CONTINENTAL RACIAL FORMS, ETC. 127 



125-128 mm.); it is also lighter on the under side and sides 

 of the head. In the 1909 immigration several of these birds 

 were seen on Fair Isle, and according to Mr Eagle Clarke 

 " seemed very ill-pleased with their lot, since they frequently 

 gave voice to a peevish cry, usually as they ascended the 

 flagstaff or equally disappointing posts of the wire fences." 

 One visited the Isle of May the same year, but it spent a 

 happy and profitable time among the ant-hills which abound 

 on the island. 



The dark-breasted form of the BARN OWL {Tyto alba 

 guttata) has only once occurred in Scotland, viz., in Shetland 

 in November 191 5. It breads in South Sweden and Den- 

 mark, Central Europe, west to France and south to the Alps, 

 Austria, and Hungary. It differs from our breeding bird in 

 having the ground colour of the under side warm orange- 

 buff instead of white, the upper side blue-grey, finely 

 vermiculated with bluish white, instead of rusty yellow 

 vermiculated towards the tip or for the larger part of the 

 feather with ash-grey, and whitish. The ground colour of 

 wings and tail much darker than in our bird, the facial disk 

 also darker. 



The Levantine Shearwater {Puffimis puffinus 

 yelko2iaii), which breeds in the Mediterranean, has been 

 recorded from the Firth of Forth. It differs from the Manx 

 Shearwater {Piiffimis puffimis puffinus), which breeds in the 

 Scottish islands, in being browner on the upper side, having 

 brown under tail-coverts and flanks. This brown shade 

 sometimes extends over the whole under surface. The 

 axillaries are also brown, or ashy brown wit^ white bases, 

 occasionally white mottled with brown. 



The only Scottish records of the SCANDINAVIAN LESSER 

 Black-backed Gull {Icarus fuscus fuscus) are from 

 Shetland and Stirlingshire. This form, which breeds in 

 Scandinavia and Russia, differs from the Lesser Black- 

 backed Gull {Larus fuscus britannicus), which nests with us, in 

 having a dark slaty black mantle, our own bird being clear 

 slaty grey in colour. The Scandinavian Lesser Black-backed 

 Gull will probably be found to occur much more frequently 

 than appears from the above records. 



