enguin.—Bill and legs black; eyebrows and Demerfa-pectoral band white. Size of a large duck; length 21 inches. Inhabits the Atlantic and Antarctic seas, chiefly round the Cape of Good Hope. Lays two white eggs, which are reckoned delicious eating. Like all of the genus, swims and dives well, but hops and flutters in a strange awkward manner on land, and if hurried stumbles perpetually, or makes use of its wings instead of legs, till it can recover its upright posture, crying at the same time like a goose, but with a hoarser voice. There are two or three varieties.

Little penguin.—Bill black; legs white. Fifteen inches long. Inhabits New Zealand. Digs deep holes in the earth, in which it lays its eggs.

Gen. 36. Procellaria, Petrel.

Bill toothless, a little compressed, hooked at the point; mandibles equal; nostrils cylindrical, tubular, trun- cated, lying on the base of the bill; feet palmated, hind claw feebly, and without a toe.

The birds of this genus all frequent the deep, where they endure the greatest storms, being hardly ever seen on shore, except at breeding time. They are, however, capable of walking, and their legs are bare of feathers a little above the knee. They feed on the fat of dead whales and fish, and have the faculty of spouting oil from their nostrils.

Pacific petrel.—Black; dusky beneath; legs spotted with black; bill plumbeous and much hooked; nostrils elevated, oval, distinct, obliquely placed; legs pale. Twenty-two inches long. Inhabits, in vast flocks, the islands of the Pacific ocean. These flocks disappear at once, dipping under water altogether, and then rise as suddenly.

Driving petrel.—Blackish brown; white beneath; bill Urinatoria; and chin black; legs blue green, without the spur behind. Eight inches and a half long. Inhabits New Zealand in numerous flocks, and dives remarkably well, often rising at considerable distances, with surprising agility. They croak like frogs, and sometimes make a noise like the cackling of a hen.

Stormy petrel, stormfinch, Mother Carey's chicken, &c. Pelagica.

—Black, with a white rump. This species is about the size of a swallow, and in its general appearance and flight, not unlike that bird. Length of about six inches. The stormy petrel is rarely seen on our shores, except in some of the northern islands, where it breeds in the holes of rocks, or under loose stones, in the months of June and July. At all other seasons it keeps far out at sea. Multitudes of them are seen all over the vast Atlantic ocean, especially before stormy weather. They often skim with incredible velocity along the hollows of the waves, and sometimes on the summits, braving the utmost fury of the tempest. As they appear to run on the surface of the sea, they have their name from an allusion to Peter's walking on the water. The inhabitants of the Faroe islands draw a wick through the body of this bird, which is so fat as to burn when lighted, and serve the purpose of a candle.—There is a variety with the body black; head and sides bluish; breast green, and wing coverts and rump spotted with green. Both sorts are excellent divers, feed on small fishes, are mute during the day, and clamorous in the night.

**Snowy petrel.**—Snow white; shafts of the feathers and bill black; legs dusky blue. One foot long. Inhabits the colder parts of the Southern sea, especially in the neighbourhood of ice, the masses of which they often haunt in considerable flocks.

**Fulmar petrel or fulmar.**—Whitish; back hoary; bill and legs yellowish; nostrils composed of two tubes, lodged in one sheath. About the size of the common gull, and 17 inches long. Inhabits the Northern and Southern seas; breeds in Greenland, Spitzbergen, St Kilda, &c., laying one large white egg. It is a bold and stupid bird, and very fat, living on fish, dead whales, and other carcases and filth, in quest of which it often follows ships for a great way. Its flesh, though rancid, is eaten raw, dried or boiled by the Kurile islanders, the Greenlanders and St Kildians, and the oil when expressed is used both for food and lamps. The young are in feather about the beginning of August, when the inhabitants of St Kilda endeavour to surprise them in their nests, to prevent them from spouting out their oil, which they do by way of defence. This oil is there valued as a catholicon; and every young bird yields nearly an English pint of it, which is carefully preserved. When the thermometer is above 52 degrees, it is very pure, but at a lower temperature becomes turbid.

**Giant petrel, or prey petrel, or break bones.**—Brownish, spotted with white; white beneath; shoulders, wings and tail brown; bill and legs yellow; naked, wrinkled, yellow membrane at the angles of the mouth. Bigger than a goose; length 40 inches; expansion of the wings seven feet. Common in the high southern latitudes, and sometimes found, though more rare, in the Northern seas. Is often seen sailing with the wings expanded, close to the surface of the water, but without appearing to move them. At Christmas harbour, Ker-guelen's land, &c., they were so tame, that they suffered themselves to be knocked on the head with a stick, by our sailors, on the beach. Though their chief food is fish, they also feed on the carcases of seals and birds. Many of the sailors confound them with the albatrosses, though such of them as are better informed, call them Mother Carey's geese. They are reckoned to be very good food. An individual of this species is figured in Latham's Synopsis.

**Glacial petrel.**—Bluish-ash; back blackish; chin, throat and breast white; bill yellow; legs blue. Nineteen inches long. Inhabits the icy seas.

