Alfred Edmund Brehm

“ It would seem that whatever they do must be done in the water; they cannot even rise upon the wing without a preliminary rush over the surface of the lake: from dry land they cannot commence their flight. Their whole life is divided between swimming and diving; and even when other water-birds go on shore to sleep, the Grebes repose floating on their liquid bed. When thus sleeping upon the tranquil water, they float as buoyantly as if they were made of cork, their legs raised to the edges of their wings, and their head comfortably buried among the feathers between their back and shoulder. ”

“ Ellis tells us that in the latter island they are so tame as to allow themselves to be taken from the branches with the hand. "These," says Bennett, "are amongst the most beautiful of all the oceanic birds, and excite admiration as the rays of a bright sun shine upon their chaste and delicate satin plumage; they are as gentle in manner as graceful in flight, and it is pleasing to watch their evolutions, for when soaring to a great elevation the action of their wings is slow, accompanied by a jerking motion, rising and falling in the air, at the same time uttering their peculiar, shrill notes. ”

“ At that season it is very easily discovered, for when you are perhaps more than a quarter of a mile distant it rises into the air with clamorous cries, alarming all the birds in its neighbourhood, flies round the place of its nest, now wheeling off to a distance, again advancing towards you, and at intervals alighting by the edge of the lake, when it continues its cries, vibrating its body all the while. ”

“ Several times when the hounds, in beating the ground, have come upon a brood, we have seen the old bird rise with a young one in her claws, and carry it fifty or one hundred yards away, and, if followed to the place where she alighted, she has repeated the transaction until too much harassed. One morning, while sitting on a grey stone, I saw a dark eye which was fixed upon mine from the bed of dead leaves before me, when suddenly the little brown head of a young Woodcock peeped out from the feathers of the old one's breast, uttering that plaintive cry for which language has no sign. ”

“ Thousands and hundreds of thousands swarm upon the ledges, shelves, and projections, wherever these are to be found, and range themselves in rows like a regiment of soldiers, all with their white breasts turned towards the sea, hundreds of thousands more may be seen flying off from the ledges of the cliffs down to the water below, while multitudes, equally innumerable, are as constantly flying upwards from the sea to the cliff, and whole fleets are swimming and diving in the waves beneath. ”

“ I beheld with concern the extraordinary affection manifested by these birds towards each other, for whenever one fell dead or wounded on the water its mate or a stranger immediately alighted by its side, swam around it, pushed it with its bill, as if to urge it either to fly or dive, and seldom would leave it until an oar was raised to knock it on the head, when, at last aware of the danger, it would plunge below in an instant. Those which fell wounded immediately ran with speed to some hole and dived into it, on which no further effort was made to secure them. ”

“ In case of danger she makes every endeavour to draw it upon herself, or if the assailants are such as to make it at all practicable, she flies at them with the utmost fury, and uses every effort to drive them away. The young brood follow her with every demonstration of affection; they watch her slightest warning, listen to every sound she utters, and when bidden, at once hide themselves among weeds or sink down between the inequalities of the ground. ”

“ They can scarcely be said to walk, but they swim with ease and buoyancy, still they seldom alight upon the water, passing by far the greater part of their lives upon the wing. From the deck of a ship they may be seen pertinaciously accompanying it for whole days together, sweeping constantly along with an unbroken equable pace, mounting gently over the crests of the highest waves, plunging headlong into the valleys between them, only staying their course now and then for a moment, to enable them to pick up any stray morsel thrown from the ship, or seen floating upon the water. ”

“ Every square foot of the ground seems to be occupied by a Guillemot planted erect, as it were, on the granite rock, but carefully warming its cherished egg. All look towards the south, and if you are fronting them, the snowy white of their bodies produces a remarkable effect, for the birds at some distance look as if destitute of head, so much does that part assimilate with the dark hue of the rocks on which they stand. On the other hand, if you approach them in the rear, the isle appears as if covered with a black pall. ”

“ Macgillivray:—"In the elegance of its buoyant flight as it skims over the waters or shoots on its way to and from its breeding-place, the tiny creature must be an object of admiration to every lover of nature. You may see a pair coming up from a distance flying at the height of a few yards over the waves, their long wings winnowing the air and impelling them in starts, as it were, as they wend their way in undulating and wavering movements. ”

