WATER-BIRD WAIFS 



hour than in the home town in ten Hfetimes. How- 

 ever, I have seen them flying over the hill towns in 

 midwinter, high up in the air, probably migrating to 

 some distant body of water. 



Perhaps the most satisfactory of our water-birds to 

 actually see and watch are the peculiar tribe of diving- 

 birds considered as the lowest of our forms of bird- 

 life, the loons and grebes. Of these w^e may hope to 

 meet in our ponds one species of the former and three 

 of the latter. The common Loon, or Great Northern 

 Diver, is the splendid big fellow, as large as a goose, 

 which we note some morning floating on the placid 

 lake. Now and then it dives below the surface, and after 

 a minute or so, which seems a long time to hold one's 

 breath, comes up quite a distance away. They breed 

 from northern New England northward, and we see 

 them on their migrations, mostly in the fall. They are 

 not apt to rise on wing and leave the pond by day, but 

 under cover of night, as their wings are small for the 

 size and weight of their bodies, and they do not attempt 

 to fly oftener than necessary. Their cries sound like 

 a sort of v/ild laughter, *'ha-ha-ha-ha-ha," and so the 

 saying has come into use, "crazy as a loon." One 

 hears these sounds mostly at night or in threatening 

 weather, and they certainly sound weird enough. 



Of the grebes which come into fresh Eastern waters, 

 the largest and scarcest is the Holboell's, or Red-necked 

 Grebe, which is nearly as large as a duck. The other 

 two are smaller, about the size of teal — the Horned 



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