184 ANNALS OF SCOTTISH NATURAL HISTORY 



but badly damaged by falling on a rock, was not preserved. In 

 May this year, my friend Robert Wilson found a nest of the Stock- 

 Dove (Columba cenas] on the Changue Burn, near Darvel. None 

 of the species above named is included in Gray and Anderson's 

 "Birds of Ayrshire, etc." (" Proc. Nat. Hist. Soc. Glasgow," vol. i.), 

 but it may be mentioned that Procellaria glacialis is included in the 

 list of birds of Kilbirnie parish in the New Statistical Account 

 (1840-41). JOHN PATERSON, Glasgow. 



Osprey in the Outer Hebrides. I have seen an Osprey 

 (Pajidion halia-tus) which was shot in April of this year in the 

 island of Lewis. This is, I believe, the first established record of 

 the species in the Outer Hebrides. T. E. BUCKLEY, Thurso. 



Curious Experience with a Heron. When I came to Loch- 

 maddy, I was told what I thought was a strange story, viz. that it 

 was possible to stalk the Heron, and when close upon him, by 

 making a noise, to render him so stupid or helpless that he would 

 be unable to take wing, and could be caught by the hand. I was 

 told of several occasions on which this had been done, and, 

 incredulous, resolved to try the experiment. On one occasion 1 

 had been at Ushenish, and was returning to Lochskipport in an 

 open boat along with a policeman and several others. Shortly after 

 we turned into the loch one of the crew drew my attention to a 

 Heron standing on the shore, 50 or 60 yards off. I immediately 

 set up a loud shouting, in which all the others who were in the boat 

 joined, and the Heron became stupid, and instead of taking wing, 

 ran backwards and forwards on the shore in a confused manner. I 

 had a retriever with me, and stopped shouting for the purpose of 

 directing her to go for the Heron. The whole crew stopped shout- 

 ing also, and the Heron took to wing. She had, however, to cross 

 the loch not far from us, and we all resumed shouting and bawling, 

 and suddenly in the midst of the row the Heron collapsed and fell 

 into the sea. The dog retrieved, and the policeman tied its legs 

 an 1 beak and took it ashore, killed it, carried it home, and ate it. 

 ANDREW M'ELFRISH, Lochmaddy. 



[Other experiences of this nature have been related to me, and I 

 once witnessed something similar myself. J. A. H.-B.] 



Pintail in Caithness-shire. On the ist of August 1901 an 

 adult female Pintail (Anas acutd} was shot near Thurso. It was in 

 full moult, but from its appearance had evidently nested in the 

 vicinity. T. E. BUCKLEY, Thurso. 



Pintail in Perth and in Fife. During the latter half of April I 

 repeatedly observed a pair of Pintails (Anas aaita) on a small loch 

 in the Rannoch district of Perthshire ; the birds were still there on 

 the last day on which I passed the loch, 28th April, and were very 

 probably remaining to nest. On 2oth May I saw another pair of 



