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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 the1 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

xii 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

31

97

29

98

29

98

3i

99

31

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

J3i

—

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

4S 167

48

168

48

169

48

170

—

171

—

171

48

171

48

172

48

172

4S

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

51

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.

51

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

231

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

5Sa

265

58a

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<Erailstora 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 awTay, 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 newT 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