NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 13 



SESSIOIST 1861-62. 



THE TENTH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING, ANDERSON'S 

 UNIVERSITY BUILDINGS, SEPTEMBER 24th, 1861. 



John Scouler, M.D., LL.D., F.L.S., President, in the chair. 

 The following gentlemen were elected office-bearers for the 

 session: — John Scouler, M.D., LL.D., F.L.S., President; Mr John 

 Gray, Vice-President; Mr Robert Gray, Secretary; Mr Thomas 

 Chapman, Treasurer; Mr Thomas S. Hutcheson, Librarian; 

 Messrs James Eamsay, John Knox, 9,nd James P. Eraser, 

 Members of Council. 



October 29th, 1861. 

 John Scouler, M.D., LL.D., F.L.S., President, in the chair. 



PAPER READ. 



Notes on the Common Starling (Sturnus Vulgaris). 

 By Mr EoBERr Gray, the Secretary. 



In this paper it was shown that, from being a comparatively 

 rare bird in many parts of Scotland, the starling had, in the course 

 of the last twenty years, been gradually increasing, until in some 

 localities it was now found in great abundance. This was in some 

 measure accounted for by the wide-spread protection now given to 

 the bird, especially in the vicinity of large towns, where it had 

 become a recognized favourite. As one result of this undue pro- 

 tection, however, Mr Gray mentioned that starlings had become 

 destructive to the skylark, and other birds building on the ground, 

 the nests of wliich were rifled of their contents, even when the 

 eggs were newly hatched, as had been repeatedly witnessed by 

 trustworthy observers. The author of the paper likewise alluded 

 to the myotherine habits of the starling. In frequent instances, 

 especially in sultry weather, he had observed hundreds of these 

 birds hawking for flies perseveringly for half an hour at a time 

 without alighting, and snapping at their prey in the air in the 

 same way as swallows. 