**Pintado, or pintado petrel.**—Variegated with white and brown, and sometimes with yellowish and brown; bill and legs black; temples white and black. Size of the kittiwake; length 14 inches. This is the pintado bird of Dampier, the white and black spotted petrel of Edwards, and the Cape pigeon of our sailors. It is seldom seen much to the north of 30 degrees, and is most frequent about the Cape of Good Hope, and the neighbouring regions. It flies in very numerous flocks, which almost sweep the surface of the water. Our voyagers have traced them to New Zealand, Falkland islands, and various regions of the southern hemisphere. The sailors often catch them with some tarred string, or a bit of lard on a fishing rod. Sometimes they appear in such immense numbers, that 700 have been taken in one night. They feed on fish, but more frequently on the carcases of whales, &c.

**Shearwater petrel or shearwater.**—Black above; white beneath; legs rufous; bill yellow, tipped with black; hind head whitish-ash; spurious wings spotted with black; first quill and tail feathers brown without and white within. Weight 17 ounces; is 15 inches long, and nearly the size of a pigeon. Inhabits the Southern and Arctic seas. Breeds in the Isle of Man, and in the Orkneys, in the former of which it is called manks puffin, and in the latter lyre. It takes possession of a rabbit burrow or other hole, and lays one white egg; blunt at each end, which is hatched in August. Though the flesh is rank and fishy, it is much relished by some. Great numbers are killed and barrelled with salt. These the inhabitants boil, and eat with potatoes. There is a variety that is cinereous above; white beneath, and with a clear white tail.

**Gen. 37. DIOMEDEA, Albatrosses.**

Bill straight, upper mandible hooked at the point, lower truncated; nostrils oval, wide, prominent, lateral; tongue very small; toes three, all placed forwards.

Only four species are known to belong to this genus.

**Wandering albatross, or man of war bird.**—White; back and wings with white lines; bill pale yellow; legs flesh-colour; quill feathers black; tail rounded and lead coloured; bill grooved, dirty yellow; nostrils remote from the base, and rising out of the furrow; tail feathers fourteen; thighs naked. From three feet and a half to four feet, long; bigger than a swan; weighs from twelve to twenty-eight pounds; and extends its wings from ten to thirteen feet. Inhabits most seas, but chiefly occurs within the tropics. It is frequent about the Cape of Good Hope, and towards the end of July appears in great numbers in Kamtschatka, and the seas which separate that part of Asia from America. It is very voracious, feeding on the salmon, which are found in shoals, in the mouths of rivers, on the flying-fish, when forced out of the water by the coryphaena, and on other fishes, which it devours whole, and in such quantities, as to be prevented by their weight from rising, though in general it soars very high. It likewise preys on mollusca, and is itself attacked by the sea-eagle, and the larus catarractus. On the shores of South America, it builds about the end of September, a nest of earth on the ground, from one to three feet high, and lays a number of eggs, which are four inches and a half long, and eatable, though the white of them does not coagulate with heat. Its voice resembles the braying of an ass, and its flesh is dry and hard.

**Chocolate albatross.**—Bill whitish; body deep chestnut-brown; belly pale; face and wings whitish beneath. Three feet long. Inhabits the Pacific ocean.

**Yellow-nosed albatross.**—White; bill black; keel of the upper mandible and base of the lower yellow; body chestnut-blue, white beneath. Three feet long. Occurs in the Southern hemisphere, from 30° to 60° round the pole. Flies five or six feet above the water.

**Sooty albatross.**—Brown; head, bill, tail, quill feathers and claws footy-brown; area of the eyes white. Three feet long. Inhabits the Southern ocean within the antarctic. Gen. 38. Pelecanus, Pelican.

Bill straight, bent at the point, and furnished with a nail; the nostrils form an almost obliterated slit; face somewhat naked; legs balancing the body equally; the four toes connected by a membrane.

The pelicans are gregarious, fond of fish, and in general remarkable for their extreme voracity. For the most part they keep out at sea, but some of them are likewise found in the interior parts of continents. They have all a long bill, in a lateral furrow of which lie the nostrils. Several of the tribe are rendered useful to mankind by being taught to fish.

A. Bill without teeth.

White, or common pelican.—White; gullet pouched; bill from fifteen to sixteen inches long, red; upper mandible depressed and broad, the lower forked; bag at the throat flaccid, membranaceous, capable of great distention; irides hazel; gape of the mouth wide; head naked at the sides, covered with a flesh-coloured skin; hind-head somewhat crested; body faintly tinged with flesh colour; spurious wings and first quill feathers black; legs lead colour. Larger than a swan, and about five feet long. Inhabits Asia, Africa, and South America. In fishing, this bird does not immediately swallow its prey, but fills its bag, and returns to the shore to devour at leisure the fruits of its industry. As it quickly digests its food, it has generally to fish more than once in the course of the day. At night it retires a little way on the shore to rest, with its head resting against its breast. In this attitude it remains almost motionless, till hunger calls it to break off its repose. It then flies from its resting place, and raising itself thirty or forty feet above the surface of the sea, turns its head, with one eye downwards, and continues to fly in that posture till it sees a fish sufficiently near the surface, when it darts down with astonishing swiftness, seizes it with unerring certainty, and stores it up in its pouch. It then rises again, and continues the same manoeuvres, till it has procured a competent flock. Clavigero informs us, that some of the Americans, to procure a supply of fish without any trouble, cruelly break the wing of a live pelican, and after tying the bird to a tree, conceal themselves near the place. The screams of the wounded and confined bird attract others of its kind, which eject for it a portion of provisions from their pouches. As soon as the men observe this, they rush to the spot, and after leaving a small quantity for the bird, carry off the remainder. The female feeds her young with fish macerated for some time in her bag. The pelican is susceptible of domestication, and may even be trained to fish for its master. Faber mentions an individual of this species which was kept in the court of the duke of Bavaria above forty years, and which seemed to be fond of the company of mankind, and of vocal and instrumental music. When a number of pelicans and corvoraunts are together, they are said to practice a singular method of taking fish. They spread into a large circle, at some distance from land; the pelicans flapping on the surface of the water with their extensive wings, and the corvoraunts diving beneath, till the fish contained within the circle, are driven before them towards the land; and as the circle contracts by the birds drawing closer together, the fish at last are brought into a small compass, when their pursuers find no difficulty in filling their bellies. In this exercise they are often attended by various species of gulls, which likewise obtain a share of the spoil. The pelican generally builds in marshy and uncultivated places, particularly in islands and lakes, making its nest, which is deep, and a foot and a half in diameter, of carices, and lining it with grass of a softer texture. It lays two or more white eggs, which, when persecuted, it sometimes hides in the water. When it builds in dry and desert places, it brings water to its young in its bag. It walks slowly, flies in flocks, and lives in society with other birds.

