_ BIRDS MET WITH BY THE WILDFOWLER 321 
RED-BREASTED MERGANSER 
Mergus serrator (Linnaeus) 
The Merganser is a winter visitant to England, and nests 
in both Scotland and Ireland, both on lakes and tarns. On 
the west coast of Ireland it breeds abundantly, and is very 
common all over that country. Its mode of living is very much 
like that of the Goosander, but is not so often found inland 
and is far more fond of the sea. The male apparently helps 
the female in attending on the young and in procuring the 
food on which they live. 
This species is very like the Goosander but smaller; the 
male may always be recognised by his pale chestnut breast, 
streaked with black; the wing patch is white, barred with 
black, and on the breast at the point of the wing there is 
a conspicuous tuft of white feathers, with black edgings ; 
mantle, portion of shoulders, inner scapulars, basal half of 
greater wing-coverts, secondaries and primaries rich black. 
The female is smaller than the male, and is reddish brown 
on the head and neck; a black bar runs across the alar 
speculum. In other respects it closely resembles the female 
Goosander. Length about 22 in. ; wing 9°‘5 in. 
GOOSANDER 
Mergus merganser (Linneus) 
This bird is a winter visitor to the British Isles. Unlike 
other Ducks, the bill is moderately long and narrow, and 
both mandibles have a very rough toothed surface enabling 
them easily to secure and hold their prey, which consists 
entirely of fish. They are all expert divers. On the east 
coast of England a fair number of this species may be found 
in the winter months, frequenting estuaries and freshwater 
lakes, but in the south and west it is of rare occurrence. 
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