346 BRITISH BIRDS. 



mixed ground. I met, however, always with the supposed breeding- 

 birds on rather extensive ])lains, and not on the small ' stone-islets ' 

 in the moors, a fact that made my searches after the nests more difficult. 

 " I met with breeding birds as well south as north of the gravel- 

 banks plateau in the Stormkap territory, but I never found them close 

 to the shores of the firths." 



Old nests, considered to be those of Knots, were found, 

 and birds were observed undoubtedly in company with young, 

 but no eggs and no downy young ones were actually seen, 

 though on August 22nd, 1907, three young able to fly, but with 

 plenty of down still left round the base of the bill, were 

 secured. " I did not see any old bird later than August 8th," 

 is a significant note. 



There is much here to interest us also concerning the breed- 

 ing-habits of the Sanderling, which was found in considerable 

 numbers, and photographs are given of the nest and eggs, 

 and of the bird on the nest, as well as a coloured plate 

 of the young in down. Herr Manniche did not succeed 

 in finding an incubating male, and it would appear 

 that after the eggs are laid the males join into flocks and leave 

 the country before the middle of July. The " tactics " of 

 the female in guarding her chicks are thus described : — 



" Already when at a distance of some 200 or 300 metres from the young 

 ones, the old female would rush towards me, and by all kinds of flapping 

 and creeping movements in an opposite direction, try to lead me astray ; 

 all the while she would squeak like a young one and now growl angrily, 

 striving to draw my attention to herself only. Now and then she 

 would rise very high in the air in a direct rapid flight to disappear behind 

 a rock on the opposite beach of a lake, etc. From qviite another direc- 

 tion she soon appeared again just before my feet." 



Of the Grey Phalarope's love-making the author gives a 

 delightful account, from which we may quote the following : — 



" As the male seemed to pay no attention to her alluring movements 

 she flew rapidly up to him — producing as she left the water a peculiar 

 whirling sound with her wings, and uttering short angry cries — pushed 

 him with her bill, and then she returned to the water and took up her 

 swimming-dance. Now the male came out to her and the two birds 

 whirled around for some moments equally eager and with increasing 

 rapidity. Uttering a short call, the female again flew to a tuft sur- 

 roim^ded by water and waited some seconds in vain for the male ; again 

 she flew to the water to induce him with eager pushes and thumps to 

 accompany her. They again whirled violently around, whereafter 

 she, uttering a strong alluring sound flew back to the tuft, this time 

 accompanied by the male — and the pairing immediately took place." 



The Snow-Bunting was quite the commonest bird of this 

 country, and was observed even so far north as lat. 83° 30' N. 



We have quoted at length from Herr Manniche' s book, but 

 it should be read by all those interested in the breeding-habits 

 of these birds, more especially as the author has done us the 

 compliment of writing his narrative in Enghsh. H.F.W. 