Rose-coloured pelican.—Rufy; gullet pouched; bill Rostrum and legs black; area of the eyes naked; pouch yellow. Size of a goose. Inhabits Manilla.

Frigate pelican, or frigate bird.—Tail forked; body Aquilus; and orbits black; bill red; belly of the female white. Three feet long; extent of the wings fourteen feet. Inhabits within the tropics. This is the frigate bird of Dampier and other navigators. From its great expanse of wing, it is capable of flying very smoothly, and so high as to be scarcely visible, remaining much in the air, and remote from land. It feeds on fishes, particularly flying fish, on which it darts with the greatest velocity. It not unfrequently likewise preys on other piscivorous animals. It builds in trees or on rocks, and lays one or two eggs of a flesh colour, and spotted with red.

Lesser frigate pelican.—Tail forked; body ferrugineous; bill and orbits red. Resembles the last, but less.

Corvoraunt.—Tail rounded; body black; head fome-Carbonate crested; bill blackish; the base of the lower mandible covered with a yellowish skin, extending under the chin, and forming a pouch; irides green; chin white, surrounded with a yellowish arch; tail long and lax, consisting of fourteen feathers; thighs with a white spot, dotted with black; legs black. Three feet long; size of a goose, but more slender, and weighs about seven pounds. Inhabits Europe, Asia, and America. Common on many of our sea-coasts, building its nest on the highest parts of cliffs that hang over the sea, and laying three or more pale green eggs, about the size of those of a goose. In winter these birds disperse along the shores, and visit the fresh waters, where they commit great depredations among the fish. They are remarkably voracious, and have a very quick digestion. Though naturally extremely shy and wary, they are stupid and easily taken when glutted with food. Their smell, when alive, is more rank and offensive than that of any other bird, and their flesh is so disgusting, that even the Greenlanders will hardly taste it. It is not uncommon to see twenty of these birds together, on the rocks of the sea coast, with extended wings, drying themselves in the wind. In this attitude they sometimes remain for nearly an hour, without once closing their wings; and as soon as the latter are sufficiently dry to enable the feathers to imbibe the oil, they press this liquor from the receptacle on their rumps, and dress the feathers with it. It is only in one particular state that the oily matter can be spread on them, namely, when they are somewhat damp; and the instinct of the birds teaches them the proper moment. Corvoraunts were formerly sometimes sometimes trained in this country, as they still are in China, for the purpose of catching fish for the table. With this view they were kept with great care in the house, and when taken out for fishing, they had a leathern thong tied round their neck, to prevent them from swallowing their prey.

**Graculus.**

*Shag.*—Tail rounded; body black, brown beneath; tail feathers twelve; head and neck black, with a green gloss; back and wing-coverts purple black, glossy at the edges; middle of the belly dusky; legs black. Weighs about four pounds. Length twenty-nine inches. The female weighs about three pounds and a quarter; and is only twenty-seven inches long. Inhabits the northern seas of Europe. Swims with its head erect, and the body under water. On perceiving the flash of a gun, dives instantaneously, and rises at a considerable distance. Has the manners and habit of the preceding, and devours a prodigious quantity of fish. Near the Cape of Good Hope, a variety occurs with a yellow chin, and wedged tail. Another, which frequents the coasts of Cayenne and the Carribbee islands, is blackish above, brown beneath; and has the feathers above edged with black.

**Pygmelus.**

*Dwarf shag.*—Tail wedged; feathers twelve; body black, with a few scattered white spots. Female brown, without spots. Size of the garganey. Inhabits the Caspian sea.

**Cristatus.**

*Crested shag.*—Shining green, dusky beneath; bill and legs dusky; head crested. From two to three feet long. Inhabits the northern seas of Europe, occurs on our own coasts, and both in appearance and manners, resembles the graculus.

**B. Bill serrated.**

**Thagus.**

*Saw-billed pelican.*—Brown; tail rounded; gullet pouched, and covered with short cinereous feathers; bill one foot long; each mandible hooked; pouch very large; legs black. Size of a turkey; extent of wings nine feet. Inhabits Chili.

