354 SWIMMERS. 



shaped lines and marks which ornament its neck and breast, 

 it has probably come by the dignified appellation of Lord 

 among the fishers of Newfoundland. It is here too rare to 

 hav'e acquired any particular name. 



The Harlequin breeds from Newfoundland to high Arctic re- 

 gions, and winters south to the Middle Atlantic States and the 

 Ohio valley. It is common during the winter months in the Bay of 

 Fundy, and rare in Massachusetts and the Great Lake region. In 

 the Rocky Mountains it has been known to breed in latitude 49°. 



The favorite resort in summer of these birds is on the swift cur- 

 rents of a rapid and secluded stream, or the surging pool at the 

 base of a fall. In winter they are found in the bays and estuaries 

 on the sea-coast. They swim buoyantly, and dive with ease. Their 

 flight is swift and powerful, and being shy and vigilant, they are not 

 easily shot. 



I have met with these handsome waterfowl in winter only, and 

 in but one localit)^, — Mace's Bay, on the western shore of the Bay 

 of Fundy. The Harlequins gathered there did not appear to be 

 the solitary and unsociable birds that many writers have repre- 

 sented them. I frequently saw flocks of ten or more, and usually 

 found these in company with Old Squaws, — their rivals in wari- 

 ness and rapid flight. When approaching the bar at Mace's Bay, 

 on which during the gunning season there is generally a danger- 

 ous array of firearms, these mixed flocks slacken their pace for two 

 or three hundred yards, and when within range increase their speed, 

 and go over the bar so swiftly that but few shot hit them. 



