176 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



number of nests contained only one Qgg, and others, two ; and 

 one nest only had three. This latter number made me pay more 

 particular attention to the species, many individuals of which 

 kept hovering around and overhead, and I carefully searched 

 for a common tern {Sterna fliiviatilis, Naum.), but quite in vain. 



As far as I could make out, all belonged to what I consider 

 the commoner species — Sterna macrura, Naum. 



Einged Dotterel {jEgialites hiaticula). — Close to the sandy 

 patches before mentioned, I saw three or four pairs, but was 

 too intent at the time on the seals to search for the nests. 



Dunlin {Tringa variabilis). — Two of this species were seen 

 at the same place and time as the last-mentioned species. 



Eock pipit {Anthus aquaticus). — Very common. 



Eider Duck {Somateria mollissima). — Also abundant. 



lLQdl{Anas guerquedula). — We did not meet with this species, 

 nor is it apparently a place one would expect to find them, but 

 in November of this year when returning to Oban from Ardna- 

 murchan, Mr John Swinburne told me he found a teal's nest 

 on Hysgeir in 1878 when paying a visit to it in his father's 

 yacht from Eilean Shona, near the mouth of the river Shiel. 



Pintail {Anas acuta). — The circumstances of the "find" of 

 this rare Scottish breeding species are already related. Mr 

 Swinburne in 1878 also took a nest of duck's eggs on Hysgeir, 

 and described to me the situation of the nest, which exactly 

 tallied with the position of that found by Dr Heddle. I 

 asked him if he found his nest near to the cairn of stones, and 

 he replied he did. Later, Mr Swinburne sent me a rough out- 

 line of Hysgeir, drawn from memory, indicating the position 

 of the nest, and it certainly closely corresponds with that of 

 our nest. He writes, "The eggs were eleven in number. 

 The nest was placed among a quantity of rank vegetation. It 

 was composed chiefly of down, which unfortunately was not 

 kept separate from a quantity of eider-down. Owing to the 

 gathering darkness, it was impossible to distinguish the species 

 of the old bird as it rose from the nest." But from his 

 description of the eggs — one of which he will send me on his 

 return to Eilean Shona — I think it likely that the present 

 species has bred before in Hysgeir.* 



* He has since done so, and it has every appearance, though broken, of 

 being that of the pintail. 



