188 HILL BIRDS OF SCOTLAND 



It is often thus. The sound which to one ear may 

 seem grand, striking, in its primitive, plaintive strength, 

 to another may possess all those qualities which inspire 

 dread, the dread of those who possess not understanding 

 for the call of the wild. The name by which the Curlew 

 is known to the Gaels is " Cluilbinn." One will fmd, on 

 consulting a Gaelic dictionary, that " Guilbinnach " is set 

 down, but I believe that this latter word is a term applied 

 rather to the VVhimbrel than to the Great Curlew. 



In the west they have — or perhaps it is only a few 

 of a former generation — a charming name for the Curlew. 

 To the old shepherd herding his flock above the deep sea 

 lochs bordering the Atlantic the bird is An t-Eun Chais- 

 meachd (the Bird of Alarm). A true name indeed, for the 

 Curlew is the sentinel of the hills. 



Though the Curlew could not but be considered as a 

 peaceable bird, on a certain occasion, when making my 

 way up a glen, I disturbed a Heron from his fishing at 

 the burn side. A pair of Curlew had young near, and as 

 the large bird passed their ground first one and then the 

 other of the parents dashed out and with angry cries 

 pursued the intruder fiercely. The Heron dodged and 

 dived with no little concern till he had placed himself 

 beyond the danger zone. Then one of the Curlews, 

 desisting from the attack, soared off, and before alighting 

 on a ridge threw out over the glen its vibrating whistling 

 song, evidently thoroughly satisfied w^ith its sally. 



A quality which doubtless inspires respect and awe 

 among the superstition-; is the habit of the " lang nebbet 

 whaap " wiiich keeps it abroad throughout the hours of 

 darkness. Recognised hours of sleep are unkno-SMi to it— it 

 snatches rest at odd intervals throughout the whole twenty- 

 four hours of the day. From the closing days of July till 

 the end of March, or even later, our eastern coast-line — 

 and to a lesser extent the western — harbours countless 



