SOME BIRD NOTES FROM THE OUTER HEBRIDES 209 



to the readers of the " Annals." I am no collector of skins 

 or eggs, and I do not wish in any way to imperil the 

 already overharassed members of our avifauna. I am 

 greatly indebted to those who allowed me to stray over 

 their valuable preserves, and hope, by publishing these 

 notes, I am in no way betraying the localities in which 

 certain species, dear to the collector, were observed. 



SONG THRUSH, Turdus musicus, Linn. It is generally recognised 

 that this species is on the increase. According to my 

 experience they are not found so much in the gardens, even 

 such as contain bushes, as among the wooded islands in 

 even the wildest lochs. On 2ist June I disturbed several 

 from such islands, where, amongst the ruins of some long- 

 forgotten castle, they appeared to find an abundance of snails, 

 et hoc genus omne. It is to be noted that I did not find 

 any on islands where the Gulls bred, nor could I find any 

 nests. The specimens I saw were all of the dark variety. On 

 another occasion I saw one on the moors by the side of the 

 road. Only once did I hear their song, and that was at Loch 

 Boisdale on my way home on 2yth June. I imagine that they 

 were deterred from singing by the execrable weather. Under 

 no circumstances does one appreciate the beauty of the song 

 more than when, above the shrieking of the Gulls, it resounds 

 from some lonely den, re-echoing from the hillsides as it falls 

 on the observer's ear. 



BLACKBIRD, Turdus merula, Linn. As on the last occasion I visited 

 these islands, so on this, my experience was limited to a single 

 pair, probably the same ; these were feeding on the borders of 

 the aforementioned loch, and appeared to inhabit the same 

 islands as the Thrushes. 



STONECHAT, Pratincola rubicola, Linn. Unless this species too be 

 on the increase, it would appear to be much more abundant 

 than has been supposed. Some five pairs were observed in 

 S. Uist, even in the wildest parts of the island ; they all 

 appeared to be breeding, but no young ones were observed. 



WHITETHROAT, Sylvia cinerea, Bech. Whereas last year we only 

 saw a single bird during our travels, this, on the other hand, I 

 heard no less than three individuals singing: two on 2gth 

 May on an island which served as a nesting site for the 

 Black-throated Diver, and one two days later on an island in 

 another loch. That at least one of these was resident would 

 appear from the fact that I heard it on subsequent occasions. ' 



SWALLOW, Hirundo rustica, Linn. This species would seem to have 

 been especially numerous this year, owing no doubt to the 

 64 C 



