EUROPEAN WATEROUZEL, 



315 



at the bottom of the last a bar of dusky : breast, 

 belly, and thighs, white, with short black streaks 

 pointing downwards, more numerous towards the 

 lower belly and thighs : vent rusty yellow, crossed 

 with bars of black ; legs rusty yellow. This was 

 taken near Penrith by Miss Calvin, who gave it to 

 Mr. Pennant. 



From the habits of this bird being so singular, 

 the following account of them, taken from the 

 Ornithological Dictionary, cannot but be accept- 

 able. A pair of these birds, which had for many 

 years built under a small wooden bridge in Caer- 

 marthenshire, we found had made a nest early in 

 May. It was taken, but had no eggs, although 

 the bird flew out of it at the time. In a fortnight 

 after they had completed another nest in the same 

 place, containing five eggs, which was taken ; and 

 in a month after we took a third nest under the 

 same bridge, with four eggs, undoubtedly the 

 work, of the same bird, as no others were seen 

 about that part. At the time the last nest was 

 taken the female was sitting, and the instant she 

 quitted her nest plunged into the water, and dis- 

 appeared for a considerable time : at last she 

 emerged at a great distance down the stream. 

 At another time we found a nest of this bird in a 

 steep projecting bank over a rivulet clothed with 

 moss : the nest was so well adapted to the sur- 

 rounding materials, that nothing but the old bird 

 flying in with a fish in its beak would have led to 

 a discovery. The young were nearly full feathered, 

 but incapable of flight, and the moment the nest 



