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COLOURED FIGURES

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BRITISH BIRDS,

WITH DESCRIPTIVE NOTICES, S*^ • 8> 2- \ \ *b • £=> V^

BY

HENRY SEEBOHM,

AUTHOR OF "SIBERIA IN EUROPE," "SIBERIA IN ASIA," "A HISTORY OF BRITISH

BIRDS," "CATALOGUE OF BIRDS IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM" (VOL. V.),

"THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE CHARADRIID/E,"

"CLASSIFICATION OF BIRDS,"

"THE BIRDS OF THE JAPANESE EMPIRE," ETC., ETC.

EDITED

(AFTER THE AUTHORS DEATH)
BY

R. BOWDLER SHARPE, LL.D., etc.,

ASSISTANT KEEPER, SUB-DEPARTMENT OF VERTEBRATA,
BRITISH MUSEUM.

SHEFFIELD :

PAWSON AND BRAILSFORD.

1896.

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PREFACE.

To edit any work on British Birds and their eggs is not an easy
task. To edit the work of such a past master on the subject as
my late friend Henry Seebohm, would have been difficult indeed,
had I not had his volumes on " British Birds " on which to rely.
I have done my best to present this work as I believe he would
have wished it to be issued. In a very few cases I have altered
the names of species, where I believe he would have altered
them himself, but in the main I have retained his nomenclature
throughout, and have adhered closely to the names employed
by him in his great work on British Birds, merely adding a
reference to Mr. Howard Saunders' "Manual," and my own
"Handbook of British Birds," where the nomenclature of the
species differs from that used by Mr. Seebohm.

With the system of classification I have had nothing to do,
as before his death he had planned out and settled the order
of the plates with his friend Mr. J. A. Brailsford, and this
arrangement has consequently been followed.

It is satisfactory to know that, whilst many recent Ornitho-
logical illustrations have avowedly been " made in Germany,"
in this instance all the work in connection with the drawing of
the eggs, the lithographing of the plates, the printing of the
letterpress, and the binding of the volume has been done in
Sheffield, at the works of Messrs. Pawson & Brailsford, who are
the publishers of the book.

R. BoWDLER SHARPE.

MEMOIR.

Henry Seebohm was born at Bradford, in Yorkshire, in Jul}',
1832, and at the time of his death was but 63 years of age, still
full of energy and the elaboration of schemes for the production
of even greater works than he had hitherto attempted. An
attack of influenza, in the early part of 1895, rendered him so
weak that nothing but absolute rest could have restored him to
health, and this the activity of his brain prevented him from
achieving, so that the malignant anaemia to which he succumbed,
had full play, and he expired on the 26th of November, 1895.
The energy of Henry Seebohm was a source of admiration to
all who knew him, and to none of his many excellent qualities
has greater tribute been paid by ornithologists of all countries
than to the indomitable zeal with which he followed up his
scientific pursuits.

He was educated at the Friends' Schools at York, where he
had for a schoolfellow Mr. J. G. Baker, F.E.S., the celebrated
botanist of Kew, and at first Seebohm's biological studies seem
to have been botanical, for he began by making a collection of
British ferns. After much hard work and devotion to business
he became a successful steel manufacturer at Sheffield, and was
at last able to spend more leisure in pursuit of his favourite study
of birds. In his work on "British Birds" are many records of
his early experiences in various portions of Yorkshire, the Fame
Islands, etc., and finally scarcely a year elapsed that he did not
visit some part of Europe, one of his most interesting excursions
being made in Greece and Asia Minor, in company with Dr.
Kriiper. He was the most careful of diary-keepers, as the writer
can testify. Every evening the events of the day were chronicled
and read over to his companions, any additional notes occurring
to the latter being carefully taken down.

When I first visited him at Sheffield, more than 20 years ago, he
had already got together a very fine collection of European birds'

VI MEMOIR.

eggs, and he was then particularly interested in the Phylloscojpi,
or Willow Warblers, on which group of birds he wrote an elaborate
paper in the "Ibis," for 1877 (pp. 66—108). At all times
Warblers interested him immensely, and he never left off the
study of these puzzling birds.

In 1875 he went with Mr. J. A. Harvie-Brown to explore the
Petchora River in North-eastern Russia. The travellers met
with considerable difficulties, but came back to England with a
rich harvest of skins and eggs, the most interesting being those
of Anthus gustavi and PJujlloscopiis tristis, of which some nests
and eggs were obtained. The great prizes were the eggs of the 1
Grey Plover (Squatarola helvetica), and the scarcely less rare
eggs of the Little Stint {Tringa minuta). With these discoveries
the expedition of Henry Seebohm and J. A. Harvie-Brown will
be for ever connected. A most interesting account of the
journey was published by Seebohm in a separate work, "Siberia
in Europe."

In the spring of 1876 he made an expedition to Holland, and
spent the month of May at Valkensvaard, and in the autumn of
the same year he visited Heligoland, with Mr. Frank Nicholson,
and they were kind enough to ask me to accompany them. This
expedition to the wonderful island rock (I can scarcely believe
that it is twenty years ago since we were there) is one of the
pleasantest memories of my life. The interest of meeting with
Gatke, the wonderful variety of the birds, the finding one's self
face to face with the phenomenon of migration, all combined to
make the visit a notable one, and no better account has ever been
given of a migration flight than that of Seebohm, in the " Ibis,"
for 1877 (p. 156), where he describes our experiences in Heligo-
land. AVhen we left, he hoped to bring out an English edition
of Gatke's notes on the ornithology of the island, and at that
time he wrote : — " Mr. Gatke's work on the Birds of Heligoland
is making fair progress ; and he has entrusted to me the task
of translating it into English, and editing it in this country ; so
that it is to be hoped that within the next twelve months the full
details of his observations, made during the last five-and-twenty
years in this wonderful little island, may be made public."
Gatke's work appeared in 1891, and an English translation by
Mr. Rudolph Kosenstock in 1895.

MEMOIR. vii

In 1877 Seebohm undertook his celebrated journey to the Yenisei
Valley in Siberia, starting with Captain Wiggins, who had left his
ship in winter quarters within the entrance of the Koorayika River,
a tributary of the Yenisei. As Seebohm did not meet Captain
Wiggins till the 24th of February, and the two travellers left
London on the 1st of March, it will be readily admitted that he
was not a man to take long to make up his mind. Including a
few days spent in St. Petersburg, they were at Nishni Novgorod
on the morning of the 10th, a distance of about 2,400 English
miles. " At Nishni we bought a sledge," he writes, "and travelled
over the snow 3,240 English miles, employing for this purpose
about a thousand horses, sixteen dogs, and forty reindeer." The
travellers finally reached the "Thames" on the Koorayika, in the
afternoon of the 23rd of April . Of his further adventures, including
the wreck of the "Thames," and his ornithological discoveries, an
interesting account is given in the "Ibis" for 1877-78, and in his
work, "Siberia in Asia."

Notwithstanding the important additions to ornithological
knowledge which his expedition had achieved, Seebohm took a
very modest view of its results. In his paper in the " Ibis " for 1878
(p. 322), he says: "The following notes on the birds of Siberia
are of course extremely fragmentary. It is very seldom that the
first expedition to a strange land is successful. The pioneer can
do little more than discover the localities where future researches
may be successively made. My great mistake was that I wintered
too far north," &c. The results of Seebohm's expedition were,
nevertheless, of the first importance. Podoces henderson i in Siberia ;
Picoidcs crissoleucus probably fully adult P. tridactyla ; Sitta
ccesia and S. europea compared ; Cuculus himalayanus in Siberia ;
Corvus sharpii and C. corone interbreeding; Linota linaria and L.
exilipes connected by intermediate forms ; the nest of Emberiza
pusilla; specimens of E.polaris, E. aureola, E. Icucocepliala and
E. rustica; the nests of Antilles gustavi and A. cervinus; observa-
tions on the Pied Wagtails and Titmice ; the nests of Turdus
dubius and T. obscurus, and the hitherto unknown young plumage
of the latter bird; the capture of Nemura cyanura, Calliope camt-
cJiatkensis, Sylvia ajfinis, the nests of Phylloscopus borealis, P.
tristis and P. superciliosus ; specimens of P.fiiscatus Mi&Locustella
certhiola ; the nests of Accentor montanellus, Chclidon lagopus,

Vlll MEMOIR.

Lagopns rupestris and Charadrius fulvus ; besides numbers of
interesting notes on other rare Palaearctic birds. The above are
some of the most important of the notes recorded by Seebohm,
as a result of his Siberian expedition.

The interest which he felt in Thrushes and Warblers had, in
1879, induced him to accept the offer made by Dr. Giinther, the
keeper of the Zoological Department of the British Museum, to
undertake the fifth volume of our " Catalogue of Birds," dealing
with Turdidce and Sylviidce. By this time Seebohm had left
Sheffield and had come to reside in London, and was gradually
preparing for the publication of the work he had most at heart,
his "History of British Birds."

As regards Seebohm's volume of the "Catalogue," it was
splendidly worked out, and is to this day the standard authority
on the Turdidce and Sylviidce. At this date, 1881, he first shewed
his proclivity towards trinomial nomenclature, a system which
he ultimately adopted in its fullest sense; but his trinomialism
was not the trinomialism of the present day, for he only employed
it in cases where be believed that two species intermingled. Thus
Monticola cyanus and M. solitaria were species, but interbred,
and the hybrids or connecting links were M. cyanus solitaria
(p. 318).

In 1880, Seebohm paid another visit to Valkensvaard, but he
was principally occupied in the preparation of the British Museum
' Catalogue,' and published but one paper on " Corrections of
Synonymy in the Family Sylviidce " (" Ibis," 1880, pp. 273—279).
an essay full of valuable notes and corrections. In 1881 the fifth
volume of the " Catalogue of Birds " was published.

It should be mentioned that in 1879 he purchased the Swinhoe
collection of Chinese birds, and this acquisition and his travels in
Siberia led him to extend his studies into a wider area. The
possession of the Swinhoe collection greatly extended his ideas
of work, and he conceived the project of writing a history of
the " Birds of China," and for this purpose he purchased several
collections from China and Japan.

Meanwhile, however, his work, the " History of British Birds,"
was proceeding apace, and he was continually spending a portion
of each year in personally collecting materials on the Continent.
In May, 1882, he was in Brunswick and Pomerania, and in this

MEMOIR. IX

year he published essays in the " Ibis," on the " Birds of Astra-
khan " (pp. 204 — 232), " Further contributions to the Ornithology
of Japan" (pp. 368 — 371), "Notes on the Birds of Archangel"
(pp. 371 — 386), and "Further notes on the Ornithology of Siberia"
(pp. 419 — 428). In the latter paper are remarks on the birds from
Krasnoyarsk, collected by a naturalist whom he had interested in
ornithology during his expedition to the Yenisei. A further essay
("Ibis," 1882, pp. 546 — 550) is on the interbreeding of birds, a
subject in which the author evinced a great interest, as was shewn
by his presentation to the British Museum of the groups of the
Crows {Corone sharpii x C. corone), and the Goldfinches (Car-
duelis carduelis x C. major), which stand in the great hall of the
Natural History Museum at the present day.

In 1883 Seebohm published some " Notes on the Birds of the
Caucasus" ("Ibis," 1883, pp. 1 — 37), and in that year he con-
ceived the idea of publishing a "Monograph of the Thrushes,"
for which group of birds he had never lost his affection since the
issue of his fifth volume of the " Catalogue," in 1881. His first
paper on the subject, "Remarks on the Thrushes of the ^Ethiopian
Region," was published in the "Ibis" for 1883 (pp. 164 — 166),
and was followed by a small paper on " Hirundo rufula and its
allies " (pp. 167 — 169). But the chief event in Seebohm's life
was commenced in this year, viz., the publication of the first
volume of his " History of British Birds." In this (intr. p. xiv.)
begins his first acknowledgment of the influence of glacial epochs,
which played a great part in his subsequent writings.

In 1884 and 1885 Seebohm wrote some essays on Japanese and
Chinese birds in the " Ibis." In the latter year he visited the
Upper Engadine. In 1886 he commenced his studies of the
Wading Birds, and wrote revisions of the genera Cursorius,
Scolopax and Himantopus, in the "Ibis."

The year 1887 saw the publication of some more papers on
Palaearctic Ornithology in the "Ibis," viz., "On the Bullfinches
of Siberia and Japan," and "On Phasianus colchicus and its
allies." Pheasants were always a favourite group of birds with
Seebohm, and the collection of these birds which he bequeathed
to the British Museum is not only one of the richest in the
world, but is almost perfect in the way of species. A note on
Horsfield's Woodcock published in the "Ibis," shews also that he

X MEMOIE.

was still busy with the Waders, and in the early part of the year
he made a voyage to Natal, principally for the purpose of deter-
mining whether Limicoline birds moulted their primaries in spring
as well as in autumn, a fact which he incontestably proved.
These and many other points of interest are discussed in his
paper, "Notes on the Birds of Natal and adjoining parts of
Africa" ("Ibis," 1887, pp. 336—351). In the same volume
there is another paper on the number of the secondary quills in
birds, and in this year he also commenced his first account of
the Birds of the Loochoo Islands.

At the end of 1887 appeared his great work on the "Geograph-
ical Distribution of the Charadriidce, or Plovers, Sandpipers and
Snipes," but, curiously enough, there is no date of publication on
the title page. On the cloth cover of the book is given the date
"1888"; but my own copy contains a letter of presentation
dated " Christmas, 1887," so that there were certainly some
bound copies in existence before the end of the year 1887.

On the above-mentioned work Seebohm spent a great deal
of labour, and a considerable sum of money. Nearly every
point that could be utilised for the discrimination of species is
figured, and woodcuts are on nearly every page. Having myself
just finished the 24th volume of the " Catalogue of Birds," dealing
with the LimicolcB, I can state with authority that Seebohm's
work on the Charadriidce was of the greatest assistance to me
throughout. The migration of birds always interested him
intensely, and as the Charadriidce afford excellent instances of
migration in the class Aves, he dealt fully with the subject in
his work, believing that the "chief causes of the dispersal of
the ancestors of the Charadriidce have probably been two glacial
epochs."

In 1888, besides writing several papers, principally on Palaearctic
Ornithology, Seebohm began to work at the osteology of birds, with
a view to publish an essay on their classification. He had already
got together a large collection of skeletons, and in the " Ibis " for
that year he wrote his first paper on the subject, " An attempt to
diagnose the Sub-orders of the Great Gallino-Gralline group of
Birds, by the aid of osteological characters." In the study of
these bones of birds he received much assistance and a mass of
information from the late Professor T. Kitchen Parker.

MEMOIR. XI

In 1889, he was still intent on his classification of birds, and
he wrote a paper in the " Ibis," " An attempt to diagnose the
Sub-orders of the Ancient Ardeino- Anserine assemblage of Birds,
by the aid of osteological characters alone." Then, in 1890,
followed more papers in the " Ibis," on the same lines, " An
attempt to diagnose the Pico-Passerine group of Birds, and the
Sub-orders of which it consists," and " An attempt to diagnose
the Sub-class Coraciiformes, and the orders, sub-orders and families
comprised therein."

In this year he received his first consignment of birds from the
Bonin Islands, from Mr. P. A. Hoist, whom he had sent out as
a collector, with the view of publishing a complete work on the
birds of the Japanese Archipelago. He was actuated by the
utmost zeal for scientific exploration, but, as I read in his last
letter to Seebohm, "ill-luck and ill-health" had been against him,
and hindered his work. When he wrote this, from Formosa, he
was dying, and he must have expired within a few days of his
generous employer. On the Bonin Islands, Hoist obtained a most
interesting series of birds, from which, however, were wanting the
Grosbeak (Chaunoproctus ferreirostris) and the Ground Thrush
{Geocichla terrestris), to Seebohm's great disappointment. After-
wards, Hoist went to the Volcano Islands, and the description of
his collection was published by Seebohm in the " Ibis " for 1891
(pp. 189 — 192). In the same year he also described a new
Zosterops, as Z. stejnegeri, from the Seven Islands, Japan (" Ibis,"
1891, pp. 273, 274). An important paper on the "Birds of
Szechuen, in Western China (" Ibis," 1891, pp. 370 — 381), was
also published by him in 1891 .

In 1890, he had issued his "Classification of Birds: an attempt
to diagnose the sub-classes, orders, sub-orders and some of the
Families of existing Birds." This work, founded on his own
individual researches, and the life-long studies of his friend Pro-
fessor Parker, was undoubtedly an important contribution to
ornithological knowledge.

In 1890, Seebohm also published his book on " The Birds of
the Japanese Empire," into which he introduced certain modifi-
cations and corrections to his ideas of " Classification." The
book is a most useful one, and is based upon the finest collection
of Japanese birds in the world. Some slight modifications must

x ii MEMOIR.

be made, as has been shewn by Dr. Stejneger in the "Auk " for
1891 (pp. 99 — 101), but otherwise the publication is one of the
most interesting of Seebohm's contributions. In fact the work
was soon rendered incomplete through the exertions of his own
collector, Hoist, who visited the Twin Islands of Japan, Tsu-sima,
and obtained some very interesting species of birds (Ibis, 1892,
pp. 87, 248,399; 1893, p. 47).

In 1890 he had been negotiating with Herr. Gatke for the pur-
chase of his collection of Heligoland birds, and in the "Ibis" for
October of that year, the editor was able to announce that the
purchase had been completed, and that the collection was expected
forthwith to arrive in England. Heligoland had been ceded to
Germany shortly before, and it was argued that the latter country
ought to retain possession of a collection made on what was now
an integral portion of the German Empire. Thus, after some
correspondence, Seebohm was induced to forego his claim, the
money was returned to him, and Germany retained the Gatke
collection. How it has since been treated is set forth by Dr.
Hartlaub in the " Ornithologische Monatsericht " for 1894.

It would have been better for the owner if he had allowed the
collection to come to the British Museum, to which Seebohm
meant to present it, and where, as all the birds were mounted, it
was intended to have exhibited them in a special case, as an
illustration of the avifauna of a great migration centre.

In the "Ibis" for 1892, Seebohm gave a "list of the birds of
Heligoland as recorded by Herr Gatke." This was merely a
brief epitome of the occurrence of each species. This, with some
papers on the Birds of Tsu-sima, appears to have been all that he
wrote during the year 1892, but he was busy in other directions.
Still working at his "classification," he was anxious to see what
characters could be derived from a study of the eggs of birds, and
he proposed to the Trustees of the British Museum to arrange
the entire collection of eggs in that institution, and offered to
present the whole of his own series. Needless to say this gene-
rous proposal was gladly accepted, and the arrangement of the
eggs was completed; the work of cataloguing, labelling, and
placing them in order in the cabinets, being performed by my
daughter, Emily Mary Sharpe, under Seebohm's directions. When
completely set in order, the collection was found to contain over

MEMOIE. Xlll

48,000 specimens, and the arrangement of this vast material
occupied over three years.

The exhibition of a series of the eggs of British Birds involved
the preparation of a series of labels, which were re-published by
Seebohm as a pamphlet, with some general remarks, as the "Geo-
graphical Distribution of British Birds." In the same year he
delivered a Presidential Address to the "Yorkshire Naturalists'
Union," at Skipton, on the same subject. This is a particularly
interesting essay, and on the lines of this address I have no doubt
that he meant to work out the distribution of the Birds of Great
Britain for his new edition of the "Eggs of British Birds," of
which he was then contemplating the publication.

His contributions to ornithology in 1893 were not many, but
he described a new species of Eared Pheasant (Crossoptilum) from
Thibet, and a Zosterops and Merula from Java; and he also gave
a further account of the Birds of the Loochoo Islands, and a digest
of Nicolsky's article on the cause of variation in the shape of eggs
of birds. In this year he was President of the Geographical
Section of the British Association at Nottingham, the subject of
his address being the "Polar Basin." In 1894 his publications
were not many, but he wrote a paper in the "Ibis" on the genus
Suthora.

In 1895 I saw little of Seebohm, as he was busy in preparing
his new work on British Birds' Eggs. He was at this time one
of the secretaries of the Boyal Geographical Society, and the
work involved in preparing for the great Geographical Congress
greatly tried him. He had a sharp attack of influenza in the
spring, and retired to Biarritz for a time to endeavour to shake
it off, but he never regained his strength. He brought out a
Supplement to his "Classification of Birds," in which he pro-
posed a new arrangement of the class, beginning with the
Penguins and ending with the Struthious Birds.

His last public appearance was made at the meeting of the
"British Ornithologists' Club," on the 23rd of October, 1895.
It was noticed that during the evening he was much excited
and interested with the exhibition of the eggs of the Grey
Plover and Little Stint which were brought by Mr. Henry
Pearson on that occasion ; they recalled to him his former
exploits on the Petchora. After the meeting was over, I was told

XIV MEMOIR.

that he wished me to come to him. He had described a new
species of Owl, from the Amur Eiver {Bubo doerriesi), and lie had
brought the specimen for exhibition ; and now would I carry the
box for him to his carriage? We helped him in, as he refused all
our proffered remedies, and when next I saw him on his bed, he
said to me cheerfully: — " Well, old fellow, you were only just in
time to send me home. I was very ill, and have not been out
of bed since." Still his talk was of birds only. " I cannot sleep
at night for thinking of the classification of birds." " Oh," he
said, " I must try to get well, I have so much still to do." And
so he gradually sank, brave to the last, and he lies buried at
Hitchin, in the Friends' grave-yard, a peaceful and a restful spot.
I could not help noticing that as his body was lowered into the
grave, a thrush, one of his favourite birds, came into the tree
above us and sang lustily, though the month was November.

I have not been able in this brief space to enumerate every
paper that my late friend published. I have written mostly a
personal reminiscence. That he was much honoured and appre-
ciated in foreign countries has been abundantly proved by the
"Obituaries" published in foreign journals. One thing however
I can say from personal knowledge, that a more generous man,
a better friend to the British Museum, and a more ardent student
of Ornithology it would be difficult to find.

E. B. S.

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY FALCONID/E, or Diurnal Birds of Prey
Griffon Vulture (Vultur fitlvus) ..
Egyptian Vulture (Vultur percnopterus)
Jer-Falcon (Falco gyrfalco)
Iceland Falcon (Falco islandicus)
Greenland Jer-Falcon (Falco caudicans)
Peregrine Falcon (Falco percgrinus)
Hobby (Falco subbuteo)
Merlin (Falco asalon)
Red-footed Falcon (Falco vespertinus)
Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
Lesser Kestrel (Falco cenchris)
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
Swallow-tailed Kite (Elanoides furcatus)
Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus caruleus)
Honey Buzzard (Pcrnis apivovus)
Common Kite (Milvus regalis)
Black Kite (Milvus atci)
White-tailed Eagle (Haliaetus albicilla)
Golded Eagle (Aquila chtysaetus)
Spotted Eagle (Aquila navia)
Rough-legged Buzzard (Archibuteo lagopus)
Common Buzzard (Buteo vulgaris)
Marsh Harrier (Circus aruginosus)
Hen Harrier (Circus cyaneus)
Montagu's Harrier (Circus cincraccus)
Sparrow Hawk (Accipitcr nisus)
Gos-Hawk (Accipitcr palumbarius) ..
American Gos-Hawk (Accipitcr atricapillus)

Page.

3

ii

3

12

3

13

2

14

2

14

2

L5

5

15

3

16

5

17

5

17

5

18

4

19

4

19

20

FAMILY STRIGID^E, or Nocturnal Birds of Prey-
Barn Owl (Strix flammed)
Tawny Owl (Syrnium aluco)
Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) ..
Short-eared Owl (Asio brachyotus)
Tengmalm's Owl (Nyctala tengmalmi)
Little Owl (Noctua noctua)
Snowy Owl (Surnia nyctea)
Hawk Owl (Surnia funerea)
Eagle Owl (Bubo maximus)
Scops Owl (Scops scops)

6

21

6

22

6

22

6

23

6

24

6

25

6

2.5

26

6

26

6

27

XVI

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY ANATID/E, or Swans, Geese and Ducks—
Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)
Whooper, or Wild Swan (Cygnus musicus)
Bewick's Swan (Cygnus beivicki)
Snow Goose (Anser hyperboreus)
Bean Goose (Anser segctum) ..
Pink-footed Goose (Anser brachyrhynchus) ..
Grey Lag-Goose (A user cinereus)
White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons)
Lesser White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons minutus)
Brent Goose (Anser brenta)
Bernacle Goose (Anser leucopsis)
Red-breasted Goose (Anser ruficollis) ..
Canada Goose (Anser canadensis)
Egyptian Goose (Anser agyptiacus)
Common Sheldrake (Tadorna cornuta)
Ruddy Sheldrake (Tadorna rutila)
Gad wall (Anas strepcra) ..
Pintail (Anas acuta) ..
Wigeon (Anas penelope) ..
American Wigeon (Anas americana)
Common Teal (Anas crecca)
American Teal (Anas carolincnsis) . .
Garganey (Anas circia)
Blue- winged Teal (Anas discors)
Shoveller (Anas clypeata)
Mallard (A nas boscas)
Red-crested Pochard (Fidigula rufina)
White-eyed Pochard (Fidigula nyroca) . .
Pochard (Fitligula ferina)
Scaup (Fidigula marila)
Tufted Duck (Fidigula cristata)
Buffel-headed Duck (Fidigula albeola) . .
Golden-Eye (Fidigula clangula)
Harlequin Duck (Fidigula histrionica) . .
Long-tailed Duck (Fidigula glacialis)
Black Scota (Fidigula nigra)
Velvet Scoter (Fidigula fusca)
Surf Scoter (Fidigula perspicillata)
Steller's Eider Duck (Somateria stclleri)
Common Eider Duck (Somateria mollissima)
King Eider (Somateria spcctabilis)
Goosander (Mergus merganser)
Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) . .
Hooded Merganser (Mergus cucullatus/
Smew (Mergus albcllus)

7

28

7

28

8

29

ii

30

8

30

10

3i

8

32

io

32

12

33

IO

33

IO

34

II

35

12

35

12

36

16

36

16

36

14

37

13

33

13

38

—

39

16

40

—

40

16

4i

—

42

13

42

13

43

14

43

14

44

14

45

M

46

13

47

—

48

13

48

15

49

15

50

14

5i

15

52

15

52

9

53

9

54

9

54

15

55

16

56

16

57

15

58

FAMILY PH^ENICOPTERIDyE, or Flamingoes—
Common Flamingo (Phanicopterus roseus)

59

XV11

late.

Page.

17

59

17

60

17

61

17

61

17

62

17

63

17

64

17

64

—

65

17

65

18

66

17

67

18

67

18

68

19

69

19

69

19

70

19

7i

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY ARDEID/E, or Herons and Storks—
Common Heron (Ardea cinerea)
Purple Heron [Ardea purpurea)
Great White Egret (Ardea alba)
Little Egret (A idea garzetta)
Squacco Heron (Ardea comata)
Buff-backed Heron (Ardea bubulcus)
Night Heron (Nyetieorax nycticorax)
Common Bittern (Botaurus stellaris)
American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus)
Little Bittern {Botaurus miuutus)
Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
Glossy Ibis (Ibis falcincllus)
White Stork (Ciconia alba)
Black Stork (Ciconia nigra)

FAMILY PELECANID.E, or Pelicans—
White Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus)
Gannet (Sula bassana)
Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
Shag (Phalacrocorax graculus)

FAMILY PROCELLARIIBvE, or Petrels—
Great Shearwater (Puffin us major)
Manx Shearwater (Puffinus anglorum)
Dusky Shearwater (Puffinus obscurus)
Sooty Shearwater (Puffinus griseus)
Bulwer's Petrel (Bulwcria eolunibina)
Fulmar Petrel (Fulmarus glacialis)
Stormy Petrel (Procellaria pelagica)
White-breasted Petrel (Pclagodroma marina)
Fork-tailed Petrel (Oceanodroma lencorrhoa)
Canarian Fork-tailed Petrel (Oceanodroma cryptoleucura)
Wilson's Petrel (Oceanites oceanica)

FAMILY COLYMBIDiE, or Divers—

Great Northern Diver (Colymbits glacialis) . . .. 21 77

White-billed Diver (Colymbus adamsi) . . . . 77

Black-throated Diver (Colymbus arcticus) . . 21 78

Red-throated Diver (Colymbus septcntrionalis) .. 21 78

FAMILY PODICIPITIDiE, or Grebes—

Great Crested Grebe (Podicipes cristatus)

Red-necked Grebe (Podicipes rubricollis)

Sclavonian Grebe (Podicipes cornutus)

Black-necked Grebe (Podicipes nigricollis) . . 22 81

Little Grebe (Podicipes minor) .. . . . . 22 82

20

71

20

72

20

72

—

73

20

73

20

73

20

74

—

75

20

75

—

76

—

76

22

79

22

80

22

81

XV111

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY RALLID/E, or Rails—
Corn Crake (Crex pratensis) . .
Spotted Crake (Crex porzana)
Baillon's Crake (Crex baUloni)
Little Crake (Crcx parva)
Water Rail (Rallus aquaticus)
Water Hen (Gullinula chloropus) . .
Common Coot (Fulica atra) . .

FAMILY OTIDID/E, or Bustards—
Great Bustard (Otis tarda)
Little Bustard (Otis tetrax) . .
Macqueen's Bustard (Otis macquccni)
Thick Knee (QZdicnemus crepitans)

FAMILY ALCIDiE, or Auks—
Great Auk (A lea impennis)
Razor Bill (A lea tarda)
Common Guillemot (A lea troile) . .
Briinnich's Guillemot (A lea brunichi)
Black Guillemot (Alca grylle)
Little Auk (Alca alle)
Puffin (Fratereitla arctica)

FAMILY LARID.E, or Gulls and Terns-
Black Tern (Sterna nigra)
White-winged Black Tern (Sterna leucoptcia)
Whiskered Tern (Sterna hybrida)
Gull-billed Tern (Sterna anglica) . .
Caspian Tern (Sterna easpia) . .
Sandwich Tern (Sterna cantiaca) . .
Roseate Tern (Sterna dougalli)
Common Tern (Sterna hirundo)
Arctic Tern (Sterna arctica) . .
Lesser Tern (Sterna minuta)
Sooty Tern (Sterna fuliginosa)
Smaller Sooty Tern (Sterna anastheta)
Noddy Tern (Sterna stolida) . .
Sabine's Gull (Larus sabinii)
Ross's Gull (Larus rossi)
Bonaparte's Gull (Larus Philadelphia)
Little Gull (Larus minutus) . .
Black-headed Gull (Larus ridibundus)
Adriatic Black-headed Gull (Larus melanoeephalus)
Great Black-headed Gull (Larus ichthyactus)
Common Gull (Larus canus)
Herring Gull (Larus argentatus)
Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus) . .
Great Blacked-backed Gull (Larus marinus)

Page.

22

83

22

84

22

84

22

85

22

86

22

87

22

S7

23

88

23

89

23

90

23

90

27, 28

9i

24

92

25

93

26

94

26

94

26

95

26

96

3 1

97

29

98

29

98

3i

99

3 1

100

30

100

29

101

29

102

29

102

29

103

30

104

3i

105

3i

!05

36

105

36

106

36

1 06

36

107

34

108

34

108

35

109

34

109

33

no

33

no

35

in

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY LARIDiE, or Gulls and Terns (continued)-
Glaucous Gull (Lams glaucus)
Iceland Gull (Larus leucopterus)
Kittiwake (Larus tridactylus)
Ivory Gull (Larus eburneus)
Pomatorhine Skua (Stercorarius pomatorhinus)
Richardson's Skua (Stercorarius richardsoni)
Buffon's Skua (Stercorarius buffoni)
Great Skua (Stercorarius catarrhactes)

FAMILY CHARADRIIDvE, or Plovers —
Oyster Catcher (Hamatopus ostralegus)

Turnstone (Charadrius intcrpres)

Little-ringed Plover (Charadrius minor)

Greater-ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula major)

Kentish Plover (Charadrius cautianus)

Asiatic Plover (Charadrius asiaticus)

Kildeer Plover (Charadrius vociferus) ..

Dotterel (Charadrius morinellus)

Golden Plover (Charadrius pluvialis) ..

Asiatic Golden Plover (Charadrius fulvus) . .

Virginian Golden Plover (Charadrius virginicus)

Grey Plover (Charadrius helveticus)

Lapwing (Vanellus cristatus)

Sociable Lapwing ( Vanellus gregarius)

Cream-coloured Courser (Cursorius gallicus)

Common Pratincole (Glareola pratincola)

Avocet (Himantopus avocctta)

Common Stilt (Himantopus melanopterus)

Grey Phalarope (Phalaropus fulicarius)

Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus hyperboieus) . .

Wilson's Phalarope (Phalaropus wilsoni)

Common Curlew (Numenius arquatus)

Whimbrel (Numenius phczopus)

Esquimaux Curlew (Numenius borealis)

Bartram's Sandpiper (Totanus bartrami)

Ruff (Totanus pugnax)

Common Sandpiper (Totanus hypoleucus)

Spotted Sandpiper (Totanus macularius)

Green Sandpiper (Totanus ochropus)

Solitary Sandpiper (Totanus solitarius)

Wood Sandpiper (Totanus glareola)

Yellowshank (Totanus flavipes)

Marsh Sandpiper (Totanus stagnatilis)

Common Redshank (Totanus calidris)

Dusky Redshank (Totanus fuscus)

Greenshank (Totanus glottis)

Bar-tailed God wit (Totanus rufus)

XIX

Plate.

Page.

32

112

33

^13

32

"4

32

"5

37

116

37

116

37

117

37

11S

38

119

38

119

40

120

40

121

40

122

—

122

39

!23

39

123

39

I24

39

125

39

125

39

126

40

126

—

I27

36

I2S

36

128

38

129

3S

129

38

I30

38

J 3i

—

132

45

132

45

133

45

133

44

134

42

135

43

136

43

136

42

*37

—

138

42

138

44

139

—

140

44

140

44

141

4i

141

42

142

Page.

XX SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY CHARADRIID/E, or Plovers (continued)—
Black-tailed Godwit (Totanus melanurus)
Red-breasted Snipe (Ereunetes griseus)
Knot (Tringa camttus)
Curlew Sandpiper (Tringa subarquata)
Dunlin (Tringa alpina)
Bonaparte's Sandpiper (Tringa bonapartii)
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper (Tringa acuminata)
Purple Sandpiper (Tringa maritima)
Broad-billed Sandpiper (Tringa platyrhyncha) . .
Pectoral Sandpiper (Tringa pectoralis)
Little Stint (Tringa minuta)
American Stint (Tringa minutilla) . .
Temminck's Stint (Tringa temmincki)
Sanderling (Calidris arenaria)
Buff-breasted Sandpiper (Tryngites rufescens) . .
Woodcock (Scolopax rusticnla)
Great Snipe (Scolopax major)
Common Snipe (Scolopax gallinago)
Jack Snipe (Scolopax gallinula)

FAMILY GRUIDyE, or Cranes—
Common Crane (Grits cinerea)
Demoiselle Crane {Grits virgo)

FAMILY COLUMBID/E, or Pigeons —
Ring Dove (Columba palumbus)
Stock Dove (Columba anas)
Rock Dove (Columba livia)
Turtle Dove (Tiirtur auritus)
Oriental Turtle Dove (Tartar orientalis)
American Passenger Pigeon (Ectupistcs migratorius)

FAMILY PTEROCLID.E, or Sand Grouse —

Pallas's Sand Grouse (Syrrhaptcs paradoxus) . . 47 160

FAMILY CYPSELID.E, or Swifts—
Common Swift (Cypsclus apus)
White-bellied Swift (Cypsclus melba)
Needle-tailed Swift (Chatura caudacuta)

FAMILY CAPRIMULGIDiE, or Nightjars —
Common Nightjar (Caprimulgus europaus)
Isabelline Nightjar (Caprimulgus cegyptius)
Red-necked Nightjar (Caprimulgus ritficollis)

FAMILY MEROPID.E, or Bee-eaters—
Common Bee-eater (Merops apiaster)
Blue-tailed Bee-eater (Merops philippinus)

42

143

41

143

43

144

—

144

43

144

43

145

—

146

43

146

40

147

43

148

44

14S

44

149

44

149

4i

150

43

151

41

152

4i

152

40

153

4i

154

46

155

46

156

47

157

47

153

47

158

47

159

—

159

47

160

48

161

48

162

—

163

47

163

—

164

47

165

48

165

—

166

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY CORACIID/E, or Rollers—
Common Roller (Coracias garrulus)
Abyssinian Roller (Coracias abyssinieus)
Indian Roller (Coracias indicus)

FAMILY UPUPIDiE, or Hoopoes —
Hoopoe (Upupa cpops)

FAMILY ALCEDINID.E, or Kingfishers—
Common Kingfisher (Alcedo ispida)
Belted Kingfisher (Ceryle alcyon)

FAMILY PICID^E, or Woodpeckers—

Great Spotted Woodpecker (Picus major) . .
Hairy Woodpecker (Picas villosus)
Downy Woodpecker (Picas pubescens)
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Picas minor)
Green Woodpecker (Gecinas viridis)
Black Woodpecker (Picas martins)
Wryneck (lynx torqnilla) ..

FAMILY CUCULID.F, or Cuckoos—

Great Spotted Cuckoo (Cucnlns glandarius)
Common Cuckoo (Cuculns canorus)
Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus)
Black-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzas ervthrophthalmus)

FAMILY PASSERID^F, or Singing Birds—
White's Ground Thrush (Geocichla varia)
Siberian Ground Thrush (Geocichla sibirica)
Mistle Thrush (Tardus viscivorus)
Song Thrush (Tnrdus musicus)
Redwing (Tardus iliacus)
Fieldfare (Tnrdus pilaris) ..
Blackbird (Merula mcrula)
Ring Ouzel (Merula torquata)
Black-throated Ouzel (Merula atrigularis)
Common Dipper (Cinclus aquaticus)

Robin (Erithacus rubecula)

Arctic Blue-throated Robin (Erithacus sueaca)

Nightingale (Erithacus luscinia)

Rock Thrush (Monticola saxatilis) . .

Redstart (Ruticilla Phoenicians)

Black Redstart (Ruticilla tithys) ..

Wheatear (Saxtcola cenanthe) ..

Isabelline Wheatear (Saxtcola isabellina) ..

Desert Wheatear (Saxicola deserti)

Black-throated Wheatear (Saxicola stapazina)

Whinchat (Pratincola rubetra)

Plate.

XXI

Page.

48 167

— 167

— 167

4 S 167

48

168

48

169

48

170

—

171

—

171

48

171

48

172

48

172

4 S

173

49

174

49

174

49

175

49

175

5°

176

5°

177

50

177

5°

178

50

179

5°

180

50

181

5°

181

5 1

182

5i

183

5i

183

5i

184

5i

185

5 [

186

5i

187

5i

187

5i

188

5i

189

5i

189

5i

190

5i

190

xxn

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY PASSERID.E, or Singing Birds (continual)
Stonechat (Pratincola rubicola)
Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa grisola)
Pied Flvcatcher (Muscicapa atricapilla)
Red-breasted Flycatcher (Muscicapa parva)
Grasshopper Warbler (Locustella locustella)
Savi's Warbler (Locustella luscinioides)
Sedge Warbler (Acroceplialns pliragmitis)
Aquatic Warbler (Acroccphalus aquaticus)
Great Reed Warbler (Acvocephalus turdoides)
Reed Warbler (Acroccphalus arundinaceus)
Marsh Warbler (Acroccphalus palustris)
Icterine Warbler [Hypolais hypolais]
Barred Warbler (Sylvia nisoria) . .
Orphean Warbler (Sylvia orpheus)
Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)
Garden Warbler (Sylvia hortensis)
Whitethroat (Sylvia cincrca)
Lesser Whitethroat (Sylvia curruca)
Sub-Alpine Warbler (Sylvia subalpina)
Dartford Warbler (Sylvia provincialis)
Rufous Warbler (Sylvia galactodes)
Wood Wren (Phylloscopus sibilalrix) . .
Willow Wren (Phylloscopus trochilus)
Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus rufus)

Yellow-browed Willow Wren (Phylloscopus supcrciliosus)
Goldcrest (Regulus cristatus)
Firecrest (Regulus ignicapillus)
Great Tit (Parus major)
Blue Tit (Parus caruleits)
British Coal Tit {Pants britannicus)
Marsh Tit (Pants palustris)
Crested Tit (Parus cristatus)
British Long-tailed Tit (Acrcdula rosea)
Bearded Tit (Pamtnis biarmicus)
Common Hedge Sparrow (Accentor modularis)
Alpine Accentor (Accentor alpinits)
Wren (Troglodytes parvulus)
St. Kilda Wren (Troglodytes hirtensis)
Common Creeper (Ccrthia familiaris) . .
Wall Creeper (Tichodronia muraria)
Nuthatch (Sitta ccesia)
Pallas's Grey Shrike (Lanius major)
Great Grey Shrike (Lanius excubitor) . .
Lesser Grey Shrike (Lanius minor)
Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio)
Woodchat Shrike (Lanius rufus)
Raven (Corvits corax)

Page.

5 1

191

5i

191

52

192

52

193

52

194

52

194

52

195

52

196

52

196

52

197

52

19S

52

198

52

199

52

200

52

201

52

201

52

202

52

203

53

204

53

204

53

205

53

206

53

206

53

207

53

208

53

208

53

209

53

210

53

210

53

211

53

212

53

213

53

214

53

214

54

215

54

216

54

216

54

217

54

217

54

218

54

219

—

219

54

220

54

220

54

221

54

222

55

223

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY PASSERIDyE, or Singing Birds (continued)-
Carrion Crow (Corvus corone)
Hooded Crow (Corvus comix)
Rook (Corvus frugiUgus)
Jackdaw (Corvus monedula)
Magpie (Pica caudata)
Common Jay (Garrulus glandarius)
Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus)
Alpine Chough (Pyrrhocorax alpinus)
Nutcracker (Nucifraga earyocatactes) . .
Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
Rose-coloured Starling (Pastor roscus) . .
Red-winged Starling (Agelaus phcenicius) . .
Meadow Starling [Sturnella magna)
Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula)
Waxwing (A mpelis garrulus) ..
Common Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
Two-barred Crossbill (Loxia bifasciata)
Pine Grosbeak (Loxia cnucleator)
Scarlet Rosefinch (Carpodacus crythrinus)
Bullfinch (Pyrrhula vulgaris)
Large Bullfinch (Pyrrhula major)
Hawfinch (Coccotliraustcs vulgaris)..
House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus)
Greenfinch (Fringilla chloris)
Canary (Fringilla canaria)
Serin Finch (Fringilla sen' nits)
Goldfinch (Fringilla carduelis)
Siskin (Fringilla spin us)
Brambling (Fringilla monti fringilla)
Chaffinch (Fringilla calebs)
Linnet (Fringilla cannabina)
Twite (Fringilla flavirostris)
Lesser Redpole (Fringilla rufescens)
Mealy Redpole (Fringilla linaria)
Greenland Redpole (Fringilla horncmanni) . .
Snow Bunting (Emberiza nivalis)
Lapland Bunting (Emberiza lapponica)
Reed Bunting (Emberiza schceniclus)
Rustic Bunting (Emberiza rustica)
Little Bunting (Emberiza pusilla)
Corn Bunting (Emberiza miliaria)
Ortolan Bunting (Emberiza liortulana) . .
Cirl Bunting (Emberiza cirlus)
Yellow Hammer (Emberiza citrinella) . .
Black-headed Bunting (Emberiza melanocephala)
Wood Lark (A lauda arborea) . .

XX111

late.

Page.

55

224

55

225

55

225

55

226

55

227

55

228

55

228

55

229

55

229

54

230

54

231

54

23 1

54

232

54

232

54

233

56

234

56

234

56

235

56

235

56

236

—

237

56

237

56

238

56

238

56

239

—

240

56

240

56

241

56

242

57

243

56

243

57

244

57

245

57

246

57

246

57

247

57

247

57

248

57

248

58

249

57

250

57

251

57

25 1

58

252

58

253

58

254

58

255

XXIV

SYSTEMATIC INDEX.

FAMILY PASSERID/E, or Singing Birds (continued)-
Crested Lark (Alauda cristata)
Sky Lark (Alauda arvensis)
White-winged Lark (Alauda sibirica)
Calandra Lark (Alauda calandra)
Short-toed Lark (Alauda brachydactyla)
Shore Lark (Alauda alpestris) . .
Pied Wagtail (Motacilla yarrellii) . .
White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
Grey Wagtail (Motacilla sulphured)
Blue-headed Wagtail (Motacilla flava)
Yellow Wagtail (Motacilla rati)
Tree Pipit (Antkus arboreus)
Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
Red-throated Pipit (Anthus cervinus)
Richard's Pipit (Anthus richardi) ..
Tawny Pipit (Anthus campcstris) ..
Rock Pipit (Anthus obscurus) ..
Scandinavian Rock Pipit (Authus rupestris)
Alpine Pipit (Anthus spinolctta)
Swallow (Hirundo yustica)
House Martin (Hirundo urbica)
Sand Martin (Hirundo riparia)
Purple Martin (Prognc purpurea)

Page.

58

255

58

256

58

257

58

258

58

25S

58

259

58

259

58

260

58A

261

58A

262

58A

262

58A

263

58A

264

5 Sa

265

5 8a

266

58a

267

58A

267

58A

268

58A

268

58A

269

58A

269

58a

270

271

FAMILY TETRAONIDiE, or Grouse—
Common Ptarmigan (Tctrao mutus)
Red Grouse (Tetrao scoticus)
Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix)
Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus)

FAMILY PHASIANIDvE, or Pheasants and Partridges-
Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
Common Partridge (Perdix cinerea)
Red-legged Partridge (Perdix rufa)
Common Quail (Coturnix communis)

59

271

59

272

59

273

59

274

59

275

59

276

59

276

59

277

FAMILY TURNICID.E, or Hemipodes-
Hemipode (Turnix andalusica)

59

278

See end of Book for Alphabetical Index.

EGGS

OF

BRITISH BIRDS.

FAMILY FALCONID^J,
OR DIURNAL BIRDS OF PREY.

Our native Birds of Prey are fourteen in number, all of which
still nest in some part or other of the British Islands. Seventeen
species are accidental or regular visitors on migration. The Owls
are not included, but are considered to be a distinct Family.

THE GKIFFON VULTUKE.
(Vultur fulvus.)*

Plate 1, Fig. 3.

An accidental visitor to Great Britain, of which one example
only has been actually obtained.

The Griffon chooses a perpendicular or overhanging limestone
cliff, in which hollows or caves, rather than ledges, are found at
a considerable height from the ground. The birds build usually a
great nest of sticks, very rough on the outside, but more or less
carefully smoothed and hollowed out in the middle, and lined
with sheep's wool, goats' hair, dry grass, leaves, or anything they
can pick up. The egg (there is seldom more than one) is laid
from January to March. The texture is coarse, with little or no
gloss. Most eggs are white, or nearly so; but some shew a con-
siderable amount of marking, which cannot be explained by any
supposition of their being stained. They vary in size from 3 '85
to 3'5 inches in length, and from 2'9 to 2'7 inches in breadth.

* Gyps fulvus — Saunders, Manual, p. 301 ; Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 116.

2 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE EGYPTIAN VULTUKE.
{Vultiir percnopterus.)*

Plate 1, Figs. 4, 5.

Two instances of the existence of the Egyptian Vulture in
our British area are all that can be authenticated. One bird was
shot in Bridgewater Bay, in Somersetshire, in October, 1825, and
another at Peldon, in Essex, in September, 1868.

The Egyptian Vulture inhabits the countries of the Mediter-
ranean, eastwards to Central Asia and north-western India, and
south, throughout Africa in winter, down to the Cape Colony.

The eggs are to be found in April and May. In Greece I
found the number to be normally two, one much more richly
coloured than the other. It is said that three are sometimes
laid. The eggs of the Egyptian Vulture are huffish or creamy-
white in ground-colour, spotted with brownish-red. Sometimes
the spots are confluent all over the egg, paler in places. Every
intermediate type occurs between this and eggs in which the
colouring-matter is distributed in blotches and small and large
spots, which only become confluent at the large end, or, in very
exceptional cases, at the small end. They vary in length from
2"9 to 2'3 inches, and in breadth from 2'1 to 19 inch.

THE JEK-FALCON.

(Falco gyrfalco.)i

Plate 5, Fig. 8.

The Jer-Falcons are divisible into several races or sub-species.
In my "History of British Birds" I recognised five well-marked
forms. Sharpe in his latest work does the same, the truth being
that it is difficult to obtain an adequate series of these rare
Falcons for exact comparison at the same time, and consequently
much difference of opinion prevails on the subject. On the dis-
tinctness of F. labradorus from Labrador (F. obsoletus of American
authors) there can be no question, and we are all agreed on this
head. Nor is there any difficulty with respect to the Norwegian
F. gyrfalco, though whether this species inhabits North America

* Neophron percnopterus — Saunders, Manual p. 303 ; Sharpe, t. c. p, 120.
f Hierofalco gyrfalco — Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 197.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. '6

as well as Arctic Europe and Asia, is still a moot point. In
England, however, this species has certainly occurred on two
occasions, an adult bird having been killed in Sussex, and being
now in Mr. AVilliam Borrer's collection, while a young bird was
shot in Suffolk in October, 1867.

In Scandinavia its breeding-season is much earlier than that
of its American and Arctic allies, and out of upwards of twenty
nests observed by the late John Wolley in West Finmark, the
eggs were nearly all taken towards the end of April.

The nest is placed on the ledges of cliffs or on trees.

The eggs of the Jer-Falcon are usually four in number, some-
times only three. The ground-colour is creamy- white ; but
usually the markings entirely conceal it from view. They are
closely freckled and spotted with reddish-brown and bricky-red.
Many eggs of this bird closely resemble Hobbys' eggs ; others
approximate more nearly to certain varieties of the Peregrine.
In a large series in my collection, however, I do not find that the
eggs are ever so dark as those of some other British Falcons,
and the markings are very evenly dispersed, sometimes becoming
confluent, at other times uniformly distributed over the entire
surface. Some specimens have the markings smoothly and evenly
laid on, giving them the appearance of ground-colour, which is
marbled and more intensified here and there. Another beautiful
variety is mottled all over with pale rosy-pink shell-markings,
intermixed with pale reddish-brown blotches and spots on a
creamy- white ground ; whilst others have the spots and blotches
mostly confined to the larger end of the egg, leaving the white
under-surface exposed to view. Jer-Falcons' eggs are slightly
more elongated than Peregrines', have a somewhat rougher shell,
and possess little gloss. Axis 2 - 35 — 22 inches, diam. 1*9 — 1'75.

THE ICELAND FALCON.

(Falco islanclicus .)*

Plate I., Fig. 1.
The Iceland Falcon is a race of the true Jer-Falcons, distin-
guished from the Scandinavian form by its whiter head, streaked

* Falco gyr/alco-candicatis—Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B., I., p. 16. Falco islandus— Saunders,
Manual, p. 333. Hierofalco islandicus—Shafpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 194.

4 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

with blackish, not uniform as in true F. gyrfalco. The throat
and chest are white, with a few dark stripes on the latter.

It is a resident bird in Iceland, and only occurs in Great Britain
as an accidental visitor, but it has been met with in all three
kingdoms. Very little has been recorded of its nidification, but
the evidence tends to prove that the species nests on the rocks,
building a nest very much like that of a Raven, or probably
utilising an old nest of the latter species. The eggs are four in
number, similar to those of the Jer-Falcon, as will be seen by the
figures in the plates.

THE GREENLAND JER-FALCON.

(Falco candicans.)*

Plate 1, Fig. 2.

The Greenland Falcon may always be recognised by its yellow
bill, irrespective of its plumage and markings. The true Jer-
Falcons have all blue bills, and the markings on their flanks are
transverse, not longitudinal. There are several other characters,
especially in the markings of the tail, as Sharpe has pointed out.

In Greenland the breeding-season of the Jer-Falcon is in June.
The nests are sometimes placed on the loftiest cliffs, either near
the sea or further inland, and sometimes on the tops of pines and
other trees. It is only an accidental visitor to England, but is
perhaps the form of Jer-Falcon which most commonly visits us.

The eggs of all the Jer-Falcons are so similar to each other that
any separate description of them is impossible.

THE PEREGRINE FALCON.
(Falco peregrinus.)

Plate 3, Fig. 1.

The Peregrine Falcon is undoubtedly the commonest of the
larger birds of prey now found in the British Islands. It breeds
on inland cliffs in many parts of England as well as on the sea-
shore, but still more often in Scotland and Ireland. It is found
throughout Europe and Asia, and also in North America. Its

* Falco candicans — Saunders, Manual, p. 331 (1889). Hicro/alco candicans — Sharpe,
Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 191 (1895).

EGGS OP BRITISH BIRDS. 5

migrations carry it to Africa, to India, and through China to the
Burmese Provinces and the Malayan Islands.

The breeding-season of the Peregrine commences early in April,
the young in down being often found in the beginning of May.
Its nesting-sites are various. In some localities the nest is placed
in the tallest trees, the most inaccessible rocks, and in some
countries, such as Finland and Lapland, the ground alone is oft-
times chosen.

The eggs of the Peregrine Falcon vary from two to four in
number. The ground-colour of the egg, when exposed, is a pale
yellowish -white, and the markings vary from brick -red and
orange-brown to rich reddish-brown. Many of the eggs are often
suffused with a beautiful purplish tint, which is seen, but more
rarely, on the eggs of the Kestrel. The eggs of the Peregrine
Falcon vary considerably in size and form, some being much elon-
gated, others almost globular. They vary in length from 2'15 to
1*95 inch, and in breadth from 1*75 to 1*52 inch.

THE HOBBY.
(Falco subbuteo.)

Plate 4, Figs. 8, 9.

The Hobby has become a rare and local bird in England. It
was formerly a regular summer visitor. Its principal breeding-
grounds are the forest districts of the north of France, the
Netherlands, Germany, Denmark, South Scandinavia, and Russia
south of lat. 65°. In other parts of Europe the Hobby is only
known as a migrant, and it passes south by the Nile Valley to
winter in Africa. At the latter season it is also found in Northern
India and in China.

The Hobby still nests in some parts of England. My friend,
Mr. Frank Norgate, found it breeding in Foxley Wood, near
Norwich, in 1882, and saw three nests of this rare Falcon in the
same wood on one day, each containing three eggs. They were
all old Common Crow's nests in oak trees.

The eggs of the Hobby vary in length from 1*8 to 16 inch, and
in breadth from 1"4 to 1*3 inch. They are scarcely distinguishable
from those of the Kestrel, but are generally rougher in texture,
not of so brilliant a red, nor so boldly spotted.

6 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE MERLIN.
(Falco asalon.)
Plate 4, Fig. 7.

The Merlin breeds throughout the mountainous districts of
Great Britain, from the moorlands of Derbyshire northwards to
•the outer Hebrides and the Shetlands, partly retiring to the low-
lands and southern counties in winter, where a few pairs casually
remain to breed. It breeds throughout Ireland in the mountain
districts ; and numbers seek the lowlands in winter.

This species is confined to the northerly parts of the Old World.
It breeds throughout North Europe, Iceland, and the Faroes,
and winters in South Europe and North Africa, where a few are
said to remain during the summer, retiring to the higher grounds
to breed. Eastward it nests throughout Northern Siberia, passing-
through Mongolia and Turkestan on migration, and wintering in
South China, North- Western India, and Sind.

It is a somewhat late breeder, laying its eggs about the middle
of May, so that its voracious young may be fed upon young
grouse.

The site of the nest, on our moorlands, is chosen on the ground
in the tall heather, or in some flat spot amongst the rocks on the
steep slopes at the foot of the precipitous ridges so often met with
in these localities. In most cases a small hole is made ; whatever
roots and dry grass may chance to be upon the spot are scratched
into the rudiments of a nest, and the only materials actually
selected by the bird appear to be a few slender twigs of "ling"
to form the outside of the structure : these are generally broken
off from the heather overhanging the nest.

The eggs are usually five in number, sometimes only four, and
somewhat rounded in form. In colour they closely resemble
those of the Kestrel and the Hobby ; but the colour is a more
decided brown, without the brick-red tints so commonly seen on
newly-laid eggs of these birds. Like all Falcons' eggs, they differ
considerably in size and intensity of colour, some specimens being
of a reddish-brown, so richly coloured as to hide all trace of the
ground-colour ; others are pale red, with most of the deep brown
confined sometimes to the large end and sometimes to the small
end. Some specimens are pale cream in ground-colour, evenly

EGGS OP BRITISH BIRDS.

and beautifully marbled with deep purplish red, or finely dusted
over the entire surface with minute specks of blackish-brown.
The size varies from 1"G5 to 1*5 inch in breadth.

THE KED-FOOTED FALCON.

(Falco vespertinus.)*

Plate 4, Fig. 10.

More than twenty occurrences of this Falcon in Great Britain
have been recorded. It nests in Hungary and in Southern Russia,
eastwards to the Yenisei Valley in Siberia, and winters in South
Africa.

The Red-footed Falcon breeds in colonies, occasionally five or
six nests being found in one tree. It is said that they rarely, if
ever, build a nest, but appropriate the old ones of Crows or
Magpies, especially preferring those of Rooks after the latter
birds have done with them.

The number of eggs varies from four to six. In shape, size
and colour, the eggs of the Red-footed Falcon approach very
nearly to those of the Common Kestrel. As the result of a careful
comparison of 147 eggs of the former with 289 of the latter,
Goebel arrives at the following conclusions, viz., that the eggs of
the Kestrel are coarser-grained, have much more lustre, and are,
on an average, larger, and not only absolutely, but proportionately
heavier. The colour of the Kestrel's eggs is a darker and browner
red compared with the yellower red of the eggs of the Red-
footed Falcon. The eggs of the latter bird vary in length from
1'6 to 125 inch, and in breadth from 1*2 to 1 inch.

THE COMMON KESTREL.

{Falco tinnunculus.)i

Plate 4, Fig. 5.

The Kestrel breeds almost everywhere, being equally abundant

in well-wooded districts and rocky moors. It likewise nests in

nearly every part of Palsearctic regions, and is common up to lat.

60°. Further north it becomes rarer. In Asia it is equally

* Cerchneis vespertina—Shaxpe, Handb. Brit. B., IP, p. 201 (1895).
f Cerchneis tinnuncuhts — Sharpe, t. c. p. 201.

8 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

abundant, and I found it very common in lat. 58°. In winter it
visits Africa, India, and China, and even extends to the Malay
Archipelago.

