NATURAL HISTOKY SOCIETY OF GLASGO\V. 147 



bounds of that hill, have forked tails, thrie inches long, whereby 

 they are easailie known and decerned from all other deir." We 

 have never ourselves heard of these forked- tailed Deer, nor are they 

 mentioned in Mr Scrope's work. Before the introduction of fire- 

 arms Deer were killed in various ways; sometimes they were 

 entrapped in enclosures called Garru-na-bhiu or " deer-dykes," at 

 others whole herds were driven over the cliffs into the sea. Thirty 

 or forty years ago the number of Red-deer in the Sutherlandshire 

 forests was estimated at about fifteen hundred head, and they are 

 probably much more numerous now. They seldom, however, carry 

 very fine heads, a fact which is attributed, in some of the forests 

 at least, to over-stocking and to inter-breeding. To remedy this 

 last defect, it has been proposed to introduce fresh blood from a 

 distance, an experiment which has been tried with the best effect 

 in the Long Island. Like the rest of the family, the Stag is a 

 strong swimmer, and often visits the islands on the larger lochs, 

 especially when about to cast its antlers, a season at which instinct 

 prompts it to seek solitude and retirement. 



ROE-DEER. 



• CAPREOLUS CAP RE A, Gray. 



Of late years Roe-deer have been much increased in numbers by 

 preservation and the extension of plantations ; they now abound in 

 suitable localities, as at Dunrobin, Rosehall, Lochinver, Tongue, etc. 

 Sometimes they will cross great tracts of open moorland country 

 on their way from one favoured resort to another. An experienced 

 gamekeeper told us, that once on the bare slopes of Canispe he saw 

 three Roe deer, two Red-deer, and a pair of Golden Eagles all in 

 sight at the same time. 



PART IL— REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS. 

 COMMON LIZARD. 



ZOOTACA VIVIPARA (Jacquin). 

 Not uncommon, especially on the moors between Aultnacealgach 

 and Loch Urigil. ^ 



SLOW-WORM. 



ANGUIS FRAGILIS, Linnaeus. 

 In the west, the Slow- worm is not uncommon, especially about 