**Balsanus.**

*Gannet, or soland goose.*—Tail wedged; body white; bill and quill feathers black; face blue; irides yellowish; tail feathers twelve; eyes surrounded with a naked skin of fine blue; legs black, and greenish on the fore part. Three feet long. Weighs seven pounds; and inhabits Europe and America. This species of pelican haunts the Bals island in the frith of Edinburgh, Ailfa, on the coast of Ayrshire, the island of St. Kilda, and hardly anywhere else in Europe. It arrives at these spots in March, and continues till September. As it must let itself fall before it takes wing, it requires a steep and precipitous breeding station. It makes a rude nest of sticks, grass, sea-plants, &c., and lays one egg. While the female is occupied with incubation, the male brings her food, which consists almost entirely of herrings and sprats. In the bag under their bill they are able to fetch four or five herrings at a time, and a great number of sprats, which the young bird extracts from the mouth of the old one, with its bill, as with pincers. The young begin to be taken in August, and by some are reared as an exquisite morsel; but the old ones are tough and rancid. The fowler who seizes the young, is let down by a rope from the top of a cliff, and is sometimes stationed on the slippery projection of a rock, with the perpendicular precipice of four hundred feet or more beneath him. The young are of a dark-gray colour, and continue so for a year or more, when they gradually become white, except the tips of their wings, which are always black. In September and October the old birds leave their breeding places, and migrate southward, following, as is alleged, the shoals of herrings. In December they are often seen off Lisbon plunging for sardines; but after that period, it is not well known what becomes of them till March. They are common on the coasts of Norway and Iceland, and are said to be met with in great numbers about New Holland and New Zealand. They also breed on the coast of Newfoundland, and migrate southward along the American shores as far as South Carolina. Of this species there are two varieties. The first is brown, spotted with white, and white beneath, with naked and blackish. The second is brown, with triangular white spots, whitish, and spotted with brown beneath; the bill, wings, tail, and legs brown.

**Leffler gannet.**—Tail wedged; body whitish; all the Pifcater quill feathers black; face red. Two feet and a half long. Inhabits the Chinese, Indian, and American seas.

**Booby.**—Tail wedged; body whitish; primary quill Suia feathers tipped with blackish; face red; bill gray, brownish at the base; irides pale ash; chin bald, yellowish; body white beneath; tail brownish at the tip; legs yellowish. Has its name from being so foolish as to alight on one's hand, if held out to it, when tired. Builds in places bare of trees, making its nest on the ground. Its flesh is black and rancid.

**Fishing corvoraunt.**—Tail rounded; body brown, Sinenis. whitish, and spotted with brown beneath; throat white; bill yellow; irides blue. Inhabits China, where it is tamed for the purpose of catching fish.

**Leffler booby.**—Black, white beneath; face downy, Parvus. Eighteen inches long. Inhabits Cayenne.

**Gen. 39. Plotus, Darier.**

**Plotus.**

Bill straight, pointed, toothed; nostrils an oblong slit Characters near the base; face and chin naked; legs short; all the toes connected.

The birds of this genus have a small head, and long slender neck. They inhabit the southern and warmer latitudes, and live chiefly on fish, which they take by darting the head forwards, while the neck is contracted like the body of a serpent.

**White-bellied darter.**—Head smooth; belly white, Anbinga. Inhabits Brazil. Two feet ten inches long. Builds on trees, and is scarcely ever seen on the ground. When at rest, it sits with the neck drawn in between the shoulders. The flesh is oily and rancid.

**Black-bellied darter.**—Head smooth; belly black, Melanogaster. About three feet long. Inhabits Ceylon, Java, &c. Plate ccxcvi. There are several varieties.

**Surinam darter.**—Head crested; belly white. Thirteen inches long. Inhabits Surinam. Is domesticated, and feeds on fish and insects, especially flies, which it catches with great dexterity.

**Gen. 40. Phaeton, Tropic Bird.**

**Phaeton.**

Bill sharp-edged, straight, pointed, the gape extending bey'nd the bill; nostrils oblong; hind-toe turned forwards. The species of this genus inhabit the South sea, especially between the tropics. Their bill is compressed, and bent a little downwards; the lower mandible angulated. The feet have four toes, which are palmated. The tail is cuneiform, and distinguished by the great length of the two intermediate feathers.

Common tropic bird.—White; back, rump, and lesser wing-coverts streaked with white; two middle tail feathers black at the base; bill red. Two feet ten inches long; size of a wigeon. Flies very high, and at a great distance from land; feeds on young hawks, dolphins, and albatrosses. On land, where it is rarely seen except in the breeding season, it sits on trees, and builds on the ground, in woods. It is well known to navigators, to whom it generally announces their approach to the tropic, though this indication is by no means infallible, as the bird sometimes wanders to the latitude of 47°. It is subject to varieties. Its flesh is indifferent.

Black-billed tropic bird.—Streaked black and white, white beneath; bill black; quill feathers tipped with white; tail feathers with black. Nineteen inches and a half long. Inhabits Palmetto and Turtle islands.

Red-tailed tropic bird.—Rufous flesh colour; bill and two middle tail feathers red. Two feet ten inches long, of which the two middle tail feathers measure one foot nine inches. Builds in hollows in the ground, under trees, and lays two yellowish-white eggs, with rufous spots. Inhabits the Mauritius.

Gen. 41. Colymbus.

Bill toothless, subulate, straight, and pointed; throat toothed; nostrils linear, at the base of the bill; feet placed far behind.

