96 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Blackbird, which looked rather out of place with never a bush to 

 shelter in. It is probable that many Arctic Terns had not yet 

 laid. Hundreds of nests only held single eggs ; more had two ; 

 here and there was one with three, and in two instances there 

 were four eggs — undoubtedly the produce of two pairs. The 

 nests were spread over the whole area, and were in a variety of 

 situations, some close to the lighthouse buildings, others on the 

 bare rock or amongst the sorrel, but the patches of short grass 

 were the most favoured. In many cases no nest at all had been 

 attempted ; a hollowed depression in the turf or a natural one in 

 the rock served to hold the eggs ; in others a slight nest had 

 been made of a few grass-stems, lichens from the rock, or not in- 

 frequently a collection of dry Eabbit-dung. The birds were tame, 

 and settled again after being disturbed so soon as we retired for 

 a few yards. It was very hot, which perhaps accounted for the 

 Terns not brooding very closely, for often all the birds in one 

 district, whether they were brooding, standing on the turf, or 

 hovering about their stationary companions, rose simultaneously, 

 and flew low over the turf and beaches and out to sea in a thick 

 grey mob, returning in a few seconds to settle on their nests, or 

 on the turf or rocks, as the case might be. This happened once 

 when a foraging Peregrine passed along the coast-line at a slight 

 elevation, though its presence probably had no connection with 

 the Terns' action ; it certainly was not the cause of it on other 

 occasions. The alarm-note of the Arctic Tern is subject to con- 

 siderable variation— " kare," " kaah," or " kee-ah," but always 

 quite distinct from the long-drawn " pirre " or " pee-rah" of the 

 Common Tern. Another note is a thrice-repeated "tchick," and 

 now and then we heard a Hawk-like whistling scream. Some 

 Arctic Terns stooped repeatedly in a bullying fashion at a Eoseate 

 Tern which was standing beside its sitting mate, but they did 

 not actually touch it. There were seven Arctics brooding in 

 close proximity to the Eoseates, but these sitting birds showed 

 no animosity, and at any rate tolerated the presence of their 

 congeners. The telegraph-wire crossing the islets is a source of 

 danger to the Terns ; one dead bird lying beneath it had one 

 wing cut clean off, and two others were struggling on the ground 

 with broken wings. 



The Eoseate Tern is not abundant on the Skerries. It is 