The Kestrel's pairing season is in April, although the eggs are,
seldom laid before early in May. It generally breeds in the
thickest woods, and rarely in nests built in isolated trees. It
also rears its young on the cliffs by the sea-side, and among the
rocks on the moors and the cliffs of limestone districts.

Six eggs is the number usually found, although, in some cases,
the number has been seven, and in others as few as four or five.
They are rich reddish-brown, of various shades, upon a dirty or
creamy-white ground. They go through all the types of Falcons'
eggs ; and in addition some have the colouring matter all massed
on the larger end of the egg, others have a ground of dull
yellowish chestnut with irregular blotches of intense coffee-brown,
whilst others are brick-red with a few minute dots of deep brown.
Most eggs of this bird, when newly laid, possess a purplish bloom,
which, however, soon fades after exposure to the light. The eggs
of the Kestrel vary from 1*7 to 1"45 inch in length, and from T35
to 112 inch in breadth.

THE LESSER KESTREL.
(Falco cenchris.)*

Plate 4, Figs 2, 3.

Three specimens of the Lesser Kestrel have been taken in
England and one in Ireland. Its native home is in the countries
of the Mediterranean, whence it ranges during the nesting-season
to Asia Minor, the Caucasus and "Western Turkestan. In winter
it migrates to South Africa.

It breeds towards the end of April, and I found several nests
containing young birds late in June. The nests are extremely
slight, and frequently the eggs are laid in a hollow scratched in
rubbish.

Five seems to be the usual number of eggs, but I have clutches
of four, and one of seven. The eggs of the Lesser Kestrel are
very round, almost globular, with but little difference between the
larger and the smaller ends. Their general ground-colour is pale

* Cerchneis cenchris — Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B. II., p. 204.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 9

brick-red, with dark brick-red spots, which are very generally
diffused evenly over the whole surface, and very small, occa-
sionally forming large blotches. Others, again, have an almost
white ground-colour, with more than usually distinct spots and
blotches, resembling very much a similar type of the Common
Kestrel. In fact the eggs of the Lesser Kestrel go through the
same varieties as the Common Kestrel, but are smaller, and are
of a paler and more bricky-red, instead of blood-red. In size
they vary from 145 to 1'3 inch in length, and from 12 to 103
inch in breadth.

THE OSPREY.
(Pandion halidetus.)

Plate 3, Fig. 5.

The remote districts of Scotland, the wild solitudes of Highland
loch and mountain, were once the favourite home of the Osprey ;
but now the numbers have greatly decreased, and only a few pairs
resort to the central and northern districts of the Highlands for
the purpose of rearing their young.

Lonely forests within easy access of freshwater lakes are the
favourite breeding places of this bird. The nest is enormously
large, from three to four feet in diameter, and occasionally as
high, and is generally placed on the summit of a pine-tree, one
having a dead top being generally preferred.

Three eggs are the usual number, occasionally two, and still
more rarely four. They are deposited by the latter end of April
or the first week in May, and vary considerably in colour.
Typical specimens are white or yellowish-white in ground-colour,
irregularly and very boldly blotched and spotted with rich reddish-
brown, which becomes more dense and thickly dispersed over the
larger end, sometimes so much so as to hide the ground-colour.
Some examples are quite purple ; others are entirely suffused with
orange-red ; whilst a very beautiful variety has all the vacant
spaces between the bold brown markings blurred and dashed with
violet-grey shell-markings. Other specimens have a large blot
of colour here and there over the entire surface, or have the
colouring matter in a zone or belt round the middle of the shell.
Many examples are marked with smaller spots and streaks of
colour, and marbled over the entire surface with violet-grey and

10 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

faint orange-red. The eggs of the Osprey are rarely faintly or
sparingly marked, and justly claim to rank as some of the hand-
somest in all the British series. In form they are not so round
as those of the true Falcons, and are also far more elongated than
those of the typical Eagles, being also somewhat coarse in texture.
They vary in length from 25 to 2'15 inches, and in breadth from
1-95 to 1-75 inch.

THE SWALLOW-TAILED KITE.

(Elanoides furcatus.)
Plate 5, Figs. 5, G.

On two occasions at least this American species has been
captured in this country. Others have been reported, but two
instances only are believed to be genuine.

It is a summer migrant to the Southern States of North
America, east of the Rocky Mountains, its breeding range exten-
ding somewhat further north, in the valley of the Mississippi, into
Southern Wisconsin. It winters in the West Indies and Central
America, where a few remain to breed in the mountains, wander-
ins into South America to Ecuador and to Brazil. Mr. W. L.
Balph writes that it nests in Florida, beginning about the first
week in April in the more southern portions of its breeding-range,
and correspondingly later further north, sometimes not before
the first or second week in June. Two eggs are generally laid,
occasionally but one, and rarely three or four. The eggs are
spotted and blotched with different shades of rich brown and
ferruginous, usually irregular in outline, and varying considerably
in amount. These markings sometimes form an irregular band
running from the centre to the smaller end, and frequently become
confluent. Occasionally a specimen is found in which the mark-
ings are very few and small in size, scarcely any being larger than
a No. 10 shot, and the majority smaller. In a few specimens
light lavender-coloured shell-markings, generally of small size,
are also visible. There is a great deal of difference in the style
and markings of these eggs, if a number be compared, but they
can readily be distinguished from the eggs of any of the American
Raptores.*

* Cf. Bendire : "Life Histories of North American Birds." — pp. 171-173.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIEDS. 11

THE BLACK-SHOULDEKED KITE.
(Elanus cceruleus.)

This tropical species has only occurred once in the British
Islands, a specimen having been captured in Co. Meath in Ireland.
It is an inhabitant of Northern Africa, visiting sparingly the
countries north of the Mediterranean. It is also found through-
out Africa and India.

The nest is built in a tree, and is composed of sticks and lined
with grass-roots and fibre. The eggs are three or four in number,
rarely five. The ground-colour is buffy-white or yellowish-white
with chestnut markings, which vary considerably. They range in
length from VI to 1*55 inch, and in breadth from 1*25 to 12 inch.

THE HONEY-BUZZAED.
(Pemis apivorus.)

Plate 3, Figs. 3, 4.

The Honey-Buzzard was formerly a regular summer visitant to
this country, breeding in most of the counties of England and
Wales where the woods were large enough to afford it a secure
retreat for its nest. As to its occurrence in Scotland and Ireland,
the information we have is very meagre ; but it appears to have
formerly bred in both these countries, where it has now, as well
as in England, become a rare summer visitor. On the Continent
it breeds in some numbers north of lat. 45° N., up to the Arctic
Circle, and occurs as far east as Krasnoiarsk. It winters in
Africa.

According to my experiences in Pomerania, the Honey-Buzzard
does not build a nest of its own, but selects one of the numerous
Buzzards' or Kites' nests which abound in the forest, re-lining
them with a profusion of fresh green leaves, or the ends of
branches of trees in full leaf : this lining is apparently renewed
from time to time.

The eggs of the Honey-Buzzard, two, three or four in number,
are very glossy or waxy in appearance, and are very round, the
small end being but slightly different from the larger one. They
run through the same variation as the eggs of the Common
Kestrel or the Peregrine. The ground-colour varies from creamy-

12 EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS.

white to pale brick-red, and the spots from brick-red to deep
rich purplish blood-red. In some examples the ground-colour is
entirely obscured ; in others the blotches are almost confluent at
one end of the egg ; whilst in others they are more evenly dis-
tributed over the surface, or shew signs of having been scratched
or rubbed off when the colouring-matter was wet. It is usual to
find in the same clutch an almost uniformly-marked egg, and one
with the markings dispersed in irregular blotches. In size they
vary from 2'05 to 1'86 inches in length, and from 1'7 to 1*55 inch
in breadth.

THE COMMON KITE.
{Milvus regalis.)*

Plate S, Fig. 7.

In the present day the Kite must be looked upon as an acci-
dental visitor to England, but it was formerly a common resident,
and even at the present day it nests in a few localities in England
and Scotland. In Ireland it has always been a rare bird. It may
be said to breed in most parts of Europe, to be resident in the
central and southern portions, and migratory in the north.

The breeding-season commences early in May. The nest is
sometimes a very bulky structure, and is flat, similar to that of
the Sparrow-Hawk. Few rapacious birds show such a partiality
for collecting rubbish for their nests as does the Kite, and in
Germany, where it arrives at the end of February or the begin-
ning of March, I was shewn several nests in May.

The eggs of the Kite are generally three, sometimes only two
in number, and most closely resemble those of the Buzzards, but
are, as a rule, distinguished from them by their more scratchy
and streaky appearance. When newly laid, they are of the palest
bluish-green in ground-colour, which soon fades to white or nearly
so, sparingly spotted and blotched with dark reddish-brown, with
a few shell-markings, ill-defined and of a pale purplish-grey.
Some specimens are far more heavily marked than others, being
clouded and dashed with colour, similar to the eggs of the Rough-
legged Buzzard-Eagle ; others are dirty bluish-white in ground-

* Milvus ictinus — Saunders, Manual, p. 325 (1889). Milvus milvus — Sharpe, Handb.
Brit. B., II, p. 168 (1895).

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 13

colour, faintly streaked, in true Bunting style, with wavy pale
lilac markings ; and in others these are evenly distributed almost
over the entire surface, mixed with scratches and streaks of
colour, and sometimes massed thickly together on one end of the
egg. They vary in length from 24 to 21 inches, and are seldom
less than If inch in breadth, the short eggs being the roundest
and bluntest.

THE BLACK KITE.

(Milvus ater.)*

Plate 3, Fig. 6.

This species has only once been captured in Great Britain, and
is included in the British list solely on the authenticity of a single
example caught in a trap in the Bed Deer Park at Alnwick in
May, 1866. It breeds in suitable localities throughout Europe
south of the Baltic, and eastwards in Asia Minor, Palestine,
Persia, and Turkestan. Its winter home extends to Southern
Africa.

A nest found by me in Northern Germany was built about
45 feet from the ground, in the fork of one of the main branches
of a beech. It was rather shallow, about three feet by two-and-
a-half, outside measurement. It was built of sticks and lined
with dead moss and a scrap or two of paper. Like that of the
Common Kite, the nest of the present species is decorated with
rags and other rubbish.

The eggs vary from two to five in number. They closely
resemble those of the Common Kite, but are, on an average,
perhaps more richly marked. The ground-colour is either dull
white, or the faintest of pale blue, more or less boldly spotted
and blotched with browns of different shades. Some specimens
are far more richly marked than others. A very handsome
variety has the smaller end clouded with pale brown, here and
there marked with pale brown and faint shell-markings of lilac.
Another and rarer variety is streaked in the smaller half with
pale brown, similar to a Bunting's egg, the streaks becoming
confluent at the small end of the egg. Many Black Kites' eggs

* Milvus migrans— Saunders, Manual, p. 327 (1889) ; Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B , II.,

p. 171 (1895).

14 EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS.

are almost indistinguishable from Common Buzzard's, and, except
that, on an average, they are slightly smaller, they scarcely differ
from Common Kite's. They possess little or no gloss, and have
the shell somewhat coarse in texture. They vary in length from
2 "25 to 2 "05 inches, and in breadth from l - 8 to 1"6 inch.

THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE.
(Haliaetus albicilla.)

Plate 2, Fig. 1.

In the British Islands, Scotland is the home of the White-
tailed Eagle, particularly the Hebrides and the Isle of Skye.
It is found throughout Europe in localities suited to its habits,
and even extends to Greenland.

The nest is large, composed of sticks, and lined with a little
grass or turf. It is placed on the ledges of cliffs, or in trees, and
has even been found on the ground. The eggs are laid in May.
They are two in number, roundish in form, slightly smaller than
Golden Eagle's, and rather coarser in texture : the colour is
white, but occasionally a few nest-stains on the shell are visible.
They vary from 3'3 to 2"75 inches in length, and from 2"4 to 21
inches in breadth.

THE GOLDEN EAGLE.
(Aquila chrysaetus.)

Plate 2, Fig. 1.

The Golden Eagle breeds in certain parts of the Highlands
of Scotland and in some of the Hebrides. It is found throughout
the Palrearctic Region and again in temperate North America.

The nest is a bulky structure of sticks of many sizes, with a
rough lining of moss or grass. It is built on a rock, but has on
rare occasions been found in a tree.

The eggs are often laid before the snow is off the hill-sides, and
they vary much in the amount of their markings, the well-marked
egg being the rule, and not the exception. They are from one
to three in number, but two is the usual clutch. As a rule,
in a nest which contains three eggs, one proves to be addled.
Typical eggs of this species are dull white in ground-colour,

EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS. 15

with lilac-grey underlying shell-markings, and rich reddish-brown
surface-blotches and spots. One of a pair of British specimens
resembles the egg of an Iceland Falcon, while the other is boldly
blotched and clashed over the entire surface. In size they vary
largely, Irish eggs being apparently the smallest. In shape they
also vary considerably, and even in the same nest one egg is often
much rounder than the other. They range from 31 to 2'7 inches
in length, and from 2' 5 to 22 inches in breadth.

THE SPOTTED EAGLE.
(Aquila ncevia.)

Plate 2, Figs. 2, 3.

Two forms of spotted Eagle occur in Europe, a large one and
a small one. Both forms are believed to have been obtained in
Great Britain, where about a dozen instances of the occurrence
of the species have taken place.

The nest is built in trees, and is very flat, made of sticks, lined
with finer twigs, and fresh green leaves. The eggs are laid in the
first half of May, and the number in each nest is almost invariably
two, though one only and as many as three have been known.
They vary considerably in size and colour, and are best described
as miniatures of the Golden Eagle. The surface is dull and
somewhat rough, and both ends are nearly alike in shape. They
vary in size from 2'65 by 2"15 inches to 23 by 2'0 inches.

THE KOUGH-LEGGED BUZZABD.

(A rcliibuteo lagopus.) *

Plate 5, Fig. 7.

This species is believed to have bred on two occasions in Great
Britain, but further evidence of the fact is necessary. It is an
inhabitant of Northern Europe and Asia, and visits us on migra-
tion nearly every year. The eggs are laid at the end of May and
in June, and the nest is built in a tree or on a fell-ridge. The nest
is a large structure of branches of cherry, birch or juniper, lined
with wiry grass ; but occasionally it is a mere hollow, lined with
grass and without any sticks.

* Aquila lagopus (Gm.) — Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B., p. 111. Buteo lagopus— Saunders,

Manual, p. 313.

16 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The eggs are subject to considerable variation in colour and
size, some specimens being poorly marked, whilst others are very
richly blotched with dark red, or clouded and mottled with pale
brown. In some eggs the colouring is confined to a few large
rich blotches of red ; others are evenly spotted with colour, just
as intense over the entire surface. The handsomest type of egg
is the clouded variety. They vary from 2"25 to 2'1 inches in
length, and from 1"8 to 1'65 inch in breadth.

THE COMMON BUZZAKD.

(Buteo vulgaris.)*
Plate 3, Fig. 2.

The Common Buzzard, though formerly pretty generally dis-
tributed throughout Great Britain and Ireland, is now confined
to a few of the larger forests, principally of Scotland and Wales,
and the sea-coasts where the rocks are lofty and precipitous.
Its range extends over the greater part of Europe, as far north as
66° in Scandinavia, and as far east as the Urals up to 59° N. lat.

The foundation of the nest is of large twigs, finished at the top
with slender twigs : it is very flat, the hollow in the middle con-
taining the eggs being of about the size and depth of a soup-plate,
and it is lined with fresh green leaves, generally beech. Eggs
usually three, sometimes only two and not unfrequently four.
They vary very much in size and colour, and are rough in tex-
ture, and possess little or no gloss. The ground-colour varies
from milky-blue to pale reddish-white, blotched, streaked, spotted,
or clouded with rich brown surface-spots and pale lilac shell-
markings. Some specimens are most richly and handsomely
marked, others more sparingly, whilst many are almost devoid of
markings. A rather rare variety is finely streaked and scratched
over the smaller half of the egg with pale brown, with one or two
larger spots. In some the colour is confluent at the larger end,
whilst in others the rich brown colouring-matter is covered with
a thin coating of lime, giving the egg a beautiful delicate lilac-
pink appearance. In form the eggs vary considerably, some
specimens being almost round, others strictly oval, some elongated,

* Buteo buteo— Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., p. 147 (1895).

Plate I.

Upland Falcon

':«.■-

Ci -iH-'iiliuiil Falcon .

*>> >,

* ». <e*

». *

IU*'#

V«^>

( W-ifFoii VuJt ur<

Revptiati V.ih.

Egyptian Vulture,

Wlute Uil.-.l K.^l<

? L *■

EBB*.' iS^-fA. '*<xl'M;l<

Spot l<«l Ea^le.

r fc*aj

Golden Eaj*l«

Plati

L'.i ciiiuc- Falcon.

i a? A*

( oriimon tin /z;nil

Hoih-v Buzzard.

*

Black Kite.

-/

ft.

* V;s

%

K i te .

• rALlth Sheffield

IM:il.

"*■■#

American Kestrel.

Lesser Kestrel.

Lessoi Kcslre

&&>!. ^**

Sparrow Hawk .

K-si,

( rosliawfe

M.tI,

Hohhv.

Hohln

Red tonli'f) Falcon.

: Era ■■ ' itt Sheffield

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 17

and more rarely elliptical. In size they vary from 2^ to 2 inches
in length and from 1*9 to 165 inch in breadth.

Three more Buzzards are included in the list of British Birds,
viz., Buteo desertorum of Africa, and B. borealis and B. lineatus
of North America. Each has been recorded once, but the occur-
rence of these species is so rare, and in some cases even doubtful,
that I feel that there would be no interest in figuring their eggs
in a work devoted to British Oology.

THE MAESH-HAKEIEE.
(Circus ceruginosus.)

Plate 5, Fig. 4.

The Marsh-Harrier still breeds sparingly in Ireland, but has
been exterminated from its former haunts in Great Britain. It
is found throughout Europe, as far east as the Valley of the Ob
and Turkestan. It visits India and parts of Africa in the winter.

A nest found by me near Brunswick was in a large extent
of swampy ground, built in the middle of a bed of reeds. The
nest was very large, the outside composed of two-thirds reeds and
one-third small branches of trees, and the extreme diameter was
at least four feet ; but the outside was very loose and straggling.
It stood two feet above the surface of the water, and one could
see underneath the nest by stooping down. The inside of the
nest was neat and compact, measuring less than a foot across, and
warmly lined with dry flag-leaves and dry grass. The eggs are
from three to six in number, roundish in form and rough in
texture, the short eggs being usually the roundest. They are very
pale bluish-green (sometimes almost white), very faintly marked
with pale brown, or (more often) spotless or covered with nest-
stains like the eggs of Grebes. In size they vary from 21 to
1*8 inch in length and from 1"6 to 1'45 inch in breadth. The
eggs of the Marsh-Harrier are very small proportionately for the
size of the bird.

THE HEN HAKBIEE.
(Circus cyaneus.)

Plate 5, Fig. 2.
The Hen-Harrier was formerly a much more generally distri-
buted breeding bird in Great Britain, but is now confined to the
B

18 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Highland Counties of Scotland, the Orkneys, Shetlands, and the
Hebrides. In Ireland it still nests sparingly. Its range extends
over the greater part of Europe and across Siberia to Corea and
Japan. In winter it visits the Mediterranean countries and N.E.
Africa, the Indian Peninsula, and China.

The site of the nest usually chosen is a dry moor or amongst
the heather, and it has often been found in a cornfield. Mr. J. A.
Harvie-Brown describes one, placed on the bare hill-side, as
merely consisting of a few loosely-arranged heather-stems, with
a shallow depression in the centre, lined with wiry dry grass,
broken into small pieces. Another, placed in deep heather, was
more than a foot high, and composed of stout rank stems and
roots of heather.

The number of eggs is usually five, but four and six are often
found. They are bluish-white, and are, on an average, interme-
diate in size between those of the Marsh and Montagu's Harriers.
They vary in length from 1*8 to 1"65 inch, and in breadth from
15 to 1"4 inch.

MONTAGU'S HARRIER.
{Circus cineraceus.)*

Plate 5, Figs. 1, 3.

Montagu's Harrier still occasionally breeds in Great Britain.
On the continent of Europe it inhabits principally the temperate
portions, nesting and departing south in winter. It reaches
Turkestan and the Yenesei Valley to the eastward, and winters
in the Indian Peninsula and in Africa down to the Cape.

In Germany, Montagu's Harrier is a somewhat late breeder.
The only time I have taken the nest was on the 23rd of May.
There was no hole whatever in the ground ; the rye had only
been trampled down, and a slight but somewhat neat nest made
of corn-stalks, lined with a little dry straw. The nest was rather
more than nine inches in diameter, and about two inches and
a half deep in the middle.

The number of eggs varies from four to six. They may be
readily distinguished from the eggs of the other British Harriers
by their decidedly smaller size. The largest egg in my collection

* Circus pygargus (Linn.)— Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 129.

EGGS OF BBITISH BIKDS. 19

measures 175 by 13 inch, whilst the smallest is only 15 by 1'25
inch. The surface of the eggs is fine-grained, but not glossy, of an
unspotted greenish-white.

THE SPARROW-HAWK.

(Accipiter nisus.)
Plate 4, Fig. 4.

Throughout the whole of Great Britain and Ireland this is a
common species in all well-wooded and cultivated localities. It
is found throughout Europe up to the limit of forest growth,
about lat. 69° N. In the northern portions of its range it is a
migratory species, wintering in South Europe and North-east
Africa, the Indian Peninsula and China.

The nest is a large one, but the cavity which contains the eggs
is small and very shallow. It is always made of sticks, the
majority being dead ones ; it contains no lining beyond a few
roots, and, in rare cases, a little moss ; but in all the nests which
I have seen there was much down, sometimes scattered half-way
down the tree, probably accidentally rubbed off the bird as she
flew on and off the nest.

The eggs are from three to six in number, although five may
be said to be an average clutch. They are round in shape, and
most richly marked. In ground-colour they are of a delicate
bluish-green, with the spots bold and decided, or reddish-brown of
various shades and intensity. Some specimens are so richly
marbled and clouded as to hide the ground-colour ; others have
the spots in a zone round the end of the egg, or more rarely round
the middle ; while yet, again, some are spotless or very faintly
marked, thus approaching very closely to certain types of Harrier's
eggs, and even in the same nest one egg will be conspicuous by its
small size, or the absence of spots. They vary from P78 to 15
inch in length, and from 139 to 12 inch in breadth.

THE GOS-HAWK.

(Accipiter palivmbarius.)*
Plate 4, Fig. (i.
It is only within the last half-century that the Gos-Hawk has
ceased to breed in Scotland, but it now no longer nests in the

* Astur palumbarius — Saunders, Manual, p. 321.

20 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

British Islands. The Gos-Hawk is nowhere very common, but
is generally, though sparingly, distributed throughout the wooded
districts of the whole of Europe, from the Mediterranean up to
the limit of forest growth. Eastward it is found, under similar
conditions, throughout Siberia, as well as in Turkestan, the
Himalayas, Mongolia, and North China. It migrates somewhat
in winter from its breeding-haunts to a little further south.

The Gos-Hawk breeds during the second half of April or the
first half of May. It generally selects a lofty beech for the
situation of its nest, which is usually placed at some considerable
elevation from the ground, in one of the main forks. It also
breeds in oaks and pine-trees. The nest is sometimes an enor-
mous structure, and is occupied for many years in succession.
The Gos-Hawk builds a deeper nest than the Eagles and the
Buzzards, and lines it with fine twigs, roots, moss and lichens,
but not green leaves.

The usual number of the eggs is four, occasionally three, and
sometimes five. They are very pale bluish-green, approaching
white, and in very rare instances show decided spots of dirty
blood-red. Stains are often to be seen on the eggs, which vary
from 2 "45 to 21 inches in length, and from T85 to 1'6 inch in
breadth.

THE AMEKICAN GOS-HAWK.

{Accipiter atricapillus.)*

Three female birds of this American species have been pro-
cured in the British Islands, one in Perthshire and two in Ireland.
It is strictly a Nearctic species, breeding in the North American
States as far south as Colorado. Two races are recognised by
American Ornithologists.

The nest is built in trees, or on the edge of a cliff.

According to Captain Bendire, the number of eggs laid by this
Gos-Hawk varies from two to five. They are pale bluish- white
and unspotted. An occasional specimen shews slight traces of
huffish-brown markings, which are probably old blood-stains.
The shells of the eggs are somewhat rough to the touch, deeply
pitted, and granulated. They vary in shape from ovate to ellip-
tical ovals.

* Astitr atricapillus — Saunders, Manual, p. 322 Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 141,

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 21

FAMILY STBIGIDJE,
OR NOCTURNAL BIRDS OF PREY.

The Owls on the British List number eleven, of which four
are indigenous, and six visitors. One, the Little Owl, originally
a migrant, has been introduced, and now nests in the vicinity of
its foster-home.

THE BAKN OWL.
(Strix flammed.)*

Plate 6, Fig. 3.

The Barn Owl is a common resident throughout the British
Islands, including the Hebrides, but becomes rare towards the
north. It is a tropical bird, found throughout the equatorial
region of both hemispheres, and not ranging more than 40 degrees
north or south of the equator, except in Western Europe.

The Barn Owl is not an early breeder, eggs seldom being found
before the end of April or the beginning of May; but it often
has two, and sometimes three broods in a season. Mr. Norgate
tells me that he has found unfledged young in November ; and
Waterton found one in December. Occasionally the eggs are
laid at intervals. I once climbed up to a Barn-Owl's nest in
a hollow oak near Oxford, and took out of the hole two nearly
fresh eggs, two young birds recently hatched, and two nearly
fledged. This must have been an exceptional case, as out of the
numerous nests which Mr. Norgate has taken he has never met
with a similar instance. The birds make no nest ; but the eggs
are often surrounded with pellets. The number of eggs varies
from three to seven. They are pure white, not quite so round
as Owls' eggs usually are, and have little or no gloss. They
vary in length from 17 to 153 inch, and in breadth from 1*3
to 12 inch.

* Aluco flammea— Seebohm, Hist. Brit. B., L, p. 147 (1883). Strix flammea— Saunders,

Manual, p. 281 (1889).

22 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE TAWNY OWL.
(Syrnium aluco.)*

Plate C, Fig. 9.

The Wood or Tawny-Owl is not so common in Great Britain
as it used to be, but is still to be found in most wooded districts
of England, Scotland, and Ireland. It is found throughout the
greater part of Europe, to the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia. In
West Eussia its range does not extend to Archangel, and in East
Kussia it is said not to be found north of 58° North Lat. It has
not been recorded from Siberia. The southern range of the
Wood-Owl extends into North Africa. In Algeria it is a resident,
and it has once occurred in Egypt. It is found in Asia Minor
and Palestine, and has been obtained in the Caucasus, but not
yet in Persia.

The Wood-Owl nests as a rule about the last week of March
or the first week in April. The situations chosen by the birds
are various ; the favourite sites being hollow trees, holes in cliffs,
and sometimes rabbit-burrows. No real nest is made, the bird
merely scratching a hole in the earth when laying in holes of
cliffs or under roots ; and when making use of old nests it does
not seem to re-line them at all.

The number of eggs are generally three or four, and are much
larger than those of the Barn-Owl. They are pure and spotless
white, round in form, but the texture of the shell is much
smoother than the Barn-Owl's, and far more highly polished.
They measure from 1*9 to 1"7 inch in length, and from 1*6 to
1'45 inch in breadth.

THE LONG-EARED OWL.

{Asio otus.)\

Plate 6, Fig. 4.

The Long-eared Owl is generally distributed throughout the
British Islands, being most common in those districts which
abound in pine-forests. It has not been met with in Greenland,
but is an accidental visitor to Iceland and the Orkney and Shet-

* Strix aluco— Seebohm, Brit. B., I., p. 154 (1883).
t Strix otus— Seebohm, Brit. B., I., p. 160 (1883).

EGGS OF BRITISH! BIRDS. 23

land Isles. It also breeds in Mull and Skye. It is distributed
throughout the Palaearctic Region, and becomes rarer towards
the Arctic Circle. It is also found in the Himalayas.

The Long-eared Owl is an early breeder : fresh eggs may be
obtained by the second week in March ; and the young are
hatched by the end of April or beginning of May. It is doubtful
if this bird ever builds its own nest. It usually takes possession
of a deserted Crow's nest, sometimes a Wood-Pigeon's, and more
frequently the deserted "drey" of a squirrel.

The selected nest does not appear to undergo much alteration,
although many naturalists have asserted that it is lined with wool
and feathers ; but pellets are often found in it in great numbers.
The eggs of this bird are from four to seven in number, generally
five or six ; and it appears that, as is the case with many other
birds of this family, the eggs are sat on as soon as laid, as young
birds and fresh eggs are seen in the same nest. The eggs of the
Long-eared Owl are somewhat oval in form, possessing some
little gloss, and are pure white in colour. They measure from
1*76 to 1"5 inch in length, and from 135 to 1'26 inch in breadth.

THE SHORT-EARED OWL.

(Asio brachyotus.)*

Plate 6, Fig. 1.

The Short-eared Owl is generally distributed on moorlands and
marshes in the north of England, Scotland, the Western Isles,
the Orkneys, and the Shetlands. Outside our islands its range is
almost cosmopolitan.

Unlike the other British members of this group of birds that
seek a covered site for their nests, the Short-eared Owl always
rears its young upon the ground, and, most curiously enough, in
an exposed and open nest. Its breeding-grounds are the marshy
fens of the low-lying eastern counties, and in the north the broad
expanses of heath on which the Harriers and the Grouse rear
their young.

This species lays from four to seven eggs ; and has been said,
on the authority of Hutchins, cited by Richardson in the ' Fur-
countries of North America,' to lay as many as ten or twelve.

* Strix brachyotus— Seebohm, Brit. B., I., p. 167 (1883).

24 EGGS OP BRITISH BIRDS.

In shape they are scarcely so round as those of the Tawny Owl,
but are much smaller, creamy-white in colour, and possess but
little gloss. The eggs may easily be confounded with those of the
Long-eared Owl ; and certain specimens are not easy to distinguish
from eggs of the Hawk Owl. They measure from 1"65 to 1'5 inch
in length, and from 1'31 to 1'2 inch in breadth.

TENGMALM'S OWL.
(Nyctala tengmalmi.)*

Plate 6, Fig. 2.

Tengmalm's Owl is an accidental visitor to the British Islands.
At least a couple of dozen instances of its occurrence have been
recorded, three of them in Scotland, but none in Ireland. It is a
circumpolar bird, breeding in the pine-forests of Europe and
Asia, as well as those of America, south of the Arctic Circle. It
is also said to breed in the Alps and the Carpathians. In Lapland
it nests up to lat. 68° ; in the Ural Mountains it is not found
further north than lat. 59°, but Dr. Finseh obtained it on the Ob
in lat. 61°. In Northern France, Germany, Southern Scandinavia,
and Central Russia it is principally found in winter. In America
its range in winter extends to the Northern parts of the United
States.

This bird is a very early breeder ; even in lat. 67° eggs have
been taken between the 2nd and the 13th of May, whilst at
Muoniovara, a degree still further north, Wolley obtained eggs
between the 8th of May and the 2nd of June, and received them
from a little further north between the 1st and the 27th of June.
Tengmalm's Owl is said not to build any nest. The eggs are laid
in hollow trees, and Wolley obtained some which had been laid
in one of the hollo wed-out logs which are closed at each end,
with a hole cut in the side, to induce the Golden-eye Ducks to
breed in them. A favourite nesting-place appears to be in the
deserted nest of the Black Woodpecker.

The number of eggs varies from four to seven. They are pure
white in colour, smooth, and differ somewhat in shape, some being
elongated, others almost round. They vary in length from 1*3 to
1'25 inch, and in breadth from l'l to 1'05 inch.

* Strix tengmalmi— Seebohm, Brit. B. I., p. 184 (1883).

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 25

THE LITTLE OWL.

(Noctua noctua.)*

Plate 6, Fig. 5.

The Little Owl may normally be considered an accidental
visitor to England and Wales, but as many have been turned
loose in this country and are known to have bred here, it is
possible that before long the species may be considered to be
established as an inhabitant of Great Britain.

The Little Owl is a resident throughout the whole of Europe
south of Scandinavia. In Northern Africa it is replaced by an
allied form, Noctua glaux ; and west of the Ural Mountains
another species, N. bactriana, occurs, extending through Central
Asia to Northern China.

It is a somewhat early breeder ; and fresh eggs may be obtained
from the middle of April to the middle of May. The situation of
the nest, which is a mere scratch round of whatever rubbish may
be accidentally collected on the spot, is varied. Sometimes it is
in a hollow tree, sometimes in the cleft of a rock, sometimes in
the roof of a house ; and I have seen it under the roots of a tree.

The number of eggs varies from four to six. They are pure
white in colour, oval in form, and measure from 1*4 to 1*35 inch
in length, and from 115 to T08 inch in breadth.

THE SNOWY OWL.

(Surnia nyctea.) i

Plate 6, Fig. 7.

The Snowy Owl is an occasional visitor to the British Islands.
It is an inhabitant of the Arctic Begions of Europe, Asia, and
America. It breeds on the tundras beyond the limit of forest
growth, or in similar climates at high elevations in less northerly
latitudes, and it only leaves these breeding grounds in conse-
quence of the scarcity of food caused by exceptional cold. It is
consequently only a partial migrant.

* Athene noctua— Saunders, Manual, p. 291. Carine noctua— Sharpe, Handb.
Brit. B., II., p. 91.

t Nyctea scandiaca — Saunders, Manual, p. 293. Nyctea nyctea— Sharpe, Handb.

Brit. B., II., p. 84.

26 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

The nest of this Owl is a simple structure, made of a few
lichens, mosses, and feathers, sometimes placed in a hole in the
ground, at others on some steep bank or cliff, or on some little
eminence rising above the surrounding plains, where it is nothing
more than a hollow scraped in the reindeer-moss.

The eggs are from six to eight in number, somtimes more,
creamy-white in colour, and somewhat rough in texture, with
little gloss. They are smaller than the eggs of the Eagle Owl,
and, as a rule, a little more elongated. They vary from 2£ to 2
inches in length, and from 1*8 to 1'6 inch in breadth.

THE HAWK-OWL.
(Sumia funerea.)*

At least six specimens of Hawk-Owls have been obtained in the
British Islands, and some of these have been identified as the
American species, Sumia funerea, as distinguished from the
European form, S. ulula. I recognise a third race from Siberia,
which should bear the name of Sumia doliata (Pallas) .

The Hawk-Owl may therefore be considered a circumpolar
bird. Its breeding-season appears to commence in the middle
of April, and to last till the end of June. It makes no nest ;
and the eggs are usually laid in the hole of a decayed pine-tree,
and rest on the powdered wood alone, as is the case with the
eggs of the Woodpeckers.

The eggs are from five to eight in number, white, smooth, and
possessed of considerable gloss. They measure from 1*65 to 1"55
inch in length, and from 1*25 to 1'17 inch in breadth. As they
cannot be distinguished from those of the Short-eared Owl, I have
not considered it necessary to figure them.

THE EAGLE-OWL.

(Bubo maximus.)\
Plate 6, Fig. 8.
The present species has been many times recorded from different
portions of the British Islands, but it is probable that many of the

* Surma ulula— Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 87.
f Bubo ignavus — Saunders, Manual, p. 299. Bubo bubo, Sharpe, Handb. p. 78.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 27

birds so obtained may have escaped from captivity. It inhabits
the forest districts of all the countries of Continental Europe,
from Scandinavia, Lapland, and Northern Russia, southward to
the shores of the Mediterranean, and is a rare winter straggler to
N. E. Africa, though it breeds in the mountains and forests of
Algeria.

The Eagle-Owl is an early breeder, and commences to lay in
March and early in April. It seldom, if ever, makes a nest of its
own, but takes possession of any old nest it can find, rarely
choosing one more than thirty feet from the ground. It breeds
in a tree or in the cleft of a rock, and the eggs have very often
been found in a slight hollow scratched in the ground at the foot
of a tree.

The eggs are usually three in number, sometimes only two.
They are pure white, very rotund, and the shell is somewhat
rough in texture. Their superior size prevents them from being
confused with those of any other species of European Owl. They
measure from 2'55 to 21 inches in length, and from 2'0 to 1"85
inch in breadth.

THE SCOPS OWL.

(Scops scops.)*

Plate 6, Fig. G.

About twenty specimens of this rare visitor have been recorded
in the British Islands. It breeds throughout Europe south of
the Baltic, wintering in North-Eastern Africa as far as Abyssinia.
Eastward it breeds as far as Asia Minor, Turkestan, and Persia.

The Scops Owl breeds almost universally in hollow trees ; but
Tristram found its nest in holes of walls, and Kriiper describes it
as especially common on the island of Naxos, laying its eggs in
the scaffold-holes which the indolent Greeks omitted to fill up in
the houses. Like all the Owls, the present species makes little
or no nest, merely a little hollow being scratched out, and lined
with the indigestible portions of the bird's food.

The eggs are from five to six in number, pure white, and varying
in length from 13 to 1'15 inch, and in breadth from 11 to 10
inch.

* Scops gin — Saunders, Manual, p. 297.

28 EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS.

FAMILY ANATIDM.

SWANS, GEESE, AND DUCKS.

Of these Birds we have forty-four species in England, of which
fourteen may be considered residents, sixteen regular migrants,
and fourteen occasional or accidental visitors.

THE MUTE SWAN.

(Cygnus olor.)

Plate 7, Fig. 2.

The Mute Swan has a very restricted range. It is doubtful
whether in a wild state it breeds west of the Rhine ; and north of
the Baltic it only nests in Denmark and South Sweden, being
also an accidental visitor to Norway. It is a summer visitor to
South Russia, the valley of the Danube, Transylvania, and
Greece ; but in the basin of the Mediterranean it is principally
known as a winter migrant. It is a summer visitor to the northern
shores of the Caspian, to Turkestan, and to Mongolia, occasionally
straying into Dauria, where it was observed by Radde.

In the northern portion of its range the Swan is a migratory
bird, arriving at its breeding-grounds in March and leaving them
again in October. The nest is a large structure, four or five feet
across and at least a couple of feet high, composed of old reeds,
dead grass, and other herbage.

The number of eggs varies from five to eight. There is often
very little difference in the shape of the two ends ; the texture is
rough, and there is scarcely any gloss. They vary in length from
49 to 4'3 inches, and in breadth from 31 to 2'8 inches. They
may always be distinguished from eggs of the other British Swans
by their greenish-white colour.

THE WHOOPER OR WILD SWAN.

(Cygnus musicus.)
Plate 7, Fig. 1.
The Whooper is a tolerably common winter visitor to the
coasts of the British Islands. It appears to be confined to the

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 29

Old World, where it breeds principally to the north of the Arctic
Circle. It is a common resident in Iceland, and breeds through-
out Arctic Europe, wandering southwards in winter to both shores
of the Mediterranean and Black Seas, and occasionally appearing
on many inland lakes and rivers on migration. Middendorf
found it nesting on the Taimur Peninsula, and it probably breeds
as far east as Bering Straits, as it passes through Southern Siberia
and Mongolia on migration, and is not uncommon during winter
in Japan and on the coasts of China.

The eggs of the Whooper agree with those of Bewick's Swan in
being creamy- white in colour and having a slight gloss like those of
the Mute Swan ; the surface is also granulated, and there is very
little difference in the shape of the two ends. They vary in length
from 4'7 to 42 inches, and in breadth from 29 to 2'65 inches.
Eggs of the Mute Swan may at once be distinguished by their
slightly greenish colour, but those of Bewick's Swan can only be
distinguished by their smaller bulk. In length the eggs of the
two species overlap, but short eggs of the Whooper are " short and
stout," and long eggs of Bewick's Swan are " tall and thin," so
that they cannot be confused except in abnormal cases, which
may possibly occur. The safest guide in the determination of the
eggs of these two species of Swan is that of weight. Eggs of the
Whooper weigh considerably more, and those of Bewick's Swan
considerably less, than four sovereigns.

BEWICK'S SWAN.

(Ci/gnus betvicki.)

Plate 8, Fig. 2.

Bewick's Swan is by no means an uncommon winter visitor to
the coasts of Scotland and England, including the Outer Hebrides,
the Orkneys and Shetlands, and possibly the Channel Islands. It
is, however, most abundant on the west coast of Ireland.

The first identified eggs of Bewick's Swan were those obtained
by Harvie-Brown and myself in the delta of the Petchora. A
Russian fisherman took the two eggs and trapped the bird on the
nest. The eggs are smaller than those of the Whooper, and are
probably the same in number, but I have never seen a larger
clutch than three. They do not differ from those of the Whooper

30 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

in any other respect, unless, perhaps, they may be slightly less
glossy. They vary in length from 4"3 to 3'8 inches. They may
be distinguished from eggs of the AVhooper by their weight,
details of which will be found above.

THE SNOW-GOOSE.

(Anser hyperboreus.)*
Plate 11, Fig. 3.

The Snow-Goose has accidentally occured in Great Britain on
several occasions. About a dozen examples have been noticed in
Ireland, others in Cumberland and Yorkshire. There are two
races of Snow-Goose, a large and a small one, and it is the latter
which has been met with in the British Islands. The larger race
of Snow-Goose is at present only known to breed in Hudson's Bay
Territory ; but as flocks have been seen on migration and indi-
viduals occasionally obtained both in North Europe and in Siberia,
it seems probable that it may breed on some of the islands in the
Arctic Ocean near those continents. It winters in the United
States as far south as Texas, and several examples are recorded
from the Bermudas.

The nests found by Mr. MacFarlane on the Anderson Kiver were
mere hollows in the sandy soil, plentifully lined with down and
probably with dead grass. The colour of the eggs is described as
of a uniform dirty chalky-white, and the size as averaging 3"4
inches in length and 2'2 inches in breadth.

THE BEAN-GOOSE.

{Anser segetum.)\
Plate 8, Fig. 1.

The Bean-Goose is a common visitor to the British Islands on
spring and autumn migration, and great numbers remain to win-
ter on our shores. It is a well-known bird on most parts of the
English, Scotch, and Irish coasts, but is said to be only a straggler
to the Orkney and Shetland Islands, though abundant in the

* Chen hypcrboreus — Saunders, Manual, p. 393; Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., p. 225.
t Anser fabalis (Lath.)— Sharpe, Handb. Brit. B., II., p. 232.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 31

Hebrides. There seems to be no evidence that it has ever bred
in any part of the British Islands. It is a more northerly species
than the Grey Lag-Goose, and in Scandinavia is not known to
breed south of Lat. 64°. In North Kussia it breeds near Arch-
angel, and in the Valley of the Petchora above the limits of
forest growth, as well as in the Valley of the Yenisei.

The Bean-Goose is an early breeder, beginning to make its rude
nest almost before the snow is melted, early in June. A slight
hollow is scraped in the soil, and lined with dead grass, moss,
sometimes a few feathers, and always plenty of the light grey-
down of the bird itself. The number of eggs is generally three,
but often four. They are creamy- white in colour, with a rough,
granular texture, and very little gloss. They are almost always
decidedly more rounded at one end than at the other. They vary
in length from 3"4 to 30 inches, and in breadth from 2 - 2 to
2*1 inches. The largest eggs of the Bean-Goose are as large
or larger than the smallest eggs of the Grey Goose, but they may
be distinguished at once by their weight. The smallest egg of the
Grey Goose weighs more than two sovereigns ; the largest egg of
the Bean-Goose scarcely weighs a sovereign and a half. Eggs of
the Bean-Goose cannot be distinguished from those of the Pink-
footed Goose or from large ones of the White-fronted Goose.

THE PINK-FOOTED GOOSE.

(Anser brachy rhy nchus .)

Plate 10, Fig. 3.

The present species is a common winter visitor to the coasts
of the British Islands, though it has only once been recorded from
Ireland. It is less common on the south coast of England, most
abundant on the outer Hebrides and the east coast of England,
but it does not appear to have been observed in the Shetlands.
It certainly breeds in Iceland and Spitsbergen, and probably on
Franz-Josef Land. To the British Islands it is only a regular
visitor in spring and autumn migration, and in winter it occasion-
ally strays as far as the coasts of Belgium and France.

The nest and eggs do not differ from those of the Bean Goose,
but the eggs may be distinguished from small eggs of the Grey
Goose by their lighter weight {vide anted) .

32 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE GKEY LAG-GOOSE.
{Anser cinereus.)*

Plate 8, Fig. 3.

A hundred years ago the Grey Lag-Goose bred in the fens and
marshes of the eastern counties of England ; but the reclamation
of these extensive wastes has long since driven the birds to seek
more congenial quarters. Its only breeding-places in the British
Islands are in Boss, Sutherland, and Caithness, and on many of
the Hebrides. The breeding-range of the species extends through-
out Scandinavia and Denmark, Northern Germany, and North
Russia, as far as the Ob, and probably to the Valley of the Yenisei.

The Grey Goose builds a large, slovenly nest of dead reeds,
grass, and sedge, with sometimes a stick or two near the founda-
tion. It is often a yard across, and a foot high, and, in cold
climates, is generally lined with moss, to which down is added as
the eggs are laid. The number of eggs is usually six or eight, but
nests have been found containing as many as fourteen. They are
dull, creamy- white in colour, and vary in length from 3' 7 to 3"2
inches, and in breadth from 2"5 to 2'2 inches. They cannot easily
be confused with those of any other British Goose. They are
larger than those of the White-fronted Goose, and heavier than
those of any other species.

THE WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE.

(Anser albifrojis.)
Plate 10, Fig. 4.

The White-fronted Goose is a winter visitor to the British
Islands, but is somewhat local in its distribution and erratic in its
appearance.

The White-fronted Goose breeds at a higher latitude than its
congener the Bean-Goose, and still more so than its much closer
ally, the Grey Goose. Middendorf found it nesting in great abun-
dance on the Taimur peninsula, between lat. 70° and 74°, where
the Bean-Goose was comparatively rare. He describes the nest
as built on a grassy hillock, a mere hollow on the summit abun-
dantly lined with down. Five to seven appears to be the usual
number of eggs. They are creamy- white in colour, and vary in
length from 3'1 to 2'8 inches, and in breadth from 2'1 to 19 inch.

* Anser anser — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 227.

Plate .").

Mont agu's I I hi i. i

Hoi, lb

Montagu's Uai

, r

M...sl, Harrier,

"Vi

Swallow tailor! Kit

s

I *^

w

Rou°h Ico.jiil Buzzard.

. 't-t J-'alrou .

Plate C.

Short eared Owl.

Tenemalm's Owl

Haiti Owl.

Long eared Owl

Little Owl.

Scops Owl

Suowv Owl

Eagle Owl.

awn? Owl .

'nefSeH

Late /.

IWiooper Sw.ui .

Mule Swan.

Plate 8

l*«wicks S\

Urev Lay C,<

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 33

THE LESSER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE.
(Anser albifrons minutus.)

Plate 12, Fig. 3.

This is a small form of Anser albifrons, and is usually known
by the name of Anser erythropus of Linnaeus. Saunders and
Sharpe do not recognise its distinctness, but, to my mind, it is a
recognisable race, and Salvadori, the first authority of the day on
the subject, allows it full specific rank. It is smaller in size than
A. albifrons, and has a broader white forehead. It inhabits the
Palaearctic Region from Lapland to the Yenisei, visiting various
parts of Europe on migration as well as Japan and Northern
India. The egg is decidedly smaller than that of A. albifrons.

THE BRENT GOOSE.

(Anser brenta.)*
Plate 10, Fig. 1.

The Brent Goose is a circumpolar bird, of which there are
two, if not three forms. The Pacific Brent Goose breeds from
the valley of the Lena, eastwards across Bering Straits as far
as the Rocky Mountains ; in the Taimur Peninsula, in Novaya
Zemlya, Franz-Josef Land, and Spitsbergen the typical Anser
brenta breeds; and in Arctic America, from the west coast of
Greenland as far west as the Parry Islands, and north of lat. 73°,
as far as land is known to extend, the white-bellied form of the
Brent Goose (Anser brenta glaucogaster) breeds; it has the under-
pays below the breast almost pure white, and the white on
the sides of the neck does not meet in front. Both the latter
races and intermediate forms between them occur on our coasts ;
but the white-bellied form is much the rarer of the two. Count
Salvadori finds intermediate specimens between them and unites
the two species.

The nests found by Colonel Feilden in lat. 82^° on the 9th of
June were made on the sloping hill-sides between the snow line
and the sea ; they were placed in slight depressions on the ground,

* Bernicla brenta— Saunders, Manual, p. 399 ; Branta bemicla— Sharpe,
Handb. II., p. 239.

34 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

with a good foundation of grass, moss and the stems of saxifrages,
and plentifully lined with down.

The number of eggs in each nest was four or five. They are
creamy- white in colour, finely granulated, and possess a slight
gloss. They vary in length from 2'87 to 265 inches, and in
breadth from 1"95 to 175 inch.

THE BEKNACLE GOOSE.

(Anser leucopsis.)*

Plate 10, Fig. 2.

The Bernacle Goose is a fairly common winter visitor to the
coasts of the British Islands, but is most abundant on the west
coasts of Scotland. Saxby only observed it once in Shetland.
In Ireland it is locally distributed, being most common in the
north and north-west. It sometimes visits inland districts. It
has never been found breeding in a wild state, but has been
recorded as occurring in summer in Greenland, Iceland, Spits-
bergen, and Novaya Zemlya. It is also said to breed on
Kolguev. It winters on the coasts of Northern Europe and
those of Hudson's Bay.

Collett is of opinion that the Bernacle Goose breeds on one of the
Lofoden Islands in lat. 68° 15', from whence the proprietor of this
island sent him two eggs of a Goose " with white cheeks, but
having the rest of the plumage and the feet dark," and " having
a slight resemblance to a Cormorant." A solitary pair are said
to have bred on the island for some years past, building a nest
composed of moss and straw, sometimes on the narrow ledges of
the rocks and sometimes in a sheltered locality, under stones or
isolated rocky masses, and laying five eggs.

Eggs laid in confinement are creamy-white, granulated in
texture, and without gloss. They vary in length from 2 '9 to
2'75 inches, and in breadth from 20 to 1'85 inch. The Lofoden
Island eggs received by Collett are slightly smaller, measuring
2"6 by 1'8 inch. They are indistinguishable from eggs of the
Brent Goose, but may possibly be distinguished from eggs of the
White-fronted Goose by their relatively lighter weight.

* Bcrnicla leucopsis — Saunders, Manual, p. 397. Bratita leucopsis — Sharpe,
Handb., II., p. 236.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 35

THE RED-BREASTED GOOSE.

(A user ruficollis.)*

Plate 11, Fig. 1.

The occurrence of the Red-breasted Goose in our islands is
purely accidental ; but its breeding-range is situated far enough
north for occasional stragglers from the eastern shores of the
Kara Sea to mingle with the flocks of Brent and Bernacle Geese
which migrate to our shores in autumn from Franz- Josef Land,
Novaya-Zemlya, and Spitsbergen. Half a dozen authentic
specimens have been obtained in this country. During the
breeding-season the Red-fronted Goose is confined to the lower
valleys of the Ob and Yenisei above the limit of forest growth.
In winter it has occurred in nearly every country in Europe except
Spain. It passes through South-western Siberia and Northern
Turkestan on migration to winter in the Caspian Sea. Elsewhere
its occurrence is only accidental.

Very little is known of the nesting-habits of the Red-breasted
Goose, which appears to be a late breeder. Middendorf obtained
slightly incubated eggs on the Bogan river on the 6th of July,
and the egg which is figured in the present work was obtained
on the 1st of July, about two hundred miles due east of that
locality. It measures 2' 7 inches in length and 1'8 inch in breadth.
The colour is creamy- white, with obscure traces of an underlying
green shell ; the surface is rather smooth but not glossy, and the
shell is very fragile. Middendorf's eggs varied in length from
2 "8 to 2" 7 inches, and in breadth from 176 to 1'73 inch.

THE CANADA GOOSE.

(Anser canadensis.) f

Plate 12, Fig. 2.

The present species is an inhabitant of North America, and is
so often kept in confinement, that there can be little doubt that
the specimens, which are occasionally shot, have escaped from
captivity. The eggs are dull white, and measure 3"65 to 3'35
inches in length, and 2' 3 inches in breadth.

* Bcrnicla ruficollis — Saunders, Manual, p. 395; Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 243.

f Bcrnicla canadensis — Saunders, Manual, p. 400, note. Branta canadensis —
Salvadori, Cat. B., Brit. Mus., xxvii., p. 112.

36 EGGS OF BEITISH BIBDS.

THE EGYPTIAN GOOSE.
(Anser cegyptiacus.)*

Plate 12, Fig. 1.

This African species is sometimes shot wild, but there is no
evidence that the examples in question have really migrated to
our shores, and it is probable that, in every case, the specimens
thus secured have escaped from confinement. The habitat of the
species, according to Count Salvadori, is Africa generally to
Palestine.

The eggs are dull white, and measure in length from 3 "05 to
2'8 inches, and in breadth from 2 - 05 to 195 inch.

THE COMMON SHELDKAKE.

{Tadorna cornuta.)]
Plate 16, Fig. 6.

The Sheldrake or Sheld-duck, is variously known as the
Burrow-duck, Shield-drake, Sheld-drake, Bargander and Perennet
in different parts of the United Kingdom. It is a resident in
Great Britain, and is found in Europe and Northern Asia, from
the Atlantic to the Pacific, breeding throughout the greater part
of its range, and wandering south in winter.

So far as is known, the Sheldrake never breeds in the open, but
always in a burrow, generally in that of a rabbit, though some-
times the birds excavate a burrow for themselves.

The eggs are laid from the end of April to the beginning of
June. Seven to twelve is the ordinary number, but occasionally
as many as sixteen are laid. They are creamy-white in colour,
somewhat smooth in texture, and have very little gloss. They
vary in length from 2 '75 to 2" 5 inches, and in breadth from 2"0 to
1*9 inch.

THE BUDDY SHELDBAKE.

{Tadorna rutila.) \
Plate 16, Fig. 5.

The present species is generally regarded as a rare visitor to
Great Britain, but in the summer of 1892 a considerable immi-

* Chenalopex agvptiaca — Saunders, Manual, p. 400; Sharpe, Handb., II. , p, 257.

f Tadorna tadorna — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 253.

+ Tadorna casarca — Saunders, Manual, p. 409. Casarca casarca — Sharpe,

Handb., II., p. 263.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 37

gration took place. The European range of the Ruddy Sheldrake
does not extend nearly so far north as that of the Comnion Shel-
drake. It is resident in the basins of the Mediterranean and
Black Seas, and to the east of the Ural Mountains. It breeds
throughout Persia, Turkestan, and Southern Siberia, but not
further north than Lake Baikal and the Valley of the Amoor.

The Ruddy Sheldrake sometimes nests in a burrow, frequently
in a hollow tree or in a hole in a fallen log. Salvin in Algeria,
and Tristram in Palestine, found it nesting in the crevices of
the cliffs, and Dybowski took the eggs in Dauria out of deserted
nests of Birds of Prey. It is a somewhat early breeder. The
eggs, sixteen to eighteen in number, are creamy-white in colour,
and are absolutely indistinguishable from those of the Common
Sheldrake. They vary in length from 2"78 to 26 inches, and in
breadth from 2"0 to 1'7 inch.

THE GADWALL.

(Anas strepera.)*

Plate 14, Fig. 3.

The Gadwall is a winter visitor to the United Kingdom, but
breeds regularly in some parts of Norfolk. It is a circumpolar
Duck, but its range does not extend into the Arctic Regions, though
a few breed as far north as Iceland. It nests throughout
temperate Europe, Asia, and North America, wintering to the
southward. The nest is placed under some convenient bush, or
beneath the shelter of a tuft of coarse grass or rushes, at no great
distance from the water's edge. It is a mere depression in the
ground, probably scratched out by the female, and lined with a
little dry grass, bits of reed or rush, and, in some cases, with a few
dead leaves. The eggs are laid in May, frequently not before the
end of the month. They are from eight to twelve in number,
smooth in texture, and slightly glossy. They vary in length from
2"15 to 195 inch, and in breadth from 1*55 to 1"4 inch. In
colour they do not differ from those of the Wigeon, being generally
bumsh-white or cream-colour, though Naumann says that they
are slightly tinged with olive — probably both types occur.

* Chaulelasmus streperus — Sharpe, Ffandb., II., p. 273.

38 EGGS OF BRITISH P.IRDS.

THE PINTAIL.
(Anas acuta.)*

Plate 13, Fig. 3.

The Pintail is best known as a winter visitor to the British
Islands, but there can be scarcely any doubt that a few remain
to breed. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding in great numbers
throughout the Arctic Kegions as far north as lat. 70°. South of
lat. 60° it breeds much more sparingly, but its eggs are occasionally
taken in North Germany, Russia, and Siberia, as far south as lat.
50°, and, it is said, in the Caucasus. It migrates both along the
coasts and the great river valleys to Persia, India, and Ceylon. On
the American continent it breeds in the same latitudes as in the
Old World, and is found in winter throughout the Southern
States, Mexico, and Central America.

The nests of the Pintail found by me in the Petchora Valley
were placed in the grass among the shrubs in dry places,
generally at some distance from the water ; they were deep,
and well lined with dead grass and sedge, and, when the full
clutch was laid, contained plenty of down. I took the first
eggs on the 5th of June. In Germany, where a few Pintails
remain to breed, eggs may be found early in May. Seven to
nine, or sometimes ten, is the full number, but where the first
eggs are taken, the second clutch only contains five or six eggs.
They are pale, huffish-green in colour, and vary in length from
225 to 20 inches, and in breadth from 1*6 to 1'5'inch. It is
impossible to distinguish them from eggs of the Long -tailed
Duck, or from small and exceptionally green eggs of the
Mallard.

THE WIGEON.
[Anas pcnelope.)^

Plate 13, Fig. 4.

The Wigeon is one of the best known and most plentiful of
the Ducks that regularly visit the British Islands in winter. It
leaves for the north in April, but a few remain behind to breed,

* Dafila acuta— Saunders, Manual, p. 417 ; Sharpe, Handb., IP, p. 287.
f Mareca penelope — Saunders, Manual, p. 425; Sharpe, Handb., IP, p. 277.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 39

and have been observed doing so in the shires of Koss and Suther-
land, in Cromarty, and in the Orkneys and Shetlands.

