THE BIRDS OF CUMBERLAND. 149 



It often happens that some days elapse between 

 the laying of the first egg of a clutch and the 

 second ; indeed Mr. A. Smith informs us, that he 

 has known thirteen days elapse between the laying 

 of the first two eggs. 



But while the majority of Dunlin lay on our 

 marshes at the beginning of May, laying again and 

 again if their first clutches be robbed or destroyed 

 by a high tide, large flocks may be observed on the 

 coast at the same time. Thus on May 8th we 

 observed a flock composed of about a hundred 

 Dunlin and nearly as many Ringed Plovers, on the 

 coast at Bowness. As soon after daylight as the 

 tide had retired sufficiently to allow of their feeding, 

 they scattered over the mud exposed, and the 

 twitter of the Dunlins, repeated at intervals by the 

 whole flock, created a sort of running murmur, very 

 grateful to an ornithologist. 



Large flocks congregate on our coast-line from 

 autumn until the following breeding season, haunting 

 the sandbanks, and retiring to rest upon the shingled 

 beach or the salt marshes. When seen at a distance, 

 a flock of some thousands of these birds may easily 

 be mistaken for a dark cloud. The effect of their 

 evolutions, as each individual bird moves with exact 

 precision in the same direction as its fellows, alter- 

 nately exhibiting the silvered belly (of winter) and 

 the dark upper parts, can never fail to refresh the 

 observer. The numbers of resident birds are largely 

 increased in autumn by Dunlins from more northern 

 breeding grounds, and these appear to be rather 

 larger than our home-bred Dunlins. 



