72 ANNALS OF SCOTTISH NATURAL HISTORY 



will be interesting to know if its visits are repeated. In 

 summer its range extends to the southern portion of Scandi- 

 navia, but its lines of flight to reach these nesting haunts do 

 not appear to lie along any section of the British shores. The 

 specimens sent me from Fair Isle are the only satisfactory 

 proof we have of the occurrence of this species in Scotland. 



1 08. SHORE LARK, Otocorys alpestris. A small number of Shore 



Larks arrived on the island towards the end of October, 

 and remained until mid-December, after which date they 

 were not observed. The most seen on any occasion was 

 seven. 



This species has not hitherto been detected in Shetland, 

 and hence may be regarded as an addition to the fauna 

 of the archipelago, though doubtless it has often visited the 

 islands on its somewhat irregular though numerous visits to 

 the coasts of Britain. 



109. PIED WAGTAIL, Motadlla lugubris. - - A few appeared on 



passage in April and May, sometimes in company with 

 M. alba. No birds of this species were observed during 

 September 1905 and 1906, when the White Wagtail was 

 one of the commonest birds of passage throughout the month, 

 no. YELLOW WAGTAIL, Motadlla rayi. On 8th May an adult 

 male was captured, and forwarded to me in the flesh for 

 identification, by Mr. J. W. Anderson. The occurrence of 

 this species at Fair Isle is interesting, but can only be regarded 

 as exceptional, since Scandinavia and the rest of Northern 

 Europe lie far beyond the bird's summer home. Saxby, how- 

 ever, in his " Birds of Shetland " (p. 84), tells us that it is a 

 rare straggler to Unst, and that, so far as he was able to ascer- 

 tain, it appeared in the late summer and early autumn. He 

 remarks that he several times saw it feeding among cattle. 



TREE PIPIT, Anthus trivialis. This has proved to be a bird 

 of double passage. It was not at all uncommon during May, 

 and again in September, while stragglers occurred well on 

 into October. On some days it was quite numerous, both 

 in spring and autumn. This species, no doubt, escaped our 

 notice in 1905, when only one specimen was obtained. 

 Previous to our visits this bird had no place in the Shet- 

 land avifauna. 



in. CREEPER, Cerfhia fcwiiliaris. On 2;th December a male 

 was found in an exhausted condition and allowed itself to 

 be captured by the hand. This bird has been compared 

 with the extensive series of Creepers in Mr. Rothschild's 

 collection, and found to belong to the Continental and not 

 to the British race. It must have been blown across the 



