p. H. BAHR : THE SCAUP-DUCK IN SCOTLAND. 211 



1899,* and the " Annals of Scottish Natural History. "f 

 The nest was found in Speyside, and was placed in rushes 

 on an island five feet from the water's edge ; it contained 

 three eggs when found. It was revisited in a week's 

 time, but the duck was not sitting. Mr. Noble got within 

 ten feet of her and watched her for some time close to the 

 nest. Two days after he watched her leave the nest, 

 which contained nine eggs, and was deep, cup-shaped, and 

 better made than most ducks' nests. In a recent 

 number of British BirdsJ he has described the down 

 and feathers taken from this nest. 



The Scaup-Duck has also been recorded § as nesting 

 in the islands south of the Sound of Harris. Mr. Harvie- 

 Brown's correspondent writes : " They are numerous, 

 and have bred for the last four years. Two pairs to my 

 knowledge in 1897, 1898, and 1899, and three pairs in 

 last season, 1900." It was believed to have bred again 

 in 1901, and in June, 1902, a young bird still in down, 

 ten days old, was sent to Mr. Harvie-Brown by Guthrie, 

 a keeper in these islands. 



Finally, the nest figured overleaf (Fig. 1) was discovered 

 on a journey made to these islands with Mr. N. B. 

 Kinnear for this express purpose.|| Professor Newton, 

 with his critical acumen, would not at first accept the 

 record because of the similarity of the eggs to those of the 

 Tufted Duck, but did so after a careful comparison of 

 the down and feathers with those taken from the nest 

 found in 1899 by Mr. Heatley Noble.t 



Mr. Kinnear and I spent a fortnight in June, 1906, 

 searching innumerable lochs for signs of nesting Scaup- 



* H. Savmders, "Ibis," 1899, p. 648; "Bull, B.O.C.," Vlll., p. 5. 

 t J. A. Harvie-Brown, " Ann. S.N.H.," 1899, p. 215. 

 t British Birds (Mag.), Vol. II., p. 38. 



§ J. A, Harvie-Brown, "Ann. S.N.H.," 1902, p. 211; vide also 

 Guthrie, "Ann. S.N.H.," 1903, p. 76. 

 I! Kinnear, "Ann. S.N.H.," 1907, p. 82. 

 t "Ootheca Wolleyana," Vol. II., pp. 591 and 2. 



