The Scottish Naturalist

The Scottish Naturalist

With which is incorporated

The Annals of Scottish Natural History

EDITED BY

V. C. WYNNE-EDWARDS
Regius Professor of Natural History
Aberdeen University

AND

JAMES W. CAMPBELL
Volume 66

Printed in Great Britain at The University Press, Aberdeen

AUGUST

Price

The Scottish Naturalist

With which is incorporated

The Annals of Scottish Natural History

EDITED BY

V. G. WYNNE-EDWARDS

Regius Professor of Natural History^ University of Aberdeen

AND

JAMES W. CAMPBELL

All Articles and Communications intended for publication and
all Books, etc., for notice, should be sent to The Editor, Natural
History Department, Marischal College, Aberdeen.

Subscriptions and Advertisements should be addressed to the
Editor.

Annual Subscription : £i is. ; single parts, 7s.

CONTENTS

PAGE

The Fledging of a Group of Young Fulmars — Kenneth
Williamson^ Neil Malcolm, Colin MacDougall, David
Norman and Geoffrey Tates ..... i

American Birds in Scotland in Autumn and Winter, 1953-54

— Kenneth Williamson . . ’ . . . . 13

Notes on Water Beetles from the Island of Raasay — Dorothy J.

Jackson ........ 30

35

Zoological Notes
Correspondence
Book Reviews .

57

58

J. Peterson

B. Forman

Plate I. {above) Blue Goose in Shetland (p. 13); {below) Walrus at
Collieston (p. 56).

SOS’.

The Scottish Naturalist

Volume 66, No. i August 1954

THE FLEDGING OF A GROUP OF YOUNG
FULMARS

Kenneth Williamson
Fair Isle Bird Observatory,

Neil Malcolm, Colin MacDougall, David Norman
AND Geoffrey Yates
Merchant Taylors’ School, Crosby

The fact that a recent monograph (Fisher, 1952) devotes few
of its 496 pages to this problem gives an indication of how little
is known concerning the life of the young fulmar Fulmarus
glacialis, apart from cycle-dates of hatching and fledging.
Most of our knowledge of its life on the ledge is due
to the studies of Duffey (1951), Richter (1937), and Perry
(1946), summarised by Fisher on pages 367-373.

In late August 1953 a party of students from Merchant
Taylors’ School, Crosby, visited Fair Isle and took an active
part in the work of the Bird Observatory. During much of
this time a careful watch was maintained on a cliff on the
eastern side of the island where some thirty young fulmars
were fledging. These youngsters were numbered A-Z (facing
north-west and north) and 1-12 (facing east). Continuous
observations were made by the authors on A to O inclusive
from a bivouac tent on the cliff-edge opposite these nests.
Observations on the other youngsters were intermittent.

I. Departure of the Young.

Throughout our observations we distinguished three
different methods of leaving the cliff, (a) through adult

I I

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Vol. 66

interference, [b) accidental, and (c) deliberate. Times of
observations are G.M.T.

{a) Both L and G first flew through adult or parental
interference on 25th August. Here are the notes on these
incidents :

1. “ 12.40 hrs. While L was wing-flapping on the edge of the
ledge, facing the cliff, an adult flew within a few feet of him.
L immediately turned to spit oil, lost his balance, slid back-
wards off the ledge, and after a few tentative wing-beats
flew steadily south-east out to sea and was lost to sight round
Goorn, flying low over the water.”

2. “ 14-55 hrs. G stopped wing-flapping (again facing the
cliff) as an adult approached, and turned to spit. G over-
balanced, fell, turned in the air, and flew low out to sea.”

There is a suggestion in these cases that this move on the
part of the adult bird is planned to hasten the chick’s departure.
This point will be discussed in a later section.

(b) H’s departure on 26th August was the only purely
accidental one, although chick 12 narrowly escaped the same
fate (see next section). H’s was definitely not a case of adult
interference.

“ 14.45 hrs. H, facing the sea, tried to turn round, lost
his balance, and slid down to J’s ledge. J threatened the
newcomer from two feet away. H was uncomfortable,
but did not reply.

“ 14.50 hrs. J advanced and spat. H clung to the ledge
with feet and outspread wings. J retired.

“ 15.10 hrs. H regained J’s ledge after a struggle. J con-
tinued to threaten him.

“ 15.25 hrs. H received such a tirade from J that he turned
and fell backwards. He flew steadily past South Gavel with
occasional glides and loss of height, and turned south towards
Sheep Craig.”

{c) Four definite cases of deliberate departure were re-
corded, and two probable cases (5 and 6 below).

I. 27th August, 10.00 hrs. After a period of continual wing-
flapping, O shuffled to the edge of his ledge and flew. Flight
at first very weak, continually dropping towards the sea, and
then regaining a little height. Flight soon became stronger.
Flew once round Mavers Geo and low past South Gavel and
out of sight.

1954

THE FLEDGING OF YOUNG FULMARS

3

2. 28th August, 08.50 hrs. J left in the same way. “ Flew
strongly out of bay and landed with splash half-a-mile away.”

3. 29th August, 15.45 h-rs. M also left in this manner. “ Came
down in sea off South Haven about 600 yards away and was
joined by adults.” See the section on Behaviour.

4. 6th September, 10.08 hrs. E, the least-developed of the
youngsters when the watch began, made a deliberate de-
parture after a number of “ false starts ”. See the section
on Behaviour.

5. 27th August, about 11.25 ^rs. N left the cliff while the
observers were otherwise engaged for two minutes. It is
certain that he went of his own accord. He had been very
restless. No adult was near at the time.

6. 29th August, about 10.00 hrs. Similar circumstances
attended the first flight of B — the first “ blue phase ” fulmar
chick known to have fledged at a British station. (It was
the progeny of the pair whose incubation behaviour was
studied by Williamson, 1952.) This bird was subsequently
seen on the sea off South Gavel some 600 yards away and was
observed until it took wing : see the Behaviour section.

There are eighteen other youngsters recorded as having
first flown at or about a certain time. It is probably a safe
guess that the majority left of their own accord, and that this is
the normal culmination of fledging. The maiden flights of a
number of birds are traced in Fig. i.

The records show a peak period from the 25th-2gth August.
P had gone before observations commenced on 21st, but
whether as a result of predation or fledging we do not know.
Single birds left on 21st and 22nd, two on 23rd, and N and O
flew on 27th. T also went on either 26th or 27th. Two birds
are known to have left on 28th and six on 29th, and three others
departed on either one or the other of these two days. F was
still on his ledge on 3rd September but away by 5th. The
last bird, E, left on 6th September. In 1952 one chick was
alone on this cliff from 30th August to 5th or 6th September
(Williamson, 1952). Thus, the intensity of departures in-
creased almost daily from 25th August, culminating on 28th-
29th.

Of the sixteen accurately or reasonably accurately known
times, ten youngsters left during the three hours from 10.00-
13.00 hrs. : three others left before 10.00 hrs. and three left

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Vol 66

after 13.00 hrs., the latest of these between 17.00 and 19.00 hrs.
(Last year two youngsters are known to have left about 18.30
hrs.) It seems clear that the young bird is most active in the

Fig. I. — Maiden flights of young fulmars.

middle of the day, and least so in the early morning and late
evening. This offers an interesting contrast with the burrow-
nesting petrels and shearwaters, which go down to the sea by
night (Lockley, 1942, and others).

1954

THE FLEDGING OF YOUNG FULMARS

5

2. The Parent- young Relationship

A note was taken of adults visiting the ledges to ascertain
for how long the chick was fed before it left the nest. Only
nine cases of feeding were recorded, mostly on 23rd August
when five youngsters were fed, but we can be certain of the
interval between the final feed and culmination of fledging in
three cases only, E, G and X.

E was recorded as having been fed the most — ^once on 24th,
at least three times on 25th, and for the last time on 27th.
This, it should be noted, was the least developed of the young.
G and X were fed only once during the study-period, on 23rd
August. E flew on 6th September, G on 25th August, and X
on 27th or early 28th. The intervals were therefore ten days,
two days and four to five days respectively.

Perry (1946) suspected that some young fulmars were
entirely deserted by their parents at the beginning of the
fifth week and left to last out the remaining fortnight on
accumulated food-reserves. In only , one case, E, do the
observations support this suggestion. On the other hand, too
much should not be made of the fact that G was fed only two
days before his departure, since, as was shown in the previous
section, his first flight was in a sense premature. The manner
of X’s departure is not known. The observations certainly
indicate a sudden decline in parental care following 23rd
August, although visits to all chicks continued to be frequent.
There is obviously a need for more observation on this angle of
the parent-young relationship.

On 28th August one of F’s parents tried to persuade this
chick to take food, but got no response. The parent stroked F’s
head, neck and breast with the beak almost continuously for at
least two hours, but no actual feeding took place. This is the
only record in our notes of an adult trying to induce a chick to
beg in this manner, which is normal behaviour at an earlieu
stage in the growth period (Duffey, 1951).

Adult aggression

Fisher (1952, pp. 338, 345, 368, 370) suggests that the young
are entirely deserted by their parents from about the middle of
August, but our observations do not support this view. On the

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contrary, even after feeding had stopped, the chicks were visited
by their presumed parents on most days, and commonly two,
three or more times a day, right up to the time of leaving.
These visits varied in length from five minutes to as long as
three hours, and for the most part the adults sat quietly on the
ledge, or dozed, at no great distance from the chick. Since all
active interest in the welfare of the young appears to have died
at this period, these visits can only reveal an attachment of the
parent birds to the nest-site. It was obvious in some cases
that this attachment was carried to the extraordinary length of
trying to hasten the departure of the chick so that the ledge
could be recovered.

As the chick grew and neared its full time it would often
stand on the edge of the nest, facing the cliff, and flap its wings
vigorously. Very often, when a chick took exercise in this way,
an adult bird of the number flying to and fro off the cliffs would
alter course so as to glide close to the youngster. We believe
(but have no proof) that these adults are parents displaying an
interest in the ledge. The young fulmars would attempt to
repel such visitations by spitting in the manner described by
Duffey (1951), and in the majority of cases they were success-
ful. There is strong indication in the manner of departure of
G and L, and also in the events at site 12 (see below), that the
purpose of this approach is to unsettle the young bird and
bring about the culmination of fledging.

The events at nest 12 on the afternoon of 29th August
provide an excellent illustration of the parents’ desire to get
rid of the youngster and reoccupy the site. At 15.00 hrs. this
chick, during a bout of exercise, slipped from his ledge to a
sloping grassy outcrop some four feet below, where he clung
precariously. Within seven minutes an adult had occupied
his ledge, and this bird peered over the edge at the stranded
youngster from time to time before leaving at 15.17 hrs.
Thereafter, on a number of occasions at ten minutes or shorter
intervals, we saw an adult fly close past this youngster,
apparently in an attempt to dislodge him. In each case the
youngster threatened the adult, and managed to maintain his
hold. At 16.40 hrs. a presumed parent again landed on the
original ledge, to be joined half-a-minute later by another
adult they peered over interestedly at the chick from time

1954

THE FLEDGING OF YOUNG FULMARS

7

to time. At 17.15 hrs., after several fruitless attempts to climb
to the original home, 12 managed to reach a new and less
precarious situation on the same level as the old nest and
about a yard distant on the opposite side of the gully down
which he had slid. Immediately after he had installed him-
self, an adult settled on the grassy slope he had just vacated.
He took his first flight from this new site a few days later,
and during the intervening period the original ledge was in
occasional occupation by adult birds.

These frequent cases of aggression by adult birds suggest that
the parents have a great need to reoccupy their ledges, and it is
interesting to note that in the case of G (who was forced off the
nest) the ledge was reclaimed within three minutes of his
departure ! Why this urge should be so strongly developed so
late in the season is not clear, but it may be that the parents
reclaim their ledges in order to prevent non-breeders from
settling on them. It was clear during our observations that a
certain amount of prospecting and settlement, presumably of
non-breeders, goes on at this time at ledges which have not
been occupied by chicks. One pair, for example, occupied a
site below F for several days during the study period, spending
the day in courtship, and apparently roosting there at night.
Moreover, there are gatherings of up to five or six individuals,
usually at unoccupied places (some of which are obvoiusly
unsuitable as nesting-sites), but sometimes also at reclaimed
sites. This reoccupation on the part of the parents can be only
a temporary and transient phase, since with the first gale after
mid-September all the fulmars go to sea, the great majority
remaining away until the end of the following month, or into
November if the winds continue strong.

Reoccupation of nest-sites was recorded in eleven cases.
G, as noted, was claimed within three minutes, D within five
minutes, and number 12 within seven minutes. B was re-
occupied (by the normal adult, which is believed to be the male)
after ninety minutes ; two other sites were taken over by adults
on the fledging-day, three others after one day, and at two
sites reoccupation was not noted until six days had passed.

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3. Behaviour of the Young
Behaviour on the ledge

During the last few days of its ledge-life the young fulmar
is far from being the “ dull creature to watch ” which Duffey
found was the case in an earlier phase of its life. Periods of
marked restlessness alternate with periods of repose. Some-
times it will stand precariously on the edge of its ledge, facing
inwards, and will flap its wings vigorously for several minutes ;
at others, it will shuffle along its ledge on a journey of explora-
tion, stopping now and then to nibble at the bare earth, or tug
at strands of vegetation. The act of flying often followed a
bout of wing-exercising, but this was by no means invariable.
In the case of J and E the taking to flight was not introduced
by wing-flapping. Although J had been active some hours
before he actually flew, there was a long period of quiescence
interspersed between exercise and departure from the cliff.
With O and M there was only a relatively short period of quiet,
of about ten minutes, between the wing-flapping bout and
the first flight, and this also applied to the presumed deliberate
departures of N and B. We found we could not predict the
approximate time at which the act would occur : we were
sometimes kept on tenterhooks for hours, even days, with birds
whose behaviour suggested readiness to leave. At such times
the youngster would advance to the brink of its ledge, face the
sea, and with swaying head survey the world beneath it : then
the wings would be half-spread, and just when departure
seemed inevitable the chick would “ lose its nerve ” and
withdraw quickly to its nest.

There it would either doze or preen, or nibble quietly the
strands of grass which festooned its nesting cavity. The
commonest posture adopted when in repose was “ pseudo-
sleeping ”, with the head turned and the bill pushed into the
scapulars, but the outward-facing eye wide open and alert.
This is a common posture among birds : it has been much
discussed, but never satisfactorily analysed.

As an illustration of the behaviour of a young fulmar on the
threshold of leaving its ledge we give our narrative of E’s last
hour. On 5th September E moved from his own side of the
ledge, a long one, to a point formerly occupied by another

1954

THE FLEDGING OF YOUNG FULMARS

9

youngster, D. Since D’s departure, this part of the ledge had
been frequently visited by adults. At 09.00 hrs. on 6th E was
on D’s half of the ledge, and subsequently was in the D nest.
Two adults visited, landing at 09.30 hrs. about the middle of
the ledge, and their arrival elicited a weak spitting response
from E. Soon after they had settled E joined them in a
cackling and head- waving display. (Similar behaviour had
been witnessed a few days earlier.) At 09.40 hrs. a third
adult landed, forcing one of the others to move closer to E.
E spat at and caused this bird to leave, and a few seconds later
he repelled the new arrival also. He then began a cackling and
head-waving display with the remaining, more distant adult.
At 09.45 hrs. an adult landed on the opposite side of nest D, and
although E stared at the newcomer with lowered head (an
“ intention movement ” showing a state of readiness to indulge
threat-display), he relaxed after a few seconds, and shortly
afterwards cackled to this neighbour. This adult left after five
minutes, but soon swept back to the cliff, and in attempting to
alight on nest D actually brushed the new occupant. It left
immediately, though surprisingly E made no hostile move.

A minute later E shuffled to the brink of site D and he was
obviously contemplating a plunge : he looked down, waved his
head from side to side, and then half-opened his wings. But
his “ nerve ” failed him and he retired. Half-a-minute later
he tried again, twice spreading his wings wide, and each time
retiring from the edge. Following his second retreat he
deliberately advanced on the remaining adult and spat at it so
vigorously that it left at once. In this interesting displacement,
the mounting nervous energy which had been denied consum-
mation in the fledging-flight was expended in aggressiveness
towards a bird he had hitherto tolerated. After a few minutes
quiet he cackled and swung his head, though now alone, but in
this activity he was probably stimulated by the courtship actions
of a pair of non-breeders at a new ledge below site F a dozen
feet away. At 10.05 ^rs. and 10.06 hrs. E approached the edge
again and on each occasion spread his wings, but could not
complete the pattern. Displacement “ habit-preening ” took
place when he withdrew. Quite suddenly, at 10.08 hrs., he
went to the edge and took off.

An interesting behaviour-pattern which we have termed

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“ gardening ” should be mentioned. Although incubating
adults, and later well-grown young, nibble strands of vegetation
overhanging their nests, the action is desultory. Armstrong
(1948) has categorised such actions as incipient nest-building.
Twice we saw this behaviour stepped up to a remarkable
degree of intensity, in one case by a non-breeding adult, and
in the other by chick 12. The behaviour was identical, the
bird pulling and tugging at the grass and other vegetation in
what can only be described as a frenzy, and scattering the
loosened strands to right and left with vigorous shakes of the
head. Two characteristics of this ‘‘ gardening ” were the
impressive quantity of vegetation broken off or uprooted, so
leaving a patch of partly denuded earth surrounding the bird,
and the astonishing amount of energy which this normally
subdued species brought to its labours. In the case of the
non-breeder, which pitched on a poor sloping ledge near nest J
and began “ gardening ” at once, we could discover no
extraneous stimulus. The activity was perhaps nest-building,
despite the lateness of the season. Following several minutes
of this behaviour the bird departed and the ledge was not
claimed again.

In the case of chick 12 the behaviour was clearly a dis-
placement, and it is most interesting that this young bird, which
had never made a nest, should go through all the actions of
preparing a site. This youngster, as described earlier, fell
from his own ledge to a grassy slope four feet below on the
afternoon of 29th August. Subsequently he made several
efforts to return home by clambering with extended wings up
the steep and narrow gully down which he had slid. It was
immediately after a long and very nearly successful climb that
the bird tumbled back and began “ gardening ” , continuing
briskly for twenty minutes before suddenly lapsing into repose.
Here the unconsummated drive to regain the nest found its
outlet in a vigorous attempt to fashion a suitable resting-place
on the new ledge.

Behaviour on the water

Only two of the youngsters, B and M, were watched on the
water following their maiden flights. M, who left at 15.45 hrs.

1954

THE FLEDGING OF YOUNG FULMARS

I

on 29th, lost height rapidly and came down to the sea only 500
yards or so from the cliff, the shortest flight we witnessed. In
a very short time he was joined by first one, then two, and
finally by four fulmars which swam around him. They did not
remain long. M progressed towards the entrance to the bay by
swimming interspersed with vigorous and very inefficient bouts
of “ rowing ” during which he beat the water with flapping
wings. Another youngster, found stranded on the moor and
released into South Haven, progressed in much the same way.

B was not seen to leave the ledge, but he was seen on the
water 600 yards distant shortly afterwards. There was no
difficulty in recognising him since he belonged to the extremely
rare (in Britain) “ blue ” phase. He swam towards the open
sea, every few minutes attempting to rise from the water. These
efforts to fly only took him a few yards and sometimes he was
never really clear of the waves, merely scudding across them,
though the wings were never threshing the surface as in the
“ rowing ” action described above. These efforts to rise
gradually improved, and at 11.20 hrs. he managed to fly low
for about 100 yards before alighting. After resting a few
minutes he tried again, and this time made height. He passed
out of sight, flying strongly to the eastward, an hour and a
half after leaving the cliff.

The most competent “ maiden voyage ” was that of the
late youngster E, who lost a little height initially, but soon
climbed high enough to clear the South Haven cliff of Buness,
over which he passed into North Haven, finally disappearing
beyond the Hoill Lee cliff the best part of a mile from his
ledge. At no time did he attempt to glide.

Summary

Observations on a group of young fulmars Fulmarus glacialis
show that whilst the majority leave the cliff of their own accord,
there are some which fledge as the result of accident or of adult
(? parental) interference during bouts of wing-exercising on the
edge of the nest.

Several of the cases suggest that the parent fulmar is eager to
reclaim the nesting-ledge, perhaps to deny it to prospecting non-
breeders, and in order to recover it will attempt to hasten the
departure of the chick.

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The intensity of departures increased daily from 25th August,
culminating on 28th-29th : most young left the cliff between

10.00-13.00 hrs.

The behaviour of a young bird on the threshold of taking flight
is described. Other activities, such as “ pseudo-sleeping ” and
“gardening” (? displacement nest-making), and behaviour on
the water, are also described.

REFERENCES

Armstrong, E. A., 1948. Bird Display and Behaviour. London.

Duffey, Eric, 1951. Field studies on the fulmar. Ibis, 93: 237-245.
Fisher, James, 1952. The Fulmar. New Naturalist ser., London.
Lockley, R. M., 1942. Shearwaters. London.

Richter, Roland, 1937. Einiges iiber die Lebensweise des Eissturmvogels.
Jour, fur Ornithologie, 85 : 187-200.

Williamson, Kenneth, 1952. The incubation rhythm of the fulmar.
Scot. Mat., 64 : 138-147.

1954

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

13

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND IN AUTUMN
AND WINTER, 1953-54

Received 20th January igy4

Kenneth Williamson

Fair Isle Bird Observatory

I. Systematic List

Blue Goose Anser caerulescens caerulescens

Commander Gilbert, principal H.M. Coastguard officer
for the north of Scotland, when visiting Fair Isle on 14th
October, told me of a strange goose he had seen the previous
day at a loch in Delting, Shetland. As his description fitted
perfectly the blue snow goose, of which there was no previous
record for Scotland, I telephoned Mr. G. T. Kay of Lerwick
and asked him to investigate the occurrence.

Mr. Kay and Mr. John Peterson saw the bird next day and
identified it as a blue goose of the dark-breasted form. On
subsequent visits they made a photographic record in colour
and monochrome and took several feet of Kodachrome film.
They very kindly took Mr. Tom Henderson and me to see the
bird on 12th November.

The blue goose was in company with a small party of
domestic geese, mainly of white plumage, and with one
exception full-winged. The gander in the party threatened
the blue goose whenever it approached too closely, but other-
wise tolerated its presence. Although difficult to approach
closely in the open, the situation of the two lochs between
which the geese spent their time admitted of a near approach
under cover of a car, so that on 12th November (as on earlier
occasions) the bird could be studied at a distance of a few yards.

The excellence of Mr. Peterson’s photograph (facing p. i)
makes a detailed description superfluous. The bird was much
smaller than its companions and had the bill and legs pink.
When it took to flight the spread wings appeared grey-blue
>vith a broad border on the trailing edge. The date of the

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bird’s arrival is not known. So far as can be ascertained, it
was at the loch when Mr. and Mrs. L. S. V. Venables passed
in their car on 20th September. It remained until the
domestic geese were removed at the end of November, and
then disappeared, but only for a short time. It was back in
the area by mid-December and still there in late January.

Greater Snow Goose Anser caerulescens atlanticus'*^

As reported by William Brotherston in Edin. Bird Bull. 4:
33, the partly decomposed remains of a snow goose were found
on an island in Gladhouse Reservoir, Midlothian, early in the
New Year. It was a $ by dissection, and although the wing-
length of 430 mm. falls within the range of overlap of the two
races, the bill-length of 65 mm. exceeds by 4 mm. the maximum
given by F. H. Kennard for a long series of the lesser race (see
The Handbook of British Birds, 3: 203-204).

It is therefore the second definite record of the greater snow
goose in Scotland, the first being an immature $ shot out of a
small party which wintered in Kirkcudbrightshire in 1920-21
[Scot. Nat., 1921: 69). This and the single example of a
lesser snow goose Anser c. hyperboreus,^ also immature, are kept
at the Royal Scottish Museum, where the latter is on exhibition
in the British Birds Hall. H. F. Witherby [Handbook, 3: 201)
questioned Dr. W. Eagle Clarke’s determination of this
specimen on the grounds that the wing-length of 401 mm. is
not too short for immature atlanticus, but its small size and
exceedingly small bill, which I measured as 50 X 31 mm.,
confirm the original diagnosis [Scot. Nat., 1924: 9).

Snow Goose Anser caerulescens? subsp.*

A snow goose was identified in the Reay district of Caithness
by James Gunn, who has written a note concerning the bird
in Fair Is. B. Obs. Bull., 2: 57. It was first seen on 27th
September, was joined by a single barnacle goose Branta

* The Checklist of Birds of Great Britain and Ireland (1952) gives the name Anser
hyperhoreus to the snow goose: the blue goose is not admitted to the list. It is
now generally recognised that the snow and blue geese are phases of a dimorphic
species (see Hesse, jf. Orn., 1915: 159-160; Mayr, Systematics and the Origin
of Species (1942), pp. 242-243). Anser caerulescens Linnaeus, 1758, given to the
blue form, has priority over hyperhoreus Pallas, 1 769, given to the white form, and
must stand as the correct name for the species.

1954 AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54 i5

leucopsis in mid-November, and the two departed about ist
December. They fed in grass-fields and roosted on a small
open pond in the middle of a field ; prior to the arrival of the
barnacle, the snow goose always grazed among sheep or close to
horses, and roosted in an old water-filled, reed-covered quarry
at night. It was an adult, and was slightly stained with rust
on the sides of the head, and so was doubtless a wild bird.

Although the two races of the snow goose are generally not
separable in the field, there being overlap in size, it is possible
that the Reay bird belonged to the race hyperboreus. Mr. Gunn
had opportunities for watching this bird and the barnacle
together at a distance of only thirty feet, from behind a stone
dike, and he says that whilst there was no apparent size
difference the snow goose looked longer in the leg. A bird of
barnacle goose size suggests a small lesser snow : the maximum
wing-length of the barnacle, ^ 420 mm., $ 417 mm., is less
than the minimum given for the adult greater snow, 430 mm.,
$ 425 mm. Although hyperboreus has lankier legs than its
larger neighbour (P. Scott, Severn Wildfowl Trust ^rd Ann. Rep.,
1949-50, p. 129), which is of a stockier build, both have a
longer tarsus than the barnacle goose.

A further snow goose, an immature bird, was recognised
among a flock of 450-500 grey-lag geese near Hamilton,
Lanarkshire, on 6th March 1954 (see p. 40).*

Harlequin Duck Histrionicus histrionicus.

Whilst with a shooting party at Barnhills, Denholm, on the
River Teviot in Roxburghshire, on 1 6th January 1954, Lieut. -
Colonel J. A. Sperling, D.S.O., shot at a solitary, low-flying
duck which proved to be a harlequin. It was identified by
Lieut.- Colonel Henry Douglas-Home and sent to the Royal
Scottish Museum. It was a young drake (by dissection),
mostly in juvenile and first winter plumage, but showing some
advancement on head and scapulars towards first summer
dress. The measurements, taken from the bird in the flesh,

* A week later Mr. H. Mayer-Gross identified a s baldpate Anas americana at
Hamilton (of which details will be published in the next number — Eds,), and
Major R. F. Ruttledge and Miss Geraldine Roche have informed me of several
occurrences of American birds in Ireland in the winter 1953-4; see Fair Is. B.
Obs. Bull., 2: 135-136.

1 6 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST Vol. 66

are: chord of wing 183 mm.; bill from feathers of forehead
26 mm.; tarsus 40 mm.; tail 66 mm., but very worn.

The head showed a dark blue coronal stripe bordered with
whitish at the front, and surrounding the base of the bill was
a scaup-like “ blaze ” suffused with brownish on the forehead.
Some blue feathering was coming in on nape, throat and
cheeks. There was a small whitish spot below the eye and a
larger pure white round patch behind the eye, with white
feathers extending backwards in an irregular streak towards
the nape. The pure white shoulder-patches were surrounded
by dark plumbeous feathers, and there were new bluish
feathers on mantle and scapulars. The belly was dingy white,
the feathers being tipped with brown, the lower breast brown
with an admixture of blue-grey, and the upper breast almost
tawny-brown. The throat was paler and had many dark
blue-grey feathers. The wings were worn and dark brown
with no white except at the hidden bases of the primaries, and
the chestnut-tipped flank-feathers were well-developed. The
legs were greenish, the webs black, and the small bill dark
brown.

This is the first specimen of a harlequin to have been
collected in Scotland, where, however, there have been two
sight-records of adult -drakes — one in the Sound of Harris,
swimming with a long- tailed duck Clangula hyemalis, 13th
February 1931 (Freme, 1931), and one near Whalsay, Shetland,
on 5th March 1933 (R. S. Bruce, Scot. Nat., 1933: 147). The
harlequin is a nearctic species which extends eastwards to
Iceland, where it is sedentary, although it is migratory in
Greenland and the Canadian Arctic.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus americanus
Black-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus erythropthalmus

During the first fortnight of October no fewer than three
yellow-billed and one black-billed cuckoos appeared in
Scotland. The first of the yellow-billed cuckoos was found by
Mrs. Edith A. J. MacEwan on the Isle of Muck, Inner Hebrides,
on 3rd October; it was lying dead on a roadway. The second
was picked up in an exhausted condition by Mr. F. M. Allar-
dyce in a garden at Caskieben, Nairn, Morayshire, on 5th

1954

17

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

October. Both specimens are preserved in the Royal Scottish
Museum, and have the diagnostic rufous flight-feathers and
rufous-tinged median and lesser coverts, white-spotted tail-
feathers (most of which are missing in the Nairn specimen),
yellow eye-ring, and black bill with the tomia and most of the
lower mandible orange-yellow. Measurements are given
below, together with those of a bird found dying at Exnaboe,
Shetland, on ist November 1952, the third Scottish example
of this species.

Provenance

Sex

Bill from
skull

Wing

Tail

Tarsus

Exnaboe, Shetland

?

27-5 mm.

148 mm.

145 mm.

25 mm.

Isle of Muck .

c?

30*5

140

142

23

Caskieben, Nairn .

$

.7-5

‘43

—

24

A third yellow-billed cuckoo was seen at Montrose Basin on
loth October by a party of ornithologists returning to Edin-
burgh from the Aberdeen Conference of the S.O.C. {Scot. Nat.,
65: 196-197). When at the British Museum (Natural

History) in late November I was shown a fine specimen of a
black-billed cuckoo which had been found dead on the Isle of
Foula, Shetland, by Mrs. D. M. Gear, on nth October {Scot.
Nat., 65: 196). A yellow-billed was also watched by a

number of people near Scarborough in East Yorkshire at the
end of the first week of November.

It is an interesting fact that of the two dozen or so British
records of American cuckoos the Montrose and Scarborough
examples appear to be the only ones which have been seen in
a healthy state. It seems probable that transatlantic drift-
migrants of this genus do not usually survive their arrival in
this country, owing to their failure to find a sufficient abund-
ance of the caterpillars which constitute their diet. They are
voracious eaters and suitable supplies of larvae are extremely
scarce in Britain in the late autumn.

In view of this, it is probable that the Muck and Nairn
examples belonged to an earlier movement than the Foula and
Montrose birds. Study of the Daily Weather Report for this
period shows that two distinct transatlantic drifts, about a
week apart, were possible. This is discussed below.

3

i8

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Grey-cheeked Thrush Hylocichla minima

Late in the afternoon of 5th October William S. Eunson
captured in the Observatory Trap at Fair Isle a dwarf thrush
which on close examination proved to be this species. Identi-
fication as H. minima was based on the dark grey loral region
and indistinct eye-ring, in which characters this bird differs
from a closely similar species the olive-backed thrush H.
ustulata, which has the lores and eye-rim prominently buff.
As this constitutes the first record of the grey-cheeked thrush in
Britain (and is apparently the second only for Europe) a full
description of the bird is given :

Head, mantle and tail uniform olive-brown (more greenish-
olive in tone than in song thrush or redwing) ; the head with
slight black streaks. Wings dark brown with outer webs of
primaries buffish-brown, this colour being less evident on the
secondaries and absent from the tertials. Tips of greater coverts
white, and small white spots at the tips of the innermost and
second tertials (presumably an indication of immaturity). Primary
coverts tipped with blackish, bastard-wing with outer web brown
and inner web blackish. Axillaries dusky brown, under wing-
coverts white.

Large black spots on a huffish ground on the upper breast, and
olivaceous spotting on the whiter lower breast. Chin, belly and
vent white, but sides of breast, flanks and under tail-coverts dusky
olive. Black moustachial streaks bordered the white chin. Lores
and ear-coverts dark grey minutely peppered white, eye-rim
indistinct.

Tail square, twelve feathers with pointed tips. Iris dark brown.
Tarsi and toes purplish-brown. Inside of mouth orange. Upper
mandible and tip of lower mandible black; basal half of lower
mandible pale becoming yellowish at the base. Three rictal
bristles.

Wing-formula: third primary longest, second i mm. shorter,
and fourth 2 mm. shorter. Third and fourth clearly emarginate
and fifth (6-5 mm. less than the wing-point) less obviously so.
First primary 4-5 mm. shorter than primary coverts.

Length of wing (chord) 99 mm.; bill 15 mm. from skull; tarsus
28 mm.; tail 68 mm. Total length of bird not more than 61-
inches.

Dusk had fallen by the time the examination was complete,
so the bird was put to roost in one of the boxes in the laboratory.

1954

19

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

It was reweighed at 06.30 hrs. next morning, the measurements
were checked, and after photographs had been taken by Mr.
H. A. Craw the bird was released. It was lively and appeared
to be in very good condition, and once gave a somewhat harsh
whistling note when handled. Unfortunately we were not
able to watch it in the field as it flew to the cliffs on being
released and quickly disappeared.

The normal weight of this species, from data given to me
by Professor Wynne-Edwards, is in the neighbourhood of
30-33 gm. on autumn migration. When trapped our bird
weighed 24-92 gm. and this, though low, does not suggest a
bird newly arrived from a long transatlantic crossing. How-
ever, its overnight loss brought its weight down by 3-32 gm. to
2i*6o gm. This loss must have been very largely due to
voided faeces and body-fluids, and it is likely that whilst the
bird had been in Britain long enough to feed well and recover
from its initial exhaustion, it had not yet begun to replace the
store of fats it must have utilised in crossing the ocean. It
seems likely to have lost over 30 per cent, of its normal weight
on the journey, and arrival probably took place one or two
days before it was first observed.

On its chin the bird carried a tick which was identified by
Dr. Evans and Mr. E. Browning at the British Museum (where
the specimen has been deposited) as a larval Haemophysalis
leporis-palustris Packard, a first record for the British Isles.
This tick has been recorded from Canada, Alaska and all the
United States, where it is common on rabbits and has also been
taken from birds.

Two races of this bird inhabit eastern North America, the
northern grey-cheeked thrush H. m. minima (= aliciae) and
Bicknell’s thrush H, m. bicknelli (= minima)^ the former ex-
tending from Newfoundland across Canada to Alaska, and
the latter breeding in Nova Scotia and the mountains of New
England and New York State. Professor Wynne-Edwards
kindly gave me measurements of the two forms, from E. H.
Forbush’s Birds of Massachusetts, over the telephone whilst the
bird was still in our possession; but it was clear from these data
— given in full in Fair Is, B. Obs, Bull., 2 : 5 — that our bird,
though small for the northern form, was so intermediate in
wing-measurement that a racial name could not be given

20

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

without further information. Accordingly I sent a copy of the
laboratory record-card to Dr. Charles Vaurie at the American
Museum of Natural History, New York, and I am grateful to |
him for looking into the question. He reported: |

As you say, your bird is somewhat intermediate in measure- I
ments, and since these races are at best rather slight we feel that ;
there is no point in trying to identify it subspecifically. Naturally,
one might assume that the northern race would be the one to
reach the British Isles, and it is perhaps worth mentioning that
this is one of the few American song-birds which has established
itself in north-east Siberia.

Later study of the material in the British Museum (Natural ■
History), and with Colonel R. Meinertzhagen of the series in
his collection, confirms the uselessness of attempting a sub- '
specific diagnosis.

Lapland Bunting Calcarius lapponicus

A remarkable feature of September 1953 at Fair Isle was
the unprecedentedly large invasion of Lapland buntings. In }
previous years, the numbers visiting the isle have fluctuated \
from peaks of a dozen or so to about forty birds (1949), but 5
in 1953 the minimum count at the height of the invasion was ■'
twice this number, and birds were at this strength for several ;
days. The invasion was also experienced at Inishtrahull off
north-west Ireland and at Malin Head (P. S. Redman, pers.
comm.) and at Lundy in south-west England (P. Davis, pers. ^ |
comm.). i

I have discussed this annual influx of Lapland buntings in j
a previous paper (1953) and there is every probability that it
originates in low arctic Greenland, a fact which does not
appear to have been previously considered. Thus Salomonsen
(1951(7), whilst noting that some East Greenland birds may
wander to Iceland and Britain as vagrants, considers that the
bulk of east and west coast birds winter in North America; and
Bannerman (1953) regards the north and west Seottish immi-
grants as birds that have nested on the south Norwegian fjelds.

The first bird appeared on 3rd September, about a week
later than usual, and the first large party was of 30 birds on
8th, inereasing to 75+ on the following day. A top count of

1954

21

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

80+ was obtained on 12th and numbers fluctuated afterwards,
with apparent increases on i6th, 19th (60) and 29th and a
final influx on 2nd October. The invasion is being studied in
detail by the present author and Peter Davis of Skokholm Bird
Observatory, and a full account will be published at a later
date.

2. Some Meteorological Considerations
The September Arrivals

Fortunately the dates of arrival of some of the foregoing
species are sufficiently accurately known to render an examina-
tion of the various meteorological situations profitable. The
earliest movements believed to have a nearctic source are those
of the Lapland buntings, which took place in several waves —
some of which coincided at Fair Isle, Inishtrahull and Lundy
— from the end of the first week in September. It is not
proposed to go into detail concerning the meteorological aspect
of this immigration, but it should be noted that at its height
in the north the weather was identical in broad outline with
that which has brought us Lapland bunting movements in all
previous years^ — namely, a marked north-eastwards extension
of the Azores high-pressure system, with moderate to fresh
westerly winds blowing on its northern periphery (Williamson,
1953). Other influxes during this period, however, were
cyclonic in kind, the flocks arriving in the north-westerly,
backing airstream of depressions moving towards the Icelandic
area. The last influxes in particular, 29th September and 2nd
October, fall into this category.

It is clear from the phenomenal numbers and protracted
nature of this invasion that there must have been several
opportunities during mid and late September for birds whose
normal range lies even farther west to make the Atlantic
crossing. Those which are known to have arrived in mid or
late September are the blue goose in Shetland and the snow
goose at Reay, but in the first case the arrival-date is not known :
in the second, the appearance of the bird coincided with a
cyclonic period during which strong westerly winds swept the
North Atlantic from Labrador south of Gape Farewell to the
southern half of a depression then situated over Iceland.

22

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

Early October Movements

In early and mid-October two transatlantic movements
almost certainly took place at intervals of about a week. The
first, involving the yellow-billed cuckoos of Muck and Nairn
and the gray-cheeked thrush, probably reached these islands
on 3rd October, a day behind the last Lapland bunting influx.
On 30th September a strong anticyclone, centred on Nova
Scotia, provided excellent migration weather in the eastern
coastal districts of North America from Labrador south to
Florida. On either side of this high were depressions, in
mid-Atlantic and over Hudson’s Bay (Fig. i). During the
night the latter deepened and its warm and cold fronts quickly
swept over the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the New England
coast, the high retreating eastwards into the Atlantic (Fig. 2).
Meanwhile, the mid-Atlantic low continued its movement
north-eastwards towards Iceland.

Offshore drift in the westerly winds of the warm sector of
the American low could have taken place on this night any-
where between Labrador and Cape Hatteras, in all probability
continuing during ist October, since at least one station^ —
Halifax, N.S. — had fog that day. Birds incurring such a drift
would be borne north-eastwards for a considerable distance in
the complementary airstreams of the North American low and
the high it had so suddenly displaced. Some time on 2nd, in
all probability, they would enter the sphere of influence of the
eastwards-moving low near Iceland (Fig. 3).

The mid-day weather map of 3rd October shows an inter-
esting situation: the American low has passed out to sea and
is centred south of Greenland, high pressure and clear migra-
tion weather have returned to the eastern States, and the
Icelandic low is pursuing its way to the Norwegian coast with
the strong north-westerly airflow of its south-west quadrant
sweeping across the Hebrides, most of Scotland, and the
northern isles.

The second transatlantic drift probably began on 7-8th
October with the development of a complex depression over
Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. This depression moved
quickly east, and on gth westerly winds prevailed on its
southern side over the whole width of the Atlantic from

1954

23

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

Newfoundland to Scotland, persisting on loth across the eastern
half of the ocean. The general similarity of these movements
to that of the American robin Turdus migratorius which reached
Lundy in late October 1952 should be carefully noted (Davis,
1953). The conditions in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and Bay

of Fundy at the probable date of commencement of these
passages reproduced faithfully those conditions which, when
they occur in the North Sea and Skagerrak, lead to extensive
drifts of Continental migrants into eastern Britain (Williamson,

1952).

The Harlequin Records

The harlequin was shot on 1 6th January, following several
days of strong to gale-force westerly winds which culminated
in a severe gale in the south of Scotland on i6th. From nth
onwards, conditions in the Atlantic were such that down-wind

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

24

drift direct from south-west Greenland and even Labrador
was possible. A depression which was centred off Cape
Farewell on loth moved to Iceland on 12th and expanded, the
westerly wind-stream on its southern side covering the full
width of the ocean till 15th, when the centre passed south-
eastwards to Faeroe. Forces of 8 to 10 on the Beaufort scale
were noted daily in mid and east Atlantic at this time. It is
at least probable that the harlequin was brought from Green-
land or farther west by this weather.

It is interesting to note that in the case of the previous
Scottish harlequin record accepted by The Handbook of Brit.
Birds, similar weather conditions were reported from the
Hebrides, and at least one other nearctic species was recorded.
S. W. P. Freme (1931) tells of the shooting at Lochmaddy,
North Uist, of a and immature $ American wigeon Anas
americana on loth February, three days before the harlequin
was seen. On 12th February Freme saw in North Uist a gyr
falcon Falco rusticolus which, from the description he gives, may
have belonged to the dark obsoletus type of sub-arctic Greenland
and Labrador. He says that very severe gales from north-west
to south-west had obtained for a considerable period im-
mediately prior to these occurrences.

“ Escapes ” and “ Assisted Passage ”

It has been found difficult in the past to accept as valid such
records as those of snow geese and nearctic ducks because of
the likelihood of their having escaped from captivity. None
of the waterfowl recorded in this paper bore rings or showed
any outward sign that they might have been in captivity; two
were examined in the flesh, and two at very close quarters in
the field. The Severn Wildfowl Trust informed Mr. Kay that
they knew of no recent escapes of blue geese in Britain; and
although Dr. H. Edgar Smith lost two snow geese in February
1952 and two blue geese in March of the same year, it seems
most improbable that any of these should turn up in Scotland
after 18 months in obscurity .

Professor V. G. Wynne-Edwards has pointed out to me that
the great majority of wild snow geese have the head and neck
stained brownish with iron deposits, whereas birds reared or
kept in captivity do not show this feature. On the evidence

1954

25

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

of rust-staining, the snow geese at Reay and Gladhouse were
undoubtedly wild; in the blue goose also, the head showed
some rust staining: this is clearly shown in Mr. G. T. Kay’s
colour-film, taken in late September. With regard to the
harlequin, the balance of evidence is an favour of a wild
origin ; the bird was very forward in its moult to first summer
plumage, and as this is a difficult species to rear in captivity
(owing to a lack of proper food, perhaps) it is unlikely that an
escaped bird would be so far advanced in this respect.

The objection could be made against the cuckoos, the
grey-cheeked thrush, and other American passerines which
have appeared here in the past, that the birds could not
possibly reach the British Isles without receiving “ assisted
passage ” aboard a ship. The knowledge we have gained over
several years of the alarming rate of weight-loss in migrant
birds during a sea-crossing Fair Is. B. Obs. Bull., 2 : 35-37,
for an interesting and appropriate case) has convinced me that
this objection should be applied only with the utmost caution.
Speed is the sine qua non of a successful transatlantic crossing,
and it is very doubtful if any small or medium-sized passerine
or wader could make it other than by a continuous down-wind
drift in the strong westerly airstream of a vast Atlantic low.
Davis believes that the American robin crossed in about 40
hours at an average airspeed of 35-40 m.p.h. plus a wind-speed
of about 35 m.p.h.: even so, its weight-loss may well have
been in the region of 40 per cent., and one suspects that this
approaches very near the limit of physical endurance of a bird
of this size. Such birds, for the most part food-specialists, are
unable to feed on the decks of ocean-going vessels, and it is the
replacement of lost energy rather than the husbanding of what
little remains that is important. A delay of even a few hours’
duration on board a ship, for a small bird that had already
used up much of its energy-providing resources, would seriously
impair its chances of finishing the journey alive.

In all cases of this kind, whether passerine or waterfowl,
greater weight should be attached than heretofore to the
possibility of the bird’s having reached the British Isles by
down-wind drift. That drift of this type is a powerful factor
in bird-migration is now generally recognised, and a good
correlation between arrival-date and the weather conditions

4

26

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

immediately preceding should be accepted as strong evidence
in favour of natural vagrancy.

Conclusions

The present season’s records of American birds, whilst
admittedly exceptional, should not be regarded as an isolated
circumstance: they merely serve to emphasise the point made
by Dr. John Berry (1939) in writing of snow geese:

... it is important to note that during the past twenty years they
have been appearing in Scotland with increasing frequency. In
view of their extreme rarity in Europe before 1920, the recent
records may prove significant.

Of course, it cannot be doubted that in modern times there
are more people in Britain on the look-out for and well-fitted
to recognise such vagrants than ever before; and a fair pro-
portion of the nearctic geese, ducks and waders identified in
recent years can be ascribed to a general increase in ornitho-
logical activity and efficiency in the field. That this is not the
whole explanation, however, is clear enough from the fact that
many records are still brought to light, as in the past, by people
who are not ornithologists, and indeed, in the present paper
this category contains double the records of the other.

Granted the importance of this factor, there is nevertheless
little doubt that changing climatic conditions are also playing
their part. The greater frequency of blue and snow geese in
Ireland and Scotland, of Lapland bunting movements from
Greenland, of American passerines and cuckoos almost
annually in the past few years, and of the now regular annual
occurrence of nearctic waders at English reservoirs and sewage-
farms, are all a part and parcel of those avifaunal changes
which are resulting from the progressive amelioration of the
climate in the north-east Atlantic region. Perhaps the most
striking instance is the nearctic Leach’s Petrel Oceanodroma
leucorhoa, in which a rapid decrease in the American colonies
(W. A. O. Gross, Auk, 52 : 382) is being offset by a correspond-
ing increase on the eastern side of the Atlantic, as shown by
Atkinson and Ainslie for the northern isles of Britain [Brit.
Bds., 34: 50-55), and the present author for the Faeroe colony
[Ibis, 87: 554-556). The phenomenal wreck of this species

1954

27

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

along our shores in late October 1952 only serves to emphasise
to an exceptional degree the means whereby this shifting
balance in distribution is being effected.

Although there is much controversy over the fundamental
causes of this pronounced climatic change, there is general
agreement among zoologists as to its effects. Salomonsen
(1948) has dealt with the situation in the north-east Atlantic
from Denmark to Greenland, and in addition to noting
extensions of breeding-range on the part of a number of species
which are benefiting from the change, he points out that in
recent years (and especially since 1920) the number of casual
visitors to Greenland and Iceland from the North American
continent has considerably increased. There is a clear
parallel here with the inference of Dr. Berry’s remarks, and
the growing number of records of American birds generally in
Britain in recent years.

Besides the admirable summary by Salomonsen, and his
more recent paper on the colonisation of sub-arctic Greenland
by the fieldfare Turdus pilaris (1951^), Gudmundsson (1951)
has given valuable information for Iceland, and recent evidence
in the Faeroe Islands is being published by the present author
(in press). In all these cases, there is agreement that the general
rise of temperature in higher latitudes is enabling these species
to push the limits of their breeding-range farther to the north.
It is a reasonable conclusion that this climatic change is also
affecting vagrancy, through the operation of down-wind drift,
equally with the more readily observed (and in some cases
more spectacular) northwards extensions of breeding-range.

Kimble (1951) shows that this rise in temperature is not
confined to the summer months, but is actually more pro-
nounced in the winter, and Brunt (1946) and other meteoro-
logists clearly show that the wind is the chief agent in the
transmission of warmth to high latitudes. The transportation
of the heat required to maintain temperatures in the north-east
Atlantic at their present high level can only be due to an
increased local atmospheric circulation, in other words, the
1 more marked activity of winter depressions bringing “tropical”

I air into the region unimpeded by strong developments of the
; Greenland and Continental polar highs. It is the activity of
these depressions which is responsible for the regular cyclonic

28

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

immigration into Britain of Greenland buntings and geese,
and the more frequent transatlantic drift of American species
varying in size from the blue goose of the present season to the
black-and-white warbler {Mniotilta varia) which reached Scallo^
way in Shetland in a mid-October gale of 1936 [Scot. Nat.,

1937: 46).

Summary

Details are given of the occurrence of a number of nearctic
birds in Scotland in autumn and winter 1953-54 and the
meteorological situation at the time of these movements is
discussed.

There is strong evidence that the increasing frequency of
American geese, passerines, cuckoos and waders in Europe is
due to cyclonic drift across the Atlantic, and is a corollary of
the increased local atmospheric circulation which has resulted
in the progressive amelioration of the climate of the north-east
Atlantic region.

Acknowledgments

I gratefully acknowledge the help of all those who have
assisted in providing material for this paper, and who are
named in the text, and owe much to Professor Wynne-Edwards
for advice and discussion of a number of points. Col.
Meinertzhagen has assisted on points of nomenclature, and
I thank Mr. Craw and Mr. Peterson for the use of their
photographs.

REFERENCES

Bannerman, David, 1953. The lirds of the British Isles. Edinburgh.
Vol. I, pp. 3 1 2-32 1.

Berry, John, 1939. The status and distribution of wild geese and wild duck
in Scotland ( Internal. Wildfowl Enquiry, vol. 2). Cambridge. P. 40.
Brunt, David, 1946. Meteorology. Oxford. Pp. loi-iii.

Davis, Peter, 1953. “American robin on Lundy.” Brit. Bds., 46:
364-367.

Freme, S. W. P., 1931. “ Ornithological notes from North Uist, Outer

Hebrides.” Brit. Bds., 34: 369-371.

Gudmundsson, Finnur, 1951. “ The effects of the recent climatic changes

on the bird-life of Iceland.” Proc. Xth Congress, pp. 502-514.

1954

29

AMERICAN BIRDS IN SCOTLAND, 1953-54

Kimble, George, 1951. The Weather. Harmonds worth. Pp. 229-239.

Meteorological Office (Air Ministry), 1953-54. Daily Weather Report.

Salomonsen, Finn, 1948. “ The distribution of birds and the recent

climatic change in the North Atlantic area.” Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidss.,
42: 85-99.

1 95 1 <3. Gj (Inlands Fugle. Copenhagen. Vol. 3, pp. 523-533.