The Wigeon is a very common Arctic species of Duck, confined
to the Old World during the breeding-season. South of lat. 60°
it is only found breeding under exceptional circumstances ; but I
have taken its eggs in the lower valley of the Danube, and nests
have been found in France, Germany, Denmark, Bohemia, and
in the Baikal Basin. The nests are well concealed, generally
close to the margin of a lake or a pond, and are placed in the long
grass and sedge, often under a willow bush. Like those of most
Ducks which breed in the Arctic Region, they are very deep,
well lined with dead grass and sedge, and, when the full clutch
is laid, contain a quantity of down with which the eggs are
covered when the female leaves the nest. The down of the
Wigeon may very easily be recognised by its sooty-brown colour,
and by the distinctness of the white tips — an important point in
discriminating the eggs from those of the White-eyed Pochard
and Gadwall, which are of about the same size and nearly the same
colour, though much less of a creamy-white, and more inclined to
dull huffish- white, whilst the down which surrounds them is
darker, greyer, and almost without pale tips.

The eggs of the Wigeon vary in number from seven to ten,
in rare instances to twelve ; they are bumsh-white or cream
colour, and never show the slightest trace of olive. They vary in
length from 2"3 to 1*9 inch, and in breadth from 1*6 to 1*3 inch.

THE AMERICAN WIGEON.
(A nas americana . ) *

The American Wigeon belongs to the list of doubtful British
birds. There is reasonable ground to suppose that it has been
shot more than once in our islands, but it is impossible to prove
that the birds had not escaped from confinement. It breeds in
Alaska and in British America as far north as lat. 70°, and its eggs
have occasionally been taken in the extreme north of the United
States. It scarcely differs in its habits from its Old World ally, and
lays eggs of the same creamy- white colour, which vary in length
from 2'25 to 2'1 inches and in breadth from 155 to 1 45 inch.
* Mareca americana — Saunders, Manual, p. 427; Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 281.

40 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

THE COMMON TEAL.
(Anas crecca.)*

Plate 16, Fig. 3.

The Teal is a local resident throughout the British Islands,
and breeds sparingly in suitable localities in almost every part,
but is more common in the northern districts than in the southern,
It is an Arctic and semi- Arctic Duck, confined to the Old World,
except that it is an accidental visitor on migration to Greenland
and the Atlantic coasts of North America. It is a regular summer
visitor to Iceland, and passes the Faroes on migration. It breeds
in great numbers throughout Northern Europe and Asia as far
north as lat. 70°.

The nest resembles that of most other Ducks, and contains
from eight to ten bumsh-white or cream-coloured eggs, in very
rare instances with the faintest possible tinge of green, which
vary in length from 1'8 to 1"6 inch, and in breadth from 1*4 to 1'3
inch. As a rule they are slightly smaller than those of the
Garganey ; but they can only be distinguished with certainty by
the down, which is small and without any white tips, and scarcely
distinguishable from that of the Long-tailed Duck, except that it
is slightly darker and not of so warm a brown.

THE AMEBIC AN TEAL.

(Anas carolinensis.)\

The American Teal is often called the American Green-winged
Teal, to distinguish it from the so-called American Blue-winged
Teal, which is not a Teal but a Garganey. It is admitted into
the British list because it has occurred twice, and possibly three
times, in our islands. The distribution of the American Teal on
that continent is very similar to that of the Common Teal in
Europe and Asia. Its principal breeding-grounds are in the
Arctic Eegions from Alaska to Greenland, whence it migrates in
autumn to winter in the Southern States, Mexico, Central
America, and the West Indies. The habits of the American Teal

* Querquedida crecca — Saunders, Manual, p. 419. Nettion crecca— Sharpe,

Handb., II., p. 283.

\ Querquedida carolinensis — Saunders, Manual, p. 421. Nettion carolinense —

Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 280.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 41

are described as precisely the same as those of our birds. It
chooses the same localities, both in its winter quarters and at its
breeding-grounds. It is not known that the nest or eggs differ
in any way. The latter are creamy-white in colour, and vary in
size from 1*85 by 1"35 inch to 1'75 by 1*3 inch.

THE GAKGANEY.
(Anas circia.)*

Plate 16, Fig. 4.

The Garganey is a somewhat scarce and very local visitor to
the British Islands on migration, breeding sparingly in one or two
favoured districts. It is a rare visitor to Scotland and to Ireland ;
but it would doubtless breed in the latter country if not molested.
It nests regularly in Norfolk, where it is thought to be increasing
in numbers, and it formerly bred in the fens of Cambridgeshire
and Huntingdonshire, before they were drained. It is not im-
probale that it may nest in several localities in the southern
counties of England, where it is known as a rare spring
visitor ; but it breeds in some numbers in Denmark, Sweden,
the Baltic Provinces, Finland, and North-west Kussia as far as
Archangel. In Siberia it appears to be confined to the extreme
south. It breeds more or less abundantly throughout Southern
Europe, the Caucasus, and Turkestan, and a few are said
occasionally to remain to nest in India, Burmah, and China.
The first eggs are seldom laid before May. The nest is placed in
a variety of positions, hidden under a bush or in thick grass or
sedge, far away from water, in the forest, or among the corn —
anywhere and everywhere where a hidden retreat can be found.
It is made very deep, and is lined with dead grass and leaves, to
which is afterwards added plenty of down. The number of eggs
varies from eight to twelve, or sometimes fourteen. They are
buffish- white or cream-colour. They vary in length from 1*9 to
1'7 inch, and in breadth from 14 to 1'3 inch. It is impossible to
distinguish eggs of the Garganey from those of the Teal, but,
fortunately for the egg-collector, the down of the Garganey
cannot easily be mistaken for that of any other British Duck ;

* Querquedula circia— Saunders, Manual, p. 423. Querquedula querquedula —
Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 291.

42 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

it is about the size of that of the Teal, but not of so warm a brown
in colour, and its most striking characteristic is the peculiar long
white tips, which are much more conspicuous even than those
on the down of the Wigeon and Shoveller.

THE BLUE-WINGED TEAL.

(Anas discors.)*

Out of four supposed occurrences of this Duck in Great Britain,

only one record, from Dumfries, is believed to be authentic. It is

an inhabitant of North America, and its eggs do not differ from

those of the Garganey.

THE SHOVELLEB.

(Anas clypeata.)\

Plate 13, Fig. 2.

The Shoveller is a well-known winter visitor to the British
Islands, many remaining behind in spring to breed in suitable
localities. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding in the Arctic Kegions
of both hemispheres about as far north as lat. 68° ; south of
lat. 50° it breeds more sparingly, but there are probably few parts
of its winter range in which a few do not remain to nest. On the
American continent it is rarely found breeding below lat. 50°, and
it winters in the Southern States, the West Indies, Mexico, and
Central America.

The Shoveller is a somewhat late breeder. Eggs are seldom found
in this country before the middle of May, and in high latitudes
not until the middle of June. The nest is generally found in the
open, well concealed in long grass or heath, and is very skilfully
made. The depression in which it is placed, if deep, is only
slenderly lined with dead grass or sedge ; but if shallow, a con-
siderable amount of material is collected to give the nest the
required depth. The eggs are pale bumsh-white, almost of the
same colour as those of the Garganey, but with the faintest pos-
sible trace of olive. They vary in length from 2 - 2 inches to 1'8
inch, and in breadth from 1*6 to 1'4 inch. The down, like that of
nearly all Ducks, has pale centres, but, unlike that of the Long-

* Querqucdula discors — Saunders, Manual, p. 422; Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 294.
f Spatula clypeata — Saunders, Manual, p. 415 ; Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 265.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 43

tailed Duck and Mallard, it has very conspicuous white tips, quite
as conspicuous as in the down of the Wigeon, more so than in
that of the Pintail, but not so much so as in that of the Garganey.

THE MALLARD.
(Anas boscas.)

Plate 13, Fig. 6.

The Mallard is generally distributed throughout the British
Islands, breeding in all suitable localities, including the Hebrides,
the Orkneys, Shetlands, and Ireland. It is a circumpolar bird,
though it is rarely, if ever, found north of the Arctic Circle. It
breeds more or less abundantly throughout the Palaearctic and
Nearctic Regions, but in Southern Europe, North Africa, and the
Southern States of America, it is principally known as a winter
visitor.

The nest is seldom placed close to water, and has even been
found in deserted nests of Rooks and Crows. It is occasionally
found in hollow tree-stumps, and sometimes on the tops of pollard
willows. When on the ground it is a carelessly constructed mass
of dead grass and leaves, deep, and carefully concealed amongst
long grass or under bushes. The eggs vary in number from eight
to twelve, and it is said that as many as sixteen are occasionally
found. They vary in colour from greenish-buff to pale buffish-
green, in length from 2'5 to 2'2 inches, and in breadth from 1/7
to 1'5 inch. Small examples are very liable to be mistaken for
eggs of the Pintail and Long-tailed Duck ; but the down is much
larger than that of the Long-tailed Duck, and has very incon-
spicuous white tips, whilst that of the Pintail has the latter
conspicuous ; it is almost neutral grey in colour, occasionally
with a slight tinge of brown.

THE RED-CRESTED POCHARD.
(Fuligula rufina.)*

Plate 14, Fig. 0.
About a score of examples have been procured in Great Britain,
and perhaps as many more observed. One has been obtained in
Scotland, one in Wales, and one in Ireland. The Red-crested

* Netta rufina — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 2.

44 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Pochard has a very limited range, confined to the south-west
portion of the Palsearctic Eegion. North of about lat. 50° it is
an accidental visitor to Pomerania and the Baltic Provinces,
Poland, Denmark, Belgium, and the north of France. Its
principal habitat is in Spain, the basins of the Mediterranean,
Black, and Caspian Seas, and Eussian Turkestan, migrating
southwards to Afghanistan to winter throughout India. Dr.
Baldamus found the nests built amongst the rushes and flags on
a small island in a pond. The foundation was made of decayed
steins of rushes or dead leaves, on which a warm bed of down
was placed as the full complement of the eggs are completed.
The eggs of the Ked-crested Pochard are usually eight or nine
in number, and resemble those of the Pochard, but are paler and
greener. They vary in length from 2 - 35 to 22 inches, and in
breadth from 1*7 to 1*58 inch. They almost resemble in colour
pale eggs of the Golden-eye ; but there can be no doubt that the
down is dark and quite unlike that of the hole-nesting species.

THE WHITE-EYED POCHAED.

( Fu lig ula nyroca.)*
Plate 14, Fig. 4.
The White-eyed Pochard, or Ferruginous Duck, as it is some-
times called, is a somewhat rare straggler on migration to the
British Islands, occurring most frequently in the eastern counties
of England. In Europe it is not known to breed north of the
Baltic, and only occurs accidentally in Denmark and the Baltic
Provinces. In Eussia the northern limit of its range appears to
be Moscow, Kasan, and Ekaterinburg ; but, in the valley of the
Ob, Finsch says that he undoubtedly saw it as far north as the
Arctic circle. No other traveller has recorded it from Siberia, nor
did Prjevalsky meet with it in Mongolia ; but since Abbe David
records its abundance in winter in North China, and Blakiston
and Pryer have sent examples from Japan, there can be no
doubt that it must breed either in the valley of the Amoor or in
Mongolia. It is a summer visitor to Central Europe south of
the Baltic, but is a resident in the basin of the Mediterranean,
though it has not been found breeding in Egypt.

* Nyroca nyroca — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 9.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 45

The nest is generally placed amongst aquatic vegetation, some-
times on the banks, and sometimes floating on the stagnant water,
supported by masses of fallen plants. At other times it is placed
on a tussock of sedge.

The White-eyed Pochard generally lays ten eggs, but the
clutches vary from nine to fourteen. The colour of the eggs is a
pale creamy-brown, like that of coffee with plenty of milk in it,
and occasionally there is an almost imperceptible shade of green.
They vary in length from 22 to 1'9 inches, and in breadth from
1'54 to 14 inch. The only eggs with which they are likely to be
confused are those of the Gadwall, the Wigeon, the Harlequin,
and the Smew ; but the down of the three latter species is very
different, that of the White-eyed Pochard being very dark brown,
and having no perceptible white tips. Its eggs may generally be
distinguished by the relatively greater weight of the shell. Eggs
selected as near as possible of the same dimensions (two inches
by an inch and a half) weigh respectively : — of the White-eyed
Pochard, 63 grains; Smew, 55 grains ; Gadwall, 50 grains; and
Wigeon, 45 grains.

THE POCHAKD.

{Fuligula ferina.)*
Plate 1-t, Fig. 5.

The Pochard is one of the most abundant species of Ducks on
the coasts of Scotland, including the Orkneys, Shetlands, and the
Hebrides, and there can be little doubt that it breeds in that
country. In England it is equally well known, and its nest has
been taken in many localities ; it also nests in certain counties of
Ireland. In Kussia it breeds as far north as Lake Ladoga and as
far south as the Caucasus. This wide range apparently contracts
both to the east and to the west, until its boundaries meet in
West Europe in England and in West Siberia at Lake Baikal.
Its winter range in Asia is very extensive, reaching from Asia
Minor through Persia, Afghanistan, India, China, and occasionally
to Japan.

The nest of the Pochard is merely a hollow lined with dead
grass and sedge, and, after the bird has begun to sit, with down.

* Nyvoca ferina — Sharpe, Handb. III., p. 5.

4(5 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Ten is the usual number of eggs ; but seven or eight are often
found, and sometimes as many as thirteen. They vary in length
from 2'45 to 2 - 2 inches, and in breadth from 175 to 1'65 inch.
They scarcely differ in colour from eggs of the Scaup, Tufted
Duck, and Pheasant. Small eggs of the Pochard are indis-
tinguishable from large eggs of the Tufted Duck. The down is
almost of the same size and colour as that of the Mallard,
greyish-brown, without white tips, but with obscure white
centres ; it is not nearly so black as that of the Tufted Duck.

THE SCAUP.
(Fuligula marila.)

Plate 14, Fig. 2.

The Scaup is a regular and common winter visitor to the
British Islands, where it is widely distributed on most parts of the
coast. It has been observed throughout the summer (especially
in the Shetlands), but only one instance of its having nested in
this country is on record. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding
throughout the Arctic Kegions as far north as lat. 70°, and in a
similar climate above the limits of forest-growth on the mountains
of Southern Scandinavia. On the American continent it is not
known to breed south of the Hudson's Bay Territory. The
Scaup generally selects some sloping bank, not far from water, but
high enough from the edge to be secure from floods, on which to
build her nest. It is well concealed, and seldom to be found
except by accidentally frightening off the sitting Duck. Some-
times it is placed under the cover of a willow or a juniper bush,
but more often in the open, carefully hidden in some hole in the
rough ground, surrounded by cranberries or bilberries struggling
amidst tufts of sedge or cotton-grass. The hole is lined with dry
broken sedge, and, as the eggs are laid, an accumulation of down
is formed sufficient to keep them warm when the Duck leaves
them to feed.

The eggs of the Scaup are from six to nine in number, pale
greenish grey, almost the same colour as the typical egg of the
Pheasant. They vary in length from 2' 7 to 2*4 inches, and in
breadth from 1'75 to 1*65 inch. The down is as large as that of
the Mallard, dark brown, without pale tips, but with obscure pale

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 47

centres. Small eggs of the Scaup are indistinguishable from
large eggs of the Pochard, but the down of the latter bird is of
a greyer brown.

THE TUFTED DUCK.
(Fiiligula cristata.)*

Plate 13, Fig. 5.

The Tufted Duck is most abundant in Sherwood Forest, on the
chain of little lakes which lie between Newstead Abbey and
Clumber Park, in Nottinghamshire, but breeds in some numbers
in the meres of South Norfolk. It has also been recorded as
occasionally nesting in Sussex, Hertfordshire, Shropshire, York-
shire, and Northumberland, as well as in certain counties in
Scotland and Ireland. On the continent the range of the Tufted
Duck is very extensive, reaching from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
but it appears to be confined to the Old World, though it is said
to have occurred in Greenland. North of the Arctic Circle it is
very rare, but further south it breeds in considerable numbers in
most suitable localities as far as lat. 50°. In Norway it has been
obtained as far north as lat. 70°, in the valley of the Yenisei, in
lat. 68°, and on the Pacific coast in lat. 62°.

The Tufted Duck is a late breeder ; the eggs are seldom laid
before the end of May, or, in late seasons, the beginning of June,
but in Norfolk they are at least a fortnight earlier.

The nest is sometimes placed under a bush by the side of a
pond, sometimes amongst the rushes, and often in the centre of
the tufts, tussocks, or hassocks of sedge, which grow to a height
of two or three feet above the water. It is a mere hollow lined
with dry sedge or grass, and after the full complement of eggs are
laid, and the duck has begun to sit, with down. The number of
eggs is usually ten or twelve, but sometimes only eight are laid,
and occasionally as many as thirteen. They vary in length from
24 to 215 inches, and in breadth from 165 to 155 inch. They
scarcely differ in colour from those of the Scaup, Pochard, and
Pheasant. The down is greyish-black, with very obscure white
centres, but without white tips ; it is both smaller and darker
than that of the Pochard, an important point of identification, as

* Fiiligula fiiligula — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 12.

48 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

small eggs of that species are indistinguishable from large eggs of
the Tufted Duck.

THE BUFFEL-HEADED DUCK.
{Fuligula albeola.)*

The Buffel-headed Duck is only a rare accidental visitor to
Great Britain. It breeds throughout Arctic America up to the
limit of forest-growth, wintering in the United States, the West
Indies, and on the coasts of Mexico. It has once been obtained
in Greenland, and occasionally visits the Bermudas, but there is
no evidence that it has ever occurred on any part of the continent
of Europe.

It breeds in hollow trees, sometimes as high as twenty feet
from the ground. Like the Golden-eye it makes no nest, but lays
its eggs on the rotten wood, with abundance of down plucked from
its own breast.

The eggs of the Buffel-headed Duck are from six to ten in
number, pale greenish-grey in colour, and vary in length from
205 to 1'95 inch, and in breadth from 1'5 to 135 inch. They very
closely resemble eggs of the Gadwall, but it is probable that the
down is quite different from that of the latter bird. The Buffel-
headed Duck, breeding in hollow trees, has doubtless pale grey
down like that of the Golden-eye.

THE GOLDEN-EYE.

{Fuligula clangula.) t
Plate 13, Fig. 1.

The Golden-eye is a common and regular winter visitor to the
British Islands. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding in the Arctic
and semi-Arctic regions of both continents up to the limits of
forest-growth. In Europe the southern limit of its breeding-
range appears to be North Germany, Pomerania, and the Cau-
casus, whilst in Asia it breeds throughout Siberia. It is said to be
a resident on Lake Baikal; but most of the Siberian birds migrate
to Mongolia, where a few remain to winter, the rest passing on to

* Clangula albeola — Saunders, Manual, p. 440. Charitonetta albeola — Sharpe, Handb.,

III., p. 24.

t Clangula glaucion — Saunders, Manual, p. 439. Clangula clangula — Sharpe,

Handb. III., p. 20.

Plate '.).

Stealer's Duck.

Km" Eider.

Eider Duck .

Rider Duck.

Plate 10.

ftren.1 Goose.

Barnacle ('■mwf.

Piiik- footed Goose.

While fronted Goos

Plate I 1.

R.ed-lii-eastP'cl Goose

Flamingo .

Snow Goose .

Rw?S?&B5ls!bSffitRlS3d

Plate 12.

Egyptian Ckkisc.

Cnnada Goose

. J ..,^.. mm*

l.cssci White ti-onrcil < r "iix>so .

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 49

China and Japan. On the American continent it breeds in Alaska
and British North America, and winters in the Southern States,
Mexico and Cuba.

The most remarkable fact in the history of the Golden-eye is
its habit of occasionally perching on the bare branch of some
forest tree, and of discovering a hole in the trunk, sometimes
quite a small one, but leading to a hollow inside, where it deposits
eggs on the rotten chips of wood without any nest, like a Wood-
pecker. These breeding-places are sometimes a considerable
distance from the ground. Where a hollow tree-trunk cannot be
found a hollow branch is often selected, and some parts of
Germany are far too well farmed to admit of the existence of
hollow trees. The Golden-eye, according to Naumann, breeds on
the tops of pollard willows or even amongst the reeds on the
ground. The down, like that of the Smew or the Sheldrakes, and
other Ducks which breed in hollow trees or holes in the ground
where it cannot be seen, is much paler than that of Ducks gene-
rally, being a delicate pale lavender-grey with very obscure paler
centres. The eggs vary from ten to nineteen, but thirteen is a
not unusual number. They are bright greyish-green, smooth in
texture and with considerable gloss. They vary in length from
24 to 21 inches, and in breadth from 1'75 to 1*55 inch. Excep-
tionally grey eggs of the Golden-eye can scarcely be distinguished
from exceptionally green eggs of the Pochard ; but the differ-
ence in the colour of the down makes confusion between them
impossible.

THE HAKLEQUIN DUCK.

(Fuligula histrionica.)*
Plate 15, Fig. 1.
Several specimens of the Harlequin Duck have been obtained
in Britain. It is almost a circumpolar species, and is a resident
in Iceland, and a summer visitor to Greenland south of the Arctic
Circle ; thence its breeding-range extends westward between lat.
45° and 65° across North America. In Eastern Siberia its breeding-
range extends from the Stanovoi Mountains, through the Valley
of the Amoor as far west as Lake Baikal. The only evidence of

* Cosmonetta histrionica — Saunders, Manual, p. 445; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 31.
D

50 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

its breeding west of Lake Baikal in the Old World is that of
Sabanaeff, who states that it nests in the Ural and in the govern-
ment of Yaroslav.

The eggs of the Harlequin are from eight to ten in number,
creamy-white, smooth in texture, and glossy. They vary in
length from 24 to 21 inches, and in breadth from 1'75 to 1(30
inch. The down of the Harlequin Duck taken from the nest
appears to be undescribed, but, to judge from that on the body of
the bird, it is a darkish-grey, much paler than that of the Gad-
wall. The eggs cannot readily be confused with those of any
other British bird, as they are always larger and heavier than
those of the Wigeon and Smew.

THE LONG-TAILED DUCK.

(Fidigida glacialis.)*
Plate 15, Fig. 3.

The Long-tailed Duck is a tolerably common winter visitor
to the British Islands, but is most abundant in the northern
portions. It appears more or less irregularly off the south and
east coast of England, but on the west coast of Scotland and on
the Hebrides is much more frequent.

No instance of the breeding of this Duck in our islands has
been authenticated, but it has been seen in the Shetland Islands
during the summer. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding above
the limit of forest-growth in the Arctic Regions of both hemi-
spheres as far north as land extends, as well as in Greenland,
Iceland, Spitsbergen, and Novaya Zemlya.

Two empty nests, containing down only, which I found in the
Petchora Valley, were mere hollows in the grass, containing no
other lining than down, and were both placed amongst the debris
left by a recent flood, doubtless the high-water mark of the river
when the ice broke up, on the shores of the inland sea where we
found the nests of the Little Stint.

The down of the Long-tailed Duck is small, like that of the
Teal, and equally devoid of white tips, but it is much browner ;
its size prevents any confusion with that of the Pintail or

* Harelda glacialis — Saunders, Manual, p. 443; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 26.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 51

Mallard, though the eggs of these species resemble those of the
Long-tailed Duck very closely. The eggs range in colour from
pale huffish-green to greenish-buff, and vary in length from 22
to 2'0 inches, and in breadth from 1'6 to 1'45 inch.

THE BLACK SCOTEE.
(Fuligula nigra.)*

Plate 14, Fig. 1.

A few pairs of the Common or Black Scoter breed in Caithness,
Sutherland and North-west Koss-shire, and it has even been
supposed to nest as far south as Sussex.

The breeding-range of the European form of the Common
Scoter extends from Iceland, through Northern Europe and West
Siberia, to the Taimur Peninsula. It is a more northern species
than the Velvet Scoter, breeding from lat. 74° down to the Arctic
Circle, below which it is rarely found, except at a high elevation.
In the valley of the Petchora we never procured the nest on the
islands in the delta, but either near a lake on the tundra or on
the sloping river-bank, concealed amongst the dwarf birch or
willow-scrub. The nest was a mere hollow scraped in the ground,
lined with a few broken twigs, dead leaves, and dry grass, but
containing plenty of down. The eggs, usually eight, but some-
times nine in number, are pale greyish-buff, considerably darker
than those of the Wigeon, smooth in grain, but having little
gloss. They vary in length from 265 to 24 inches, and in
breadth from P8 to 1*75 inch. The down of the Black Scoter
very closely resembles that of the Mallard, but is a trifle greyer ;
it is somewhat smaller than that of the Velvet Scoter, and in the
latter the white centres are not quite so conspicuous. The eggs
appear to be always smaller than those of the Velvet Scoter,
and generally smaller than those of the Goosander ; they are
not always absolutely distinguishable from the latter, but in
nine cases out of ten they may be identified by their weight. I
have never met with blown eggs of the Common Scoter that
weighed quite so much as a quarter of an ounce, and of the eggs
of the Velvet Scoter and Goosander I have only met with one

* CEdemia nigra— Saunders, Manual, p. 453; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 43.

52 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

example of each which did not weigh more than a quarter of an
ounce. The eggs of the Goosander may, however, always be
identified by the paleness of the down in the nest.

THE VELVET SCOTER

(Fuligula fusca.)*

Plate 15, Fig. 5.

The Velvet Scoter is a species which has been said to breed
in Scotland, but no absolute proof of the fact has yet been
obtained. The breeding range of the species extends from the
Atlantic to the Pacific. It has not been recorded from Iceland,
but has been known to wander on migration as far as the Faroes
and Greenland in the west, and Alaska in the east. It ranges as
far north as lat. 69° both in Europe and in Asia, and in moorland
districts as far south as the Baltic Provinces in Europe, and to
lat. 55° in South-east Siberia.

The nest is a mere depression in the ground, lined with any
suitable material that may be convenient, and provided with
abundance of down. The eggs of the Velvet Scoter are usually
eight, but sometimes nine in number, and are pale greyish-buff,
smooth in grain, but with little gloss. They vary in length from
2'9 to 2"7 inches, and in breadth from 1*95 to 1"85 inch. The
down is rather larger than that of the Black Scoter, slightly
browner in colour, but the pale centres are not so distinct. The
eggs of the Goosander overlap in size, but the colour of the
down is always an easy means of distinction.

THE SUEF-SCOTEE.

(Fuligula perspicillata.) t

Plate 15, Fig. 2.

The Surf-Scoter is a rare straggler to the British Islands in
winter, but has been obtained as far south as the Scilly Isles. It
is a Nearctic species, breeding from the Pacific to the Atlantic,
from lat. 70° down to about lat. 50°, and wintering on the Pacific
coast as far south as Lower California, the shores of the Great

* CEdemia fusca — Saunders, Manual, p. 455 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 46.
f CEdemia perspicillata — Saunders, Manual, p. 457; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 48.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 53

Lakes, and the Atlantic coast as far south as Jamaica. It is a
rare visitor to Greenland ; and though it has not yet been obtained
in Iceland, it has occurred accidentally on the Bermudas, the
Faroes, on the coasts of Scandinavia, Heligoland, Germany,
France, and in Switzerland.

Audubon, who found the Surf-Scoter breeding in Labrador,
gives some particulars of its nesting habits. He discovered a nest
in a large freshwater marsh, built in a tuft of grass, and about
four inches above the surrounding ground. It was made of
dead and decaying weeds, the inner cavity, which was about
six inches in diameter, being surrounded with down plucked
from the female.

The eggs of the Surf-Scoter are from five to eight in number.
They are pale greyish-buff when newly laid, with a slight pinkish
tinge, smooth in texture, and with little gloss. The eggs obtained
by MacFarlane vary in length from 2'3 to 225 inches, and in
breadth from 175 to 1*6 inch ; they are smaller in size than those
of the Black Scoter and the Velvet Scoter, but otherwise closely
resemble them. The down of the Surf-Scoter does not appear to
have been exactly described.

STELLEK'S EIDEB DUCK.

(Somateria stelleri.)*

Plate 9, Fig. 2.

Steller's Eider (the Western Duck of Pennant) has very slender
claims to be regarded as a British bird ; but a stray individual
occasionally wanders westward from Russian Lapland as far as
our shores, and two such occurrences are on record, one in 1830
and the second in 1845. This bird has a limited range, being
only known to breed on the shores of the Arctic Ocean in North
Russia and Siberia, and on the islands in Bering Sea.

The nests found by Middendorff were very deep in moss, and
contained from seven to nine fresh eggs and abundance of down.
The eggs obtained by the same traveller are pale bumsh-green,
and vary in length from 25 to 2"2 inches, and in breadth from 1*6
15 inch. Small eggs of Steller's Eider are indistinguishable
from large eggs of the Pintail.

* Heniconetta stelleri — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 34.

54 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE COMMON EIDEE DUCK.
(Somateria mollissima.)

Plate 9, Figs. 3, 4.

The Eider breeds on the Fame Islands, very sparingly in the
Firth of Forth, in the Orkneys and Shetlands, and in suitable
localities throughout the islands off the west coast of Scotland,
extending to those of the St. Kilda group. The Eider appears
to be an Atlantic species, breeding as far as the shores of the
Kara Sea, and as far west as the Coppermine Kiver, as far
south as Labrador and Newfoundland, and on the coasts of
Greenland up to lat. 81^°. It is specially abundant in Iceland,
the Faroes, Spitsbergen, and Franz-Josef Land, and breeds in
various suitable localities on the islands off the coast of Norway
and Denmark.

The nest of the Eider is often a rather substantial structure,
made of dry grass, heather, bits of seaweed, and stalks of campion
and other marine herbage. The lining of down is gradually added
when the full complement of eggs is almost completed. Nests that
I examined on the Fame Islands were made principally of dead
and living stalks of the sea-campion and a little grass, lined with
the down from the female. Sometimes the nest is very slight,
being little more than a hollow in the ground or amongst the
rocks, lined with a profusion of down and a few feathers.

The eggs of the Common Eider are from five to eight in num-
ber, and vary in colour from creamy-grey to greyish-green. They
range in length from 3"3 to 2"8 inches, and in breadth from 205
to 1'9 inch. The down varies from greyish-brown to brownish-
grey, with obscure pale centres. The eggs of the King-Eider
may readily be distinguished by their smaller size.

THE KING-EIDEE.

(Somateria sj)cctabiUs.)

Plate 9, Fig. 1.

Although it is possible that the King-Eider may breed on one

or two islands off the British coast, in the absence of conclusive

evidence that such is the case, it can only be regarded as a rare

and accidental straggler to our shores. It is circumpolar in its

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 55

range, nesting probably as far as land extends. It appears to
breed on all the coasts of Greenland, Spitsbergen, Franz-Josef
Land, and Novaya Zemlya, and the islands off the north coast
of Siberia. On the American continent it breeds throughout
the coasts of the Arctic Ocean, occasionally straying in winter
to Labrador, New Jersey, the Great Lakes, and California.

In its mode of nesting the King-Eider closely resembles the
Common Eider. Middendorff says that he found a nest contain-
ing fresh eggs on the 7th of July ; and early in August he saw
many females swimming down the river with their young broods.
Colonel Feilden found these Ducks common at Floeberg Beach in
lat. 82|°; they arrived in flocks at the end of June, most of which
were killed by the hunters, but the survivors began to nest in
suitable localities on the coast, and fresh eggs were obtained from
the ninth to the middle of July. Mr. MacFarlane found the King-
Eider breeding on the Arctic coast near Franklin Bay, and he
describes the nest as a mere depression in the ground fifty yards
from the beach, lined only with down.

The eggs of the King-Eider are usually six in number, and
vary much less in colour than those of the Common Eider, being
pale greenish-grey. They vary in length from 2'6 to 2'45 inches,
and in breadth from 1*85 to 1'7 inch. They can very easily be
confused with those of the Red-breasted Merganser, but may be
detected by their greener colour. The down of the King-Eider
very closely resembles that of the Common Eider.

THE GOOSANDER.

(Mergus merganser.)*

Plate 15, Fig. 6.

The Goosander is a tolerably common winter visitor to the
British Islands. A few pairs remain to breed in the Highlands,
and Mr. Harvie-Brown has had the eggs and down sent to him
from North Perthshire, obtained from a hollow tree ; and other
evidence, not quite so conclusive, is to be found in Booth's
"Rough Notes" and elsewhere.

The Goosander is a resident in Iceland, but is an accidental
straggler to the Faroes. It breeds throughout Scandinavia,

* Merganser merganser — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 58.

56 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

but is only a summer visitor north of the Arctic Circle. Fur-
ther to the east it is a summer visitor to Pomerania, and across
Russia and Siberia as far as the Arctic Circle, and as far south
as lat. 50°.

The pale grey down of the Goosander points it out at once as
one of the few species of Ducks which breed in holes, those which
breed in the open having always dark coloured down. The
favourite nesting-place of the Goosander is in a hollow tree-
trunk ; but in localities where such sites are not plentiful it
shows considerable fertility of resource and capability of adapta-
tion to circumstances in choosing the best substitute. The
Goosander is an early breeder : in Denmark, Mr. Benzon says
that the eggs are laid late in April or early in May ; and even
in Finland, Palmen states that they are laid from the middle
of May to the middle of June.

The eggs of the Goosander are from eight to twelve in number,
and are creamy- white in colour, somewhat smooth in grain, and
rather glossy. They vary in length from 29 to 2"5 inches, and
in breadth from 1*9 to 1'8 inch. The down is a nearly uniform
greyish-white, which prevents any confusion between the eggs of
the Goosander and those of the Velvet and Black Scoters. Large
eggs closely resemble those of the former, and small eggs those
of the latter, but are slightly yellower.

THE RED-BREASTED MERGANSER.
(Mergus serrator.)*

Plate 16, Fig. 2.

The Red-breasted Merganser is only a winter visitor to England,
where it is generally distributed both inland and on the coast ;
but in Scotland north of the Clyde it is a resident, as it is also in
parts of Ireland. It is a circumpolar bird, having almost pre-
cisely the same distribution as its congener the Goosander, but
it is not known to breed in Turkestan or the Himalayas. Its
breeding-range extends from about lat. 50° to the Arctic Circle,
but in Scandinavia it reaches to the North Cape.

It prefers to make its nest under shelter of some kind, some-
times under a large rock. Saxby says that it uses rabbit-burrows

* Merganser serrator — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. Gl.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 57

and the crevices in walls ; he also states that a favourite situation
is in a hollow at the foot of a dry bank where the herbage over-
hangs and completely conceals it. Sometimes the nest is made
amongst long grass or heath, and in most cases is very slight,
usually a small hollow in the ground, lined with green and dry
grass, sprays of heather, and dead leaves.

The eggs of the Red-breasted Merganser are usually from six
to nine in number, but occasionally as many as twelve are laid.
They are of a more or less olive-grey colour, sometimes as dark as
a pale egg of the Pheasant, but never quite reaching the cream-
colour of the eggs of the Goosander ; they are somewhat smooth
in grain, rather glossy, and they vary in length from 2*8 to 2'4
inches, and in breadth from 1'85 to 1"6 inch. The down is about
the same size as that of the Mallard, but is pale brownish-grey,
with obscure pale tips and somewhat indistinct pale centres.
The pale colour of the down prevents any confusion between
these eggs and those of the Pochard and the Scaup, although
the former are generally smaller and greener, whilst the latter,
though not differing much in size, are usually darker.

THE HOODED MERGANSER.

(Mergus cuculla tus.) *
Plate 16, Fig. 1.

A few examples of this American species have been obtained
in the British Islands. The geographical distribution of the
Hooded Merganser on the American continent is almost exactly
the same as that of its congeners. It breeds from the Atlantic
to the Pacific, from about lat. 45° to the Arctic Circle, wintering
in the United States, Mexico, and the West Indies.

Like its allies, the Goosander and the Smew, the Hooded
Merganser always breeds in holes. It chooses some hole in a
standing tree, or even a hollow in a fallen log, which it is said to
line with dry grass and leaves ; a plentiful supply of down is
added as the full clutch of eggs is laid and the female begins
to sit.

The eggs of the Hooded Merganser are from five to eight in
number, smooth in texture, and remarkable for their roundness.

* Lophodytes cucuUatits — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 56.

58 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

They are pure white, varying in length from 21 to 2'0 inches,
and in breadth from 1"75 to 165 inch. The down with which the
nest is lined, like that of the Smew and other Ducks breeding in
holes, is very pale grey.

THE SMEW.
(Mergus albellus.)

Plate 15, Fig. 4.

The Smew is a rare straggler in winter to the coasts and inland
waters of the British Islands, being most frequent in its occurrence
on the eastern coast line of England and Scotland.

The geographical range of the Smew appears to extend from
the Pacific, across Siberia and North Eussia as far west as the
Baltic, and as far north as the Arctic Circle. It is not known to
visit Iceland or the Faroes, and is only an accidental wanderer on
migration to the coasts of Scandinavia. In West Eussia there is
no evidence of its breeding south of the Gulf of Finland ; but in
East Eussia, Bogdanow found it nesting in the valleys of the
Kama and Lower Volga, whilst Henke states that it breeds in the
delta of the latter river. In N.E. Eussia we did not succeed in
taking the nest of the Smew ; but having commissioned some
of the villagers to bring us eggs and down of Ducks, we were
delighted to receive a clutch of eggs which looked like Wigeon's
eggs, but accompanied by pale grey down. The man who
brought it knew the bird well, and told us that he had taken the
eggs from a hollow tree. On our return home we were able to
verify the eggs by weighing them. The eggs of the Smew are on
an average smaller than those of the Wigeon, but they are pro-
portionately heavier. All my eggs of the Smew weigh more than
two scruples and a half ; a few of my largest eggs of the Wigeon
just balance that weight, whilst one only, an abnormally rough
egg, turns the scale.

The eggs of the Smew are from seven to eight in number,
creamy-white, fine-grained, and slightly glossy, indistinguishable
from those of the Wigeon except by weight. They vary in
length from 2"05 to 1*9 inch, and in breadth from 152 to 142
inch. No Wigeon's egg as large would weigh two and a half
scruples. The down is greyish -white, scarcely distinguishable
from that of the Golden-eye.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 59

FAMILY PH.ENICOPTEBIDJE,
OR FLAMINGOES.

This family contains only one genus, of which the European
representative is —

THE COMMON FLAMINGO.

(Phcenicopterus roseus.)

Plate 11, Fig. 2.

Three instances of the capture of this bird in a wild state have
been recorded, and one was seen by Captain Shelley near New
Eomney, in Kent. The first was shot in Staffordshire, the second
in Hampshire, and the third in Kent.

The nest of the Flamingo is a large structure of mud, and the
birds build in company on the open salt-marshes of Southern
Europe, eastwards to India. The eggs are chalky in texture,
pure white, and measure 3'7 to 3*55 inches in length, and about
1'15 inch in breadth.

FAMILY ABDEIDJE,
OR HERONS AND STORKS.

Of the fourteen species of Herons included in the British List
one only is resident, the others being occasional or rare visitors.

THE COMMON HEEON.

(Ardea cinerea.)
Plate 17, Fig. 1.

The Common Heron is a somewhat local resident throughout
the British Islands, but it does not appear to breed in the Outer
Hebrides, and rarely does so in the Orkney and Shetland Islands.
It has a very extensive range, breeding in most parts of Europe,
Asia and Africa. In Scandinavia it nests up to lat. 65°, and

60 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

occasionally wanders as far north as lat. 68°. In Russia it is not
known to breed further north than lat. 57°, but sometimes occurs
in West Russia up to lat. 60°. In West Siberia it is occasionally
seen in lat. 55°, and breeds near Lake Baikal and throughout the
valley of the Amoor. The nest is a large structure, usually built
on a tree, and composed of sticks and lined with fine twigs ; it is
very flat, and sometimes contains turf and moss. The old nest is
usually repaired year after year, and, by the time the young are
able to fly, it is whitewashed with the droppings of the birds.
Several nests are generally built in one tree.

The Heron lays from three to five eggs. They are greenish-
blue in colour, dull, and chalky in texture. The shell is often
full of minute pits, or covered with small white excrescences.
Some eggs are much bluer -green than others. They vary in
length from 2 '65 to 23 inches, and in breadth from 1*79 to 1'5
inch.

THE PUEPLE HERON.
(Ardea purpurea.)*

Plate 17, Fig. 3.

The Purple Heron must be regarded as a somewhat rare strag-
gler, principally to the eastern and southern counties of England,
though it has been twice obtained in Scotland and once in Ireland.

The range of the Purple Heron is almost as great as that of the
Common Heron, except that it does not extend so far north. It is
said to be a resident in most parts of Africa, including Madagascar ;
its numbers in those countries being increased during winter.
Eastwards it breeds in Persia and Turkestan.

The nest is a large structure, two feet or more in diameter, and
is very flat. It is generally built on reeds.

The eggs are from three to five in number, and vary considerably
both in size and shape, some being much more rounded than
others. They vary in length from 245 to 195 inch, and in breadth
from 175 to 1'45 inch. They are greenish-blue, and do not differ
in colour or texture from those of the Common Heron, from which
it is impossible to distinguish them, though on an average they
are slightly smaller.

* PJwyx purpurea — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 66.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 61

THE GKEAT AVHITE EGEET.

(Ardea alba.)*

Plate 17, Fig. 8.

The Great White Egret is only an accidental straggler to the
British Islands ; but about twenty instances of its occurrence
have been recorded, principally in the eastern counties of England
and Scotland. It is not known to breed regularly in any part of
Europe except in South Kussia and the valley of the Lower
Danube. In Europe the breeding-season of the Great White
Egret takes place in May, and eggs may be obtained from the
middle of that month till the middle of June. In India the
eastern form of this species is said invariably to make its nest in
trees. Both forms appear often to take up their residence with
other Herons, and generally make their nests in the same tree as
Ibises, Pigmy Cormorants, Night-Herons, and Little Egrets.

The nest is a moderately large structure, almost exclusively
made of sticks, the larger and coarser ones forming the outside
and the finer twigs the lining ; but when it is placed in swamps,
it is made of dead reeds and portions of aquatic vegetation suitable
for the purpose. The nest is broad and quite flat, and, by the
time the young are able to fly, is so trodden about as only to
resemble a mere heap of sticks. It appears that the old nests are
repaired and enlarged in many cases, in a similar manner to those
of the Kook. The eggs are generally three or four in number,
sometimes five ; they are greenish-blue, rough in texture, and
possess no gloss. They vary from 2*7 to 2'35 inches in length,
and from 177 to 17 inch in breadth. They vary somewhat in
shape, some specimens being much more pointed than others. It
is impossible to distinguish the eggs of this species from those of
the Common Heron or the Purple Heron.

THE LITTLE EGEET.

(Ardea garzetta.)\

Plate 17, Fig. 7.

The Little Egret is a very rare accidental visitor to the British
Islands. The range of this species is not such a northern one as

* Herodias alba — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 74.
t Garzetta garzetta — Sharpe, Handb., III., p, 77.

62 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

that of the Great White Egret. It is resident and breeds in
suitable localities throughout the whole of Africa and the
Cape Verd Islands, occasionally visiting the Canaries and the
Azores. To Europe it is only a summer migrant, breeding in
Spain, the delta of the Bhone, Sardinia, Sicily, the valley of the
Danube, and South Kussia. It is a resident in India, Ceylon,
Burmah, and the main island of Japan, as well as in South
China.

In the Lower Danube the nests of these birds were generally
placed in a fork of a side branch of the pollard willows, and were
made on quite a different model to that adopted by most birds :
they were entirely composed of slender twigs, on some of which
the leaves were still remaining ; but the peculiarity of their
structure was that nearly all the twigs radiated from the centre.
The nests were rather deep, but the sides were so thin that the
eggs could be seen from the level. It is difficult to give exact
measurements of nests formed on this plan, but the thick part of
the nest was about ten inches across.

The eggs of the Little Egret are from three to six in number
and uniform bluish in colour. They vary in length from I'D to
1'65 inch, and in breadth from 1*4 to 125 inch. On an average
they are smaller than eggs of the Night Heron ; but small eggs
of the latter species are indistinguishable from large eggs of
the Little Egret. The eggs of the Squacco Heron are much
smaller.

THE SQUACCO HEKON.

(Ardea comata.)*
Plate 17, Fig. 2.

The Squacco Heron must be regarded as a very rare straggler
to the British Islands, principally on spring migration. It is con-
fined to Africa and the basin of the Mediterranean and Black Seas,
and is a straggler to the Canary Islands ; it is a resident in all
suitable localities in Africa, breeding in Algeria, Egypt, Damara
Land, the Transvaal, &c. In the Spanish Peninsula it is only

* Ardca ralloides — Saunders, Manual, p. 65. Ardcola ralloides — Sharpe,
Handb., III., p. 83.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 63

known as a summer visitor, and to the east it breeds in the valley
of the Danube, South Kussia, the basin of the Caspian, and
Palestine.

On the Lower Danube the nests of the Squacco Heron were
built on the same model as those of the Little Egret and Night
Heron, the twigs of which they were composed being arranged
from the centre, thus forming radii, whilst those of the Common
Heron and the Pigmy Cormorants were arranged, as usual, round
the centre, forming arcs. The Squacco Heron builds a very
slight nest, somewhat deep, though the sides permit the eggs to
be seen through the sticks, the more, solid part of the nest not
exceeding six inches across.

The eggs are from six in number, and are greenish-blue in
colour; they vary in length from 1*6 to 1*5 inch, and in breadth
from 1'2 to 1*06 inch.

THE BUFF-BACKED HERON.
(Ardea bub ulcus.)*

Plate 17, Fig. 5.

The Buff-backed Heron has scarcely any claim to be regarded
as a British bird, having only been obtained in this country three
times. It is an African bird, resident throughout that continent,
breeding in all suitable localities from Algeria and Egypt in the
north to Cape Colony and Madagascar in the south. This species
is an accidental visitor to Madeira and to various parts of South
Europe, and is also an accidental straggler to the South of France,
Italy, Sicily, Greece, and South Russia, but is not known to have
occurred in Northern Europe.

The nest is composed of sticks, and probably does not differ
much from that of the Squacco Heron ; but we have no reliable
information on the subject. The number of eggs varies from three
to five. They are almost white in colour, but are slightly shaded
with bluish-green, and, after they are blown, the dark-green of the
inner shell is visible through the hole when held up to the light.
They vary in length from 1/9 to 17 inch, and in breadth from
132 to 1-28 inch.

* Bubulciis lucidus (Rafin.)— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 86.

64 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE NIGHT HERON.

(Nycticorax nycticorax.) :|:
Plate 17, Fig. 4.

The Night Heron has been obtained in our Islands at least fifty
times. Most of these occurrences were in the southern and
eastern counties ; but it has been found in most parts of England,
three or four times in Scotland, and as many times in Ireland.
The species has appeared chiefly in spring, but there does not
seem to be any evidence that this bird has ever bred in our islands.

The Night Heron, subject to some slight variation in size,
is found both in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America. It is a
regular summer visitor to the Spanish Peninsula, the South of
France, North Italy, the valley of the Danube, Transylvania,
South Russia, and the Caucasus. It breeds in all suitable
localities throughout Africa down to the Cape Colony, in Pales-
tine, Asia Minor, Persia, West Turkestan, throughout India and
Ceylon, the Burmese Peninsula, China, and South Japan, and
has been found in many of the islands of the Malay Archipelago.
On the continent of America, it is found throughout the United
States, extending northwards as far as New Brunswick, and
southwards into Mexico, Central America, and Ecuador.

The nest of the Night Heron is built of sticks like that of the
Squacco, and forms a cradle-like structure in a tree. Eggs, from
three to five in number, bluish-green in colour. They vary in
length from 2 "18 to 1'8 inch, and in breadth from 1*5 to 1'3 inch.
Some specimens are slightly paler than others. It is impossible
to distinguish small eggs of this species from large examples of
those of the Little Egret ; but on an average the eggs of the
Night Heron are larger. The eggs of the Buff-backed Heron,
although similar in size, are distinguished by their much paler
colour.

THE COMMON BITTERN.
(Botaurus stellaris.)

Plate 17, Fig. 10.
The Common Bittern must now be regarded as an accidental
straggler on migration. It was probably at one time a common
resident in this country. The species breeds in suitable locali-

* Nycticorax griscus (Linn.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 367.

Plate 15.

("milieu Eye

Shovellei

Phi tail.

Wigeon

Tutted Diu-k

Mallard .

Sheffield

late H-

Black Scoter.

Scaup

"White - eved Pochard .

Gadwall

Pochaixl .

Red-crested Bochard.

T ,v..-,r 5<Er a ilstora Lidi

;ilr LO.

Hai'leijiiiji Duck

Suit Scoter.

Long-tailed Duck.

Velvet Scoter.

Goosander*.

Plate 16

Hooded Merganser - .

Red-T>reasted Merganser.

Gareaiiey

Riiddv Sheldrake .

Common Sheldrake

EGGS OF BEITISH BIEDS. 65

ties from the Atlantic to the Pacific, but its range does not
extend very far north.

The nest is built on the mud, and is composed of dead reeds
and flags carelessly placed together so as to form a platform with
a slight depression in the centre. The number of eggs varies
from three to five. They are uniform huffish-grey in colour; the
shell is smooth and not very glossy, but does not partake of the
chalky character of that of the true Herons. They vary in
length from 2 "15 to 197 inch, and in breadth from 1 ■ 55 to
145 inch. The eggs of the Common Bittern, when held up to
the light, are not green inside, like those of the Herons, but
yellowish-brown, and vary somewhat in shape, some specimens
being pointed almost as much at each end as those of a Grebe.

THE AMEKICAN BITTEEN.

(Botaurus lentiginosus.)

It is not known that the American Bittern has ever occurred
on the continent of Europe, but it is an occasional visitor to
Great Britain. It is found throughout the continent of North
America south of Alaska and Greenland, being a resident in the
southern States, but further north it is only a summer visitor,
and further south only a winter visitor.

Some observers say that the nest is built in trees and low
bushes, and made of coarse grasses, twigs, and leaves ; whilst
others assert that the eggs are laid on the bare ground, on a
tuft of grass, or at the foot of a bush. The eggs of this bird
are similar in colour to those of the Common Bittern, being
greyish-buff, sometimes with an olive or brownish tinge. They
are from three to five in number, and vary from 2*1 to 1*9 inch
in length, and from 1*65 to 1*4 inch in breadth.

THE LITTLE BITTEBN.

{Botaurus minutus.)*

Plate 17, Fig. 9.

The Little Bittern is a very rare summer visitor to this

country, but there is no reliable instance of its eggs ever having

* Ardetta minuta— Saunders, Manual, p. 369 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 88.
E

66 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

been obtained in our islands. It is a summer migrant to
Europe south of the Baltic, and is a resident in the Azores,
Madeira, Algeria, and to a limited extent in Egypt, wintering
in small numbers in Africa. It is a summer visitor to Palestine,
Asia Minor, Persia, Baluchistan, Cashmere, and North-west
Turkestan.

The nest of the Little Bittern is generally placed amongst the
dense vegetation of its marshy haunts. Sometimes it is built
amongst reeds a few inches above the water, and is often at a
considerable distance from the shore. The nest is very large for
the size of the bird, loosely put together, and made of pieces of
aquatic vegetation, sometimes a few twigs, and lined with finer
materia], such as grass or dead leaves of the reed.

The eggs are from four to five in number, and pure white in
colour. They soon become stained by contact with the bird's
feet and the damp materials of the nest. Their small size and
colour is a sufficient distinction from the eggs of all the other
Herons. They vary in length from 1*45 to 1'29 inch, and in
breadth from 1'05 to 0'98 inch. They are oval in shape ; the
shell is fine, but closely pitted with small pores.

THE SPOONBILL.

(Platalea leucorodia.)

Plate 18, Figs. 2, 3.

The Spoonbill was formerly a regular summer visitor to
England, and bred in the marshes of Norfolk, Suffolk and other
counties, but it appears to have been exterminated at the close
of the 17th century. This bird, like most of its Herodian allies,
has a most extensive range, reaching from the Atlantic to the
Pacific ; but owing to the rapid increase of population its breeding-
colonies are now few and far between.

Most of the nests which I visited in Holland were built on
grassy tussocks, but a few of them were in the alder trees three
or four feet above the ground. The greater part of the nests
were built upon a foundation of a few sticks, the principal struc-
ture being of dead reeds lined with dry grass.

The eggs of the Spoonbill are four or five in number, and vary
much in size, shape, and colour ; some are long and narrow, with

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 67

the small end almost as blunt as the large end ; they scarcely vary
in shape from typical eggs of the Cormorant, whilst others are so
round that they might easily be passed off by unprincipled dealers
as eggs of the Kite. They are dull chalky-white in ground-
colour, sparingly spotted and blotched with small spots or short
streaks, and occasionally large smudged blotches, principally at
the large end, of reddish-brown. Occasionally a few grey under-
lying spots are observable ; and sometimes the surface-markings
form a zone round the large end of the egg. They vary in length
from 29 to 22 inches, and in breadth from 1'9 to 17 inch.

THE GLOSSY IBIS.

(Ibis falcinellus.)*

Plate 17. Fig. 6.

The Glossy Ibis is an accidental visitor, principally on autumn
migration, to our islands, especially to the southern and eastern
counties of England. The geographical distribution of this species
is very similar to that of the Spoonbill, but its breeding-colonies
are more isolated, and it extends further south to the Malay
Archipelago, the Moluccas and Australia. It also occurs in the
Eastern United States.

The nests are made of sticks and reeds ; but whether they are
built on the radius model of the Egret, or on the arc model of
the Cormorant, I cannot say. The eggs are said to be three,
and occasionally four, in number. They are dark greenish-blue
in colour, rather rough in texture, and the shell is finely pitted
with small pores. They vary in length from 2 - 2 to 2'0 inches,
and in breadth from 1/55 to 1/38 inch. The eggs of the Ibis
cannot well be confused with those of any other European bird ;
they are readily distinguished from those of the Herons by their
much darker blue colour and less chalky appearance.

THE WHITE STOKK.
(Ciconia alba.)\

Plate 18, Fig. 4.

It is not known that the White Stork has ever bred in the
British Islands, but it occasionally visits them, either singly or

* Plegadis falcinellus — Saunders, Manual, p. 379; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 104.
f Ciconia ciconia (Linn.) — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 97.

68 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

in small parties, during the spring and autumn migration. The
range of the White Stork, like that of so many other birds,
extends from the Atlantic to Central Asia. It is a summer visitor
to the western Palgearctic region, wintering in West Africa and
from South Africa as far north as the Soudan.

The Stork has attached itself to human habitation almost as
much as the House-martin and the Sparrow. If possible, it
builds its nest on the roof of a house, and in civilized countries
a platform of some kind, an old cart-wheel or some such struc-
ture, is provided for its accommodation. Occasionally several
nests are built upon the same roof, and a house in the middle
of a village is quite as eligible as one in the outskirts. The
old nest is used year after year, a slight addition being made to
it every season, so that after the lapse of years, if it happens to
be in a situation protected from the wind, it sometimes attains
to a great height.

The nest is a very large structure, four or five feet in diameter,
and is built of sticks, many of them of considerable thickness,
mixed with lumps of earth and masses of decayed reeds ; it is
very shallow, and is lined with softer materials of all kinds — dry
grass, moss, hair, feathers, rags, bits of paper, wool, or anything
it can pick up.

The eggs of the Stork are from three to five in number, dull
white in colour, rough in texture, and with little gloss. They
vary from 3'0 to 2*72 inches in length, and from 22 to 2*05
inches in breadth. The eggs of this bird very closely resemble
those of the Black Stork, but are on an average larger, and,
when held up to the light, are yellowish-white inside, those of
the Black Stork being green.

THE BLACK STOKK.
(Ciconia nigra.)

Plate 18, Fig. 1.

The Black Stork must be regarded as an accidental straggler to
England during spring and autumn migration. It has a much
wider range than the AVhite Stork, being found from the Atlantic
to the Pacific. It is a summer visitor to Europe, breeding in the
principal forest-districts south of lat. 55°.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 69

The nest is very large, at least four-and-a-half feet across, and
with scarcely any depression in the centre, the top being covered
all over with green moss.

The eggs of the Black Stork are from three to five in number ;
dull white in colour, coarse in texture, full of small pores, and
with very little gloss. They vary in length from 2"8 to 2*45
inches, and in breadth from 205 to 1*85 inch. On an average
the eggs of this bird are smaller than those of the White Stork,
but large eggs equal in size small eggs of the latter. They vary
considerably in shape, some specimens being much rounder than
others ; they are, however, readily distinguished by the green
colour of the inside of the shell when held up to the light.

FAMILY PELECANIDM,

OB PELICANS.

In this family are included all the Cormorants, Gannets, Tropic-
Birds, Frigate-Birds and Pelicans. Of the latter the following
species has been included in the British List : —

THE WHITE PELICAN.

{Pelecanus onocrotalus.)
Plate 19, Fig. 3.

Only one specimen of this bird has been said to have been killed
in England, and then it was believed to have been an escaped
bird. This event happened as long ago as 1663, so that the claims
of the Pelican to be considered British are of the most slender
character. The egg is white and chalky, like those of the other
members of the family.

THE GANNET.

(Sula bassana)*

Plate 19, Fig. 4.

The Gannet is a resident in the British Islands, but is confined
to a few breeding colonies. It is an oceanic species, and is only
known to nest on some of the islands in the North Atlantic Ocean,
colonies being found in the Faroes, Iceland, and the rocks in the
Bay of Fundy and the Gulf of St. Lawrence in North America.

* Dyspovus bassanus — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 218.

70 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The nests are generally slight, often trodden out of all shape,
and smell most offensively. They are made of seaweed picked up
from the waves below, bunches of turf pulled up from the summit
of the cliffs, and a few straws. They are very shallow, and, as the
materials of which they are composed wear aw T ay, they are con-
stantly added to. The eggs of the Gannet, seen through the
hole when held up to the light, are emerald-green inside, and
occasionally traces of this colour can be seen on the outside ; but
usually the surface is thickly coated over with a layer of white,
which in some places appears to be very clumsily laid on. The)'
are nearly uniform ovals, and vary in length from 3-4 to 2 - 8
inches, and in breadth from 2'15 to 1'85 inch.

THE COKMOEANT.
(Phalacrocorax carbo.)

