54 Transactions, 



the othei's remained during the winter, and of all of them, except 

 the Cole Tit, I picked up starved birds. I found a Longtailed 

 Tit near Nethertown on the 14th December, sticking with head 

 and shoulders biiried in the snow, its tail upright and just visible 

 above the snow ; and as neither wings nor feet had made the 

 slightest marks of struggling, I concluded that its death had been 

 sudden, and that it had fallen frozen from the beech tree above. 



The Pied and Grey Wagtails were exceptionally numei'ous in 

 October and November of 1878, and continued so until the water- 

 courses were all frozen, when they took their departure south- 

 wards, and no more was seen of them till March, when they 

 again returned. I saw more of their nests this season than usual. 



The Tree Pipits were very scarce all summer, and the few that 

 were in the district lingered unusually late. I shot a tine pair in 

 the middle of last month — a later date than I have seen them 

 hitherto. The Meadow Pipits left the district entirely at the 

 beginning of December, but towards the end of that month some 

 flocks again appeared, jirobably coming from some more northerly 

 region. Skylarks were not conspicuously numerous until the 

 beginning of January. As you are aware, the Larks have become 

 very scarce hereabouts as a resident species, and I was therefore 

 glad to see that this last spring and summer there were rather 

 more of them nesting than for the past few yeai's. 



Several Snow Buntings were procured in November, and one 

 was shot by Mr Bruce of Slogarie in January. The Blackheaded 

 Buntings, the Yellow Buntings, Sparrows, Chaffinches, and Green- 

 finches made up some vast flocks, which during the continuance 

 of the storm made the farmyards their home, finding there 

 abundance of grain and other food. 



I have always been acciistomed to look out for some large flocks 

 of the Lesser Redpoll about the middle of March, and which 

 would remain for a few weeks. I saw only one of these flocks, 

 and it remained on Mabie and Dalscairth all summer, and is there 

 yet. I found nine of their nests, and was very pleased to have 

 an opportunity of seeing them, as the Lesser Redpoll has not to 

 my knowledge bred in Troqueer since 1873, when there were a 

 few nests near Cargen. It is somewhat remarkable that each of 

 the nests I examined was thickly lined with feathers, and had 

 many feathers woven into the general structure, and ])robably we 

 may find a reason for this in the desire of the birds to have a 

 comfortable nest during the ungenial weather of May and June. 