“ Their care for their young progeny is equally remarkable. Although the male does not himself actually take a share in the duties of incubation, all his energies seem to be devoted to the protection of his mate during her patient retirement, and he may at such times always be seen, either swimming proudly and defiantly around her, or reposing in the immediate vicinity of the nest, as though to cheer her confinement by his presence. ”

“ While flying, their attention is anxiously bent upon the sea beneath, on the look-out for food, upon which, when discovered, they instantly dart down, some of them with the straightness and rapidity of an arrow, others more leisurely, while some, before they seize their prey, settle down and swim. All are equally rapacious, whether they catch food for themselves or rob other birds of their hard-earned booty, whether they devour living victims or content themselves with feeding, like the Vultures, upon carrion. ”

“ Every one of the party stood on tip-toe, to mark the spot where it should rise, but all in vain, when the man at the rudder accidentally looked down over the stern, and then saw the Goose, its body immersed, the point of its bill alone above water, and its feet busily engaged in propelling it so as to keep pace with the movements of the boat. ”

“ But when the red beams of the setting sun tinge the tall tops of the forest trees, the birds rise clumsily on their short legs, and hastily waddle to the water and plunge into the stream. Lightly they float as they marshal themselves and extend their lines; and now their broad, paddle-like feet propel them onwards. In yonder nook the small fry are dancing on the quiet water. Thousands are there, and the very manner of their mirth making the water to sparkle, invites their foes to advance. ”

“ The Little Auk must certainly be regarded as the gayest and briskest member of its family; when visiting the shore it steps nimbly along on its toes, vanishes from observation among the stones, or creeps like a mouse into crevices in the rocks. When out at sea it swims and dives with wonderful alacrity, remaining under water for even more than a couple of minutes. Its flight resembles that of the birds above described, but it moves its little wings even more rapidly than they. ”

“ The Ganders seem to delight in tyrannising over all the other inmates of the pond, and not content with persecuting Ducks and Geese considerably larger than themselves, such is their boldness and audacity that they will sometimes attack even man himself. Should one of them encounter another male of his own species, either alone or accompanied by a female, it will fall upon him as though it were a bird of prey, and should it be unable to kill him by blows inflicted with the beak and wings, will try to drown him. ”

“ We are told by travellers that among all the gorgeously-coloured inhabitants of these luxuriant regions, the Peacock Heron is conspicuous, presenting as it does a most brilliant combination of yellow, green, black, brown, and grey, when seen by the full light of the sun, in whose rays it delights to bask, keeping meanwhile its wings and tail gracefully outspread. ”

“ This bird may occasionally be seen flying by day if it has been disturbed; but it usually remains motionless upon sandbanks from morning to evening, generally lying flat upon its belly, more rarely standing up on its little feeble feet; while thus reposing, it is but seldom that it makes any noise or exhibits the slightest activity. As the sun sets, however, it begins to be more lively, moves about, stretches itself, raises its wings, hops backwards and forwards, and utters its peculiar cry; but it is only as night approaches that it flies away in search of food. ”

“ The nest of the Water Rail is composed of sedges and coarse grass loosely heaped together, and is made on the ground, amongst reeds and rushes, beneath bushes, and occasionally in short herbage. The eggs, from six to ten in number, vary somewhat in colour, but are usually brownish white, or greenish, spotted with violet, grey, and brown. The young look like little, round, puffy balls of down when first hatched, and at once roll into the water, where they swim about with as much delight and enjoyment as if they had been accustomed to the exercise for years. ”

“ The eggs are well-shaped, rather elongate, slightly shining, and of a delicate greenish brown, grey, or dirty olive-green colour. Only the female sits, and upon her the guardianship of the young brood almost entirely devolves. Such as are born in nests placed at a considerable height, must necessarily be brought by her to the surface of the ground, but we are not aware that any naturalist has witnessed such a proceeding. It is just possible that, like some Ducks and Geese, they may leap from the nest trusting to their fluttering wings and thick downy covering to come off scatheless. ”