ea A) Ai aN KS y a Ne as s _ = SNRGTENL | SP N. MOSK: H ACH ‘ AAD MC ree) AS, WS wa BeOS UVC AY AD cathy VT Siig Ie = _EX-LIBRIS FRANK WILLIAM: BORMAN (SLED; era PRC Te Ml are pine dst ne As is a ” te Aiea Tree Sparrow do Linnet ¢ House Sparrow 3& (fron Brambling 3 PReELISH BIRDS IN RHEIR. HAUNTS By the late Rev Ci AS TOLINS, Pes Author of Flowers of the Field Edited, Revised, and Annotated by J. A. OWEN Author of Birds in their Seasons, etc Collaborator in all Books by a ‘Son oF THE MaArsues ’ Illustrated with 64 Coloured Plates (256 Figures) by WILLIAM FOSTER, M.B.O.U WITII A GLOSSARY OF COMMON AND PROVINCIAL NAMES AND OF TECHNICAL TERMS LONDON GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS LIMITED NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO Tg09 UNIFORM WITH THIS WORK. FLOWERS OF THE FIELD. By Rev. C.A. Jouns, F.L.S., revised throughout by CLARENCE ELLIOTT; with 268 coloured Figures, and 245 Text Illustrations, THE FERN WORLD. By F. G. HEatu. With Text Illustrations and 12 Coloured Plates. THE BALANCE OF NATURE AND MODERN CONDITIONS OF CULTIVATION. By GEORGE ABBEY. With 150 Illustra- tions. LONDON: GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS, LTD. EDITORS PREEACE Tuts admirable work by the late Rev. C. A. Johns, F.L.S., which is now offered in a new form, has already proved the making of many a naturalist and it will be a delight and help to many more nature lovers who wish to determine a species without recourse to bulky scientific works. In editing the present edition I have carefully preserved all Mr. Johns’ delightful personal stories and his descriptions of the birds and their daily life in their haunts, but Ihave brought the scientific arrangement of the species up to date, as well as altered the nomen- clature, in accordance with present-day knowledge and use. We begin with the Passeres because modern ornithologists are now nearly all agreed that this order attains the highest Avian development. I have rectified statements as to the local distribution of various species which, with the progress of time and local changes, no longer apply, and have added facts here and there which I considered of some value. The faithful and beautiful presentments made by Mr. William Foster for this new edition have no need of our commendation to the public, J. A. OWEN. B.B. iii b SVoOrEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS (Numbered in accordance with the Plates and Descriptions in this Volume.) ORDERS BASSE RES (PERCHING BIRDS) Bill various ; feet adapted for perching on trees or on the ground (not for grasping, wading, or swimming) ; toes four, all in the same plane, three before and one behind ; claws slender, curved, and acute. Food, various ; that of the nestlings, perhaps in all instances, soft insects. FAMILY TURDIDZ (THRUSHES) Bill as long as the head, compressed at the sides ; upper mandible arched to the tip, which is not abruptly hooked, notch well marked, but not accom- panied by a tooth; gape furnished with bristles; feet long, with curved claws. Food—insects, snails and fruits. SUB-FAMILY TURDINZE Young in first plumage differ from adults in having the upper and under parts spotted. Genus 1. Turbus (Thrush, Blackbird, etc.) Bill moderate, compressed at the point; upper mandible notched, bending over the lower one; gape furnished with a few bristles; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, partly covered by a naked membrane; tarsus longer than the middle toe; wings and tail moderate; first primary very short or almost abortive, second shorter than the third or fourth, which are the longest. Page 1 2. SAxicoLa (Wheatear). Bill straight, slender, the base rather broader than high, advancing on the forehead, compressed towards the point ; upper mandible keeled, curved, and notched; gape sur- rounded by a few bristles ; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, half closed by a membrane; first primary half as long as the second, which is shorter than the third, third and fourth longest ; tarsus rather long ; claw of the hind toe short, strong and curved. Page 10 3. PRATiNCOLA (Chats). Bill shorter and broader than in Savicola ; bristles at the gapestrongly developed. Wings and tail rather short. Page 12 4. RutTici_La (Redstarts). Bill slender, compressed towards the point, a little deflected and very slightly emarginate ; gape with tolerably large bristles. Nostrils basal, supernal, and nearly round. Wings moderate ; the first quill short; the second equal to the sixth ; the third, fourth and fifth, nearly equal, and one of them the longest. Legs slender, the tarsus longer than the middle tee, and covered in front by a single scale and three inferior scutelle. Page 14 Vv vi SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS Pat 6. ErftHacus (Redbreast). Bill rather strong, as broad as it is high at the base, where it is depressed, slightly compressed towards the tip; upper mandible bending over the lower and notched, nostrils basal, oval, pierced in a membrane, partly hid by bristles diverging from the gape; first primary half as long as the second, fifth the longest ; tail slightly forked. Page 16 Dauias (Nightingale). Bill rather stout, straight, as broad as high at the base; upper mandible slightly bent over at the tip ; gape with a few short bristles; nostrils basal, round, pierced in a membrane ; first primary very short, second and fifth equal in length, third and fourth longest ; tail somewhat rounded ; tarsus elongated. Pacem, SUB-FAMILY ACCENTORINZE Bill strong and broad at base; upper mandible overlapping lower and slightly notched at tip. 7 Io. 12. ACCENTOR (Hedge-sparrow). Bill of moderate length, strong, straight, tapering to a fine point; edges of both mandibles com- pressed and bent inwards, the upper notched near the tip; nostrils naked, basal, pierced in a large membrane; feet strong; claw of the hinder toe longest, and most curved ; first primary almost obsolete, the second nearly equal to the third, which is the longest. Page 20 SUBFAMILY SYLVIINZE Young on leaving nest differ slightly in colour from adults. Sytv1A (Whitethroats, Blackcap, Warblers). Bill rather stout, short, not very broad ‘at base; upper mandible decurved towards point, which is slightly emarginate; nostrils basal, lateral, oval, and exposed ; gape with bristles. Wings moderate, first quill very short. Tail with twelve feathers, generally rounded. Tarsus scutellate in front and longer than middle toe ; toes and claws short. Page 21 ACROCEPHALUS (Reed, Marsh, Sedge, and Aquatic Warblers). Bill nearly straight, with culmen elevated, wide at base, compressed towards tip, and slightly emarginate; edges of lower mandible inflected ; nostrils basal, oblique, oval, and exposed ; moderately developed bristles at gape. Forehead narrow, depressed. Wings rather short, first quill minute, third usually longest. Tail rounded, rather long. Legs long; feet large and stout, hind toe strong ; claws long and moderately curved. Page 25 LocusTELLA (Grasshopper Warbler). Differs from other Sylviine chiefly in its more rounded tail and longer under tail-coverts. The late Professor Newton found the tendons of the tibial muscles strongly ossified in this genus. Page 28 PHyYLLOscopus (Chiffchaff, Willow and Wood-warblers). Bill slender, rather short; upper mandible decurved from middle and compressed towards tip, which is very slightly notched ; nostrils basal, lateral, oblong, partly operculate, membrane clothed with small bristle- tipped feathers, internasal ridge very thin; gape beset with hairs. Wings rather long, first quill comparatively large, third or fourth longest. Tail slightly forked, twelve feathers. Tarsus scaled in front, rather long. Toes long, claws curved. Page 30 SUB-FAMILY REGULINZ: Arboreal. Each nostril covered by a single stiff feather. Recutus (Gold and Fire-crested Wrens). Bill very slender, awl- shaped, straight, compressed ; cutting edges bent inwards about SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS vii the middle; nostrils partly concealed by small bristly feathers, directed forwards ; first primary very short, second much shorter than the third, fourth and fifth longest ; tail moderate; tarsus slender, rather long. : Page 33 FAMILY PARIDAt (T1Ts) Bill short, straight, conical, sharp-pointed, destitute of a notch; nostrils basal, concealed by reflected bristly hairs. Small birds, remarkable for their activity, not highly gifted with musical power, constantly flitting and climb- ing about trees and bushes, which they examine for small insects, suspending themselves in all attitudes, feeding also on grains and fruits, and not sparing small birds when they are able to overpower them. 13. AcR&DULA (Long-tailed Tit). Bill much compressed, both mandibles curved, upper considerably longer than lower. Eyelids with wide bare margins. Length of wing quills increases to fourth and fifth, which are longest. Tail very long, narrow, graduated, outer feathers one-third length of middle pair. Tarsus long, feet moderate. Page 35 14. Parus (Great, Blue, Cole, Marsh, and Crested Tits). Bull slightly compressed, upper mandible hardly longer than lower. First wing quill short, fourth or fifth longest. Tail moderate, even or slightly rounded. Tarsus moderate, feet strong. Page 37 RAMEY PAN WRID AL (REEDLINGS) 15. PANGrRuUS (Bearded Tit or Reedling). Bill short, subconical; upper mandible curved at tip and bending over lower one, which is nearly straight ; the edges of both somewhat inflected and not notched. Nostrils basal, oval, pointed in front and partly covered by reflected bristly feathers. Wing with ten quills, first almost obsolete, third longest, fourth and fifth nearly equal to it. Tail very long and, much graduated. Tarsus long and scutellate in front ; feet stout , claws not much hooked. Page 42 FAMILY SITTIDA (NUTHATCHES) 16. SitrA (Nuthatch). Bullmoderate, strong, and slightly conical; lower mandible ascending from angle to point. Tongue short, horny tip abrupt and furnished with strong bristles. Nostrils basal, rounded, in deep hollow, covered by short feathers and hairs. Wings rather long; first quill much shorter than second, fourth or fifth longest. Tail short, flexible, broad, nearly square. Legs short, stout, tarsi scutellate ; toes long, strong, hind toe especially, outer toe joined at base to middle toe; claws large, much hooked. Page 44 FAMILY CERTHIID# (CREEPERS) Bill either straight and subulate or slender, long, and curved; _ nostrils basal; tail never emarginate; fourth toe coalesced at first phalanx with middle toe. Principally insectivorous. 17. CERTHIA (Creeper). Bill rather long, slender, compressed, decurved, pointed ; nostrils basal, lateral, elongate, partly covered by mem- viii SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS brane. Wings moderate, rounded, first feather short, fourth and fifth longest. Tail of twelve feathers, long, stiff, pointed, slightly decurved. Feet large, tarsus slender; fore toes long, united at base as far as first joint ; claws moderate, but much curved ; hind toe short, but with long curved claw. Plumage soft and thick, especially above. Page 47 FAMILY TROGLODYTID 18. TROGLO6ODYTES (Wren). Bill moderate, compressed, slightly curved not notched, pointed. Nostrils basal, oval, partly covered by membrane. Wings short, concave, rounded; first quill rather short, fourth or fifth longest. Tail generally short; its feathers soft and rounded. Tarsus rather long and strong, middle toe united at base to outer but not to inner toe; hind toe as long or longer than middle toe; claws long, stout and curved. Plumage long and soft. Page 48 FAMILY CINCLIDZZ 19. CincLus (Dipper). Bill moderate, slightly ascending, angular, higher than broad at base, straight, compressed, and rounded near tip ; upper mandible slightly decurving at point. WNostrils basal, lateral; in depression, cleft longitudinally, partly covered by membrane. Gape very narrow, without bristles. Wings short, broad, convex ; first quill very short, second not so long as third or fourth, which are nearly equal. Tail short. Legs feathered to tibio-tarsal joint ; tarsus longer than middle toe; lateral toes equal in length, outer toe slightly connected with middle. Whole body closely covered with down. Page 51 FAMILY ORIOLID: Bill with notch in upper mandible; ncstrils placed well in front of base of bill and quite bare. 20. Or16LUs (Oriole). Bill an elongated cone, depressed at the base ; upper mandible keeled above, notched near the point, bending over the lower one; nostrils basal, lateral, naked, pierced hori- zontally in a large membrane; tarsus not longer than the middle toe; wings moderate; first primary very short, second shorter than the third, which is the longest. Page 53 FAMILY STURNIDZ (STARLINGS) Bill nearly straight, short at the base, diminishing regularly to a sharp point, which is not distinctly notched ; the*ridge of the upper mandible; ascends upon the forehead, ‘dividing the plumage of that part; nostrils placed low in the bill; planta tarsi entire ; wings moderate, not reaching to end of tail. An extensive and widely diffused family, comprising species for the most part above the average size of Passerine birds, yet inferior to the Crows. They are in general social, feeding much on the ground ; their legs and feet are robust, their gait stately, their plumage, though com- monly of dark colours, is lustrous, with reflections of steel-blue, purple, or green. 21. StTuRNus (Starling). Bill straight, forming an elongated cone, depressed broad at the base, bluntish; upper mandible broader than the lower ; nostrils at the base of the bill, partly closed by an arched membrane ; first primary very short, second longest. Page 54 SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS ix 22. Pastor (Rose-coloured Starling). Bill slightly arched, forming an elongated cone, compressed ; nostrils at the base of the bill partly covered by a feathery membrane; wings with the first primary very short, second and third longest. Page 56 FAMILY CORVIDA (Crows) Bill powerful, more or less compressed at the sides; upper mandible more or less arched to the point without distinct notch; gape nearly straight ; nostrils concealed by stiff bristles. Hallux very strong, but with its claws not as long as the middle toe and claw. Birds of firm and compact structure; their wings long, pointed, and powerful; their feet and claws robust. In disposition bold and daring, extremely sagacious, easily tamed and made familiar. Most of them have the power of imitating various sounds, but their natural voices are harsh. They evince a remarkable propensity for thieving and hiding brilliant and gaudy substances. In appetite they are omnivorous. 23. PyRRHOCORAX (Chough). Bill longer than the head, rather slender, arched from the base, and pointed; nostrils oval; feet strong, tarsus longer than the middle toe; wings rounded, first primary short, fourth and fifth the longest; tail even at the end. Page 50 24 NucirraGa (Nutcracker). Bill about as long as the head, straight, conical, the base dilated, and dividing the feathers of the fore- head ; mandibles blunt, the upper somewhat the longer ; nostrils round ; wings rather long and pointed ; first primary shorter than the second and third, fourth longest; tail nearly even. Page 57 to tn GARRULUs (Jay). Bill shorter than the head, conical; both mandi- bles equally curved, the upper notched near the tip ; crown feathers forming a crest; wings rounded, fourth, fifth, and sixth primaries nearly equal, and the longest ; tarsus longer than the middle toe ; tail: moderate, shghtly rounded. Page 58 26. Pica (Magpie). Bill, nostrils, and feet as in Corvus; wings short and rounded; tail long, graduated. Page 59 to N Corvus (Raven, Crows, Rook), Bill not longer than the head, strong, straight at the base, cutting at the edges, and curved towards the point ; nostrils oval; feet strong, tarsus longer than the middle toe; wings pointed, first primary moderate, second and third shorter than the fourth, which is the longest ; tail moderate, rounded. Page 61 FAMILY LANIID/E (SHRIKES) Bill strong, arched, and hooked, the upper mandible strongly notched after the manner of the FaALtconip#&; claws adapted for capturing insects and even small birds. Sylvan. Young barred below. 28. LAnrus (Shrike, or Butcher Bird). Bill short, flattened vertically (compressed) at the sides; gape furnished with bristly feathers directed forwards ; wings with the first three primaries graduated, the third and fourth being the longest, Page 73 x SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRD- FAMILY AMPELID/® (CHATTERERS) Bill stout, approaching, especially in the form of the lower mandible, to that of the Corvide; the upper mandible is however somewhat broad at the base, flat, with the upper edge more or less angular and ridged, and the tip distinctly notched. Feet usually stout, with the outer toe united to the middle one as far as, or beyond, the first joint. They feed principally on berries and other soft fruits, occasionally also on insects. 29. AmPELIS (Waxwing). Bill as above; nostrils oval, concealed by small feathers directed forwards; wings long and pointed; first and second primaries longest, some of the secondaries and tertials terminating in wax-like prolongations of their shafts. Page 76 FAMILY MUSCICAPID/E (FLYCATCHERS) Bill broad, flattened horizontally (depressed), shghtly toothed and adapted for catching small flying insects; nostrils more or less covered by bristly hairs; feet generally feeble. 30. Muscicapa (Flycatcher). Bill moderate, somewhat triangular, de- pressed at the»base, compressed towards the tip, which is slightly curved downwards; gape armed with stiff bristles; tarsus equal to or longer than the middle toe ; side toes of equal length; wings with the first primary very short, and the third and fourth longest. Page 77 FAMILY HIRUNDINIDZ (SWALLOWS AND MARTINS) Beak short but broad, and more or less flattened horizontally ; mouth very deeply cleft ; feet small and weak; wings with nine visible primaries, long and powerful, and thus adapted for sustaining a protracted flight in pursuit of winged insects, which form the sole sustenance of these birds ; tail long and usually forked ; plumage close, smooth, often burnished with a metallic gloss. Migratory birds, spending the summer in temperate climates, but being impatient of cold, withdrawing in winter to equatorial regions. 31. Hrirunpo (Swallow). Bill short, depressed, very wide at base, com- missure straights Nostrils basal, oval, partly closed by membrane. Tail deeply forked, of twelve feathers, the outermost greatly elon- gated and abruptly attenuated. Legs and feet slender and bare ; toes rather long, three in front, one behind ; claws moderate. Page 80 32. CHELipON (Martin). Bill short, depressed, very wide at base, com- missure slightly decurved. Nostrils basal, oval, partly closed by membrane and opening laterally. Tail forked, of twelve feathers, outermost not abruptly attenuated. Legs and feet slender, closely feathered above; toes rather long, three in front, one behind ; claws moderate, sharp. Page 83 33. CoTILE (Sand-martin). Bill short, depressed, very wide at base, commisssure straight. Nostrils, wings and tail as in chelidon. Legs and feet slender, and bare except for tuft of feathers on tarsus just below hallux; toes moderate, three in front, one behind ; claws strong. Page 84 SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS x FAMILY FRINGILLID/Z (FINCHES) Remarkable for the shortness, thickness, and powerful structure of the bill; the upper and lower mandibles are usually equally thick, and their height and breadth are nearly alike, so that the bill when closed presents the appearance of a short cone, divided in the middle by the gape. By its aid they break open the hard woody capsules and fruit-stones containing the seeds and kernels which form their chief food. At nesting-time many species live on insect larve, with which the young are almost exclusively fed. The wings have nine visible primaries. This family is one of immense extent, consisting of relatively small birds. 34. Licurrinus (Greenfinch). Bill compressed towards tip, with scarcely 35- 36. 37: 39. 40. 4l. B.B, perceptible notch at point ; nostrils basal, concealed by stiff feathers directed forwards ; wings rather pointed, first quill obsolete, second, third and fourth nearly equal and longest. Tail rather short, slightly forked. Tarsus scutellate in front ; toes moderate ; claws arched and laterally grooved. Page 86 CoccoTHRAUSTES (Hawfinch). Bill tapering rapidly to point, culmen rounded ; mandibles nearly equal, edges inflected and slightly in- dented. Nostrils basal, lateral, oval, nearly hidden by projecting and recurved frontal plumes. Wings with first quill obsolete, third and fourth primaries nearly equal, sixth, seventh, and eighth curved outwards. ‘Tail short, and nearly square, ‘Tarsus scutellate in front, covered at sides with single plate, stout and short ; claws moderately curved, rather short and strong. Page 87 Carpué is (Goldfinch and Siskin). Bill a rather elongated cone, compressed at the tip, and finely pointed ; wings long, pointed ; first three primaries nearly equal and the longest; tail slightly forked. Page 88 Passer (Sparrows). Bill somewhat arched above ; lower mandible rather smaller than the upper; first three primaries longest. Page 92 FRINGILLA (Chaffinch and Brambling). Biil straight,sharp, pointed ; mandibles nearly equal; first primary a little shorter than the second, much shorter than the third and fourth, which are nearly equal and the longest. Page 95 AcaANnTHIS (Linnet, Redpolls, Twite). Bill a short straight cone, compressed at the tip; wings long, pointed ; third primary some- what shorter than the first and second, which are equal and the longest ; tail forked. Page 98 PYRRHULA (Bullfinch). Bill short and thick, the sides tumid ; upper mandible much arched and bending over the lower one; first primary nearly equal to the fifth, second a little shorter than the third and fourth, which are the longest. Page 101 Loxta (Crossbill). Bill thick at the base; both mandibles equally curved, hooked at the tips, and crossing each other at the points. Page 103 EmBerizA (Buntings, Yellow-hammer). Bill with upper mandible not wider than lower, edges of both inflected and those of latter gradually cut away (sinuated); the palate generally furnished with a hard bony knob; wings moderate, first primary obsolete, second, third and fourth nearly equal. Tail rather long and slightly ¢ xii SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS forked. Claws considerably curved, that of hind toe: of moderate length. Page 106 43. PLECTROPHENAX (Snow Bunting). Bill with upper mandible narrower than lower, otherwise as in Emberiza. Wings long and pointed, first primary obsolete, second and third nearly equal and longest in wing, fourth considerably longer than fifth. Tail moderate and slightly forked. Front claws rather long and curved; hind claw considerably curved and elongated. Page 110 44. CaLcartus (Lapland Bunting). Bill with considerably inflected cutting edges (tomia) ; claws of front toes short and slightly curved ; hind claw nearly straight and elongated; other characters much as in Plectrophenax. Page 111 FAMILY MOTACILLIDZ (WAGTAILS AND PipIts) Wings with nine visible primaries. Inner secondaries nearly as long as primaries. 45. Moraciiia (Wagtail). Cutting edges of both mandibles slightly compressed inwards; nostrils basal, oval, partly concealed by a naked membrane; first primary acuminate and nearly obsolete, second and third nearly equal and longest; one of the scapulars as long as the quills; tail long, nearly even at the end; tarsus much longer than the middle toe. Page 111 46. ANTHUs (Pipit). Bill and nostrils very much as in Motacilla ; two of the scapulars as long as the closed wing ; first primary acuminate and nearly obsolete,-second shorter than the third and fourth, which are the longest; hind claw very long. Page 116 FAMILY ALAUDID: (LARKS) Wings with nine or more visible primaries. Planta tarsi scutellate. Grani- vorous birds, frequenting open spaces, and singing during their flight ; nesting on ground and seeking their food there by running ; they are ‘ pulverators’, i.e. they shake dust or sand into their feathers instead of bathing. 47. ALAuDA (Lark). Bill moderate, slightly compressed at edges ; upper mandible more or less arched from middle. Nostrils basal, oval, covered by bristly feathers directed forward. Gape straight. Wings long; first primary short but unmistakably developed ; second, third and fourth nearly equal, but third longest. Tail moderate, slightly forked. Tarsus longer than middle toe; claws slightly curved and moderate, except that of hind toe, which is generally elongate and nearly straight. Page 119 48. Orocorys (Shore-lark). Bill rather short, subconic ; upper mandi- ble slightly arched. Head—in adult male—with tuft of long, erectile feathers on either side of occiput. Wings long; first primary so smallasat first sight to seem wanting, second longest but third nearly its equal, fourth decidedly shorter, outer secondaries short and emarginate at tip. Tail rather long, slightly forked. Tarsus shorter than middle toe; claws moderate and very slightly curved, that of hind toe being comparatively straight, Page 122 SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF BIRDS xiii ORDER PICARIZ Opposed to the Passeres. The feet are relatively weaker and smaller. FAMILY CYPSELIDZ (SwIFTs) Tail of ten feathers (swallows have twelve). Gape very wide. 49. CypsEtus (Swift). Bill very short, flattened horizontally, triangular ; upper mandible curved downwards at the point; gape extending beyond the eyes; legs very short; toes all directed forwards ; wings extremely long ; first primary a little shorter than the second. Page 123 FAMILY CAPRIMULGID (GOATSUCKERS) The bill in this family resembles that of the Swallows, but is shorter and weaker ; the gape is enormous and its sides are, for the most part, furnished with long and stiff bristles, which point forwards; the wings are long, and formed for powerful flight; the feet are small, and feathered to the toes ; plumage soft and downy, and beautifully mottled with black, brown, grey, and white, varying in colour with the soil of their habitat ; the claw of the middle toe is dilated on one side and toothed likeacomb. Tail of ten feathers. Nocturnal birds, feeding on large insects, which they capture in their flight. 50. CApRimuLGUS (Goatsucker or Nightjar). Bill very short, somewhat curved, broad and flattened at the base; upper mandible curved downwards at the tip; gape extending beyond the eyes, and armed with strong bristles ; wings long; first primary shorter than the second, which is the longest. Page 125 FAMILY PICID (WOODPECKERS) Feet short, but of unusual strength ; the rigid toes diverge from a centre, two pointing forwards, and two backwards; claws large, much curved, and very hard and sharp; breast-bone shallow ; flight weak and undulating. SUB-FAMILY PICINZ Tail feathers stiff and pointed: nostrils covered with bristles. 51. DENDROcOoPUS (Spotted Woodpeckers). Bill about as long as the head, robust, straight, irregular, compressed, pyramidal, laterally bevelled at the tip; tongue long and extensile, the tip barbed ; nostrils basal, oval, concealed by reflected bristly feathers ; wings with the first primary very short, fourth and fifth longest; tail- feathers graduated, stiff and pointed. Fourth toe much longer than third. Prevailing colours of the plumage black and white, or black and red. Page 127 52. Gerctnus (Green Woodpecker). Bill hard, broad at base, compressed at tip; upper mandible slightly arched, ending abruptly with shallow groove on each side running parallel to and near the culmen, and longer than lower mandible, which is pointed and has the gonys nearer the tip than the base and the tomia rounded. The fourth toe equal to the third. Prevailing colour greenish, otherwise much as in Dendrocopus. Page 129 xiv SYSTEMATIC ARRANGEMENT OF THE GENERA OF- BIRDS SUB-FAMILY IYNGIN& Nostrils partly covered by a membrane. 53. Iynx (Wryneck). Bill shorter than the head, straight, conical; tongue long and extensile ; nostrils without bristles, partly closed by a membrane; wings with the second primary somewhat the longest ; tail-feathers soft and flexible. Page 131 FAMILY "ALCEDINIDZ (KINGFISHERS) Bill long, stout, and pointed, with angular sides, not serrated ; feet small and feeble, the outer and middle toes united to the last joint ; wings rounded and hollow, ill adapted for protracted flight; form robust, with a large head and usually a short tail. Predatory birds, feeding on fish, insects, and even reptiles, birds, and small quadrupeds. Scattered over the world, but Australia and South America contain the greatest number of species. 54. Atckpo (Kingfisher). Bill long, straight, quadrangular, sharp ; wings short with the third primary the longest ; tail very short. Page 132 FAMILY CORACIID/ (ROLLERS) Bill corvine in shape ; culmen rounded ; nostrils near base of upper mandi- ble and hidden by bristly feathers; tail feathers twelve. 