840 Pictures of Bird Life 



birds " — that peculiar smell so familiar to both of us, 

 which is so noticeable wherever large numbers of sea-])irds 

 are nestiuo- in a confined space. ^Vt each end Mas a 

 strong colony of Sandwich Terns. Tlieir extremely hand- 

 some eggs were thickly scattered over the ground, so close 

 together that I was able, a few days later, to photograph 

 fifteen nests on one whole plate, in doing which I broke 

 several eggs by treading on tliem. The eggs were curiously 

 different (in no case were there more than two eggs in a 

 nest) ; but in Acry many instances one egg would be heavily 

 l)lotchcd or zoned round witli dark markings, wliile the 

 other was uniformly spotted all over. There were three 

 Aery handsomely marked eggs, Init in each case they were 

 odd, not matching the other egg. 



On approaching the island, the Terns rose Cfi iiki.s.sc in 

 the air, and himg like a dense cloud over their nests, 

 returning to them as soon as we moAcd on a little. There 

 were two or three Avocets' nests, witli foiu" eggs each ; and 

 a colony of 15hick-headed Gulls, eacli witli three eggs. 



This island seemed to verify our expectation that tlie 

 islands would be earlier than the mainland, and we deter- 

 mined to go off to the second island, rather a larger one. 

 It was a good long way round, however, and we had to 

 negotiate some deep creeks on our way. Half-way we saw 

 a big lot of Ruffs on a hill, evidently just arrived ; but, 

 unfortunately, two men with guns were working up to tliem, 

 and afterwards we heard tliem fire sexeral times. 



By this time we had waded off to the other island. 



