ANATIDJE. 517 



REDBREASTED MERGANSER, Mergus Serrator. As 

 the Rev. Murray A. Mathew informs me that an im- 

 mature specimen of this, with us, rare bird was killed 

 by him at Weston-super-Mare, I have to include it 

 in the list of Somersetshire birds. Other specimens 

 may have been obtained, especially immature ones, 

 as they might easily have been mistaken for imma- 

 ture Goosanders. It has occurred on the opposite 

 side of our channel, at Swansea, as well as in the 

 neighbouring counties of Devon and Dorset. In the 

 more eastern counties the Redbreasted Merganser is 

 much more common, and breeds in them in such 

 places as suit its habits, as it also does in many 

 parts of Scotland. More of these birds appear to 

 be found in England in the winter than in the 

 breeding season : we must, therefore, consider it, 

 partially at all events, a winter visitor. 



Dr. Saxby, writing from Shetland, in the * Zoolo- 

 gist' for 1864 (p. 9243), describes the nests of these 

 birds as follows : " Although they often lay amongst 

 long grass they seem to prefer the shelter of a roof 

 of some kind, and thus it is that the eggs are most 

 commonly found under rocks, in rabbit-burrows, and 

 even in crevices in old walls ; but, whatever may be 

 the situation chosen, the nest always consists of a 

 hollow scraped in the ground, and lined to a greater 

 or less extent with down, feathers and dead plants, 

 the amount of material being increased as incubation 

 proceeds." 



