216 THE BIRDS OF OUR RAMBLES. 



his throat is white at all seasons, that bird's only 

 in winter. Throughout the autumn and winter 

 the Puffin is not seen much near the land, but in 

 spring they congregate at the old accustomed 

 haunts, coming from the surrounding sea with 

 marked regularity. The date of their arrival 

 varies a good deal with the locality, sometimes 

 being as early as March, at others not before the 

 beginning of May. For miles around a Puffin 

 colony the sea is studded with birds, swimming 

 and diving, and flying to and fro. But the great 

 centre of interest is ashore, either on the low 

 rock-bound islands or the cliffs. At some of 

 these Puffin colonies the visitor is apt to feel 

 disappointed at first, because scarcely a bird is to 

 be seen ; but at others the stirring sight frustrates 

 all attempts to describe it. This is because the 

 Puffin makes its nest in a hole in the ground, just 

 like a rabbit burrow, either in. the soft earth near 

 the top, or on the sloping downs among the cliffs, 

 or yet again in the peaty soil that covers the 

 rocky islets (as at the Femes), or on the bare 

 sloping hillsides (as at St. Kilda). Now in some 

 places all the birds are hidden away under- 

 ground, and do not leave their burrows until 

 pulled out by the hand ; yet in others, especially 

 when on the cliffs and downs, they appear to sit 

 more at the entrance of their holes, and imme- 

 diately take wing when you approach, sweeping 

 down to the sea in a bewildering, silent multitude. 

 The Puffin generally excavates its own burrow, 

 using its sharp claws to bore into the ground, 

 throwing out the loose soil behind it as it goes. 

 Several feet or sometimes several yards from the 

 entrance a slight nest of dry grass and perhaps a 



