BIRDS OF ST. KILL A. 



57 



long enough to negotiate them. The St. Kildans 

 are wonderful fellows on the crags, and most of 

 the performances we saw them go through were 

 done without the aid of a rope ; but, of course, 

 their bare feet, thoroughly hardened and inured to 

 the touch of the sharp rocks, give them a great 

 advantage over men who wear boots and socks 

 every day of their lives. Their heads, too, being 

 used to the dizzying heights from childhood are 

 absolutely unaffected by any vertical depths how- 

 ever great. 



The following is a list of the birds I saw and 

 identified on the islands : 



Fulmar Petrel (Fulmarus gla- 



cialis). 

 Manx Shearwater (Puffinus an- 



glorum). 

 Forked-tailed Petrel (Cymo- 



chorea-leucorrhoa) . 

 Great Black-backed Gull (Larus 



marinus). 

 Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus 



fuscus). 



Herring Gull (Larus argentatus}. 

 Common Gull (Larus canus). 

 Razor-bill (Alca tor da). 

 Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla). 

 Guillemot (Uria troile). 

 Black Guillemot (Uria grylle). 

 Puffin (Fratercula arctica). 



Shag (Phalacrocorax gracutus). 

 Gannet (Sula bassana). \simd). 

 Eider Duck (Somateria mottis- 

 Whimbrel (Numenius phceopus). 

 Oyster-Catcher (Hcematopus os- 



tralegus). 



Dunlin (Tringa alpina). 

 Raven (Corvus corax). 

 Hooded Crow (Corvus comix). 

 Starling (Sturnus vulgar is). 

 Wheat ear (Saxicola cenanthe). 

 Rock Pipit (Anthus obscurus). 

 Tree Sparrow (Passer niontanus). 

 Twite (Linota flavirostris). 

 Bunting (Emberiza miliaria). 

 Swallow (Hirundo rustica). 

 Wren (Troglodytes parvulus). 



The Barn Swallow visited us once or twice, but 

 only hawked round for an hour or so on each 

 occasion and was gone. 



The Whimbrel was dead, having been stalked 

 by one of the natives and caught with his fowling 

 rod a very clever performance indeed when the 

 shy nature of the bird is taken into consideration. 



