OCCURRENCE OF THE WHITE -BILLED NORTHERN DIVER. 15 



12. Wind W. Ditches laid with ice. I noticed the Grey Crows 

 hunting all round the water line of the Broad in hopes of finding 

 some crippled ducks. I observed that they hardly took any 

 trouble on the windward side, but on the lee side they searched 

 carefully among the rubbish that had been blown on shore. 

 Flying one after the other about two or three feet from the 

 ground, and alighting whenever they thought they had a prize. 



13. Frost, and the ditches all laid with strong ice. As very 

 few fowl had appeared, we did not expect a continuance of severe 

 weather, and before mid-day it came on to rain. 



14. All signs of frost vanished. The morning was still, 

 without a breath of air, and the water as calm as glass. Soon 

 after daybreak I made out a Great Northern Diver on the south 

 part of the Broad. The bird was busily engaged in diving for 

 food, and I was able to scull up near enough to examine all its 

 actions closely with the glasses. When I was between 70 and 

 80 yards off, it came up with a small Jack of 10 or 12 inches 

 in length in its beak, held crosswise. This it kept shaking, 

 apparently wishing to kill it before swallowing. After the bird 

 had held it for four or five minutes it swam up within 60 yards 

 of where I was, so I fired the big gun. It dived immediately, 

 but soon reappeared on the surface badly wounded, and uttering 

 the most mournful cries I ever heard proceed from the throat of a 

 bird. I soon got close enough for a shot with the shoulder-gun 

 at about 50 yards, which I thought would have ended the matter ; 

 but after receiving the charge the bird swam straight to the 

 punt and came at me open-mouthed, scrambling on to the after- 

 deck, and would have come right on board had it not been 

 seized by the neck. It was an immature specimen, in good 

 condition, weighing 8j lb. ; the beak white, with the exception 

 of a dark mark down the upper ridge extending almost to the 

 point ; the inside of the mouth a dirty white ; eye a very warm 

 olive-brown ; leg, outside black, inside white, edges light grey, 

 toes black, webs white, with veins showing very plain down the 

 centre. 



16. Wind E. There were to-day hundreds of fowl — Mallard, 

 Wigeon, Teal, and Pochard. The newspapers had announced a 

 frost in the north, and although we felt no signs of hard weather 

 in Norfolk, it was, I supposed, the cause of so many fowl being 

 observed. I might have had several shots with the punt-gun 



