66 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



visible whilst the bird was, and once I clearly saw them in action. 

 The dive was always in the Shag or Cormorant style — a leap up, 

 and then down, that is to say — but not with the same verve and 

 energy, nor would it be expected of these soft and rounded little 

 creatures, slightly enlarged and much glorified Dabchicks. So 

 far as I was able to observe, I believe it was weed this bird was 

 feeding on — at any rate, I never saw it with a fish in its bill. 

 When the one bird had fed and the other rested sufficiently, 

 both swam together down the stream in the same intent, busi- 

 ness-like manner in which they had ascended it, and I thought 

 they were going out into the lake. But they soon stopped, came 

 back again, and again preened and idled on the water. It was 

 now that I twice saw them go through the same courting action 

 which I have before described, the only difference being that it 

 was a little less pronounced. They did not, perhaps, stand quite 

 so bolt upright in the water, at any rate they had a little stoop 

 forward, and subsided, again, almost immediately — it was more 

 perfunctory in fact. Two or three times, also, when thus in 

 each other's company, they both, as on a common impulse, swam 

 up closer together, and then, fronting one another, with beak 

 turned to beak, but not now touching, and without rearing them- 

 selves up, made a curious little twittering cry, thus presenting 

 exactly the same little scene of reunion and mutual expression 

 of gladness as I have so often seen pass between the male and 

 female Dabchick. The note, however, was not nearly so shrill, 

 nor did it rise in intensity, as with the latter, so that the perform- 

 ance was not quite such a striking one. Also, like Dabchicks, 

 these beautiful little Grebes would, sometimes, whilst swimming 

 — generally when in full swim, so to say — make a little pause 

 and, almost instantaneously, a little, gentle rise of an inch or 

 so out of the water (too soft to call a jump), just showing the 

 silky white of their breasts before sinking down again, and 

 swimming on. So like Dabchicks are they, indeed, that I 

 believe, with the exception of the notes, which are not the same, 

 and of which they seem to have a greater variety, an accurate 

 description of the habits and actions of the one species would be 

 equally accurate for the other. This, however, may to a large — 

 perhaps to an equally full — extent be said, substituting the Great 

 Crested Grebe for the Dabchick. Unless for some special 



