PREFACE. 



THE present volume deals with that large class of birds 

 which, owing to the difficulty of approach occasioned by 

 their aquatic habits, are in many ways not familiar. 



Field-work on the Irish coast, carried out during more 

 than twenty years, has been supplemented more recently 

 by investigations into the avifauna of many other districts 

 of the British sea-board, thus enabling descriptions from 

 personal observation to be given of many aspects of 

 bird-life upon which much information is still wanting. 

 To make the accounts given as complete as possible, 

 those sources have been gleaned from which are believed 

 to be trustworthy, and the valuable works and papers of 

 Barrington, Buckley, Evans, Eagle Clarke, Gray, Gurney, 

 Harting, Harvie-Brown, Newton, Salvin, Saunders, Seebohm, 

 Stevenson, Ussher, and Warren, and of many other writers 

 whose names appear in the text, have been laid under 

 contribution. 



In the case of nearly every bird reference has been 

 made to coloured figures in standard works. Descriptive 

 Characters have been given under a separate paragraph ; 

 the headings Flight, Voice, Food, Nest, and Geographical 

 Distribution, have been italicised to facilitate reference ; 

 while at the end of each- article Allied Species and Repre- 

 sentative Forms are mentioned. The eggs of most species 

 are described with the nests and surroundings ; in articles 

 dealing with very rare birds, where the habits are not 

 described and only the occurrences recorded, the colour 

 and number of eggs in the clutch are mentioned under 

 Descriptive Characters. In all cases the size is given under 

 Average Measurements. 



The majority of the Plates are original, and include 

 photographic reproductions of birds, nests, and eggs, in their 

 natural haunts ; of various aspects of coast-scenery ; of 

 mounted specimens, chiefly from my private collection ; and 

 of a few drawings in black and white, kindly lent by my 

 Publisher. 



For contributions of original photographs I am indebted 

 to Dr. N. H. Alcock, Mr. H. Brooke, Mr. C. B. M. Chambre, 

 Mr. A. D. Delap. Mr. C. D. Head, Mr. W. D. Latimer, Mr. 

 G. W. Nicholson, Mr. F. H. Walker, Mr. R. Welch, Dr. E. 

 P. Wright, and Mr. R. J. Ussher ; also to Dr. Wiglesworth 



