BIRDS OF MASSACHUSETTS. 401 



fonndland they are called the Ice-bird, from the presumption 

 that, unless extreme cold were approaching, they would not 

 come so far from home. Those that are found in this State 

 are generally exhausted by their long flight ; some have quietly 

 submitted to be taken by the hand. They are not regular vis- 

 itants, but occasional, solitary wanderers. 



The Puffin, Mormon arcticus, commonly called the sea 

 parrot, has been found in severe winters as far south as Savan- 

 nah ; but this is unusual ; its common range is from Long Is- 

 land to the Bay of Fundy, where many of them breed. Many 

 more, however, keep on to Labrador, where Audubon found 

 flocks, which covered the water to the extent of half an acre. 

 Those which proceed to that distance, leave the states in April, 

 and make their way along the shore, never going far from the 

 sea. They breed in holes, which they make by burrowing three 

 or four feet in the ground, and feed their young with small 

 fish. They are very social, and betray strong attachment to 

 each other ; when any one is shot, some one alights by its side, 

 swimming round it and stirring it vv^ith its bill, as if urging it 

 to fly or dive ; and when man, the only animal savage enough 

 to torture and kill for pleasure, lifts an oar, to knock it on the 

 head, it reluctantly leaves its friend, and disappears under the 

 water. The puflin flies firmly and swims rapidly under water ; 

 it also dives to the bottom, many fathoms deep, to find shell- 

 fish and other prey. In his contests with the piratical raven, 

 the puffin grapples with his antagonist, and both fall into the 

 water, when the raven is drowned ; but if he can seize the 

 puffin's neck, the victory inclines to the other side. 



The Razor-billed Auk, Alca tarda, occasionally goes as 

 far south as New York, in winter : but farther south it is 

 never seen. It is found from Boston eastward, arriving on the 

 coast in November, and returning in April. While here, they 

 are seen fishing far out at sea, and are thought to be able to 

 dive deeper than even the puffin, in search of their food, 

 which consists of shrimps, shell-fish, small fishes, and roe. 

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