The birds of this family walk on land with awkwardness and difficulty, but swim and dive with great dexterity. The guillemots chiefly inhabit the seas; have a slender tongue, of the size of the bill. The latter is compressed, and covered with short feathers at the base; the upper mandible a little bent; flesh tough, and like the eggs, nauseous. The divers frequent also the northern lakes, have a strong bill, legs pointed, cylindrical, the edge of the mandible turned in, and the upper longer than the under; the nostrils divided in the middle by a membrane; the tongue long, sharp, serrated at the base on each side; legs slender, a black band between the thighs; tail feathers twenty. These birds are monogamous, fly with difficulty, and frequent fresh water in the breeding season. The grebes have no tail, a strong bill, lores naked, tongue a little cleft at the tip, body depressed, thickly covered with short shining plumages, wings short, and legs compressed. They are frequently found about the fresh waters of southern Europe.

A. Feet three-toed. Guillemot.

White guillemot.—Snowy; bill and legs brownish and flesh-coloured. Size of the garganey. Inhabits the Netherlands.

Black guillemot, spotted guillemot, Greenland dove, sea turtle, &c.—Body black; wing-coverts white. But these general markings are incident to great variety. The more special characteristics are; bill black, inside of the mouth and legs red; upper wing-coverts in the middle, and lower part of the belly white. Weighs fourteen ounces, and measures nearly the same number of inches in length. Inhabits Europe and America. Frequent the Faroe islands, the Balearic, St Kilda, &c., visiting these places in March, making its nest far under ground, and laying one egg of a dirty white, blotched with pale rust-colour. Except at breeding time, it keeps always at sea, lives on fish, flies low, and generally, in pairs. It cannot without much difficulty, rise from the ground. In the Orkney islands, it is called tytle. The Greenlanders eat its flesh, and use its skin for clothing, and its legs as a bait to their fishing lines.

Leather guillemot.—Black, with a narrow stripe across Minor. the wings, cheeks and under parts white. Weight eighteen or nineteen ounces; length about fifteen inches. Inhabits the northern seas of Europe, and in winter frequents the frith of Forth in vast flocks; where it feeds on sprats, and is called marrot, or morrot. Many doubts have been entertained with regard to this bird, Dr Latham and other ornithologists having considered it as the young of the succeeding species. It is to be observed, however, that besides the difference in size and plumage, this bird is rarely met with in the fourth till the month of November, whence it has been called the winter guillemot, whereas the other species always leaves us before September, and does not again appear till the ensuing spring; and that its young, when they depart, are exactly like the old ones.

Foolish guillemot or scout.—Body black; breast and belly snowy; secondary quill feathers tipped with white; bill black; inside of the mouth yellow; legs and tail blackish. Seventeen inches long. Inhabits the northern seas of Europe, Asia, and America. This species is likewise called marrot in Scotland, and lavie in St Kilda. In that island it appears about the beginning of February, and is hailed by the inhabitants as the harbinger of plenty. A St Kilda man descends in the night, by the help of a rope, to the ledge of a precipice, where he fixes himself, and tying round him a piece of white linen, awaits the arrival of the bird, which, mistaking the cloth for a piece of the rock, alights on it, and is immediately dispatched. In this way 400 are sometimes taken in one night, and at dawn the fowler is drawn up. The foolish guillemot lays but one egg, which is very large, unprotected by any nest, and has such a slender hold of the rock, that when the birds are surprised, and fly off suddenly, many of them tumble down into the sea. These birds seldom quit their eggs unless disturbed, but are fed with sprats and other small fish by the male. In places where they are seldom molested, it is with difficulty they are put to flight, and may sometimes be taken with the hand; others flutter into the water, appearing not to have much use of their wings.

B. Four-toed, and palmated. Diver.

Red-throated diver or loon.—A ferruginous shield-like Septentrion spot beneath the neck; body brown, with minute white spots above, white beneath; bill black; head and chin cinereous, spotted with brown; neck with small white and brown lines above; legs dark. Weighs about three pounds. Length near two feet and a half. Inhabits the north of Europe, Asia, and America, and is seldom seen far southward, except in very severe winters. In the breeding season it frequents the lakes, making a nest among the reeds and flags, and lays two eggs of an ash colour, marked with a few black spots. In Iceland it is said to make its nest of moss and grass, lined with down, among the grass of the shores contiguous to the waters. It breeds in the north of Scotland, but is seldom observed in the south of England. It lives on marine vermes, crabs, and the smaller fishes, with which it is sometimes taken in nets. It swims and flies swiftly; and when it screams in its flight is said to prefigure a storm.

**Black-throated diver.**—Head hoary; neck violet black beneath, with an interrupted white band; bill black; body black above, white beneath; sides of the neck white, spotted with black; shoulders and wing-coverts with white spots, the former square, the latter round; quill feathers dusky. Two feet long. Inhabits the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and America, frequenting both the sea and lakes. Before rain, it is restless and clamorous; occurs in Scotland, but is not common in England.

**Speckled diver or loon.**—White beneath; hind-head and quill feathers dusky; throat pale-ash; back, flanks, rump, and tail spotted with white; bill horn colour; legs brown. The weight of this species is about four pounds, and the length 27 inches. It inhabits the north of Europe and America, and is among the most common of the diver tribe found in this country, being frequently seen in winter, in our bays and inlets, and sometimes in fresh water rivers and lakes. From its attending the sprats in the Thames, it is called *sprat-loon* by the fishermen. In the northern regions it lays two eggs, the size of those of a goose, dusky, and with a few black spots, in the grass, on the borders of lakes.

