NOTES ON THE NATURAL HISTORY OP THE BELL ROCK. 33 



legitimate spoil, he may be seen riding gracefully, head to 

 wind, in front of our kitchen window, with his weather eye 

 always lifting in our direction. A hand thrust from the 

 window is sufficient invitation, he is up at once, and the 

 smallest morsel tossing among the foaming breakers does not 

 escape his keen eye. How gracefully he floats back to his 

 former position, lighting on the surface like a fleck of foam. 

 What a contrast to the eiders, who, when changing their 

 fishing ground, wing their way with such rapid wing beats as 

 to give one the impression that they are barely able to support 

 themselves, and finally strike the water with an awkward 

 splash, reminding one of the somewhat inelegant term with 

 which boys designate a bad dive a " gutser." Should a flock 

 of eiders be fishing to leeward of the tower, an amusing sight 

 may be witnessed if advantage be taken, while they are under 

 water, of pouring a little paraffin oil from the balcony, so that 

 it will drift in their direction. No sooner does the head of 

 the first emerge in the greasy track of the oil than he is 

 conscious of something unusual having taken place. Flippering 

 hither and thither with outstretched neck, he becomes quite 

 excited, and each as he bounces to the surface joins in the 

 commotion, frequently colliding with each other. Finally, 

 with loud cacklings, the whole flock takes wing, evidently in 

 high dudgeon at the insult offered to their olfactory organs. 



Sea pheasant is the name by which the long tailed duck is 

 known in some localities, and as we watch a flock of them 

 crossing the reef in full flight the synonym is at once apparent. 

 In style of flight and shape, to the long tail feathers, they 

 are similar to the pheasant, but only half the size, with 

 beautiful plumage of black and white. Here they are known 

 as " candle wicks," their call notes needing but little stretch of 

 the imagination to be rendered "Here's a candlewick," 

 repeated several times in shrill falsetto, which on a quiet day 

 becomes somewhat annoying as it clamorously floats through 

 our bedroom window. Some queer visitors we have here at 

 times in the way of birds. Once we captured a large owl 

 dosing sleepily in one of our windows. During the week of 



c 