54. CorActas (Roller). Bill compressed, straight, with cutting edges ; upper mandible slightly hooked at the point; sides of the gape bristled ; tarsus short; wings long; first primary a little shorter than the second, which is the longest. Page 134 FAMILY MEROPIDZ (BEE-EATERS) Bill long ; culmen with sharply defined ridge ; toes joined for part of length 55. Merops (Bee-eater). Bill long,compressed, slightly curved, slender, with cutting edges, broad at the base; upper mandible keeled, the tip not hooked ; tarsus very short ; wings long, pointed, second primary the longest ; centre tail feathers elongated. Page 135 FAMILY UPUPIDZ (HooPoEs) 56. Upupa (Hoopoe). Bill longerthan the head, slender, slightly arcl ed, compressed ; feathers of the head long, forming a two-ranked crest; tail even at the extremity. Page 136 FAMILY CUCULID/& (CucKoos) Bill moderate, rather deeply cleft, both mandibles compressed, and more or less curved downwards ; nostrils exposed ; wings for the most part short; tail of ten feathers lengthened; toes four, two pointing backwards and two forwards, but the outer hind toe of each foot is capable of being placed at right angles with either the inner or outer front toe. i 7 ey Vs a - fy be ¥ eT . a if ; sae 4 ed i +E us od —. « i \ ¢ ern re Kee, “ , an { i ° “at d : ; v - try ¥ = a r pane Vy , , i ° } re ee Sr eee oe *. ey) ey 1 vr Sih ne A, q © he , Ls ey , ea WSs, ole “af o 7 , x md F [. jl = rs j ‘ oy aa Os ii ae A) a4 ‘ cae ; ; i a ; ‘f tr) re e ' : 2 acer’ bier bat , ee 7 : if ce boy Ma Aad j : j iv a ee ee THE CRANE 235 Willughby, whose Ornithology was published about a hundred years later, says that Cranes were regular visitors in England, and that large flocks of them were to be found, in summer, in the fens of Lincolnshire and Cambridgeshire. Whether they bred in Eng- land, as Aldrovandus states, on the authority of an Englishman who had seen their young, he could not say on his own personal knowledge. Sir Thomas Browne, a contemporary of Willughby, writes, in his account of birds found in Norfolk: “Cranes are often seen here in hard winters, especially about the champaign and fieldy part. It seems they have been more plentiful ; for, in a bill of fare, when the mayor entertained the Duke of Norfolk, I met with Cranes in a dish.’ Pennant, writing towards the close of the eighteenth century, says: ‘On the strictest inquiry, we learn that, at present, the inhabitants of those counties are scarcely acquainted with them ; we therefore conclude that these birds have left our land.’ Three or four instances only of the occurrence of the Crane took place within the memory of Pennant’s last editor; and about as many more are recorded by Yarrell as having come within the notice of his correspondents during the present century. It would seem, therefore, that the Crane has ceased to be a regular visitor to Britain. It is, however, still of common occurrence in many parts of the Eastern Continent, passing its summer in temperate climates, and retiring southwards at the approach of winter. Its periodical migrations are remarkable for their punctuality, it hav- ing been observed that, during a long series of years, it has invariably traversed France southward in the latter half of the month of Octo- ber, returning during the latter half of the month of March. On these occasions, Cranes fly in large flocks, composed of two lines meeting at an angle, moving with no great rapidity, and alighting mostly during the day to rest and feed. At other seasons, it ceases to be gregarious, and repairs to swamps and boggy morasses, where in spring it builds a rude nest of reeds and rushes on a bank or stump of a tree, and lays two eggs. As a feeder it may be called omnivorous, so extensive is its dietary. Its note is loud and sonorous, but harsh, and is uttered when the birds are performing their flights as well as at other times. The Crane of the Holy Scriptures is most probably not this species, which is rare in Palestine, but another, Grus Virgo, the Crane figured on the Egyptian monuments, which periodically visits the Lake of Tiberias, and whose note is a chatter, and not the trumpet sound of the Cinereous Crane. In the north of Ireland, in Wales and perhaps elsewhere, the Heron is commonly called a Crane. A certain number of Cranes have been noticed in the Shetland Isles, and some in the Orkneys. The latest seen in Ireland was in 1884, County Mayo. 236 THE GREAT BUSTARD FAMILY OTIDIDA No hind toe. THE GREAT BUSTARD OTIS TARDA Head, neck, breast, and edge of the wing ash grey ; on the crown a longitu- dinal black streak ; bill with a tuft of elongated loose feathers on each side of the lower mandible; upper plumage reddish yellow, streaked transversely with black ; lower whitish ; tail reddish brown and white, barred with black. Female—smaller, without a moustache, the streak on the crown fainter. Length nearly four feet. Eggs olive-brown, irregu- larly blotched with dull red and deep brown. Tue Great Bustard was formerly not unfrequent in Britain, but of late years it has become so rare that it is now impossible to describe its habits on the testimony of a living eye-witness. In several parts of the Continent it is indeed still to be met with; but I find so many discrepancies in the various accounts which I have consulted, that it is hard to believe all the writers who de- scribe it to have had the same bird in view. Some of these the reader may examine for himself. The earliest mention of it which I find occurs in the Anabasis of Xenophon, who describes a plain or steppe near the Euphrates full of aromatic herbs, and abounding with Wild Asses, Ostriches, and Bustards (Ous). The latter, he says, ‘ could be caught when any one came on them suddenly, as they fly to a short distance like Partridges and soon give in. Their flesh is delicious.’ Pliny’s description of the Bustard is very brief. He says it approaches the Ostrich in size; that it is called Avis tarda in Spain, Otis in Greece ; its flesh is very disagreeable, in consequence of the strong scent of its bones.’ Our countryman Willughby, who wrote in the middle of the seventeenth century, gives a longer account. “The Bustard has no hind claw, which is especially worthy of notice ; for by this mark and by its size it is sufficiently distin- guished from all birds of the tribe. It feeds on corn and the seeds of herbs, wild cabbage, leaves of the dandelion, etc. I have found in its crop abundance of the seeds of cicuéa, with but a few grains of barley even in harvest-time. It is found on the plains near Newmarket and Royston, and elsewhere on heaths and plains. Bustards are birds of slow flight, and raise themselves from the ground with difficulty, on account of their size and weight ;_ hence, without doubt, the name ¢avdu was given to them by the Latins. By the Scotch, on the authority of Hector Boethius, they are called Gustarde.’ M. Perrault, who wrote in 1676, gives an account of a tame Bustard which was kept for a while in summer in a garden, and died of cold in the winter. ‘ He killed mice and sparrows with THE GREAT BUSTARD 237 his bill by pinching their heads, and then swallowed them whole, even when of considerable size. It was easy to observe a large mouse going down his throat, making a moving tumour till it came to the turn of the neck ; it then moved backwards, and al- though out of sight, yet its progress was traced by the feathers between the shoulders separating, and closing again as soon as it passed into the gizzard. He was fond of worms, and while the gar- dener was digging, stood by him and looked out for them. He ate the buds of flowers, and particularly of roses; also the sub- stance of cucumbers, but not the outside. From these observa- tions the Bustard is evidently fitted more particularly to live on animal food.’ The average number of Bustards annually supplied to Chevet, the great game-dealer of the Palais Royal, Paris, about fifty years ago, was six. Its principal place of resort in France was the wild country between Arcis-sur-Aube and Chalons, in most other dis- tricts it was as little known as with us. Several authors of undoubted veracity state that the adult male Bustard has a capacious pouch, situated along the fore part of the neck, the entrance of which is under the tongue, capable of hold- ing several quarts of water—it is said not less thanseven. Montagu, in his Ornithological Dictionary, expresses his doubt whether the bird could carry as much as seven quarts, or fourteen pounds, while flying ; he admits, however, that ‘it is large, as may be seen in the Leverian Museum’ ; and he adds, ‘ that it is only discover- able in adults, as it is most likely intended for the purpose of furnishing the female and young in the breeding with water.’ Of this pouch a figure is given by Yarrell, copied from Edwards’ Gleanings of Natural History, and there inserted on the authority of Dr. James Douglas, the discoverer. Some doubts having arisen in Mr. Yarrell’s mind as to the accuracy of the statement, he took much pains to ascertain the truth by dissecting several adult males, and found no peculiarity of structure—a result which was also arrived at by Professor Owen, who dissected one with a view of obtaining a preparation of the supposed pouch for the Museum of the College of Surgeons. A paper by Mr. Yarrell,t read before the Linnean Society since the publication of his admirable work on Ornithology, contains many other interesting particulars res- pecting this bird, to which the reader is referred. Bustards have been seen in England at various intervals during the last eighty or a hundred years, sometimes in small flights and sometimes as solitary specimens, more frequently in Norfolk than in any other county, but they have ceased to breed in this country. I lately met a gentleman in Norfolk who well recollected the time when Bustards were to be met with in that county. On the lands i Eine Trans,, Vol. xxi. PD: 155. 238 THE PRATINCOLE near Flamborough Head there used to be droves of them. They were occasionally seen in the middle of the large uninclosed plains with which Norfolk formerly abounded, and in such situations he had himself seen them. When disturbed they move off rapidly, employing both their feet and wings, rising heavily, but at an angle so acute that they advanced perhaps a hundred yards before they attained the height of a man. When once on the wing, they flew swiftly. They formerly bred in the parish of Deepdale, and he could himself recollect an instance when an attempt was made to rear some in captivity from the eggs, but failed. The Bustard is now only a very rare visitor to Great Britain. Its last fertile eggs were taken in Norfolk and Suffolk about the year 1838. ORDER LIMICOLA: FAMILY GLAREOLIDA THE PRATINCOLE GLAREOLA PRATINCOLA Crown, nape, back, scapulars, and wing-coverts, greyish brown ; throat and front of the neck white, tinged with red, and bounded by a narrow black collar, which ascends to the base of the beak ; lore black ; breast whitish brown ; lower wing-coverts chestnut; under parts white, tinged with brownish red; tail-coverts, and base of tail-feathers, white; the rest of the tail dusky, much forked; beak black, red at the base; irides reddish brown; orbits naked, bright red; feet reddish ash. Length nine inches and a half. Eggs pale stone colour, spotted with grey and dusky. THE Pratincole, called on the Continent, but without good reason, Perdrix de mer, or Sea Partridge, is a rare visitor to Great Britain, inhabiting for the most part the northern part of Africa, and the countries in the vicinity of the Don, the Volga, the Caspian, and the Black Sea. It has been observed also from time to time in several of the countries of Europe. In some of its habits it resembles the Plovers, as it frequents open plains and runs with great rapidity. In nidification, also, and in the shape, colour, and markings of its eggs it is associated with the same tribe ; while in its mode of flight and habit of catch- ing flies while on the wing, it approaches the Swallows. Hence it was named by Linneus, Hivundo pratincola, and under this designation it is figured in Bewick. Its true place in the system is, however, undoubtedly, among the waders, several of which not only feed on insects, but are expert in catching them on the wing. THE THICK-KNEE OR STONE CURLEW 239 Fave y CAR ADRIUDA; Tit DiiiCk KNEE OR STONE CURLEW ‘EDICNEMUS SCOLOPAX Upper parts reddish ash with a white spot in the middle of each feather ; space between the eye and beak, throat, belly, and thighs, white ; neck and breast tinged with red, and marked with fine longitudinal brown. streaks ; a white longitudinal bar on the wing; first primary with a large white spot in the middle ; second, with a small one on the inner web ; lower tail-coverts reddish, the feathers, except those in the middle, tipped with black; beak black, yellowish at the base; irides, orbits, and feet, yellow. Length seventeeninches. Eggs yellowish brown clouded with greenish, blotched and spotted with dusky and olive. THOUGH a citizen of the world, or at least of the eastern hemis- phere, this bird is commonly known under the name of Norfolk Plover, from its being more abundant in that county than in any other. It is also called Thick-knee, from the robust conformation of this joint ; and Stone Curlew, from its frequenting waste stony places and uttering a note which has been compared to the sound of the syllables curlut or turluw. Like the Cuckoo, it is more fre- quently heard than seen, but that only by night. In some of its habits it resembles the Bustard, and is said even to associate, in Northern Africa, with the Lesser Bustard. Its favourite places of resort are extensive plains ; it runs rapidly when disturbed, and when it does take wing, flies for a considerable distance near the ground before mounting into the air. It frequents our open heaths and chalk downs and breeds in Romney Marsh and in the uplands of Kent and Sussex. By day the Thick-knee confines itself to the ground, either crouching or hunting for food, which consists of worms, slugs, and beetles, under stones, which it is taught by its instinct to turn over. After sunset, it takes flight, and probably rises to a great height, as its plaintive whistle, which somewhat resembles the wail of a human being, is often heard overhead when the bird is invisible. It is singularly shy, and carefully avoids the presence of human beings, whether sportsmen or labourers. Yet it is not destitute of courage, as it has been seen to defend its nest with vigour against the approach of sheep or even of dogs. Nest, properly speaking, it has none, for it contents itself with scratching a hole in the ground and depositing two eggs. The males are supposed to assist in the office of incubation. The young inherit the faculty of running at an early age, being able to leave their birth-place with facility soon after they are hatched; but the development of their wings is a work of time, for their body has attained its full size long before they are able to rise from the ground. Before taking their depar- ture southwards in autumn, they assemble in small parties, number- ing from four to six or seven, when they are somewhat more easy 240 THE GOLDEN PLOVER of approach than in spring. In the chalky plains of La Marne in France they are very numerous ; and here, by the aid of a light cart, fowlers in quest of them have little difficulty in shooting large numbers, the birds being less afraid of the approach of a horse than of a human being. But when obtained they are of little value, as their flesh is barely eatable. The Thick-knee is migratory, visiting us in the beginning of April to stay till October. His flights are made by night. THE CREAM-COLOURED COURSER CURSORIUS GALLICUS Plumage reddish cream colour; wing-coverts bordered with ash-grey; throat whitish; behind the eyes a double black bar; lateral tail-feathers black towards the tip, with a white spot in the centre of the black ; abdomen whitish. Length nine inches. Eggs unknown. THOUGH the specific name Europzeus would seem to imply that this bird is of frequent occurrence in Europe, this is not the case. Not more than three or four have been observed in Great Britain, at various intervals, from 1785 to 1827; and on the Continent it is an equally rare visitor to the plains of Provence and Languedoc. It is a native of Syria, Egypt, and Abyssinia, frequenting pools and other moist situations. It is singularly fearless of man, and when disturbed prefers to run, which it does very swiftly, rather than to take flight. Its winter residence is supposed to be the central lakes of Africa, from which it returns to the countries named above early in autumn, and disappears at the approach of winter. Nothing is known of its nidification. About the autumn of 1868 one was shot in Lanarkshire. THE GOLDEN PLOVER CHARADRIUS PLUVIALIS Winter—upper plumage dusky, spotted with yellow, cheeks, neck, and breast mottled with ash-brown and buff; throat and abdomen white; quills dusky, white along the shafts towards the end ; beak dusky, feet deep ash-colour; irides brown. Summev—upper plumage greyish black, spotted with bright yellow; forehead and space above the eyes white ; sides of the neck white, mottled with black and yellow; lore, throat, neck, and lower parts deep black. Length nine inches. Eggs yellowish green, blotched and spotted with black. Tue Golden Plover is a common bird in the south of England during the winter months, and in the mountainous parts of Scotland and the north of England during the rest of the year; yet so different are its habits and plumage at the extremes of these two seasons, that the young naturalist who has had no opportunities of observing them in their transition stage, and has had no access to trustworthy Kentish Plover 9 3 Grey Plover 7 (Summer and Winter) Golden Plover 3 Ringed Plover young and Q [face p. 240. THE GOLDEN PLOVER 241 books, might be forgiven for setting down the two forms of the bird as distinct species. In the hilly districts of the north of Europe, Golden Plovers are numerous, sometimes being, with Ptarmigans, the only birds which relieve the solitude of the desolate wastes. Though numerous in the same localities, they are not gregarious during spring and summer, and are remarkable for their fearlessness of man. So tame, indeed, are they that, in little-frequented places, when dis- turbed by the traveller they will run along the stony ground a few yards in front of him, then fly a few yards, then stand and stare and run along as before. On such occasions they frequently utter their singular cry—the note so often referred to in Sir Walter Scott’s poems—which, like the Nightingale’s song, is considered simply plaintive or painfully woe-begone, according to the natural tem- perament or occasional mood of the hearer. This bird builds no nest ; a natural depression in the ground, unprotected by bush, heather or rock, serves its purpose, and here the female lays four eggs, much pointed at one end, and arranges them in accordance with this. At the approach of autumn, no matter where their summer may have been passed, Plovers migrate southwards in large flights, those from Scotland to the southern counties of England, where they frequent wide moist pastures, heaths, and reclaimed marsh- land. From the northern parts of the continent of Europe they take their departure in October, either to the European shores of the Mediterranean, or to the plains of Northern Africa. In these migrations they are not unfrequently joined by Starlings. They travel in close array, forming large flocks much wider than deep, moving their sharp wings rapidly, and making a whizzing sound which may be heard a long way off. Now and then, as if actuated by a single impulse, they sweep towards the ground, suddenly alter the direction of their flight, then wheel upwards with the regularity of a machine, and either alight or pursue their onward course. This habit of skimming along the ground and announcing their approach beforehand, is turned to good purpose by the bird-catcher, who imitates their note, attracts the whole flight to sweep down into his neighbourhood, and captures them in his net, a hundred at a time, or, when they are within range, has no difficulty in killing from twelve to twenty at a shot. Not unfrequently, too, when some members of a flock have been killed or wounded, the remainder, before they remove out of danger, wheel round and sweep just over the heads of their ill-fated companions, as if for the purpose of inquiring the reason why they have deserted the party, or of alluring them to join it once more. This habit is not peculiar to Plovers, but may be noticed in the case of several of the seaside waders, as Dunlins and Sanderlings. In severe winter weather they desert the meadows, in which the worms have descended into the ground B.B, R 242 ELE GRE YSPEOVER beyond the reach of frost, and so of their bills, and resort to the muddy or sandy sea-shore. In the Hebrides it is said that they do not migrate at all, but simply content themselves with shifting from the moors to the shore and back again, according to the weather. In the northern parts of France, on the other hand, they are only known as passengers on their way to the south. From making their appearance in the rainy season they are there called fluviers, whence our name Plover, which, however, is supposed by some to have been given to them for their indicating by their movements coming changes in the weather, in which respect indeed their skill is marvellous. The Golden Plover, sometimes called also Yellow Plover, and Green Plover, is found at various seasons in most countries of Europe ; but the Golden Plovers of Asia and America are considered to be different species. THE GREY PLOVER SQUATAROLA HELVETICA Wintey—forehead, throat, and under plumage, white, spotted on the neck and flanks with grey and brown ; upper plumage dusky brown, mottled with white and ash colour; long axillary feathers black or dusky ; tail white, barred with brown and tipped with reddish; bill black; irides dusky ; feet blackish grey. Swmmey—lore, neck, breast, belly, and flanks, black, bounded by white; upper plumage and tail black and white. Length eleven and a half inches. Eggs olive, spotted with black. Many of the Waders agree in wearing, during winter, plumage in a great measure of a different hue from that which characterizes them in summer ; and, as a general rule, the winter tint is lighter than that of summer. This change is, in fact, but an extension of the law which clothes several of the quadrupeds with a dusky or a snowy fur in accordance with the season. The Grey Plover, as seen in England, well deserves its name, for, as it frequents our shores in the winter alone, it is only known to us as a bird grey above and white below. But in summer the under plumage is decidedly black, and in this respect it bears a close resemblance to the Golden Plover, with which, in spite of the presence of a rudi- mentary fourth toe, it is closely allied. My friend, the Rev. W. S. Hore, informs me that he has seen them in Norfolk wearing the full black plumage in May. The occurrence of the bird, however, in this condition, in England, is exceptional; while in the northern regions, both of the Old and New World, it must be unusual to see an adult bird in any other than the sable plumage of summer. The Grey Plover is a bird of extensive geographical range, being known in Japan, India, New Guinea, the Cape of Good Hope, Egypt, THE GREY PLOVER 243 the continent of Europe, and North America. In this country, as I have observed, it occurs from autumn to spring, frequenting the seashore, and picking up worms and other animal productions cast up by the sea. Grey Plovers are less abundant than Golden Plovers ; yet, in severe seasons they assemble in numerous small flocks on the shores of the eastern counties, and, as Meyer well observes, they are disposed to be “ sociable, not only towards their own species, but to every other coast bird. When a party either go towards the shore, or leave it for the meadows and flat wastes, they unanimously keep together; but when alighting, they mix with every other species, and thus produce a motley group.” They fly in flocks, varying from five to twenty or more, keeping in a line, more or less curved, or in two lines forming an angle. Their flight is strong and rapid, rarely direct, but sweeping in wide semicircles. As they advance they alternately show their upper and under plumage, but more frequently the latter; for they generally keep at a height of sixty or a hundred yards from the ground, in this respect differing from Ringed Plovers, Dunlins, etc. Occasionally one or two of the flock utter a loud whistle, which seems to be a signal for all to keep close order. Just as Starlings habitually alight wherever they see Rooks or Gulls feeding, so the Grey Plovers join themselves on to any society of birds which has detected a good hunting-ground. During a single walk along the sands I have observed them mixed up with Dunlins, Knots, Gulls, Redshanks, and Royston Crows ; but in no instance was I able to approach near enough to note their habit of feeding. They were always up and away before any other birds saw danger impending. In autumn they are less shy. The people on the coast describe the Grey Plover as the shyest of all the Waders, and could give me no information as to its habits ; but Meyer, whose description of this bird is very accurate in other respects, states that “its general appearance is peculiar to itself ; it walks about on the ground slowly and with grace, and stops every now and then to pick up its food ; it carries its body in a horizontal position on straight legs, and its head very close to its body, conse- quently increasing the thick appearance of the head.” The Grey Plover breeds in high latitudes, making a slight hollow in the ground, and employing a few blades of grass. It lays four eggs, on which it sits so closely that it will almost be trodden on. When thus disturbed its ways remind one of the Ringed Plover. 244 THE DOTTEREL THE DOTTEREL EUDROMIAS MORINELLUS Winter—head dusky ash; over cach eye a reddish white band, meeting at the nape ; face whitish, dotted with black ; back dusky ash, tinged with green, the feathers edged with rust-red ; breast and flanks reddish ash ; gorget white ; beak black ; irides brown ; feet greenish ash. Summer— face and a band over the eyes white; head dusky; nape and sides of the neck ash; feathers of the back, wing-coverts, and wing-feathers, edged with deep red ; gorget white, bordered above by a narrow black line ; lower part of the breast and flanks bright rust-red ; middle of the belly black ; abdomen reddish white. Young birds have a reddish tinge on the head, and the tail is tipped with red. Length nine inches and a half. Eggs yellowish olive, blotched and spotted with dusky brown. THE Dotterel, Little Dotard, or Morinellus, ‘little fool’, received both the one and the other of its names from its alleged stupidity. ‘It is a silly bird’, says Willughby, writing in 1676; ‘but as an article of food a great delicacy. It is caught in the night by lamp- light, in accordance with the movements of the fowler. For if he stretch out his arm, the bird extends a wing ; if he a leg, the bird does the same. In short, whatever the fowler does, the Dotterel does the same. And so intent is it on the movements of its pursuer, that it is unawares entangled in the net.’ Such, at least, was the common belief; and Pennant alludes to it, quoting the following passage from the poet Drayton: Most worthy man, with thee ‘tis ever thus, As men take Dottrels, so hast thou ta’en us Which, as a man his arme or leg doth set, So this fond bird will likewise counterfeit. In Pennant’s time, Dotterels were not uncommon in Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, and Derbyshire, appearing in small flocks of eight or ten only, from the latter end of April to the middle of June ; and I have been informed by a gentleman in Norfolk that, not many years since, they annually resorted also in small flocks to the plains of that county. Of late years, owing most probably to their being much sought after for the table, they have become more rare ; and the same thing has taken place in France. The Dotterel has been observed in many of the English counties both in spring and autumn, and has been known to breed in the mountainous parts of the north of England; but I may remark that the name is frequently given in Norfolk and elsewhere to the Ringed Plover, to which bird also belong the eggs collected on the sea-coast, and sold as Dotterel’s eggs. THE RINGED PLOVER 245 THE RINGED PLOVER GIALITIS HIATICULA lorehead, lore, sides of the face, gorget reaching round the neck, black; a band across the forehead and through the eyes, throat, a broad collar, and all the lower parts, white ; upper plumage ash-brown ; outer tail- feather white, the next nearly so, the other feathers grey at the base, passing into dusky and black, tipped with white, except the two middle ones, Which have no white tips ; orbits, feet and beak orange, the latter tipped with black. | Young—colours of the head dull; gorget incom- plete, ash-brown ; bill dusky, tinged with orange at the base of the lower mandible ; feet yellowish. Length seven and a half inches. Eggs olive-yellow, with numerous black and grey spots. On almost any part of the sea-coast of Britain, where there is a wide expanse of sand left at low water, a bird may often be noticed, not much larger than a Lark, grey above and white below, a patch of black on the forehead and under the eye, a white ring round the neck, and a black one below. _ If the wind be high, or rain be falling, the observer will be able to get near enough to see these markings ; for sea-birds generally are less acute observers in foul weather than in fair. Ona nearer approach, the bird will fly up, uttering a soft, sweet, plaintive whistle of two notes, and, having performed a rapid, semicircular flight, will probably alight at no great distance, and repeat its note. If it has settled on the plain sand or on the water's edge, or near a tidal pool, it runs rapidly, without hopping, stoops its head, picks up a worm, a portion of shell-fish, or a sand- hopper, runs, stops, pecks, and runs again, but does not allow any one to come so near as before. The next time that it alights, it may select, perhaps, the beach of shells and pebbles above high- water mark. Then it becomes at once invisible ; or, if the observer be very keen-sighted, he may be able to detect it while it is in motion, but then only. Most probably, let him mark ever so accurately with his eye the exact spot on which he saw it alight, and let him walk up to the spot without once averting his eye, he will, on his arrival, find it gone. It has run ahead with a speed marvellous in so small a biped, and is pecking among the stones a hundred yards off. Its name is the Ringed Plover, or Ringed Dotterel. Fishermen on the coast call it a Stone-runner, a most appropriate name ; others call it a Sea Lark. In ornithological works it is described under the former of these names. The Ringed Plover frequents the shores of Great Britain all the year round. It is a social bird, but less so in spring than at any other season ; for the females are then employed in the important business of incubation, and the males are too attentive to their mates to engage in picnics on the sands. The nest is a simple hollow in the sand, above high-water mark, or on the shingly beach ; and here the female lays four large, pointed eggs, which are arranged in the nest with all the small ends together. The young are able 246 THE KENTISH PLOVER to run as soon as they break the shell; but, having no power of flight for a long time, avoid impending danger by scattering and hiding among the stones. The old bird, on such occasions, uses her wings ; but not to desert her charge. She flies up to the intruder, and, like other members of the same family, endeavours to entice him away by counterfeiting lameness or some injury. The Ringed Plover sometimes goes inland to rear her young, and lays her eggs in a sandy warren, on the bank of a river or the margin ofalake ; but when the young are able to fly, old and young together repair to the seashore, collecting in flocks, and for the most part continuing to congregate until the following spring. Their flight is rapid and sweeping, consisting of a succession of curves, while per- forming which they show sometimes their upper grey plumage, and at other times the under, which is of a dazzling white. Occasionally, too, as they wheel from one tack to another, every bird is lost sight of, owing to the perfect unanimity with which, at the same instant, they alter their course, and to the incapacity of the human eye to follow the rapid change from a dark hue to a light. Not unfrequently one falls in with a solitary individual which has been left behind by its companions, or has strayed from the flock. Such a bird, when disturbed, utters its whistle more fre- quently than on ordinary occasions, and, as its note is not difficult of imitation, I have often enticed a stray bird to fly close up to me, answering all the while. But it has rarely happened that I have succeeded in practising the deception on the same bird a second time. THE KENTISH PLOVER AAGIALITIS CANTIANA Forehead, a band over each eye, chin, cheeks, and under parts, white ; upper part of the forehead, a band from the base of the beak extending through the eye, and a large spot on each side of the breast, black ; head and nape light brownish red; rest of the upper plumage ash-brown; two outer tail-feathers white, the third whitish, the rest brown; beak, irides, and feet, brown. Female wants the black spot on the forehead, and the other parts black in the male are replaced by ash-brown. Length six and a half inches. Eggs olive-yellow, spotted and speckled with black. THE Kentish Plover differs from the preceding in its inferior size, in having a narrower stripe of black on the cheeks, and in wanting the black ring round the neck. It is found from time to time in various parts of the country, breeding in Kent, Sussex and the Channel Islands, but is most abundant on the shores of the Mediter- ranean. Its habits resemble closely those of the allied species. On the authority of the Greek historian Herodotus, a little bird is found in Egypt called the Tréchilus, which is noted for the friendly Curlew 5 Dotterel F Peewit 2 Norfolk Plover 2 [face p. 246. THE LAPWING, OR PEEWIT 247 and courageous office it performs for the Crocodile. This unwieldy monster, having no flexible tongue wherewith to cleanse its mouth, comes on shore after its meals, opens its jaws, and allows the Tro- chilus to enter and pick off the leeches and fragments of food, which, adhering to its teeth, interfere, with its comfort. This story was long believed to be a fable; but the French naturalist Geoffrey de Saint Hilaire has, in modern times, confirmed the veracity of the father of history, and pronounces the Tréchilus of the ancients to be the Pluvier a Collier interrompu, the subject of the present chapter. The Cayman of South America is also said to be indebted for a similar service to the kindly offices of a little bird, which, however, is not a Plover, but a Toddy. THE LAPWING, OR PEEWIT VANELLUS VULGARIS Feathers on the back of the head elongated and curved upwards ; head, crest and breast, glossy black ; throat, sides of the neck, belly and abdomen white ; under tail-coverts yellowish red; upper plumage dark green with purple reflections ; tail, when expanded, displaying a large semi- circular graduated black patch on a white disk, outer feather on each side wholly white; bill dusky; feet reddish brown. Young—throat dull white, mottled with dusky and tinged with red; upper feathers tipped with dull yellow. Length twelve and a half inches. Eggs olive- brown to stone buff, blotched and spotted with dusky black. THE Peewit, or Green Plover, as it is sometimes called, is among the best known birds indigenous to the British Isles. This notoriety it owes to several causes. The lengthened feathers on the back of its head, forming a crest, at once distinguish it from every other British Wader. Its peculiar flight, consisting of a series of wide slow flappings with its singularly rounded wings, furnishes a character by which it may be recognized at a great distance; and its strange note, resembling the word ‘ peweet ’ uttered in a high screaming tone, cannot be mistaken for the note of any other bird. In London and other large towns of England its eggs also are well known to most people ; for ‘ Plovers’ eggs’, as they are called, are considered great delicacies. Peewits are found in abundance in most parts of Europe and Asia from Ireland to Japan. They are essentially Plovers in all their habits, except, perhaps, that they do not run so rapidly as some others of the tribe. They inhabit the high grounds in open countries, the borders of lakes and marshes and low unenclosed wastes, and may not unfrequently be seen in the large meadows, which in some districts extend from the banks of rivers. They are partially migratory ; hence they may appear at a certain season in some particular spot, and be entirely lost sight of for many 248 OYSTER CATCHER months. Individuals which have been bred in high latitudes are more precise in their periods of migration than those bred in the south. In Kamtschatka, for instance, their southern migration is so regular that the month of October has received the name of the ‘Lapwing month’. In Britain their wanderings are both more uncertain and limited ; for, though they assemble in flocks in autumn, they only migrate from exposed localities to spots which, being more sheltered, afford them a better supply of food. In April and May these birds deposit their eggs, making no further preparation than that of bringing together a few stalks and placing them ina shallow depression in the ground. The number of eggs is always four, and they are placed in the orderso common among the Waders, crosswise. Lapwings are to a certain extent social ,even in the breeding season, in so far that a considerable number usually frequent the same marsh or common. It is at this season that they utter most frequently their characteristic cry, a note which is never musical, and heard by the lonely traveller (as has happened to myself more than once by night) is particularly wild, harsh, and dispiriting. Now, too, one may approach near enough to them to notice the winnowing movement of their wings, which has given them the name of Lapwing in England and Vanneau in France (from van,a fan). The young are able to run as soon as they have burst the shell, and follow their parents to damp ground, where worms, slugs, and insects are most abundant. When the young have acquired the use of their wings, the families of a district unite into flocks. They are then very wary, and can rarely be approached without difficulty ; but as they are considered good eating, many of them fall before the fowler. OYSTER CATCHER HEMATOPUS OSTRATEGUS THE plumage of this species is entirely black and white ; head, neck, scapulars and terminal half of the tail black ; rump, upper tail-coverts white ; legs and toes pink ; eyelids crimson. Length, sixteen inches. The young have the feathers of the back and wings margined with brown. The Oyster Catcher inhabits the shores of Great Britain and Ireland throughout the year. The first time I came upon a flock of these birds I was able to approach them nearer than on any other occasion. They frequently uttered a harsh note ina high key which, though unmusical, harmonized well with the scenery. I had many other opportunities of observing them on the shores of the Scottish lochs, and I was OYSTER CATCHER 249 once induced, on the recommendation of a friend, to have one served up for dinner as an agreeable variation from the bacon and herrings which mainly constitute the dietary of a Scottish fishing- village inn. But I did not repeat the experiment, preferring fish pure and simple to fish served up through the medium of a fowl. The nature of its food sufficiently accounts for its strong flavour, Oyster Catchers frequent rocky promontories or the broad banks of mud, sand, and ooze, which stretch out from low portions of the coast. Here they feed on mussels and other bivalves, limpets, worms, crustacea, and small fish; mixing freely with other birds while on the ground, but keeping to themselves while performing their flights. In their mode of using their wings they remind the spectator of Ducks rather than of Plovers, and they advance in a line, sometimes in single file, one after another, but more fre- quently wing by wing. When they alight, too, it is not with a circular sweep, but with a sailing movement. When the mud- banks are covered by the tide they move to a short distance inland, and pick up slugs and insects in the meadows, or betake themselves to salt marshes and rocky headlands. They have also been observed many miles away from the coast ; but this is a rare occurrence. Their nest is generally a slight depression among the shingle above high-water mark; but on rocky shores they make an attempt at a nest, collecting a few blades of grass and scraps of sea-weed. They lay three or four eggs, and the young are able to run soon after breaking the shell. In high latitudes Oyster Catchers are migratory, leaving their breeding grounds in autumn, and returning in the spring; con- sequently, those coasts from which they never depart afford an asylum in winter to vast numbers of strangers, in addition to their native population. On the coast of Norfolk, for example, they are to be seen in small parties all through the summer; but in winter, especially if it be a severe one, they may be reckoned by thousands. They here seem to have favourite spots on which to pass the night. One of these is what is called the “‘ Eastern point ”’ of Brancaster Marsh, a place of perfect security, for it is difficult of access under any circumstances, and cannot be approached at all with any chance of concealment on the part of the intruder. Towards this point I have seen line after line winging their way, all about the same hour, just before sunset, all following the line of the coast, but taking care to keep well out at sea, and all ad- vancing with perfect regularity, every individual in a company being at the same height above the water. They are very wary at this season, insomuch that though I must have seen many thousands, and examined upwards of twenty species of sea-shore birds, which had been shot in the neighbourhood, not a single Oyster Catcher was brought to me. A common name for this bird is Sea-pie, another appropriate 250 THE TURNSTONE one is ‘ Mussel picker’; and it is thought that ‘Catcher ’ comes from the Dutch aekster (magpie). The note is a shrill keep, keep. It swims well, and sometimes it will take to the water of its own accord. Although the nest is commonly on shingle or among sand-hills, or a tussock of sea-pink on a narrow ledge of rock, Mr. Howard Saunders has seen eggs of this bird in the emptied nest of a Herring-gull and on the summit of a lofty ‘ stack.’ THE TURNSTONE STREPSILAS INTERPRES Crown reddish white, with longitudinal black streaks ; upper part of the back, scapulars, and wing-coverts, rusty brown, spotted with black ; rest of the plumage variegated with black and white; bill and irides black; feet orange-yellow. Length nine inches. Eggs greenish-grey, blotched and spotted with slate and brown. TuHeETurnstone is a regular annual visitor tothe shores of Great Britain, and indeed of almost every other country, having been observed as far north as Greenland, and as far south as the Straits of Magellan ; but it is rarely inland. It arrives on our coasts about the be- ginning of August, not in large flocks like the Plovers, but in small parties, each of which, it is conjectured, constitutes a family. It is a bird of elegant form and beautiful parti-coloured plumage, active in its habits, a nimble runner, and an indefatigable hunter after food. In size it is intermediate between the Grey Plover and Sanderling, being about as big as a Thrush. The former of these birds it resembles in its disposition to feed in company with birds of different species, and its impatience of the approach of man. For this latter reason it does not often happen that any one can get near enough to these birds to watch their manceuvres while engaged in the occupation from which they have derived their name, though their industry is often apparent from the num- ber of pebbles and shells found dislodged from their socket on the sands where a family has been feeding. Audubon, who had the good fortune to fall in with a party on a retired sea-coast, where owing to the rare appearance of human beings, they were less fearful than is their wont, describes their operations with his usual felicity : ‘‘They were not more than fifteen or twenty yards distant, and I was delighted to see the ingenuity with which they turned over the oyster-shells, clods of mud, and other small bodies left exposed by the retiring tide. Whenever the object was not too large, the bird bent its legs to half their length, placed its bill beneath it, and Avocet. Red-necked Phalarope. Grey Phalarope ? Bar-tailed Godwit 2 [face p. 250. . \ ‘ - a - a in . - —¥e oan) ye - P ” bh ‘ / .« — h * _,; = ind 7 ° - cad ge ay . “-¥ 2 « = a” ol r < ‘ . - * a ‘yicAelh 7 aay } tcrheye) Raltaey ET THE TURNSTONE 251 with a sudden quick jerk of the head pushed it off, when it quickly picked up the food which was thus exposed to view, and walked deliberately to the next shell to perform the same operation. In several instances, when the clusters of oyster-shells or clods of mud were too heavy to be removed in the ordinary way, they would not only use the bill and head, but also the breast, pushing the object with all their strength, and reminding me of the labour which I have undergone in turning over a large turtle. Among the seaweeds that had been cast on shore, they used only the bill, tossing the garbage from side to side with a dexterity extremely pleasant to behold.t In like manner I saw there four Turnstones examine almost every part of the shore along a space of from thirty to forty yards ; after which I drove them away, that our hunters might not kill them on their return.’’ A writer in the Zoologist” gives an equally interesting account of the successful efforts of two Turnstones to turn over the dead body of a cod-fish, nearly three and a half feet long, which had been imbedded in the sand to about the depth of two inches. For an account of the habits of the Turnstone during the breeding season—it never breeds with us—we are indebted to Mr. Hewitson, who fell in with it on the coast of Norway. He says, ‘We had visited numerous islands with little encouragement, and were about to land upon a flat rock, bare, except where here and there grew tufts of grass or stunted juniper clinging to its surface, when our attention was attracted by the singular cry of a Turnstone, which in its eager watch had seen our approach, and perched itself upon an eminence of the rock, assuring us, by its querulous oft- repeated note and anxious motions, that its nest was there. We remained in the boat a short time, until we had watched it behind a tuft of grass, near which, after a minute search, we succeeded in finding the nest in a situation in which I should never have expected to meet a bird of this sort breeding ; it was placed against a ledge of the rock, and consisted of nothing more than the dropping leaves of the juniper bush, under a creeping branch of which the eggs, four in number, were snugly concealed, and admirably sheltered from the many storms by which these bleak and exposed rocks are visited. . 1 From this habit, the Turnstone is in Norfolk called a ‘ Tangle-picker ’.— (Cs INS Me EVO ix Das Ofc © Ww THE AVOCET FAMILY SCOLOPACID/ THE AVOCEr RECURVIROSTRA AVOCETTA General plumage white; crown, nape, scapulars, lesser wing-coverts, and primaries, black; bill black; irides reddish brown; feet bluish ash. Length eighteen inches. Eggs olive-brown, blotched and spotted with dusky. Tuts bird has become so rare, that having recently applied to two several collectors in Norfolk, once the headquarters of the Avocet, to know if they could procure me a specimen, I was told by one that they were not seen oftener than once in seven years—by the other, that it was very rare, and if attainable at all could not be purchased for less than five pounds. In Ray’s time it was not unfrequent on the eastern maritime coasts. Small flocks still arrive in May and now and again in the autumn, but collectors never allow them to breed. They used to rest on the flat shores of Kent and Sussex. Sir Thomas Browne says of it: ‘ Avoseta, called shoeing horn, a tall black and white bird, with a bill semicircularly reclining or bowed upward ; so that it is not easy to conceive how it can feed; a summer marsh bird, and not unfrequent in marsh land.’ Pennant, writing of the same bird, says: ‘ These birds are frequent in the winter on the shores of this kingdom; in Gloucestershire, at the Severn’s mouth; and sometimes on the lakes of Shropshire. We have seen them in considerable numbers in the breeding season near Fossdike Wash, in Lincolnshire. Like the Lapwing, when disturbed, they flew over our heads, carrying their necks and long legs quite extended, and made a shrill noise (¢w7t) twice repeated, during the whole time. The country people for this reason call them Yelpers, and sometimes distinguish them by the name of Picarimt. They feed on worms and insects, which they suck with their bills out of the sand; their search after food is frequently to be discovered on our shores by alternate semicircular marks in the sand, which show their progress.! They lay three or four eggs, about the size of those of a Pigeon, white, tinged with green and marked with large black spots.’ Even so recent an authority as Yarrell remembers having found in the marshes near Rye a young one of this species, which appeared to have just been hatched; he took it up in his hands, while the old birds kept flying round him. The Avocet is met with throughout a great part of the Old World, 1 Tt is not a little singular that the Spoonbill, a bird which strongly con- trasts with the Avocet in the form of its bill, ploughs the sand from one side to another, while hunting for its food. THE RED-NECKED PHALAROPE 253 and is said to be not unfrequent in Holland and France. A writer of the latter country says that ‘ by aid of its webbed feet it is enabled to traverse, without sinking, the softest and wettest mud ; this it searches with its curved bill, and when it has discovered any prey, a worm for instance, it throws it adroitly into the air, and catches it with its beak’. hie GREY PMArAROPRE PHALAROPUS FULICARIUS Wintey—plumage in front and beneath white ; back of the head, car-coverts, and a streak down the nape, dusky ; back pearl-grey, the feathers dusky in the centre, a white transverse bar on the wings ; tail-feathers brown, edged with ash; bill brown, yellowish red at the base; irides reddish yellow; feet greenish ash. Suwmmerv—head dusky; face and nape white ; feathers of the back dusky, bordered with orange-brown ; front and lower plumage brick-red. Length eight inches and a half. Eggs grecnish stone colour, blotched and spotted with dusky. Tue Grey Phalarope, without being one of our rarest birds, is not of irregular occurrence. Its proper home is in the Arctic regions, from whence it migrates southward in winter. It is a bird of varied accomplishments, flying rapidly like the Snipes, running after the fashion of the Sandpipers, and swimming with the facility of the Ducks. In all these respects it does not belie its appearance, its structure being such that a naturalist would expect, @ priort, that these were its habits. During the breeding season, the Phalarope quits the sea, its usual haunt, and repairs to the seashore, where it builds a neat nest, in a hollow of the ground, with grass and other weeds, and lays four eggs. The usual time of its appearance in Great Britain is autumn; sometimes it comes then in numbers ; but specimens have been obtained in winter. On all these occasions it has shown itself singularly fearless of man. THE RED-NECKED PHALAROPE PHALAROPUS HYPERBOREUS Head deep ash-grey ; throat white; neck bright rust-red ; under plumage white, blotched on the flanks with ash ; back black, the feathers bordered with rust-red ; a white bar across the wing; two middle tail-feathers black, the rest ash, edged with white; bill black; irides brown; feet greenish ash. Length seven inches. Eggs dark olive, closely spotted with black. Tue Red-necked Phalarope, or Lobefoot, is, like the preceding species, an inhabitant of the Arctic regions, but extends its circle 254 THE WOODCOCK of residence so far as to include the Orkney Islands, in which numer- ous specimens have been obtained. It builds its nest of grass, in the marshes or on the islands in the lakes, and lays four eggs. The most marked habit of these birds seems to be that of alighting at sea on beds of floating seaweed, and indifferently swimming about in search of food, or running, with light and nimble pace, after the manner of a Wagtail. They are often met with thus employed at the distance of a hundred miles from land. They are described as being exceedingly tame, taking little notice of the vicinity of men, and unaffected by the report of a gun. THE WOODCOCK SCOLOPAX RUSTICOLA Back of the head barred transversely with dusky ; upper plumage mottled with chestnut, yellow, ash, and black ; lower reddish yellow, with brown zigzag lines; quills barred on their outer web with rust-red and black ; tail of twelve feathers tipped above with grey, below with silvery white ; bill flesh-colour ; feet livid. Length thirteen inches. Eggs dirty yellow, blotched and spotted with brown and grey. THE history of the Woodcock as a visitor in the British Isles is briefly as follows: Woodcocks come to us from the south in autumn, the earliest being annually observed about the twentieth of October. On their first arrival, they are generally found to be in bad condition ; so weak, in fact, that I recollect many instances of flights having reached the coasts of Cornwall, only able to gain the land. Their condition at these times is one of extreme exhaustion ; and they become the prey, not only of the sportsman, but are knocked down with a stick, or caught alive. In the course of a very few days they are enabled to recruit their strength, when they make their way inland. They have been known even to settle on the deck of a ship at sea, in order to rest ; or actually to alight for a few moments in the smooth water of the ship’s wake. Their usual places of resort by day are woods and coppices in hilly districts, whither they repair for shelter and concealment. Disliking cold, they select, in preference, the side of a valley which is least exposed to the wind ; and though they never perch on a branch, they prefer the conceal- ment afforded by trees to that of any other covert. There, crouch- ing under a holly, or among briers and thorns, they spend the day in inactivity, guarded from molestation by their stillness, and by the rich brown tint of their plumage, which can hardly be distin- guished from dead leaves. Their large prominent bead-like eyes are alone likely to betray them; and this, it is said, is sometimes THE WOODCOCK 255 the case. So conscious do they seem that their great security lies in concealment, that they will remain motionless until a dog is almost on them or until the beater reaches the very bush under which they are crouching. When at length roused, they start up with a whirr, winding and twisting through the overhanging boughs, and make for the nearest open place ahead; now, however, flying in almost a straight line, till discovering another convenient lurking-place, they descend suddenly, to be ‘ marked’ for another shot. About twilight, the Woodcock awakens out of its lethargy, and repairs to its feeding-ground. Observation having shown that on these occasions it does not trouble itself to mount above the trees before it starts, but makes for the nearest clear place in the wood through which it gains the open country, fowlers were formerly in the habit of erecting in glades in the woods, two high poles, from which was suspended a fine net. This was so placed as to hang across the course which the birds were likely to take, and when a cock flew against it, the net was suddenly made to drop by the concealed fowler, and the bird caught, entangled in the meshes. Not many years ago, these nets were commonly employed in the woods, near the coast of the north of Devon, and they are said still to be in use on the Continent. The passages through which the birds flew were known by the name of ‘cockroads’, and ‘ cockshoots’. The localities which Woodcocks most frequent are places which abound in earthworms, their favourite food. These they obtain either by turning over lumps of decaying vegetable matter and picking up the scattered worms, or by thrusting their bills into the soft earth, where (guided by scent it is supposed) they speedily find any worm lying hid, and having drawn it out, swallow it whole, with much dexterity. When the earth is frozen hard, they shift their ground, repairing to the neighbourhood of the sea, or of springs ; and now, probably, they are less select in their diet, feeding on any living animal matter that may fall in their way. In March they change their quarters again, preparatory to quitting the country ; hence it often happens that considerable numbers are seen at this season in places where none had been observed during the previous winter. They now have a call-note, though before they have been quite mute ; it is said by some to resemble the syllables pztt-pitt- coor, by others to be very like the croak of a frog. The French have invented the verb crower, to express it, and distinguish Woodcock shooting by the name crotile. Some sportsmen wisely recommend that no Woodcock should be shot after the middle of February ; for it has been ascertained that increasing numbers of these remain for the purpose of breeding in this country; and it is conjectured, with reason, that if they were left undisturbed in their spring haunts, they would remain in yet larger numbers. As it is, there are few counties in England in which their nest has not been discovered ; and there are some few localities in which it is one of the pleasant 256 THE GREAT SNIPE sights of the evening, at all seasons of the year, to watch the Wood- cocks repairing from the woods to their accustomed feeding- ground. The nest is built of dry leaves, principally of fern, and placed among dead grass, in dry, warm situations, and contains four eggs, which, unlike those of the Snipes, are nearly equally rounded at each end. There have been recorded numerous instances in which a Woodcock has been seen carrying its young through the air to water, holding the nestling between her thighs pressed close to her body. During its flight, the Woodcock invariably holds its beak pointed in a “direction towards the ground. Young birds taken from the nest are easily reared ; and afford much amusement by the skill they display in extracting worms from sods with which they are supplied. The Woodcock is found in all countries of the eastern hemisphere where trees grow; but it is only metas a straggler on the Atlantic coast of the United States. THE GREAT SNIPE GALLINAGO MAJOR Crown black, divided longitudinally by a yellowish white band ; a streak of the same colour over each eye ; from the beak to the eye a streak of dark brown ; upper plumage mottled with black and chestnut-brown, some of the feathers edged with straw-colour ; greater wing-coverts tipped with white ; under parts whitish, spotted and barred with black; tail of sixteen fedthers; bill brown, flesh-coloured at the base. Length eleven and a half inches. Eggs brownish olive, spotted with reddish brown. THE Great Snipe, Solitary Snipe or Double Snipe, is intermediate in size between the Woodcock and Common Snipe. Though not among the rarest of our visitants, it is far from common. It is, however, an annual visitor, and is seen most frequently in the eastern counties in the autumn. Its principal resorts are low damp meadows and grassy places near marshes, but it does not frequent swamps like its congeners. This difference in its haunts implies a different diet, and this bird, it is stated, feeds principally on the larvee or grubs of Tipule (known by the common name of Father Daddy- Long-legs), which are in summer such voracious feeders on the roots of grass. It breeds in the northern countries of Europe, and in some parts of Sweden is so abundant that as many as fifty haye Great Snipe Jack Snipe g Common Snipe Woodcock g (face Pp 256. THE COMMON SNiPE 2 been shot in a day. When disturbed on its feeding-ground, it rises without uttering any note, and usually drops in again, at no great distance, after the manner of the Jack Snipe. It may be distin- guished by its larger size, and by carrying its tail spread like a fan. In the northern countries where it breeds it is found most commonly in the meadows after hay-harvest, and as it is much prized for the delicacy of its flesh it is a favourite object of sport. It is remarkable for being always in exceedingly good condition, a remark which applies to specimens