**Northern diver or greatest speckled diver.**—Head and neck purplish-black; chin and upper part of the neck with a white interrupted band; upper part of the body, bill, legs, and tail black; back with square white spots disposed in rows; wing-coverts with white dots. The largest of the genus sometimes weighing fifteen or sixteen pounds; and measuring nearly three feet and a half in length. Inhabits the north seas, and breeds in the fresh waters, in Iceland, Greenland, &c. Frequent the seas about the Orkneys, all the year round, without breeding there. The skin, which is tough, and well covered with soft down, is dressed in some parts of Russia, &c., and used as clothing.

**Immer, imber, or ember goose, or diver.**—Body blackish and waved with white above, white beneath; feathers of the back, wings, and tail edged with white. Two feet long. Inhabits the Arctic ocean, and also, it is said, the lake of Constance, where it is called *fluder*. Unless in severe winters, it is rare in England, but is more common on the Scottish and Orkney coasts. It makes its nest on the water, among reeds and flags. It feeds on fish, after which it dives with great celerity, and is sometimes taken under water, by a baited hook.

**C. Feet four-toed, lobed. Grebe.**

**Crested grebe, gray, or ash-coloured loon, &c.**—Head rufous; collar black; secondary quill feathers white; bill flesh-coloured, brown at the tip; lores and irises red; body brown above, white beneath; head tumid, and varies in colour by age. During the first year, this bird has a smooth head, and a white spot on the wings; and during the second, a long downy tuft on each side of the throat. This is the largest of the grebes, weighing about two pounds and a half, and measuring twenty-one inches in length. It occurs in almost every lake in the northern parts of Europe, as far as Iceland, and southward to the Mediterranean, and is also found in various parts of America and Siberia. It is common in the fens and lakes in various parts of England, where it breeds. The female makes her nest of various kinds of dried fibres, stalks and leaves of water plants, as of the nymphea, potamogoton, hottonia, &c., and the roots of menyanthes trifoliata, and conceals it among the flags and reeds which grow in the water, and where it erroneously said to float. The young are fed on small eels. In some countries, ladies' muffs and other ornamental articles of dress are made of the skin of the belly of this species, which has a fine down of a dazzling whiteness. It requires five skins to make a muff which sells at four or five guineas. The tippet grebe is the female or young of this species.

**Eared grebe or dobchick.**—Blackish-brown above, white beneath; head black; ears crested, and ferruginous; bill and legs black; irides and lores red; primary quill feathers dusky, secondary white. There is a smaller variety, with a double crest, and the neck spotted with chestnut. This species is about twelve inches long, and inhabits the northern lakes of Europe and Siberia. It is also met with in southern climates, but is not numerous in England. According to Pennant, it breeds in the fens near Spalding in Lincolnshire, and the female makes a nest not unlike that of the preceding, laying four or five small white eggs.

**Horned grebe.**—Head glossy-green; a yellow tufted coronet band through the eyes; neck and breast tawny. Size of the preceding. Inhabits North America.

**Little grebe or small dipper.**—Of a reddish-brown above, white, with spots beneath; head smooth; feathers of the body edged with reddish; lower part of the belly grey; upper wing-coverts, and first and last quill feathers blackish, rest of the quill feathers white; bill blackish; base of the lower mandible reddish; legs blackish-green. Inhabits Europe, North America, the Philippine isles, and the Delta in Egypt. The least of the grebe tribe, weighing only between six and seven ounces, and measuring from the tip of the bill to the rump, ten inches. It seldom quits the water, and is a remarkable diver, feeding on fish, insects, and aquatic plants; constructing a large nest, a foot thick, of grass and the stalks of aquatic plants, in the midst of the waters which pervade it, and laying five or six whitish eggs, which it covers when it leaves the nest. In several parts of this country it is called *didapper*.

**Red-necked grebe.**—Subcrested, brown; chin, cheeks, and region of the ears cinereous; under part of the bill, neck and breast rusty-red; belly, and secondary quill feathers white; bill black, the sides tawny at the base; irides tawny; legs dusky. Seventeen inches long; and weighs nearly nineteen ounces. Inhabits Europe, but is very rare in Britain.

**Dusky grebe or black and white dobchick.**—Head smooth; body dark brown above; front, under parts of the body, and tips of the secondary quill feathers, white. Eleven inches long. Inhabits Europe and America. Breeds in the fens of Lincolnshire, and is found, in the winter, in our inlets on the coast, particularly in Devonshire, where it is by no means uncommon.

**Black-chin grebe.**—Head smooth; body blackish; chin black; throat ferruginous; belly cinereous, mixed with Anseres. with silvery. Somewhat larger than the little grebe. Inhabits Tiree, one of the Hebrides.

Gen. 42. Larus, Gull.

Bill straight, sharp-edged, a little hooked at the tip, and without teeth; lower mandible gibbous below the point; nostrils linear, broadest on the fore part, and placed in the middle of the bill.

