320 VERTEBRATE FAUNA OF LAKELAND 



Plain, on May 19, as reported by Mr. Davidson, and continued 

 to frequent the locality until May 26, when three were shot and 

 brought in the flesh to George Dawson of Carlisle. About this 

 time a flock of nine took up their abode on the mosses and grass 

 fields near Bow. Mr. J. N. Robinson and Mr. Dawson, being 

 well acquainted with the farmers of the district, succeeded in 

 rousing much interest in the preservation of the birds, and none 

 being shot, the party haunted that district the entire summer. 



(C) The English Solway. Much interest attached to the im- 

 migration of Sand Grouse to this district, from which their 

 presence was first reported by that excellent out-door naturalist, 

 Mr. Richard Mann. First seen here were a pair of birds seen 

 by Mr. Williamson, jun., near Allonby, on May 22. It is pro- 

 bable, from information obtained by Mr. Tom Duckworth and 

 others, that about this date Sand Grouse appeared near Bow- 

 ness and Abbey. But the earliest date of any number was 

 May 27. On the morning of that day a flock was seen near 

 Silloth by Mr. Osborn. The same afternoon a flock of fifteen 

 were seen at close quarters under cover of a hedgerow, by Mr. 

 R. Mann, near Allonby. I reached the ground on the following 

 forenoon, and, with Mr. R. Mann as guide, observed a number of 

 birds. They had, however, been shot at, and were growing 

 wild. A flock of fifteen which were tame, and had not pre- 

 viously been shot at, was seen in the locality the same day. 

 On June 5 a flock of thirty birds flew past William Nicol, while 

 shrimping near Silloth pier ; and the same flock lingered in the 

 neighbourhood until the 8th, when it was last seen, flying west. 

 On June 9, Mr. Tandy discovered that a party of ten birds had 

 frequented Wolstey farm since the beginning of the month, and 

 there they remained until the 13th, when, according to one 

 report, they were seen to cross the Solway Firth to the Scotch 

 side. 



After June 13 very few birds were seen near the English 

 Solway. On June 25 a single bird was seen by W. Nicol to 

 cross the Solway from the Scotch side, proceeding inland when 

 it reached our coast. On the 28th June ten or twelve birds 

 visited the Grune Point. On July 20 a flock of eight or nine 

 birds crossed over to us from the Scottish side of the Solway. 





