242 Birds, 



tare. But to come to the more immediate object of this communica- 

 tion. Mr. Hepburn suggests the propriety of ascertaining " the geo- 

 graphical limits within which the swallow breeds in the chimneys of 

 dwelling-houses." This proposal is surely worthy of particular at- 

 tention. That the chimney swallow should seldom, if ever, be found 

 nestling in the places, from its haunting which we are led to suppose 

 it derives its name, is a fact calculated to astonish many a British 

 out-door naturalist. During many years only one instance of this bird 

 building in the chimney of a dwelling-house has come under my 

 observation. The house was in Mid Lothian ; and the chimney in 

 which the nest was fixed had not been used for nearly a dozen years. 

 I cannot altogether vouch for this statement, as it is long since the oc- 

 currence, but the impression is strong on my mind that it is authentic. 



House Martin. — Yesterday having occasion to pass under the mag- 

 nificent viaduct of forty-two arches over the valley of the Almond, on 

 the line of the Edinburgh and Glasgow railway, I was astonished to 

 find that hundreds of window swallows, or martins, were fixing their 

 nests under an ornamental ledge, placed a few feet below the cope- 

 stones. The little creatures were at work as I passed, and the bed of 

 the river literally swarmed with them, engaged in picking up materi- 

 als for building. How odd was their appearance when they attempt- 

 ed to run on the sand ! Their nestling in such a place appeared to 

 me somewhat singular, as, during the whole day, trains are passing 

 westward and eastward along the viaduct, making a noise loud enough 

 to be heard four or five miles off. Robert Dick Duncan. 



Vale of Almond, Mid Calder, Edinburghshire, 

 June 10, 1843. 



Notes on the Habits of a Masked Gull in confinement.^ 

 By Thomas Gough, Esq. 



The stormy weather which occurred in the latter end of November, 

 1841, compelled large flocks of sea-gulls to resort to our meadows and 

 pastures in search of food. One of these birds came into my posses- 

 sion in the following manner. A number had alighted in a field pas- 

 tured by sheep ; and whether in default of suitable food, or temptec 



* This bird is the Larus capistratus, or masked gull, of Fleming and Yarrell 

 and the brown-headed gull of Jenyns and Eyton. Sketches of the heads of this an( 

 the species next mentioned have been made from Mr. Yarrell's figures, to show ihi 

 difference. 



