118 DTTBLIN NATURAL HISTORT SOCIETY. 



ON THE MIGRATION OP BUFFON's SKUA (lESTEIS PARASITICUS), AND 

 RECORD OF OCCURRENCE OF RARE BIRDS IN IRELAND. BY JOHN ROBERT 

 CRANE, LIEUTENANT, 67TH REGT. COMMUNICATED BY R. P. WILLIAMS, 

 M. E. I. A. 



[Eead February 7, 1862.] 



Athlone, January, 1862. 

 The specimens of Buffoii's Skua (Zestris parasiticus), were shot by 

 me on 16th May, 1860, on the Shannon, about five miles south of Ath- 

 lone. I was out in company with two other officers shooting landrails, 

 which are very plentiful on that part of the banks of the river. The 

 day was very stormy and cold for the season ; the wind was from the 

 IN". W. I was sitting in a boat at a place called Long Island, when a 

 flock of about twenty Skuas passed over. I saw at once that they were 

 not common birds; the long tail-feathers marked them at once; but as I 

 was sitting in the bow, the flock had nearly passed before I saw them, 

 but I succeeded in killing one. Some time after another flock of about 

 the same number passed, but I could not get a shot ; but a third flock 

 came over, out of which I killed one with each barrel, making three in 

 all. I gave two of them to the late Mr. Glennon, and he then showed 

 me another, which he told me had been killed from a flock in the County 

 Donegal on the 1 7th, the day after I got mine. The birds were follow- 

 ing the course of the Shannon, flying north. I gave the third specimen 

 to Major I^ewton, -E. A., who sent it to his brother, Alford Newton, Esq., 

 well known for his work on eggs. I saw between sixty and seventy in 

 all. One of the other officers who was with me and saw me kill the 

 birds was Captain Eowland, 55th Regiment. I think the skuas were 

 migrating when I saw them. They did not seem inclined to settle any 

 where ; the three flocks were steadily pursuiag the same course in a 

 northerly direction. I fear there is but little chance of meeting with 

 them again, as I look on their occurrence as quite exceptional. They 

 were probably driven from the sea by severity of weather, and induced 

 to pursue their journey along the course of the Shannon, as affording them 

 comparatively more shelter than the open sea. The weather had been 

 very stormy for some days, and on the 1 6th it blew so hard that we could 

 hardly keep our boat clear of water ; there were several heavy hail-show- 

 ers during the day. I showed the birds to several boatmen here, who 

 are constantly in the habit of attending the officers of the garrison in 

 their shooting excursions, and they all said they had never seen anything 

 like them before. 



I may mention that in November, 1858, I shot, near the same place, 

 a specimen of the YeUow Shanks, or American snipe, {Totanus flavipes) 

 of which I can only flnd one other British record — viz., one shot in Not- 

 tinghamshire. Unfortunately I did not then know Mr. Glennon, and I 

 gave it to a friend who said he could skin birds ; but it was very fat, 

 and he tore and spoiled the skin so much that he threw it away. I was 

 not then aware of the extreme rarity of the bird, or I would have en- 

 deavoured to preserve some part of it. 