procured in this country as well as those shot in Sweden. The nest, which has rarely been seen, is placed in a tuft of grass, and contains four eggs. The Zoologist once mentioned the fact of four solitary Snipes being killed in the county of Durham in August, and two of these were young birds, scarcely fledged, THE COMMON SNIPE GALLINAGO CA&LESTIS Upper plumage very like the last ; chin and throat reddish white ; lower parts white, without spots ; flanks barred transversely with white and dusky ; tail of fourteen feathers. Length eleven and a half inches. Eggs light greenish yellow, spotted with brown and ash. THE Common Snipe is a bird of very general distribution, being found in all parts of the eastern hemisphere, from Ireland to Japan, and from Siberia to the Cape of Good Hope. It is common also in many parts of America, especially Carolina, and is frequent in many of the American islands. In Britain Snipes are most numer- ous in the winter, their numbers being then increased by arrivals from high latitudes, from which they are driven by the impossi- bility of boring for food in ground hardened by frost or buried be- neath snow. In September and October large flocks of these birds arrive in the marshy districts of England, stopping sometimes for a short time only, and then proceeding onwards ; but being like many other birds, gregarious at no other time than when making their migrations, when they have arrived at a district where they intend to take up their residence, they scatter themselves over marsh land, remaining in each other’s neighbourhood perhaps, but showing no tendency to flock together. Their food consists of the creeping things which live in mud, and to this, it is said by some, they add small seeds and fine vegetable fibre ; but it is questionable whether this kind of food is not swallowed by accident, mixed up with more nourishing diet. The end of their beak is furn‘shed with a soft pulpy membrane, which in all probability is highly BB, S 258 THE COMMON SNIPE sensitive, and enables the bird to discover by the touch the worms which, being buried in mud, are concealed from its sight. Snipes when disturbed always fly against the wind, so when suddenly scared from their feeding-ground, and compelled to rise without any previous intention on their part, they seem at first uncertain which course to take, but twist and turn without making much progress in any direction ; but in a few seconds, having decided on their movements, they dart away with great rapidity, uttering at the same time a sharp cry of two notes, which is difficult to describe, but once heard can scarcely be mistaken. When a bird on such an occasion is fired at, it often happens that a number of others, who have been similarly occupied, rise at the report, and after having performed a few mazy evolutions, dart off in the way described. At other times they lie so close that beween the sportsman and the bird which he has just killed there may be others concealed, either unconscious of danger, or trusting for security to their powers of lying hid. This tendency to lie close, or the reverse, depends much on the weather, though why it should be so seems not to have been decided. But the movements of Snipes generally are governed by laws of which we know little or nothing. At one season they will be numerous in a certain marsh; the next year perhaps not one will visit the spot ; to-day, they will swarm in a given locality ; a night’s frost will drive them all away, and a change of wind a few days after will bring them all back again. If very severe weather sets in they entirely withdraw, but of this the reason is obvious ; the frozen state of the marsh puts a stop to their feeding. They then retire to milder districts, to springs which are never frozen, to warm nooks near the sea, or to salt marshes. Perhaps the majority perform a second migration southwards; for, as a rule, they are most numerous at the two periods of autumn and spring— that is, while on their way to and from some distant winter- quarters. After March they become far less frequent, yet there are few extensive marshes, especially in Scotland and the north of England, where some do not remain to breed. At this season a striking change in their habits makes itself perceptible. A nest is built of withered grass, sometimes under the shelter of a tuft of heath or reeds, and here the female sits closely on four eggs. The male, meanwhile, is feeding in some neighbouring swamp, and if disturbed, instead of making off with his zig-zag winter’s flight, utters his well-remembered note and ascends at a rapid rate into the air, now ascending with a rapid vibration of wing, wheeling, falling like a parachute, mounting again, and once more descending with fluttering wings, uttering repeatedly a note different from his cry of alarm, intermixed with a drumming kind of noise, which has been compared to the bleat of a goat. This last sound is pro- duced by the action of the wings, assisted by the tail-feathers, in his descents. One of its French names is Chévre volant, flying goat, and Knot 3. Wood Sandpiper. Sanderling 3 Whimbrel J (face p. 258. THE JACK SNIPE 280 the Scottish name ‘ Heather-bleater ’, was also given to it as descrip- tive of its peculiar summer note. The female sits closely on her eggs, and if disturbed while in charge of her yet unfledged brood, endeavours to distract the attention of an intruder from them to herself by the artifice already described as being employed by others of the Waders. ‘Sabine’s Snipe’, which was at one time thought to be a distinct species, is now admitted to be a melanism, a dark variety of the Common Snipe, recent examination of specimens having proved that its tail contains fourteen feathers and not twelve only, as was supposed. It is seldom found outside Great Britain. ES PACKS SNIPE GALLINAGO GALLINULA Crown divided longitudinally by a black band edged with reddish brown , beneath this on either side a parallel yellowish band reaching from the bill to the nape; back beautifully mottled with buff, reddish brown, and black, the latter lustrous with green and purple ; neck and breast spotted ; belly and abdomen pure white; tail of twelve feathers, dusky edged with reddish grey; bill dusky, lighter towards the base. Length eight and a half inches. Eggs yellowish olive, spotted with brown. As the Great Snipe has been called the Double Snipe, on account of its being superior in size to the common species, so the subject of the present chapter is known as the Half Snipe, from being con- trasted with the same bird, and being considerably smaller. The present species is far less abundant than the Common Snipe; yet still it is often seen, more frequently, perhaps, than the other, by non-sporting observers, for it frequents not only downright marshes, but the little streams which meander through meadows, the sides of grassy ponds, and the drains by the side of canals, where the ordinary pedestrian, if accompanied by a dog, will be very likely to put one up. Its food and general habits are much the same as those of the Common Snipe ; but it rises and flies off without any note. Its flight is singularly crooked until it has made up its mind which direction it intends to take ; indeed it seems to decide even- tually on the one which was at first most unlikely to be its path, and after having made a short round composed of a series of dis- jointed curves, it either returns close to the spot from which it was started, or suddenly drops, as by a sudden impulse, into a ditch a few gunshots off. I have seen one drop thus within twenty yards of the spot where I stood, and though I threw upwards of a dozen stones into the place where I saw it go down, it took no notice of them. It was only by walking down the side of the ditch, beating the rushes with a stick, that I induced it to rise again. It then 260 THE SANDERLING flew off in the same way as before, and dropped into the little stream from which I had first started it. From this habit of lying so close as to rise under the very feet of the passenger, as well as from its silence, it is called in France la Sourde, ‘deaf’. In the same country it is known also as ‘St. Martin’s Snipe ’, from the time of its arrival in that country, Novem- ber 11 ; with us it is an earlier visitor, coming about the second week in September. A few instances are recorded of the Jack Snipe having been seen in this country at a season which would lead to the inference that it occasionally breeds here ; but no instance of its doing so has been ascertained as a fact. THE SANDERLING CALIDRIS ARENARIA Winter—upper plumage and sides of the neck whitish ash; cheeks and all the under plumage, pure white; bend and edge of the wing and quills blackish grey ; tail deep grey, edged with white; bill, irides, and feet, black. Swmmeyv—cheeks and crown black, mottled with rust-red and white ; neck and breast reddish ash with black and white spots; back and scapulars deep rust-red, spotted with black, all the feathers edged and tipped with white; wing-coverts dusky, with reddish lines, and tipped with white; two middle tail-feathers dusky, with reddish edges. Young in autumn—cheeks, head, nape, and back variously mottled with black, brown, grey, rust-red and dull white. Length eight inches. Eggs olive, spotted and speckled with black. THE early flocks of Sanderlings often consist of old as well as young birds, which is not the common rule with Waders. They are plenti- ful on our sandy shores, and they sometimes visit inland waters. By April the return passage begins. The note is a shrill wick / They arrive on our shores early in autumn, keeping together in small flocks, or joining the company of Dunlins, or Ringed Plovers. In spring they withdraw to high latitudes, where they breed ; they are not, however, long absent. Yarrell mentions his having obtained specimens as late as April and June, and I have myself obtained them as early as the end of July, having shot at Hunstan- ton, on the coast of Norfolk, several young birds of the year, on the twenty-third of that month; and on another occasion I obtained a specimen on the sands of Abergele, in North Wales, in August. This leaves so very short a time for incubation and the fledging of the young, that it is probable that a few birds, at least, remain to breed in this country, or do not retire very far north. Little is known of their habits during the season of incubation, but they are said to make their nests in the marshes, of grass, and to lay four eggs. Like many other shore birds, they have an extensive geographical range, and are found in all latitudes, both in the eastern and western hemispheres, THE KNOT 261 THE CURLEW SANDPIPER TRINGA SUBARQUATA Bil curved downwards, much longer than the head. Wintey — upper tail- coverts and all the under parts white; upper plumage ash-brown, mottled with darker brown and whitish; breast the same colours, but much lighter; bill black; iris brown; feet dusky. Swmmer—crown black, mottled with reddish; under plumage chestnut-red, speckled with brown and white ; much of the upper plumage black, mottled with red and ash. Length seven and a half inches. Eggs yellowish, with brown spots. Tus bird, called also the Pigmy Curlew, is of about the same size as the far commoner Dunlin, from which it is distinguished not only by the difference in the colour of its plumage, but by the greater length of its beak, which is curved downwards. Pigmy Curlews are observed from time to time in this country at the periods of autumn and spring, and it is said that a few remain with us to breed, but their nest and eggs have never been detected. In their habits they resemble the Dunlins, from which they may readily be distinguished, even when flying, by their white upper tail- coverts. They are of wide geographical range, but nowhere abundant, and visit us on passage in spring and autumn. THE KNOT TRINGA CANUTUS Beak straight, a little longer than the head, much dilated towards the tip ; tail even at the extremity ; a small part of the tibia naked. Wéanter throat and abdomen white; breast and flanks white, barred with ash- brown; upper plumage ash-grey, mottled with brown; wing-coverts tipped with white; rump and upper tail-coverts white, with black crescents ; bill and legs greenish black. | Swmmey—streak over the eye, nape, and all the under plumage, rusty-red, the nape streaked with black ; back streaked and spotted with black, red, and grey. The upper plumage of young birds is mottled with reddish brown, grey, black, and dull white; legs dull green. Length ten inches. Eggs unknown. THE Knot, Willughby informs us, is so called from having been a favourite dish of King Canutus, or Knute. It is a migratory bird, visiting the coasts of Great Britain early in autumn, and remaining here till spring, when it retires northwards to breed. During the intervening months it keeps exclusively to the sandy or muddy seashore, assembling in small flocks, and mixing freely with Dunlins, Sanderlings, and Purple Sandpipers. Some authors state that it feeds principally early and late in the day, and during moonlight nights; but I have seen it on the coast of Norfolk in winter feeding at all hours of the day in company with the birds mentioned above, and differing little from them in the mode of obtaining its food. But I remarked on several occasions that, 262 THE DUNLIN when a flock was disturbed, the Knots often remained behind, being less fearful of the presence of man; in consequence of which tardiness in rising they more than once fell to our guns after their companions had flown off. On their first arrival, they are said to be so indifferent to the vicinity of human beings that it is not difficult to knock them down with stones. Their provincial name in Nor- folk is the Green-legged Shank, the latter name, Shank, being applied for shortness to the Redshank. Dr. Richardson states that ‘ Knots were observed breeding on Melville Peninsula by Captain Lyon, who tells us that they lay four eggs on a tuft of withered grass, without being at the pains of forming any nest.’ Flocks of young make their appearance early in August, the adults arriving a little later. THE, DUNELN TRINGA ALPINA Bill a little longer than the head, slightly bent down at the tip; two middle tail-feathers the longest, dusky and pointed; a small part of the tibia naked. Wdanter—throat and a streak between the bill and eye white ; upper plumage ash-brown streaked with dusky; upper tail- coverts dusky; lateral tail-feathers ash, edged with white; breast greyish white, mottled with brown ; bill black; feet dusky. Summer— most of the upper plumage black, edged with rust-red ; belly and abdo- men black. Young birds have the upper plumage variously mottled with ash-brown, dusky, and reddish yellow; the bill is shorter and straight. Length eight inches. Eggs greenish white, blotched and spotted with brown. THE name variabilis, changeable, has been applied to this species of Sandpiper on account of the great difference between its summer and winter plumage. It was formerly, indeed, supposed that the two states of the bird were distinct species ; of which the former was called Dunlin, the latter Purre. It is now known that the two are identical, the bird being commonly found to assume in spring and autumn colours intermediate between the two. Except during the three summer months, May, June, and July, the Dunlin is common onall the shores of Great Britain, where there are extensive reaches of sand or mud. I have obtained specimens on the coast of Norfolk as early as the twenty-fifth of July ; but, gener- ally, it is not until the following month that they become numerous. From this time until late in the winter they are reinforced by con- stant additions ; and in very severe weather the flocks are increased to such an extent that, if it were possible to number them, they would be probably found to contain very many thousands. Such a season was the memorable winter of 1860-61, when, during the coldest part of it, I made an excursion to the coast of Norfolk for the purpose of observing the habits of the seaside Grallatores and Natatores which, in winter, resort to that coast. Numerous as Dunlin 2? J Little Stint. Temminck’s Stint ({ face p, 262 Cream-coloured Courser. THE DUNLIN 263 were the species and individuals of these birds which then flocked to the beach and salt-marshes, I have no doubt, in my own mind, that they were all outnumbered by Dunlins alone. Of nearly every flock that I saw feeding on the wet sand or mud, fully half were Dunlins ; many flocks were composed of these birds alone ; while of those which were constantly flying by, without alighting, the proportion of Dunlins to all other birds was, at least, three to one. Added to which, while the parties of other birds were susceptible of being approximately counted, the individuals which composed a flock of Dunlins were often innumerable. At one time, we saw in the distance, several miles off, a light cloud, as of smoke from a factory chimney: it moved rapidly, suddenly disappeared, and as suddenly again became visible. This was an enormous flock of Dunlins, consisting of many thousands at least. They did not come very near us; but smaller flocks which flew about in our immediate vicinity presented a similar appearance. As the upper surface of their bodies was turned towards us, they were of a dark hue; suddenly they wheeled in their flight as if the swarm was steered by a single will, when they disappeared ; but instantaneously revealed themselves again flying in a different direction, and reflected glittering snowy white. Dunlins, while feeding, show a devoted attention to their occupa- tion, which is not often to be observed in land birds. They run rapidly, looking intently on the ground, now stopping to pick up some scrap of animal matter which lies on the surface of the sand, now boring for living prey where they detect indications of such prey lying hid. Occasionally an individual bird appears to suffer from lameness, and halts in its progress as if its legs were gouty. Frequently they chase a receding wave for the sake of recovering a prize which has been swept from the beach: never venturing to swim, but showing no fear of wetting either feet or feathers. While engaged in these various ways, they often keep up a short conversational twitter, in a tone, however, so low that it can only be heard at a very short distance. While flying, they frequently utter a much louder piping note, which can readily be distinguished from the call of the other seaside birds. I observed that a small detached flock, when disturbed, generally flew off to a great dis- ance; but if other birds were feeding in the neighbourhood, they more frequently alighted near them, as if assured by their presence that no danger was to be apprehended. Dunlins have bred in Cornwall and Devon; but in many parts of Scotland, in the Hebrides and Orkneys ‘ they frequent the haunts selected by the Golden Plovers, with which they are so frequently seen in company, that they have popularly obtained the name of Plovers’ Pages. Sometimes before the middle of April, but always before that of May, they are seen dispersed over the moors in pairs like the birds just named, which, at this season, they greatly re- 264 PURPLE SANDPIPER semble in habits. The nest, which is composed of some bits of withered grass, or sedge, and small twigs of heath, is placed in a slight hollow, generally on a bare spot, and usually in a dry place, like that selected by the Golden Plover. The female lays four eggs, and sits very assiduously, often allowing a person to come quite close to her before removing, which she does in a fluttering and cowering manner.’ + In a few specimens which I obtained, the bill was considerably curved downwards throughout its whole length, thus approaching in form that of the Pigmy Curlew ; but the dusky upper tail-coverts sufficiently distinguished it from its rarer congener. PURPLE SANDPIPER TRINGA STRIATA Bill longer than the head, slightly bent down at the tip, dusky, the base reddish orange; head and neck dusky brown, tinged with grey; back and scapulars black, with purple and violet reflections, the feathers edged with deep ash; breast grey and white; under plumage white, streaked on the flanks with grey ; feet ochre-yellow. Length eight and a quarter inches. Eggs yellowish olive, spotted and speckled with reddish brown. THE Purple Sandpiper is described as being far less common than the Dunlin, and differing from it in habits, inasmuch as it resorts to the rocky coast in preference to sandy flats. The few specimens of it which I have seen were associated with Dunlins, flying in the same flocks with them, feeding with them, and so closely resembling them in size and movements, that a description of the one equally characterizes the other. It was only, in fact, by the difference of colour that I could discriminate between them ; and this I did, on several occasions, with great ease, having obtained my specimens singly while they were surrounded by other birds. According to Mr. Dunn, ‘ The Purple Sandpiper is very numerous in Orkney and Shetland, appearing early in spring, and leaving again at the latter end of April ; about which time it collects in large flocks, and may be found on the rocks at ebb-tide, watching each retiring wave, running down as the water falls back, picking small shellfish off the stones, and displaying great activity in escaping the advancing sea., 1t does motvbreed there. This species has a wide geographical range. It has been often observed in the Arctic regions, where it breeds. It is well known in North America, and is found in various parts of the continent of Europe, especially Holland. 1 Macgillivray. LITRE STINT 265 TEMMINCK’S STINT TRINGA TEMMINCKI Bill slightly bent down at the tip, much shorter than the head ; tail gradu- ated. Wintey—upper plumage brown and dusky; breast reddish ; lower plumage and outer tail-feathers white; bill and feet brown. Summer—All the upper feathers black, bordered with rust-red ; breast reddish ash, streaked with black. Length five and a half inches. Eggs unknown. TEMMINCK, in whose honour this bird was named, states that it ‘inhabits the Arctic Regions, and is seen on its passage at two periods of the year in different parts of Germany, on the banks of lakes and rivers ; probably, also, in the interior of France ; never along the maritime coasts of Holland; very rare on the Lake of Geneva. Its food consists of small insects. It probably builds its nest very far north.’ A few have been killed in England, and it occurs in many parts of Asia and in North Africa, but it is nowhere abundant, being an irregular visitor, only on migration. LITTER STINT TRINGA MINUTA Bill straight, shorter than the head ; two middle and two outer feathers of the tail longer than the rest (‘ tail doubly forked ’); tarsus ten lines; upper plumage ash and dusky; a brown streak between the bill and the eye; under plumage white; outer feathers of the tail ash-brown, edged with whitish ; middle ones brown; bill and feet black. Length five and a half inches. Eggs reddish white, spotted with dark red- brown. A RARE and occasional visitant, appearing from time to time in small flocks on the muddy or sandy sea-coast. My friend, the Rev. W. S. Hore (to whom I am indebted for many valuable notes, incorporated in the text of this volume), obtained several specimens of this bird in October, 1840, on the Laira mud banks, near Plymouth. In their habits they differed little from the Dunlin. They were at first very tame, but after having been fired at became more cautious. In their food and mode of collecting it, nothing was observed to distinguish them from the other Sandpipers. They come on passage in spring and autumn. 266 THE RUEF AND REEVE THE RUFF AND REEVE MACHETES PUGNAX Male in spring—face covered with yellowish warty pimples; back of the head with a tuft of long feathers on each side; throat furnished with a ruff of prominent feathers ; general plumage mottled with ash, black, brown, reddish white, and yellowish, but so variously, that scarcely two specimens can be found alike ; bill yellowish orange. Male in winter —face covered with feathers ; ruff absent; under parts white ; breast reddish, with brown spots ; upper plumage mottled with black, brown, and red; bill brownish. Length twelve and a half inches. Female, “The Reeve ’—long feathers of the head and ruff absent ; upper plumage ash-brown, mottled with black and reddish brown ; under parts greyish white ; feet yellowish brown. Length ten and a half inches. In both sexes—tail rounded, the two middle feathers barred ; the three lateral feathers uniform in colour. Eggs olive, blotched and spotted with brown. Boru the systematic names of this bird are descriptive of its quarrel- some propensities: machetes is Greek for ‘a warrior’, pugnax Latin for ‘ pugnacious’. Well is the title deserved ; for Ruffs do not merely fight when they meet, but meet in order to fight. The season for the indulgence of their warlike tastes is spring ; the scene, a rising spot of ground contiguous to a marsh; .and here all the male birds of the district assemble at dawn, for many days in suc- cession, and do battle valiantly for the females, called Reeves, till the weakest are vanquished and leave possession of the field to their more powerful adversaries. The attitude during these con- tests is nearly that of the domestic Cock—the head lowered, the body horizontal, the collar bristling, and the beak extended. But Ruffs will fight to the death on other occasions. A basket con- taining two or three hundred Ruffs was once put on board a steamer leaving Rotterdam for London. The incessant fighting of the birds proved a grand source of attraction to the passengers during the voyage; and about half of them were slain before the vessel reached London. Ruffs are gluttonously disposed too, and, if captured by a fowler, will begin to eat the moment they are supplied with food ; but, however voracious they may be, if a basin of bread and milk or boiled wheat be placed before them, it is instantly contended for; and so pugnacious is their disposition, that even when fellow-captives, they would starve in the midst of plenty if several dishes of food were not placed amongst them at a distance from each other. Many years have not passed since these birds paid annual visits in large numbers to the fen-countries. They were, however, highly prized as delicacies for the table, and their undeviating habit of meeting to fight a pitched battle gave the fowler such an excellent opportunity of capturing all the combatants in his nets, that they have been gradually becoming more and more rare. The fowler, in fact, has been so successful that he has destroyed his own trace. Green Sandpiper ¢ Common Sandpiper 2 Purple Sandpiper fd Curlew Sandpiper. [face p. 266. GREEN SANDPIPER 267 Another peculiarity of the Ruff is, that the plumage varies greatly in different individuals—so much so, indeed, that Montagu who had an opportunity of seeing about seven dozen in a room together, could not find two alike. These birds are now become rare, but occasional specimens are still met with in different parts of Great Britain, and at various seasons; but if they are ever served up at table, they must be consignments from the Continent. The female builds her nest of coarse grass, among reeds and rushes, and lays four eggs. The brood, when hatched, remain with her until the period of migration; but the males take no interest in domestic affairs. The few that have not been caught become more amicably disposed during the latter portion of the year. They lose the feathery shields from whence they derive their English name, and, assuming a peaceful garb, withdraw to some southern climate. The Ruff is about one-third larger than the Reeve ; and the latter is, at all seasons, destitute of a prominent collar. Formerly these birds bred in the east of England. GREEN SANDPIPER TOTANUS OCHROPUS Upper plumage olive-brown, with greenish reflections, spotted with whitish and dusky ; lower plumage white ; tail white, the middle feathers barred with dusky towards the end, the two outer feathers almost entirely white ; bill dusky above, reddish beneath; feet greenish. Length nine and a half inches. Eggs whitish green, spotted with brown. Tuts bird, which derives its name from the green tinge of its plum- age and legs, must be reckoned among the rarer Sandpipers. In habits it differs considerably from most of its congeners, in that it is not given to congregate with others of its kind, and that it resorts to inland waters rather than to the sea. It is seen for the most part in spring and autumn, at which seasons it visits us when on its way to and from the northern countries in which it breeds. Specimens have been killed late in the summer, from which it has been inferred that the Green Sandpiper sometimes breeds in this country ; but the fact does not appear to have been confirmed by the discovery of its nest. While migrating it flies very high, but when scared from its feeding-ground it skims along the surface of the water for some distance, and then rises high into the air, uttering its shrill whistle. In its choice of food, and habits while feeding it resembles the Common Sandpiper. It lays its eggs in deserted nests and old squirrel dreys—and breeds probably in wild parts of Surrey, Sussex and Hampshire. The Son of the Marshes considers that it does so. 268 THE COMMON SANDPIPER THE WOOD SANDPIPER TOTANUS GLAREOLA Winter—a narrow dusky streak between the bill and eye; upper parts deep brown, spotted with white; breast and adjacent parts dirty white, mottled with ash-brown; under plumage and tail-coverts pure white ; tail-feathers barred with brown and white; two outer feathers on each side with the inner web pure white; bill and legs greenish. Swmmer— head streaked with brown and dull white; the white of the breast clearer ; each of the feathers of the back with two white spots on each side of the centre. Length seven and a half inches. THIS species closely resembles the last both in appearance and habits. It received its name of Wood Sandpiper from having been observed occasionally to resort to boggy swamps of birch and alder, and has been seen even to