THE GREAT NORTHERN DIVER. 131 



rise and fly. They quickly took to their heels, how- 

 ever, and flapped and floundered to the nearest water 

 at a great pace ; their motion being similar to that 

 of a Cormorant when first trying to lift clear of a 

 calm sea. The local fowlers are well aware of this 

 curious habit of the " loons," as they term them. 



The average weight of a fine specimen, though it 

 may not perhaps be quite adult, of this Diver I 

 have found in my experience, after weighing over a 

 score, to be nine pounds. The old birds (except the 

 females) are by no means the heaviest. The most 

 perfectly plurnaged male I ever shot, with glossy 

 green-tinted head (they are never full feathered till 

 they exhibit this shade of colour), weighed under 

 nine pounds, and was in very good condition. The 

 male varies greatly in size, far more so than the 

 female. When adult, however, they are similar in 

 plumage. 



Mr. R. Evatt, of Mount Louise, tells me, " Many 

 years ago I well remember that a pair of Great 

 Northern Divers nested on a lough in co. Mona- 

 ghan, but a local gamekeeper shot the male bird, 

 which I preserved for my collection. They used to 

 fly to the sea, some twelve miles distant, to fish, and 

 on returning I have seen them travelling at a very 

 great height, and when over the lake fall to the 

 surface much like a Gannet." 



This Diver is to be seen in the immature state 

 throughout the winter on every part of the Irish 

 coast, and in all the bays and estuaries of Ireland, 

 but is seldom met with at that season inland. An 

 adult bird is rarely obtained. Near the mouth of 

 the Shannon, off Scattery Island, with a smooth sea, 



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