440 COLYMBID^. 



them attempt to escape by taking wing. I may observe 

 that a visible track from the water to the eggs was made 

 by the female, whose progress upon land is effected by 

 shuffling along upon her belly, propelled by her legs be- 

 hind. On the day following, Saturday, the 31st of May, 

 Mr. J. Wilson was fortunate enough to find two newly- 

 hatched young ones in a small creek of Loch Craggie, 

 about two and a half miles from Lairg. After handling 

 and examining them, during which the old birds approached 

 very near to him, he left them in the same spot, knowing 

 that we were anxious to obtain the old birds. Accordingly 

 on the Monday morning we had the boat conveyed to the 

 loch, and on our arrival, soon descried the two old birds 

 attended by their young, and apparently moving to a 

 different part of the loch. Contrary to their usual habit 

 at other times, they did not attempt to dive upon our 

 approach, but kept swimming around their young, which, 

 from their tender age were unable to make much way in 

 the water, and we got sufficiently near to shoot both of 

 them through the neck and head, the only parts accessible 

 to shot, as they k swim with the whole body nearly sub- 

 merged. The female could only be distinguished from 

 the male by a slight inferiority of size, and both were in 

 the finest adult, or summer plumage. "We afterwards 

 saw several pairs upon various lochs, and upon Loch Kay 

 a pair, attended by two young ones nearly half grown. 

 When swimming, they are in the constant habit of dip- 

 ping their bill in the water, with a graceful motion of the 

 head and neck." The egg, measuring two inches and 

 three-quarters in length, by one inch and ten lines in 

 breadth, is of a dark olive brown, thinly spotted with dark 

 umber brown. 



Mr. Thompson has recorded the occurrence of the Black- 

 throated Diver in the north of Ireland ; and Mr. J. Mac- 



