5. Little Auk. 6. Red-Legged Partridge. 7. Sanderling.
8. Long-tailed Titmouse. 9. Razor-bill.
]
THE ROCK DOVE.
Ledges and fissures or crevices in sea-cliffs are the nesting-places of
this bird, which uses sticks, twigs, heath, and dead grass for building
purposes. Her eggs are two in number, quite white.
THE DOTTEREL.
Mountain-tops in the North of Scotland are the favourite nesting-places
of the Dotterel, which is now becoming comparatively rare in districts
where it was once common. It uses no materials for nest-making, simply
laying three eggs in a slight cavity amongst woolly-fringe moss or
other mountain vegetation which affords some little concealment. The
eggs are of a dark cream or olivaceous-brown colour thickly blotched or
spotted with dark brown or brownish-black.
THE MARSH TIT.
Holes in trees (generally willows or pollards), banks, &c., are the
places adopted by the Marsh Tit for its nest, which is composed of
moss, wool, and down from rabbits, or the ripe catkins of willows. Her
eggs number from six to eight, or even as many as ten have been found.
They are white, spotted with red-brown, more thickly at the larger end.
THE LITTLE AUK.
The rocky shores of Spitzbergen, Greenland, and Iceland form suitable
breeding resorts for this bird, which makes no nest, but deposits its
single egg on the bare ground in some crevice or under loose rocks. The
egg is of a pale greenish-blue, or white tinged with greenish-blue,
a little spotted and veined, especially at the larger end, with
rust-colour or yellowish-brown. Sometimes the egg has no spots or
streaks, at others only indistinctly streaked or veined at the large
end.
THE RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE.
This bird makes a slight nest of bents and leaves upon the ground in
grass, corn, or clover fields; however, instances have been cited where
it has been found at considerable elevation. But this departure from
the general rule I have noticed with other birds on rare occasions. Her
eggs number from twelve to eighteen, of a yellow-grey or cream colour,
marked with red or cinnamon-brown.
THE SANDERLING.
The Sanderling is only a visitor to our shores, and breeds in Arctic
countries, such as Labrador, Greenland, &c. Its nest is composed of
grass and built upon the ground. The eggs are four in number, of a
buffish-olive ground colour, spotted and mottled plentifully with dark
brown or black, also with indistinct sub-markings of a greyish tinge.
THE LONG-TAILED TIT.
Hedges and bushes are the positions taken up by this skilled little
architect and builder, whose beautiful work wins the admiration of all
naturalists. Oval in shape, it is of large size compared with the bird,
and strongly and compactly put together with wool, lichens, and moss,
the two former of which adhere very closely when they once become
entangled. A small hole is left on one side, pretty high up, for
ingress and egress, and the inside is lined with feathers, which make
it as warm and comfortable, at least to the human understanding, as the
outside is compact. The eggs number from seven to ten, and even sixteen
or twenty, which are probably the production of more than one bird;
white or rosy-white until blown (by reason of the yolk showing through
the thin transparent shell), with very small reddish-brown spots round
the larger end.
THE RAZOR-BILL.
The Guillemot and Razor-Bill appear to be very much alike in the
choice of their position for breeding purposes, and alike only lay one
egg each; but that of the latter differs very much from the former
in diversity of colouring. It is white or buffy-white, spotted and
blotched with black, chestnut, or reddish-brown.
THE SANDWICH TERN.
Low, sandy islands, such as the Wamses at the Farne and Scilly Isles,
and at suitable places on the Scottish and Irish coasts, are the
favourite breeding places of this Tern. Sometimes a slight hollow is
scratched in the sand or gravel; at others no declivity at all is
formed for the nest. Occasionally a few bits of grass are used as a
lining. The eggs number two or three, and vary from creamy-white to
dark buff in ground colour. They are blotched and spotted with
reddish- and blackish-brown and underlying light grey markings.
THE ARCTIC TERN.
Breeds on low islands and in suitable places along the coast, chiefly
in the northern parts of our kingdom. I have found most nests amongst
the shingle. As a rule, no materials whatever are used. The eggs are
two or three, varying from greyish-buff to buffish-brown (I have seen
them occasionally pale blue), spotted and blotched with blackish-brown
and underlying pale grey. The eggs of this bird run slightly smaller
than those of the Common Tern.
THE COMMON TERN.
The situation, nest, and eggs of this bird differ but little from those
of the Arctic Tern, except that the nest is often farther away from the
water's edge, and generally lined with bits of withered grass and weed.
