1904 Notes. 249 



Mayo Ornithology. 



To the August number of the Zoologist, Mr. Robert Warren contributes 

 a paper entitled " Ornithological Notes from Killala Bay and the Moy 

 Estuary." In the same number he draws attention to a recent flagrant 

 attempted breach of the Wild Birds' Protection Act, which we are glad 

 to know the Dublin Society for the Protection of Birds promptly check- 

 mated. 



Time Occupied by Birds in BuiWing and Laying, 



That the indiscriminate robbing of birds' nests cannot be too strongly 

 condemned is a statement that will be endorsed by all ornithologists ; 

 though, for the purposes of scientific investigation, it may sometimes be 

 found necessary to abstract the results of the birds' labour. With a view 

 to ascertain the time spent by some of our birds in building a nest and 

 laying the quota of eggs, it was necessary to remove the nest and watch 

 closely till the same birds had repeated their operations ; and for the 

 instruction of your readers, I append details of my investigations in this 

 respect. It may be asked, how could I be certain that these nests 

 belonged to the same pair of birds.?— and to this my reply is that, with 

 the exception of those birds which breed in colonies, only one pair of 

 birds of a species takes possession, for the season, of an area in which to 

 rear their broods, and from this they do not depart during the season ; 

 while if their first nest be disturbed, another is constructed in the 

 vicinity. 



(a.) A meadow, about an acre in extent, contained one pair of Water 

 Rails, whose nest with eight eggs was taken on 3rd May ; a second 

 nest was built and eight eggs laid by 19th May, which was also taken ; 

 and on 31st May a third nest was built and seven ^%%i> laid therein ; that 

 is two nests built and fifteen eggs laid in a period of twenty-eight days. 



((^.) A nest containing nine eggs of Water Rail was taken on 9th May : 

 by 6th June a brood was hatched in a second nest in same meadow ; i.e.^ 

 nest built, eggs laid, and young hatched in twenty-eight days. 



{c.) In a small meadow a Snipe had reared its brood about the middle 

 of May, and by the 23rd of that month had constructed a second nest 

 and laid four eggs, which were removed. A third nest was built and two 

 eggs laid on 3rd June, but, being disturbed, this nest was forsaken ; and 

 a fourth nest- built, which, on 15th June, contained four eggs ; that is 

 nest biiilt and four eggs laid in twelve days. 



{d.) A finished nest of Reed Bunting was found on 20th May, but was 

 not occupied, and the birds constructed a fresh nest. This nest, on 4th 

 June, contained three eggs of the builder and a Cuckoo's ^^%. On 

 examination these were found to be about three days incubated, from 

 which we may infer that the Reed Bunting will build a nest and lay its 

 clutch in about eleven days. 



John Cottney. 



Hillsborough, Co. Down. 



