LITTLE STINT. 3 



was performed by the female only, whose tameness, when the nest was approached, 

 was remarkable. 



The late Mr. H. Seebohm has described the eggs as resembling in every 

 respect miniature eggs of the Dunlin. 



Prof. R. CoUett has published full details of the nesting-habits of the Little 

 Stint as observed by him in Northern Norway in 1880. I translate the following 

 extract from his account * : — " I had again found Tr. minuta on the Porsangerfjord, 

 in the summer of 1878, this time near Kistrand (where a female, shot on June 25th, 

 contained an egg, the yolk being perfectly developed, which would have apparently 

 been laid on the following day). At last I had the good fortune to find their 

 nests and eggs in the summer of 1880 in the same locality. 



" It was partly with special regard to Tr. miniita and other East-European 

 or Siberian birds that I again visited this district this summer in company with 

 my friend Landmark, Inspector of Fisheries, previously mentioned. After the first 

 nest of this species had been found, and by this means, almost accidentally, we 

 were enabled to become acquainted with it and its ally Tr. temminckii, as weU as 

 with their characteristic behaviour at the nest, it was shown that there is hardly 

 one among our other waders whose nests may be discovered as easily as those of 

 these species, Phalaropus hyperloreus excepted, which has quite a similar 

 character in this respect. 



" This summer I found Tr. minuta again near Kistrand, and also in a new 

 locality near Stabursnas, a little lower down on the Porsangerfjord ; the third 

 locality, Tamso, where I had found it previously (1872), not being visited. 



" It was not breeding in large numbers in any of these three localities ; its 

 breeding-stations here must be regarded as isolated and scattered, such as are 

 found on the extreme boundaries of the breeding-district of a species, ^^'ithout 

 doubt the proper breeding-area of Tr. minuta lies further east than Europe. It 

 always breeds in colonies associated with Tr. temminckii, the latter always largely 

 preponderating. 



" Whilst we saw, as already stated, 30 to 40 clutches of the last-named species, 



we only found three nests of Tr. minuta in spite of careful search 



They chose for then- nesting-places the same level plains, covered mth heather or 

 Empetrum, near the sea, as are frequented by Tr. temminckii, and both species 

 nested amicably together. Only those plains, however, were chosen, on which at 

 the same time small pools are found, preference being given to stagnant pools 

 near the seashore with fiat banks, these being sometimes covered with turf. These 



* 'Journal fiir Ornithologie,' 1881, pp. 329-331. 



