• G R E A T NORTI1KKN DIVER OR LOON.
When out at a distance lie made the same cautious efforts to hide, and •
would commonly defend himself in great anger, by darting at the intruderv
and striking powerfully with his dagger-like hill. This bird,
with a pink-coloured iris-likeSSibihos, appeared to suffer from the glare
of broad dafilight, and was Utelined to hide fcomíits efféei»;: but became
very active towards the dusk of the evening. The pupil of the
in this individual, like that of noeturnal animals, appeared indeed
dilatable; nidi the one in question often put clown his head and M'es
into the water to observe thci^'situation of his prey. This bird was a
most 'expert ami indefatigable 'diver, and remained don n-sometimes
for several miuul(!.s, often swimming lindor water, anda® it were Hying
with the velocity of an arrow it) the air. Though at length inclining
to becotife docile1; and shewing 'no alarm when visited, it constantly
betrayed its wandering habits, and every night was fciund to have
waddled to !soiTie hiding: place, where it seemed to pretor hunger to
the loss of liberty, and never could lie restrained from exercising its
instinct to move onwards to some secure o r more suitable asylum."""
The saine valued friend has corroborated the result of my observa
tions reápettting the number of eggs usually laid by this species, by
stating as follows: " Aboiit'thcMlth ofjuuc, through the kimhuW of
Dr J. W. HARRIS, I receivcVl three eggs, which hail been taken from
'the nest of a Lóón, made in a hummock, or elevated grassy hillock,'at
Sébago Pond", in New Hampshire."
The ra»go' of this sp'efeiS is immense. It occurs on the waters
that fall into the; l'acific Ocean, and has been observed on the Oolumbia
River. In lie Fur Countries it ¿'plentiful; and, as I have' already
stated, it breeds in many parts of the United StatB It is
found! equally in Europe, and the northern parts of Asia. In all thiise
countries i t movies: sMuthward on the approach of Winter, and returns
when the mild weather commences :in spring.,
Unlike the Cormorant, 'the Loón usually swallows its food under
the water, tmUSss when it happens to bring up a shell-fish or a erustaeeous
animal, which it munches for a while before il swallows it.
Fishes of numerous kinds, aquatic insects, water-li/.ards, frogs, and
leeches, have. been, found by me in its stomach, in which there is
also generally much coarse gravel, and sometimes tho roots of freshwater
plants.
Although the flesh of the Loon i's not very palatable, being tough,
G R E A T NORTHERN DIVER OR LOON. 58
rank, and dark; coloured, I have seen it much relished by many lovers
of good-living, ^Specially at Boston, where it was not unfrequently
served almost raw at the tabic of the house where I boarded.
A female,bird particularly examined by me presented the following
;
appearances,;,! eFrom the point of the; bill to the end of the tail it mea^
sura! ;i4 inches ; to the claws 41; the extended wings were 71; the bill
measured ;"> inches along the gape.; the breadth of the body was 8
inches, its depth .only four ; the wings were, ,2 inches shorter than the
tail,; and the weight was 10 lb. 11 oz. avoirdupois. The first primary
was longest. The .trachea, which was even-,, and flattened, being in
diameter about. of an inch by i inch,.was 16 inches long,, The; eggs
were numerous. Tl%gizzard was moderate, and contained many large
pebbles. The intestines were 7 foet long, and about.the same size as
a Swan's quill. Every bivnp. and sinew was, strong^and tough. The
tongue, resembled in shape and sizthat of ,th<i Ivory-billed Woodpecker.
The. bones of the wing: and leg weje almos;t.;soUd, the cavity
for' the: marrow being very small. All the, bonos of this ,spe:eimen
jvere. presented to Mr THOMAS ALLXS, of the Friend's Retreat, near
My frienu Captain JAMKS CI.ARK Ross,: of the Royal Navy of
,England, once placed at my disposal a spei-im.pn yf the Loon procured
in a very high latitude, and which, having closely inspected it, I found
to differ from the one. represented in the plate, pnly in having the
point of ,lh;e, bill slightly elevated or recurved, and of a fine yellow
tints,' Dr R I C H A R D S O N informed me that, on one of his arduous northern
journeys, he saw a ve^y large and handsomely crested Div^r, which,
although sojnewhat prematurely, I propose honouring with the name
o f i'olymhua ffiehardsoni,
COI/YMBUS G LACIALIS, JAnn. Syst. Nat- vol. i. p. 221. Adult,—Lath. Ind. Ornith-
^ i f S S P l
: I , ; OOTYMBITS IMMER, imjis-Sjisi. ,Hat. vol. i. p. 222. Young, /.tit*. Ir.d. Oraith. p. 800.
, : (Jor.YKBT:^ GLACIALIS, Ch. Jiaiaparu, pvnopsi* of Birds of TJnitod States, p. 420.
GREAT NORTHERN DIVER or Loon,. Wtis. Ainev. Oniitli. vol. ix. pi. 74, fig. 3.
OOLYMBUS G RACIAL is, Itichardi. and Swains. Fauna Box*. Amer. vol. ii. p. 474.
T.OON, or GREAT' NORTHERN DIVER, Nuttall, Manual, vol. ii. p. 513.
Adult Male. Plate CCCVI. Fig. 1.
Bill as long as the head, straight, stout, much compressed, tapering