1951^. “ The immigration and breeding of the fieldfare in Green-
land.” Proc. Xth Congress, pp. 515-526.

Williamson, Kenneth, 1952. “ Migrational drift into Britain in autumn

1951.” Scot. Nat., 64: 1-18.

1953. “ Migration from the north-west in autumn 1952.” Scot.

Nat., 65: 65-94.

(in press). “A report on some Faeroese breeding-birds.” Dansk

Orn. Foren. Tidss.

30

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

NOTES ON WATER BEETLES FROM THE ISLAND
OF RAASAY *

Dorothy J. Jackson
St. Andrews

During a visit to Raasay in the end of September 1953 I did
some collecting of water beetles, mostly in the vicinity of
Raasay House Hotel. I spent ten days on the island, but it
rained a great deal during most of my visit^ — there was only
one perfect day — ^and my collecting was restricted to the dryer
intervals and the nearer waters. This probably accounts for
my finding only twenty-six species of Hydradephaga and
Hydrophilidae, but six of these are new records for the island,
and two, Hydroporus striola and H. memnonius^ have not pre-
viously been recorded from the North Ebudes (Balfour-
Browne, 1953).

Dr. George Heslop Harrison (1938) lists forty-two species,
as a result of extensive collecting throughout the island from
1933-37; several of the species he records came from the
higher lochs (on Dun Caan) which I was unable to visit. The
highest lochan I reached was one above Raasay House on the
west side of Cam nan Eun, about 500 feet above sea level.
This was a sheltered lochan in a hollow in the hills. It had a
firm stony bottom, clear water with a good deal of Scirpus
Jluitans floating in it, and no inflow or outflow; it contained
numbers of water beetles. Nearby, a little to the south, was
another lochan of very diflerent character, with marshy edges
and water full of algae, where my collecting was quite unsuccess-
ful. Other lochans I visited were beside the upper road above
Oskaig at a height of about 250 feet. There are four lochans
here, close together, almost in a line, from three of which
(those nearest the road) I collected during the one lovely day,
24th September. The northern of these had soft marshy
shores with sphagnum, and some Sparganium and water
Lobelia growing in the water. The next lochan had little

* Received i2,th January, 1954

1954

WATER BEETLES FROM THE ISLAND OF RAASAY

31

aquatic vegetation and steep heather-covered banks and
yielded few beetles. The third lochan was larger and had a
variety of aquatic plants including sedges, water crowfoot,
bog-bean, pond-weed, and water-lilies, and it proved a good
collecting place.

I visited only three of the larger lochs, all low-lying. These
were (i) the Home Loch, near Raasay House, dammed at the
south-west end, so at least partly artificial, and surrounded by
a dense growth of rhododendrons which made access to the
water difficult; (2) Loch Eadar da Bhaile, near Balachurin,
sheltered by cliffs on the west and by a steep hill on the east,
full of water plants and with marshy shores : it looked a most
promising loch but my visit was on a cold, showery, sunless
day with a strong south-east wind blowing, which did not
favour gyrinids; (3) Loch an Rathaid, north-west of Loch
Eadar, a bare loch with heather almost to the water’s edge.

In addition, ditches, pools and marshy spots were investi-
gated between Oskaig and Inverarish, but little collecting was
done in streams as they were all in spate.

It will be seen from the following notes that soft, recently
emerged specimens of several species were taken. In Fife,
I have observed occasional soft specimens of various species of
Hydradephaga even in October (and soft Deronectes assimilis
as late as the middle of November in 1952 and 1953), and
I think there can be no doubt that in Scotland the period of
emergence is continued well into the late autumn.

I am grateful to Mr. J. Balfour-Browne for his kindness in
examining some of the more difficult species and confirming
my identifications,* and to Mr. D. K. Kevan, who has most
kindly checked my determination of the Dryops and Donacia
taken.

The new records for Raasay are marked with an asterisk.
Haliplidae

Haliplus lineatocollis Marsh. Loch Eadar da Bhaile, two;
eattle trough, Oskaig, one.

H. rujicollis Deg. Home Loch. Not very common.

H. fulvus F. Widely distributed and occurring sparingly
in almost all the lochs and lochans visited; common in the
Home Loch.

32

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

Dytiscidae

Hydroporus gyllenhalii Schiodte. Not common. One in
shallow pool above Oskaig and two in lochans above the upper
road.

^ H. striola Gyll. One taken in a pool at the root of an
upturned tree in a boggy area near the Home Loch.

H, palustris L. Common only in the low-lying lochs —
abundant in Loch an Rathaid. Here, where a stream enters
the loch from the south, I netted a light chestnut specimen
with a dark sutural stripe. It is ab. fuscorufus Munst., men-
tioned by Guignot (1933, p. 315) and confirmed by Mr. J.
Balfour-Browne. I have taken a specimen of almost the same
colouring in Loch nan Dubhrachan, near Knock, Skye, in
July 1949.

H. erythrocephalus L. Common in third lochan above
Oskaig, and in the Cam nan Eun lochan.

^ H. memnonius Nic. Two taken in same pool with H.
striola^ one in a spring near Suisnish and one in a small
sphagnum ditch near Raasay House; all low lying districts.

H. ohscurus Sturm. Common in most of the lochans in
which I collected. Two soft specimens were obtained in the
Cam nan Eun lochan on 28th September.

H. nigrita F. Not common. Two near Suisnish (one in
a marsh and one in a spring) and a damaged specimen in a
flooded ditch near the Home Loch.

^ H. discretus Fairm. One taken with H. striola^ near the
Home Loch, and eight in a cattle trough near Oskaig on ist
October, three of them soft.

H. pubescens Gyll. Common in grassy pools above Oskaig
and one soft specimen taken in a sphagnum pool near the
Home Loch on 22nd September.

^ Agabus guttatus Payk. Three (one soft) in trough near
Oskaig on ist October. This trough was flush with the
ground on three sides and just above the roadside ditch; the
beetles could have crawled up from the ditch. This is one of
the species which I have so far found to be without normal
flight muscles (1952). I dissected two of the Raasay speci-
mens, one a newly emerged and one an old specimen, and the
flight muscles in both were abnormal.

1954 WATER BEETLES FROM THE ISLAND OF RAASAY 33

A. bipustulatus L. Common and widely distributed. Dr.
Heslop Harrison records this species from Raasay as the form
solieri. The specimens I netted appeared to me to be quite
normal, but I regret I did not bring any back, excepting one
reddish specimen from the Cam nan Eun lochan, which would
qualify for var. solieri Aube if a name for this form is desirable.

Ilybius fuliginosus F. Very common in inflow to Home
Loch, and in a nearby pool; two in moss overhanging the
loch.

Rontus bistriatus Bergstr. One in Cam nan Eun lochan.

Dytiscus marginalis L. One in Loch Eadar da Bhaile.

D. semisulcatus Mull. Three in Loch Eadar and two in
Cam nan Eun lochan.

Acilius sulcatus L. Very common in Cam nan Eun lochan.
Gyrinidae

Gyrinus minutus F. Abundant in third lochan above Oskaig
on 24th September. Several specimens were soft.

G. natator L. var. substriatus Steph. Common and generally
distributed on pools, lochans and lochs, and several soft
specimens were taken. Active even on dull days and in rain,
in sheltered places near the shore. The specimens collected
showed much variation in the degree of prominence of the
ely tral striae, in a few the striae being very insignificant ; some
specimens from Loch an Rathaid had the sutural striae rather
strongly punctured and were thus intermediate in character
between natator and substriatus. A male of an unusual colora-
tion, was taken on the porthern lochan above Oskaig. The
elytra are dull browp instead of black, darker* in front and at
the sides and almost chestnut coloured towards the apex; the
suture and the elytral striae are black. It was not a newly
emerged specimen. Mr. Balfour-Browne has seen this speci-
men and he considers that if it should have any name it would
probably be var. schatzmayri Ochs.

Hydrophilidae

* Helophorus aquaticus L. One in grassy pool above Oskaig
and one in marsh above Suisnish.

H. Jlavipes F. Common in grassy pools and in ditches on
low ground.

5

34

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

* Paracymus scutellaris Rosenh. One specimen found in
sphagnum in the northern lochan above Oskaig. The only
other record for the North Ebudes is from Eigg, where Professor
Balfour-Browne (1911) took a few specimens in September
1910.

Anacaena globulus Payk. Common in ditches and swampy
places near Raasay House and Oskaig.

Enochrus quadripunctatus Herbst. vdiY.fuscipennis Thoms. One
specimen in sphagnum in Loch Eadar da Bhaile.

Dryopidae

Dryops luridus Er. One specimen taken in Loch Eadar da
Bhaile.

Chrysomelidae

Plateumaris discolor Panz. One specimen, with head and
thorax missing, found on marshy moorland near lochan on
Cam nan Eun.

REFERENCES

Balfour-Browne, F., 1911. “The aquatic Coleoptera of the North
Ebudes.” Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 149-157.

1953* The aquatic Coleoptera of the Western Scottish Islands

with a discussion on their sources of origin and means of arrival.”
Entomologists Gazette, 4: 79-127.

Guignot, F., 1933. Les Hydrocanthares de France. Toulouse.

Harrison, G. Heslop, 1938. “ The aquatic Coleoptera of the island of

Raasay, etc.” Scot. Nat., 60-64.

Jackson, D. J., 1952. “ Observations on the capacity for flight of water

beetles.” Proc. R. Ent. Soc. Lond., (A) 27: 57-70.

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

35

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

Convolvulus Hawk-moth on Raasay. — A convolvulus hawk-
moth Herse convolvuli was found alive on 26th September 1953 in an
outhouse at West Suisnish, Raasay, in a basket of clothes brought
in from drying in the garden. It was found and brought to school
by Farquhar Maclennan. It was identified doubtfully in school,
and confirmed by Mr. A. R. Waterston, Royal Scottish Museum.
— Iain M. Murray, Portree.

The Spiders of Eigg and Mull. — During the summer of 1953
short visits were made to the Islands of Eigg (6th July- nth July)
and Mull (5th September- 14th September) and the opportunity was
taken to make a collection of the spiders of these islands in the local-
ities described below. As far as the author is aware the only list of
the spiders of Eigg and Mull, apart from a short note by Kevan
(1941) on the spiders of Eigg, is that of Bristowe (1927) in his
paper on the spiders of the Western Isles. Eighteen species have
previously been recorded from Eigg and ten from Mull ; the
present list increases these figures to twenty-five and twenty-three
respectively.

Both the islands are in Inverness-shire, Eigg in vice-county 104,
Mull in 103. On Eigg the collecting was carried out mainly in
Cleadale, and on Mull in the vicinity of Lagganulva (O.S. map
reference 1 7/454412). When on Mull a few spiders were also taken
on the adjacent Island of Ulva and these are included below.

The Linyphiidae were not collected but the records of the above
authorities for this, as for other families, are included in the follow-
ing list. The nomenclature is that given in the check list of British
spiders by Locket and Millidge (1953), that of the earlier records
being modernised where necessary, using the synonymic index of
Bristowe (1941).

Ciniflo fenestralis (Stroem)

Eigg

Mull

Segestria senoculata (Linn.)

Eigg

Mull

(Bristowe)*

Drassodes lapidosus (Walck.)

Eigg

(Bristowe)

Mull

(Bristowe)

Ulva

(Bristowe)

Drassodes signifer (G. L. Koch)

Mull

Bristowe, 1927
author

not found by

* The names of Bristowe or Kevan in brackets indicate earlier records by
one or both of these authors, confirmed by the writer.

36 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST Vol. 66

Clubiona pallidula (Clerck)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941 ;

not

found

by

author

Xysticus cristatus (Clerck)

Eigg

(Kevan)

* Xysticus erraticus (Bl.)

Mull

(Bristowe)

Eigg

* Lycosa tarsalis (Thorell)

Eigg

Mull

* Lycosa pullata (Clerck)

Eigg

(Bristowe, Kevan)

Mull

(Bristowe)

* Lycosa amentata (Clerck)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941 ;

not

found

by

Mull

author

Lycosa nigriceps (Thorell)

Mull

Bristowe, 1927 ;

not

found

by

author

* Tarentula pulverulenta (Clerck)

Mull

Ulva

* Tarentula barbipes (Sund.)

Mull

Immature specimen

* Trochosa terricola (Thorell)

Mull

(Bristowe)

* Trochosa ruricola (Degeer)

Eigg

Immature specimen

* Pirata piraticus (Clerck)

Eigg

(Bristowe)

Mull

Textrix denticulata (Olivier)

Eigg

Mull

Tegenaria domestica (Clerck)

Mull

* Theridion ovatum (Clerck)

Eigg

Robertus lividus (Bl.)

Eigg

Bristowe, 1927 ;

not

found by

author

* Robertus arundineti (O. P.-

Mull

Camb.)

Tetragnatha extensa (Linn.)

Eigg

(Bristowe)

Mull

Ulva

Tetragnatha montana (Simon)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941 ; not

found

by

author

Meta segmentata (Clerck)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941 ;

not

found

by

author

Mull

(Bristowe)

Meta merianae (Scop.)

Eigg

(Bristowe)

Mull

Meta menardi (Latr.)

Eigg

Bristowe, 1927 ;

not

found

by

Mull

author

Araneus diadematus (Clerck)

Eigg

(Bristowe, Kevan)

Mull

Ulva

Araneus quadratus (Clerck)

Mull

Araneus cornutus (Clerck)

Eigg

Bristowe, 1927 ;

not

found

by

author

* Singa pygmaea (Sund.)

Mull

Zygiella x-notata (Clerck)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941 ;

not

found

by

author

* Mangora acalypha (Walck.)

Eigg

New record for Scotland

* Oedothorax fuscus (Bl.)

Eigg

Kevan, 1941

Erigone atra (Bl.)

Mull

Bristowe, 1927

Leptyphantes ericaeus (Bl.)

Eigg

Bristowe, 1927

* The author wishes to express his indebtedness to Mr. Bruce Forman, who
kindly verified the identity of those species marked with an asterisk.

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

37

i 1954

i REFERENCES

Bristowe, W. S., 1927. Scot. Nat., pp. 88 and 1 17.

1939, 1941. The Comity of Spiders. London : Ray Society, 2 vols.

Kevan, D. K. McE., 1941. Entom., 74 : 247,

Locket, G. H. and A. F. Millidge, 1951, 1953. British Spiders. London :
Ray Society, 2 vols.

Alexander B. Roy,

Edinburgh University

Flocks of Black-throated Divers in Wester Ross. — On

24th August 1953, looking over Gruinard Bay from Gruinard Hill,
a flock of eleven black-throated divers Colymbus arcticus was noticed
out in the middle of the bay. They were preening and washing,
with occasional outbursts of mild display, including a form of
activity in which a bird would extend its head and neck along the
surface of the water and, agitating its feet violently to produce a
propeller-like wash, swim towards other birds. The flock gradually
moved towards the shore and started to dive so that an approach
was possible sufficiently close to enable all the details of the plumage
to be seen. Eight were adults still in full summer plumage. The
white-marked scapulars and shoulders, black throat, grey head, and
dagger-like bill were noticed. There were three juveniles with a
plumage similar to that of the adult in winter.

Later the same day five birds were found fishing close inshore at
Loch Gairloch. When disturbed by the approach of a small boat
three adults moved out to sea leaving one adult to accompany a
juvenile in another direction.

„ Apparently fiocks of this diver, even small ones such as these,
have not often been observed, though it is probable that they are
not unusual both in spring and early autumn — Ralph Stokoe,
Maryport, Gumberland.

White-billed Diver in Angus. — While watching the birds
lying off Brough ty Ferry Castle, Angus, on 21st January 1954,
I observed a diver well out in the river. It was feeding and
gradually working its way inshore. At first I paid no particular
attention to it, but when I observed it again a few minutes later
I realised that it was something out of the ordinary. It approached
to about eighty yards and at that range I was able to examine it
with 8x binoculars for nearly 30 minutes. It then moved up river
and by changing my position I was eventually able to watch it at

Vol. 66

38 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

fifty yards range for about five minutes before it moved into mid
river again.

The crown of the head and back of the neck were dark, almost
black, and this dark coloration came well round in front leaving
a narrow white front to the neck; the back and wings appeared
uniform black; the breast was white. The most noticeable
feature was, however, the bill, which was heavy and gave the
appearance of being upturned. In colour it was pale ivory-yellow
shading to dark horn near the base. The bird was obviously a
white-billed diver Colymbus adamsii.

About 300 yards further west, on 14th February 1954, a white-
billed diver was seen for a few minutes at forty yards range by
Gordon B. Corbet, Len Fullerton, Henry G. Watson, and the
writer. All four agreed with the identification.

On 28th February 1954, at the Stannergate, Dundee, a white-
billed diver was again observed by the writer at about 100 yards
range, and was examined with a telescope. It is probable that it
was the same bird which was observed on all three occasions.

These three observation points are from two to four miles west
of Monifieth Bay where a white-billed diver was found dead on
24th February 1952, by Gordon B. Corbet [Scot. Mat., 4: 119;
Brit. Birds, 45 : 423). The bill and some other parts of this Moni-
fieth specimen are preserved in the Dundee Naturalists’ Society
Museum and are well known to all four observers, who are members
of that Society. — Alexander Cross, Monifieth.

The presence of a white-billed diver off Broughty Ferry has
also been reported to us by Mr. John Grierson, Dundee. — Editors.

Black-necked Grebes in Orkney. — Our house is some 400
yards from a wide bay, facing south, that opens on to Scapa Flow.
In northerly or north-westerly winds birds come close inshore for
shelter. On the morning of loth September 1953, during a spell of
strong north-westerly winds, I spotted three small groups of birds
that puzzled me. One consisted of five birds, one of three and the
last was a single bird. A first glance through a telescope gave the
impression of very small red-throated divers ; this was due to the
markedly tip- tilted bills. Driving showers alternated with brilliant
sunshine, and during these sunny spells I was able to make further
observations. They were grebes of sorts from their shape, and the
size and colouring was very similar to Slavonian grebes in winter
plumage, which I know quite well, as they are fairly common in
the Flow in winter, but their bills are not tip-tilted, and this
feature was very marked in the birds I was watching. I felt sure

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

39

1954

I must be looking at black-necked grebes Podiceps caspicus, and
reference to the Handbook left this in no doubt. The birds seemed
very tired, and slept nearly all morning. The following morning
I again picked up the group of three birds, which were constantly
diving. — Marjorie Traill-Clouston, Orphir, Orkney.

Black-necked grebes have only been recorded from Orkney on a
few occasions. — Editors.

The Heron on St. Kilda. — The absence of the heron, Ardea
cineredy from T. B. Bagenal’s list of birds on St. Kilda, 1952 {Scot. Mat.,
65 : 19, 1953), has prompted me to record the occurrence of this
bird at St. Kilda in 1950. On 27th August of that year the fishery
research ship Explorer anchored in the village bay to allow repairs to
be made to fishing gear. During the afternoon, which was sunny
with a strong north-west wind, a heron was seen to rise from the
shore at the eastern end of the bay and to disappear behind the
headland. About half an hour later the call of a heron drew
attention to the same or another bird flying high over the bay in a
westerly direction. On this occasion the bird disappeared, while
still on the same course, well to the south of the islands.

This species has been noted at St. Kilda by Mackenzie, recording
his father’s observations over the period 1829 to 1843 Scot.

Mat. Hist., 1905), by Dixon {Ibis, 1885), by Waterston in June 1905
{Ann. Scot. Mat. Hist., 1905), and by Buchan, Harrisson and Lack
from 29th July to 13th August 1931 {Scot. Mat., 1932). Mackenzie
states that two or three herons at a time came to the islands about
every fourth year and died of starvation. Buchan and his co-
authors also refer to the erratic occurrence of the species.*
Nicholson and Fisher {Brit. Birds, 1940) do not refer to the heron but
these observers were chiefly concerned with breeding birds.

Clark describes the heron as an occasional visitor in August and
September to the neighbouring Flannan Isles. It is interesting
that after well over 100 years herons still make this irregular and
apparently fruitless flight to St. Kilda. — Bennet B. Rae, Marine
Laboratory, Aberdeen.

Eiders nesting in Banffshire. — Since Adam Watson {Scot.
Mat., 64 : 178) recorded breeding of the eider Somateria mollissima
at Troup Head, Banff, in 1950, the species has nested again there
in 1951 and 1953. (No observation was possible in 1952.) In

* Also recorded in 19 ii (see Baxter and Rintoul, Report on Scottish
Ornithology in 1911, Edin., 1912, p. 52). — Eds.

40

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 6&^

1953 a brood of six was seen on the water on 7th July, an early date.
In the same year, a brood of seven was seen off Melrose shore,
Macduff. These are my only definite breeding records, though
the number of adults present in the summer seems to be increasing
yearly. — R. Richter, Gordonstoun.

Late migration of Pink-footed Geese — On the evening of
31st May 1953 I saw a pair of pink-footed geese Anser arvensis
brachyrhynchus on the links at Dornoch, Sutherland. Their late
appearance was probably due to the prolonged spell of exceptionally
cold north-westerly winds prevailing at that time. — D. Macdonald,
Dornoch, Sutherland.

Snow Goose in Lanarkshire. — At the beginning of a day’s
bird-watching along the banks of the Clyde in the Hamilton district
on 6th March 1954, we called at Merriton Farm to look at the
wild geese and visit the flood-pools beside the river. A large flock
of grey-lag geese {Anser anser) which we eventually estimated at
between 450 and 500 were grazing on the farmland, and we were
excited to see a white goose standing in their midst. When we
first viewed it the bird was perhaps 300 yards distant and the grey-
lags were already alert and the nearer birds began to rise. We
suspected the white bird must be a snow goose (Anser caerulescens) ^
but were alive to the possibility of its being an albino grey-lag. At
that range it appeared dirty-white below and greyish-white above,
and although blackish points to the folded wings could just be
made out in field-glasses, we were unable to see any colour in the
bill or ascertain the colour of the legs.

After half a minute or so the whole flock rose, dividing into
sections, and fortunately the group with which the white bird
consorted came right over our heads and circled the fields for
several minutes before finally vanishing, in V formation with the
white goose in the middle of one arm, in the direction of Hamilton.
We thus had good opportunities for seeing the bird in flight and
comparing it with the grey-lags, and it was clear almost at once
that the bird was an immature snow goose. The black primaries,
contrasting with the off-white plumage of the underside, were
clearly observed, and it was noted that the nape and back and
wing-coverts were suffused with greyish-buff, palest on the coverts.
Again we were unable to make out any colour in the bill, which
seemed wholly dark.

The bird did not appear to be any smaller in body and wing-
span than its companions, but a comparison between a mainly

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

41

white and a mainly dark bird is bound to be unsatisfactory in this
respect. The neck appeared to be shorter and thicker than in
the grey-lags and the outline of the head, with its thicker bill, was
quite different. We remained in the area, visiting the pools, for
the next 4 hours, hoping the geese would return before our departure
but they did not. This makes the fourth snow goose in Scotland
during the present winter : previous occurrences have been recorded
in a paper in this journal by one of the present writers. — Kenneth
Williamson and P. W. Sandeman, Edinburgh.

Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosas near Aberdeen. — On

2ist June 1953, among the sandhills of Millden Links three miles
north of Aberdeen, my dog and I surprised a large bird of prey,
which flew up from the marram grass not 20 feet in front of us.
With binoculars I watched it fly for about 300 yards until it passed
out of sight behind a line of dunes north of Potterton Burn.

I made two sketches of the bird and wrote the description
quoted below before crossing the burn to follow it. As I reached the
skyline behind which it had disappeared it saw me, and flew up from
the middle of a pasture held some distance away. I then had
another long and satisfactory view of it, till it disappeared inland
more than half-a-mile to the north-west. The morning was fine
and the sun behind me.

In heavy build and flight I thought it more like a rough-legged
buzzard than, for example, a hen harrier. It was a female, with
the “ head mostly off-white, and a conspicuous light-buff leading
edge of the wing in the prepatagial area. [Rest of upper side and]
underside all dark, not visibly barred, but the plumage with some
[irregular] light flecks and a larger one on the lower back [as if the
bird was moulting]. A large bird, considerably bigger than the
common gulls and crows which mobbed it, the size of a buzzard,
but rather loose-jointed and more like a rough-leg, with four or five
separated primaries and a longish tail.” The better of my sketches
accurately resembles the lowest bird figured in The Handbook, 3 : 57.

Though I had never seen a marsh harrier before, and did not
know what bird I had seen until I got home, there is no doubt of
its identity. A male shot on 12 th May 1881 at Dinnet appears to
be the only previous record for Aberdeenshire. — V. C. Wynne-
Edw^ards, Aberdeen.

Montagu’s Harrier nesting in South-West Scotland. — The

nesting of Montagu’s harrier Circus pygargus in Galloway in 1953
has been reported to me owing to the fact that the female was

42

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ringed. She was one of a brood of nestlings marked in 1951 in
North Wales, and was found dead inside the nest and four eggs on
28th June 1953. — E. P. Leach, B.T.O. Bird-Ringing Committee,
British Museum (Natural History), London.

An illustrated article on the recent breeding of the Montagu’s
harrier in the Central Highlands was published in the Scottish Field,
November 1953, pp. 23-24. — Editors.

Ptarmigan on Kincardineshire coast. — On 22nd November
1953 I came across a cock ptarmigan Lagopus mutus, in winter
plumage, on a stretch of heather only a few acres in extent along
the top of the sea-cliffs between Blowup Nose and Clashrodney,
Banchory Devenick parish. The bird was rather tame, but
appeared to be in good condition ; it had completed the winter
moult, except for a few small dark feathers on the back of the neck.

There had been no unusual gales, and no hard weather, in the
preceding weeks.

The ptarmigan is a frequent visitor at least to the higher hills of
Kincardineshire. Harvie-Brown, in A fauna of the Toy Basin and
Strathmore (1906, p. 277), mentions that “ they are said by some
only to appear in winter and in stormy weather as far east as Mount
Battock and Cairn o’ Mount ; but Sim puts its easternmost breeding
range as at Mount Battock at least ”. Cairn o’ Mount is in
Kincardine, and the boundary passes over the summit of Mount
Battock, the highest point in the county (2,555 feet).

I recently visited Mount Battock for the first time, on 27th
December 1953, and found three ptarmigan sunning themselves
on the Angus side of the summit ; they immediately flew over into
Kincardine ! On 26th April 1947, at the end of an unusually
severe winter, I saw a ptarmigan on Cam mon Earn (1,245 feet),
above the Slug road 8 miles from Stonehaven, and found a large
number of moulted feathers clinging to the heather, so that there
were probably several birds present. — V. C. Wynne-Ed wards,
Aberdeen.

Coot on Isle of Canna. — On 30th January 1954 a coot
{Fulica atra) was caught here on the shore. After recovering from
exhaustion it was liberated. This seems to be the first record of
this bird on Canna. — J. L. Campbell, Canna.

Green Sandpiper at Morton Lochs, Fife, in February. —

On 2ist February 1954 at Morton Lochs, Fife, my wife and I had
an extremely close view of a green sandpiper {Tringa ocrophus) in

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

43

flight. It was flying at about twenty feet up as it approached and
flew over where we were standing, the dark underwing being
clearly seen then. It rose somewhat as it flew on, when we had
excellent views of the blackish upper-parts, white rump and tail.
The bird flew on for some 250 yards before pitching out of sight
near flooded ground near the lochs. — John Grierson, Dundee.

Green Sandpiper at Aberdeen in February. — On i8th
February 1954 I saw a green sandpiper {Tringa ocrophus) feeding
on the shore of the island between the new and old bridges of Don.
It was seen in excellent light, and was in company with dunlins
and redshanks. The uniform very dark colour of the wings, the
conspicuous white of the rump and tail in flight, pure white under-
parts, grey-green legs, and the intermittent bobbing of the tail were
among the recognition characters noted. — V. C. Wynne-Edwards,
Aberdeen.

There have hitherto been few recorded cases of green sandpipers
wintering in central and northern Scotland. Harvie-Brown and
Buckley mention one shot at Helmsdale in the winter of 1879
{Vert. Fauna of Sutherland, Caithness and West Cromarty, p. 222), and
Harvie-Brown states that “ one was entered in the list of specimens
in the Montrose Museum, ‘ shot in December 1882 ’ ” {Fauna of
Tay Basin and Strathmore, p. 322). During the past winter, in
addition to the two instances now reported, there have been at
least two others in Scotland, one in Fife and one in Lanarkshire
{Edin. Bird Bull., 4 : 14, 1954). — Editors.

Knots in South Inverness. — On i8th July 1953 near Traigh,
between Arisaig and Morar, there were three knots Calidris canutus
in summer plumage. The birds were seen only once, and had
gone the next day. — R. S. Weir, Dunfermline.

The knot does not appear to have been recorded previously from
South Inverness. — Editors.

Little Stints in South-East Sutherland. — On 2 7th September
1953 I flushed two little stints Calidris minuta from the area of
salt-marsh adjoining Dornoch Point. The birds resettled a short
distance away and I was able to watch them through binoculars at
close range, obtaining a clear view of plumage details. Both birds
were young in autumn plumage, as are most little stints seen in the
British Isles ( The Handbook, 4 : 244) .

Three days later, on 30th September, Dr. I. D. Pennie and I put
up a single little stint near the same spot. This bird mounted

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fairly high, uttering the repeated “ tit ” note, and disappeared.
Although we searched the area we failed to flush the bird again.

Baxter and Rintoul, in The Birds of Scotland, 2 : 566, state that
“ it occurs occasionally in the northern firths, has not been recorded
from Sutherland and only very rarely from Caithness”.

D. Macdonald, Dornoch, Sutherland.

Temminck’s Stint in East Lothian. — On 26th July 1953 a
Temminck’s Stint Calidris temminckii was observed at Aberlady Bay
Nature Reserve, East Lothian. The bird was consorting with a
large number of dunlin and ringed plover, which were feeding on
the flooded grass saltings and was first distinguished by its call, a
high pitched trill, and its small size. The bird appeared to be an
adult in breeding plumage having a distinct grey bib, white under-
parts and faint buff edgings to its greyish-brown back feathers.
In flight the tail appeared noticeably white with a dark central line.
The bill was black but we were unable to ascertain the exact colour
of the legs although they were definitely light. The bird acted
independently of the accompanying waders and several times flew
off on its own, once climbing to a height of about fifty feet with a
noticeably bat-like flight, during which time it called frequently.

The bird was subsequently seen by ourselves on the 27th, and
on the 28th by Messrs. G. L. and P. W. Sandeman. This is the
second record for the Forth area, the first having been seen at the
same place in 1948 by K.S.M. {Scot. Nat., 61 : 126).

Also present on the 26th July in the same flock as the above
bird, were two adult curlew-sandpipers, Calidris testacea, in breeding
plumage, this being an early date for both species.

K. S. Macgregor and F. D. Hamilton, Edinburgh.

Sanderlings in South Inverness. — With reference to the
recent note {Scot. Nat., 65 : 56), I have spent September 1951 and
1952 between Morar and Arisaig, and have seen small parties of
sanderlings Crocethia alba on many occasions, in both years, in the
sandy bays at Camusdarroch. They were never accompanied by
any other wader. — Mark Kerr, Edinburgh.

At Traigh, between Arisaig and Morar, on the evening of 13th
July 1953, my wife and I saw a sanderling in summer plumage. —
R. S. Weir, Dunfermline.

Siberian Herring-Gull in East Lothian. — On 24th January
1954, at North Berwick, M.F.M.M. discovered an unusual gull of
the argentatus-fuscus group; on his return to Edinburgh he reported

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

45

the fact to K.W., who was successful (in company with Mrs.
Williamson and Mrs. A. W. Thom) in finding the bird next day.
The observers were able to watch it through glasses at distances
under fifty yards.

The gull was consorting with herring gulls Lams a. argentatus,
from which it was readily distinguishable even at a distance with
the naked eye. It was seen in flight, swimming, and standing on
the shore, and its principal field-characters were the dark colour
of mantle and wings and its large size. The former were nearly
as dark as in the British lesser blackback L.f. graellsii but the colour
was slate-blue rather than slate-grey. Comparison of size with
herring gulls was readily obtained; the bird looked longer on the
water, stouter in body, had a greater wing-span, and was a head
taller when standing. It was intermediate in size between L.
marinus and argentatus^ and both of us remarked on its solid, great
blackback-like head. The typical herring gulls near it gave the
impression of not being comfortable in its company when ashore,
retreating from it when approached.

There was no sign of immaturity in the plumage. The tail
was pure white, the primary-tips quite black and the white mirrors
prominent. The head and neck bore the heavy brown streaking
of winter dress. The colour of beak did not differ from that of
typical herring gulls, although perhaps a trifle paler (M.F.M.M.) ;
the legs and feet were pale flesh.

The largest and darkest races of the herring gull are those
inhabiting Siberia from the Petchora eastwards to the Taimyr
Peninsula (L. a. heuglini Bree, = taimyrensis Buturlin, = antelius
Iredale: see Bull. B.O.C., 54: 133, 56: 33, 70: 70) and from Taimyr
eastwards to the Bering Sea, wintering in China and Japan {L. a.
vegae Palmen). The former has the wing up to 475 mm. and the
latter to 480 mm.; both may have flesh-coloured legs and the
tarsus is generally longer than in the typical race. According to
The Handbook of British Birds, 5 : 95, the upper parts of L. a. omissus
Pleske (which may have flesh-coloured legs in Scandinavia and on
the Murman coast) are “ rather darker ” than in the typical race
but the difference cannot be relied upon for safe distinction in the
field. The adequate series of seventy-six specimens of omissus
measured by Stegmann shows a maximum wing-length of 466 mm.,
and this does not suggest a marked size difference from argentatus
(maximum 450 mm., but only twelve measured).

Since the darker, bluer shade of our bird was immediately
apparent, even without the use of glasses, and the size was con-
siderably greater than argentatus, we feel that the bird cannot be

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

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46

omissus and most probably belongs to one of the Siberian forms.
Dresser {Birds of Europe, 8: 417) describes the mantle of heuglini
as “ dark dull slate-blue ” and this form would seem more likely
to wander west than vegae. K.W., on examining a winter skin
of vegae from Japan at the Royal Scottish Museum, thought the
upper parts paler than in the North Berwick bird. Although a
satisfactory subspecific identification is out of the question on field
observation alone, we think it useful to put all these points on
record as it is possible that Siberian herring gulls are more frequent
in winter in Britain than the single definite record suggests. The
race heuglini has been admitted to The Check List of the Birds of Great
Britain and Ireland (1952) on the strength of a specimen (one of three
present) collected by Colonel R. Meinertzhagen at St. Andrews on
19th November 1949 {Bull. B.O.C., 70:70; Ibis, 93:298).

The bird was seen by several observers. On 28th February it
was seen again by M.F.M.M. who noticed that, whereas all typical
herring gulls in adult plumage had pure white heads, it still re-
tained the dark streaking of winter. — M. F. M. Meiklejohn,
Glasgow and Kenneth Williamson, Edinburgh.

Roseate Tern nesting in Angus. — On 7th July 1953, while
investigating a colony of terns at Buddon Ness, Angus, I found the
nest and eggs of a pair of roseate terns {Sterna dougallii). The two
eggs were laid in a bare scrape in the sand, in the midst of a group
of arctic terns {S. macrura), and were a dark buff colour, speckled
and blotched with dark brown. Both birds were seen overhead
while I was at the nest and later one was watched on to the eggs
from about fifty yards range. Several subsequent visits were made
to the area and on 15th July the first egg hatched, the chick having
the ‘‘ spiky ” down characteristic of the species. On 21st July one
egg was still being incubated and was very warm to touch; neither
the first chick, nor the other adult of the pair could be found on
that date. Unfortunately I could not visit the area again after the
2 1 St and do not know whether the second egg did, in fact, hatch.
It is perhaps worth noting that five species of the genus Sterna were
nesting in this small colony (i.e. common tern S. hirundo, arctic tern,
roseate tern, little tern S. albifrons, and Sandwich tern S. sand-
vicensis). — John Grierson, Dundee.

Barn Owl and Jackdaw on Isle of Ganna. — These two birds
arrived here in the bitter southerly gale of 22nd January 1954.
The owl {Tyto alba) was captured in an exhausted condition and
has since died. There seems to be no certain record of a barn

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

47

owl on Canna since 1910. The jackdaw (Corvus monedula) was seen
along with other birds in the field called Bial na Fadhlach. — J. L.
Campbell, Isle of Canna.

Carrick and Waterston in their paper on “ The Birds of Canna ”
{Scot. Mat., 1939 • 5" 1 2) record the jackdaw as an occasional passage
migrant in small numbers in spring and autumn. — Editors.

Late Swift in North Perth. — Mr. George Blackwood informs
us that a swift Apus apus was watched for about half an hour by
Mr. John Hendry at Barrowstoun, Ballinluig, on 21st October
1953. — Editors.

Jay in South-east Sutherland. — I note that Baxter and
Rintoul in The Birds of Scotland, i : 28-32 make no reference to the
jay Garrulus glandarius having been observed in Sutherland. There-
fore it is perhaps worth recording the appearance of a bird in the
town of Dornoch on 23rd September 1944. On that occasion
I was walking along the main street when I heard raucous notes
issuing from a group of lime trees and, on closer inspection, was
rather amazed to find a jay perched on a low branch of one of the
trees. Considering that the unusual visitor was far away from
any recognised breeding area of the species, at the height of a
migratory period, suggests that it may have been a Continental
immigrant. — D. Macdonald, Dornoch, Sutherland.

The St. Kilda Wren in Village Area, Hirta, 1952. — Between
24th July and loth August 1952 a party visited St. Kilda, with
the kind permission of the Marquess of Bute, and were based at the
manse. Village Bay. During that period the distribution of the
wren population in the village area was studied, and as the breeding
season was well advanced with most of the young on the wing, a
simple count of nesting sites could not be carried out. Attempts
were made on several occasions, by different members of the ex-
pedition, to count the number of singing male wrens in the dawn
chorus, all of which proved unsuccessful. A few were heard
between the store and the factor’s house, but these were in no way
representative of the numbers present.

With the assistance of other members of the party, I compiled
information about points in this area where wrens had actually
been seen, and these points were plotted regularly on a map of the
village. In all well over 100 records of wrens were made, and
although the method of census has its limitations, it is evident that
there were twelve or perhaps thirteen fledged families in and around
the village.

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It is thought that the village area within and including the
perimeter wall, with its fixed area of pastureland and fixed amount
of stone cover (ruins, cleits, dykes, storm beach, etc.), presents an
optimal habitat for a definite number of nesting pairs. The line
of the ruins from the store to cottage No. i6 would appear to be a
line of greatest aggregation. In 1931 eleven nesting pairs were
reported from the area, seven of which were situated along the
village “ street ”, one between the street and the beach, and three
between the street and the perimeter wall (Harrisson and Buchan,
1934). This count of seven pairs along the street is consistent
with the pattern as seen in 1952 — seven or eight pairs — but two
pairs had probably nested along the shore, and two pairs between
the street and the perimeter wall (including the perimeter wall).
One pair was found on the hillside just above the perimeter wall
to give a total of thirteen probable nesting pairs.

In 1938 Atkinson made a thorough search of the village area, and
found twelve nesting pairs from an accurate count of occupied nests.
In the following year Messrs. Huxley, Nicholson, Blacker and Fisher
also found the number to be twelve (Nicholson and Fisher, 1940),
and it would appear that twelve pairs may be the optimal density.
The presence in 1952 of twelve pairs within the perimeter wall,
and one pair on the hillside above seems to support this, and may
be a sign of prosperity in the population.

The approximate locations of the family groups recorded in
1952 is as follows :

Between street and sea : Two on storm beach: one near quay and
the other behind the sand.

Along the street (seven or eight groups) : One at the store, gun,
and magazine; one at the manse, and along the street behind; one
at the factor’s house and in the cleits behind to the perimeter wall;
one between cottages i and 2, and down the dry ditch in the
meadows; one between cottages 7 and 9; one between cottages
II and 13; one or two between cottages 14 and 16 and across to
the stream.

Between the street and the perimeter wall (two groups) ; one behind
cottages II and 12 between the graveyard and the perimeter wall;
the other at the perimeter wall among cleits and small sheep fanks
behind cottages 3, 4 and 5.

On hillside above perimeter wall (one group) : one outside the
perimeter wall behind the graveyard and around a cleit roofed
with an upturned boat.

During the period of our visit notes on the wider distribution of
the wren were made, and fledglings were ringed (Bagenal, 1953).

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

49

REFERENCES
Atkinson, R., 1949. Island Going. London.

Bagenal, T. B., 1953. “ The birds of St. Kilda, 1952 Scot. Nat.,

65: 19-23-

Fisher, James, 1948. “ St. Kilda.” New Naturalist Journal, pp. 91-108.

London.

Harrisson, T. H., and J. N. S. Buchan, 1934. “A field study of the

St. Kilda wren T. t. hirtensis, etc.” J. Anim. Ecol., 3: 133- 145.
Nicholson, E. M., and J. Fisher, 1940. “ A bird census of St. Kilda,

1939 ”• Brit. Birds, 34: 29-35.

J. Morton Boyd, Glasgow University.

Some notes on the nesting of a Missel Thrush. — In 1953
a pair of song thrushes {Turdus ericetorum) decided to nest on the
ledge outside my bedroom window in Largo, and on 26th March
began to build their nest of aubretia stalks. These were soon
removed, I thought by the wind, and several other attempts shared
the same fate. When I gathered up the aubretia stalks below the
window, they almost filled a garden creel.

Soon after daybreak on 5th April I was awakened by sounds as
of nest building from my bedroom window ledge and on investigat-
ing found that the dumping and thumping were due to the
activities of a missel thrush [T. viscivorus), who had taken the site
where the thrush had tried to nest. She did a spell of furious
building till about 1 1 a.m., by which time she had the nest well
on, complete with cup, and in the evening she did another short
spell, chiefly on the inside of the cup. Next day she went on with
the lining and gave it the finishing touches on the 7th and 8th.

The nest was built of moss, some aubretia including a stalk
with bright purple flowers, and fine dry grass, mostly as the lining.
The song thrushes came on to the ledge once or twice but were
evicted by the missel thrush, and I concluded she was responsible
for the removal of their nesting material.

The missel thrush laid her first egg on 19th April between 8 a.m.
and 2 p.m. She then went off and I did not see her again till
10 p.m., after which she sat all night. She laid an egg on each of
the three following days before i p.m. She sat every night from
the time she laid her first egg ; from the 13th she sat steadily and
the young hatched on 28th April in a gale of wind and rain. The
hen missel thrush was very tame and let me stand close beside her,
inside the window, or walk below without minding in the least, but
on three occasions when I walked below the window a bird went off
the nest, very wild, probably the cock.

7

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The first two days after the young hatched were very cold and
the hen sat close and fed them very little ; after this she was busy
feeding and brooding them except when she went off for a feed
herself, usually about lo a.m.

By ist May the young had a fine array of quills; the feathery
tips were showing by the 3rd ; on 7th May they began to preen but
weren’t very good at it, and by next day they were preening more
vigorously. The hen’s day’s work at this time lasted from 4.30 a.m.
to g.30 p.m. From 5th May onwards I several times saw two adults
at the nest feeding the young, usually with huge beakfuls of worms,
but once one of them fed the babies with something quite small, I
couldn’t see what. Presumably the cock was giving a hand with
the job.

From 4th May onwards the hen did not brood the young during
the day-time and on gth May she did not brood them at night
though it was fairly cold. They were now pretty well covered with
feathers. On gth May the young were stretching and flapping
their wings in the nest ; next day they stood on the edge of the
nest and flapped and preened most vigorously, apparently getting off
bits of quill covering. On 1 1 th May one came out of the nest at
6.40 a.m. and walked to and fro on the ledge for a bit. By 8 a.m. it
had flown. Number two came out on to the ledge about 8.30 a.m.
by g.30 it had gone. The parents spent a most agitated day,
driving away the rooks and everything else they saw, and feeding
the young in tree and nest. Next day the remaining two flew before
g a.m. ; none of them fluttered down to the ground but flew into a
neighbouring beech tree. They had been quite silent in the nest
but once they had flown were clamorous for food. They were last
seen on 14th May.

I hoped there would have been a second brood in the nest which
was quite clean, but the hen built another nest in the rone above my
front door, not a good site, as the nest with an egg in it was blown
away bodily on 25th May. Later she built a third nest, high in a
beech tree, and reared her brood there.

Missel thrushes so seldom breed in a situation where they can be
closely watched that it seems worth while to record the foregoing
observations in detail. — Evelyn V. Baxter, Upper Largo, Fife.

The Redwing nests in Shetland. — In an appendix to Dr.
H. L. Saxby’s Birds of Shetland is a note from a journal kept by the
doctor while staying in North Wales in 1855. Under the heading
“ First Recorded Nesting of the Redwing in Britain ” is described
the finding of a nest in a bay tree from which had been flushed a

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

51

redwing Turdus musicus. The exact locality in North Wales is not
mentioned. Corroboration is given by Richard Owen (not the
same as the celebrated professor) who accompanied the doctor
at the time. Nest and eggs are accurately described. The
record, however, does not appear to have been accepted as, when
The Handbook was published, only three nesting records for Britain
were given, namely the pair which nested unsuccessfully in the
Moray area in 1932 and again in 1933 and the pair which bred and
reared young at the Fair Isle in 1935.*

Dr. Saxby’s residence in Shetland was Halligarth House,
Baltasound, in the island of Unst, where his grandson, Mr. Stephen
Saxby, lives today. About the middle of June 1953 a rumour
reached Lerwick that a pair of redwings were nesting in the
Halligarth garden. Before accepting this rather remarkable story I
felt that I should like to see one of the birds and accordingly visited
Unst at the first opportunity. Mr. Saxby told a tale of disaster.
I was shown a broken nest in a fuchsia bush with half an egg-shell
lying on the ground ; probably the depredations of a cat. The
nest had earth in it and was lined with fine grass and the egg-shell
resembled that of a blackbird but the egg had been smaller and was
distinctly greener in ground colour. Evidently the birds were
redwings and they had been about until the day before, but I failed
to get a glimpse of them. Scarcely a week after these events I had
a letter from Mr. Saxby, dated 2nd July, informing me that the birds
had nested again in a fuchsia bush, but this time in the cottage
garden at Wullvershool a short distance up the hill. There were
four eggs and all was going well. (Dr. H. L. Saxby’s widow, Mrs.
Jessie Saxby the authoress, had lived at Wullvershool cottage for
very many years and died there, a nonagenarian, in 1940.) Four
young birds were hatched on 12th July and on the 17th I again
visited the island of Unst. The garden at Wullvershool is not a

* Saxby’s record was also published in The Zoologist, 1861 : 7427, where the
locality is given as Maentwrog, in the vale of Ffestiniog. The nest as described
could just possibly have been a blackbird’s, and so of course could the eggs, of
which one was sent to Saunders. Saxby, already an ornithologist of great promise,
was nineteen at the time, and the first suggestion that the bird they put off the
eggs was a redwing came not from him but from his companion Owen. On
revisiting the nest two days later Saxby says he “ distinctly saw a redwing sitting
upon the eggs ”, and “ obtained a still better view of her as she caught sight of
me and flew off”. She was sitting on each of the next three days, but thereafter
the nest was deserted. Mention is not actually made of the recognition char-
acters which Saxby saw himself, though he refers to “ the peculiar sound it
uttered We think an impartial judge, having in mind the degree of improb-
ability of the event, and weighing up all the evidence now remaining, must
conclude with Newton (in Yarrell’s Brit. Bds., 4th Ed., i : 269, 1871) that, though
this was “ perhaps the best authenticated ” case of breeding then known in
Britain, it must still be “ regarded with doubt ”. — Editors.

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large one and, during my visit, six young children were playing in it,
with injunctions, however, not to go too near to the fuchsia bush. A
domestic hen had a nest under the bush, which was visited every
morning, and near the top, about 4 feet from the ground, was a
nest containing four young birds which were being fed every few
minutes by two undoubted redwings. Earlier I had had doubts as
to the advisability of attempting to photograph bird or nest, but the
tenant of the cottage, Mr. George Inkster, assured me that the birds
were quite used to the children (as was quite evident) and that there
would be no risk of upsetting them. A hide was erected and a friend
took a few stills in colour and I secured a cine record of the occasion
while the feeding of the young birds went steadily forward. They
were all successfully fledged a few days later. — G. T. Kay, Lerwick.

Red-spotted Bluethroat in Angus. — On 27th September
1953 I saw a red-spotted bluethroat Luscinia svecica in the beds of
common reed bordering a swamp near the mouth of the Buddon
Burn, Angus.

The bird was under observation for five short periods between
12.30 and 2.15 p.m. ; the rest of the time it spent down amongst
the reeds presumably feeding. When flushed it flew for a short
distance only, before diving among the reeds again. During the
two periods when most of my observations on plumage details
were made, it clung to the top of a reed stem and while in this
position flicked its tail incessantly and kept up a continuous “ chac-
chac-chac ” or “ tak-tak-tak ” call. The following are extracts
from my field notes on plumage taken at the time : “ crown very
dark brown, light eye-stripe ; chin orange, bounded by two dark
patches appearing black ; blue crescent across upper breast,
orange-red below shading through orange on the breast to buff on
lower breast, belly and under tail-coverts.”

I believe this is the first record for Angus and the sixth for the |
Scottish mainland. — W. H. Wild, Dundee. !

This species has been recorded twice from the Bell Rock, off the I
Angus coast, some 12 miles E.S.E. of Arbroath, but we have not ;i|
traced any record for the mainland of Angus. — Editors. i

A Phylloscopine Warbler Wintering in Fife. — A warbler, ij
either a willow warbler {Phylloscopus trochilus) or a chiffchaff (P. _

collybita), frequented my garden near Dunfermline for more than |
three weeks, first on 14th January 1954 (when it was seen twice), |
and thereafter on the i6th, 20th (when it was again seen twice), |
31st and 9th February. It was in rather drab plumage, but was I;

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

53

lively enough, and appeared to be feeding on something on the
undersides of the cabbage leaves. Trapping was out of the ques-
tion, as it stayed only for a few minutes on each visit, and seemed
to come only on the coldest days. The ground was covered by
2 or 3 inches of snow on the 31st, so that when it reappeared on
gth February it had managed to survive a period of very wintry
weather.

I had excellent close views, having to turn down my glasses for
close vision, viewing at six to seven yards. On one occasion
I stood right over it as it fed on one side of a large cabbage. Its
underparts were whitish, showing no sign at all of buff or yellow,
the mantle drab or pale green, and greener on the wings. There
was an indistinct or pale eye-stripe, and the legs were definitely
blackish, or at least very dark indeed. — J. Hoy, Dunfermline, Fife.

From the above description it would seem that this warbler was
a chiffchaff, either of the Siberian {P. c. tristis) or Scandinavian
(P. c. abietinus) race. Both races are passage migrants in Scotland,
the Siberian being rarely recorded except in the Northern Isles,
and in 1913 one was in Shetland as late as 27th December. On
Fair Isle Dr. Eagle Clarke observed them chiefly in cabbage plots.
— Editors.

