613 



but this does not coincide with my experience ; for whereas the Long-tailed Ducks, by their 

 incessant chatter, richly deserved the appellation of " old squaws," bestowed on them by the 

 ungallant redskins, the Harlequins were, as a rule, rather silent than otherwise. On the water 

 it swims swiftly and with great buoyancy, the male usually heading the small flock, and the 

 females and young males following in the wake. 



The food of the present species consists chiefly of small mollusks ; and the stomachs of 

 those I shot in the Bay of Fundy were filled with small univalves, large numbers of which were 

 attached to the rocks, and were obtained by the birds by diving, frequently to a considerable 

 depth below the surface. It is also said to feed on various sorts of marine insects, small fish, and 

 water-plants ; and Faber found in stomachs of examples examined by him, amongst other things, 

 remains of Nerita, Cancer pulew, and water-plants. To the fishermen on the coast of New 

 Brunswick, and to the Indians who frequent the Bay of Fundy to hunt after porpoise, the drake 

 of this species is known by the name of " Lord " and the duck by that of " Lady." During the 

 breeding-season the present species is stated to be found inland, where it frequents streams which 

 flow swiftly, and more especially places where there are swift rapids, amongst which it swims 

 and dives with ease. 



Dr. Kriiper, who found it breeding in Iceland, says that it is only found in certain localities, 

 such as swift-flowing places in the rivers, almost always just below a fall or where the rivers flow 

 into the lakes; and in these places it is always to be seen swimming against the stream and 

 searching for food. 



The nest of the Harlequin Duck is placed on the ground on the banks of a swift-flowing 

 stream, and is so carefully concealed that it is extremely difficult to find. I have not found any 

 careful description of the nest itself; but it is doubtless a depression scratched in the ground and 

 lined with dried herbage and down of the bird itself. The number of eggs is said to vary from 

 eight to ten. Eggs of this species in my collection from Iceland and Greenland are smooth in 

 texture of shell, oval in shape, and of a rich cream-colour. In size they measure from 2^ by 1^§ 

 to 2££ by lf£ inch. 



In working out the synonymy of the present species I have had some difficulty in fixing on 

 the correct name it should bear. That it should stand generically separate I have no doubt ; 

 and I at first thought that it should bear the name, by which it is tolerably well known, of 

 Histrionicus torquatus ; but in this I was wrong, as, if the generic appellation Histrionicus should 

 stand, the bird would have to be called Histrionicus minutus (L.) ; for I have now convinced 

 myself beyond the shadow of a doubt that Linnseus's Anas minuta was really the female of the 

 present species. As, however, Lesson only recognizes Histrionicus as a subgenus, and does not 

 give it true generic rank, it is inexpedient to use it ; and therefore the next oldest generic title, 

 that of Cosmonetta, Kaup, the type of which is the Harlequin, will have to be substituted, and 

 the correct name is, therefore, Cosmonetta histrionica (L.). 



The specimens figured are the adult male and female above described. 



In the preparation of the above article I have examined the following specimens : — 



