268 FACULTIES OF BIRDS, 



CHAPTER XIIL 

 M i G R ATIO N continued. 



DISMISSING the untenable conjectures which were 

 exhibited in the last chapter, we shall now state a 

 few facts proving the migration of birds to other 

 countries. In the first place let us observe the flights 

 of some of our more common species of birds. 



The only breeding place of the gannet, on the east 

 coast of Scotland, is the Bass Rock, at the mouth of 

 the Frith of Forth. Individuals of the species may 

 frequently be seen fishing as far up as Queensferry, 

 a distance of upwards of thirty miles, as well as along 

 all parts of the coast. In like manner the gannets 

 of Ailsa Craig may be seen along all parts of the 

 coast of Ayrshire. In the outer Hebrides, they may 

 be observed every morning about sunrise, flying in 

 strings eastward along the coast; and in the evening*, 

 proceeding outward over the ocean, in the direction 

 of St. Kilda, their only roosting place in that district. 

 Here then we have a daily migration extending to 

 sixty or more miles, the object of which is to procure 

 a supply of food. This kind of migration is neces- 

 sarily performed by all birds, although it may be less 

 extensive in most species. 



The next kind of migration is that performed by 

 birds which are permanent residents in a district or 

 country of greater or less extent, but which shift from 

 one place to another in search of food. The purre 

 or dunlin, for we believe they are identical, breeds 

 on the moors of Dumfriesshire, and other parts of 