Probable American Pipit at Fair Isle. — When I was
observing along the tops of the west cliffs at Fair Isle on 17th
September 1953 I came upon a bird which at first glance I took to
be an immature flava wagtail. When I used my binoculars it was
at once apparent that the plumage-pattern was entirely wrong for
a wagtail, and for the reasons given below I had to conclude that
the bird was an American pipit Anthus spinoletta rubescens. It was
a darker, richer brown above than our own rock pipits A. s.
kleinschmidti^ a number of which were feeding as usual on the close-
cropped grassy ground behind the cliffs. There was a clear, pale
eye-stripe. The most striking feature of the plumage was the buff
underside, richest on the brown-streaked breast, so that the upper
and underparts afforded a greater and more colourful contrast than
in the rock pipit, in which the olivaceous wash renders the breast-
plumage very dull at a short distance. A suggestion of the huffish
coloration invaded the sides of the head, and there were pale tips
to the median and greater coverts. The outer tail-feathers were
white and this fact was readily noticeable even when the bird was
at rest, owing to the wagtail-like flicking of the tail.

I should perhaps say that I have had previous experience in
the field, affording good opportunities for observing behaviour

54

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

and call-notes, of all seven species of British pipits; but that my |
knowledge of the south European and American races of j
spinoletta is founded on museum material. These races appear to
be distinctive in autumn plumage from the specimens I have seen,
the breast and belly of the European water-pipit being whiter than
in the rock pipit, and in the American bird strongly suffused with
buff, as in the case of the bird watched at Fair Isle. On behaviour,
the pipit with which the American is perhaps most likely to be
confused is the tawny pipit Anthus campestris, which also is very
wagtail-like in its movements: but the tawny is a pale-looking,
almost sandy bird with a greenish-olive cast in the mantle plumage,
and without the colourful contrast between mantle and breast
noted in the present instance. Moreover, it has a soft “ tee-up ”
call-note quite different from the one given by the Fair Isle bird,
which rose with a note I wrote down as “ syit, syit ” — very like
the call of the rock pipit, but higher in pitch, clearer and more
incisive.

Although I feel confident that this identification is correct I am
recording this case as a “ probable ” because I was not able to
get a second observer to confirm, nor was I able to trap or collect
the bird. There have been two records of the American pipit in
the British Isles, at St. Kilda on 30th September 1910 {Ann. Scot.
Nat. Hist., 1911: 52), and Great Saltee, south-east Ireland, from
8th- 1 6th October 1951 {Brit. Birds, 45: 325-326). It is possible
the bird is more frequent in Britain than these records suggest,
since it breeds in low-arctic Greenland and could conceivably
reach this country in the weather responsible for the Lapland
bunting Calcarius lapponicus immigration in autumn (see pp. 20-
21). — Kenneth Williamson, Fair Isle Bird Observatory.

Perthshire Pied Flycatchers, 1953. — In continuation of two
previous records for 1950 and 1952 {Scot. Nat., 62 : 180 ; 64 :
169), in 1953 I had two pied flycatchers Muscicapa hypoleuca nesting
in boxes in North Perth. One was on the shores of Loch Tay, in
hardwood scrub with standards, within 100 yards of the 1950 box,
which was occupied by redstarts both in 1952 and 1953. There
were six eggs on 26th May, and five seven-day nestlings on 12 th
June, with one addled egg. In 1951 I put up eleven boxes on 5th
May, in a pure oak wood on the banks of the Tay at Strathtay, with
the object of catching these flycatchers coming down the Tay from
Argyll, as I think they do. Eight of them were in use by loth May,
indicating a severe local housing shortage, but there were no fly-
catchers. On 26th May 1953 there was a nest and seven eggs of this

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

55

species in one of the boxes, and six nestlings, about a day younger
than the Loch Tay lot, with the inevitable addled egg, on 12th June.
Allowing thirteen days for incubation, this means the first egg was
laid in both nests about i8th May. It was a late and cold spring.

I do not know what happened to the west and north of Loch Tay
in 1953, but the Strathtay nest represents a spread east of ten miles
from the 1952 nest, and fourteen from the 1950 one. It is inter-
esting as showing that the spread of this species can be anticipated
and helped, as nest sites are definitely scarce and in the main
occupied when the bird arrives. Tits and tree-creepers take most
of them ; then redstarts arrive, with pied flycatchers a bad last up
here. In 1953, in some sites, my redstart nestlings were a day or so
older than the great tits (the last of the tits to nest, being a few days
after blue tits and a fortnight after coal tits and tree-creepers).
Great tits, however, take their boxes and start building some time
before the redstarts arrive. The pied flycatcher dates for the first
egg were about i8th May in 1950, and 14th May in 1952. In Dr.
Eggeling’s two nests in 1952, the first eggs would have been laid
about loth May in Glen Lyon, four miles west of my nest, and about
5th May in Glen Lochay, fifteen miles west. This agrees with
birds coming in from Argyll. Both cocks were seen in 1953, and
were in normal plumage. — J. M. D. Mackenzie, St. Andrews.

We wish to congratulate Mr. Mackenzie on the success of his
thoughtful distribution of nest-boxes for pied flycatchers in Perth-
shire ; we are convinced that an extension of this work would
produce valuable results. — Editors.

Pied Flycatcher in Morayshire. — A fine male pied flycatcher
Muscicapa hypoleuca frequented Gordonstoun gardens, Elgin, from ist
to 3rd May 1953, after which date it was not seen again.

R. Richter, Gordonstoun.

The Food of the Scarlet Grosbeak. — The scarlet grosbeak
Carpodacus erythrinus has been recorded eating oats on Fair Isle
{Scot, JVat., 61 : 23), but with this exception there seems to be no
record of its food in Britain. It may therefore be worth recording
that a bird of this species, observed by us on the Isle of May on
7th September 1952, fed in one of the gardens, on the seeds of
sow-thistles, Sonchus arvensis and oleraceus. Gaetke records the seeds
of the latter as being the usual food of the species on Heligoland
{Heligoland, p. 407) — an observation overlooked by The Handbook of
British Birds, which does not mention the seeds of any herbaceous

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

56

plant in its account of the scarlet grosbeak’s food, — M. F. M.
Meiklejohn, Glasgow, and A. G. S. Bryson, Edinburgh.

Tree Sparrows in Kinross. — On 4th November 1953, about
1 1 miles due west of the south end of Loch Leven, I saw two tree
sparrows Passer montanus. In the same area, on 14th and i8th
November three at least were present.

In The Geographical Distribution and Status of Birds in Scotland
(Baxter and Rintoul, 1928) no record is given for the tree sparrow
for Kinross ; in their Vertebrate Fauna of Forth (1935) they state :
“We have at present no record of the tree sparrow in East Stirling,
South Perth, Clackmannan or Kinross ”, and this is not altered by
any statement contained in The Birds of Scotland (1953). — Dr. R. S.
Weir, Dunfermline.

A second record of the Water Shrew in Skye. — A young
water shrew JVeomys fodiens was found by Donald Walker of Portree
Secondary School on the afternoon of 2nd October 1953, in a shallow
roadside ditch on outskirts of Portree; it was alive and unhurt.
It ate a little, but died in two hours. It was identified in school
and confirmed by Dr. Stephen of the Royal Scottish Museum. —
Iain M. Murray, Portree.

The water shrew was recorded from Skye for the first time in
1951 {Scot. Nat., 63: 199). Long ago it was reported to occur on
Arran (E. R. Alston, 1880, Fauna of Scotland: Mammalia, Glasgow,
p. 10) and on Kerrera (W. Borrer, Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1893: iii,
referring to the year 1836). There are no other acceptable records
known to us for any of the Scottish isles. — Editors.

Walrus at Collieston. — On 24th February 1954, a very rare
visitor in the form of a walrus {Odobenus rosmarus) appeared on the
Aberdeenshire coast. This animal, which was almost certainly an
immature female, was first seen on the shore about a mile south of
Collieston by some of the villagers. Later it put off to sea again
and was subsequently found lying on a rock about half a mile to
the north of the village, where the photograph (facing p. i) was
taken about 5.30 p.m.

Since the walrus was alive (very much so as we found when we
got within fifteen feet of it and it charged!) it was impossible to
make accurate measurements of it. The length, however, was
estimated at about seven feet and the weight at nearly half a ton.
The tusks protruded about ten inches from the mouth. Lying
there on the rocks it looked just like a young bull. There was a

1954

CORRESPONDENCE

57

slight wound on its right shoulder, which it probably received as it
clambered on to the rocks out of a fairly rough sea.

Until about a century ago the walrus was a fairly frequent
visitor to British waters. At that time it was very abundant in all
the Arctic regions. Since then, however, it has suffered extreme
persecution at the hands of man in search of its ivory and oil. The
result is that it is now confined to the more remote and inaccessible
parts of the polar region, which are so far away that it seldom
reaches our coasts.

In the Scottish Naturalist of 1920 Professor James Ritchie gave a
list of twenty-four records of walruses seen in British waters. Since
then only two further cases have been recorded — one in Shetland
in October 1926 [Scot. Nat., 1926: 140) and one at Gairloch in
May 1928 {id., 1928: 76). So far as I know this is the first walrus
ever actually recorded in Aberdeenshire. It disappeared during
the night and does not appear to have been seen again. — Bruce
Forman, Aberdeen University.

CORRESPONDENCE

The Editors,

The Scottish Naturalist

Dear Sirs,

14 St. Helen’s Road,

Harrogate, Yorkshire
2^th May, 1954

Unusual Numbers of Scaup Inland

Records of scaup {Aythya marila) appearing inland in
Yorkshire during the past winter, 1953-54, have been unusually
numerous and I should be interested to know if these occurrences
have been peculiar to Yorkshire only or whether this species has
been recorded inland in many parts of the British Isles. Scaup
have been more numerous on the Yorkshire coast this last winter
than for some years and large flocks have been seen elsewhere.

For the purpose of this enquiry, therefore, I should be most
grateful if the following information could be sent to me at 14 St.
Helen’s Road, Harrogate, Yorkshire:

{a) All records of scaup occurring inland in Scotland (except
Central Scotland) including the number, sex, date, locality (whether
lake, reservoir, river or floodwater), nearest town, and a brief
remark as to whether the observer regards the birds’ inland appear-
ance as unusual in his or her area.

[b) Records of unusually large flocks of scaup on the Scottish
coasts this last winter.

8

Yours truly,

A. F. C. WALKER.

58

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

BOOK REVIEWS

A Field Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe. By Roger Peterson, Guy
Mountfort and P. A. D. Hollom; introduction by Julian Huxley.
London: Collins, 1954. Pp. 352, 1200 illustrations, 650 in colour,
and distribution maps. 25s.

This eagerly awaited work is no disappointment : it is, indeed, about as
good as it could be within such a small compass, and Mr. Peterson seems
likely to repeat the success of his American Field Guides. His pictures have
the great merits of looking like birds and of showing clearly those features
by which they are most readily identifiable. Perhaps his greenshank has
too little white on the back, his Bonelli’s eagle too light spots on the under-
side ; perhaps a few more illustrations might have been fitted in of difficult
immature plumages, as of the skuas or the subalpine warbler — but the
user of this book will be more than well served by its copious and excellent
illustrations. The text, too, is above reproach; after a complete reading
I can only find a single error — which may be a slip of the pen — namely,
that it is inferred that the mealy redpoll is the breeding race of redpoll in
the Alps. I disagree with a few statements (that the call of the Syrian
woodpecker differs from that of the greater spotted, and that the female
black-headed and red-headed buntings are indistinguishable in the field),
but these are matters of opinion. We are disappointed that the method
of identifying kittiwakes at a distance, by their dark back, is not advised,
and that the hooded and carrion crows are still treated as distinct species;
but we welcome the inclusion of American passerines and the placing in
different species of the bean and pink-footed geese.

Mr. Hollom’s maps are accurate and helpful; unfortunately their
small size makes it virtually impossible to include such minutiae of dis-
tribution as the small colony of little ringed plover in Yorkshire, or the
wintering station of the black-tailed godwit in Scotland. Such recent and
little known records as that of the breeding of the dotterel on the Maiella
in southern Italy have been taken into account, though the occasional
breeding of the wood sandpiper in Britain has not.

The major defect of the book is the bibliography, which appears to be
a work of publicity rather than scholarship. In a list of “ the leading
ornithological handbooks and check-lists concerning the birds of Europe ”
are included the names of several writers whose works are published by
Messrs. Collins, but not those of Dresser, Coward and Baxter and Rintoul !

Though prejudiced against this book by its omission of the Scottish
Ornithologists’ Club from the list of the principal British ornithological
societies, I nevertheless must praise it enthusiastically. Reviewers in the
press have chiefly treated it as a useful companion for trips abroad, but.

BOOK REVIEWS

1954

59

while it is certainly this, we should not forget that it is also the best book
of its kind on the birds of Britain. — M. F. M. M.

The Birds of the British Isles. By D. A. Bannerman and G. E. Lodge.

Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1953. Vol. i, pp. 356, with 41 coloured

plates. 45s.

This beautifully produced book, the first of a series which will be published
over a period of years, deals in some 350 pages with the Corvidae, Sturnidae,
Oriolidae, and Fringillidae ; two more will be needed to complete the
Passerine birds. Dr. Bannerman in the preface tells how the idea originated
from a wish of his old friend, the late George E. Lodge, to illustrate entirely
a book on British birds. The completed work will include 385 full-page
colour plates, illustrating 426 species.

The present volume contains 41 plates; one has become so accustomed
to the crowded illustrations of modern bird books, where often the chief
aim has been the identification of birds in the field, that the arrangement
of these pictures, with their complete disregard for limitations of space,
comes as a refreshing surprise. Some depict only a single bird, many
just a pair in adult plumage. In the majority the birds themselves occupy
only a small part of the space, the remainder being devoted to conveying
the atmosphere of the natural habitat, a pleasing and restful technique
which has been most successful.

Dr. Bannerman has been responsible for the text, and it is important
that the critical reader should study his preface thoroughly. Here it is
made clear that the aim has been to produce a readable book which can
be enjoyed at leisure; it is not intended to be a text book, nor is it in any
way a potted Handbook, full of all the most up-to-date facts on British
birds. Indeed the author states frankly that much of the modern work
on ornithology, particularly in its biological aspect, does not appeal to
him, and he has made full use of the writings of the nineteenth-century
ornithologists which he considers make far more interesting reading. The
classification follows that of the last edition of Wither by’s Handbook, and
not that now generally adopted. The text is divided under species into
sections on identification, local distribution, distribution abroad, habits,
migrations, and breeding habits. Those on habits and migrations contain
much information from observations made by the author on his many
visits abroad, supplemented by other hitherto unpublished material, which
has been made available by certain ornithologists who have also been
fortunate in studying birds on the British list overseas. These sections
are important and are in general treated more fully than the others.

Very few printer’s errors were noticed; on page 330 Caprestris should
be campestris and “ Amonphila ” Ammophila. In the footnote on page 90
quoting Howard Saunders, 3rd edn., “ Uist ” should read Unst.

Dr. Bannerman and the publishers, Messrs. Oliver and Boyd, are to be
congratulated on adding another beautiful work to the literature of British
Birds.— J. W. C.

6o

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

Indoor Aquaria. By D. Latimer-Sayer. London: English Universities
Press Ltd., 1954. Pp. 185. 6s.

The author has succeeded in condensing a large amount of up-to-date
knowledge of aquarium management between the covers of this most
lucid, attractive and exceedingly well illustrated little book. Although
intended for the beginner it deserves a place on every practical naturalist’s
bookshelf. Only one small error needs comment — young trout, being
relatively large, will not feed on “ infusoria ” or “ powder suspensions ”

(p. i23).-T. a. S.

New Concepts in Flowering-Plant Taxonomy. By J. Heslop-Harrison.

London: William Heinemann, 1953. Pp. viii + 135, 12 text-figures.

6s.

Naturalists who are keen to identify flowering plants in the held some-
times find it hard to understand why their “ floras ” seem often to introduce
difficulties into this process, rather than remove them. The taxonomist
is blamed for confusion in nomenclature and for failure of the printed
description to tally exactly with the specimen. After reading this book,
however, these doubts and difficulties will be rapidly changed into an
active interest in the principles and problems of taxonomy. In an ad-
mirably clear account. Dr. Heslop-Harrison analyses the outlook of classical
taxonomy, viewing it in the light of recent studies of the causes of variability
within plant populations and the means by which such populations become
differentiated one from another. Contributions from ecology and cytology
are considered, and the present position is summed up by a comparison
between the aims of “ experimental ” and “ orthodox ” taxonomy. A
future is envisaged in which experimental studies of evolutionary processes
will contribute to “ an expanded but not wholly revolutionised taxonomy ”.

The book may be recommended without reserve to all who have a
grounding in botanical science, to naturalists as well as to professional
botanists and students (all technical terms are defined in a glossary). A
great revival of interest in botanical taxonomy has taken place in recent
years, and it is of the utmost value to have an up-to-date summary of an
expanding branch of science made available with a minimum of delay
in publication. If parts of it soon become dated, this will be a tribute to
its value in stimulating research and observation, and in stabilising the
present riot of terminology in this field. In this small monograph the
virtues of clear writing, attractive production and reasonable cost are
combined. — C. H. G.

How Animals Move. By James Gray, illustrated by Edward Bawden.

Cambridge : University Press, 1953. Pp. 114, 15 plates, 52 text figs.

1 6s.

The study of the mechanics of animal movement by the methods of exact
science reaches back to the days of Galileo, whose disciple Borelli pioneered

1954

BOOK REVIEWS

6i

the way in a famous treatise. Among twentieth-century zoologists Professor
James Gray of Cambridge is the outstanding representative of this dis-
tinguished lineage. How Animals Move presents the substance of his Royal
Institution lectures (“ adapted to a juvenule auditory ”) given at Christmas
1951. The introductory chapter discusses some important general
principles in relation to locomotion and body movements. Chapters
follow on swimming, walking and running, jumping and creeping, gliding
and flapping flight. The mechanical principles of these are admirably
treated, with an agreeable minimum of mathematical terms and a wealth of
apposite examples covering a great part of the animal kingdom. These
range from the acrobatics of flies, fleas and grasshoppers, the behaviour of
the “ radar ” fish Gymnarchus and the way (or ways) of a serpent, to the
running of a hooked trout, the salmon’s leap, a high pheasant gliding and
the movements of human athletes.

The book provides a fresh and lucid introduction to the subject for
student and layman alike and at the same time brings the reader into close
contact with the most recent extensions of knowledge in this field. Here
Professor Gray’s own contributions illuminate many of the problems
involved, and the current researches of several colleagues, whose ready
co-operation is warmly acknowledged, are effectively introduced. Simple
though the presentation is the work is a notable one.

The original lectures were supported by demonstrations of living
animals of all sorts introduced into the auditorium. In the printed version
line diagrams, photographs and black and white drawings fortify the text.
The two former are admirable adjuncts, but some of the latter (e.g. p. 43,
and the curious bear picture, p. 64) hardly conform to the standard of the
book.— R. M. N.

Freshwater Microscopy by W. J. Garnett. London : Constable and Co.,
1953. Pp. 300, 50 plates, 51 text figs. 30s.

This work combines elementary natural history and relatively advanced
microscopy of freshwater organisms. In some measure the author disarms
criticism in advance by the introductory statement that his aim is to
“ describe and illustrate some of the commoner species of aquatic animals
and plants which can be observed under the microscope while alive ”,
selecting those that he himself has collected and examined. Within these
limits he has produced a pleasantly written guide book for the naturalist
and collector who is sufficiently interested in the technics of microscopy to
profit from the variety of practical directions contained within its covers.

Opening chapters on collecting and on examining the catch are very
good, but twenty pages on microscopic equipment — a condensed handbook
of microscopy — may needlessly deter the newcomer with limited resources
or facilities. An appendix (II) and a chapter on permanent mounts
designed to “ indicate the general method of approach ” are likely to be of
most value to the expert, despite the elementary remarks on staining.
The larger part of the book, chapters IV-XIV, is devoted to the survey of

62

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

various forms of freshwater plants and animals, chiefly inhabitants of still
waters. The author’s selections include many of the most interesting types.
He is most at home with “ truly microscopic ” Protozoa, Algae, Rotifera
and Entomostraca. Other invertebrate animal groups fare less well : thus
aquatic insects occupy but fourteen pages of text largely devoted to a single
Ephemeropteran nymph, Chloeon, and stages of a few of the commoner
Diptera. There are 51 text figures, a frontispiece and 50 other plates.
Many of the latter are of high quality and good use is made of them in
references throughout the text.

While the work has many merits for naturalist and technician the
author should reflect on his concluding sentence on page i and eliminate
errors in biological technicalities if, as he hopes, schools and university
students are to favour his book. To take a few examples : Limnea peregre
{Limnaea pereger) p. 19 1 : Shistostoma {Schistosoma) p. 192 : Paramoecium
{Paramecium) chap. IX (which becomes Paramoeceum in Fig. 35) : Spherium
{Sphaerium) p. 221 : “ prostomum ” (prostomium) pp. 195, 197, etc.
These may be mere misprints (though they recur in the index) but the
glossary (pp. 288-291) informs us that “ cercaria ” is the plural of
“ cercarium ”. It is so used in the text (p. 191) where also “ redia ” is
used for “ rediae ”. According to the glossary, palps would seem restricted
to insects and arachnids, while cilia beat in “ metachromal ” rhythm. On
p. 150 “ the ‘ metachromal ’ rhythm ” of “ Paramoecium ” is discussed.
It is suggested that this co-ordinated action of cilia prevents our regarding
protozoa as unicellulars, since it indicates a “ more elaborate organisation
than is found in the individual cells of higher animals A cell in the
epithelium of, say, a mussel’s gill may well set its cilia beating wildly in
protest at this statement. — R. M. N.

Poplars. By T. R. Peace. Forestry Commission Bulletin No. 19. Lon-
don : H.M. Stationery Office, 1952. 50 pp. and 24 pp. of plates.

7s. 6d.

The limited occurrence of poplar species in Scotland may well limit the
interest of the field naturalist in the contents of this bulletin. Yet those
with a woodland bent will find th-e publication a valuable introduction to
a branch of forestry which is expanding rapidly in Europe and may yet
find its place in Scotland.

The author begins by describing the various species, varieties and hy-
brids of poplars with reference to certain silvicultural characters such as
crown habit and resistance to canker ; the accompanying key to identifica-
tion is a useful complement. The second chapter outlines the practice of
silviculture both in the nursery and in the plantation, and the section on
the rate of growth and yield is especially revealing. A tree which can be
cropped on a rotation of thirty years and which may easily exceed 1 00 feet
in that period is not to be despised, in spite of the prejudice which exists
against its timber. Then follows a large and descriptive chapter on the
pests and diseases of the poplar species. It is illustrated by a number of

BOOK REVIEWS

1954

63

excellent photographs of these agents and the injuries they inflict. Finally
the utilisation of poplar timber is discussed.

With the present range of species and hybrids, poplar planting must be
highly speculative in Scotland. The subject cannot be said to carry
general interest, yet the naturalist who picks up the bulletin will find it a
very readable account drawn from a wide experience in the field and from
a large bibliography. It may fill a useful but not essential place in his
library.

Sea Birds. By James Fisher and R. M. Lockley. London : Collins,

1954. Pp. xvi + 320. 25s.

The latest number in Collins’ New Naturalist series. Sea Birds, has been
eagerly awaited since its first announcement five years ago. A more
suitably qualified partnership than Fisher and Lockley for such an enter-
prise would be difficult to imagine, and the authors, both well known
individually for their work on sea-birds, have now combined to produce a
banquet of information for the ornithological gourmet.

Although the series is concerned primarily with British natural history,
the authors have not limited their scope to these islands, but have compiled
a survey of the evolution, distribution, population, migration and behaviour
of every sea-bird found in the area of the North Atlantic, and of allied
species in the southern hemisphere. The chapter on evolution includes a
full discussion of the relationships of the Larus argentatus-fuscus group of
gulls, in which the Iceland gull (which has never bred in Iceland) is
included, with a commendation that the name “ Greenland herring-
gull, Larus argentatus glaucoides ” should be adopted. (It must be pointed out
that Plate XXVIIa, which appears over the caption “ Immature glaucous
gull ”, has already been published both in British Birds (1947, PI. 53) and
in Alexander’s Birds of the Ocean as an immature Iceland gull. Unfor-
tunately no other picture of a glaucous gull is included, although there are
two others of Iceland gulls.)

World populations of sea-birds vary from less than a hundred individuals
in the case of the Bermudan cahow to at least fifteen million puffins, but
the authors see no reason to depart from Fisher’s previous opinion that
Wilson’s petrel is the most numerous bird in the world. Factors controlling
the numbers of sea-birds are discussed.

A series of “ map-nets ” illustrates the world breeding distribution, and
in many cases the dispersal and migration of the species discussed in the
text. These will be found particularly valuable and place the book in a
unique position as a work of reference.

The selection of plates must be no easy task, and on the whole these
have been well chosen. The colour plates of the storm-petrel and great
blackback by Robert Atkinson are outstanding, and it is a pity that con-
siderations of cost must limit the use of such fine work. A fine painting
by R. T. Peterson of the near-extinct cahow forms a most attractive
frontispiece. It is noted that the captions of Plates XlVa and b have been

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

64

Vol. 66, ig§4

transposed. Plate XVII^ shows a gannet in the attitude adopted when
about to take flight from a crowded colony and it is stated in the text that
this attitude may be associated with the Ailing of subcutaneous air cells
and suggests fear of attack from the bills of neighbouring birds. The
explanation given by Barruel {Vie et moeurs des oiseaux, p. 172) that this
posture is a warning of impending flight to prevent provocation of panic
in the colony sounds more convincing.

The authors are to be congratulated on writing a book which not only
may be read right through with enjoyment and profit, but which will be
retained as a work of reference by the more serious student. I. D. P.

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CONTENTS

PAGE

Report on Birds of the Clyde Area, 1953 — M. F. M.

Meiklejohn and C. E. Palmar . . . . 65

The Mountain Hare in Scotland in 1951 — Raymond Hewson . 70

Notes on the Birds of Glen Moidart, Inverness-shire — •

F. D. Hamilton, K. S. Macgregor and R. C. F. ^amboni 89

Migration along the North-west Coast of Scotland — T. G.

Longstaff 94

The Macrolepidoptera of the Isle of Canna — J. L. Campbell 10 1

Zoological Notes . . . . . . 93, 121

r. V /

The Scottish Naturalist

Volume 66, No. 2 1954

REPORT ON BIRDS OF THE CLYDE AREA, 1953*

M. F. M. Meiklejohn and C. E. Palmar
Glasgow

Like its predecessors, this fourth annual report is confined to
records of rarer species, or unusual observations of more
familiar ones, in the Clyde watershed and the adjacent country
around Aberfoyle which, though in the Forth area, is habitually
worked from Glasgow.

We are grateful for the co-operation we have received :
the high standard of the notes is encouraging and we feel that
this report is now firmly established, providing a focus for
observers in this large, but thinly-watched faunal area.

Records of the distribution and breeding of commoner
birds are valuable and have been filed. We hope to publish
material derived from these at no very remote date.

We would like to thank all those who have been kind
enough to send us notes. The contributors of the observations
below are : D. G. Andrew, A. G. S. Bryson, H. F. Cochrane,
Mrs. G. M. T. Conacher, the Misses Conacher, P. E. D. Cooper,
H. Dacker, Miss W. U. Flower, F. D. Hamilton, Ian Hay,
L. S. Hodgkinson, Cdr. G. Hughes-Onslow, G. A. Johnson,
G. Kerr, Miss M. I. Kinnear, K. S. Macgregor, H. Mayer-Gross,
J. H. B. Munro, R. Napier, W. K. Richmond, Miss E.
Robertson, G. L. Sandeman, J. A. Thomson, L. A. Urquhart,
the Rev. E. T. Vernon, G. Waterston, J. Wightman and the
compilers.

Unless otherwise stated, all dates apply to 1953.

Little Grebe Podiceps rujicollis, Hamilton, 21st Sep-
tember, over eighty were seen on the rubbish-dump pool

* Received 30/A March 1 954

65

9

66

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

(D. G. A., G. L. S.). This large scale autumn passage
occurred also in 1952 {antea 65 ; 115).

Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus. Mr. D. C. Lawrence,
Gurator of the Dick Institute, Kilmarnock, informs us that the
Institute possesses a male little bittern obtained at Maidens,
Ayrshire, in the early spring of 1947. This, the only record
for the Clyde area, has been published by G. H.-O. [Ayrshire
Archaeological and Natural History Society. Collections ig^y-ig^g,
series II, vol. i : 1 16).

Bittern Botaurus stellaris. The Rev. W. D. Maxwell [per
J. W.) has sent us an extract from Anderson’s Disquisition on the
Introduction of the Lord's Prayer into Dumbarton (1705) which gives
a circumstantial account of the occurrence of a bittern in the
Leven valley in the summer of 1705. Ornithologically the
most interesting point is that the species, at that date, was
unfamiliar locally : “ those that first heard the fowl make this
noise were mightily alarmed at it . . . whereupon they
concluded it to be no less than the devill.”

Reports were received from reliable sources of a bittern
being seen at a locality in Ayrshire on 9th January and loth
February, and at a different locality on 23rd September
(G. H.-O.).

Gadwall Anas strepera. Castle Semple, a pair, 2nd May.
Hamilton, loth October, one S (H. M.-G.) ; 25th December,
onecJ(F. D. H., K. S. M. ).

Smew Mergus albellus. A red-headed bird was present at
Hamilton on 23rd March (M. F. M. M.).

Shelduck Tadorna tadorna. Lanarkshire records, all from
Hamilton, are : 25th August, two (L. A. U.) ; 21st September,
two immature birds (D. G. A., G. L. S.) ; 15th December,
one (M. F. M. M.).

White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons. The species appears
strangely rare in the area and the following observations
include the first apparent records for Lanark and West Stirling.
In no case was the subspecies determinable ; all were in
company with grey-lags. Blanefield, Kirkoswald, last week
of November 1948, two shot (A. Ferguson per G. H.-O.).
Blairbowie farm, Maybole, four, 15th November 1949 ; one,
20th March 1952 (G. H.-O.). Endrick mouth, 14th and 15th
March, one — seen both in Dumbarton and West Stirling.

1954 REPORT ON BIRDS OF THE CLYDE AREA, 1953 67

(M. F. M. M.). Clyde Valley, above Hamilton, 25th March,
one (M. I. K.).

Bean Goose Anser arvensis. At the Endrick mouth (West
Stirling) a flock of about thirty were seen on 22nd February
(G. K., J. H. B. M., E. R.) and their identiflcation was
confirmed by several other observers during the following
week. On 28th February only fifteen remained (M. I. K.).
In 1938 most of the geese in the locality were bean geese, but
they have gradually become much scarcer (J. A. T.).

Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus. It is evident, from
records received, that this species is mainly a passage migrant
in the Clyde area in October and April. A juvenile bird was
shot at the mouth of the Endrick in the middle of November
which bore a ring from the Reykjavik Museum.

Canada Goose Branta canadensis. In early September 1952
a flock of twenty or thirty Canada geese flew north-west over
Bearsden (W. K. R.). Dr. John Berry informs us that this is
the only occurrence of the species in the Clyde area known to
him since the last war.

Bewick’s Swan Cygnus bewickii. The Endrick mouth, 25th
January, two adults and two immature (W. K. R.). Bothwell
Bridge, 17th February, three (M. F. M. M., J. K. Stanford) ;
these birds were seen by other observers up to the 2 ist, and may
possibly have come from Holland after the floods of 31st
January.

Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus . A bird of this species
was seen on the slopes of Holehead in the Campsies ( W. Stirling)
on 19th December. “ The uniformly dark plumage with the
gold-buff crown and yellowish leading edges to the upper half
of the wings were unmistakable.” Though the plumage
description given might apply to an immature bird, the
observer is of the opinion that, on account of its large, robust
appearance, it was an adult female. It flew in a leisurely
manner across the valley towards Lecket Hill ( W. K. R.) .
Mr. Richmond adds : “ Though familiar with marsh harriers
in Norfolk and on the Continent for a number of years this
was the first one I had ever seen so far (1,700 feet) above sea
level. Both the time and the place were improbable. During
the day, however, I did see more than twenty short-eared
owls in a ten-mile walk over these hills, a circumstance

68

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

which might help to account for the harrier’s being attracted
en passant.'^

Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus. We have reports of the
presence of seven pairs in the area covered by this report in the
summer of 1953. At least three of these were successful in
rearing young.

Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus. A peregrine from time
to time haunted a tall tower in Glasgow from 5th February to
2nd March, and again from 25th November till 24th January
1954 (H. M.-G.).

Northern Golden Plover Charadrius apricarius altifrons.
Two were seen near Eaglesham on 14th April 1951 ; “ one
was most clearly marked with the contrasting pattern of black
belly, breast and face outlined in white, the other not so clean
cut in marking” (L. A. U.). On 12th April about 500 were
seen between Tarbolton and Carnell, Ayrshire ; “ those in
full plumage were certainly northern birds ” (G. H.-O.).

Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus. On 3rd May one flew over
Drymen, calling, in a north-easterly direction (M. F. M. M.).
This species does not appear to have been previously recorded
in W. Stirling.

Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa. Two at Hamilton,
2 1st September (D. G. A., G. L. S.).

Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica. We have received
three inland records of this species ; one at Balmaha, 6th Sep-
tember (M. I. K., G. W.) ; two at Hamilton, 12th September
(G. K.) ; and two at Hamilton, 25th October (H. M.-G.).
We can trace no previous record for Lanark.

Arctic Skua Stercorarius parasiticus. On the afternoon of
20th June a dark-phase bird was seen on the north side of the
Duchray Water, south of Loch Ard (Perthshire). It flew past
within 20 yards and a perfect view was obtained ; it was sooty
all over except for a pale patch on the upper breast. Both
observers had recently been watching arctic skuas on Fair Isle
(M. I. K., G. W.). One (dark phase) at Barassie, 23rd August
(L. A. U.). One, between Monkton and Troon, 5th September
(R.N.).

Great Skua Stercorarius skua. Three at Barassie, i6th
August (L. A. U.).

Iceland Gull Larus glaucoides. A pure white Iceland gull

1954

REPORT ON BIRDS OF THE CLYDE AREA, 1953 69

was seen at Hogganfield Loch, Glasgow, on 5th February
(M. F. M. M.) and at Woodend Loch (Lanarkshire) on 5th
December (M. F. M. M., C. E. P.). These records probably
apply to the bird reported from Hamilton from 1949 to 1952.

Black Tern Chlidonias niger. An immature bird at
Hamilton, 21st September (D. G. A., G. L. S.).

Willow Tit Farus atricapillus. In the Rosebank area of
the Clyde valley noted twice in 1952 and three times in 1953
(P. E. D. C.). A flock of tits at Penwhapple (Ayrshire)
on 4th September contained one, and probably two, of this
species (G. H.-O.).

White Wagtail Motacilla alba alba. Seen in spring as
follows : Stevenston shore, 21st April, fifteen ; 22 nd April, five
(M. I. K.) ; Hamilton, 21st April, two ; Endrick mouth,
3rd May, two (M. F. M. M.).

Waxwing Bomby cilia garrulus. Up to twelve were seen
during the last week in November on Knightswood golf course,
where the observer had also seen waxwings in 1946 and 1949
(H. F. C.).

Siskin Carduelis spinus. Most observers agree that this
species is surprisingly uncommon in the Clyde area, except
perhaps in Argyllshire. M. I. K. and W. U. F. inform us that
they have never seen it, and G. H.-O. has one record only from
Barr, having seen at least six, in company with redpolls, on
1st December 1947. However, it appears regular in the
Endrick valley in winter. Flocks have been seen twice at
Gartness since 1948, and a flock has been seen on three occasions
in the last months of 1953 at Fintry, from thirty to forty birds
having been seen on 13th November (L. S. H., G. A. J.).

Crossbill Loxia curvirostra. On loth September, in
Fullerton woods, Troon, considerable numbers of freshly
worked pine-cones were found, the birds themselves not being
seen (G. H.-O.).

Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra. In view of the relative
scarcity of this species in the area, it is interesting to report that
about forty were seen in a tree near Possil Loch on 4th March,
perhaps preparing to roost in the marsh there (I. H.).

Tree Sparrow Passer montanus. One at Hamilton rubbish
dump, I St March 1952 (G. M. T. C.) and one on Flanders Moss,
26th June (M. I. K., G. W.).

70

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951 ^

Raymond Hewson
London

In 1949 and 1950 the mountain hare Lepus timidus scoticus was
found to be extremely rare in parts of the northern Highlands.
Inspection of game bag records on two estates in Easter Ross
and Sutherland showed that there were fewer mountain hares
than had been recorded in periods of fifty and twenty-two
years respectively. Further enquiry was then made through-
out Scotland as a whole, to discover whether this scarcity was
widespread. Printed questionnaires were sent to game-
keepers in all parts of the country, and while living in Easter
Ross I visited parts of Moray, Wester Ross, north-west Suther-
land, and Caithness. About 270 questionnaires were returned;
those stating the acreage concerned covered a total of about
1,700,000 acres, equal to rather more than one- twelfth of the
total land area of Scotland. The actual area covered would
be a little more than this, as a good many returns gave no
acreage. From all these returns, together with other corre-
spondence with gamekeepers, landowners, and naturalists this
paper has been made up.

The number of mountain hares per thousand acres,
estimated by gamekeepers, has been used as a broad standard
of comparison only, but it should be borne in mind that game-
keepers are expected to have some idea of the approximate
numbers of game on their beats, and should therefore be able
to estimate roughly how many mountain hares there are also.
In any given district there is usually some similarity between
the estimated densities on the various estates. In two cases
where it was possible to check the gamekeepers’ estimates by
a detailed search of the ground the estimated totals agreed
fairly closely with the numbers of mountain hares found.

Apart from the area of southern Scotland covered by
Professor James Ritchie’s detailed survey (1925, 1929) little
definite information exists on the status and distribution of the

* Received 2nd July 1 954

1 954 the mountain HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951 71

mountain hare. At the end of the nineteenth century Harvie-
Brown and Buckley recognised that its numbers fluctuated
considerably, but apart from this the mountain hare has
attracted very little attention. It is often referred to in such
general terms as “ still found on all our higher hills ” or
“ inhabits the uplands ”.

While it seems likely that in many parts of Scotland the
mountain hare was less common between 1940 and 1950 than
at any time in the previous thirty years, a very rapid increase
may have occurred since then. There have been many such
increases in the past, often leading to local populations several
times greater than in times of scarcity.

For the purposes of this paper I have divided the country
into three sections (omitting the islands).

1. Northern. The area north of the Great Glen, including
the counties of Caithness, Sutherland, Ross-shire and part of
Inverness-shire.

2. Central. The Highland area south of the Great Glen
and certain other counties:- — Inverness-shire (part), Moray,
Banff, Aberdeen, Kincardine, Angus, Perth, Stirling, Clack-
mannan, Fife, Argyll, West Dumbarton.

3. Southern. The counties of Dumfries, Kirkcudbright,
Wigtown, Ayr, Renfrew, Lanark, East Dumbarton, Peebles,
Selkirk, Roxburgh, Berwick, East Lothian, Midlothian, West
Lothian.

Returns showing “ no hares ” are only referred to when
the area concerned is suitable hare ground. A number of
questionnaires were inadvertently sent to gamekeepers on low
ground where the mountain hare has never been known.
Throughout this paper the use of the term “ hares ” should be
taken to mean mountain hares.

Distribution and Numbers
Northern Area

Harvie-Brown and Buckley (1887, 1892) and Harvie-
Brown and MacPherson (1904) recorded considerable fluc-
tuations in the numbers of mountain hares in the northern area
between about 1870 and 1902-3. Generally speaking the
mountain hare had become less numerous by the end of the

72

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

century. It is of interest, in view of the present (1954) scarcity,
to note that mountain hares were said to be abundant in parts
of Wester Ross about 1900, and also near Fort William (Omond,
1905). They were, however, rare at Braemore, Wester Ross,
and at Assynt and in other parts of Sutherland. In Caithness
they were more abundant on the hills bordering Sutherland
than elsewhere. “ Disease or emigration ” was held to account
for a scarcity of mountain hares in the Loch Morar area of
Inverness-shire about 1895 (Harvie-Brown and MacPherson).
In Sutherland “ several thousands ” had been killed on the
Ben Griams about 1860-70. The only estimate of the numbers
of hares in a given area is that quoted by Eagle Clarke (1903)
of less than one mountain hare per thousand acres in Braemore,
Wester Ross.

In 1951 the mountain hare was nowhere numerous, and
in some places was quite rare. Thirty returns out of thirty-
seven described it as rare; of the remaining seven the descrip-
tion common ” does not always accord with the estimated
numbers particularly in Caithness, although perhaps partly
true in relation to the recent low stocks. The estimated
densities, usually below ten per thousand acres (Table I) and
the game bag records (Table II) indicate that the mountain
hare appears to be rarer in the northern Highlands and along
the north-west coast than elsewhere in Scotland. At Loch
Morar I was told in 1951 that mountain hares had died
out about 1930 and at Achiltibuie, Wester Ross, that they had
become extremely rare about the same time. Between March
1949 and December 1950 I made thirty-six visits to ground
apparently suitable for mountain hares without seeing any.

Returns showing “ no hares ” were received from the
following areas:

Sutherland — Eriboll, Kinbrace, Bettyhill; Ross-shire — Kyle
(not known since 1920), Killilan (Kyle), Kinlochewe, Strath-
conon, Poolewe, Strathrusdale ; Inverness-shire — Glen Moriston,
Knoydart.

Mountain hares were stated to have died out in Glen-
cassley, Sutherland (about 1913), Strathbran, Ross-shire, and
the Loch Moidart-Loch Ailort area of Inverness-shire. Re-
turns from Torridon refer to “ one white hare which may now
be dead ” as the total stock; from Strathcarron two seen in

THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951

— Status of the mountain hare in 1951, as indicated by returned
questionnaires.

Mountain Hare Rare Common

Increasing
No change
Decreasing

t t
I T
t i
i 'I'

1 I

74

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

five years; from Fasnakyle-Cannich “only an odd one”.
The introduction into Wester Ross in 1937 of sixty hares from
Inverness-shire appeared to make little difference to the resident
stock, and mountain hares were rare in 1951 on the estate
concerned.

When hare populations of around one per thousand acres
occur the hares may be congregated in small groups in fairly
limited areas some distance apart, often among peat hags,
which may provide shelter. An increase in numbers, begin-
ning about 1949 or 1950 is recorded for Caithness, Sutherland,
Easter Ross and east Inverness-shire ; a continued decrease
or no change in Wester Ross. The increase near Rogart,
Sutherland, is reported as substantial and the estimated
population (1951) was several times as high as any other in
the northern area. Population figures in the western portion
of the area. West Sutherland, Wester Ross and west Inverness-
shire, resemble more closely those from Argyll than elsewhere
in the northern area. Throughout this north-western area,
where the climate is relatively mild, the rainfall high, and the
ground often wet and rocky, the mountain hare is rarer than
in any comparable area in Scotland.

Central Area

y\t the end of the nineteenth century the mountain hare
was apparently common south of the Great Glen and over most
of the central area at a time when it was less numerous or rare
in the northern area. Harvie-Brown and Buckley (1895)
recorded that hares were abundant along the summit ridges
of the Monadhliath and all over the higher mountains in
Badenoch, Lochaber, the Cairngorms and the Cam district.
Throughout the greater part of Aberdeen and Kincardine, and
part of Banffshire, mountain hares were common on all the
high ridges, and no change in numbers had been observed
between about i860 and 1900 (Sim, 1903). In the Moray
Firth area Taylor (1900) described the mountain hare as “ still
found on all our higher hills ”. In north-west Perthshire 230
mountain hares were killed to one gun (a muzzle loader) in
one drive in 1850, and a year earlier 685 had been killed in a
single day (Horn, 1881). Towards the southern fringe of the

1954

75

THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951

area they were plentiful about Callander in 1892 and 1896
and about the same period “ fairly numerous ” in the Ochils
above Tillicoultry (Evans, cited by Rintoul and Baxter 1935).
Alston (1876) gives the mountain hare as frequent in the
Kilpatrick Hills and abundant on the Loch Lomond hills;
Boyd Watt (1904) states also that it was numerous on the Loch
Lomond hills in 1873, and was present on the Campsie Lells
about 1900. On moorland at 500-700 feet to the south of
Campsie Lells, and separated by a valley, the first mountain
hare was shot in December 1907, and another was trapped in
1910. Lrom then they gradually increased until the 1939-45
war when they were exterminated by poaching. There is
little information concerning Argyll : the Rev. N. Macpherson
of Inveraray, writing to Harvie-Brown in 1879, said that it was
only about 1839 that the mountain hare appeared there; at
the end of the century “ disease or emigration ” was held to
account for their scarcity in north Argyll. More recently,
mountain hares were “ very common ” in the Corrour Lorest,
Inverness-shire, about 1917 (Eagle Clarke, 1917).

Although in 1951 the hare population was in some places
the lowest for thirty to fifty years, it was generally several
times as high as in the northern area. The estimated average
numbers per thousand acres (fifty-five to sixty-nine) in Moray,
Nairn, Banff, Aberdeen, and Kincardine (thirty-three returns)
were higher than the highest estimate (400 to 500 hares on
9,000 acres) north of the Great Glen, although too much
reliance should not be placed on these estimates. Certainly
in parts of Moray and Inverness-shire a good many hares were
to be seen on grouse moors and the lower moorland generally
in 1950, yet in most cases the estimated populations in this
area do not exceed the average numbers shot per thousand
acres per annum on the same estates (Table II).

Lrom the information available it seems likely that the
mountain hare reaches its greatest numbers in Scotland in
Moray, Nairn, Banff, Aberdeen, and Kincardine. In the
Cairngorms, however, the mountain hare was uncommon
although widespread in 1951. Another observer (1953)
reported the same thing; in Lebruary 1954 I saw no mountain
hares or tracks on the north side of the Cairngorms up to 3,000
feet on two visits. Much of the ground supporting large numbers

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

76

of hares is grouse mcor rather than deer forest, and the pro-
portion of grouse moor must be higher in Moray and Nairn
than in Ross-shire and Sutherland. In Inverness-shire also
the mountain hare appeared to be numerous and, from the
game bag figures, to have attained similar numbers to those
found in the north-eastern counties.

Fig. 2. — Estimated densities of mountain hares per thousand acres by counties.
Inset figures indicate average numbers killed annually per thousand acres over a
period of years (see table II).

77

I

;j

ig54 THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951

I In Perthshire and Argyll, however, the position appears to
i be quite different. Despite former records of abundance in
! Perthshire, fifteen out of twenty-four returns describe the
mountain hare as rare, particularly towards the Argyll border;
but a high proportion of the returns (thirteen) show it as
j' increasing against five decreasing and three no change. Near
i Rannoch they were rare and had died out in parts, although
abundant on Rannoch Moor about 1900 (Harvie-Brown and
Buckley). In Argyll, as in Wester Ross, the mountain hare in
1951 was rare in all the eleven places from which returns were
received, and there is no evidence, except an isolated report
i that mountain hares were “ plentiful ” a mile or two north of
' the entrance to Loch Fyne (Robertson, 1920), to show that it
was ever really numerous, nor does it seem to be increasing in
numbers to any great extent. Reports of no hares in Argyll
i were received from the following areas :

I Lochgilphead (two seen in forty years), Kingairloch, Appin
|i (three returns), Glenmorvern (Oban), Ardnamurchan, Achar-
j! acle, Salen, Minard. At the southern fringe of the high ground
Ij the mountain hare was said to be absent from grouse country
in the Sidlaws near Blacklaw Hill. No information was
I received about Gampsie Fells, but hares were numerous on
part at least of the Kilpatrick Hills.

Except for Argyll the mountain hare was increasing in
: forty-two areas and decreasing in thirteen; the increase may

! have begun eailier than in the northern area, in 1948 and 1949
rather than 1949 and 1950.

It is obviously difficult to say exactly when a hare population
begins to increase, because it will be some time before the
increase becomes evident, and the years referred to may
indicate good breeding seasons a year or two earlier.

Southern Area

The mountain hare is not indigenous to southern Scotland
although widely distributed as a result of introductions
(Barrett-Hamilton) .

The spread of the mountain hare from these introductions
has been traced in detail by Ritchie (1925, 1929). From
introductions in Manor Parish, Peeblesshire, in 1834, in

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

78

Peeblesshire in 1846 or 1847, the Pentlands in 1867 or 1868
and at Cairntable on the Ayrshire-Lanarkshire border in 1861
and 1862, the mountain hare spread over almost all the high
ground of the Scottish Lowlands, reaching Kirkgunzeon and
Criffel Moor by the Solway Firth between 1878 and 1880.
Service (1895) records a “ great extension ” in the hard winters
of 1878-80. The same author (1896) states that the earliest
Dumfriesshire record is in i860 when “ some few ” were shot
at Queensberry, but this does not seriously conflict with the
increase in range and numbers described by Ritchie. A good
many unrecorded introductions have probably been made in
various parts of the British Isles.

By 1900 the mountain hare had become fairly numerous in
Renfrewshire, 300 having been killed in one season on the
Misty Law Hills (Watt, 1904) although this is of course a
small total compared with those found in the central Highlands.
The Lammermuirs appear to have been colonised from the
Peeblesshire introductions via the Moorfoots. Rintoul and
Baxter (1935) quote Evans as writing that mountain hares
appeared in the Lammermuirs soon after 1891 and later
became plentiful; they were still quite common near Whitting-
hame in 1931, and about this time were present also in the
Pentlands and Moorfoots.

A little fresh information has been brought to light by the
present enquiry. The Earl of Stair (personal communication)
shot the first mountain hare on the moorlands of Inch and
New Luce (900 feet) in Wigtownshire in 1898. This may
have arrived from a hitherto unrecorded introduction at
Lagafater, south Ayrshire, about this time. Near Port
William, Wigtownshire (250 feet), the first mountain hares
were seen in the 1920’s and they have remained fairly constant
in numbers ever since (Lord David Stuart — personal communi-
cation). In this same south-western corner mountain hares
appeared on low ground (200-300 feet) near Creetown in
1926-29, although “ small numbers ” of hares had been known
on Round Fell and Craignelder, 8-10 miles north, since 1888
(Bedford, 1930).

The mountain hare appeared nowhere to be common in
the Lowlands in 1951, although perhaps several times as
numerous as in the northern Highlands, and to be much less

1954

79

THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951

numerous than in the eentral area generally. In the east
Lowlands (Peebles, Roxburgh, Berwick and Midlothian) two
out of seven returns described it as common, four as rare, and
six out of seven as decreasing or stationary in numbers. It was
not very plentiful in the Lammermuirs, and the only set of
game bag figures available indicate that since 1908 it may
never have been very numerous ; near Stow, Midlothian, game
bag figures from a small estate show that it was not very
numerous about 1940. From the little information received
there were perhaps more mountain hares in parts of Roxburgh,
and from Peebles the only return described them as common.
A long series of game bag figures indicate a steady increase,
perhaps from the Manor Parish introduction. There were
mountain hares in the Pentlands between Balerno and Carlops
in 1946, but I do not remember them as being very numerous.
Information from the east Lowlands generally was scanty, and
and it was impossible to say whether the “ nil ” returns referred
to suitable hare ground.