The bird is a more abundant breeder, however, round the English coast,
and less numerous in Scotland. Its eggs run slightly larger, are not so
boldly marked, and the ground colour is less prone to an olive tinge.
THE LESSER TERN.
One result of the recently-passed law for the better protection of Wild
Birds ought to be the stoppage of the decrease of this beautiful little
Tern's numbers. It breeds in suitable localities round our coast,
depositing its eggs on the shingle without making any nest at all.
These number two, three, and occasionally four, similar in coloration
to those of the Common and Arctic Terns, but smaller in size.
[Illustration: EGGS.
1. Yellow Wagtail. 2. Twite. 3. Hobby. 4. Marsh Harrier.
5. Osprey. 6. Snow Bunting. 7. Tufted Duck. 8. Goosander.
9. Ringed Plover. 10. Short-eared Owl.
]
THE GOSHAWK.
High trees on the outsides of forests and large woods are chosen
by the Goshawk for the accommodation of its nest, which is made of
sticks, twigs, rootlets, and moss. It lays four eggs generally, but
sometimes only three are found, and at others as many as five; of a
pale bluish-white, occasionally marked with small, light reddish-brown
spots. The bird has, however, long since ceased to breed in the British
Isles, unless as a rare exception.
THE YELLOW WAGTAIL.
I have met with this somewhat local though common summer visitor's nest
most abundantly in the Yorkshire dales. It is situated on the ground,
in meadows, pastures, and on commons, and is generally sheltered by a
clod, piece of overhanging bank, or tuft of grass, and is often most
difficult to find. It is composed of grass, moss, and rootlets, with an
inner lining of horse and cow hair, sometimes a few feathers. The eggs
number from four to six, greyish-white in ground colour, and thickly
speckled with greyish- and yellowish-brown. They are very similar to
those of the Grey Wagtail.
THE GREY LAG GOOSE.
This bird places its nest on the ground in desolate swamps and on
lonely moors in the Highlands of Scotland, and the islands lying to the
west; also in Ireland, in County Monaghan. It builds a large nest of
sticks, heather, twigs, reed, grass, and moss, with an inner lining of
down from the bird's own body. The eggs number six to eight, or even a
dozen, creamy-white, unpolished.
THE MUTE SWAN.
Although semi-domesticated and holding its footing only by the help of
strict protection, the Swan has been so long with us that it merits
treatment, I think. Its nest is composed of reeds, rushes, and grass,
with a slight lining of down and feathers, and is placed on small
islands and on the banks of lakes and rivers. The eggs number from
three or four to a dozen, according to the age of the parent bird, and
are greenish-white, roughish, and unspotted.
THE SHAG.
In caves, fissures, on ledges of maritime cliffs, and amongst huge
boulders piled up along the beach of small rocky islands around our
coasts, may be found the nest of this bird. I have seen specimens close
together vary considerably in size according to the accommodation. It
is composed of seaweed, sticks, sprigs of heather, turf, and grass. The
eggs number two, three, four, or five, generally one of the first two
numbers, the real shell being of a delicate bluish-green, but difficult
to see on account of the thick, chalky encrustation.
THE CRESTED TIT.
The nest of this pretty little bird is placed in a hole in the branch
or trunk of a tree at varying heights from the ground, and is met with
only in the pine forests of Scotland. It is composed of grass, moss,
wool, fur, and feathers. The eggs number four to seven or eight, and
are white in ground colour, freckled and spotted with reddish-brown,
generally forming a belt round the large end.
THE GADWALL.
This bird is only known to nest in one or two places in Norfolk. It has
been my pleasure to examine two nests--one situated amongst rough, dead
grass, and the other in a tuft of rushes--in each case quite close to
the water. The nest is made of dry grass, rushes, or withered leaves,
and lined with beautiful soft down. From eight to twelve or thirteen
creamy-white eggs are laid.
THE TUFTED DUCK.
This member of the Duck family selects the neatest and best concealed
situation of all. It is generally well hidden in a tussock of rushes
growing in or close to the water of a mere or pond. The nest is made of
dead rushes, grass, or reeds, and is lined with small dark pieces of
down, with whitish centres. The eggs are light greenish-buff in colour,
and number from eight to ten, or even thirteen. They are very similar
to those of the Pochard, but the down tufts in the nest are darker.
THE STONE CURLEW.
