AND NEIGHBOURHOOD. 2G1 



holes or tunnels under stones or in the clifF-faces, 

 up to 2000 feet above sea-level. The habits of the 

 Little Auk resemble those of its near relations the 

 Razorbill and Puffin, the greater part of its existence 

 being spent upon the sea ; it is an expert diver, and 

 lives upon small fishes and mollusks. Our coasts, 

 especially those of the eastern and north-eastern 

 counties, are occasionally, but not commonly, visited 

 by large numbers of this species, driven by stress 

 of weather; the autumn and winter of 1841 are 

 mentioned in Yarrell's ' British Birds ' as having been 

 especially remarkable for the quantity of Little Auks, 

 not only recorded from our sea-coasts, but also from 

 many inland localities. 



Since the above article was in print, we have had 

 a considerable visitation of this species in North- 

 amptonshire. On the 18th of October, 1894, a 

 living specimen, picked up at Luddington on the 

 previous day, was brought to Lilford, and another 

 was found near Stamford within a few days of this 

 occurrence. On January 24th, 1895, I received a 

 fresh specimen from the Rev. H. H. Slater, of 

 Thornhaugh, with the information that it had been 

 picked up at Wansford bridge on 22nd inst. ; 

 another was brought to me from Brigstock, and a 

 third was caught by a cat and taken by its captor 

 into a cottage at Wadenhoe. On January 26th, one 

 of our gamekeepers brought in the remains of another 

 Little Auk that had been partially eaten by some 

 beast near Lilford Wood. In the 'Field' of that 

 day were many records of the occurrence of this 

 species from various parts of the country, most of 

 them naturally referring to the great number that 

 had been obtained on the coast of our eastern 