Rather more information was received from the western
Lowlands (Dumfries, Kirkcudbright, Wigtown, Ayr, Renfrew,
and Lanark). In Dumfries and Kirkcudbright seven out of
eight returns show the mountain hare as rare and five out of
eight as decreasing; no increase was reported. The estimated
densities given (two to ten per thousand acres) support this,
and resemble those in the northern Highlands, but a small
estate (1,000 acres) showed thirty to forty hares. The game
bag figures for a Kirkcudbright estate, quoted by Ritchie
(1925) showed that, although a steady increase occurred from
1901 to 1921, the mountain hare probably had not then be-
come as numerous as in the central Highlands. In the
Lowlands generally the areas per gamekeeper-return were a
good deal smaller than elsewhere. There were no longer
mountain hares on Criffell Moor. In Wigtown the mountain
hare appeared to be rather more numerous: the spread into
low ground in Wigtown and south-west Kirkcudbright has
already been referred to.

In Ayrshire estimated densities varied from twelve to
thirty-five per thousand acres (six returns), and six out of
eleven returns described the mountain hare as common. It
was generally increasing, probably from 1948-50. Near

8o

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

Carnwath in Lanarkshire it had died out; near Leadhills it
was common. In Renfrewshire the only return received said
that mountain hares were common but the estimated eight to
twelve per thousand acres does not support this.

TABLE I

Abstract of particulars in some returned questionnaires

Area

{counties)

No. of
returns

1 Common

Rare

Increasing

Decreasing

No change

Area covered 1
(1000 acres) j

Hares per
1000 acres

Caithness .

5

4

I

4

I

60

3-6

Sutherland

12

3

9

8

I

3

214

4-5

Easter Ross and

E. Inverness .

9

—

9

5

3

I

143

2-3

Wester Ross

8

—

8

3

3

160

2-3

W. Inverness

3

—

3

2

I

48

I

37

7

30

19

8

8

625

Inverness .

12

7

5

8

3

. — .

209

25

Morav, Nairn,

Banff .

9

7

I

7

I

—

96

55-59

Aberdeen and

Kincardine

24

16

7

13

4

3

153

59-69

Perth

24

7

15

13

5

3

214

7-8

Argyll

1 1

— •

1 1

3

4

I

197

2

Dumbarton

I

I

—

I

—

—

I

8i

38

39

45

17

7

1 0

CO

Peebles, Rox-

burgh .

4

I

2

I

I

2

17-4

77*

Berwick

3

I

2

—

2

I

137

29*

Dumfries .

4

I

3

—

3

I

7

9-10

Kirkcudbright .

4

—

4

—

2

2

49

6

Wigtown .

3

2

I

2

—

—

13-8

22*

Ayr .

1 1

6

4

6

I

2

86

21-23

Renfrew .

I

—

—

—

■ —

3

8-12*

1 Lanark

I

I

—

—

—

■ —

27

—

!

31

1

12

1

16

9

9

8

216-9

* One estate only.

Game-bag Records

The mountain hare is generally regarded as something of
a pest, and as no attempt is made to conserve stocks as with
game birds, the numbers shot may give a more accurate index

jl ig54 THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951 81

of the population than with, say, grouse. The numbers shot
i in a partieular year may, however, be influenced by deep snow
which prevents organised shooting, especially in the early part
I of the year and after the close of the grouse-shooting season.
Besides the totals shown in the game books a number of
mountain hares may be shot as bait for traps or food for dogs.
In the northern Highlands, and probably elsewhere, hare
drives were open to a wide range of people and the intention
^ was to destroy as many hares as possible. Although the
money value of mountain hares was small before the 1939-45
war, several thousands were sent each year to Smithfield
Market, London. In most parts of Scotland in 1951 organised
hare drives had not been resumed.

There is no evidence, from the figures available, of any
cyclical fluctuation in the numbers of mountain hares (J. G.
Skellam, personal communication). Mountain hare popula-
tions are subject to very violent fluctuations. After building
up to enormous peaks (in some areas perhaps as high as one
hare per acre) the population may fall in a few years to no
more than 2 or 3 per cent, of what it was, and remain there
for a period (Fig. 4) or begin to build up again. During the

82

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

period 1920-39, for example, the minimum bags, ignoring
isolated small totals, on most of the estates shown in Table II
were less than one- tenth of the maximum. It is possible for
hare stocks to remain for several years so low that on a yearly
average only one hare is shot per thousand acres. In some
places, such as in Glen Moriston where over ten years less than
one hare per thousand acres per annum was shot, and in parts
of Argyll, the hares may finally become locally extinct; in
others, east Ross-shire and Sutherland for example, a recovery
may occur.

Fig. 4. — Numbers of mountain hares killed on estates (a) at Alness, Easter Ross,
1901-1940, (b) at Inveraray, Argyll, 1921-1940. Each estate about 40,000 acres.

Figures smoothed

a -f b + c
3 ■

In general, the game-bag records bear out the conclusions
drawn from the returned questionnaires, that is, that over a
period of years the hare population has been higher in the
central area (except Argyll) than in the northern and southern
areas. The average numbers shot per thousand acres (Table
II) in the central area exceed the highest recorded from the
northern ; it may be, however, that higher totals than the few
of which I have records have been obtained in the northern
area. Estimated 1951 populations per thousand acres were
generally below the average numbers shot yearly per thousand
acres in the same area. The numbers of hares shot would

1 954 the mountain HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951 83

probably need at least doubling to arrive at the population at
the time of shooting, because large numbers of hares were
usually shot over a period of a year or two either side of the
recorded maximum bags, which must therefore have left a
fairly large breeding stock. In many places the hare popula-
tion may need several years to build up to the average numbers
of the 1930’s.

TABLE II

Mountain hares shot per i 000 acres per annum on various estates

Estate

{county)

Acres

{thousands)

Tears

recorded

Average shot
per 1000
acres per year

Highest bag
per 1 000
acres per year

Tear of
highest
bag

Easter Ross

40

50

II-4

44'5

1931

N.W. Sutherland

12

30

1 1-6

48-8

1933

E. Sutherland

60

22

6-6

20-6

1933

Inverness

6-7

40

130-2

549-1

1931

Nairn . . . '

7

31

127-5

363-8

1938

Moray .

1 1

42

87-9

277-1

1941

Aberdeen

3

31

46-6

148-3

1950

Aberdeen

3*5

31

1 12-2

430-5

1931

Perth .

1*7

25

108-4

352-9

1940

Argyll .

6

31

4-4

10-8

1939

Argyll .

35

37

1-3

10-5

1910

Argyll .

40

31

5-3

18-6

1934

Berwick

7

36

16-4

93-8

1933

Peebles .

3

53

13-3

33'3

1942

i

On eight estates the numbers of grouse shot over thirty
years or more were also available. As many of the hares may
be shot after the close of the grouse season it seems unlikely
that any resemblance can be caused by the organisation or
intensity of the shooting upon both animals. While the peak
years for grouse did not generally coincide with those for
mountain hares the one or two major peaks (less pronounced
in the case of grouse) often occurred at about the same time,
that is, the greatest annual totals of hares and of grouse shot
within a given period occurred within a year or two of each
other. A decline in numbers, general throughout the game
bag records, of mountain hares and grouse, from mid to late
1930’s cannot be accurately gauged owing to restricted war-time

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

84

shooting; but in 1945-46 hare and grouse bags were still very
low. Efforts may have been made to conserve grouse stocks
for some years, but this would not apply to mountain hares.
A comparable decrease was not found after the 1914-18 war
although hare and grouse bags were low about 1920. There
is also some resemblance between the fluctuations in the
numbers of red squirrels [Sciurus vulgaris leucourus) killed on an
Easter Ross estate and the numbers of mountain hares (Fig.
4), particularly the peaks about 1907-08, the decline about
1920 and the final severe decrease about 1933. The red
squirrel figures in this case also resemble those for squirrels
over a much larger area (Hewson, 1953), and so this result
could not be entirely due to local factors affecting both mam-
mals equally.

Factors which may Affect Mountain Hare
Populations

A question on the enquiry form asked the observer to state
what factors, in his opinion, affected the numbers of mountain
hares. In the northern area “ vermin ”, i.e. predators, were
considered to be the principal factor; in the rest of Scotland,
weather. The following table gives an analysis of the replies :

Area

Vermin

Weather

Ticks

Disease

Heather

burning

Shooting

Total

Northern

18

1 2

I

1 2

4

2

49

Central .

18

27

6

9

12

6

78

Southern

14

15

—

6

2

3

40

Totals

50

54

7

27

18

1 1

167 j

In the Northern Highlands where, in 1951, the hare
population was lowest, wild cat, fox, and golden eagle are not
uncommon; in those parts of the Nairn- Moray-Banff- Aber-
deen area with the highest numbers of hares there are fewer
eagles and wild cats and probably not so many foxes. More-
over, grouse moors, where hares were most numerous, may
generally be more heavily trapped for predators of all kinds
than are deer forests. The acreage per gamekeeper-return in
the central area (6,000-18,000 acres) compared with the

1954 the mountain HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951 85

16,000-26,000 of the northern area may be of some importance
in this respect.

However, the number of predators or potential predators
upon a small hare population may be very large, and the
population still survive, as the following examples, from my
own observation, show.

1. Easter Ross, 40,000 acres, about fifty mountain hares

Wild cat. Four to eight trapped annually

Fox. Not very numerous, owing to absence of suitable
breeding dens

Golden eagle. One pair resident, one pair visiting.

2. Easter Ross, 30,000-40,000 acres, perhaps 100- 150 licires

Wild cat. Rare

Fox. Common: thirty-five to forty foxes and cubs de-
stroyed at dens in 1951

Golden eagle. Two pairs breed.

3. Sutherland, 60,000 acres, below fifty hares

Wild cat. About twelve trapped 1939, less now

Fox. Not uncommon

Golden eagle. One or two pairs breed.

Eagles take a good many mountain hares and so may wild
cats. Wild cats certainly take many rabbits and are often
trapped or snared at rabbit warrens. A limited analysis of
fox droppings in summer has shown that young mountain
hares probably form a major food item of Scottish foxes
(Southern and Watson, 1941); but it seems possible that a
small mountain hare population may survive all this.

Little dehnite information is available concerning the effect
of weather upon mountain hares. The increase in numbers
which began in 1949-51, particularly in the central area,
appears to have been unchecked by the prolonged severe
weather in the late winter of 1950-51 and I have been told
that hares arriving at Smithfield market at that time were not
noticeably in poor condition. While twenty-seven returns
refer to disease — tapeworm and “ grass sickness ” were men-
tioned— they give no evidence of epidemic or other disease
such as might account for the sudden fall in numbers from
major peaks. There is no evidence that ticks transmit disease
to mountain hares (Dr. Owen Evans, personal communication).

86

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Reports on heather burning were contradictory, some
stating that burning encouraged mountain hares, some that it
had the opposite effect. In the early months of the year I have
noticed that hares graze upon patches of rush [Juncus spp.) and
green shoots among burnt heather, where rushes are among
the first plants to re-establish themselves (Pearsall, 1950), and
to that extent they may benefit from heather burning. On
the other hand, young heather, for several years after burning,
provides insufficient cover for mountain hares to breed and
this is probably a more important factor. Fraser Darling
(1947) refers to mountain hares being “ so numerous as to
injure the Callunetum and allow the ingress of mat grass and
rushes a return from an estate of 25,000 acres in Perthshire
said that hares left after having fouled the ground.

Shooting obviously has an immediate effect upon the hare
population but probably not sufficient to interfere with the
normal numerical trends. No central record exists of the
number of mountain hares sold in the London Central Markets
where there is a regular sale over a season extending from late
October to the end of February; the bulk of the hares arrive
in January and February. Relatively few hare drives are now
held compared with before 1939, and the supply of hares in
1951-52 appeared to be substantially less than it was then; in
the case of one of the largest game salesmen in Smithfield I was
told that it was no more than a quarter. Prices in 1951-52
were about four shillings per hare out of which carriage of
about ninepence had to be paid; in 1953-54 the price was a
good deal less. Before the war prices ranged from tenpence to
one and ninepence with carriage of threepence or fourpence.

It is impossible to assess the varying effects on the mountain
hare of predators, weather, heather-burning, and so forth.
Predators may be the cause of the slow recovery and low
population in the northern area and the virtual extinction in
the western Highlands, but the west coast is wet and rocky
and hares flourish chiefly on the drier eastern hills. Heather
burning can clear the mountain hares from a particular area
by denying them breeding grounds and cover; unless it is
widespread it should not exclude them from an extensive area.
It does not seem likely that severe weather can greatly affect
mountain hares unless during the breeding season.

1954

THE MOUNTAIN HARE IN SCOTLAND IN 1951

87

Acknowledgements

For help in connection with this paper I am indebted to
Dr. John Berry, Mr. C. Elton, Dr. I. Pennie, Mr. J. G. Skellam
and Mr. H. N. Southern; and also to the many people who
filled in questionnaires and supplied other information.

Summary

In 1951 the mountain hare was rarer north of the Great
Glen than elsewhere in Scotland, and most numerous in the
area Moray-Nairn-Banff-Aberdeen-Kincardine (except for
the Cairngorms). Generally speaking it was increasing in
numbers, since about 1948-49, except in Wester Ross and
Argyll. Here it reached its lowest numbers, down to about
one hare per thousand acres, and here also it had died out in
several places. The mountain hare is not indigenous to the
south of Scotland but has spread from introductions about
i860. It does not appear to have become as numerous as in
the north-eastern area.

Estimates of the number of hares per thousand acres show
that the 1 95 1 stocks of mountain hares were often lower than
the numbers shot per thousand acres over a period of years on
the same estates, or in the same areas. Game bag records
indicate that the mountain hare has always been most numer-
ous in the north-eastern counties already referred to. Moun-
tain hares are subject to considerable fluctuations in numbers,
minimum bags over periods of thirty years or more being less
than a tenth of the maximum. These maxima show that an
average of more than 500 hares may be shot per thousand
acres.

On eight estates where figures were available for grouse as
well as mountain hares over a period of about thirty years,
major peaks in mountain hares roughly coincided with those
of grouse, but there was no closer resemblance than this.
Both hares and grouse declined sharply from the mid- 1930’s.
Factors possibly affecting the numbers of mountain hares are
eonsidered. None of these — predators, weather, disease,
heather-burning — can be shown to account for the fluctuations
in numbers which occur.

88

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST
REFERENCES

VoL 66

Alston, E. R., 1876. The fauna and flora of the West of Scotland. Glasgow.
Barrett-Hamilton, G. E. H., 1911-13. A history of British mammals, Vol.
2. London.

Bedford, The Duchess of, 1930. Increase of Mountain Hare at Cairns-
more, Kirkcudbrightshire. Scot. Nat., 1930, 68.

Clarke, W. E., 1917. Wild life in a West Highland deer-forest. Scot.
Nat., 1917: 255-264; 279-287.

and Hinxman, W., 1903. Additional notes on the vertebrate fauna

of West Ross-shire. Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1903: 69-73.

Darling, F. F., 1947. Natural history in the Highlands and Islands. London.
Gladstone, H. S., 1912. A catalogue of the vertebrate fauna of Dumfriesshire.
Dumfries.

Har VIE -Brown, J. A., 1906. A fauna of the Toy Basin and Strathmore.
Edinburgh.

■ and Buckley, T. E., 1887. A vertebrate fauna of Sutherland, Caithness

and West Cromarty. Edinburgh.

1892. A vertebrate fauna of the Moray Basin. Edinburgh.

— — • and Macpherson, H. A., 1904. A fauna of the north-west Highlands
and Skye. Edinburgh.

Hewson, R., 1953. The Red Squirrel — Sciurus leucourus Kerr — in Easter
Ross. Northw. Nat., 493-496.

Horn, W., 1881. The Mammalia of north-west Perthshire. Proc. Nat.
Hist. Soc. Glas., 5: 119.

Pearsall, W. H., 1951. Mountains and moorlands. London.

Omond, R. T., 1905. Zoological notes from the log-book of the Ben
Nevis Observatory. Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1905: 130.

Rintoul, L. J. and Baxter, E. V., 1935. A vertebrate fauna of Forth.
Edinburgh.

Ritchie, J., 1925. Increase of the Mountain Hare in the Scottish Low-
lands. Scot. Nat., 1925: 47-48.

1929. The spread of the Mountain Hare in the Scottish Lowlands

and Border country. Scot. Nat., 1929: 169-175.

Robertson, J., 1920. Mountain Hare on the shore in summer. Scot.
Nat., 1920: 14.

Service, R., 1893. Distribution of the Alpine Hare in south-west Scot-
land. Zoologist, 17: 265.

1895. Distribution of the Alpine Hare in south-west Scotland.

Zoologist, 19: 375.

1896. Mammalia of Solway. Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1896: 201-210.

Sim, G., 1903. A vertebrate fauna of^^ Dee ”. Aberdeen.

Southern, H. N. and Watson, J. S., 1941. Summer food of the Red
Fox {Vulpes vulpes) in Great Britain: a preliminary report. J. Anim.
Ecol., 10: i-i I.

Taylor, W., 1900. Notes on the land mammals of the Moray Firth
area. Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1900; 141.

Taylor, W. L., 1946. The Wild Cat {Felis sylvestris) in Great Britain.
J. Anim. Ecol., 15; 130- 133.

Watt, H. Boyd, 1904. The land mammals of the Clyde faunal area.
Trans. Nat. Hist. Soc. Glas., New Series (vii) : 170-189.

1954

BIRDS OF GLEN MOIDART, INVERNESS-SHIRE

89

i NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF GLEN MOIDART,
INVERNESS-SHIRE *

I F. D. Hamilton, K. S. Maggregor and R. F. G. Zamboni
I Edinburgh Cardiff

From the 7th to the 19th June 1953 we camped on the shores
of Loch Moidart, for the purpose of ascertaining the status of
the breeding birds. Dr. Bruce Campbell kindly supplied us
with brief notes on the southern part of Moidart and also
useful comparative notes for Ardnamurchan. Some informa-
tion was obtained from Birds from Moidart and Elsewhere by
Mrs. Blackburn (1895), but this is rather out-dated and, in
parts, slightly vague as to the exact locality.

; The ground covered by the survey was bounded by the
1 watershed on each side of the glen. The area is well wooded,

' especially on the lower part of the glen and on each side of
: Loch Moidart, where the trees extend up the steep slopes to
!| a height of 350 to 450 feet. The woods are mainly comprised
' of oak and birch, particularly the former, with holly, rowan,
hazel and ash, whilst around Kinlochmoidart the trees are
more varied with a fair amount of large conifers, such as
1 spruce. Here, as at Dorlin, azaleas are in abundance. Other-
|i wise bracken forms the main undergrowth. The cultivated
! area is mostly confined to the flat ground surrounding the
head of the loch and is chiefly used for grazing. The vegeta-
tion on the higher terrain consists of grass and heather and it is
here that innumerable lochans exist, many having rocky islets.

The highest mountain in the area, Rois-Bheinn (2,887
feet) was not climbed due to inclement weather, and it was not
; possible to visit the islands in Loch Moidart.

i Red-throated Diver. Seen or heard almost daily
coming down to feed on Loch Moidart, but single birds only
' found on two of the hill lochs on the north side.

I Black-throated Diver. Though expected this species
was not found on any of the large hill lochs or on the sea.

Gannet. Seen on the seaward side of Eilean Shona.

i

* Received i ^th June 1954

90

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Cormorant. Several seen on Loch Moidart.

Shag. A few at the mouth of Loch Moidart.

Heron. Common. Only heronry found was on Eilean
an Fheida, in Loch Moidart, but it was impossible to ascertain
the number of pairs breeding. Heronries were not found on
Riska, near Eilean an Fheida, or on the islets on Loch Bairness
where they previously nested.

Mallard. Fairly common on Loch Moidart; largest
number seen in one party was twelve. Young noted on Loch
Moidart and on Loch na Bloraich, above Glenforslan.

Teal. Only one noted, on Loch na Bloraich.

Eider. Common on Loch Moidart.

Red-breasted Merganser. Very common on Loch
Moidart.

Goosander. Two seen ofFDorlin on the gth June.

Sheld-duck. Uncommon; up to three seen together.

Buzzard. Four or five pairs in the whole area, mostly
around Kinlochmoidart.

Sparrow Hawk. Recorded as very common by Black-
burn, but we noted only one.

Kestrel. Like the previous species apparently much
reduced; only one bird was seen, near Dorlin.

Red Grouse. Only observed on the high ground to the
north of Loch Moidart when three pairs, two with young, were
seen in a 6-mile walk.

Corncrake. Not heard, though there were suitable fields
at the head of Loch Moidart.

Moorhen. Not found; mentioned as being seen here by
Blackburn.

Coot. Not found, but again Blackburn records it.

Oystercatcher. Common, but no evidence of breeding.

Lapwing. Not noted. (Nearest were two pairs at Achar-
acle in Glen Shiel, about 4 miles south of Kinlochmoidart.)

Ringed Plover. Not seen, though Blackburn records it
as very common.

Snipe. Recorded only at Loch nam Lochan, below
Glenmoidart Lodge, where there were at least two pairs.

Woodcock. Common.

Curlew. Not noted on hills, but fairly common about
Loch Moidart.

I ig54 BIRDS OF GLEN MOIDART, INVERNESS-SHIRE 91

Whimbrel. One heard high over Loch Moidart on the
j gth June.

Common Sandpiper. Common.

I Great Black-backed Gull. Fairly common about Loch
Moidart.

Lesser Black-backed Gull. Common on Loch Moidart.

Herring Gull. Common. A colony of about ten pairs
on a small islet at the mouth of Loch Moidart.

Common Gull. Common in the area, but only one colony
of seven pairs found, on Loch nam Paitean.

Black-headed Gull. A few about Loch Moidart, but no
evidence of breeding.

Common Tern. Common. A colony of approximately
ten to fifteen pairs on a rocky islet off Newtown of Ardtoe.

Black Guillemot. Two off Dorlin on the 17th June.

; Wood Pigeon. Rather uncommon; apparently little

i change from Blackburn’s time.

Cuckoo. Common.

Tawny Owl. Scarce. Blackburn records having intro-
duced a pair and mentions that they appeared to spread.

’ Nightjar. One heard near Mill House on the north shore
of the loch.

: Great Spotted Woodpecker. Common; heard and

; seen in four different localities.

Skylark. Fairly common. Mainly confined to the high
, grassy hill-tops to the south of Loch Moidart.

Swallow. Common, and breeding in the majority of
suitable sites.

House Martin. Two colonies of about five pairs each, at
Glenmoidart Lodge and at a large dairy farm by Mill House.

Sand Martin. Two pairs found nesting in the low bank
I of the River Moidart by Assary, above Glenmoidart Lodge.

Raven. Common, especially on high ground on the north
i| side of Glen Moidart.

Hooded Crow. Common.

Jackdaw. One pair nesting at Castle Tiornam, and a
pair around Mill House; this contrasts with Blackburn’s ‘‘ very
I common ”.

I Great Tit. Fairly common.

Blue Tit. Common.

92

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Coal Tit. Common.

I.ONG-TAiLED Tit. Common. Largest party seen num-
bered twenty.

Tree Creeper. Only two birds recorded, near Kinloch-
moidart Post Office.

Wren. Common.

Dipper. One seen between Assary and Glenmoidart
Lodge, on the River Moidart.

Mistle Thrush. Fairly common.

Song Thrush. Common. More numerous than blackbird.

Ring Ouzel. Two heard, one in Glenforslan and the
other in Glen Gluitanen, at the source cf the River Moidart.

Blackbird. Common.

Wheatear. Common, especially in upper Glen Moidart.

Stonechat. Pairs found at Glenmoidart Lodge, Kinloch-
moidart and at Newtown of Ardtoe.

W HiNCHAT. Common, particularly in upper Glen Moidart.

Redstart. Common.

Robin. Common.

Whitethroat. Rather uncommon.

Willow Warbler. Common.

Wood Warbler. Common; for instance, thirteen singing
birds were counted in a 2-mile stretch of woodland along the
north side of Loch Moidart, this being typical of the remainder
of the woods. Birds were noted singing up to 300 feet in low
birch scrub. It is interesting to note that Blackburn records
this species as being less common than either willow' warbler
or whitethroat.

Goldcrest. Common in the coniferous woods.

Spotted Flycatcher. Uncommon.

Hedge-sparrow. Uncommon.

Meadow Pipit. Common.

Tree Pipit. Common.

Rock Pipit. Only one pair seen, at Dorlin.

Pied Wagtail. Common.

Grey Wagtail. Uncommon, only two pairs noted.

Starling. Not noted. According to Blackburn, starlings
arrived a little after 1856 and became quite common, breeding
in walls, chimneys, etc.

Greenfinch. Fairly common around Kinlochmoidart.

ig54 BIRDS OF GLEN MOIDART, INVERNESS-SHIRE 93

Siskin. Common round Kinlochmoidart House and at
Glenmoidart Lodge.

Twite. Fairly common.

Redpoll. Not seen. Blackburn mentions that this
species was common, and we found it so around Salen in
Ardnamurchan.

Bullfinch. Common.

Crossbill. One seen and heard in the grounds of Kin-
lochmoidart House. Whether this bird was on passage or was
breeding is not known.

Chaffinch. Common.

Yellow-hammer. Fairly common, especially in scrub at
the edge of woods.

House Sparrow. Common round human habitation.

ZOOLOGICAL NOTE

The Jellyfish Velella spivans at the Isle of Canna. — On the

4th August, 1954 which was one of the few fine days of that
month, I encountered a number of specimens of the Siphonophore
jellyfish Velella spirans in a patch of calm water near Sgeir a’
Phuirt, just outside Canna Harbour. They were coming in with the
tide. One was taken for examination and was found to be living.

This is the second year in which Velella has been noticed here ;
in the late summer of 1953 Mr. T. Lethbridge and I each found a
dead specimen on the shore ; mine was on the north-east end
of Sanday, not far from where I encountered the specimens this
summer. I am indebted to Mr. T. Bagenal for assistance in identi-
fication.— J. L. Campbell, Canna.

Velella spirans is a well-known Siphonophore, provided not only
with floats but also with a triangular ‘‘ sail ” which projects from
the water and, when it catches the wind, helps to carry the animal
along. It occurs in the Mediterranean and warmer parts of
the Atlantic, and has been stranded on our shores (sometimes in
enormous numbers) at rather irregular intervals, most often in July
and August. It was recorded from Skye in the eighteenth century,
and has since been reported from the Monach Isles and Flannans
{vide Ritchie, Ann. Scot. Mat. Hist., 1910, p. 12 1), Skye, North Uist,
Muck, Colonsay and Kintyre {Scot. Mat., 1936, pp. 27-28), and
Barra (Scot. Mat., 1937, p. 10). Dr. R. M. Neill informs us that
some years ago he once found some washed up on the east coast,
between Aberdeen and Newburgh. — Editors.

94

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

MIGRATION ALONG THE NORTH-WEST COAST
OF SCOTLAND^

T. G. Longstaff
Achiltibuie, Ross-shire

On pages 248 and 268 of The Ibis for April 1953, the lack of
recorded migration along the north-west coast of Scotland is
stressed. I suggest that this is due to the former absence of
resident observers.

When living at Samalaman in Moidart, just north of
Ardnamurchan Point, I encountered the greatest “ rush ” of
migrants I have ever seen. On 29th April 1921, starting
from Samalaman at dawn, I walked along the coast to Glenuig
and back, passing hundreds of passerines. Warblers, tree
pipits and redstarts (including one male P. ochrurus gibraltariensis)
were the most numerous. On nth April I had already
identified a yellow-browed warbler {Phylloscopus inornatus)
amongst many willow- wrens. Very few of these birds sum-
mered in the locality. Some may have dispersed up the
Great Glen.

As we approach Cape Wrath it would be natural that the
weight of migration should decrease; but at least up to 40
miles south of the Cape it is still obvious. Since 1942 I have
lived permanently in the north-west corner of Ross-shire, at
Badentarbat, near Achiltibuie, in Coigach: this is on the
coast 85 miles north of Samalaman and 40 miles south of
Cape Wrath. I am by no means a consistent bird-watcher
and the notes I have made have been irregular. But I have
identified more than 130 species here and I am familiar with
the summer habitats of the local birds, so that migrants are
easy to recognise.

Badentarbat means “ the little wood of the boat portage
The wood is represented by two silver birch trees and two ash
trees, all on their last legs, in the small garden at Badentarbat
Lodge. In this there is also a hedge of pollarded ash and a
few shrubs, all sheltered by drystone walls. There is no other

Received 2^th May 1954

(

1954 MIGRATION— NORTH-WEST COAST OF SCOTLAND 95

cover on the “portage ”, which is all bare peat-moor, and so
the garden is a magnet for passing small birds. Between the
Lodge and the sea is an enclosed arable field, tailing off into
a large reed-bed.

The portage is from Achnahaird Bay on the north, facing
Enard Bay, to Badentarbat Bay on the south, facing the

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

96

Summer Isles outside Loch Broom. Its use saved a 20-mile
sea-course, fully exposed to the storms of the Minch, round '
Rhu Coigach and its outlying reefs. The length of the
portage from sea to sea is only 2 miles at high water and
follows the connected lochs of Raa and Vatachan, so that the
overland portion (between Vatachan and Badentarbat Bay) is
under f of a mile, while the height of land is under 100 feet.
On either side of the portage the moors rise to over 400 feet.

This portage is a typical “ leading line ” for migrants.
Indeed it is in daily use all the year round by flocks of herring
gulls, a few great black-backed gulls and irregularly by herons
and cormorants. In summer it is in daily use by lesser black-
backed gulls and often by a pair of black-throated divers. In ;
autumn and winter it is used by swans, very large skeins of I
geese, ducks, golden plovers and curlews. At evening and _ \
dawn in autumn the notes of other waders can frequently be » ■
heard overhead. | ii

Dr. F. Darling was disappointed by seeing so little migra- • '
tion on the Summer Isles. I think this was because migrating ■ ii
birds here follow the coast of the mainland and do not cross II
Loch Broom until at the narrows at Ullapool, 12 miles to the ;;
south-east. I have traced a migration route from Ullapool ||
along the coast to Achiltibuie, across the Badentarbat portage
and thence near the coast past Inverpolly. Autumn migration ,
is slower in tempo and extends over a longer period than in
spring, so that I see most movement here in autumn and
winter.

There are birch woods in the sheltered glens of Inverpolly 1 1
Forest 4 miles and more to the north-east and smaller coppices f ■
2 miles and more to the east-north-east. In these James ■ n
Fisher has shown me resident redstarts, wood warblers and , ||
tree pipits. At Reiff, 4 miles to the north-west, is a tidal ■ jj
loch with sand and mud flats exposed except at high tides, jj
and a greater variety of waders is to be found there than ' jj
anywhere else in Coigach: swans, geese, and ducks also visit |
it in winter. j il

Kenneth Williamson has pointed out {Scottish Naturalist, ^ !!
65: 91) how the normal autumnal westerly air drift over the , I
North Atlantic would bring birds from Greenland to North |
Britain more easily than to any other landfall. Some of the J

97

IQ54 MIGRATION— NORTH-WEST COAST OF SCOTLAND

many skeins of barnacle geese flying over here in spring and
autumn may well be from Greenland. Timmermann notes
{Ibis^ 96: 399) that two-thirds of all recoveries of Iceland-
ringed birds are from the British Isles.

Unless otherwise stated, the following notes refer to
Badentarbat, or its immediate neighbourhood, including the
area of the portage; “ resident ” and “ local ” is used in the
same restricted sense.

Regular spring migrants breeding locally

Black-throated Diver.

Little Grebe.

Corncrake. Heard at Badentarbat in 1951 and 1952;
returned to Achiltibuie in 1954.

Common Sandpiper.

Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Cuckoo.

Ring Ouzel.

Whinchat.

Redstart. Breeds in relict birch woods: seen once, 24th
June 1950, at Badentarbat.

Sedge Warbler. First seen 1947; since then bred
annually at Badentarbat, but not in 1954.

Wood Warbler. Breeds in relict birch woods.

Tree Pipit. In relict birch woods.

Local breeding species, showing migrational movements

Greylag Goose. Marked increase in winter; many
cross portage September-October flying south, and some
flying north in April.

Golden Plover. A few breed, taking up territories in
April; there is also passage across portage in spring and
autumn; a tight flock of seven at Reiff, 15th March, on
passage.

Skylark. Breeds freely but also a heavy autumn passage;
irregular winter flocks.

Song Thrush. Marked coastal migration in October.

Blackbird. Heavy passage south October-November; a
“ host on the moor ”, ist and 2nd December 1942.

13

98

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

Wheatear. First passage end of March but local birds do not
occupy territories till mid April. One probable male leucorrhoa
in garden, 4th April 1953; first Badentarbat residents appear-
ing 13th April. Three males at Dornie 27th March 1948; first
locals 19th April. One at Altandhu 25th March 1954, first
locals 20th April.

Robin. Nests in birch woods, not near houses. Single
birds in garden for a few days annually between 5th July and
30th October; seldom in spring.

Willow Warbler. Does not breed on portage nor
remain in garden where it is seen annually between 22nd
April and mid May. For example, in 1953 it was first heard
on 2nd and 4th May but in each case had flown on before I
could get out to see it. Return passage in July and August,
sometimes with juveniles, apparently staying two or three
days, but may be a succession of visitors.

Meadow Pipit. Breeds freely; notable passage August-
September.

Species not found breeding locally^ but seen on migration

WiGEON. Winter resident; habitually use the portage in
winter in both directions.

Goldeneye. Occasionally seen on Loch Raa for a day
or two in winter (e.g. 13th November 1941).

Long-tailed Duck. Shot by Capt. H. Seth-Smith (an
experienced wildfowler) near Achnahaird 27th October and
loth November 1941.

Common Scoter. One found dead on portage, i8th April
1947-

Goosander. One on Loch Vatachan, i8th April 1947.

White-fronted Goose. Three on Loch Raa end January
to beginning of February 1943 (H. Seth-Smith); three at
Achiltibuie 20th April 1950 (Hamish Campbell and Bruce
Paton) .

Pink-footed Goose. H. Seth-Smith reported five at
Achnahaird, 8th May 1952.

Barnacle Goose. Numerous in winter; 100 to 200 stay
on Summer Isles. Skeins noted flying south 30th September
1941 and 1944. Four large skeins, over 200 in all, around

99

ig54 MIGRATION— NORTH-WEST COAST OF SCOTLAND

noon on 25th April 1954, flying high over Badentarbat and
heading north-west out to the Minch.

Whooper Swan. Small herds, up to sixteen twice noted
crossing portage to the south in October: two flying north
25th March 1948: seven at Reiff, 14th April 1951, and two
on nth October 1952.

Bewick’s Swan. A herd of over twenty flying over
south, October 1942. A herd of thirty took off from Loch
Vatachan and flew towards marsh on coast beyond Achiltibuie,
14th October 1948.

Hen Harrier. One flying south over portage 28th October
1942, and another a subsequent year in August.

Turnstone. A few at Reiff in spring.

Jack Snipe. A few late autumn.

Whimbrel. Small flock in May at Achiltibuie and at
Badentarbat 3rd August 1946.

Bar-tailed Godwit. At Reifi', one 7th September 1951
(with J. S. Huxley), and two 5th May 1953.

Green Sandpiper. One 28th September 1943.

Little Stint. Two at Reiff, 2nd June 1954 (dunlin and
ringed plover present for comparison).

Temminck’s Stint. One 20th July 1948, taking cover
amongst vegetables against a full gale from the south. Watched
at 15 to 20 yards for an hour from open upper window; legs
green; sketches made [Scot. Nat., 60: 220).

Sanderling. Six at Reiff, 26th May 1947.

Arctic Skua. In Badentarbat Bay, one, October 1941,
and four (dark) 13th October 1947.

Great Skua. One following shore, Badentarbat Bay,
1 6th May 1949.

Wood Pigeon. One 22nd May 1945.

Turtle Dove. One on road. May 1947 (H. Seth-
Smith).

Barn Owl. One, 21st August 1944.

Swift. One, 12th September 1943; four flying east,
17th July 1947; two flying north at Inverpolly, 23rd May

1950.

Swallow. Two, 13th May 1950, and one 28th May
1953-

House Martin. One, 9th May 1951.

100

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

Sand Martin. One, 25th May 1951.

Great Tit, 2nd July 1951; Blue Tit, 7th October 1952; ^
and Willow Tit, nth August 1952; each noted once passing
through garden.

Fieldfare. Not a winter resident; a few at Badentarbat
22nd to 26th November 1952. Flock of over fifty moving
from Rhidorach towards Ullapool, 15th October 1952.

Redwing. Not a winter resident; two in garden, i8th j
October 1943 and one i6th October 1948. i|

Whitethroat. Single birds, 19th May 1946, 17th May
and nth August 1948.

Lesser Whitethroat. Two, 7th and 8th August 1949; I
one, 9th May 1953 — gone in an hour.

Dunnock. Occasionally visits garden for a few days in '
October. !

White Wagtail. Adult males April and September;
identification of juveniles not attempted.

Red-backed Shrike. Adult male in garden for about 6
hours on 27th May 1951 {Scot. Nat., 63: 129).

Siskin. Flock of over twenty during last half of December I
1942. Several, July 1944. [

Linnet. Twice noted. I

Twite. May breed near but site never found. Frequent ||

garden in spring and autumn; over sixty on 6th April 1950. ||
Small winter parties round garden.

Lesser Redpoll. Noted occasionally in spring and late I
autumn (22nd May 1945 (J. S. Huxley), ist and 2nd |!
December 1942). i

Crossbill. 1953: one 1 6th June; one nth September; ||
Mr. W. Muir reported three, one red, feeding in his garden ;i
near Badentarbat pier at the end of June. Col. R. Neilson
reported twenty, one red, at Rhiconich, north-west coast ]
Sutherland, 22nd June. |

Chaffinch. Rare visitor in spring and autumn. ^ |

Yellow-hammer. Never stays but possible breeder; in 1
the garden a flock of ten, late March 1944 and 1948; and a j
flock of thirty, 17th December 1945. |

Snow Bunting. Large flock, ist and 2nd December ||
1942; a few, 2 1 St and 22nd March 1949.

1954 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA

lOI

THE MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF
CANNA*

J. L. Campbell
Ganna

The topography of the Isle of Canna is described in detail in
the paper “ The Natural History of Canna and Sanday,
Inner Hebrides : A Report upon the Glasgow University

Canna Expeditions, 1936 and 1937 ” {Proc. Roy. Phys. Soc., 23 :
1-72) and in the “ Report of the Joint Schools Expedition to
the Island of Canna ” in 1948 (Merchant Taylors’ School,
Crosby, and Monkton Combe School, Bath), so that it is not
necessary to say much on the subject here. The Island of
Canna is a basaltic island lying east and west ; it ascends in
terraces from the south to a plateau, which terminates in cliffs,
some of which are about 600 feet high, on the north side of the
island. Owing to its position it is more sheltered and warmer
than most Hebridean islands. The tidal island of Sanday,
which forms the southern arm of Canna Harbour, is consider-
ably lower in elevation, and also has many sheltered spots.

Trees and Vegetation

Native trees are represented by a very few aspens, rowans,
creeping junipers, hazels and sallows in sheltered places that
are inaccessible to sheep. The sallow- and heather-fringed
moorland brooks that are frequently found in Barra and South
Uist hardly exist here — I know only one. But there is a
greater number and variety of trees in the few small plantations
and these support a large proportion of the Canna lepidoptera.
As all these trees except three ashes and three elms were
planted after 1882 it follows that a considerable proportion of
Canna species must be immigrants, probably blown here by
the wind, which have settled down in these plantations.
M. albicellata and E. fraxinata and some other geometers may
be quoted as examples of this. The trees found in the Canna

* Received iith March 1954; some later observations added

102

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

plantations, all of which are at the east end of the island north
of the harbour, were at the time of my arrival here in May 1938
as follows : deciduous trees — sycamore, wych elm, ash, oak,
beech, alder, willow, hawthorn, holly, Spanish chestnut, horse
chestnut, apple, plum, pear, cherry, to which I have added
limes, birches and black Italian poplars; conifers — pine,
larch, spruce ; windbreaks^ — ^escalonia, veronica, gorse, broom,
fuchsia, rhododendron, azalea ; garden bushes — gooseberry,
currants, raspberry, loganberry, globe artichokes. In the
interests of entomology I have been (and still am) engaged in
increasing the numbers of poplars, willows, alders and birches.

Apart from woodlands, and my garden, the terrain falls
naturally into three types, moorland, sandhills and cliffs.
Those parts of the moorland where sheep graze in summer
(all Canna except Compass Hill at the east end, and Sanday)
are very sparsely populated by lepidoptera. The cliffs are
rather better populated. The sandhills are restricted to a
small area above the sandy beach at the west end of Sanday
Island : hence sandhill species are a good deal less common
here than in the Outer Hebrides. The grazing of sheep,
and muirburn, are obviously very inimical to lepidoptera, and
the density of butterfly population is much higher on Sanday
than on Canna.

Methods of Collection

The collection that is described here was begun in May
1938 and is still being added to : it was mostly made in the
years 1938, 1939, 1945, 1947 and 1952. In May 1951 I
acquired a mercury-vapour moth-trap, by means of which a
number of new species were added to the collection, and others
were caught in good condition. This moth-trap can only be
worked in my garden as electricity is not available elsewhere.
Other methods of moth-hunting used have been sugaring with
cow-molasses and examining sallow, rocket, ragwort and
veronica blossoms at night, when in season. It is very notice-
able that moths are indifferent to molasses during the time of
the year that sallow and ragwort are in blossom. Veronica is
very popular with the late autumnal species and with V. cardid
and atalanta.

1954 THE MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA

103

Summary of Moth-trap Results

Species

Specimens

1951

1952

1953

1951

1952

1953

Sphingidae

I

I

I

I

4

3

Notodontidae .

—

2

4

—

5

8

Thyatiridae

• —

—

I

—

I

Lasiocampidae

2

2

I

2

2

8

Saturniidae

—

I

. —

—

2

—

Arctiidac .

3

3

4

68

154

83

Lithosiidae

—

Noctuidae

52

76

57

985

1845

1002

Geometridae

17

33

27

46

125

1 1 1

Zygaenidae

—

—

Hepialidae

2

3

3

26

20

46

77

121

98

1 128

2157

1

1262

Number of Species of Moths

Other

Methods

Moth-Trap

1945

1951

1952

1

1953

March .

5

6

April

—

—

8

9

May

31

12*

36

25t

June

57

26

31

467

July .

74

31

57

41

August .

36

36

47

25

September

—

20

12

1 1

October .

—

12

—

10

December

■ —

—

—

2

* Last nine days of May only,
f Not worked from 12th May to 22nd June.

Altogether, 142 out of 1 76 species or 8o-68 per cent, of the moths
I have taken here have been caught in the trap at one time or
other. The trap works under hardly optimum conditions, as
only during May, June and July is it practicable to keep the
light burning from dusk to dawn. The only place where it

104 the SCOTTISH NATURALIST Vol. 66

can be used is in my garden. Although this is well situated,
beside a mixed plantation, the light from the trap is interfered
with by fruit bushes, vegetables, and by my house itself.
Nevertheless the trap has added sixteen new species to my
Ganna collection, and produced many others in far larger
quantities and better condition than other methods of
collecting.

Seasonal Fluctuations

By far the greatest number of species is on the wing during
the six weeks following midsummer. After the first week in
August, there is a notable falling off. There is a minor surge
in May followed by a slight falling off in early June. However,
it would be quite impossible to make a representative collection
without starting at the beginning of March and continuing
until the end of October.

All the species described below are represented in my
cabinet by Canna-caught specimens except M. stellatarum
which I have seen but not captured.

Migratory Species

The species V. cardui, V. atalanta and P. gamma arrive here
nearly every May and lay eggs which produce a Ganna-bred
generation in the autumn. C. croceus and M. stellatarum I have
only seen here in 1947. A, saucia appears pretty regularly.
A specimen of L. exigua was caught in the moth-trap in 1952.
P. brassicae exists here in a colony which may be single-brooded,
is apparently free from parasites, and which is probably re-
inforced from outside.

Quite apart from regular migratory species I have observed
single specimens of the following alone on the plateau, as if
wandering: P. brassicae, A. urticae, V. io; P. aegeria has twice
appeared here, but does not seem to be native ; and I have
seen S. semele apparently setting out to fly from Sanday to Skye,
and flying across bays at other times.

In my experience a change in the butterfly population, or
the appearance of fresh migrants, usually coincides with a rise
in barometric pressure and the change of the wind from
south-west to north-east.

1954 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 105
Fluctuations in Numbers

So far as I have observed, very few larvae captured and
reared here have been parasitised. The controlling factor
appears to be the weather. The second of two good years will
always be marked by an increase in the number of lepidoptera
observed; 1939 and 1945 were such years. A species will be
rarely noticed for several years and then turn up in numbers ;
this applied to X. lithoxylea in 1945 and to C. rubi in 1953. It
is hardly possible to obtain a reliable view of the relative
numbers of different species on the basis of one season’s col-
lecting. Good years for lepidoptera have been : 1938, 1939,
*940, 1944. 1945. 1947. '949. '952 ; bad years : 1941, 1942,
'943, '946, '948, '95', '953, '954-

%

Heiskeir Lighthouse

The island on which this light is situated, a flat grass-
covered basaltic rock of about ten acres extent, is part of Ganna
Estate. It is about six miles due south off the west end of
Ganna. From time to time the Head Keepers have sent me
specimens of butterflies and moths taken there, and I take this
opportunity of expressing my gratitude for their collaboration.
The following species have been observed there: P. napi
(possibly resident), V. atalanta^ M. jurtina, P. icarus (possibly
resident), A. caja, A. obscura, X, monoglypha, P. arcuosa and
H. pennaria.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Messrs. W. H. Tams, R. J. Collins,
D. S. Fletcher and J. A. Downes for assistance in identifying
difficult species, and to Dr. E. B. Ford who examined the whole
collection in 1947 and also helped with a number of identifica-
tions.

Published Papers

Reference may be made to the following articles by the author :
Migrant Lepidoptera on the Isle of Barra, 1936, Scottish Xaturalist,
November-December 1936.

The Macrolepidoptera of the Parish of Barra, idem, November-
December 1938.

14

io6

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Catalogue of a Collection of Macrolepidoptera made in the
Hebrides between 1936 and 1946, Entomologist^ March 1946.
An Experiment in Marking Migratory Butterflies, Entomologist,
October 1949.

Miscellaneous Notes : November 1944 ; August 1945 ;

May, September, November, 1947 ; February, April, August,
September, 1949 ; July, August, October, 1951 ; January,
June, August, September, November, 1952 ; February, April,

1953-

Entomologist's Record, October 1952 ; March, June 1953.
Scottish Naturalist, September-October 1939 ; April 1948 ;
Summer 1948 (on spread of V. io in Highlands and Islands) ;
Winter 1952.

RHOPALOCERA

I have taken fourteen different kinds of butterflies on Canna,
but one, C. croceus, is an immigrant only observed here in one
summer, and another, P. aegeria, is only a very occasional
vagrant. Two others, V. cardui and V. atalanta, are regular
immigrants. The remaining ten species are residents.

PlERIDAE

1. Pieris brassicae (Large White). The colony of this
butterfly seems well established here but it is undoubtedly
reinforced from time to time by immigration. The larvae feed
on cabbages and other cruciferous plants in the gardens and on
nasturtiums, and on charlock in the cornfields. They are very
seldom parasitised here and are hardier than is sometimes
realised as I have found them feeding on broccoli as late as the
end of November. One of these pupated on the 3rd December
1952 and the butterfly, a male, emerged on the loth July 1953.
I have observed other instances of late emergence of pupae on
the walls of my house and think it probable that this species is
at least partially single-brooded in the Hebrides. The larvae
are often very plentiful and have a habit of pupating on the
walls of my house and other buildings and even coming indoors
through open windows to do so.

2. P. napi (Green-veined White). Fairly common in damp
sheltered places. Double-brooded. I have two specimens
of the spring brood tending towards yellow coloration,

IQ54 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 107

and a female of the summer brood very heavily marked.
On nth August 1952 there was a snowstorm of the green-
veined white on a certain marshy spot on Sanday. It was a
calm day and the butterflies were there in immense numbers,
but having no net I was unable to search for varieties. As I
found a freshly emerged crippled female this must have been
a local emergence rather than an immigration. Later in the
afternoon a breeze sprang up and the butterflies were dispersed.

3. Colias croceus (Clouded Yellow). The only year I have
seen this migrant in Canna was the August of 1947, when
butterflies of all kinds were exceptionally plentiful. Prior to
that date I had not seen it in the Hebrides since 1936, when
it was fairly plentiful for a fortnight in September on the west
side of the Isle of Barra.

Nymphalidae

4. Vanessa urticae (Small Tortoiseshell). Fairly plentiful
and well established, the local specimens being strongly
marked. Often seen coming into houses in August to hiber-
nate.

5. V. io (Peacock). For the first few years I was on Canna
this butterfly was seldom seen, but from 1945 onwards it has
been much more plentiful, especially in 1947. I have found
batches of larvae, and a hibernating specimen found in a
peat stack on the neighbouring island of Soay was once sent to
me.

6. V. cardui (Painted Lady). This migrant arrives fairly
regularly in the month of May and lays eggs on thistles, from
which a generation hatching in August and September emerges.
I suspect that the autumn-hatched generation retreats south-
wards rather than remain on Canna to die of cold, but this
is very difficult to prove. An experiment in marking these

I autumnal painted ladies with the hope of tracing their move-
, ments was described in an article in The Entomologist of January
1951. This was carried out in the autumn of 1949, a year in
I which larvae were very plentiful, as was the butterfly itself in
1947. A dwarf specimen reared in 1949 has a wing span of
1 only 42 mm. In 1952 this butterfly beat all records for early
appearance, four specimens being seen around veronica
I blossoms in the garden on 24th March and one or two others

io8

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

on 25th, 26th, 27th and 2nd April. No cardui were seen at all
in 1951 and only one in 1953 in October. None in 1954.

7. V. atalanta (Red Admiral) . The red admiral’s migratory
and breeding habits resemble those of the painted lady, but
it is a more constant visitor and I do not remember any summer
in which it was entirely absent. In 1947 this butterfly was
particularly abundant, and two interesting specimens of the
rare aberration merrijieldi, and another specimen intermediate
between the merrijieldi and the normal form, were taken and a
fourth seen on the wing. Drawings of these butterflies by
Mr. A. D. E. Russwurm later appeared in the Nature Lover^
vol. V, p. 74. This rare aberration is, after D. caesia, the most
interesting entomological capture yet made on Ganna.

8. Argynnis aglaia (Dark Green Fritillary). Not very
common here, although not as uncommon as has been believed
when one knows where to look for it. The specimens of the
males that I have from the Isle of Ganna are smaller and lighter
coloured than those from the Outer Hebrides. On nth
September 1952, much later than the normal time of appear-
ance of the local aglaia^ a very battered but active specimen was
seen in my garden. This may have been a vagrant from some
other district.

Satyridae

9. Satyr is semele (Grayling). Gommon in all rocky,
sheltered places on cliflfs and along the shores. Has been
noticed flying off-shore.