Plate 19, Fig. 2,

A common resident in the British Islands, breeding in all
suitable districts from the Shetlands to Cornwall, and from St.
Kilda to the south of Ireland ; some of its breeding stations are
also found inland. The Cormorant inhabits the entire Palaearctic
region, and breeds as far south as the Mediterranean countries,
and eastwards in Central Asia, X. W. India, and the Burmese
Provinces.

The nest is a large structure of sticks and sea-weed, those
examined by me on the Fame Islands being one or two feet high
and composed entirely of sea- weed ; they were generally lined
with the fresh green leaves of the sea-parsley and other maritime
plants. Those I saw on the Horster Meer, in Holland, were
piles of sticks and reeds from one to four feet high, and were
lined with a little green grass. It appears that a new T nest is
built every year on the ruins of the old one.

The eggs, when held up to the light, are emerald-green, like
those of the Gannet, and the white coating is sometimes as thick
as in the eggs of the latter bird, but the green can always be
more or less seen through it in patches. They differ very
slightly from eggs of the Gannet, but are smaller in size and
slightly more elongated in shape, varying in length from 29 to
24 inches, and in breadth from 1*75 to 1"5 inch.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 71

THE SHAG.
(PJialacrocorax graculus.)

Plate, 19, Fig. 1

The Shag is a well-known and common resident in the British
Islands. It is confined during the breeding seasons to the rocky
coasts of Europe, from Iceland, the Faroes, and the entire coast-
line of Norway, to the French, Spanish, and Portuguese coasts.

The present species always prefers a cave, if it can obtain one,
for nesting purposes. In some districts where suitable caves are
not to be found, the Shags build their nests on the ledges of cliffs.
The nests are bulky structures, made principally of sea-weed,
masses of turf, sprays of heather, and perhaps a few straws and
bits of dead grass.

The eggs of the Shag, from three to four, sometimes more, in
number, do not differ from those of the Cormorant, except that
they are slightly smaller. They vary in length from 2'6 to 2'3
inches, and in breadth from 16 to 1'4 inch.

FAMILY PBOCELLABIIDsE,
OR PETRELS.

Of the species of Petrel enumerated in the British List, four
breed in Great Britain, but the others are rare visitors, and the
following have only been recorded once: — Pelagodroma marina,
(Estrelata brevipes, O. hccsitata Daption cajjensis, and Diomedea
melanophrys, the latter species of Albatros having been obtained
near Peterhead, in 1894.

THE GEEAT SHEAEAVATEK.

{Puffin us major.)*

Plate 20, Fig. 6.

This Petrel is a tolerably frequent visitor to the British coasts,
principally to the extreme south-west of England. It seems

* Puffinus gravis (O'Reilly)— Salvin, Cat. B, Brit. Mus., XXV., p. 373.

72 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

possible that the breeding home of the species may be in Southern
Greenland, but the identification of the eggs obtained there is not
at all satisfactory, and Mr. Howard Saunders considers that the
nesting-place of the Great Shearwater is still unknown.

THE MANX SHEAKWATEE.
(Puffin us a ngloru m .)

Plate 20, Fig. 1.

The Manx Shearwater is par excellence the Shearwater of the
British Islands, where it is widely distributed, breeding in many
localities. It is exclusively an Atlantic species, breeding only on
the European coasts. The principal colonies are in Iceland, the
Faroes, St. Kilda, and the islands off the coast of Brittany, and
south to the Azores. In the Mediterranean it is represented by
P. yelkouanus, which sometimes strays north to the coasts of
Devonshire and Cornwall.*

The nest is merely a little bunch of dry grass, according to
Dixon, and the holes in which they are placed are sometimes very
long and under masses of rock, where it is impossible to reach
the eggs. The burrows in St. Kilda were found by him to be four
or five feet in length, and are made by the birds themselves. The
single egg is laid between the early part of May and the middle of
June. It is pure white, much smoother in texture, and more
glossy, than that of the Fulmar. It varies in length from 2'5
to 2'3 inches, and in breadth from 1*75 to 155 inch.

THE DUSKY SHE AB WATER

(Pujjinus obscurus.)
Plate 20, Fig. 2.
Two specimens of the Dusky Shearwater have been captured
in Great Britain. It is a tropical and sub-tropical species,
breeding both in the Atlantic and the Pacific.

The breeding-habits of the species are similar to those of the
Manx Shearwater. It lays a single pure white e^, which varies
in length from 1"45 to 13 inch.

* Cf. Salvin, Cat. B, Brit. Mus., XXV., p. 379.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 73

THE SOOTY SHEAKWATER
(Puffinus griseus.)

Many specimens of this Shearwater have been recorded as
taken in Great Britain, but some of them may have been P.
major. The distribution of the species extends nearly all over
the seas of the world, but the accounts of it are meagre. Dr.
Crowfoot says that on Norfolk Island the holes inhabited by
these birds are always isolated, and the burrow deep. One ego-
is laid, and there is no nest.

The eggs, which are pure white, vary from 2" 75 inches to 25
inches in length, and from 1*75 to 1*5 inch in breadth.

BULWEK'S PETBEL.
(Bulweria columbina.)*

Plate 20, Fig. 3.

One specimen of Bulwer's Petrel has been procured near
Tanfield, in Yorkshire, in May, 1857. It is an inhabitant of the
temperate North Atlantic and temperate North Pacific Oceans,
according to Mr. Salvin, and breeds on the Desertas Islands.
Eggs procured by Mr. Ogilvie-Grant in the latter locality were
pure white, almost pyriform in shape, and distinctly pointed
towards the smaller end. They measure 1*81 to 159 inch in
length, and 1*28 to 1*12 inch in breadth.

THE FULMAB PETBEL.
(Fulmarus glacialis.)

Plate 20, Fig. 5.

The best known breeding-place of the Fulmar in the British
Islands is on St. Kilda and the adjoining Islets and Stacks — a
group of rocky islands about forty miles west of the Hebrides.
One or two solitary pairs are said to breed on the west coast of
Skye, and it also nests on Foula, in the Shetlands.

The Fulmar is a bird of the North Atlantic Ocean. There are
enormous colonies in Iceland, St. Kilda, the Faroes, Spitsbergen,
Bear Island, and Novaya Zemlya.

* Bulweria bulweri (Jard. & Selby)- Salvin, Cat. B., Brit. Mus., XXV., p. 420.

74 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

On St. Kilda, according to Dixon, the Fulmar begins to lay
about the middle of May. The nest is less concealed than is
usual with the Petrels, and consists of a little dry grass ; or is
made entirely of small bits of rock, a neat hollow being formed
in which one single egg is laid. The nests are always very slight,
and in a great number of instances are dispensed with altogether.
Dixon says that it very rarely burrows deep enough in the ground
to conceal itself, whilst in a great many instances, it is content to
lay its eggs under some projecting tuft, or even on the bare and
exposed ledge of a cliff, in a similar place to that so often selected
by the Guillemot.

The Fulmar lays only one egg, which is rough and chalky in
texture, with little or no gloss, and pure white, though it soon
becomes considerably stained by contact with the peaty soil. The
eggs vary in length from 3'2 to 2'6 inches, and in breadth from
21 to 1-85 inch.

THE STOEMY PETEEL.

{Procellaria pelagica.)
Plate 20, Fig. 4.

The Stormy Petrel has many breeding places in the British
Islands, but is not known to nest anywhere on the east coast of
England or Scotland. On the west, however, from the Scilly
Islands and along the coasts of Wales and Western Scotland,
there are many nesting places, as there are also on the islands of
the Irish coasts. It breeds on the Faroes, but has not yet been
found nesting on the coasts of North America.

The nests which I found on one of the Blasquet Islands seldom
consisted of more than a dozen blades of dead grass, and were
placed in holes in the rocks, or in the rough walls put up to pro-
tect the little potato-patches from the sheep. On another island
they were placed in old rabbit-burrows

One egg only is laid, white, rough in texture, and without any
gloss. The eggs are almost always thinly sprinkled with minute
reddish-brown specks, and not unfrequently there is an obscure
zone of specks round the larger end, occasionally round the small
end of the egg. They are scarcely more pointed at one end than
the other, and vary in length from 1*2 to 10 inch, and in breadth
from 0-86 to 0'8 inch.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 75

THE WHITE-BREASTED PETREL.

(Pelagodroma marina.)

An example of this southern species was picked up dead on
Walney Island in November, 1890. It is an inhabitant of the
Australian Seas, but appears to frequent the Atlantic Ocean also
as far north as the Canary and the Salvage Islands. On the latter
Mr. Ogilvie-Grant procured several eggs in 1895. These are white,
more or less finely spotted, and often zoned towards the larger
end, with dark red and purplish dots. Some few are equally
spotted all over the shell, while one is almost devoid of mark-
ings. Axis, 148 to 135 inch ; diam., 1*08 to l'O inch.

THE FORK-TAILED PETREL.

{Oceanodroma lencorrhoa.)*

Plate 20, Fig. 7.

The Fork- tailed Petrel breeds on St. Kilda and on other islands
of the outer Hebrides, also on the Blasquet Islands, off Co.
Kercy, where the eggs have been found by my friend Mr. R. J.
Ussher. Besides these British localities, the species is found
nesting on the islands of the Bay of Fundy, and again in the
Kurile and Aleutian Islands.

In St. Kilda, Dixon says, the nesting holes are made in the
soft peaty soil, and it is very easy to unearth the bird. Sometimes
the hole has two entrances. The nest is made of dry grass, both
round stalks and flat blades, a scrap or two of moss, and a few
bits of lichen and roots. Many nests are placed close together
(an underground colony in fact), and he found half-a-dozen nests
within a radius of eight or nine yards.

The Fork-tailed Petrel lays only one egg, which is pure white,
with a more or less distinct zone of very minute specks round
the large end. The overlying spots are reddish-brown, and the
underlying ones slightly greyer. Sometimes a few indistinct
streaks or dashes of colour, often darker than the spots, occur on
the large end of the egg, which varies in length from 135 to 1*25
inch, and in breadth from l'O to 0'92 inch.

* Proccllaria leachi — Seebohm, Brit B., III., p. 448.

76 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE CANAEIAN FORK-TAILED PETEEL.
(Oceanodroma cryptoleucura.)

This species was originally described from the Sandwich
Islands, but it has recently been discovered in the Salvage
Islands, the Canaries, and on St. Helena in the Atlantic. A
specimen, now in the collection of Mr. Boyd Alexander, was
picked up dead on the beach at Littlestone in Kent, on the
5th of December, 1895.

Mr. Ogilvie-Grant describes the egg as exactly like that of
Leach's Petrel, and measuring 13 by 096 inch. It has, there-
fore, not been thought necessary to figure it.

WILSON'S PETEEL.
(Oceanites oceanica.)

This is a southern species, which breeds on Kerguelen Island,
and probably on other islands of the South Atlantic Ocean. It
wanders north, and has many times been obtained off the shores
of Great Britain.

The Rev. A. E. Eaton says that in Kerguelen Island these
Petrels love to make their colonies on the slopes of shattered
rocks, wherever there are suitable chinks and crevices, or dry
places under stones and large boulders, either close to the sea,
just above high-tide mark, or on the sides and summits of high
hills. He obtained eggs in January and February. They are
white, with a more or less obscure zone of minute reddish-brown
spots, generally round the larger end. They are of about the
same size as those of the Fork-tailed Petrel, and consequently
cannot be distinguished from them, averaging about 13 inch
in length, and 09 inch in breadth.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 77

FAMILY COLYMBIDJE,

OB DIVERS.

Of the four species of Diver on the British List, two species,
and probably three, nest within our limits, the White-billed
Diver being only an occasional visitor.

THE GREAT NORTHERN DIVER.
(Golymbus glacial is.)

Plate 21, Fig. 3.

The Great Northern Diver may possibly breed in some of the
wild secluded lochs of the West of Scotland, the Outer Hebrides,
the Orkneys, and the Shetlands, and little doubt is now enter-
tained as to its having nested in the latter group. It breeds in
Iceland and in Southern Greenland, as well as in the Fur
countries of North America, below the Arctic circle.

The nest is very clumsily made and often very slight : it is
composed of dead grass and decayed water-plants. Two is the
usual number of eggs, and it is doubtful if any more are laid.
They vary in colour from olive-brown to russet-brown, and are
somewhat sparingly spotted with black. The spots vary in size
from that of a pea downwards, and are generally most numerous
round the large end. The underlying spots are paler and are
not very numerous. The eggs vary in length from 3'8 to 34
inches, and in breadth from 2'4 to '21 inches.

THE WHITE-BILLED DIVER.

(Colymbus aclamsi.)

The present species extends from Scandinavia throughout the
Arctic regions to Bering Sea and Alaska, as far as the Great
Slave Lake in North America. It has twice been noticed in
Great Britain, and doubtless other examples have occurred, but
have been confounded with the preceding species.

78 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE BLACK-THEOATED DIVER.

(Colymbus arcticits.)
Plate 21. Fig. 1.

The Black-throated Diver is known to breed in the north of
Scotland, and in some of the lochs in the Outer Hebrides. Its
breeding-range extends from Scandinavia, as far east as Kamts-
chatka, and throughout North America from Alaska to Hudson's
Bay. The nests found by my son in North Uist were substantial
structures, about a foot in diameter, and two or three inches high.
The foundation was composed of dead stalks and roots, upon which
was a lining of fresh green grass and herbs, the whole forming a
bona-fide nest, as different as possible from the slovenly debris on
which its Red-throated cousin lays its eggs. Two is the usual
number of eggs, but sometimes one only is laid. The ground-
colour is dark or light russet-brown, sometimes with a slight shade
of olive. The spots are nearly black, sparingly distributed over
the surface, rather more profusely at the larger end, and seldom
as big as a pea. The underlying spots are few and indistinct.
The eggs vary in length from 3'5 to 2"9 inches, and in breadth
from 2'2 to 1*9 inch.

THE RED-THROATED DIVER,

{Colymbus septentrionalis.)
Plate 21, Fig. 2.

The present species nests commonly in the Hebrides, as well as
in many localities in the west and north of Scotland, from Argyle-
shire northward, and in the Orkneys and Shetland Isles. It also
nests in the lakes of Donegal, in Ireland. Its breeding-range
elsewhere is circumpolar.

The Red-throated Diver very rarely makes a nest. The eggs
are often laid on the bare turf, often in a depression in the grass
or moss, but a scanty lining of weeds or sedge is frequently found.
The eggs are somewhat more variable in colour than those of its
allies, being more commonly of a brownish-olive than of a russet-
brown ground-colour. The spotting is also occasionally somewhat
bolder. They vary in length from 3*1 to 2*5 inches, and in breadth
from 1"9 to 1"7 inch

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 79

FAMILY PODICIPITIDsE,
OB GREBES.

Of the five species of Grebes found in Great Britain two are
resident and three are spring and autumn visitors on migration.

THE GKEAT CRESTED GREBE.
(Podicipes crista t us.)

Plate 22, Fig. 10.

The Great Crested Grebe is a somewhat local resident in the
British Islands, and it has only recently been discovered breeding
in Scotland, Mr. Robert Read having taken eggs near the Clyde.
Though rare on the west coast of the latter country in the winter,
it has been known to stray as far north as the Shetlands ; it is,
however, more frequent on the east coast. It breeds in Ireland
on several of the large sheets of fresh-water.

The range of the Great Crested Grebe extends over the whole
of the Palsearctic region, as well as India, and it is also found in
Australia. It does not inhabit North America, and the African
species appears to be different.

The nests are formed of weeds and rushes, and are always
damp. Those which I found in Pomerania contained three or
four eggs. They were warm and covered with damp moss ; but
in the nests containing only one or two eggs, the latter were
uncovered and cold. The natural inference is that the eggs are
not covered until the female begins to sit, and that the object of
covering them is not protective, at least in the technical sense in
which that word is now used. The Grebes cover their eggs, not
to conceal them from enemies, but to protect them from cold.

The eggs of the Great Crested Grebe are green, as may be seen
by looking through the hole against the light ; but this ground-
colour is almost entirely obscured by an irregular and often rough
layer of chalky white. The large end is seldom much more
rounded than the small end. They vary in length from 2'4 to 20
inches, and in breadth from 1*6 to 1'3 inch. Small eggs
occasionally measure less in one of their dimensions than large

80 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

eggs of the Red-necked Grebe ; but in that case the other
dimensions always exceed the maximum of the latter species, so
that the eggs of the two birds cannot easily be confused.

THE RED-NECKED GREBE.
(Podicipes rubricollis.)*

Plate 22, Fig. 12.

The Red-necked Grebe is a regular winter visitor to the British
Islands, being most numerous in severe seasons. It is almost a
circumpolar bird ; but the American ornithologists regard the birds
inhabiting their continent and East Siberia as specifically distinct
from those inhabiting Europe and West Siberia. In Scandinavia
it is a resident south of the Arctic circle, and is a common
summer visitor to Archangel, but it has not been recorded from
the lower valleys of the Petchora or the Ob. It breeds in
South-west Siberia, Turkestan, and the basins of the Caspian
and Black Seas. It does not appear to breed south of the valley
of the Danube, nor west of the valley of the Rhine, occurring
only on migration or in winter beyond these limits.

The nests are sometimes placed in the recesses of the thick
reed-beds, but quite as often they can be seen at a considerable
distance, in localities where the reeds are only half-grown and
thinly sprinkled over the water. The nest is always floating, so
that it can rise or fall with the water, and is considerably less
than that of the Coot. It is somewhat carelessly made of reeds
and decayed water-plants, and near each nest is a sort of sham
nest or foundation of a nest, merely a few reeds laid together,
which is used as a roosting-place for the parent which, for the
time being, is not occupied with the incubation of the eggs.

Fresh eggs may be obtained during the first half of May. The
number of eggs is usually three, often four, and they vary in
length from 2'1 to 1*9 inch, and in breadth from 1*4 to 1'25
inch. The ground-colour is green, but this is so coated over
with chalky-white, of a more or less irregular and rough texture,
that it can only be seen here and there. They are smaller than
eggs of the Great Crested Grebe, though both dimensions over-

* Podicipes griseigena (Bodd.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 703.

Plate 17.

Siih acco f I

Common Heron.

Purple Heron.

BuiX backed Heron.

Xi-ilil Heron.

Lit tie F, eret .

Ibis

Great White Etji-et.

Little. Bittern.

Common Bittern.

ft.-son&Srailifora.Lltt. SWffieM

Plate 18.

Black Stork .

' *

3T

. *'

Spooobi I I .

I

t^if

* *

* *

Spoonbill .

Wlut,- Stork.

■

Plate 1'.).

Siutji.

Cormox^Hnt

Omniiet

Wltite Pelican.

Bwsan .

Plate 2().

Manx Shearwater.

Duskv Shearwater

ftulwers Petrel.

Storirev PdK'i

Great Shearwater.

Fnltii;

Fork tailed PetreL
Wilsons Petrel .

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 81

lap, but never in the sanie egg. This is also the case with the
eggs of the Black-necked and Sclavonian Grebes, which are
always smaller.

THE SCLAVONIAN GBEBE.
{Podicipes cornutus.)*

Plate 22, Fig. 8.

The Sclavonian or Horned Grebe is a semi- Arctic species, and is
only a winter visitor to the British Islands. It is a circumpolar
bird, but does not breed north of the Arctic circle, except in
Norway. In Europe it is only found on migration, or in winter
south of the Baltic. It breeds in Greenland and Iceland, Scan-
dinavia, Kussia, and less frequently in Denmark. In Asia it is
extremely abundant in South-west Siberia, the basin of Lake
Baikal, and in Dauria, but appears to be rarer on the Lower
Amoor. On the American Continent it breeds in Alaska and
throughout British North America south of the Arctic circle.

It makes a nest near the banks of lakes, which, like those of its
allies, is generally a floating structure composed of decayed water
plants, amongst which it is placed. Kriiper occasionally found it
on a tussock of grass in the water, and once on a stone. The
number of eggs never exceeds five. They are of precisely the
same shape and colour as those of the allied species. They vary
in length from 1*9 to 1'6 inch, and in breadth from 1"2 to 11 inch.
They are smaller than eggs of the Bed-necked Grebe and larger
than those of the Little Grebe, but are indistinguishable from
eggs of the Black-necked Grebe.

THE BLACK-NECKED GKEBE.

(Podicipes nigricollis.)
Plate 22, Fig. 11.
The Black-necked or Eared Grebe is chiefly known in our
islands as a rare visitor on spring and autumn migration, though
a few have been obtained during winter, and it is believed to have
bred in Norfolk. The Black-necked Grebe has a somewhat
similar range to that of the Little Grebe. It is a resident in the

* Podicipes auritus (Linn.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 705.

82 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

basin of the Mediterranean, but is a summer visitor to Central
Europe and Southern Russia, as far north as the Baltic and
Moscow.

The nest is concealed amongst reeds or sedge, and is generally
a floating mass, like those of the allied species of Grebe ; but it is
occasionally placed on a tussock of grass or on fallen sedge. It is
a small compact structure, not more than 9 inches across, and is
composed of dead sedge, mixed with grass and water plants.
When the nest is left, the eggs are carefully covered with wet
moss and rotten grass.

The eggs are laid late in May. The number is usually four,
but five are sometimes found. Like those of other Grebes, they
are creamy-white in colour, but when held up to the light the
green colour of the inside may be seen through the hole, and
is sometimes traceable on the surface. They are considerably
tapered at both ends, rough and irregular in texture, and vary in
length from 1*9 to 1'7 inch, and in breadth from 1*25 to 1*1 inch.
They cannot be distinguished from the eggs of the Sclavonian
Grebe, but they are always larger than eggs of the Little Grebe,
and smaller than those of the Red-necked Grebe.

THE LITTLE GREBE.

(Podicipes minor.)*
Plate 22, Fig, 5.

The Little Grebe is by far the commonest British species of
this genus. It is a resident in all districts suited to its habits,
both in England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, extending to the
Outer Hebrides and the Orkneys. The Little Grebe is confined
to the Old World, where it is a resident south of about lat. 42" in
the sub-tropical portion of the northern hemisphere, from the
Antarctic to the Pacific ; but Dr. Sharpe has pointed out that
the African and Indian Little Grebes belong to distinct species.

The nests are generally floating structures of weeds moored
near an island, in some reedy sheet of water ; they are seldom
hidden in the reeds, and frequently quite in the open.

The number of eggs varies from three to six, but four or five is
the usual clutch. They are somewhat rough in texture, without

* Podicipes fluviatilis (Tunst.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 709.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 83

much gloss, and frequently tapered at both ends. When fresh
laid they are dull white, but soon become stained a dirty buff ;
they always look green through the hole when held up to the
light. They vary in length from 1'55 to 1:3 inch, and in breadth
from 1*1 to 0.9 inch.

FAMILY BALLIDsE,
OB RAILS.

The Water-rail, Water-hen, and Coot are residents in Great
Britain. The Crakes are either regular visitors in spring or of
accidental occurrence.

THE CORN-CRAKE.

(Grex j) rat en sis.)

Plate 22, Fig. 9.

The Corn-crake, or Land-rail, breeds in all suitable localities
throughout Great Britain. It is found in summer all over
Europe, and as far east as the valley of the Yenisei, and breeds
as far north as the Arctic circle, wintering in Africa.

The nest is a much better structure than is usually supposed.
The materials used are coarse dry grasses and other herbage, and
very often a few withered leaves, whilst the inside is lined with
fine grass, very similar to that used by the Missel-Thrush. It is
very carefully made, the materials being well interwoven, and is
quite as elaborate a structure as the nest of a Pipit or a Skylark.
It is generally built in a little hollow in the ground, either a
natural one or one made by the birds.

The eggs are from eight to twelve in number, nine being an
average clutch. They vary from pale buff to creamy -white or
bluish-white in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with surface
spots of reddish-brown, and underlying ones of pale lilac. The
markings are seldom so numerous as to cover much of the
ground-colour, and are generally distributed over most of the sur-
face. Sometimes one egg in a clutch is much paler than the rest,
and the markings much smaller. They vary in length from 15
to 1"36 inch, and in breadth from 11 to 1'02 inch.

84 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE SPOTTED CRAKE.
(Crex porzana.)*

Plate 22, Fig. 1.

Although generally distributed through the British Islands in
summer, this Crake is more local than the others, and is nowhere
abundant, breeding in a few districts only. It is a summer
visitor to Scandinavia up to lat. 65°, and in West Russia up to
lat. 64°. In the Ural Mountains it is not known to have
occurred farther north than lat. 58°, or than lat. 55° in West
Siberia. It also visits Turkestan in summer.

The nests found by me in Holland were large for the size of
the bird, built in clumps of rushes or among reeds ; they stood
nearly a foot above the level of the water, and were composed
of flat leaves of the reed, sedge, and other water-plants, and
generally, when built in the reeds, had a foundation of dead
broken reed.

The number of eggs is from eight to twelve : they are usually
laid in May or early in June. They vary in ground-colour from
buff to very pale greenish-white, boldly spotted and speckled with
pale and dark brown, and with underlying markings of violet-grey.
The spots vary in size from that of a small pea to a mere speck.
Most eggs are finely dusted over the entire surface with these
small specks, amongst which the larger markings are somewhat
evenly dispersed. On some specimens most of the markings are
at the large end, where they sometimes form broad irregular
streaks joining the larger blotches together. On many eggs the
underlying spots are as numerous as the surface ones, sometimes
more so, sometimes less. The eggs vary in length from 1*4 to
1*2 inch, and in breadth from l'O to 0*9 inch.

BAILLON'S CRAKE.
{Crex baillo?ii).\

Plate, 22, Fig. 4.

Baillon's Crake has occurred in various parts of the United
Kingdom, and nests have been found in Cambridgeshire and on
the Norfolk Broads. To Central Europe it is a summer migrant,

* Porzana maruettv — Saunders, Manual, p. 495.
t Porzana bailloni — Saunders, Manual, p. 499.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 85

but its range does not extend north of the Baltic, and its
occurrence in the Baltic Provinces appears to be doubtful. In
Eastern Russia it breeds as far north as lat. 56°.

The breeding-season of Baillon's Crake commences late in
May or early in June. The nest is generally placed amongst the
aquatic vegetation on the banks of a pool or stream, and is made
of sedge, dry leaves, and grasses : it is rather large, loosely put
together, but not badly made.

The eggs of Baillon's Crake are from five to eight in number,
six being the average clutch. They are oval in form, and rather
glossy : in ground-colour they vary from pale olive to rich buff,
profusely but indistinctly spotted, blotched, freckled, and mottled,
with olive-brown and dull violet-grey. On some eggs the mark-
ings are more confluent than on others, and mostly to be seen
at the larger end. They vary from 12 to 11 inch in length, and
from 09 to 0'8 inch in breadth. It is almost impossible to dis-
tinguish with certainty the eggs of this species from those of
the Little Crake, but, as a rule, they are slightly smaller.

THE LITTLE CRAKE.
(Crex parva.)*

Plate 22, Fig. 6.

The Little Crake is a rare visitor to our islands on spring and
autumn migration. It is not impossible that some remain to
breed, but no evidence of the fact is as yet forthcoming. It is
locally distributed in Central and Southern Europe, and is found
as far to the eastward as Turkestan and Afghanistan.

The nest is generally very carefully concealed among the reeds
and rushes that grow in the bird's swampy haunts. Sometimes
it is built on a large mass of decaying reeds which have been laid
by the wind, and is placed at a height of a few inches to a foot or
more above the surface of the water. It is rather large for the
size of the bird, very flat, and somewhat loosely put together. It
is generally made of bits of flags, leaves of the common reed,
coarse grass, and scraps of other aquatic vegetation.

The eggs of the Little Crake are seven or eight in number, pale
yellowish-brown in ground-colour, indistinctly but evenly marbled

* Porzana parva — Saunders, Manual, p. 497.

86 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

and blotched over the entire surface with darker brown, and
occasionally a few small very dark brown specks. Some specimens
have the markings more numerous at the large end, where they
form an ill-defined mass. They vary from 13 to 12 inch in
length, and from 0'9 to 0"85 inch in breadth. Eggs of this species
closely resemble those of Baillon's Crake, but are larger — the
character of the markings is also very similar.

THE AVATER-RAIL.

(Ballus aquations.)

Plate 22, Fig. 3.

The Water-rail is found throughout Great Britain in localities
suited to its skulking habits. It is a partial migrant, being most
common in summer in some districts, in others in winter.

It is generally distributed throughout Europe and is resident
in most countries, extending eastward as far as Turkestan, the
northern limit of its breeding range being 63° in Scandinavia, and
the latitude of Riga in Russia.

The nesting-season commences early, and eggs have been found
in the first week in April. A nest which I found in the Norfolk
Broads was admirably concealed, and was placed about a foot
from the ground, but it had a solid foundation under it, formed
by the roots of the clump of rushes in the midst of which
it was built. It was carefully made of flat sedge and the flat
leaves of the reed, lined with dry broken pieces of round slender
roots.

The number of eggs laid by the Water-rail varies from five to
eleven, but from five to seven appears to be the usual number.
They are very smooth, but do not exhibit much gloss, and are
pale buff or huffy-white in ground-colour, sparingly spotted and
speckled with reddish-brown surface-markings and violet-grey
underlying ones. The spots are seldom larger than No. 6 shot,
and are most abundant on the large end of the egg, where they
sometimes congregate into a confluent mass. The underlying
spots are as numerous as the surface ones, and on some eggs
predominate, while in exceptional specimens a few of the spots
are as large as peas. The length varies from 15 to 1'28 inch,
and the breadth from 109 to 98 inch.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 87

THE WATEE-HEN.
(Ga 11 in u la ch lor op us.)

Plate 22, Fig. 7.

This species is a very common resident throughout the British
Islands, and is distributed over the greater part of the Old World,
excepting the Australian region.

The nest of the Moor-hen, as the species is generally called, is a
mass of reeds, sometimes intermixed with flags and coarse grass ;
it is loosely put together, but the materials, being moist, soon settle
down into a tolerably firm mass. The middle of the nest is more
carefully finished than the other parts, and the materials are finer,
sometimes dry leaves being used.

The eggs are from four to ten in number, seven or eight being
an average clutch. They are huffish-white or pale reddish- buff in
ground-colour, spotted or speckled with reddish-brown and dark
grey. The markings are never so numerous as to hide much of
the ground-colour, and they generally vary in size from that of a
No. 6 shot to that of a speck, but sometimes many of them are
as large as a pea. They vary in length from 19 to 155 inch, and
in breadth from 13 to 115 inch. An abnormally large egg in
my collection measures 2'19 inches in length, and 1'45 inch in
breadth.

THE COMMON COOT.

(Fulica atra.)

Plate 22, Fig. 2.

The Coot, though not so universally distributed as the Water-
hen, and rather more local, is to be found in the neighbourhood of
slow-running streams, lakes, and ponds, throughout the British
Isles. It is found generally throughout the Palaearctic region
from Scandinavia to Northern China, wintering somewhat to the
southward in India and Burmah.

The nest is a large bulky structure, sometimes as much as two
feet in height, varying according to the depth of the water. In
some cases it is a floating structure, anchored safely to the
surrounding reeds, or built on a large mass of rushes that have

88 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

been broken by the wind and lie on the surface of the water.
The outside is generally made of coarse flags, reeds, dead leaves,
and portions of aquatic plants ; and as it approaches completion
finer materials are used, and the lining generally consists of dry
reed leaves.

The eggs are from six to twelve in number, seven or eight being
an average clutch. They are huffish- white or stone-colour,
spotted and speckled evenly over the entire surface with blackish-
brown. The markings are seldom very large, generally varying
from about the size of No. 10 shot to mere specks On some
eggs many of the spots are underlying and violet-grey. They are
not subject to much variation in colour, but differ considerably in
size. They vary in length from 2 - 2 to 2"08 inches, and in breadth
from 1*55 to 105 inch.

FAMILY OTIDID/E,
OB BUSTARDS.

THE GKEAT BUSTABD.
(Otis tarda.)

Plate 23, Fig. 4.

The Great Bustard formerly bred in several parts of Great
Britain, but is now completely extinct. It nests on all the steppes
and large open plains throughout the southern portion of the
Palaearctic region. It is found on the plains of Northern and
Central Germany, Spain, Italy, the steppes of the Danube, South
Russia, and Turkey, and eastwards into Palestine and throughout
Turkestan.

A nest found by me in Northern Germany was a slight hollow
in the midst of the wheat, not more than an inch depressed even
in the centre, and occupying a space about 18 by 13 inches.
A handful of dry grass was all the lining below the eggs, which
were warm and slightly incubated.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 89

The eggs of the Great Bustard are generally only two in num-
ber, but sometimes three are laid. They vary from olive-green
to pale buff and olive-brown in ground-colour, and are spotted
and blotched with reddish-brown, and with numerous under-
lying markings of greyish-pink. The markings are generally
obscurely denned, and somewhat evenly distributed over the
entire surface. On some eggs the blotches are very irregular,
and are intermingled with small rich dark brown streaks and
scratches. The surface is slightly rough, full of small pores, and
possesses a little gloss, but some specimens are much smoother
than others. They vary in length from 3'2 to 2' 7 inches, and
in breadth from 2'4 to 2"15 inches. They differ considerably in
shape, some being elongated at both ends, whilst others are
nearly round.

THE LITTLE BUSTAED.
(Otis tetrax.)*

Plate 23, Fig, 2.

The Little Bustard occurs in Great Britain nearly every other
year, and has been many times recorded, principally from the
eastern countries. It has a more restricted range than its larger
congener, and its home is from Southern Europe to Central Asia,
reaching to about 55° in Eussia.

In a nest found by me in the Danubian Steppes the hollow was
deeper than that of the Great Bustard, and there was a distinct
nest of dry grass and weeds, though very slight ; it was about
7 inches across, and well concealed by tufts of a kind of lucerne.

The eggs of the Little Bustard are usually four in number, but
three are often found, and, it is said, sometimes five. They vary
in ground-colour from huffish-brown to dark olive-brown and
olive-green, indistinctly mottled and spotted with pale reddish-
brown. Most of the markings are congregated on the large end
of the egg, sometimes on the small end, and form an indistinct
confluent mass. The surface is highly polished, rather smooth,
and the pits and pores are not very conspicuous. The eggs vary
in length from 2'15 to 1'93 inches, and in breadth from 1'6 to
15 inch.

* Tetrax tetrax — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 120.

90 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

MACQUEEN'S BUSTAKD.

{Otis macqueeni.)*

Plate 23, Fig. 1.

Two specimens of Macqueen's Bustard have been obtained in
England. The breeding range of the species appears to be
confined, so far as is known, to Turkestan, from Yarkand to the
eastern shores of the Caspian, extending northwards into the
extreme south-west of Siberia, as far east as Lake Saisan, and
southwards into Persia and Afghanistan.

Whether it builds a nest, or merely lays its eggs in a hollow on
the bare plain, those naturalists who have been on its breeding-
grounds omit to say. Doubtless in its nidification it resembles
its close ally the African Houbara, whose nest is only a depression
in the ground, with no lining. I have an egg of this species in my
collection which was obtained by Tancre's collectors on the Altai
Mountains. It is huffish-brown or rich stone-colour, sparingly
blotched and spotted with surface-markings of dark brown, and
with paler underlying blotches of the same colour and dull grey ;
the spots are evenly distributed over the entire surface, but none
of them are very bold or decided. This specimen measures 2*55
inches in length and P85 inch in breadth. It will be noticed
that the egg of the present species is of a very distinct type from
either of the other British Bustards, and more closely approaches
that of the Plovers.

THE THICK-KNEE.
( QBdicneirms crepitans.) f

Plate 2:3, Fig. 3.

The distribution in England of the Thick-knee, or, as it is
frequently called, the Stone-curlew, or Norfolk Plover, is very
similar to the former distribution of the Great Bustard in our
islands.

On the Continent the Stone-curlew does not breed north of the
Baltic. It is a resident throughout the basin of the Mediter-
ranean ; but to France, Holland, Belgium, Germany, and South

* Houbara macqueenii — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 123.
f CEdicnemus scolopax — Saunders, Manual, p. 515. QL. oedicnemus — Sharpe, Handb.,

III., p. 127.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 91

Russia it is a summer migrant. Its northern range in South
Russia has not been accurately determined ; but it is common at
Sarepta, and may range up to lat. 50°.

The bird makes no attempt at a nest, a slight hollow being-
made in the ground.

The eggs of the Stone-curlew, two in number, vary from pale
huffish or creamy-white to rich clay-buff in ground-colour,
spotted, blotched, and streaked with light and dark brown, and
with underlying markings of lilac or grey. Some specimens are
very boldly spotted and blotched, chiefly at the large end ; others
are evenly marked with spots and blotches, many of the latter
being connected by streaky lines of paler brown. On some eggs
most of the markings are underlying ones ; on others very few
of these are to be seen. The intensity of the brown colour also
varies considerably, some of it being almost black. The eggs
vary in length from 2*2 to 2'0 inches, and in breadth from 1'6 to
1'49 inch. The only eggs with which they are at all likely to be
confused are those of the Oyster-catcher, but the eggs of the
latter bird are larger and the markings are darker and much
bolder and more decided.

FAMILY ALCIDM,
OB AUKS.

Of the seven species of Auks enumerated below, four are
resident in some portion or other of the British Islands, the
Great Auk is now extinct, and two are winter visitants.

THE GREAT AUK.

(A lea impennis.)

Plates 27, 28.

Two hundred years ago the Gare Fowl or Great Auk was
known as a regular summer visitor to St. Kilda.

It was always a semi-Arctic Atlantic species, breeding on the
islands off the coasts of Newfoundland, Labrador, South Green-
land, Iceland, the Faroes, and probably on some of the islands

92 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

on the coast of Norway. It doubtless made no nest and laid only
one egg, which is said to have been deposited during the first half
of June. As in the allied species, the egg is large in proportion
to the size of the bird, varying from 5'1 to 4" 7 inches in length,
and from 3"1 to 2 - 8 inches in breadth. The ground-colour is a
creamy-white, with black or dark brown surface-markings and
grey underlying spots. Most of the eggs still remaining in
collections resemble the common type of eggs of the Razor-bill,
and are somewhat sparingly spotted, the markings being largest
and most irregular in shape round the large end. The specimens
figured are in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, and
I have to acknowledge the kindness of Professor Stewart in
allowing them to be drawn, as illustrations of these eggs have
not been given before. Mr. E. Bidwell, who drew my atten-
tion to this fact, considers them to be exceptionally good types
of the variation shewn in eggs of this species.

THE RAZOR-BILL.

(A lea tor da.)
Plate 24, Fig. 1 — 4.

The Razor-bill is a very common bird on almost all parts of the
British coasts that are sufficiently rocky to afford it a suitable
place for its nesting-colonies. It is found breeding more or less
abundantly on all sea-rocks from Cornwall to Shetland, round the
Irish coast, the Channel Islands, and St. Kilda.

The Razor-bill is probably an exclusively North Atlantic species.
It breeds on the coasts of Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and
Labrador, but does not enter Hudson's Bay or Davis Straits. Its
range extends eastwards along the coast of Greenland as far north
as lat. 70°, to Iceland, the Faroes, the British Islands, and the
north coast of France. Thence its breeding-grounds are to be
found wherever the coast is rocky on the shores of the North Sea
and the Baltic, the coasts of Norway and the White Sea, where
it was found breeding by Henke on the island of Onega.

If the locality be well suited to them, great numbers of birds
breed together on the same range of cliffs, but in less eligible
districts the pairs are scattered. The great attraction is the
presence of suitable crannies amongst the cliffs where the bird

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 93

can lay its eggs ; ledges are shunned. The Eazor-bill must have
a hole, if one can possibly be obtained. The eggs are deposited
on the cliffs at various heights from the water, but seldom very
close to the sea, and generally near the summit.

The eggs of the Razor-bill vary very much, but the range of
variation, both in the colour and shape of the spots, is not nearly
so great as in those of the Guillemot. A remarkable difference
between the eggs of these two birds is to be found in the fact that
whereas those of the latter species, when viewed through the
hole against the light, sometimes appear cream-coloured and
sometimes green, the eggs of the Razor-bill, when examined in
the same way, always look green, though on the surface they
never show more than the faintest tint of that colour. The
ground-colour of the eggs of the Razor-bill varies from pure white
to pale reddish-brown. The colour of the overlying spots is dark
reddish-brown, sometimes approaching black, and that of the
underlying spots pale greyish-brown ; they vary in size from large
blotches, often confluent round the large end, to the minutest
speck. In rare instances a few streaks are mixed with the spots,
and in still rarer instances most of the markings are streaks.
The normal eggs vary in length from 31 to 2*7 inches, and in
breadth from 2*25 to 2'2 inches.

THE COMMON GUILLEMOT.

(Alca troile.)*
Plate 25, Figs. 1 — 6.

The Guillemot breeds in all suitable localities from the Isle of
Wight in the south, up to the north of Scotland, as well as in the
islands off the coasts. It nests also in Western Europe from the
coasts of Portugal and France to Heligoland and the Baltic and
along the coasts of Norway. It also breeds in North America
from New England to lat. 64 o N.

The Guillemot lays but a single egg, on the bare rock. The

variation in the colour and marks of the eggs is so pronounced

that no description can convey an adequate idea of them, and I

have figured a few of the most remarkable forms. They vary in

* Uria troile — Saunders, Manual, p. 683.

94 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

length from 3'5 to 3'0 inches, and in breadth from 2 to 1"85
inch. Abnormally large eggs and very small varieties are some-
times met with.

The Ringed Guillemot (Alca ring via) I consider to be merely
a variety of the Common species.

BRUNNICH'S GUILLEMOT.
(Alca brilnnichi.)*

Plate 20, Figs. 5, 6.

This species is a rare winter visitor to the British coasts.
It breeds in Greenland above lat. 64°, and on the coasts of
North America, as well as in vast numbers on Spitsbergen, Jan
Mayen, Franz-Josef Land, and Novaya Zemlya.

The eggs of this species resemble, as might be expected, those
of the Common Guillemot, and Mr. H. J. Pearson, who took a
number of eggs on Novaya Zemlya, says that they pass from
pure white to the browns of the Razor-bill, and every variety of
yellow and blue-greens, some being very handsomely blotched
with black.

THE BLACK GUILLEMOT.
{Alca grylle.)\

Plate 26, Fig. 4.

The stronghold of the Black Guillemot in Great Britain is the
west coast of Scotland, including the Hebrides, Orkneys, and
Shetland. It is not known to breed with certainty on the east
coast of Scotland south of Sutherland. In Ireland it has deserted
some of its former breeding-places, but still has colonies on the
north coast.

The Black Guillemot breeds in the Bay of Fundy, on the
coasts of Newfoundland, Labrador, South Greenland, Iceland,
the Faroes, Ireland, Scotland, Denmark and the Baltic, on the
Norwegian coasts, and eastwards as far as the AVhite Sea.

It is a rather late breeder, its eggs being seldom deposited in
Scotland before the end of May or the first week in June, and
fresh eggs may be obtained all through the latter month.

* Uria bruennichi — Saunders, Manual, p. 685.
f Uria gryllc — Saunders, Manual, p, 686.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 95

It makes no nest, but deposits its eggs either in a crevice of
the cliff, it may be hundreds of feet above a boiling sea, or
amongst the debris under the fallen rock-fragments at the foot
of the cliffs. Sometimes they are laid under the large blocks of
rock on the beach, and less frequently at considerable distances
inland.

The eggs are almost invariably two in number. Macgillivray
says that they are frequently three, and Audubon states that the
latter number is the usual clutch. They are subject to but little
variation, ranging in ground-colour from very pale buff or creamy-
white to very pale bluish-green. The overlying markings are
rich deep brown, some of them almost black, and they vary in
size from large irregular blotches to minute specks ; many of the
blotches are confluent, and form in some instances an irregular
zone round the large end. The underlying markings, which are
often large and generally very conspicuous, are inky-grey. They
vary in length from 2'5 to l 2"2 inches, and in breadth from 17
to 1'5 inch.

THE LITTLE AUK.
(Alca alle.)*

Plate 26, Fig. 3.

The Little Auk, or " Kotche," is only a winter visitor to the
British Islands, and is most common in the extreme northern
portions, especially in the Orkneys and Shetlands. It is an
Atlantic species, but only breeds north of the Arctic circle. It
is most abundant on the coasts of Spitsbergen, where it is said
to breed in countless thousands, and ranges eastwards as far as
Franz-Josef Land and Novaya Zemlya, and westwards to Grimsey
Island, North Iceland, and to both shores of Greenland north of
lat. 68°.

It rarely breeds at any high elevation, but lays its single egg
in some crevice, or under the loose stones that have fallen from
the cliffs, occasionally at some distance from the coast.

The egg is pale greenish-blue, occasionally indistinctly streaked
round the large end with yellowish-brown, and varies in length
from 1'9 to 1'8 inch, and in breadth from 1'35 to 1/2 inch.

* Mergtdus alle — Saunders, Manual, p. 689.

96 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

THE PUFFIN.

(Fratercida arctica.)
Plate 26, Figs. 1, 2.

The Puffin, or " Sea Parrot," is one of the best-known of British
sea-birds, and is found in all suitable localities along the entire
coast-line of our islands during summer. In rocky districts it is
much more numerous than on low-lying coasts, and it is especially
abundant at Lundy Island, Priestholme off the coast of Anglesey,
the Isle of Man, the Hebrides (especially St. Kilda), the Orkneys,
Shetlands, and the Fame Islands. It is equally common on the
Irish coasts. It also nests on the coasts of North America.

Puffins breed in colonies, sometimes only composed of a score
or so of birds, but very often of twenty thousand or more. Low
flat islands covered with turf, rocky islets (as the Bass and Ailsa
Craig), or bold headlands (as those of Flamborough) , are the places
usually selected. Sometimes, however, it takes up its quarters in
a rabbit-warren, breeding in the deserted burrows ; and at others
it rears its young amongst the clefts and crannies of the cliffs, or
under the thickly-strewn rock fragments.

When first laid, the eggs of the Puffin are pale bluish-white in
ground-colour, very indistinctly spotted and blotched with pale
brown and violet-grey. Some eggs are much more finely marked
than others, having both kinds of spots large and distinct, some-
times confluent and forming an irregular zone round the large
end, or elongated into fine scratchy streaks. Most of the mark-
ings are underlying ones. The eggs vary in length from 26 to
2'2 inches, and in breadth from P75 to 1'6 inch.

FAMILY LARIDJE,
OR GULLS AND TERNS.

These may be divided into three sub-families, viz., the Terns
(Stemince), of which five nest with us, and eight are migrants

Black throated Diver

*»♦= -..'-at..

■ •4.

rv-*

i- r,*

Red throated Diver,

: m

dreHl Northern Diver.

I:, uLttr-l.L.tK Sheffield

Plate 22

.- '■'•"'.

> ■•
'«*. , ■ » ♦ ;;

'' i • if * *

: \

• *

,* e •

• * * i
t

•

* - . ?«■',.,

Si).)H<-,l (Vaki

\V.,I.T Hail.

I'»aill.»..s Crak<

W.ll.'! II

Little Orel)

Little (Yak

Corn Crake.

ScJcivoillJllL (i|('l>

Gre«t Crested Oreli

Black. -necked Oreli

Red - necked GreLe.

Plate 23.

*+**

Mac

Bustard.

Little Bustard.

I hiclcnee .

Great Bustard

Pmraor. S "neffieU

Plate 24-

Razor-bill.

Razorbill.

Razorbill.

-TV

Razox-biLL.

Pawson •■ Brailsf r.3 1 id

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 97

or rare visitors; the Skuas {Stercorariince) , of which two are
resident, and two are visitors ; and the Gulls (Larince), of which
six breed in Great Britain, while nine species are more or less
rare visitors to our coasts.

THE BLACK TEEN.
(Sterna nigra.)*

Plate 31, Figs. 1, 3.

The pretty little Black Tern is now, alas, only a visitor to the
British Islands during spring and autumn migration. Half a
century ago it bred every season in considerable numbers in
Bomney Marsh in Kent, on many of the Norfolk Broads, and
in some of the Lincolnshire Fens, but it is not known to have
remained to nest in this country for the last five-and-twenty
years.

It breeds, however, in enormous numbers in various parts of
the Continent, from Esthonia on the southern shores of the Gulf
of Finland to Western Turkestan and the Altai Mountains in the
east. It also nests in suitable localities throughout the basin of
the Mediterranean, except in Egypt.

The Black Tern is a late breeder, and it is useless to look for
eggs in Denmark before the first week of June, or, on the Danube,
before the last week of May.

The nests are built on floating weed, and can very rarely be
reached without a boat ; they are placed in somewhat scattered
colonies, and each nest is a substantial structure of cotton reeds,
dead horse-tails, or decaying pond-weed or other water-plants.

Three is a full clutch of eggs. They vary in ground-colour from
greyish-buff to huffish-brown, and are thickly spotted and blotched
with rich reddish -brown and very dark blackish -brown, with
underlying markings of greyish-brown and inky-grey. Few eggs
are more boldly marked than those of the Black Tern. On most
of the eggs the large blotches are confluent, often forming broad
irregular bands round the widest part of the shell or round the
large end. The eggs vary in length from 1'46 to 1*3 inch, and
in breadth from L05 to 0'9 inch.

* Hydvochelidon nigra — Saunders, Manual, p. 617.

98 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE WHITE-WINGED BLACK TEEN.

(Sterna leucoptera.)*
Plate 29, Figs. 4, 6.

The White-winged Black Tern is an accidental visitor to the
British Islands. It breeds in South Russia, Hungary, and
probably in the delta of the Rhone, but it only visits Spam on
migration. It is said to breed in Algeria and in some of the
islands of the Mediterranean. Further east it nests in the
plains of Poland and the Caucasus, and probably in Turkestan,
as it is a regular summer visitor to the rivers, lakes and marshes
throughout the extreme south of Siberia, Mongolia, and North
China.

The nest resembles that of the Black Tern, and if not built
amongst a colony of that species, is placed in a precisely similar
locality, but in a colony apart.

The eggs of the White-winged Black Tern are usually three in
number, but it is said that four are occasionally laid. They are
precisely similar to those of the Black Tern, and exhibit the same
variations, ranging from greyish-buff to bullish-brown in ground-
colour, more or less heavily spotted and blotched with reddish-
brown and blackish-brown. The underlying markings are pale
grey. The eggs vary in length from 1*4 to 1'34 inch, and in
breadth from l'Ol to 0'95 inch.

THE WHISKERED TERN.

(Sterna hybrida.)\

Plate 29, Figs. 8, 10.

The Whiskered Tern is an inland species confined to the
tropical and semi-tropical regions of the Old World. It has only
occurred in the British Islands on a few occasions, and its prin-
cipal breeding-places in Europe are the Spanish swamps, the
delta of the Rhone, and the marshes of the Upper Danube in
Hungary, and of the Dnieper and South-west Russia.

In North Africa it breeds more abundantly ; and small colonies
are to be found in Greece and Palestine. Further east it breeds
on the plains of the Caucasus, in Turkestan, Cashmere, and

* Hydrochelidon leucoptera — Saunders, Manual, p, 619.
f Hydrochelidon hybrida — Saunders, t.c, p. 621.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 99

Northern India ; and Prjevalsky found it nesting in the valley of
the Hoang-ho in South-east Mongolia. Canon Tristram found it
breeding in Algeria, in nests of the Eared Grebe which the young
had left ; but in India, Anderson saw it building floating nests of
its own, some of which were more than a foot in diameter and
four inches high.

The eggs of the Whiskered Tern are readily distinguished from
those of the Black and White-winged Black Terns by their larger
size, smaller markings, and paler and greener ground-colour. The
eggs vary in length from 165 to 1*4 inch, and in breadth from
116 to 105 inch.

THE GULL-BILLED TERN.
(Sterna anglica.)*

Plate 31, Figs. 6, 8.

About half-a-dozen specimens have been obtained in Great
Britain. The species nests in the temperate and sub -tropical
portions of both hemispheres. The nests which I found in the
salt-islands off the coast of Asia Minor were not very close to
each other, but they were all in one part of the island. The
eggs were on the sand, never on the black mud ; some were lying
in slight natural hollows between the patches of vegetation on the
bare sand, without any attempt at a nest, but generally a slight
hollow was scratched in the earth or sand, and a few bits of sea-
weed or dead grass frequently formed an apology for a nest.

The most common number of eggs in each nest was two ; three
were not uncommon, but I never found four in one clutch. The
eggs of the Gull-billed Tern vary in ground-colour from bumsh-
white to huffish-brown, with occasionally a very slight tinge of
olive. The spots are never very large, rarely as big as a pea ; the
surface-markings are brown, and the underlying ones, which are
always very conspicuous, are grey. Occasionally the spots are
most numerous round the larger end of the egg, but they are
generally evenly and sparingly distributed over the whole surface.
The eggs vary in length from 21 to 1"8 inch, and in breadth
from 15 to 1*3 inch. Small eggs of the Sandwich Tern might
sometimes be mistaken for eggs of the Gull-billed Tern ; but the
latter are almost always much duller in colour.

* Gelochelidon anglica — Saunders, Cat. B., Brit. Mus., XXV., p. 25.

100 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE CASPIAN TERN.
(Sterna caspia.)

Plate 31, Fig. 2.

The Caspian Tern appears in Great Britain as a rare straggler
on migration. In Europe it breeds on the shores of the Mediter-
ranean and Black Seas, on the Spanish coast, on the island of
Sytt, and in various localities in the basin of the Baltic. It fre-
quents the entire coasts of Africa, breeding in the deltas of the
Nile and the Zambesi. It also breeds on the islands in the
Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea, and in the salt lakes of Turke-
stan. It is also found in North America on both sides of the
Continent, from the Arctic circle to Florida on the east ; and to
California on the west.

The nests are mere depressions in the sand, with occasionally a
little seaweed or dead grass placed round the edge.

It is not known that the Caspian Tern ever lays more than
three eggs. They vary in ground-colour from bumsh-white to
huffish-brown ; the surface-markings, never very large, are brown,
and the underlying markings, always very conspicuous, are grey.
Occasionally most of the spots are round the large end of the egg,
but generally they are distributed over the whole surface. The
eggs vary in length from 2*7 to i2 - 4 inches, and in breadth from
1"8 to 1'7 inch. They resemble very closely in colour those of the
Gull-billed Tern, but are always much larger.

THE SANDWICH TERN.
(Sterna cantiaca.)

Plate 30, Figs. 1—3.

The Sandwich Tern is a regular summer visitor to many parts
of the British Islands. It no longer breeds on the coast of Essex
or Kent, but it is still found in some numbers on the Fame
Islands off the Northumberland coast, and there is a small colony
on the coast of Cumberland. A few pairs breed on Walney Island
in Lancashire and on the Scilly Islands. The species must be
regarded as an Atlantic one, being found both on the shores of
the Palsearctic and Eastern Nearctic regions.

The Sandwich Tern arrives at the Fame Islands about the
middle of April. The nests found by me were merely slight

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 101

hollows in the bare sand, in diameter and depth of the dimen-
sions of a cheese-plate, and they and their contents were diffi-
cult to distinguish from the sand and fine gravel.

The eggs of the Sandwich Tern are remarkably handsome,
and are unrivalled in the boldness of the markings which they
occasionally display. The ground-colour varies from pure white
to brownish-buff. The commonest colour is creamy-white ; and
the rarest white with a slight tinge of olive. The colour of the
surface-spots is dark brown, frequently approaching black, whilst
the underlying markings, which are generally very conspicuous,
are pale slate-grey. The size, shape, and distribution of the spots
present almost endless variations. In some of the handsomest
eggs a fantastically-shaped spot covers a third of the visible
surface, and occasionally eggs are met with in which the spots
are delicate though short streaks. They vary in length from 2"3
to 1*9 inch, and in breadth from 15 to 1*3 inch.

THE EOSEATE TERN.
(Sterna dougalli.)

Plate 29, Figs. 7, 9.

It is doubtful whether the Roseate Tern nests in any part of
the British Islands at the present time ; it was formerly found
breeding on several islands off the Scotch and Irish coasts, on
Foulney and Walney Islands off the coast of Lancashire, on the
Fame Islands, and on the Scilly Islands.

The Roseate Tern may be regarded as an inhabitant of the
Atlantic and the Indian Oceans, being found even in Australia
and the Chinese Seas. It is also an inhabitant of the shores of
Eastern North America, as far south as the West Indies. Like
its congeners, it makes no nest, but lays its eggs in a slight
depression in the sand, sometimes placing a few roots or bits of
dead grass round them.

The eggs of the Roseate Tern are two or three in number, and
are similar in colour to those of the Common Tern. They vary
in length from 175 to 155 inch, and in breadth from 125 to 11
inch. It is impossible to give any characters b}^ which the ego-s
of this species can be distinguished from those of the Common
and Arctic Terns.

102 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE COMMON TEEN.
(Sterna hirundo.)

Plate 29, Figs. 1, 3.

Next to the Arctic Tern, the Common Tern is perhaps the best
known British species, although it is, especially in the north,
much less abundant. Like the Arctic Tern, it is an Atlantic
Ocean bird, but does not range as far north as the latter species.

The Common Tern often lays its eggs within a few feet of the
water, and in many cases dispenses with a nest altogether. It
generally establishes its colony on a bare shingly portion of the
beach, or amongst the scant herbage of an ocean rock.

The eggs are two or three in number, never more. They vary
in ground-colour from pale greyish-buff to brownish-buff, occasion-
ally with a tinge of green. The overlying spots are dark brown,
sometimes almost black, and the underlying spots are grey.
The spots are generally small, less than the size of a pea, and
are distributed somewhat sparingly over the whole surface, but
sometimes in a band near the large end of the egg. Occasionally
a few of the spots are confluent and form a large blotch, and
in very rare instances streaks are to be found. They vary in
length from 1*8 to 1*5 inch, and in breadth from 1'3 to 1.15
inch. They cannot with certainty be distinguished from eggs
of the Arctic Tern or Roseate Tern.

THE ARCTIC TERN.

(Sterna arctica.)*

Plate 29, Figs. 10, 12.

This is the Tern par excellence of the British coasts, and
especially north of the Tweed. It breeds in the Shetlands (where
it replaces the Common Tern), in the Orkneys, throughout the
Hebrides, and in all suitable places on the entire coast-line of Scot-
land, but always prefers an island to the mainland. On the east
coast of England its great stronghold is on the Fame Islands ;
while on the west it breeds on the shores of Cumberland, on
Walney Island, and in a few localities on the Welsh coast. On

* Sterna macrura — Saunders, Manual, p. C33.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 103

the south coast it certainly breeds on the Scilly Islands, but is
rarer than the Common Tern. In Ireland it breeds in many
localities, principally on the west coast. It is a circumpolar
species, breeding, according to Saunders, from 82° N. lat. down
to about 50° N. lat. in Europe, and 42° in America.