Found on stony, arable land, commons, and rough, bare pastures. I have
watched the bird through my binoculars, when put off her eggs, fly to
some distance and remain quite flat upon the ground, with which she
closely harmonises. The nest is a mere unlined hollow, with sometimes a
few bents in it, which may as easily as not have been blown there. Her
eggs number two, of light buffish to clay-brown ground colour, blotched
and spotted with blackish-brown and grey. I have noticed that one
egg in a nest will differ radically in the size and intensity of its
markings from the others.
THE FULMAR PETREL.
So far as the British Isles are concerned, it is perhaps only safe to
say that this bird breeds at St. Kilda, although it has been reported
from other quarters. Its nest is situated on ledges of cliffs covered
with a sufficient amount of earth for the bird to make a burrow in, or
in crevices. It is sometimes lined with a scanty supply of dry grass;
at others no lining at all is used. The bird lays a single rough,
chalky-white egg.
THE GARGANEY.
Norfolk seems to be the last breeding resort of this duck. Its nest
is situated in reed beds, or such other vegetation as will afford the
bird plenty of concealment. It is composed of reeds, leaves, or dry
grass, and is lined with pieces of down, the long white tips of which
distinguish it from the Teal. The eggs are creamy-white, like those
of the bird above-named, and number from seven or eight to as many as
thirteen.
THE GOOSANDER.
The Goosander breeds in the Highlands of Scotland, and situates its
nest in hollow trees and crevices of rock, generally near the water.
Very little, if any, material is said to be used excepting the warm
lining of greyish-white down from the bird's own body. The eggs number
from eight to a dozen or thirteen, creamy-white and smooth-shelled.
THE GREAT CRESTED GREBE.
The midland and eastern counties contain the favourite breeding resorts
of this handsome bird. Its nest is composed of all kinds of dead
aquatic vegetation, such as reeds and flags, and is situated in or on
the water of lakes, broads, large tarns, and meres. The bird lays three
or four eggs, sometimes even as many as five, white and chalky when
first laid, but soon becoming soiled and dirty.
THE BLACK GUILLEMOT.
The Isle of Man, Hebrides, Orkneys, Shetlands, and some parts of
Ireland are favoured by this bird as a breeder. Its nest is situated
in crevices and under ledges and boulders of rock. No materials of any
kind are used for its nest. The eggs number two, varying from light
bluish-green to light buffy-white in ground colour, spotted, speckled,
and blotched with rich blackish-brown and pale reddish-brown and
underlying grey markings.
THE KITTIWAKE.
The nest of the Kittiwake is situated on ledges of maritime cliffs
round our coast, and at the Farne Islands. I have seen the bird
occupying such a small corner that it was unable to sit properly on its
eggs. The nest is made of seaweed and lined with dead grass. Its eggs
number two, three, and rarely four, and vary from light greenish-blue
to stone colour, or buffish-brown, blotched and spotted with varying
shades of brown and grey. The markings sometimes form a zone round the
larger end.
THE SHORT-EARED OWL.
On the ground, amongst heather or sedges, this bird makes its nest,
in the eastern and northern counties and in Scotland. It uses next to
no materials, but such as are present consist of bits of dead reeds
and leaves. Its eggs number from four to seven or eight, pure white,
unspotted, and oval in shape.
THE LESSER SPOTTED WOODPECKER.
Although nowhere abundant, this bird breeds in suitable districts
throughout England. Its nest is situated in a hole in the trunk or some
large branch of a tree, and is about seven to a dozen inches deep. I
have found it quite close to London. No materials are used for the nest
except chippings of dry wood detached in the construction of the hole.
Eggs from five or six to eight, and even nine, white, without spots,
and polished.
THE WILLOW WREN.
The nest of the Willow Wren, or Willow Warbler, is situated on or near
the ground in fields, orchards, woods, and almost everywhere. It is
made of moss, bits of dried grass, occasionally fern-fronds or leaves,
and is lined with feathers and hair. The eggs number from four or five
to seven, and upon occasion I have found eight. They are white, spotted
with reddish-brown.
THE SEDGE WARBLER.
I have found this bird's nest amongst low bushes, tufts of tall,
coarse grass, and amongst nettles; generally, though not always,
near water. It is composed of grass-stems lined with finer grass,
horsehair, and sometimes vegetable down in small quantities. The eggs
number five or six, light yellowish-brown tinged with blue, which
is rarely seen on account of the closely-crowded yellowish-brown or
buffish-brown markings. The eggs generally have a few streaks or lines
of blackish-brown on the larger end.
