428 TRAVELS OF A NATURALIST 



yet breeding, but we have never met with flocks of 

 Temminck's Stints here whilst others of the species were 

 breeding ; but at Archangel we met with small flocks of 

 Temminck's Stints feeding on neighbouring islands when 

 there were numbers breeding, and we shot both $ and 

 ? at the nests, both of which sexes had been incu- 

 bating. We find here also immense flocks of Dunlins 

 feeding at low tide, whilst any quantity are breeding on 

 the tundra, and perhaps also on the other islands which 

 we could not visit. 



I believe that where birds are obliged to feed at stated 

 times, as at low tides, they are more likely to feed together 

 in flocks than those species which can procure their food 

 at all times. The Little Stint, as far as we know, is an 

 almost purely maritime species, and Temminck's Stint 

 an inland and riverine species, except when only a coast 

 locality is available, as in Northern Norway. Temminck's 

 Stint here migrates down the Petchora, and the Little 

 Stint along the coast. 



On dissection the Sanderlings proved to be two ? and 

 three $ , the former with very small eggs in the ovaries, 

 like birds done breeding for the season, or not yet mature, 

 and the latter with testes not greatly developed. The 

 moult had also commenced. 



The Curlew Sandpiper is a female, with small eggs 

 size of pin-heads. 



As already mentioned, the migration doubtless passes 

 along the north coast of Europe, the Kaftin and Timanski 

 coast, and the promontory of Kusski Zavarot, and the 

 Golaievski sand-banks and islands, and probably strikes 

 the coast of the Great Meleski Tundra considerably 

 east of where we found the Stints and Curlew Sandpipers. 

 A portion then passes on to Varandai and eastwards, 

 and another smaller portion goes back along the coast 

 to the breeding haunts, where we found them, and 



