130 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



As already observed, the mild season had a marked effect on 

 some of our birds ; the Lapwing, for instance, remaining in 

 the district in undiminished numbers all through the winter, 

 whereas in other seasons the majority disappear with the early 

 December frosts ; and in February, when returning to their 

 breeding haunts, a score or so are generally seen about ; but this 

 winter I observed flocks as numerous as those seen in October 

 and November, thus giving promise of a good breeding season 

 in consequence of the large number of birds returning to their 

 breeding grounds. 



I observed few Golden Plover about the Moy estuary, the 

 mild weather not inducing them to leave their inland haunts to 

 rest by day on the sands, as is their usual habit in mild seasons ; 

 and I have heard from some shooters that they have been 

 rather scarce in their usual inland haunts. On September 9th I 

 was surprised at seeing three Swifts flying about over the old 

 Kath here ; they were in the company of some Swallows and 

 Martins, but all had disappeared the following day. On the 22nd 

 I saw a little flock of twenty Teal on a small lough in one of my 

 fields next the shore, but although I did not shoot at them, they 

 only remained a few days, and did not return later in the 

 season. I saw a flock under similar circumstances at the same 

 place last year, and they also went off after a visit of a few days. 

 On October 2nd, observing a few Wigeon resting on the 

 water off the point of the Hillfield, I launched my punt, and 

 putting the gun on board, paddled down to them, but they scat- 

 tered so much on the approach of the punt that I only knocked 

 over three birds by the shot, and on picking them up was 

 surprised to find that two were Pintails, an old female and a 

 young male, the latter beginning to moult, and just showing a 

 few feathers of the male plumage ; the third bird was a young 

 male Wigeon of the year. 



Wigeon were very scarce, not more than a score being seen 

 about until the end of November, when the main flight appeared 

 near Bartragh about the 25th. Not having been down for some 

 days, I did not know of their arrival, until one of the pilots 

 asked me one day " why I did not go after the Wigeon that were 

 feeding in hundreds at the Sloke Rock ;" but owing to the mild- 

 ness of the weather I was unable to look after them until the 

 28th, when I went down the channel, and sure enough when I 



