1875-1876.] l8 3 



On 8th March the Chair was occupied by the President (Rev. 

 William Macllwaine, D.D.), and a lecture was delivered by the 

 Rev. George Robinson, M.A., " On the Birds of Lough Neagh." 



The lecturer stated that he had selected to bring under the 

 notice of the Club a short account of the birds of Lough Neagh, 

 chiefly because there had been nothing written specially on the 

 ornithology of that lake, and he thought it was desirable that 

 there should be some record of the birds that frequented it, before 

 that lake should become a thing of the past, as the drainage of the 

 lake had been spoken of and written about, and no doubt, in 

 course of time, would be effected. It had been his lot to live for 

 many years within three miles of the southern shores of the lake, 

 so that he had frequent opportunities of being acquainted with its 

 birds. On referring to the " Guide to Belfast and the adjacent 

 Counties," by your Club, you will see that the number of birds 

 recorded for those counties is 185, and for the lake and its sou- 

 thern shores for a mile inland the number is 103. Of these 68 

 breed. The lecturer called attention to several of the birds which 

 frequent the lake, one of which was pointed out as especially in- 

 teresting and almost peculiar to it — the Yellow Wagtail— -of which 

 a specimen was exhibited. This bird is found as a summer visitant 

 in both England and Scotland, but the only part of Ireland in 

 which it had been hitherto found breeding is the northern and 

 southern shores and neighbourhood of the lake. Another interest- 

 ing bird found breeding within a mile of the lake is the Siskin. It 

 has also been found breeding near Belfast, as made known by Mr. 

 Bristow, and also in County Wicklow, confirming the surmise of 

 that excellent naturalist, of whom Belfast has reason to be proud — 

 Mr. Thompson — that it would, some time or other, be found 

 breeding in Ireland. Another bird, which we can claim as breed- 

 ing in this district, is the Woodcock, which breeds regularly at 

 Churchhill, about a mile inland from the lake. Of gulls, two 

 species breed on the islands in the lake, the Lesser Black-backed 

 Gull and the Black-headed Gull. The common Tern breeds, but 

 the Arctic Tern, so nearly allied to it, has not been observed at the 



