. History of British birds : the figures engraved on wood . rs, but particularly where they fallin cafcades, or run with great rapidity amongftones and fragments of broken rocks; there itmay be feen perched on the top of a ftone in themidfl of the torrent, in a continual dipping motion,or fhort courtefy often repeated, whilfl it is watch-ing for its food, which conlifts of fmall fiihes andinfefts. The feathers of this bird, like thofe of theDuck tribe, are impervious to water, whereby itis enabled to continue a long time in that fluidwithout fuflaining the leafl injury. But the moftfmgular tra
. History of British birds : the figures engraved on wood . rs, but particularly where they fallin cafcades, or run with great rapidity amongftones and fragments of broken rocks; there itmay be feen perched on the top of a ftone in themidfl of the torrent, in a continual dipping motion,or fhort courtefy often repeated, whilfl it is watch-ing for its food, which conlifts of fmall fiihes andinfefts. The feathers of this bird, like thofe of theDuck tribe, are impervious to water, whereby itis enabled to continue a long time in that fluidwithout fuflaining the leafl injury. But the moftfmgular trait in its character, (and it is wellauthenticated) is that of its poflefllng the power ofwalking, in quefl of its prey, on the pebbly bot- VoL II. t C l8 BRITISH BIRDS. torn of a river, in the fame way, and with thefame eafe as if it were on dry land. The femalemakes her nefl in the banks of the rivulet, of thefame kind of materials, and nearly of the fameform as that of the common Wren; and laysfour or five eggs, which are white, lightly blufhedwith BRITISH BIRDS. 19
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Keywords: ., bookauthorbeilbyralph17431817, bookdecade1790, booksubjectbirds
