Lindisfarne in February 



studjr the knot at its breeding grounds in North-east Green- 

 land, gives an interesting picture of its home life and court- 

 ship. According to this authority the love-song of the knot 

 is an extraordinarily fine performance. The singer mounts 

 almost perpendicularly into the sky, uttering the while his 

 curlew-like whistle, until he has reached such a height as to 

 be invisible to the eye and can be located by his song alone. 

 Descending abruptly he comes to rest on the still snow-clad 

 ground, with wings held stiffly above his head. Nesting in 

 such northerly latitudes, the knot does not lay until the early 

 days of July, or as soon as ever the snowy covering has left 

 the ground. In the British Isles knot in full breeding 

 plumage may be seen passing northwards until well into 

 June, and as the earliest returning migrants from the north 

 reach our coasts by the end o£,July the birds are scarcely ever 

 absent from our shores. 



I am informed that several fulmar petrels were sailing 

 over Lindisfarne Castle in autumn, and ultimately dis- 

 appeared in a westerly direction, while during the winter a 

 specimen of that rare, accidental visitor, the little gull, was 

 shot. This bird is essentially continental in its breeding, and 

 so its visits to these islands usually occur after easterly gales. 



It is four o'clock when the return drive is commenced. 

 The tide is half-ebb and much of the sands are now exposed. 

 The wind has backed south-west and moderated considerably. 

 Wandering across the bleak flats one can see solitary fowlers 

 making their way to the water's edge, where they will await 

 the evening flighting of the widgeon. Dusk is falling as we 

 commence to cross the sands. Curlew are feeding in the 

 ooze, and, as we pass, rise into the evening air with much 

 mournful wailing. Across the sky there still hurry storm- 

 driven clouds, through which the moon struggles to throw 

 her subdued light on wind-swept sands and shimmering sea. 



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