46 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST 



The Black-headed Gull. For years after I went to 

 the Hebrides I never saw a Black-headed Gull's nest ; then 

 one season a colony of them appeared and bred, next year 

 several colonies which stayed all the year round. 



The Arctic Tern. Is very numerous as a nesting 

 species, appearing in early June and swarming on many of 

 the small islands in the fresh-water lochs. In some places 

 the nests are so close you cannot land without breaking eggs. 



The Little Tern. I was many years in the Hebrides 

 before I saw this beautiful species ; then one year a pair or 

 two came and nested, next year many more, and the third 

 year quite a fine colony. They bred just above high-water 

 mark on the wild Atlantic coast, till unfortunately a severe 

 storm raged for three days, with a high spring tide, and 

 destroyed all their eggs when they were just on the point of 

 hatching. After this the Little Terns disappeared and did 

 not return during my stay in South Uist, but I was informed 

 that the next year a few pairs nested on Barra. 



The Black-throated Diver Is a native of the 

 Hebrides, staying there all the year round, nesting on wild 

 unfrequented moorland lochs as a rule on a small dry islet, 

 sometimes in company with hundreds of Gulls, Geese, 

 Duck, etc. 



The Red-throated Diver. This very handsome bird 

 seems also to be a native of the Hebrides, as it is to be seen 

 there all the year round, nesting on the shores of lonely 

 moorland ponds where the ground is very flat and mossy. 

 The male attends very regularly on the female during incu- 

 bation and after the young are hatched ; until these are strong 

 enough to leave their breeding place, both male and female 

 go to sea for fish to feed their family. The eggs are laid in a 

 shallow hole so close to the water that the bird can drink 

 while on the nest, and the eggs are sometimes in water. I 

 was often puzzled, when the pond overflowed its bank after a 

 sudden flood, how the Red-throated Divers managed to 

 hatch their young, but they invariably did. 



The Great Northern Diver. Frequents the 

 Hebrides chiefly on the Atlantic sea-board, does not breed, 



