84 ANNALS OF SCOTTISH NATURAL HISTORY 



small flock in Holland garden on the 25th. I have not seen 

 this bird in North Ronaldshay before. 



CHAFFINCH (Fringilla calebs). First seen for the season on 4th 

 October, when large flights were about the garden and stack- 

 yard ; a few Bramblings accompanied them. I shot two of 

 the latter, and saw three or four more. The wind during the 

 night had been strong from the S.E., as also the day before. 

 Fresh flocks of Chaffinches came in during this month ; large 

 numbers on the gth, but no Bramblings along with them. 



BRAMBLING (Fringilla montifringilld), A few of these birds in 

 large flocks of Chaffinches on 4th October. None seen after 

 that date. 



SNOW-BUNTING (Plectrophanes nivalts). The last I saw in Spring 

 was on the ist of May, when I saw a single bird in full breed- 

 ing plumage. The first of the autumn migration was on the 

 1 9th September, when I again saw a single bird. On the 

 22nd September a flock of eight; after .this they came in 

 rapidly in small lots. On the Qth October I saw a flock of, 

 I should think, one thousand birds. Nothing like the numbers 

 that were here at the same time last year. 



STARLING (Stitrmis ntlgaris). A flock of several thousand starlings 

 visited this island in the evening of the loth October; by the 

 next morning all had disappeared. Whether these were actual 

 migrants from farther north, or just a collection of the birds 

 from the neighbouring islands, is difficult to determine. 



CROW (Con'us comix). Three seen yth October, and six on 



the 3 1 st. 

 ROOK (Corvits frugilegi/s). Numbers seen during the latter half ot 



February and the first fortnight of March ; as many as thirty 



in a flock. 

 RAVEN ( Cor-cus corax). Only a single Raven seen up to November; 



this was on the nth October in a fearful gale of wind and 



rain from the S.W. 



COMMON NIGHTJAR (Caprimulgits europceus). On Sunday, the 4th 

 June, when taking a walk along the west rocks, I flushed a 

 Nightjar from a bunch of nettles ; it settled again among the 

 boulders about fifty yards ahead ; I flushed it a second, and 

 again a third time, after which it disappeared. This is the 

 first Nightjar I have seen here. 



SHORT-EARED-OWL (Asia accipitrinus). I shot a female on the gth 

 October. On the i3th of same month, six were seen in a 

 turnip-field at the north end, near the lighthouse. It had 

 been blowing a gale from the west or S.W. for several days 

 previously. 



