I9IO. C ampb:eli..— Birds of Inch and Upper Lough S willy. 23 



not common. The Scaup (/^ marila, Linn.) used to visit Inch 

 in vast flocks, and frequented the salt as well as the fresh 

 water, but of late years it has decreased greatly. It is 

 locally called the '' Black Wigeon." I have seen it at Inch 

 in some numbers as late as the third week in May — a few, 

 probably wounded birds, remain over the summer. The 

 Golden-eye {Clangula glaucio7i, Linn.) is a winter visitor in 

 some numbers. Of the Long-tailed Duck (Harelda glacialis, 

 Linn ) I have noted a few occurrences of females or imma- 

 ture males. I have only seen one mature male. The Com- 

 mon Scoter {Oedemia nigra, Linn.) visits Lough Svvilly, but I 

 have never seen it as far up as Inch. I have only a note of 

 one specimen of the Goosander {Mergns merga7iser, Linn.) 

 shot at Inch by Mr. H. Leebody. The Red-breasted Mer- 

 ganser (y^/. seyrator, Linn.) is common. I have not been able 

 to find its nesting place, but I believe it breeds somewhere 

 in the Lough S willy district, as I have seen it in spring and 

 summer. The beautiful little Smew {M. albellus) visits Lough 

 Svvilly, and I have seen a few specimens. 



The Ring-Dove {Columba palumbics, Linn.) is common. 

 The Rock-Dove (C livia, Gmelin), visits Inch Island, and 

 comes to feed on the stubbles. The Grouse {Lagopiis 

 scoiicus, Latham) is found in small numbers in the district, 

 and is plentiful on many of the surrounding moors. 



The Pheasant {Phasia?iics colchicus, Linn.) occurs in the 

 woods at Burt, RathmuUan, and has visited Inch Island. I 

 once received, on ist March, a clutch of twelve eggs taken 

 on Inch Island, from a nest in the heather, surely an unusu- 

 ally early date. 



The Partridge {Perdix ci7ierea, Latham), occurs, but is not 

 common. The Quail {Coturnix communis, Bonnaterre) visited 

 the district in some numbers in the influx of this species in 

 1893. For about ten years afteiw^ards I heard nothing of it. 

 Then it came back in 1903, and Mr. Gibson was informed of a 

 nest at Grainan Hill, near Inch. Then again, in August, 

 1904, a nest with sixteen eggs was found in the same locality. 

 I think, of late years, the Quail has been a regular visitor. 



The Land-rail {C^ex prateiisis, Bechstein), is, of course, 

 common. During the exceptionally cold spring of 1891, 

 when there was little or no grass in the meadows, I found the 

 Corncrake nesting in a shrubbery close to our house, and on 

 2ist Maj^ I found a nest in long grass, in semi-marshland 

 beside the water. 



