COMMON SCOTER. 223 



panied by numbers of the Red-throated Diver, wliich appear 

 to act the part of sentinels outside the flocks of Ducks ; and 

 so quick-sighted are these sentinels, and so instantaneously 

 do they dive, and so rapidly do they swim under water, that 

 hundreds of Scoters are killed to one couple of Divers. M, 

 Savi includes the Scoter among the Birds of Italy. M. 

 Vieillot says that the coast of Picardy is covered with them in 

 winter whenever the wind blows from the north, or north- 

 west : and M. Temminck describes it as abundant on other 

 parts of the coast of France, and in Holland. I am not aware 

 that the Scoter has ever been found to breed in this country. 

 The nest is described as formed of grass and other vegetable 

 matter, mixed and lined with a quantity of its own down ; 

 the eggs about six in number. These, as figured in the work 

 of M. Thienemann, are of a pale buff colour, tinged with 

 green ; two inches six lines in length, by one inch and nine 

 lines in breadth. In reference to the Scoter in Scandinavia, 

 Richard Dann, Esq. sent me word that this Duck frequents 

 the same places, and is very similar in its habits to the Velvet 

 Duck, both being generally found in the same localities. 

 After the female has laid, the males associate in large flocks, 

 and slowly draw towards the coast, where they arrive in 

 October. The eggs are generally from five to seven in num- 

 ber. They are never found on the coast during summer 

 there. Mr. Procter found the Scoter breeding in Iceland, 

 but it is not common ; only two nests were obtained ; the 

 eggs six in number. The Scoter is found in the northern 

 parts of Europe, Asia, and America. 



In the adult male the beak is black, except the central 

 ridge of the upper mandible, which is orange ; the irides 

 brown ; all the plumage deep black ; legs and toes dusky 

 black, the webs darker, or quite black. 



The whole length nineteen inches. From the carpal joint 

 to the end of the longest quill-feather nine inches ; the 

 second quill-feather rather the longest in the wing. 