perch on a tree. Its most common places of resort are, however, swamps and wet heaths. Like the last, it is a bird of wide geographical range, nowhere very abundant, and imperfectly known, coming only on passage in spring and autumn. THE COMMON SANDPIPER TOTANUS HYPOLEUCUS Upper parts ash-brown, glossed with olive; back and central tail-feathers marked with fine wavy lines of rich dark brown; a narrow white streak over each eye; under plumage pure white, streaked at the sides with brown ; outer tail-feathers barred with white and brown; bill dusky, lighter at the base; feet greenish ash. Length seven and a half inches. Eggs whitish yellow, spotted with brown and grey. To this bird has been given not inappropriately the name of Sum- mer Snipe. In form and mode of living it resembles the Snipe properly so called, and it is known to us only during summer. Un- like the last two species, it is a bird of common occurrence. One need only to repair to a retired district abounding in streams and lakes, at any period of the year between April and September, and there, in all probability, this lively bird will be found to have made for itself a temporary home. Arrayed in unattractive plumage, and distinguished by no great power of song—its note being simply a piping, which some people consider the utterance of one of its provincial names, ‘ Willy Wicket ’—it may nevertheless be pro- nounced an accomplished bird. It flies rapidly and in a tortuous course, likely to puzzle any but the keenest shot; it runs with remarkable nimbleness, so that if a sportsman has marked it down, it will probably rise many yards away from the spot ; it can swim if so inclined ; and when hard pressed by a Hawk, it has been seen to dive and remain under water until all danger had passed away. It has never been observed to perch on the twigs of trees, but it has been noticed running along the stumps and projecting roots of trees. Its favourite places of resort are withy holts (where it THE COMMON REDSHANK 269 searches for food in the shallow drains), moss-covered stones in rivers, the shallow banks of lakes, and the flat marshy places inter- sected by drains, which in low countries often skirt the seashore. Its food consists of small worms and the larve and pup of the countless insects which spend their lives in such localities. It may be presumed, too, that many a perfect winged insect enters into its dietary, for its activity is very great. Even when its legs are not in motion, which does not often happen, its body is in a perpetual state of agitation, the vibration of the tail being most conspicuous. Sandpipers do not congregate like many others of the Waders ; they come to us generally in pairs, and do not appear to flock to- gether even when preparing to migrate. The nest is a slight de- pression in the ground, most frequently well concealed by rushes or other tufted foliage, and is constructed of a few dry leaves, stalks of grass, and scraps of moss. The Sandpiper lays four eggs, which are large, and quite disproportionate to the size of the bird. Indeed, but for their peculiar pear-shaped form, which allows of their being placed so as to occupy a small space with the pointed ends all together, the bird would scarcely be able to cover them. The parent bird exhibits the same marvellous sagacity in diverting the attention of an intruder from the young birds to herself, by counter- feiting lameness, which has been observed in the Plovers. The young are able to run within a very short time after exclusion from the egg, there being an instance recorded in the Zoologist of a gentleman having seen some young birds scramble away from the nest while there yet remained an egg containing an unhatched chick. Early, too, in their life they are endowed with the instinct of self-preserva- tion, for Mr. Selby states that if discovered and pursued before they have acquired the use of their wings, they boldly take to the water and dive. The Sandpiper is found in all parts of Europe and Asia, but not in America. THE COMMON REDSHANK TOTANUS CALIDRIS Wintey—upper plumage ash-brown ; throat, sides of the head, streak over the eye, neck, and breast, greyish white; rump, belly, and abdomen, white ; tail marked transversely with black and white zigzag bars, tipped with white; feet and lower half of both mandibles red. Swmmer— upper feathers ash-brown, with a broad dusky streak in the centre; under parts white, spotted and streaked with dusky ; feet and lower half of both mandibles vermilion red. Length ten to eleven inches. Eggs greenish yellow, blotched and spotted with brown. Tue Redshank is a bird of frequent occurrence on all such parts of the coast as are suited to its habits. Nowhere, I suppose, is it more abundant than on the coast of Norfolk—at least, on those parts 270 THE COMMON REDSHANK of the coast where it can have access to muddy marshes. It does not, indeed, confine itself to such places, for it is not unfrequently to be seen on the seashore, feeding in the neighbourhood of Dunlins, Knots, Grey Plovers, and other Waders; or, when its favourite haunts are covered by the tide, a solitary bird or a party of three or four meet or overtake the stroller by the seaside, taking care to keep at a respectful distance from him, either by flying high over his head or sweeping along, a few feet above the surface of the sea, in the line of the breakers or in the trough outside them. They may easily be distinguished from any other common bird of the same tribe by the predominance of white in their plumage, Other Waders, such as Dunlins and Sanderlings, present the dark and light sides of their plumage alternately, but the Redshank shows its dark and white feathers simultaneously, and if seen only on the wing might be supposed to be striped with black and white. Keen-sighted observers can also detect its red legs. Its flight, as accurately described by Macgillivray, ‘is light, rapid, wavering, and as if undecided, and, being performed by quick jerks of the wings, bears some resemblance to that of a Pigeon’. During its flight it frequently utters its cry, which isa wild shrill whistle of two or three notes, approaching that of the Ringed Plover, but louder and less mellow. At low water, it frequents, in preference to all other places of resort, flat marshes which are intersected by muddy creeks, and in these it bores for food. It is very wary, flying off long before the fowler can come within shot if it happens to be standing exposed ; and even if it be concealed under a high bank, where it can neither see nor be seen, it detects his approach by some means, and in most cases is up and away before any but the most expert shot can stop its flight. On these occasions it invariably utters its alarm note, which both proclaims its own escape and gives warn- ing to all other birds feeding in the vicinity. Scattered individuals thus disturbed sometimes unite into flocks, or fly off, still keeping separate, to some distant part of the marsh. On one occasion only have I been enabled to approach near enough to a Redshank to watch its peculiar movements while feeding, and this observation I was much pleased in making, as it confirms the account of another observer. A writer in the Naturalist, quoted by Yarrell and Mac- gillivray, says: ‘I was very much struck with the curious manner in which they dart their bill into the sand nearly its whole length, by jumping up and thus giving it a sort of impetus, if I may use the word, by the weight of their bodies pressing it downwards.’ This account Macgillivray, with an unamiable sneer too common in his writings when he refers to statements made by others of facts which have not fallen within his own observation, considers to be so inaccurate that he pronounces the birds to be not Redshanks at all, and calls them ‘ Irish Redshanks’. On the occasion to which I have referred, I saw at a distance a largish bird feeding on a bank Redshank ¢ Greenshank. Blacktailed Godwit ? Ruff & Reeve. [face p. 270. THE GREENSHANK 27! of mud close to an embankment. Calculating as nearly as I could how many paces off it was, I cautiously crept along the other side of the embankment ; and when I had reached what I supposed was the right spot, took off my hat and peeped over. Within a few yards of me was an unmistakable Redshank, pegging with his long beak into the mud, and aiding every blow with an impetus of his whole body. In my own mind I compared his movements with those of a Nuthatch, with which I was quite familiar, and, the surface of the mud being frozen hard, I imagined that the laborious effort on the part of the bird was necessitated by the hardness of the ground. Perhaps this may have been the case; but, whether or not, it is clear enough that the bird does, when occasion requires it, lend the weight of his body to the effort of his beak in searching for food. I should add that I did not know, at the time, that any similar occurrence had been recorded. The food of the Redshank consists of worms, marine insects, and any other animal matter which abounds on the seashore. In small communities it builds its nest of a few blades of grass in the marshes, in a tuft of rushes or long grass, never among the shingle where that of the Ringed Plover is placed, but often under a shrub (popularly known on the coast of Norfolk by the name of ‘ Rose- mary’), the Sueda fruticosa, Shrubby Sea Blite, of botanists. It lays four eggs, which are considered delicate eating. THE GREENSHANK TOTANUS CANESCENS Bill strong, compressed at the base, slightly curved upwards. Wintery—fore- head, all the lower parts, and lower back, white ; head, cheeks, neck and sides of the breast, streaked with ash-brown and white; rest of the upper feathers mottled with dusky and yellowish white; tail white, middle feathers barred with brown, outer white with a narrow dusky streak on the outer web; bill ash-brown; legs yellowish green, long and slender. Swmmeyr—teathers ot the back edged with white, breast and adjacent parts white, with oval black spots; middle tail- feathers ash, barred with brown. Length fourteen inches. Eggs olive- brown, spotted all over with dusky. AN unusual colour and disproportionate length of leg are characters which sufficiently distinguish the Greenshank and account for its name. It is far less common than the Redshank, but seems to resemble it in many of its habits. It is sociably disposed towards birds of its own kind and allied species, but utterly averse to any familiarity with man, insomuch that fowlers rarely come within shot of it. It frequents low muddy or sandy shores and brackish pools, the oozy banks of lakes, ponds, and rivers, preferring such open situations as allow it a clear view of threatening danger while there is plenty of time to decamp. In the course of feeding it wades unconcernedly Die. THE BAR-TAILED GODWIT through pools of shallow water, and, if so minded, hesitates neither to swim nor to dive. Its visits to England are paid most commonly in spring and autumn, while it is on its way to and from the northern climates in which it breeds. ‘In Scotland it is seen’, says Macgillivray, “in small flocks here and there along the seashore, by the margins of rivers, and in marshy places breeding there in the north, but it is nowhere common, and in most districts of very rare occurrence. By the beginning of summer it has disappeared from its winter haunts, and advanced northwards; individuals or pairs remaining here and there in the more northern parts of Scotland, while the rest extend their migration.’ The same author describes a nest, which he found in the island of Harris, as very like those of the Golden and Lapwing Plovers, with four eggs, intermediate in size between the eggs of these two birds. Another nest was also found by Selby, in Sutherlandshire. There can be therefore no doubt that the north of Scotland is within the extreme southern limit of its breeding-ground. During the winter it is to be seen in the west of Ireland only. THE BAR-TAILED GODWIT LIMOSA LAPPONICA Beak slightly curved upwards ; middle claw short, without serratures. Winter —upper plumage variously mottled with grey, dusky, and reddish ash ; lower part of the back white, with dusky spots ; tail barred with reddish white and dusky ; lower parts white. Swmmerv—all the plumage deeply tinged with red. Young birds have the throat and breast brownish white, streaked with dusky, and a few dusky lines on the flanks. Length sixteen inches. Eggs unknown. On the coast of Norfolk, where I made my first acquaintance with this bird in the fresh state, it is called a Half-Curlew. In like manner, a Wigeon is called a Half-Duck. In either case the reason for giving the name is, that the smaller bird possesses half the market value of the larger. It resembles the Curlew in its flight and the colour of its plumage ; but differs in having its long beak slightly curved upwards, while that of the Curlew is strongly arched down- wards ; and it is far less wary, allowing itself to be approached so closely that it falls an easy prey to the fowler. It appears to be most frequently met with in spring and autumn, when it visits many parts of the coast in small flocks. In Norfolk it is met with from May, the twelfth of that month being called ‘Godwit day,’ by the gunners, although it is almost unknown up north at that season. The specimens which were brought to me were shot in the very severe weather which ushered in the year 1861. These birds have nowhere been observed in England later than the beginning of THE COMMON CURLEW 273 summer, from which fact the inference is fairly drawn that they do not breed in this country. Their habits differ in no material respects from the other seaside Waders, with whom they frequently mingle while feeding, not, seemingly, for the sake of good fellowship, but attracted by a motive common to all, that of picking up food wherever an abundance is to be met with. Their note is a loud, shrill cry, often uttered while on the wing. The female is much larger than the male. This bird is sometimes called the Sea Woodcock. Its flesh is good eating, but is far inferior in flavour to that of the true Woodcock. THE BLACK-TAILED GODWIT LIMOSA BELGICA Beak nearly straight ; middle claw long and serrated ; upper parts ash-brown the shafts of the feathers somewhat deeper ; breast and adjacent parts greyish white; tail black, the base, and the tips of the two middle feathers, white; beak orange at the base, black at the point; feet dusky. Summey—much of the plumage tinged with red. Length seventeen and a half inches. Eggs deep olive, spotted with light brown. Tuis bird is, in outward appearance, mainly distinguished from the preceding by having two-thirds of the tail black, instead of being barred throughout with white and black. Like its congener, it is most frequently seen in autumn and spring, while on the way to and from its breeding-ground in the north; but it does not stay with us through winter, though occasionally a few pairs used to remain in the fen-countries to breed. It is by far the less common of the two, and seems to be getting annually more and more rare. Its habits, as far as they have been observed, approach those of the other Scolopacide. In its flight it resembles the Redshank. Its note is a wild screaming whistle, which it utters while on the wing. It builds its nest in swamps, among rushes and sedges, simply collecting a few grasses and roots into any convenient hole, and there it lays four eggs. THE COMMON CURLEW NUMENIUS ARQUATA General plumage reddish ash, mottled with dusky spots; belly white, with longitudinal dusky spots; feathers of the back and scapulars black, bordered with rust-red ; tail white, with dark brown transverse bars ; upper mandible dusky ; lower, flesh-colour; irides brown; feet bluish grey. Length varying from twenty-two to twenty-eight inches. Eggs olive-green, blotched and spotted with brown and dark green. DweELLeErs by the seaside —especially where the tide retires to a great distance leaving a wide expanse of muddy sand, or on the B.B, . iz 274 THE COMMON CURLEW banks of a tidal river where the receding water lays bare extensive banks of soft ooze—are most probably quite familiar with the note of the Curlew, however ignorant they may be of the form or name of the bird from which it proceeds. A loud whistle of two syllables, which may be heard for more than a mile, bearing a not over-fanciful resemblance to the name of the bird, answered by a similar cry, mellowed by distance into a pleasant sound—wild, but in perfect harmony with the character of the scene —announces the fact that a party of Curlews have discovered that the ebb-tide is well advanced, and that their feeding-ground is uncovered. The stroller, if quietly disposed, may chance to get a sight of the birds themselves as they arrive in small flocks from the inland meadows ; and though they will probably be too cautious to venture within an unsafe distance, they will most likely come quite close enough to be dis- criminated. Not the merest novice could mistake them for Gulls ; for not only is their flight of a different character, but the bill, which is thick enough to be distinguished at a considerable distance, is disproportionately long, and is curved to a remarkable degree. Curlews are in the habit of selecting as their feeding-ground those portions of the shore which most abound in worms and small crus- taceous animals; these they either pick up and, as it were, coax from the tip to the base of the beak, or, thrusting their long bills into the mud, draw out the worms, which they dispose of in like manner. When the sands or ooze are covered, they withdraw from the shore, and either retire to the adjoining marshes or pools, or pace about the meadows, picking up worms, snails, and insects. Hay-fields, before the grass is cut, are favourite resorts, especially in the North; and, in districts where there are meadows adjoining an estuary, they are in the habit of changing the one for the other at every ebb and flow of the tide. From the middle of autumn till the early spring Curlews are, for the most part, seaside birds, frequenting, more or less, all the coast ; but at the approach of the breeding season they repair inland, and resort to heaths, damp meadows, and barren hills. Here a shallow nest is made on the ground, composed of bents, rushes, and twigs of heath, loosely put together. The eggs, which are very large, are four in number. During the period of incubation the male keeps about the neigh- bourhood, but is scarcely Jess wary than at other seasons. The female, if disturbed, endeavours to lure away the intruder from her dwelling by the artifice, common in the tribe, of pretending to be disabled; and great anxiety is shown by both male and female if any one approaches the spot where the young lie concealed. The latter are able to run almost immediately after they are hatched, but some weeks elapse before they are fledged. It seems probable that an unusually long time elapses before they attain their full size, for the dimensions of different individuals vary to a remarkable degree. Eight or nine specimens were brought to THE BLACK TERN 275 me in Norfolk in the winter of 1861, and among them about half seemed full-grown ; of the others some were so small that, at the first glance, I supposed them to be Whimbrels. The Curlew is found on the sea-coast over the whole of Europe and Asia, and along the northern coast of Africa. The flesh of this bird is said by some to be excellent eating. This, perhaps, may be the case with young birds shot early in autumn before they have been long subjected to a marine diet. My own experience of birds shot in winter does not confirm this opinion. I have found them eatable, but not palatable. THE WHIMBREL NUMENIUS PHAEOPUS General plumage pale ash-colour, mottled with white and dusky spots ; crown divided by a longitudinal streak of yellowish white; over each eye a broader brown streak ; belly and abdomen white, with a few dusky spots on the flanks ; feathers on the back, and scapulars deep brown, in the middle bordered by lighter brown ; rump white ; tail ash-brown, barred obliquely with dark brown; bill dusky, reddish at the base; irides brown ; feet lead-colour. Length not exceeding seventeen inches. Eggs dark olive-brown, blotched with dusky. THOUGH by no means a rare bird, the Whimbrel is of far less com- mon occurrence than the Curlew, and is seen only at two periods of the year, in May and August, when performing its migrations. It resembles the Curlew both in figure and habits, though much smaller in size ; its note, too, is like the whistle of that bird, but somewhat higher. It is gregarious, but unsociable with other birds. The extreme southern limit at which the Whimbrel breeds is considered to be the Orkney and Shetland Islands. It is known to visit most of the countries of Europe and Asia in spring and autumn, but is nowhere very abundant. ORDER GAVE FAMILY LARID/ Sus-Famity STERNINZ® THE BLACK TERN HYDROCHELIDON NIGRA Bill black ; feet purple-brown, the membrane short ; head and neck black ; upper parts lead-colour ; under parts dark ash-grey ; under tail-coverts white ; tail not much forked, shorter than the wings ; irides brown. In winter, the lore, throat and breast are white. Length ten and a quarter inches. Eggs dark olive-brown, blotched and spotted with black. Tue Black Tern is a common bird in most temperate countries 276 THE SANDWICH TERN which abound in extensive marshes. In its habits it is scarcely less aquatic than the preceding species, but differs from them all in preferring fresh water to salt. It was formerly of frequent occur- rence in England ; but draining and reclaiming have, within the last few years, given over many of its haunts to the Partridge and Wood Pigeon ; and it is now but rarely known to breed in this country.! A few, however, are not unfrequently seen in spring and autumn, when on their way from and to their winter quarters, which are the warmer regions of the globe. In Norfolk its name still lingers as the ‘ Blue Darr’, a corruption, probably, of Dorr-Hawk (another name of the Nightjar), a bird which it closely resembles in its mode of flight. Like the Dorr-Hawk, the Black Tern feeds on beetles and other insects, which it catches on the wing, but adds to its dietary small fresh-water fish, which it catches by dipping for them. While in pursuit of its winged prey, it does not confine itself to the water, but skims over the marsh and adjoining meadows, sometimes even alighting for an instant to pick up a worm. Black Terns are sociable birds among themselves, but do not consort with other species. They lay their eggs in the most inaccessible swamps, on masses of decayed reeds and flags, but little elevated above the level of the water. The nests are merely depressions in the lumps of vegetable substance, and usually contain three or sometimes four eggs. They are placed near enough to each other to form colonies ; and the birds continue to flock together during their absence in warmer climates. Large flocks have been seen in the Atlantic, midway between Europe and America. In Holland and Hungary they are said by Temminck to be numerous. This author states that the Black Tern commonly lays its eggs on the leaves of the water-lily. THE SANDWICH TERN STERNA CANTIACA Bill long, black, the tip yellowish ; tarsus short (one inch); tail long; head and crest as in the last ; nape, upper part of the back, and all the lower parts brilliant white, tinged on the breast with rose; back and wings pale ash-grey; quills deeper grey; tail white; feet black, yellowish beneath. Young bivds—head mottled with black and white ; back, wing- coverts, and tail-feathers varied with irregular lines of black; bill and feet dark brown. Length eighteen inches. Eggs greyish green, blotched with brown and black. Tue Sandwich Tern, which takes its name from the place where it was first seen in England, is not uncommon on many parts of the coast during the summer months. In some places it seems to be 1 The Rev. R. Lubbock states in his Fauna of Norfolk, 1845, that it has ceased to breed regularly in Norfolk, but that eggs had been recently obtained at Crowland Wash in Lincolnshire, Sandwich Tern. Black Tern. Arctic Tern, Roseate Tern. [face p. 276 THE ROSEATE TERN 277 abundant. A large colony inhabits the Farne Islands. They breed as far north as the Findhorn. Upon this coast it is called par excellence ‘The Tern’, all the other species passing under the general name of ‘Sea Swallows’. Its habits are so like those of the Common Tern, to be described hereafter, that, to avoid repetition, I purposely omit all account of its mode of fishing, and content myself with quoting, on the authority of Audubon and Meyer, incidents in its biography which I have not noticed in the Common Tern. The former author says: ‘Its cries are sharp, grating, and loud enough to be heard at the distance of half a mile. They are repeated at intervals while it is travelling, and kept up inces- santly when one intrudes upon it in its breeding-ground, on which occasion it sails and dashes over your head, chiding you with angry notes, more disagreeable than pleasant to your ear.’ Meyer, writing of the same bird, says: ‘The Sandwich Tern is observed to be particularly fond of settling on sunken rocks where the waves run high, and the surf is heavy: this being a peculiar fancy belong- ing to this species, it is sometimes called by the name of Surf Tern.’ DHE ROSEATE TERN STERNA DOUGALLI Bill black, red at the base; feet orange, claws small, black; tarsus three- quarters of an inch long ; tail much forked, much longer than the wings ; upper part of the head and nape black; rest of the upper plumage pale ash-grey ; tail white, the outer feathers very long and pointed ; cheeks and under plumage white, tinged on the breast and belly with rose. Length fifteen to seventeen inches. Eggs yellowish stone-colour, spotted and speckled with ash-grey and brown. Or this Tern Dr. M’Dougall, its discoverer, says, ‘It is of light and very elegant figure, differing from the Common Tern in the size, length, colour, and curvature of the bill; in the comparative shortness of the wing in proportion to the tail, in the purity of the whiteness of the tail, and the peculiar conformation and extra- ordinary length of the lateral feathers. It also differs from that bird in the hazel-colour and size of the legs and feet.’ Roseate Terns have been discovered on several parts of the coast, principally in the north, as in the mouth of the Clyde, Lancashire and the Farne Islands. They associate with the Common Terns, but are far less numerous. Selby says, ‘ the old birds are easily recog- nized amidst hundreds of the other species by their peculiar and buoyant flight, long tail, and note, which may be expressed by the word crake, uttered in a hoarse grating key.’ They rarely nest in Great Britain. 