The birds of this genus have a light smooth body; long wings; a strong bill; the tongue somewhat cleft; the feet short; bare of feathers above the knee; with a small back toe. They inhabit the north; feed chiefly on fishes, and even on those that are dead. When harried, they throw up or discharge their food. As the young are sometimes spotted to their third year, the extrication of the species is attended with doubt and difficulty.

A. Nostrils without a cere.

Tarrack or kittiwake.—Whitish; the back grayish; tips of the tail feathers, except the outermost, black; three toes. In mature age, the characters are; back whitish-hoary; quill feathers white; hind toe unarmed. Ornithologists, in fact, seem now to be agreed, that L. tridactylus and L. rissa, are only varieties of the same species. A third variety occurs, distinguished by an oblique black band on the wings, and white chin. About the size of a pigeon; about fourteen inches long. Inhabits Europe, Asia, and America. Breeds on the cliffs about Flamboroughhead, the Bays, Isle of May, the rocks near Slains Castle, &c.; lays two eggs; feeds on fishes, and seeks its food in company of seals and whales. It swims and flies rapidly, and is often clamorous. Its flesh is much relished by the Greenlanders, who also make clothing of its skin. One that was kept and tamed, knew its master's voice at a distance, and answered him with its hoarse piping note. It had a voracious appetite, and though plentifully fed on bread, would rob the poultry of their share.

Little gull.—Snowy; head and beginning of the neck black; back and wings russet; bill brown-red; legs scarlet. Size of a thrush. Inhabits Russia and Siberia.

Common gull.—White; back hoary; primary quill feathers black at the ends, the fourth and fifth with a black spot at the tip, the outer one black without; bill yellow; irides hazel; legs greenish white. A variety is met with that has the head spotted with brown; neck brown above, and tail feathers white, with a black band. This is generally supposed to be the younger bird. Inhabits Europe and America. Seventeen inches long; of the size of a pigeon; and is seen in numerous flocks, continually screaming. Lives on fishes, vermes, and the larvae of insects; builds among rocks and stones, and is a foolish bird. The most common and numerous of all the British gulls, breeding on rocky cliffs, and laying two eggs, nearly the size of those of a common hen, of an olive brown colour, marked with dark reddish blotches. At the mouths of the larger rivers they are seen in numbers, picking up the animal substances which are cast on shore, or come floating down with the ebbing tide. For this kind of food they watch with a quick eye, and it is curious to observe how such as are near the breakers will mount up the surface of the water, and run splashing towards the summit of the wave to catch the object of their pursuit. At particular seasons, this species also resorts to the inland parts of the country, to feed on worms, &c. Some persons who live near the sea, commonly eat this, as well as various other kinds of gulls, which they describe as being good food, when they have undergone a certain sweetening process before cooking; such as burying them in fresh mould for a day, or washing them in vinegar. This species breeds on the ledges of rocks, close to the sea-shore, sometimes not far above the water. This bird is frequently seen in winter, at a considerable distance from the coast. It flocks with rooks in severe weather, and will follow the plough for the sake of the larva of the chaffier.

Black-backed gull or great black and white gull.—Marinus. White; back black; bill yellow; lower mandible with a red spot near the tip and black in the middle; irides yellow; lower part of the back white; quill feathers black, tipped with white; legs flesh-coloured. The markings, however, vary considerably with the age of the bird. The weight of this species is four pounds and three quarters; and the length near thirty inches. It inhabits Europe and America. Though not very plentiful on our coasts, it is occasionally seen in small flocks of eight or ten, sometimes in pairs, but never associating with the other gulls. It cackles like a goose, lives chiefly on fish, but also infests the elder duck, and even lambs. It has been known to tear and devour the largest fish on the hooks, when left dry by the ebbing tide. It breeds on the steep holmes, and Lundy island, in the Bristol channel, makes a nest in the crevices of the highest rocks, and lays three eggs of a blackish-gray colour, with dark purple spots; and eatable. Its skin is used for clothing by the Esquimaux and Greenlanders; and the young not only affords a fine down, but an article of food.

Herring gull.—White; back brown; legs yellow; Fuscus. Bill yellow; irides straw-coloured; five first quill feathers black above. Weight about thirty-three ounces; length twenty-three inches. Inhabits Europe, Asia, and North America, proceeding southward in winter as far as the Black and Caspian seas, Jamaica, and the islands on the shore of South Carolina. It lives on fish, especially herrings, which it seizes with great boldness, and the shoals of which it accompanies in flocks. It is sometimes observed to trample the soft land, by moving its feet alternately in the same place, for the purpose, it is supposed, of forcing up sand-eels, or some hidden prey. This species is very common on the British shores; makes its nest of dry grass on the projecting ledges of the rocks, and lays three eggs of a dull whitish colour, spotted with black. Fishermen describe it as the constant, bold, and intruding attendant on their nets, from which they find it difficult to drive it away.

Black-headed gull.—Whitish; head blackish; bill Atricilla. Red; legs black. Eighteen inches long. Inhabits Europe and America. Flies about the shores in flocks, with a continual clamour; and builds in pine-trees.

