BIRDS HUNTED FOR FOOD OR SPORT. 49 



Loons (Family Gaviidae). 



The bill of the Loon is stout, straight, narrow, sharp- 

 pointed, with sharp edges so constructed that they cut into 

 and hold securely the slippery fishes on which these birds 

 mainly subsist. The head is feathered to the beak; the neck 

 is long and sinuous. The plumage of the head and neck is 

 short and of rather a furry texture, while that of the body is 

 hard and compact; it forms a perfect waterproof garment. 

 The wings are rather narrow, short and pointed, but are ample 

 to lift the heavy body. The tail, though very short, is not 

 downy and rudimentary like that of the Grebe, but is com- 

 posed of eighteen or twenty stiff quill feath- 

 ers. The leg, like that of the Grebe, is placed 

 so far back and is so bound up in the skin of 

 the body that the Loon walks or runs with 

 diflBculty. The tarsus is narrowed, like that 

 of the Grebe, but the foot (Fig. 2) is a simple 

 paddle, resembling somewhat the foot of a 

 Duck. Loons, like Grebes, have a peculiar 

 faculty of sinking gradually in the water with- '°' '~ 

 out apparent effort, and thus remaining partially submerged. 

 It is believed that they are able to expel the air from the air 

 cells in different parts of the body. Many water birds are 

 provided with a cushion of air cells between the body and the 

 skin, particularly on the breast and lower parts. If Loons 

 are able to inflate or deflate these and other air cells at any 

 time, the mystery of floating or sinking at will is explained. 

 They are noted for their powers of diving and the long dis- 

 tances that they can swim under water without rising to the 

 surface. The large size of the Loons, the long neck and rather 

 long, narrow, sharp-pointed bill, distinguish them from the 

 Ducks. Loons may be readily distinguished from Geese by 

 their larger and more pointed bills, and from Grebes by their 

 larger size, although the larger Grebes approach the size of 

 the smaller Loons and are sometimes mistaken for them. 



