at the nest : six Puffins, one Guillemot, four Thrushes, a Blackbird and a Kitti- 

 wake. Most of these birds were untouched, or only half plucked, but the whole 

 place was strewn with bones and wings, chiefly those of the Puffin, which 

 seems to be the Peregrine's favourite food in seaside districts. 



The nest is usually a poor structure, often consisting only of a few small 

 sticks or scraps of vegetation, the eggs being sometimes laid on the bare ledge, 

 without even these scanty preparations. I have never come across a Peregrine's 

 nest which had signs of any trouble having been taken in the building of it. 



The eggs vary in number from two to four; sometimes, but very rarely, 

 as many as five are laid. The ground colour is pale yellowish buff, but it is 

 not very often exposed, as the entire surface is usually covered with rich red- 

 brown or brick-red markings. Some specimens when quite fresh are suffused 

 with a beautiful purplish bloom, but this very soon fades after they have been 

 blown or are slightly incubated. The eggs vary much in shape as well as in 

 size, even in the same clutch, some being almost round, while others are more 

 oval in shape. They vary from 2-20 to 1-92 inches in length, and from 1-80 

 to 1-50 inches in breadth. 



The young, when hatched, are covered with a dirty white down, which 

 remains till they are nearly fledged. They are most carefully tended by their 

 parents, whose anxious chattering cry is not often forgotten when once heard. 

 The old birds cater for them for some time after they can fly. At first the 

 prey is carefully stripped of its fur or feathers, but when the young begin to 

 get fledged they are left to do this for themselves. By the time that they 

 leave the nest the ledge is usually a mass of bones, feet, wing-feathers, and 

 pellets, the refuse of their food. 



- "WvT^'V 1 



