268 
BRITISH BIRDS* 
LOUGH-DIVER. 
This is fomewhat lefs than the Smew, “ The 
head and hinder part of the neck are ruft-coloured 5 
the head llightly crefled : back, fcapulars, and tail 
dufky : fore part of the neck white : breaft clouded 
with grey : on the lelfer coverts of the wings a great 
bed of white ; on the primaries and greater coverts 
two tranfverfe lines of white : legs dulky/’ In de- 
fcribing this as the female of the Smew, Mr Pen- 
nant fays it has around the eyes a fpot of the 
fame colour and form as in the male he afterwards 
corrects his error in fuppoiing it the female, and 
adds — “ The bird I thought to be the female, and 
called the Lough- diver, is a diftind kind. Mr 
Plymiey informs me that he diire£led feveral, and 
found males andTemales without any diftinftion of 
plumage in either fex.’’ 
Having had no opportunity of examining either 
of the two birds lafl; defcribed, the author has been 
obliged to relate merely what others have faid 
concerning them, and is at a lofs how to reconcile 
their different opinions, not only indeed concerning 
thefe, but others of this tribe ; to fome of which no 
known females have yet been diftindly attached : 
and whilfl it is evident that this is a circumftance 
which cannot happen, it is alfo plain that much 
further inveftigation is neceffary in order to eluci- 