278 THE COMMON TERN THE ARCTIC TERN STERNA MACRURA Bill slender, red throughout ; under plumage ash-grey ; tail much forked, longer than the wings ; legs orange-red, in other respects very like the last. Length fifteen inches. Eggs as in the last. Tuis bird, as its name indicates, frequents high northern latitudes, to which, however, it is not confined; since in the Orkneys and Hebrides it is the common species. It breeds also on the coast of some of the northern English counties, but not farther south than the Humber, though several instances are recorded of large flocks making their appearance in different places at the season when they were probably on their way from their winter quarters ~—far away to the south—to their breeding-ground. In the rocky islands, which they frequent from May to September, they form colonies and lay their eggs, generally apart from the allied species. The eggs closely resemble those of the Common Tern, but are somewhat smaller. In its habits and general appearance the Arctic Tern comes so close to the last-named species, that the birds, even when flying together, can only be distinguished by the most practised eye. THE COMMON TERN STERNA FLUVIATILIS Bill moderate, red with a black tip ; head and long feathers on the back of the head black ; upper parts bluish ash; quills ash-grey, brown at the tips; tail much forked, not longer than the wings, white, the two outer fea- thers on each side dusky on the outer webs; under parts white, tinged with grey on the breast; irides reddish brown; feet coral-red. Young birds have a good deal of white about the head, and the feathers on the back are tipped with white; tail ash-grey, whitish at the tip. Length fourteen inches. Eggs olive-brown, blotched and spotted with ash and dusky. On those parts of the coast where the Common Tern is abundant, no sea-bird is more likely to attract the notice of the visitor than the Common Tern. It is less in size than any of the common species of Gull, with which, however, it is often confounded by the unob- servant. It is more lively and active in its motions, not ordinarily flying in circles, but, if I may use the expression, ‘rambling ’ through the air, frequently diverging to the right or left, and raising or depressing itself at frequent intervals. These characters alone are sufficient to distinguish the Tern from any of the Gulls ; but it presents yet more striking features. Its tail is elongated and forked like that of the Swallow, and from this character rather than from its flight it is commonly known as the Sea Swallow. Its mode of taking its prey is totally different from Ng aS, Lesser Tern 3 Oyster Catcher 2 {face p. 278. Common Tern, Turnstone go wmm. THE LITTLE (OR LESSER) TERN 279 that of the Gulls. Very frequently a single Tern may be observed pursuing its course in a line with the breakers on a sandy shore at the distance perhaps of from fifty to a hundred yards from the beach. Its beak is pointed downwards, and the bird is evidently on the look-out for prey. Suddenly it descends perpendicularly into the water, making a perceptible splash, but scarcely disappearing. In an instant it has recovered the use of its wings and ascends again, swallowing some small fish meanwhile if it has been successful, but in any case continuing its course as before. I do not recollect ever to have seen a Tern sit on the water to devour its prey when fishing among the breakers. Often, too, as one is walking along the shore, or sailing in a boat, when the sea is calm, a cruising party of Terns comes in sight. Their flight now is less direct than in the instance just mentioned, as they ‘ beat’ the fishing-ground after the fashion of spaniels, still, however, making way ahead. Sud- denly one of the party arrests its flight, hovers for a few seconds like a Hawk, and decends as if shot, making a splash as before. If unsuccessful it rises at once, but if it has captured the object on which it swooped, it remains floating on the water until it has re- lieved itself of its incumbrance by the summary process of swallow- ing it. I do not know a prettier sight than a party of Terns thus occupied. They are by no means shy, frequently flying quite over the boat, and uttering from time to time a short scream, which, though not melodious, is more in keeping with the scene than a mellow song would be. In rough weather they repair to sheltered bays, ascend estuaries, or follow the course of a river until they have advanced far inland. They are harbingers of summer quite as much as the Swallow itself, coming to us in May and leaving in September for some warmer coast. They usually breed on flat shores, laying two or three eggs on the ground, in marshes, or on sandy shingle. The eggs in my collection were procured on the coast of Norfolk, but I have seen the birds themselves in the greatest numbers in Belfast Lough and in Loch Crinan. They have bred as far north as Sutherland. TEs Lit Ree (OR LESSER) TERN STERNA MINUTA Bill orange, with a black tip; feet orange ; forehead, and a streak above the eye, white; crown black; upper parts pearl-grey ; under, white ; tail much forked, shorter than the wings. Young bivds have the head brownish, with darker streaks ; upper plumage yellowish white and dusky ; bill pale yellow, with a dark tip; legs dull yellow. Length eight and a half inches. Eggs stone-colour, spotted and speckled with grey and brown. On the sandy and marshy shores of Norfolk, the Lesser Tern is a bird of common occurrence in summer, either single, or in small 280 TEE Ee EeiN parties of three or four. Not unfrequently, as the seaside visitor is sauntering about on the sands, one of these birds seems to take offence at its dominion being invaded. With repeated harsh cries it flies round and round the intruder, coming quite close enough to allow its black head and yellow beak to be distinguished. Its flight is swift, something like that of a Swallow, but more laboured, and not so rapid. If fired at, it takes little notice of the noise ; and, knowing nothing of the danger, continues its screams + and circling till its pertinacity becomes annoying. When feeding it presents a far pleasanter appearance. Then, altogether heedless of intrusion, it skims along the surface of the drains in the marshes, profiting by its length of wing and facility of wheeling, to capture flying insects. At least, if this be not its object, I can in no other way account for the peculiar character of its flight. At other times, either alone or in company with a few other individuals of the same species, it is seen flying slowly along, some fifteen or twenty feet above the surface of a shallow tidal pool, or pond, in a salt marsh. Suddenly it arrests its onward progress, soars like a Kestrel for a second or two, withits beak pointed downwards. It has descried a shrimp, or small fish, and this is its way of taking aim. Employing the mechanism with which its Creator has pro- vided it, it throws out of gear its apparatus of feathers and air- tubes, and falls like a plummet into the water, with a splash which sends circle after circle to the shore; and, in an instant, having captured and swallowed its petty booty, returns to its aerial watch-post. eae ~ Sie) pete aad {iso We eee Poa, ai . *# 7 31 An i ere ae THE BROWN-HEADED GULL 281 like a Swallow’s than that of the Common Tern, and in size it does not so very much exceed the Swift as to make the comparison out- rageous. <= 7 ' f Sane 2 § a : odd _ ‘ : colt A sft of des eed, as pee AG Bid nk - ae a Rye THE KITIIWAKE GULL 28 GLAUCOUS GULL, OR BURGOMASTER LARUS GLAUCUS General plumage white; back and wings bluish grey; tail and termina portion of the quills white; bill strong, yellow; legs livid flesh-colour. Young mottled with white, grey, and light brown ; shafts of the quills white ; in other respects like the last, but the bill is longer and stouter. Length about twenty-nine inches; breadth five feet two inches. Eggs as in the last, but of a greener hue. THE Glaucous Gull, a large, handsome, and powerful bird, resembles in many of its habits the species last described, but it has not been known to breed in even the most northerly of the British Isles. It pays occasional visits to our shores in winter. A few specimens only have been shot in the southern portion of the island, and no large number in Scotland; but in the neighbourhood of the whale fishery it is common enough. It is very voracious, and not only eats fish, whether dead or alive, and shares with the whale-fisher in his booty, but pursues other sea-fowl, compels them to disgorge their prey, robs them of their eggs, and, if they resist, kills and devours them.t In short, it is the very tyrant of the Arctic Ocean. Its predatory habits were noticed by the early navigators in these waters, who gave it the name of Burgomaster ; but as no accurate description of the bird was brought home, and as some of our other large Gulls are open to a charge of similar rapacity, the name was naturally transferred by Willughby to another species, which he calls the Wagel (probably the Great Black-Backed Gull in immature plumage). This was in 1676. A hundred years later Brunnich gave it the name of Glaucous Gull; but it is still called Burgo- master by the Dutch, and by Arctic voyagers generally. Mr. St. John gives the name of Wagel to the Great Grey Gull. NI THE KITTIWAKE GULL RISSA TRIDACTYLA Hind toe represented by a small knob without a claw. Summer plumage —head and neck pale bluish ash, a few fine dusky streaks before the eyes ; forehead, region of the eyes, and all the under parts, pure white ; upper plumage bluish ash; first primary with the outer web black, four first tipped with black, two or three of them ending in a small white spot, fifth having the tip white bordered with black; bill greenish yellow ; orbits red ; irides brown; feet dark olive-brown. In winter, the whole of the head and neck is white. Young birds have the head white, mottled with grey and dusky; upper feathers tipped with brown; bend and upper edge of the wing black; primaries black; tail black, towards the end tipped with white; bill, orbits, and irides, black; feet pale brown. Length fifteen and a half inches. Eggs stone-colour, spotted with grey and two shades of brown. ; THE Kittiwake Gull takes its name from the cry with which in the * A specimen shot in Norfolk was found to contain a full-grown Golden Plover entire, 288 THE GREAT SKUA breeding season it assails any intruder on its domain. It is a beauti- ful bird, especially in its variegated immature plumage, remarkable for its delicacy of colouring and the easy grace of its flight, frequent- ing high cliffs in summer, while engaged in the duties of incubation, and at all other times preferring the open sea to estuaries, and feed- ing on such small fish as swim near the surface. It is very abun- dant in the Arctic regions of both hemispheres during summer, and extends its southern limits so far as to include the British Isles, but is most numerous in the north. Its nest, built of seaweed or - bents, is placed high up in the face of a precipitous cliff, generally on a narrow ledge, and in close proximity with others belonging to birds of the same species. It contains three eggs, and the young birds remain in their airy nest until fully fledged, when, as well as their parents, they disperse over the neighbouring seas, rarely venturing either to perch on land or fly over it. The young of the Kittiwake, previous to its first moult, is sometimes called the Tarrock. Colonel Irby says that the Kittiwake is a partially resident species. Marked birds have been known to follow vessels across the North Atlantic. Sus-Famity STERCORARIINZ! (Rosser Gutts) THE GREAT SKUA STERCORARIUS CATARRHACTES Upper plumage brown, of several shades ; shafts of the quills, basal half of the primaries, and shafts of the tail-feathers, white ; under, reddish grey, tinged with brown ; two central tail-feathers but slightly elongated, not tapering; tarsus two and a half inches long, somewhat rough at the back. Length twenty-five inches. Eggs olive-brown, blotched with brown. TuE Skuas, called also Skua Gulls, are sufficiently distinguished from the true Gulls by their strong hooked bills and talons, and by the habits of daring and voracity founded on these characters. The present species, though called common, is only to be so con- sidered in high latitudes ; for it is very rarely seen on the coasts of England, and has become scarce even in the Shetland Islands, where it was at one time frequent. Mr. Dunn! says: ‘“‘I never saw this bird in Orkney, and there are only three places in Shetland where it breeds—viz. Foula, Rona’s Hill, and the Isle of Mist ; in the latte place it is by no means numerous, and is strictly preserved by the landlords, on whose property it may have settled, from a superstition that it will defend their flocks from the attacks of the Eagle. That } Ornithologist’s Guide to Orkney and Shetland, p. 112, TWIST-TAILED OR POMATORHINE SKUA 289 it will attack the Eagle if he approaches their nests is a fact I have witnessed: I once saw a pair completely beat off a large Eagle from their breeding-place, on Rona’s Hill. The flight of the Skua is stronger and more rapid than that of any other Gull. It is a great favourite with the fishermen, frequently accompanying their boats to the fishing-ground, or Haaf, which they consider a lucky omen ; and in return for its attendance, they give it the refuse of the fish which are caught. The Skua Gull does not associate in -groups; and it is seldom that more than a pair are seen together. During the breeding season it is highly courageou: ; and will strike furiously at, and will even pursue, any one who may happen to approach its nest, which is constructed among the heath or moss ; the female laying two eggs.’’ Some authors state that the Common Skua obtains its livelihood by levying contributions on the White Gulls, compelling them to disgorge their prey, and catching it before it reaches the water ; but Dr. Edmonston, who had great opportunities of watching the habits of these birds, says that they do not adopt the practices correctly attributed to the Arctic Gull, or Richardson’s Skua. The voice of the Common Skua is said to resemble that of a young Gull, being sharp and shrill; and it is from the resemblance of its cry to that of the word Skua, or Skui, that it obtains its popular name. That it is remarkably courageous and daring, all accounts agree. Mr. Low says that, when the inhabitants are looking after their sheep on the hills, the Skua often attacks them in such a manner that they are obliged to defend themselves with their cudgels held above their heads, on which it often kills itself ; and Captain Vetch, in the Memoirs of the Wernerian Society, says that it not only drives away Ravens and Eagles, but that the larger quadrupeds, such as horses and sheep, which venture near its nest, are imme- diately put to flight. Its northern name is Bonxie. TWIST-TAILED OR POMATORHINE SKUA STERCORARIUS POMATORHINUS Upper plumage uniform dark brown; feathers of the nape long, tapering lustrous ; sides of the face and under plumage white ; a collar of brown spots on the breast, and similar spots on the flanks ; shafts of the quills and tail-feathers white, except at the tip; two central tail-feathers projecting three inches, not tapering; tarsus two inches long, rough at the back, with projecting scales. Length twenty-one inches. Young biyrds— upper plumage dusky brown, mottled with reddish yellow ; under, yellowish white, thickly set with brown spots and bars. Eggs ash-green, spotted with dusky. Tue habits of this bird vary but little from those of the other species. Its home is in the Arctic seas, from which it strays southwards in winter, and has been occasionally seen on our coasts. The follow- B.B. U 290 RICHARDSON’S SKUA ing account of the capture of one of these birds, in 1844, indicates a bird of unusual daring and voracity: “ About the beginning of last October, a Pomarine Skua was taken in the adjoining village © of Ovingdean. It had struck down a White Gull, which it would not quit: it was kept alive above a fortnight, and then died. The very first day of its captivity it (is said to have) devoured twenty- five Sparrows. Once it escaped, and immediately attacked a Duck, which it held till recaptured.’ + RICHARDSON’S SKUA STERCORARIUS CREPIDATUS Crown dusky ; cheeks, neck, and under plumage white, tinged with yellow or brown; rest of the plumage dusky, the wings and tail the darkest. Two central tail-feathers tapering from the base, pointed, and projecting six inches; tarsus less than two inches. Length twenty-one inches. Eggs olive, with a circle of brown spots near the larger extremity, the rest speckled with the same colour. Tuis species of Skua, most familiarly known, perhaps, as the Arctic Gull, received its distinctive name, ‘ Richardson’s’, in honour of the eminent Arctic naturalist. It is distinguished from the species already described by its longer tail, but the habits of all are much alike ; indeed, the names of ‘ Arctic Gull’, “ Boatswain’, ‘and Man- of-War’, appear to be sometimes employed indiscriminately. Richardson’s Skua, like the rest, inhabits the Arctic seas, but extends its wanderings southwards in far greater numbers than either of the other species, so that its occurrence on the east coast of England is not unusual. According to Mr. Dunn, ‘numbers of this bird breed in Orkney and Shetland, appearing regularly in May and leaving in August: it is confined to a few situations and is strictly preserved, from the same motive as the Skua Gull. It constructs its nest on low, not mossy, heaths in exposed situations. The female lays two eggs, and has recourse to the same stratagems that the Plover employs to decoy you from the nest ; but when a person approaches near to the place where the nest is built, becomes bold and fierce, and strikes severely with the feet and bill.’ The following account is taken from Mr. St. John’s Wild Sports of the Highlands: ‘‘I was much amused the other day by the proceedings of a pair of the Black-toed Gull or Boatswain. These two birds were sitting quietly on an elevated ridge of sand, near which a number of other Gulls of different kinds were fishing, and hovering about in search of what the waves might cast up. Every bird, indeed, was busy and employed, excepting these two black robbers, who seemed to be quietly resting, quite 1 Zoologist, vol. iii. p. 880, Puffin Jd Black Guillemot d 2 Razorbill J Guillemot ? [ face p. 290. long te ' iz _ _*" ie ee a " THE RAZOR-BILL 291 unconcerned. When, however, a Gull had picked up a prize, these birds seemed instinctively to know it, and darting off with the rapidity of a Hawk (which bird they much resemble in their manner of flight), they attacked the unfortunate Gull in the air, and in spite of his screams and attempts to escape, they pursued and beat him till he disgorged the fish or whatever he had swallowed, when one of them darted down and caught the substance before it could reach the water. The two then quietly returned to their sandbank, where they waited patiently to renew the robbery, should an opportunity occur. As the flock of Gulls moved on with the flow of the tide, the Boatswains moved on also, hovering on their flank like a pair of plundering freebooters. I observed that, in chasing a Gull, they seemed perfectly to understand each other as to who should get the spoil; and in their attacks on the largest Gulls (against whom they waged the most fearless warfare), they evidently acted so as to aid each other. If another pair of Boatswains intruded on their hunting-ground they immediately seemed to send them further off ; not so much by actual battle, as by a noisy and screaming argument, which they continued most vigorously till the new-comers left the neighbourhood. ‘“T never saw these birds hunt for their own living in any other way than by robbing the other Gulls. Though not nearly so large as some of the birds which they attack, their Hawk-like swoops and great courage seem to enable them to fight their way most successfully. They are neatly and powerfully made, their colour a kind of sooty dull black, with very little gloss or shining tints on their feathers.” ORDER VEYGORODES FAMILY ALCID/ THE RAZOR-BILL ALCA TORDA Wings reaching to the origin of the tail ; head and upper parts black ; a band across the wing ; an interrupted line from the eye to the base of the bill, and all the under parts white; bill black, with three or four furrows, of which the middle one is white; irides hazel; legs dusky. In summery the line from the eye to the bill is pure white, and the whole of the throat and neck is black, tinged with red. Length seventeen inches. Eggs white, blotched and spotted with two shades of brown. In general habits, the Razor-bill closely resembles the Guillemot and Puffin. Indeed, in some parts of the coast, the Razor-bill is called a Puffin, and the latter a Sea Parrot ; and in Cornwall both 292 THE COMMON GUILLEMOT Guillemotsand Razor-bills are known by the common name of Murre. At a distance the birds can only be distinguished by a practised eye ; but on a close inspection they cannot be possibly confounded. Razor-bills are common on many parts of our coast during the later summer months. They are more frequently seen swimming than flying, and if pursued by a boat are little disposed to take alarm until they are approached to within twenty or thirty yards, when they dive, but soon reappear not very far off. If two birds be in company and one be killed by a shot from a gun, its companion, instead of taking measures to insure its own safety, seems to lose the power of self-preservation. It paddles round its companion as if unable to comprehend the reason why it neither dives nor flies, and if pursued suffers itself to be overtaken and knocked down by an oar. This sympathetic feeling is not confined to birds which have paired, or to members of the same family ; for in an instance which came under my own notice, both birds were only a few months old, and, as the Razor-bill lays but one egg, the birds could not possibly have grown up together. Towards winter, Razor-bills migrate southwards, either to avoid cold or to find waters where their prey swims nearer to the surface than in our climate. In spring they return northwards, and repair, like Puffins, to places of habitual resort for the purpose of breeding. At this season, also, they are eminently social, laying each an egg in close proximity on a ledge in the rocks, lower down than the Puffins, but above the Guillemots, all of which birds flock to the same portion of coast, often in countless multitudes. The egg differs from that of the Guillemot not only in colour but in shape, being less decidedly pear-shaped. It is much sought after as an article of food, and is said to be very palatable. The ‘Auk’ of Arctic voyagers is this bird. The Razor-bill is one of the best known of the Auk family, or Alcide, although less plentiful than the Guillemot or the Puffin. THE COMMON GUILLEMOT URIA TROILE Bill much compressed, longer than the head, greyish black ; upper plumage brownish black; the secondaries tipped with white; a whitish patch behind the eye on each side; under plumage white ; feet dusky ; iris brown. Length nearly eighteen inches. Eggs greenish or bluish, blotched and streaked with black. Tus is one of our common sea-birds during a great portion of the year, though little known to ordinary seaside visitors, owing to its habit of keeping well out to sea and having nothing ostentatious in its habits. Yet, during a cruise in a yacht, on almost any part of the coast, a practised eye will often discover a few stragglers, THE COMMON GUILLEMOT 293 distinguished among other sea-birds by their black and white colours, short neck, and sharp beak. They swim low in the water ; and when disturbed do not invariably dive like the Grebes and Divers, but readily take wing. They are essentially marine birds, never resorting to fresh water, and living exclusively on fish, which they capture by diving, an art in which they are scarcely less skilful than the true Divers, and which they practise in the same way—by the means, namely, of both wings and feet. Occasionally, a small party may be observed, flying in single file near the surface of the water. On the eastern coast of England, the Guillemot is best known by the name of Willock. It is also called Tinker’s Hue, or, as Yarrell gives it, ‘ Tinkershere ’ ; and in the west of England it is often called a Murr. The old writers describe it under the name of Greenland Dove, or Sea Turtle-Dove ; and in Scotland it has a variety of other names. Tinker’s Hue is, I presume, the sobriquet of a white bird with a smutty back; Murr is clearly a corruption of Mergus, or ‘ diver’. Yet more commonly it is known as the ‘ Foolish Guillemot’, a term of reproach analogous to that of ‘ Booby’, given to it from the indifference which it evinces, in the breeding season, to one of its few, but that one the most formidable of its enemies, man. Early in spring Guillemots throng together from all parts of the open sea, and repair to some lofty cliff, where, on a narrow ledge of rock, which in their folly they deem inaccessible, they lay each a single egg. As the bird holds the egg between her legs, she could not well cover more than one; and though a con- cave nest is very needful to keep eggs together when there are several, no such contrivance is necessary when there is one only ; so the Foolish Guillemot builds no nest, but lays a solitary egg on the bare rock. The egg, which is large, is thick-shelled and rough, so that it receives no detriment from the rock; and it is not likely to roll off, for at one end it is thick, and at the other tapers almost to a point; consequently, if accidentally moved by the parent bird when taking flight, it turns as if on a pivot, but does not fall off. At this season, the cliffs to which Guillemots resort are fre- quented also by myriads of other sea-birds, such as Razor-bills, Puffins, and Gulls, each congregating with its own species, but never consorting with another. In Iceland, the Faroe Islands, St. Kilda, the Orkneys, and many parts of the coast of Scotland, the breeding season of these birds is the harvest-time of the natives. Either by climbing from below, or by being let down with ropes from above, the egg-collectors invade the dominions of these literally feathered ‘tribes’. The Foolish Guillemots, rather than leave their charge, suffer themselves to be knocked on the head, to be netted, or noosed. Although stationed so close to each other that a Foolish Guillemot alone could know its own egg, they learn no wisdom from the fate of their nearest neighbours. They are captured in detail for the sake of their feathers; and their eggs 294 THE LEE AUK are taken for food. In St. Kilda and, perhaps, elsewhere, young birds are also taken in large numbers, and salted for consumption in winter. Such as escape this systematic slaughter flounder, as well as they are able, into the sea when nearly fledged, or are carried thither by their foolish mothers. There they learn to swim, to dive, and to fish, and about the middle of August old and young disperse. Huge baskets of their eggs are sometimes brought to the markets of seaport towns (I have seen them so far south as Devonport), and sold for a price exceeding that of domestic fowls, for they are much larger, and are said to afford good eating. Wilson, in his Voyage round the Coasts of Scotland, says that the natives of St. Kilda prefer the eggs of these, and other sea-fowl, ‘when sour ; that is, when about ten or twelve days old, and just as the incipient bird, when boiled, forms in the centre into a thickish flaky matter, like milk.’+ Great quantities are used in the neighbourhood of Flamborough Head early in the nesting season. THE BEACK GUILLEMOT URIA GRYLLE Upper plumage black ; middle of the wings and under parts white ; iris brown ; feetred. Length thirteen andahalfinches. Eggs whitish grey, blotched and speckled with grey and two shades of brown. THE Black Guillemot, is a resident species breeding on the Isle of Man, and on the Irish coasts. In Scotland it is common. Its mode of life, as described by Macgillivray, who was familiarly acquainted with it, differs in no material respect from that of the species already described. It is, however, much smaller, and lays two or sometimes three eggs. Macgillivray says that, on those parts of the coast which it frequents, attempts are often made to rear it in captivity; but always unsuccessfully. In summer, these birds may be readily distinguished from other sea-fowl, by their black and white plumage and red feet : the predominant tint of the plumage in winter is white, with a tinge of grey; and in high latitudes the proportion of white increases. TRE LITTLE Ak MERGULUS ALLE Head and upper parts black ; two bands across the wings ; a spot above the eye and all the under parts white. In swmmey the throat and front of the neck are also black. Lengthabout seveninches. Eggs uniform pale blue. ; Tue Little Auk is essentially a northern sea-bird, coming to us in winter, and is described by Arctic voyagers under the name of PANNE tile 305-215) Red-throated Diver 2? Winter and ¢ Summer. Little Auk 2 Black-throated Diver wm. and Jd Great Northern Diver J [ face p. 294. rs 2 ve A ay i tk 1 are a a . LL 6 “if THE PUFFIN 295 Rotche. It is an indefatigable swimmer, and has considerable powers of flight ; but it does not possess the faculty of diving to the same degree as the Divers and Grebes, as it generally stays but a short time under water. Henceit must find its food near the surface ; and this is supposed to consist of the small crustaceous animals which are so abundant in the Arctic waters. Little Auks are eminently social birds, and have been observed occasionally in such numbers on the water and floating masses of ice as almost to hide their resting- place. They rarely travel far south; and when they visit our shores, which is in winter, and after tempestuous weather, they are supposed to have been driven hither against their will. Instances are recorded of specimens having been found far inland, disabled or dead. It lays only a single egg. THE PUFFIN FRATERCULA ARCTICA Crown, collar, and upper parts, black ; cheeks, region of the eyes, and throat, greyish white; under parts pure white; bill bluish grey at the base, yellow in the middle, bright red at the tip; upper mandible with three transverse furrows, lower, with two; iris whitish; orbits red; feet orange-red. Length twelve and a half inches. Eggs whitish, with indistinct ash-coloured spots. UNLIKE the majority of sea-birds which have been passing under our notice, Puffins visit the shores of the British Isles in summer, and even in winter they are not absent. They make their appear- ance about April or May, not scattering themselves indiscriminately along the coast, but resorting in vast numbers to various selected breeding-places, from the Scilly Islands to the Orkneys. Their home being the sea, and their diet small fish, they possess the faculties of swimming and diving to a degree of perfection. They have, moreover, considerable powers of flight ; but on land their gait is only a shuffling attempt at progress. Their vocation on shore is, however, but a temporary one, and requires no great amount of locomotion. Soon after their arrival they set to work about their nests. Fanciful people who class birds according to their constructive faculty as weavers, basket-makers, plasterers, and so on, would rank Puffins among miners. Building is an art of which they are wholly ignorant, yet few birds are lodged more securely. With their strong beaks, they excavate for themselves holes in the face of the cliff to the depth of about three feet, and at the extremity the female lays a solitary egg—solitary, that is to say, unless another bird takes shelter in the same hole, which is not unfrequently the case. Puffins generally show no overweening partiality for their own workmanship ; sloping cliffs which have been perforated by rabbits are favourite places of resort ; and here they do not at all scruple to avail themselves of another’s labour, or, if necessary, to eject by force of beak the lawful tenant. If the soil be unsuited 295 THE PUFFIN for boring, they lay their eggs under large stones or in crevices in the rock. The old bird sits most assiduously, and suffers herself to be taken rather than desert her charge, but not without wound- ing, with her powerful beak, and to the best of her ability, the hand which ventures into her stronghold. Myriads burrow on Lundy Island. Lunde means Puffin, and ey Island, the name being given by the old Scandinavian rovers who settled there. The young are fed by both parents, at first on half-digested fish, and when older on pieces of fresh fish. At this period they suffer their colonies to be invaded without showing much alarm, and are either shot, knocked down with a stick, or noosed without difficulty. As soon as the young are fully fledged, all the Puffins withdraw to southern seas, where they pass the winter, and do .not approach land until the return of the breeding season. ‘‘ A small island near Skye, named Fladda-huna, is a great breeding haunt of Puffins, a species which arrives in the earlier part of May, literally covering the rocks and ledgy cliffs withits feathered thousands. Although these have no concern with our Grouse-shooting season, they almost totally disappear on the twelfthof August.” + It was just about this period (August 7) in the present year (1861) that I observed several large flocks of Puffins, floating with the tide through the Sound of Islay, and was told by an intelligent gamekeeper that “‘ these birds habitu- ally swim through the sound at this season, but always fly when returning’’. The reason probably is that the young are not at the former period sufficiently fledged to undertake a long flight, though they find no difficulty in swimming. By spring they have attained their full strength, and are able to adopt the more rapid mode of progress. In Scotland there are many large colonies, also in the cliffs by Flamborough Head, and on the Farne Islands. Puffins and some other sea-birds appear to be either liable to a fatal epidemic or to be surprised by some atmospheric disturbance, being unable to resist which, they perish in large numbers. I have seen a portion of the sea-shore in Cornwall strewed for the distance of more than a mile with hundreds of their remains. All the softer parts had been apparently devoured by fishes and crustaceous animals, and nothing was left but the unmistakable parrot-like beaks. A friend informs me that he witnessed a similar pheno- menon in Norfolk, in September, 1858; but in this instance the carcases of the birds were not devoured, and the birds were of different kinds. He estimated that about ninety per cent. were Guillemots, and the remainder Puffins, Razor-bills, Scoters, and a sprinkling of Black Throated Divers. A similar mortality among sea-birds is recorded in the Zoologist as having taken place on the coast of Norfolk, in May, 1856. On this occasion they were so numerous as to be thought worth collecting for manure. 