. 

 The down in the nest is indistinguishable from that of the common 

 goldeneye. 



Eggs. — The set consists of anywhere from 6 to 15 eggs, but 

 probably the usual number is in the neighborhood of 10. The eggs 



