;6 ANNALS OF SCOTTISH NATURAL HISTORY 



April and a few were seen at intervals throughout that month. 

 On September a single bird only came under notice. The 

 occurrence of this bird at Fair Isle is interesting since there 

 appears to be only one previous instance of the visits of the 

 Stonechat to the Shetland group ; and as it is not a native of 

 Scandinavia, the bird must be regarded as a casual straggler 

 only to our Northern Isles. 



1 20. HEDGE ACCENTOR, Accentor modularis. In 1906 this species 



was observed both on the spring and autumn passage, but 

 only very small numbers came under notice at both seasons. 

 It does not appear to pass the winter on the island. There 

 seem to be only three records for this species as a visitor to 

 Shetland, all relating to single birds, but as the Hedge 

 Sparrow is a migratory species in Scandinavia its visits are, 

 perhaps, more frequent than is expected, and the Fair Isle 

 observations indicate that such is the case. 



121. SPOTTED FLYCATCHER, Musricapa grisola, Several appeared 



on their way north from late in May to beyond the middle 

 of June ; but on the return journey southward only one 

 came under our notice, namely, on i5th September. This 

 bird, according to published records, has seldom been 

 observed in the Shetlands. 



122. PIED FLYCATCHER, Musdcapa atricapilla. Though this species 



did not come under our notice in the autumn of 1905, yet 

 it was fairly common, passing at intervals and usually in 

 small parties, in September 1906. A number of these visitors 

 were males, but all were in the greenish grey plumage of 

 autumn. During their short sojourn on this treeless and 

 shrubless isle, these Flycatchers chiefly frequented the steep 

 cliffs on the west side, which the sun rendered especially 

 genial, and where also insect life was abundant : advantages 

 which most of the insectivorous birds among the migrants 

 were not slow to take advantage of. 



This species has rarely been recorded for Shetland. 



123. RED-BREASTED FLYCATCHER, Musdcapa parva. The occur- 



rence of this Central European summer bird at Fair Isle in 

 some numbers in the autumn of 1906 was one of those 

 pleasant surprises which sometimes fall to the lot of the ob- 

 server of bird migration. On 2oth September three or four 

 were seen, and an adult female and a young male were 

 secured ; and on the following day several others were 

 observed. It is probable that on both these dates this bird 

 was present in fair numbers, for those seen frequented the 

 great range of lofty cliffs which flanks the entire west side 



