GREAT NORTHERN DIVER, OR LOON. 257 
u Northern divers,” says Hearn e, “ thong'll common 
in Hudson’s Bay, are hy no means plentiful ; they are 
seldom found near the coast, but more frequently in 
fresh water lakes, and usually in pairs. They build 
their nests at the edge of small islands, or the margins 
of lakes or ponds ; they lay only two eggs, and it is very 
common to find only one pair and their young in one 
sheet of water : a great proof of their aversion to society. 
Thev are known in Hudson’s Bay hy the name of 
loons.”* 
The great northern diver measures two feet ten 
inches from the tip of the bill to the end of the tail, and 
four feet six inches in breadth ; the bill is strong, of a 
glossy black, and four inches and three quarters long to 
the corner of the mouth ; the edges of the bill do not 
fit exactly into each other, and are ragged, the lower 
mandible separates into two branches, which are united 
by a thin elastic membrane, and are easily movable 
horizontally or receding from each other, so as to form 
a wider gap to facilitate the swallowing of large fish ; 
tongue, bifid ; irides, dark blood red; the head and half 
of the length of the neck, are of a deep black with a 
green gloss, and purple reflections ; this is succeeded by 
a band consisting of interrupted white and black lateral 
stripes, which encompasses the neck, and tapers to a 
point on its fore part, without joining, — this band 
measures about an inch and a half in its widest part, 
and, to appearance, is not continuous on the back part 
of the neck, being concealed by some thick, overhanging, 
black feathers, but, on separating the latter, the band 
becomes visible : the feathers which form these narrow 
stripes are white, streaked down their centre with 
black, and, what is a remarkable peculiarity, their 
webs project above the common surface ; below this a 
broad band of dark glossy green and violet, which is 
blended behind with the plumage of the back ; the lower 
part of the neck and the sides of the breast, are ribbed 
in the same manner as the band above ; below the chin 
* Hearne’s Journey , p. 429 , quarto. 
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VOL. III. 
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