THE RED-BREASTED MERGANSER.
The nest of this bird is found on the ground, concealed beneath rocks,
or amongst the vegetation growing on the banks of large bodies of
water in Scotland and Ireland. I have seen it on the banks of streams,
where it must have been washed away by the first freshet. It is
composed of bits of heather, dry leaves, and down from the bird's own
body. The eggs number from six or seven to nine, or even a dozen, and
vary from buffish-grey to pale olive-grey in colour.
THE GREENSHANK.
Breeds chiefly in the Highlands of Scotland, and the islands lying to
the west thereof. Its nest is merely a slight declivity lined with
a few bits of dry grass, dead heather, or leaves. The eggs number
four, of a stone colour or creamy-white, spotted and blotched dark
reddish-brown and grey.
THE WHIMBREL.
The islands to the west and north of Scotland are the breeding home of
the Whimbrel. A slight dry hollow in the shelter of a tussock of grass
or heath is selected on some lonely piece of moor. The nest is lined
with a few blades of withered grass, sprigs of heather, or dead leaves.
The eggs number four, varying from darkish buff to olive-green, spotted
and blotched with reddish-brown, olive-brown, and underlying markings
of grey.
[Illustration: EGGS.
1. Wood Warbler. 2. Greenshank. 3. Sandwich Tern.
4. Reed Warbler. 5. Whimbrel. 6. Black Guillemot. 7. Garganey.
8. Red-breasted Merganser. 9. Bearded Tit.
]
THE REED WARBLER.
This bird suspends its nest between the stems of reeds and branches of
willows and other trees growing from or over water. It is composed of
sedge grass, reed leaves, moss, hair, and reed-down. It is found in
the Southern and Eastern portions of England. The eggs number four or
five, light greenish-blue or greenish-white, spotted, freckled, and
clouded with greenish-brown or dark olive, and underlying markings of
greyish-brown. The spots are generally most numerous round the larger
end of the egg.
THE WOOD WARBLER.
Breeds sparingly throughout England and in Southern Scotland. Its nest
is placed in tufts of coarse grass and other vegetation on the ground,
and is composed of dry grass, leaves, and bits of moss, and lined with
horsehair only. This feature will readily distinguish it from the
nest of the Chiffchaff and Willow Wren, whose semi-domed structures
it closely resembles in other respects. The eggs number from five to
seven, white in ground colour, numerously spotted and freckled with
purplish-brown and underlying markings of grey.
THE TWITE.
The Twite breeds on the moors in the North of England, Scotland, and
in Ireland. Its nest is situated on or near the ground amongst heather
or furze. It is composed of sprigs of heath, and lined with rootlets,
wool, feathers, and hair. The eggs number four or five, sometimes six,
and are similar to those of the Linnet, pale bluish-green, spotted,
speckled, and streaked with purplish-red and reddish-brown. I have
found several nests close together on a small rocky islet in the
Highlands.
THE BEARDED TIT.
It is thought by some writers that the exceptionally hard weather we
experienced last winter (1894-5) has extinguished this little bird in
its last resort, the fens of Norfolk and Cambridgeshire; however, it
is to be hoped that this is not the case. Its nest is composed of dead
sedge and reed leaves, lined with grass and reed-down, and is situated
near the ground in some large reed bed. The eggs number from four to
seven, light brownish-white, sparingly marked with streaks and spots of
dark brown.
THE ROSEATE TERN.
So rare a breeder with us has this bird become, that a celebrated
authority recently included it in a work on British Birds' Nests only
after some hesitation; but I am pleased to say that two pairs bred last
year in one of their old haunts well-known to me. The nest is simply
a hollow in the sand or shingle of a small rocky island, at no great
height from the sea. The eggs number two or three, and exactly resemble
in coloration and size those of the Common and Arctic Terns.
[Illustration: EGGS.
1. Fork-tailed Petrel. 2. Mute Swan. 3. Grey-lag Goose.
4. Fulmar Petrel. 5. Manx Shearwater. 6. Spotted Crake.
7. Black Grouse.
]
THE RINGED PLOVER.
This pretty little bird makes no nest in the proper sense of the
word, although I have found a few pebbles and small shells used when
a rocky place instead of a sandy beach has been chosen for breeding
upon. Its nest is generally well above high-water-mark, amongst fine
sand, shingle, or on bare rock round our coast, and on the shores of
inland sheets of water. The eggs number four, and vary from pale buff
to stone or cream colour, spotted and speckled all over with small
brownish-black and underlying inky-grey marks.
