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the whole. I have often wondered at this habit, and tliink it lias 

 been acquired in tlie robbing' of nests of tliose birds Hke grouse 

 and duck, wliose eggs are so carefully covered when the parent 

 bird is absent. Tlie lapwing- alone of all birds nesting in the open 

 can by his " right arm " liold his own against the crow ; but he is 

 sometimes outwitted by the superior cunning of the enemy. An 

 illustration of this was given me by an eye-witness, who observed 

 a crow fly away after a series of futile attempts on the lapwhig's 

 nest. In a short time after he returned with two companions, who 

 successfully enticed the lapwing from the neighbourhood of its 

 nest, and left the other to the quiet enjoyment of the plunder. In 

 another instance, where two crows discovered and failed to dislodge 

 a wild duck, different tactics were enforced. Apparently conscious 

 that all comes to them who can but wait, they laid siege to the 

 nest, and for two days one of them remained on the ground, and 

 eventually seized the opportunity when the duck had gone for his 

 diurnal constitutional, and plundered the whole. Of all the 

 feathered tribes, the sparrow alone seems to understand the crow. 

 He builds his nest among the very twigs the crow has gathered 

 as the foundation of his nest, and there rears his brood unmolested 

 by the abstract-minded thief who sits above him. For many years 

 a pair of Ravens have nested in the parish. Two seasons ago they 

 attempted to build on the steepest part of the rock which they 

 frequent, but the wind carried it away, and they had to renew 

 their work on more suitable foundation. Next year the same thing 

 was attempted, and again it failed. I shall watch with interest 

 whether next season they have profited bj- their failures. The 

 Cuckoo is common ; in Euchan glen even abundant. I once saw 

 ten in a flock there. The dates of their arrival for the last three 

 years have been April 28, April 7, and May 4. The Night Jar is 

 very rare. One pair, however, have for years nested in the Holm 

 woods. The Tawny Owl and Long-eared Owl are both natives. 

 The former is common ; the latter i-are, and limited to one 

 locality. The hilly nature of this district favours the continuance 

 of birds of prey, and we can still find the Peregrine, Merlin, 

 Kestrel, and Sparrow Hawk. The Peregrine has of late only ap- 

 peared as a visitor in the spring, but for many years it nested 

 regularly in Kirkconnel parish. The game little Merlin, nesting in 

 the heather far among the hills, defies extermination. The Sparrow 

 Hawk, more accessible, is gradually becoming scarcer, and may 

 soon be extinct. The Kestrel, being more harmless than the 



