280 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



say that there are nests, as - the egg is nearly always laid on a flat 

 rock, under a tussock, or in a crevice of the rock. It is often not 

 more than three inches from the edge of a crag, and it is surprising 

 that the eggs should escape being blown away in rough weather. 

 When the birds are disturbed they rise almost simultaneously, with a 

 continuous shrill call, and make a circuit in the air, presenting an 

 extraordinarily regular and drilled appearance. As they fly over the 

 visitor's head, he seems to be looking through a wonderful trans- 

 parency of snowy-white wings and reddish legs, relieved by shining 

 black heads. ' It is hardly possible,' the correspondent writes, ' to 

 imagine a more strikingly beautiful sight.' " 



Fish Killed by Lightning. — In these islands we seem to escape 

 the severe thunderstorms which work havoc in the larger areas of 

 Europe and America. The ' Oesterreichische Fischerei-Zeitung ' 

 records two instances of the destruction of fish by lightning. At 

 Neuhaus, in Austria, a tank belonging to Count Czerninschen, and 

 containing about 15 cwt. of Carp, was struck by a thunderbolt, every 

 one of the fish being destroyed. The same thing occurred in a mill- 

 stream near Passau, where a large number of fish, including some 

 magnificent Pike, were killed by lightning. 



The ' Deutsche Fischerei-Zeitung ' records a curious instance in 

 which a tree on the banks of a pond near Orsoy, on the Lower 

 Ehine, was struck by lightning. The pond happened to be in flood 

 at the time, and the whole of the ground surrounding the tree was 

 under water. A number of fish, weighing 20 lb. in all, were after- 

 wards found floating in its immediate neighbourhood. The cause of 

 death in every instance was rupture of the swimming bladder. — 

 {From the 'Fishing Gazette,' Sept. 12th, 1908.) 



