2294 Birds. 



evolutions than one, and when the danger is apparently over. When on the wing, his 

 back appears as if it were broken, the centre of the line rising into an angular point, 

 and falling gradually on both sides. He utters no cry, and the motion of his wings 

 is like that of the common mallard. When newly shot, his breast is of that beautifully 

 delicate and reddish tinge which is sometimes to be seen in the atmosphere, at the go- 

 ing down of the sun, in a calm evening of winter : it speedily fades, however, and 

 turns into a dull shade of the colour of nankeen. The goosander male and female are 

 frequently found on the river, far beyond the influence of the tide, and on some occa- 

 sions have been met with in the inland part of the country. 



The golden eye (Clangula vulgaris) may be regarded, in the locality in question, as 

 a migratory species which fails not to make its appearance, whatever the nature of the 

 winter may be, although its numbers are always greatest when the season is the most 

 severe. The flight of this bird is so vigorous, that, as it moves along, it produces a 

 peculiar and very audible whistling in the air: this is familiar to all who have seen it 

 fly. So far, however, as I have been able to perceive, the whistling of which we are 

 speaking is peculiar to the male, and is not to be heard in the flight either of the fe- 

 male or of the young male, both which, as in the case of the goosander, are so very 

 different in appearance from the adult male, that they have been described by natu- 

 ralists as a distinct and well-marked species. And even yet, while it is generally ad- 

 mitted that what was named by Linnasus the Anas glaucion, and had for its trivial 

 designation the ' morillon,' should now be regarded as either the female or the imma- 

 ture male of the golden eye, it is, nevertheless, asserted by some, that there is in exist- 

 ence in this country a smaller duck, which, although of similar plumage with the 

 female and young male of the golden eye, is notwithstanding a distinct species, being 

 of different form and habits and of inferior flavour as an article of food, and that it 

 ought to be considered as the true and proper morillon. The observations made on 

 this particular point by Mr. Colquhoun (' The Moor and the Loch,' p. 52 et seq) are 

 interesting, and certainly appear conclusive; and they ought to induce attention to 

 the supposed identity between the small morillon and the golden eye, on the part of 

 those who may have the necessary opportunities for pursuing the investigation. The 

 golden eye has a cry of a hoarse and somewhat hissing character: it is seldom uttered, 

 but may occasionally be heard by an attentive listener: it is compared, and not in- 

 aptly, by the writer now mentioned, to a single note on the hurdy-gurdy. 



In the bay bag-nets are set for the purpose of taking salmon. In one of these a 

 northern diver (Colymbus glacialis) had got entangled, and was found drowned by the 

 fishermen. I had an opportunity of examining him as soon as he was brought on 

 shore. He weighed no fewer than twelve pounds, and was of the most beautiful 

 plumage and in the finest condition. The ribbon or band round his neck was perfect 

 the whole way, was most distinctly marked, and was not obscure nor interrupted, as in 

 most of the specimens which are to be seen of this interesting bird. I once saw ano- 

 ther and a much smaller bird of this species, which had been caught in a similar 

 manner, but which had been got hold of alive : it was kept for some time in a place 

 of confinement, where it ceased not to utter a loud and prolonged howl of the most 

 dolorous character : at length it was resolved to set it at liberty. With the view, how- 

 ever, of observing its peculiar motions, it was placed upon the shore at a very consi- 

 derable distance from the water: it instantly evinced the greatest eagerness to get to 

 its natural and beloved element : it was capable, however, neither of walking — in the 

 usual acceptation of the term — nor of rising upon wing from the ground : accordingly, 



