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THE BIRDS OF THE MIDLAND EAKES AND BOGS, 



CHIEFLY AS OBSERVED IN THE BREEDING-SEASON. 

 BY R. J. USSHER. 



{Concluded from page 238.) 



The Common Tern is usually to be found on the larger 

 lakes, on many of which it breeds, sometimes in colonies 

 apart from other birds, sometimes with gulls, sometimes but 

 a pair or two, but always on islands. I have met with Terns 

 on ^^lyough Erne, I^ough Arrow, ^^Lough Key, ^-I^ough Allen, 

 Lough Boderg, Lough Forbes, ^Lough Oughter, ^^Lough 

 Sheelin, -'Lough Gowna, Lough Ree, Lough Iron, and 

 *Lough Derg. On the latter I have found eggs on the 31st 

 May, but on Lough Key and Lough Oughter, there were 

 uncompleted clutches on the 12th June. On a large grassy 

 island in Lough Gowna, which rises into a hill, a large colony 

 of Terns had eggs in the first and second stage of incubation 

 on the loth June. These were laid here and there, in depres- 

 sions in the grass, on the upper slopes of the hill, though 

 fourteen cattle were grazing on the island, probably not long, 

 as cattle usually drive Terns away by trampling on their nests. 

 I found there one Tern's ^%% laid in a depression in a dried 

 cow-dung, used as a nest. On an islet in Lough Key, within 

 a short distance of the house and terrace-garden of Rocking- 

 ham, were five Terns' nests round the margins of the soil, 

 overhung by the bushes that occupied the centre. A similar, 

 but much larger colony, occupied an islet in Lough Oughter. 

 On two stony islands in Lough Allen I found Terns having 

 eggs in hollows of the gravel, on the outskirts of a colony 

 of Black-headed Gulls. 



The Black-headed Gull is a bird to be met with every- 

 where in the breeding season in these counties. It breeds in 

 colonies, large or small, both on islands in lakes, which are 

 usually small and ston}', and also on the great red bogs. In 

 the latter the Gulls lay round the margins of the pools that 

 occur in the wetter portions, as on Killeenmore Bog, in King's 

 Co., where the hosts of Gulls that breed over so extended an 

 area seem to increase from year to year, owing probably to 

 protection. On a marsh of Lord Castletown's, in Queen's Co., 



B* 



