NOTES ON NP:WF0UNDLAND. 865 



beautiful and quite common harlequin duck (Anas hia- 

 trionica) is called " a lord : " the long-tailed duck (A. 

 glacialis) rejoices in the name of " cockawee," from its 

 note, and sometimes the " old squaw," " from the lu- 

 dicrous similarity between the gabbling of a flock of 

 these birds and an animated discussion of a piece of 

 scandal in the Micmac lanfjuanje between a numl)er of 

 antiquated ladies of that interesting tribe."* The puffin 

 is termed a parrot, and the little auk, the bull-bird. 

 The name of shell-ducks or shell-drakes, applied to th(i 

 mergansers (more especially to the goosander), is a 

 misnomer prevalent along the whole coast and in 

 Labrador : no true tadorna is found in North America. 



In several of the harbours on the Nova Scotian coast 

 excellent sport may be obtained in winter, shooting wild- 

 fowl on the ice, for many of these birds remain all 

 winter. Canada geese and brant are shot only during 

 migration. Scatterie, a desolate island lying off the 

 eastern end of Cape Breton, is a great resort of sea-birds 



* The Rev. J. Amlirose, on " Birds frequenting St. Margaret's Bay, N. S.," 

 from " Proceedings of N. S. Inst. Nat. Science." Tlie writer further 

 observes : — " Tlie shooting of sea-hirds is not only a source of jjrotit to our 

 fishermen, and a means of providing them with an agreeable variety at 

 their frugal board, but it also relieves a great deal of the tedium of their 

 winter season of inactivity. It is sur])i-ising, however, that accidents do 

 not more freciuently happen from their mode of charging their guns. Three 

 fingers of powder and two of shot is the smallest load for tludr old militia 

 muskets — the approved gun here — and in the hurry of loading in a boat 

 much more powder is frequently poured in. Black eyes and bloody noses 

 are the not uncommon penalties of a morning's sport, and I know one 

 fisherman whose nose has been knocked permanently out of shape by the 

 frequent kicking of his gun. In several instances the gun ha.s gone clean 

 overboard out of the fowler's hands, by the recoil. But nothing can daunt 

 these men, or induce them to load with a lighter hand. There is one living 

 at Nor'-West Cove, who has had his right eye destroyed by his gun, but 

 who is now as great a duck-shooter aa ever, firing, however, from the left 

 shoulder." 



