THE PHALAROPES 265 



Herr Manniche records the interesting fact, that while the 

 females on their arrival at the nesting-places are thin, the males 

 are extremely fat, and he believes that the latter make use of 

 this stored up fat to sustain them during incubation, which, owing 

 to the cold climate of their circumpolar breeding-grounds, and the 

 consequent necessity of keeping the eggs warm by continual sitting, 

 they interrupt only for short periods, just enough to enable them to 

 snatch a hasty meal. 



The nest of the rednecked-phalarope is moderately deep, and 

 is concealed in a tuft of grass, somewhat after the manner of that 

 of the snipe. It is generally near the water often on small grassy 

 islands in the lochs and the male, when he leaves the nest, runs 

 through the herbage and joins his mate on the water. The female at 

 this time shows much anxiety, swimming about in the pools in the 

 vicinity of the nest, and if alarmed rising without a splash, and by an 

 alarm-note which Mr. H. S. Gladstone in an interesting account of the 

 Irish colony describes as a hoarse "chiss-ick" gives notice of danger 

 to the male, who creeps through the grass from the nest to the 

 nearest water, where he is joined by the female, and the two swim 

 about together, " trying to hide their anxiety by preening their 

 feathers or pretending to feed." 1 



The female appears to be less concerned when the young are 

 hatched. Both Mr. H. S. Gladstone and Dr. Bahr give instances : 

 when newly hatched young birds were handled, the males showed 

 great anxiety, shuffling through the grass with cries of distress, 

 and approaching quite close to the endangered family. Dr. Bahr 

 recounted how a male approached so near, and was so oblivious of 

 danger, that it came and brooded over its chicks, whilst he, quite 

 unconcealed, took several photographs of it, and also how this male 

 "in his fervour nestled a clutch of Tern's eggs close by." 2 How 

 fearless the male can be is shown by Mr. H. S. Gladstone's photograph 

 on PL XLIX., Fig. 2, where it is seen vainly trying to incubate a chick 



1 British Birds (magazine), i. 176. * Ibid., i. 207. 



