THE SHELLDRAKE. 
69 
On examination of the gizzards of nine birds killed in Bel- 
fast Bay, Strangford Lough; and Dundrum Bay, in winter wea- 
ther of all kinds, and in the months of March, April, and July, 
I found them all to contain a number of minute univalve shells, 
in addition to which was only sand or gravel. A few of them 
from the two first-named localities were entirely filled with Palu- 
dina muriatic a, Lam., a most abundant species. Although they 
exhibited “ shell-fish” only, food of various kinds — vegetable and 
animal — was abundant where they were obtained. The tenth 
individual — shot in Belfast Bay, in February 1849, during mild 
weather — had its stomach wdiolly filled with minute mollusca, Mon- 
tacuta purpurea* (in profusion), Skenea depressa , and Paludiua 
muriatica (few of these). Its crop was full of the two former 
species, chiefly of very small Skenece ; it alone containing not less 
than nine thousand of these shell-fish. The stomach produced still 
more, so that 20,000 of these minute mollusca were estimated to 
be in the bird at the same time.f To give an idea of their size, 
the Skenea is about that of clover-seed, or one-eighteenth of an inch 
in diameter ; the Montacuta , when large, is one-twelfth of an inch 
broad. The bird was very fat, as might be expected from such 
nutritious diet ; — the same on which the grey mullet ( Mugil 
chelo) attains a great size in this bay. 
From the evident partiality of the species for such food, I had 
naturally imagined that it was originally called Ai^-drake, 
and that Shiel- drake would turn out to be an unmeaning corrup- 
tion. The latter term is often quoted from Willughby, though 
“ Sheldrake” is his orthography ; J and he tells us that “ they 
are called Sheldrakes because they are particoloured” (p. 363). 
Mr. Yarrell suggests that “ the term Shield-drake may have had 
its origin in the frequent use made of this bird in heraldry. § 
Willughby’s may, however, be the correct version, when we 
think of the red-breasted merganser and the goosander, birds 
* My a purpurea, Mont. 
f Five hundred were reckoned by Mr. Darragh (Curator of the Belfast Museum) 
and myself, and the remainder carefully divided into portions of similar size. 
% Edition 1678. § Yol. iii. p. 143. 
