428 THE GREBES 



attained its maximum thrust. When they reached the parent she would, 

 in the case of the younger birds, administer to the first arrival a small 

 fish. In the case of older birds the prey was dropped on the water 

 and the youngsters were made to try and pick it up for themselves. 

 Once or twice, as if irritated at their clumsy efforts, I saw her 

 impetuously pick up the victim and swallow it herself. Often, as the 

 fish feebly struggled to swim away she would catch it again, pinch 

 it, and drop it before her complaining offspring. Sometimes she 

 would cover the distance between herself and her offspring in a 

 series of short dives, the fish gleaming in her beak at each appear- 

 ance, whereby, it would seem, she was, in a vague sort of way, 

 endeavouring to suggest the source of their food to the oncoming 

 youngsters. Immediately she had disposed of her spoils she would 

 dive, and commonly the larger youngsters would follow suit, to the 

 best of their ability. But diving evidently requires practice, for they 

 reappeared instantly. They did no more, in fact, than " duck " 

 under. 



A word as to the coloration of nestling grebes. These, as already 

 mentioned, are longitudinally striped ; and furthermore, have a 

 curious bare, slightly raised, heart-shaped area of vermilion coloured 

 skin in the middle of the forehead. What purpose can this serve ? 

 Is it a vestige of a sometime ancestral character, or does it serve as 

 a recognition mark to the parents when the young are in hiding? 

 Perchance a little closer observation of the young may settle this 

 point. It is curious that no such structure exists in the adult. The 

 colour scheme of the body is, as in the case of the young emu, 

 continued on the beak, which is grey, barred with black. That the 

 longitudinal stripes, an ancestral character without doubt, serve the 

 purpose of a mantle of invisibility when occasion demands that these 

 young should take refuge in the reeds, there can be no doubt. They 

 need such protection, for, unlike the parents, they cannot, at this 

 tender age, escape their foes by diving. 



That the nuptial dress of the adult is protective is attested by 



