THE RED-THROATED DIVER. J 77 



Europe down to the Mediterranean. It is common in winter in the Straits of 

 Gibraltar, and occurs in some numbers further east, as far as the delta of the 

 Nile, wintering in considerable numbers in the basins of the Black and Caspian 

 Seas (Seebohm). It is of very common occurrence at Heligoland, both on the 

 spring migration and again in August ; also in late autumn. These Divers make 

 their appearance in some numbers off the coast of Norfolk early in the autumn. 

 During a few hours in the forenoon of the 24th September, when about a mile off 

 shore, I noticed some half dozen travelling singly eastward, parallel to the north 

 coast, and perhaps following the coast on their southward migration. In October, 

 1880, Divers were observed by the Messrs. Power going south-east in a constant 

 stream for nearly four hours, a quarter of a mile from the shore, on the north 

 coast of Norfolk (Messrs. Gurney and Southwell's "List of Norfolk Birds"). 



The Red-throated Diver resorts to fresh-water lakes for breeding purposes, 

 and is said to prefer the shores of small pieces of water to islands in a larger loch, 

 and also to prefer low islands, or shores, near the sea-coast, to the more inland lakes. 

 Booth wrote that this species appeared to be more plentiful, in Scotland, where 

 the country was flat, with small marshy pieces of water, than in hill lochs, the 

 true home of the Black- throated Diver. It was consequently most numerous 

 among the " floes " which abounded in the central part of Caithness. In the 

 Shetlands, where the nest is sometimes found on holms and small islands, it is 

 much oftener placed by the side of a little pool in the hills. 



The nest sometimes consists of a collection of grass, rushes, or other easily 

 available materials ; at other times the eggs are laid on the turf, among stones, 

 or in a slight depression in the ground, with or without something in the way 

 of lining. Dunn states that the eggs are laid so close to the water's edge, that 

 the sitting bird can touch the water with her bill. 



The eggs are two in number, and are subject to considerable variation in 

 size and colour. They measure about 2'8 inches in length by about i'8 in breadth. 

 Saxby remarks, concerning Diver's eggs especially, that the breadth of an egg is 

 far less liable to variation than its length. Of the colours of the eggs of this 

 species, he states that the spots are few, scattered, occasionally of large size, and 

 of two colours deep brown and brownish-grey ; and that the ground colour may 

 be reddish-brown, olive-brown, or green of almost any shade (he had seen it almost 

 as light as that of the Wild Duck's egg), the rarest variety being of a pale, warm, 

 yellowish clay colour. 



The food of the Red-throated Diver consists chiefly of fish and small crusta- 

 ceans ; and Rodd states that the large size of the fish which it can swallow 

 whole is simply astonishing. It can take in a considerable quantity of fish too, 



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