17G Mr. A. C. Chapman's Birds' -Kesting 



noon, we met the Russian Finn's daughter, who had just 

 Hiished a Willow-Grouse {Lagopus albus) from its nest and 

 eleven riehly coloured eggs, laid on the dead birch-leaves at 

 the foot of an old stump. 1 bought these from her ; but she 

 thought they were worth at least a krone for eating. Coming 

 back to our tent that night I disturbed a Blue-throated 

 Warbler from her nest under a juniper bush, containing five 

 fresh eggs. As we lay in the tent we made notes of the 

 nocturnal bird-songs. About 11 p.m. the woods resounded 

 with the hoarse cackle of the W^illow-Grouse. I learnt that 

 they were in the habit of flying down to the forest-streams to 

 drink at this hour, and certainly from 11 o'clock till mid- 

 night they were very restless and noisy. For about half an 

 hour at midnight, though the sun shone brilliantly in a 

 yellow sky, all was hushed, aud the first bird to break the 

 silence was the Redwing, followed immediately by the Bram- 

 bling, and then the smaller Warblers joined the chorus. It 

 is strange how short a time they seem to allow themselves 

 for rest. In the morning, the Russian Finn, having heard 

 from his daughter that some eccentric individuals were camp- 

 ing out in the woods by the lake, came and informed me 

 that he had seen the prints of seven bears in the snow two 

 days before, and wanted us to go after them ; but the dis- 

 tance was great, and the chance small, so we declined. 



June 21st. On the fells to-day Golden Plovers and Whim- 

 brels were numerous. I took a ncst of the former with four 

 fresh eggs, and shot one of the latter as he perched on the 

 topmost branch of a birch tree. W^hen lunching we heard a 

 peculiar chit-chit note in some scrub near us, and on going 

 to see what it was, a Common Snipe [Gallinago ccelestis) rose, 

 the only example of this species 1 observed in Finmark, or 

 Finland, for we were now on Russian territory. A pair of 

 Long-tailed Skuas seemed to be wandering over the fells in 

 search of a place to breed, and I secured a splendid specimen 

 as he came, like an arrow, right at me. The inside of its 

 mouth was pale pink, the irides hazel, the tarsus was a pale 

 blue, and the feet dusky black. We got our third nest of 

 the Bluethroat to-day, with six eggs. 



