184 STUDIES IN BIRD-MIGRATION 



it was formerly the home of the flightless Great Auk, 

 is still the British metropolis of the Fulmar and Fork- 

 tailed Petrels, and possesses a Wren and two species of 

 Mice which are entirely peculiar to the group, have 

 combined to make St Kilda famous in the annals of 

 natural history. 



St Kilda, too, has gained considerable fame as 

 having been for centuries the home of a race of daring 

 cragsmen who stand unrivalled in their dangerous 

 calling. All the men follow this ''dreadful trade," for 

 by them the myriads of sea-fowl and their eggs have 

 ever been considered of greater import than the rich 

 harvest of fish which lies almost at their thresholds, but 

 is little garnered. 



Martin's remarkable, and on the whole singularly 

 accurate account of St Kilda and its bird-life at the close 

 of the seventeenth century, attracted much attention ; 

 and its interest was supplemented by another old-time 

 observer, Macaulay, who visited the islands in 1758. 

 Later, especially during recent years, the isles have 

 become happy hunting-grounds for the collector in 

 search of spoils wherewith to enrich his egg-cabinet, and 

 this has led to the summer aspect of their bird-life being 

 as well known as that of any portion of the British 

 area, owing to the many descriptions of it that have 

 been published. 



Down to the autumn of 19 10, the St Kilda birds 

 had only been studied during the summer time, and it 

 remained to be ascertained by what feathered visitors 

 the isles were sought at other seasons, and especially 

 during the periods of the great migratory movements. 

 Here, then, was an interesting little problem in bird- 

 migration awaiting solution. It was most desirable that 



