LARID.I^. 



675 





THE ARCTIC OR RICHARDSOxN'S SKUA. 



Stercorarius crepidatus (J. F. Cmelin). 



The second English name is strictly applicable to a dark form of 

 this bird ; but it is often employed, and has the merit of being dis- 

 tinctive, whereas the first has occasionally been conferred on the 

 next species. The x'\rctic Skua breeds on some of the Shetlands, 

 and there are several colonies in the Orkneys, while on the main- 

 land a pair or two may still be found in Sutherland and Caithness ; 

 it also nests at a few spots in the Outer Hebrides, and very sparingly 

 on the Inner islands. On migration it is not uncommon along both 

 sides of Scotland, as well as down the east coast of England, but it 

 is less frequent in the Channel, while comparatively irregular in the 

 western sea. To Ireland it is a periodical visitor ; and it has oc- 

 casionally been met with on inland waters in various parts of the 

 British Islands. 



