A SUMMER AT HOME. 231 



way, and there remain for several minutes. These fish 

 seemed to find food on many of the stones, and nipped 

 and tugged at objects that offered some resistance. I 

 found these objects to be small mollusks, known to con- 

 chologists as Ancylus. These fish had also eaten other 

 shells in abundance, as proved by an examination of 

 their stomachs; for after tiring of watching them, a 

 skilful dip of a hand-net landed them in the boat. 



It was here, just as we were about to return home, 

 that I saw a fish -hawk under peculiar circumstances. 

 The bird flew over at a considerable height, and then, 

 suddenly turning, sailed slowly downward towards the 

 creek. We checked our course in an instant and waited. 

 The hawk alighted at the very edge of the water, and, 

 wading in a few inches, searched the bottom carefully, 

 as it appeared to us. We remained "stock still" for 

 fully five minutes, watching him, yet the bird did not 

 find anything to eat, and then, without a sound, walked 

 to the shore, spread his wings, and was gone. Had it 

 been a heron or a bittern, there would have been noth- 

 ing strange in all this, but it was not hawk- like, even 

 fish-hawk-like. Then, what do these birds eat but fish ? 

 And do they ever go a-fishing on foot? 



The fish-hawk, or osprey, is one of the very few birds 

 whose appearance, in spring, is at all regular. Along 

 the sea-coast, it is said to regularly appear on the 21st 

 of March ; never a day earlier or later. I will not dis- 

 pute it. I have known them to come to the river and 

 Poaetquissings- on that date, and never earlier ; but are 

 they never later? It has appeared to me, that if they 



