16 THE BIRD WATCHER 
have only had the tim@or the patience, to note down 
fifteen, which I did very carefully, through the glasses, 
as the birds stood amidst the short heather on the 
ness-side. Here they are; not, perhaps, very pre- 
cisely or scientifically defined, but none the less 
truthfully so, for all that, and as accurate, I think, as 
the fact that no two people see colours quite alike will 
allow. But they, at any rate, bring out four facts, 
which, together, have, I think, a distinct meaning, viz. 
(1) the unmistakable and, for the most part, pro- 
nounced difference in these fifteen forms of a two- 
formed species ; (2) the likeness of the extremely plain, 
permanent form to the plain-coloured great skua ; (3) 
the same resemblance in the first true plumage of the 
young bird ; and (4) the absence in the young bird of 
the two lance-like feathers which, in the old ones, 
project beyond the rest of the rectrices, but which are 
also absent in the great skua. Well, here they are. 
(1) The neck, from just below the head, with the 
throat, breast, and ventral surface, as far as the legs, a 
beautiful creamy white; the rest dark, as in the 
ordinary dark form, but I was not careful to note 
the precise shade ; the crown of the head—and this, 
it seems, is universal—sufficiently dark to appear 
black. This bird represents, I think, the extreme of 
the light or ornate form, in which dark and light are 
almost equally divided. 
(2) The light colouring extends, speaking roughly, 
over the same parts, but is very much less bright and 
pure. It might be described as a dun-cream or cream- 