1 Wilson’s Voyage round the Coast of Scotland. THE GREAT NORTHERN DIVER 207 Other names by which the Puffin is known are Sea Parrot, Coul- terneb, Mullet, Bottlenose ; and, in Scotland, Ailsa Parrot, Tammie- Norie, and Tammas. FAMILY COLYMBID/ THE GREAT NORTHERN DIVER COLYMBUS GLACIALIS Bill, with the upper mandible, nearly straight, upwards of four inches in length ; head and neck violet-black, with a double gorget white, barred with black ; upper parts black, spotted with white ; under parts white ; bill black ; irides brown; feet dusky, the membranes whitish. Young very like the next, but distinguishable by their superior size and the direction of the bill. Length thirty-three inches. Eggs dark olive- brown, with a few spots of purplish brown. THE name Divers is, on the sea-coast, loosely applied to a ¢ribe of sea-birds, including the Grebes, Cormorants, and other birds, which, when pursued, place their safety in diving rather than in flying. In works on natural history the term is, however, employed to designate the genus CoLyMBus, and with great propriety ; for, however skilled any of the above birds may be in this mode of progression, the true divers surpass them immeasurably. First among these in size and dignity is the Great Northern Diver, a native of high latitudes in both hemispheres, never perhaps coming farther south than the Shetlands for breeding purposes, and visiting our waters only during winter.1 The Northern Diver, or Imber or Ember Goose, appears to be tolerably frequent in British waters. In Scotland it prefers saltwater lochs and sandy bays to the open sea, though occasionally seen some miles from land. It swims deep in the water, but advances rapidly. When in pursuit of prey it sinks beneath the surface without plunge orsplash, the head disappearing last, and it traverses perhaps two or three hundred yards of water before it rises again. Montagu says that it propels itself by its feet alone ; Audubon, on the contrary, states that it uses the wings under water. The latter author is most probably correct, for it dives more swiftly than the Grebes, and these birds undoubtedly make a vigorous use of their wings. Where shoals of small fish, such as sand-eels 1 Mr. Yarrell, vol. iii. p. 426, quotes Sir Thomas Browne as an authority for the fact that Divers formerly bred in the Broads of Norfolk. A careful examination of that author will show, however, that Sir Thomas Browne had seen only a single specimen of the Northern Diver, his ‘ Divers’, or ‘ Dive- fowl’, being the Crested and Lesser Grebes, etc., which, as we have seen above, continue to breed in the Broads. 298 THE BLACK-THROATED DIVER and sprats, abound, or where fish even of a much larger size are numerous, the Northern Diver finds a rich harvest. Occasionally while thus engaged it meets its death by dashing into the herring nets, and there getting entangled. A fine specimen was recently shown to me in the island of Islay, which had been thus captured. Though it has never been known to take wing in attempting to elude pursuit, it is often seen flying with strength and rapidity, outstripping even the Grebe, which, in proportion to its size, is furnished with far larger wings than itself. The adult male, which is a very handsome bird, is of rare occur- rence, most of those which visit our shores being young birds. The nest is usually placed near the edge of a reedy lake or large river, having a well-beaten track leading to it from the water’s edge. This is formed by the bird in its clumsy effort to walk, a feat which it only performs on such occasions. The nest itself is bulky, and is formed of the vegetable substances found in the immediate vicinity, such as grasses and other herbaceous plants. It contains two, and sometimes three, eggs. The young are able to swim and dive very soon after they are hatched, and are fed for about a fortnight by their parents, at the expiration of which time they have to hunt for themselves. THE BLACK-THROATED DIVER COLYMBUS ARCTICUS Bill slightly curved upwards, with the middle of the lower mandible equal in width to the base, exceeding three inches in length; head ash-grey ; throat and front of the neck black, lustrous with violet and green; be- neath the throat a narrow band streaked with white and black; sides and front of the neck streaked with white and black; back black, with a longitudinal patch of white and black bars on the upper part ; scapulars with twelve or thirteen transverse white bars; bill dusky; iris brown ; feet dusky, with whitish membranes. Young birds have the head and back of the neck greyer and the upper plumage dark brown, edged with bluish ash; under plumage white; cheeks white, spotted with ash ; upper mandible ash-grey, lower dull white. Length twenty-four to twenty-eight inches. Eggs dark olive-brown, spotted with purplish brown. Tuts Diver differs from the preceding species principally in being of inferior size. The predominant tints of the plumage are the same, and the habits of the two are so similar that a separate descrip- tion is unnecessary. The present species is, however, far less common, though it breeds in the Outer Hebrides and in Scot- land, where both eggs and young birds have been observed, and migrates southward in winter. It lays two eggs, near the edge of a fresh-water loch; and Mr. Selby observed that a visible track from the water to the eggs was made by the female, whose progress upon land is effected by shuffling along upon her belly, Red Necked Grebe. Slavonian Grebe. Black Necked or Eared Grebe. Great Crested Grebe 2 Winter od Summer [face p. 298 ag® THE RED-THROATED DIVER 299 propelled by her legs behind. In the breeding season the old birds are often seen on the wing, at which time also they have a peculiar and loud cry, which has been compared to the voice of a human being in distress. THE RED-THROATED DIVER COLYMBUS SEPTENTRIONALIS Till slightly curved upwards, with the edges of both mandibles much incurved, not exceeding three inches in length ; head, throat, and sides of the neck mouse-colour ; crown spotted with black ; neck both above and below marked with white and black lines ; on the front of the neck a large orange- coloured patch ; back dusky brown ; lower parts white. Young birds— upper plumage mouse-colour, darker on the back, where it is marked by longitudinal white lines ; wings dusky ; feathers on the flanks dusky, some of them edged with white; all the under plumage pure white Length twenty-six inches. Eggs chestnut-brown, spotted with darker brown. THE name ‘Loon,’ given in some districts to the Crested Grebe, is elsewhere given to the Red-Throated Diver. The term is an old one, for our countrymen, Ray and Willughby, quoting yet more ancient authorities, describe the Northern Diver under the name of ‘Loon’,and the Black-Throated Diver under that of ‘Lumme’, the latter being the name of the bird in Iceland and Norway, and the former probably an English corruption of the same word, which in the original signifies ‘lame’. : On no part of our coast must we expect to hear this bird popularly called by the name of ‘Red-Throated’, for, though common on many parts of the coast, almost all the specimens observed are young birds of the year, which have the throat pure white. Several were brought to me by the seaside gunners on the coast of Norfolk. In May birds with red throats are noticed. A writer in the Zoologist! says that they are very numerous in winter off the coast of the Isle of Wight, passing and repassing in small flocks and in two lines about a mile apart. Of the hundreds which fell under his notice one only had a red throat, and this was captured under singular circumstances. On April 24, 1839, some fishermen observed an object floating which they imagined was a keg of spirits, but which proved to be a large fish of the kind known as the Fishing Frog, or Angler. On hauling it on board with their boat-hooks, the fishermen discovered that the animal had nearly choked himself by swallowing, tail foremost, an adult Red-throated Diver. The head of the bird protruded from the throat into the mouth of the captor, and, strange to say, it had not only survived its imprisonment, but was unhurt. It was extricated and pre- sented to the Zoological Gardens, where it lived for six months. WON; ath, oh Cy#ic 300 THE GREAT CRESTED GREBE Another writer in the same magazine? says that he saw a large number in Norway during the breeding season, but not one without the dark red throat. This species, like the rest of the genus, obtains its food by diving ; when pursued it rarely tries to escape by taking wing, though it has the power of flying with great rapidity. During the breeding season especially, it often flies about over the water with its long neck outstretched, and uttering a wailing scream. I am informed by a friend, that while fishing in a boat in calm water off the coast of North Devon, he has many times seen Divers pass through the water, at a considerable depth below, propelling themselves by a free and active use of their wings. From October to May only these Divers frequent our coast. Towards the end of spring they withdraw northwards and build their nests, of coarse grass and other herbs, close to the edge of a fresh-water loch. They lay two eggs, and the male is said to take his turn in the office of incubation. Many stay to breed in the Orkneys and Outer Hebrides, and in Ireland. PODICIPEDIDA: THE GREAT CRESTED GREBE PODICIPES CRISTATUS Bill longer than the head, reddish, the tip white ; distance from the nostril to the tip seventeen or eighteen lines; cheeks white; crest and ruff dark brown and chestnut; upper plumage dark brown; secondaries white; breast and under parts silky white; bill brownish red; irides red; feet dull green. Female—crest and ruff less conspicuous, colours generally less bright. Young bivds have neither crest nor ruff. Length twenty-one inches. Eggs white. THE Great Crested Grebe is thus described by Sir Thomas Browne, under the name of Loon: ‘A handsome and specious fowl, cris- tated, and with divided fin-feet placed very backward. They come about April, and breed in the broad waters ; so making their nest in the water, that their eggs are seldom dry while they are set on.’ Fifty years ago the Loon continued to be so common on the Broads of Norfolk that eighteen or twenty might be counted together. It is more or less resident in England and Wales—in the meres of the Midlands and the lakes of Breconshire, and has lately bred in the vicinity of the Clyde. The movements of this bird in the water are described as most graceful ; in swimming it vies with the Swan, and it is a skilful diver. As seen perched upin a museum its form is ungainly, but 1 Zoologist, vol. ix. p. 3084. RED-NECKED GREBE 301 in its native element it might serve as the standard of perfection among water birds. The legs, compressed so as to present a sharp edge, cut the water with a minimum of resistance ; the webbed feet are placed so far backwards that they fulfil at once the office of propellers and rudder; the body is conical and covered with satiny plumage, which throws off water as perfectly as the fur of the otter; the long neck tapers to exceedingly narrow dimensions and terminates in a small head produced into a slender bill. The conformation of the greyhound is not better adapted for fleet run- ning than that of the Grebe for rapid diving. The chase, I need scarcely add, consists of fish; but the Loon will feed on frogs, tadpoles, and any other small animals which fall in its way. It frequents fresh water during the summer months, but on the approach of winter repairs to the sea, not, it would seem, from any desire of varying its food, but to avoid being frozen up. It builds its nest among rushes or decaying weeds, but little above the level of the water, and lays four eggs, the male assisting his partner in the office of incubation. The young can dive and swim immediately that they are hatched ; but if the mother be suddenly alarmed while they are with her, she takes them under her wing and dives with them. The name Loon is supposed to be a corruption of the Finnish designation, Leomme or Lem, ‘lame’, given to several of the Colymbidé on account of the awkwardness with which they advance on land. The Loon is found in lakes throughout a great portion of both the eastern and western hemispheres, but not very far to the north. It rarely flies, except at the period of migration, when it passes swiftly through the air, with neck and feet extended to their full length. RED-NECKED GREBE PODICIPES GRISEIGENA Bill as long as the head, black, yellow at the base ; distance from the nostrils to the tip eleven lines ; crest very short ; head and crest lustrous black ; cheeks and throat mouse-colour ; a black band along the nape; breast bright rust-red ; lower parts white; flanks spotted with dusky; feet black, greenish yellow beneath. Young birds have the head, neck, and back, dusky ; throat, cheeks, breast, belly, and abdomen, silky white ; sides of the breast spotted with grey. Length sixteen inches. Eggs dirty greenish white. THE Red-Necked Grebe is smaller than the Loon, from which it differs also in wanting the elongated crest, in having a more robust bill in proportion to its size, and is further distinguished by the grey hue of its cheeks, on account of which last character it is known in France under the name of Grébe Jou-gris. It is a native 302 THE Lilie, GREBE, OR DABCHICGIS of the north-eastern parts of Europe, and is fairly common along the eastern coast of Great Britain from autumn to spring. In habits it differs little from the last described species, but is less common, occurring both in fresh-water lakes and along the sea- coast. SLAVONIAN GREBE PODICIPES AURITUS Bill strong, shorter than the head, compressed throughout its whole length, black, with the tip red ; eyes with a double iris, the inner yellow, the outer red ; distance from the nostrils to the tip of the bill six or seven lines ; head and bushy ruff glossy black; two horn-like crests orange-red ; lore, neck, and breast, bright chestnut ; upper plumage dusky ; second- aries and under parts white; bill black, rose-coloured at the base and ted at the tip. Young—crest and ruff wanting; upper plumage and flanks dusky ash, under parts white; irides white, surrounded by red. Eggs dirty white. THE Slavonian, or Horned Grebe, approaches so closely in habits to the two preceding species that it is unnecessary to say more than that it inhabits the northern parts of America and Europe, visiting us from autumn to spring. Audubon describes its nest as a rude structure of weeds, situated at a distance of about twelve feet from the water’s edge; but other authors state that though it constructs its nest of these materials, it disposes it among weeds in such a way that it rises and falls with every alteration in the level of the water. It lays from five to seven eggs, and the male is supposed to assist in the office of incubation. THE LITTLE GREBE,-OR, DABCHTIEGK PODICIPES FLUVIATILIS Bill very short, shining, compressed ; no crest or ruff ; distance from nostrils to tip of the bill five lines ; tarsus with a double row of serratures behind ; head black; cheeks bright chestnut ; breast and flanks dusky, mottled with white ; upper parts dark brown, tinged with green ; primaries ash- brown ; secondaries white at the base and on the inner web, under parts dusky ash, tinged on the thighs with reddish ; bill black, whitish at the tip and base of the lower mandible ; irides reddish brown ; feet externally greenish brown, beneath flesh-colour. Young birds are ash-brown above, slightly tinged with red ; breast and flanks reddish white ; belly pure white ; bill brown and yellowish ash. Length nearly ten inches. Eggs dirty white. Tue Lesser Grebe, or, as it is more commonly called, the Dabchick, is the only species with which it is possible to become familiarly acquainted in Britain. It frequents rivers, ponds, and lakes, in all parts of the country, rarely flying, and still more rarely coming to land. Rambling by the side of asluggish river, the sides of which are lined Manx Shearwater 3 Stormy Petrel Fork Tailed Petrel 9? Fulmar face p. 302. THE LITTLE GREBE, OR- DABCHICK 303 with reeds or bulrushes, one may often descry, paddling about with undecided motion, what appears to be a miniature Duck no longer than a Blackbird. It does not, like the Moor-hen, swim with a jerk- ing movement, nor when alarmed does it half swim and half fly ina direct line for the nearest bank of weeds. If you are unobserved, it swims steadily for a short distance, then suddenly disappears, making no splash or noise, but slipping into the water as if its body were lubricated. It is diving for its food, which consists of water insects, molluscs, small fish and worms. As suddenly as it dives so suddenly does it reappear, most likely not far from the spot where you first observed it: A di-dapper peering through a wave, Who, being looked on, ducks as quickly in. SHAKSPEARE, Another short swim and it dives again ; and so it goes on, the time spent under the water being far in excess of that employed in taking breath. Advance openly or make a noise, it wastes no time in idle examinations or surmises of your intentions, but slips down as before, not, however, to reappear in the same neighbourhood. Its motives are different : it now seeks not food, but safety, and this it finds first by diving, and then by propelling itself by its wings under water in some direction which you cannot possibly divine ; for it by no means follows that it will pursue the course to which its bill pointed when it went down. It can alter its line of flight beneath the water as readily as a swallow can change its course of flight through the air. But wherever it may reappear, its stay is now instantaneous ; a trout rising at a fly is not more expeditious. You may even fail to detect it at all. It may have ensconced itself among weeds, or it may be burrowing in some subaqueous hole. That it has the power of remaining a long while submerged, I have no doubt. There is in the parish of Stamford Dingley, Berks, a large and beautiful spring of water, clear as crystal, the source of one of the tributaries of the Thames. I was once bending over the bank of this spring, with a friend, watching the water, some five or six feet down, as it issued from a pipe-like orifice and stirred the sand around like the bubbling of a cauldron, when there sud- denly passed between us and the object we were examining a form so strange that we were at first doubtful to what class of animals we should refer it. In reality, it was a Dabchick, which, alarmed probably by the noise of our conversation, was making for a place of safety. As it passed within two or three feet of our faces, we could distinctly see that it propelled itself by its wings; but it appeared not to have observed us, for it kept on in a direct course towards the head of the spring. We searched long in the hope of discovering it again, but failed; and as there were no weeds among which it could possibly hide above water, and we could examine the bottom of the spring almost as thoroughly as if it 304 THE PUEMARK PETRELE contained air only, we could but conclude that our apparition had taken refuge in a hole under the bank. Early in spring, when Dabchicks leave the small streams and watercourses for broader pieces of water, they have been observed to fly ; and during the building season also they have been seen circling round in the air near the locality of their intended nest. The nest itself is constructed of weeds of all kinds, forming a thick mass raised but a few inches above the surface of the water, and invariably far enough from the bank to be inaccessible except by wading. The Dabchick lays five or six long-shaped eggs, pointed at either end, of a chalky white colour. These the bird, when she leaves the nest, covers with weeds for the purpose of conceal- ment, and on her return continues the work of incubation without removing the covering, so that the eggs soon lose their white hue, and before the period of hatching have become very dirty. The young birds can swim and dive immediately on leaving the egg. I have never myself seen a Dabchick fly through the air or walk on land, neither have I ever heard its note. The latter, a low clicking and chattering sort of noise, it is said to utter in spring. It breeds even in St. James’ Park. Females smaller than males. ORDER -TUBINARES FAMILY PROCELLARITIDA THE FULMAR PETREL PROCELLARIA GLACIALIS Head, neck, under plumage, and tail, white; wings bluish ash, the primaries brownish grey ; beak, irides, and feet, yellow. Young of the year grey tinged with brown, mottled on the back with deeper brown ; bill and feet yellowish ash. Length nineteen inches. Eggs white. In some of the Outer Hebrides Fulmars breed ; but the great station: to which tens of thousands annually resort, is the remote island of St. Kilda. To the Fulmar indeed, and in a less degree to the Gannet and two or three other sea-birds, the island is indebted for its being able to boast of human inhabitants. Eggs and birds, fresh or salted, furnish them with food; the Fulmar with oil: and feathers pay their rent. In the Shetlands it is said to be increas- ing. — James Wilson says: ‘ The oil is extracted from both the young and old birds, which, however, they must seize on sud- denly and strangle, else, as a defensive movement, the desired (and pungent) oil is immediately squirted in the face and eyes of their opponent.’ This oil is ejected, not, as it is sometimes said, through tubular nostrils, but directly through the throat and open mouth. THE MANX SHEARWATER 305 The flesh of the Fulmar is also a favourite food with the St. Kildans, who like it all the better on account of its oily nature. The Fulmar is essentially a sea-bird, and never comes to land except in the breeding season, when it builds its nest of herbage on the grassy shelves of the highest cliffs, and lays a single egg, if which be taken, it lays no more. The young birds are fed with oil by the parents, and on being molested spurt out through the throat and open mouth the same fluid, which, being of a rank smell, infects not only the nest, but the whole neighbourhood. The young birds, which are taken early in August, are boiled, and made to furnish a large quantity of fat, which is skimmed off and pre- served for winter use. The old birds are considered great dainties. In the Arctic regions the Fulmar is well known for its assiduity in attending on whale ships, keeping an eager watch for anything thrown over; and when the operation of cutting up a whale is going on, helping itself most greedily to stray pieces of offal, and venturing so near as to be easily knocked down by a boathook or to be taken by hand. Owing to the rankness of its food, the smell of the Fulmar is very offensive. A specimen recently shot was brought to me in Norfolk, early in January, 1862, and being a great rarity, was carefully preserved and set up; but on being sent home from the bird-stuffer’s it was banished to an outhouse, where it has remained for three months without losing anything of its offensive odour. THE GREAT SHEARWATER PUFFINUS MAJOR Bill two inches long ; tail pointed ; upper plumage dusky ; under, deep ash grey. Length eighteen inches. THE Great Shearwater is far less abundant than the preceding species, and may indeed be considered a rarity. A few solitary specimens have from time to time been shot on various parts of the coast, and they have occasionally been noticed in considerable numbers off the coast of Cornwall. In the Scilly Islands, where they are called ‘Hackbolts’, they are said to be yet more frequent. The Great Shearwater differs little in habits, as far as they are known, from the other species. THE MANX SHEARWATER PUFFINUS ANGLORUM Bill an inch and a half long; tail rounded ; upper plumage brownish black lustrous ; under white ; sides of the neck barred with grey ; sides spotted with grey. Length fourteen inches. Eggs nearly round; pure white. THAT a bird whose generic name is Puffinus should sometimes be called a ‘ Puffin’ is not surprising; and the reader who meets B.B, x 306 THE MANX SHEARWATER with the name in books should satisfy himself whether the subject of his study be an Auk or a Shearwater, before he admits as facts any statements about the ‘ Puffin’ which may fall in his way. Yarrell, for instance, gives the name of Puffin to the bird already described under the name of Fratercula Arctica, while by Montagu that bird is described under the name of ‘ Coulterneb’, ‘ Puffin’ being given as a synonym for the Shearwater. Off Cornwall it is called skiddeu and brew. The Shearwater is so called from its mode of flight, in which it ‘shears’ or skims the water; and its distinctive name, Manx, it owes to its having been formerly very abundant in the Calf? of Man, a small island lying south of the Isle of Man. The Manx Shearwater is, during the greater portion of the year, an ocean-bird, and only ventures on shore during the breeding season. It then repairs to some island, or portion of the coast little frequented by man, and in society with other birds of the same species there takes up its summer quarters. A sandy or light earthy soil, scantily furnished with vegetation, is preferred to any other station. Its nest is a hole in the ground, either the deserted burrow of a rabbit or a tunnel excavated by itself, or less frequently it lays its one egg in the crevice of a rock. During the day Shearwaters, for the most part, remain concealed in their holes, and lie so close that they will suffer themselves to be dug out with a spade and make: no attempt to escape. Towards evening they quit their hiding-places, and paddle or fly out to sea in quest of food. This consists of small fish and other marine animals which swim near the surface, and are caught by the birds either while they are floating or ‘ shearing ’ the water. No nest ever contains more than one egg, but that one and the chick which it produces are objects of the greatest solicitude. Unfortunately for the poor Shearwaters, their young, though fed on half-digested fish oil, are delicate eating ; consequently, some of the stations of these birds have been quite depopulated, and in others their numbers have been greatly thinned. Willughby tells us that in his time ‘ Puffins’ were very numerous in the Calf of Man, and that fully fledged young birds, taken from the nests, were sold at the rate of ninepence a dozen. He adds, that in order to keep an accurate reckoning of the number taken, it was customary to cut off, and retain, one of each bird’s legs. The consequence was that the state in which the birds were sent to market was supposed to be their natural condition, and the Puffin was popularly believed to be a ‘ monopod’ (one-footed bird). This station is now nearly, if not quite, deserted ; but colonies still exist in Annet, one of the Scilly Islands, on the south coast of Wales, in the Orkneys, and in the Shetlands. In the Scilly 1 ‘Calf’, on many parts of the coast, is a name given to the smaller of two rocks in proximity, of which the larger is called the ‘Cow’, THE STORM-PETREL 307 Islands the Shearwater is called a Crew, from the harsh note uttered by the bird when its burrow is invaded ; in the north, a Lyrie or Scrabe. THE STORM-PETREL PROCELLARIA PELAGICA General plumage like the last ; tail even at the extremity ; legs moderate ; membranes black. Length scarcely six inches. Eggs white. UNDER the name of ‘ Mother Carey’s Chickens’ the Petrels must be known to all readers of voyages. According to the belief popular in the forecastle, these birds are invisible during calm or bright weather; but when the sky lowers, and a storm is impending, suddenly, no one knows whence, forth come these ill-omened heralds of the tempest, inspiring more terror than would be caused even by the hurricane which they are supposed to commence. In reality, the Petrels are scarcely birds of the day ; they love to hide them- selves in holes and behind stones. It is not, therefore, surprising that when the sea is calm, and the sun bright, they lurk in their hiding-places, if near enough to land ; or, if on the open ocean, le asleep on the surface of the water, unnoticed, because still and of small size. An overcast sky, however, awakes them as twilight would, and they leave their hiding-places, or rise from their watery bed, not because a storm is impending, but because the cloud which accompanies the storm brings them the desired gloom. When in motion they are more conspicuous than when at rest, and they follow the wake of a ship for the same reason that other sea-fowl do, for the sake of the offal thrown overboard. They will some- times accompany a ship for days, showing that they have untiring power of wing, and to all but the superstitious greatly relieving the monotony of the voyage. The Petrel builds its nest, a rude structure of weeds and rubbish, either in the hole of a cliff or under stones on the beach, and lays a single egg. It rarely comes abroad by day, and if disturbed ejects from its mouth an oily matter, after the manner of the Fulmar. Towards evening it comes forth from its stronghold, and skims the sea in quest of food, which consists of floating animal matter of all kinds. Its name, Petrel, or Little Peter, is derived from its habit of occasionally skimming along so close to the surface of the sea as to dip its feet in the water, and present the appearance of walking ; but its ordinary flight is very like that of the Swallow. The Storm-Petrel breeds in the Orkney, Shetland, and Scilly Islands and a few on the Welsh coast, also in the Channel Islands, but a genuine ocean-bird quits the land as soon as its young are able to accompany it. It is frequently seen in the Atlantic and 308 THE FORK-TAILED PETREL Mediterranean, and is not an uncommon visitor to our shores, especially during severe weather. Its note is only heard during the season of incubation, when its retreat is often betrayed by a low twittering. Storm-Petrels are gregarious birds; they breed in colonies, and skim the sea in small flocks. The French steamers which sail between Toulon and Algiers are said to be regularly accompanied by these birds. THE FORK-TAILED PETREL _ PROCELLARIA LEUCORRHOA General plumage like the last ; tail forked ; legs moderate ; membrane dusky Length seven and a quarter inches. Eggs white, marked with small rusty spots. Tue Fork-Tailed Petrel, a native of North America, does not differ materially in habits from the other species. It is met with almost annually on our east coast, and is common off Cornwall. In Ireland it is frequent. This species was first declared to be a British bird by Bullock, who found it at St. Kilda in 1818. GLOSSARY OF COMMON AND BeOVINCIAL NAMES AND OF TECHNICAL TERMS. dS: male Q : female Aberdeen Sandpiper: a name for Bearded Reedling the Knot Bee-bird: a name sometimes Aberdevine : name for the Siskin Accentor, Hedge : Sparrow, Chan- ter or Warbler Alk: the Razorbill Allamotte: the Petrel Allan: the Skua Alp: a name for the Bullfinch Annet: the Kittiwake Gull Arctic-bird: the Skua Arctic Skua » Tern Assilag: the Petrel Awl: the Woodpecker a Badock: the Skua Bankjug: the Chiff-chaff and Willow Warbler Bargander: the Sheldrake Barley-bird : the Siskin and Wry- neck Barred or Lesser-spotted Wood- pecker Bar-tailed Godwit Basal: at or near the base Beam-bird: the Spotted Fly- catcher Bean Crake: the Land-Rail Goose ”? 