BRANT. 
BLACK BRANT. BRANT GOOSE, 
BrANTA BERNICI.A. 
Char. Mantle blackish brown, the feathers paler on the edges ; head 
and neck black, with patch of white on sides of the throat ; quills and 
tail black ; tail-coverts white ; under parts grayish brown, the feathers 
tipped with white ; bill and legs black. In the winter the mantle has a 
rufous tinge. Length about 25 inches. 
Nest. On a cliff or sandy beach ; made of grass, moss, and weed-stems 
thickly lined with down. 
Eggs. 4-6 (usually 4) 1 dull white or creamy ; average size about 2.85 
X i-go- 
The Brant is another of the hardy aquatic birds common 
to the hyperboreal regions of both continents. It breeds in 
great numbers on the coasts and islands of Hudson Bay and 
the Arctic Sea, and is rarely seen in the interior. In Europe 
these birds proceed to the most northern isles of Greenland 
and to the dreary shores of Spitzbergen. In winter they are 
very abundant in Holland and in Ireland, as well as in Shet- 
land, where they remain until spring. In .America, though they 
visit in the course of their migrations most of the Northern 
and Middle States, they proceed still farther south to spend 
