FIELD NOTES IN .WESITERN SWEDEN. 127 
is the Handel, which rises on Sylfjellen (6552 ft.), and a short 
distance above the lake falls over a fine fosse, thence forcing 
its way through numerous small channels, intersected by islets 
overgrown with mountain-ash and willow. 
When [J arrived, on June 11th, the deeper end of the lake was 
thickly coated with ice, and snow lay in drifts down to the water's 
edge. The season was unusually late, and a rapid thaw caused 
the lake to rise considerably above its usual level. Lake Ann is 
situated in the heart of a forest region. Upon its eastern border 
the forest is continuous, only broken by the occasional presence 
of small clearings; on the western side it extends from the margin 
of the lake (2000 ft.), until the tall spruce-firs give place to a broad 
belt of dwarf willows. Across the lake, from our quarters, snow- 
capped ridges of hills extend in one unbroken line along the 
horizon. 
That birds were extremely scarce was my first impression of 
this wild region, and although, as spring advanced, fresh species 
appeared, we never found many birds except in the neighbourhood 
of the lake. 
The Fieldfare was first noticed on June 12th; on the 24th 
I took a clutch of fresh eggs, between which date and July 5th 
we examined many nests of this Thrush, some incomplete and 
empty, others containing incubated eggs. A few Ring Ouzels 
nested on the nearest fells. Redstarts found attractive stumps of 
old timber near the water, and I lifted a hen Redstart off her 
incubated eggs on June 28th. I was anxious to find the Dipper, 
Cinclus melanogaster ; but our boatman, who knew it well, said 
that the resident birds had been killed, he thought, by the severity 
of the preceding winter. 
Numerous Willow Warblers haunted the forest as well as 
bushes near the water, while an occasional Marsh Tit flitted 
through the woods. Every farmstead was frequented by a pair 
of White Wagtails, but the Grey-headed Wagtail, Motacilla 
_cinereocapilla, was seen only on the islands of the lake. The 
Tree Pipit was the only species of Anthus observed ; one obtained 
at Lake Ann proved to be smaller than an average English 
specimen. House Martins built their mud-nests under the eaves 
of our farmhouse, but we only observed the Swallow coursing over 
the country. 
The weather during my stay was brilliantly fine, and the 
