DOMESTIC HABITS OF RED-THROATED DIVER. 213 
there—run into the water at the same place that it did yester- 
day, but in this I was disappointed, and I now fear the worst. 
July 30th.—In situ at 11.45 a.m., and find the female—that 
is to say, the smaller Diver—with one of the chicks, the other 
having now, as it would seem, permanently disappeared. The 
two are in the bay, or just at the entrance of it, as usual, and, at 
about 12, the male flies in only just over my head, and, coming 
down by them, gives the chick a fish—taken by it from the bill 
—which does not this time look like a sand-eel, and which, as 
far as I can make out, in a good view through the glasses, has 
no head. ‘The three then float about together, but a little 
sundered, the male sometimes uttering a few deep quacks, and 
the female that other strained note I have spoken of-—a sort of 
‘*quew-00-00,”’ plaintive and wild in its character. She bends 
her head slightly forward, to make it, and, all at once, this 
action becomes more emphatic, and the note louder and longer. 
Her head and neck are now stretched along the water, her body 
almost submerged in it, and, in this manner, she advances, in a 
series of little plunges, towards the male, who comes to meet 
her, uttering now the same ery, and also his deep guttural 
quack. It isa sudden outburst of excitement between the two, 
either of a sexual or social character, and has a strange, wild 
appearance, infinitely delighting to see—to see, too, at very close 
quarters, amidst full sunlight, on the darkly sparkling waters of 
this little lonely loch. Hach time, in making the cry, the birds 
raised their heads from the surface of the water, arching the 
neck, somewhat, as they attained their height, and now these 
lovely necks were no longer smooth, as before, but creased into 
long rigid wrinkles, as though the skin covered several pipes— 
all was now tense, strained, and rigid. Thus they advanced and 
met each other, and so continued, for a little, floating in one 
another’s proximity, then gradually quieted down—a strange, 
wild, interesting scene. To the wild feelings of the birds’, some- 
thing deep down in my own human organism—-stifled and 
overlaid, but felt now, again, with strange yearnings—seems to 
correspond. This may be real or imagined, but how predomi- 
nant is personal proclivity! I would sooner see a thing like 
this than a dozen coronations, with processions and appur- 
tenances, though sitting in a good front seat all the while. And 
