I. WINTER. 



THE LAPWING is not common here. The ground, being rough and 

 rocky and bushy, is not suitable for rearing their young, except 

 just at the head of Loch Ailort, where it is open and flat. I 

 have seen a few pairs congregating there in spring. I have 

 seen a few individuals on the seashore here in winter. They 

 are numerous in some parts of the South of Scotland, in Stirling- 

 shire particularly. 



The Rook is one of their greatest enemies, watching his 

 opportunity, when the parent is in pursuit of some other foe, 

 to rush in and steal an egg. It is a wonder that any of the 

 young can ever be reared amidst such a host of enemies and 

 in such unsheltered situations. Were it not that their instinct 

 teaches them that " union is strength," and that they all unite 

 in defence of the breeding ground, they would probably become 

 very scarce indeed, perhaps altogether extinct. Their French 

 name is " Dishuit," their Scotch one " Peesweepe," from the cry 

 they make. There are several kinds of waders here Red- 

 shank, Greenshank, and Turnstone. 



Curlews do not breed here, but are often to be seen and 

 heard on the seashore in winter. 



THE TURNSTONE (Slrepeilas interpres) I have seen in small 

 flocks flying about in spring close to the sea, and alighting on 

 the many rocky islands in Loch Ailort. We got three at one 

 shot (all males), not yet quite in their summer plumage. In 

 winter they are dark on the upper parts and white beneath ; in 

 summer they are brightly coloured a sort of tortoiseshell mixture 

 of black, white, and chestnut. In summer I have seen one near 



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