RICHARDSON'S SKUA 



187 



Brazil, while they also occasionally visit the western coast of India in 

 the neighbourhood of Sind. 



Unlike the great skua, the present species, which with its allies is 

 locally known by the name of jaeger, does not attack the intruder on 

 its breeding-grounds, but warily endeavours to entice liim away from 

 the neighbourhood of its nest by its movements. In most respects the 

 habits of this bird are similar to those of other representatives of the 

 group ; but it ma\' be noted that during summer it prefers marshes 

 and bogs to the sea-coast. Although in ordinary cases these skuas 

 follow the usual practice of their tribe in robbing other sea-birds of 

 their prey, in the Yukon Territory they have been observed, on their 

 first arrival in May, to feed on shrew-mice and lemmings. In England 

 the Arctic skua is most generally seen on the east coast in autumn, 

 occurring from August to October, and being much more abundant in 

 some years than in others. In the south, and more especially in the 

 south-west of England, this species is much more uncommon, and its rarity 

 becomes still more marked when the west coast is reached. In Ireland 

 this is the most common representative of the group, but its visits are 

 irregular and uncertain, although in some years large numbers of these 

 birds are seen : autumn is the usual time for its appearance, although 

 specimens occasionally 

 come in May and June. 

 Usually the nest is a de- 

 pression in the moss of 

 the bogs, but an instance 

 is on record of one being 

 lined with grass. The 

 eggs, which are two in 

 number and measure 

 from just over 2^ to a 

 little more than 2^ 

 inches in length, present 

 a variation in colour 

 comparable to that ex- 

 isting in the case of the 

 plumage of the adult 

 bird ; there being a dark and a light phase. In the former case 

 the ground-colour is chocolate, with deep brown or blackish spots 

 uniformly distributed over the greater part of the surface, and the 

 underlying grey markings very inconspicuous. On the other hand, 

 the ground-colour in the light phase is clay-brown, with the dark spots 



HE ROWLAND 



YOUNG ARCTIC SKUA. 



