78 BIRDS OF P. E. ISLAND. 



prized eider down of commerce. The flocks come 

 round our shores in autumn, and are here early 

 in the spring, when the ice - laden bays and misty 

 air resemble their home of the North. They 

 are quiet northern birds, loving to sit in the lee 

 of the floes, uttering not a sound till dusk of 

 evening when they call their missing mates to 

 the nightly gathering. 



The Black Scoter is a beautiful velvety -black 

 bird, with a prominent, orange - colored gibbosity 

 at the base of its bill. It is common in the late 

 fall, and probably stays in the Gulf during mild 

 winters. The Velvet Scoter, called "Sea -Coot," 

 is quite common in autumn and spring. It is 

 distinguished by a large white patch on the wing 

 and another under the eye. 



The Surf Duck is another Scoter, distinguished 

 by having only a white patch on the forehead 

 and another on the nape. It is common here 

 in the fall with the general crowd of ducks that 

 swarm the bays at that time. 



The Red - breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) 

 is much smaller than the boreal Goosander, and 

 is not a winter bird with us. Mergansers come 

 into our waters with the first breaking of the ice, 