The breeding-season commences at the Fame Islands in the
first half of June. The eggs are generally laid quite close to the
sea on the coarse pebbles, sand, and shingle, sometimes amongst
drifted seaweed. A nest is very seldom constructed, and, if such a
provision is made, it is of the slightest description — a little hollow
lined with a few scraps of dry grass or stalks of marine herbage.

The eggs of the Arctic Tern are two or three in number, never
four, and very closely resemble those of the Common Tern, but
are on an average slightly smaller, generally more boldly blotched,
and the ground-colour is much more often tinged with olive, and
very frequently is a huffish-brown, much darker than the brownish-
buff of the Common Tern. They vary in length from 1*6 to 1'45
inch, and in breadth from 1*2 to l'l inch.

THE LESSEE TERN.

(Sterna minuta.)

Plate 29, Figs. 2, 5.

The Lesser Tern breeds in scattered colonies as far north as
Aberdeenshire on the east, and the Solway Firth on the west, as
well as in Ireland. Below the line of the Baltic it is found
nesting in many parts of Europe, eastwards to North-western
India. There are few places where this bird breeds in greater
abundance than on some of the islands in the lagoon of Misso-
longhi, in Greece. There it makes no nest, but generally
scratches a slight hollow in the sand, or in the long line of
broken reeds, bits of cork, dead grass, seaweed, or similar rubbish,
which marks the limit of the wavelets produced on the lagoon
by the storms of winter.

Three is the usual number of eggs, but now and then four are
found in one nest, possibly the produce of two females. In their
ground-colour the eggs of the Lesser Tern vary precisely to the
same extent as those of the Common Tern, from pale greyish-buff

104 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

to dark buff, occasionally with a slight shade of olive, but in the
boldness of their spotting they very frequently equal the eggs of the
Arctic Tern ; otherwise they may be regarded as miniature eggs
of these two allied species. They vary in length from 13 to 1"2
inch, and in breadth from TO to 09 inch. Some of them very
closely resemble eggs of the Kentish Plover ; but the latter may
generally be recognized by their more pyriform shape, and by
most of the markings being streaks rather than spots.

THE SOOTY TEEN.

(Sterna fuliginosa.)

Plate 30, Figs. 4— G.

The Sooty Tern is a bird of the tropics, but on two occasions it
appears to have strayed as far as our islands. It is known to
wander to the continent of Europe occasionally, but it is mainly
an inhabitant of the tropical seas.

Ascension Island, the great breeding-place of the Sooty Tern,
is situated a little south of the line, about a thousand miles from
Africa, and rather more from South America. It is said that the
birds only sit on a single egg ; but this is, no doubt, the result of
the constant robbery of the eggs, which is continued until the
power of producing them is almost exhausted. Hume, who found
this bird breeding on the Laccadive Islands, says that three is the
full clutch.

The eggs of the Sooty Tern vary in ground-colour from white
to pale buff ; the surface-spots are reddish-brown, and the under-
lying spots are pale brown. The markings are generally evenly
distributed over the surface of the egg, occasionally somewhat
sparsely so, and not unfrequently displaying a tendency to form
a zone round the larger end. The spots are generally small,
ranging from the size of buck-shot downwards. The eggs vary
in length from 21 to 1'8 inch, and in breadth from 1*5 to 1*35
inch. They approach nearest to certain varieties of the Sandwich
Tern ; but although the spots on some examples of the eggs of
the Sandwich Tern may be no larger in size, they are always
darker in colour.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 105

THE SMALLEK SOOTY TEKN.
(Sterna ancestheta.)

Plate 31, Fig. 6.

An example of this species was obtained on one of the light-
ships at the mouth of the Thames in September, 1875 ; it is now
in the collection of Mr. Edward Bidwell.

The eggs of this species resemble those of the preceding, but
are smaller.

THE NODDY TEKN.
(Sterna stolida.)

Plate 31, Figs. 4, 5.

Two specimens of this Tern were obtained off the coast of
Wexford, about the year 1830. It is an inhabitant of the seas in
the tropics, and has much the same distribution as the Sooty Tern.

It builds a nest of grass or bits of seaweed and twigs, which is
placed on a branch of a tree or on a mangrove-bough, or even
on rocks.

Only one egg is laid, and the markings vary considerably, as is
the case with the eggs of other Terns. Two types are figured
on the plate.

SABINE'S GULL.

(Lams sabinii.)*
Plate 3G, Fig. 8.

This bird may fairly claim to be regarded as a rare straggler to
our islands on autumn migration. Sabine's Gull is a circumpolar
bird, breeding on the shores of the Arctic Ocean. It is not
uncommon in various localities in Arctic America, from Alaska
to Greenland. In the Old World it has been found on the
Siberian side of Bering Straits ; Middendorff found it breeding
in considerable numbers on the Taimur Peninsula; and it has
occurred in Spitsbergen and Jan Mayen.

The nests, according to Middendorff, were mere depressions in
the moss, lined with a few dead grass-stalks.

* Xema sabinii — Saunders, Manual, p. 641.

106 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The eggs of Sabine's Gull vary in ground-colour from pale
brown to dark brown, occasionally approaching olive-brown.
The spots are small, varying from the size of a pea downwards,
and are generally somewhat indistinct and sparingly but evenly
distributed. The surface-spots are darkish brown, and the under-
lying spots are greyish-brown, but very indistinct. Occasionally
one or two almost black spots or streaks are found, principally at
the large end of the egg. They vary in length from 1*8 to 1"7
inch, and in breadth from 1*3 to 1*2 inch. In colour the eggs of
this bird most resemble Skuas' eggs, but are much too small to
be confused with any of them.

EOSS'S GULL.
(Larus rossi.)*

Plate 30, Fig. 6.

The claim of Ross's Gull to a place in the British list rests
upon a single example, and the occurrence is surrounded with
some doubt. The range of the species is circumpolar, as it
breeds in the high north beyond the Arctic circle in both the
Old and New Worlds.

The egg figured was sent from Christianshaab, on the south
shore of Disco Bay, in Greenland, about 69° N. lat. The old bird
which accompanied it was shot on the nest. The egg is of
exactly the same character as that of Sabine's Gull, but is rather
larger, measuring 1'9 by 1'3 inch.

BONAPARTE'S GULL.
(Larus Philadelphia.)

Plate 36, Fig. 7.

Bonaparte's Gull is another American species which acciden-
tally visits the British Islands. It is an inland species, and
breeds in the semi-Arctic portions of North America, from Alaska
to Labrador.

Kennicott found the nests of Bonaparte's Gulls near Fort
Yukon. One was built on the branch of a green spruce, near a
lake, about twenty feet from the ground, and others were in

* Rhodostethia rosea — Saunders, Manual, p. G43.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 107

similar positions, but on smaller trees. Richardson found this
bird breeding in colonies in similar situations, some trees con-
taining seven or eight nests, which were made of sticks.

The eggs of the Bonaparte's Gull vary in ground-colour from
pale brown to dark brown and olive-brown, but the range of varia-
tion is not very great. The spots are generally evenly distributed
over the surface of the egg, but occasionally they form a zone
round the larger end ; they vary in size from that of a small pea
down to mere specks. The surface-spots are dark brown, and the
underlying spots on those eggs where the ground-colour is pale,
are brownish-grey and distinct, but where the ground-colour is
darker, they are greyish-brown and indistinct. The eggs vary in
length from 2"05 to 19 inch, and in breadth from 145 to 135
inch. Small eggs of the Black-headed Gull may easily be con-
fused with large eggs of Bonaparte's Gull ; but in a series the
difference in size between the eggs of the two species is very
conspicuous.

THE LITTLE GULL.
(Lams minutus.)

Plate 36, Figs. 1, 2.

The Little Gull has been found to be a somewhat irregular
visitor to our shores on migration, and in winter. The breeding-
range of the Little Gull extends from the lakes of Ladoga and
Onega, through Southern Siberia, to the Stanovoi Mountains
and the southern shores of the Sea of Ochotsk.

The nests are built of sedge, dead reeds, and grass, the finer
portions being reserved for the lining. The usual number of eggs
is three, but two are occasionally found ; and both Meves and
Russov state that sometimes four eggs are laid in one nest.
They vary in ground-colour from greyish-buff to huffish-brown
and olive-brown. The surface-spots are dark brown, sometimes
approaching black, and the underlying spots, which are generally
very distinct (except on the eggs having a dark ground-colour),
are grey. The size of the spots varies from that of a pea down-
wards ; occasionally two or three of them are confluent and form
an irregular blotch, and in some instances streaks are inter-
mingled. They vary in length from 175 to 1*5 inch, and in
breadth from 1"22 to 1*18 inch.

108 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE BLACK-HEADED GULL.
(Lams ridibundus.)

Plate 34, Figs. 1, 2.

The Black-headed Gull is one of our commonest species. Its
colonies are not so large as those of the Kittiwake, but they are
much more numerous. It is a resident in the British Islands,
frequenting the coasts during winter, but retiring inland in
summer to breed in colonies in swamps. It is an inland species,
breeding throughout the temperate portions of the Palgearctic
region.

The nests are very slight structures, mere depressions in the
spongy ground. Occasionally the eggs are laid on the bare
ground, but there is generally a lining of dead grass, sedge, or
other weed.

Very few birds are subject to greater variation in the colour of
their eggs than the Black-headed Gull. The eggs vary in number
from two to three, and four are occasionally found. Sometimes
the eggs in one clutch are very much alike ; but occasionally one
of the eggs is quite different from the rest, both in the ground-
colour and in the style of spotting. Probably in the latter cases
the odd egg has been laid by a different bird. The eggs vary in
ground-colour from pale bluish-green to greyish-buff and brown,
spotted, blotched, and streaked, in almost every conceivable
variety, with surface-markings of dark brown, and with under-
lying markings of greyish-brown. On some eggs the spots are
much darker than on others, and occasionally, but apparently only
where the ground-colour is pale bluish-green, they are absent or
nearly so. They differ greatly in shape and size, varying from
'245 to 1'95 inch in length, and from 155 to 1"35 inch in breadth.

THE ADKIATIC BLACK-HEADED GULL.

(Larus melanocepJialits.)
Plate 34, Figs. 3, 4.

Two specimens of this Gull have been obtained in England.
One was shot on Breydon Broads in Norfolk in December, 1886,
and another was obtained near Barking Creek in January, 1866,

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 109

and is now in the British Museum. The species inhabits the
Mediterranean and Black Seas, and nests in marshes or among
sand banks.

THE GBEAT BLACK-HEADED GULL.
(Larus ichthyaetus.)

Plate 35, Figs. 3, 4.
An adult bird, in full breeding plumage, was shot in the spring
of 1859 in the estuary of the Exe, in Devonshire. This specimen
is now in the Exeter Museum. It is an eastern species, breeding
from the basin of the Caspian eastwards to Mongolia.

THE COMMON GULL.

(Larus can us.)
Plate 34, Figs. 5, 6.

The Common Gull breeds in various parts of Scotland and
Ireland, both on the coasts and inland, extending to the Orkneys,
the Shetlands, and the Outer Hebrides. It nests only in the
northern portion of the Palsearctic region, from the Atlantic
to the Pacific. In Europe it is not known to breed south of
the Baltic.

The nest is carelessly constructed of dead grass and other
weeds, and is generally placed on the ground, either in a rocky
niche, on dry sandy earth, or in swampy grass or moss, and a
clump of sedge or a bunch of heath are often chosen. Newly laid
eggs may be obtained during the last half of May in Scotland ;
but north of the Arctic circle I have taken fresh eggs in the
middle of June both in Norway and in Siberia. Three is the
usual number. They are subject to very little variation. The
ground-colour varies from olive-brown to huffish-brown. The
spots are seldom larger than a pea, but occasionally very irregular
in shape, and sometimes elongated into streaks ; they are
generally most abundant on the large end, but occasionally evenly
distributed over the egg. The surface-spots are dark brown,
sometimes approaching black, and the underlying spots, which are
seldom very distinct, are brownish-grey. The eggs vary in length
from 2-35 to 21 inches, and in breadth from 17 to 16 inch. They
are not very easily confused with those of any other British gull.

110 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

THE HERRING GULL.
{Larus argentatus.)

Plate 33, Figs. 1, 2.

The Herring Gull is commonly distributed round the British
coasts, and breeds in more or less abundance in suitable
localities. It is an Atlantic species, in the New World breeding
in British North America as far north as the Arctic circle. In
the Old AVorld its range is comparatively restricted, being confined
to North-west Europe. It breeds on both coasts of Scandinavia
as far east as the Varanger Fjord, and in many places on the
shores of the North Sea and the English Channel.

The nests are often large bulky structures, made of tufts of
half-dry grass and masses of seaweed, and lined with fine grass
and a few straws or stalks of the sea-campion. Sometimes they
are very slight— mere hollows, scantily lined with dry grass.
The eggs of the Herring Gull are usually three in number, but
sometimes only two. The typical eggs of this Gull are indistin-
guishable in colour from eggs of the Common and Great Black-
backed Gulls, but many other varieties are found which do not
occur in either of those species. Some eggs are pale bluish-green
with only a few small brown specks upon them, whilst others, in
which the ground-colour is dark huffish-brown, are not very
uncommon. Occasionally the surface-spots are as large as a
sixpence. The eggs vary in length from 30 to 2 - 7 inches, and
in breadth from 21 to 19 inch. The eggs of this Gull should
be very carefully authenticated, otherwise they are of no value.

THE LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL.

(Larus fuse us.)
Plate 33, Figs. 4, 5.

The Lesser Black-backed Gull is a resident in the British
Islands. During the breeding-season the distribution of the
adult birds is very local south of the Tyne. There are no breed-
ing-places on the east coast south of the Fame Islands, and none
on the south coast east of Devonshire. On the west coast this
Gull breeds in various localities in Wales, Devonshire, and Corn-
wall. In Ireland very few breeding-places are known. The

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. Ill

species has a very restricted range, being confined to the shores
of Western Europe and North Africa.

The nests are placed in various situations. In the Fame
Islands, wherever a suitable niche in the bare rocks occurs, a large
slatternly nest is placed in it, composed of dry grass and the dead
leaves of the various marine plants which grow on the neigh-
bouring islands, frequently mixed with a bunch or two of sea-
weed. On other islands the nests are built on the grass, and
occasionally almost hidden in the masses of bladder campion,
which grows in great profusion in many places.

Three is the usual number of eggs in each nest. They vary
much in size, shape, and tint. The colour ranges from pale
bluish-green to almost white, and from greyish-buff through pale
brown to dark brown. The surface-spots are rich dark brown,
sometimes approaching black, and the underlying spots are
brownish-grey. On some eggs the spots are very small and
evenly distributed over the entire surface ; on others they are
large blotches and very few in number : they are usually largest
and most numerous at the large end, where they often form a
semi-confluent zone. In rare instances the spots assume the
form of fantastically-shaped streaks and blotches. The eggs vary
in length from 2"8 to 2'4 inches, and in breadth from 20 to 1'7
inch. It is very important that eggs of this species should be
carefully identified, as many of them are indistinguishable from
those of the Herring Gull.

THE GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL.

(Larus mar inns.)

Plate 35, Figs. 1, 2.

The Great Black-backed Gull is a resident in the British
Islands, but in the breeding-season it is principally confined to
the vicinity of rocky coasts or mountain lakes. It is conse-
quently much more common in Scotland than in England.

On the European coast its most southern breeding locality is
North-western France ; thence it breeds further north on the
shores of the German Ocean and the Baltic Sea, as far north
as the North Cape, and as far east as the delta of the Petchora.
It nests on the Faroes, in Iceland, and in Greenland as far north

112 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

as lat 68°. On the American continent it breeds in Labrador,
and possibly on the islands of some of the great lakes south of the
Arctic circle and east of the Rocky Mountains, as it has occurred
in Alaska.

Like those of all other Gulls, the nests of this bird are care-
lessly made, and are little more than a depression in the grass or
heath, or even a niche in the bare rock, roughly lined with dead
grass, seaweed, and occasionally ornamented with a twig or two
round the edge, or a few feathers or sheep's wool in the middle.
North of the Arctic circle I have taken fresh eggs during the first
half of June, but in Scotland the first eggs are laid a month or
more earlier.

A full clutch of eggs is three, but two are not unfrequently
found. They vary very slightly, and are usually greyish-brown in
ground-colour, sometimes very slightly tinged with olive, and
occasionally pale brown. The spots are seldom much larger than
a pea, often very irregular in shape, sometimes elongated into
streaks, and, as a rule, evenly but sparingly distributed over the
surface, though it is not uncommon to find eggs where they are
more abundant on the large end. The surface-spots are dark
brown, and the underlying spots brownish-grey. The eggs vary
in length from 3'2 to 30 inches, and in breadth from 22 to
2'0 inches.

The eggs of the Great Black-backed Gull are on an average
larger than those of any other British Gull ; but small examples
are indistinguishable from those of the Glaucous Gull, and from
large examples of the Herring Gull.

THE GLAUCOUS GULL.
(Larus glaucus.)

Plate 32, Figs. 4, 5.

The Glaucous Gull is only a winter visitor to the British
Islands, appearing somewhat irregularly. It is a circumpolar
bird, breeding in the Arctic Ocean on the shores of both Conti-
nents. Athough at Vardo the Glaucous Gull breeds on the
precipitous cliffs, Harvie-Brown and I afterwards found its nest
on one of the low flat islands which separate the lagoon of the
Petchora from the Arctic Ocean.

w~^

( Mill loinol .

Plate 2€

.

,y 1. 1

i?'*

**-■*

i'iii'im

Puffin.

: *t^U» •?*'*.•«*' 3.

Little Auli.

i

"* • *

- *

Black C.uilLmoi

Bruimi<-ha < hiillemol

Plate 27.

I

* ■ i

Great Auk.

Pavrs >n S= Erads&riLitk. Sheffield.

Plate 28.

v N-

Great Auk .

l-s-.-a-.- vErsulsforALidL Sheffield.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 113

The nest is a very careless structure, generally composed of dead
grass and seaweed, and three appears to be the full complement of
eggs, which are usually laid during the first half of June. They
vary in ground-colour from pale brown to pale olive-brown and
pale bluish-green. The surface-spots are dark brown, occasionally
approaching black, and the underlying spots are brownish-grey.
The spots vary in many eggs from the size of a pea downwards,
and are nearly evenly distributed over the surface ; but occasion-
ally they are large bold blotches, principally collected round the
large end of the egg, and often confluent. A very handsome
variety, presumed to be of this species, is obtained at Vardo. The
ground-colour is pale brick -red, and the underlying spots are
violet-grey. Occasionally the spots are well-defined, but generally
they are obscure and distributed over the surface. The eggs vary
in length from 3*3 to 2 - 8 inches, and in breadth from 2 - l to 1/9
inch.

Eggs of the Glaucous Gull are indistinguishable from those of
the Great Black-backed Gull, and small examples resemble large
eggs of the Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gull.

THE ICELAND GULL.

{Lams leucopterus.)

Plate 33, Fig. 3.

This species is only a winter visitor to our shores, and one
which appears with great irregularity. It is only a winter visitor
to Iceland, but is found breeding in Greenland and on Jan Mayen
Island. The remarks published on the nest and eggs of this
species in my " History of British Birds" refer to Larus glaucus,
as Mr. Howard Saunders has shown that the Gull from Alaska is
that species, and not true L. leucopterus.

The eggs appear to be three in number when the full clutch is
laid, and they vary in colour from pale greyish-buff to buffish-
brown and pale olive. The surface-markings, varying in size
from a large pea to a speck, are rich brown or pale brown in
colour, and are pretty evenly distributed over the entire surface of
the egg. The underlying markings are large, numerous, and
conspicuous, and are violet-grey. Some eggs are much more

H

114 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

boldly marked than others, the spots being often confluent and
forming an irregular zone round the larger end. They vary in
length from 2'85 to 2'5 inches, and in breadth from 1'93 to 1*8
inch. It is impossible to distinguish the eggs of the Iceland Gull
from those of the Lesser Black-backed Gull and the Siberian
Herring-Gull (L. a/finis). Eggs of the Common Herring-Gull
resemble them closety, but are, on an average, slightly larger and
richer in colour.

THE KITTIWA K E.
(Larus tridactylus.y

Plate 32, Figs. 1, 2.

The Kittiwake is one of the most abundant of the British Gulls,
but as it is exclusively a rock bird, its colonies are confined to
certain districts. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding on the coasts
of the Arctic Ocean, and on Iceland, the Faroes, Spitsbergen, and
Novaya Zemlya. In the Atlantic its breeding range extends along
the coast of Norway as far south as lat. 62°, south of which there
appears to be no breeding stations except those on the British
Islands and on the rocky coasts of Brittany. In Asia it breeds as
far south as the Kurile Islands, and on the west coast of the Pacific
as far south as the Aleutian Islands. On the west coast of the
Atlantic it is not known to breed further south than Labrador.

The Kittiwake's nest is better made than is usual with the
Gulls. In some districts the foundation is made of turf, with the
soil adhering, which the salt spray and wet feet of the birds soon
turn into a kind of mortar. This foundation is finished off into a
nest made of seaweed, pieces of marine vegetation, and finally
lined with dry grass and sometimes a few feathers.

The eggs are two or three in number, but in some cases four
are laid ; they vary in ground-colour from pale greenish-blue and
olive-brown to pale buff and buffi sh-brown, spotted and blotched
with rich reddish-brown and with underlying markings of pale
brown and grey. On some eggs the spots are small and evenly
distributed over the whole surface, but on others the blotches are
large and confluent, and form an irregular zone round the large

* Rissa tridactyla — Saunders, Manual, p. G67.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 115

end. Some specimens are very sparingly marked with a few
large blotches here and there. The underlying markings are
numerous, large, and very conspicuous, and on some eggs are the
preponderating ones, the surface-spots being only represented by
a few indistinct blotches or dark brown ^streaks. The eggs vary
in length from 2 "25 to 2'0 inches, and in breadth from 1'68 to 1'5
inch. The eggs of the Kittiwake are not easily confused with
those of any other British species.

THE IVOKY GULL.
(Larus eburneus.)*

Plate 32, Fig. 3.

The Ivory Gull is one of the very few birds which are residents
in the Arctic regions, and is only a rare straggler to the British
Islands. Except perhaps on the icy shores of Greenland, it
does not probably breed more than a thousand miles from the
North Pole. Within this limit, wherever land has been found,
the Ivory Gull has been observed during the breeding-season — ■
in Spitsbergen, Franz-Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya, Bennett
Island, Herald Island, the Parry Islands, and Grinnell Land. It
generally breeds in colonies on inaccessible cliffs. Dr. Malmgren
obtained its eggs in Spitsbergen on the 7th of July, 1861, where
it was breeding on the side of a steep limestone precipice several
hundred feet high, in company with the Kittiwake and the
Glaucous Gull.

The nests were shallow depressions in the soil, carelessly lined
with dead grass, moss, other weeds, and a few feathers.

The Ivory Gull never lays more than two eggs. The specimen
in the Dublin Museum measures 2"45 inches in length, and 1"7
inch in breadth ; the ground-colour is huffish-olive, and the
surface-markings, which are distributed over the entire shell, are
dark brown and pale brown, and the underlying markings, which
are very large and conspicuous, are violet-grey. The eggs appear
to resemble those of the Kittiwake in colour, but those of the
Common Gull in size.

* Pagophila eburnea — Saunders, Manual, p. 669.

116 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE POMATOEHINE SKUA.
( Stercorarius pomatorhinus.)

Plate 37, Fig. 6.

This Skua is a more or less common winter visitor to the British
Islands, occurring more abundantly on the east than on the west
side. It is a circumpolar species, breeding beyond the Arctic circle
on the shores and tundras of both hemispheres. Middendorff, who
found this species breeding near the Taimur Lake in lat. 74° N.,
obtained eggs on the 19th of July.

No nest was made beyond a depression in the moss on the
tundra.

The number of eggs seems to be never more than two, but on
the Yalmal Peninsula Finsch never found more than one nestling
with the parents. The eggs vary in ground-colour from dark
russet-olive to pale olive ; the surface-spots are often blurred,
and are generally most abundant round the large end, where
they are sometimes confluent, and are very irregular in shape,
varying in size from that of a large pea downwards, and are
of a dull reddish-brown in colour ; the underlying spots are
dull greyish -brown. They vary in length from 2'4 to 2'25
inches, and in breadth from 17 to 16 inch. They are indis-
tinguishable from certain varieties of the eggs of Kichardson's
Skua and the Common Gull.

EI CHARD SON'S SKUA.

( Stercorarius richardsoni.) *

-Plate 37, Figs. 1, 2.
Richardson's Skua is by far the most common species of the
genus which visits the British Islands, but its best known
breeding-places are on the Outer Hebrides, principally North and
South Uist, and on the Orkney and Shetland Islands. Booth
found it nesting on the moors in Caithness, and it is said to breed
regularly in Sutherlandshire. It is a circumpolar bird, breed-
ing in the Arctic and Sub-arctic regions of both hemispheres,
including the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Spitsbergen, and Novaya
Zemlya.

* Stercorarius crepidatus — Saunders, Manual, p. 675.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 117

The nest is a mere depression in the ground, scantily lined with
a little dry grass and occasionally a few dead leaves.

Two is the normal number of eggs, but sometimes birds have
been found sitting on a solitary egg, and in rare instances three
eggs have been found in the same nest. Few eggs vary more in
shape than those of Eichardson's Skua, some being very long and
pointed, others almost round. They vary in ground-colour from
russet-brown to pale olive ; the overlying spots are dark brown,
sometimes almost black, generally evenly though somewhat
sparingly distributed over the entire surface, but occasionally
most of them are collected in a ring round the larger end, where
they are sometimes confluent ; the shape of the spot is very
fantastic, many of them are prolonged into streaks, and they vary
in size from that of a large pea downwards ; the underlying spots
are few, very inconspicuous, and pale greyish-brown in colour.
The eggs vary in length from 2"55 to 2"0 inches, and in breadth
from 1'7 to 1*55 inch. It is almost impossible to give any
character by which the eggs of this bird may be distinguished
from certain varieties of those of the Common Gull, Black-headed
Gull, and Pomatorhine Skua.

BUFFON'S SKUA.

(Stercorarius bujfoni.)*

Plate 37, Fig. 5.

Buffon's Skua, or the Long -tailed Skua, as it is sometimes
called, is a somewhat rare visitor on migration to the British
Islands. The range of the species is, during the breeding-season,
more northerly than that of Eichardson's Skua, and is confined
to the Arctic regions of both hemispheres.

The nest is a slight depression in the grass or moss, lined
sparingly with a little dry grass.

The number of eggs is almost invariably two ; but in very rare
instances one only, or as many as three, are reported to have been
found. They are precisely similar in colour to those of Eichard-
son's Skua, and are subject to the same variations, but on an
average they are slightly smaller in size. They vary in length
from 2'2 to 1*9 inch, and in breadth from 16 to 1'4 inch.

* Stercorarius parasiticus — Saunders, Manual, p. 677.

118 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE GEEAT SKUA.

(Stercorariiis ca tarrhactes.) *

Plate 37, Figs. 3, 4.

The only locality in the British Islands where the Great Skua
is known to breed is in the Shetlands, and even there incessant
persecution has driven it from all its old stations, with the
exception of one on Unst and a second on the neighbouring"
island of Foula. It is an oceanic bird, and is only known to breed
in Iceland, the Faroes, and on the Shetlands, though it probably
also breeds in Hudson Strait in North America.

It makes a somewhat slight nest, treading a hollow in the moss
nearly a foot in diameter, and lining it with bits of moss, a little
dead grass, and a feather or two.

The usual number of eggs is two, but in some instances it is
said that one only is found. The eggs vary in length from 3'0 to
2" 7 inches, and in breadth from 2'0 to 1'9 inch. They vary in
ground-colour from pale huffish- brown to dark huffish -brown ;
the overlying spots are dark brown, and the underlying ones are
greyish-brown, generally most thickly distributed round the large
end, where they are sometimes confluent, and usually varying
from the size of a pea downwards, and never very conspicuous.
They bear a close resemblance to brown varieties of the eggs of
the Lesser Black-backed and Herring Gulls, but the spots always
appear duller, in consequence of the less difference in colour
between the markings and the ground-colour.

FAMILY CHARADBIIDM,

OB PLOVEBS.

As might be expected in a family of birds so strictly migratory,
as a rule, as the Plovers, only seventeen of the British species
visit us on passage to and from their northern breeding-grounds,
while as many as twenty-three are accidental visitors only. The
species which nest are sixteen in number.

* Megalestris catarrhactes— Saunders, Cat. B, Brit. Mus., XXV., p. 315.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 119

THE OYSTER CATCHER.
(Hamatopus ostralegus.)

Plate 38, Fig. 8.

The Oyster Catcher is comparatively rare on the low-lying
coasts or those which are much frequented. North of Yorkshire
and Lancashire, and throughout the entire coast-line of Scotland,
it is much more common, and in many localities breeds in
abundance. It frequents nearly all the adjacent islands, in-
cluding the Orkneys, Shetlands, and the Hebrides, and even
isolated St. Kilda. It is commonly distributed on the Irish
coasts, and is found from the Atlantic to the valley of the Ob.

The nest is merely a little hollow amongst the rough shingle
and broken shells, or in the sand. It is about six inches across,
and about an inch deep, and is lined with little scraps of shells
and small pebbles, generally more or less neatly and smoothly
arranged.

The eggs of the Oyster Catcher are three, and occasionally four,
in number, sometimes only two, but three is the usual clutch.
The ground-colour is pale buff, sometimes pale brownish-buff,
blotched, spotted, and streaked with dark brown, and with under-
lying markings of grey. Some eggs are much more streaked
than others ; some are uniformly spotted over the entire surface,
others have most of the markings in an irregular zone round the
large end. They vary in length from 2"35 to 2 - 07 inches, and in
breadth from l - 6 to 1*47 inch. Some eggs of the Oyster Catcher
are indistinguishable from exceptionally dark eggs of the Stone-
Curlew ; but the latter are, on an average, smaller, and the
markings are not so dark and decided ; others somewhat resemble
certain varieties of those of the Sandwich Tern.

THE TURNSTONE.

(Ch aradrius in terpres.) *
Plate 38, Figs. 7, 9.
The Turnstone must be regarded as a visitor to the British
Islands on spring and autumn migration, but a few remain during

* Strepsilns interpres — Saunders, Manual, p, 541. Arenaria interpres — Sharpe,
Handb., III., p. 170.

120 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

winter. It is more numerous in Scotland and Ireland than in
England, and in the former country it may possibly breed. Its
breeding-range is supposed to extend as far north as land exists,
and it nests in the Arctic portion of both hemispheres.

The nest is very slight, composed of a few bits of dry herbage
or withered leaves, scratched into a little hollow, which is usually
selected, under the shelter of a tuft of herbage, or under a broad-
leaved plant, or behind a bush.

The eggs are four in number, differing considerably from those
of the typical Plovers, and approaching much more closely those
of the Sandpipers. They vary from pale olive-green of different
shades to pale buff in ground-colour, dashed, clouded, spotted, and
blotched with olive-brown and very dark brown, and with under-
lying markings of purplish-grey. Some specimens are boldly
streaked with dark brown, especially on the larger end, others
have most of the larger markings running in an oblique direction
round the surface. Some are much more richly marked than
others ; occasionally the markings are blurred and indistinct,
whilst on others they are bold and well denned. They vary in
leneth from 1*7 to 1'52 inch, and in breadth from 1*2 to l'l inch.

THE LITTLE-EINGED PLOVEE.
(Charadrius minor.)*

Plate 40, Fig. 2.

The Little-ringed Plover is a very rare straggler to England,
and has not hitherto been detected in Scotland or Ireland. It is
a summer visitor to the whole of Europe north of the basin of
the Mediterranean, and south of about lat. 60°, between which
and the Arctic circle it can only be regarded as an accidental
straggler. It is a resident in the basin of the Mediterranean.
On the Asiatic continent it is a summer visitor throughout the
Palgearctic region, as far north as lat. 60°, and a winter visitor
throughout the greater part of the Oriental region.

The eggs are seldom laid before May, often not until June.
It makes very slight provision for them, merely scratching a
little hollow in the sand or shingle, which it treads into a very

* JEgmlitis curonicus (Gm ) — Saunders, Manual, p. 162. M. dubia (Scop,)— Sharpe,

Handb. III., p. 162.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 121

neat, round, shallow basin, in which the eggs are laid without
any lining. They are four in number, pyriform in shape, pale
buff in ground-colour, speckled and streaked with surface-spots of
dark and light brown, and with underlying markings of inky-grey.
The spots are pretty evenly distributed over the surface, but are
usually most numerous on the large end. The eggs vary in
length from 1*2 to 1*15 inch, and in breadth from 0.9 to 0"8o inch.
In the streaky nature of their markings the eggs of this bird show
an affinity with those of the Kentish Plover, but their lighter
colour, more delicate markings, and smaller size readily distin-
guish them.

THE GREATER RINGED PLOVER.
(Charadrius hiaticula major.)*

Plate 40, Figs. 1, :\.

The large form of Ringed Plover, which inhabits the British
Islands, is very generally distributed in all suitable localities, but
is most common on the sandy coasts, though it occurs in con-
siderable numbers in favourable inland districts, as on the banks
of large rivers and the shores of lochs. It is found on most of
the adjoining islands, including the Orkneys and Shetlands, the
Outer Hebrides and the Channel Islands. It breeds also in Green-
land, Iceland, Spitsbergen, and Novaya Zemlya. The smaller
form (C. hiaticula) is a regular summer visitor to the whole
of Europe north of the Alps, and to Asia at least as far east
as the Taimur Peninsula, and possibly as far as Bering Straits.
This smaller form is also found occasionally on the southern
and eastern coasts of England.

The Ringed Plover makes little or no nest. It contents itself
by scratching a little hollow in the sand, less frequently in shingle,
or even takes advantage of a hole already formed ; but occasionally
it deposits its eggs on the bare flat sand.

The eggs are four in number, and do not vary much in colour.
They are very pale buff or stone-colour, spotted with blackish-
brown and with underlying markings of inky-grey. The spots
are pretty evenly distributed over the surface, but on many
specimens are most numerous on the large end, and vary in size
from specks to that of a very small pea, the average being about

*s£gialitis hiaticula— Saunders, Manual, p. 523 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 158.

122 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

as big as a No. 10 shot. The eggs are pyriform in shape, and vary
in length from 155 to 1'3 inch, and in breadth from 1*05 to 0'98
inch, the larger dimensions being those of British examples.

THE KENTISH PLOVEE.
(Charadrius cantianus.) *

Plate 40, Figs. 4, 6.

This is one of the most local of British birds, and has only
occurred, more or less sparingly, on the south and east coasts of
England, as far north as Flamborough Head in Yorkshire, and
as far west as Cornwall. Its only breeding-places in this country
appear to be on the coasts of Kent and Sussex. So far as is
known, the Kentish Plover only nests on the margins of salt-lakes
or on the sea-shore ; nevertheless its breeding-range extends from
the Atlantic to the Pacific.

The nest is very simple, a little hollow scratched in the sand or
amongst the shingle. This hole seldom or never contains any
lining material, and the eggs are laid on the bare sand. Some-
times a site is selected amongst the drifted seaweed, above the
usual high-water mark.

The eggs are three or four in number, and from the great
resemblance they bear to the colour of surrounding objects they
are difficult to find. They vary from light to dark buff in ground
colour, and are spotted, scratched, and blotched with blackish-
brown, and with underlying markings of inky-grey. Some eggs
are much more richly coloured than others ; some have the mark-
ings composed of blotches and spots, others of streaks, specks, and
scratches. They vary in length from 135 to 115 inch, and in
breadth from - 95 to 0'85 inch.

THE ASIATIC PLOVEE.

{Charadrius asiaticus.) t

An adult male of this eastern Plover was shot in May, 1890,
near Yarmouth. It breeds in the basins of the Caspian and Aral

* JEgialitis cantianus (Lath.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 5*27. JE. alexandrina (L.) —

Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 16G.

f Octhodromus asiaticus — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 150.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 123

Seas, and winters in Africa. It appears to prefer sandy plains
sparsely covered with vegetation, but when these become parched
for want of rain it frequents the banks of rivers or inland seas.
Thus it is found on the shores of the Caspian, and possibly on
those of the Red Sea. Its line of migration appears to be across
Arabia to the valley of the Upper Nile, and winters in Africa
south of the line.

THE KILDEEE PLOVER.
(Charadrius vociferus.) *

Plate 39, Fig. 2.

This American species has occurred twice in England — once in
Hampshire and once in the Scilly Islands. It is a well-known
American Plover, breeding in the temperate portions of the
Nearctic region, and migrating south in winter to Central and
South America as far as Peru and Chili.

The nest is very simple, being nothing but a hollow in the
ground, sometimes lined with a few scraps of herbage.

The eggs are four in number, pale buff in ground-colour,
blotched and spotted with blackish - brown, and underlying
markings of greyish-brown. They vary in length from 1'6 to
145 inch, and in breadth from 11 to 105 inch.

THE DOTTEREL.
{Charadrius morinellus.) t

Plate 30, Figs. 4, 6.

The Dotterel is principally known as a migrant to England ;
but a few may possibly still stay to breed on some of the most
secluded mountains in the Lake District. Its favourite breeding-
grounds in the British Islands are in the wildest parts of Scotland.
It breeds on the tundras above the limits of forest growth from
the Atlantic to the Pacific, and winters in Africa north of the
equator. No nest is made.

* JEgialitis vocifera — Saunders, Manual, p. 529. Oxyechus vociferus — Sharpe,

Handb., III., p. 155.
f Eudromias morinellus — Saunders, Manual, p. 521 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 152.

124 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The eggs vary in ground-colour from greyish-buff to ochraceous-
buff, with sometimes the faintest possible tinge of olive, and are
blotched and spotted with rich dark brown, and with underlying
markings of inky-grey. The surface -markings are generally
large, concealing a large portion of the ground-colour, and are
often confluent, especially on the larger end of the egg. Some
eggs have the spots much larger than others, but on most of them
they are pretty evenly distributed over the entire surface. The
underlying spots are small and remarkably few in number. The
eggs vary considerably in shape, some being almost as pointed at
the large end as at the small, whilst others are pear-shaped ; they
vary in length from 1*75 to 15 inch, and in breadth from 1*17 to
l'l inch. The only eggs of a British bird at all likely to be con-
fused with those of the Dotterel are certain varieties of those of
the Arctic Tern, some of which are almost indistinguishable from
those of the Dotterel, but the latter have fewer and smaller
underlying markings.

THE GOLDEN PLOVER.
(Charadrius pluvia lis.)

Plate 39, Figs. 1, 3.

The Golden Plover is very local in England during the breeding
season, south of Derbyshire. It is said to breed in the extreme
south-west of England and in several localities in Wales, but its
true home is on the moors and mountains of Scotland and Ireland.
In Europe, the chief breeding-places of the Golden Plover are the
fjelds of Norway and the tundras of Russia and Siberia, as far east
as the valley of the Yenisei ; it also breeds sparingly on similar
ground as far south as the moors of Holland, Belgium and North
Germany.

The nest is rather larger, deeper and better made than that of
the Lapwing, and is composed of bits of dry herbage and scraps
of heath and moss, arranged in a small depression in the ground
or on the top of a tuft, or in a clump of cotton-grass.

The eggs are four in number, and are very beautiful. They
vary in ground-colour from pale buff to rich buff, with occasionally
a tinge of olive, and are spotted and blotched with rich purplish-
brown and brownish-black. The underlying markings are com-

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 125

paratively few, very small and inky-grey. The larger markings
are generally most numerous on the large end of the egg. Many
of the blotches are confluent and cover a large portion of the egg;
but occasionally the markings are small , varying in size from that
of a pea to fine shot. They are pyriform in shape, and vary in
length from 22 to 1*95 inch, and in breadth from 1'5 to 13 inch.
Eggs of the Golden Plover may generally be distinguished from
those of the Lapwing and Grey Plover by their much brighter
colour ; the ground-colour is clearer and less olive, and the mark-
ings are richer. As a rule they are slightly larger in size than
those of the Lapwing.

THE ASIATIC GOLDEN PLOVER
(Charadrius fulvus.)

Plate 39, Fig. 8.

This small race of Golden Plover, distinguished by its smoky-
brown axillaries, has twice been captured in Great Britain ; one
specimen from Norfolk having been purchased in Leadenhall
market, and another having been shot at Stennis, in Orkney.
The species is found over the greater part of Asia, from north to
south. It breeds on the tundra of Siberia, and a nest I found on
the Yenisei, in July, was merely a hollow in the ground on a
piece of turfy land, overgrown with moss and lichen, and was
lined with broken stalks of reindeer moss.

The eggs are four in number, and very closely resemble those of
the Golden Plover, but are slightly smaller. They vary in length
from 192 to 185 inch, and in breadth from l - 32 to 1"27 inch.

THE VIEGINIAN GOLDEN PLOVEE.

(Charadrius virginicus.)

Plate 39, Fig. 5.

This is a slightly larger bird than the Asiatic Golden Plover,

which it resembles in the colour of its axillaries. It nests in the

barren grounds of North America, and extends— in winter — over

the whole of the New World. Dr. Sharpe and some ornithologists

do not admit the distinctness of this form from C. fulvus. It has

twice occurred in Great Britain — once in Perthshire, and on the

other occasion a specimen was picked up in Leadenhall market.

126 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE GREY PLOVER.
(Charadrius helveticus.)*

Plate 39, Figs. 7, 9.

The Grey Plover is a circumpolar bird, but has only been
known to breed on the tundras above the limit of forest-growth.
It appears to be very local in its distribution during the breeding-
season. It is not known with certainty to breed anywhere except
on Kolguev Island, in the valley of the lower Petchora, on the
Taimur Peninsula in the extreme north of Siberia, in Alaska, on
the banks of the Anderson River, and on Melville Peninsula.

To discover the eggs of the Grey Plover was one of the chief
reasons for the expedition to the Petchora made by Mr. Harvie-
Brown and myself, and we were fortunate in finding several
nests, which were rounded and somewhat deep hollows in the
turf, containing a handful of broken slender twigs and reindeer
moss.

The eggs of the Grey Plover are four in number, intermediate
in colour between those of the Golden Plover and the Lapwing,
and subject to variation, some being much browner and others
more olive, none quite as olive as the typical Lapwing's eggs or
as buff as typical ones of the Golden Plover, but the blotching
is in every respect the same ; the underlying spots are equally
indistinct, the surface-spots are generally big, especially at the
large end, but occasionally very small and scattered, and some-
times taking the form of thin streaks. They vary in length from
22 to 1"9 inch, and in breadth from 1/4 to 1" 35 inch.

THE LAPWING.

(Vanellus cristatus.)]

Plate 40, Figs. 7, 9.

The Lapwing or Peewit is the commonest and best known of
the Plovers found in the British Islands. It is generally dis-
tributed through Great Britain and Ireland, breeding in every
county. It is a semi-Arctic species, ranging during the breeding-

* Squatarola helvetica — Saunders, Manual, p. 535; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 138.
f Vanellus cristatus (Bechst.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 539. V. vanellus (L.)— Sharpe,

Handb., III., p. 170.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 127

season from the Atlantic to the Pacific, in Scandinavia up to
the Arctic circle, but in Siberia not further north than lat. 55°.

The site for the nest is very frequently on the bare fallow or
turf in any little depression that may chance to be there. The
footprint of a cow or a horse is very frequently selected. Where
no hole is to hand the birds scratch a little hollow, which is
scantily lined with a few bent sprays of withered heath, or bits
of dead rush, moss, or dry grass, on which the eggs are laid.

The eggs are usually four in number, but the bird has been
known to sit on two or three, probably in cases where the first
clutch have been destroyed ; and in very rare instances as many
as five have been found. They are huffish-brown, light buff, or
olive, and in rare instances pale green in ground-colour, heavily
blotched and spotted with blackish-brown, and with underlying
markings of inky-grey. The eggs of this bird are subject to
much variation. On some the markings are small and evenly
distributed over the entire surface ; on others the blotches are
large and confluent, hiding most of the ground-colour. Some are
very sparingly marked ; others have most of the spots or blotches
in a broad zone round the large end. They are very large for the
size of the bird, varying in length from 2'0 to 1*75 inch, and in
breadth from 14 to 1*28 inch. The eggs of the Lapwing may
be easily distinguished from those of the Golden Plover by their
much browner appearance and, on an average, by their smaller
size.

THE SOCIABLE LAPWING.

(Vanellus gregarius.)*

A specimen of this eastern Lapwing was shot in Lancashire,
in the autumn, about the year 1860. It is an inhabitant of the
steppes of Southern Eussia, extending to the Aral', and wintering
in North-western India, Arabia, and North-western Africa.

The nest has not been described, but is doubtless similar to
those of the Common Lapwing.

The eggs, four in number, are very similar to those of the
last-named species, but the spots appear to be rather more
sparsely distributed. They measure 195 to 165 inch in length,
and 135 to 1'25 inch in breadth.

* Chatusia gregaria—Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 173.

128 EGGS OF BRITISH BIEDS.

THE CREAM-COLOURED COURSER
(Cursor ius gallicus.)

Plate 3(j, Fig. 3.

The present species is only an accidental visitor to Great
Britain and Europe generally. It breeds in the Canary Islands,
and thence through the deserts of Northern Africa to Persia.

The eggs are deposited on the bare ground, and they closely
resemble their surroundings in colour. They are two in number,
of a pale ochraceous buff ground-colour, thickly spotted, blotched,
and freckled with huffish-brown, and with numerous underlying
markings of grey, which give them a very marbled appearance.
They vary in length from 11 to 1'35 inch, and in breadth from
11 to 10 inch.

THE COMMON PBATINCOLE.

(Glareola 2>^'cdincola.)
Plate 36, Figs. 4, 5.

Nearly all of the occurrences of this bird — and more than
twenty instances have been noted — have taken place in spring
and autumn. The Pratincole is a regular summer visitor to the
basin of the Mediterranean, Spain, and the valley of the Lower
Danube. North of these limits it is an accidental visitor to
various parts of Central Europe.

The birds do not make any nest, but lay their eggs upon the
bare ground, seldom, if ever, taking the trouble to scratch a
hollow or to collect what dry grass or seaweed may be at
hand.

The eggs of the Pratincole are very fragile, oval in form, being
scarcely more pointed at one end than the other. They vary in
ground-colour from citron or yellow-ochre to pale slate, richly
spotted all over with streaks and blotches of dark brown,
(approaching black in some instances), mostly so at the large
end. The underlying spots of pale greyish-brown are usually
very distinct, and often impart great beauty to the egg, giving it
a marbled appearance. They vary in length from 1*35 to 11
inch, and in breadth from l'O to 0"9 inch.

IM-.il.' 29.

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Lesser Tern

White winged Black Tern.

White --wmgeel Black Tern.

Roseate Tern.

Whiskered Tern.

Roseate Tern.

Arctic- Tern.

Whiskered Teni .

. BraiLsfbriLitK Sheffield

Plate 30.

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Sandwich Tein.

S ;n irlwich. Tenv.

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SooV Te

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Plate 51

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I

Black Tern

Caspian Tern..

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i.

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< mil- hilled Tern.

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foriLn

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 129

THE AVOCET.

(Himantopus avocetta.)*

Plate 38, Figs. 2, 5.

At the commencement of the present century the Avocet was a
well-known and common summer visitor to the low-lying eastern
counties of England, but is now only known as a straggler on mi-
gration. The increase of population and the drainage of marshes
have restricted the breeding-places of the Avocet in Europe to the
islands off the coast of Denmark and Holland, the marshes of
Southern Spain, the delta of the Ehone, and the lagoons on the
shores of the Black Sea. Further east it is more abundant.

The nests which I found in the valley of the Danube on the
10th of June, 1883, were most of them slight, but some had
more foundation than others.

The eggs of the Avocet are three or four in number, but in
exceptional cases it is said that as many as five have been found.
They are pale bumsh-brown in ground-colour, spotted and
blotched with rich dark brown, and with underlying markings of
grey. They are pyriform in shape, and are subject to but little
variety in colour. On some specimens the spots are small and
evenly dispersed over the entire surface, whilst on others they
more frequently take the form of irregular blotches. They vary in
length from 20 to 1"9 inch, and in breadth from 1'45 to 1'35 inch.
Some eggs of the Avocet are almost indistinguishable from
certain varieties of the eggs of the Grey Plover and the Lap-
wing ; but, as a rule, the eggs of the former are richer in ground-
colour, and those of the latter are smaller, darker, and more
heavily marked.

THE COMMON STILT.

{Himantopus melanopterus.) t

Plate 38, Figs. 4, 6.

There seems to be no evidence that the Common Stilt has ever
bred in our islands ; but it has occurred so many times that it may
fairly be classed as an accidental visitor on migration. It is most
abundant during the breeding-season in India and Ceylon, where

* Recurvirostra avocetta — Saunders, Manual, p. 545: Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 185.
■[Himantopus candidus (Bonn.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 547. H. himantopus— Sharpe,

Handb., III., p. 188.

130 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

its numbers are increased during winter. West of India it is a
regular summer visitor to Afghanistan, Turkestan, North Persia,
Palestine, Asia Minor, to the salt lakes of the Kalmuk and Kirghis
Steppes, the lagoons on the shores of the Black Sea, the delta of
the Rhone and the marismas of Southern Spain and Portugal.

When Mr. Young and I were in the Dobrudscha in 1883 we
found a small colony of seven nests on the 7th of June. They
were flat, and stood from two to three inches above the level of
the water ; the slight hollow was about six inches across, and
the nest was about eight inches in diameter at the surface of the
water. They were entirely composed of broken bits of old dead
reeds, the slenderest pieces being reserved for the lining.

The eggs of the Common Stilt are pale huffish-brown in ground-
colour, spotted, blotched and streaked with blackish-brown, and
with underlying markings of inky-grey; some have the ground-
colour much richer than others, and the character of the markings
is subject to considerable variety. Some eggs are boldly and
clearly blotched, a few of the larger blotches being connected by
irregular streaks ; others are blotched, but the colour is paler and
the blotches are not so clearly denned. Most of the markings
are on the surface, and on some specimens pale and dark brown
blotches and spots occur. The eggs are pyriform in shape, and
vary in length from 1'85 to 15 inch, and in breadth from 1'32 to
1*1 inch. They are not easily confused with the eggs of any
other British species, but only differ in size from those of the
Avocet.

THE GREY PHALAROPE.

(Ph a la rap us fulicarius.)*

Plate 38, Fig. 3.

The Grey Phalarope must be regarded as a rare accidental
visitor to our shores, but one which, like the Waxwing, occasion-
ally appears in great numbers. It is a circumpolar bird, and
breeds in Iceland, Spitsbergen, and in the Taimur Peninsula,
as well as in Arctic America from Alaska to Greenland.

The birds are said not to make any nest, but to deposit their
four eggs in a slight depression in the grass, or amongst the
shingle ; occasionally a few leaves are added as a lining.

* Crymophilus fulicarius — Sharpe, Handb,, III., p. 193.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 131

The eggs of the Grey Phalarope are four in number. The
ground-colour is pale huffish -brown, slightly tinged with olive.
They are profusely spotted and blotched with very dark brown,
the spots being largest and frequently confluent at the large end
of the egg ; the underlying spots are few in number and very pale
greyish-brown. They vary in length from P28 to 1'2 inch, and
in breadth from 0"9 to 0'85 inch. The eggs of this species very
closely resemble those of the Bed-necked Phalarope, but may
generally be distinguished by their larger size.

THE BED-NECKED PHALABOPE.

Phala rop us hyper bo re us .
Plate 38, Fig. 1.

The Bed-necked Phalarope formerly bred in the counties of
Perth and Inverness, in the Orkneys, and also in Sutherland and
the Isle of Skye, but it now only nests sparingly in the Orkneys,
Shetlands, and in the Outer Hebrides. It is a circumpolar bird,
nesting principally on the tundras above the limit of forest-growth
as far north as land extends in the eastern hemisphere, and in the
western hemisphere up to lat. 73°. It rarely breeds south of the
Arctic circle ; but above the pine-regions of the Dovref jeld it nests
as far south as lat. 62°, and on the Pacific coast Middendorff found
it nesting on the west shores of the Sea of Ochotsk as far south
as lat. 55°. It is a summer visitor to Greenland, Iceland, and the
Faroes.

The nest is simply a slight depression in the ground, very much
like that of a Snipe.

The eggs of the Bed-necked Phalarope are four in number, and
vary in ground-colour from pale buff and rich ochraceous-buff to
pale olive, thickly blotched, spotted and speckled with rich umber-
brown, blackish-brown and pale brown, and with a few greyish
underlying markings. Some eggs are much more boldly and
richly spotted than others, and on some many of the markings
take an oblique direction. The spots are largest and finest round
the large end of the egg, sometimes entirely covering it. They
vary in length from 1"2 to 1*05 inch, and in breadth from 0'85 to
0"8 inch. The eggs of this bird resemble very closely those of the

132 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Grey Phalarope : the character and colour of the markings are pre-
cisely the same, but they may almost invariably be distinguished
by their smaller size.

WILSON'S PHALAKOPE.
(Phalaropus loilsoni.) *
This American species has occurred but once in England, near
Market Bosworth, in Leicestershire. It nests throughout tem-
perate North America. The eggs vary from a fawn colour to a
rufous-drab, profusely spotted and speckled with shades of rufous-
brown, more thickly at the large end. They measure about 135
inch in length, and 0'95 inch in breadth.

THE COMMON CURLEW.

(Numenius arquatus.)
Plate 45, Figs. 4, 5.

The breeding-grounds of the Curlew are principally confined to
the moors and uplands of the north of England, Scotland, and
Ireland. It nests sparingly in the wilder districts of Cornwall and
Devonshire, is common on the mountains of Wales, but is never
known to nest in the low-lying counties of the east and south of
England. Its breeding-range extends throughout Northern and
Central Europe, including South Russia.

The nest is very slight and shallow, and about ten inches
across; it consists of a little hollow, either one formed naturally
or by the birds themselves, lined with a few bits of herbage, a
sprig or two of heath, or a few dead leaves or bits of broken rush.

Four is the full complement of eggs, but instances have been
known where five have been found, one of them being doubtless
the produce of another female. They vary in ground-colour from
dark or light olive-green to brownish-buff, spotted and blotched
with olive-brown and dark blackish-brown, and with underlying
markings of purplish-grey. The markings are generally distri-
buted over the entire surface of the shell, but occasionally they
form an irregular zone round the large end ; and sometimes
the spots are few in number, large, bold, and unusually rich in
colour. Sometimes a few streaky lines of very dark brown, or a
* Steganopus tricolor (V.)— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 202.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 133

few minute specks of the same colour, are seen amongst the other
markings. The eggs vary considerably in shape, some being much
rounder than others, but they are usually pyriform ; they vary in
length from 2*8 to 2*45 inches, and in breadth from 195 to 1*75
inch.

THE WHIMBREL.
(Nu menius p hceop us.)

Plate 45, Figs. 1, 2.

So far as is known, the only breeding-places of the Whimbrel
in the British Islands are in the Orkneys and Shetlands. The
species breeds in the Arctic regions of Europe and Asia, from
Scandinavia to the Petchora, but, like the Grey Plover, it appears
to be very local.

The nest is very slight, a little hollow amongst the heath, or
under the shelter of a tuft of coarse grass, in a dry part of the
swamp, and is lined with a few scraps of dry herbage.

The eggs are usually laid at the end of May, and from that date
they may be obtained until the end of June. They are four in
number, and are very similar to those of the Curlew. They are
olive-green of different shades or pale brownish-buff in ground-
colour, spotted and blotched with olive-brown or reddish-brown,
and with grey underlying markings. On some eggs most of the
spots take the form of an irregular zone round the large end, on
others they are evenly distributed over the entire surface ; whilst
some are only sparingly marked with large blotches and tiny
specks. They vary in length from 2*5 to 2*2 inches, and in
breadth from 1*75 to 1'6 inch. In actual bulk the eggs of the
Whimbrel are always smaller than those of the Curlew. It is
almost impossible to distinguish certain eggs of the Whimbrel
from some eggs f Richardson's Skua ; but as a rule those of the
latter bird are smaller and not so pointed at the small end.

THE ESQUIMAUX CURLEW.

(Numenius borealis.)

Plate 45, Fig. 3.

Six occurrences in the British Islands of the Esquimaux Curlew

have been recorded. It has never occurred on the continent of

Europe, being a strictly Nearctic species, breeding on the Ameri-

134 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

can tundras above the limit of forest-growth, and occasionally
crossing to the Siberian side of Bering Straits. It winters
throughout South America below the Equator.

It is said to breed on the open plain or tundra, and its nest is very
slight, consisting of a little hollow in the ground, lined with a few
bits of dry herbage, or one or two withered leaves and bents.

In this scanty cradle the female deposits four eggs ; but Richard-
son once observed a female sitting on three. I have figured an egg
of this bird which is in the collection of my friend Mr. Philip
Crowley ; it is pale olivaceous-buff in ground-colour, spotted and
blotched with light and dark brown, and with faint underlying
markings of greyish-brown. In the series of eggs collected by
MacFarlane near the Anderson River, and now in the collection
of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington, the ground-colour
varies from greyish-buff to greenish-olive on the one hand, and
to huffish-brown on the other. The overlying spots are dark
reddish-brown, sometimes small, but generally bold, and are
usually most abundant, often confluent, round the large end of
the egg ; the underlying markings, generally conspicuous, are
pale greyish-brown. The eggs are pyriform in shape, and vaiy
in length from 212 to 1"9 inch, and in breadth from 15 to 1'33
inch.

BARTRAM'S SANDPIPER.

(Totanus bartrami.)*

Plate 44, Figs. 10, 12.

Eight examples of Bartram's Sandpiper have been obtained
in Great Britain. The species inhabits temperate North America.

The nest is very slight — a small depression in the ground,
carelessly lined with a few straws or bits of herbage, which is all
the provision that is made.

