54 Bird-Nesting 



of the snow bunting. Out of this number were forty-one 

 clutches of five eggs each, nineteen clutches of four eggs, and 

 eleven clutches of six e^gs, so that five eggs appear to be the 

 regular number. The eggs are laid both in Iceland and Green- 

 land towards the latter part of June. The average size is 

 0.90x0.65. The Lapland bunting does not breed in Iceland, 

 but is common in Greenland and Lapland. I have four 

 clutches collected June 20, 1882, in South Greenland, as well 

 as a number of sets of four and five eggs that were collected 

 at Tornea, Lapland, June 11, 1888. The eggs are very dark 

 like those of the titlark, with a chocolate, sienna or olive 

 ground, clouded with darker 1 brown ; and some eggs have 

 streaks and hair-lines of dark brown, chiefly round the butt 

 end. 



On the high prairie above Rush Lake, curlews, willets, kil- 

 deers and Bartram's sandpipers were numerous. We saw a 

 number of marbled godwits, and shot a willet and a marbled 

 godwit. The lake where the avosets breed now appeared in 

 sight, and we were soon walking along its western shore, where 

 we disturbed several Canada geese. John showed me three 

 nests from which he had taken eggs the first week in May. 

 The nests were hollows in the sand along the margin of the 

 lake amongst the grass, and these hollows were lined abund- 

 antly with greyish down and feathers. On the lake were 

 several species of ducks and other water-fowl. Avosets were 

 plentiful, and we shot four handsome specimens. This lake 

 was about a mile and a half long and half a mile wide. Near 

 the north end are two small sandy islands, about which were 

 several terns, Bonaparte's gulls, and a few Franklin's gulls. At 

 the east side of the lake a stony sand-bar ran out towards the 

 centre of the lake, and on approaching this place the avosets 

 became very noisy, flying around making a jelping kind of a 

 noise. We soon found two or three nests, and on reaching the 

 end of the sand-bar the nests became so numerous that we had 

 to be careful not to step upon the eggs. It was a grand sight, 

 and onelshall never forget. There must have been over one hun- 

 dred eggs on this narrow sand-bar. We collected a number of 



