TCD MS 10515 folio 83 verso
[May 10th 1916]
catcher with less skill than determination. They also feed on locusts, and in the pursuit of these insects, display a noteworthy intelligence for, after capture, their first efforts are to divest the locust of its wings and limbs; to first cripple their prey, then devour it. Truly the animals that follow man in his wanderings are as adaptable to the varying conditions of nature as is man himself.
Two birds nested in the open desert laying their eggs in simple depressions in the sand, without a trace of any nest construction! One, The Sandgrouse, had specially chosen for this purpose the ancient ruins of Ur of the Chaldeans. The other, a species of Plover* ([word omitted]) scratched a hollow for its nest near one of our camps. The parent birds were very amusing
* See description in general notes