78 Dan Meinertzhagen's Diary. 



A man came in to-day and told me he had a 

 lot of Haukka's eggs, which were taken four 

 years ago in the neighbourhood, that year being 

 a *• lemming " year. I could not make out the 

 bird he meant at all at first — smaller than an 

 Eagle Owl — he called it " pikko nowkka ya," 

 without ears, nesting in a tree, about the size 

 of a Rough-legged Buzzard. On showing 

 him Wheelwright's picture of a Ural Owl, he 

 immediately recognised the bird, and said that 

 he had seen none since. The eggs he possessed, 

 which he says have full data, were ordered by 

 someone who eventually did not take them — 

 and he bought all the eggs he could that were 

 taken in this valley — fifty-eight eggs in all — and 

 he gave 2 kr. apiece. 



It seems a curious fact that the more food 

 there is about, the more eggs birds lay at a time. 

 It is a well-known fact that birds of prey in 

 "lemming" years lay many more eggs than 

 usual. Snowy Owls, and Short-eared Owls 

 laying eleven or twelve eggs in a clutch. Now, 

 owing apparently to this year really swarming 

 with insects, birds here are laying large clutches. 

 I have taken Magpies with eight, Thrushes 

 with six, and several other large clutches. 



June yth. — Snowing again, and very windy, 

 the wind changing in the evening to North 