10. Pararge aegeria (Speckled Wood). This does not seem
to be native here ; the amount of ground suitable for it is very
limited. Two specimens were captured in July 1945 and
another seen, and a fourth specimen was captured on 8th
September 1951. They were probably vagrants — the species
is well established in Knoydart, Morar and Arisaig.

11. Maniola jurtina (Meadow Brown). Gommon. Many
dark specimens are to be seen but also many lighter ones — it
cannot be said that the local race consists entirely of dark
specimens. In August 1953 a male with bleached hindwings
and partly bleached forewings was taken on Sanday.

12. Coenonympha pamphilus (Small Heath). This is common
everywhere from the middle of May until the end of July, being

1 954 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 109

found even in the most desolate places, the only butterfly
distributed over the whole of the island. Some specimens are
large and brightly marked.

Lycaenidae

13. Callophrys rubi (Green Hairstreak). I thought I saw
a specimen of this butterfly in May 1938. The record was not
confirmed until May 1951 when a small colony was discovered.
In 1952 only two specimens were seen. 1953 was quite a good
year for the butterfly, numbers being seen both on Ganna and
Sanday and one even turning up in my garden. In 1954 it
was even commoner.

14. Polyommatus icarus (Gommon Blue). Gommon from
midsummer until end of August in all the sheltered sunny places.
My Ganna specimens are not so strongly marked on the under-
side as those from the Isle of Pabbay near Barra. I have one
male from Ganna with no black spots on the under side and
another with only two on each forewing.

HETEROCERA

Sphingidae

15. Amorpha populi (Poplar Hawk Moth). Gommon.
The larvae are often a serious pest on young willow and poplar
cuttings, from which they have to be periodically removed or
the young trees will be stripped. Specimens of the moth I
have vary considerably in colour.

16. Macroglossa stellatarum (Humming-bird Hawk). Two
specimens were seen in July 1947, one by Dr. E. B. Ford and
one by myself.

Notodontidae

17. Diacranura vinula (Puss Moth). Gommon and an even
greater menace to young poplars and willows than S. populi.
The moth usually appears early in May. I have known this
moth to spend more than one winter in the pupal stage. Very
few larvae are parasitised^ — a remark which also applies to
A. populi and N. ziczac.

18. Notodonta ziczac (Pebble Prominent). Eggs and larvae
quite often found on poplars and willows and easily reared.

I 10

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

19. N. dromedarius (Iron Prominent). Much less common [

than jV. ziczac. I have beaten a few larvae from alders but *
the moth has never been taken in the moth-trap although :
several alder trees are within eighty yards of the light. ;

20. Lophopteryx camelina (Coxcomb Prominent). Larvae
beaten from poplars, and the adult has been taken in the moth
trap this summer (1953).

21. Phalera bucephala (Buff Tip). I have found a batch of
larvae once feeding on a poplar tree, and have taken the moth
several times in the trap.

Thyatiridae

22. Thyatira batis (Peach Blossom). Not uncommon. It
has been taken at sugar and in the trap, and when flying at dusk.

23. Palimpsestis or (Poplar Lutestring). A specimen in the
moth trap on 4th June 1954.

Lasiocampidae

24. Lasiocampa quercus v. callunae (Northern Eggar). This
is quite common on Canna. The larvae are often seen, as are
the adult moths themselves, flying in the sunshine, in July and
August. Females and occasionally males have been taken in
the moth-trap.

25. Macrothylacia rubi (Fox Moth). This is less common in
Canna than callunae, though in Barra it was the other way about.
Possibly this is due to intensive grazing by sheep and occasional
muirburn. The caterpillar is well known in the Gaelic under
the name of bratag. Females have been taken in the moth-
trap.

26. Cosmotriche potatoria (The Drinker). A dead male was
picked up on the road to Tarbert in the summer of 1949.
This is the only record I have for the Isle of Canna. I am well
acquainted with the larvae and pupae of this species but have
never found them here, nor has the moth ever turned up in the
m.v. moth-trap. I consider it to be a vagrant on this island:
it is common in Knoydart where I found pupae in 1948.

Saturniidae

27. Saturnia pavonia (Emperor). Occasionally seen in May
flying over moorland. Larvae also observed.

IQ54 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA iii
Arctiidae

28. Spilosoma menthastri (White Ermine). Common.
Taken in the trap in fair numbers every May and June.
Larvae often noticed.

29. S. lubricipeda (Buff Ermine). Common. Appears in
the moth-trap about a week later than menthastri and continues
to appear till about a week after menthastri. Not taken in the
same numbers as menthastri in the trap.

30. Phragmatobia fuliginosa (Ruby Tiger). Quite common,
the moth being seen in June and the larvae in the autumn.

31. Parasemia plantaginis (Wood Tiger). Day- flying on
moorland, including Sanday. Difficult to capture any owing
to its liking for wet places. Never in trap.

32. Diacrisia sanio (Clouded Buff). A male was taken in
the moth trap on 12th July 1954.

33. Arctia caja (Garden Tiger). Common. The larvae
and particularly the adults were abundant in 1952, when
many were caught in the moth-trap and many more were
reared, including some fine dark specimens. An extraordinary
aberration of this moth was taken in the m.v. trap on 21st July
1952. It is unsymmetrically marked : on the right forewing
the usual brown markings occur but very much reduced. On
the left forewing the white is suffused with light brown and the
brown markings are even more greatly reduced. The hind
wings are more normal.

[Hypocritajacobaeae (Cinnabar). I introduced this species by
liberating females after mating in the summer of 1950. A
little colony was established which increased at first, and
persisted until 1953, but no imagines or larvae were noticed
in 1 954-]

Lithosiidae

34. Endrosa irrorella (Dew Moth). This occurs in sheltered
spots along the shore on the southern side of Canna.

Noctuidae

Eighty-six out of the 176 species of moths found on the
island belong to this group. All of these except five have been
taken in the moth-trap at one time or another.

I 12

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

35. Acronycta menyanthidis (Light Knotgrass). Not so
common on Canna as on Barra.

36. A. psi (Grey Dagger). Taken at sugar and in the
moth-trap, sometimes found sitting on the walls of houses, etc.
The brightly-marked caterpillar has been found feeding on
apple trees in the autumn.

37. A. euphorbiae v. myricae (Sweet-gale Moth). A specimen
was taken in the moth-trap in 1952.

38. A. rumicis (Knotgrass). Common. Often found at
sugar and in the moth-trap and the larvae often seen on sallow
in the autumn.

39. Agrotis tritici (White Line Dart). Found on the sand-
hills on Sanday. Not so common as in Barra.

40. A. ypsilon (Dark Swordgrass). Found occasionally on
veronica blossoms and occasionally in the moth-trap.

41. A. exclamationis (Heart and Dart). Abundant, large
numbers turning up in the moth-trap and at sugar.

42. A. strigula (True Lover’s Knot). Common. Taken in
the moth-trap in fair numbers and seen at heather blossoms.

43. A. praecox (Portland). I have only one Canna speci-
men of this sandhill species, taken in the moth-trap in August

1952.

44. A. saucia (The Pearly Underwing). This migrant
species is sometimes seen on veronica blossoms in the autumn.
It has only once been taken in the moth-trap.

45. (Northern Rustic). Fairly common although
not many specimens have come to light. I saw it flying over
the cliffs on the north side of Canna during the day-time on
15th August 1952.

46. Noctua glareosa (Autumnal Rustic). Quite common
some years on ragwort blossoms ^and in the moth-trap, scarce
in other seasons.

47. jV*. baja (Dotted Clay). Quite common at sugar and
in the moth-trap.

48. jV. c-nigrum (Setaceous Hebrew Character). Abun-
dant at sugar and in the moth-trap.

49. jV*. ditrapezium (Triple Spotted Clay). Common at
sugar and in the moth-trap.

50. N. primulae (Ingrailed Clay). Common at sugar but
not so often taken in the moth-trap.

jg34 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 113

51. N. xanthographa (Square Spot Rustic). Abundant on
blossoms, particularly ragwort, and common in the moth-trap ;
the commonest autumnal species.

52. N. plecta (Flame Shoulder). Fairly common at sugar
and occasionally in the moth-trap.

53. (Lesser Yellow Under wing). Common
at sugar and in the moth- trap. Some fine dark forms have
turned up but they do not predominate.

54. T. pronuba (Large Yellow Underwing). Abundant at
sugar and in the moth-trap. Probably the commonest moth
on the island. In 1951, 185 specimens out of a total of 1,128
taken in the moth-trap were of this species. In 1952 it was 407
out of 2,157. In 1953 it was 123 out of 1,262.

55. T. ianthina (Lesser Broad Border). Very common at
sugar and in the moth-trap.

56. Eurois prasina (Green Arches). A single specimen of
this interesting moth was taken at sugar in my garden in July
1939* Never seen since ; probably a vagrant.

57. Aplecta nebulosa (Grey Arches) . A single worn specimen
was taken in the moth-trap on 8th July 1952. Determined by
Mr. Tams.

58. (Bright Line Brown Eye) . Abundant
in May and June. It has also been reared from larvae found on
sallow.

59. M. thalassina (Pale Shouldered Brocade). Not so
common as in Barra.

60. M. pisi (Broom Moth). Not so common as in Barra.
Larvae are sometimes noticed.

61. M. glauca (Glaucous Shears). Common in the moth-
trap in May.

62. M. dentina (The Shears). Also common in May, but
not quite so common as the preceding.

63. Dianthoecia caesia (The Grey). Five specimens of this
moth were taken in the moth-trap in 1952, the first on the
25th May, and one specimen was taken on 8th May 1953.
This is probably the most interesting capture made on Canna.
The record appears to be the first for Scotland.

64. D, conspersa (Marbled Coronet). Abundant at rocket
blossoms in May and early June. Very variable but dark
forms do not predominate.

15

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

114

65. D. cucubali (Campion). Quite common at rocket
blossoms in May and in the moth-trap.

66. D. capsincula (The Lychnis). Occasionally in the
moth-trap.

67. Tholera cespitis (Hedge Rustic). Uncommon.
Specimens in the moth-trap very occasionally.

68. Cerapteryx graminis (Antler). Abundant in August.

In 1952 it was the second commonest moth in the moth-trap.

69. Eumichtis adusta (Dark Brocade). At sugar and in the
moth-trap, but not nearly so common as in Barra.

70. Luperina testacea (Flounced Rustic). At sugar and in
the moth-trap but not so common as in Barra.

71. Cerigo matura (Straw Underwing). Two specimens of

this species were taken at sugar in July 1945. I never en-
countered it since. j

72. Hama furva (The Confused). Quite common at sugar )

and in the moth-trap. ||

73. Apamea obscura (Dusky Brocade). Occasionally at l!

sugar and in the moth-trap. U|

74. A. secalis (Common Rustic). Common in August and l||

September on ragwort blossoms and in the moth-trap. f"

75. Miana fasciuncula (Middle Barred Minor). Occasion- ^li

ally at sugar and in the moth- trap in July. |ii

76. M. bicoloria (Cloaked Minor). I have seen this species |
flying over the moorland in the day-time in September. It I
has occurred twice in the moth-trap.

77. Xylophasia rurea (Clouded Bordered Brindle) . Common
at sugar and occasionally in the moth-trap.

78. X. lithoxylea (Light Arches). This has been quite
common in some summers at sugar, as in 1945, but I have seen
few specimens lately. Only once in the moth-trap.

79. X. monoglypha (Dark Arches). Abundant — probably
just as common as T. pronuba but not so phototropic. Very
variable — light and dark forms occur.

80. Aporophyla lutulenta (Deep Brown Dart). Single speci-
men only in the moth-trap in 1952.

81. A. nigra (Black Rustic). Not common. Occasionally
on ragwort blossoms and in the trap.

82. D asypolia tsmpli OchrE) . Uncommon. The ■

only records I have are a single specimen at a lighted window ;

IQ54 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 115

on 13th March 1947, and a single specimen in the moth-trap
on 8th October 1953.

83. Folia chi (Grey Chi). In the autumn occasionally in
the moth-trap. Sometimes on ragwort blossoms or sitting on
stone walls, etc.

84. Euplexia lucipara (Small Angleshades). Common at
sugar and occasionally in the moth-trap.

85. Phlogophora meticulosa (Angleshades). Often seen on
veronica blossoms in the late autumn and sometimes again in
the spring.

86. Noenia typica (Gothic). Occasionally at sugar and once
in the moth-trap. Not so often met with as in Barra.

87-89. Hydraecia lucens, H. paludis, H. crinanensis (The Ear).
These three species have been determined by Mr. W. H. Tams.
They are found on ragwort blossoms in the autumn. The
three species are fairly common in some seasons and not often
seen in others, but they are not so abundant at all as in Barra.

90. H. micacea (Rosy Rustic). Common autumnal species
often seen on ragwort blossoms and taken in the moth-trap.

91. Tapinostola fulva (Small Wainscot). Single specimen
was taken in the moth-trap on 5th October 1953. One in
July 1954.

92. Leucania impura (Smoky Wainscot). At sugar but only
very occasionally in the moth-trap.

93. L. conigera (Brown Line Bright Eye). Common at
sugar and in the moth-trap.

94. Stilbia anomala (Anomalous). On cliffs and moorland
in August. Occasionally in the moth-trap.

95. Caradrina alsines (Uncertain). Not so common as in
Barra. Only once in the moth-trap.

96. C. taraxaci (The Rustic). Fairly common at sugar and
in the moth-trap.

97. C. quadripunctata (Pale Mottled Willow). Often seen
around haystacks, though only twice taken in the moth-trap.

98. Laphygma exigua (Small Mottled Willow). A single
specimen of this migrant was taken in the moth-trap on 3rd
August 1952.

99. (Small Dotted Buff ) . Single specimen
was taken at Heiskeir Lighthouse in 1945. Determined by
Mr. Tams.

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

1 16

100. Amphipyra tragopogonis (Mouse). At sugar and in the
moth-trap but not so common as in Barra.

1 01. Pachnobia rubricosa (Chestnut). Common in the moth-
trap from the end of March to the middle of May.

102. Taeniocampa gothica (Hebrew Character). Common
in the moth- trap from the end of March to the beginning of
May.

103. T. stabilis (Common Quaker). The commonest
spring species, occurring from the last week of March to the
middle of May.

104. T. incerta (Clouded Drab). Fairly common from
early March till early May at sallow blossoms and in the
moth-trap.

105. T. gracilis (Powdered Quaker). Occasionally at
sallow blossoms and in the moth-trap in April but far less
common than the other spring species.

106. Omphaloscelis lunosa {Lun?iT\]ndtrWmg). Quite com-
mon in September on veronica blossoms and in the moth-trap.

107. Amathes circellaris (Brick). A few specimens were seen
at veronica blossoms in the autumn of 1952.

108. Xanthiafulvago {Sallow) . A single specimen was found
on a thyme blossom in the garden in September 1952, the only
one I have seen on Canna. In the Barra collection it is also
represented by a single specimen. This moth cannot be
common in the Hebrides.

109. X. areola (Early Grey). Fairly common in the moth-
trap from the last week of March till the beginning of May.

no. Calocampa vetusta (Red Swordgrass). Occasionally on
veronica and once or twice in the moth-trap both in autumn
and in spring.

111. Cucullia umbratica (Shark). I have found this quite
commonly around rocket blossoms in some seasons, but
curiously enough it has never turned up in the moth-trap so far.

1 12. Pliisia chrysitis (Burnished Brass). Common in July.

1 13. P. bractea (Gold Spangle). A single specimen in the
moth-trap on 25th July 1952.

1 14. P. festucae (Gold Spot). Two specimens in the moth-
trap in 1952 and one in 1953.

1 15. P. iota (Golden Y). Occasionally in the moth-trap.

1 16. P. pulchrina (Beautiful Golden Y). Common.

1954 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 117

1 17. P. gamma (Silver Y). Migrant, often common.
Worn specimens are usually seen flying in the sunshine in late
May or early June and a fresh locally-bred generation in
August and September.

1 18. Abrostola tripartita (Light Spectacle). Common at
rocket blossoms and in the moth-trap.

1 19. Hypena proboscidalis (Snout). Quite common among
nettles ; occasionally in the moth-trap.

Geometridae

There are considerably more species of geometers on Canna
than on Barra owing to the presence of trees. Few of them are
attracted at all strongly to light. Many of the species could
hardly have been natives of the island before the introduction
of trees.

120. Geometra papilionaria (Large Emerald). A specimen
was found on a gooseberry bush near the m.v. trap on the 8th
July 1952.

12 1. Acidalia bisetata (Small Fan-footed Wave). Found
around the edges of mixed plantations.

122. A.fumata (Smoky Wave). Single specimen taken in a
garden in July 1945.

123. Ortholitha limitata (Shaded Broad Bar). Common on
cliffs and along the shore.

Anaitis plagiata (Treble Bar). Fairly common on
moorland.

125. Cheimatobia brumata (Winter Moth). Males often
come to lighted windows in calm evenings during the winter.

126. Lygris tesfata (Chevron). Common on moors and
cliffs.

127. L. populata (Northern Spinach). Less common than
the preceding on cliffs.

128. Cidaria fulvata (Barred Yellow). Taken occasionally
in gardens and plantations.

All common.
Determined

by R.J.
Collins.

132. C. siterata (Red Green Carpet) . Occasionally found on
veronica blossoms in the autumn.

129. C. truncata (Common Marbled Carpet).

130. C. concinnata

13 1. C. citrata

ii8

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

133. Thera obeliscata (Grey Pine Carpet). Common.
Double-brooded. Often found on thyme, veronica and rag-
wort blossoms in autumn. Sometimes in the moth-trap.

134. T. cognata (Chestnut-coloured Carpet). Found on
the cliffs in August.

135. Coremia ferrugata (Red Twin Spot). Found in planta-
tions. Not common.

136. C. designata (Flame Carpet). Also found in planta-
tions.

137. Amoebe viridaria (Green Carpet). Quite common in
plantations. Never taken in the moth-trap.

138. Malenydris multistrigaria (Mottled Grey). Fairly
common.

139. A4. didymata (Twin Spot Carpet). Common on the
cliffs and sandhills.

140. Xanthorhbe montanata (Silver Ground Carpet). Very
common, with a peculiar distribution, on cliffs and in
plantations. The cliffs must have been its original habitat
here.

14 1. X. jiuctuata (Garden Carpet). Common. Double-
brooded. The larvae sometimes a pest on cabbages.

142. X. galiata (Galium Carpet). Uncommon. I have
two specimens from the cliffs and one found sitting on my
house.

143. X. sociata (Common Carpet). Common around edges
of plantations.

144. Mesoleuca albicillata (Beautiful Carpet). Not un-
common in gardens and plantations.

145. M. ocellata (Purple Bar). Common in mixed planta-
tions.

146. Perizoma affinitata (Rivulet). Common on edges of
plantations.

147. P. alchemillata (Small Rivulet). Very common.

148. P. flavofasciata (Sandy Carpet). Occasionally on
edges of plantations.

149. P. albulata (Grass Rivulet). On sandhills and cliffs.

150. Camptogramma bilineata (Yellow Shell). Very common
and variable. All types of colouring found.

15 1. Hydriomena furcata (July Highflier). Common in
plantations.

1954 the MACROLEPIDOPTERA OF THE ISLE OF GANNA 119

152. H. impluviata (May Highflier). Very common in
plantations.

153. Anticlea badiata (Shoulder Stripe). Larvae found on
wild rose in August. Moth sometimes taken in the spring.

154. A. nigrofasciaria (The Streamer). One specimen found
on a tree in 1952 and another in the moth-trap last spring

(1953)-

155. Eupithecia oblongata (Lime Speck). Common, often
found on ragwort blossoms.

156. E. pulchellata {Yo-Kg\owtV\xg). Plantations and garden.

157. E. venosata (Netted Pug). On cliffs.

[E. distinctaria (Thyme Pug). The Ganna specimens have
been lost, and a specimen from Barra supposedly of this
species has been identified by D. S. Fletcher as E. absinthiata.
E. distinctaria requires further confirmation.]

158. E. absinthiata (Wormwood Pug). Plantations.

159. E. goosensiata (Ling Pug). Found on the moor.

160. E. vulgata (Common Pug). Very common in woods
and gardens.

16 1. E. lariciata (Larch Pug). One in moth-trap, 1954.
Identified by W. H. Tams.

162. E. satyrata (Satyr Pug). Common in plantations.

163. E. fraxinata (Ash Pug). Occasionally found sitting on
ash trees in gardens and plantations.

164. E. nanata (Narrow- winged Pug). Common on moors
and cliffs.

165. Gymnosceles piimilata (Double Striped Pug). Speci-
mens taken in the moth-trap on nth August 1952.

166. Chloroclystis rectangulata (Green Pug). Three specimens
taken in the moth-trap on 15th July 1952.

167. Coenocalpe vittata (Oblique Carpet). A specimen
taken in a plantation, identified by R. J. Collins.

168. Abraxas grossulariata (Magpie). Garden and planta-
tions. Occasionally on moor but, unlike Barra, that is not
its main locality here.

169. Cabera pusaria (Common White Wave). Common in
plantations, sometimes found on the moor.

170. Metrocampa margaritaria (Light Emerald). Common
in plantations.

120

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

17 1. Selenia bilmaria {Yidixly Thorn) . Two specimens, both
taken in the moth-trap, one in 1952 and one in 1953.

172. Gonodontis bidentata (Scalloped Hazel). Occasionally
found in May and in the moth- trap.

173. Himera pennaria (Feathered Thorn). Twice taken:
one at a lighted window, one at Heiskeir Lighthouse in 1949.

1 74. Opisthograptis luteolata (Brimstone) . Common in garden
and plantations. Quite often taken in the moth-trap,

175. Hybernia aurantiaria (Scarce Umber). One taken at
light, 1954.

176. H, marginaria (Dotted Bar). Males taken at lighted
windows during the winter.

177. H. defoliaria (Mottled Umber). Males taken at
lighted windows during the winter. This species was not
noticed until the autumn of 1951 but it has been frequently
seen since.

178. Phigalia pedaria (Pale Brindled Beauty). First taken
in the moth- trap on ist March 1952.

179. Nyssia zonaria (Belted Beauty). Males sometimes
come to the lighted windows or moth-trap in March and April.
Caterpillars found on sandhills. Species is not so common
here as on Barra. The males I have from Canna are larger
and darker than those from Barra. I have found the larvae of
this species feeding on iris.

180. Boarmia repandata (Mottled Beauty). Common, being
found in woods, gardens, cliffs and on the moor, and in the
moth-trap.

18 1. Gnophos obscurata (Amulet). On the cliffs.

182. G. myrtillata (Scots Amulet). Sometimes on the moor;
it has also been taken in the moth-trap.

183. Ematurga atomaria (Common Heath). Common on
the moor in late April and May.

184. Selidosema ericetaria (Barred Clay). Found on the
moor.

185. Lozogramma petraria (Brown Silver Line). Fairly
common around edges of plantations where bracken grows.
This species is strongly attracted to the light trap.

186. Scodiona fagaria (Grey Scalloped Bar). Not common.
Found on the moor.

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

I2I

Zygaenidae

Careful searching here has revealed the presence of only one
of the burnets, which is :

187. Zygaena jilipendulae (Six-spot Burnet). Fairly wide-
spread, especially on the cliffs. The Canna specimens are
large and well marked. It has the distinction of being well
enough known popularly to have a Gaelic name, Cuileag
Fhrangach, meaning “ French Fly ”.

Hepialidae

There are three species of this family here, and all of them
are common.

188. Hepialus humuli (Ghost Moth). Is often abundant in
my garden around midsummer at dusk.

189. H. sylvina (Orange Swift). Common along the edges
of plantations.

190. H. fusconebulosa (Map- winged Swift). Common, and
strongly attracted to the moth-trap.

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

Spiny Lobsters off the Scottish coast. — Since the northerly
range of the spiny lobster {Palinurus vulgaris) was last discussed {Scot.
Nat., 64 : 15 1 and 65 : 62), the following additional records have
been received at the Scottish Home Department Marine Laboratory,
Aberdeen.

July 1939

March 1953
Jan. 1954

Jan. 1954

North entrance Hoy Sound,
Orkney

Scalloway Deep, Shetland
4' N.E. Sandside, N. coast of
Scotland

5-6' off Hoy Head, Orkney

Lobster creel

Cod-net
Seine net

Seine-net

The Hoy Sound specimen was not in the creel but clinging to the
top of it. The information about it and about the last one listed
above was provided by Mr. J. G. Marwick, Honorary Curator,
Stromness Natural History Museum. The other two records came
from the Department’s Fishery Officers at Lerwick and Wick
respectively. The Shetland specimen, a female, lived in an
aquarium box in the laboratory from 6th March 1953 until 19th
16

122

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

April 1954. Shell casting took place seven days before it died. I
Apparent increase in total length (24-2 cm. when received) was
only 0*5 cm.

Two recent occurrences of larval forms in research-vessel
plankton collections have also been recorded. These collections
were by i -metre silk nets, the first north-west of the Butt of Lewis, I
58° 50' N. 6°26'W., on 13th August 1953, and the other west of |
Barra, 56° 45' N. 8° 38' W., twelve days later. — E. Wilson, |
Marine Laboratory, Aberdeen. |

The dragonfly Cordulegaster boltonii (Don.) recorded from |
Wigtownshire. — Mr. C. E. Palmar of the Glasgow Museum jj
forwarded to us on 1 8th June 1954 a specimen ofC. boltonii which he # |
had received from Stranraer. This large dragonfly does not appear |
to have been recorded previously from vice-county 74 (cf. Miss I
Longfield’s The Dragonflies of the British Isles, 2nd edn., 1949, p. 98). ,

— Editors. v

Bithynia tentaculata (L.) in Moray. — In September 1953 I took )
a number of specimens of this little operculate snail in a pond at
Brodie, Forres, Moray. The species has not hitherto been recorded |j
north of Stirling. The identification has kindly been confirmed 4
by Mr. A. R. Waterston at the Royal Scottish Museum. — R. ]'
Richter, Gordonstoun, Elgin.

Nesting of the Shag in Banffshire and Aberdeenshire. —

Though there appears to be no record of the shag [Phalacrocorax
aristotelis) breeding on the coast of Banffshire, they now breed at '■
several points on the Troup Head line of cliffs between Crovie and

Pennan. In Aberdeenshire there are no recent records of the ^

%

breeding of shags. In 1895 Serle {Avifauna of Buchan, p. 18) wrote \
that it was “ common, and breeds about Pennan and the Cruden ^
coast”. However, Sim {The Vertebrate Fauna of Dee, 1903, p. 136) |

was unable to verify this statement, though he had “ traversed the |
coasts of Dee time after time ”. Sim mentioned that he had never I
seen a shag in summer on these coasts. i

In Aberdeenshire shags now breed on the granite cliffs between |
Cruden Bay and Longhaven. Two were found sitting on nests on |
Dunbuy Rock on 20th June 1950 and another further north at I
Longhaven on a nest in June 1954. |

In Banffshire, I first saw the shags nesting on 28th May 1947, |

when there were three occupied nests on the headland west of Hell’s I
Lum on some ledges close above the sea. On 24th April 1948 there |
were four occupied nests at this site. Many more shags were seen J

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

123

off the cliffs, and during the next winter it was found that up to
150 shags were using the half-mile long stretch of cliffs west of
Hell’s Lum as a roost. Other sites were discovered later, and on
30th June 1951 there were thirteen occupied nests on this stretch, of
which one was seen to contain eggs and five to contain young.
On 19th August 1950 of forty-one birds seen on the cliffs here, ten
were adults and the rest juveniles. They also now breed on the
cliffs at Troup Head, where several were sitting on nests on 25th July
1954. — Adam Watson, Aberdeen.

Three nests were visible on the Dunbuy Rock on 24th May 1 952,
and over fifty adults were seen in the vicinity. — Editors.

A Baldpate (American Wigeon) in Lanarkshire. — On

13th March 1954, at Hamilton rubbish-dump pool, a wigeon-like
bird was seen, of which a detailed description has been furnished
to the Editors. There is no doubt that it was an adult male bald-
pate [Anas americana) . Our description differs in two points from The
Handbook, but in each case other sources suggest that The Handbook
is wrong. Firstly, The Handbook says that americana and penelope
are of the same size, whereas our bird was larger. Mr. J. A.
Anderson, who knows the bird in the field, says americana is usually
larger. Peterson {A field guide to the birds), Grinnell, Bryant and
Storer {The game birds of California), and Phillips {A natural history
of the ducks), all give a larger size for the baldpate. According to
Phillips, the bill-size is markedly greater, suggesting a heavier head,
which we observed. Secondly, The Handbook and Peterson show a
very pale face for americana. Mr. Anderson agrees with our descrip-
tion. The illustration by Allan Brooks in Taverner’s Birds of Canada
exactly resembles our bird in this particular. The pictures in
Phillips, and in Fitter and Richardson {The pocket guide to British
birds), also come very close indeed to our bird.

The bird may possibly be the same individual as that recorded
from the same locality on i6th April 1952 {Scot. Nat., 65 : 116).
The species has been suspected of breeding in Iceland and it may
possibly have become associated with a migratory flock of wigeon
from there. — D. G. Andrew, G. Frazer, M. F. M. Meiklejohn,
H. Mayer-Gross, R. W. T. Smith, G. Walker.

Another Marsh Harrier in Aberdeenshire. — On 3rd June

1954 Mr. R. Hawley and I recognised a marsh harrier {Circus
aeruginosus) , flushed from tall reed beds surrounding Braeroddach
Loch, near Dinnet. The bird was recognised by its white head with
a dark eye-stripe, and long, broad wings with separated primaries.

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

1 24

The tail was long. In flight it was harassed by curlew and lap- >
wings. We watched it circling round with slow wing beats for
about ten minutes until it dropped down into the reeds again. j

On the following day it was again seen at the same place ; it
appeared to be ranging over a large area of Dinnet Moor and flew ;
away towards Lochs Kinord and Davan.

It is interesting to note that previous to the appearance of the |
bird there was a black-backed gull colony of approximately a
hundred pairs ; since the appearance of the harrier they have all
gone elsewhere.

The bird disappeared temporarily, but was seen again in the
first week of July. — J. A. Clark, Dinnet.

On an earlier page (p. 41) we reported the occurrence of a
marsh harrier in Aberdeenshire in 1953. On the present occasion
the bird was frequenting the same area as the one shot in 1881,
which until 1953 was the only known record for the county. —
Editors.

Some Capercaillie Notes. — On 28th May 1954 I found a
caper’s nest [Tetrao urogallus) on Drummond Hill, Perthshire, in a
forty-year-old Norway spruce plantation, under small branches left .
from felling rubbish, and about eighteen inches from the base of a i
spruce, a very usual site. The nest was a normal scrape under
dead branches with five eggs, but a foot away from it was a second f
nest, better lined than the first with two eggs in it, which were wet |
as it was raining. I saw the bird’s eye before she flew off with |
customary noise and fuss, and she was sitting with her head almost I
directly above the wet eggs. These were shut in by branches to |
such an extent that I could not see how such a massive bird could J
get on to them. It may be assumed that in her usual heavy move- j
ments near the nest, she displaced branches and made the nest I
unapproachable ; dry spruce branches are intractable and it i..
would be difficult to make a new way in, so she deserted. What is |
unusual is that she only moved a foot to find the new site, which i
makes it unlikely that she was frightened off the nest. Later the ^
five eggs were found to have hatched, while the two were left on |
the ground although they had disappeared a month later. i

Near Perth, on 17th May 1954, I found a caper’s nest with the|
first egg in it, still damp. This was under felling rubbish in a |
thirty-year Scots pine plantation. A fortnight later it had been |
predated by a dog or fox, with bits of apparently three eggs lying j
round. This seems late, but it was a late spring with most birds |
laying a fortnight after the usual date. |

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

125

I find that The Handbook does not mention blaeberries ( Vaccinium
myrtillus) among caper foods. I have shot caper on the open moor
in August and found their crops full of them. They had been feed-
ing in the same place for some days. In September in a ten-year-old
mixed plantation, two crops from a hen and a young bird contained
50 per cent, by volume of sheep’s fescue Festuca ovina^ 30 per cent,
needles of Abies nobilis, of which there were only about ten trees in
four acres, 10 per cent, heather tips (not flowers) and 10 per cent,
larch needles plus two or three Scots pine needles, this and larch
being the two main tree species. The preference for A. nobilis,
an exotic with a very strong smell, is curious. — J. M, D. Mackenzie,
St. Andrews.

J. G. Millais in Game Birds and Shooting Sketches (1894, 2nd edn.,
p. 3) refers to caper feeding on blaeberries at Craig Vinean, near
Dunkeld. — Editors.

Curlew nesting in cornfields. — On 27th May 1954 a farm
worker found a nest of a curlew (JVumenius arquata) , containing four
eggs, in a barley field on Lochton farm, half a mile north of theTweed
near Coldstream. The nest was composed of the usual dry grasses.
Three of the eggs had hatched by 3rd June and the parents were
observed close by. — W. M. Logan Home, Edrom.

(Mr. Adam Watson has kindly placed the following information
on this subject in our hands. — Editors.)

A census of the curlew population was made in the Turriff
district of Aberdeenshire and Banffshire in 1945. If a pair of birds
were consistently seen in the same small area, or eggs or young were
found there, this was taken to be their nesting habitat. The total
area was approximately 100 square miles. Of 1 13 pairs, 21 were in
arable fields. Of these 21, 13 were in fields sown with grain crops
(usually oats in this district), five in turnip fields, and three in potato
fields. The distribution was : heather moor, 7 ; heather mixed
with rough grass, 24 ; wet rough grassland, 8 ; heather dotted with
trees, 9 ; grass or hayfields, 23 ; wet fields with rushes, 13 ; marsh,
4 ; grass (parks, golf course, etc.), 4 ; turnip fields, 5 ; potato fields, 5 ;
fields with sown or growing grain, 13. — Adam Watson, Aberdeen
University.

Shore-larks in East Lothian. — On 13th December 1953 I
discovered a party of eleven shore-larks [Eremophila alpestris) on the
south bank of the Tyne estuary. East Lothian. These birds were
subsequently seen by a number of observers and, when I found the

126

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

flock again on 24th January 1954, it still consisted of the same num-
ber of birds. There also appears to have been another party of three
birds in the area (see Edinburgh Bird Bulletin, 4 (3) : 42) which were
seen as late as 7th March. The Tyne mouth is perhaps the locus
classicus of this species in Scotland, but these birds seem to be the
first to have occurred on the mainland of Scotland for some years. —
M. F. M. Meiklejohn, Glasgow.

Lutino Willow Warbler {Phylloscopus trochilus). — On gth July
1954 a remarkable variety of willow warbler was brought to me.
It had died shortly after capture in an exhausted condition at
Thirladean, Selkirk. When first seen it was being mobbed by other
un-named birds, and the finder tells me that his first thought was
that it was a large white moth. It was a young bird not long
fledged, and was identified from its wing formula. The beak and
legs were pure bright yellow and the eyes pink. It was white with
a shading of yellow particularly on the head and back, where it was
as yellow as a canary, and there was not a dark feather anywhere.
It is now at the Royal Scottish Museum where a skin has been
prepared. (Wing 59 mm., weight 5-45 gm.) — Arthur J. Smith,
Selkirk.

A rather similar variety of the wood warbler [Ph. sibilatrix)
has recently been described by Dr. Stuart Smith, with photographs
by Mr. Eric Hosking, in Bird Motes, 26 : 115, and in The Times of
loth August 1954.

We have examined Mr. Smith’s bird in the Royal Scottish
Museum. It is a very small specimen, with a wing measurement
below the minimum given for the willow warbler in The Handbook;
but the wing-formula agrees better with this than with the chiff-
chaff, and we agree with the identification given. The bird
appears to have normal yellow pigment, but to lack all other pig-
ment (i.e. eumelanin and phaeomelanin) . — Editors.

Grey-headed Wagtail in East Lothian. — On the evening of
the 26th May 1954 at Gullane, East Lothian, we saw two “ flava ”
on the sand dunes, one of which was a perfect example of a grey-
headed wagtail [Motacilla flava thunbergi). From a distance of
about ten yards, under perfect conditions using 8 X 30 binoculars,
it was noted that the forehead, crown and nape were grey, while the
lores and cheeks were black, becoming paler towards the nape.
The absence of an eye-stripe was very noticeable. Otherwise the bird
resembled a male yellow wagtail {M.f. flavissima) with the excep-

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

127

tion of the back which was of a much darker olive-green colour, and
the tail which was almost black with white outer feathers.

The bird was watched for about half an hour and at times fed
close beside the accompanying yellow wagtail, which afforded
excellent comparison. Later at dusk the bird was again seen in a
nettle-filled hollow, along with three other “ flava ” wagtails, where
they appeared to be going to roost. One of the “ flava ” wagtails
was certainly a yellow, but due to the failing light, and the short
time they were seen before taking flight, it was not possible to identify
them for certain.

This bird was seen only about a mile east from where a black-
headed wagtail (M. f. feldegg) was noted the previous year (see
Brit. Birds, 46 ; 219), and although the grey-headed wagtail has
been recorded from the Isle of May, it appears that this is the first
time it has been seen on the Scottish mainland. — F. D. Hamilton
and K. S. Macgregor, Edinburgh.

Red-backed Shrike in Inverness-shire. — In the early
morning of ist June 1954 near Coylumbridge my attention was
drawn to an area of mixed bushes and small trees beside a stream
by the scolding of siskins and a crested tit. The cause of this dis-
turbance appeared to be a male red-backed shrike {Lanius collurio)
which was sitting quietly in the shade of a birch tree. I checked
my identification and brought Dr. J. C. Somerville of Barassie and
Messrs. F. C. Gribble and W. J. Champkin, both of Bedford, who
were in Coylumbridge, and all four of us managed to see the bird
in good sunlight at about twenty yards range. I had previously
seen this species in Germany and Gribble and Champkin are familiar
with it in their home country. These two spent the rest of the morning
searching for evidence of breeding, but they found none, and the
last they saw of the bird was about mid-day. They report that
it allowed them to approach it to ten yards range. — Ian F. Stewart,
Dumfries.

There appears to be no previous record for East Inverness. —
Editors.

Lapland Buntings in East Lothian. — On the 27th September
1953 at Aberlady Bay Nature Reserve, East Lothian, we flushed two
birds which, by their call, immediately attracted our attention.
After they had landed a close approach was made and a full descrip-
tion taken which identified them as Lapland buntings Calcarius
lapponicus.

128 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST ¥0166,1954

Subsequent to this, Lapland buntings were seen every week
till the 27th December, averaging six to eight each visit, with a
peak of twenty-five on the 22nd November. Thereafter birds were
seen more sporadically, the last being two on 21st February 1954.
All the above birds were seen on or over the grassy saltings on the
east side of the bay. These occurrences constitute the first records
for East Lothian.

On the I St January 1954 a further twelve Lapland buntings
were flushed from a stubble field at West Barns, near Dunbar,
East Lothian. — F. D. Hamilton and K. S. Macgregor, Edinburgh.

Lesser Shrew in Perthshire. — On 30th March 1954 our cat
brought in a lesser shrew {Sorex minutus) . Measurements were above
those quoted in standard works but I sent the specimen to the Royal
Scottish Museum in Edinburgh where Dr. A. C. Stephen confirmed
the identification. Despite the absence of records I doubt if this
shrew is very rare around here. In September 1954 I was shown
another specimen, also caught by a cat, at Port-na-Craig, the iden-
tity of which was again kindly confirmed by Dr. Stephen. —
G. G. Blackwood, Dalshian, Pitlochry.

A Hedgehog in Coll. — On 1 1 th May 1 954 I found a fully
grown hedgehog [Erinaceus europaeus) lying dead in the sand dunes
near Totronald in south-west Coll. The animal, which had prob-
ably been dead for about a week, was lying on its back, unrolled,
and eviscerated. Harvie-Brown and Buckley (1892, p. 6)*
referring to the hedgehog say : “ Certainly does not occur in Mull,
nor, to the best of our knowledge anywhere in the Isles. Only
one has been trapped at Loch Swein in Kintyre. . . .” Later,
however, Maclaine {Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1895, p. 193) recorded its
inclusion in a Mull vermin price-list dated 1825. The records of
the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, do not mention the
occurrence of the hedgehog in the Hebrides. — J. Morton Boyd,
Glasgow University.

* A Vertebrate Fauna of Argyll and the Inner Hebrides, Edinburgh.

Vol. 66, No. 2 (pages 65-128) was issued to subscribers in January 1955. The
concluding part of the 1954 volume is in the press and will be ready shortly.

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THE IRISH NATURALISTS’ JOURNAL

A MAGAZINE OF NATURAL HISTORY
Published Everj Quarter by the LNJ. Committee

EDITED BY

MARY P. H. KERTLAND, M.Sc.

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The Scottish Naturalist

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EDITED BY

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Regius Professor of Natural History^ University of Aberdeen

AND

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CONTENTS

PAGE

June Notes on the Birds of Islay — Prof M. F. M. Meiklejohn

and Lt.-CoL J. K. Stanford . . . . . 129

Redstarts reared in Tits’ Nests — J. M. D. Mackenzie . .146

Botanical Note . . . . . . . .154

A Synoptic Study of the 1953 Crossbill Irruption — Kenneth

Williamson . . . . . . • 1 55

Rare and Exotic Fishes recorded in Scotland during 1953 —

Dr. B. B. Rae and E. Wilson . . . .170

Zoological Notes ...... 145, 185

Book Reviews . . . . . . . • 193

Correspondence . . . . . . .196

Index ......... 205

The Scottish Naturalist

Volume 66, No. 3 1954

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY*

M. F. M. Meiklejohn and J. K. Stanford

In June 1954 we attempted to carry out a survey of the breed-
ing birds of Islay, Inner Hebrides. We passed a fortnight on
the island, from 3rd to 17th June, during which time we
covered it thoroughly, travelling about 500 miles by car and
about 120 on foot. We visited fifty-four of the freshwater
' lochs. We were unable to visit the east coast from Ardmore
to Port Askaig, the summits of Beinn Bheigheir and Glas
I Bheinn, the easternmost cliffs of the Mull of Oa, most of the
(! islands offshore and some of the remoter patches of moorland
in the south-east and north-east; nor were we able to inspect
thoroughly the Kildalton woods.

Islay contains a very wide variety of habitats for birds:
large expanses of woodland, agricultural land, moorland,
numerous lochs, mountains as high as 1,600 feet and sea cliffs
; which, at the Mull of Oa, are about 600 feet high. The
island well repaid our journey, and results exceeded our ex-
pectations. We hope that this article will show others that
: there is still work to be done on the distribution of Scottish
birds. We found Baxter and RintouPs Birds of Scotland of
very great use as a textbook in our work.

I We would like especially to thank Major John Morrison,
M.P., of Islay House for numerous kindnesses, above all for
j the loan of a Land-Rover, without which our researches would
have been much restricted. Mr. J. H. Cranston, the Factor
of the Islay House Estates, was of great help to us during our
stay, and Mr. Robert Gartshore, the Head Keeper, not only

* Received 13th August 1 954

17

130 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST VoL 66 i

assisted us in many ways, but also endured our innumerable
questions with great patience; we would like to thank them |j
also. f

We must thank Mr. W. B. Alexander for reading this «
article, for giving us advice on it and for supplying us with i
information regarding his visits to the island in 1936 and 1949
in company with the Oxford Ornithological Society and Mr.

R. Vaughan.

Systematic List

(In the following list the abbreviation BS denotes The
Birds of Scotland by E. V. Baxter and L. J. Rintoul).

On the fifty-four lochs visited by us we did not see a single |
Black-throated Diver Colymbus arcticus, in spite of rumours of J
its occurrence as a breeding species.

Great Northern Diver Colymbus immer. Birds in summer
plumage were seen on 5th June at Portnahaven, on 1 6th June
in Loch Indaal, and, on the return journey on 17th June, at
the mouth of East Loch Tarbert.

Red-throated Diver Colymbus stellatus. McWilliam’s
epithet of “ common ”, applied to this species on Islay, appears
an overstatement at the present time. We observed it on
only six lochs out of the fifty-four visited, and on only three
of these did it appear that breeding was likely. We found
one nest on nth June.

Dabchick Podiceps ruficollis. This species does not now
appear to be so common as previously thought [BS 505). We |
saw only one bird, accompanied by three chicks, on loth June p
at Loch Lossit.

The storm petrel Hydrobates pelagicus and Manx shearwater
Pujffinus puffinus very probably nest, but we found no proof of
their doing so; nevertheless it is interesting in this connection
that on Nave Island, where rabbits are absent, the turf is
frequently pierced by burrows; these may all, however,
have been made by black guillemots Uria grylle, the eggs of I
which were found in one burrow.

Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis. Seen on the Mull of Oa. On ;
the west coast we found three colonies between Lossit and j

1954

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY 131

Kilchiaran, totalling about fifty pairs; on the Saligo cliffs
about seventy pairs; at Sanaig about forty pairs; and on
Nave Island about thirty, where, to secure proof of breeding,
we flushed two birds from the egg. One was seen on 6th
June on the north-east coast near Killinallan, and there was
a colony of seven pairs on the small cliffs at Laggan Point.
They do not appear to nest on the east of the island where
there are many suitable sites.

Gannet Sula bassana. Several times observed flying off-
shore.

Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo. We only saw two adults
and three immature birds; although it may breed on the
Mull of Oa we saw no nests on the cliffs north of there.

Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis. A frequent breeder on the
west cliffs, where we saw nests, some already with young on
the Rhinns, at Sanaig and on Nave Island. A number were
also present at Laggan Point, where, however, we found no
nests.

Heron Ardea cinerea. Everywhere common, although we
only discovered one heronry, containing about seven pairs, in
the northern part of the island.

Mallard Anas platyrhynchos. Seen almost everywhere,
both on salt water and fresh, even as high as Loch Beinn
Uraraidh (r. 1,000 feet) where we saw five and two $5.
Newly hatched young were several times observed.

Teal Anas crecca. We found this duck on six lochs, and,
on Loch Fada, saw a female with two ducklings.

Common Scoter Melanitta nigra. We found at least five
pairs present and, on gth June, flushed two $$ off their
nests, each of which contained seven eggs ; one nest was under
brambles, the other in a hollow between two clumps of rushes.
This new breeding record is of great interest in filling a gap
between their northern Scottish and Irish breeding stations.
Alexander did not observe the species either in 1936 or 1949.

Eider Soniateria mollissima. Everywhere common round
the coast; for example, we found five nests and saw two
broods of young on Eilean Beag. Nearly all the parties of
young birds seen were accompanied by two females, and
already, on 4th June, the males had mostly collected into
large parties. We were several times struck by the small size

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of newiy hatched broods on Islay, and on Eilean Beag and
Ardnave Island found that an interesting factor apparently
limited clutch-size in certain cases; here the number of eggs
in clutches being brooded were 2, 3, 3, 3, 5, and 8. All the
small clutches were laid in narrow fissures in the rocks, where
there would be no room for more eggs to be laid side by side;
the large clutch (8), on the other hand, was laid on flat ground
in thick herbage. It seems clear that, in this small part of
the eider’s range, the number of eggs depends on the capacity
of the nest-site to contain them.

Merganser Mergus senator. Probably the commonest
duck. Thirty-two were seen together at the mouth of the
Sorn on 12th June. Undoubtedly breeding.

Shelduck Tadorna tadorna. Seen commonly all round the
coast, with the exception of the eastern shore. Several broods
observed. The decrease reported [BS 385) seems to have
been arrested; we think it very unlikely that on Islay any
decrease in this species could be due to an increase in mergan-
sers, since the food of the two species is very different and, in
a place so abounding in rabbits, nesting sites for the shelduck
are innumerable. It is significant that we found this species
most numerous in the sandy Ardnave area, where rabbits are
ubiquitous.

Mute Swan Cygnus olor. Ardnave Loch, two : Loch Gorm,
three: Loch Ballygrant, two: Loch Lada, four: Kildalton
(on salt water), two. It is interesting that, in early June, we
found no signs of either nest or young.

Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetus. We saw several birds of
this species and found one eyrie, to which one of the parents
was bringing a hooded crow Corvus cornix cornix.

Buzzard Buteo buteo. We saw buzzards in four different
localities, on one occasion carrying food.

Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus. On 12th June we saw a
male of this species carrying food, apparently to a nest.

Peregrine Falco peregrinus. Seen in three different local-
ities.

Merlin Falco columbarius. We only saw a single bird,
but it bred on the island in 1954, the nest being destroyed
by a keeper.

Kestrel Falco tinnunculus. Seen in five localities.

1954

133

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY

Red Grouse Lagopus scoticus. In all suitable localities,
even at sea level. We found a nest with eggs and a brood
out of the nest.

We did not record the ptarmigan Lagopus mutus, but, of
the mountains which provide a suitable habitat, we only
ascended two, Beinn Bhan and Beinn Uraraidh. Inquiries
elicited no recent definite record for Islay, though W. B.
Alexander’s party found young in 1936.

Black Grouse Lyrurus tetrix. Not common; we only saw
twelve S S • In view of the adaptability of the pheasant on
Islay [q.v.), we are inclining to think that Sir Hugh Gladstone’s
observation (quoted in BS 720) applies here also: “The

principal cause for the decrease in Blackgame is an insuffi-
ciency of their natural food brought about by the increase of
Pheasants.” To this we would add that on Islay the pheasant
has largely usurped the habitat of the black grouse.

Partridge Perdix perdix. We saw only two, near Port
Ellen and near Saligo. They can be no longer common on
Islay (cf. BS 739), and Mr. Gartshore tells us that the Islay
House Estate holds only about nine coveys.

Pheasant Phasianus colchicus. Numerous in the most
varied types of country, being seen even among sand-dunes
at Ardnave and in heather near Rhuvaal. It is perhaps
especially numerous in marshy country with low bushes — a
typical black grouse habitat. On five occasions we saw pairs
feeding together, the cock evidently having escorted the hen
from the eggs.

Corncrake Crex crex. We heard birds calling in thirty-
one different fields; these either contained rye-grass (cf.
Venables, 1950) or were damp pasture with rushes.

Moorhen Gallinula chloropus. Seen on lochs with suitable
cover: Loch Indaal, Loch Gearach, Loch nan Diol, Loch
Fada, Loch Clach a Bhuaile and Loch Eighinn. On Loch
Indaal we saw one wandering about on the sea sand.

Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus. The statement (^^S*
608) that the oystercatcher nests “ in small numbers ” on
Islay is no longer correct. We found it all round the coasts
and it was certainly the commonest limicoline bird — much
commoner than the lapwing. We also saw large numbers
inland, for example, twenty-two miles east of Bowmore, and

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134

Vol. 66

I?

found it as high as 1,000 feet (Loch Beinn Uraraidh). Ross
(1913) says “ everywhere round the coasts ,

Lapwing Vanellus vanellus. In all suitable country; nests j
and young found.

Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula. Observed all round
the coasts, except on the unsuitable east shore, also inland,
as on Loch Gorm and one of the dubh lochans on the Port
Ellen-Bowmore road.

Golden Plover Pluvialis apricaria. We only found the
golden plover locally on the slopes of mountains in the south- I
east part of the island. Here we located six birds, three of
which uttered the anxiety note, as if they had young. I

Turnstone Arenaria interpres. Nave Island, six on 14th
June; two of these birds appeared to us to be paired.

