BIRD LIFE AT THE SHETLAND ISLANDS. 121 



seen to drop suddenly like a stone on any small fish swimming 

 near the surface, the birds immediately rising to repeat the 

 process. The nests are mere hollows amongst the stones and 

 short grass, lined with a small quantity of withered herbage. 

 The eggs which number two or three are subject to endless 

 variety, from a ground colour of white, light blue, or pale yellow, 

 to green and brown, with brown to blackish-brown spots. 

 These remarks will be best followed by an inspection of the 

 pictures here presented. 



Scalloway has a population of about 500. It has a semi- 

 circular Bay round which houses are dotted ; it was formerly the 

 Shetland Capital, but has long since given way to the more 

 populous Lerwick. 



The fine ruins of its four-storied Castle- owned by the Earl 

 of Zetland overlook the Bay from an imposing edifice. It is 

 interesting to observe that it was erected by Earl Patrick Stuart 

 in 1600 by the forced labour of the poor islanders, and is the 

 only Castle in the Shetlands with the exception of that of 

 Muness in Unst, and the Manor House of Jarlshop, Dunrossness, 

 built by Earl Robert. 



In the garden of West Shore are some fine old Sycamores, 

 and just above the village is Gallowshill, where witches and 

 criminals were executed in by-gone days. In the neighbour- 

 hood of Scalloway the smell of decaying fish is overpowering, 

 the atmosphere being quite permeated, and altogether neutral- 

 izes the salubrious effect of the ozone. 



The Golden Plover is plentiful throughout the Island, and the 

 birds have a very peculiar way of enticing one away from the nest. 

 Their cry at this season is something after the sound produced 

 by a flute, and on first hearing it one imagines the birds are 

 quite near, whereas they are a few hundred yards away. The 

 nest is merely a slight hollow, lined with a few sticks of 

 heather. Four is the usual number of eggs, and the colour 

 is a dull olive-green sometimes creamy-white or yellowish 

 brown spotted and blotched with deep brown and purplish-grey. 



Numerous Curlews were seen on the same ground as the 

 last mentioned variety, but this latter bird is more wary than 

 the Golden Plover, for during incubation the male is ever on 

 the alert, and he can observe the approach of anyone long 



