NOTES. 289 



FORK-TAILED PETREL IN SHROPSHIRE. 



On the 24th December, 1910, 1 had brought to me for identifi- 

 cation a bird which had killed itself against the telegraph-wires 

 outside Shrewsbury Station. It was a Fork-tailed Petrel 

 {Oceanodroma leucorrhoa), and is the eighth example recorded 

 in Shropshire within the last thirty years. Two days earlier 

 a bird resembling a Swift in size and general appearance 

 had been seen flying over the house-tops in the middle of the 

 town, and this may possibly have been the Petrel. 



H. E. Forrest. 



Scottish Ornithology for 1909. — The usual " Report " 

 which appears annually in the Annals of Scottish Natural 

 History is this year undertaken jointly by Miss E. V. Baxter 

 and Miss L. J. Rintoul, Mr. J. Paterson, who had previously 

 provided these Reports for some years, having retired from 

 this activity. The new authors, who are well known for their 

 most useful work on the Isle of May, have done their task well, 

 giving a most useful introduction {Anii. S.N.H., 1910, pp. 132- 

 148) and a carefully compiled list of records under specific 

 headings (pp. 193-211). One serious omission must, how- 

 ever, be noted — there is no indication in the majority of the 

 records as to whether the information is new or has been 

 previously published. In some cases references are given, 

 but in a large number of records which have already been 

 published no indication of the fact is given, and this will 

 indubitably lead to confusion and duplication. The following 

 records do not appear to have been noticed previously in these 

 pages, and it will be seen that the majority hail from Fair 

 Isle, and many are given with insufficient data, to which 

 practice we must again express strong objection. All the 

 dates are for the year 1909. 



Mistle-Thrush {T. viscivorus). — One at Fair Isle April 21st. 



Black Redstart {B. titys).—A female at Fair Isle October 

 14th. 



Red-spotted Bluethroat [C. suecica). — At Fair Isle 

 " spring and autumn." 



Lesser Whitethroat {S. curruca). — Single birds at Fair 

 Isle April 23rd and May 4th, and small numbers from August 

 25th to October 2nd. 



Barred Warbler {S. nisoria).—A female at Fair Isle m 

 " autumn." 



Yellows-browed Warbler (P. superciliosus).— Four at 

 Fair Isle between September 28th and October 4th. 



Siberian Chiffchaff {P. tristis) .—One at Fair Isle m 

 " autumn." 



