T. H. NELSON: A RAMBLE ON THE FARNE ISLANDS. 1 25 



seen but a vast tract of angry waters, and to the landward side the 

 waves are beaten into sheets of foam, seeming as though in their 

 rage they would tear the rocky islands from their foundations. In 

 the channels the seas rush through with mighty force and speed, and 

 it is sheer madness to venture with a boat into the raging vortex of 

 angry waters. I remember on one occasion going to the Staples to 

 shoot in August when the sea was so calm that we had to row the 

 coble in going out, but during our stay on the island an easterly 

 wind sprang up, and blowing against a strong flood-tide, raised a 

 very awkward sea, so that when we set off on our return journey 

 towards evening, although the ballast was piled to one side and 

 we sat well up to windward, the boat shipped so many seas that we 

 were all wet through before we had gone half a mile across the 

 channel towards the Inner Fame. 



A narrow channel separates the Inner Fame from the Wide-opens, 

 and after crossing this we landed on slippery boulders, covered with 

 seaweed, over which we scrambled till we got a safer footing on the 

 grass. There we found Arctic Terns breeding in great numbers, the 

 nests being placed on a small plateau near the centre of the island ; 

 so numerous were they in places we had to exercise great care in 

 walking for fear of breaking the eggs. I have frequently heard that 

 the Common Tern was to be found on the Fames — Mr. Hancock 

 says it was very abundant there at the time of his visits — and we 

 accordingly carefully watched the parent birds, as well on the Wide- 

 opens as on the Longstone and Brownsman, but could not satisfac- 

 torily identify any of the smaller Terns with Sta-na fluviatilis, and, as 

 it is impossible to discriminate between the eggs of the two species 

 without seeing the birds, we were unable to satisfy ourselves that any 

 of the eggs we saw belonged to the Common Tern. I had also been 

 led to believe that the Roseate Tern {Sterna dougalli) bred on the 

 islands; not only our boatman, but other people on the mainland 

 with whom I conversed on the subject, told me they were certain this 

 species was still to be seen on the Fames. No doubt it did breed 

 there at one time, and possibly still may do so, but I am quite con- 

 vinced that my informants do not know the difference between a 

 Roseate and a Sandwich Tern, and of this I had abundant evidence 

 on three separate occasions. 



While watching the birds flying about us, our attention was- 

 attracted by the excited clamour of alarm-notes amongst some Sand- 

 wich Terns fishing out at sea, and we perceived a dark-plumaged 

 bird, Richardson's Skua {Stercorarius crepidatus) in close pursuit of 

 one of the Terns ; the latter was screaming with terror, twisting and 

 turning, doubling and darting about, in its endeavours to evade its 



April 1887. 



