486 Strong, Red-breasled Merganser. [5(.t_ 



the third week, some of these table scraps were observed to be 

 eaten by the merganser, especially bits of cooked fish. Cooked 

 fish proved to be the most satisfactory food as it could be kept in 

 an ice box for several days without spoiling and the merganser 

 seemed to thrive on it. 



Audubon ^ states that the young of the Red-breasted Merganser 

 go to the water a few hours after hatching and are expert at diving 

 from the first. This is to be expected, of course, as ducklings take 

 to the water at once, though ducks are no more aquatic in their 

 habits than mergansers, and are excelled in diving ability by the 

 latter. The following is taken from Chamberlain's ^ description : 

 "Soon after they are hatched, the young are led to the water, and 

 at an early age they swim rapidly and dive with great expertness, 

 as I have learned by experience." 



Clear spring water was kept for the hen and mergansers in a 

 rectangular pan about two to three inches deep. The little 

 birds were never observed to swim. The three mergansers which 

 appear in the illustrations were all placed in the water, but they 

 jumped out as though frightened. The single bird which lived 

 more than a few days was seen in the pan only twice during the 

 first nine days. On one occasion, it seemed to be enjoying the 

 water though not swimming. On the tenth day the writer's notes 

 contained the following: "Saw merganser in water today when it 

 thrust its bill under water a couple of times. It left the water 

 within a minute after my arrival but I could not tell whether it 

 would have remained in longer if I had not been present." It is 

 a curious fact that the mergansers which died were found lying in 

 the water pan. 



The surviving merganser was often seen on the hen's back, 

 and it appeared fully as devoted to her as a chick could be. When 

 separated, the little bird would appear much disturbed, and peeps 

 somewhat resembling those made by a duckling under similar 

 circumstances were made. This devotion is suggested in Plate 

 XXII, fig. 2. On the other hand, one of the nestlings escaped 

 from the box where it was hatched, on the second day. It went 



1 Audubon, J. J. Ornithological Biography. 



2 Chamberlain, M. A Popular Handbook of Birds. The Ornithology of the 

 United States. Based on Nuttall's Manual. Vol. 2, pp. 360-362. 