309 given to the Flycatcher ; sometimes to the Willow Warbler ,, ~eater ,, -hawk: the Honey Buzzard Beech-finch: the Chaffinch Bergander: the Sheldrake Bernicle Goose Billy: the Hedge Sparrow Billy-whitethroat: the White- throat Bittern Black-a-top : the Stonechat Black-billed Auk: a name given to the Razor-bill in the winter plumage of the first year Blackcap: a name sometimes given to the Black-headed Gull, the Marsh Tit, and Coal Tit Black Duck: the Scoter Blacky-top : the Stonechat Bloodulf : the Bullfinch Blind Dorbie: the Purple Sand- piper Blue-backed Falcon : grine Falcon , -bird: the Field-fare , =cap): the Blue Tit Darr: the Black Tern Hawk: the Peregrine Falcon the Pere- ” 310 i. GLOSSARY Blue-headed Wagtail : headed Wagtail », tailed Bee-eater » Jit: the Tom Tit, the Blue- the grey- cap ,, -=winged Shoveler : the Shoveler Boatswain: the Skua Brake-hopper : Warbler Brambling, or Bramble-finch Bran: the Crow Brancher: the Goldfinch in its first year Brantail: the Redstart Brent Goose Broad-bill: the Shoveler Bronzie: the Cormorant Brook Ouzel: a name given to the Dipper, and incorrectly to the Water-Rail Brown Owl, or Tawny Owl the Grasshopper Pe -Leader Gull: Black- headed Gull, Red- headed Gull or Hooded Gull » Starling: a name some- times” fiven! stow ane young of the Starling i aabern.c. ¢the Pern am 16s immature plumage Budfinch: the Bullfinch Bullfinch, Common i Pine, or Pine Grosbeak Bunting, Lapland, or Finch Burgomaster: the Glaucous Gull Burrow Duck: the Sheldrake Bustard, Great the Kittiwake Gull the Jackdaw the Long-tailed Duck Cargoose: the Crested Grebe Carinate: in the form of a keel Carrion Crow Car-swallow : Cackareer : Caddaw : Calloo: the Black Tern Cere: the wax-like membrane which covers the base of the bill in the Falconidae Chaldrick or Chalder : the Oyster- Catcher Chanchider : catcher Channel Goose: the Gannet Chanter, Hedge: Sparrow, Ac- centor or Warbler Charlie Miftie: the Wheatear the Spotted Fly- Chank, and Chank-daw: the Chough Chepster: the Starling Cherry-finch : the Hawfinch Cherry-sucker, Cherry-chopper, and Cherry-Snipe : the Spotted Flycatcher. Chevy Lin: the Redpoll Chickell: the Wheatear Chickstone: the Stonechat Chippet Linnet: the Redpoll Church Owl: the White Owl Churn Owl: the Nightjar Churr: the Dunlin Cirl Bunting Clack Goose, Clakes: the Bernicle Goose Clatter Goose : the Brent Goose Clee: the Red Shank Cleff: the Tern Clinker: the Avocet Cloven-footed Gull: the Tern Coal-and-candle-light : the Long- tailed Duck Coal Goose : Coaly Hood: Coal Mouse Cob: the male Swan Cob : the Great Black-backed Gull Cobble : the Great Northern Diver Cobbler’s Awl: the Avocet Cobweb: the Spotted Flycatcher Cockandy: the Puffin Cock-winder: the Widgeon Coddy Moddy: the common Gull in its first year’s plumage the Cormorant the Bullfinch or GLOSSARY 311 Coldfinch : the Pied Flycatcher Colk: the King Duck Colin; a name in New Spain for Quail Compressed: flattened vertically Coot-foot: the Phalarope Copperfinch: the Chaffinch Corbie: the Raven Corndrake: the Land-Rail Cornish Crow, or Daw: the Chough Gannet: the Skua Cornwall Kae: the Chough Coulterneb: the Puffin Crake, Little » spotted Crank bird: the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Craw: part of the stomach in birds Cream-coloured Plover: foot or Courser Courser Gull: the Glaucous Gull Creeper, Creep-tree, or Tree- creeper. These names are in some places given to the Nut- hatch Crested Cormorant: the Shag Heron, Common or Grey Cricket-bird: the Grasshopper Warbler Cricket Teal : Swift- the Garganey Crooked Bill: the Avocet Crossbill : Common Cuckoo’s Leader or Mate: the Wryneck Culmen: the ridge of the upper mandible Cultrate: in the form of a bill- hook or pruning knife Curlew-Jack: the Whimbrel Curwillet: the Sanderling Cushat: the Ring Dove Cutty Wren: the Common Wren Cygnet: the young Swan Daker Hen: the Land-Rail Danish Crow: the Hooded Crow Darr, Blue: the Black Tern Dertrum Depressed : flattened horizontally Deviling : the Swift Dick Dunnock: the Hedge Spar- row Dippearl: the Tern Dirty Allen: the Skua Dishwater: the Wagtail Diving Pigeon: the Guillemot Dobbler and Dobchick: the Lesser Grebe Door Hawk and Dorr Hawk: the Nightjar. Dorbie: the Dunlin Doucker: a popular name for a Grebe or Diver Doveky: the Black Guillemot Dove-coloured Falcon : the Pere- grine Falcon Draine: the Missel Thrush Duck Hawk: the Marsh Harrier Ducker: a popular name for a Grebe or Diver Dulwilly: the Ring Plover Dunkir and Dunair: the Pochard Dun Crow: the Hooded Crow Dundiver: the female and young of the Merganser Dung Hunter: the Skua Dunlin Dunnock: the Hedge Sparrow Earl Duck: the MRed-breasted Merganser Easterling : the Smew Ebb: the Bunting Ecorcheur: the Shrike Egret: a tuft of long narrow feathers found on the lower part of the neck of the Herons. The name is also sometimes ex- tended to the two tufts of fea- thers, resembling ears or horns, in some of the Owls 312 Elk: the Hooper Swan Emmer or Ember Goose: Great Northern Diver Emmet Hunter: the Wryneck Erne: the Eagle the Falk or Fale x tne Razor-vill Faller: the Hen Harrier Fallow Chat, Fallow Finch, Fallow Lunch, or Fallow Smich: the Wheatear Fanny Redtail: the Redstart Fauvette : the Garden Warbler, also applied to others of the Warblers. Feather-poke: i.e. ‘“‘sack of feathers’’ is the Chiff-chaff, so called from the materials and form of the nest Felt and Feltyfare: the Fieldfare Fiddler : the Common Sandpiper Field Duck: the Little Bustard Field Lark: the Skylark Fiery Linnet: the Common Lin- net Finch, or Lapland Bunting Fire-crested Regulus or Wren Fire-tail: the Redstart Flapper: a young Duck Flopwing : the Lapwing Flusher: the Butcher-bird Foot: The foot of a bird consists of four, never less than three, toes, with their claws, and the joint next above, called the tacsus) 5 French Linnet: the Redpoll Magpie: the Red-backed Shrike ; Pie: the Great Spotted Woodpecker. ” a flight of Wild Geese the Auk and _ the Gaggle : Gairfowl : Razorbill GLOSSARY Gallinule: the Moor Hen; this name is sometimes applied to the Crakes Gallwell Drake : Garden Ouzel: ,, Warbler Gardenian Heren : the Night Heron Gaunt: the Crested Grebe Gidd: the Jack Snipe Gillhowter: the White Owl Gladdy: the Yellow Hammer Glaucous Gull Glead, Gled, or Kite Goat Owl and Goat-sucker : Nightjar Goldeneye Golden-crested Regulus, Warbler or Wren Oriole or Thrush *. Plover Gorcock: the Moor Cock Gorsehatch : the Wheatear Gorse-duck: the Corn Crake Gorse Linnet: the Common Linnet Goud Spink: the Goldfinch Gouldring: the Yellow Ham- mer Gourder: the Petrel Gouk: the Cuckoo Graduated: a term applied to the tail of a bird when the middle feathers are longest and the outer ones are shorter in gradation Greenwich Sandpiper : Grey: the Gadwall Grey-bird: the Thrush Grey-Duck: the Gadwall ,, Coot-footed Tringa: Phalarope , Crow: the Hooded Crow » Falcon: the Hen Harrier » Heron: common or Crested Heron the Land Drake the Blackbird the young of Glade: the the the Ruff the GLOSSARY 313 Grey Lapwing, or Sandpiper: the Grey Plover , Linnet: the Common Linnet » Owl: the White Owl » Partridge: the Common Partridge ,, Ohrike, Lesser: coloured Shrike » Skit: the Water-Rail , lag: Fen, Stubble, or Wild Goose the Ash- Grisette : the Whitethroat Ground Lark: the Pipit and Bunting a Wren: the Willow War bler Guldenhead: the Puffin Gull-tormentor: the Skua Gunner: the Great Northern Diver : Gurfel: the Razorbill Gustarda: the Bustard Hackbolt: the Greater Shear- water Hadji: the Swift Hagdown: the Greater Shear- water Haggard: the Peregrine Falcon Hagister: the Magpie Half-Curlew : the Whimbrel and Godwit » -Duck: the Wigeon, Po- chard, etc. », -snipe: the Jack Snipe Harle: the Red-breasted Mer- ganser Harpy: the Marsh Harrier Hawk Owl: this name is some- times given to the Short-eared Owl Hay-bird, or Hay-Tit: the Willow Warbler Hay-Jack: the Garden War- bler and Whitethroat Heather Bleater: the Snipe Heath Throstle: the Ring Ouzel Hebridal Sandpiper: the Turn- stone Heckimal: the Blue Tit Hedge-Chicken: the Wheatear » Jug, the Long-tailed Tit Hegrilskip ; the Heron Helegug: the Puffin Hellejay: the Razor-bill Hern, Hernshaw, Heronshaw : che Heron Heronsewgh: the Heron Herring-bar: perhaps a corrup- tion of Herring-bird, Diver Herring Gant: the Gannet 5 Gull Hew-hole: the Woodpecker Hickwall: the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker High-hoo: the Woodpecker Hiogga: the Razor-bill Hissing Owl: the White Owl Hoarse Gowk: the Snipe Hoddy: the Crow Holm Cock and Holm Screech: the Mistle Thrush Hoop: the Bullfinch Hornfinch: the Petrel Horniwinks: the Lapwing Horra: the Brent Goose Horsefinch: the Chaffinch Horsmatch: the MRed-backed Shrike, the Wheatear and Whin- chat Howlet: the Brown Owl Howster: the Knot Huckmuck: the Long-tailed Tit Hullat: the Owl Icebird: the Little Auk Imber, or Great Northern Diver Isle of Wight Parson: the Cor- morant Iris (plural, Irides) : the coloured circle of the eye surrounding the pupil 314 Isaas: the Hedge Sparrow Ivy Owl: the Barn Owl Jack Curlew : Jackdaw Jack-nicker: the Goldfinch » Saw: the Goosander », snipe Jar Owl: the Night Owl Jay, Jay Pie, or Jay Pyet Jenny: the Wren Jid or Judcock: the Jack Snipe the Whimbrel Kadder and Kae: Kamtschatka Tern: Tern Katabella : the Hen Harrier Kate: the Hawfinch Katogle: the Eagle Owl Kiddaw: the Guillemot King-Harry: the Goldfinch Kip) the, @ern Kirktullock : the Shoveler Kirmew and Kirmow: the Tern Knee: a name often given, though inaccurately, to the junction of the tarsus and tibia of a bird. Knot the Jackdaw the Black Lamhi or Lavy: the Guillemot Land Curlew: the Great Plover Lary: the Guillemot Laughing Goose: the White- fronted Goose Lavrock: the Skylark Leg-bird: the Sedge Warbler Lesser wing-coverts : the feathers which overlie the greater wing- coverts, or those next the quills Ling-bird: the Meadow Pipit Linlet: a young Linnet Lobefoot: the Phalarope Long-tongue: the Wryneck GLOSSARY Loom or Loon: the Diver Lore: the space between the beak and the eye Lough Diver: Lum, Lungy: Lumme : Lyre: the Smew the Guillemot the Diver the Manx Shearwater Madge Howlet: the White Owl Maglowan : a name for the Divers Magpie Diver: the Smew Malduck, or Malmarsh: the Ful- mar Mallemoke: the Fulmar Mandibles : upper and under, the two portions of a bird’s bill Man-of-war bird: the Skua Manx Shearwater: the Manx Petrel Marketjew Crow: the Chough Marrot : the Guillemot and Razorbill May-bird, or Mayfowl : the Whim- brel Mavis: the Thrush Meadow Crake, or Drake: Gallinule si Pipit, Titlark or Titling the Meggy-cut-throat: the White- throat Merlie: the Blackbird Mew or Mow: a Gull Millithrum : the Long-tailed Tit Minute Gallinule : the Little Crake » Merganser: the young Smew » ? GLOSSARY 317 Redstart, Common np Black Red-throated Diver Red-winged Blackbird : bird, or Starling Reed-bird: the Sedge Warbler Reed Bunting : the Black-headed Bunting Fauvette : the Sedge Warbler , Pheasant: the Bearded Tit ,, Sparrow: the Black-headed Bunting ,, Warbler or Wren Reeve: the female of the Ruff Richardson’s Skua Richel Bird: the Lesser Tern Rind-tabberer : the Green Wood- Maize- pecker Ring Blackbird: the Ring Ouzel ,, Dove Ringed Dotterel, or Plover Guillemot -necked or Great Northern Diver Ring-tailed Eagle: the Golden Fagle in its second year’s plumage Rippock: the Tern Rochie: the Little Auk Rock -birds : the Auk, Puffin, and Guillemot Dove, Rocker Dove, Rockier Dove Hawk: the Merlin Lark, or Pipit = Ouzel: the King ,, Sandpiper : the Sandpiper Rodge: the Gadwall Rood Goose, or Brent Goose Rose-coloured Ouzel, Pastor, Star- ling or Thrush » Linnet: the Redpoll, and ¥ Common Linnet Rotck, or Rotcke: the Little Auk Rothermuck ; Ouzel Purple the Bernicle Goose Ruddock: the Redbreast, Robin Ruddy Goose, or Sheldrake » Plover: the Bar-tailed Godwit Ruff (female Reeve) Runner: the Water-Rail » stone: the Ringed Plover the! Eider the Jack St. Cuthbert’s Duck : St. Martin’s Snipe: Snipe Sandcock : Sanderling Sandsnipe : a Sandpiper Sandwich Tern Sandy-loo : the Ring Plover » Poker: the Pochard Sarcelle: the Long-tailed Duck Saw-bill: the Merganser Scale Drake: the Sheldrake Scallop-toed Sandpiper : the Pha- larope Scammel: the Bar-tailed Godwit Scapulars: the feathers which rise from the shoulders and cover the sides of the back Scar Crow: the Black Tern Scarf and Scart: the Shag Scaurie: the Herring Gull Scooper: the Avocet Scotch Goose: the Brent Goose Scout: the Common Guillemot Scurrit: the Lesser Tern Scrabe : the Manx Shearwater Scraber : the Black Guillemot Scraye: the Tern Screamer and _ Screecher : Swift Screech : the Missel-Thrush » Martin: the Swift », Owl: the Barn Owi Scull: the Skua Scuttock : the Guillemot Sea Crow: the Cormorant, and Black-headed Gull ,, Dotterel : the Turnstone » Hen; the Guillemot the Redshank the 318 Sea Lark: the Rock Pipit and Ring Plover », Mall, Mew, or Mow: the Gull 7 Parrot: the Putin ,, Pheasant: the Pintail Duck ., Pie: the Oyster-catcher ,, Sandpiper : the Purple Sand- piper », Snipe: the Dunlin , Swallow: the Tern ,, Titling : the Rock Pipit ,, ~Lurtle-dove: the Guillemot and Rotche ,, Wigeon: the Scaup ,, Woodcock: the Godwit Seaford Goose : the Brent Bernicle Secondaries: the quill-feathers arising from the second joint of the wing Sedge-bird, Sedge Warbler, or Sedge Wren Selninger Sandpiper: the Purple Sandpiper serrator: the Ivory Gull Serrated : toothed like a saw Serrula: the Red-breasted Mer- ganser Sheldapple: the Crossbill This name and “Shelly ’”’ are sometimes given to the Chaf- finch Shepster : the Starling Shilfa : the Chaffinch Shoeing-horn : the Avocet Shore-bird: the Sand Martin 3 Pipit: the Rock Pipit Short-eared or -horned Owl Shrieker : the Black-tailed Godwit Shrimp-catcher : the Lesser Tern Shrite : the Missel Thrush Silvery Gull: the Herring Gull Skart : the Cormorant, and Shag Skein: a flight of Geese Skiddaw: the Guillemot Skiddy Cock, Skilty, or Skit: the Water-Rail Skite: the Yellow Hammer GLOSSARY Skitty : the Spotted Crake Skrabe : the Black Guillemot Snake-bird: the Wryneck Snite: the Snipe Snow-bird: the Ivory Gull , -*Bunting: Flake, or Fleck Snuff-headed Wigeon: the Po- chard Solan, or Solent Goose : the Gannet Solitary Snipe: the Great Snipe Song Thrush: the Common Thrush Sparlm-fowl : the female Mergan- ser Spectacle Duck: the Goldeneye Speculum: the bright feathers which form a kind of disc of the wing of the Ducks Speckled-bellied Goose : the White- fronted Goose » Diver: the young of the Great Northern Diver Spider-diver : the Dabchick Speney: the Petrel Spink: the Chaffinch Spoonbill, White Spotted-necked Turtle Dove: the Turtle Dove Sprat Loon, the young of the Great Northern Diver ,, Mew: the Kittiwake Gull Spurre: the Tern Standgale, or Stannel: the Kestrel Starling, Common, Stare, or Starenil Staynil: the Starling Steel Duck, Larger : the Goosander » » Lesser: the Merganser Stint : the Dunlin, or any similar bird, is often so called on the coast Stock-Dove Stonechacker or Stoneclink: Stone- chat Stone Curlew: the Great Plover Stonegale : the Kestrel Stone Hawk: the Merlin GLOSSARY Stone-smirch : the Wheatear Stork, White Storm Cock: the Missel Thrush Petrel, or Storm Finch the Guillemot Summer Snipe: the Sandpiper » Teal: the Garganey Duck, or Sheldrake: the Long-tailed Duck Sweet William : the Goldfinch Swiftfoot : the Courser Swimmer, Little: the Phalarope Swine-pipe: the Redwing Straney : Tail-coverts: upper and under, feathers covering the basal portion of the tail feathers above and below Tailor, Proud: the Goldfinch Tammie Cheekie and Tammie Norie: the Puffin Tang-waup: the Whimbrel Tangle-picker: the Turnstone Taring, Tarrot: the Tern Tarrock: the young of the Kitti- wake Gull Tarse : the male Falcon, a name used in falconry Tarsus: the bone of a_ bird’s foot next above the toes. In a domestic fowl the tarsus is the portion between what is called the ‘“‘ drumstick ’’ and the toes ; the shank Tatler: a Sandpiper Teal Cricket: the Garganey Teaser: the Skua Teewit : the Peewit Tertiaries : the quills which spring from the third or inner joint of a bird’s wing Thistlefinch : the Goldfinch Three-Toed Sandgrouse Thrice-cock : the Mistle Thrush Throstle : the Thrush 319 Tibia: the joint of a bird’s leg next above the tarsus; the “ drumstick.”’ Tick : the Whinchat Tidley : the Wren Tinkershere, or Tinker’s hue: the Guillemot Tippet Grebe: the Crested Grebe Titlark, and Titling : the Meadow Pipit , » seas the Rock Pipit Tom Pudding: the Dabchick Tommy Norie: the Puffin Tomtit : the Blue Tit Tony Hoop: the Bullfinch Tope: the Wren Tom Harry: the Skua Tor-Ouzel: the Ring Ouzel Towilly : the Sanderling Tonite : the Wood Warbler Tree Pipit, or Lark » Sparrow oneeler = the Tree Creeper Tuchit : the Lapwing Plover Tufted Duck Tuliac : the Skua Turkey-bird : the Wryneck Turtle, Sea: the Guillemot and Ricke Twink: the Chaffinch Twit Lark: the Meadow Pipit Tystie : the Black Guillemot Ulnia: the Tawny Owl Under tail-coverts: the feathers which overlap the base of the tail beneath Under wing-coverts : the feathers which cover the wings beneath Upper tail-coverts: the feathers which overlap the base of the tail above Upper wing-coverts : the feathers which overlap the base of the quills Utick : the Whinchat 320 the Smew the Water-Rail Vare Wigeon : Velvet Runner : Wagell: the young of the Great Black-backed Gull Wall Hick: the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Wash-dish and Washerwoman : the Pied Wagtail Water-hen : the Moor-hen ,, Crow, the Dipper ,, Junket : the Common Sand- piper ,, Ouzel or Dipper ,, Sparrow: the Sedge War- bler » Tie: the Wagtail , Wagtail: the Pied Wagtail Waxen Chatterer or Waxwing Wease-alley : the Skua Weasel Coot: the young Smew » Duck: the Smew Weet-weet : the Common Sand- piper Wellplum : chard Whaup : Whautie : Wheel-bird, or Nightjar Wheety-why: the Whitethroat Winthrush: the Redwing Whit-ile, i.e. Whittle : the Green Woodpecker Whewer: the Wigeon Whey-bird: the Whitethroat Whilk: the Scoter Whim: the Wigeon Whimbrel or May-bird Whin Linnet: the Linnet Whistling Plover : Plover Whistling Swan : Swan White Baker ; catcher the Red-headed Po- the Curlew the Whitethroat Wheeler: the Common the Golden the Whooper the Spotted Fly- GLOSSARY White-breasted Blackbird: the Ring or Water Ouzel ,, -faced Duck: the Pochard ; Tinch : the Chaffinch ,, sheaded Goosander: the Smew ,, -cheaded Cormorant: the Common Cormorant ,, headed Harpy: the Moor Buzzard , Nun: the Smew -spot Cormorant: the Common Cormorant -tail: the Wheatear -Winged Black Duck: the Velvet Scoter Whitterick : the Curlew Whitty-beard: the Whitethroat Whitwall and Witwall : the Green Woodpecker Wierangel: the Ash-coloured Shrike Willock and Willy: the Guille- mot Willow-biter : the Tomtit Willywicket : the Common Sand- piper Windhover and Windfanner : Kestrel Windle, the Winnard, and Wind- thrush: the Redwing Wing-coverts: several rows of feathers covering the basal part of the quills above and below, and called the upper and under wing-coverts ; the feathers out- side these are called the lesser wing-coverts Winglet : a process arising from near the base of the terminal joint of the wing, answering to the thumb in the human hand Winnel and Windle-Straw : Whitethroat Winter-bonnet : the Common Gull , Duck; the Pintail Duck the GLOSSARY 321 Winter-Gull, or Mew: the Com- mon Gull in its winter plumage , Wagtail: the grey-headed Wagtail Witch: the Petrel Witwall: the Green Woodpecker Woodcock Owl: the Short-eared Owl Sea: the Godwit . -Snipe: the Great Snipe Woodcracker: the Nuthatch Wood Grouse: the Capercaillie Woodpie: the Green Woodpecker Wood Sandpiper Shrike Woodchat Woodspite, Woodwall, and Wood- wele: the Green Woodpecker Wood Warbler, or Wren Writing Lark: the Bunting, so called from the markings of the eggs B.B Yaffil, Yaffle, Yaffler, Yappingale : the Green Woodpecker Yardkeep and Yarwhip: the Bar- tailed Godwit Yarwhelp : the Stone Plover and Godwit Yeldrin and Yeldrock : the Yellcw Hammer Yellow legged Gull: the Lesser black-backed Gull » Sandpiper: the young of the Ruff i Owl: the White Owl 40 Plover: the Golden Plover D Poll: the Wigeon Warbler : the Willow Warbler Yeldock, Yoit, Yoldrin and Yowley, the Yellow Hammer Yelper: the Avocet INDEX OF BIRDS AND OF ILLUSTRATIONS The first numeral refers to the text, the second to the illustration facing the page named. PU eee 5 264); p. 204. MVOCEL: 252): p. 250 Bearded Reedling: 42 ; Bee-eater . 135 5 p. 134! Bitter +173); ps 232 Blackbird: 7 ;)pp. 6, 8 iBlackcap = 23; p. 22 Brambling : 97; front Bullfinch : 101; p. 100 Bunting, Cirl: 108; p. 108 ,, Corn (or common) : p-. 108 Es Eaplands) ii rb.) -p: oe eelxced.s 100); p. 208 wf Snow: I10; p. 108 » Yellow (Yellow Ham- Mien) = LOZ; Pp. LILO Burgomaster : see Gull, Glaucous p- 46 106; 108 Bastard) ‘Great: 236; p._ 220 Buzzard, Common: 150; p. 150 we ELONey <= 151; 9p. 150 Rough-legged : 151; p. 150 Capercaillie: 212; p. 220 Chaffinch : 95; p. 96 Chiffchaff : 30; p. 30 Chough: 56; p. 62 Coot (233% 1p. -232 Cormorant, Common: 165; p. 166 s Green*: 167 Courser, Cream-coloured: 240; p:. 262 B.B, Crake Com 225); sps 230 Littler: 3230 5. p. 230 WL SpPOLteds 229); ps 230 Crane 234 3p. 234 Crested Tit: see Titmice Crossbill; 103,53. p. 138 is Two - barred (White- winged) : 106 ; p.138 Crow, Carrion: 65; p. 68 i Eloeded::, 67; ps 08 Cuckoo: 137; ps 133 Curlew, Common: 273; p. ” 2406 Dabchick: see Grebe, Little Dipper 53.5 ps 52 Diver, Black - throated: 298 ; p. 294 Great Northern: 297; p. 294 » Red-throated : 299; p.294 Dotterel\: 244; p. 246 Dove, Ring (Wood Pigeon) : Ag p. 208 Rock: 208; p. 208 Stock: 207; p. 208 Turtle 20095, p. 208 Duck, Black: see Scoter, Black Hider 71975, p-.193 Golden-eye : 195; p. 194 ”? 203; Longtailéd? —190);, pa 195 Pintail : 190; p. 199 Scaup: 194 Tufted: 19455 p: 104 ee Waldas 1G5::. p.<1toO Dunlin : 262; p. 262 324 INDEX Eagle, Golden: 152; p. 152 », 9ea, or White-tailed : T5353 P8652 3 spottedi: 15255 preg Falcon: see Peregrine Falcon Fern Owl: see Nightjar Pieldfare!:°s- apa 2 Blycatchers Pied; 705 “p. 78 - spotted = 775. p. 78 Fulmar: see Petrel, Fulmar Gadwall: 189; p. 186 Gallinule : see Moorhen Gannet: 168; p. 168 Garganey : 192 p. 190 Godwit, Bar-tailed : 272; p. 250 ;, Black-tailed: 2735" p: 270 Gold Crest: see Wren, Gold- Crested Goldfinch : 88; p. 96 Goosander: 201; p. 202 Goose, Bean: 178; p. 178 7 ebermicles mon; p. 166 5) eM 1S0}7 p.) 166 3 GcLey ae 170. par 78 \Pinkfooted : 179; p. 178 3) White = fronted™ 177: sip: 178 Grebe: Black-necked : p. 298 Ls Great-crested : 300; p. 208 st eittleSg027) Sps202 ype dxed-necked=. 3057") ip: 298 p slavohian : 3025.4p..298 Greenfinch : 86; p. 78 Greenshank : 271; p. 270 Grosbeak, Pine: 102 Grouse, Black: 213; p. 7 Neds 2156p. 6204. 204 Guillemot, Common: 292; p. 290 ; Black : 294; p. 290 Black or Brown-headed : 281%) ps. 202 Gull, Gull, Common : 283; p. 280 » Glaucous : 287 pazee » Great Black-backed: 286; Pp. 280 1» lerting 7285 5 ps 262 » Kittiwake: 287; p.282 ,», Lesser Black - backeil : 285; p. 280 » Little: 2380p i282 Harrier, Hien: 148; ps E48 » Martsh + a47 ssp ae a Montagu’s: 149; p. 148 Hawfinch: 87; p. 96 Hawk, Sparrow: 156; p. 158 Heron, Common: 170; p. 234 ba Night > 2735 ps 234 Hobby ; 16m; p., 158 Eloopoe : 136 57p. 134 Jackdaw: 61; p. 68 Jay: 58; p. 62 Kestrel’: 163, 5 (ps 148 Kingfisher : 132; p. 134 Katecer5 ci; pe 150 Kittiwake: see Gull, Kittiwake Knot: 261 p. 258 Lapwing: 247; p. 246 Wark, shore? 122); ps 226 5, Sky. L1Q= pagrzo » Wood :. 1225) pmaaze Minnet = 98; iromt » Mountain: 1005) pames Magpie: 59; p. 62 Martin, House: 83; p. 84 3) wands 845 1p. Ot Merganser : 202; p. 202 Merlin: 162; p. 158 Moorhen : 231; p. 232 Nettlecreeper : see Whitethroat Nightingale: 17; p. 16 INDEX 32 Nightjar: 125; p. 220 Nutcracker: 57; p. 58 Nuthatch: 44; p. 46 Oriole: 53; p. 52 Osprey’: 154; p. 152 Owl, Barn or White: 142; p.144 oy eons — eared 2 i445 “p. 144 we SHont-cared:)) 4'5)3° 9p. 144 i lawny or Brown: 1460; p. ey Ox-bird : see Dunlin Ox-eye: see Great Tit Oystercatcher: 248; p. 278 Partridge, Common: 222; p. 214 5 Ixed-leseed 3" 22555, =p. 214 Penguin: see Razorbill Peewit : see Lapwing Peregrine Falcon: 1593 p. 148 Petrel, Fork-tailed: 308; p. 302 eekulmar: 3045 p. 302 Pe ScOE 307.5 sp. 302 Phalarope, Grey: 253 p. 250 5 Red-necked : 253; p. 250 Pheasant : 219; p. 220 Pipit, Meadow: 117; p. ROCK LESS p: 116 PI WECE -OrLO p- EI6 Pigeon, Wood; 203; p. 208 Plover, Cream - coloured : 240 Ee GOlden)"240°>.p. 240 Py mGteen 247 7 GIey.. 242°> p.. 240 ay Wentish: 24605 p..240 i need = 2445p. 240 , stone or Great Norfolk: 220); (Pp. 240 Pochard (or Dunbird) : 194 Pratineole 238; p: 226 Ptarmigan? 217 ;- p> 226 Putin: 295; p. 200 I16 193; P.- we Ouail=" 226 sp. 7226 Raven : 63; p. 62 Razorbill : 291; p. 290 Redbreast: see Robin Redpoll, Lesser: 99; p. 100 3 Meals 995 p. 100 Redstart; 145) sp. 12 u Black 16) 3p. 12 Redshank : 269; p. 270 Redwing : 2; p. 2 Reedling, Bearded : Reedling Reeve, Female of Ruff : King, @uzel> 1072p. 6 Ringtail: see Hen Harrier Robin’: 165 p. 16 Rollers 1034: "ps £34 Rook : 68; p. 68 Ruff and Reeve : see Bearded 266 2005 pa 270 Sanderling : 260; p. 258 Sandgrouse : 211; p. 226 Sandpiper, Common : 268 ; p. 266 Curlew; 261 5) p. 266 Greens, 2677. p> 200 Purple: 264; p. 266 Wood: 268; p. 258 ” ” ” ” Scaup: 194; p. 194 Scoter, Black (or Common): 199; p. 198 ; Pe SUliehee2 Ok wu Welvet: 200); jp. LOS Shas 107-> p. “160 Shearwater, Great: 305; p. 285 . Manx: 305; p. 302 Sheld-drake : 184; p. 186 Shoveler: 189; p. 186 Shrike, Great ‘Grey: 73; ‘p: 58 OMmlEeSSere GLeVvaen 74 ,» Red-backed: 74; p. 58 », Woodchat: 76; p. 58 Siskin : 90; p. 96 Skua, Greats 288); —p. 266 » Richardson’s: 290; p. » Lwist-tailed: 289; p. Smew : 202; p. 202 286 288 326 INDEX Snipe, Common; 257; p. 256 a Jacks 250 p."256 » Great or Solitary: 256; p- 256 Sparrow: House: 92; front » Hedge :) 20; p. 26 cs cee 2 945 front Spoonbill, White: 176; p. 232 Starling : 54; p. 52 Stint, Little : 205— p: 262 », Rose-coloured : 52 » Lemminek’s : 265; p. Stonechat : 13; p. 12 Stork: 175 ; p. 234 Stork, Black: 175 Swallow: 80; p. 84 i Night: see Nightjar Swan, Bewick’s: 181; p- 168 », Whooper or Wild: 180; p. 168 Swift : 123; p. 84 SO ioe Teakser91 > 9. 190 Perm, Arctic: 278°; 3p: 276 o Blacks 275.5, p. 276 Common : 278; p. 278 Little : 279; p.«278 Roseatem 277 ; p: 276 ,, Sandwich: 276; p. 276 Thick-knee : see Plover, Great 230 Thrush, Seng: 15 Mistles, sre: Wpse2 Titmouse, Great: 37; p. 34 a Blue: 39; p. 40 “A Cole: 40; p. 40 » Marsh: 41; p. 40 ee Bearded : 42 oe Crested : 42; p. 40 Pr Long-tailed : 35; p. 34 Titlark : see Pipit, Meadow Tree-creeper : 47°, p. 40 Turnstone: 250; p. 378 Twite: see Linnet, Mountain Wagtail, Blue-headed : 112 a (GTEY SES eps tee Pied 3025 paki White > 111 ; Spa riz Yellow: 115 } po Ene Warbler: Dartford: 25; p. 26 is Garden: 23.5 ps2 Grasshopper : 28; p. 30 Marsh: 27; p. 26 Reed > 25.- pi 26 sedge : 27°; py 20 Willow : 31; p. 30 P Wood 3325 pegs Waterhen : see Moorhen Water Rail: 230; p. 230 Waxwing: 76; p. 78 Wheatear: 10; p. 16 Whimbrel : 275; p. 258 Whinchat: 12; p. 12 Whitethroat : 21; p. 22 e IWeSses 22). ae22 Wigeon : 192; p. 190 Windhover : see Kestrel Woodcock : 254; p. 256 Woodpecker, Green: 129; p. 178 115 Sop. bs Great Spotted: 127; p. 128 a Lesser Spotted: 129; p. 128 Wren, Common: 48; p. 46 ,» Gold-erested 3933 pa 8 » Hire-crested : 35 7 pa a4 Wryuneck ? 131 5 p., 126 Yellow Hemmer: see Bunting, Yellow . & Butler & Tanner, The Selwood Printing Works, Frome, and London, vi) “5 ~ ’ A > . Leis we My. a a: TREC Ge aie i y i a AM a —${— — ———— Itt