The eggs are always four in number, and are laid by the second
week in June. They vary in ground-colour from pale greyish-buff
to pale bumsh-brown ; rather sparingly spotted, and blotched
with reddish-brown and with grey underlying markings. Some
eggs have a few delicate streaks of brown at the large end. The
markings are never very large, varying from the size of a pea to

* Bartramia longicauda (Bechst.) — Saunders, Manual, p. 589; Sharpe, Handb.,

III., p. 207.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 135

a mere speck ; the spots are largest and most numerous round
the large end. The eggs vary in length from 19 to 1"68 inch,
and in breadth from l - 35 to l - 25 inch. The eggs of Bartram's
Sandpiper are very similar in general appearance to those of the
Common and Green Sandpipers, but may always be distinguished
by their larger size.

THE RUFF.
(Tot corns pugnax.)*

Plate 42, Figs. 4, G.

The Ruff is a rare summer migrant to the British Islands, a
few pairs still occasionally breeding in the Norfolk broads ; but it
is more abundant on spring and autumn migration. Formerly it
bred in great numbers in most of the marshy districts of England,
from Northumberland southwards. The Ruff is a western Palae-
arctic species, breeding as far north as land extends, as far south
as the valley of the Danube and the Kirghis Steppes, and as far
east as the Taimur Peninsula and West Dauria, whence it reaches
to, and probably breeds in, the upper valley of the Amoor.

The nest is on the ground, in the middle of a swamp, where
you have to splash through the water amongst rushes, sedge, and
coarse grass, in the midst of a clump of which a depression is
found, and roughly lined with dead grass and sedge. The nest
is very difficult to find, but the bird sits close, and reveals her
treasures as she flies away.

The eggs, in a full clutch, are always four in number, and
somewhat similar to those of the Great Snipe ; indeed some of
them are absolutely indistinguishable from eggs of the latter bird ;
but, as a rule, they are smaller and greener. The ground-colour
varies from an almost neutral pale grey to pale greenish-grey ;
the overlying spots are reddish-brown, and the underlying spots
pale greyish-brown. The spots are not quite so bold as those on
the eggs of the Great Snipe, but they are equal in size to those on
most Sandpipers' eggs, and are occasionally confluent at the large
end. The eggs vary in length from 1*8 to 1'6 inch, and in
breadth from 1*3 to 1'15 inch.

* Machetes pugnax — Saunders, Manual, p. 585. Pavoncella pugnax— Sharpe,
Handb., III., p, 271.

136 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE COMMON SANDPIPER
(Totanus hypoleucus.) *

Plate 43, Figs. 1, 3.

The Common Sandpiper is a well-known summer visitor to the
British Islands. It breeds throughout Scandinavia, but in North
Russia and Siberia it is not found north of the Arctic circle. It
nests in suitable localities throughout Europe, and in Asia as
far south as Turkestan (and possibly Persia), Cashmere, China,
and Japan.

The nest is very simple, a little hollow scratched in the ground,
and lined with a few bits of dry grass, scraps of heather, dead
leaves, or bits of withered rush.

In this slight cradle the female lays four eggs, very large in
comparison with the size of the bird. They vary in ground-
colour from white, with the faintest possible tinge of green, to
pale creamy-buff, speckled, spotted, and blotched with light and
dark reddish-brown, and with underlying markings of inky-grey.
The markings are seldom very large, varying in size from that of
a small pea to a mere speck, and are most numerous on the large
end of the egg. Sometimes the markings are confluent on the
large end, gradually becoming scattered over the rest of the sur-
face. They are pyriform in shape, and vary in length from 1'6 to
1"4 inch, and in breadth from 113 to l'O inch.

THE SPOTTED SANDPIPEE.
(Totanus macularius.) t

Plate 43, Figs. 4, 6.

The Spotted Sandpiper has been recorded from the British
Islands on many occasions, but the number of records admitted to
be correct does not exceed half-a-dozen. The Spotted Sandpiper
has a very similar range in America to that of the Common Sand-
piper in the Old World. In the north it does not quite reach the
Arctic circle ; but it breeds through the United States, migrating
southwards in autumn to winter in Mexico, the West Indies,
Central America, and the northern portion of the South American
continent.

* Tritigoides hypoleucus — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 283.
f Tringoides macularius — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 287.

EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS. 137

It is not known that the Spotted Sandpiper differs from its
European ally in its choice of a nesting-site; but Audubon
remarked that in the colder climate of Labrador it concealed
its nest under ledges of rocks, collected a considerable amount of
moss for the outer walls, and added a compact lining of slender
grasses and feathers of the Eider Duck.

The eggs are four in number, pale buff in ground-colour, with
very dark reddish-brown spots and blotches, which vary in size
from that of a pea down to a speck. The underlying spots are
pale grey in colour, occasionally very large and conspicuous, but
generally small and obscure. The eggs vary in length from 135
to 12 inch, and in breadth from 10 to 09 inch. Compared with
eggs of the Common Sandpiper they are smaller, more boldly
spotted, and the spots are much darker.

THE GEEEN SANDPIPEE.

{Totamis ochropus.)*

Plate 42, Figs. 5, 8.

The Green Sandpiper is principally known in the British
Islands as a frequent visitor on spring and autumn migration.
The breeding-range of the Green Sandpiper reaches from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, in the west extending somewhat north of
the Arctic circle, but in the east scarcely reaching that latitude.

So far as is known it is the only Sandpiper which does not lay
its eggs on the ground. The Green Sandpiper nests in a tree,
but it is not known that it ever builds a nest. Sometimes its
eggs are placed in the fork of a tree-trunk, on the leaves or
lichens and moss which may have accumulated there ; more
often the old nest of a Song Thrush or Mistle Thrush is chosen ;
and in Siberia I have taken the eggs from the old nest of a
Fieldfare in a willow tree, six feet from the ground.

Four is the full clutch of eggs, which vary in ground-colour
from creamy-white to white, with the faintest tinge of olive on
the one hand and to very pale reddish-brown on the other. The
surface-spots are dark reddish-brown, generally most numerous on
the large end of the egg, and seldom larger than No. 4 shot ; the

* Helodromas ochropiis, Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 289.

138 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

underlying markings are similar in size and distribution, but are
pale greyish-brown in colour. They vary in length from 1"6 to 15
inch, and in breadth from 1*15 to 1'05 inch. In general appear-
ance they most nearly resemble eggs of Bartram's Sandpiper and
the Common Sandpiper, between which they are intermediate in
size.

THE SOLITAEY SANDPIPER.
(Totanus solitarius.) *

The Solitary Sandpiper may fairly claim to be admitted into the
British list as a rare accidental visitor, three specimens at least
having been identified.

The species is found during the breeding season on the
American continent as far south as lat. 44°, and northwards
up to the limit of forest-growth, which in the west extends
beyond the Arctic circle, but in the east not nearly so far
north. It winters in South America, in Brazil and Peru.
Whether the similarity in the habits of the two species extends
to the mode of nidification remains to be proved, but at present
the only nest recorded was found on the ground, and further
confirmation respecting the nesting of the species is desirable.

THE WOOD SANDPIPER.

(Totanus glareola .) \

Plate 42, Figs. 1, 3.

The Wood Sandpiper is a somewhat irregular straggler on
spring and autumn migration to the British Islands. It has
only once been known to breed in England, in the now-drained
Prestwick Car, where Mr. John Hancock obtained its eggs on the
3rd of June, 1853. The Wood Sandpiper is a summer visitor
to the whole of Europe north of the valley of the Danube, to
Siberia, Turkestan, Mongolia, and the extreme north of China.
It probably breeds as far north as land extends, as Middendorff
found its nest in lat. 70° on the Taimur Peninsula.

* Helodromas solitarius— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 292 (1896).
f Rhyacophilus glareola— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 275 (1896).

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

139

The nest is a mere hollow in the ground, lined with a few dry
stalks and blades of grass.

The eggs of the Wood Sandpiper vary in ground-colour from
creamy- white to dull buff and very pale olive, and are very hand-
somely spotted and blotched with rich reddish-brown. The spots
vary in size from a pea downwards, and in the widest part of the
egg are often confluent. Occasionally the spots are evenly distri-
buted over the egg, but at the smaller end they are generally less
in size and more scattered, and in rare instances very few and far
between. The underlying spots are pale brown, and seldom
very conspicuous. They vary in length from 155 to 1"4 inch,
and in breadth from 11 to 1*0 inch.

THE YELLOWSHANK.
(Totanus flavipes.)

Plate 44, Fig. 11.

The Yellow-legged Sandpiper, or Yellow-legs as it is variously
called, is an American bird, which is said to have occurred twice
in the British Islands. The species breeds in the Arctic regions
of the American continent, from Alaska to Greenland. It is
said occasionally to nest as far south as Lake Michigan.

Mr. MacFarlane and others describe the nest as a mere depres-
sion in the ground. Sometimes it consists of a slight hollow,
lined with a few leaves and twigs.

The eggs are four in number and very handsome. The fine
series of eggs of this species in the Smithsonian Institution vary
in ground-colour from creamy- white to pale greyish-brown. The
surface-spots are dark, rich, reddish-brown, and vary in size from
a large pea downward, many of them becoming confluent and
forming large irregular blotches, or occasionally taking the form
of streaks. Most of the markings are generally on the large end
of the egg, but on some specimens they are more evenly distributed
over the entire surface. The underlying markings are pale grey,
or greyish-brown, and are large and conspicuous. The eggs vary
in length from 1*7 to 16 inch, and in breadth from 12 to 108
inch. In colour they resemble those of the Greenshank, but
in size they are on an average slightly less than those of the
Redshank.

140 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE MAKSH SANDPIPER,

{Totanus stagnatilis.)

One specimen of the Marsh Sandpiper has been recorded from
England, having been shot by the Hon. Walter Rothschild, on
the Tring reservoirs, in October, 1887. As, however, the specimen
was afterwards lost, it will be well to await the capture of other
examples before fully admitting the species into the British list.

THE COMMON REDSHANK.
{Totanus calidris.)

Plate 44, Figs. 2, 5.

The Redshank is one of the commonest and best known of all
the Waders found in the British Islands. It breeds in all suitable
localities throughout the whole of Europe (excepting that, east of
the White Sea, its range gradually drops down to lat. 58° in the
Urals) and in North Africa. In the basin of the Mediterranean
it appears to be a resident, but to the whole of South Africa it is
only a winter visitor. In Siberia its breeding-range only extends
as far north as lat. 55°, and appears to be confined to the moun-
tains of Southern Siberia and Turkestan. It breeds in the
Caucasus, and probably on some of the Persian highlands.

The nest is very slight : in many cases the centre of a tuft of
grass is trodden down into a receptacle for the eggs, but at other
times a few dead bents, straws, or scraps of moss, heath or reed
are placed as a lining to the selected hollow.

The eggs are four in number, rather large for the size of the
bird, and pyriform in shape. They vary in ground-colour from
very pale buff to rich ochraceous-buff, and are spotted and blotched
with rich dark brown surface-markings, and with underlying spots
of paler brown and grey. On some eggs a few streaky lines of
dark brown are pencilled on the large end. Most of the stronger
markings are on the large end of the egg, and some specimens
are more finely and handsomely spotted than others. They vary
in length from 19 to 165 inch, and in breadth from 13 to 117
inch. They are not easily confused with the eggs of any other
British Wader, being yellower in colour than those of the Ruff
or Great Snipe, which they somewhat resemble.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 141

THE DUSKY REDSHANK.

(Totanus fuscus.)
Plate 44, Figs. 7, 9.

The Dusky, or Spotted, Redshank is a somewhat rare visitor to
the British Islands on spring and autumn migration, occurring
most often at the latter season. It is not known with certainty
to breed anywhere south of the Arctic circle, but on the tundra
above the limit of forest-growth it nests from Lapland to Bering
Straits, though nowhere very abundantly.

Wolley states that the nests found by him in Lapland were a
slight depression in the ground, which was covered with short
heath and other small plants growing amongst reindeer moss;
they were lined only with a few dead spines of the Scotch fir.

The eggs of the Dusky Redshank are four in number, but are
laid late in May or during the first half of June, sometimes later,
according to season ; they are very handsome, and vary in ground-
colour from pale green to pale brown, heavily blotched and
spotted with rich sepia-brown, and with underlying markings of
violet-grey and brownish -grey. On many eggs a few very dark
brown hair-like lines and scratches occur on the large end. Some
eggs are so richly marked as to hide almost all of the large end ;
others are more evenly spotted over the entire surface. The
markings are generally bold and very clearly defined. The eggs
are pyriform in shape, and vary in length from 195 to 18 inch,
and in breadth from 135 to 125 inch.

THE GREENSHANK.

(Totanus glottis.)*

Plate 41, Figs. 7, 9.
The breeding places of the Greenshank in Scotland are local,
and chiefly situated in the Highlands and in the Hebrides ; but it
nests as far south as the counties of Perth and Argyle. The
geographical distribution of the Greenshank very closely resembles
that of the Dusky Redshank ; but in the west its breeding range
extends further south, and in the east not nearly so far north.

* Totanus cawcens (Gm.)- Saunders, Manual, p. 605. Glottis ncbulavius (Gunn.)
— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 280.

142 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The nest is cunningly concealed amongst the heath and short
herbage, and is very slight, being a mere depression in the ground,
lined with a few bits of dry grass or withered leaves.

The eggs are four in number, placed with their pointed ends
inwards. They vary from creamy-white to buff in ground-colour,
blotched and spotted with rich dark brown, and with underlying
shell-markings of pinkish-brown and grey. The large dark rich
blotches are generally on the large end of the egg, and often form
a zone. Some eggs have the markings no larger than a large pea,
and equally distributed over the entire surface. The underlying
markings are large, and partake of the character of blotches as
well as spots. The eggs vary in length from 2'05 to 1"82 inch,
and in breadth from 1/4 to 1"3 inch. They are not easily
confused with those of any other British species.

THE BAB-TAILED GODWIT.
(Totanus rufus.)*

Plate 42, Figs. 7, 9.

The Bar-tailed Godwit has never been known to breed in
any part of the British Islands, although it has been suspected to
do so. It is entirely confined, during the breeding-season, to the
the Siberian tundra above the limit of forest-growth, from the
Yenisei Valley westwards to Finland and Lapland.

The nest is very slight, a little dry grass or other herbage placed
in a depression in the ground.

The eggs are four in number. They are pale or dark olive-green
in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with darker brown, and
with underlying markings of grey. Two eggs, supposed to be
those of this bird, from the neighbourhood of Archangel, and
taken on the 1st of June, 1880, are very boldly and handsomely
blotched with rich brown, and one specimen is streaked with very
dark brown on the large end. They vary in length from 2 - 39 to
205 inches, and in breadth from 15 to 1"43 inch. It is impos-
sible to give any character by which the eggs of this bird may be
distinguished from those of the much commoner Black-tailed
Godwit, nor are they with certainty to be distinguished from eggs
of Buffon's Skua.

* Limosa lapponica (L.) — Saunders, Manual, p. G07 ; Sharpe, Handb.,111., p. 309.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 143

THE BLACK-TAILED GODWIT.
(Totanus melanurus.)*

Plate 42, Fig. 2.

The Black-tailed Godwit is much rarer in the British Islands
than the Bar-tailed Godwit. It formerly bred in small numbers
in the fens and marshes of the low-lying eastern counties, but
is now never known to do so. The geographical distribution of
the Black-tailed Godwit is almost an exact parallel to that of the
Bar-tailed Godwit, except that the former is never found in the
Arctic regions.

The nest is a mere hollow in the short, coarse herbage, on the
dry part of the ground, somewhat deep, and lined with a handful
of dry grass.

The eggs of the Black-tailed Godwit are four in number, olive-
brown or pale olive-green in ground-colour, indistinctly blotched
and spotted with darker olive-brown ; and with underlying mark-
ings of greyish-brown and pale inky-grey. On some eggs the
markings are very pale and ill-defined. They are pear-shaped,
and vary in length from 22 to 2'05 inches, and in breadth from
1-52 to 145 inch.

THE RED-BBEASTED SNIPE.

(Ercunetes griscus.)\
Plate -41, Fig. 8.

This species breeds throughout the Arctic regions of America,
from Alaska to Greenland, and has occurred accidentally in Great
Britain on some sixteen occasions.

The nests which Mr. MacFarlane obtained in Arctic America
were taken between the 21st of June and the 1st of July, and
were built amongst the vegetation on the marshy borders of small
lakes. They were very slight — a mere depression in the mossy
ground, into which a few dead leaves were scraped as a lining.

The eggs of the Bed-breasted Snipe are four in number, and
vary in ground-colour from pale bumsh-brown to pale greenish-
brown, spotted and blotched with dark reddish-brown, and with
well-marked pale greyish-brown underlying spots. Most of the
blotches and spots are on the large end of the egg, many of them

* Limosa bclgica— Saunders, Manual, Brit. B., p. 609 (1889). Limosa. limosa— Sharpe,

Handb., III., p. 312.
t Macrorhamphus griseus— Saunders, Manual, p. 501 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 306.

144 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

being confluent. A few streaks of very dark blackish-brown are
sometimes seen over the ordinary blotches, and the latter
occasionally take an oblique direction. They are pyriform in
shape, and vary in length from 175 to 155 inch, and in breadth
from 1-2 to 1-08 inch.

THE KNOT.
(Tringa canutus.)

Plate 43, Fig. 10.

Scarcely anything is known of the breeding-places of the Knot,
as young birds only were found by Colonel Fielden and Mr. H. C.
Hart in the Arctic regions during the voyage of the "Alert" and
" Discovery."

A nest found by Mr. Hart during the latter voyage was placed
on the ground under a large flat stone, which was resting on two
others, and was composed of a few leaves and bits of dry grass
loosely put together.

The egg which I have ventured to figure is one of a clutch
of four sent, with the parent bird shot on the nest, to me by
Mr. Verslev, the chief tenor of the opera in Copenhagen, who
received it from Coloniforsteher Bolbre, who procured it in 1875
on Disco, in Greenland, near Godhaven, in lat. 69°.

THE CUKLEW SANDPIPEB.
{Tringa subarquata.) *
The Curlew Sandpiper is not an uncommon bird on migration
in the British Islands. It must breed somewhere in the high
regions of the north, but like those of the Knot, genuine eggs of
the Curlew Sandpiper are still a prize which some adventurous
ornithologist has yet to secure.

THE DUNLIN.

(Tringa alpina.)\

Plate 43, Figs. 7, 9.

The Dunlin is a regular summer visitor to the west of Scotland
and the adjacent islands, including the Outer Hebrides, the
Orkneys and the Shetlands. In England it is a very rare and

* Ancylochilus subarquatus — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 236.
f Pelidna alpina— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 228.

Plate 3?>.

Lesser Black-Tjacked G-uIL.

Lesser Black-Tjacked GaJl.

Pawson&Brailsfora.Litl. SbaBid

Plate 34-.

Black- lieaded <i nil.

Black headed (tvlII.

• .^ *****

I74C'

Adriatic Blank headed CHdl.

Adriatic Black- lieaded Gxdl.

»t%

Cammon. G-xdl.

( ' arm t ion ( r i ill .

Bi-aJsfori LltK Sheffield.

Plate 55.

%

Great Black- Tracked CKiU .

I ^ 4

.1

*+j',yS

r

jpty

(rr-eat Black- Tracked Gull.

Great Black.-liead.ed. GidL.

Paws^r. 8c Bradsfori LitV Sheffiell

Plate 36.

tittle Chill

SSI*

Little Gull

*;

Crsata- coloured Coxirsea

••*"-*,

Caramon Pratincole

m

Ross's GaitL.

Common Pratincole

w

B < map art e's Grill

S abine s Gi il I .

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 145

local bird during the breeding season, and is confined to the
northern counties and a few places on the moors of Cornwall and
Devonshire. It is a circumpolar bird, breeding throughout the
Arctic regions of both continents— in Asia up to lat. 74°, but in
America probably not so far north. The American form is often
considered to be distinct from the European one.

The nest itself is a mere depression, with occasionally a slender
twig or two round the margin, and lined with a little dead grass,
a few roots, or sometimes a little moss.

The eggs, which are always four in number, are subject to great
variation in colour, and are sometimes remarkably handsome.
They are larger than the eggs of the Little Stint or American
Stint, and smaller than those of the Purple Sandpiper and
Common Snipe ; but there are no variations of colour or spot-
ting to be found in the eggs of these four species which are not
occasionally found in eggs of the Dunlin. The ground-colour
varies from pale green to pale brown and buff ; the underlying
spots are few, obscure and grey, but the surface-spots vary from
rich reddish-brown to nearly black ; they are sometimes, chiefly
at the large end, bold, and many of them confluent, but occasion-
ally small and evenly distributed over the surface. On some
eggs the blotches are oblique, resembling a common variety of
the eggs of the Turnstone. They vary in length from 14 to
12 inch, and in breadth from 1*0 to 0"9 inch.

BONAPAKTE'S SANDPIPEE.

{T ring a bonapartii.)*

Plate 43, Fig. 8.

Bonaparte's Sandpiper is another of those American species
that occasionally wanders across the Atlantic to the British
Islands. Upwards of a dozen examples of this bird have been
obtained, principally in October and November. It breeds in the
Arctic regions of North-east America and Greenland, but it has
not occurred west of the Eocky Mountains.

The nest is described as a mere depression in the ground, in
which a few dead leaves are collected to serve as a lining.

* Tringa fuscicoUis (V.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 567. Heteropygia fmcicollis (V.)—
Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 242.
K

146 EGGS OF BKITISH BIBDS.

The eggs are four in number. Those taken by Mr. MacFarlane
are pyriform in shape, olive-brown or brownish-olive in ground-
colour, marked with somewhat bold surface-spots of dark brown,
and underlying spots of greyish-brown. Many of the markings
are confluent on the larger end of the eggs, which measure 1'35
inch in length, and 095 inch in breadth. An egg in my collection
is greyish-buff in ground-colour, thickly spotted over the entire
surface with reddish-brown and with a few larger blotches of the
same colour intermingled, and with numerous underlying markings
of purplish-grey and pale brown.

THE SHAKP-TAILED SANDPIPER

(Tringa acuminata).*

Of this Asiatic Sandpiper two specimens have been obtained in
England, both of the occurrences having taken place near
Yarmouth in autumn. The breeding-home of the species is
undoubtedly North-eastern Siberia, but the nest and eggs have
not yet been described.

THE PUEPLE SANDPIPER

(Tringa maritima.) t

Plate 43, Figs. 2, 5.

The Purple Sandpiper is a winter visitor to the British Islands,
but it is believed to breed in some of the outer Hebrides and the
Shetlands. It is a summer visitor to North Greenland, Spits-
bergen, Novaya Zemlya, and to the Taimur Peninsula, but is a
resident species in South Greenland, Iceland, the Faroes, and on
the Norwegian Coast.

The nest is merely a little hollow scraped in the scanty vegeta-
tion, and lined with a few dry sprigs of moss, or a little dried
grass.

The eggs are four in number and remarkably handsome. They
vary in ground-colour from pale-olive to pale bumsh-brown, boldly

* Heteropygia acuminata — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 244.
f Avquatclla maritima— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 236.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 147

mottled, blotched, and streaked with reddish-brown and very dark
blackish-brown. On some eggs the blotches are large, and chiefly
distributed in an oblique direction round the large end ; on others
they are more evenly distributed over the entire surface ; and on
many, a few very dark scratches, spots, or streaks are scattered
here and there amongst the brown markings. The underlying
markings are numerous and conspicuous, and are pale violet-grey
or greyish-brown in colour. The eggs vary in length from 1'55
to 1"45 inch, and in breadth from l'l to l'O inch. It is almost
impossible to distinguish some eggs of the Purple Sandpiper from
certain varieties of those of the Jack Snipe or the Common Snipe ;
but on an average the ground-colour of the eggs of the two latter
species is less olive. Eggs of the Dunlin resemble very closely
those of the Purple Sandpiper, but are smaller.

THE BEOAD-BILLED SANDPIPER.
(Tringa platyrhyncha) .)*

Plate 40, Figs. 5, 8.

About seven specimens of this species have been obtained in
Great Britain, most of them on the east coast of England. The
Broad-billed Sandpiper is a very local bird during the breeding-
season, but its range extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
The breeding-season in Scandinavia is in the latter part of May
and early in June.

The nest resembles that of a Snipe, and is placed in a tuft of
grass.

The eggs are four in number, bumsh-white in ground-colour,
thickly mottled and spotted with rich chocolate-brown, and
numerous underlying markings of violet-grey. Some eggs are so
thickly marked as to conceal most of the ground-colour ; others
are more sparingly marked, having most of the spots clustered on
the large end, where many of them are confluent, and on these
the underlying markings are larger than usual. They vary in
length from 1'38 to 1'25 inch, and in breadth from 0.95 to 0.87
inch.

* Limicola platyrhyncha — Saunders, Manual, p. 563; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 223.

148 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE PECTOKAL SANDPIPER

(Trin cja pectoralis.)*
Plate 43, Fig. 12.

This species has occurred so often in the British Islands that it
may fairly be regarded as an irregular migrant on autumn
migration. It is confined to Arctic America during the breeding-
season, and wanders in autumn through the United States to
Central America, and even to the extreme north of the South
American continent.

The nest is built in the grass, and placed in some high and dry
situation.

The eggs are very handsome, and closely resemble in colour
those of the American Stint, though they are more than twice
the size. The ground-colour varies from pale buff to pale olive-
brown ; the surface-spots are very large and irregular in shape,
and generally of the richest reddish-brown. Where the surface-
spots are not so crowded as to become confluent and to hide the
ground-colour, the grey underlying spots are very conspicuous.
An egg belonging to the Smithsonian Institution, kindly lent me
to be figured, measures 1'55 inch in length, and 1/05 inch in
breadth.

THE LITTLE STINT.
(Tringa minuta.)\

Plate 44, Figs. 1, 3.

This interesting and charming little Sandpiper is only known
as a visitor on migration to the British Isles. It breeds in great
numbers, though very locally, on the Siberian tundra, from
Kolguev Island and the North Cape, eastwards to the Taimur
Peninsula. This was one of the species whose eggs Mr. Harvie-
Brown and I were in search of when we went to the Petchora
Valley, and there we found it nesting in July.

The nest was like that of other Sandpipers, a mere depression in
the ground, with such dead cloudberry-leaves and other dry material
as was within easy reach to scrape together to serve as lining.

The eggs vary in ground-colour from pale greenish-grey to
pale brown, spotted and blotched with rich brown, and with under-

* Hetcropygia maculata (Vieill.) — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 247.
f Limonites miiiuta— Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 250.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 149

lying markings of greyer brown and purplish-grey. Sometimes a
few very dark brown streaks occur on the large end. The spots
and blotches are generally large, and often confluent on the large
end of the egg. They vary in length from 1*15 to 1.06 inch, and
in breadth from 0'85 to 0"8 inch. The eggs of the Little Stint
probably go through every variation to which those of the
Dunlin are subject.

THE AMEKICAN STINT.

(Tri)iga m in utilla.)*
Plate 44, Fig. 8.

The American form of the Little Stint breeds in the Arctic
regions of the western hemisphere from Alaska to Labrador. It
passes through the United States and the Bermudas on migration
southwards to winter in Mexico, the West Indies, Central America
and the northern portions of South America. It has occurred on
three occasions in Great Britain.

The nest is slight, and consists of a little depression, either
scratched out by the birds, or one selected for the purpose ready
made, scantily lined with a few dead leaves and bits of dry grass.

The eggs are always four in number when the full complement
is laid. In ground-colour they are dull buff, spotted and blotched
with reddish-brown, and with paler and somewhat indistinct
underlying markings. Most of the spots are congregated on the
large end of the egg, often becoming confluent. They are very
handsome eggs, scarcely to be distinguished from those of the
Little Stint, and, except in size, from those of the Dunlin; some-
times the ground-colour is almost concealed by the spots, causing
the eggs to resemble those of the Broad-billed Sandpiper. They
vary in length from 115 to 0'95 inch, and in breadth from 0*85
to 0'75 inch.

TEMMINCK'S STINT.
(Tringa temmincki.) \

Plate 44, Figs. 4, G.

Temminck's Stint is a regular, but by no means common, visitor
to the east and south coasts of England on spring and autumn

* Limonites minutilla — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 255.
t Limonites temminckii — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 257.

150 EGGS OP BRITISH BIRDS.

migration. It is essentially an Arctic bird, breeding in the Old
World portion of the circumpolar region, on the tundra above
the limit of forest-growth, and in similar localities on the banks
of the great rivers as far south as lat. 65° on the shores of the
White Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, to lat. 55° on the shores of
the Sea of Ochotsk.

The nests are mere depressions in the ground, lined with a
little dry grass, and are seldom far from water.

The eggs of Temminck's Stint are four in number, and vary in
ground-colour from pale buff to pale olive and pale greyish-green ;
they are spotted and blotched with reddish-brown and dark brown,
and with underlying markings of pale brown and purplish-grey.
The markings are largest and most numerous on the large end of
the egg, where they are often confluent and form an irregular
zone or a large irregular mass. On many eggs there are a few
dark streaks on the large end, and the small spots are generally
distributed almost evenly over the entire surface. The eggs vary
in length from 12 to 1/05 inch, and in breadth from 087 to 0'8
inch. It is impossible to give any characters by which the eggs
of Temminck's Stint may always be distinguished from those of
the Little Stint. As a rule the eggs of the latter bird are more
buff in ground-colour, and the markings are larger, bolder, and of
a richer brown.

THE SANDEKLING.

( Ca lidris a rena ria.)

Plate 41, Fig. 4.

The Sanderling visits all suitable portions of the coasts of the
British Islands in autumn and in spring, on its way to and from
its northern breeding-grounds. It is a circumpolar bird, and
doubtless breeds throughout the Arctic regions, as it has been
found on the Anderson Eiver (lat. 68°), in Grinnell Land
(lat. 82^°), Sabine Island (lat. 74£°), and in Iceland (lat. 65°).

A nest found by Colonel Feilden was placed on a gravel ridge,
several hundred feet above sea-level, and consisted merely of a
slight depression in the centre of a recumbent plant of willow,
lined with a few dead leaves and last year's catkins.

EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS. 151

The eggs of the Sanderling are four in number, bumsh-olive in
ground-colour, thickly mottled and spotted with pale olive-brown,
and with a few indistinct underlying markings of violet-grey.
The eggs obtained by Mr. MacFarlane, as well as the one in my
own collection from Iceland, have most of the markings on the
large end ; but those obtained by Colonel Feilden have them
more uniformly dispersed over the entire surface. They vary in
length from 144 to 1"35 inch, and in breadth from 099 to 093
inch. It is not easy to confuse the eggs of any other British
wader with those of the Sanderliner.

THE BUFF-BKEASTED SANDPIPEB.
{Tryngites rufescens.) *

Plate 43, Fig. 11.

Some sixteen instances of the occurrence of this American
species on the shores of Great Britain are admitted. It may be
regarded as a summer visitor to the Arctic regions of America,
although it has not been recorded from Greenland. From Alaska
its range extends to the Siberian coasts of Bering Straits ; and
Middendorff obtained a single example on the southern shores of
the Sea of Ochotsk.

The nest is always on the ground, and is scarcely distinguishable
from that of the Golden Plover ; it must consequently be very
slight, little more than a depression, scantily lined with a few dead
leaves and bits of dry grass.

The eggs of the Buff-breasted Sandpiper, of which I have
examined the magnificent series in the Museum of the Smithsonian
Institution at Washington, are about as large as those of the
Wood-Sandpiper, but in colour they rival those of the Kedshank.
The only adjective that an ornithologist can apply to them is
" superb." They vary in ground-colour from pale sandy to rich
ochre, sometimes with a slight olive tint. The overlying spots
are a very rich reddish-brown, varying somewhat in intensity,
most of them very bold irregular blotches, often confluent round
the large end of the egg, varied with smaller spots. The under-
lying markings are numerous, well defined, and pale lavender in
colour. On some eggs the spots are smaller, whilst in others they

* Tringifes sub-ruficollis (V.) — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 264.

152 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

take the form of diagonal dashes. Often the large ends are
slightly streaked with dark brown. They vary in length from
15 to 1*4 inch, and in breadth from 1*1 to 102 inch.

THE WOODCOCK.
(Scolojxix rusticula.)

Plate 41, Figs. 2, 5.

The AVoodcock breeds somewhat sparingly and locally through-
out the British Islands, including the Shetlands and some of the
inner islands. It is a semi-Arctic bird, ranging from the Atlantic
to the Pacific. In Scandinavia it breeds up to the Arctic circle ;
in West Kussia up to about lat. 65°, but in East Russia and
Siberia not much further north than lat. 60°. Its southern breed-
ing range extends to the Azores, the Canaries, Madeira, to the Alps,
the Carpathians, and the Caucasus, to the Himalayas, where it
breeds at an elevation of 10,000 feet, and to Mongolia and the
mountains of Japan.

The nest is placed on the ground, and is little more than a
hollow scratched in the earth, and lined with a few leaves and a
little dry grass.

The eggs of the Woodcock are four in number, and vary in
ground-colour from greyish-white to brownish-buff ; the surface-
spots vary in size from a pea downwards, and are reddish-brown
in colour, and very irregular in shape ; the underlying spots are
quite as large, and are pale greyish-brown. They vary in length
from 1'8 to 1"6 inch, and in breadth from 1*4 to 1"3 inch.

THE GREAT SNIPE.

(Scolopax major.)*
Plate 41, Figs. 1, 3.
The Great Snipe is known to sportsmen by the name of
Double Snipe, to distinguish it from the Full Snipe (the Common
Snipe), and the Half Snipe (the Jack Snipe). It can only be
regarded as a rare visitor, on spring and autumn migration, to
our islands. The geographical distribution of the Great Snipe is
a very remarkable one, extending in summer from Scandinavia

* Gallinago major — Saunders, Manual, p. 555 ; Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 211.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 153

to the valley of the Yenisei, but in winter confined to the basin
of the Mediterranean and the continent of Africa. It is not even
known to pass through Turkestan on migration.

It makes its nest in the long grass, but more often in the
middle of a hillock of sedge or rushes. A small quantity of moss
or dead grass is placed as a lining to the depression, where its
four eggs are laid.

The eggs of the Great Snipe are very handsome, and vary
in ground-colour from pale greyish-buff (sometimes with the
faintest possible green tinge) to pale brownish-buff, and are
spotted and blotched with rich dark brown and paler brown,
and with underlying markings of purplish-brown and grey. Most
of the blotches are distributed round the largest part of the egg.
often in an oblique direction, and many of them are confluent.
Some eggs have the large end covered with a network of streaks,
but more often only a few lines are seen. The underlying mark-
ings are large, numerous, and very conspicuous. The eggs vary
in length from 19 to 17 inch, and in breadth from 13 to 122
inch.

THE COMMON SNIPE.
(Scolopax gallinago.)*
Plate 40, Figs. 10, 11, 12.

The Common Snipe is generally distributed throughout the
British Islands, nesting wherever swampy ground, even of limited
extent, is to be found. It breeds throughout the whole of North
Europe and Siberia, but is very rare north of lat. 70°, and in the
southern portions of its breeding range is chiefly confined to
mountain ranges.

The nest is a mere depression lined with dead grass, and is
generally placed in a bunch of rushes, or sedge, in the middle of
a swamp.

The eggs, nearly always four in number, vary in ground-colour,
but are mostly pale greyish-green, spotted and blotched with
rich dark brown, with underlying markings of pale brown and
grey. Most of the blotches are on the large end of the egg, often

* Gallinago caslestis (Frenz.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 557. G. gallinagoSharpe,
Handb., III., p. 215.

154 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

placed obliquely, and many of them confluent ; sometimes they
form a broad irregular zone, and are often intermixed with very
dark brown streaks and scratches. The underlying markings are
large, numerous and very conspicuous. The eggs vary in length
from 1'65 to 1'5 inch, and in breadth from 115 to 105 inch.
The eggs of the Common Snipe very closely resemble those of
the Jack Snipe, but are on an average slightly larger. It is also
very difficult to distinguish some eggs of the Common Snipe from
certain varieties of those of the Purple Sandpiper.

THE JACK SNIPE.

(Scolopax ga llinu la .) *
Plate 41, Fig. 6.

The Jack Snipe is a regular winter visitor to the British Islands.
It is a very local bird, but appears to be irregularly distributed in
the Arctic regions during the breeding-season, from the Atlantic
to the Pacific.

A full clutch of eggs of the Jack Snipe is alw T ays four. The
ground-colour goes through precisely the same variations as that
of the Common Snipe's eggs, but the blotches and spots are a
richer brown, and not, as a rule, quite so bold. The underlying
markings are large and very distinct. The eggs are remarkably
large for the size of the bird, and vary in length from 1*56 to 1'45
inch, and in breadth from 1*1 to 102 inch. On an average, the
eggs of the Jack Snipe are a little smaller than those of the
Common Snipe, but it is impossible to give any character by
which they may with certainty be distinguished from them.
Some varieties of the Dunlin's eggs resemble those of the Jack
Snipe, but they may be distinguished by their smaller size. Eggs
of the Buff-breasted Sandpiper are absolutely undistinguishable.

* Gallinago gallinula — Saunders, Manual, p. 559. Limnocryptes gaUinula-
Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 220.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 155

FAMILY GBUIDjE,
OR CRANES.

The three species of Crane which have been found in the
British Islands are all visitors, the Common Crane, which at
one time nested with us, being the only species which occurs at
all regularly.

THE COMMON CKANE.
{Grus cinerea.)*

Plate 46, Figs. 1, 3.

The Crane is recorded to have been extremely numerous, no
doubt breeding on the extensive bogs in this country, in the 12th
and 14th centuries.

It nests in suitable localities throughout Europe and Northern
Asia, wintering in North Africa and North-western India and
China. In Pomerania the nest of the Crane is generally built on
one of the hummocks in the swamps. It is a very slight struc-
ture : the top of the hummock is trampled down, and the sedge,
part of it fresh new foliage and part last year's dead leaves, is
twisted round into an apology for a nest.

Two is the usual number of eggs laid, but in very rare instances
three have been found. They vary in ground-colour from brown-
ish-buff to greenish-buff, spotted and blotched with rich brown,
and with underlying markings of paler brown and greyish-pink.
Some specimens have most of the markings on the large end,
where they form a semi-confluent mass ; in some they form an
irregular zone, whilst in others they are evenly distributed over
the entire surface, many being indistinct and confluent. Certain
specimens have much of the brown surface-colour clouded over
the shell, with one or two large spots and an indistinct mass of
colour at the large end, intermingled with a few dark brown spots.

* Grus communis (Bechst)— Saunders, Manual, p. 507. Grus grus (L.)— Sharpe,
Handb., III., p. 111.

156 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

The shell is conspicuously pitted, almost like pig-skin, and shows
little gloss. The eggs vary in length from 41 to 3'5 inches, and
in breadth from 2'5 to 23 inches.

THE DEMOISELLE CKANE.

(Grus virgo.)*
Plate 46, Fig. 2.

The Numidian or Demoiselle Crane must be regarded as a very
rare and accidental visitor to the British Islands, but a pair were
seen on one of the Orkney Islands on the 14th of May, 1863,
and one of them, which proved to be a male, was shot (Saxby,
' Zoologist,' 1863, p. 8692). The summer range of the Demoiselle
Crane is very extensive, but the bird is only locally distributed
throughout the Paliearctic region, from the Mediterranean coun-
tries to North-western China.

The nest is always built on the ground, often amongst growing
grain of some kind, or amongst tall grass in the meadows. It is
a very slight structure, the surrounding herbage being generally
trodden down and a slight hollow formed, into which are scraped
a few straws, and sometimes one or two small stones.

The eggs are two in number, placed side by side in the nest,
with the small ends pointing in the same direction. They are
pale buff or olive in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with
umber-brown and with numerous underlying markings of brownish-
pink. On some eggs most of the spots and blotches "are under-
lying and ill-defined ; others are only sparingly marked with one
or two large irregular confluent blotches. The surface is rather
smooth and is full of small pores, but does not show much gloss.
The eggs vary in length from 3"8 to 31 inches, and in breadth
from 2'2 to 2 inches ; they very closely resemble those of the
Common Crane, but are much smaller.

* Anthropoides virgo — Sharpe, Handb., III., p. 11-i.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 157

FAMIL Y COL UMBIDJE,

OB PIGEONS.

Of the six species of Pigeons included in the British List,
three are resident, one is a regular summer visitor, and the other
two are of accidental occurrence.

THE KING DOVE.

(Columba palumbus.)
Plate 47, Fig. 8.

The Ring Dove is a common resident in the wooded districts
of Great Britain. It is confined to the western Palaearctic region,
where it is a resident, excepting the most northern portions
of its range. In Scandinavia and West Eussia it is a common
summer visitor up to lat. 64°. In the Ural Mountains it does not
appear to breed north of lat. 60°, but occasionally wanders east-
wards into the valley of the Tobol. It breeds sparingly through-
out the basin of the Mediterranean, but is principally known in
that district as a winter visitor.

The nest is rudely made, almost flat, and is merely composed
of a few dead sticks so lightly interwoven that the eggs can often
be seen through it from below.

The eggs are almost invariably two in number, never more ;
but in some cases the bird will sit on a single egg. They are
rather small for the size of the bird, elongated and oval in shape,
and pure white. They are very smooth, and more polished than
the eggs of the Owls, but less so than those of the Woodpeckers.
They vary in length from 1*7 to 155 inch, and in breadth from
1*35 to 1"15 inch. As a rule they are larger than those of the
Rock Dove, and may be distinguished from those of the Stock
Dove by being much whiter.

158 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE STOCK DOVE.
(Columba arnas.)

Plate 47, Fig. 7.

The Stock Dove is generally, though locally, distributed through-
out the whole of England and Wales. It is a resident in the
extreme west of the Palaearctic region, but to the colder portions
of its range it is only a summer visitor. In Scandinavia it breeds
up to lat. 62° ; in West Bussia it is very rarely found north of
St. Petersburg, and in the Ural Mountains it is not known to
breed north of lat. 57°.

Its nesting-site varies considerably according to the nature of
the district. By the end of March the birds are in pairs, and the
eggs are laid during the last half of April. In places where there
are no hollow trees the Stock Dove often rears its young in the
old nest of a Magpie or a Crow ; or in the dense ivy growing over
trees or buildings. It makes a most rudimentary nest, and in
some cases the decaying wood is the only bed for the eggs.

The eggs are never more than two in number, and are pale
creamy -white in colour — a characteristic which always dis-
tinguishes them from those of the Eing Dove. They vary in
length from 1*5 to 1*4 inch, and in breadth from 1*2 to 1"13
inch.

THE BOCK DOVE.

{Columba livia.)
Plate 47, Fig. 9.

The Bock Dove breeds on the coasts of Great Britain, Ireland,
and all the adjacent islands, even including the distant St. Kilda,
wherever the rocks are precipitous enough to give it protection,
and provide suitable breeding -places for it in their recesses.
The range of this species is much wider than that of any other
British Dove, extending from the Atlantic to the Pacific ; and its
exact limits are very difficult to determine, in consequence of the
impossibility of discriminating between wild birds and those which
have been, or are, in a semi-domesticated state.

It is a very early breeder, its eggs being often laid by the middle
of March ; and as it rears two, if not three or four, broods in a
season, fresh eggs may be obtained from that month till August

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 159

or September. April and May are the principal breeding-months.
A few Rock Doves build their nests in the crevices of the cliffs ;
but the greater majority resort to the caves for breeding-purposes.
The eggs are only two in number, pure white in colour, oval and
rather elongated in form ; they vary from 1'5 to 1"38 inch in
length, and from 1*2 to 1*1 inch in breadth. As a rule, the eggs
of this bird are rather more rotund than those of the Ring Dove,
and they are always smaller than normal eggs of that bird.

THE TURTLE DOVE.
{Tiirtur auritus.)

Plate 47, Fig. 2.

During the breeding season the Turtle Dove is generally distri-
buted throughout England and Wales, becoming rarer in Cornwall,
in the wilder Welsh counties, and north of South Yorkshire. In
Scotland it is only known as an accidental straggler on migration ;
but in Ireland it is said to breed sparingly. It is a summer visitor
to the western Palasarctic region. In Russia it has not been
known to occur north of lat. 60°. East of the Urals it is a summer
visitor to Turkestan (as far east as the Altai Mountains, Yarkand
and Gilgit), Afghanistan, Persia and Asia Minor.

The nest is sometimes built in a tall, dense hedge, sometimes
in an evergreen bush, or in the branches of a pine-tree ; as a rule,
however, it is much nearer to the ground than that of the Ring
Dove, sometimes within easy reach of the hand. It is usually a
slight flat structure, made of slender twigs, but I have occasionally
found it to be more substantially made.

The eggs are two in number, creamy-white in colour, like those
of the Stock Dove, and oval in form, both ends being almost
equally pointed ; they vary in length from 1"25 to 11 inch, and
in breadth from 0"94 to 0'86 inch. The small size of the eggs
of the Turtle Dove prevents them being confused with those of
any other British species of Pigeon.

THE ORIENTAL TURTLE DOVE.

(Turtur orientalis.)

An example of this Dove has been shot near Scarborough. The
specimen in question was exhibited by me at a meeting of the

160 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Zoological Society on May 6th, 1890. The species has occurred
before accidentally in Europe, but its native home is India
and China.

THE AMERICAN PASSENGER PIGEON.

(Ectopistes mig ra to ri us.)

Plate 47, Fig. 11.

At least five of this wandering species have been shot in
England. Great numbers, however, of the Passenger Pigeon
have been turned loose in Great Britain. The home of the
species is in North America, as far north as 65° N. lat. The
eggs are white, and, according to Eidgway, measure about 1"47
inch in length to 1'02 in breadth.

FAMILY PTEROCLIDM,

OB SAND GROUSE.

PALLAS'S SAND GKOUSE.
(Syrrhaptes paradoxus.)

Plate 47, Figs. 10, 12.

Pallas's Sand Grouse visits Great Britain at long intervals, but
occasionally in large numbers. Such visitations took place in
1859, 1863, 1872, 1876 and 1888. The true home of Pallas's
Sand Grouse is in the steppes of Central Asia. It breeds in
North-east Turkestan, Mongolia and Dauria.

Radde found eggs in the middle of April, and saw young birds
in the middle of May. The birds make no nest, but merely
scratch a shallow hollow, about five inches across, in the salt-
impregnated soil, though in some cases a little grass or a few
sprigs of a saline plant are placed round the margin.

Three is the usual number of eggs, though it is said that four
are occasionally found. They are remarkably elongated in shape
and are scarcely at all pyriform, in this respect resembling the
eggs of the Pigeons. In their colour, which is strictly protec-
tive, they resemble much more the eggs of the Plovers, especially

Plato 57.

Richard sons Kkua .

Richardsonis .Skua .

Great Skua .

* .

ft

Great Skua.

Piuffrms Skua.

Pamecme Skua .

Piwson&IW.sfora.Litl

Plate 38.

< rrey Rhalarop<

Avocel .

Black winged Sii

^Uitf^

Avocel .

Black winded Stilt.

Turns tc

Turns t<

( )vsterc atelier.

liBradsforALi*

Plate 39.

to*

,7 y

Killdeer Plover.

Golden Plovei".

Golden Plover.

«m V

Dotterel.

ZA^

Dotterel .

VLreiniaxi Golden Plover.

Grev Mover .

Asiatic Golden Plover

Grey Plover.

Bawson&Brailsi rd Lit!

Plate -1-0

Ringed Plover

Little Rintjed Plover,

1* *»

' ' Hi

\i*A

r

Ringed Plover.

Kentish Plover.

Broad billed Sandpiper

Kentisll I'luvcr

I..

■pwm.g.

Biroad -tilled Sandpiper.

Common Snipe.

I .apwirrg.

vN

I ' moii Snipe.

-A

Common Snipe.

Pa«son &Brsub£orA Lith Sheffield

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 161

those of the Kinged Plovers. The ground-colour varies from
olive-buff to brownish-buff, the latter being the most common.
The eggs are generally pretty evenly, but not very profusely,
spotted with overlying markings of dark brown, and with paler
and underlying markings ; these spots are irregular, sometimes
almost fantastic in shape, and vary in size from that of a small
pea to a mere speck. The eggs vary in length from 1*8 to 1"6
inch, and in breadth from 12 to l'l inch.

FAMILY CYPSELID.E,

OB SWIFTS.

Of the three species of Swifts which are enumerated as British
birds, one is a common summer visitor, and the two others are
occasional visitants.

THE COMMON SWIFT.
(Cypselus apus.)*

Plate 48, Fig. 2.

The Swift, although one of the latest birds of passage to arrive
and one of the earliest to leave, is found in suitable districts in
almost all parts of the British Islands. In Norway it has been
found breeding as far north as lat. 69°, and has been seen up to
lat. 70°. It breeds throughout Europe and North Africa, being
most abundant in rocky districts.

The nest of the Swift is a very slight structure, almost flat,
composed of bits of straw and other vegetable fibres, placed
together with very little art, and lined with feathers ; these
materials are covered with a viscid saliva which solidifies like
glue, and renders the nest hard and caked together. The Swift
obtains most of the materials with which it builds its nest whilst
on the wing, seizing a feather here or a bit of dry grass there, as
they happen to be blown into the air. It also finds hay, straw,
etc., under the tiles and in the crevices which it frequents, con-
veyed thither by Sparrows ; indeed the nest has even been found

* Micropus apus — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 40.

162 EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS.

on a nest of the Sparrow containing eggs, the Swift having,
doubtless, ejected the original tenant.

The eggs of the Swift are two or three in number, generally
the former, but sometimes as many as four are laid. They are
elongated in shape, the small end almost as blunt as the large
end, rough in texture, with little gloss, and almost pure white in
colour. They vary from T08 to 0'93 inch in length, and from 0'7
to 062 inch in breadth. Swifts' eggs are readily distinguished
from those of the Martin by their larger size, more oval shape,
and rougher texture.

THE WHITE-BELLIED SWIFT.
(Cyjjselus melba.)*

Plate 48, Fig 3.

The White-bellied or Alpine Swift has been obtained frequently
in the British Islands. It breeds in the Alpine districts of Europe
south of the Baltic, and in the Ural Mountains its range extends
up to lat. 55°. Eastwards it ranges through Asia Minor, Palestine,
West Turkestan, to the Western Himalayas, and the mountain
ranges of Western India and Ceylon.

The nest is built in a hole or crevice, generally in the most
inaccessible part of the cliffs, sometimes where they overhang.
It is usually at some distance from the entrance ; and even if this
can be approached, the eggs, often in sight of the collector, are
beyond his reach. The nest is a very similar structure to that of
the Common Swift, rather small, and made of dry grass, straws,
and feathers, very flat, and cemented together with the saliva of
the bird. Most of the nesting materials are obtained whilst the
bird is on the wing, but the remains of other nests may some-
times be utilised.

The eggs are deposited late in May, and are usually two or
three in number, but it is said that' four and even five sometimes
occur. They are elongated, and the small end is almost as blunt
as the large end. They are pure white in colour, and vary from
1'3 to 1'2 inch in length, and from 0'8 to 072 inch in breadth.
Their size easily prevents their being confused with those of the
Common Swift.

* Micropus melba — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 38.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 163

THE NEEDLE -TAILED SWIFT.
(Chcetura caudacuta.) *

The Needle-tailed Swift has been obtained twice in the British
Islands. It breeds in South-east Siberia, East Mongolia, Japan,
and North China. Schrenck and Radde found it on the Ainoor ;
Dybowsky records it from Lake Baikal ; and my Siberian collector
has sent me several specimens from Krasnoyarsk, which appears
to be the most westerly limit of its breeding-range in Siberia.

Of the nidification of this bird nothing positive is known. Some
writers state that it nests in holes of rocks and trees, whilst others
assert that it builds a glutinous nest like that of the Edible
Swallow. Of its eggs nothing is known at present ; but they are
most probably white in colour, as are those of all the Swifts,
so far as is known.

FAMILY CAPRIMULGID/E,

OB NIGHTJARS.

Of the three British Nightjars, one is a regular summer visitor,
and the other two accidental ones.

THE COMMON NIGHTJAR.
( Cap rimu Igus eu rop ceus.)

Plate 47, Figs. 4, 5, 6.

The Common Nightjar, or Goatsucker, is a summer migrant to
the British Islands, and is found more or less commonly in almost
every county, but is more numerous in the south of England than
in the north. It breeds throughout Europe and South-west
Siberia. In Scandinavia and West Russia it is found as far north
as lat. 63° ; but in the Ural Mountains and the valley of the
Yenisei it has not been recorded further north than 1-at. 59°, nor
does it appear to occur further east than Irkutsk.

It makes no nest, and deposits its eggs upon the ground, some-
times at the foot of a tree, in rare instances on a fallen trunk

* Acanthyllis caudacuta — Saunders, Manual, p. 43.

164 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

covered with moss and lichen, often in a slight depression on the
far-stretching heathy wastes, but most commonly on a small
naked flat patch of ground amongst the bracken and the brambles.
The eggs of the Nightjar possess certain characteristics which
easily distinguish them from the eggs of all other British birds.
They are very similar in shape to those of the Swifts and Pigeons,
and still more so to those of the Sand Grouse. They are long
and oval, the widest part of the egg being nearly in the middle,
and the small end being scarcely more pointed than the large end.
They are pure white in ground-colour, sometimes with a faint
creamy tinge, — mottled, blotched, veined, streaked, and clouded
with brown of various shades, and with underlying markings of
violet-grey. They differ considerably in the extent and character
of the markings. Some eggs have the spots very large, sparingly
but evenly distributed over the surface, but the surface ones are
rich brown, and the underlying ones violet-grey. On other eggs
most of the markings are underlying violet-grey blotches and
spots, with only a few small surface ones of rich brown. Some
eggs are intricately streaked and scratched with brown surface-
colour, with large streaky blotches of grey underneath, whilst
in others this is exactly reversed, the underlying grey markings
being principally composed of streaks and lines, and the surface
ones mostly of blotches and spots. The shell has very little
polish. The eggs vary in length from 1*4 to l'l inch, and in
breadth from 95 to 0'8 inch.

THE ISABELLINE NIGHTJAR.
(Cap rimulgus ccgyp tins.)

The claim of the Egyptian Nightjar to be considered a British
bird rests on a specimen obtained near Mansfield, in Nottingham-
shire, on the 23rd of June, 1883. The range of the Isabelline
Nightjar is very restricted. Hitherto it has only been obtained
in Western Turkestan, Baluchistan, Egypt and Nubia. Both
Heuglin and Severtzow say that it is only a summer visitor to
its breeding-grounds, which probably also include Arabia.

Heuglin describes the nest as a mere depression in the sand,
near a tuft of halfa-grass, or under the shelter of a stunted
bush.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 1G5

Its eggs appear to be two in number, and he describes them as
more yellow in tinge than the eggs of the Common Goatsucker,
while they are also smaller and paler. I have not been able to
obtain a specimen to figure in the present work.

THE BED-NECKED NIGHTJAB.
(Gaprimulgus ruficollis.)

Plate 17, Figs. 1, 3.

The claim of the Bed-necked Nightjar to be included in the list
of British birds rests upon a single example which was shot
on the 5th of October, 1856, at Killingworth, near Newcastle.
This species has a very restricted range, and is only known to
breed in North-west Africa and the Spanish Peninsula, though it
has occurred several times near Marseilles, and in other localities
in the extreme south-east of France.

Like the Common Nightjar it lays two eggs on the bare ground,
and they can scarcely be distinguished from those of C. europccus.

FAMILY MEBOPID.E,

OR BEE-EATEBS.

Of the two species of Bee-eater entered on the British list,
the Blue-tailed Bee-eater has been shot on one occasion, while
M. apiaster has occurred many times.

THE COMMON BEE-EATEB.

{Merops apiaster.)
Plate 48, Fig. 6.

The Common Bee-eater is only an accidental straggler to the
British Islands. It is a regular summer visitor to Europe south
of the Carpathians. Throughout North Africa it is principally
known as a spring and autumn migrant, but many remain to

1G6 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

breed, especially in Algeria and Morocco. It passes through
Afghanistan, North-west India, and Sind on migration, and win-
ters in South Africa.

It nests in holes burrowed in the earth or in banks.

The eggs are from five to eight or nine in number, nearly
round, and pure glossy white, the shell being as highly polished
as that of a Kingfisher's or Woodpecker's egg. They vary in
length from 105 to 0'95 inch, and in breadth from 093 to 0'8
inch.

THE BLUE-TAILED BEE-EATEE.

{Merops pli ilippinus.)

An example of the Blue-tailed Bee-eater, said to have been shot
by Mr. Thomas Iiann of Byer's Green, near the Snook, Seaton
Carew, in Durham, in August, 1862, is in the collection of the
Rev. T. M. Hicks. * This species is found throughout India and
the Malay Peninsula, South China, and Formosa, extending to
many of the islands of the Malay Archipelago, Sumatra, Java,
Timor, Borneo, Celebes, and the Philippines. The improbability
of a species inhabiting a district so remote and so far to the south
ever visiting the British Islands is so great that it is difficult to
avoid coining to the conclusion, either that the individual in ques-
tion had escaped from an aviary, or that the skin of an Indian
bird was substituted for that of a Common Bee-eater by the bird-
stuff er through whose hands it passed.

FAMILY CORACIIVJE,

OR ROLLERS.

Of the three species here enumerated, one, a typical African
species, and the second, a typical Indian species, are supposed to
have visited England once. The Common Boiler has occurred
more than a hundred times.

* Hancock, " Birds of Northumberland and Durham, p. 28.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 167

THE COMMON ROLLER.

(Coracias garrulus.)
Plate 48, Fig. 14.

Although this conspicuous bird occurs almost every year in our
islands, it can only be regarded as an accidental straggler to
them, chiefly on autumn migration. It breeds in most parts of
Europe south of lat. 60°, but is only of occasional occurrence in
the north of France, Belgium, Holland, and the British Islands.
It is a summer visitor to Algeria, and to Turkestan, Afghanistan,
Cashmere, and the Punjab. It also breeds in South-west Siberia
as far north as Omsk, and as far east as the Altai Mountains.

The Roller generally chooses a hole in a rock or a tree in which
to lay its eggs ; but it often makes use of a hole in a bank or in a
wall or building.

The eggs are from three or four to six in number, somewhat
globular in form, and pure and glossy white in colour. They
vary considerably in size, typical examples measuring from 155
to 1-4 inch in length, and from 12 to 11 inch in breadth, whilst
unusually small specimens only measure 12 by 1 inch. Their
beautifully polished surface and globular form distinguish them
from those of the Pigeons ; and their large size prevents them
being readily confused with those of the British Woodpeckers.

