Motacilla alba.—The White Wagtail was not very numerous at Tromsö, though on July 20th we noted eight roosting side by side on a sloop at anchor in the strait. There were several about the shore at Lyngseidet; two were seen at Skjervö, and one at Svolvaer.
M. borealis.—The Northern Yellow Wagtail was noted the day after our arrival, when one rose from the willow scrub by the shore of the strait near Storstennaes. Next day we saw several on Grindö. One much-excited pair led us to make a search, with the result that we caught a young one just able to fly, and saw another.
Anthus pratensis.—The satisfactory determination of Norwegian Pipits is well known to be a matter of no small difficulty. I examined some scores with the field-glass upon the bogs and crowberry "barrens" in the hope of detecting the Red-throated Pipit, but all appeared to be of the present species. Some Meadow Pipits were feeding young, but the majority had eggs, doubtless a second brood; and so numerous were they that in the Tromsdal we stumbled across three nests in the course of about half an hour. Upon Grindö a boy showed us a nest with six eggs in a clump of moss and Empetrum. We watched for the return of the bird, much bitten by Mosquitoes the while, and, though she did not turn out to be the wished-for Red-throated Pipit, it was interesting to note the artless and unconcerned manner in which the bird, under pretence of feeding, stole up to the nest.
A. obscurus rupestris.—The Norwegian Rock-Pipit cannot be numerous in the part of the Nordland which we visited, as, though constantly upon the look-out for it and frequently about rocky shores well suited to its requirements, I only met with it at Svolvaer.
Accentor modularis.—The Hedge-Sparrow seems to be a shy bird in Norway, keeping to the cover of birch and willow. One was singing at Lyngseidet on the morning of July 17th, and another the same day at Skjervö. A third, heard in Lofoten on the 25th, was also singing in an unfrequented spot far from the village.
Pyrrhula major.—On July 12th, a wet day spent in a first exploration of Tromsö Island, I twice heard the low piping note of this species as we pushed through the birch woods.
