Amo7ig the Birds on Sfmjigford Lougli. 69 



had been sown broadcast over the islet. As the cloud of 

 Terns, with much screaming and fluttering, settled down on 

 the island after we had left it, we could not help wondering 

 w^hether each bird was able to identify its own eggs among the 

 hundreds that lay around, or whether each simply annexed 

 the first clutch it came upon. 



On lyittle Sheelah we found our first Oystercatcher's nest 

 ( Hoimatop2is ostralegiis). Like the Ringed Plover's, tlie nest 

 was a slight hollow scraped in the shingle ; the eggs are of a 

 duller hue than the Ringed Plover's, are spotted and streaked 

 all over with dark brown and black, and are much larger. 

 The parent birds, whose brilliant black and white plumage, 

 and scarlet legs and beak render the Oystercatcher one of the 

 most showy birds of the seashore, were flying uneasily around. 

 Then away south to Bird Island, which however belied its 

 name, as the only eggs that we saw on the island were a clutch 

 of Ringed Plover. 



It was now getting late, and repeated heavy showers had 

 made us very wet, so we stood away for the point of Mahee 

 Island, on the western side of the I^ough, and landed on a 

 second Bird Island close by. When we drew near, one Red- 

 breasted Merganser {M. serrator), nine Oystercatchers, and 

 five Redshanks {Totanus calidris) rose off the island, but we 

 only came upon some broken Merganser's eggs in a clump of 

 brambles — evidently last year's eggs— and a broken Oyster- 

 catcher's ^%%, Cold and hungry, we made for Mahee, and 

 claimed hospitality for the night at Stewart's farm, where we 

 were kindly received. We got our wet things out of the boat 

 and soon had them drying at a huge fire in the kitchen. With 

 the help of our obliging hostess, we got out our provisions 

 and had a great tea— Mrs. Stewart being evidently much im- 

 pressed by the extent of our appetites. Three collie dogs, 

 each answering to the name of ''Sheelah," that had been 

 rather suspicions of us at first, we pacified with huge lumps of 

 tinned meat. After a chat with our host, and writing our 

 notes, we three turned into one small bed— the only one avail- 

 able—and tried to sleep, but as one of us had put over him a 

 rug which he found in a corner of the room, and which we 

 discovered in the morning belonged to the dogs, the result was 

 not quite as satisfactory as could have been desired. But those 

 who did sleep dreamt of islands where the ground was paved 



