Vol. V, 



ALBION, N. Y., JULY, 1888. 



No. 7 



Xicon; Great Nothern Diver. 

 UHnator itriber (Gunn.) 



BY SCOLOPAX. 



For the Oologist. 



This bird is well known to those persons 

 who have their eyes open for objects of 

 natural history, but to that class who 

 never observe the creatures of land and 

 water, the loon is a shrouded mystery. 

 Considered from all sides; for his peculiar- 

 ly aquatic ways, remarkable anatomical 

 construction, curios breeding habits, and 

 astonishing call notes, or song if you wish 

 to call it so, this bird, of great swimming 

 and diving powers, is one of our most in- 

 teresting species, and a study of its habits, 

 differing so widely from those of any other 

 species nesting in this locality, 42 degrees, 

 20 miuutes, no:th latitude, elucidates 

 many oddities that command our attention 

 and admiration. 



This species is quite variable in its 

 vernal appearance, in our locality, some- 

 times appearing in late February and 

 again not till after the twentieth of March, 

 it is often observed swimming about in the 

 river in open spots in early March, and is 

 occasionally found consorting with the 

 Red -throated diver or loon, urinator 

 lumme, ( Gunn. ) on our streams just pre- 

 vious to the departure of the latter species 

 from its irregular winter sojurn with us. 

 The two loons do not probably associate 

 from any motive of companionship, as the 

 common loon is hardly ever met with in 

 more than twos and threes, but they are 

 undoubtedly brought in contact with their 

 more gregarious cousins from the fact that 

 good fishing grounds are scarce in early 

 March, when the lakes are frozen solid 

 with few exceptions. Severed times in the 

 experience of the writer, it has been his 

 pleasure to observe these two species to- 

 gether on cur streams, and witness their 

 movements and points of difference, and 

 peculiarities. 



The loon of which tins article treats, is 

 generally as common as it will be during 

 the season, by April fifteenth, as it is be- 

 lieved that migration north has ceased by 

 that date, and that all birds seen in south- 

 ern Michigan are located or nearly so for 

 the nesting season. That the birds are 

 mated on their arrival seems probable, as 

 the same pair is known to occupy the same 

 nesting site, or its immediate vicinity from 

 year to year. 



In cases where three or more birds are 

 observed on the same lake in proximity to 

 one another, there is evidence of dispute 

 occasionally, but the retirement of one, 

 undoubtedly a male, soon occurs and then 

 the lucky swain and mate are left in undis- 

 puted possession of the lake or pond. On 

 larger lakes, it may occur that two or more 

 pairs of birds are occasionally found nest- 

 ing, but here, never more than one nest is 

 found on a body of water. Many pairs 

 rear their young on ponds of from ten to 

 a hundred acres extent, the old birds sel- 

 dom feeding on the same body of water to 

 any extent, but seeking their finny prey on 

 larger lakes near by. Several pairs of birds 

 may be seen at one time feeding on one 

 large lake without a nest of the species to 

 be found in its area, and this too, at the 

 time when nesting is in progress, thus show- 

 ing conclusively, that the birds often seek 

 their food away from home. 



About May tenth the nests are begun, or 

 rather earlier, the first evidence of a select- 

 ed site being the devotion of the prospec- 

 tive parents to a particular portion of the 

 lake or pond. The selection so far as 

 records hererbouts prove, is always quite 

 forty rods from the margin of the water 

 and varies from this distance to one-half 

 a mile, always depending on the depth of 

 the water. The loon is pre-eminently an 

 acquatic species and never attempts trips 

 on land, or even through mud and water. 

 It may well be doubted if this bird could 

 move with anything but the slowest and 



