154 BRITISH BIRDS, THEIR EGGS AND NESTS. 
but little purpose to attempt a description of the Guillemot’s 
egg. They are of all shades, from nearly or quite white to a 
dark green, some profusely spotted and blotched and streaked 
with dark colours, others very slightly so or scarcely at all. 
Unfortunately the egg is so large that but two illustrations can be 
given in the limited space available to us.— 7%. 1, 2, plate X. 
280. BRUNNICH’S GUILLEMOT—(Uria Brunnichit), 
Thick-billed Guillemot.—Hasily distinguished by an expe- 
rienced eye from the last, but a bird of which, perhaps, it can 
scarcely be said that it has been actually ascertained to breed 
any where within the limits of the British Isles. The eggs are 
described as varying from those of the Common Guillemot in 
their greater roundness; they are less long in proportion to their 
thickness than the others, but seem to run through the same 
endless variations of ground-colour. 
281. RINGED GUILLEMOT—(Uria lacrymans). 
Bridled Guillemot.—There has been some doubt whether this 
bird is to be considered a distinct species, or merely a variety 
of the Common Guillemot. It is now, however, generally ad- 
mitted as a good species. It occurs m company with the other 
Guillemct on various parts of our coasts, and in Wales is said 
to be equally numerous with it. The eggs’ are distinguishable 
from those of the other two species already named, but still ex- 
hibiting precisely similar characteristics. 
282. BLACK GUILLEMOT—(Uria grylie). 
Tyste, Scraber, Greenland Dove, Sea Turtle—Sensibly less 
in size than the Common Guillemot, and not found commonly 
on our more southerly coasts. Shetland, the Orkneys and 
Western Isles are all frequented by them, and their quick 
and lively motions are pleasant enough to witness. These birds 
lay two eggs each instead of one, in holes or crevices of pre- 