Snipe Capella gallinago. Very common in all likely places;
we also several times flushed snipe from bracken. We heard
a number drumming and found one newly hatched chick.

Woodcock Scolopax rusticola. Very common, especially in
Bridgend woods, where we saw eight roding within a single
half hour. In Daill woods, on loth June, we disturbed a
woodcock and four young; the parent flew off, looking very
strange, with tail depressed, legs dangling and feathers
puffed out^ — rather like a barndoor fowl in flight. The young
ran away with their wings lifted high, slowly rocking them-
selves from side to side. This species is said to breed two or
three times a year and we found eggs in the second week in
June.

Gurlew Numenius arquata. Extremely common on low
lying moorland, but not elsewhere. Young several times seen.

Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica. Present throughout
our stay on Loch Gruinart (8 +) and Loch Indaal (15 +).

In winter plumage.

Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola. On 7th June, we found
a male of this species -on Loch Airidh Dhaibhaidh. When
disturbed, it did not fly away, but, ascending into the air,
performed its breeding flight, accompanied by the flute-like
notes of its song. Our hopes that it might have a mate were
disappointed when, on three later visits, we failed to see the
bird. We found that the barring on the flanks was a useful
diagnostic feature of the male at this season (see The Handbook,

1954

135

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY

4, Plate 1 1 7). The wood sandpiper, always rare in Scotland,
has not previously been observed in the Inner Hebrides.

Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos. Not so common as
the adjective “ common ” (BS 573) led us to expect. We
observed nineteen (including a newly hatched chick) on
inland waters, and twelve on the seashore. Three were seen
at over 1,000 feet near Beinn Uraraidh.

Redshank Tringa totanus. By no means common in
comparison with other Scottish coastal localities; it can no
longer breed “ numerously about Sanaig ” {BS 578). On the
shore seen only on Loch Indaal (where young seen). Loch
Gruinart, at Laggan Point and Bonahaven: inland, at Loch
Eighinn, at a dubh lochan on the Port Ellen — Bowmore road,
at Loch Lossit, and in two swampy fields near Ballygrant.

Dunlin Calidris alpina. Common, both on the shore and
at inland lochs at low elevation; no nest found, but trilling
song frequently heard.

Sanderling Crocethia alba. Loch Indaal, two, gth and 1 5th

June.

Arctic Skua Stercorarius parasiticus. We observed two
dark-phase individuals of this species, both of them cruising
inland, but obtained no evidence of breeding. It has bred on
Islay {BS 671).

Great Black-backed Gull Lams marinus. We found
young of this species in three localities. Non-breeding birds
of this and the following species were frequently seen on
inland lochs.

Lesser Black-backed Gull Lams fuscus.

Herring Gull Lams argentatus. Neither species is very
numerous on Islay; we found them breeding together in
several places, on more or less flat rocks near the sea, usually
in about equal numbers, as at Lossit (west coast of Rhinns),
Saligo, Sanaig, Eilean Beag and Nave Island, but only about
sixty pairs of each species in all these localities.

Common Gull Lams cams. The most numerous breeding
gull, using a variety of sites: flat seashore (Loch Indaal, two
pairs; north of Bonahaven, one pair) ; islands oflf shore (island
off Portnahaven, a few pairs; Nave Island, two or three pairs) ;
old peat-cuttings (near Portnahaven, four pairs) ; fresh-water
lochs (Loch Gorm; Loch Eighinn, 20 + pairs; Loch Fada,

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

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136

15+ pairs; dubh lochan near Laggan, three pairs). About
ten pairs were found on the lochan near the top of Beinn Bhan
at over 1,300 feet. It particularly favours damp moorland,
where old nest-sites are conspicuous by lush growth of grasses
(Eilean na Muice Duibhe, 10+ pairs; near Grunnd Loch,
20+ pairs; Rhinns of Islay, near Lossit, 50+ pairs; moor
east of Loch nan Gabhar, 50+ pairs). We nowhere saw it
nesting on the cliffs.

Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus. The old colony at
Loch na Beinne {BS 636) is still occupied and still contains
about forty pairs. In addition we found three pairs in a
marsh near Loch Gruinart, and about 100 pairs on the Leur
Lochan near Sanaig.

Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla. We found two colonies on the
West Cliffs; 100 pairs on the cliffs north of Lossit and 200
pairs on the Sanaig cliffs. We did not closely investigate the
Mull of Oa.

Common Tern Sterna hinindo. In those parts of Islay where
accurate identification was made possible by a close approach
to the birds, we found this species more numerous than the
arctic tern, 10 1 pairs counted as opposed to sixty-seven of the
latter. It nests on Loch Indaal (50 pairs), Eilean Beag
(Ardnave) (fifteen pairs), north of Bonahaven (six pairs) and
on fresh water at Loch Gorm (thirty pairs). The Loch Gorm
and Eilean Beag colonies contained a few individuals of Sterna
macrura, but we found no common terns in arctic colonies.
We found the Richardson-Rayner method of identification of
great value especially in mixed colonies (Richardson 1953).

Arctic Tern Sterna macrura. It is strange that this species
does not appear to have been recorded breeding on Islay, but
W. B. Alexander [in litt.) tells us that it was breeding on Loch
Indaal in 1936 and 1949 and that he and R. Vaughan found
many nesting on Loch Gruinart in 1949. In addition to the
isolated pairs in common-tern colonies (see above), we found
this species on Nave Island (twenty pairs), Ardnave (twenty
pairs). Loch Gruinart (three pairs), and an islet one mile north
of Portnahaven (twenty pairs). We are also of the opinion
(based on the birds’ calls alone) that the terns on Eilean Mhic
Goinnich, off Portnahaven, are of this species. There is an
interesting case of distribution on the north-west of Islay

1954

137

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY

where two colonies of arctic tern (at Ardnave and on Nave
Island) two kilometres apart have, lying between them, on
Eilean Beag, a colony of common terns, containing, however,
one pair of arctic.

Little Tern Sterna minuta. This species, like the preceding,
has not been recorded nesting in Islay. We found a colony of
four nests on Loch Gruinart, and several birds were seen on
Loch Indaal. W. B. Alexander [in litt.) tells us that he and
R. Vaughan found a nest in 1949.

Algidae. The numbers of breeding auks were very low
when W. B. Alexander visited Islay in 1949. We found that
the guillemot and puffin were still scarce, but that the black
guillemot has made a good recovery and the razorbill is now
common. It should be emphasised, however, that all our
observations come from the West Cliffs and we did not have
time for full exploration of the Mull of Oa which is perhaps
the headquarters of Alcidae on Islay.

Razorbill Aka torda. Cliffs north of Lossit, four pairs;
Saligo, 20+ pairs; Sanaig, 200 -f- pairs. These large numbers
are perhaps a recent increase (cf. BS 678).

Guillemot Uria aalge. We saw about fifteen pairs on the
sea off the Mull of Oa; six pairs on cliffs north of Lossit;
eight pairs at Sanaig and none at Saligo.

Black Guillemot Uria grylle. We saw four at Rhuvaal
and found twelve pairs on Nave Island, finding a burrow
containing two eggs. At Port Askaig there were about ten
pairs sitting on rocks by the' sea or on the cliffs, where some
were seen entering holes about 100 feet up. W. B. Alexander
saw only one in 1949.

Puffin Fratercula arctica. Seen only at Sanaig (five pairs) ;
one observed issuing from a hole in the cliff. This bird was
watched eating shoots of Cochlearia officinalis^ a possible necessary
source of vitamin G.

(Stockdove Columba oenas. Mr. Gartshore tells us that
he heard a stock dove cooing at Bridgend in May 1954. This
cannot be considered as a serious record without the bird
having been seen, but, since Mr. Gartshore knows the bird in
Perthshire, we have thought it best to include his observation,
in view of possible future expansion of range into Islay, which
cannot be thought unlikely.)

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138

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

Rock Dove Columba livia. Seen in large numbers on
arable land, where it must do similar damage to that done by
the wood pigeon elsewhere. On one newly sown field near
Port Ellen we counted 192. A review of the new Protection
of Birds Act in Bird Notes (26: 92) says: “ The presence of
the Rock Dove in Schedule Two (those birds which may be
killed or taken at any time) is astonishing.” Astonishing
perhaps to Londoners, but not to Hebrideans. Certainly
breeds in the coastal caves.

Wood Pigeon Columba palumbus. Numerous in Bridgend
woods, where young birds seen.

Cuckoo Cuculus canorus. Seen, as the French bird-books
say, un peu partout^ in woods, mountain, moorland and sand-
dunes. We heard or saw it in twenty localities.

Barn Owl Tyto alba. Heard making its snorting shriek at
night at Bridgend. We were told it bred at a neighbouring
farm.

Tawny Owl Strix aluco. We saw three in different parts
of the Bridgend woods; one of these, seen in broad daylight,
seemed to be of the grey phase.

Long-eared Owl Asio otus. We heard the unmistak-
able hunger-cry of the young in the Bridgend woods on 4th
June. We were also told that they nested in a conifer wood
near Island House.

Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus. We found two “ singing ”
males in the Bridgend woods, one of which was seen with his
mate, and have little doubt that they breed.

Swift Apus apus. We saw four at Bridgend on the evening
of 3rd June: these were probably on passage, and we saw no
others.

Kingfisher Alcedo atthis. Although we did not ourselves
see this species, it still occurs on Islay and we received
reports of it having been seen recently on the Laggan, the
Sorn and Ballygrant Loch. No evidence of recent breeding
was, however, obtained.

Greater Spotted Woodpecker Dryobates major. Mr.
Gartshore informs us that a bird of this species was seen
several times in Bridgend woods in May 1954. He gave us an
excellent description of its plumage, flight and “ chipping ”
call-note; he also knows the bird in Perthshire and we have

39

1954 JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY

no doubt that his identification is correct. This occurrence is
not surprising, in view of the bird’s recent extension of its
range to Mull {BS 260).

Skylark Alaiida arvensis. Inhabits all suitable areas. We
heard it singing at the summit of Beinn Bhan (1,544 feet).

Swallow Hirundo rustica. Common wherever there are
buildings.

House Martin Delichon urbica. A scarce species on Islay.
We found it only at Bridgend, where there were five or six
pairs. It was nesting under the eaves of houses to the west of
the village.

Sand Martin Riparia riparia. We saw sand martins in
nine different parts of the island, but found nesting holes at
only four: at Ardnave and Killinallan (in sand-dunes), at
Sanaig (in a bank at the mouth of Gleann Tuath), and at
Ardbeg (in a roadside quarry).

Raven Corvus corax. We found six pairs of ravens on the
island, one of which was accompanied by a young bird. One
pair was in woodland.

Hooded Crow Corvus cornix. Not common; we only saw
twenty-six altogether. This includes a party of ten seen on
Beinn Bhan and a party of eight near Rhuvaal.

Rook Corvus frugilegus. Common on agricultural land.
We found rookeries at Aoradh (Loch Gruinart) and on the
island in Loch Lossit, the latter containing about fifteen pairs.
We were also told that there were colonies at Ballygrant and
Ballinaby, and there is doubtless a rookery or rookeries in the
south of the island, since the species is common there.

Jackdaw Corvus monedula. Very common, now being found
all along the west cliffs, in the woods at Bridgend and Kil-
dalton, and in dunes at Ardnave and Uisgentuie, where it nests
in rabbit burrows. We also saw nesting holes in the steep
banks of the Laggan River, and J. K. S. observed a pair enter-
ing the chimneys of the National Bank of Scotland at Bridgend.

Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax. We saw eight pairs of
this species in only one locality. Mr. R. Huggins told us
that one possible reason for its decrease is that a number get
caught in rabbit traps in the winter.

Great Tit Parus major. Not common; nothing like so
numerous as the blue and coal tits. We saw only six birds.

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at Bridgend, Ballygrant and Ardmore. Ross (1913) gives
only three occurrences.

Blue Tit Parus caeruleus. One of the commonest wood-
land species. We found several nests.

Coal Tit Parus ater. As common as the blue tit, and by
no means confined to coniferous woods. Seen feeding young.

Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus. We saw one in
Bridgend woods on 13th June. Mr. Gartshore saw a family
party in front of Islay House in late May, and a visitor to the
Bridgend Hotel described what was clearly a party of these
birds. Bridgend is the only area where it has been reported
on Islay, but it is hard to think that it does not occur also in
Kildalton woods, although Ross (1915), who made most of his
observations in the south of Islay, says: “ I am doubtful if it
occurs at all.”

Tree Creeper Certhia familiaris. We observed a family party
of three in the woods beside Loch Lossit, but saw no others.

Wren Troglodytes troglodytes. Found wherever there is
suitable cover, which includes not only vegetation but broken
rocks and gullies; thus it is not uncommon along the cliffs, as
at Rhuvaal. Nest found and young seen.

Dipper Cinclus cinclus. We did not explore the larger
streams, such as the Laggan and Duich, but found several
dippers on the Sorn, including some birds of the year, also
on the Abhainn Bhogie.

Mistle Thrush Turdus viscivorus. We saw six in the
Bridgend area and a pair on the Bridgend-Port Ellen road.

Song Thrush Turdus ericetorum. A very numerous species,
occurring not only in gardens and woods, but also commonly
in types of country described in The Handbook as characteristic
of the Hebridean race — edges of moorland, sheltered gullies,
vegetation by streams.

Blackbird Turdus merula. Very common, even on the
edges of moorland, especially among bracken. We nowhere
found the ring-ouzel T. torquatus, which is supposed to nest
on Islay, although we visited a number of places where we
expected to find it. There has been a general decrease of
the ring-ouzel, but on a low-lying island like Islay competition
with the blackbird, which is found in the habitat of the related
species, may be partly responsible for its absence.

1954

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY 141

Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe. Very common all round the
shore, as well as on Nave Island, and occurs in the hills up to
1,500 feet. We first saw flying young on 4th June.

Stonechat Saxicola torquata. We found about sixteen pairs.
On Islay it is predominantly a moorland bird, frequently
found among peat cuttings and not so dependent on the
presence of bushes as is the whinchat. We saw a family party
on nth June.

Whinchat Saxicola rubetra. Although The Birds of Scot-
land (p. 206) says it is local on Islay, we found it slightly more
plentiful than the stonechat, observing about eighteen pairs.
It prefers country with rather more thick vegetation than the
other species, being especially fond of bracken.

Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus. We saw only one bird
of this species, a female, which was feeding young in a hole in
a stone wall at Port Askaig on 12th June. There is only one
previous breeding record for Islay [BS 212). The scarcity of this
species in woods which are eminently suited to its habits may
in part be due to the presence there of large numbers of robins.

Robin Erithacus rubecula. This seems to be the commonest
woodland species, being found not only in the forest at Bridg-
end but also in numerous small thickets all over the island.

Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus. Common in all
damp places with sufficient cover.

Whitethroat Sylvia communis. A very common species,
being found, as in the rest of Scotland, even on the moors
among bushes and bracken.

Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus. The commonest
warbler, occurring over much of the same country inhabited
by the whitethroat and being, of course, very common in
thick woodland.

Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita. There are no previous
records from Islay, although it occurs as a summer visitor in
Mull and Raasay. M. F. M. M. heard three — and possibly
four — in song in the Winter Covert at Bridgend: this un-
fortunately occurred shortly before our departure, and breeding
can only be assumed, not proved. The centre of the wood
contains a dense thicket of rhododendrons, where the birds
were singing ; this chiffchaff-rhododendron association is
usual in Scotland (cf. Meiklejohn, 1952).

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Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix. We heard four in
song, three at Bridgend and one beside Loch Lossit; two of
the Bridgend birds were in beech wood, the others in mixed f
woodland. Ross (1913) has two records for the south of the
island.

Goldcrest Regulus regulus. We saw this species on several
occasions at Bridgend, where there was a family party on 13th
June. It was also feeding flying young beside Loch Lossit on
loth June.

Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata. Observed in
seven different parts of Bridgend woods, also in the woods
beside Loch Lossit.

Dunnock Prunella modularis. Found commonly, not only
in gardens and woods, but also in any sort of scrub in quite
open localities.

Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis. Common in all suitable
places.

Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis. In a young larch plantation
at Bridgend we found a pair feeding young on 7th June.
The birds were tame enough for us to observe the short hind-
claw. Ross (1913) gives records from the south of the island,
but did not observe it breeding. Very likely it is quite a
common species in Islay, where there is much land suited to
it, but there seems to be no previous breeding record.

Rock Pipit Anthus spinoletta. Common all round the
parts of the coast visited by us. Heard singing and seen
feeding young.

Pied Wagtail Motacilla alba yarrellii. We located thirteen
pairs, several of which were accompanying flying young.

Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea. We saw this species
only on the River Sorn, where we found one nest, saw flying
young of another brood and watched parents carrying food
to a third.

Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio. We found a male of
this species near Portnahaven on 5th June. It was perched
on a low hedge over a ditch and was probably a first-summer
bird as there were still traces of barring on the flanks. There
is no previous record for the Inner Hebrides.

Starling Sturnus vulgaris. Very common on the cliffs, as
well as on Nave Island. It is also largely a woodland species.

1954 JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY 143

and the call of young in the nest was one of the commonest
sounds of the Bridgend woods. Starlings were already
beginning to flock on 5th June, when we saw about a hundred
collected in willow scrub between Portnahaven and Kilchiaran.

Greenfinch Chloris chloris. Common where there is
sufficient vegetation.

Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis. Mr. Gartshore tells us that
he saw a pair in the Winter Covert at Bridgend about loth
June. There are nesting records for some other islands [BS

51)-

Linnet Carduelis cannabina. Twite Carduelis Jlavirostris.
The respective distribution of these two species in Islay
depends on vegetation rather than altitude. We never saw
the twite at any height, but both species were common round
the coast, the linnet where there were suitable bushes, the
twite on open ground, usually with heather in the vicinity.
We never saw them together. The twite also occurs on
Eilean Beag (one pair) and Nave Island, where we saw twelve
birds.

Lesser Redpoll Carduelis Jlammea. A common bird in the
Bridgend woods, where it attracts attention as it flies calling
over the treetops. We observed young birds of the year.
Ross (1913) records it also from Lagavulin.

Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula. We saw three pairs in
different parts of the Bridgend woods, one of which was
accompanying a young bird, and a pair at Kildalton.

Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs. Common in woodland as at
Bridgend, Kildalton and Port Askaig. We only once, in the
Loch Gorm area, saw a pair away from the woods.

Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra. Only one, seen and
heard singing near Loch Gruinart on 6th June. There has
probably been a further decrease since Alexander’s visit in
1936 [BS 77).

Yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella. We found only about
fourteen pairs in habitats varying from thick woodland
(Bridgend) to moorland with bracken (Bonahaven).

Reed Bunting Emberiza schoeniclus. A common species in
all open damp places near sea level.

House Sparrow Passer domesticus. Common in the neigh-
bourhood of houses.

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Conclusions

1. In the preceding list we have not been concerned with
systematic considerations and thus have not attempted to give
subspecific designations to Cinclus cinclus^ Saxicola torquata and
Prunella modularis.

2. During a fortnight (3rd to 17th June) we observed 112
species and obtained proof of breeding of 73.

3. The only species which is supposed to breed regularly on
Islay, and which we did not see, is the ring-ouzel Tiirdus
torquatus.

4. Other birds which have on rare occasions bred, or been
presumed to breed, on Islay, and which we did not see are:
shoveler Spatula clypeata {The Handbook, 3: 278 gives the mis-
taken impression that this is a regular breeder there), tufted
duck Aythya fuligula, hen harrier Circus cyaneus, ptarmigan
Lagopus mutus, coot Fidica atra, kingfisher Atthis ispida, carrion
crow Corvus cornix corone, grasshopper warbler Locustella naevia,
and yellow wagtail Motacilla jlava jlavissima.

5. Possible future breeding birds, not observed by us are:
black-throated diver Colymbus arcticus, storm petrel Hydrobates
pelagicus, Manx shearwater Puffinus pupjinus, wigeon Anas
penelope, pintail Anas acuta, goosander Mergus merganser, grey-
lag goose Anser anser, water rail Rallus aquaticus, greenshank
Tringa nebularia. Sandwich and roseate terns Sterna sand-
vicensis and dougallii, short-eared owl Asio jlammeus, blackcap
and garden warbler Sylvia atricapilla and borin, pied flycatcher
Muscicapa hypoleuca, goldfinch and siskin Carduelis carduelis and
spinus. The grey-lag goose, as well as the white-tailed eagle
Haliaetus albicilla, bred in the last century.

6. The following species had not previously been recorded
breeding on Islay: common scoter Melanitta nigra, arctic and
little terns Sterna macrura and minuta, and tree pipit Anthus
trivialis. Nests of the two terns were, however, found in 1949
by W. B. Alexander and R. Vaughan and of the arctic tern by
W. B. Alexander’s party in 1936. The chiffchaff Phylloscopus
collybita, not previously recorded at all from Islay, may be
presumed to nest there. We recorded the second nesting of
the redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus in Islay.

1954

145

JUNE NOTES ON THE BIRDS OF ISLAY

7. After such a brief survey, it would be unwise to make
definite assertions about the increase or decrease of the Islay
species but, dealing in terms of probabilities, we may say that
the Alcidae^ with the exception of the razorbill, have grown
scarcer, although the black guillemot shows signs of re-
establishing former numbers. Of species which have decreased
elsewhere, we found the corn bunting very scarce and the ring-
ouzel non-existent, though the corncrake is still common.
Indications that birds whose range is expanding may spread
to Islay were obtained in the cases of the stockdove and greater
spotted woodpecker. It is possible that an increase in the
jackdaw may be correlated with a decrease in the chough.

8. Two vagrants seen by us, wood sandpiper Tringa
glareola and red-backed shrike Lanius collurio, are new to the
Inner Hebrides.

REFERENCES

Alexander, W. B. Personal communication.

Baxter, E, V. and Rintoul, L. J., 1953. The Birds of Scotland. 2 vols.,
Edinburgh.

Meiklejohn, M. F. M., 1952. Habitat of the chiffchaff in Scotland.
Scot. Nat., 64: 114-116.

Richardson, R. A., 1953. A distinction in flight between arctic and
common terns. British Birds, 41 1-4 12.

Ross, Alexander, 1913. Birds of Islay. The Glasgow Naturalist VI, i;

7-32.

Ross, Alexander, 1915. Additional notes on the birds of Islay. The
Glasgow Naturalist VII, 4: 97-101.

Venables, L. S. V. and U. M., 1950. The corncrake in Shetland. British
Birds, 1 37-141.

WiTHERBY et al., 1938-1941. The Handbook of British Birds. 5 vols.,
London.

ZOOLOGICAL NOTE

Pied Flycatcher in East Inverness. — On 20th June 1954 I
saw a male pied flycatcher {Muscicapa hypoleuca) just south of Loch
Insh, across the strath from Kincraig. — David West, New York.

In view of the colonization which is taking place in North Perth,
occurrences elsewhere in the Highlands during the summer months
are of interest. There was a breeding record for East Inverness in
1948 {The Birds of Scotland, p. 147). — Editors.

19

146

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66 \

REDSTARTS REARED IN TITS’ NESTS*

J. M. D. Mackenzie

St. Andrews

1

I HAVE once found two blue tits [Pams caeruleus) reared in the
nest of a great tit (P. major) (Mackenzie, 1950). The events
which caused this were clear — the great tits ousted the blue
from a nest in which three eggs had already been laid. There
were empty boxes available nearby, and it seems to have been
due to a strong preference for a particular box. In other
years that box has not always been used, and perhaps climatic
conditions, especially wind, were such that it was specially
desirable in 1949. From the date, the blue tits nested in |
another box nearby. In 1954 I found a great tit’s nest with
two redstarts’ (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) eggs in it and next to it
a coal tit’s (P. ater) with six. The story is worth recording.

1954 was a late year for resident birds in Perthshire and
Fife. This explains the abnormal availability of nests when
the redstart was cuckolding the tits ; tits are usually sitting
when redstarts arrive.

The plot with the redstarts. Plot C, is near Perth and
mainly Scots pine about thirty years old with some spruce
patches and with hardwoods, mostly oak and birch, nearby.

In September 1953 I removed half the boxes to see if I got
the same number of nests with fewer boxes. This plot is in
three groups, originally with 60 boxes split into Ci 2^^ C 2 18
and C5 17. These were reduced to 15, 5, and 7, making 27.
The total area is about 30 acres (12, 10 and 8) and the groups
are perhaps 100 to 150 yards from each other. The box
spacing was about 40 yards and is now about 60. There is a
road between Ci and C2 and C5. In C/, Scots pine, there used
to be about 10 to 15 nests, in C2, also mainly Scots pine, about
5 and in C3, birch scrub with some oaks, also about 5. All
are within reach of hardwoods for feeding. The nest density
all over is high for the type, but C/ is particularly high for
conifers, even Scots pine, due to one to four redstarts’ nests

* Received 2nd August 1954

1954

REDSTARTS REARED IN TITS’ NESTS

147

and the surrounding hardwoods. Boxes left in C/ were fewer
than I intended as three were blown down ; two, close together
on an edge, were left empty, but the rest all contained nests,
so there was really a shortage of boxes this year caused by the
loss of three boxes plus four redstarts ; tit numbers were about
normal.

When first inspected on 17th May, two redstarts’ nests in
Ci and one in C3 about 200 yards away contained three eggs
each, and one was building. This indicates that hen redstarts
arrived between 5th and loth May.

The nest situation in Plot C is best shown as a table with a
sketch map (Fig. i), which shows how the boxes stand and
stood in the whole plot. Crosses mark boxes removed in 1953.

TABLE I
Plot Ci Boxes

Box

\^th May

31^; May

2yth June

6

Redstart 3 eggs

predated

_

8

empty

Blue tit sitting on
10 eggs

1 0 nestlings 1 4 days
old

9

Great tit sitting on
8 eggs

8 nestlings 8 days
old

flown

10

Redstart 3 eggs

Redstart sitting on
6 eggs

flown

1 1

empty

Coal tit 5 eggs

10 nestlings 8 days
old

12

empty

Redstart sitting on
6 eggs

flown

13

Great tit 4 eggs

Great tit sitting on
6 eggs + 2 Red-
start eggs

flown

14

Coal tit 2 eggs

Coal tit sitting on
1 1 eggs + 6

Redstart eggs

C Coal tit nest-
lings 1 5 days old
1^ Redstart nest-
lings flying

15

Great tit sitting on
7 eggs

deserted

—

16

Redstart building

Redstart i egg

4 nestlings 8 days
old

17

Great tit sitting on
8 eggs

7 nestlings 6 days
old

flown

18

^ nest, tit

same

—

19

empty

same

—

20

Coal tit sitting on
8 eggs

predated

21

empty

same

148

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

Q® SCR.UB

^ wjth oaks

(2> ®

(2) 0 0 © 0 O

0 0 0 0 0®

GRASS FI E LD

N

A

/ ROUGH

/

GRASS

© " Ex:i5tin^ boxe^ . serial numbers [7 ^ Z2 blown down)

0- Boxes removed, Sept.iqSd Q ^ ^oxes uoed by

redstarts ,

Fig. I.

On 1 2th June I found in Box 13 five nestling great tits and one
redstart; the tits’ age was about 10 days but the redstart was
definitely more advanced, well fledged and almost ready to
fly. The Handbook gives 13 to 14 days as the incubation period
for great tits, and 17-18 for coal tits, remarking that this
seems long. I make the period to be about 14 days for both,
but have not made special investigations. For redstarts the
period is given as 14 days. The fledging period for great tits
is given as generally 18 to 20 days; for coal tits, 16 days,
which I think short: I would say much the same as for great
tits, but again have no special data. For redstarts, 14 days
is given. All three species are quite capable of flying some
days before they actually do so if left in peace, and any dis-
turbance causes them to fly and escape if they can. The red-
start is frequently double-brooded (perhaps less often up

1954

REDSTARTS REARED IN TITS’ NESTS

149

here than in the south) and arrives normally after the tits
(which very rarely have second broods up here) have started
sitting; so a shorter fledging period would be expected. I
had to go away for a week^ — the place is 40 miles from St.
Andrews — and on 24th June the box was empty except for
one dead great tit. The nestlings were all too big to be
removed if they had died, so the rest flew.

On 1 2th June, Box 14 had just hatched; there were eight
coal tit nestlings and six redstarts, and all but two redstarts
seemed hungry, which is perhaps not remarkable. I was
greeted by a forest of gaping mouths filling the whole nest and
it was quite easy to distinguish the species as redstarts’ are
yellow, tits’ pink. The redstarts also seemed both actually and
relatively bigger than the tits, the latter being a day or two
old and the former seemingly a day older. This might be
accounted for by quicker initial growth with the shorter
fledging period and perhaps the bigger nestlings got the lion’s
share of the food as their gaping mouths reached higher. If
not, it might mean that the redstart incubation period tended
to be slightly shorter than that of coal tits. On 24th June, a
redstart flew from the box as I arrived. I have seen redstarts
fly before and there is no doubt that this was a nestling.
Certainly one and probably two coal tits were fussing round
the redstart just as they do round their own young when they
first fly — that is, they seemed to accept it. I have seen
perhaps a dozen lots of nestlings flying, not including explos-
ions caused by opening the box, and the foster tits were be-
having in much the same way as other parents at that pre-
sumably most exciting event. A coal tit came and perched
close beside the redstart when it finally managed to land on
its first twig; at the end of the second flight I could not see
it properly and I lost the bird on the third.

When I opened the box, another redstart promptly flew
out and there were six coal tits not yet ready to fly. I tried
one from my finger. Using my estimate of 18 to 20 days for
fledging, I put the tits at 14 to 15 days old, with three days
still to go. I think I saw another redstart in the trees, but
lost it before I could be sure — I was on top of a ladder and
somewhat immobile. I also found three coal tit’s eggs buried
in the material, making a clutch of 1 1 in all. It is not

150 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST Vol. 66

surprising that these eggs were buried, as on 31st May the tit
was sitting in a complete basket of eggs, eight of her own and
the six blue and bigger redstart’s. The extraordinary thing
is that so many hatched. The whole nest was flattened on
24th June, the material worked right into the corners more
completely than usual. The redstarts were relatively so big
on 1 2th June that I doubt if the tits could have removed them
had they died, and it seems quite probable that all six flew
although I only saw two or perhaps three. These nests show
that the redstart fledging period is shorter than the tits’.

No. 13, the great tit’s nest, had about a dozen bits of grass
worked round the edge in a way which I have not seen before
in a tit’s nest, and this may have been the redstart’s contribution.

So much for the observed facts. As regards the predation
of Box 6, red squirrels live in these woods. Box 20, predated
at about the same time, would be the next box reached
along one edge of the wood. Boxes i, 2, and 4 were predated
later, between 31st May and 24th June (Box 3 was empty),
and lie not very far away across the road, perhaps 200 yards.
In all cases the entrance had been enlarged, although I have
not been able to distinguish between damage by squirrels and
by greater spotted woodpeckers.

Squirrels are capable of investigating a box they have
seen opened and I have had nests destroyed by them just after
my visit (from the age of the nestling remnants left) as well as
several days later. Box 6 (redstarts) was empty on 31st May
but the nest material was caked with egg remains. There
was also an egg left in Box 20, very slightly incubated. Both
were predated on or very soon after 17th May. The coal
tit from Box 20 which had laid a full clutch moved over to
Box II, made a new nest and had laid five eggs by 31st May.
The redstart from Box 6 was, however, in process of laying
and had to continue. In Box 13 she found a nest with eggs
and no bird, and laid two eggs. After that the tit began
sitting and she could not get in, so she moved to No. 14 which
by then contained five eggs, and laid six herself. Then the
coal tit started sitting about 26th May, and the redstart took
a box for herself, completed the nest and laid. Box 12 is
ruled out as laying must have started about 20th May; the
eggs were set and looked dull by 31st. So we were left with

1954

REDSTARTS REARED IN TITS’ NESTS

Box 16. On 17th May there were the foundations of a nest,
but it was not until 31st May that an egg was laid. On 24th
June there were four nestlings here, about eight days old,
which gives i6th June as the hatching date. With three more
eggs laid on ist to 3rd June, this gives 13 or 14 days as the
incubation period. It follows from this that the coal tit in
Box 14 also had a 14-day period, and not 17 to 18. With
two eggs on 17th May, and nine still to be laid, this gives the
start of incubation as 26th-27th May, and they hatched on
loth-i ith June (two days old on 12th June).

The diary of key events seems to have been as follows :
i^th May. Box 6, three redstart’s eggs. Box 13, four great
tit’s eggs. Box 14, two coal tit’s eggs. Box 16, unfinished
redstart’s nest. Box 20, coal tit sitting on eight eggs.
Boxes 6 and 20 probably predated in the afternoon.
i8/y^. Box 13, five great tit’s and one redstart’s eggs.

20th. Box 13, great tit sitting on six of her own and two
redstart’s eggs. Box 14, five coal tit’s eggs; redstart lays
an egg.

2^th. Box 14, eleven coal tit’s eggs and six redstart’s. Tit
starts sitting. Redstart takes over Box 16.

3ii-^. Box 16. Nest finished. Redstart lays first egg; coal
tit from Box 20 has finished nest in Box 1 1 and laid five
eggs.

2nd June. Box 13 hatches, 14 days incubation.

^rd. Redstart begins sitting in Box 16.

loth. Box 14 hatches. 15-16 days incubation owing to the
number of eggs.

i^th. Box 16 hatches. 13 to 14 days.

These dates are thought to be correct but depend on an
estimate of the age of nestlings, always liable to be a day or
so out. Although it makes the redstart lay 1 1 eggs in 1 1 days,
plus four more in the next week, it is extremely unlikely that
two birds will do such an abnormal thing as to cuckold tits in
adjoining boxes. Regarding the nest in Box 16, started by
17th May, I have before known birds which have deserted
while laying take over a nest which had already been partly
built and left.

Redstart nestlings appear to be catholic in their food
demands as they were reared by both great and coal tits.

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Vol. 66

Food supplies must be abundant locally as in addition to the
12 nests in group Ci, g out of twelve boxes on the other side
of the road contained nests. This may be due to the hard-
woods near the conifers. From the three nests I have found
containing alien nestlings in areas with good food supplies,
great tits can rear both blue tits and redstarts, and coal tits
can rear redstarts. The differences seem only to show where
there is a qualitative or quantitative food scarcity, probably
the former. It is not known what happens to the aliens later.

To the human eye, the blue eggs are very obvious in the
nests; they are also very much bigger than the coal tit’s.
The nestlings were also much bigger when hatched, with a
higher reach. There were no signs of fighting and presum-
ably the two birds did not meet while laying; the box is dark
inside which might mean that the difference in colour passed
unnoticed, but the difference in size in the coal tit’s nest was
obvious to my finger — it “ felt ” wrong. It is said that a
bird does not count but continues laying until a certain pattern
has been achieved, which releases the brooding urge. In the
great tit, eight eggs is quite normal (and so is six) but with
the coal tit, 17 eggs (or, if 3 were already buried in the nest
material, 14) is more than I have ever found up here. Also,
these eggs were covered by nest material as laid and seem only
to have been cleared when the bird started to sit. There are
exceptions to every rule, as when two hens lay in the same
nest, but the tits submitted to being cuckolded without any
visible signs of protest. The different coloured gape in the
redstarts seemed to release the feeding urge just as well as
both tits’ nestlings. I regret that I did not make exact notes
of this colour difference although I noticed that it existed in
the coal tit’s nest on 12th June. There was also a difference
of about an inch in the height reached when the birds stretched
upwards, and the birds which were lying at the bottom of
the nest, satisfied for the moment, were redstarts.

I find it surprising for a redstart to use a tit’s nest as the
two architectural styles are different. The tit’s is moss and
fluff, a soft structure which is flattened by the time the nest-
lings fly. The redstart’s is much more stable, of grasses, bark,
and roots, and retains its shape much better as it would have
to do on a shelf with nothing to support the sides. It needs

f

1954

REDSTARTS REARED IN TITS’ NESTS

153

care to feel into a tit’s nest without spoiling the rim while
sometimes with redstarts the difficulty is to get a finger in at
all. The one has a soft lining, the other a hard one. One
can only think that the redstart was so pressed for somewhere
to lay on i8th May that she accepted any port in a storm, and
then just carried on.

F. Amann (1949) reports finding in that year a number of
blue tit nestlings in great tit’s nests. He also notes a number
of similar cases in previous years: a great tit with two red-
start nestlings, a blue with redstart eggs, seven willow tits with
one blue tit nestling, six marsh tits with three blue tit nestlings,
seven blue tits with three marsh tit nestlings and six red-
start with three great tit nestlings; also young pied flycatchers
in a redstart’s nest. The circumstances under which these
aliens were found are not given, but, from the absence of coal
and crested tits, it is probable that Amann’s nests were in
broad-leaved woods, where food supplies are good, and this
may be why nestlings of so many species were raised by foster
parents, again of many species but all insectivorous.

The Editors have shown me a note of a similar case in
Sweden, by Lars Gustavsson {Var Fagelvdrld, 13: 1 90-1 91,

1954). At Ostervala, Uppland, a ringed coal tit was found
sitting on eight eggs on 13th May 1952. In the same
box, a ringed marsh tit was sitting on twelve eggs on 2nd
June. On 17th June, when the nestlings were nearly fully
fledged, there were four marsh tits, two coal tits and some
addled eggs. There was no doubt about their identity.
A pair of marsh tits were flying round while the nestlings
were being ringed, but there were no coal tits. No details
are given to show whether the marsh tits fought and turned
out the coal tits, or whether the coal tits were killed or
deserted and the marsh tits just took the nest over. The
date of starting a new nest nearby might have settled the
point. I have at least once known a great tit’s nest with
one egg deserted and remain unused for about a fortnight,
when it was taken over by a great tit whose nest had been
destroyed; from the dates, the two birds were not the same.
Several eggs were laid and the whole lot, including the original
egg were hatched. From the Swedish data above, the eggs
must have hatched very soon after 2nd June. So sitting

20

154

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

began about 20th or 21st May. There were at least four
marsh tit’s eggs so these birds must have taken the nest over
about 1 6th May, which (with only four marsh tit’s eggs and
there may have been more) is very near 13th May when the
coal tit was sitting.

REFERENCES

Amann, F., 1949. Junge Kohl- und Blaumeisen im gleichen Nest. Orn.
Beob., 46: 187-190.

Mackenzie, J. M. D., 1950. Competition for nest sites among hole
breeding speeies. Brit. Birds, 43: 184-185.

WiTHERBY, H. F. et al., 1938. The Handbook of British Birds, Vols. i and 2,
London.

BOTANICAL NOTE

Further New Records of Stoneworts {Charophytd) in
Scotland. — In the course of field work in central and northern
Scotland carried out from the Brown Trout Research Laboratory,
Pitlochry, during the past spring and summer, some further interest-
ing finds of charophytes have been made (see Scot. Mat., 65: 190).

Of these finds, the most outstanding has been the discovery of
Mitella gracilis Agardh, which has not previously been recorded
from Scotland, in two lochs in the Scourie district of Sutherland
(V.C. 108). These are Loch Grosvenor and Lochan an Smuraich,
the former lying to the north-west of Loch Stack and the latter to
the south-west. It is of interest to note that both are distinctly
acid lochs with pn usually about 5*5 to 6*o and having alkalinities
of i-o mg./l. CaCOs or less. This species was collected from both
localities by Mr. A. V. Holden.

Further north in Sutherland, from Loch Croispol in the Durness
area, considerable amounts of a form of Char a contraria Kiitz. have
been gathered, this being a new record for the species in V.C. 108.
It has also been found for the first time in V.C. 89 in Loch Moraig,
Perthshire, amongst growths of Chara aspera Wilden.

Another new record for V.C. 108 is the discovery of Mitella
translucens Agardh in three lochs near Scourie, again in collections
made by Mr. Holden. A very slender form has been found in
considerable amounts in Lochan an Smuraich, while much stouter
and more typical plants have been taken in bottom samples from
Lochan an Daimh Beag and Lochan a’ Bhagh Ghainmhich.

The author of this note wishes to thank Mr. G. O. Allen for
his generous help in confirming the identity of these charophytes. —
A. J. Brook, Brown Trout Research Laboratory, Pitlochry,
Perthshire.

1954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

155

A SYNOPTIC STUDY OF THE 1953
CROSSBILL IRRUPTION^

Kenneth Williamson
Fair Isle Bird Observatory

Introduction

In this short paper I make no attempt to trace in full the
spread of the 1953 invasion of crossbills (Loxia curvirostra) over
the British Isles, but rather to explain how these interesting
birds reached our shores in the first place, and how the im-
migration into Britain and passage through the northern isles
developed as the season advanced. In paying particular
attention to the crossbills’ movements throughout the summer
I was primarily seeking confirmatory evidence of the concept
of migrational drift, which I have expounded in previous papers
(Williamson, 1952, 1953 and in press); but as such irruptions
have been held to be cyclic in character and to be a direct result
of over-population on the breeding-ground, I have allowed
myself some speculation on this aspect of the crossbill problem.

Since I hold that the concept of migrational drift is valid
for all kinds of birds which have a long-distance movement to
perform, the present circumstances afforded a unique oppor-
tunity for testing the views which had crystallised from the
five years’ study of migration undertaken at Fair Isle. My
first concern, therefore, was to discover if the irruption showed
a marked parallel with (or divergence from) normal migration
insofar as its meteorological environment was concerned, both
at the beginning of the movement and throughout its sub-
sequent course. If a correlation could be demonstrated, this
would afford support of the migrational drift theory, and it
might also throw fresh light on the nature of such irruptions
generally.

A full survey of the occurrence of crossbills in Britain
during 1953 is the subject of an enquiry now being under-
taken by J. H. R. Boswall on behalf of the journal British
Birds. The records received by The Scottish Naturalist, whilst

* Received I'^ih December 1954

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156

they have been of value for the present purpose and are grate-
fully acknowledged, have been passed to Mr. Boswall for
inclusion in this more detailed analysis. My thanks are due
to a number of correspondents, whose names appear in the
text, and also to the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery
Office for permission to use diagrams based on charts published
in The Daily Weather Report of the Meteorological Office, Air
Ministry.

The meteorological environment of the irruption

A polar high which first appeared on the weather-map on
6th June 1953, over Jan Mayen seas, reached the Scandi-
navian Peninsula during 7th and spread into north-western
Russia on 8th. It was then intensifying rapidly, and its
centre over the White Sea attained 1032 mb. on loth. After
this date it declined slightly to steady at 1 024-1 028 mb., and
it continued to be the controlling factor in North European
weather for the whole of the following month.

There was an easterly airflow on the southern side of this
high, affecting the Skagerrak and the drift-migrants’ normal
approach to northern Britain, from 8th- loth June, and again
on 1 2th, but no crossbills came. In fact, the vanguard of the
invasion was not noticed until 14th, when small parties were
seen at Boddam in the south of Shetland, and at Fair Isle.
It is therefore impossible to be sure (on the basis of migrational
drift) where and when the crossbill movement started, but in
view of the time-lag between the establishment of the anti-
cyclonic conditions and the first appearance of the birds in
Shetland (and also of negative reports of movement in northern
Sweden at this period^), the irruption seems likely to have had
a distant origin, perhaps in Finland or even north-west Russia.

During the days following 14th there was stable air and a
good deal of resultant fog among the northern islands of
Britain, so dense at Fair Isle that no proper search for cross-
bills was possible until i8th, which began with mist but quickly
cleared to a day of bright sunshine. The flock of 40+ seen
feeding on the hill of Burrashield, taking the berries of the
juniper [Juniperus communis var. sibirica)^ might well have

* Vide Carl-Frederick Lundevail and R. Meinertzhagen, Bull. Fair Is. B.
Obs., 2 : 22.

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

157

1954

come in a day or two earlier, for L. S. V. and U. M. Venables
had noted several birds in south Shetland since i6th, some of
them on the cliffs of Fitful Head. Actually, the first major
influx may well have been spread over these three days, for

Fig. I

from 15th June North Sea weather was suitable for the drift
of birds off the coast of south-west Norway to the northern
isles and beyond to the Inner Hebrides.

The synoptic situation immediately before the birds’
arrival in Shetland is shown in fig. i, which reproduces the

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158

distribution of the chief air- masses and shows the trend of the i
airstream covering northern Europe and sea-area Forties. -
The suggestion is made that in the days following 8th June, on j
which the polar high became well established, the crossbills I
came by anticyclonic drift down the corridor of easterly winds I
from north-west Russia, through southern Fenno-Scandia to >
the south-west coast of Norway, travelling between the polar
high and a northwards-moving low over the Baltic States.
They may then have crossed sea-area Forties by cyclonic drift
from 14th onwards between a ridge of the polar high, which ^
had developed south of Spitzbergen, and a depression centred
over eastern England (fig. 2). The distribution of the records

agrees well with this interpretation, for they were confined to
Shetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides, with none reported from
the north and east of the Scottish mainland until later. A
crossbill was seen by Dr. T. A. Longstaff at Achiltibuie, Wester
Ross, on 1 6th June, and H. A. Course noted the arrival of a
small party as far to the south as Canna the next morning.
Douglas Scott and members of a geological expedition which
visited the Shiants found crossbills on two of the islands on 19th.

The polar high persisted over the whole of northern Europe,
centred between Spitzbergen and Novaya Zemblya, but after
the night of 17th-! 8th North Sea weather was no longer con-
ducive to drift as a result of the activity of a vigorous low
approaching Britain from the west. For a short time the
crossbill invasion was halted, and at Fair Isle numbers declined

1954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

159

following 1 8th. That the irruption was still proceeding in
western Europe seems certain from the information from
Sweden, given below, and from the fact that when a ridge of
the Scandinavian high reached across Forties to Scotland on
22 nd June, bringing clear weather with light breezes (easterly
in the Skagerrak all 2 3rd- 24th) a new lot of over 60 crossbills
arrived at Fair Isle (fig. 3). They were also noted in Shetland
— a score in the Halligarth Plantation in Unst on 23rd (G. T.
Kay, J. Petersen), many on Foula (the Venables) ^ — and they
were much in evidence in the Faeroe Islands (Esther William-
son, Samuel Peterson). An interesting record sent by Hr.
Petersen is of a female which came aboard M.V. Eystnes
some 80 miles north-east of Faeroe on 24th, dying shortly
afterwards: the position is marked with an a; on fig. 3.

Doubtless a number of birds reached Iceland at this time : the
Severn Wildfowl Trust expedition later saw a crossbill in that
country.

I am indebted to Dougal Andrew, one of a party of British
ornithologists who visited Swedish Lapland, for notes con-
cerning crossbills in Sweden at this period. He writes: “ On
15th June, on our first stop in conifers, a small party of cross-
bills was seen on the Norwegian-Swedish border at lat. 60° 1 5'
N. During the next three days, spent at the nearby town of
Torsby, one short visit to suitable country produced a flock of
thirty: there was nothing to suggest unusual numbers. We
were in the Soppero area at 68° 10' N. from 19th June to 4th
July: this area is almost exclusively birch, the pine and spruce
ending about fifteen miles to the south and being few and
scattered in the village area. The only record of crossbills
was of a flock of twenty to thirty of unknown species flying to
the west over the village on 23rd June. We stopped for a few
minutes on 4th July between Vittangi and Gallivare (67° 30'
N.), and at once a flock of twenty crossbills flew over. That
night we camped by the Gulf of Bothnia near Javre (65° 10' N.)
and next morning found crossbills generally dispersed through-
out all the surrounding trees, and amongst them at least three
two-barred crossbills [Loxia leucoptera). On 5th, 6th and 7th
July we drove down the Baltic highway to Soderhamn, and
then across country through Bollnas, Torsby and Kongsvinger
to Oslo. On the first half of the journey we were held up by

i6o

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Vol. 66

frequent punctures and at practically every halt heard crossbills
in the roadside trees. This continued even at our last camp,
twenty miles from Oslo. At the time we had not heard of the I
invasion of Britain, but we were astonished at the abundance
of these birds.”

There must undoubtedly have been large numbers of cross-
bills in the island-groups to the north of Britain in the early
days of J uly, following the drift of 23rd-24th June. It is our
experience over the past five years that the southward flow of
migrants displaced from the Continent by drift may be ex-
pected with the first calm weather, either col or anticyclonic,
following their arrival (Williamson, 1953), and the crossbills
appear to have behaved no differently from ordinary migrants
in this respect. About forty birds were present at Fair Isle
on 28th, following three days of heavy mist during which it is
doubtful if re-determined passage could have taken place.
There followed a spell of upwards of a week during which the
numbers on the isle fluctuated almost daily, a situation in-
dicating that through passage was under way. In this period,
from 29th June (flocks of 40 and 120 at Fair Isle) to 2nd July
(140 at least on the isle) and 4th July (flock of 150 containing
one female Loxia leucoptera) there was anticyclonic weather in
this sector and calms and light airs were frequent in Faeroe
and Shetland. At this time they appear to have decreased in
Faeroe (S. Petersen) and my wife was unable to find any in
the spruce plantations, the most likely crossbill habitat in the
Torshavn district. There were fluctuating numbers in
Shetland and Orkney and an infiltration on a wider front
into northern Scotland.

Crossbills were present on the Isle of May in the Firth of
Forth from ist- 12 th July, with a maximum on 3rd of twenty-
four birds. As the observers did not arrive at the isle until
I St the crossbills may have been there before, but the build-up j
in numbers to 3rd suggests that they were fresh arrivals. On I
the last day of June and ist July there was high pressure over
the North Sea with a north-easterly airstream from the ;

Skagerrak to the Forth, creating favourable drift conditions !

not matched at Fair Isle, which had light southerly wind on |
the western side of the high pressure centre.

The peak of re-determined passage through Fair Isle was !

1954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

i6i

on 6th July. On 5th the Faeroe-Shetland region lay in a col
between highs to north and south and lows to west and east,
and in the calm conditions prevailing it looks as though many
crossbills moved southwards, to be halted by the fog and rain
of a warm front which came from the south-west and passed
Fair Isle during the night (fig. 4). As a result the 6th was our
best trapping-day at Fair Isle, thirty- two birds being caught,
half of them in two drives of the Gully Trap in the evening,
when a flock went there to roost. At this period too there was
a noticeable change in the feeding habits of the birds, for where-
as the first two influxes had given their whole attention to the
juniper, these later passage-birds concentrated on the seeding
thrift {Armeria maritime^. There is little juniper in Shetland
and none at all in Faeroe, and perhaps the southward-moving
birds were already conditioned to feeding on the sea-pink as a
result of their off-passage stay in the more northerly isles.

This passage through Fair Isle from farther north continued
intermittently, notably on nth (anticyclonic ridge) and from
17th (col), when flocks of 15 + 15+8 + 10 were recorded,
to 2 1 St (col), a further twenty birds being trapped during the
five days. A trickle of birds continued until the end of the
month, but on a few days, and more especially during the
first week of August, no birds were recorded. Throughout
the month of July the volume of re-determined passage which
came down from the northern islands and entered Scotland,
to move on southwards, must have been considerable.

