373 Letters, Announcements, ^c. 



omitted to note the latitude in wliicli I met with all these 

 sea-birds. I am pretty sure, however, that the Kittiwake 

 was the only Gull I saw in Icelandic seas. After I landed 

 I met with the Great Black-backed Gull, and I think I once 

 saw an immature Ivory Gull. It was singular that I never 

 once saw a Black-headed Gull on either voyage. I did not 

 meet with the Common Tern after leaving British waters. 

 Fulmars w^ere very common round Iceland. Once I thought 

 I saw a Storm-Petrel, but not, I think, near Iceland. The 

 Great Skua was the only Skua that I saw off the coast of 

 Iceland; but I saw Baflbn's Skua at no great distance, and 

 Richardson's Skua was common on land : I found a frag- 

 ment of an egg, but could not find the nest. The large Puffin 

 with dark grey cheeks was the only form seen near Iceland ; 

 and, curiously enough, I did not see a single thin-billed Guil- 

 lemot in those Avaters ; they w^ere all the thick-billed Briin- 

 nich's Guillemot. With a good glass the whitish ridge of the 

 upper mandible was clearly visible. I saw no Razorbills at 

 all, and no Cormorants anywhere near Iceland. Gannets 

 were common nearly everywhere ; and I saw one or two Little 

 Auks ofi" the coast. I did not see any Shearwatei's very near 

 Iceland ; but I saw two sorts — one large and deep brown, and 

 the other smaller and blacker : I have little doubt these were 

 the Greater and Manx Shearwaters. Black Guillemots were 

 very abundant in Icelandic waters. 



On land I only visited two localities, at no distance from 

 each other — Melstade and Borg — a little east of where the 

 north-western peninsula, somewhat resembling Britain in 

 shape, juts out from the mainland. Of birds of prey I saAv 

 two pairs of Sea-Eagles (they are said to w^atch the shallows 

 for salmon), two Iceland Falcons, and a Merlin or two. I 

 once saw a Merlin on the gable-end of Melstade church. The 

 Snow-Bunting w'as very common, and the Wheatear, White 

 Wagtail, and Meadow-Pipit fairly so. I thought the last- 

 named seemed rather grey and mealy in plumage. The 

 Raven was common, as also the Rock-Ptarmigan, which had 

 "spreaker" young ones, able to fly before we left at the end 

 of July. (My companion, I should have said, was the Hon. 



