9158 Birds. 
sights, it was almost bewildering. The rabbits seemed almost regard- 
less of our presence; the wheatears merely retired to a little distance, 
uttering their peculiar “chat, chat;” and here I may remark that 
I never observed anywhere wheatears either so large or so finely 
coloured as those on Walney. The blackheaded gulls kept hover- 
ing over the spot where their nests were placed, rising and falling 
like monster snowflakes, till the eye became dazzled by looking at 
them. The nests were placed on the ground, within a few feet of one 
another, and for the most part built in tussocks of coarse grass. The 
material was invariably dry grass only, and every nest contained either 
eggs or young birds, while in sume cases I noticed both. As a rule, 
the majority of nests contained three eggs each, but many of them had 
four, and in a few instances I saw three eggs (cracked) and a young 
bird. Several of the young birds, two or three days old, were running 
about or hiding in the coarse herbage, while overhead, I may say 
without exaggeration, hundreds of the parent birds were dashing about 
on outstretched wings, uttering their wild screams, which were almost 
deafening. Examining every nest, I proceeded to pick out the hand- 
somest eggs, until I had collected about a score. 
We then left the gulls in quiet possession, and proceeded to the 
eyrie of the Sandwich terns. Long before we reached the spot, we 
could point to the exact situation of the nests, for the birds were con- 
tinually hovering above and around them. As we approached they 
rose perpendicularly to a great height, keeping up a succession of 
harsh screams, not unlike the sound produced by running a sharp stick 
across a comb. The nests in structure were very similar to those of 
the blackheaded gulls, being composed entirely of grass, and placed 
quite close to each other on the ground, the only difference being that 
the gulls’ nests were placed on somewhat level ground, whereas those 
of the Sandwich tern were situate on the side of a sand-hill among 
long thin grass. Standing still for a few minutes I counted seventeen 
nests, all close to each other, all containing eggs, and the majority 
having three. They had been robbed once, much to the annoyance 
of the owner of the land, and he was therefore very loth to allow any 
more eggs to be taken. As a particular favour, however, I was allowed 
to select three of the handsomest from different nests, and these I care- 
fully placed in the basket, consoling myself with the thought of the old 
adage that “‘ half a loaf is better than no bread.” The proprietor then 
left us, after exacting a promise that we would not shoot anywhere in 
the vicinity of his nests. This I readily agreed to, and we proceeded 
on our way. 
