Vo! i9oiP T ] Townsend, Use of Wings and Feet by Diving Birds. 241 



Eiders and Scoters, almost entirely bottom feeders, use the wings. 

 Many of the others, however, cannot be divided in this way. 



Redheads in diving keep their wings close to their sides and Mr. 

 Beebe writes that these birds, as observed by him in tanks, do not 

 use the wings under water. The Scaups, both Greater and Lesser, 

 in the same way keep the wings close to the sides in diving, and 

 sometimes leap clear of the water or disappear with scarcely an 

 effort. Mr. G. M. Allen tells me that he watched a captive Ring- 

 neck Scaup in a small pool, and was able to observe not only the 

 clean cut leap and dive with wings close to the side, but the rapid 

 progress under water by the use of the feet alone. The Whistler 

 or American Golden-eye, is also a graceful diver, and, as far as I 

 have observed, always keeps its wings close to its sides in diving. 

 As it disappears from sight it often sends up a little spurt of water 

 by the powerful action of its feet. I should therefore conclude that 

 the Whistler habitually swims under water by the use of its feet 

 alone. Mr. Win. Brewster, however, tells me that he has seen it 

 make use of its wings in diving, but this was probably at times 

 when the bird was hard pressed, and it acted as does the Loon in 

 similar circumstances. The Bufflehead also keeps its wings close 

 to its sides in diving, and sometimes leaps clear of the water before 

 it disappears from sight. 



Old Squaws, on the other hand, open their wings before diving 

 as plainly as do the Guillemots and the Puffins. On one occasion, 

 while I was watching some Old Squaws sporting in the water off 

 Xahant, chasing each other on and just below the surface, I dis- 

 tinctly saw the wing of one of them cut the water from below like 

 the fin of a great fish. A Harlequin Duck, that I saw on the 

 Labrador Coast, opened its wings as it dove. I have watched the 

 Northern Eider, the American Eider and the King Eider dive, 

 and all open their wings for subaqueous flight as they go down. 

 Of the Eider Selous (15) has made some satisfactory observations. 

 He says: "Their dive is a sudden dip down, and in the act of it 

 they open the wings, which they use under water, as can be plainly 

 seen for a little way below the surface." 



Our three Scoters, — American, White-winged and Surf Scoters 

 — all open their wings as they dive. I once shot and slightly 

 wounded a Surf Scoter that was standing on the edge of the beach 



