THE GREENSHANK. 219 



at Blenuerville, near Tralee, when the tide is out."* The lo- 

 calities which have been named in connexion with the greenshank, 

 are all of a marine or estuary nature. About inland fresh water, 

 I have not known it to be killed in the north of Ireland, and 

 once, only, on the part of the river Lagan subject to the flow of 

 the tide, near to the Eoyal Botanic Garden, Belfast. The bird 

 had previously frequented the place for a fortnight. Temminck 

 mentions the gravelly borders of rivers as frequented by this bird, 

 and very rarely those of the sea. 



I am not aware of their breeding in Ireland, but Mr. E. 

 Chute, who considers greenshanks to be common in Kerry, 

 believes that they breed at Caragh Lake, in that county, from the 

 circumstance of his having seen them at the upper part of it in 

 pairs, at different times during summer, though he never found 

 their nests. The people of the neighbourhood assured him 

 that the birds remained there the entire summer. The lake is 

 about two-and-a-half miles from the sea, and situated between 

 mountains ; it is five miles in length. The greenshank was 

 observed at Clifden, or Eoundstone Bay, Connemara, in July 

 184-l.t 



The contrast of the snowy-white and dark plumage renders 

 the greenshank an attractive bird ; it varies considerably in 

 size. The redshank and it are considered, by some persons, to 

 be the worst eating of all the shore birds that are commonly 

 served up at table. A bird-preserver has remarked to me that 

 the fat of tins bird is white, and not orange-yellow, like that of 

 the redshank. 



When H.M.S. Beacon was in the Bay of Navarino, in April 

 1841, one of the officers, on the 29th of that month, brought 

 me a greenshank, shot by him on the sea-beach, contiguous to 

 an extensive marsh, which I subsequently visited. In a proper 

 climate this would be a most suitable breeding-haunt for the 

 species, and, as two or three more birds were seen, I could not 



* Mr. R. Chute ; — who once saw a large flock of greenshanks there. 

 t Rev. G. Robinson. 



