256 SKETCHES OF EUROPEAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



female Oystercatcher deposits her eggs (four in number), among the 

 shingles ; and that while " engaged in the task of incubation, the 

 male keeps assiduous watch and gives notice of the approach of dan- 

 ger by a peculiar kind of whistling cry." Wilson says of the Ameri- 

 can species, that " the female sits on her eggs only during the night, 

 or in remarkably cold and rainy weather : at other times the heat of 

 the sun and of the sand, which is sometimes great, renders incubation 

 unnecessary." The parent birds are very solicitous in behalf of their 

 young, and, like the Lapwing, wheel round the intruder's head, utter- 

 ing repeated cries, and counterfeiting lameness or incapability of fly- 

 ing very far, in order to draw him on to the pursuit, and thus lead 

 him from the spot where their young are crouched. The species 

 described by Wilson, is the Hcematopus palliatus, Tem. H. Brazi- 

 liensis, Licht. It is widely distributed over the American continent. 



Azure Tit, Parus Cyanus, Pall. — Mesange azuree, Fr. De- 

 licate little creatures ! There they are, peering among the leaves in 

 search of insects, and clinging to the slender spray of the birch, un- 

 bent by their weight, unshaken by their actions ! Who would think 

 that these little beings were fitted to tenant the regions of Siberia, 

 and endure the cold of winter in these joyless realms of snow ? Yet 

 so it is. Their presence enlivens the gloomy recesses of the forests 

 of Siberia and Russia, where man seldom ventures to intrude upon 

 their quiet. Their nest and eggs are unknown. The only specimens 

 in England are those from which the lovely drawings were taken ; 

 and they were obtained through the liberality of the Directors of the 

 Royal Museum of Berlin. Of the restricted genus Parus nine 

 species are indigenous in Europe, and six in North America. 



Black Guillemot, Uria Grylle, — Guillemot a mirroir blanc, Fr. 

 — Der Schwarze Lumme, G. The plate gives a characteristic 

 figure of an adult, and also of an immature bird, of the natural size. 

 This species of Guillemot is most abundant in high northern latitudes, 

 and particularly along the coasts of the Baltic : it is also common in 

 the polar regions of both continents. Frequents the north of Scotland 

 and the adjacent isles ; it is not often seen on the coasts of England, 

 where the Foolish Guillemot {Uria Troile, Lath.) swarms in thou- 

 sands ; and still less frequently does it occur on those of Scotland or 

 of France. " The northern parts of Scotland, and the Orkney and 

 Shetland Islands (says Mr. Gould) form a place of general rendez- 

 vous for the Black Guillemot, which being less migratory in its 

 habits than its near ally, the Foolish Guillemot, seldom quits those 

 isolated groups, whose bays afford it shelter during the stormy season 



