70 ANNALS OF SCOTTISH NATURAL HISTORY 



that " in the Loch of Mochrorne, there are bred a number of herons 

 and wild Geese with other Fowls." This is the only reference to 

 herons nesting in the three volumes of these "Geographical Collec- 

 tions," the contents of which cover a period of about 200 years 

 beginning about the middle of the sixteenth century, and in which 

 there are many curious natural history items. Judging by these 

 records, in earlier days mermaids were of more frequent occurrence 

 in Scotland than heronries. But perhaps it is more correct to con- 

 sider the mermaids as supernatural. 



THE AMERICAN BITTERN IN SCOTLAND. 

 By HUGH S. GLADSTONE, M.A., F.Z.S., F.R.S.E. 



MR. J. A. HARVIE-BROWN recently drew my attention to a 

 record of the American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus] in 

 Ayrshire in I 848. In looking through a large quarto scrap- 

 book entitled Miscellanea Zoologica, formerly belonging to 

 the late Sir William Jardine, and now in his possession, 

 Mr. J. A. Harvie-Brown came across a cutting from the 

 Dumfries Herald of 24th February 1848, quoting the 

 Ayr Observer as to the recent occurrence of this rare bird in 

 that county. 



Reference to the newspaper files at the British Museum 

 resulted in my finding the following in the issue of Tuesday, 

 2 ist February (sic] 1848. (The real date should have been 

 Tuesday, 22nd February, 1848.) 



THE AMERICAN BITTERN. " A very beautiful specimen 

 of that rare bird the American Bittern has been brought to 

 our office by Thomas Logan, gamekeeper to the Marquis of 

 Ailsa. The bird, which is stuffed, and in fine preservation, 

 was lately shot by the gamekeeper at Loch Martnaham. 

 When killed, the stomach of the Bittern contained no less 

 than NINE LARGE PERCH! certainly a very good meal. 



" This kind of bird is very rare in Scotland ; the only 

 specimen known is one which was killed, in 1 844 on the 

 Moor near the residence of Sir William Jardine, in Dumfries- 

 shire, and is preserved in his collection. This species, we 

 find, is well known to American naturalists, and is found at 



