5 ; I 'ANS — GREBES 



4i3 



latter is drowned. The male and female are, however, affectionate and inseparable, 



billing and cooing, intertwining their necks, and exchanging many other signs of 

 affection. On migration, swans are fairly sociable with their fellows; they collect 

 in larger or smaller flocks and fly very high in the air, following one behind the 

 other or formed up in echelons. Though called mute, this swan really has a loud 

 trumpet-like voice, and can also hiss like a goose. A full-grown mute sw T an is 

 5 feet long, though it does not look so large on the water. The species may be 

 distinguished from other swans by the reddish yellow beak and black tubercle, 

 which is larger in the male than in. the female. 



m 



THE BH'TE SWAN. 



Grebes. 



Finally, mention may be made of the grebe family, in which the 

 hooded grebe is restricted to southern Sweden in the north. The 

 little grebe appears very seldom in Scandinavia, the red-necked grebe is 

 unknown farther north than central Sweden, while the black-necked species 

 belongs principally to the temperate zone. None of these is therefore a true 

 northern bird, although the eared grebe, which is principally spread over northern 

 Asia, may be mentioned as such. 

 Reptiles and Northern Europe possesses exclusively neither reptile nor 



Amphibians, amphibian, although the central European viviparous lizard is found 

 in Lapland, and the blind-worm ranges even beyond 65° N. latitude. The viper 

 reaches the Arctic Circle, the ringed snake is found as far as latitude 65° N, and 

 the smooth snake in southern Norwaj'. 



The northern boundary of the edible frog is 59° X. latitude, the common frog 

 ranges into northern Scandinavia, and the moor-frog a little above 65° X. latitude. 

 The brow r n toad-frog and the fire-bellied frog go no higher than southern Sweden, 

 which is also the northern boundary of the natterjack and the tree-frog. The 



