MOUNTAIN BIRDS 241 



of the mountains, and in autumn make off to the 

 low-lying mosses and estuaries. Whilst camping, 

 and when I emerged from the flaps of the canvas, 

 it was sometimes seen that a great many birds were 

 around, and our lights certainly had the effect of 

 keeping the " ling birds " cheeping all night. And 

 we noticed that this continued when the short sharp 

 bark of a fox was coming from out the crags. 



The bird essentially of the mountains, however, is 

 the peregrine. Since the eagles have become ex- 

 tinct this is our noblest bird of prey. It still nests 

 high in the beetling crags, and its nest is most difficult 

 of access. It marauds and plunders the whole dis- 

 trict. The gulls and the summer-snipe of the tarns 

 afford it food, as do also moor-game, ducks and 

 wood-pigeons. I have seen the female peregrine fly 

 with a rock-dove in its talons without its flight being 

 impeded in the least. But the rock-dove is a strong 

 flier, and the Falcon-crag peregrines I saw strike 

 thrice, ascending betwixt each, before pulling down 

 their plucky game. There can be no doubt that 

 peregrines are very destructive to grouse, but it is 

 just as true that they pick off the slowest and 

 weakest birds. When food is scarce on the moun- 

 tains they descend to the valleys, and here they 

 obtain leverets and partridges, as well as the larger 

 non-game birds. In one locality, where there has 

 been an eyrie time out of time, I found the raven 

 



