282 HILL BIRDS OF SCOTLAND 



across the surface of some hill loch where they are nesting, 

 and picking up many insects on the wing. Throughout 

 the night they may be heard uttering their cries, for, 

 like the Oyster Catchers, they appear to be active during 

 the whole of the twenty-four hours, snatcliing a few 

 minutes of sleep at odd intervals throughout that time. 



The nest of the Sandpiper is rudimentary, but I think 

 that a deeper hollow is scraped than is the case with the 

 majority of the waders. The eggs always number four. 

 Their ground colour is a pale red brown, and they have 

 underlying shell markings of pinkish tinge as well as 

 darker blotches and spots. They are pear-shaped, and lie 

 in the nest with the small ends towards the centre. The 

 period of incubation is about three weeks, and the 

 young are able to move actively about from the first. 

 They sometimes take to the water and swim fairly well. 

 They are covered with down of a brownish grey colour 

 above, with a brownish black band down the back. The 

 lower parts are white. 



Towards the end of July the young Sandpipers become 

 full-fledged, and almost at once young and old make 

 their way down the burns to the rivers, and so to the 

 coast, from where the southern migration is commenced. 



In the Hebrides the Sandpiper is common ; here it 

 is known as the Little Fiddler, on account of its habit of 

 vibrating its body and its piping notes. It nests, too, 

 in the Orkneys and Shctlands. 



There are few of our " waders " which have so extensive 

 a breeding range as the Sandpiper. Northward it nests 

 up to the North Cape. It is found on the river Petschora. 

 South of these islands it nests amongst the mountains of 

 Spain, Portugal, and Italy, and is also found in Turkey, 

 Greece, and the Caucasus. It is also reported as nesting 

 in Tunisia. 



In autumn the southward migrations of the Sandpiper 