The Abyssinian Roller (Coracias abyssinieus) and the Indian
Roller (Coracias indicus) have both been said to occur once in
Great Britain. There is nothing distinctive about their eggs,
which resemble those of the Common Roller.

FAMILY UP UP ID &,

OB HOOPOES.

THE HOOPOE.

(Upupa epops.)

Plate 48, Figs. 1, 4.

The Hoopoe may almost be regarded as a regular summer
migrant to the British Islands. Scarcely a year passes without
specimens being obtained, and it has bred in most of the southern

168 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

counties of England. Although not a northern bird, it has a very
extensive range, and breeds commonly in temperate and southern
Europe south of lat. 56°.

The breeding-season commences in the middle of May, and
eggs may be found from that time onwards until the second week
in June, the nest being placed in holes in trees, especially willows,
or in a suitable hollow in a rock or old wall. There is scarcely
any nest, merely a few straws, roots, and often pieces of dried
cow-dung as a lining to the hole ; but sometimes the eggs rest
on the dead wood alone, or on the remains of the old nest of a
Starling, or other bird that had previously been in possession of
the site.

The eggs are from five to seven in number, and many of them
when newly-laid are pale bluish-green, but they soon fade or
become stained in the nest. They vary considerably in colour ;
some are pale greenish-blue, almost the colour of those of the
Starling; others are of different shades of olive; some are lavender-
grey, and others stone-colour. Some specimens have a consi-
derable amount of gloss, and the surface is full of small pits and
streaky hollows, which gives them the appearance of being dusted
over with minute white specks. The eggs in each clutch do not
differ much amongst themselves. They vary in length from 1*15
to 0'96 inch, and in breadth from 0"77 to 0'65 inch. It is not
easy to confuse the eggs of the Hoopoe with those of any other
European bird, the peculiar texture of the shell being sufficient
to identify them at a glance.

FAMILY ALCEDINIDM,
OB KINGFISHERS.

THE COMMON KINGFISHEE.
Alcedo ispida.

Plate 48, Fig. 7.

The Kingfisher is a resident on the banks of most of our lakes,
rivers, and brooks throughout the British Islands, except in the
Outer Hebrides and the extreme north of Scotland. It has a

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 169

comparatively restricted range, being confined to the southern-
half of the western Palaearctic region, and is represented in
Siberia and India by a smaller form, known as Alcedo bengalensis.
Upon its nest of fish-bones, if nest it can be properly called, the
female Kingfisher deposits her round, shining, white eggs, from
six to eight or nine in number. As is the case with most white
eggs before they are blown, the yolk inside gives them a beautiful
pink appearance. They vary in length from 0'95 to 0'87 inch,
and in breadth from 0'8 to 0'72 inch. Kingfishers' eggs are not
easily confused with those of any other British bird, for their
rotund shape distinguishes them from those of the Woodpeckers,
and their size from those of the Bee-eaters.

THE BELTED KINGFISHEE.
(Ceryle alcyon.)
Plate 48, Fig. 12.

The Belted Kingfisher may fairly claim to be inserted in the
list of British birds as an accidental straggler on migration. It
is found throughout the continent of North America, from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the Arctic Ocean to Central
America and Trinidad.

It rears its young in a hole, which is usually made in the
clayey banks of a stream or pond near the birds' favourite fishing-
grounds. Some holes are perfectly straight, whilst others turn
from side to side, usually when near the end. All the holes are
enlarged at the end into a sort of chamber, and in this the eggs
are deposited.

The eggs, usually laid in April or May, are generally six in
number, rarely seven, and are, when blown, pure and glossy
white, and vary in length from 1*4 to 1'3 inch, and in breadth
from 1'06 to 1'02 inch. Their size, of course, prevents them
from being confused with those of the Common Kingfisher.

170 EGGS OF BEITISH BIEDS.

THE FAMILY PICIDyE,
OB WOODPECKERS.

Three species are resident in Great Britain, one, the Wryneck,
is a regular summer migrant, and the rest are accidental visitors.

THE GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
(Picus major.)*

Plate 48, Fig. 13.

The Great Spotted Woodpecker is principally a forest bird, and
probably breeds in every county in England and Wales wherever
the woods are sufficiently extensive and the trees large enough.
It is a partial resident in the wooded districts throughout Europe
and Siberia, and even in Japan. In Scandinavia it is rarely found
north of the Arctic circle ; in Russia it is a common resident up to
Archangel, and was obtained by Hoffmann in the Ural Mountains
as far north as lat. 63^°. In West Siberia, Sloffzow obtained
it at Omsk in lat. 55° ; Theel met with it in the valley of the
Yenisei as far north as lat. 60° ; and Middendorff procured it on
the Pacific coast of East Siberia in lat. 55°.

The Great Spotted Woodpecker is a somewhat late breeder. It
seldom has eggs before the middle of May. The hole in which
the eggs are deposited is nearly always made by the bird itself,
but it is said that a ready-made one is sometimes utilised. Occa-
sionally it is made in a large branch, but more frequently in the
trunk, and a decayed part is invariably selected. The passage is
wonderfully round and smooth, and the end is enlarged into a little
sort of chamber, and here the eggs are deposited.

The bird makes no nest ; the eggs lie upon the powdered wood
at the bottom of the hole. They vary from five to seven or eight
in number, and are creamy-white with no spots or markings, save
an occasional nest-stain. They vary in length from 115 to 095
inch, and in breadth from 82 to 0'75 inch.

* Dcndrocopus major — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 8.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 171

Two allied species of Pied Woodpecker have visited us from
the American Continent. The Hairy Woodpecker (Picus villosus)
is believed to have occurred twice, and the Downy Woodpecker
(Picas pubescens) once.

THE LESSEE SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
(Picus minor.)*
Plate 48, Fig. 8.

In many parts of England the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker is
a commoner bird than the Great Spotted Woodpecker. It is
more often seen in small plantations ; but, strange to say, north
of Yorkshire it is extremely rare, and it is doubtful if it breeds
regularly in any part of Scotland. Its range, like that of its
larger ally, is Palaearctic ; but it extends somewhat further to
the north, and, except in the extreme west, not quite so far to
the south.

It nests in holes in trees ; and though it often begins excava-
tions very early in the season, its eggs are not generally deposited
before the beginning or middle of May. The hole is made in
many kinds of trees and at different heights from the ground.
Sometimes it chooses a dead stump or the stem of an apple or
a pear-tree, more frequently high up in the branches of a poplar,
a beech, or an elm. Sometimes it bores into a pollard willow by
the stream, or selects a pine or birch tree for its purpose.

The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker makes no nest ; its eggs are
laid on the fine powdered chips and fragments of wood left at the
bottom of the hole. They are from five to eight or nine in
number, and are pure white with a considerable amount of polish.
They vary in length from 082 to 07 inch, and in breadth from
062 to 055 inch. It is difficult to distinguish between the eggs
of the present species and those of the Wryneck, and they require
the most careful identification. On an average, however, the
Wryneck's eggs are larger, coarser in texture, and not so
glossy.

* Dendrocopus minor — Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 12.

172 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE GEEEN WOODPECKEE.
(Gecinus viridis.)

Plate 48, Fig. 15.

The Green Woodpecker is a somewhat local resident, but is
generally distributed throughout the woodland districts of England
and Wales, becoming rarer north of Yorkshire. Its range is
somewhat restricted in Europe, being confined to the western
portions of the Paloearctic regions, and not extending to the
Arctic circle.

For nesting purposes, many kinds of trees are selected ; poplars,
elms, oaks, chestnuts, and sycamores being amongst those which
are more frequently chosen. The hole is wonderfully round and
regular, and looks as if it had been made with a sharper instru-
ment than a bird's bill.

The eggs are usually laid late in April or early in May ; they
are from five to seven and occasionally eight in number, and are
pure white, beautifully polished. They vary in length from 1'4 to
1'19 inch, and in breadth from 0"95 to 0"89 inch. They also vary
slightly in shape, some being blunter at the ends than others.
Their size prevents them being confused with those of any other
British Woodpecker.

THE BLACK WOODPECKEE.
{Picus martins.)

Plate 48, Fig. 9.

The Black Woodpecker has been included in the list of British
birds by most ornithologists, and long lists of its alleged occur-
rences in our islands have been published. These have been
carefully investigated by Mr. J. H. Gurney, jun.,* with the result
that no authentic instance of the occurrence of the species in this
country can be substantiated. This fine bird is a resident in
the pine-forests of Central Europe as far south as the Pyrenees
and the mountains of Asia Minor. It is found as far north as
the Arctic circle ; and eastwards it extends across Siberia to the
north island of Japan. It is a resident in East Mongolia and the

* Cf. Dresser, B. Eur., V., p. 12.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 173

extreme north of China, but does not appear to range further
north in Asia than lat. 62°. In its habits and mode of nidification
it differs very little from other Woodpeckers.

THE WRYNECK.

{lynx torquilla.)
Plate 48, Fig. 10.

The Wryneck is a common bird in summer in the south-eastern
counties of England. West of the Severn and north of the Trent
it is much rarer, and is very locally distributed. It is a rare
summer visitor to most of the counties of Scotland, but in Ireland
it has only been obtained twice ; otherwise it has a very exten-
sive range, being found during the breeding-season throughout
the greater part of the Palsearctic region.

The Wryneck, like the Woodpeckers, lays its eggs in holes of
trees. It does not, however, make its own abode, although it
often slightly alters the hole which it has chosen. This is often
selected in the most exposed situation, not unfrequently in an
orchard, and sometimes in a dead stump in a hedgerow.

Sometimes the eggs may be seen from the opening, at other
times they are at arm's length down the aperture. They are
deposited on the decayed wood at the bottom with no other nest
whatever, and are usually laid about the middle of May. They
are from six to ten in number, seven or eight being an average
clutch, and are pure white without any markings. They are not
quite so smooth and polished as those of the Woodpeckers, and
vary in length from 09 to 0"8 inch, and in breadth from - 67
to 0'58 inch. They most closely approach the eggs of the Lesser
Spotted Woodpecker, but may generally be distinguished by their
larger size, and less amount of gloss.

THE FAMILY CUCULID^J,

OR CUCKOOS.

The Common Cuckoo is a regular summer visitor, but the other
species are of accidental occurrence.

174 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE GREAT SPOTTED CUCKOO.

(Cuculus glanda rius.) *
Plate 49, Fig. 7.

The claim of the Great Spotted Cuckoo to be included in the
British list is very slender, and rests on two examples only. It is a
well-known summer migrant to several parts of Europe, where it
arrives rather earlier than the Common Cuckoo.

Like the latter, the present bird is a parasite, and deposits
its eggs in the nests of other birds, and leaves its young to be
hatched and reared by other species. The nests selected by the
bird for its purpose are the species of Crows. A Magpie's
nest, either that of the common species or the Azure-winged
Magpie, is generally selected in Spain and Algeria ; but in Egypt
that of the Hooded Crow is preferred, and in some parts of
Palestine that of the Black-headed Jay is probably chosen.

The eggs of the Great Spotted Cuckoo are very pale bluish-
green in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with light brown,
and with numerous underlying markings of violet-grey. On some
specimens these underlying spots are more numerous than the sur-
face ones, and the markings are generally pretty evenly distributed
over the whole surface, but are most numerous at the larger end
of the egg. They vary from 1*35 to 1'2 inch in length, and from
1'05 to 0"9'2 inch in breadth. Although the eggs of this bird bear
considerable superficial resemblance to those of the Common
Magpie, they may be distinguished from them by the reddish
instead of olive-brown colour of the surface-markings, and by
the numerous grey underlying markings. They are also on an
average smaller and rounder.

THE COMMON CUCKOO.
{Cuculus canorus.)

Plate 49, Figs. 1—5, 9—13.

The Cuckoo is a summer visitor to Great Britain ; and in winter
it visits on its migrations nearly every part of the southern conti-
nents of the Old World, while during the breeding-season it is
found almost everywhere from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

* Coccystcs glandarius — Saunders, Manual, p. 278; Sharpe, Handb., II., p. 21.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 175

The bird, as is well known, builds no nest of its own, but is
parasitic on other species. Space does not permit me to give any
full account of the curious habits of the species, but the figures
in the plate give some idea of the small size and the varied
colourings of the eggs of the Cuckoo. A list of 120 species in
which Cuckoo's eggs have been found is published by Mr. Bidwell
in the "Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club " for March,
1896, and among the many curious facts related by Dr. Key, who
has devoted much attention to the study of the Cuckoo, is the
resemblance which is seen in some of the eggs of the species to
those of the foster-parent. Thus it happens that blue Cuckoo's
eggs are found in nests of the Bed start, and some of those
deposited in nests of species like the Sedge Warbler and the Water
Wagtail are almost exact copies of the foster-parent's eggs, but
are, of course, slightly larger.

THE YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO.
(Coccyzus americanus.)

Plate 49, Fig. 8.

The claim of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo to be included in this
work is supported by the record of four British-killed examples. It
has a very extensive range on the American continent, breeding as
far north as New Brunswick and Minnesota, and as far south as
Texas, as well as in some of the West Indian Islands.

The nest is generally placed in trees and large bushes, often in
a fruit-tree, or in a cedar, a crab, or a thorn. It is very carelessly
put together, and composed of small sticks loosely mixed with
grass, and is almost as slight and flat as the nest of a Pigeon.

The eggs are from three to five in number, of an uniform bluish-
green, and measure from 14 to 11 inch in length, and from 098
to 0"83 inch in breadth. The shell is somewhat rough in texture,
and possesses little or no gloss. The colour fades rapidly, even
in a cabinet.

THE BLACK-BILLED CUCKOO.

(Coccyzus erythrophthalmus.)
Plate 49, Fig. 6.

An example of this species was shot by Dr. Bea at Killead,
ten miles from Belfast, near the end of September, 1871. It

17() EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

inhabits the eastern half of the North American Continent, breed-
ing as far north as Labrador, and as far south as Georgia and
Texas. In winter it is found in Mexico, Central America, some
of the West Indian Islands, and the northern portions of South
America.

The habits of this bird differ little from those of the Yellow-
billed Cuckoo, and, like the last-named species, it builds its own
nest.

The eggs of the Black-billed Cuckoo vary in length from 1'15
to 1'05 inch, and in breadth from 0'9 to 0'8 inch, and are on an
average smaller than those of the Yellow-billed Cuckoo ; but small
eggs of the latter are indistinguishable from large eggs of the
former.

THE FAMILY PASSERIDsE,
OB SINGING BIRDS.

Of these there are one hundred and forty species, of which fifty
are resident and fifty migrants, while forty are occasional or rare
visitors.

WHITE'S GROUND THRUSH.
(GeocicJUa varia.)*

Plate 50, Fig. 1.

This handsome bird has occurred in the British Islands at least
a dozen times. It winters in South Japan, South-west China,
and the Philippine Islands, occasionally straying as far west as
Sumatra.

A nest of this species was obtained by Swinhoe near Ningpo,
and is now in my collection. It was built on a fork on a hori-
zontal pine-branch, and is about two-and-a-half inches deep inside
and about four inches outside, seven inches in outer, and four-and-
a-half inches in inner, diameter. The outside is composed of
withered rushes, fine and coarse grass, and moss, with an occa-
sional twig and withered leaf, and plastered most copiously with
mud. Here and there are a few pieces of some green weed,
apparently conveyed in the mud from the swamps. The inside
is lined with a thick coating of mud, like the nests of our own

* Turdus varius — Saunders, Manual, p. 11. Ortoachla varia — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 213.

Plate 4-1.

is V X \

f 1 1 •< ' ; 1 1 Sin

pe

* .» •

Woodcock.

( u-.-iii Snipe

Sancloi'liii'i .

. .*,'>. :•>**

f.

,'»

Woodcock.

•:: -

( li-p^nshank .

V-Vr

Red- oreasted Snipe .

Greeiisn a«k .

Pawson&BraJsfoxi.LitK Sheffield

Plate 4-2.

Wood Sandpiper

Black taiU'd Godwit.

: m*.

ftf*

, J** *

«... -. *

Buff

Green Sandpiper

Hull.

.1 *>

Green Sandpiper

Bar -tailed Godwit.

Bilt ti»ilt!fl Godwit.

■ Brailsfa

Pi ale 4-3.

,'

v >>%■

± t'

Common Sandpiper.

f^urple Sandpiper

Common Sandpiper.

Spotted Sandpipei

f*uiple Sandpiper

/fi

$m

w

Spotted Sandpipei

J 'iiriim

Bonaparte's S andpiper.

Dunlin .

Knot I .

Hull breasted Sandpiper. Pectoral Sandpipei

■

Plate 4~k

Little Stint.

lit' * ♦>*/',

Little Stint.

'lV-niiniiK k.-i Stint

Spotted Redshank.

Ml." t .-ft Ki -*K "\ \ ■
,t w* ■*'. '. ',

li.ii 1 1 ;uii.-; Sandpiper.

Redshank.

JT*

Redshank.

American Stml

Texnniincks Stint

Spatted Redshank.

__ v S&&

Yellowshank .

BartratrTs Sandpiper".

S Bradford Li* Sheffield

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 177

Eing Ouzel or Blackbird, and is then finally lined with fibrous
rootlets, quite as coarse as those the Magpie uses, and one or two
pieces of sedgy grass. In general appearance the nest resembles
most closely a common Magpie's without the sticks, just the mere
cup, and is far more coarsely made than the nests of the true
Thrushes.

The eggs, greenish-white, with minute reddish spots, were
three, although most probably the full number had not been laid.
They resemble those of the Mistle Thrush, but the ground-colour
is slightly paler, and the spots much finer, more numerous, and
more evenly distributed. They measure 1/2 inch in length and
0'9 inch in breadth.

THE SIBEBIAN GEOUND THEUSH.

(Geocich la sibirica.) *

Plate 50, Fig. 3.

The only claim of the Siberian Ground Thrush to be included
in the list of British birds rests upon a single example, which was
sent to the late Mr. F. Bond by a dealer, who informed him that
it had been shot between Guildford and Godalming in the winter
of 1860-61. The Siberian Ground Thrush breeds in the valleys
of the Yenisei and the Lena, between lat. 67° and 68°, and also
near Yokohama in Japan. The egg figured was procured in the
latter locality by Mr. H. Pryer.

THE MISTLE THEUSH.
(T urdus viscivorus.)

Plate 50, Figs. 4, G.

The " Stormcock," as this bird is popularly called, is one of
those few species which, during very recent times, have extended
their range in the British Islands. Upon the European Continent
the Mistle Thrush breeds throughout the temperate portions,
extending on the west coast as far north as the Arctic circle.
Eastwards it ranges through Turkestan to the North-west Hima-
layas and Lake Baikal.

* Tardus sibiyicus — Saunders, Manual, p, 12,
M

178 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Probably few other British birds' nests exceed in picturesque-
ness the home of this Thrush. There is a peculiar rustic beauty
about it which few others possess. As in the nest of the Blackbird
(as indeed in those of all the Thrushes), it undergoes three distinct
stages before completion : First, the outside is composed of grass,
chickweed, bog-moss, and often large masses of wool, through
which are artfully woven a few slender twigs to strengthen the
sides of the structure ; this nest is lined with mud or clay and,
lastly, a very thick lining of grass, usually in a green state, com-
pletes the work. No attempt at concealment is made ; indeed it
seems that the birds rather court discovery than otherwise ; for it
is no uncommon thing to see a large piece of wool hanging loosely
from a nest, or a portion of the nest itself so lightly put together
as to cause it to arrest the attention at once.

The eggs of the Mistle Thrush very rarely exceed four in
number, and in but very few cases are less. They are somewhat
different from the typical Thrush's egg, being of a greyer tinge.
The ground-colour ranges from bluish-white to reddish-brown,
spotted, blotched, and clouded with various shades of rich purplish-
brown and with greyish underlying spots. They vary in length
from 1*32 to 1'03 inch, and in breadth from 0'94 to 0'8 inch.

THE SONG THBUSH.

(Turdus musicus.)

Plate 50, Fig. 2.

The Song Thrush breeds throughout Great Britain and Ireland
in all well-cultivated districts, or where the ground is sufficiently
wooded to afford it shelter. Its breeding-range extends across
the Palaearctic region from the Atlantic as far east as the valley
of the Yenisei, but the bird is much commoner in the west than
in the east.

The nest is a bulky structure, and composed outwardly of dry
grass, with generally a few twigs and sometimes a little moss.
This grass-formed nest is then lined with a thick coating of mud
or clay, and sometimes cow's dung, with decayed wood as a
final lining.

The eggs of the Song Thrush are four or five in number, and
may readily be distinguished from those of any other species of

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 179

British bird. They are of a beautiful clear greenish-blue, marked
with small spots of a deep rich brown approaching to black. Eggs
of this bird vary considerably, both in size and markings. Many
eggs (doubtless the production of the older birds) are exception-
ally large ; others more resemble the Redwing's in size. Some
eggs (though these are rare) are spotless ; others are very richly
spotted and blotched with reddish-brown and various tints of
purplish -grey. Eggs that are boldly blotched never have the
colouring-matter so intense as those on which the markings are
small. They vary in length from 1"16 to 0'95 inch, and from 09
to 0'7 inch in breadth.

THE REDWING.
(Turdus iliacus.)

Plate 50, Figs. 5, 8.

The Redwing is a regular winter visitant to Great Britain and
Ireland. Its principal breeding-range is at or near the Arctic
circle throughout the Pala3arctic region, though it appears to
become very rare east of the Yenisei river.

The nest is neatly made, and somewhat resembles that of the
Ring Ouzel, though it is smaller and perhaps more firmly put
together.

The eggs of the Redwing are from four to six in number, most
frequently the former, and cannot easily be confounded with the
eggs of the other British Thrushes, on account of their smaller
size. The streaks or spots generally almost hide the ground-
colour, and are evenly distributed over the entire surface. The
usual colour is a pale bluish-green, thickly marbled over the
entire surface with greenish-brown. Some specimens have the
spots dispersed in irregular streaks and blotches, like miniature
Blackbird's eggs ; in others the ground-colour is almost clear,
except at the large end of the egg, where a zone is formed of
confluent brown spots ; whilst others are almost clear pea-green,
devoid of all markings. They vary but little in size or shape,
and are never large enough to be mistaken for small specimens
of the other eggs of this group of birds, which they resemble in
colour. They vary in length from 11 to 0'9 inch, and in breadth,
from Q'8 to 0'7 inch,

180 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE FIELDFARE.
(Turd us pilaris.)

Plate 50, Fig. 7, 9.

Fieldfares have been said to breed in the British Islands, but,
until definite proofs are forthcoming, it is not safe to admit the
truth of the statement, the birds being very liable to be con-
founded with Mistle Thrushes by careless observers. The Field-
fare has a somewhat more southerly breeding range than the
Redwing. It breeds in the Arctic circle, extending up to, and
occasionally beyond, the limit of forest growth, and in north-
temperate Europe as far south and west as the basin of the
Baltic, and throughout Siberia as far east as the watershed of
the Yenisei and the Lena.

The nest is very similar to the Blackbird's or the Ring Ouzel's
in construction and materials. The outside is made of coarse
dry grass, with sometimes a few birch-twigs or a little moss
interwoven, then plastered with mud, and finally lined with a
thick bed of fine grass.

The eggs are from four to six in number, and, in rare instances,
as many as seven or as few as three. None of our British
Thrushes' eggs vary so widely as do the eggs of the Fieldfare.
The average type of egg is bluish-green in ground-colour, thickly
marbled, speckled, and blotched over the entire surface with rich
reddish-brown, the spots being the densest on the larger end, in
fact resembling a very handsome Blackbird's egg. Some varieties
are pale greenish, with the spots and streaks distributed equally
over the whole surface and very pale and indistinct, like the
duller eggs of the Blackbird ; in others the egg is paler in ground-
colour, but thickly and boldly blotched with reddish-brown, like
typical eggs of the Ring Ouzel ; while yet, again, specimens are
more rarely met with, which are almost as blue as the Song
Thrushes', and with but one or two streaks of liver-brown on
the larger end. They vary in length from 1*35 to 1'02 inch, and
in breadth from 0"9 to 0'7 inch.

The American Migratory Thrush (Turdus migratorius) has
occurred once in England and once in Ireland, but in both
instances the birds are believed to have escaped from con-
finement,

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 181

THE BLACKBIRD.
(Merula morula.)*

Plate 50, Figs. 11, 12.

Throughout Great Britain, wherever trees abound, the Black-
bird is very commonly met with, and occasionally frequents the
wild mountain-wastes, but only near the upland farms or in gar-
dens or orchards on the border-lands of the moor. The Blackbird
is a more or less constant resident in every country in Europe
and North Africa ; but its range does not extend very far north.
In Norway, in consequence of the milder climate caused by the
Gulf-stream, it breeds up to the Arctic circle ; but in Russia it
does not appear to range further north or further east than the
valley of the Volga.

In form the Blackbird's nest is somewhat shallow, and is
usually a large, bulky structure.

The eggs of the Blackbird are from four to six in number,
although this is in some few cases exceeded, for nests have been
known to contain eight eggs. They differ considerably in size,
form, and colour ; some specimens are exceptionally large, others
small ; some are quite pear-shaped, others almost round. The
usual colour is a bright bluish-green, spotted, streaked, clouded,
and blotched with rich reddish-brown and various tints of purple.
Some specimens have most of the spots and streaks round the
large end of the egg in a zone or band ; others are finely blotched ;
whilst some specimens are so richly marked as to hide all trace
of the ground-colour. Varieties of the Blackbird's eggs are occa-
sionally met with which are very similar to the eggs of the
Starling, pure blue and spotless. The eggs vary from 1*35 to 1
inch in length, and in breadth from 0"9 to 0"79 inch.

THE RING OUZEL.
(Merula torquata.)\

Plate 50, Fig. 10.

The range of the Ring Ouzel in Great Britain is pretty much
restricted to the moorland wastes and northern mountains. On

* Turdus merula — Saunders, Manual, p. 13.
f Turdus torquatus — Saunders, Manual, p. 15.

182 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

the Continent it breeds in Scandinavia, but in Central Europe it
is replaced by M. alpestris.

When examining the nest of this bird, its close resemblance to
that of the Blackbird will be noticed. Indeed it would be almost
impossible to discriminate between them, were we not aware that
the Blackbird does not haunt the wide, open, moor. In the dis-
tricts where the habitats of these two birds adjoin (the boundary
of cultivation and the wild), nothing but a sight of the parent
birds can make identification sure.

The Ring Ouzel lays four or five finely-marked eggs, bluish-
green in ground-colour, boldly and richly blotched with reddish-
brown, and sometimes streaked with dark brown. So closely do
the eggs of this bird resemble those of the Blackbird and the
Fieldfare, that, were a series of the eggs of these three birds
mixed promiscuously, it would be absolutely impossible to separate
all of them correctly. Nevertheless, on an average, the Ring
Ouzel's eggs have the ground-colour clearer, and are more boldly
and richly marked, than those of the Blackbird. They vary in
length from 1*35 to l'OS inch, and in breadth from 0'9 to 0'78
inch.

THE BLACK-THROATED OUZEL.
(Merula a trig it la ris.) *

Plate 51, Fig. 1.

The only claim of this Thrush to rank as a British species rests
on a single example taken in the south of England during the
winter of 1868. The Black-throated Ouzel belongs to the eastern
Palgearctic region, and is one of many Siberian birds which are
in the habit of occasionally missing their way on their autumn
migration, and wandering into Europe instead of Southern Asia.

Nothing is known of the nest of this bird ; but a series of its
eggs has been obtained by Herr Tancre's collectors on the Altai
Mountains. They exhibit the same variation in colour as the
eggs of the Blackbird, and measure from 1'2 to 11(3 inch in
length, and from 0*8 to 075 inch in breadth.

* Tardus atrogularis — Saunders, Manual, p. 9.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 183

THE COMMON DIPPER.

(ductus aquaticus.)
Plate 51, Fig. 8.

The distribution of the Dipper in Great Britain is chiefly
confined to the mountainous districts of the west and north of
England, including Wales, and throughout Scotland, extending
to the outer Hebrides and the Orkneys, but not to the Shetland
Isles. In Ireland it is found in similar localities to those in
Britain. The Dipper in a more or less modified form appears
to occur throughout the Palrearctic region and the Himalayas
wherever rocky mountain-streams are to be found.

By the first week in April, should the weather be at all favour-
able, the birds are engaged in nest-building. The site for the nest
is usually amongst the rocks, never in a tree or bush, although
occasionally amongst their gnarled and moss-grown roots. In
form it is somewhat like the Wren's, domed; but the hole which
admits the parent birds is very low down the side, and can seldom
be seen unless from below, the entrance overhanging a little.
Inside this mossy dome a nest of the ordinary open style is con-
structed, apparently quite distinct from it, without being in any
way woven into it.

The eggs of the Dipper are four or five in number, and can
never be confounded with the eggs of the Thrushes, except in
size and form. They are pure white and spotless, somewhat less
than a Song Thrush's egg in size. The shell, however, does not
possess that beautiful gloss so characteristic of the eggs of the
Kingfisher and the Woodpecker, and is somewhat rough in texture.
They vary in length from 1*1 to 0*95 inch, and in breadth from
0-77 to 0-7 inch.

The Black-bellied Dipper (Cinclus melanog aster) of Scandinavia,
has occurred on the eastern coasts of England. Its eggs resemble
those of C. aquaticus.

THE EOBIN.
(Erithacus nubecula.)

Plate 51, Figs. 2, 3.

Throughout Great Britain and Ireland the Robin is everywhere
a well-known bird in those localities where there is sufficient
cover ; like the Sparrow, it is a close attendant on cultivation

184 EGGS OF BEITISH BIKDS.

and improvement. Formerly it was a rare bird on the wild
and desolate Hebrides ; but now it is comparatively common,
as improvement and the planting of trees and shrubs have
increased. It breeds as far north as the Orkneys, but has not
yet been known to do so in the Shetlands, and only rarely occurs
on the Faroes in the autumn. The Robin breeds throughout
Europe as far north as the Arctic circle, rarely beyond ; but
becomes of far less frequent occurrence in Russia, and is not
known to nest east of the Ural Mountains.

The Robin's nest is very bulky and somewhat peculiar in its
construction. In the first place, should the nest be on the
ground, a small cavity is made as a foundation for future
operations. Then, with withered leaves, dry grass and moss, a
somewhat rude nest is made, but with a neat deep cup lined with
hair, and sometimes a little wool and rootlets, the latter material
being the most extensively used.

The eggs of the Robin are from five to eight in number, but
probably six may be taken as an average clutch. In ground-
colour they are pure and shining white ; the markings, which in
some cases are very rich, are brown of various shades, or red, and
sometimes with dashes and freckles of grey. In colour they differ
considerably. Some are pure white without a trace of markings,
others have a zone of colour round the larger end ; many are so
clouded with spots as to hide the ground-colour, while not a few
are richly and boldly blotched with reddish-brown, streaked with
dark brown approaching black. The eggs possess a considerable
amount of gloss, which fades to a very great extent after being
kept for any length of time. To be seen in all their delicate
beauty they must be examined soon after they are laid and before
the contents have been removed. They vary in length from 0*9
to 0"7 inch, and in breadth from 065 to 0"56 inch.

THE ARCTIC BLUE-THROATED ROBIN.
(Erithacus suecicd.)*

Plate 51, Figs. 6, 7.
The present species is a frequent visitor to England, especially
in the autumn. The Arctic Blue-throat breeds within the Arctic

* Cyanccula suecica — Saunders, Manual, p. :>3 ; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 230.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 185

circle, or in the birch-regions at high elevations of more southerly
climes, both in Europe and Asia ; in the latter continent it breeds
as far south as the Himalayas, and occasionally crosses Bering
Straits into Alaska.

The nest is not unlike that of a Robin. The hole is well
filled with dry grass and roots, and at the far end a neat deep cup
is formed, lined with fine roots and hair. It is almost impossible
to find the nest, except by accidentally frightening off the bird, and
even then it often takes some time, so carefully is it concealed.

The eggs are from five to six in number, and are laid about the
middle of June. They are greenish-blue, more or less distinctly
marbled with pale reddish-brown, and are very similar to the eggs
of the Nightingale. They may be described as miniature eggs of
the Redwing. They measure from - 8 to 0*69 inch in length, and
from 0'56 to 0"53 inch in breadth.

THE NIGHTINGALE.

(Erithacus luscinia.)*

Plate 51, Figs. 10, 11.

The Nightingale is a common summer visitor to all the counties
of England, except those in the north and west, being compara-
tively rare in South Yorkshire, Shropshire, and East Devon, which
may be considered the limits of its range in our islands. It is
pretty generally distributed on the Continent of Europe during the
breeding-season south of Scandinavia and west of Russia, only
occurring in the latter country accidentally. It passes through
North Africa on migration, and a few remain to breed in Algeria.

The nest is a large structure loosely put together outside, but
neatly finished. It is composed externally of dry grass, sometimes
fine flags and rushes, and strips of withered bark, together with
dead leaves of the oak, the hawthorn, and the birch, usually the
former. The nest cavity, which is deep and round, is lined with
fine grasses, dry rootlets, sometimes with horse-hair, and more
rarely with vegetable down.

The eggs of the Nightingale are four or five in number, usually
the latter, and sometimes as many as six have been found. There
appear to be two types of the egg of this bird — a rich olive-

* Dunlins luscinia — Saunders, Manual, p. 39; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 271.

186 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

brown one, and a bluish-green one. The ground-colour of the
olive-brown type of egg is bluish-green, where it can be seen
through the surface-colouring, which is pale reddish-brown. The
bluish-green type is very faintly mottled with pale reddish-brown,
the colouring-matter being sometimes collected on one end of the
egg, like a cap. In some specimens this cap is to be seen on each
end, the egg becoming paler round the centre. Some eggs are
finely streaked here and there with darker brown. In size they
vary from 0'93 to 075 inch in length, and from 0'65 to 0'57 inch
in breadth.

THE HOCK THEUSH.
(Monticola saxatilis.)

Plate 51, Fig. 4.

The occurrence of the Kock Thrush in England is only acci-
dental, only one specimen being admitted to be genuine. The
Rock Thrush breeds across Southern Europe as far north as the
Hartz Mountains, and eastward through Persia, Turkestan, and
South Siberia, as far as Lake Baikal, South-east Mongolia, and
North China. It passes through North Africa on migration, where
some remain to breed, and winters in Senegambia, Abyssinia, and
East Africa.

Wherever the nest is found, it is usually well concealed from
view, and always in a hole. Nests in the more cultivated districts
are made of roots, fine and coarse grasses, moss and bents, and
lined with hair and feathers. Those taken from more isolated
places, the rocky districts high up mountain sides, are similar in
outward construction, rarely lined with hair or feathers, but with
fine rootlets and dry grass.

The eggs of the liock Thrush are four or five in number, of the
same beautiful bluish-green as those of the Song Thrush, but
slightly paler and rounder ; indeed they are almost intermediate
between a Song Thrush's and a Starling's. The markings are
confined to a very few faint light brown specks, usually on the
larger end ; but the eggs are very often spotless. Even in the
same clutch these peculiarities may be noticed ; for sometimes
one egg will be faintly marked, and the rest spotless. They vary
in length from T05 to 0"95 inch, and in breadth from 0'82 to
0'7 inch.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIBDS. 187

THE REDSTART.
(Rutidlla phcenicurus. )

Plate 51, Fig. 12.

This handsome Jittle bird is of somewhat local distribution in
the British Islands, and can nowhere be said to be of very common
occurrence. The Kedstart breeds throughout Central Europe as
far north as the Arctic circle. In South Europe it is rarely seen,
except on spring and autumn migration, although a few remain to
breed at high elevations, usually selecting the pine regions for this
purpose. It winters in North Africa. In Asia its range during
the breeding season extends eastwards as far as the valley of the
Yenisei, and the winter home of these Asiatic birds appears to be
in Persia.

May is the Redstart's nesting season. We must not seek its
nests amongst the branches, nor yet amidst the brambles or
vegetation on the ground, but always in some hole, well protected
from the wind ; holes in walls and trees are, as a rule, selected ;
but most peculiar sites are sometimes chosen — for example, gate-
posts, flower pots and crevices under the eaves. Indeed, in this
respect the Redstart is almost as famous as the Robin.

The eggs are usually five or six in number, occasionally seven,
and even eight. They are of a paler blue and are more highly
polished than those of the Hedge Accentor, and the shell is far
more fragile. They vary in length from 0'8 to 0'7 inch, and in
breadth from 0"57 to 05 inch.

THE BLACK REDSTART.
(Ruticilla tithys.)

Plate 51, Fig. 5.

The Black Redstart is a regular winter visitant to the whole of
the south coast of England, and is not uncommon in Cornwall ;
but there is no positive evidence that it has ever bred in the
British Islands. The geographical distribution of the Black
Redstart during the breeding season is a somewhat peculiar one.
In the south it extends from Portugal through Algeria to
Palestine. Northwards its range becomes more restricted, and
apparently does not extend east of the valleys of the Dniester and

188 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

the Vistula or north of Holstein. South of the Alps it is found
throughout the year, its numbers being increased during winter,
when its range at that season extends as far south as Nubia.

The nest of the Black Redstart resembles that of the Robin,
being a very large, loose structure outside ; inside it is extremely
round and neat.

The usual nmnber of eggs is five ; sometimes only four are laid;
but six, and even seven, eggs have been recorded. The colour is
usually pure white ; but sometimes there is the faintest tinge of
brown, and a clutch in my collection from Altenkirchen shows the
faintest possible tinge of bluish-green. The eggs are very finely
grained, and the surface polished. In length they vary from 0'83
to 0"7 inch, and from - G to 0"5 inch in breadth.

THE WHEATEAR.
(Saxicola wnanthe.)

Plate 51, Fig. 9.

The Wheatear is one of the first migrants to arrive in Britain
in early spring. Outside the British Islands the Wheatear's range
is exceeded by few other British Passerine birds. It breeds
throughout Central and Northern Europe. Westward its breed-
ing-range extends over Iceland as far as Greenland, Labrador,
and eastwards throughout northern Siberia, the mountains of
Persia and Syria, and beyond Bering Straits into Alaska.

Far under a piece of rock, or in a crevice of a huge boulder, not
unfrequently in the holes of walls, or under a convenient earth-
clod on the fallow, are the usual situations chosen for the nest. It
will, when nesting on the sandy downs, take possession of a
deserted rabbit-burrow, or other suitable hole in the sandy soil.

The eggs of the Wheatear are from four to seven in number,
but six seems to be the average clutch. They are pale greenish-
blue, elongated in form, and usually spotless. Occasionally, how-
ever, they are found with markings upon them, usually confined
to a few faint purplish specks on the larger end, sometimes so
indistinct and fine as to be scarcely perceptible, unless examined
closely. The eggs vary in length from 095 to 0'79 inch, and in
breadth from 0(55 to 06 inch.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 189

THE ISABELLINE WHEATEAE.
(Saxicola isabclllna.)

Plate 51, Fig. 13

This large Wheatear is an inhabitant of South-eastern Europe
and North-eastern Africa, ranging eastwards to Central Asia as
far as Northern China. A specimen was shot in Cumberland in
November, 1887.

The nest resembles that of the Common Wheatear, and is
generally placed in burrows.

The eggs are four or five in number, of a pale greenish-blue,
with occasionally a slight indication of pale brown spots. They
measure from 0"85 to 0'9 inch in length, and about 0-65 inch in
breadth.

THE DESEET WHEATEAE.
(Saxicola deserti.)

Plate 51, Fig. 14.

The claim of the Desert Wheatear to a place in the British
Avi fauna rests upon the capture of two specimens — one obtained
on the 26th of November, 1880, near Stirling, and another near
Holderness on the 17th of October, 1885. It is found from North
Africa to Central Asia and India. Of the habits of the Desert
Chat during the breeding season but little is known.

Its nest is said, by ornithologists who have met with it, to
resemble that of the Black-throated Chat. It is placed on the
ground, sometimes in the shelter of a bush or in a fissure of the
rocks, or not unfrequently in the walls of wells.

The eggs closely resemble those of the Black-throated Wheat-
ear, but are not so brightly coloured, and the pale liver-coloured
spots are larger. They are light greenish-blue in ground-colour,
spotted with liver-brown of varying degrees of intensity, usually
in a zone round the larger end. They measure 077 inch in length
and 0"49 inch in breadth.

190 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE BLACK -THEOATED WHEATEAK.
{Saxicola stapazina.)

Plate 51, Fig. 15.

A male of this species was shot by Mr. David Page, of Bury, in
Lancashire, on or about the 8th of May, 1875, whilst it was sitting
on the ridge of the out-buildings belonging to the Bury Angling
Association near the reservoir. The Black-throated Wheatear,
and its ally the Black-eared Wheatear, are two of the commonest
birds in Greece and Asia Minor.

The nests which I found were usually in the grass in some
rock-sheltered crevice, and were loosely made outside of moss and
grass, but rather neatly lined with roots and goats' hair.

The number of eggs was usually five, but sometimes only four.
They vary in ground-colour from pale to dark bluish-green, spotted
with reddish-brown of different shades. In some specimens the
spots are dark (almost liver) brown and sharply defined ; in others
they are pale, many of them confluent. As a rule, the markings
are confined to the large end of the e^g, where they usually form
a zone ; but sometimes they are irregularly dispersed over the
entire surface. Some eggs are almost spotless, whilst others
have an indistinct band of very pale spots at the large end.
They measure from 0'8 to 0'7 inch in length, and from 0'62 to
0'56 inch in breadth.

THE WHINCHAT.
(Pratincola rubetra.)

Plate 51, Figs. 18, 19.

The Whinchat may be said to be pretty generally diffused
throughout the three kingdoms in summer, and, in certain locali-
ties, it is a common and abundant species. It breeds in all suit-
able localities throughout Central and Northern Europe, ranging
from the Arctic circle as far south as the pine regions extend.

The nest of the Whinchat is usually made in a little cavity in
the ground, and the thickest tufts of herbage are selected. Dry
grass, moss, and a few straws form the outside of the nest.
Internally it is composed of rootlets and horse-hair, loosely put
together and almost enshrouded in the surrounding herbage.

The eggs are from four to six in number, greenish-blue like
those of the Stonechat.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 191

THE STONE C HAT.
(Pratincola rubicola.)

Plate 51, Fig. lfi,

Unlike the Whinchat, the present species is, in our islands at
least, a constant resident, and may be seen in its favourite haunts
at all times of the year. Its distribution in Great Britain is
somewhat local, much more so than that of the Whinchat. The
Stonechat breeds in suitable localities in all the counties of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Hebrides, and
is occasionally found on the Orkney and Shetland Isles, but is not
known to breed there. On the Continent the Stonechat is not
found north of the Baltic or east of the valley of the Volga ; but
is a resident in North Africa, Palestine, and Asia Minor.

The nest is composed of dry grass and moss, occasionally with a
few rootlets, and is lined with finer bents, hair, feathers, and some-
times a little wool. Although somewhat loosely put together and
exhibiting but little skill, the nest of this bird is a pretty one.

The eggs of the Stonechat are from four to six in number, and
vary considerably in the extent and intensity of their spotting.
They are pale bluish-green in ground-colour, clouded and spotted
with reddish-brown. In most eggs of this bird the spots are
confined for the most part to a broad zone round the larger end,
and in some specimens the end is covered completely with them.
The pattern is very similar to that of the eggs of the Whinchat,
only far more intense and more widely dispersed. Eggs of the
Stonechat are sometimes found almost spotless, while others are so
richly marked as to resemble the eggs of the Spotted Flycatcher ;
and it will also be noticed that clutches of eggs are seldom
uniform in the intensity of their colouring, the last-laid eggs
being usually paler. They vary in length from 0"75 to 0"65 inch,
and in breadth from 059 to 0'55 inch.

THE SPOTTED FLYCATCHER.

{Muse icapa g risoli i . )

Plate 51, Figs. 17, 20.

The Spotted Flycatcher is one of the latest of our summer
migrants. Throughout Great Britain it is a common bird from
May until September, breeding in every county, but becoming

192 EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS.

rather less numerous in Scotland and in the Channel Islands.
Throughout the European Continent and the islands of the
Mediterranean it is a very common bird, and, for the most part,
a regular summer migrant.

A very handsome nest of the Spotted Flycatcher in my collec-
tion is somewhat larger than usual, and resembles certain nests
of the Robin. The lining contains no feathers, but is completely
composed of fine dry grass and a few hairs. It is deeply cup-
shaped, and the frontage to the nest is broad. Externally it is
chiefly composed of moss, long stems of water-plants, grass-blades,
and leaves of herbage — now dry and withered, but evidently
gathered in a green state. Here and there may be seen parts of
dead leaves, almost skeletonized, and a few scraps of green lichens.
Nests of this bird are sometimes composed largely of sticks and
fibrous roots, and then they are usually warmly lined with wool
and feathers.

The eggs of the Spotted Flycatcher vary in number from four
to six, and range from bluish-white to pea-green in ground-colour,
blotched, spotted, and clouded with various shades of reddish-
brown. Some eggs are so richly covered with spots as to hide
the ground-colour, and resemble very closely certain varieties of
Robin's eggs ; others have the markings confined to a zone round
the larger end ; while many are more evenly marked and singularly
clouded with a faint roseate tinge, which adds considerably to
their beauty, but which soon fades after they are blown. They
vary in length from 0'8 to - 7 inch, and in breadth from - G2 to
0-52 inch.

THE PIED FLYCATCHER.
(Muscicapa atricapilla.)*

Plate 52, Fig. 2.

Although the Pied Flycatcher breeds in some districts in North
Wales and the English counties on the Welsh border, its chief
summer haunt appears to be from South-west Yorkshire, ex-
tending northwards to the Lake districts of England and the
eastern and midland counties of Scotland from Berwickshire to
Caithness. On the Continent it is common in Scandinavia during

* Ficcdula atricapilla — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 323,

Plate 4-5.

*&*$ to

Whimbrel .

•'%->.'

Esquimaux Ouilew.

«*

Pawsor.S. b'.« li rd Uth iheffj.U

Plate 4-6.

Demoiselle Crane.

Crania .

P»»3on t BruUford lath Sheffield

Plate 4-7.

■ -0« • '

Red-necked Nightjar.

Tiii -tie Dove.

Red-necked Nightjar.

"**"Wb «W

" ^

f

Nightjar.

" - --
■t .% 1*

Nitfhtiai-.

ightj

Night jar.

Stock Dove.

Rind Dove

Hoc.lt Dove,

***■•■

k

M * ! it

San<l Grouse.

Passenger Pigeon.

Sand < farouse.

Piwaon.S. .Sheffield.

Plate £8

Hoopoe.

Swii't .

White- bellied Swift.

Hairy Woodpecker. Bee eater. Kingfisher. Lesser Sotted Woodpecker.

Wi-viieck . Dowuv Woodpecker.

Black Woodpecker. Belted Kingfisher.

Great Spoiled Woodpecker.

Roller.

Green Woodpecker,

Pavraon i Emiktord . Lit).

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 193

summer ; but in Russia it is not found so far north, ranging in the
Ural Mountains only to lat. 57°.

The Pied Flycatcher's nest is always placed in a covered site,
which varies but little in its situation. It is built in the holes of
birch and other trees, sometimes in a deserted Woodpecker's hole,
or a crevice of a wall or rock, at various heights from the ground,
sometimes but a few feet, at others far up the trunks. In these
holes a slight nest is formed of dry grasses, dead leaves, moss and
feathers, sometimes a little wool or a few horse and cows' hairs.

Few of our British eggs are more beautiful in colour than those
of the Pied Flycatcher. They are of a delicate pale blue, some-
times almost approaching white, perfectly spotless, somewhat frail
in texture, and slightly smaller than those of the Hedge Accentor.
In number they vary from five to eight, the latter number, how-
ever, being somewhat exceptional ; and but one brood is, as a
rule, reared in the year. The eggs vary in length from 0"8 to
065 inch, and in breadth from 0'58 to 0'52 inch.

THE RED-BREASTED FLYCATCHER,
(Muscicapa parva.)*

Plate 52. Fig. 3.

This pretty little Flycatcher is fairly entitled to a place in the
British avifauna, three examples having been obtained. Upon
the European Continent the range of the Red-breasted Flycatcher
is somewhat restricted. It breeds in Germany, Austria and South
Russia as far north as the Baltic provinces, arriving during the
latter end of April or early in May, and departing again in August
or September.

The nest is built in the hollow of a tree-trunk or against the
stem. It is a very handsome little structure, almost entirely
formed of green moss, with here and there a few scraps of lichen
and a downy feather or two. The inside is sparingly lined with
line dry grass and hairs. The nest-cavity measures about two
inches in diameter and one and a half inch in depth.

Many of the eggs of this bird very closely resemble Robin's
eggs in colour, others as closely the eggs of the Spotted Fly-
catcher. They are the palest of bluish-green in ground-colour,

* Siphia parva — Sharpe, Handb. I., p. 325.

194 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

closely freckled with reddish-brown and greyish-brown shell-
markings. They are from five to seven in number, and vary
from 0'07 to 0'06 inch in length, and from 0'54 to 0'5 inch in
breadth.

THE GRASSHOPPER WARBLER.
{Locustella locustella.)*

Plate 52, Fig. 1.

This is a somewhat local bird in the British Islands ; but there
is probably no county in England, Wales, Ireland, or Scotland
south of the Firth of Forth where it does not breed. On the
Continent it is probably confined to Western Europe.

A nest I found in Sussex was round, compact and rather deep,
the outside woven principally of green moss, mixed with a few
dead leaves and a little dry grass. The lining was of entirely
dry, slender, round grass stalks.

The ground-colour of the eggs is a pale, pinkish-white, generally
profusely spotted all over with small rufous-brown spots or dots
interspersed with paler and greyer underlying spots of the same
character. In most eggs the spots are slightly larger towards
the large end of the egg, and sometimes very decidedly so.
Occasionally the overlying spots are sparsely distributed, and in
some instances they are almost absent altogether. Not unfre-
quently irregular short and thin hair-lines of very dark rufous-
brown are observable. The eggs vary in length from 0'75 to 0'7
inch, and in breadth from 0'55 to 0'5 inch. The number ranges
from four to seven.

SAVI'S WARBLER.

(Locustella luscinioides.)

Plate 52, Fig. -i.

Savi's Warbler is in all probability extinct as a breeding-bird
in our islands, as the marshes where it formerly bred have been
to a great extent drained. On the Continent the distribution of
this species is also somewhat restricted, though in many localities
it is a common bird.

* Locustella ncevia (Bodd.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 81; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 236.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 195

Graf Casimir Wodzicki, describing its habits in Galicia* writes : —
" The nest is carefully concealed amongst the sedges {Car ex), and
is placed upon a heap of tangled blades, usually six inches, but
sometimes two or three feet above the water. It is composed of
flat leaves of broadish grass, generally of sweet-grass {Glyceria),
carefully woven together, the narrowest leaves being chosen for
the lining. It is a marvellously neat structure, very deep, some-
times deeper than the inside diameter."

The eggs vary in number from four to six. They are French-
white or pale-buff in ground-colour, thickly sprinkled over the
entire surface with ashy-brown spots, most numerous at the
larger end of the egg, where they usually form an obscure zone.
The pale violet-grey underlying markings are numerous; and on
some eggs there are a few very dark, irregular, hair-like streaks.
The eggs of Savi's Warbler somewhat closely approach those of
the Grasshopper Warbler, but are always browner. They vary
in length from - 8 to - 75 inch (Professor Newton gives a mea-
surement of 0"84), and from 0'6 to 0"55 inch in breadth.

THE SEDGE WAEBLEE.
{A crocephalus phragmitis.)

Plate, 52, Fig. 5.

This well-known bird is a common summer visitor to nearly
every part of our islands, breeding more or less abundantly in
every county. On the Continent the Sedge Warbler has a some-
what extensive range, being found in Norway as far north as lat.
70°, in Sweden and North Russia to lat. 68°, and in the valleys
of the Ob and the Yenisei to lat. 67°.

Few of our British nests are so unassuming as that of the
Sedge Warbler's. It is a small and simple little structure, not
very deep, made of dry grass-stems, portions of sedgy plants,
sometimes lined with a few hairs, sometimes with scraps of vege-
table down. It is occasionally placed as high as ten feet from
the ground, but more frequently at a height of one or two feet,
and rarely on the ground itself.

The eggs of the Sedge Warbler are five or six in number, and
differ considerably in colour. One type is stone-colour, with pale

* (Journ. Orn., 1853, Extra-Heft, p. 49.)

196 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

and indistinct mottlings of yellowish-brown. A second type has
the same huffish appearance, but the markings are very much
more pronounced and of a richer brown, in some specimens deep
red-brown. Almost all eggs of the Sedge Warbler, of both types,
are marked with fine scratchy streaks of rich blackish-brown ; on
some eggs these pencillings are not continuous and can scarcely
be traced ; in others they are almost as pronounced as the marks
on a Bunting's egg. The eggs vary in length from 0"75 to 06
inch, and in breadth from 0'55 to 0"5 inch.

THE AQUATIC WARBLER.
(A crocephalus aquaticus.)

Plate 52, Fig. G.

This species is a bird of the Western Palacarctic region. It has
been recorded on three occasions in England. It never makes its
nest amongst the reeds over the water, but chooses a bunch of
sedge or water plants near the bank, or a thorn or willow over-
grown with rank herbage. The nest is never placed on the
ground, but frequently only a few inches above it ; seldom more
than a foot or eighteen inches. It is suspended between the stalks
of the plants which grow close to it, and which are woven into
the sides.

It is impossible to give any character by which the eggs of this
bird can be distinguished from those of the Sedge Warbler. They
are four or five m number, and vary in length from G"7 to 007
inch, and in breadth from 0"52 to 05 inch.

THE GKEAT KEED WARBLER

{Acrocephalus turdoides.)
Plate 52, Fig. 7.

The only satisfactorily authenticated instance of the occurrence
of the Great Reed Warbler in our islands is the one recorded by
Hancock in his " Catalogue of the Birds of Northumberland and
Durham." It is a western Palaearctic species, breeding in Central
and Southern Europe, and ranging eastwards into Northern Persia
and Turkestan.

The nest is usually placed in the middle of the reed-bed, about
half-way between the top of the reeds and the surface of the

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 197

water. The nest is deep and cup-shaped, having an inside
diameter of about two inches and a half, and being of about the
same depth. Outside it measures about five inches in height, with
an outside diameter of four inches. Occasionally the leaves of
water-plants are interwoven in the nest, and sometimes moss,
wool, a feather or two, and downy seeds, such as those of the
clematis and cotton-grass.

The number of eggs is generally four or five, but frequently
six. In colour they almost exactly resemble those of the Marsh
Warbler, but are twice the size. The ground-colour is a pale
blue, sometimes approaching green, and often tinged with grey.
Few eggs are more boldly or richly spotted. Large blotches of
olive-brown or russet-brown, sometimes pale, but occasionally
approaching black, are distributed pretty evenly over the surface,
and are relieved by minute spots of the same colour and by the
underlying blotches, which show pale through the ground-colour.
The eggs vary considerably in size ; the largest in my collection
measures 1*0 by 0'7 inch, and the smallest 0"8 by 63 inch.

THE REED WARBLER.
(Acrocephalus arundinaceus.)*

Plate 52, Fig. 8.

The Reed Warbler is common enough in the south of England,
but in the north it is very rare. It is found in suitable localities
in summer throughout Europe, south of lat. 58°, and in Asia Minor,
Palestine, South-west Siberia, Turkestan, Persia, Baluchistan,
and probably in Afghanistan.

The materials of the nest are principally very fine roots, a
piece or two of worsted, a feather, a little moss and some dry
grass. The lining is entirely of fine roots.

The eggs vary very little, but some clutches are much darker
and more profusely spotted than others. The ground-colour is
a pale greenish blue, and the spots or blotches greenish brown,
more or less confluent at the larger ends, the underlying spots
being paler and greyer than the others. Some eggs show a few
streaky spots, almost black. They vary from 0.78 to 07 inch in
length, and from 0'55 to 0"5 inch in breadth, and are from three
to five in number.

* Acrocephalus strepems (V.)— Saunders, Manual, p. 71 ; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 231.

198 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE MAKSH WARBLER.
(Acrucephahis palustris.)

Plate 52, Fig. 9.

Thanks to the researches of Mr. Harting and others, the Marsh
Warbler must now be admitted to be a regular, though local,
summer visitor to England. On the Continent the geographical
range of the Marsh Warbler is almost the same as that of the
Reed Warbler.

The nest, according to Naumann, is never placed over water —
not even over marshy ground. It is always built over firm ground,
though this is generally somewhat moist, as it cannot help being
on the bank of a stream, a situation often chosen.

The number of eggs varies from five to seven, and in the colour
and character of the markings they present two very distinct
types, the one apparently as common as the other. The first
type has the ground-colour pale greenish-blue, with surface-spots
and blotches of olive-brown and underlying markings of violet-
grey. The peculiarity of this type is that most of the spots are
underlying ones, the overlying spots being fewer and smaller.
Each of these olive surface-markings generally contains a spot of
darker brown in the centre. The second type somewhat more
nearly approaches the eggs of the Reed Warbler, being of a
greenish -white ground-colour, richly marbled, blotched and
spotted with olive-brown, and having a few very dark-brown
specks. In this type the underlying markings are few and
usually small. In both types most of the markings are distri-
buted on the large end of the egg, sometimes so thickly as to
almost conceal the ground-colour. The eggs vary in length from
0'8 to 065 inch, and in breadth from 0'59 to 052 inch.

THE ICTERINE WARBLER.

(Hypolais hypolais.)*
Plate 52, Fig. 10.

The Icterine Warbler has been noticed in Great Britain on
half-a-dozen occasions, and it is believed to breed occasionally in
England. It is a common summer visitor to the north of France,
Belgium, Holland, Germany, Italy and Sicily, but is very rare in

* Hypolais icterinu — Saunders, Manual, p. 69.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 199

the south of France, and entirely absent from Spain. It is
common in Denmark, the Baltic Provinces and South Scan-
dinavia, but becomes much rarer further north, the limit of its
range in Norway being lat. G7°, and in Sweden and West Eussia
about 65°. On the Urals it is said only to range as far north as
57°, and it has been recorded east of those mountains from the
valley of the Tobol.

