206 On the Occurrence of some of the Rarer Species of Birds 



to fish for themselves, but on observing- any Gull that may have 

 captured a fish, they pursue it unrelentingly until it has disgorg'ed its 

 prey, which they will often catch in its fall ere it reaches the water. 

 So furiously do they attack some of the smaller Gulls that they are 

 seen not infrequently to kill them with blows from their powerfully- 

 hooked beak. The Great or Common Skua is not very frequently 

 met with at Christchurch. Hart had two specimens in 1871, but 

 there had been no record of them since that date. White, the 

 taxidermist, of Salisbury, informs me that one of these birds was 

 picked up on the downs at Orchard St. Mary by a Mr. Mills, on 

 October 31st, 1882. They breed in the Shetlands, but nowhere 

 further south. 



Stercorar'ms Pomatorhinus. "The Pomatorhine Skua.^^ There 

 was a remarkable irruption of these birds on our south coast, and 

 other places in England, in the autumn of 1879. In October, from 

 the 13th to the 20th, over fifteen specimens were received by Hart, 

 at Christchurch, one of these being of a peculiarly dark plumage. 

 There were a great many killed, also, on our eastern and south- 

 eastern coasts at the same time, appearing on the Yorkshire coast 

 on October 14th, literally in thousands (Yarrell). Another of these 

 birds was killed at Christchurch, also, in 1876, and three more in 

 1882. One adult bird was seen, Hart tells me, to kill a Kittiwake, 

 whilst making it give up the fish it had nearly swallowed, a not 

 unusual occurrence in the case of the smaller Gulls. The adult 

 bird difiers considerably from the young ones, having the two 

 central tail feathers some 4in. longer than the others, and twisted 

 as it were sideways, while the breast and under parts are of a dull 

 yellowish white — the young bird being of a uniform mottled brown. 



Stercorar'ms Orepidatus. " Richardson's or Arctic Skua.'' This 

 bird is by no means common, and is not met with so frequently as 

 the last-noticed species. The same year — 1879 — in which so many 

 specimens of the last-named Skua were observed, was also noted for 

 the occurrence of many of these birds as well. They were plentiful 

 at Christchurch at that time, though generally by no means common 

 there. Hart had two specimens during the October of 1879, one 

 of these, also, being of a very dark type. Mr. Baker also informs 



