AMERICAN EIDER 309 



male, which can be expressed by the syllables aah-ou, or ah-ee-ou, fre- 

 quently repeated, and, while low and pleasing in tone, its volume is so 

 great that it can be heard at a considerable distance over the water. On 

 a calm day when there were many eiders about, the sound was almost 

 constant. While the syllables aah-ou express very well the usual notes, 

 there is much variation in tone, from a low and gentle pleading to a loud 

 and confident assertion. In fact, the tones vary much as do those of the 

 human voice, and there is a very human quality in them, so much so 

 that when alone on some solitary isle I was not infrequently startled 

 with the idea that there were men near at hand. 



"But the showy drake eider does not depend on his voice alone; he 

 displays his charms of dress to best advantage and indulges in well-worn 

 antics. It always seemed to me a pity that the magnificent black belly 

 should disappear when the drake is swimming on the water, and the bird 

 evidently shares my sentiment, for during courtship he frequently dis- 

 plays this black shield by rising up in front, so that at times in his eager- 

 ness he almost stands upon his tail. To further relieve his feelings he 

 throws back his head and occasionally flaps his wings. The movements 

 of the head and neck are an important part of the courtship, and al- 

 though there is considerable variation in the order and extent of the per- 

 formance, a complete antic is somewhat as follows: The head is drawn 

 rigidly down, the bill resting against the breast; the head is then raised 

 up until the bill points vertically upward, and at this time the bill may 

 or may not be opened to emit the love notes. Directly after this the head 

 is occasionally jerked backward a short distance, still rigidly, and then 

 returned to its normal position. All this the drake does swimming near 

 the duck, often facing her in his eagerness, while she floats about indif- 

 ferently, or at times shows her interest and appreciation by facing him 

 and throwing up her head a little in a gentle imitation of his forceful- 

 ness." Dr. H. F. Lewis in notes kindly furnished the author, says that 

 the eider has two courtship notes: "When the head is drawn back over 

 the scapulars and then brought quickly forward, the note ah-oo is ut- 

 tered as the head is brought forward. When the head and bill are 

 pressed down against the breast and suddenly elevated, the note k'doo 

 is uttered as the head is elevated. I think ah-oo is the usual, preliminary 

 courtship note; k'doo, on the other hand, is used when the male thinks 

 that he perceives that the female is responding to his persistent court- 

 ing." 



Eiders prefer to nest in communities. The nests are placed on the 

 ground, almost always on islands and generally close to salt water, 

 though often nests are found a hundred yards or more from the water. 

 The nesting site may be open to the sky in a depression among the rocks 

 of a barren island, but it is often partially or wholly concealed among 

 and under spruce, alder and laurel bushes or in the grass and rushes. 

 The nest itself is made of seaweeds, mosses, sticks, leaves and grasses 

 matted together, but is chiefly distinguished for the famous eider-down, 

 which is plucked by the mother from her breast. The down is of a dull 

 grey colour, very soft, warm, and usually supplied in such liberal 



