74 VOYAGE INTO 



because of her long wings and feathers of her tail, hut when 

 the feathers are off there is no more meat than upon a spar- 

 row. It is peculiar to this bird to have very sharp-pointed 

 wings, and its tail is longer than that of a swallow, and as 

 long as the longest feather of the wings. Because of these 

 long and sharp-pointed feathers in her wing and tail, she 

 might very properly be called the swalloio-mew, but it is 

 commonly called Mrmew from its cry. The claws, as well as 

 the skin between them, are as red as blood ; the nails are 

 black on all the four claws ; the hindmost claw is very little ; 

 the legs are short and red ; it shews veiy brisk and pert when 

 it stands upright on its legs. The head at the top is black, 

 like a black cap ; the sides of the head are snow white, and 

 the whole body is of a silver colour, or white enclining to 

 grey ; the wings and tail are white underneath ; one side of 

 the feathers of the wings are black. All these differing 

 colours, together with the blood-red bill, red legs and feet, 

 make her very beautiful : her feathers are thready or hairy ; 

 she flies singly, for so I saw her always in the Sotith Haven, 

 and in other places where we were. Where their nests are 

 they fly in great numbers ; these they make of moss. One 

 can hardly discern their eggs from their nests, for both of 

 them are of a dirty white, but the eggs have black specks ; 

 they are of the bigness of a pigeon's egg ; I eat of them at 

 Spitzhergen, and found them very good, they tasted like the 

 lapwings eggs ; the yolk was red, and the white blewish ; 

 they are very sharp-pointed at one end. She defends her 

 nest and eggs, and flies directly at a man, biting and crying. 

 It is the same with her as what we say of the lapwing ; she 

 endeavours to defend all the meadow, and yet cannot defend 

 her own nest. 



I brought about thirty of their eggs with me to Hamburgh, 

 but they were rotten and stunk. It is a kind of a hawk, and 

 throws herself into the water as other mcAvs do, 



I am of an opinion that she feeds on the small grey Avorms, 



