VELVET SCOTER. 



npHE Velvet Scoter is a bird of the Old World, and has 

 only been obtained a few times within the limits of 

 North America, viz., in Greenland and Alaska. It must 

 then be regarded as an accidental visitor to our shores, 

 and in no way considered as an American species. It is 

 rather common in the northern portions of the Eastern 

 Hemisphere, going southward, during the winter, to the 

 Mediterranean and the Caspian seas. Like its American 

 ally, this Scoter is found along the sea-coast, flies swiftly 

 after it once gets started, — for it is rather clumsy in rising 

 from the water, as it is a heavy bird, — swims easily, and 

 is a most expert diver. 



The nest is placed upon the ground near some pond. 

 It is merely a depression, hidden under a bush, and lined 

 with grass, leaves, and some down, and the number of 

 eggs varies from eight to ten, ivory white in hue, with a 

 buiif tinge. The habits of this species are the same as 

 those of the American Scoter. When incubation begins 

 the males desert the females, and assembling together re- 

 sort to the sea, and the islands lying ofi shore. When 

 the young are full grown they and the females join the 

 males, and begin their journey southward. The Velvet 

 Scoter bears a close resemblance to the American Scoter, 

 but has a differently shaped and colored bill, which easily 

 distinguishes the two forms. 



