9492 Birds. 



wandered on foot from the streams. This goosander was talien to a 

 patient of mine, who, knowing my ornithological tastes, kindly 

 endeavoured to keep it alive until an opportunity offered of sending 

 it to me safely. When I did receive it, the poor bird had become 

 sadly emaciated from vrant of proper food and necessary supply of 

 water, &c. I placed it in a retired and shady aviary, supplied it with 

 fish and plenty of water, and soon had the satisfaction of seeing it 

 both eat and wash. The bird did not appear nearly so shy as I should 

 have imagined from its habits and wild nature, and had it lived I am 

 convinced would ere long have become quite tame and domesticated. 

 It never recovered its strength, and died two days after I received it, 

 to my surprise, as I quite hoped — from its contented way of appro- 

 priating the food and bath prepared for it — to have preserved this 

 interesting bird for future observation. Its mode of progression on 

 land was slow and ungainly, owing to the very backward position of 

 the legs. It waddled more decidedly than a domestic duck, and if its 

 movements were quickened to a run, impelled by fear, &c., it would 

 often stumble and fall forward on its breast. In the water its move- 

 ments were as much the opposite, viz. both easy and elegant. On 

 land, when standing, the legs were perfectly straight, the knee-joints 

 being bent as much forward as possible, and the body was carried at 

 right angles to them, as in the domestic duck. The neck was generally 

 relracted, so as to give the bird the appearance of having none at all : 

 in this attitude the head, seemingly resting on the back, would peer 

 about with never-ceasing vigilance ; if the restless liazel eye detected 

 me, the bird would swell out the elongated feathers on the cheeks and 

 sides of the neck, as though in disapproval or fear of my presence. If 

 a stick were pointed at the bird, it would snap at it in anger, and erect 

 the same elongated feathers of the face and neck. In feeding it seemed 

 carefully to wash each mouthful in water, dashing it from side to side 

 before finally swallowing it. After feeding, washing and preening the 

 plumage, it would retire into a dry, darkened house, and there sit for 

 hours, if undisturbed, on the sandy flooring. 



PS. — Richard Richardson, my birdstuffer, has just informed me, 

 since penning the above notes, that whilst skinning the goosander 

 I had alive, a small shot-corn fell from the skin upon the table. He 

 could find no mark of internal injury resulting from shot, nor could I 

 detect, during life, any blood on the plumage, lameness or other mark 

 of injury. Still it is quite possible that the bird had been wounded in 

 some part we had failed to discover, and if so the fact would account 

 for its easy capture, and the unusual situation in which it was found. 



