454 ALCAD.E. 



These birds have a partial moult in the spring, besides 

 the entire moult in autumn, and while changing the wing- 

 primaries they are said to be for a time wholly incapable of 

 flight. When killed here in summer the bill is black ; the 

 inside of the mouth orange ; the irides very dark brown ; 

 head, neck all round, at the upper part, and on the sides 

 and hind part below, the back, tail, and wings, except the 

 tips of the secondaries, sooty black ; lower part of neck in 

 front, and all the under surface of the body pure white ; 

 legs, toes, and their membranes dark brownish-black ; the 

 whole length of a male bird about eighteen inches ; the 

 wing, from the wrist to the end of the longest quill- 

 feather, seven inches and a half. Females are rather 

 smaller than males. 



The young Guillemot, on its first appearance, has the chin 

 and the throat in front white, the neck in front below 

 slightly varied with a few black hairs, which are lost on the 

 bird's gaining its first true feathers. 



The figure on the left hand in our illustration was taken 

 from a young bird of the year, killed in its first winter ; in 

 this state of plumage they resemble the winter plumage of 

 adult birds in higher northern latitudes, but are distin- 

 guished from old birds by their smaller beak ; the throat 

 remains white till the spring-moult produces the ap- 

 pearance observed in our other figure, the ordinary plumage 

 of summer. 



