Part 8

THE LANDRAIL.

The position selected by the Landrail for her nest is on the ground, amongst grass, underwood, clover, or corn. It is loosely constructed of dry herbage. Her eggs vary greatly in number, from seven, eight, or nine to as many as fifteen, and are of a dingy white, suffused with a reddish tinge, freckled and spotted with red, brown, and purplish-grey.

THE WIGEON.

This bird has been known to breed in Scotland and Ireland, but its favourite places are Scandinavia, Finland, and Northern Russia. The nest is placed in a clump of rushes or a tuft of heather, its materials being reeds and decayed rushes, with a beautiful inner lining of down off the parent bird, which lays from seven to ten creamy-white eggs, of a very oval shape. Broods have been hatched at different times in the Zoological Gardens.

THE COMMON SKUA.

Nidification is carried on by the Skua in companies, in the Shetland Islands only. The nest is placed on the ground, and is made of dead ling, moss, and dry grass, in which are deposited two eggs only, of varying colour. Some are of a dark olive-brown, whilst others are of a greener tint, with black-brown spots, intermixed with small speckles of a whitish or rusty colour.

1. Sand Martin. 2. Little Stint. 3. Long-eared Owl. 4. Kite. 5. Lesser Whitethroat. 6. Redwing. 7. Shieldrake. 8. Sandpiper. 9. Red-shank. ]

THE KITE.

This bird locates its nest in a strong fork of some tall tree, building it with sticks and whatever softer material she can come at without much trouble, such as wool, &c. The eggs number three, and are of a grey or dirty white, spotted and blotched with dull red or orange-brown, the spots predominating at the larger end.

THE RED-SHANK.

The nest of the Red-shank is situated amidst a tuft of grass, or in a small hole sheltered by the surrounding herbage, and is constructed of a few blades of fine dry grass lightly put together. She lays four eggs of a cream or straw colour, blotched and speckled with dark brown, the spots being very variable, but generally forming a belt or zone at the larger end.

THE SAND-MARTIN.

As denoted by the name, the nesting-place of the Sand-martin is at the extremity of a deep hole, which the bird excavates for herself in some sandbank, generally near a river. The nest is constructed of straw, hay, or dead rushes, whichever may be found in the locality where the bird is breeding, and lined with feathers. The eggs are from four to six in number, of an elongated shape, the extreme thinness of the shell giving them a pinky appearance, but when blown they are a beautiful white.

THE LITTLE STINT.

This bird does not breed in the British Isles, but in Northern Europe and Asia. The nest is situated on the ground, and is very similar in construction to that of most of the Sandpiper species, being a natural depression in the ground, with a lining of dead leaves, or other such material as may be procured within easy reach of the place chosen. The eggs are four in number, of varying ground colour, from pale brown to pale greenish-grey, spotted and blotched with rich brown, the spots generally confluent at the larger end; but the colour is probably subject to as many variations as the Dunlin's eggs, already described.

THE LONG-EARED OWL.

Like the Hawk tribe generally, this bird manifests an unmistakable dislike for maternal labour, as she contents herself with the old nest of a Crow, Magpie, or the abandoned home of a Squirrel. Some collectors give the number of eggs as from three to seven; but four or five is the general rule, and numbers above the last figure quoted the exception. The eggs are white, and almost as blunt at one end as the other.

THE SHIELDRAKE.

The labours of the Rabbit are utilised by the Shieldrake, and almost indispensable to her for incubation purposes, as she deposits dried flags, bents, reeds, and a liberal quantity of down, plucked from her own body, at the bottom of a deep burrow, after having enlarged and improved it to suit her purpose. She lays from eight even to twice that number of eggs, of a very smooth, roundish, oblong shape. They are cream colour, or nearly white in colour.

THE REDWING.

This bird very rarely builds in the British Isles, but abundantly in Norway, Sweden, and other high latitudes visited by it during the summer. Its nest is very similar to that of the ordinary Ring Ouzel or Blackbird, and is located in the middle of a dense bush. The eggs number from four to six, and are somewhat like those of the Fieldfare, only not so large. It would take a very clever connoisseur to pick out the egg of the Blackbird, Ring Ouzel, Fieldfare, and Redwing from some specimens without making a mistake, so much alike are they in colour, size, and shape.

THE SANDPIPER.

On the banks of a river, lake, or tarn, this familiar little bird locates its nest, generally choosing some natural depression, where it will be protected by a projecting grass tuft, though I have found its nest on the bare ground, and once on a tiny piece of grass amongst a lot of rocks. The nest is lined with dead rushes, leaves, and fine grass. The eggs number four, of a creamy yellow or stone colour, with light brown spots and blotches, as it were, in the shell, and dark brown on the surface.

THE LESSER WHITETHROAT.

The situation chosen by the Lesser Whitethroat for its nest is amongst brambles, low bushes, and nettles, building it of grass, bents, and an inner lining of horsehairs. The eggs number four or five, and are white, with a greenish tendency, spotted, chiefly at the larger end, with ash and light umber-brown.

THE RUFF.

This bird, like the Snipe and Red-shank, makes her nest in wet, swampy places, using only the coarse grass found on the spot. Like its congeners, it only lays four eggs, very similar in ground colour and marking to the two birds quoted above, varying from stone colour to olive-green, blotched and speckled with rich brown and liver-coloured spots.

THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE.