156 BIRD WATCHING 



down." The dabchick, therefore, has a tail, and 

 knows how to regulate it 



Between these two extremes of the dabchick's 

 manner of diving, and independently of the little 

 curled leap a la cormorant, there are infinite grada- 

 tions, as well as all sorts of mannerisms and indivi- 

 dualities. But in all these I do not distinctly 

 remember to have seen him throw out his wings in 

 the act of going down. 



I should be pretty sure, therefore, that he swims 

 only and does not fly (if this expression is permissible) 

 under water, if I did not seem to remember having 

 once seen him do so, as I lay with my head just 

 over the river's bank and he passed underneath me. 

 But it was years ago; I have no note, and my 

 memory may very likely have deceived me. Pos- 

 sibly both in regard to this, as well as the way in 

 which he dives, the dabchick may be in a transition 

 state. His multifariousness in this latter respect 

 seems to render this likely. The shag, if I mistake 

 not, never dives in any other way than that which I 

 have described, unless he is really alarmed, when he 

 disappears instantaneously and in a dishevelled 

 manner. 



The moor-hen, also, may follow no fixed plan in 

 his diving, for I have certainly seen him using his 

 feet only under water, and I believe I have also 

 seen him using his wings. Though this, too, was 

 many years ago I ought not to be mistaken, as the 

 incident made such a deep impression on me at the 

 time. I was standing on the bank of a little creek, or 

 streamlet, running out of a reedy moor-hen-haunted 

 river. The creek itself, however, was clear where I 



