ORNITHOLOGICAL OBSERVATION IN ICELAND. 65 



bourhood, but not when actually by it. One of the notes was a 

 sort of soft chuckling cackle, and there were various other ones 

 very suggestive of satisfaction, which I cannot recall sufficiently 

 to set down. Another note often uttered, but not, I think, by 

 one of the pair in question, was a sort of mewing sound, followed 

 by a deep guttural one. Altogether there was a great variety of 

 utterance. 



June 18th. — It was a little past 6 a.m. when I first looked at 

 my watch, and, about an hour afterwards, I saw the pair of 

 Grebes swimming up the stream in the same purposeful manner 

 as yesterday, and also the last thing overnight, as I was getting 

 my bed ready — at a quarter to one, namely. I was now dressed, 

 and creeping down to my place of observation, behind some low 

 rocks on the hillside, was so lucky as to see both birds, together, 

 upon the nest, the female lying along it in the manner described, 

 and the male a little raised on his feet just behind her. The 

 next moment he stood upright, or nearly so, and coition was 

 effected. During its continuance, both birds constantly uttered 

 a short, sharp note, which was shriller, I think, in the male 

 than the female — at any rate, both were not alike. After coition, 

 the birds came down, off the nest, and, for a short time, kept 

 quiet amongst the flags. They then came out upon the open 

 water, where, in a little pool-like bend of the stream, they 

 floated at ease, together, and seemed full of content and satis- 

 faction. Sometimes they dozed or went to sleep, and I noticed 

 that their sleeping attitude was not the general one of birds. 

 They drew back the head, indeed, but without turning it round, 

 and pressed the beak into the feathers of the throat or upper 

 breast, instead of hiding it amongst those of the back and 

 shoulders. The head itself, however, was thus brought right 

 into the middle of the back, and looked like nothing so much as 

 the little knob on the top of a pork pie. In this attitude they 

 seemed to be really asleep, for the brilliant, light ruby-red eye 

 was invisible through the glasses, though quite plainly seen at 

 other times. After awhile, one of them began to dive for food, 

 and, though the water was not clear, I could each time see it go 

 down for some way, and the body always presented a smooth, 

 oval outline, showing that the wings were not used under the 

 water, as they are by various diving birds. The legs were always 



