Fróðskaparrit - 01.01.2005, Page 55

GREAT NORTHERN DIVER (GAVIA IMMER) IN CIRCUMPOLAR FOLK ORNITHOLOGY 53
been most important in the folk ornitho-
logy over large parts of the circumpolar
region. From north-east Russia and Sibe-
ria over to Alaska the white-billed diver/
yellow-billed loon (Gavia adamsii) is of
significance. In North America two other
species, the Pacific diver (Gavia pacifi-
ca) and the great northern diver (Gavia
immer), have been more important. The
great northern diver or common loon is a
widespread species that nests throughout
the lake country of the northern United
States, Canada, and Alaska (Gingras and
Paszkowski, 1999).
The breeding distribution also includes
Greenland and Iceland, where the popula-
tion has been estimated to be 500-2,300
pairs, i.e. 1,500-6,900 individuals (there-
of in Iceland only about 300 pairs in sum-
mer, 100-1,000 birds in winter) and the
bird has been known to breed in Scotland,
at least in 1970, and on Bear Island and
possibly also on Jan Mayen Island and
Spitsbergen (Cramp, 1978: 58; Muus
et al., 1990; Lundevall, 1989: 139; Pe-
tersen, 1999: 36; Anonymous, 2005). It
is a fairly large species and is regarded as
the most common diver, hence the narne
common loon, in eastern North America
(Peterson, 1980: 32). Other North Ameri-
can names having been used at one time
or another for this species are e.g. guinea
duck, imber diver, ring-necked loon and
wallon (Terres, 1980: 595).
The great northern diver has played
an important role in the mythology and
economy of the native peoples of Canada
and Alaska (Armstrong, 1958: 63-64, 68;
Mclntyre, 1989: 1-6; Dregni, 1996: 9-
12; Rasmussen, 1999: 90). It has been lo-
cally known as big loon, call-up-a-storm,
greenhead and hell-diver (Sayre, 1996:
92). In Quebec it was called for example
plongeon, plongeon huard and riche-poom
(McAtee, 1957: 2; Terres, 1980: 594-
595). Among the Inuit of Alaska it was
known under the name kahroak, a name
used also for the black-throated diver (Ga-
via arctica), although they are aware of
the differences between them (Nelson,
1969: 163). The Greenlandic name of the
great northern diver is tuullik. It features
in many North American Indian and Inuit
myths and legends (Jones, 1880: 376-377;
Ingersoll, 1923: 276-277; Martin, 1993:
111, 113; Friesen, 1999).
There exists for example a short myth
among the great inajority of Inuit (Eski-
mo) groups and some Indian tribes, about
two birds painting each other in turn so
that they came to look like they do today
(cf. Rasmussen, 1926: 92). Most often the
birds in question are the raven and the
loon (great northern diver). The Danish
ethnologist Inge Kleivan wrote an article
about it in 1971, where she presented the
Eskimo material in its entirety, i.e. all the
25 variants, found among the East Green-
landers, the South-East Greenlanders, the
West Greenlanders, the Polar Eskimos,
the Labrador Eskimos, the Baffinlanders,
the Eskimos on the west coast of Hudson
Bay, the Iglulik Eskimos, the Caribou Es-
kimos, the Natsilik, the Copper Eskimos,
the Mackenzie Eskimos, North Alaska
and South Alaska. The oldest known Es-
kimo variant of the myth was written down
by missionary H. C. Glahn in his diary