JOURNAL OP MAINE ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIFLTY. 



in length, packed tightly in the stomach 

 of a Shelldrake killed in mid-winter, so 

 it is easy to see why they are sometimes 

 called Fish Ducks. The name Shell- 

 drake is derived from their feeding on 

 mollusks and other shellfish. 



American Eider. Somateria dresseri 

 Sharpe. As a breeding bird the Sea- 

 duck will soon be one of the "has beens," 

 although flocks are still common in fall, 

 winter and spring. Their breeding- 

 grounds here are all known to the fisher- 

 men and it is a very rare thing for a 

 pair of them to successfully hatch their 

 litter of eggs. 



They are very particular in their choice 

 of a breeding place and will return to the 

 same island year after year. They are 

 social and nest in small colonies when- 

 ever possible. Green and Lower Mark 

 Islands, and Spirit and Saddleback 

 Ledges are the only localities where they 

 breed on this part of the coast. These 

 are the outer and most unfrequented 

 isbmds of this vicinity. 



Nest building begins about the second 

 week of June and full sets of eggs may 

 be found by June 15th or 20th. The 

 nest is usually placed at the foot of a 

 clump of cow-parsnip or tussock of 

 grass, but I have observed nests placed 

 on the bare rock in plain sight. As a 

 rule they are made exclusively of down, 

 plucked from the bi'east of the female, 

 and the amount of down is daily added 

 to as the incubation advances. Occa- 

 sionally a nest of the Herring Gull, 

 *Larus argeiitatus, is lined with down and 

 appropriated by the Duck, but in such 

 cases I am inclined to believe that the 

 bird has been robbed of its first set, and 

 not having sufficient down to serve alone 



* The aUeged Larus argentatiis smithsonianus 

 of the A. O. U. List. 



is obliged to resort to this expedient of 

 eking out what it has. 



Three to six gi'eenish-drab colored 

 eggs are deposited, but four seems to be 

 the normal sized set. Five eggs found 

 on Green Ishmd, June 20th, 1896, UK-as- 

 ure, 2.99 x 2.07, 3.04 x 2 06, 3.05 x 

 2.01, 3.11 X 2.04 and 3.09 x 2.08. 



The female alone performs the task of 

 incubation, and if flushed fiom her nest 

 flies quickly away uttering a short "kuk, 

 kuk, kuk." The cry of liie male bird is 

 a brusque "a-o-wah-a-o-wah." The 

 eggs take about a month to hatch. 



Three or four pair used to breed on 

 Spirit Ledge, two pair on Saddleback 

 Ledge, two pair on Green Island, and a 

 single pair ou Lower Mark Island. Ten 

 pair of birds is the lai'gest number I 

 have ever known to breed in this vicinity. 



Mussels and other mollusks constitute 

 the chief food of the Eidei's and being 

 excellent divers they can easily seek 

 this food at the bottom of the ocean 

 shallows. 



Notes on the Ducks, Swallows and 

 Thrushes. 



EVEKFTT E. JOHNSON. 



THE DUCK FAMILY. 



The members of this family are said 

 by old gunners to be more numerous at 

 Sabatis Pond this fall than before for 

 years. 



AMERICAN MERGANSER. 



This species is a common migrant and 

 a few are found in the open places in 

 the river all winter. April 19, 1 shot a 

 male, which is now in my collection, on 

 the Sabatis River below Sabatis. April 

 22, I saw about fifteen in Sabatis Pond. 



