﻿172 
  

  

  BIRDS. 
  

  

  ' 
  Some 
  years 
  ago 
  my 
  friend 
  Captain 
  H. 
  W. 
  Feilden 
  and 
  myself 
  

   obtained 
  the 
  kind 
  permission 
  of 
  the 
  lessee 
  of 
  a 
  shooting, 
  in 
  a 
  certain 
  

   wild 
  district 
  of 
  Scotland, 
  to 
  obtain 
  the 
  eggs 
  of 
  the 
  Dotterel 
  

   (Charadrius 
  morinellus), 
  which 
  rare 
  species 
  was 
  known 
  to 
  breed 
  

   upon 
  a 
  mountain 
  on 
  the 
  property. 
  The 
  gamekeeper, 
  however, 
  

   during 
  three 
  successive 
  seasons, 
  failed 
  to 
  obtain 
  them 
  for 
  us, 
  and 
  

   assured 
  us 
  that 
  none 
  had 
  frequented 
  their 
  accustomed 
  haunts 
  

   during 
  these 
  years 
  ; 
  further, 
  that 
  a 
  young 
  English 
  gentleman, 
  who 
  

   was 
  shooting 
  there, 
  had 
  killed 
  in 
  one 
  day 
  the 
  two 
  old 
  birds 
  and 
  

   the 
  three 
  young 
  ; 
  and 
  that, 
  since 
  that 
  time, 
  none 
  had 
  been 
  seen 
  

   upon 
  the 
  mountain, 
  though, 
  upon 
  an 
  adjoining 
  property, 
  two 
  pairs 
  

   had 
  bred 
  undisturbed 
  the 
  year 
  previous 
  to 
  our 
  visit. 
  

  

  ' 
  It 
  was, 
  therefore, 
  with 
  but 
  the 
  very 
  faintest 
  expectations 
  of 
  

   success 
  that 
  Captain 
  Feilden 
  and 
  myself, 
  accompanied 
  by 
  the 
  

   gamekeeper, 
  started 
  to 
  ascend 
  the 
  mountain 
  on 
  the 
  morning 
  of 
  

   the 
  16th 
  June 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  year 
  (1873). 
  Indeed, 
  we 
  already 
  

   consoled 
  ourselves 
  with 
  the 
  thought 
  that 
  we 
  would, 
  at 
  all 
  events, 
  

   see 
  the 
  ground 
  which 
  was 
  known 
  at 
  one 
  time 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  

   occupied 
  by 
  this 
  now 
  rare 
  British 
  bird, 
  and 
  have 
  a 
  good 
  walk 
  and 
  

   a 
  view 
  from 
  the 
  top. 
  We 
  reached 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  mountain, 
  some 
  

   3000 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  sea, 
  at 
  nine 
  o'clock 
  A.M., 
  and 
  found 
  a 
  broad, 
  

   almost 
  level, 
  moss-covered 
  plateau 
  stretching 
  before 
  us 
  to 
  a 
  

   distance 
  of 
  about 
  three-quarters 
  of 
  a 
  mile. 
  Scattered 
  over 
  this 
  

   level 
  mossy 
  ground 
  were 
  numberless 
  small 
  pieces 
  of 
  grey 
  rock, 
  

   partially 
  imbedded 
  in 
  the 
  yielding 
  moss, 
  and 
  the 
  moss 
  itself 
  rose 
  

   in 
  ridges 
  or 
  hummocks, 
  giving 
  an 
  irregular 
  outline 
  to 
  the 
  surface, 
  

   or, 
  as 
  it 
  were, 
  forming 
  the 
  latter 
  into 
  innumerable 
  miniature 
  hills 
  

   and 
  valleys. 
  We 
  at 
  once 
  saw 
  how 
  admirably 
  suited 
  to 
  the 
  habits 
  

   of 
  the 
  species 
  we 
  were 
  in 
  search 
  of 
  this 
  kind 
  of 
  ground 
  was, 
  and, 
  

   moreover, 
  that 
  we 
  would 
  have 
  no 
  little 
  difficulty 
  to 
  contend 
  with, 
  

   in 
  the 
  event 
  of 
  our 
  having 
  to 
  watch 
  the 
  bird 
  to 
  the 
  nest, 
  as 
  the 
  

   upper 
  plumage 
  of 
  the 
  Dotterel 
  harmonises 
  in 
  colour 
  with 
  the 
  

   yellowish-brown 
  carpeting 
  of 
  moss. 
  First, 
  however, 
  we 
  had 
  to 
  

   find 
  the 
  birds; 
  and, 
  accordingly, 
  with 
  this 
  object 
  in 
  view, 
  we 
  

   slowly 
  walked 
  over 
  the 
  deep 
  yielding 
  moss, 
  towards 
  the 
  far, 
  or 
  

   west 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  ridge. 
  

  

  'About 
  half-past 
  ten 
  o'clock, 
  as 
  we 
  were 
  walking 
  along 
  in 
  line, 
  

   I 
  first 
  discovered 
  a 
  Dotterel, 
  running 
  swiftly, 
  about 
  twenty 
  yards 
  

   in 
  front 
  of 
  the 
  gamekeeper. 
  It 
  shortly 
  afterwards 
  rose 
  and 
  flew 
  

  

  