53 TRANSACTIONS, NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 



Westness House, and on another occasion about tlie 

 same time one near the garden wall by the sea. 

 Mr. Learmonth, the farmer at Westness, told me a 

 few once bred here — a very unusual thing, apparently, 

 as it was recorded in one of the Orkney papers. 



Sand Martin (Cotyle rlparla). On one or two 

 occasions when fishing Loch Wasbister I saw a bird 

 of this species flying about the loch. My attendant 

 had no idea what it v/as. 



PlCARI^. 



Fam. Cue id idee. 



Cuckoo (Cucidus canoms). This bird, so common 

 in most iDarts of the Highlands, was only heard here 

 on one or two occasions. Perhaps the cold spring 

 prevented it uttering its well-known note, as May 

 was very cold and disagreeable. 

 Fam. Picidce. 



Wryneck (Yunx torquiUa). On the 8th of Sep- 

 tember I shot a male Wryneck as it ^vas flying and 

 settling before me on a stone wall; its flight being 

 unknown to me first attracted my attention. The 

 only other occurrence of this bird in Orkney is 

 mentioned in Messrs. Baikie and Heddle's Natural 

 History of Orkney as follows : "A sx^ecimen of this 

 bird, caught after a gale, was, we believe, in the 

 possession of the Rev. Charles Clouston, Sandwick." 



COLUMB^. 



Fam. Cohunhidce. 



Wood Pigeon (Columba palumhus). A Wood 

 Pigeon stayed about Westness House for a fe^v days 

 at the end of May and beginning of June. At first 

 there was a pair of them, but one either left or was 

 killed, and the other disappeared shortly after. 



Rock Dove (Columba livia). Not particularly 

 numerous, though a few breed in most of the sea- 

 cliffs round the island. They were most numerous 

 about the middle of August, and after that seemed 

 to leave the island, except one or two favourite 



