1502 The Zoologist— January, 18C9. 



these birds are in approaching a boat when on the wing). Strange to 

 say, I shot him by accident with one of Eley's breech-loading wire 

 "long-distance" cartridges. To show the uncertainty of these affairs, 

 I found the wire cage felted, literally blended with the feathers, under 

 one wing, and quite empty, sl)owing that it had discharged all its 

 shot within ten yards, instead of keeping up the propulsion till about 

 sixty yards from the gun. Yesterday 1 shot a gannet with one between 

 ninety and one hundred yards off": it passed through him like a bullet. 

 It is a great pity some improvement cannot be made. To the potting 

 game-shooter they are good enough, but an improvement on them 

 would rid Ireland of many an old cock grouse : half a dozen of these 

 old birds brought to bag in a day is good sport for a man of tough 

 sinews on an Irish mountain, after "Manchester" has bagged the 

 young birds and hens, leaving these old Mormons to break the eggs 

 in the coming season, one of them doing more harm than a dozen 

 hawks. How invaluable something sure to kill at eighty yards would 

 also be to the naturalist ! 



Deglutition. — October 29. Spent a profitable hour before breakfast 

 this morning watching a redthroated diver feeding. Being about 

 thirty yards from uiy place of concealment I could note, with the 

 powerful glass, each secret glance, each wind-ruffled feather of the 

 fair beauty, and never did I use the same old glass with more eagerness 

 to find out wrinkles amongst the " ballets" or the " boxes" than I did 

 at the present time. With incessant fishing and labour it caught 

 three small flat-fish in the hour. It did not shift its locale more than 

 a few yards, for it evidently knew its breakfast was there. With each 

 fish it rose to the surface, and did not attempt to swallow it till 

 it was killed : this was done by repeated snaps, shakings, letting 

 goes and catchings again. When a fish was let go and showed any 

 activity in the water, the eagerness of the diver to secure it again was 

 ludicrous in the extreme, the eye showing every expression of fear, 

 hope, determination, success and satisfaction, as plain as eye could 

 speak. When killed these small plaice were too flat and stiff to pass 

 easily and completely down the throat, so were passed backwards and 

 forwards through the bill (as I know cormorants to do, in confinement, 

 for the same purpose), to soften the points of the side- fins and ver- 

 tebrae. Each victim took from five to ten minutes to manipulate, and 

 was then swallowed with rapid gulps. The fish being quite flexible 

 from all this champing, was easily doubled up, side-fin to side-fin, and 

 went down headforemost without much effort. No doubt "round" 



