22 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



NOTES FROM NORWAY. 

 By John Cordeaux. 



These notes have reference to a tour made in August last 

 from Bergen to Vadso in the Varanger Fjord, in the Bergen 

 Steamship Company's boat the * Neptune,' to view the total eclipse 

 of the sun on August 9th. In crossing the North Sea from New- 

 castle to Stavanger very few sea-birds were seen — some Gulls, 

 Guillemots, and an occasional Skua. When about half-way across, 

 two Dolphins (Delphinus delpliis) approached the boat and then 

 shot ahead. 



We left Bergen on August 1st at 11 p.m., and until we had 

 rounded the North Cape were seldom outside the island belt 

 (Skjsergaard) which fringes the whole length of the mainland. 

 Opportunities were given, both on the out and return journey, 

 for spending several hours on shore at those places where the 

 vessel called — such were Aalesund, lovely Molde, Christianssund, 

 N. Trondhjem, Torghatten, Harstedhavn in the Lofotens, Svartisen 

 glacier, Tromso, Hammerfest, North Cape (Hornvoek Bay), Vardo, 

 reaching Vadso at 3 p.m. on August 7th. 



The commonest Gulls on the coast are the Lesser Black- 

 backed and the Herring Gull, mixed nights of both following in 

 the wake of the steamer almost continuously on the chance of 

 picking up any scraps thrown overboard. Other Gulls were the 

 Great Black-backed, the Common, and the Kittiwake ; the latter, 

 north of the Arctic Circle, being the predominant species and 

 increasing in numbers the farther we go north. A few miles 

 south of the Bird-rock (Hjelmso), near the North Cape, we passed 

 through an enormous flock of Kittiwakes floating in long extended 

 line, the birds in the rear constantly rising and flying over the 

 heads of those before them to take a front place. All were so eagerly 

 feeding that they took little notice of the passage of our boat, 

 being much too busily engaged picking some small object from 

 the water, probably some of those small crustaceans which 

 form the food of the whales. A large proportion were birds 



