THE WATER-BIRDS. 253 



that so many eggs are worth a dollar or a crown, casts his 

 eye towards the rock, marks the day in his memory, and gives 

 orders to depart. The light breeze enables them to reach 

 another harbor a few miles distant, in which, like the last, 

 lies concealed from the ocean some other rocky isle. Arriving 

 there they reenact the scene of yesterday, crushing every egg 

 they can find. For a week, each night is passed in drunken- 

 ness and brawls, until, having reached the last breeding-place 

 on the coast, they return, touch at every isle in succession, 

 shoot as many birds as they may need, collect the fresh eggs, 

 and lay in a cargo." 



THE LOONS AND GREBES. 



The Loons are large, powerful divers, that are equally at 

 home in fresh and salt water. Owing to their wariness, and 

 also to the fact that they cannot fly without a long course in 

 which to get a good start before leaving the water, they are 

 not usually found in the smaller streams and ponds. Except 

 during the period of incubation they rarely venture ashore. 

 They feed almost wholly upon fish, which they dive for and 

 pursue with great energy. In the economical balance they 

 have little weight either way. The fish they consume are 

 generally worthless, while their own flesh is hardly better. 

 The common loon is a picturesque element in the scenery 

 of our northern lakes in summer. In winter it may be found 

 in the sea or wherever there is plenty of open water. The 

 red-throated loon is a more northerly bird that breeds entirely 

 beyond our limits, but is found fairly common out of breeding 

 season. The black-throated loon is an arctic species rarely 

 appearing in the United States. 



The Grebes constitute a branch of the diver family. Their 

 chief peculiarities are wide, flat, unwebbed toes and an entire 

 lack of tail. They are essentially fresh-water birds, designed, 

 like divers in general, to glean a livelihood in the liquid ele- 

 ment. Small fish, lizards, tadpoles, and aquatic insects, with 



