NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 309 



and early summer of 1879 were warmly lined with feathers, as I 

 have almost invariably found them to be in more northern countries. 

 This was attributed to the unusually backward cold spring, and 

 late advent of summer in that year. It is interesting, therefore, 

 to quote again Mr. Service's report on the nests of this season. 

 He writes as follows : — " I have found a few nests this month 

 (May) near to where they were last year, and I find that the nests 

 are either without feathers altogether or with one or two only." 



This autumn Redpoles appeared among the alders in the central 

 districts of Scotland quite a month earlier than usual, along with 

 Siskins. 



TWITE. 



LlNOTA FLAVIROSTRIS (Lin. J. 



Twites were going in flocks in Ardnamurchan, Argyllshire, by 

 !24th Oct., 1879. I saw them at the west end of Loch Errochd 

 on 11th July this year, where I also saw a few Grey Linnets. 

 The somewhat local distribution of this species at inland localities 

 is curious and worth some attention. 



GREEN LINNET. 



LlGUKENUS CHLORIS (Lin.). 



In the unusually dry spring of 1880, up to end of May, seedsmen 

 in Gallow^ay were suffering much loss from large flocks of Green 

 Linnets. " They are destroying," writes Mr. Service, " quantities 

 of seedling firs just as the seed leaf appears above ground, pulling 

 out the plant for the sake of the part of the seed adhering. Their 

 beaks become round masses of soil and dirt, owing to the resinous 

 matter of the seeds adhering to them." 



SNOW BUNTING. 



Plectrophanes nivalis (Lin. J. 



Flocks were driven down lower than usual in the first hard frost 

 of Nov. and Dec, 1879, coming close to the houses near Eemony, 

 Loch Tayside [D. Dewar, in lit.]. 



I have received further evidence of the Snow Bunting breeding 

 in Scotland this year, birds in full summer plumage having been 

 asain observed on the summits of the Aberdeenshire hills. 



In autumn an unusually early migration of this species was 

 noted, as also of Siskins and Redpoles. 



