BIRDS OF RUSSIAN LAPLAND 21 



to-day. Vegetation had made a decided start in growth, and was 

 more advanced than anything we had seen round Pechenga fjord. 



After dinner we steamed to the N.w. point of the Ribatchi or 

 fishermen's Peninsula (Ribachi, Arctic Pilot and chart ; Ribatschi, 

 E. Rae), and anchored in the harbour of Vaida- guba (Vaida Bay Arctic 

 Pilot ; Vaid Bay, chart ; Vaidda Guba, E. Rae). This place, founded 

 in 1864 by a colony of Norwegians, seems to be a prosperous fishing- 

 station, and three sea-going vessels were at anchor, besides a number of 

 fishing boats ; the captain of one of the former told us he was from 

 Middlesborough, with a cargo of salt. Among the houses on shore 

 were two or three good warehouses, a well-built post-office, and a 

 telegraph station. 



We landed as soon as the anchor was down, and walked over the 

 hill towards the N.w. ; a bare, desolate country with little vegetation 

 except lichens. All the small pools were coated with ice, and the 

 surface of the snow was frozen ; a fact on which we presumed, and 

 consequently went through into two feet of snow and Avater, soaking 

 both arms and legs. The rest of the return march was at " quick 

 step." The only birds I find noted in my diary were a pair of Turn- 

 stones, which we watched for half-an-hour and came to the conclusion 

 they had no nest as yet. 



June I %th. — We landed at noon on the south side of the bay and 

 walked for some miles over the country between the sea and the hills. 

 Birds were numerous, but the only nest seen was a Shore-Lark's, with 

 one Qgg. Blue-throats and Lapland Buntings were common ; and we 

 also saw Snow-Buntings, Meadow-Pipits, White Wagtails, Shore-Larks, 

 Golden Plover, Turnstones, Dunlins, Ringed Plovers, Redshanks, 

 Purple Sandpipers, Eider Ducks, Arctic Terns, and in the harbour 

 some Gulls, which were too far off for identification. Thickets of 

 sallow and birch grew in some of the marshy parts; but nothing 

 approaching the dignity of a tree was to be seen. There was also 

 more herbage on this side than on the country traversed last night ; 

 but neither grass nor scrub showed any signs of green yet. We saw 



