Considerable interest is attached to the natural history
of the Dipper, or Whter Ouzel, from the diversity of opinions
that exist even to the present time, in reference not
only to its power of diving, which is believed by some to be
accomplished without any perceivable muscular effort, but
that it can also walk at the bottom when under water with
the same ease that other birds walk on dry land.
Never having seen this bird alive, I must be indebted to
the recorded observations of those who have ; and one of the
most complete and perfect accounts that I am acquainted
with is that by Mr. Macgillivray, published in the first
volume of the Naturalist, page 105.
The Dipper frequents clear, rocky mountain streams, and
although allied to the Thrush or the Blackbird in its internal
organization, and in many of its actions on land, it has also
the habits and powers of the Moorhen ; living constantly by
the sides of rivers, swimming and diving with great facility,
and feeding principally upon the various aquatic insects with
which the bottoms of streams abound.
I am indebted to the kindness of my friend John Morgan,
Esq. for the only opportunity that has occurred to me of dissecting
a specimen of this bird, which came from Wales.
The muscles and other parts of the organs of voice are similar
to those of the Thrush ; but I found nothing in the
structure of this bird internally that could induce me to believe
that it possessed the powers which have been so frequently
attributed to it, of diving and remaining on the
ground at the bottom of the water, without making any visible
muscular effort. Its short wings are well adapted for
diving; but, clothed with its feathers, the specific gravity of
the Dipper must be considerably less than that of an Otter or
a Beaver,—and we know that diving and remaining under
water is not accomplished by these animals without using
great and continued exertions. Accordingly Mr. Macgillivray
observes, “ I have seen the Dipper moving under water
in situations where I could observe it with certainty, and I
readily perceived that its actions were precisely similar to
those of the Divers, Mergansers, and Cormorants, which I
have often watched from an eminence as they pursued the
shoals of sand-eels along the sandy shores of the Hebrides.
It, in fact, flew, not merely using the wing from the carpal
joint, but extending it considerably, and employing its whole
extent, just as if moving in the air. The general direction
of the body in these circumstances is obliquely downwards;
and great force is evidently used to counteract the effects of
gravity, the bird finding it difficult to keep itself at the
bottom. Montagu well describes the appearance which
it presents under such circumstances: in one or two instances,
where we have been able to perceive it under
water, it appeared to tumble about in a very extraordinary
manner, with its head downwards, as if picking something;
and at the same time great exertion was used, both by wings
and legs. When searching for food, it does not proceed to
great distances under water; but, alighting on some spot,
sinks, and soon reappears in the immediate neighbourhood,
when it either dives again, or rises on the wing to drop somewhere
else on the stream, or settle on a stone. The assertion
of its walking below the water, which some persons have
ventured, is not made good by observation, nor countenanced
by reason. The Dipper is by no means a walking b ird : even
on land I have never seen it move more than a few steps,
which it accomplished by a kind of leaping motion. Its
short legs and long curved claws are very ill adapted for run-
nino-, but admirably calculated for securing a steady footing
on slippery stones, whether above or beneath the surface of
the water.”
The Dipper may be said to be local rather than rare, but
is seldom found in the counties around London. The nearest