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on the Breeding Birds on Lough Neagh.


It was on one of these excursions that my friend and I

started by the 9.20 a. 111. train for Burgan, from which we had a

rather rough drive of about six miles across a strange boggy

country called the Manchus, where the road is built up with

metal 10 or 12 feet above the bog.


A few birds on the way however kept us amused :—Reed

Buntings, Meadow Pipits, Corn Buntings, Sedge Warblers,

House Martins, Swallows, Swifts, and Pied Wagtails, besides

many commoner birds.


Our stopping place was a little harbour where there is a

ferry across one of the rivers that flow into Bough Neagh.

Here we met our boat with two men and a fine Irish water-dog.

It was now about 11 o’clock, so we hurried our things, which

were many, into the little boat, the spritsail was got up, and

away we went flying before a nice easterly breeze.


The first bird I noted was an old Cormorant drying his

wings on a post, after the style of the German imperial eagle.

He soon flew off over the vast expanse of muddy water to his

fishing, and w 7 e sailed on towards the isles. Numbers of Swifts

and Sandmartins were hawking above our heads, and now and

again a Tern or Black-headed Gull would relieve the monotony.

We passed an old ruin where Kestrels nest every year, and, with

our glasses, we could make out the old birds flying round the tower.

The wind had fallen rather light, so our men had taken to the

oars so as to hurry us to our first island, Corrigan by name ; we,

in the meantime, got on our waders, as the water round the

islands is so shallow that one always has to wade ashore.


We pulled on till the boat stuck on the big stones ; out

jumped the dog, then the men, and we followed when the

lightened boat was pulled into still shallower water.


My friend had for the first time visited this island about

two years ago, when he found it covered with Redshanks’ nests.

Bast year he went back and found no Redshanks, but in their

place a great colony of Black-headed Gulls, and this year, as the

reader will see, there was not very much of anything.


By this time we had landed and spread out to look for

nests. Over our heads were screaming Redshanks, Black-headed

Gulls, and Terns, but for a while we came on nothing. At last I



