BIRDS OF LOCH AND MOUNTAIN 109 



mate or young ones on the shingle bed a little further 

 up stream. 



With slow-measured wing-beats, which have a 

 tremendous amount of power behind them, it makes 

 its way rapidly up the river in a zigzag course 

 whence its name of Sea Swallow every now and 

 again uttering its harsh " Kik, kik, kirree " as it 

 eagerly returns to its family. 



Although principally catching its fish on the 

 wing, I have sometimes seen one standing motion- 

 less on a stone among the shallows for a con- 

 siderable time. Possibly it was catching its prey 

 after the manner of the sedate old Heron, although 

 no one could, by any stretch of imagination, picture 

 that bird capturing its dinner in the fashion of the 

 energetic Tern. 



On the island mentioned above, the colony of 

 Terns have not the sole possession of the nesting 

 site, but share it with a pair or two of Oyster 

 Catchers and Sandpipers, and, strangely enough, 

 several pairs of Common Gulls. Now every keeper 

 will tell you that the Common Gull is an incor- 

 rigible thief and will not hesitate to steal the eggs 

 of any bird when it has the chance. If this be 

 the case and to a certain extent I admit it 

 how can all these birds nest in harmony to- 

 gether on a small island not 100 yards from end 

 to end ? 



All the same, the island is quite an arcadia for 

 all kinds of water birds, and on it I have, in one 

 season, found the nests of the Oyster Catcher, 

 Common Tern, Common Gull, Sandpiper, Tufted 

 Duck, Moorhen, and Coot, while sometimes the 

 single tree the island boasts of is used as a nesting 

 site by a pair of Hoodie Crows. If the birds 



