148 VERTEBRATE FAUNA OF LAKELAND 



LAPLAND BUNTING. 



Calcarius lapponicus, L. 



The late Mr. S. H. Haslam furnished to the Zoologist 1 the 

 following ' Note on the Occurrence of the Lark Bunting near 

 Milnthorpe. I am glad to have it in my power to record the 

 capture of a fine specimen of the Lark Bunting (Plectrophanes 

 lapponka) near this place, about ten days ago. This very scarce 

 bird was brought to me by a professional bird-catcher, who, 

 though he was evidently aware he had fallen in with a rara avis, 

 knew nothing more about it than that it was a bird he had 

 never seen before. He described it as having been very wary, 

 and difficult of approach, but after a whole day spent in the 

 attempt, was enticed into a trap-cage. . . . The bird in question 

 exhibits the sombre plumage of the female, as described by 

 ►Selby and Yarrell ; but should it ultimately assume the more 

 varied garb of the male, I shall be only too happy to record it 

 in the Zoologist. 1 The postscript of a letter from Dr. Gough to 

 T. C. Heysham, dated August 28th, 1843, contains the fortify- 

 ing remark of the writer : ' My friend Mr. Haslam has in his 

 possession a living specimen of the Lapland Bunting, which was 

 captured somewhere in this neighbourhood by one of our bird- 

 catchers. I hope to see the bird shortly, which is doing well' 

 The only other known instance of this Bunting visiting Lakeland 

 occurred in the autumn of 1890. Mr. Archibald and I fell in 

 with a solitary Lapland Bunting on the 17th of October that 

 year when shooting on Walney Island. I saw the bird alight 

 upon the beach, coming in from the north-east, and pointed it 

 out to Mr. Archibald. It was in immature or female dress. 

 When it rose again Mr. Archibald fired at it. The bird towered, 

 was caught by a violent gust of wind, and being borne down 

 the channel, was soon lost to sight. 



1 Zoologist, 1843, p. 316. 



