THE BIRDS OF IONA AND MULL. 229 



cliffs or rocky caverns between the months of September and April." 

 Of the sand-martins, " these, it is highly probable, pass the winter 

 among dead reeds at the bottoms of lakes, pools, and slow rivers." 

 Again, of the wheatear, " From Hastings, a little to the east of Beachy 

 Head, the coast of France is visible on a clear day, and opposite Dover 

 is the narrowest part of the channel. A strong and steady west wind 

 would blow these voyagers so short a distance in a very little time. 

 But if so, when and how do they return 1 Mr White calls them the 

 Sussex bird ; but the wheatear is certainly not peculiar to that county." 



THE ROCK DOVE. 



On looking over my old letters to you, published in The Naturalist, 

 I come to the conclusion that I can add nothing to the remarks that 

 I sent you concerning the rock dove, except that in toy long residence 

 subsequently on the shores of Loch Fyne I never once saw it, though 

 the wood pigeon (unknown in lona) was abundant. I need only 

 repeat that the rock dove abounds in Mull and lona, breeding on all 

 the rocky shores and remaining all the year. 



BLACK COCK. 



Gaelic, Coileach dubh black cock. The female Cearc fhraoich hen of 

 the heather. 



On the wild tracts of land on the south-west of Mull the black 

 game flourishes much more abundantly than the red grouse ; you 

 meet one brace of the latter to ten of the former in a day's walk over 

 the moors and mosses. 



RKD GROUSE. 

 Gaelic, Eoin rua' red bird. 



Is not so abundant as the last, perhaps for want of artificial 

 encouragement and protection. 



PTARMIGAN. 



Exists on Ben M6r in Mull, whence I have seen specimens procured 

 in their snow-white plumage. 



Q 



