MISCELLANEOUS NOTES. 320 
behind a bush looking at the goat. At last he made up his mind and walked 
straight along the cattle track towards the goat, at the same time keeping his 
eye on the buffalo. He walked very slowly and deliberately, When he got 
opposite my machan I dropped him with a bullet in his shoulder and gave him 
a second as he lay. He did not make a sound, but lay perfectly still as if dead. 
At first I thought of getting down and having him carried in, but fortunately 
I changed my mind and decided to sleep where I was till morning. I had 
just dozed off, when the tiger got up and went off before I could geta 
shot in, Next morning I founda pool of blood where he lay ; he had laid down 
frequently, but I never got him, and he died some eight days later in a cave. 
My theory of the above incident is first that the tiger was very hungry, When 
he had got back to ‘the jungle after the first two shots, which had doubtless 
gone over him and not disturbed him except by the noise, he saw the buffalo, 
put the noise down to it, and started to kill it, The second shots were high 
too Lam sure,and no doubt put him quite off tackling the buffalo, and he 
decided to keep well away from it and content himself with the goat,” 
EB, F, BECHER, 
Lonpon, 12th April, 1893. 
No. XII.—NESTING OF THE CRAB-PLOVER. 
I have posted to your address .a box containing an egg of the Crab-Plover 
(Dromas ardeola) and an egg of the Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia);s0 I sup- 
pose some account of the taking of these eggs, with a description of the nests, 
&c., will be expected. I fear Iam not qualified to give a scientific description 
or to offer any remarks of much value; still I trust they may be of 
interest, and at any rate induce others as ignorant as myself of the technicali- 
ties of the science of Natural History to follow my example and endeavour 
to describe what they see without waiting for the knowledge that is only 
obtained by study and experience. 
On the 29th May, 1893, I landed on the Island of Sad-ad-din, a reef island 
about five miles from the town of Zeila, on the Somali coast, and with my 
friend, Captain E. R. Shopland, commenced to search the island for eggs, as we 
had heard that great numbers of seagulls breed there every year. While 
we were crossing the level and open plains, we saw atthe north-east end of 
the island a sand-hill about half a mile long and raised above the level about 
six or eight feet. This is one of the features of reef islands ; the wind and 
sea throw up matted seaweed, which is covered with sand, then again more 
seaweed and sand, till the coastline on the weather side is several feet higher 
than the rest of the island. We saw on this hill a great number of white 
birds and a number of seagulls with them, As we approached, we saw that 
they were a species of plover, and from their consternation we knew they 
must be breeding. The gulls all flew away and left the plovers to their 
