30 
The Irish Naturalist. 
February, 
Some Notes on Winter Birds near Dublin and in Ulster. 
The first Great Northern Diver I saw this winter was at Seapoint, on 
September 27th ; since then I have seen them on various occasions on 
the south side of Dubhn Bay. The last Tern which I saw this season in the 
vicinity of Kingstown was on the 23rd of October, on the outside of the 
West Pier ; it was a specimen of the Common Tern. The first Snow 
Bunting which I saw this winter was at the Forty -foot Hole, Sandycove, 
on the 9th of November, The next occasion on which I saw these birds 
was on November i8th, on the West Pier, a small flock of five, and one 
very beautiful specimen amongst them. I believe the names Snow Bird 
and Frost Bird are applied to this bird synonymously. I was driving on 
an outside car some time ago from Newbridge to the Curragh Camp, and 
on the way the carman remarked to me that he thought we were going 
to have a very hard, frosty winter, as the " White Sparrows " had been 
seen already on the Curragh. 
On November nth I saw a Kingfisher on the rocks at the edge of the 
sea behind Sandycove Battery, not a usual place to see this bird. I saw 
it twice afterwards on the rocks between that and Kingstown, and the 
following week there was one in the Park at Blackrock. 
On November 2 5th and on one other occasion I saw a Purple Sandpiper 
on the rocks between Bullock Harbour and Sandycove. I do not recollect 
having seen this bird as far south in Ireland before ; the great storm of 
the 12th November may have had something to say to its appearance here. 
I used to see it every winter on the coast of North Antrim and Donegal. 
The week previous to this a Black Redstart had put in its appearance 
not very far from Dublin and not far from where I saw it last year, but 
I will refrain from specifying the locality as it might result in a tragedy 
for the poor bird. On November 13, the morning after the storm, three 
Grey-backed Crows were to be seen at Booterstown, and on several 
occasions since. These birds are not often seen near Dublin in late years. 
Strange to say, there was one which came in through an open bedroom 
window of a house in Kingstown towards the end of October last, much to 
the astonishment of the occupants of the room ; but this one, I think, 
must have been a pet, as it seemed quite at home, and after getting some- 
thing to eat it took its departure in the same way in which it had come. 
I have not seen a Razorbill about Kingstown since the 2nd of October, 
on which date 1 saw seven. The Common Guillemot I have seen on 
various dates up to December 6th, generally ouside the West Pier, but 
on this date off Sandycove. 
Though not in the vicinity of Dublin, it may be of interest to note that 
I picked up a dead Fulmar Petrel on the shore between Portstewart and 
the mouth of the river Bann, in County Londonderry, on the 17th of last 
April ; there had been some very stormy weather just before this. 
Another bird which I saw at the mouth of the river Bann, in the month 
of August, and which is by no means common, was the Curlew Sandpiper ; 
there was a small flock of them. I have never come across this bird in 
the neighbourhood of Dublin. 
Geo. Brown Crawford. 
Rathgar, Dubhn. 