The nest of this Warbler is a very beautiful one, and is
generally built in the fork of a small tree eight or ten feet
from the ground. It is composed of dry grass deftly inter-
woven with moss, wool, spiders' webs, thistle-down, strips of
bark and lichen, lined with fine roots, grass-stalks and horse-hair.
The eggs are four or five in number — very rarely six. They are
brownish-pink in ground-colour, evenly spotted and more rarely
streaked with very dark purplish-brown, which occasionally
approaches black. The underlying markings are very indistinct,
and some specimens are very finely streaked with lighter brown.
Some eggs have the spots much smaller and finer than others.
They vary in length from 0"78 to 065 inch, and in breadth from
06 to 05 inch.

THE BARRED WARBLER.
(Sylvia nisoria.)

Plate 52, Fig. 11.
The present species has been recorded at least eight times in
Great Britain. It nests in South Sweden, as well as in Germany
east of the Rhine, Transylvania, South Russia, Persia, and Tur-
kestan, as far east as Yarkand.

The nest is not like that of most Warblers, a slender structure,
so loosely made as to be semi-transparent, but is somewhat bulky
and compact. It is composed of dry grass-stalks and roots, with
generally some small-leaved plants, cobwebs, thistle-down, or
other woolly material mixed with it. Outside it is rough enough,
but inside it is very neat and round, rather deep, and lined with
a few fine roots, cobwebs, or horse-hair.

The eggs are usually four or five in number, and, in rare in-
stances, six ; they are laid in the last week of May. They are
very characteristic, and cannot easily be confounded with those of
any other Warbler. The ground-colour is dull bufnsh-white ; the

200 EGGS OF BEITISII BIRDS.

underlying spots are grey, and, though somewhat obscured by
the overlying layer of ground-colour, they appear distinct and
bold enough when carefully examined In the greater number
of eggs the overlying spots are either absent altogether or are so
small and pale as to be observed with difficulty ; but in some
cases, though rarely, they are tolerably well defined and are
brown, and much more numerous than the underlying spots
(which they almost conceal), and are, like them, principally dis-
tributed at the larger end of the egg. They vary in length from
09 to 0"8 inch, and in breadth from 065 to 0'6 inch.

THE OKPHEAN WAKBLEK.
(Sylvia orpheus.)

Plate 52, Figs. 14, 15.

The Orphean Warbler can only be looked upon as a very rare
and accidental straggler to our islands, if indeed the evidence
of its occurrence at all can be relied upon. On the Continent the
range of this bird is very restricted. It appears to be a summer
migrant to all the countries lying in the basin of the Mediterranean
and the Black Sea, and eastward as far as Persia and Turkestan.

The nest is a tolerably substantial one, and deep, composed of
dry grass and leafy stalks of plants. Inside it is built of finer
grasses, and lined sparingly with thistle-down or the flower of
the cotton-grass. Little or no attempt seems to be made to
conceal it. It is generally placed on the branch of a tree not
more than a few feet from the ground, and sometimes near the
top of a bush.

Four or five is the usual number of eggs. The ground-colour
is white, sometimes faintly tinted with gre} r and sometimes tinted
with brown. The spots are almost always much more developed
at the large end than at the small one, and are sometimes very
small, but generally vary in size from dust-shot to No. 4 shot, and
in rare instances are even larger, two or three being confluent and
forming irregular blotches. The colour of the overlying spots
varies from olive-brown to nearly black, whilst the underlying
spots naturally take the tint of the ground-colour of the egg, and
vary from pale grey to buff. They vary in length from 0'85 to
0'75 inch, and in breadth from 0"G3 to 0'50 inch.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 201

THE BLACKCAP.
(Sylvia atricapilla.)

Plate 52, Figs. 17, 18, 19.

The Blackcap is one of the best-known of all the Warblers that
visit us in spring and remain to nest. On the Continent the
Blackcap is generally distributed throughout Europe — in Scandi-
navia ranging as far north as lat. 66°, in the valley of the Dwina
to lat. 62°, and on the Ural Mountains to lat. 57°.

The nest is made of dry grass-stems, leaf-stalks, a little moss,
and coarse roots, cemented together with a few cobwebs and
insect-cocoons, and lined with a few horse-hairs. Although very
slight in structure, it is well-built, very compact, and most
beautifully rounded.

The eggs of the Blackcap are from four to six in number.
There are certainly three distinct types of the eggs of this
Warbler. The usual type is dirty white in ground-colour, suf-
fused with olive-brown or yellowish-brown, clouded with darker
tints of the same colour, and here and there marked with rich
brown spots and sometimes a few streaks. The second type
closely resembles certain varieties of the eggs of the Barred
Warbler. They are the palest of bluish-white in ground-colour ;
and most of the markings are underlying ones of violet-grey, with
a few surface-spots and blotches of yellowish-brown, intermingled
with one or two spots and streaks of dark brown. The third, and
perhaps the most beautiful type, certainly the rarest, is uniform
pale brick-red in colour, indistinctly marbled with darker shades,
and sparingly spotted and streaked with dark purplish-brown.
The usual type of the Blackcap's egg very closely resembles the
eggs of the Garden Warbler, but they are perhaps more uniformly
clouded and brighter in colour than those of that bird. They
vary in length from - 85 to 75 inch, and in breadth from
06 to 055 inch.

THE GARDEN-WAEBLER.
{Sylvia hortensis.)*

Plate 52, Figs, 12, 13.

The Garden Warbler is pretty generally distributed throughout
England, except in the extreme south-west, but becomes exceed-
* Sylvia simplex — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 195.

'202 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

ingly local in Wales, Scotland, and Ireland. On the Continent the
geographical distribution of the Garden Warbler extends through-
out Western Europe, and, like that of some other migrants,
becomes more and more restricted, both to the north and to the
south, as it progresses eastwards. In Norway the bird ranges as
far north as lat. 70°, in Finland and North-west Russia to lat. 65°,
and in the Ural Mountains to lat. 59°.

The nest is a simple net-like structure, made of the withered
stems of grasses and a few small roots ; sometimes a few cobwebs
and a little moss cement the stalks together, and it is lined with
a small quantity of horse-hair. The surrounding branches are
artfully interwoven with the sides of the nest, which, frail as it is,
is well and skilfully put together.

The eggs are four or five in number, in some cases as many as
six. They very closely resemble those of the Blackcap, and vary
in ground-colour from pale huffish-white to greenish-white. In
some eggs the markings are distributed in large blotches of green-
ish-brown, varying in richness of colour, and intermingled with
smaller and paler underlying spots, with sometimes a few short
irregular streaks of dark brown ; in others the underlying spots are
the predominant ones — large irregular pale violet-grey blotches,
sparingly dashed and marbled with brown surface-spots, some of
which are very dark in colour ; others, again, have the markings
chiefly round the large end of the egg — very rich brown spots and
irregular streaks intermingled with grey underlying spots. I have
never met with the rufous type which occasionally occurs in eggs
of the Blackcap and other Warblers as well as the Shrikes, etc.
The eggs vary in length from 0"85 to 0'7 inch, and in breadth
from 063 to 055 inch.

THE WHITETHROAT.

(Sylvia cinerea.)*
Plate 52, Fig. 16.
The Common Whitethroat is, as its name implies, one of the
best-known of the Warblers. It breeds throughout Europe, in
Scandinavia and West Russia, as far north as lat. 65°, and in the
Ural Mountains as far as lat. 60°. Eastwards it is found in Asia
Minor, Palestine, Persia, Turkestan and South-west Siberia.

* Sylvia sylvia — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 182.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 203

The nest is made of fine dry grass-stems, and is lined with a
few fibrous rootlets and a quantity of horse-hair. Although so
slight and loosely put together, the Whitethroat's nest is a very
pretty one, and may generally be distinguished from the nests of
allied birds by its greater depth.

The eggs of the Whitethroat are from four to six in number.
Some specimens are bumsh-white, with most of the spots under-
lying, and violet-grey in colour ; others are pale bluish-white,
mottled, blotched and speckled with yellowish-brown, and with
large underlying spots of violet-grey; whilst others are pale green,
sparingly marked with olive-green. In some eggs the spots are
evenly distributed ; in others they form a zone round the larger
half of the egg ; and in others they are all confluent on the large
end, forming a round mass of colour. They measure from 0'8 to
0'65 inch in length, and from 06 to 0'5 inch in breadth.

THE LESSEE WHITETHIiOAT.

(Sylvia curruca.)
Plate 52, Fig, 20.

In this country the bird is a somewhat local one, and becomes
very rare in the west of England and in Wales. It is found
nesting throughout Europe, Asia Minor and Palestine, extending
northwards somewhat beyond the Arctic circle, but not quite
to the limit of forest-growth.

The nest is much shallower than that of the Common White-
throat, and is often made of coarser materials. It is usually
made of fine dry grass-stalks, amongst which the twigs that
support it are artfully interwoven. It is generally bound together
with spiders' webs or the cocoons of caterpillars, and lined with a
few fibrous rootlets and sometimes a little horse-hair.

The eggs of the lesser Whitethroat are four or five in number,
and present in their variations two very distinct types. The first
type, and perhaps the commonest, is pure white or pale creamy-
white in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with rich greenish-
brown, and with underlying shell-markings of violet-grey. The
second type has the ground pale buff or stone-colour, and the
markings are not so bold and deep in colour. They are confined
for the most part to the large end of the egg, often forming a

204 EGGS OF BEITISH BIEDS.

zone, sometimes an irregular circular patch. Many of the eggs
are streaked with very deep brown, and usually most of the large
spots are paler round the edge than in the centre, and on all
eggs the large spots are intermingled with finer markings of pale
yellowish brown. They measure from 078 to 0'6 inch in length,
and from 0*55 to 05 inch in breadth.

THE SUB-ALPINE WAKBLEE.

(Sylvia subalpina.)
Plate 53, Figs. 3, 4.

This Warbler is a little smaller than the Lesser Whitethroat,
and is distinguished by its vinous-chestnut chin and breast. A
specimen of this South European bird was captured on St. Kilda
by Mr. J. S. Elliot, on the 13th of June, 1894.

The nest is composed of dry stalks, with dead thistle-leaves,
and lined with fine dry grass or long horse-hair.

The eggs are four in number, pale yellowish or greenish-white,
speckled all over, especially at the larger end, with light-brown
or slaty-blue.

THE DABTFOED WAKBLEE.

(Sylvia provincialis.) *
Plate 53, Fig. 1.

The headquarters of this species appear to be in the basin of
the Mediterranean, where it occurs in Spain, the extreme South
of France, Corsica, Sardinia, Italy, and Sicily. Canon Tristram
obtained it in Palestine ; and Heuglin found it near Alexan-
dria. It is a resident in Marocco and Algeria. In England it is
principally confined to the counties bordering the Channel, but
also occurs in the counties of Surrey, Oxford, Worcester, Leicester,
and Derby.

The nest is a very slender structure, built principally of the
finest round grass-stalks and slender stems of various plants, a
good deal of moss being used in the foundation, and small bits of
wool being introduced into the lining. The nest is very small and

* Sylvia undata — Saunders, Manual, p. 53. Melizophilus undatus — Sharpe, Handb.,

I., p. 198.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 205

deep, and though the sides are thick, the materials are so loosely
put together that when held up to the light it is possible to see
through them.

Four or five is the usual number of eggs. In colour they much
resemble those of the Whitethroat. The ground-colour is white,
sometimes of a greenish and sometimes of a huffish shade. The
spots are darker and more numerous than those of typical eggs of
the Whitethroat, and are dark brown, largest and most numerous
towards the large end of the egg. The underlying spots are, of
course, paler, but in closely spotted eggs are not conspicuous. In
size the eggs vary from 0"7 to 0"65 inch in length by 0'53 to 05
in breadth.

THE KUFOUS WARBLER.

(Sylvia galactodes.)*

Plate 53, Fig. 2.

The Rufous Warbler can only be considered a very accidental
straggler to the British Islands. It has a very restricted geogra-
phical distribution, its breeding-range being confined to the basin
of the Mediterranean.

Mr. Salvin observes : — " The materials for the nest are dead
shoots of the tamarisk, which form the outside, the inside and
lining being usually Coot's or Duck's feathers mingled with wool
or camel's-hair ; and in nine cases out of ten, a small piece of
serpent's skin is loosely placed in the bottom of the nest."

The eggs are from three to five in number, and differ somewhat
in the extent and colour of the markings. The usual type is very
pale bluish-white or French-grey in ground-colour, irregularly
marked and dashed with large brown spots, and with a few streaks
of the same colour and pale violet-grey shell-markings. Another
type is very pale blue in ground-colour, finely speckled with
pale brown, the spots being most numerous on the large end
of the egg. They measure from - 95 to 0*8 inch in length, and
from 0'67 to 059 inch in breadth. The eggs of the Rufous
Warbler very closely resemble those of the Tawny Pipit (Anthus
campestris) ; but, as a rule, the eggs of the latter bird are com-
paratively broader in proportion to their length.

* Aedon galactodes— Saunders, Manual, p. 67 ; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 202.

20b' EGGS OF BKITISH BIRDS.

THE WOOD WEEN.

{Phylloscopus sibilatrix.)*

Plate 53, Fig. 12.

Though somewhat more local than its near allies, the Wood
Wren is by no means uncommon in England and Wales. To the
greater part of Europe it is a regular summer visitor.

The nest, which is extremely difficult to find, is always on the
ground, concealed amongst the grass, heath or bilberry. It is
semi-domed, composed of dry grass, with sometimes a little moss
or a few leaves, and lined with horse-hair — not with feathers.

The eggs vary in number from five to seven, and are pure
white in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with purplish-brown,
and with numerous shell-markings of violet-grey. Some eggs are
much more thickly marked than others ; in some the spots are
small ; in others they are confluent in places and form several
large pale blotches, thickly intermingled with smaller and darker
spots and streaks. They measure from 0'7 to 0'6 inch in length,
and from 0'59 to 0'53 inch in breadth. The peculiar character of
the Wood Warbler's eggs, as compared with the eggs of its
British congeners, consists in their average larger size, the more
numerous and richer brown markings, and the underlying spots
of violet-grey.

THE WILLOW WHEN.
{Phylloscopus trochilus.)

Plate 53, Figs. 5, 6.

Of all the Willow Warblers the common Willow Wren, as it
is generally called, is the most abundant and the most widely
distributed. On the Continent it is equally common.

The nest is almost always concealed amongst grass on the
ground, and is difficult to find. It is semi-domed, the rim which
forms the entrance being at an angle of about 45°. It is some-
what loosely constructed outside with dead grass, and sometimes
a little moss or a few dry leaves. Inside it is more carefully
finished, and is lined with fine roots, horse-hair, and lastly with a
profusion of feathers.

* Phylloscopus sibilator — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 205.

EGGS OF BEITISH BIRDS. 207

The eggs vary in number from five to eight, and are white or
pale creamy-white in ground-colour, blotched, spotted and speck-
led with pale brownish-red. In some specimens the spots are
small and finely powdered over the whole shell ; in others the
markings are confluent, usually at the large end of the egg,
sometimes forming a zone, and sometimes with a few streaks of
rich brown. In shape the eggs vary not a little, sometimes being
almost round. They vary in length from 0'73 to 0'5(5 inch, and
in breadth from 0"5 to 0'45 inch.

The eggs of all the British Willow Warblers possess certain
characteristics which readily distinguish them from each other.
Those of the Common Willow Warbler are readily identified by
their pale reddish-brown markings ; those of the Chiffchaff by
their less numerous and very dark red spots ; and those of the
Wood Wren are darkest of all, being thickly marked with purplish
coffee-brown and underlying spots of pale violet-grey. From the
eggs of many of the Tits it is a more difficult matter to distin-
guish the eggs of the two former Willow- Warblers ; but the
situation and shape of the nest are sufficient for their identi-
fication.

THE CHIFFCHAFF.

{Phijlloscop us rufus . ) *
Plate 53, Figs. 7, 8.

The Chiffchaff, though it has a much more restricted range
than the Willow Wren, and is seldom so abundant, is neverthe-
less a common bird in most parts of England and Wales. In
Scotland and Ireland it is said to be more local. On the Con-
tinent the Chiffchaff' does not range quite up to the Arctic circle.

The nest of the Chiffchaff does not differ from that of the
Willow Wren. It is semi-domed, composed of dried grass, rather
loosely made outside, but inside it is very neat and lined with
roots, horse-hair, and finally with a profusion of feathers. Unlike
that of the Willow Wren, it is often placed a foot or two from
the ground.

The eggs are five or even seven in number, and vary from pure
white to pale creamy-white in ground-colour. There are two

* P. minor — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 211.

208 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

types of ChiffchafF s eggs. The commonest type is spotted, chiefly
at the large end of the egg, with very dark reddish-brown. Be-
longing to this type are certain varieties, in which the markings
are very minute and more evenly distributed over the entire
surface of the egg. In the second type the spots are very much
larger and likewise paler and not so numerous. Underlying spots
of violet-grey are seen sparingly in the eggs of this bird. The
eggs vary in length from 065 to 0'55 inch, and in breadth from
0-5 to 0-45 inch.

THE YELLOW-BROWED WILLOW WEEN.
(Plujlloscopiis superciliosus.)

Plate 53, Fig. 9.

The breeding-range of the Yellow-browed Warbler is supposed
to be confined to the pine forests of North-eastern Siberia, from
the valley of the Yenisei eastwards to the Pacific, and from the
mountains of Lake Baikal northwards to the Arctic circle. It is
an occasional visitor to Great Britain.

A nest found by me in the Yenisei valley was built in a slight
tuft of grass, moss and bilberries, semi-domed, exactly like the
nest of our Willow Warbler's. It was composed of dry grass
and moss, and lined with reindeer-hair.

The eggs are pure white in ground-colour, spotted very thickly
at the large end, in the form of an irregular zone, with reddish
brown, and more sparingly on the remainder of the surface ; some
of the spots are underlying and paler, but not grey, and on one
or two of the eggs they are confluent. They measure - 6 inch
in length and - 45 inch in breadth. The markings are well
defined, like those of the eggs of the Chiffchaff, but the colour is
decidedly more like those of the Willow Warbler's.

THE GOLDCEEST.

(Begulus cristatus.)

Plate 53, Fig. 10.

The Golden-crested Wren, Kinglet, or Goldcrest, as it is often

called, is very generally distributed throughout the British Islands.

It is found throughout the Palaearctic region, in Scandinavia as

far north as the Arctic circle, but in North Eussia only as far as

Plate 49.

( Aickoo

Cuckoo.

Cuckoo .

( uckoo.

Cuckoo .

•\4' ''*

Black -billed Cuckoo . Great Spotted Cuckoo. Yellow hilled Cuckoo.

( 'uckoo .

Cuckoo.

Cuckoo .

r

< i ickoo .

Cuckoo.

Pawaon&Braibfoi-d.Litii ShfffieU

Plate 50.

,.i \ -

Whites Thrush

Son^ Thrush .

S ibcrifin Thnis) i

"* ft

• . ▼ »

Mistle Thrush

Redwing.

Mistle Thrush.

Kins; l l.iz.-l.

SheffieU.

Plate 51

&**£

Black thr< >.tted Ouzel.

Rock Thrush.

Black Redstart

I ^ipP*

VVh^atpar

Nightingale

Nightingale

IsabaLtm* "Wheatear Desert 'Wheateai- Bla.k throated Wheatear. S»..nfichat.

Spotted flycatcher Whinchat.

Baraom 8= Brafla ford Uth . Sheffield

Plate 52.

Grasshopper Warbler. r\ed rlv ;it«lu>r. \<f>A breasted ETycatclien Savis "Warbler.

Sodjie Warbler.

•

ft?'?**-.

*

^

«»

Aquatic Warbler, (irest Reed Wart J.^i Ret.d Warbler.

•''•'.V

Maxell Warbler

.-'. v>

Iv *

t^:

in"' Warbier.

Barred Warbler.

(varcksn Wai-bJer.

f3N

< vardfoci Warbler.

•H

< >r jJu

ST >

Orpliean Warbler

ft

Lesser Whitethxoat

Sheffield.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Archangel in lat. 63°, and in the Ural Mountains and eastwards
not extending above lat. 60°.

The nesting-site of the Goldcrest is generally in the branches
of pines, firs, or drooping yew-twigs, usually the very extremity
of the branch being selected, where two or three twigs branch
out, and where the nest is wafted to and fro by every breath of
air. The end of a drooping branch of spruce is a site often
chosen. The nest is almost spherical, slung under the branches
like a hammock, and made outwardly of the greenest moss, a few
grass stems and hairs, and felted with spiders' webs and some-
times a few lichens, and then usually lined with a quantity of
feathers. The foliage on the selected branches is carefully inter-
woven with the nesting materials, so that at a casual glance it
appears nothing but a tangled mass of vegetation.

The eggs of the Goldcrest are from five to eight in number,
sometimes as many as ten. Usually they are of a most delicate
reddish-white, speckled with tiny red markings, which often form
a zone round the larger end of the egg. Some specimens are
pure and spotless white, whilst others have the spots confluent
and so numerous as to give the egg a uniform reddish or yellow-
ish-brown appearance. They measure from 0"6 to 0"52 inch in
length, and from 43 to 0"4 inch in breadth.

THE FIBECBEST.

(Begulus ignicap ilhis . )
Plate 53, Fig. 11.

The Firecrest has a very restricted range. Its northern limit
appears to be the Baltic Provinces, where, however, it is very
rare. To the west it breeds throughout Europe south of the
Baltic, and is extremely abundant in Algeria, although it has not
been recorded from North-eastern Africa. Eastwards its range
does not apparently extend beyond the Crimea and Asia Minor,
and it occasionally visits Great Britain in winter.

The nest of the Firecrest does not differ from that of the
Goldcrest.

The eggs are as numerous as those of the Goldcrest, and are
usually nine or ten in number, sometimes less, and, in rare
instances, more. They may always be distinguished from the

210 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

eggs of the Goldcrest by their much redder tinge. They are
reddish-white in ground-colour, richly marbled and speckled over
the entire surface with brownish-red. Some specimens are thus
richly coloured only on the larger end of the egg ; but usually
the whole surface is covered. On some specimens a few minute
streaks of brown are found. They measure from 0'56 to 0'5 inch
in length, and from 0'45 to 0'4 inch in breadth.

THE GREAT TIT.

(Par us major.)

Plate 53, Fig. 13.

The Great Tit is a common bird throughout the wooded por-
tions of Great Britain. It appears to be found throughout the
Palaoarctic region, from the Atlantic to the Pacific.

The site of the Great Tit's nest varies considerably. Holes in
walls and decaying timber are favourite places ; so, too, are the
deserted nests of Crows and Magpies, as also amongst the sticks
in the foundation of Rooks' nests. Most curious situations are
sometimes chosen. Like the Robin, it appears to have the same
weakness for a flower-pot ; or it will sometimes select an old
pump.

The eggs of the Great Tit are from five to eleven in number,
usually seven or eight, and they vary somewhat in size and mark-
ings. They are pure white in colour, sometimes with a faint
yellowish tinge, spotted and blotched with light reddish-brown.
Some specimens are far more richly marked than others, the
colour being distributed in bold blotches ; on others it consists of
mere specks, sometimes partly confluent and forming a zone
round the larger end of the egg. The eggs measure from 08 to
065 inch in length, and from 0"55 to 05 in breadth.

THE BLUE TIT.

(Par us ctcrtdeus.)
Plate 53, Figs. 14, 15.

The Blue Tit is one of the most widely spread and certainly
one of the best known of our native birds. It is distributed over

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 211

the whole of temperate and Southern Europe, as far east as the
Ural Mountains and the Caucasus.

The Blue Tit's breeding-grounds are in well-wooded districts,
in gardens and orchards, near houses, in the holes of outhouses,
and in walls. Like all other nests built in holes, it is but a poorly
made structure, so loosely put together that it is difficult to
remove it without breaking it to pieces. The materials usually
selected are moss and dry grass ; and it is lined with wool, hair,
and great quantities of feathers.

Many nests of the Blue Tit contain as many as twelve eggs ;
in other and more usual instances the number varies from five to
eight. The eggs are very similar in shape to those of the Great
Tit, and are white in ground-colour, speckled, as a rule, rather
faintly with light red ; they measure from 0'7 to 0'55 inch in
length and from 05 to 0'4'2 inch in breadth.

THE BRITISH COAL TIT.

(Parus britannicus.)

Plate 53, Fig. 16.

The Coal Tit is found pretty generally throughout the British
Islands in all suitable localities. The British form, P. britannicus,
appears to be peculiar to our islands. The European form, P. ater,
occasionally visits us on migration, and may interbreed with the
British sub-species, as intermediate forms between them can be
obtained.

The nest of the Coal Tit is generally found in holes of trees
and stumps, but sometimes a hole in a wall will be selected.
Birch-woods are favourite haunts of this bird during the breeding
season, where the abundance of holes suitable for nesting purposes
is most probably the chief attraction. The nest resembles those
of the other Tits, and is very loosely put together. It is made of
dry grass, moss, in some cases thickly felted with hair, and lined
very warmly with feathers.

The eggs, from five to eight or nine in number, are usually pure
white, spotted and freckled with light red. In some specimens
the spots are bold and rich in colour, chiefly massed on the large
end of the egg ; in others they are evenly distributed over the

212 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

entire surface in small dots. A beautiful clutch of eggs from
Pomerania, in my collection, nine in number, has the ground-
colour delicate creamy-white; many of the markings are confluent,
and all are very pale and chiefly distributed in broad wavy streaks.
One egg in this clutch has the colour distributed in the minutest
of specks over the whole surface. The eggs vary from 0'7 to 0'58
inch in length, and from 0'5 to 0'45 inch in breadth.

THE MAESH TIT.
(Parus palustris.)*

Plate 53, Fig. 17.

British examples (Parus dresseri) are of a somewhat more
sandy-brown than those from the continent of Western Europe,
but scarcely sufficiently so to warrant their separation. The
variety of the Marsh Tit which is generally accepted as the typical
form of P. palustris is found throughout South-western Europe
as far north and as far east as St. Petersburg.

I have always found the nest of the Marsh Tit in a hole in a
tree, generally near the ground, and almost always in such a
narrow hole that it was necessary to use a wire to draw out the
eggs with part of the nest. Many other situations, however, are
on record. The inside of the hole, if too deep, is filled up with
bits of wood or small twigs, and upon this foundation a moderately
neat nest is composed of moss, wool, hair and any other soft
material that may be within reach.

Fresh eggs may be found in May. The number varies from
five to eight, and some writers say even twelve ; but no such
case has ever come under my notice. They are white, with a
scarcely perceptible yellowish tinge in ground-colour, spotted and
speckled with light-red. They vary from 0"67 to 0'6 inch in
length, and from 0"52 to 0'47 inch in breadth. It is impossible
to distinguish the eggs of the Marsh Tit from those of its allies.
They are, of course, slightly smaller than those of the Great Tit ;
but the only safe guide to the correct authentication of the eggs
of this bird, and indeed of those of all the Tits, is by observing
the parent birds.

* Parus drcsscvi — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 139.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 213

THE CEESTED TIT.
(Parus crista tus.)*

Plate 53, Fig. 18.

The Crested Tit is one of the most local of our indigenous
birds. Its only known breeding-grounds in the British Islands
are in Scotland, in the valley of the Spey and in the adjoining
counties of Ross and Inverness on the west, and Aberdeen on the
east. The Crested Tit is much commoner and less local on the
Continent, being a resident in most of the pine-forests, though
it does not appear to range further north than lat. 64°, whence
Meves records it.

The Crested Tit generally builds its nest in a hole in a tree,
and usually at no very great height from the ground. The nest
is put together in a somewhat slovenly fashion, and made of dry
grass, moss, wool, feathers, and very often the fur of the " Blue
Hare" thickly felted together.

The eggs of the Crested Tit are from four to six or seven in
number, and differ considerably in the amount and distribution
of the markings. They are pure white in ground-colour, some
specimens being spotted and speckled over the whole surface
with brownish-red, others with the markings in a confluent zone
round the end. In some specimens this band is increased into an
irregular patch, which almost conceals the ground-colour of the
large end of the egg ; whilst in others the spots are very rich and
bold, forming bands of colour round the egg. The colour of the
spots is also subject to variation ; and usually those eggs which
are evenly and minutely marked have the spots darker red than
those specimens in which the markings are larger. Clutches are
sometimes obtained in which the spots are almost absent, or dis-
played on one of the eggs only ; but as a rule the eggs of the
Crested Tit are more richly and boldly spotted than those of its
allies. They measure from 0'7 to 0'6 inch in length, and from
0'55 to 0'47 inch in breadth.

* Lophophanes cristatus — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 143.

214 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE BKITISH LONG-TAILED TIT.

{Acredula rosea.)*

Plate 53, Fig. 19.

The British form of the Long-tailed Tit is found in France,
Western Germany, Northern Italy, and some parts of Turkey,
and apparently interbreeds with the Continental form A. caudata,
which differs from it in the adult bird having a pure white head.
The latter form ranges throughout Northern and Central Europe
between the Arctic circle and the Alps, its range extending east-
wards through Southern Siberia to the Pacific. This white-
headed form sometimes migrates to Great Britain.

The nest is oval in shape ; and a small hole in the side near
the top admits the parent birds. The materials that compose it
are very similar to those used by the Chaffinch — the greenest
moss, lichens, and cobwebs all felted artfully together, and lined
with an immense number of feathers and hairs. The nest of
this bird is undoubtedly the finest piece of bird-architecture
found in our islands.

The eggs vary considerably in number. Some nests only con-
tain six eggs, whilst others may be found with eleven, and in rare
instances as many as sixteen and twenty have been known. They
are pure white or pearly-grey in ground-colour, with a few small
spots of light-red, and fainter marks of purple, although many
specimens are spotless or appear to have the scanty colouring-
matter delicately suffused over the entire surface ; sometimes
they are without any trace of markings. They measure from
063 to 052 inch in length, and from 0'48 to 04 inch in breadth.
The eggs of this bird are less spotted than those of any other
Tit.

THE BEABDED TIT.
(Panurus biarmicus.)

Plate 53, Fig. 20.

The Bearded Tit is still found in a few districts in Norfolk.
On the Continent the range of the species is an extensive one ;
but it has not been recorded south of the Mediterranean or north
of Pomerania.

* Acredula caudata — Saunders, Manual, p. 93. /Egithalus vagans — Sharpe,
Handb., I., p. 147.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 215

A nest I found in Norfolk was built about a foot from the
ground, on a clamp of sedge (Carex), and was partially concealed
by overhanging reeds. It was built of flat grasses, rather deep,
and was lined with the flower of the reed.

The usual number of eggs varies from four to seven. They
most closely resemble in some respects the eggs of the Buntings,
but always possess peculiar characteristics which readily distin-
guish them. They are white, slightly suffused with brown, and
possess considerable gloss, being somewhat sparingly marked with
short wavy lines, specks, and streaks of dark brown. Some speci-
mens are a trifle more thickly marked than others ; but otherwise
little variation is seen. The eggs are remarkably large for the
size of the bird, and vary from 075 to 065 inch in length, and
from 06 to 0*53 inch in breadth.

THE COMMON HEDGE SPAEEOW.
(Accentor modularis.)*

Plate 54, Fig. 1.

The Hedge Sparrow — the Hedge Accentor, Hedge Warbler or
Hedge Chanter of those who wish to protest against the absur-
dity of classing so round-winged and thin-billed a bird amongst
the Finches — is the Dicky Dunnock or Shuffle Wing of the
plough boy. It is a resident throughout the British Islands
wherever there are bushes, but in sub-arctic Europe it is a
migratory bird, crossing over Heligoland in some numbers in
autumn to winter in our Eastern counties. In sub-tropic Europe
it is a resident in the north and a winter visitor in the south,
wandering in autumn as far as Asia Minor and Palestine and
occasionally to North Africa. It is not known to have occurred
east of the Ural mountains.

The nest is a handsome little structure, composed of green
moss, a dead leaf or two, a little dry grass, and strengthened with
a few fine twigs ; moss usually forms the greater part of the nest,
and it is lined with a thick warm bed of hairs, feathers, and wool.

The eggs of the Hedge Sparrow are from four to six in number,
and differ very little in shape or colour. They are a beautiful
greenish-blue in colour, spotless and somewhat rough in texture

* Tharrhaleus modularis — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 305.

216 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

— a character which will to some extent serve to distinguish them
from eggs of the Bedstart. They vary from 0'8i2 to 0"72 inch in
length, and from 0'05 to 0'55 inch in breadth.

THE ALPINE ACCENTOE.

{A ccen tor alp in us.) *

Plate 54, Fig. 4.

The Alpine Accentor is a purely accidental visitor to the British
Islands. It breeds throughout the mountains of Southern Europe,
the Sierra Nevada in South Spain, the Pyrenees, the Alps, the
mountains of Greece and Asia Minor, and the Caucasus, extending
into Northern Persia.

The nest is placed on the ground, under an overhanging rock
or rhododendron shrub, and is neatly finished and rather deep.
It is composed of dry round grass-stalks, intermixed with fine
roots and a few lichens. It is said sometimes to be lined with
moss, wool, or hair.

The eggs vary in number from five to six, and in size from l'O
by 07 inch to 0'9 by 0'63 inch. In colour they are unspotted pale
greenish-blue.

THE WEEN.
(Troglodytes parvulus.) t

Plate 54, Fig. 2.

The Common Wren is generally distributed throughout the
British Islands, even in the wildest and most desolate districts.
It is found throughout Europe, but does not extend to the Arctic
circle.

The Wren builds a domed nest like those of the Dippers. As
often as not the outside is composed of moss and withered leaves,
the latter in great numbers. Bound the hole which admits the
parent birds are woven straws, which also do much to strengthen
the whole structure. The inside is lined with fine moss, hair, and
a large quantity of feathers ; but those materials are not always
found.

* Accentor collaris — Saunders, Manual, p. 87 ; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 308.
f Anorthura troglodytes — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 314.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 217

The eggs of the Wren vary from four to six, and even eight or
nine in number. Clutches of still larger numbers are on record,
but are very exceptional. They are pure white in ground-colour
when blown, with a few red spots usually congregated round the
large end of the egg in a zone. Occasionally they are entirely
without markings; but sometimes the spots are evenly distributed
over the egg. Inform they differ considerably, some being almost
round, others more elongated. They vary in length from 0'75 to
0'65 inch, and in breadth from 055 to 0'48 inch.

THE ST. KILDA WEEN.
( Troglody tes hirtensis . ) *

Plate 54, Fig. 3.

This is a large race of the Common Wren found in St. Kilda.

Mr. Dixon, who discovered this island race, says that the nest
is similar to that of the Common Wren, and is plentifully lined
with feathers : it is placed in the crevice of a wall or under an
overhanging bank.

The eggs are similar to those of the Common Wren, but are
larger, and with the reddish spots somewhat more boldly marked.
The length is about 0"75 inch, and the breadth about 0'6 inch.

THE COMMON CREEPER.

(Certhia familiaris.)
Plate 54, Fig. 5.

The Creeper is generally, though locally, distributed throughout
the wooded districts of Great Britain and Ireland. In western
Europe it appears to range to about 63° N. lat.; in Eastern
Europe, to about lat. 60°. In Siberia it has not been recorded
further north than lat. 57°.

The breeding-season of the Creeper commences in April, and
its nesting place is somewhat varied. A site is usually chosen on
some decaying tree, where the thick bark has peeled away from
the trunk for some distance and left a hollow space behind in
which the bird can build its nest. The crevice behind the bark
which the bird usually selects is often too large for the nest itself,
* Anorthura hirtensis — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 317.

218 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

and the superfluous space is filled up with a quantity of fine
twigs, chiefly of beech and birch. Hound the edge of the nest
is artfully woven a series of the finest twigs, and the lining is
made of roots, grass, moss, and sometimes feathers. But the
chief characteristic of the Creeper's nest is the lining of fine
strips of inside bark which is probably invariably there.

The eggs are from six to nine in number. They are, when
blown, pure white or creamy-white in ground colour, rather
richly marked with brownish-red spots, and with a few greyish
underlying markings. They differ considerably in the amount and
arrangement of the markings ; but it will usually be noticed that
all the eggs in one clutch are very similar. In some clutches the
spots are confined to a zone round the large end of the egg ; some
are very rich in colour, others pale. In other clutches the zone
is almost confluent ; whilst in others the markings are few, and
composed of very deep reddish-brown spots almost like those on
the egg of the Chiffchaff. They vary in length from 0'7 to 0"58,
and in breadth from 0'5 to 0"45 inch.

THE WALL CEEEPEE.
( Tichodroma muraria.)

Plate 54, Fig. 6.

The range of this species is a somewhat wide one, extending
across the Palaearctic region between lat. 30° and 50°, and just
entering the limits of the Oriental region in the Himalayas and
China. It is a rare and occasional visitor to Great Britain.

The nest is placed in the crevices of the rocks, sometimes in
places quite inaccessible. A handsome nest of this bird in my
collection is very elaborately built. Its chief material is moss,
evidently gathered from the rocks and stones, intermingled with
a few grasses, and compactly felted together with hairs, wool,
and a few feathers. The lining is almost exclusively composed
of wool and hair, very thickly and densely felted together.

The eggs of the Wall Creeper are from three to five in number,
and are white in ground-colour, very finely freckled near the
large end with reddish-brown, and with numerous minute violet-
grey underlying spots. They vary from 0'8 to 0"75 inch in length,
and from 06 to 0'52 inch in breadth.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 219

THE NUTHATCH.

(Sitta ccesia.)

Plate 54, Figs. 7, 8.

In the southern and central counties of England the Nuthatch
is a common and fairly well-known bird ; but it becomes much
rarer and more local in the northern counties. It inhabits Cen-
tral and Southern Europe, and its range extends to the south as
far as Algeria, and to the east as far as Asia Minor and West
Persia.

The site of the nest is almost invariably in a hole in a tree ;
but other situations are sometimes chosen, as, for instance, in a
hole in a wall, as mentioned by Hcwitson — and, stranger still, in
the side of a haystack. The nest, placed generally at some little
distance from the entrance, is crude and simple in the extreme.

The eggs of the Nuthatch are from five to eight in number,
and are pure white in ground-colour, blotched and spotted with
reddish-brown, with underlying markings of purplish-grey. There
are several striking varieties in the eggs of this bird ; but those
of a clutch generally resemble each other. The markings differ
considerably in size ; and on a few specimens fine specks of veiy
rich blackish-brown are seen, and more rarely one or two very
fine streaks of the same colour. The type with the semi-confluent
zone very closely resembles certain varieties of the eggs of the
Greenfinch ; but the pure white ground-colour and the reddish,
instead of purplish, tinge of the spots, serve to distinguish them.
They vary from 0'85 to 0'75 inch in length, and from 0'6 to 053
inch in breadth.

PALLAS' S GEEY SHRIKE.

(Lanius major.)*

Pallas's Grey Shrike is as distinct from the Great Grey Shrike
as the Carrion Crow is from the Hooded Crow. Like so many
other Siberian birds, it is an accidental visitor to Western Europe,
but one which has occurred so frequently that it may almost be
looked upon as a regular, though rare, straggler to Great Britain.
Pallas's Grey Shrike breeds throughout Siberia south of lat. 65°,
where it is a partial migrant, wintering in Turkestan.

* Lanius sibirkus — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 165.

220 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

Of the nest and eggs of Pallas' s Grey Shrike nothing definite
appears to be known.

THE GEE AT GKEY SHKIKE.
(Lanius excubitor.)

Plate 54, Fig. 9.

The Great Grey Shrike is a regular though somewhat rare
autumn and winter visitant to the British Islands. It breeds in
the north of France, Belgium, Holland, Switzerland, Germany,
Denmark, Scandinavia (up to about lat. 70°), and North Eussia.

The nest of the Great Grey Shrike is a somewhat bulky struc-
ture, as large as that of a Blackbird. Outside it is composed of
slender twigs, dry grass, a few leaves, and a little moss, and is
lined with roots, wool, hair, and feathers.

The number of eggs varies from five to seven. They are buffish
or greenish- white in ground-colour, blotched and spotted with
olive-brown of different shades, and with underlying markings of
violet-grey. Usually most of the spots are on the large end of
the egg, where many of them are confluent. Sometimes they
form an irregular zone, and are generally somewhat ill-defined.
The eggs of this Shrike do not differ very much ; and the red
type of egg, found in a series of eggs of L. collurio and L. rufus,
appears never to occur. They vary in length from 1*1 to 10 inch,
and in breadth from 0'8 to 075 inch.

THE LESSEE GEEY SHEIKE.

(Lanius minor.)

Plate 54, Fig. 12.

The Lesser Grey Shrike can only be considered a very acci-
dental straggler to the British Islands. It breeds in Eastern
France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, South Eussia (up to lat.
57°), Austria, Turkey, Asia Minor, Palestine, Turkestan, Persia,
and South-western Siberia (as far north as Omsk, in lat. 57°,
and as far east as Lake Saisan, in long. 84°).

The Lesser Grey Shrike breeds early in June, and the nest is
placed in the thick branches of poplars or fruit-trees, at least ten
feet from the ground. One which I found near Smyrna, with the

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 221

exception of a twig or two, a piece of flag-like rush, and a little
wool at the foundation, was composed of downy-leaved cudweeds
(Gnaphalium dioicum), some in flower and some in seed, and most
pulled up by the roots.

The eggs vary in number from four to seven. Some are very
round, measuring 0"95 by 0'8 inch ; others are much longer and
more pointed, viz., T05 by 0'7 inch. The average size and
shape lies between these extremes. The ground-colour is a
pale bluish-green. Some eggs have a few small greenish - brown
spots, chiefly towards the larger end. Typical eggs have also
larger spots or blotches ; whilst in examples which are exception-
ally rich in their markings the spots round the egg towards the
large end are confluent, but do not assume the form of a uniform
band round the egg, because the underlying spots, which in all
the varieties are paler and greener than the overlying spots, are
distinctly visible amongst the others. The eggs of this bird may
easily be distinguished from those of the Great Grey Shrike by
their smaller size and much greener colour. From the largest and
greenest varieties of the eggs of the Woodchat it is not quite so
easy to separate them ; but the latter are very seldom, if ever,
quite so large or quite so green. It is not known that rufous
varieties of the eggs of the Lesser Grey Shrike ever occur.

THE KED- BACKED SHEIKE.

{Lanius collurio.)
Plate 54, Figs. 10, 11.

The Red-backed Shrike is by far the commonest Shrike met
with in the British Islands. It is a summer visitor to the whole
of the continent of Europe up to lat 64°, with the exception of the
Spanish Peninsula, where it is only an occasional straggler to the
north-east.

The nest is a bulky one, large for the size of the bird, and made
of dry stems of plants, dead grass, rootlets, and moss, and lined
with horse-hair and sometimes a little wool.

The eggs are from four to six in number, and are subject to
such considerable variation that it would almost be impossible to
describe each in turn. For the sake of convenience, they may be
divided into four very distinct types. The first is pale green in

222 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

ground-colour, spotted and speckled with olive-brown and with
numerous underlying markings of violet-grey ; the second is pale
buff in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with pale olive-brown
and with underlying spots of pale brown and violet-grey ; the
third is almost pure white or creamy-white in ground-colour,
finely speckled and spotted with rich reddish-brown, and with
larger underlying spots of violet-grey ; the fourth has a salmon-
coloured ground, spotted and blotched with brownish-red of
different shades, with violet-grey underlying spots and sometimes
a few hair-like lines of deep brown. The character of the mark-
ings also varies considerably. Some eggs are uniformly spotted
over the entire surface ; more frequently the markings take the
form of a zone, and sometimes are so thickly massed on the large
end of the egg as to entirely conceal the ground-colour. In some
eggs the markings are finely powdered on the shell ; in others
they take the form of bold spots and blotches ; and in all eggs
the underlying spots are both numerous and well defined. The
eggs vary in length from 0'95 to 0"8 inch, and in breadth from
0'7 to 062 inch. It is very difficult to distinguish between the
eggs of the present species and those of the Woodchat Shrike.
The latter bird's are, however, on an average, larger, not so
bright, and usually more boldly marked.

THE WOODCHAT SHRIKE.
(Lcuiius rufus.)*

Plate 54, Figs. 14, 15.

The Woodchat Shrike is an accidental visitor to England,
chiefly during the seasons of migration. Upon the Continent the
Woodchat Shrike breeds in the basin of the Mediterranean,
its northern range extending into Southern France, Holland,
Germany (as far north and east as Pomerania), and Austria.
Eastwards it is found as far as Western Persia, its range extend-
ing northwards into the Caucasus.

The nest of the Woodchat Shrike is a very handsome structure,
though loosely put together. It is usually placed in the fork of a
small tree, sometimes in the branches of an olive-tree, sometimes
in an evergreen oak, a cork-tree, or a tamarisk.

* Lanius pomeranus — Saunders, Manual, p. 145; Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 171.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 223

The eggs of this bird are from four to six in number. They are
exceedingly variable in size and colour. They may be separated
into three very distinct types, connected with each other by innu-
merable intermediate varieties. In the first the ground-colour is
pale green, spotted and dashed, chiefly at the larger end, with
olive-brown, and thickly marked with obscure underlying spots of
pale violet-grey and ashy-brown. In the second type the ground-
colour is very pale huffish-white, sparingly spotted with dark
greenish-brown, and thickly marked with underlying spots of
grey.- In the third type the ground-colour is reddish-buff, the
surface spots are dark reddish-brown, and the underlying ones
are pale lilac. In the greater number of the eggs of this bird the
markings are most numerous on the large end, and very often
form a zone. The spots, too, differ considerably in size ; and, as
a rule, the underlying ones are the largest. In some few instances
the zone is round the small end of the egg. They vary in length
from 105 to 086 inch, and in breadth from 072 to - 65 inch.

THE KAVEN.
(Corvus corax.)

Plate 55, Figs. 7, 9.

The Kaven is now rapidly becoming scarce in England. In
Scotland, however, it is a fairly common bird in some parts of
the mainland and adjacent islands, especially on the Outer
Hebrides and the Western Isles, extending to the Orkneys, the
Shetlands and even to St. Kilda. According to Thompson, it is
generally distributed in Ireland in all suitable localities. The
Kaven is a circumpolar bird, being found both in the Palasarctic
and Nearctic regions.

The nesting-site varies according to the locality which the birds
frequent. In some districts a lofty tree is selected, and this was
probably the bird's favourite choice when it was commoner in
England ; but now the incessant persecution to which it is subject
almost everywhere, drives it to the remoter wilds of Scotland and
the cliffs which skirt the ocean.

The eggs of the Eaven are from four to six in number, five
being not an unusual clutch. They are bluish-green or greenish-
brown in ground-colour, more or less thickly marked with dark

224 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

olive-brown. In some specimens the markings are very sparse ;
in others so thick as often to hide the ground-colour. A rare and
beautiful variety of the Raven's egg is sometimes obtained —
reddish-white in ground-colour, spotted with rich reddish-brown
and splashed with violet-grey. This type of egg closely resembles
certain varieties of those of the Moorhen, and also approaches very
closely in colour to the eggs of a South-African Crow, G. capensis.
In size and shape Ravens' eggs vary considerably, some specimens
being quite undistinguishable from eggs of the Carrion Crow.
They vary in length from 2"1 to 1'7 inch, and in breadth from 1*4
to 1'25 inch.

THE CARRION CROW.

(Corvus co rone).

Plate 55, Figs. 10, 12.

The Carrion Crow is still a fairly common bird in the wooded
districts and on the rocky coasts of England and Wales, the
Channel Islands, and Southern Scotland ; but in Central and
Northern Scotland it certainly is less common and more local
in its distribution. It is generally but locally distributed over
Europe.

The site for the nest depends considerably on the nature of its
haunts. In hilly districts, and in the neighbourhood of the coast
its bulky nest is made in the rocks, usually in the least accessible
part. In the wooded districts it selects some tall tree for its pur-
pose, a large oak or pine being very often chosen. The nest is
made of large sticks, usually dead ones, stems of heather, masses
of turf, fine twigs, and roots, and lined with wool, moss, dead
leaves, fur, feathers, and any soft material the bird can find. In
shape it is rather flat ; and the interior is smooth and compact.

The eggs are from three to six in number, usually five, and are
very similar to those of allied species. They vary from pale bluish-
green to clear green in ground-colour, spotted and blotched with
olive-brown of different shades, with violet-grey underlying spots.
They are subject to no small amount of variation. Some speci-
mens are so thickly spotted and blotched as to almost conceal the
ground-colour ; others are very sparingly marked. The eggs are
usually well marked ; but occasionally specimens are obtained

Plate 53.

Dnrttbrd Warblar.

Rufous Warble

Sub-.A]tpin» Warbler.

Sub Alpine Warbler

VTill.^r W,v„

( hlffchatt

Y<-liow bi\>we<l Willow Wren

Wood Wren.

/-t

TO 4

' » '• '.' '

Blue Tit

Coal Tit.

£7^

L<m£ tailed Tit.

Bearded Tit

Paw.on vBrsiafoi-A Luh Sheffield

Plate 54-.

Hedge Sjiar

StKlda Wren. AlpXLe Accentor

. - V

•■•'' '♦. t'»

^SKfe

^ 'mm |i.'i

Wall Creeper

*

Great Grey Shrike. Red backed Shrike Red hacked Shrike. Lesser Grey Shrike.

Wbodchart Shrike. Woodchat Shrike. Rose coloured Starling.

/ " .• •*• ■

Meadow Starting. Red wmged Starling. WaxwinjS.

Golden Oriole

, i Bradford. L.th Sk.flie

Plate 55.

. I av .

Alp

xgh.

**'#

Raven.

i '•* ; -.*>'V''S

j^

f

C hough .

Hooded Crow.

Magp

j>iaepie .

Nutcra ck ei\

*?ms>

/.'*V ^S

j •• * * *. • . ,.

7 •%

^V" V •"$

w\ * -.'V

■ ■' ** ■■■■.'

<ibt

Jackdaw.

Raven .

Carrion Crow.

Rook.

Carrion Crow.

Awwm& Bradford. Lidi Sheffield

Plate .")("».

<1 "* >

,'. > VN

>.:

\i r

Conmuiii Crossbill. Common Crossbill. Two barred Crossbill. l'ii\<; Grosbeak.

0k

» <• »

s-#

Scarlet Rosefincli

Hmise Sparrow.

« ■
Qbuse Sp«

Trt-'O S|)J

r > •

■V . »;

.

OhafYmrW.

Pawson & Br^nlsford. lath - Sheffield

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 225

almost spotless, or merely marked with a few yellowish-brown
dashes. They vary in length from 1'8 to 1'5 inch, and in breadth
from 1*3 to 1*1 inch. It is impossible to distinguish the eggs of
the Carrion Crow from those of the Hooded Crow ; but the eggs
of both these birds are generally larger than those of the Rook
and smaller than those of the Raven.

THE HOODED CROW.
(Corvus comix.)

Plate 55, Fig. 5.

The Hooded Crow is a migratory bird in the northern portion
of its range. Although it is a permanent resident in Scotland,
great numbers of the Scandinavian birds migrate to Holland,
Belgium and Northern France, and even to England, to winter.

The nest is composed of almost every material which can be
applied to the architect's purpose. Large sticks and twigs, stalks
of heather, bones, moss, turf, wool and feathers are all used.
From the fact that the bird returns to its old habitations year
after year, many nests are very bulky structures, and the greater
part of the outside material is bleached by the weather. The
inside is smooth, soft and compact, and rather deep.

The eggs of the Hooded Crow are four or five in number, and
are absolutely indistinguishable in size and colour from those of
the Carrion Crow. They exhibit precisely similar types and
variations as the eggs of that bird, rendering a description of
them unnecessary.

THE ROOK.
(Coruus frugilegus.)*

Plate 55, Fig. 11.

The Rook is found commonly in most parts of England and
Wales, as well as of Ireland, wherever the country is not too
barren to afford it a pasture and a nesting-place. It breeds
throughout Central and Southern Europe as far north in Scan-
dinavia as the Arctic circle, but in Russia and in West Siberia
only up to lat. 64°.

* Trypanocorax frugilegus — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 4.

226 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

The nest is composed outwardly of sticks, varying in thickness
from slender twigs to branches more than half-an-inch in diameter,
and is cemented with mud and clay, and lined with large masses
of turf, a few roots, moss and dry leaves, straws, and a few
feathers. It is somewhat flat in shape outside ; but inside, the
hollow is rather deep. Although in rare instances nests of the
Book may be seen loosely made, the majority are singularly strong
and compact.

The eggs of the Rook are from three to five in number, and
differ considerably in size, form and markings. Some specimens
are oval, others are rounder, whilst many are considerably elon-
gated. Many have the ground-colour green, of various shades ;
whilst in some it is very light blue, almost white. The markings
are greenish-brown of different degrees of intensity, sometimes
interspersed with spots of deep blackish-brown. The markings
are often so thickly distributed as to hide the ground-colour.
They measure from 1"8 to 1'55 inch in length, and from 1'25 to
105 inch in breadth.

THE JACKDAW.

(Corvus monedula.)*
Plate 55, Fig. 8.

The Jackdaw breeds in most districts, both in Great Britain
and Ireland — in inland localities, as well as on the coasts ; in
forest districts, as often as in rocky ones ; in the busy thickly
populated cities, as much as in the quiet tower of the village
church. On the Continent the Jackdaw is distributed throughout
Europe south of the Arctic circle, but becomes very local in the
basin of the Mediterranean.

The Jackdaw's nest is made of sticks, moss, grass, leaves,
feathers, wool, together with the food-refuse pellets cast up by the
bird, which, in addition to being found in the nests, also strew
the ground below them. Numbers of the nests will be built close
together, in some cases as many as a dozen in one single hollow
tree.

The eggs are usually six in number, sometimes only four or
five. They vary considerably in size, shape and markings. Some

* Cokcus moncdula — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 10.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 227

specimens are bluish-green in ground-colour, richly and boldly
spotted and blotched with dark greenish-brown, chiefly at the
large end of the egg, and with a few violet-grey underlying spots ;
others are much paler in ground-colour, and have the markings
smaller, deeper in colour, and more evenly distributed over the
entire surface, being deep greenish-brown, olive-brown, and pale
grey ; whilst others are the palest of blue, almost white, and
quite free from markings. They measure from l'O to 1*3 inch in
length, and from l'l to 0'95 inch in breadth.

THE MAGPIE.

(Pica caudata.)*
Plate 55, Fig. 3.

The Magpie is generally distributed throughout the British
Islands. It is found throughout the Palaearctic region north of
the Mediterranean, Syria, South Persia, and the lowlands of
Baluchistan. In the Oriental region it is found in the Himalayas,
Japan, South China, Formosa, and Hainan ; and in the Nearctic
region it occurs throughout the western United States, but only
to the east of the Missouri river in winter.

The nest is very bulky and almost impenetrable, from the fact
that the birds usually select sticks with large thorns upon them.
The nest-cavity is very deep for its breadth ; and the hole in the
side of the basket-like roof, just above the edge of the nest, is
generally well concealed.

From six to eight is the usual number of eggs. They are very
small in proportion to the size of the bird, many of them being
no larger than exceptionally large eggs of the Blackbird. They
vary from bluish to yellowish -green in ground-colour, with
greenish-brown markings thickly and evenly distributed over the
entire surface. They are subject to considerable variation : some
specimens are almost white, with a few pale olive-green markings
at the larger end ; whilst others are green in ground-colour, boldly
marked with deep brown and a few faint underlying greyish-
purple blotches. A less frequent variety is precisely like the
eggs of the Pied Wagtail in colour. They measure from 1'45 to
125 inch in length, and from l'O to 0'9 inch in breadth.

* Pica rustica — Saunders, Manual, p. 227. Pica pica — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 18.

228 EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS.

THE COMMON JAY.
(Garrulus ylandarius.)

Plate 55, Fig. 1.

The Jay is still found more or less commonly in all the wooded
parts of England, and in some districts appears even to he in-
creasing in numbers ; but in Scotland it has of late years become
much rarer. It is a resident bird throughout Europe except in
the south-east. In Scandinavia it is found as far north as the
Arctic circle ; in Russia up to lat. 63°, ranging eastwards to the
valley of the Volga.

In form the Jay's nest is cup-shaped, deep, and very bulky.
It is generally very neatly made, and is built on the same model
as the nests of the Bullfinch, the Hawfinch, and the Sparrow
Hawk. The coarsest twigs are selected for the foundation ; as
the construction of the nest proceeds, finer and finer twigs are
chosen ; and, finally, the lining is composed of roots, which often
project above the outside structure.

The eggs are laid by the latter end of April, more frequently in
the first or second week of May, and are from five to seven in
number. They are bluish-green in ground-colour, usually evenly
and thickly speckled over the whole surface with olive-brown,
and sometimes marked with a few streaks of rich brown. Some
specimens are not so closely marked and have a greener appear-
ance, as more of the ground-colour is visible ; whilst others have
the greater part of the spots collected in an indistinct zone round
the egg. They vary in length from 1*35 to 1'2 inch, and in
breadth from TO to 0"85 inch.

THE CHOUGH.

(PyrrJwcorax graculus.) *

Plate 55, Fig. 2.

Formerly the Chough bred in many inland localities in England;
but now it is only known to frequent a few favoured spots on the
coast. It is essentially a bird of the rocks, and is in no part of
its range a migratory species. In the British Islands it finds suit-
able haunts on the coast ; but on the Continent it breeds almost
exclusively on the mountains.

* Graculus graculus — Sharpe, Handb., I., p. 22.

EGGS OF BRITISH BIRDS. 229

The nest is usually placed in some crevice or hole in a rock,
sometimes at a considerable distance from the opening, where it
is absolutely impossible to obtain the eggs. It is made of sticks
and heather-stems, and lined with dry grass, roots and wool,
sometimes with hair. It is often a large structure, but, as is
usual with birds nesting in holes, seldom very compactly made.

The eggs of the Chough are from three to six in number. They
range from creamy -white to greenish - white in ground-colour,
spotted with brown of various shades, and dashed with underlying-
markings of purplish -grey. They vary considerably as to the
amount of markings. Some specimens have a few dark streaks
upon them. They measure from 165 to 14 inch in length, and
from 1'15 to 1 inch in breadth.

THE ALPINE CHOUGH.

(Pyrrhocorax alpinus . )

Plate 55, Fig. 4.

One specimen has been recorded from Oxfordshire, as having
been shot by a keeper at Broughton Castle, near Banbury. Al-
though the appearance of the bird bore no evidence of its having
been kept in confinement, some doubt must still attach to the
example in question ; for P. alpinus is not a migratory species,
and, further, it is a bird very likely to be imported into this
country.

The Alpine Chough in