ORNITHOLOGICAL OBSERVATION IN ICELAND. 417 



of the islet, but soon it appears that she is returning to it — 

 evidently she cannot keep away. Nearer she comes, stealing at 

 first, then with the manner of one whose mind is fully made up, 

 and having rounded the point from which she first becomes 

 visible to the sitter, there is, all at once, a great splash amidst 

 the little stony archipelago, just within which the nest is situated, 

 and the next moment he appears, swimming out to her. Again 

 they pass each other, without pause or demonstration, though 

 only at the distance of a foot or so, and, at 2.10, the female (if 

 it be really she) makes the same vigorous leap up the bank, and 

 once more takes sweet possession of that little shallow cup of 

 dark earth in which all her simple bird-soul is centred, the 

 contents of which (" the pity of it, Iago ! ") have probably been 

 sold, long before, to some one who may be even now on his way 

 out from England, to " obtain " them. 



The bird now off duty rises in the water and flaps its wings 

 several times, at short intervals. This is accompanied with some 

 other little pleasurable actions, seeming to show appreciation of 

 recovered freedom, and then it dives and is off. Some time 

 afterwards I catch sight of it off the shore of a bay on the 

 opposite side of the lake ; but it dives again, after which I see it 

 no more. These birds dive for great distances, and it is not 

 easy to locate them on their re-emergence, if the waters of the 

 lake are at all rough, as is the case to-day. 



It is now 4.30, and there has been no further change on the 

 nest. Neither has there yet, at nearly 9, when the cold and 

 rain drive me, at last, into the tent. It rained most of the 

 night, and the tent proved not to be waterproof — a heavy blow. 



June 16th. — The first change on the nest observed by me 

 to-day took place at about a quarter to 8 a.m., and the second 

 at 8. The details were as follows. About 7.30 I saw the one 

 bird swimming a little off the islet where the other sat on the 

 nest. It would come up near the shore, and then swim out 

 again, and again go in, peering up, each time, at the nest, in so 

 wistful a manner that one seemed to see the actual expression 

 in the eyes and countenance, though, in all probability, it was 

 conveyed entirely through movement. Several times it went in 

 between two large stones which stand right in front of the 

 landing-place — for there is but one — and, in fact, showed every 

 Zool. 4th ser. vol. XVII., November, 1913. 2 k 



