PET CHORA 363 



were frequenting willow and alder thickets near the 

 village. 



At Stuchia, Seebohm took the first Terek Sandpiper's 

 nest with four eggs, and I a Kedpoll's, which was lined 

 with Duck's (apparently Pintail's) down, with one egg, 

 and two Fieldfares' with five and three. 



I shot another of those doubtful Warblers, which we 

 afterwards had identified as the Siberian Chiffchaffs. 

 There is a very distinct buff colour on its breast. They 

 do not agree with the description of Phylloscopus borealis 

 we noted down at St. Petersbourg, nor with specimens 

 sent to Seebohm by Dresser, but they remind me of the 

 birds Alston and I shot at Archangel (at Valdiishki) in 

 1872, and which were then identified by Dresser as P. 

 borealis. They appear to be intermediate in size, 

 between the Willow Warbler and S. middendorffii. This 

 bird was silent, and flew from tree to tree towards me, 

 looking curiously on all sides as it rested on each branch. 

 The buff on the breast was distinctly visible at a 

 considerable distance. 



Later in the evening we took an Oystercatcher's nest 

 with four eggs, and a Tern's with two, shot two 

 Temminck's Stints, and saw two Scaups. 



We had a slight tossing in our boat this evening ; the 

 wind was still northerly, and, of course, against us. The 

 loose bottles and sundries on our shelf, however, behaved 

 well. 



Our boat lay-to for the night to let the rowers have 

 some sleep, and we made good use of the opportunity, 

 shooting all the morning of 



June 16. 



Wednesday, the 16th of June, and making a good 

 bag of the Siberian Chiffchaffs, Sedge Warblers, Little 

 Buntings, and getting also one Yellow-headed Wagtail <? , 



