ORNITHOLOGICAL OBSERVATION IN ICELAND. 151 



tion, but, as part of the program, the gathering had now taken 

 flight, and since, after waiting a fair time, there was no return, 

 we rode on to the island of the Divers, a quite small one lying 

 only just off the shore, so that the horses were able to cross to 

 it, though they had to wade deeply. In the pleasing little net- 

 work of shallow pools and bays formed by the irregularities of its 

 shores, many Phalaropes were swimming, and, standing so close 

 to them that the glasses were seldom necessary, I made out the 

 following : (1) It was the smaller and more plainly coloured male 

 bird that most frequently rose from the water, and flew at the larger 

 and handsomer female, and these flights were not only amorous, but 

 satyrian in their character. Of this there were several examples, 

 but the two most marked ones were : {a) Where the actual attempt 

 on the part of the male was unmistakeable. (b) Where the 

 resistance of the female, which, in the first instance, was of a 

 general, though unmistakeable character, was, in addition to 

 this, marked by a special action, in which the posterior part of 

 the body was dipped, with a quick and strongly curved motion, 

 below the surface of the water, away from the male. (2) These 

 amorous attempts on the part of the male were not always 

 confined to a single female. In one instance especially, two 

 were made, in rapid succession, upon first one and then another 

 of a pair that were not far apart. (3) One female would some- 

 times fly at another in a bellicose and threatening manner, 

 which the threatened one would similarly assume. The hostile 

 spirit was quite unmistakeable, but nothing that could be called 

 a contest took place whilst I watched. (4) On one occasion a 

 male flew at a female, not amorously, but with a little peck or 

 attempt at one, for I think she just avoided it. Immediately 

 after this, and, to judge by appearances, as a corollary to it, he 

 flew to the shore — represented by my island — where he was very 

 shortly followed by the same female. She alighted just by him, 

 on which he flew to the water again. I then walked to the spot, 

 which was hardly a dozen paces off, to find the female still 

 there, and on her nest, which contained four eggs. This 

 certainly looks like an admonition, given by the male of a mated 

 pair, to the female to attend to her incubatory duties, and one 

 which was followed by her. Since however the duty here is of a 

 grateful kind — as indeed, amongst animals, all duties are — no 



