180 BRITISH BIRDS. 



Scarce except in the lowlauds, and there not numerous. 

 Plentiful in the Conway Valley, and fairly common though 

 sparsely distributed in the extreme west (Lleyn), 1903 {t.c, 

 pp. 71, 104). Merioneth. — Fairly common in some valleys, and 

 particularly in Dovey (^.c, p. 72). Denbigh and Flint. — 

 Grenerally distributed, but not numerous except in the vales of 

 Clwyd and Ceiriog (^.c.,pp. 72, 104). Anglesey. — Fairly common 

 in the east of the island {t.c, p. 71) ; not uncommon (t.c, 1904, 

 p. 19). N. Wales generaUy. — No increase except in Montgomery 

 (t.c, 1903, p. 71). Isle of Man. — Increase during last ten years 

 after a decrease {Zool., 1903, p. 71). 



Scotland. 



Mr. Harvie-Brown believes that there is an increase of these 

 birds, and that Perthshire is the present headquarters of the 

 species. At the present time it is entitled to be designated 

 fairly common, but still rather local in dispersal, and breeds in 

 suitable situations where found (J. A. H.-B., Fauna of Tay 

 Basin, pp. 112, 113). 



Ireland. 



Well known in every part from Avhich bird-catchers have not 

 driven it, though they have done this ior miles round our larger 

 towns (B. of Ireland, p. 54). A common bird. In co. Wicklow 

 it is very numerous, and in Wexford and Carlow equallv so 

 (Allan Ellison, ZooL, 1903, p. 191). 



SISKIN Carduelis sjnnus (L.). S. page 175. 



Shropshire. — The first and only recorded instance of its 

 nesting was in 1898, when a nest was found in a fir tree on 

 Erinshill Hill (H. E. Forrest, Fauna of Shropshire, p. 119). 



Derby. — A pair nested and had fertile eggs near Repton in 

 the summer of 1902 (C. R. Gurney, Field, 8, viii., 1902). 



Yorkshire. — In recent years one or two pairs have nested 

 near Pickering (T. H. Nelson, Birds of Yorks., 173). 



Scotland. — The Siskin appears to me to be a species in- 

 creasing its distribution towards the south (J. A. Harvie-Brown, 

 Fauna of Tay Basin, p. 114). 



Sutherland. — Mr. Eagle Clarke is of opinion that its presence 

 there (Assyut) two years in succession (1902, 1903, the latter in 

 June) indicates that it was breeding somewhere in the district 

 of Assyut {id., Fauna of N.W. Highlands). Hitherto only known 

 as an autumn migrant in the west of Sutherland. 



Orkney. — Several small flocks of fifteen to thirty individuals 

 arrived on the south-east mainland on September 21st, 1901, and 

 were seen there in decreasing numbers for the two following 

 days (N. F. Ticehurst, ZooL, 1901, p. 425). The occui-rence of 

 the Siskin had not previously been authenticated in Orkney. 



