14 REPORT ON THE MIGRATION OF BIRDS. 



by special atmospheric causes. The Storm Petrel winters at 

 1ST, Unst in their burrows there, and may be said never to be 

 absent from the neighbourhood. — J. A. H.-B.] There seems to 

 have been, however, unusually large movements of the Petrels, 

 and W. Nichol remarked upon it in one of his letters. Also in 

 September, and less so in October. 



Pallida. — Corn Crake. — May. — 10th, at N. Konaldshay, 

 heard for the first time this year, and at Pentland Skerries on 

 16th, " arrived three days earlier than usual ! " 



September. — 21st, one at Pentland Skerries, 3 p.m.; light 

 N.W., cloudy. 



Charadriid^:. — There is really little to be learned from the 

 accounts of movements of this family. Oyster-Catchers are 

 always locally present, so almost are Golden Plover. 



Entries of Plovers and even of Oyster- Catchers are very few 

 and far between, and the records of Lapwings add little to our 

 data. Kinged Plover receive a few notices. 



Scolopacid^e. — The Woodcock is always interesting, so we 

 take him in detail. It is a curious circumstance that there 

 is scarcely an entry in the Eeport — or at most only two or 

 three. Thus : — 



Never appeared till November : — on the 1st, two plater than 

 last year ") found benighted in a S.S.E. gale with rain at Pent- 

 land Skerries, and the other next day. Again on the 11th, 

 one ; wind N.W., cloudy ; and one at N. Eonaldshay ; light E, 

 and clear. 



December. — Only three entries — 10th, 12th, and 16th, at 

 Pentland Skerries and at Dunnet. Three birds. 



Snipe, equally scarce with the last. One entry in March, 

 and none again till 3d of November, and no more after- 

 wards. 



Curlew has many entries, yet not so many as in 1886; but 

 the Curlew can only be considered as a very partial migrant, 

 and entries are mostly of local interest only. 



We do not repeat the comparative tables given under Curlew, 

 Woodcock, Snipe, and Jacksnipe, which we gave in 1886 

 Eeport (8th Eeport, p. 24). 



Of Eedshanks, Sandpipers, Dunlins, there are few entries 

 of any value in working out our subject, and these are almost 

 entirely from 1ST. Unst and Pentland Skerries in autumn. The 



