Order XVI. Pygopodes 243 



America. It returns very regularly to its breeding 

 haunts in April and is commonly met with in winter 

 at sea. 



ORDER XVI. PYGOPODES 



This Order contains the Families Colymbidce, or 

 Divers, and Podicipedidce, or Grebes. They are water- 

 birds of somewhat varying habits, with very close 

 plumage that water cannot penetrate ; this is particu- 

 larly glossy below in Grebes. The bill is very strong 

 and straight in Divers, moderate and sometimes a 

 little curved in Grebes ; the feet are peculiarly flattened 

 and have webbed or lobed toes in the respective 

 Families ; they are also set very far back. The claws 

 are broad and flat. The wings are decidedly short; 

 the tail is very short in Divers and represented by a 

 few downy feathers in Grebes. The young are downy 

 and of a sooty or streaky appearance. 



Family COLYMBIDCE, or Divers 



The Great Northern Diver (Colymbus immer) has 

 never bred in Britain, for the supposed instances of 

 its doing so in Shetland have been due to errors of 

 identification. Yet individuals may occasionally be 

 seen in Scotland as late as June, and are frequently 

 abundant on other parts of our coasts. This fine bird 

 breeds in Iceland, Greenland, and North America, mainly 

 south of the Arctic Circle, at least as far westward as 

 the Great Slave Lake ; it has a purplish black head 

 and neck with two white bands on the greener throat, 

 which are striped vertically with black ; the upper parts 

 are black, regularly spotted with white, the lower parts 

 are white, the hides are crimson, the bill is black. 



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