BIRDS OF LLEYN, WEST CARNARVONSHIRE. 497 



The mobbing cries are a short squeaky " quik " and " que-ah," 

 sometimes uttered together, " quik-que-ah," uttered quickly and 

 peculiarly squeaky, and, under great excitement, fairly screamed ; 

 but the note is always a short one. There is no prettier orna- 

 ment to a rocky coast than these Sea-pies, conspicuous from 

 afar, and their ordinary high clear whistle " fy-feet " or "feet" 

 is always a pleasing sound. I saw birds with and without the 

 white collar, and six flying together (some of which were dull 

 birds) might have been a family party, the young hatched early. 



Lleyn is too well cultivated for much moorland to remain, but 

 there are some little bits to be met with, inland as well as 

 on some of the headlands, and at the bases of the mountains, 

 where the soil has proved too barren for a race of farmers who 

 wrest from every bit of land what goodness lies in it. I saw no 

 signs of Curlews breeding when I was in Lleyn, but their nesting 

 season was probably past. Curlews were there, both on the 

 coast and on inland fields, in flocks ; once I saw a score together. 

 I did not often hear the breeding-call, but the ordinary resonant 

 flying note " k'lyike " or " k'like," uttered about three times, 

 could be heard frequently at Pwllheli, when they resorted to the 

 harbour muds at low tide. I saw one Whimbrel. Four Dunlins, 

 in the dress of birds hatched in the previous year, were so tame, 

 on the sands at low tide, that I walked within three or four yards 

 of them. Each one was resting on one leg, and they did not even 

 trouble to put down the other one at first, but hopped away on 

 one ; so long did one bird remain thus that I began to think it had 

 lost a leg. Afterwards they fed belly deep in the sea, and were 

 occasionally lifted off their legs by the lap of a very gentle wave- 

 let. Mr. Coward has seen flocks along the beach. This com- 

 pletes my list of waders. But Mr. Coward saw five Purple Sand- 

 pipers on St. Tudwal's Island on May 26th, 1893. Curiously 

 enough, I received, a good many years ago, a pair of these birds, 

 which were shot on May 14th on this island. A Turnstone was 

 seen at the same time. 



But, if Lleyn cannot boast of much in the way of mountains, 

 few districts in southern Britain can match it for bold coast 

 scenery; for, as Leland observes so quaintly, " Al Lene is as it 

 were a pointe into the se." Many fine headlands stretch out into 

 Cardigan and Carnarvon bays, and into St. George's Channel. 