Laughing or black-headed gull.—Whitish; head black-Ridibundus; bill and legs pale red. Eyelids red; irides hazel; dusky-brown; and in the full-grown bird, black; first ten quill feathers white-edged, and tipped with black, the rest cinereous, tipped with white; claws black. This species has its name from its singular cry, which resembles a hoarse laugh. It is fifteen inches long; inhabits Europe, America, and the Bahama islands; and breeds in the pools and fens of England, making its nest on the ground, with rushes, dried grass, &c., and laying three greenish-brown eggs, spotted with tawny. In former times, (says Mr Bewick,) these birds were looked upon as valuable property by the owners of some of the fens and marshes in this kingdom, who every autumn caused the little ells or harts in those waters, to be cleared of the reeds and rushes, in order properly to prepare the spots for the reception of the old birds in the spring, to which places at that season they regularly returned in great flocks to breed. The young ones were then highly esteemed as excellent eating; and on that account were caught in great numbers before they were able to fly. Six or seven men, equipped for this purpose, waded through the pools, and with long poles drove them to the land, against nets placed upon the shores of the harts, where they were easily caught by the hand, and put into pens ready prepared for their reception. The gentry assembled from all parts to see the sport. "There were the sea-gulls of which we read as being so plentifully provided at the great feasts of the ancient nobility and bishops of this realm. Although the flesh of these birds is not now esteemed a delicacy, and they are seldom sought after as an article of food, yet in the breeding season, where accommodation and protection are afforded them, they still regularly resort to the same old haunts, which have been occupied by their kind for a long time past."

B. Nyctilis covered with a core.

Parusitius. Arctic gull.—Two middle-tail feathers very long; bill and legs dusky; body black above; temples, throat, and under parts of the body white; breast with a dusky band. Female brown beneath; twenty-one inches long. Inhabits Europe, Asia, and America. Breeds in the Hebrides and Orkneys, among the heath, making its nest of grass and moss, in some marshy place, and laying two eggs, the size of those of a hen, ash-colored and spotted with black. It is very rapacious, and pursues the lesser gulls, not for their dung, as some have asserted, but to make them disgorge what they have lately eaten, which it dexterously catches and devours before it reaches the water. It is to be remarked, that all this tribe are voracious, and if chased by a hawk, or other bird that creates alarm, readily disgorge, in order to lighten themselves, and thus escape by flight. It is no uncommon thing to see them bring up a large quantity of half digested food, when slightly wounded by shot; and tame gulls will do the same, if driven by a dog. It may also be observed, that gulls float highly on the surface of the water by reason of the quantity of feathers in proportion to their weight, and seem to be incapable of diving. If they should be wounded ever so slightly, and fall into the water, they never attempt to dive like other aquatic birds.

Crepidatus. Black-toed gull.—Varied with dirty white and brown, paler beneath; two middle tail feathers a little longer; bill black; breast and belly white, with numerous dusky and yellowish lines; flanks and vent transversely black and white; wing-coverts and tail black edged with white or brownish; legs bluish; toes and connecting membrane black. Weight about eleven ounces; length fifteen or sixteen inches. Inhabits Europe and America, but is not common on the British shores. Its habits nearly coincide with those of the preceding species. Its excrement is said to be red, from the circumstance of its feeding on the helix fanthina.

Skua quill.—Grayish; quill and tail feathers white at the base; tail nearly equal; bill dusky, much hooked, upper mandible covered half way with a black cere; body brown above, rusty-ash beneath; legs blackish, rough, warty; claws hooked, black; hind-toe short, with a sharp-hooked claw; two feet long. Inhabits Europe and America. These fierce birds are met with by navigators in the high latitudes of both hemispheres, where they are much more common than in the warm or temperate parts of the globe. They are often mentioned in Captain Cook's Voyages, and, from their being numerous about Falkland islands, the seamen call them Port Egmont hens. They are also common in Norway, Iceland, the Shetland and Faroe isles, &c. They prey not only on fish, but also on the lesser sorts of water fowl, and are so courageous in defence of their own young, that they attack either man or beast, that dares to disturb their nest. They make their nests among the dry grass, and, when the young are reared, they disperse themselves commonly in pairs over the ocean. In the island of Foula, in Shetland, the skua gull is called bonzie, and is a privileged bird, there being a fine of 10l. Scotch for destroying its eggs, because it keeps off the eagle during the whole breeding season.

Gen. 43. Sterna, Tern.

Bill subulate, somewhat straight, pointed, a little compressed, without teeth; nostrils linear; tongue pointed; wings very long; tail generally forked.

The birds of this genus are mostly inhabitants of the ocean, and feed on fishes. They are seldom afraid of man.

Sooty tern.—Black above; upper parts of the body, cheeks, and front shafts of the quill and tail feathers white; fifteen inches long. Inhabits the Atlantic and Antarctic seas.

Noddy.—Body black; front whitish; eye-brows black; bill and legs black; hind-head cinereous; fifteen inches long; found chiefly within the tropics; is clamorous, seldom goes far from shore, and always rests there during the night. It builds on the rocks, and its eggs are reckoned excellent food.

Sandwich tern.—White; back and wings hoary; cap black; front with white spots; quill feathers black; iris, with a white shaft; bill black, yellowish at the tip; legs black; wings longer than the tail; egg olive-brown, with purplish and crowded spots; eighteen inches long. Inhabits the Kentish coast, generally appearing about Romney, in the middle of April, and departing in the beginning of September. It is not uncommon about Sandwich, where it was first particularly noticed by Mr Boys. The circumstance of its breeding in England has not been perfectly ascertained. The hævia of some authors, or the Kamtschatkan tern of Pennant, appears to be only a variety, which is black, with paler colours above; white beneath; and bill and legs black.