84 



HISTORY OF 



HARLEQUIN DUCK. 



Clangula Histrionica. LINN^US. 



FEW of the Duck tribe exceed the Harlequin in the beauty 

 of their plumage, and the singularity and distinctness of its 

 markings. It must be a matter of regret to all who have seen 

 the species, that it is of such rare occurrence in the British 

 Isles. 



It is another of the birds whose true habitat is in the Arctic 

 regions, but of which a scattered few occasionally visit our isles. 

 In some parts of America the bird is far from rare, being found 

 in considerable abundance in the neighbourhood of Hudson's 

 Bay, frequenting small rivulets, where Wilson informs us that 

 it breeds, the female laying ten white eggs in the grass. It is 



