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  BIRDS. 
  

  

  catcher 
  reported 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  small 
  flocks 
  of 
  strange 
  birds 
  (about 
  

   thirty 
  birds) 
  as 
  frequenting 
  the 
  ground. 
  This 
  was 
  about 
  May 
  20th. 
  

   One 
  was 
  got, 
  and 
  identified 
  as 
  the 
  Sand 
  Grouse; 
  I 
  gave 
  orders 
  

   that 
  they 
  were 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  disturbed. 
  When 
  the 
  birds 
  had 
  been 
  

   here 
  about 
  a 
  week 
  they 
  broke 
  up 
  into 
  pairs; 
  this 
  looked 
  like 
  

   breeding. 
  They 
  remained 
  in 
  pairs 
  for 
  about 
  a 
  week, 
  and 
  then 
  

   they 
  all 
  got 
  into 
  flocks 
  again, 
  excepting 
  about 
  three 
  or 
  four 
  pairs 
  

   that 
  remained 
  paired, 
  and 
  could 
  be 
  seen 
  in 
  pairs 
  morning 
  and 
  

   evening. 
  Keasoning 
  from 
  analogy, 
  those 
  in 
  pairs 
  would 
  be 
  breed- 
  

   ing, 
  those 
  in 
  flocks 
  had 
  given 
  it 
  up 
  as 
  a 
  bad 
  job. 
  There 
  are 
  a 
  

   number 
  of 
  Sea-swallows, 
  Oyster-catchers, 
  and 
  Peewits, 
  that 
  breed 
  

   on 
  the 
  bare 
  links. 
  The 
  rabbit-catcher 
  told 
  me 
  one 
  day 
  that 
  there 
  

   were 
  two 
  eggs 
  lying 
  in 
  a 
  slight 
  hollow 
  on 
  the 
  bare 
  ground 
  under 
  

   a 
  tuft 
  of 
  heather, 
  eggs 
  that 
  he 
  did 
  not 
  know, 
  right 
  in 
  the 
  centre 
  of 
  

   the 
  ground 
  frequented 
  by 
  the 
  Sand 
  Grouse, 
  and 
  that 
  he 
  thought, 
  

   whatever 
  bird 
  they 
  belonged 
  to, 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  deserted. 
  I 
  told 
  

   him 
  to 
  feel 
  the 
  eggs 
  that 
  evening 
  and 
  next 
  morning, 
  and 
  if 
  they 
  

   were 
  cold 
  to 
  bring 
  them 
  to 
  me 
  — 
  which 
  he 
  did. 
  I 
  blew 
  them 
  my- 
  

   self 
  ; 
  though 
  a 
  week 
  in 
  the 
  nest, 
  they 
  had 
  never 
  been 
  sat 
  upon 
  ; 
  

   not 
  a 
  streak 
  of 
  red 
  in 
  the 
  yolk. 
  The 
  eggs 
  at 
  a 
  glance 
  were 
  not 
  to 
  

   be 
  distinguished 
  from 
  the 
  eggs 
  of 
  a 
  Water 
  Hen 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  puzzled 
  me 
  

   how 
  a 
  Water 
  Hen 
  would 
  deposit 
  an 
  egg 
  in 
  such 
  a 
  place. 
  (The 
  

   Water 
  Hen 
  makes 
  a 
  large 
  nest 
  of 
  rushes 
  and 
  dry 
  flags.) 
  I 
  could 
  

   understand 
  a 
  Water 
  Hen 
  getting 
  her 
  nest 
  destroyed, 
  and, 
  being 
  

   " 
  taken 
  short," 
  glad 
  to 
  deposit 
  an 
  already 
  formed 
  egg 
  anywhere 
  ; 
  

   but 
  there 
  being 
  two 
  eggs 
  was 
  against 
  this. 
  I 
  wrote 
  to 
  Professor 
  

   Newton, 
  detailing 
  the 
  circumstances, 
  and 
  he 
  requested 
  me 
  to 
  send 
  

   up 
  the 
  eggs 
  for 
  his 
  inspection, 
  which 
  I 
  did. 
  He 
  returned 
  them 
  to 
  

   me, 
  saying 
  he 
  thought 
  they 
  were 
  Water 
  Hen's 
  eggs 
  ; 
  about 
  three 
  

   weeks 
  after 
  I 
  had 
  a 
  letter 
  from 
  Professor 
  Newton 
  apologising 
  for 
  

   throwing 
  a 
  doubt 
  on 
  the 
  supposed 
  Sand 
  Grouse 
  eggs, 
  and 
  he 
  wrote 
  : 
  

   " 
  A 
  friend 
  of 
  mine 
  has 
  received 
  some 
  undoubted 
  Sand 
  Grouse 
  eggs 
  

   from 
  abroad, 
  and 
  he 
  says 
  it 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  distinguish 
  them 
  from 
  

   the 
  egg 
  of 
  the 
  Water 
  Hen." 
  On 
  getting 
  this 
  note 
  of 
  explanation 
  

   it 
  set 
  me 
  examining 
  the 
  eggs 
  more 
  closely. 
  I 
  had 
  a 
  pair 
  of 
  real 
  

   Water 
  Hen's 
  eggs 
  to 
  compare 
  them 
  with. 
  I 
  weighed 
  the 
  blown 
  

   egg 
  of 
  the 
  Sand 
  Grouse 
  in 
  a 
  chemist's 
  shop 
  ; 
  it 
  was 
  34 
  grains. 
  But 
  

   I 
  do 
  not 
  think 
  this 
  test 
  of 
  weight 
  of 
  shell 
  can 
  avail 
  much 
  ; 
  the 
  

   thickness 
  and 
  weight 
  of 
  shell 
  all 
  depend 
  upon 
  the 
  previous 
  

  

  