BIEDS OF SPITZBEKGKEN. 441 



may be found on the south-west coast, but fancies that it is 

 rare even there. 



18. The Red-throated Diver. Breeds commonly up to 

 80 45 ' north lat. Singular that the black-throated diver is 

 not known north of Scandinavia. 



19. The Black Guillemot. Is common on all these coasts, 

 but nevertheless not nearly so much so as Brunnich's guille- 

 mot. He notices respecting Uria glacialis, Brehm., which 

 was also very common, that it is certainly no distinct species, 

 but only the black guillemot in its summer dress after the 

 first winter. After the second winter it attains its full 

 plumage, and is then able to breed. The full-grown black 

 guillemot from Spitzbergen has a rather smaller beak than 

 the Scandinavian bird, but is not a distinct species. 



20. Brunnich/s Guillemot. Is the commonest of all the 

 birds on Spitzbergen, and is the only form of common guille- 

 mot which is seen there. 



21. The Little Auk. Very common on these coasts. 

 Are excellent eating; fried "rot ges" (their Spitzber- 

 gen name, from their peculiar cry, " Rott-tet-tet-tet ") and 

 dried reindeer flesh are two of the delicacies of the island. 



22. The Puffin. Is spread over the whole coast, but not 

 common on the north coast. 



Birds which only occasionally visit Spitsbergen, but do not 

 breed there. 



1. Falco Gyrfalco, Nilss. Seems to be very rarely seen 

 there. 



2. The Snowy Owl. One example was shot on the 10th 

 July, 1861, between Yerlegen Hook and Shoal Point, by a 

 walrus hunter, at 80 10' north lat.; and this is the 

 only time it has been shot on Spitzbergen, and at so 

 high a latitude. There is little to tempt birds of prey on 

 Spitzbergen in the winter, where there are no lemming, as 

 on Melville Island, Nova Zembla, Taimyr Land, etc., and 

 where the ptarmigan are by no means plentiful. 



3. The Dotterel. Keilhan mentions, in 1827, that he 

 found a dead dotterel here on the coast. This must have 