A new major wave of invasion took place on 12th- 13th
August, with only eleven birds seen on the first day (when,
however, little field-work was done), but well over 200 being
counted on 13th. There was a fresh to strong south-southeast
wind on 12th and an afternoon of very heavy rain, with
thunder, due to the approach of an occluded front from the
west (fig. 5). This new wave was evident also in west Main-
land and on Papa Stour (the Venables). It was followed by
a weak decline on 14th- 15th, but an increase — due probably
to fresh arrivals on the northern side of a small low in the
North Sea — occurred on i6th, and there were still upwards of
a hundred birds on i8th. This time the crossbills were in
flocks and parties widely dispersed about the cultivated part
of the isle, and an accurate daily tally of their numbers was

21

i62

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Vol 66

impossible to obtain: they fed on the centres of the partly-
withered ragwort blooms (Senecio aquaticus var. ornatus), and to
an even greater extent (especially after the first few days) on
thistle seeds Carduus lanceolatus, a favourite food also on Papa
Stour (Venables). A few birds also attacked the standing
corn, and later on fed at the stooks.

The synoptic picture at the outset of this new and heavy
invasion was not greatly dissimilar from that of the second
phase of late June, except that the high pressure centre in
Europe was now a good deal farther south and west, over
southern Sweden. The easterly airflow of the high, therefore,

was more to the southward than in the earlier invasion, and it
is suggested that this drift came off the coast of the Low'
Countries and was directed north-northwest down the full
length of the North Sea (fig. 5). Thus the affected birds w'ere
very possibly members of the same populations as had com-
prised the earlier waves, but which had been too far to the
east at that time to be caught up in the trans-North-Sea move-
ment. Now unfavourable winds had caught them when they
had proceeded much farther to the south-west.

This is a time of the year when a number of other passerines
are beginning their autumn migration, and certain birds which
occurred at Fair Isle with the crossbills support the views of
[a) an ultimate north-east European or west Asiatic origin,
and {b) a long northwards drift from the Low Countries.

1954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

163

The most unusual migrants were two Richard’s pipits (Anthus
richardi), present from i7th-24th {Bull. Fair Is. B. Obs., 2: 14),
and whose nearest breeding-area is north-west Russia ; a
marsh warbler {Acrocephalus palustris) trapped on i6th with
another of the same genus seen in crops on 17th-! 8th, a third
Acrocephalus which was probably a marsh warbler and which
was watched closely in a geo at Skaddan on 19th, and a barred
warbler Sylvia nisoria trapped on 14th. These are southern
elements which do not breed (except very rarely) north of the
Skagerrak, and do not appear at Fair Isle unless the weather
map indicates a drift originating to the south of this waterway.

With this direction of drift one would anticipate crossbill
arrivals all along the east coast of Britain, and in fact it was
not until mid-August that birds first appeared in Berwickshire
(W. H. Logan Home, A. G. Long), whilst a single bird appeared
at the Isle of May on 13th. At least from 19th a decline in
numbers had set in at Fair Isle and by 22nd 30 -[-? by 24th
fifteen birds and by 27th two birds only were found. There
was no marked period of re-determined passage as after the
two early movements. Only one bird, a male on 20th August,
was seen by S. Petersen in Faeroe. A further sixteen birds
arrived at Fair Isle on 31st, and these appear to have been
drifted ahead of the occluded front of a low to west of the
Hebrides, from Denmark or perhaps as far north as the
Skagerrak. But it seems certain that most of the crossbills
had by now passed so far south as to be beyond the reach of
North Sea cyclonic winds, and indeed one of the passage-birds
which we had ringed at Fair Isle on 6th July was recovered at
Bergamo in northern Italy on 25th August.

September numbers in the north were very small and
sporadic, with so little marked fluctuation that it was virtually
impossible to distinguish new drift from redetermined passage,
or indeed from small off-passage parties which might have
been overlooked. About ten birds were at the isle from loth-
15th September in conditions suggesting onward passage — a
high centred over Britain, with western Europe in the throes
of a depression^ — and there was an increase to nineteen with
the big migratory movement in the middle of the month. An
analysis of this period has been given in Bull. Fair Is. B. Obs.,
2: 117-126. This also was a long anticyclonic drift from the

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164

Low Countries, the high covering southern Europe extensively
(a paddyfield warbler Acrocephalus agricola and red-breasted
flycatcher Muscicapa parva were south-eastern elements among
the birds trapped). On i8th another influx entered the Forth
after a drift across the northern half of a depression then
centred on southern England, and among the nine birds
trapped at the Isle of May was a female of the large-billed
form pityopsittacus, from which many Scottish breeding birds
cannot be distinguished. There were also increases on i8th
in the south of Shetland (Tom Henderson), including a flock
of over twenty; and at Grandhome in Aberdeenshire (Miss
Elizabeth Garden), where an earlier movement had been
noticed in mid-July. This period was also the peak of
autumn movement at Eigvaag, near Lista, in south-west
Norway (Michael K. Swales). Samuel Petersen received a
fresh male specimen from Nordoyri, Bordoy, in the Faeroe
Islands on 20th September. He saw a male at Klakksvik
on the same island as late as 20th October, about the time
that the last few birds disappeared from Fair Isle.

The nature oj irruptions

Grossbill irruptions into western Europe on a scale com-
parable with that of 1953 are rare events. In the present
century notable invasions occurred in north-east Prussia in the
years 1909-1910, 1929, 1935 and 1938-1939 (Lack 1951, after
Fischler 1941).

At Fair Isle the movements over the same period may be
summarised.

1909. First seen 23rd June, numbers increasing to loth
July, “ as if the birds had arrived in a series of waves, as many
as 300 being seen on a single day.” Numbers fell away at
the end of July, birds were seen in scattered parties through-
out August, but only a few in September, and the last was
noted on 2nd October. Adult 8 L. leucoptera on 13th June
and another on loth July (Clarke 1909, 1910a, 1912). Full
accounts of this invasion were published by Whitaker (1910),
Witherby (1910) and Witherby and Alexander (1911).

1910. On a much smaller scale: adult 8 seen on 20th
June but none thence until 9 appeared on 8th August, leaving

IQ54 STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION 165

on 24th. Three more arrived on gth September and again a
few on I gth. (Clarke igiob, Baxter and Rintoul igii.)

igii. Maximum 12 birds, between 22nd August and
nth September.

ig27. Birds began to arrive in the first week of July,
increasing to over 300 by 5th (Stout ig27). They continued
in diminishing numbers until i6th September (Baxter and
Rintoul ig28). One L. leucoptera was seen on 2nd and 5th
September.

iggo. Passing parties throughout July, containing many
adults. None in early August except a party of night-migrants
calling on 2nd (Stout iggo). Present until loth Ociober
(Stenhouse iggi). Three L. leucoptera on 12th September and
one on i8th.

1935. Flock of nearly 100 between 15th June and 7th
August (Waterston 1936).

1939. Three L. leucoptera seen (one obtained) on 29th
September (Waterston 1947).

There is a close correspondence between irruptions into
north-east Prussia and the movements recorded at Fair Isle,
except for the years 1929-1930 (a year late at Fair Isle) and
perhaps 1939, when only L. leucoptera appears to have been
recorded. It has been claimed that these invasions are cyclic
in character (Siivonen 1941), but on the contrary the most
noteworthy feature about the timing is their irregularity.
Thus, they may occur in two (even three) successive seasons,
as in 1 909-1 91 1, or the interval may be as long as 18 years, as
between the last and present irruptions. Moreover, as Lack
has pointed out, the irruption-years in Europe do not coincide
with those in North America.

Lack (1951) says: “Apparently the immediate stimulus
for a large eruption can be provided by high population
density ”, but exactly how this operates is not clear. That
this alone is the “ immediate stimulus ” seems unlikely,
since irruptions may occur in successive years, despite the
heavy drain which migration losses, and the settlement of
new areas so characteristic of these invasions, must impose
on the stock. That a high population density relative to the
available food supply plays a part in influencing these move-
ments, however, seems inescapable. Reinikainen (1937) has

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shown that there is a clear correlation between the numbers
of crossbills on the breeding-grounds in Finland and the
abundance of the spruce Picea abies cone-crop, the seeds of
which are the preferred food of this species; and further, that
in 1930 a seed famine and decrease of birds in his study area
coincided with the vast immigration into western Europe.

The present synoptic study of the 1953 invasion shows
that a prima facie case can be made out for correlating the
really big invasions with the establishment of a strong anti-
cyclonic development in the post-breeding period. It would
appear, therefore, that there may be three very different —
but, one suspects, closely integrated^ — factors which must be
reconciled if we are to find an adequate explanation of the
great irregular migrations in this, and probably other species,

A point which has to be borne in mind is that although
the crossbill has evolved an early breeding-season, the greatest i
nesting activity taking place in March, it has not succeeded in '
evolving a correspondingly early moult. The post-nuptial ;
moult, which most migratory birds enter immediately after j
nesting and complete before their autumn movement begins, ^
is delayed until August in the crossbill, and birds on passage
through Fair Isle did not show new growth of remiges until
early in that month. There is, therefore, a period of two
months or so between the cessation of breeding and the onset
of moult during which, assuming that the food supply is good,
adults and young should attain the peak of physiological
condition. These midsummer months of June and July will
be the critical time when the birds are most likely to respond
to external migrational stimuli.

It is clear from Reinikainen’s study that there is no fixed
crossbill population in any one area, at least over the greater
part of the bird’s range: on the contrary, the species is subject !
to a high degree of nomadism, occurring plentifully where |
there is a rich spruce- seed yield, and moving elsewhere (often |
only a short distance) in seasons when a failure occurs. He |
says: Whatever the ultimate causal factor may be, the result i

attained is, at least in most cases, advantageous for the main- |
tainance of the species, as the motility brings the birds to j
regions with rich nourishment and suitable for multiplication.”
Lack also emphasises this important point: “ When the bird

1954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

167

density is high, the next fruit crop is likely to be below average,
because a high density of birds is presumably a result of high
survival due to a good crop of fruit in the previous season, and
the plants concerned (at least the conifers) do not usually have
two good fruit years in succession.”

The key to the situation, therefore, is not a potential food
shortage — since most invasions begin in late May or June, before
the season’s spruce crop can have ripened — ^but an abundance
of food over a wide area, attracting a great concentration of
these nomadic birds, and providing conditions for high fertility,
in the winter before a large-scale irruption takes place.

Whether or not the dispersal which follows takes the
normal pattern of nomadism described by Reinikainen
(doubtless on a wider scale in some years than in others), or
reaches the magnitude of a large-scale exodus into western
and southern Europe as in 1909- 19 10, 1927, 1935 and 1953,
must be decided by a different factor, since it seems unlikely
that high population itself can operate in some way to this end.
It appears probable that this other factor is the same which
has been shown to operate in the case of normal migrants,
namely, the development of anticyclonic weather over the
breeding-area at a time when the migration urge is strong.
Such weather, as I have emphasised in previous contributions
(Williamson, 1952, 1953, and in press), is optimal for migration
because it affords the best conditions for orientation and visual
navigation, and the least risk of excessive down-wind drift.

What is true of normal migration appears therefore to be
no less applicable to the wanderings of the crossbill, although
it may be that in this species, which is not adapted to regular
movements between fixed summer and winter abodes, there
is perhaps no definite orientation, so that the course of migra-
tion is determined by down-wind drift to a greater degree
than in other species. I suggest that the irregularity of the large-
scale “ irruptions ” is to be explained by the fact that a strong
development of the polar high over a large part of the cross-
bills’ range in early summer is an uncommon event, and its
association with a season following a rich spruce seed yield
over the same region must be rarer still. This combination of
circumstances could happen, but as a remote possibility, in
successive years; but it is more likely to happen at long and

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1 68

unpredictable intervals; and it is hardly likely to happen in
both eastern and western hemispheres concurrently. :

Finally, it has been noted that crossbill irruption-years are
usually years of exceptional abundance in other species whose
ecology is bound up with the spruce cone-crop. The siskin |
Carduelis spinus and cole tit Parus ater show this association,
and 1953 was no exception to the rule: both were on the move |
in considerable numbers at Ottenby Bird Observatory, Gland,
in September (Carl-Frederik Lundevall, in whilst siskins
were unusually numerous also at Fair Isle. As the timing of I
their migration in the crossbill and these other species is quite
different^ — by about twelve weeks — it is clear there can be no
real connection between the two kinds of movement. But j
ultimately the strong polar high development could be re- I
sponsible, directly in the crossbills’ case, indirectly in the |
others; for such weather during the later breeding-seasons of
these other species, with its prolonged sunshine and high
temperatures in northern Europe, must lead to an unusually
good seed- crop of the flowering plants and a marked flush of
insect life, resulting in a greater number of second broods and
high survival rate of young. In the autumn of 1953 it was
clear to those watching the bird migration that many species
had apparently reached a high population level. The wader
migration was stronger than for many years all over the |
country; kestrels {Falco tinnmculus) occurred in unprecedented |
numbers in Shetland and Fair Isle, and the number of field- |
fares { Turdiis pilaris) passing through in late September and |
October was greater than in any previous season.

Summary

The entry of crossbills of the 1953 irruption into the 1
Shetland region, and their subsequent passage into Scotland, |
are studied in relation to the meteorological environment. |

Several movements are apparent, and all can be linked with
[a) down-wind drift in easterly or south-easterly air-streams
from the Continent, or {b) through passage from the islands
to the north in col or anticyclonic weather. i

The nature of such irruptions is discussed in relation to the j
crossbills’ ecology, and it is considered that the irregularity of

^954

STUDY OF CROSSBILL IRRUPTION

169

these large-scale movements is due to the rarity with which
the responsible factors coincide — a strong polar high over a
large part of the breeding- range in the period between the
end of breeding and beginning of moult, following a season in
which the spruce cone-crop has given a rich yield and breed-
ing has been unusually successful.

REFERENCES

Baxter, E. V. and Rintoul, L. J., 1912. Report on Scottish ornithology
for 1911. Scot. Nat., 1912 (extra number).

1928. Report on Scottish ornithology in 1927. Scot. Nat., 1^2^: 142.

Clarke, Wm. Eagle, 1909. The recent remarkable visitation of cross-
bills. Annals Scot. Nat. Hist., 1 909 : 2 1 5-2 1 7.

1910A. Some further remarks on the visitation of crossbills. Annals

Scot. Nat. Hist., 1910; 54-55.

1910B. Another arrival of crossbills in Scotland. Annals Scot. Nat.

Hist., 1910: 245-246.

1912. Studies in Bird Migration, Edinburgh.

Lack, David, 1951. -Population ecology in birds: a review. Proc. Xth
Internat. Orn. Congress, 409-448.

Reinikainen, Antti, 1937. The irregular migrations of the crossbill Loxia
c. curvirostra, and their relation to the cone-crop of the conifers. Ornis
Fennica, 14.: 55-64.

Stenhouse, J. H., 1931. Migration notes from Fair Isle. Scot. Nat.,
1931: 45-46.

Stout, George, 1927. Crossbills at Fair Isle. Scot. Nat., 1927: 160.

1930. Crossbills at Fair Isle. Scot. Nat., 1930: 109.

Waterston, George, 1936. Bird-notes from Fair Isle. Scot. Nat., 1936:
61-64.

1947* Notes from Fair Isle, 1939-1945. British Birds, 38: 228-231.

Whitaker, J. I. S., 1910. On the great invasion of crossbills in 1909.
Ibis, 1910: 331-352.

Williamson, Kenneth, 1952. Migrational drift in Britain in autumn
1951. Scot. Nat., 64: I -1 8.

1953. Migration into Britain from the north-west in autumn 1952.

Scot. Nat., 65: 65-94.

in press. Migrational drift. Proc. Xlth Internat. Orn. Congress.

WiTHERBY, H. F., 1910. The irruption of crossbills. British Birds, 3:
258-261; 4: 22, 51-53, 83, 122 and 185.

WiTHERBY, H. F. and Alexander, C. J., 1911. The 1909 irruption of
the crossbill as observed in the British. Isles. British Birds, 4: 326-331.

22

170

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES RECORDED IN
SCOTLAND DURING 1953*

B. B. Rae and E. Wilson

Scottish Home Department, Marine Laboratory, Aberdeen

In the compilation of this list and of those which preceded it 1
(Rae and Wilson, 1952, 1953) some selection of species has |
been made. Little difficulty arises regarding the inclusion of
exotics, i.e. non-indigenous species such as Ray’s bream, the
shark Scymnorhims licha, the Mediterranean bream Box boops^
or the deal fish Trachypterus arcticus, which all figure in the
present list. However, at the opposite extreme of the subject .j
lie those species which are native to continental shelf waters
off the Scottish coasts, but whose occurrence at the locality of
capture is occasional, irregular or spasmodic. It is not proposed
to discuss this problem now but the authors would like it to
be known that in making a selection they aim at publishing
data about fishes whose movements towards, into or within the
northern North Sea might subsequently be capable of inter-
pretation in the light of contemporary environmental conditions.
The lists also contain records of a few species which merit
mention because of the scarcity or incompleteness of knowledge
concerning them. Raia lintea and Alepocephalus giardi in the
present list provide two appropriate examples in this category.

The authors again express thanks to all who have either
donated specimens or reported their capture.

Hexanchus griseus (Gmelin) — Six-gilled Shark

One record of this shark was obtained during the year from,
a research vessel fishing with great lines on Rockall Bank on |
29th August. The fish was a female of 157 cm. I

j

Lamna cornubica (Gmelin) — Porbeagle

Two specimens of this fish were reported^ — the first 193 cmi.
in length was taken by trawl north of the Faroes on 7th August
and the second, a small fish of 96-5 cm., by great line off South
Rona on 24th October. Although the porbeagle has been

* Received 2>oth November 1954

1954

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

71

regarded by some naturalists as rather rare in Scottish waters
there is evidence that it occurs more frequently, at least out-
with coastal areas, than the sparse records obtained from
Scottish fishing vessels suggest and recently measures have
been taken to direct the industry’s attention to the possibility
of profitable exploitation.

Scymnorhinus licha (Bonnaterre)' — no common name

The capture in spring of a small shark known to some
fishermen as “ Darkie Charlie ” off the north of Shetland was
reported by Skipper Henderson of the Aberdeen trawler Ben
Heilem. Identification from a verbal account of the fish was
difficult in the circumstances but, fortunately, a similar
specimen was caught by the same vessel in mid-July while
fishing 20-30 miles N.N.W. to N.N.E. of Flugga. This fish,
a female of 142 cm., was identified as Scymnorhinus licha from
the description of the species by Goode and Bean (1895). Two
distinct groups of ova were found in the ovary. The first
consisted of small ova of the size of a pea, the second of seven
large eggs varying in size up to about one-third larger than a
tennis ball. The authors are obliged to Dr. A. G. Stephen of
the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh, for knowledge of the
fact that one S. licha was landed at Scalloway in the summer
of 1947. It is possible that in earlier years specimens had been
landed at Aberdeen but not identified.

Squatina squatina (L.) — Angel-fish

Four records of this fish were reported to the laboratory
during the year — the first since the war. No details were
obtained of the first fish caught in the spring; the others were
all taken by trawl, one on 29th May on Stormy Bank (west of
Orkney), another on 29th June off Rhu Stoer (Minch) and the
last on 4th December 14 miles N.N.E. of Cape Wrath. The
Stormy Bank fish was a female of 139 cm. with ripening ova
up to a size of 19 mm. The stomach of this specimen contained
fish remains.

Torpedo nobiliana Bonaparte — Electric Ray

The first of two records of this species was received on 1 3th
March from the Moray Firth where it was caught in a seine

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

172

net. The second was trawled off the North of Scotland in
mid-December.

Raid lintea Fries^ — no common name

Two specimens of this northern deepwater form were
presented to the laboratory by great-line fishermen. The
first, caught early in July 100 miles W.N.W. from Westmann
Isles, measured 64*6 cm. across the disc, the second in August
from West Iceland (67 fathoms), was 59*6 cm. in width of disc
and 99*5 cm. in total length. Clark (1926) gives the bathy-
metric range as 80-350 fathoms. Although R. lintea is stated
by Saemundsson (1949) to be of very rare occurrence in West
Icelandic waters it is not unknown to Scottish great-line fisher-
men operating in that area, particularly in the deeper water
beyond the 200-fathom depth contour. The fish is regarded as
having no market value and accordingly is not brought to port.

Trygon pastinaca (L.) — Sting Ray

A single specimen provided an unusual catch in a salmon
stake net in Largo Bay on 25th July. The fish, a female,
measured 52 cm. across the disc and 90*2 cm. in total length.

Myliobatis aquila (L.)' — Eagle Ray

As in 1952 two records of this species were received during
the year. Unlike the previous year’s specimens, which were
from the North Sea south of the latitude of Aberdeen, the 1953
fish would appear to have approached Scottish waters from the
south via the west coast. Details of the captures are as follows :

Date

Position

Method of
capture

Disc

width

{cm.)

Total

length

{cm.)

Nov. 1 7

17'N.N.E. Cape Wrath
(50 fm.)

Trawl

47*0

Nov. 24

Stormy Bank (W. of
Orkney)

Seine

59'2

86-4

Both were female fish. The stomach of the first contained
no food, the second the remains of Polychaeta.

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

173

1954

Chimaera monstrosa L.— Chimaera or Rabbit Fish

One specimen, a female of 70 cm., was obtained from a
trawler fishing near St. Kilda at the beginning of November.

Acipenser stiirio L. — Sturgeon

Ten sturgeon were caught in waters close to the Scottish
coasts during 1953. This is the highest total for this species in
any one year since 1938. The details of the captures are as
follows :

Date

Position

Method of
capture

Length

{cm.)

Weight

ikg.)

Jan.

Off Fair Isle

Trawl

12-7

Jan.

22

4' off Helmsdale

Seine

c. 152

14-3

Jan.

23

Moray Firth

??

C. 122

II-3

Feb.

27

12'N.N.W. Lossiemouth

? ?

127

22*2

Mar.

28

20-30' N.E. X E. Outer

Skerries

Trawl

214

48-1

Apr.

17

6' S. X W. Tiree

Seine

145

22-2

May

30

Moray Firth

? ?

—

June

10

Off Lybster

Trawl

122

I I-I

July

9

1 7' N. N.E. Cape Wrath

130

—

Aug.

7

5' off Portknockie

Seine

134

8-5

The following records, culled from daily newspapers and
trade journals during 1953 and emanating from English
sources, could lend emphasis to this unusual appearance of the
species in more northern waters.

Date

Position

Method of
capture

Length

{cm.)

Weight

ik-)

Jan. 19

(North Sea)

Trawl

69-0

Jan. 22

( „ „ )

c. 240

133-5

Jan. 29

Near confluence of Ouse

and Derwent rivers,

Yorkshire, about 45 miles

from open sea

Stranded

305

—

Mar.

Off Cornish coast

—

—

Apr. 15

(North Sea)

Trawl

—

25-0

Sept.

(English Channel)

? ?

—

—

Oct. 20

(North Sea)

? ?

260

107-5

Nov.

Off Dodman Pt. near Eddy-

stone

50-9

* Brackets indicate area of capture presumed; vessels concerned operated
from Grimsby, Hartlepool, N. Shields, Brixham, Grimsby, respectively.

174

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Only three sturgeons were recorded from Scottish coastal
waters in the whole of 1952 — all in the first five months — yet
in January 1953 three fish were landed in Scotland and three
more in England. This suggests an incursion of sturgeon into
British coastal waters at the beginning of the year. The
remaining Scottish records show an even distribution of one
per month from February to August while the remaining
English records show a similar tendency and at the same time
extend the period of capture from August to November.

Territorially the records are also interesting. Six of the
Scottish fish were caught in the Moray Firth, one off the
west coast, one off the north coast and two in the Shetland-
Fair Isle region. Three of the English records were from the
English Channel. It is to be regretted that more definite
information regarding those captures attributed above to the
North Sea is not available.

There is an indication in the details above that the fish
which travelled to more northern latitudes were on the average
smaller, of less weight and therefore probably younger. The
large specimen found stranded well up-river from the open
sea provides a particularly interesting record. The newspaper
report included the item that it measured 5 feet in girth. One
wonders if this was not a female seeking conditions favourable
for spawning.

Alepocephalus giardi Koehler^ — no common name

A specimen of this rare deepwater fish was caught by the
Peterhead great-line fishing vessel Violet Flower, Skipper J.
Reid, 50 miles N.W. of the Butt of Lewis in the first few days
of April. Identification was based on the description of the
species by Holt and Byrne (1908). Four previous records of
Alepocephalus in the Laboratory lists have been identified as A.
hairdii Goode and Bean (1879). Although the present speci-
men resembles A. bairdii in most respects the body proportions
are on the whole closer to those of A. giardi as the figures, on
next page, giving the proportions borne by three body parts to
the length from the snout to the base of the caudal fin, show.

In bairdii the length of the snout equals the orbital width
but in A. giardi and also in the present specimen the orbital
width is slightly greater. In three out of four measurements.

igS4 RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES 175

A. bairdii

A. giardi

Present

Specimen

Length of head ....

4-33

3-75

4-00

Height of body ....

5-33

5-75

5*37

Height of caudal peduncle .

I i-oo

1

12-33

12-30

therefore, the present Alepocephalus is nearer to A. giardi. In
the fourth, the height of the body, the figures certainly suggest
proximity to A. bairdii but because it may vary with condition
the significance of this character is open to doubt. On the
other hand, this difference may serve to emphasise the weak-
ness of the distinction between the two species which, indeed.
Holt and Byrne have already suggested may be one and the
same.

The specimen, a mature female of 92 cm., is the largest
Alepocephalus in the Laboratory records and also appears to
exceed in length any referred to in the literature available.
The fish has been preserved at the Laboratory.

Alosa alosa (L.)- — Allis Shad

One specimen of allis shad was reported during the year.
This was caught on 1 6th January in the Inchmarnock region
of the Firth of Clyde from which several records were received
towards the end of each of the two previous years. The fish,
37*7 cm. in length, with pigment patches present along the
body, was a male with testes at an early stage of maturity.

Sardina pilchardus ( Walbaum) — Pilchard

On 27th November newspapers reported that shoals of
pilchards had begun to invade herring fishing grounds off
Cape Gris Nez at the eastern end of the English channel.
The species was also reported on East Anglian grounds towards
the close of the herring season. In the light of this information
the following reports of pilchards in Scottish waters are
interesting.

{a) On 8th December a research vessel caught one specimen
in Inverness Firth. This fish, 29 cm. long, was a five-
year-old female with ova at an early stage of develop-
ment; the stomach was empty.

176

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

{b) In mid-December small numbers of pilchards were
identified in ring net catches of sprats and small herrings
in the inner Firth of Forth off Bo’ness and between
Aberdour and Burntisland.

{c) About 4 cwt. of pilchards were caught in herring nets
anchored in shallow water off Johnshaven (north of
Montrose) on 17th December.

These records recall those of December 1951 (Rae and
Wilson, 1952) when the appearance of dense shoals on the
East Anglian ground was also followed by the appearance of
small numbers off the Scottish coast.

Engraulis encrasicholus (L.) — Anchovy

Two fish, 12 and 15 cm. in length, were trawled by a
research vessel off Buchan Ness (57° 29' N. 1° 33' W.) on 19th
November.

Argentina silus (Ascanius) — Great Silver Smelt

On 23rd June a Belgian trawler landed 35 cwt. of this
species from 25 miles S.S.E. of Ingolfshofdi Huk, Iceland.
The great silver smelt is fairly common off the south and west
coasts of Iceland but its presence in such numbers as to render
it of commercial importance is a less frequent event which
must be put on record.

Scomberesox saurus (Walbaum)' — Saury Pike

Five fish were received during the year; none of them
contained food. The variety of means by which they were
acquired is not without interest. The first, 26 cm. long, was
found stranded near the Brough of Birsay, Orkney, on 22nd
January. The second, an immature male of 28 cm., was
dropped by a bird at Whiteness, Shetland, on 7th March.
The third, 37 cm., was washed on board a trawler on Whiten
Head Bank (north of Scotland) during the night of 8th
September. The fourth, 34*5 cm., was found amongst sea-
weed on the shore at Weisdale, Shetland, on 8th October.
The fifth record, two fish, both females of 37-5 cm., originated
from catches of herring from Inverness Firth on 12th and 13th
November. A merchant buying these herring later stated that

1954

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

177

about a dozen sauries had been recognised in other catches
from the same area in the preceding weeks.

Belone belone (L.) — Garfish or Greenbone

Date

Position

Method of
capture

No. of Specimens,
etc.

Apr.

7

170'E.N.E. Peterhead

Drift net

I

12

N. of Coral Bank

? ?

3 to 4 each haul

14

200' E. X N.|-N.
Aberdeen

??

3 F. ripe 72, 75 cm.,
M f ripe 69 cm.

Oct.

20

58° 25' N. 1° 20' W.

Plankton net

I 33 cm., taken at
surface

Nov.

6

8/10' S.E. Aberdeen
10' N.E. Rattray Head

Trawl

I 90 cm.

Nov.

10

? ?

I 83 cm.

Dec.

2

near Bell Rock

? ?

Drift net

I 84 cm.

Dec.

8

i|-'N. X E.|^E. Tolsta
Head

I 84 cm., F. f ripe

Dec.

9

Tiumhan Hd. to Cellar
Hd.

2

The presence of garfish in the north-eastern North Sea in
April is a yearly event which has been confirmed in recent years
by the operations of the long-distance drifter fleet based on
Aberdeen. From the condition of the gonads such fish ranging
in length from 68 to 75 cm. are clearly members of a spawning
concentration. Specimens of this size or less are also taken in
some years nearer to the Scottish coast towards the end of the
year but the capture at the end of 1953 of the three much
larger fish listed above at positions from Rattray Head to the
Bell Rock is exceptional for that area. At least one fish of a
similar size was also taken in the Minch.

Raniceps raninus (L.)^ — Lesser Fork-beard

Two specimens were received in 1953; one, a small fish
of 13 cm., was trawled on 6th March by a research vessel off
Montrose (56° 34' N. 1° 30' W.) at a depth of 55 metres; the
other, a male of 24-7 cm., by a commercial trawler 19 miles
S.E. of Aberdeen on 5th August.

Lampris guttatus (Brunnich) — Opah

The capture of an opah during the first week of August by
a Fleetwood trawler N.N.W. of Flugga in no fathoms was

23

178 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST Vol. 66

reported in the press. Confirmation of the record has been
obtained from the British Museum (Nat. Hist.), London, where
the fish had been sent. It weighed nearly 32 kg.

Trachypterus arcticus (Briinnich)^ — Deal-fish

For the following three records the authors are much
indebted to ex-Provost J. G. Marwick, Stromness, and to Mr.
T. Suttar, then Fishery Officer at Lerwick. In the last week
of February the remains of a deal-fish, much decomposed,
were washed ashore at Birsay, Orkney. The complete fish,
it is thought, would have measured about 180 cm. On i8th
October a fine juvenile specimen was found on the beach at
Tankerness, Orkney. This fish measured 26-8 cm. from the
snout to the base of the caudal fin ; the caudal fin itself measured
8*2 cm. A third fish, also in fragmentary condition, was found
on the rocks at Stiva Point, Cuppaster, South Yell, Shetland,
on 26th November. This specimen is estimated to have been
almost 68 cm. long.

Poly prion americanum (Schneider)' — Stone Basse

A single fish was “ clipped ” on board a line fishing vessel
from the surface of the water on Rockall Bank on 5th October.
The specimen was an immature male, of 54 cm., weighing
nearly 6 kg. The stomach was empty.

Brama rail (Bloch) ^ — Ray’s Bream

No.

Date

Position

Method of
capture

Length

{cm.)

Sex

I

Feb.

14

I T N.W. X W. Flugga

Trawl

55-5

F

2

Oct.

3

* 45' N.N.W. Butt of Lewis

Gt.-line

■ — ■

3

Oct.

15

f 60' N. Sule Skerry

—

—

4

Oct.

26

N.N.W. Flugga (65 fm.)

Trawl

—

—

5

Nov.

2

30' N.E. X N. Fraserburgh

??

57*0

M

6

Nov.

3

S^. Kilda

??

47-5

M

7

Nov.

12

5' S.E. Sule Skerry

??

56-5

M

8

Nov.

14

near Portobello

Stranded

—

9

Dec.

22

24' S.S.E. Aberdeen

Trawl

55-0

F

* denotes 6 fish: f denotes 2 hsh: others, i hsh in each case.

In addition to these records reports were received from the
crews of great-liners working N.W. of Barra Head and N.W. of

1954

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

179

Eagle Island off the Irish coast, of the presence of Ray’s bream
in large numbers on these grounds at the end of September
and in the first half of October.

The fish taken in February is clearly a straggler from the
heavy invasion of the North Sea by the species in the last
quarter of 1952 (Rae and Wilson, 1953).

The above records reveal that although Ray’s bream again
approached the Scottish west coast in considerable numbers
their penetration of the northern North Sea was on a smaller
scale than in either of the two previous years. Only three fish
crossed the Orkney-Shetland boundary line in 1953 compared
with thirty-two in 1952 and eight in 1951.

Five specimens were procured for examination. The
stomachs of two of these (Nos. i and 6) were empty while two
(Nos. 7 and 9) were feeding on small cephalopods and one
(No. 5) on fish, probably Argentina sphyraena. The muscles of
all five contained encysted plerocercoid larvae of Gymnorhynchus
gigas (Rae and Wilson, 1953).

Mullus surmuletus L. — Red Mullet

No.

Date

Position

Length

{cm.)

1

Sex

I

May 21

30' S. Aberdeen

33'5

F

2

June 23

* Stormy Bank (W. Orkney)

28-0

—

3

July 9

17'N.N.E. Cape Wrath

29-0

—

4

Sept. 12

7' S.S.E. Aberdeen

31-0

—

5

Sept. 18

60/63' S. to S. X E. Aberdeen

—

—

6

Oct. 1 7

40' S.S.E. Aberdeen

38-7

F

7

Oct. 21

30' S.S.E. Aberdeen

37-0

F

8

Oct. 23

7' S.E. X E. Tod Head

—

9

Oct. 24

Turbot Bank

—

—

10

Nov. 3

10' N.N.E. Whiten Head

36-5

F

1 1

Nov. 6

5' E.S.E. Bell Rock

35'5

F

12

Nov. 6

32-0

F

13

Nov. 6

S.W. Bell Rock

40-0

—

14

Nov. 21

near Longs tone

31-5

M

15

Nov. 26

Off St. Abbs Head

32-7

F

16

Nov. 28

Off St. Abbs Head

35*0

F

17

Nov. 28

12'S. X E. Aberdeen

—

18

Dec. 4

12'N.E. Rattray Head

33-3

F

19

Dec. 8

30' S. Aberdeen

3i'5

F

20

Dec. 1 1

50' E. X N. Aberdeen

29-7

F

* Captured by seine-net; all others by trawl.

i8o THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST VoL 66

Fifteen of the twenty red mullets recorded were caught off
the Scottish east coast south of the latitude of Aberdeen, two
north of this and three off the north coast. In number dis-
tribution and time of capture these records resemble the corre-
sponding data for 1952 thus supporting the theory of a northerly
movement from the southern North Sea. The north coast
captures, however, may indicate a similar movement via the
west coast but with reduced penetration to more northerly areas.

The sex of twelve fish was ascertained. The high proportion
of eleven female fish to one male is in keeping with last year’s
observation on this point. It is also interesting to note that the
single male fish is the most southerly record in the list.

The stomach contents were examined in twelve cases.
Nos. I, 4, 6, 10, 14 and 20 were empty. Nos. ii, 12, 16 and

18 contained the remains of Crangon including, in two cases, C.

almanni] nos. 15 and 1 6 contained 5/?. ; nos. 16, 18 and

19 contained polychaete remains.

Box boops (L.) — Bogue

A fine specimen of this Mediterranean bream, which Day
(1880-84) describes as Box vulgaris, was caught by seine net in
the Firth of Clyde, between Girvan and Ailsa Craig, on 19th
February. For fish and record the authors were obliged to
Mr. Hugh McCreath of the motor fishing vessel Amity, BA 94,
Girvan, Ayrshire. A search through the literature reveals that
this is the first record of the species from Scottish waters. The
hsh, 31-5 cm. in length, has been presented to the Royal
Scottish Museum, Edinburgh.

Labrus mixtus h. — Cuckoo Wrasse

Date

Position

Gear

No. of
Specimens

Length

{cm.)

Sex

June 29

Off Rhu Stoer (Minch)

Trawl

I

M

Aug. 13

28/32' N. X W. Rattray

/2

34:33

M

Hd.

\2

24:32

F

Oct. 7

Stormy Bank

? >

I

• —

M

„ 16

lo'N.N.E. Lossiemouth

3

23:26:26

—

Nov. 21

Off Rattray Head

,5

I

—

M

,, 21

Off Caithness coast

Seine

M

^954

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

i8i

These records help to confirm the local nature of the
distribution of this species around the Scottish coast.

Ctenolabrus rupestris (L.)^ — Goldsinny

Two specimens of this wrasse were obtained — the first in
the laboratory lists for many years. One, i6 cm. in length,
was caught by seine net 2 miles south of Pittenweem, Firth of
Forth, on 6th February, the other by a research vessel trawl
7 miles north of Lossiemouth on 20th October.

Trachinus draco L.' — Greater Weever

A single specimen of this weever, 31-5 cm. long, was taken
by trawl 12 miles E. X N. of the Longstone Light on 31st
December.

Aphanopiis carbo Lowe^ — Black Scabbard Fish

Two of this species were caught in very deep water on the
same occasion as the Alepocephalus giardi (see p. 174).

Thiinmis thynnus (L.) — Tunny

On 6th November a dead tunny was found floating at the
western entrance to Scapa Flow, Orkney. This solitary record,
however, in no way represents the extent of the seasonal appear-
ance of the species in the North Sea since the usual tunny
fishery was carried on by vessels of other nationalities on the
Fladen ground during the herring trawling season in the late
summer and autumn.

Fierasfer dentatus Cuvier — Fierasfer or Pearl Fish

One specimen, 26 cm. in length, was trawled by a research
vessel near St. Kilda (57° 57' N. 8° 52' W.) from 150 metres
on 24th August.

Centrolophus niger (Gmelin)' — Black- fish

One fish was caught by trawl 8 miles S.E. of Sule Skerry on
gth November. This proved to be a male of 61 cm.; the
stomach was empty. The pyloric region of the intestine
contained numerous tapeworms of several species and several

1 82 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST VoL 66 ,

larval nematodes were encysted in the mesenteries of the body
cavity.

f

Mugil chelo Cuvier^ — Thick-lipped Grey Mullet

Two records were obtained' — the first, 40*4 cm., from a
stranding at Canisbay near John O’ Groats in Gaithness on
15th March and the second, a female of 43-5 cm., caught close
inshore at Voe, Shetland, on 4th August.

Scorpaena dactyloptera Delaroche — Blue-mouth

“ Blue-mouth ”, used as a common name in Smitt’s Scandi-
navian Fishes, is not inappropriate. That author says the species
occurs in Norwegian waters northwards along the coast from^ ■
Stavanger in depths of 100 to 200 fathoms and that: “ it is a ? j
Mediterranean fish by no means rare off Nice and in those i
parts of the Mediterranean where hooks are used for deep «
sea fishing and it is also known off the south of Portugal, the
Ganary Islands and Madeira.” According to Holt and Byrne
(1908) it is found to the west of Ireland. Sim (1903) mentions
it as abundant locally off the Scottish east coast and particularly '
off Troup Head and Fraserburgh, while Scott (1894) refers to
the capture of a specimen south-east of May Island. ^

It is indeed strange that few records of the species near the
Scottish east coast during the present century appear to exist.
Captures of individual fish may have been passed over because ^ i
of the likeness to Sebastes but the only evidence of the occur-
rence of Scorpaena in numbers approaching those indicated by |
Sim is confined to the year 1925. In that year the following j
were recorded by the Fishery Officer, Aberdeen, from grounds |
ten miles off Kinnaird Head : 28th October, 5 fish ; 30th ;

October, ij cwt. ; 21st December, i cwt. The capture of i
three specimens during 1953 is therefore well worthy of notice. !
One fish 12-4 cm. in length was taken by a research vessel in
Largo Bay, Firth of Forth, on 21st April and another larger I
specimen, caught by a commercial trawler 8 miles north-east of |
Rattray Head, was observed on Aberdeen Market on 17th |
October. The third, also a research-vessel capture, 14 cm. |
in length, was taken on the west side on the 24th August |
near St. Kilda.

1954

RARE AND EXOTIC FISHES

183

Trigla lucerna L.- — Yellow Gurnard, Tub or Latchet

This is another fish which has been regarded at one time
as “ not uncommon ” and later as rare in the north-western
North Sea. Again, however, it may occur more often than
published records indicate, but it seems probable that its
presence in numbers occurs only in particular years when con-
ditions favour that event. That this may be so is suggested by
the following records which, it will be noted, are of captures
mainly in coastal waters south of Kinnaird Head during the
last quarter of the year.

Date

Position

Method of
capture

Length

{cm.)

Sex

Oct.

6

Off Dunbeath

Seine

53

Nov.

10

15' E.^S. May Island

Trawl

43

M

Nov.

18

45' S. X E. Aberdeen

??

—

Nov.

18

65' S. Aberdeen

—

—

Nov.

21

S.E. Bell Rock or Longstone

??

—

—

Dec.

5

Bell Rock

? ?

- —

— ■

Dec.

23

15' E.|S. May Island

??

57

M

Arnoglossus laterna (Walbaum)^ — Scaldfish

On 1 7th March a scaldfish was trawled by a research vessel
in Dornoch Firth and on 19th March the same vessel caught
another in Nairn Bay. The former fish measured 13 cm. and
the latter 1 1 cm. These captures together with that referred
to in the 1951 list (Rae and Wilson, 1952) are interesting since
the species has not been recorded from the Moray Firth or
indeed from any Scottish east coast grounds since a single
individual was obtained in 1921 off the Banffshire coast.

The occurrence of a small number of larvae o^ Arnoglossus sp,
in the plankton off all Scottish coasts in 1953 (Fraser, 1954) is
rather remarkable and worthy of further study.

The main features of the 1953 rare fish records are:

I. The invasion of the western North Sea by sturgeon on a
greater scale than for some years and in particular the minor
concentration of this species in the Moray Firth.

1 84 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST VoL 66

2. The presence of larger numbers of the rarer pelagic
species in east coast waters, e.g. saury pike, garfish, pilchard
and anchovy, and the appearance of garfish of a larger size
than normally found round the Scottish coast.

3. The appearance of red mullet off the east coast in
numbers comparable with those of the previous year.

4. The capture of several very rare species including at
least one and possibly two not hitherto recorded from the
Scottish coast.

When compared with the records for the two preceding
years the relatively light invasion of the North Sea by Ray’s
bream is worthy of note, in that this was despite the evidence
in the plankton catches from Scottish waters of a strong hydro-
graphic influence emanating from the region west of the
entrance to the Mediterranean in the latter half of the year
(Fraser, 1954).

The records of pilchards, yellow gurnard or tub, and of
most of the red mullet indicate a northward movement of fish
from the southern North Sea, particularly in the last quarter
of the year. There is a tendency, no doubt, for this to recur
annually but the evidence suggests that in 1953 it was rather
stronger than in either of the two previous years and that
other species took part in it. The bib, Gadus luscus L., and
the common sole, Solea solea (L.), are thought to have been
more numerous than usual.

Some of the relatively large number of tope, Eugaleus
galeus (L.)j which appeared on Aberdeen market may also have
been concerned. Out of forty-six fish — length 4^ to 5I feet —
landed during the latter part of the year, ten were from grounds
south of Rattray Head in the period 21st October to gth
December. The remainder, taken between 24th August and
nth December, were captured off the west and north coasts
as far north as Flugga in the Shetlands. These could have
been associated with the shark concentration which character-
ised certain western grounds during the summer and autumn
and extended as far west as Rockall Bank. Another feature
of this concentration was the extraordinary large number of
basking sharks, Cetorhinus maximus (Gunner), frequenting the
Minch and adjoining waters during the summer.

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES
REFERENCES

185

Clark, Robert S., 1926. Rays and Skates: a revision of the European
species. Fisheries, Scotland, Sci. Invest., 1926, i.

Day, Francis, 1880-84. fishes of Great Britain and Ireland. London.
Fraser, J. H., 1954. Zooplankton collections made by Scottish research
vessels during 1953. Ann. biol. (Copenhagen), 10 (1953): 27.

Goode, G. B. and T. H. Bean, 1879. Description of Alepocephalus Bairdii,
a new species of fish from the deep-sea fauna of the western Atlantic.
Proc. U.S. Nat. Mas., 2. Washington.

1895. Oceanic ichthyology. Special Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus. Washing-
ton.

Holt, E. W. L. and L. W. Byrne, 1908. Second report on the fishes of the
Irish Atlantic Slope. Sci. Invest. Fish. Br. Ire., 1906, V. Dublin.

Rae, B. B. and E. Wilson, 1952. Rare and exotic fishes recorded in
Scotland during 1951. Scot. Nat., 64: 102-111.

1953- Rare and exotic fishes recorded in Scotland during 1952.

Scot. Nat., 65: 1 41 -1 53.

Saemundsson, B., 1949. Marine Pisces. The ^oology of Iceland, 4, pt. 72.
Copenhagen and Reykjavik.

Scott, T., 1894. Scorpaena dactylopterus in Scottish waters. Aim. Scot. Nat.
Hist., 1894: 18 1.

SiM, George, 1903. Fishes of the east coast from Wick to Firth of Forth
[in] The vertebrate fauna of '' Dee Aberdeen.

Smitt, F. a., 1893. A history of Scandinavian fishes. Stockholm.

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

Spotted Redshank in South-east Sutherland. — On 19th
September 1954 I had an exeellent view of a spotted redshank
(Tringa erythropus) feeding with three redshanks {Tringa totanus) in a
strip of salt-marsh on Dornoeh Links. The lanky build, the
speekled appearance of the upper parts and the pale eye-stripe,
conspicuously broad in front of the eye, were recognition features
noted through binoculars when the bird was on the ground, and in
flight the distinctive note and the absence of white on the secondaries
were characteristic.

The lighter coloration of the spotted bird was quite marked when
both species were seen feeding together. It appeared to be less shy
than the common redshanks being, on two occasions, the last to take
wing when I flushed the birds.

The bird was also seen by Mr. W. H. Houston at the same place
on 20th September. — D. Macdonald, Dornoch, Sutherland.

There appears to be no previous record in south-east Sutherland.
— Editors.

24

1 86 THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST VoL 66

Lesser White-fronted Geese in the Stewartry of Kirk-
cudbright.— Between 20th February and 14th Mareh 1954 two
lesser white-fronted geese {Anser erythropus) were observed near
Castle Douglas. One, an immature, was identified first on 20th
February and seen again on a number of days until 14th March.
The second bird, an adult, was not conclusively identified until 7th
March. It was seen again on 14th March. Prior to 6th March all
observations were made on a grass knoll and in adjacent boggy
ground. On 6th, 7th, and 14th March the birds were seen in a
low-lying field about a mile further south-east. On all occasions
they were amongst bean geese {Anser arvensis arvensis) of which some
150 were present at maximum. On 20th and 2 ist February about
150 greylag geese {Anser anser anser) were mixed with the bean.
On later dates the greylags remained more separate, when present,
and on 6th and 7th March were not associating at all with the bean
flock. A Canada goose {Branta canadensis) was in the mixed flock
on 20th and 21st February but thereafter it kept mainly with the
greylags. Three or four pink-footed geese {Anser arvensis bracJiy-
rhynchus) were also sometimes among the flock.

The following observers saw the immature bird on 20th February :
Miss M. I. Kinnear, William Austin, A. G. S. Bryson, D. G. Andrew,
A. B. Duncan, John Hoy, Ian Stewart, Charles Walker, George
Waterston, and Donald Watson. It was seen through telescopes at
ranges down to 350 yards. On 7th March Professor M. F. M.
Meiklejohn and I saw it at 100 yards through a telescope and X 12
glasses.

The most striking feature was its diminutive size, about half
that of a bean goose. The short legs and rather abbreviated neck
added to this impression. At long ranges the body colour some-
what resembled a bean goose. On a closer view it was darker and
“ sootier ” than a bean goose, specially on the flanks, next the white
vent, where it was blackish. There was a noticeable absence of
clear pale edges to the feathers of the upper-parts and no white line
where flanks overlap wing. The under-parts lacked barring. The
small white blaze on the forehead was scarcely visible side-on but
quite striking full-face. The rather bright pink bill was small and
stubby, tiny beside the long bills of the beans and certainly smaller
than in the white-front {Anser albifrons). At 100 yards the legs
were seen to be a good deal paler than those of the bean. The
bright yellow eyelids were very clearly seen at 100 yards but at 350
yards they could not be made out with absolute certainty. In flight
it appeared even more absurdly small and strikingly narrow in the
wing. It could be picked out at once in the flying flock, both by
size and quickness of wing-beat. Seen on the ground beside a
curlew it did not appear much bigger. It generally grazed and
moved more rapidly than the other geese but this was not always
apparent. On 7th March M. F. M. M. and I considered that both
lesser white-fronts were feeding at much the same rate as the bean

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

187

geese. Although obviously associating with the bean geese it
sometimes fed rather apart and more than once was chased away
by a bean goose.

The presence of an adult bird was strongly suspected from 20th
February. On 6th March A. B. D., M. F. M. M. and I
watched it in pouring rain for some time without obtaining a
conclusive view. Flowever, on 7th March it was at last seen in
excellent light at 1 00 yards through a telescope and X 1 2 glasses
by M. F. M. M. and me. It differed in many features from the
immature. It was appreciably larger and in spite of its strikingly
short legs and rather short neck it did not stand out at once as a
much smaller bird among the bean geese. The general body colour
was much lighter than in the immature bird, more like the typical
white-front {Anser albifrons albifrons). The head and neck were
rather light-coloured, brownish-grey, becoming brighter and
distinctly chestnut-tinged on the hind neck. The fore-part of the
body was light coloured, greyer above and with a marked tinge
of warm brown on the sides of the breast. The white upper fringe
to the flanks was well defined. The pale edges to the feathers of
the upper parts were narrow and much less distinct than in the bean
geese. The black barring on the belly was not very obvious, taking
the form of four or five well separated short bars looking almost
like spots from a side view. The bill was small, bright rosy pink
in colour with a light nail. The white blaze, very prominent on a
front view, extended on to the crown just as far back as the eye.
On a side view it looked narrower than in the white-fronted goose
and curved backward on to the crown. The legs were brighter
than in the immature bird but lacked the vivid “ painted ” look of
the bean goose’s legs. The bright yellow eyelids could just be made
out in strong sunlight at about 400 yards and were seen very clearly
at 100 yards. In feeding and movement generally this bird did not
show any special speed of action compared with bean and pink-
footed geese. In flight it stood out at once as smaller than the bean
but by no means so diminutive as the immature bird. Among
white-fronted geese its size might not have been a distinctive
feature. In both birds the projection of the wings beyond the tail
was noted. They showed no inclination to associate together
although at times they passed alongside one another while feeding.

Excellent views were again had of both birds on 14th March
by L. A. Urquhart and me, but after this date neither they nor the
bean geese could be found again.

It may now be worth recording that on ist February 1953
Messrs. Andrew, Walker, Watson, Gavin Mills and R. W. J. Smith
saw a goose which they suspected was a lesser white-front, with bean
geese, in the spot where the birds were first seen in 1954. The size
of the bird and shape of the white blaze suggested an adult lesser
white-front, but it was never seen well enough for positive identi-
fication, nor could it be found on subsequent occasions.

