iO 



HKI'J'ISII HIKDS. 



[vol. IX. 



On climbing np we found that one egg had gone, exce})t for 

 fragments of shell, and the other had been broken and had 

 a chick in it that had died in the shell. The site was an 

 old Sparrow-Hawk's nest (of last year) in a Scotch lir, this 

 year's nest being in another Scotch fir a few yards away. 



J. H. Owen. 



ARRANGEMENT OF EG(;S IN (T.UTCHES OF FIVE 

 OF SNIPE AND LAPWING. 



Mk. J. H. Owen's note in the last number on Snipe and 

 Lajjwing laying five eggs was most interesting. Once 

 (April .'}Oth. 1910) I saw a Snipe's nest Avith five eggs, and, 



Fig. 1. XEST OF LAPWIXCi TO SHOW ARRAXGEMKNT OI' 



FIVE EGGS. 



(Photographed by G. T. Atchison.) 



as was the case with his nest, ail the eggs wcic liiincd with 

 their points inwards, as is usual with normal clutches of 

 four. I have three times seen Lapwings' nests with five 

 eggs, and on each occasion the eggs weie arranged in different 

 formation. The first nest (April 27th, 1909) had the eggs 

 arranged in a ring, points inwards, as in normal clutches of 

 four (tig. 1). On the second occasion (May 1st, 1910) the 

 eggs were in two rows, three and two resjiectively. points 

 inwards and alternate (fig. 2). Presumably the bird sat 

 lengthwise along the rows. The last time (.\])ril Kith. 1914) 

 one of the eggs was at the bottom of the nest, and the otlici' 

 four were arranged one at each side antl at each end of the 