THE MANX SHEARWATER.
The Manx Shearwater breeds on the western coasts of England and
Scotland, in the Hebrides and islands to the north of Scotland; also
in several parts of the Irish coast and the off-lying islands. Its
nest is situated at the end of a deep burrow, which is generally dug
by the bird itself. Some observers have reported it to consist of
bits of grass and stalks, and others have found no attempt at all at
nest-building in some of the burrows they have opened. It lays a single
white, smooth egg.
THE PINTAIL DUCK.
This uncommon Duck breeds in one or two parts of Ireland and Scotland
still, it is said on good authority. Its nest consists of rushes,
sedge, dead grass, and tufts of dark brown down bearing white tips,
and is placed amongst rushes and such other coarse vegetation as will
afford the bird shelter. The eggs number from six to eight, or even
ten, of a pale buff colour tinged with green.
LEACH'S FORK-TAILED PETREL.
The St. Kilda group of islands forms the principal British-breeding
haunt of this bird, although colonies nest in the Hebrides and on the
Blaskets off the Irish coast. The nest is situated at the end of a
burrow made by the bird itself, or under rocks, and is composed of
withered grass, moss, and lichens. Only one egg is laid, white in
ground colour, with a belt of small brownish-red spots round the larger
end.
THE RED-NECKED PHALAROPE.
A little withered grass or other herbage is used to line the depression
selected by this bird for its nesting-place, which is situated on the
ground in grassy swamps and marshes, near water as a rule, in the
North of Scotland and some of the islands lying to the west and north
thereof. Four eggs are laid, varying in ground colour from olive to
pale buff, spotted, speckled, and blotched with varying shades of dark
brown and underlying specks of light grey.
THE HOOPOE.
Although this bird has bred in different parts of England, its chances
of doing so now are somewhat remote, on account of the merciless
persecution it suffers at the hands of gunners. Its nest is situated
in holes in trees, walls, or rocks, and is composed of bits of straws
and dry grass. The eggs number from five to seven, and vary from light
greenish-blue to pale buff, with minute pit marks over their surface.
[Illustration: EGGS.
1. Golden Oriole. 2. Shag. 3. Gadwall. 4. Willow Wren.
5. Richardson's Skua. 6. Marsh Warbler. 7. Goshawk.
8. Pintail. 9. Arctic Tern. 10. Blue-headed Wagtail.
]
THE GOLDEN ORIOLE.
This bird is, to a very great extent, an accidental visitor to our
shores, but it is thought by eminent authorities that it would
become a common breeder with us were it not so dear to the heart of
the collector. It has bred in several of the southern counties of
England, and suspends its nest, which is composed of strips of bark,
wool, sedge, grass, and leaves, with an inner lining of flower-heads
of grass, beneath the forks of a large horizontal branch at some
considerable height from the ground. The eggs number four to five or
six, are white or light creamy-white, spotted with purplish-brown and
underlying markings of grey.
THE OSPREY.
The Osprey, now only met with in one or two remote parts of Scotland,
employs sticks, turf, moss, and wool in the construction of its bulky
nest, which it builds on the top of a tall tree or ruin. The eggs
number three, sometimes four, varying from white to creamy-white in
ground colour, beautifully marked, and especially so at the larger end,
as a rule with rich reddish-brown. The markings vary considerably.
THE WHITE WAGTAIL.
Although this bird is the Continental representative of our Pied
Wagtail, there are on record many well-authenticated instances of its
breeding in this country. It differs from the Pied Wagtail in being
bluish or slate grey, where that bird is black, below the nape. Its
nest, and the situation in which it is placed, do not differ from that
of the bird just named. The eggs are also similar, but are said to be
subject to greater variation in colour and markings.
THE BLUE-HEADED WAGTAIL.
The nest of this somewhat rare visitor has several times been found
in Northumberland, and it has in all probability nested on many
occasions elsewhere, without its identity being clearly established.
The nest is made of dry grass, fine roots, and moss, lined with hair
and occasionally a few feathers, and is situated on a bank or amongst
grass or corn in a similar position to that of the Yellow Wagtail.
The eggs number five as a rule, but six are sometimes found, of a
yellowish-white ground colour, spotted, freckled, and clouded with
light brown, and occasionally streaked on the larger end with fine
blackish-brown lines.
MONTAGU'S HARRIER.