NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS. 



77 



129. MERGANSER (From Brehm). 



130. RED-BREASTED MERGANSER. Merganser serrator (Linn.) Geog. 

 Dist. Northern portion of Northern Hemisphere; south, in winter, throughout the 

 United States. 



An inhabitant of the more northern portions of the Northern Hemisphere, being 

 common to Europe, Asia and North America. In the latter continent it is more 

 abundant than the M. amcrlcanus. Very common in the United States in winter, 

 where it is found breeding in suitable localities in the months of May and June. 

 The Red-breasted Merganser breeds abundantly in Newfoundland, Labrador, the fur 

 countries of British America and Alaska. It is a resident of Greenland and Iceland. 

 It nests usually on the ground among brushwood, surrounded with tall grasses and 

 at a short distance from water; most generally it is concealed by a projecting rock 

 or other object. The nest is made of leaves and mosses, lined with feathers and 

 down, which are plucked from the breast of the bird. The number of eggs in a set 

 Taries from six to twelve, usually about nine or ten; oval or elliptical in shape, and 

 vary in size from 2.48 to 2.65 long by 1.65 to 1.82 broad. The color is a yellowish or 

 reddish-drab, sometimes a dull buffy-green. 



131. HOODED MERGANSER. Lophodytes cucullatus (Linn.) Geog. Dist. 

 North America generally, south to Mexico and Cuba. 



This handsome Merganser is an exclusively North American species. In suitable 

 places throughout its range, in wooded districts near water almost wherever it oc- 

 curs, it may be found breeding. It nests in hollows of trees or stumps, lining the 



