6 SCOLOPACID^. 



of their experiences with this bird * : — " The eggs of this species were among the 

 special prizes obtained on this island. The birds were fairly numerous on both 

 sides of the river as far up as it was affected by the tide, but no nests Avere found 

 beyond that point. The nests were in all kinds of positions : among coarse 

 herbage on the low marshy ground, on dry ground at the foot of the bluffs, on the 

 sides of the bluffs among dwarf sallow 3 to 5 inches high, and on the tundra 

 among fine low grass some little distance from the edge of the bluffs. We took 



15 clutches (12 of four, two of three, and one of one) Only two or 



three of the birds were shot for identification, for when a bii'd performs a little 

 dance within two feet of you, or sits on your gun-barrel as it lies by your side to 

 .see how you blow the eggs, it seems not only unnecessary but cold-blooded 

 murder, to kill it! It was quite bad enough to see one come and sit down 

 in the nest close to your feet, and then get up to enquire where the eggs had 

 gone. Some of the clutches were fresh, others taken some days earlier were 

 too much incubated to make good specimens. In colouring, some eggs are 

 beautifully blotched with burnt-sienna brown on pale green, and are like 

 some varieties of Red-necked Phalarope, while others could scarcely be distin- 

 guished from eggs of Temminck's Stint — the latter form proving fatal to the 

 bird ! It is evident that great caution must be used in accepting the eggs of this 

 bird as genuine." 



Through Mr. H. J. Pearson's kindness I am enabled to figure eight 

 representative varieties of these eggs (Figures 7 to 14). He sends me the 

 measurements of 21 eggs, contained in 6 clutches of 4, 4, 4, 1, 4 and 4 eggs 

 respectively. These vary from I'll to 1*04 inch in length, by '82 to '77 inch in 

 breadth, averaging I'll by "80 inch. 



The late Mr. H. Seebohm gives the measurements of eggs of this species as 

 varying from 1T5 to 1'06 inch in length by '85 to "8 inch in breadth. f . 



Prof. R. CoUett states that the measurements of the three clutches obtained 

 by him on the Porsangeifjord varied from 1*22 to 1-10 inch in length by '82 to 

 •80 in breadth.$ 



* "List of Birds observed on Kolguev (July 5th to loth [1895])," 'Ibis,' 1896, p. 218. 

 t ' History of British Birds,' vol. iii. p. 212. 

 f ' Journal fUr Ornithologie,' 1881, p. 331. 



