SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



225 



me some relief as they ran over the heather tufts 

 and across the patches of bare ground, piping the 

 while. The land became more distinctly cultivated 

 as I advanced, and in the neighbourhood of the 

 Loch of Skaill it had little of a wild nature about 

 it at all. The drizzle still continued slightly, and 

 a cold wind was exceedingly refreshing. 



The nearness of the loch, made famous in my 

 day-dreams of Orkney before I had left home, now 

 induced me to quicken my steps, and I soon gained 

 the side of a small iris-fringed stream flowing into 

 it. Again my old companions, peeweeps and red- 

 shanks, got up to torment me, and I found eggs of 

 both species, out of which the young birds had safely 

 come, but I did not actually handle the young. 

 My first scrutiny of the loch was disappointing ; 

 coots were common, and mute swans were en the 

 water, whilst a colony of blackheaded and common 

 gulls occupied a small island, and a few arctic 

 terns were about. Not being at all satisfied with 

 such life. I was on the point of leaving the loch for 

 some other haunt when I thought I had better 

 take a look at an odd swan sitting on the bank, and 

 turning my glass upon the bird I was surprised to 

 see that it was not a mute swan at all, but a 

 whooper. I at once planned a careful approach ; 

 but 1 scon saw that the bird had no fear, as he 

 placed bis head back amongst his plumage, and did 

 not move till I had come within a short distance of 

 him. His head was rusty tinged, and on the back 

 of the neck some way down was a rusty ring ; 

 otherwise his plumage was white. 



On the ground the whooper stood with body 

 horizontal and long neck almost quite erect. He 

 walked very sedately, throwing out his foot 

 comically and spreading it as he brought it down, 

 whilst his breast projected in an unseemly manner. 

 As he walked he uttered a more or less clanging 



hoomp, whoomp," and occasionally moved 

 bis tail sharply in a horizontal direction. The 

 shape of his head was markedly triangular, whilst 

 that of the mute swan was round, and the whooper, 

 though he sometimes bad a slight curve on his neck, 

 carried it far more nearly erect than the mute swan. 

 A pair of the latter birds were often careering 

 about the 1</Ch. one of them :: of the water 



altogether, and this performance acted I 

 fully on ti '. who uttered a " 



wboo," in regret at hit inability to fly 1 In: 

 wboopcr's right wing was broken, as was seen 

 when be flap|/ed it. which accounted for his stay 

 here. Several time* he lowered his head su 

 and raised it again, an action t) 

 many specie* of b 



the water on my nca.- and was 



a few yards from the ihori 

 swam in his din 



If him, so that the whooper was forced to 

 come ashore at once, and he renewed his 



on the land. Once he stretched out his long slim 

 neck and shook his head most comically several 

 times. During the remainder of my stay the mute 

 swan kept guard over him, and the whooper was 

 continually clanging. Repeatedly the whooper 

 stood with head and neck outstretched and beat 

 his wings, as if anxious, after his long detention 

 on Skaill, of reaching once more the spot where 

 his companions were, and he uttered the while a far 

 louder continuous cry. 



When at length I could learn no more of the 

 bird's habits, I continued my course along the 

 grassy margin of the loch, and was presently 

 attracted by four swans that had risen clanging, 

 disturbed by a passing horseman, and were flying 

 at some height above the water. These birds 

 displayed entirely black bills, and puzzled me for 

 a time. I was destined, however, to have a long 

 acquaintanceship with them, and found that they 

 were immature mute swans. That portion of the 

 bill w-hich in the adult is yellow, was in these 

 birds black, though not so intensely black as the 

 rest. They had also some brown about the wings 

 and the crown of the head. I had never before 

 heard mute swans clanging, and I have since 

 wondered whether the presence of the noisy 

 whooper may not have induced these birds to 

 attempt an imitation of his cry. 



Some distance below the whooper's haunt I 

 passed a mute swan on her nest, and at the foot of 

 the loch I became an attraction for terns. Here 

 also I noticed a pair of dunlins and a little grebe on 

 the water. The end of the loch was bordered by 

 swampy ground that afforded inducements for 

 wild fowl, and coots and mallard were breeding 

 there. I encountered a mallard shuffling along to 

 the water with two young birds in her trail, and 

 catching one of the young birds as it rested in a 

 depression, I examined its soft, downy plumage, and 

 released it again, when it promptly dived. On 

 advancing to the spot from which I had seen the 

 mallard rise, I noticed other youngsters lying 

 close, and set them in motion by catching one of 

 them, which I again released, delighted to watch 

 the activity of its movements. 



In following the sinuous outline of the loch I 

 came to an equisetum marsh occupied by a colony 

 of blackheaded gulls. Owing to the: swampy 

 nature of the ground, the nests required to be 

 firmer than usual and raised above the level of 



I itl [s, and 



was completely astoni bed to note the position oi 

 B to a high road, 'I he immature 



wans also bad 11 [uai ti 1 a here, and wi r< 



1 van 'i be 



1 bin '■ < than lbs adults and 



tbeii bead 1 erect, •.■ bilsl the adull hud, 



with ' att ii the Kali and neel 



:i proudly back, swam boldly on to the 



' 3 



