loo THE SCOTTISH NATURALIST 



ON THE OCCURRENCE OF THE EASTERN 

 SHORT-TOED LARK AT FAIR ISLE: AN 

 ADDITION TO THE BRITISH AVIFAUNA. 



By William Eagle Cl-^rke. 



During recent years the ornithological investigations 

 carried out in the Scottish islands have contributed several 

 novelties to the British avifauna of far Eastern (Asiatic) 

 origin. From the Flannan Isles came the Eastern Skylark, 

 Alauda arvensis cinerascens ; from Auskerry (Orkney) the 

 Dusky Warbler, Phylloscopns fuscatus ; and from Fair Isle 

 came the Pine-bunting, Einberiza leucocepJmla} The latest 

 recruit to the ranks of these interesting peregrinators is a 

 specimen of an Eastern race of the Short -toed Lark 

 ( Calandrella brachydactyla). 



On the nth of November 1907 a stranger was detected 

 among a small party of Skylarks at Fair Isle. It proved to 

 be a Short-toed Lark, and was recorded {Annals of Scottish 

 Natural History, 1908, p. yy) as the second known Scotch 

 example of that rare visitor to the British Isles. On the 

 acquisition of further material it was noticed that this bird 

 was much greyer in plumage than the rest of the specimens. 

 The question then arose whether this difference in plumage 

 was simply to be attributed to individual variation, or 

 was it an example of the Asiatic race, Calandrella 

 brachydactyla longipennis, and the bird was reserved for 

 comparison, when opportunity arose, with a series of 

 specimens representing the various subspecies of Short-toed 

 Larks. This opportunity was afforded, a few weeks ago, 

 by a visit to Tring, where it was compared by the Hon. 

 Walter Rothschild, Dr Hartert, and myself with the large 

 series in the museum, with the result that the bird was 



' Another species which may ahnost be regarded as belonging to 

 this category is the Pied Wheatear, CEna?ithe leucomela {^Saxicola 

 pleschanka), from the Isle of May. 



