Oyster Catcher. See Sea-pie
P
Palace of Truth, Mr. W. S. Gilbert's, As played and conceived of at Cheltenham, 243 (footnote)
Peewits, Habit of crouching in young, 6; which is not shared by adult, 6
— Relations of, with black-headed gull, 10
Peregrine Falcon, An exaggerated estimate of, 156
— Foiled by a partridge, 156; and by pigeons, 156, 157; and by a rook, 158
Pheasants, Refusal of a cock to rise, 44
— Unsportsmanlike conduct of, in Norfolk, 44
Pigeons, in a mirage, 36
— How seen to advantage, 157
— Coo of, terror of, 158
— Success of, against peregrine falcon, 157, 158; and eagles, 158, 159
Poet, the modern Christian, His devices for speaking the truth, 228, 229
Porpoise, A large kind of, 83, 84
Professors, The blood-prayer of, 148
Puffins, Pursued by arctic skua, 133
— Rapid flight of, 133
— Picked remains of, frequent, 136, 242
— Enemies of, 136, 137
— Great difference between young and old, 150
— Note of, 154, 155
— Impassive spectators, 169
— Lover-like actions of, 240
— Playfulness of, 240
— Sympathy shown by, 240, 241
— Mischances that may befall, 242
— Tendency of, to fight in mêlées, 242
— Marvellous beak of, 243; resembling a false nose used in amateur performance of The Palace of Truth at Cheltenham, 243 (footnote)
— Legs of, how coloured, 243, 244
— New sensation given by, 244
— Enormous numbers of, 244, 245
— Are somewhat silent, 245
— Nuptial display of, 246
— Male, a large-hearted bird, 246
— Buccal cavity of, a bright yellow, 246, 247; is probably a sexual adornment, 247, 248
Puffins, Eye of, almost as marked a feature as the beak, 299
— Young, dropped by herring-gull on to rocks, 308, 309
— Many fish brought in at a time by, 300; theory as to how this is done, 300, 301, 349
— Is strongly ritualistic, 313
— A lecture delivered to, 336–41
R
Railways, Absence of, add a charm to Sterne and Miss Austen, 193, 194
— The destroyers of man and nature, 193
Raven, Mobbed by arctic skuas, 191, 205
— None, this time, on the island, 191
— Battue of, in progress throughout the Shetlands, 191
— Very wary, 194
— Odd action of, in air, 194
— Flight of, not majestic, 205
Razorbill, Apparent habit of constantly drinking sea-water, of, 62
— Bright colouring of buccal cavity, of, 127; suggested explanation of, 129–31
— Nuptial note and actions of, 127
Red-throated Diver, A ripple in shape of bird, 59
— Resembles both a grebe and a guillemot, 59
— Neck of, very beautiful, 59, 60
— Dives like a grebe, 60, 61
— Apparent habit of continually drinking, of, 61
Right does not exist apart from might, 348, 349
Rock Pipit, Arctic skua baffled by a, 10, 160
S
Science, Hypocritical cloak of, 147
— Continual slaughter "for the sake of," 147
Scott, Sir Walter, Description of hawk chasing heron in The Betrothed, by, 9, 10
Sea Birds, Their apparent habit of constantly drinking sea-water, 62; possible explanation of this, 62
— Power of ejecting excrement to a distance, possessed by, 165, 166
