76 BRITISH BIRDS. [vol. viii. 



CURIOUS BREAK IN NESTING ACTIVITIES OF 



HOUSE-MARTINS. 



A NUMBER of House-Martins {Hirundo u. urhica) made their 

 first appearance for the year at Branecombe, in east Devon, 

 on the afternoon of April 20th, 1914. From early morning 

 of the next day until after dusk they Mere busy collecting 

 material from the edge of a neighbouring stream and flying 

 off to a barn close at liand under the eaves of which a great 

 number of nests are built. Owing to the wild weather 

 experienced each winter in this locality, nothing but the 

 remnants of a few old nests were left, and there was not one 

 that could have been rebuilt under many days. On the 

 morning of the 22nd, a little more work was done, but from 

 noon on that day until May Sth not a bird was to be seen 

 working, although there appeared to be nothing in the state 

 of the weather, or the mud at the edge of the stream, to 

 hinder them. Lewis R. W. Loyd. 



INCREASE OF TUFTED DUCK BREEDING IN 

 NORTHUMBERLAND. 



There is a considerable increase in the Tufted Duck {Nyroca 

 fuligula) breeding in Northumberland this season. More 

 are breeding at Alnwick : I noted four broods of seven, 

 four, seven, and three on the lake at Newton in south 

 Northumberland, and several broods at Hallington and 

 Netherwitton. If sportsmen will refrain from shooting 

 them there is little doubt that Tufted Ducks will become 

 established as breeding -birds all about the county. 



M. Portal. 



GREAT SHEARWATERS AT ST. KILDA. 



On June 19th, 1914, when boating in Village Bay, St. Kilda, 

 off Dun, with Mr. A. G. Ferguson of Glasgow, we came up 

 with a Great Shearwater {Pu/pnus gravis) which had been 

 about in the bay for some days. The bird was very tame, 

 and w as easily secured. It proved to be a mature male, but 

 very thin, and from the appearance on dissection, was 

 certainly not breeding this year. On June 26th Finlay 

 McQueen found another floating dead in the bay. 



E. W. Wade. 



[A good many Great Shearwaters have been seen and 

 several obtained from time to time near St. Kilda, generally 



