igoi] 



BouTELiER — Birds, Sable Island, N, S. 



199 



top off the nest or puts down her claws and Hfts the little ones 

 out. Mr. Telfer also says that he once dug a turtle up in the 

 spring in a cow-path that had been walked over daily by fifty head 

 of cattle for four or five months. All that could be seen of the 

 turtle was a claw sticking up out of the clay, and when he dug it 

 out it was still living. 



The eggs of the turtle are richer and better flavoured than 

 those of a hen. Mr. McKillop, whom I know to be a reliable 

 man, tells me that he once killed a large " moss-back," and when 

 he had cut her open he took from her sixty eggs, which he boiled. 

 Most of them were eaten by a neighbor and himself and found to 

 be excellent. 



AUTUMN NOTES ON BIRDS, SABLE ISLAND, N.S., 1901, 



By Richard Boutelier. 



The list of birds which follows, though not complete, will 

 give a pretty good idea of the bird migrants which visit Sable 

 Island in the autumn. We are not sure about the Knot, but the 

 bird we have so named was larger than the Jack Snipe and agrees 

 well with the illustration and description in the bird book we use. 



Incidentally it may be mentioned that we have a tame black 

 duck here which we j-aised during the summer of 1900. It flies 

 all over the island but always comes home again. Once it was 

 away for two months, but when it flew home it came under the 

 window to be fed as usual. We have two other black ducks with 

 clipped wings, and attracted by them what looked like a pintail 

 nearly settled down in our yard a few weeks ago. 



I. King-bird, one, Aug-. 3rd. 



Crossbills, in flocks, Aug-, igth. 



Various kinds of hawks, in numbers, Aug. 30th. 



Buff-breasted Sandpiper, in numbers, Sept. 2nd. 



Flicker, one, Sept. 25th. 



White-throated Sparrow^ in numbers, Sept. 26th. 



Orchard Oriole, one, Sept. 28th. 



8. Pine Warbler, in numbers, Sept. 28th. 



9. American Pipit, in numbers, Sept. 28th. 



10. Knots, (?) in numbers, Sept. 30th. 



11. Horned or Shore Lark, one, Sept. 30th, 



12. Hermit Thrush, one, Oct. ist. 



2. 

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