88

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

As the bean geese which annually visit this area are probably
all of the yellow-billed form {Anser arvensis arvensis), which breeds
in arctic Lapland, it seems possible that lesser white-fronts breeding
in Scandinavia may join up with them not infrequently, as they
have been shown to do, by Peter Scott and others, with the white-
fronts visiting the New Grounds on the River Severn.

The lesser white-fronted goose has not previously been certainly
recorded for Scotland. — Donald Watson, Dairy, Castle Douglas.

Wilson’s Phalarope in Scotland. — On nth September 1954
we were bird-watching on an area of reclaimed ground between
North Queensferry and Rosyth Dock Yards, Fife, where there are
two shallow fresh-water pools. Due to the wet summer the pools
have been more extensive than in previous years and, consequently,
provide excellent feeding for ducks and waders. A raised bank
divides the area in half, and separates the pools, and it was whilst
watching from behind this bank that we came across a noticeably
white wader feeding alongside a party of ruffs, at a distance of
about 25 yards.

The bird immediately excited our curiosity and, at first,
due to the general pale colouring and method of feeding we
suspected a phalarope in winter plumage. After a few moments
we realised that the bird had yellow legs, and when it fluttered a
few yards, saw that it had no wing-bar. It showed a white

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

1954

189

rump and tail. We then knew that this was something most unusual
and the following deseription was taken on the spot.

The general appearance was of a very white bird, with longish
neck and small head. Size approximately that of curlew-sandpiper.
Bill black, straight, needle-like and slightly longer than the width
of the head. T'hroat, breast, and underparts, pure white. Fore-
head white with ashy-grey crown and nape. White eye-stripe,
separated from white of under parts by a pale greyish line through
eye, which continues down side of neck, to join with grey of shoulder.
Mantle ashy-grey as crown, scapulars and coverts darker, giving a
scaly appearance at close quarters, feathers being tipped with buff.
Primaries dark brown. Rump white, as in the wood-sandpiper.
Tail white, very faintly barred with grey at tip. Underwing white.
Legs ochreous yellow, rather long and slender; feet the same colour
as the legs.

The bird fed in a very energetic manner, running fast after
insects, and picking these off the tops of the weeds and off the ground
with quick side-to-side movements of the head. It tended to feed
with legs flexed and head and neck close and parallel to the ground.
It was not seen to probe at any time. After being watched for
about half an hour in excellent light, it suddenly rose with two
redshanks and flew directly over us. The flight was fast and pur-
poseful; we noted that the legs projected slightly beyond the tail.
The redshanks, taking the bird with them, disappeared over the
Forth, heading down towards North Qrieensferry.

We were unable to make an identification after reaching home
and consulting all the popular reference books, and it was decided to
contact other ornithologists with a view to returning the following day.

On the Sunday morning, along with George Waterston,

D. G. Andrew, and Miss M. I. Kinnear, we returned and almost
immediately found the bird, when all obtained first-class views,
confirming the description given above. Later the same day Afiss

E. V. Baxter also saw the bird. We had with us Peterson’s Birds of
America and with the help of this, all present agreed that the bird was,
without doubt, a Wilson’s phalarope {Phalaropus tricolor). On this
and later occasions the bird was seen swimming in deep water in
typical phalarope fashion, although this species prefers to feed on
land. Twice it was seen to spin (on land) hfteen to twenty times
very fast in one spot, this being quoted as a characteristic in Ameri-
can literature. The bird was always silent but on one occasion it
was heard to give a loud nasal aongh, when threatened by a redshank.
Later, on reference to Pearson’s Birds of America we came across a
coloured plate by Fuertes, which shows perfectly all the details of
the Rosyth bird.

A full account of the weather conditions prevailing during the
period when the bird probably arrived has been submitted for
publication in an article to British Birds, and the following is a sum-
mary of it.

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

VoL 66

190

Presuming the bird was in the Long Island-Florida area at the
end of August, where it occurs fairly regularly on autumn passage,
it seems possible that a hurricane at that time was responsible for
displacing the bird to the Labrador-Newfoundland area, where
it remained till the 7th September. Assuming that the bird started
to move south on that day, perhaps across the Gulf of St. Lawrence,
a depression, centred between Greenland and Labrador, moving
very quickly eastwards, would have drifted it out to mid-Atlantic,
where a low, situated near the Faeroes, ensured a continuation of
the strong westerly airflow. By the evening of the 8th it is probable
the bird would be over mid-Scotland, where poor visibility and
light winds would induce it to land. As the average wind-speed
appeared to be about 35 m.p.h. and taking the speed of the
migrating phalarope to be about 25 m.p.h., we can deduce that
it took 35 to 40 hours to cross the Atlantic, a distance of some
2,300 miles.

The normal breeding range of the Wilson’s phalarope is in
central and western North America, while it winters in South
America.

During the phalarope’s three-and-a-half week stay, until it was
last seen on 5th October, at least sixty different people from many
parts of the country were able to watch it. — Frank D. Hamilton
and Keith S. MacGregor, Edinburgh.

Sooty Tern {Sterna fuscatd) in Orkney. — On the morning of
22nd April 1954 I had the remarkable experience of having an
undoubted sooty tern standing on the ground within 20 yards of me,
between our house and the Loch of Brockan.

The upper parts were black except for a white patch across the
forehead, and the under parts were white. The bill which was
blackish looked rather long for a tern. The tail was very deeply
forked. It looked bigger than either arctic or common terns, but
was perhaps rather less than a black-headed gull.

It was standing almost head-on to me, and remained for about
twenty seconds ; it then took off, and flew quite strongly towards the
sea, but was quickly lost in the glare of the sun.

I did not have my binoculars with me at the time.

The bird was near a stream, and about a quarter of a mile from
the sea. — E. Balfour, Mill of Isbister, Rendall, Orkney.

There is only one previous record of the sooty tern in Scotland, in
Stirlingshire in May 1939. The bird seen by Mr. Balfour, at such
close quarters as to render the use of binoculars unnecessary, and
at rest on the ground, could scarcely have been confused with any
other species except possibly the bridled tern {S, anaethetus) , which is
smaller, somewhat greyer and less black above, and has a light collar.
Mr. Balfour writes: “ I did, at the time, consider the possibility of
it being a bridled tern, but soon became satisfled that the bird was a

1954

ZOOLOGICAL NOTES

191

sooty. It was viewed in very good light, and its upper parts
(head, neck, mantle and tail) could only be described as being
black. There was no suggestion of a whitish or pale collar.” We
think there can be very little doubt that the identification is correct. —
Editors.

Blackcap in Inverness-shire in winter. Records of black-
caps {Sylvia atricapilla) in upper Speyside district of Inverness-shire
are scanty even in summer, and the first that I have myself seen
in the Kingussie district appeared in elder bushes at the fringe
of a pine wood beside our garden on 3rd November 1954. I had
very close views of the bird, which was a male. — Colin C. I.
Murdoch, Kingussie.

Garden Warbler and ChifFchafF in Sutherland. — A garden
warbler {Sylvia borin) was heard singing by D. G. Andrew and myself
on nth June 1954 in a mixed wood about a mile east of Scourie,
north-west Sutherland. We did not see the bird but the song was
unmistakable. On 20th June 1954 a chiffchaflf {Phylloscopus collybita)
was singing during the whole afternoon in the middle of the Balblair
Wood, Golspie, south-east Sutherland. This wood consists of
almost a square mile of Scots pine with practically no undergrowth
apart from some heather, blaeberries and an occasional juniper in
some of the older and more open parts of the plantation.

There are very few records of either species for Sutherland,
the only ones of which I have knowledge are those recently reported
in this journal, viz. a garden warbler at Loch Eriboll (vol. 63, p. 198)
and of a chiffchaff at Skibo (vol. 64, p. 113). — I. D. Pennie,
Golspie.

A cornered Pine Marten. Mr. Seton Gordon has kindly
forwarded an interesting letter he received from Mr. H. J. S. Wilson,
from which the following extract is taken, relating to a recent ex-
perience in Wester Ross in the summer of 1954.

“ Two of the party were making their way along the rocky coast
between the harbour at Gairloch and the mouth of the Kerry River
when they came across a pine marten basking in the sun on a mossy
ledge in a narrow gorge running down to the sea. Watch was kept
on the animal, after it was disturbed, for an hour as it moved around
over some and under others of the boulders jammed in the gorge.
Finally, in order to show two of our number unable to reach the spot,
the creature was cornered in a cave at sea-level, for there was no
escape from the gorge possible even for so nimble an animal except
past us. It was caught in a jacket and subsequently released.

“ Local folk tell me that apart from one caught in a fox trap a
year or two ago there have been few if any records of them here.”

192

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Field Identification of the Common and Grey Seals. —

Almost everywhere on the coasts of Scotland both the common
seal {Phoca vitulina) and the grey seal {Halichoerus grypus) are quite
likely to be encountered, in some places more or less commonly and
in others as unexpected and often solitary visitors. Notwithstanding
statements to the contrary, the two species often consort together
and haul out on the same reefs and loeaches, at least in summer.
Even under these conditions, where the two may be directly com-
pared together, it is very easy to confuse the cows and immatures
of the grey seal with common seals and vice versa. Identification
of isolated individuals with any certainty has often proved difficult or
impossible, even to experienced observers. The demonstration of a
reliable field-character differentiating Halichoerus from the various
species of Phoca is thus of some practical importance.

Seals which have taken to the water usually show themselves to
the observer at no great distance, coming up to peer at him with
“ great sad eyes ”. It may then be seen that their slanting oval
nostrils are repeatedly worked open and shut. In the common seal
(and I believe other species of Phoca) the nostril slits almost meet in a
broad V when seen from the front, being separated at the bottom
by only about one-third of an inch; their grooves converge almost to
the mid-line of the lip. In Halichoerus^ on the contrary, even the
inner corners of the nostrils are wide apart, separated on the snout
by a distance about equal to their length (an inch or more) and
correspondingly remote from the mid-line — comparable, perhaps,
to the outer arms of a W. This has proved an excellent character,
easily seen when looked for, easily remembered (V for vitulina), and
applicable to each species at all ages from birth. I cannot find it
mentioned previously in the extensive literature of seals.

Good photographs showing the nostrils may be found in Dr.
Harrison Matthews’ British Mammals, facing page 277 (common
seal, by A. R. Thompson) and in Mr. Robert Atkinson’s Island Going,
facing page 65 (grey seal cow, by R. Atkinson). In Dr. Fraser
Darling’s picture of grey seals in the water, facing page 226 of
Island Tears, the two on the extreme left are blowing with dilated
nostrils and show the character particularly clearly. It may be
added in parenthesis that photographs of Phoca vitulina are rare,
being no doubt much more difficult to obtain.

The big grey seal bulls are of course very distinctive, on account of
their size and relatively huge head, the long narrow nose and fore-
head of which have a flat or slightly Roman profile, showing
practically no ‘ step ’ at the eyes. The colour is so variable in both
species that it cannot be relied upon as a distinguishing character.
V. C. Wynne-Edwards, Aberdeen.

1954

BOOK REVIEWS

193

BOOK REVIEWS

The Lapwing in Britain. By K. G. Spencer. London: A. Brown and
Sons Limited. Pp. 166, 12 black and white plates and 2 maps. 1953.
1 6s.

The author summarises the results of his own considerable field work and
a careful search of the literature on lapwings, in a book designed as a
work of scientific reference. There is a good account of the distribution
and recent change of status of the lapwing and of the various hypotheses
advanced to account for its general decrease. Valuable chapters follow
on the breeding biology, diversionary display and other aspects of behaviour,
and migration. In these lies the author’s main contribution. We are
interested to find at the end a series of chapters on the local names of the
lapwing in Britain, and its place in dialect, folklore, place names and liter-
ature. Here the author has tackled the problem of local names in the
same way as the modern worker in dialect study. The use of the regional
map is an excellent idea. — A. W.

Birds as Animals. Vol. i. The History of Birds. By James Fisher.
London: Hutchinson’s University Library, 1954. Pp. 205. 8s. 6d.

•

We welcome this, the first of two volumes representing the 1939 Birds as
Animals, now entirely revised and rewritten for the Biological Sciences Series
of Hutchinson’s University Library. In the preface we read that it is designed
for university students, but it will certainly have a much wider appeal. It
is just what the keen ornithologist looks for: a general summary of orni-
thology right up to date, and one that covers the increasing spate of orni-
thological literature which most amateurs have neither the time nor the
facilities to study.

The book may be divided into three main sections; three chapters on
the history of ornithologists and their work, four more on bird evolution,
geographical distribution, systematics and the formation of species, and a
final set of four on bird numbers, their changes and their relations with
man. The second volume, expected in 1956, will deal with the fields of
migration and behaviour. — A. W.

The Ancient White Cattle of Britain and their Descendants. By G. Kenneth
Whitehead. London: Faber and Faber, 1953. Pp. 174 with 81
illustrations. 63s.

The wild white cattle of Britain, whose Scottish representatives were
reputed to be the descendants of the native cattle of the Caledonian Forest,
are nowadays limited to five herds. Of these Cadzow in Lanarkshire is

25

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THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

the only Scottish survivor of twelve recorded herds, seven of which were
of very ancient origin, two at least being traceable to the thirteenth century.
But if the original herds are disappearing, descendants in various degrees
exist in domesticated or semi-domesticated herds, of which more than
forty have been registered from time to time.

In bringing up to date the information about all these herds, Mr.
Whitehead has created a standard work which, with its numerous and
excellent photographs, notably replaces Storer’s monograph of nearly
eighty years ago. The characteristics of the various herds ar^ described
and, for comparison, a chapter is given to the prehistoric native cattle, the
giant ox or aurochs. Bos primigeniiis, and those interesting facsimiles of that
long extinct animal which have been recreated on the continent by the
brothers Heck through crossing various domestic breeds, including Scottish
Highland cattle.

Speculation about the origin of British white cattle has been abundant
and confusing, but the tendency is to forsake the old idea that they are
direct descendants, modified by confinement and in-breeding, of Bos
primi genius, although its blood may well be one component in their make-
up. Neither are they albino varients of any early domestic breed. An
attractive suggestion, which may come as near the truth as any, is that
they are derived from white sports, specially culled and segregated by the
Brythonic folk or by the Romans in connection with sacrificial offerings
and the bull-cult. This would help to explain their preservation and their
segregation in parks. These speculations the author sets out and discusses
in this attractive and authoritative book.^J. R.

Squirrels. By Monica Shorten. London: Collins, The new Naturalist,
1954. Pp. xii + 212, 15 plates and 22 text figures. 15s.

This notable addition to the Monograph series organises and amplifies
the present knowledge of squirrels. The author’s evident enthusiasm and
easy conversational style give presonality to the book, which deals primarily
with past and present distribution and the spread of the grey squirrel in
relation to the decline in numbers and distribution of our native red squirrel.
Like other transatlantic visitors, the grey squirrel has attracted consider-
able notice and its biology has been widely studied. The later chapters on
activity, breeding, pelage colour change, development and habitat, prove
the most interesting. The author speculates on the squirrels’ future dis-
tribution in the new and extensive habitats provided by the Forestry
Commission.

The Running of the Salmon. By Eric Taverner and W. Barrington
Browne. Pp. 62, illustrated. London: Geoffrey Bles, 1954. 15s.

The now familiar theme of the salmon’s spawning journey followed by the
development and subsequent migration seawards of the new generation.

1954

BOOK REVIEWS

195

is here embellished by forty-eight of Mr. Barrington Browne’s sketches
and paintings — four of them reproduced in colour. The story is pleasantly
told by Mr. Eric Taverner. While sustaining the note of wonder or
mystery he brings out skilfully the natural history detail of the fish’s life
cycle. The illustrations — which form a most attractive set of pictures —
show in a lively way episodes in the life of the fish, its river and estuarine
environments, its underwater foes and the birds and beasts that take active
interest in its journey. There is an interesting full page sketch representing
a salmon’^s* view of another salmon being gaffed. The work is nicely
produced. — R. M. N.

A Key to the British freshwater leeches with notes on their ecology. By K. H. Mann,
with a coloured plate by E. V. Watson. Freshwater Biological
Association Scientific Publication No. 14, 1954. Pp. 21, illustrated.
2s. 6d.

Dr. Mann has produced a guide to the study of British freshwater leeches
that will be welcomed by all students of freshwater zoology. No compar-
able aid to identification of the British forms has been published since the
work of Harding (1910) whose list is given side by side with the new revised
list for convenient reference. Two new British species are included in the
new Key. There are notes on ecology, methods of collection and examina-
tion, and on various points of structure. A notable feature is the frontis-
piece, the work of Dr. E. V. Watson, which illustrates in colour ten of the
thirteen species of leeches now known from British freshwaters.

A revised Key to the adults of the British species of Ephemeroptera with notes on
their ecology. By D. E. Kimmins. Freshwater Biological Association
Scientific Publication No. 15, 1954. Pp. 71, illustrated. 3s.

Mr. Kimmins’ revised Key to the British Ephemeroptera is a revision
of the major part of his former Key (F.B.A. Scientific Publication No. 7,
1942) whose value to entomologists and angler naturalists is well known.
In the earlier work keys to the families and genera of nymphs were included.
These are omitted here, as a complete key to species of ephemeropteran
nymphs is in preparation, and will be published separately in the same
series. — R. M. N.

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

196

CORRESPONDENCE

The Editors,

The Scottish Naturalist

Dear Sirs,

I have read with great interest the contribution to
your August issue on the hedging behaviour of young fulmars
{Fulmaris glacialis). This introduces two factors which are new to
me: viz. the possibilities that: —

{a) The young may be prompted to leave the nesting ledge
by the behaviour of the adults.

and {b) The adults wish, themselves, to take possession of the
nesting ledge.

At the same time this contribution illustrates strikingly a point
which impresses me more every year: viz. that contemporary

studies of both birds and mammals fail to take sufhcient account of
the variation in behaviour of both bird and animal communities
from one locality to another. These variations in behaviour are
further masked by the modern monograph treatment, which tends
to dragoon all the individuals of one species into behaving alike —
which, of course, is as untrue as the statement that a bird’s incuba-
tion or fledging period must be precisely so many days, and neither
more nor less.

In this particular case of the fulmar, I cannot claim to have
studied the fledging behaviour of the young as intensively as has
been done on the Fair Isle; but it is an interesting fact that, in the
course of three summers on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, I have
no record of parents feeding young after 17th August; no record of
an adult sitting near a young bird after ist September (and this did
not appear to be a parent) ; and no records of adults visiting the
cliffs or flying past them after ist September, whereas the earliest
chick I have known to fledge did not do so until ist September.

It is clear, therefore, from these details that there is a wide
divergence in the behaviour of adult fulmars at the Fair Isle and
on Holy Island — connected perhaps with the respective size and
age of the two colonies. However that may be, a truer concept of
animal behaviour would surely be obtained if these local variations
in behaviour — and they are continually cropping up — were more
widely recognised.

Yours truly,

RICHARD PERRY.

^954

CORRESPONDENCE

197

American Birds in Britain — Drift or Assisted Passage

The Editors,

The Scottish Naturalist

iiTH November, 1954

Dear Sirs,

It is to be feared that Mr. Kenneth Williamson’s
enthusiasm for “ down- wind drift ” is in danger of getting the better
of his scientifie principles. Skilful as he is in relating the recent
occurrence of a number of Nearctic species in this country to the
meteorological conditions prevailing at the time, it seems that in
so far as it applies to the passerines at any rate his “ explanation ”
is a little less than plausible. Since he affirms that the possibility
of any bird’s crossing the Atlantic by means of assisted passage
needs to be treated “ with the utmost caution ”, it is necessary to
remind him that assisted passage is ^ fact of common observation
whereas “ down- wind drift ”, no matter how well supported by
circumstantial and presumptive evidence, remains at best a theory.
In reopening an old controversy I realise, of course, that the con-
census of informed opinion nowadays favours the belief that, given
the right conditions, a West-East crossing is within the powers of
even the small bird, — and that the old school of ornithologists was
inclined to be much more sceptical. I am not concerned to argue
exclusively in support of either view: the point I wish to make is
that there is something to be said for both, and that before any
large conclusions can be drawn the evidence for assisted passage as
well as that for drift needs to be taken into account.

Mr. Williamson objects to assisted passage on somewhat peculiar
grounds.

First, he alleges that for a lost and exhausted migrant to remain
on board ship even for a few hours is likely to prove fatal. But
this, with all due respect, is nonsensical. It amounts to a denial of
the bird’s recuperative powers which are known to be remarkable.
On several occasions I have seen finches, warblers, flycatchers, etc.,
come on board, apparently in extremis, only to resume their journey
when they were refreshed, usually (and significantly) when they
were within easy striking-distance of land. Not that exhaustion is
the only reason for their taking refuge in this way. The ship’s
lights after dark and its smoke-trail by day always exercise a strong
fascination: and, once settled, the bird may remain on shipboard
long enough to be deflected many hundreds of miles from its
normal destination. Gases of birds being carried beyond the
limits of their range in this way are on record (e.g. Coward, Birds of
the British Isles, Series I, p. 363 — cedar waxwings “ taken on board
ship in the Atlantic far from the American coast ”).

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Second, Mr. Williamson attaches great importance to the fact
that the body-weight of these “ lost ” vagrants is considerably
below normal. To say the least of it, this argument cuts both
ways. Presumably loss of weight may be due to fasting as well as
to over-exertion.

Third, he insists that these vagrants are so highly specialised in
their feeding habits that they cannot possibly subsist for any length
of time on an ocean-going vessel. While it is true that each species
has its appropriate food-spectrum it is not easy to see what there is
to prevent a grey-cheeked thrush from picking up a living of sorts
on a cargo boat. The amount of insect-life on such vessels is often
surprising. Personally, I cannot see a grey-cheeked thrush (still
less a black-and-white warbler or a red-eyed vireo!) flying the
Atlantic even with the assistance of a howling gale, though I am
willing to believe that it could manage at a pinch on, say, a grain
ship. Mr. Williamson may retort that my powers of imagination
have nothing to do with the case. Here again I would repeat that
the facts of common observation suggest that it is he, not I, who is
allowing a subjective prejudice to stand in the way of truth. Many
ornithologists have seen birds feeding while on ships at sea. Mr.
A. Cameron-Brown, for example, has recently written to me des-
cribing how swallows regularly came aboard his ship off the north-
west coast of Africa, roosting in the wheel-house for several nights
and feeding on swarms of flies in the holds. Many similar instances
might be cited. Unless Mr. Williamson is prepared to dismiss all
such accounts as so many travellers’ tales, he must concede that
what a highly specialised feeder like the swallow can do can be
done equally well, and probably better, by a thrush !

In autumn 1951, three chaffinches made the trip from Ports-
mouth to Gibraltar on an aircraft carrier (v. Trident, November
1953)* I ^ little worried by the thought of what might have
happened had Mr. Williamson been stationed on some island off
the North African coast and found one of this trio in his traps.
His first reaction, doubtless, would be to appeal to the relevant
weather charts and then, supposing that the signs were favourable,
to fit the ocurrence into the general pattern of his theory. His
conclusion would be as satisfying as it was invalid.

No one denies that wind-drift may be largely responsible for
the bird’s straying off its standard line of migration in the first
instance. Among other things, it helps to explain why more
American birds have reached Europe than vice versa. Quite
obviously birds following the Western European seaboard are more
likely to be blown inland while those heading for the Gulf Coast are
liable to be forced out to sea. At the same time, if wind were the

^954

CORRESPONDENCE

199

sole, or even the controlling factor, we might expect the trans-
Atlantic passage to be much more one-way than, in fact, it is.

A comparison of the lists of Accidentals for the two continents
reveals some striking anomalies. How does it come about, for
instance, that both bar-tailed and black-tailed godwits have turned
up in New England when neither the Hudsonian nor the marbled
has occurred in Britain ? Surely, if the aero-dynamics of drift are
as simple as we are asked to believe, the odds are all in favour of the
latter pair? Again, why should the black-headed and little gulls
be accounted almost regular by the American ornithologist when
we have no comparable quid pro quo on our side of the water ? And
are we to suppose that the prevailing winds went into reverse on
the fifteen-odd occasions when the corncrake succeeded in making
a landfall in the New World ?

Let it be said that no one has done more than Mr. Williamson
himself to show that wind-drift is a reality and a factor which has
to be reckoned with in studying the whole problem of migration.
He has provided a wealth of evidence which is certainly impressive;
but this does not give him any pre-emptive right to ignore the
existence of other available evidence. What little we know about
the behaviour of land birds at sea is enough to make us suspect that
the picture we have of seasonal movements may well be complicated
(possibly falsified would be a better word) by the existence of
assisted passage, not seriously complicated, perhaps, but sufficiently
so as to place a question-mark against certain arrivals. In our
present state of ignorance we must await the findings of such a
body as the Royal Naval Bird Watching Society with interest.
In the meantime, a little judicious inquiry from the main shipping
lines might (who knows?) be just as rewarding as the most pains-
taking scrutiny of the weather charts.

Yours sincerely,

W. KENNETH RICHMOND.

P.S. In his Summary {Scot. Nat., 66: 28), Mr. Williamson mentions
“ the increasing frequency of American geese, passerines, cuckoos
and waders in Europe ”. Another large conclusion! It is by no
means clear, and cannot be proved, that there has been a real
increase. Since there certainly are a great many more observers
than there used to be an increase in the number of reliable sight
records is only to be expected. Formerly the unusual bird was
either overlooked or it was seen by someone who was incapable of
identifying it. Today the chances of the unheard-of rarity being
spotted and recognised are infinitely greater than they were fifty
years ago.

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Vol. 66

Dear Sirs,

Mr. Richmond has raised an issue which is important
since his objections to my views may well be shared by others. I
am therefore grateful to you for affording me the opportunity of
reviewing at greater length than was possible in my recent paper
{Scot. Nat.., 66: 13-29) the reasons why I reject the “ assisted

passage ” theory in the case of American birds occurring in Europe.

The first point which impresses me is this : just as many vessels
sail westbound as eastbound aeross the Atlantic, yet the A.O.U.
Check-list contains very few exclusively Palaearctic speeies, whilst
I can cite at least forty-two strictly Nearctic forms (excluding geese,
ducks, gulls and other swimming birds) whose vagrancy in Europe
is admitted by most authorities. (There are several more whose
status may be reviewed in years to come — see R. S. R. Fitter and
W. B. Alexander’s recent paper in British Birds.) I know of
only two passerines — the fieldfare and white wagtail — which have
made the east to west crossing, as against a dozen American passer-
ines currently recognised as stragglers to Europe. Neither is strictly
Palaearctic, since they nest in Greenland. The white wagtail sight-
record was made at Fort Chimo, Ungava, on 29th August 1883,
and the fieldfare was found at Jens Munk Island, Foxe Basin, in a
mummified condition in 1939: it may have been one of the flock
which established a breeding-colony in the Juliannehaab district of
south-west Greenland in 1937 (Finn Salomonsen, Birds of Greenland,
3: 488, 501). There are no important ports in the Canadian
Arctic, but the region is within the polar east-wind belt.

Turning to the waders, we find that eastern North America has
barely a dozen Europeans as against nineteen Americans currently
recorded in the British Isles. Of these, the ruff and woodeock have
several records, but their frequency bears no comparison with that
of the pectoral sandpiper — of which small numbers ‘‘ invaded ”
Britain in 1948, 1950, and 1951 — and lesser yellowlegs here.
Indeed, several of these American waders now have a dozen or
more occurrences in Britain and a few — dowicher, white-rumped
and buff-breasted sandpipers — have over a score. One must
also bear in mind the number of American bitterns (40) and
cuckoos (25) which have been found in Britain, a phenomenon
without parallel in Canada and the United States.

Why is there this remarkable discrepancy both in the quality
and quantity of this transatlantic exchange ? What is wrong with
westbound ships that they cannot afford shelter and subsistence to
a few of the thousands of Old World migrants which find themselves
adrift in Rockall Seas and Western Approaches every year? For

1954

CORRESPONDENCE

201

Mr. Richmond’s contention that migrants following the eastern
seaboard of the United States are more likely to get blown out to
sea than those following the western seaboard of Europe is just not
true. My view that a large part of our autumn passage-migration
is due to sueh drift {Scot. Nat., 64: i- 18) is no longer seriously

contested, and Mr. Richmond himself has recorded an interesting
spring movement of this kind {Bull. Fair Is. B. Obs., 2: 39-40).
Anticyclones operate over both eontinents, and the chances of off-
shore anticyclonic winds coineiding with fog and poor visibility are
probably about equal on the two sides. Offshore cyclonic air-
streams, on the other hand, are decidedly more frequent on the
European coasts, due to the proximity of the depressions moving
in almost continuously from mid-Atlantic, so that the volume of
drift to sea is greater on our own than on the American side. What
is there to prevent these migrants finding a berth on outward-bound
vessels and continuing to the St. Lawrence ports. Nova Scotia or
New York? A common-sense deduction is that some faetor other
than shipping is primarily concerned; and as birds are air-borne
creatures, one suspects that the chief and indeed the only important
agent in this dispersal is the wind.

Secondly, if “ assisted passage ” is so general that we must allow
it to prejudice the acceptanee of every small passerine wanderer to
Europe, why is it that only a small proportion of sueh birds reach
us on spring migration? Surely just as many vessels sail the high
seas then as later in the year, and it is a well-known fact that many
American migrants are wind-drifted to sea off Florida and the
south-eastern States by outbreaks of tropieal air in spring, as my
friend Mr. Aaron M. Bagg has lucidly shown in a recent paper to
the Wilson Ornithological Club. If there is no marked seasonal
difference in the volume of shipping, then clearly some other factor
is involved. I suggest that this is a meteorologieal one. In spring,
the Atlantic storm-belt is comparatively weak owing to the ex-
pansion of the Azores and Bermuda highs, but from September
onwards it is in the ascendant.

There is a third consideration. Ocean liners and cargo vessels
enter many European ports other than our own. I have no shipping
statistics, but the volume of sea-borne trade between the North
American ports and the Seandinavian eountries, France, Holland
and Germany must be very considerable. Yet the incidence
of American species in the European maritime eountries is exceed-
ingly low eompared with the position in the British Isles. Of the
forty-two Ameriean forms mentioned, the British Isles can boast
thirty-six against ten for each of France and Germany, eight for
Faeroe and Iceland combined, six for Denmark, and fewer still for
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THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Italy, Belgium, Holland, and Norway. (There appear to be no
records of American birds in Portugal and Spain.) This disparity
is greatly magnified, of course, if one counts individuals instead of
forms. Again I would point out the coincidence with the meteoro-
logical situation. Britain lies athwart the Atlantic storm-track,
France is not so very far away, whilst Iceland (which surely has
much less sea-borne trade than either Norway or Spain) is the
graveyard of the Atlantic depressions.

Fourthly, it is pertinent to look at the situation in Greenland.
Although sea-borne trade with Greenland is almost negligible, the
number of American species which have been taken in this sparsely-
inhabited land is quite phenomenal. Greenland also lies athwart
the storm-track, on its north-western side. American birds on its
list include five herons, three swallows, and more than a score of
warblers and flycatchers, most of which have their breeding-quarters
about a thousand miles away. Greenland also has a smaller but
nevertheless rich assortment of vagrants of Palaearctic origin which,
I suggest, have no alternative way of reaching that country than
by down-wind drift in the complementary easterly airflow between
the northern sector of the Icelandic low and the east wind belt of
the polar high. This has been responsible for the transportation to
Greenland, and to the north-eastern portion of America beyond,
of such north European nesting-birds as the curlew, the godwits,*
the woodcock and the ruff.

So, despite the far greater opportunities afforded by the trade-
routes for “ assisted passage ”, only five American warblers are
known to have reached the vast shore-line of Europe. The Atlantic
crossing, it would appear, is just about the utmost limit to their
physical endurance. If “ assisted passage ” were general, this
figure ought not to be so low : that it may happen to an occasional
bird I have never denied, but for the great majority it is a possibility
that is exceedingly remote. Mr. Richmond has given us one or
two instances and has hinted at others, but he has not chosen the
most sensational (and at the same time, illuminating) cases. Peter
Scott records a journey from Falmouth to Maracaibo in Venezuela
of a party of starlings on board M/V. Pellicula in autumn 1949
{Brit. Birds ^ 43: 369), and Malcolm Davies gives an instance of
four house crows making a 3,000 mile journey from Colombo,
Ceylon, to Somaliland, East Africa, in a cargo steamer {Auk, 68;

* The marbled and Hudsonian godwits are comparatively rare birds and it is
not surprising that there are no European records — yet. To reply to another of
Mr. Richmond’s points, the winds do sometimes “ go into reverse ” if the path of
the depressions is displaced somewhat to the south. For a classic example of what
can happen then, he should read H. F. Witherby’s paper on “ A Transatlantic
Passage of Lapwings ”, Brit. Birds, 22: 6-13.

1954

CORRESPONDENCE

203

529). Mr. Richmond will perhaps regard these cases as strong
support for his views, but it is clear that the success of these astonish-
ing voyages was due to the fact that the participants are commensal with
man and their metabolism was adequately sustained by scraps from
the galley.

I do not know what evidence Mr. Richmond can adduce for
his other sweeping generalisation, that a bird’s powers of recupera-
tion are known to be “ remarkable ”. All I care to go on is the
factual evidence provided by our long and ever-growing series of
weights of migrant birds at Fair Isle. This has convinced me that
the bird’s first need is an abundant and constant supply of the right
kind of food. Because of this need many species have been forced
to adapt themselves to nocturnal migration; because of it, a
number of species such as goldcrests, flycatchers and warblers
desert Fair Isle (or die there) when others with more catholic tastes
can safely elect to remain. Inactivity alone will not replace used
glycogen and fats, nor check the steep downward trend in weight.
Greenland wheatears often arrive in westerly gales 8 gm. or more
below par, and lose a further 2 to 3 gm. roosting quietly overnight
in the laboratory. I could supply many similar examples, but may
draw attention to two given for American birds {Brit. Birds ^ 46:
365, and Scot. Mat., 66: 19). Whether resting or flying down-wind
weight must decline, and it is doubtful if the latter is very much
more costly to the organism — unless the bird gets mixed up with
frontal weather, which is very often responsible for temporary distress
of the kind seen by Mr. Richmond, and not infrequently observed
here. It is commonsense that the bird which wastes valuable
time resting on board a ship in mid-ocean has but a slender and
ever-diminishing chance of reaching land alive, whereas the one
that is fortunate enough to ride fast and far on a favourable wind
has every hope of making a landfall with a little left in reserve.

We must not forget that very few ships are as fast as the ocean
“ Queens ”, the great majority taking a week or ten days to make
their transatlantic trips. And as Mr. Bagg has pointed out to me,
in the second half of the last century American birds appeared in
Europe just as they do now (but with less frequency), and in those
days the voyage was very much slower than it is today. If I may
answer Mr. Richmond’s final point, I would say that I cannot
believe the increase in American vagrants in recent years is attribut-
able entirely, even mainly, to keener observation and a greater
number of bird-watchers. If this were so, it should affect equally
American and Eurasian rarities; and it is surely significant that in
the past decade ten of the birds new to the British Isles have been
vagrants from America, whilst only six have come to us from the

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I

Vol. 66, igj4

east and south. There has not been such a preponderance of
western over eastern and southern species in a similar period before.
And there is abundant climatological evidence that the storm-belt
has increased in vigour during the present century, and particularly
in recent years (see Salomonsen, “ The distribution of birds and
the recent climatic change in the North Atlantic area ”, Dansk
Orn. Foren. Tidss,, 4.2: 85-99).

I do not deny — obviously, I could not — that assisted passage is a
“ fact but it is by no means the only fact which must concern
us in this discussion. It is also true that down-wind drift is but a
theory; but with objectors ever ready to strip him of his “ scientific
principles ” it behoves the student to found his theories firmly on a
consideration of all the facts. This I hope I have done, and despite
all that Mr. Richmond has said I stand my ground that “ speed is
the sine qua non of a successful transatlantic crossing, and it is doubt-
ful if any small or medium-sized passerine or wader could make it
other than by a continuous down-wind drift in the strong westerly
airstream of a vast Atlantic low ”.

And in concluding, I should like to appeal that a due sense of
proportion be brought to bear in considering the claims of American
wanderers to Europe, and that greater weight be allowed this
“ theory ” which so well satisfies a careful sifting of all the evidence
we possess.

Yours etc.,

KENNETH WILLIAMSON

Fair Isle Bird Observatory.

]

INDEX

Acarina, 19 (tick)

American birds in Scotland, 13-29,
197-204

Andrew, D. G., G. Frazer, M. F. M.
Meiklejohn, H. Mayer-Gross,
R. W. T. Smith, and C. Walker,
123

Baldpate, 15 (footnote), 24 (= American
wigeon), 123
Balfour, E., 190

Bannerman, D. a., and G. E. Lodge,
The Birds of the British Isles, reviewed,
59

Baxter, Miss E. V., 49

Bittern, 66; American, 200; Little, 66

Blackbird, 92, 97, 140

Blackcap, 191

Blackcock, 133

Blackwood, G. G., 128

Bluethroat, Red-spotted, 52

Book Reviews, 58, 193

Botanical Note, 1 54 (Charophyta)

Boyd, J. Morton, 47, 128
Brook, Dr. A. J., 154
Bullfinch, 93, 143

Bunting, Corn, 69, 143, 145; Lapland,
20, 21, 127; Reed, 143; Snow, 100
Buzzard, 90, 132

Campbell, Dr. J. L., 42, 46, 93;
The Macrolepidoptera of the isle of
Ganna, loi

Ganna, The Macrolepidoptera of the
isle of, loi
Capercaillie, 124
Cat, Wild, 85

Chaffinch, 93, 100, 143, 198
Charophvta, 154 (new Scottish records)
Chiffchaff, 53, 141, 191.

Chough, 139
Clark, J. A., 1 23-1 24
Coelenterata, 93 {Velella spirans)
Coleoptera, 30-34 (water beetles)

Coot, 42, 90, 144
Cormorant, 90, 96, 131
Corncrake, 90, 97, 133, 145, 199
Correspondence, ^7, 196-204
Cross, A., 37

Crossbills, 69, 93, 100; A synoptic study
of the 1953 irruption, 155-169;
Two-barred, 159, 160, 164-165
Crow, Carrion, 144; Hooded, 91, 139;
House, 202

Crustacea, 1 2 1 (spiny lobster)

Cuckoo, 91, 97, 138; Black-billed, 16,
200; Yellow-billed, 16, 22, 200
Curlew, 90, 96, 125, 134, 202

Dabchick, see Grebe, Little
Dipper, 92, 140

Diver, Black-throated, 37 (flocks), 89;
96, 97, 130; Great Northern, 130;
Red-throated, 89, 130; White-

billed, 37

Dove, Rock, 138; Stock-, 137, 144;

Turtle, 99
Dowitcher, 200

Duck, Harlequin, 15, 23, 25; Long-
tailed, 16, 98; Tufted, 144; see also
Baldpate, Eider, Gadwall, Goos-
ander, Mallard, Merganser, Scaup,.
Scoter, Shelduck, Shoveler, Smew,
Teal, Wigeon.

Dunlin, 135

Eagle, Golden, 85, 132
Eider, Common, 39, 90, 131

Falcon, Gyr, 24; Peregrine, 68, 132
Fieldfare, 100, 168, 200
Fisher, J., Birds as Animals, reviewed, 193
Fisher, J. , and R. M. Lockley, Sea BirdSy
reviewed, 63

Fishes, Rare and exotic, recorded in
Scotland during 1953, 170-185
Flycatcher, Pied, 54, 55, 145; Red-
breasted, 164; Spotted, 92, 142
Food of birds: Scarlet grosbeak, 55;

golden eagle, 85; crossbill, 156,
161-162

Forman, B., Walrus at Collieston, 56,
and photo facing p. i
Fox, 85

Frazer, G., see Andrew, D. G., et al.
Fullerton, Len, 188 (illustration of
Wilson’s Phalarope)

Fulmar, 1-12 (The fledging of a group
of young fulmars) ; blue phase, 3,

1 1 ; 130, 196

Gadwall, 66
Gannet, 89, 131

Garnett, W. J., Freshwater Microscopy y
reviewed, 61

Godwit, Bar-tailed, 68, 99, 134, 199;
Black-tailed, 68, 199; Hudsonian,
199, 202; Marbled, 199, 202

205

2o6

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol 66

Goldcrest, 92, 142
Goldeneye, 98
Goldfinch, 143
Goosander, 90, 98

Goose, Barnacle, 97, 98; Bean, 67,
186; Blue, 13 (and photo facing
p. i), 21, 25; Canada, 67, 186;
Greylag, 40, 66, 97, 186; Lesser
White-fronted, 186- 188; Pink-footed,
40, 67, 98, 186; Snow, 14, 21, 25,
26, 40; White-fronted, 66, 98, 186
Gordon, Seton, 191
Gray, Sir James, How Animals Move,
reviewed, 60

Grebe, Black-necked, 38; Little, 65, 97,
130

Greenfinch, 92, 143
Grierson, J., 42, 46
Grosbeak, Scarlet, 55
Grouse, Black, 133; Red, 83, 90, 133
Guillemot, 137; Black, 91, 137, 145
Gull, Black-headed, 91, 136, 199;

Common, 91, 135; Greater Black-
backed, 91, 96, 135; Herring, 91,

96, 135; Iceland, 68; Kittiwake,
136; Lesser Black-backed, 91, 96,

97, 135; Little, 199; Siberian
Herring, 44

Hamilton, F. D., and K. S. Macgregor,
126-127, 127-128, 188-190
Hamilton, F. D., K. S. Macgregor,
and R. F. C. Zamboni, Notes on the
birds of Glen Moidart, Inverness-
shire, 89

Hare, Mountain, 70-88
Harrier, Hen, 68, 99, 144; Marsh,
41, 67, 123; Montagu’s, 41
Hedgehog, 128
Hedge-sparrow, 92, 100, 142
Heron, 39 (at St. Kilda), 90, 96, 131
Heslop-Harrison, J., New Concepts in
Flowering-Plant Taxonomy, reviewed,
60

Hewson, R., The mountain hare in
Scotland «in 1951, 70
Home, Lt.-Col. W. M. Logan, 125
Hoy, J., 52

Jackdaw, 46, 91, 139
Jackson, Miss D. J., Notes on water
beetles from the island of Raasay,

30-34

Jay, 47

Kay, G. T., 50
Kerr, M., 44
Kestrel, 90, 132, 168

Kimmins, D. E., a revised key to the adults
of the British species of Ephemeroptera,
reviewed, 195
Kingfisher, 138, 144
Kittiwake, 135
Knot, 43

Lapwing, 90, 134

Latimer-Sayer, D., Indoor Aquaria,
reviewed, 60

Leach, Miss E. P., 41-42
Lepidoptera, 35 {H. convolvuli), loi

(Isle of Canna)

Linnet, 100, 143

Longstaff, Dr. T. G., Migration along
the north-west coast of Scotland, 94

Macdonald, D., 40, 43, 47, 185
MacDougall, Colin, see Williamson,

K.

Macgregor, K. S., and F. D. Hamilton,
44; see also Hamilton,
Macgregor and Zamboni
Mackenzie, J. M. D., 54, 124- 125;

Redstarts reared in tits’ nests, 146
Macrolepidoptera of the Isle of Canna,

lOI

Mallard, 90, 131

Mammals, 56 (water shrew, walrus),
70-88 (mountain hare ; 191 (pine
martin), 192 (common and grey seals)
Mann, K. H., A Key to the British
Freshwater leeches, reviewed, 195
Marten, Pine, 191

Martin, House, 91, 99, 139; Sand, 91,
100, 139

Mayer-Gross, H., see Andrew, D. G.,
et al.

Meiklejohn, Prof. M. F. M., 45,
125-126; see also Andrew, D. G.,
et al.

Meiklejohn, M. F. M., and A. G. S.
Bryson, 55

Meiklejohn, M. F. M., and C. E.
Palmar, Report on birds of the
Clyde area, 1953, 65
Meiklejohn, M. F. M., and Lt.-Col.
J. K. Stanford, Junp notes on the
birds of Islay, 1 29 .

Meiklejohn, M. F. M., and K.
Williamson, 45

Merganser, Red-breasted, 90, 132

Merlin, 132

Mollusca, 122

Moorhen, 90, 133

Murdoch, C. C. L, 191

Murray, Iain M., 35, 56

Nightjar, 91, 138

Norman, David, see Williamson, K.

1954

INDEX

207

Odonata, 122

Owl, Barn, 46, 99, 138; Long-eared,
138; Tawny, 91, 138
Oystercatcher, 90, 133

Palmar, C. E., 122; see also Meikle-
jOHN and Palmar
Partridge, 1 33

Peace, T. R., Poplars, reviewed, 62
Pennie, Dr. I. D., 191
Peregrine Falcon, 68, 132
Perry, R., Letter to the Editors, 196
Peterson, J., photo of blue goose facing

p. I

Peterson, R., G. Mountfort and
P. A. D. Hollom, a Field Guide to
the Birds of Britain and Europe,
reviewed, 58
Petrel, Storm, 130
Phalarope, Wilson’s, 188-190
Pheasant, 133
Pigeon, see Wood-pigeon
Pipit, American, 53; Meadow, 92, 98,
142; Richard’s, 163; Rock, 92, 142;
Tree, 92, 94, 96, 97, 142, 144
Plover, Golden, 68 (Northern), 96, 97,
134; Ringed, 90, 134
Ptarmigan, 42, 133
Puffin, 137

Rae, Dr. B. B., 39

Rae, Dr. B. B., and E. Wilson, Rare and
exotic fishes recorded in Scotland
during 1953, 170-185
Raven, 91, 139
Razorbill, 137, 145
Redpoll, 93, 100, 143
Redshank, 135, 185; Spotted, 185
Redstart, 92, 94, 97, 141; reared in
tits’ nests, 146; Black, 94
Redwing, 50 (nesting in Shetland), 100
Richmond, W. K., Letter to the Editors,

197

Richter, Dr. R., 39, 55, 122, 140

Ring-ousel, 92, 97, 140, 144, 145

Robin, 92, 97, 141

Rock Dove, 138

Rook, 139

Roy, Dr. A. B., 35

Ruff, 188, 200, 202

St. Kilda, 39 (heron on), 47 (wren)
Sandeman, P. W., see Williamson, K.
Sanderling, 44, 99, 135
Sandpiper, Buff-breasted, 200; Common,
9L 97, 135; Curlew-, 44; Green,
42, 43, 99; Pectoral, 200; White-
rumped, 200; Wood, 134, 145

Scaup, 57

Scoter, Common, 98, 131 and 144

(breeding in Islay)

Seal, Common, 192 (field identification);

Grey, 192 (field identification)
Shag, 90, 122, 1 31
Shearwater, Manx, 130
Shelduck, 66, 90, 132
Shore-lark, 125

Shorten, M., Squirrels, reviewed, 194
Shoveler, 144

Shrew, Lesser, 128; Water, 56

Shrike, Red-backed, 100, 127, 142, 145

Siskin, 69, 93, 100, 168

Skua, Arctic, 68, 99, 135; Great, 68, 99

Skylark, 91, 97, 139

Smew, 66

Smith, A. J., 126

Smith, R. W. T., see Andrew, D. G.,
et ah

Snipe, 90, 134; Jack, 99
Sparrow, House, 93, 143; Tree, 56, 69
Sparrow, Hedge-, 92, 100, 142
Sparrow-hawk, 90, 312
Spencer, K. G., The Lapwing in Britain,
reviewed, 193

Spiders, 35 (from Eigg and Mull)
Squirrel, Red, 84, 150
Starling, 92, 142, 202
Stewart, I. F., 127

Stint, Little, 43, 99; Temminck’s, 44, 99
Stock-dove, 137, 145
Stokoe, R., 37
Stonechat, 92, 141

Stoneworts, 154 (new Scottish records)

Swallow, 91, 99, 139

Swan, Bewick’s, 67, 99; Mute, 132;

Whooper, 99
Swift, 47, 99, 138

Taverner, E., and W. Barrington, The
running of the Salmon, reviewed, 194
Teal, 90, 1 31

Tern, Arctic, 46, 136, 144; Black, 69;
Common, 46, 91, 136; Little, 46,
137, 144; Roseate, 46; Sandwich,
46 ; Sooty, 1 90

Thrush, Grey-cheeked, 18, 22, 198;

Mistle, 49, 92, 140; Song, 49, 92,
97, 140

Tit, Blue, 91, 140, 146, 153; Coal, 92,
140, 146-154, 168; Great, 91, 100,
139, 146-154; Long-tailed, 92, 140;
Marsh, 153

Traill-Clouston, Mrs., M., 39
Tree-creeper, 92, 140
Turnstone, 99, 134
Turtle-dove, 99
Twite, 93, 100

2o8

THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST

Vol. 66

Velella spirans, 93
Vireo, Red-eyed, 198

Wagtail, Grey, 92,142; Grey-headed,
126; Pied, 92, 142; White, 69, 100,
200; Yellow, 144
Walker, A. G. F., 57
Walrus, at Collieston, 56, and photo
facing p. I ,

Warbler, Barred, 163; Black-and-white,
28, 198; Garden, 191; Grass-

hopper, 144; Marsh, 163; Paddy-
field, 164; Phylloscopus sp., 52 (win-
tering), 126 (lutino); Sedge, 97,
141; Willow, 92, 98, 126 (lutino),
141; Wood, 92, 96, 97, 126, 142;
Yellow-browed, 94
Water beetles from Raasay, 30-34
Watson, Adam, 122, 125
Watson, Donald, 186- 188
Waxwing, 69
West, D., 145
Weir, Dr. R. S., 43, 44, 56
Wheatear, 92, 98, 141 ; Greenland, 203
Whimbrel, 68, 91, 99
Whinchat, 92, 97, 141
Whitehead, G. K., The Ancient White
Cattle of Britain, reviewed, 193
Whitethroat, 92, 100, 141 ; Lesser, 100
Wigeon, 98

Wild, Dr. W. H., 52
Williamson, K., American birds in
Scotland in autumn and winter,
i953-54» 13-29. 53; A synoptic
study of the 1953 crossbill irruption,
155-169; reply to Mr. W. K.
Richmond’s letter, 200; see also
Meiklejohn and Williamson
Williamson, K., N. Malcolm, C.
MacDougall, D. Norman and G.
Yates, The fledging of a group of
young fulmars, 1-12
Williamson, K. and P. W. Sandeman, 40
Wilson, E., 121; see also Rae and
Wilson

Wilson, H. J. S., 191
Woodcock, 90, 134, 200, 202
Woodpecker, Great-Spotted, 91, 138,

145. 150

Wood-pigeon, 91, 99, 138
Wren, 47 (St. Kilda), 92, 140
Wynne-Edwards, V. C., 41, 42, 43, 192

Yates, Geoffrey, see Williamson, K.
Yellowhammer, 93, 100, 143
Yellowlegs, Lesser, 200

Zamboni, R. F. C., see Hamilton,
MacGregor and Zamboni

The concluding part {pages i2g-2o8) of Volume 66 was published in June, iggy.

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