120 THE ZOOLOGIS'I. 
notice during the year was an Osprey, shot in a wood close to this 
town on May 11th. Its dimensions, as taken by myself, were :— 
spread of wings, five feet six inches; total length, two feet one 
inch; and the weight was four pounds and a quarter. 
My remaining notes for the month of May show that on the 2nd 
a flock of several hundred wild geese were seen flying ‘north 
across the River Duddon about 8 a.m. On the Sth a local gunner 
obtained a number of Turnstones in full plumage—a fact which 
affords a strong argument for those who would place all sea and 
shore birds under the protection of an Act of Parliament, inasmuch 
as to omit a bird, such as the Turnstone, affords a loophole to any 
one who wishes to elude the Acts of Parliament at present in force, 
and enables them to shoot almost ad libitum throughout the close 
season. On the 12th, although young Black-headed Gulls were 
beginning to appear on Walney Island, the Herring Gulls on the 
rocky ledges of St. Bees Head showed no signs of hatching. 
The Terns on Walney began to lay as soon as the Gulls had 
hatched, but their eggs were not plentiful before the commencement 
of June. On the 2lst of the latter month I found in the Gullery 
a young Sandwich Tern almost ready to fly, as well as three freshly- 
laid Oystercatcher’s eggs, probably a second brood. On June 2nd 
a friend dug out a nest containing Shieldrake’s eggs from amongst 
some sand-hills on the Cumberland coast, but an attempt to hatch 
them out under a hen unfortunately failed. Towards the end of 
July numerous broods of the young of this species might be seen 
amongst the sand-hills, ready at the first alarm to take refuge in a 
rabbit-hole. 
Two Woodcock’s eggs were brought to me on the 30th June, 
which had been taken in the early part of the season in a wood 
close to this town; and on the 5th I put up a pair of Long-eared 
Owls in the same wood, and was assured by a friend that he had 
taken their eggs there in previous years. 
At the beginning of July I chanced to be on the railway which 
skirts the estuary of the Duddon, when a Kestrel rose from the 
embankment, within a few yards of me, with a large object in its 
claws. By shouting and waving the fishing-rod I had in my 
hand I induced it to drop its prey, which on examination proved 
to be a full-fledged young Cuckoo, dead though still warm. Not- 
withstanding its size, the hawk seemed to experience little difficulty 
in rising with its burden. 
