CHAP. SEVENTEEN SPRING BIRDS 



useful, and worthy of being oftener kept for this purpose 

 where a garden is surrounded by walls; it will, if taken 

 young, remain with great contentment with poultry with- 

 out being confined. I have found its nest in different local- 

 ities, sometimes on the stones and sometimes on the sand 

 close to high-water mark — very often on the small islands 

 and points of land about the river, at a considerable dis- 

 tance from the sea; its favourite place here is on the carse 

 land between the two branches of the Findhorn near the 

 sea, where it selects some little elevation of theground just 

 above the reach of the tide, but where at spring-tides the 

 nest must be very often entirely surrounded by the water 

 — I never knew either this or any bird make the mistake 

 of building within reach of the high tides, though, from the 

 great difference there is in the height of the spring-tides, 

 one might suppose that the birds would be often led into 

 such a scrape. 



Unlike most birds of similar kind, the sandpiper builds 

 a substantial, comfortable nest, in some tuft of grass near 

 the river side, well concealed by the surrounding herbage, 

 instead of leaving its eggs on the bare stones or sand. It 

 is a lively little bird, and is always associated in my mind 

 with summer and genial weather as it runs jerking along 

 the water's edge, looking for insects or flies, and uttering 

 its clear pipe-like whistle. The young of the sandpiper are 

 neatly and elegantly mottled, and are very difficult to be 

 perceived. The eggs are brown and yellow, nearly the col- 

 our of the withered grass and leaves with which the bird 

 forms its nest. 



Towards the end of March the curlew begins to leave 

 225 p 



