1 91 8.] Recently published Ornithological Works. 331 



number, consisting of over 50 pages, is devoted to their 

 " Report on Scottish Ornithology in 1916." It follows 

 the lines of previous reports, which have now been issued 

 since 1913, and is a most useful and business-like com- 

 pilation. Notwitiistanding the difficulties of travel and of 

 access to particular areas, a large number of observations 

 have been made and sent in to the authors. No actually 

 new birds are recorded for Scotland, but a female Pied 

 Wheatear, GEnanthe leucomela of the B. O. U. list, was 

 taken on Swona, Orkney, the second record for the British 

 Isles ; while an example of the Siberian Chiffchaff, Phyllo- 

 scojOMs/m/is, hardly known beyond the Orkneys and Shetland, 

 was taken at the Little Ross Lighthouse, Kirkcudbright- 

 shire, on December 3. It had never previously been noticed 

 so far south. Other sections of this report deal with ringing 

 results, plumage-variations, breeding and migration notes ; 

 these last include a monthly calendar of weather and move- 

 ments, and another section where the species are treated of 

 individually. 



Another article by the same ladies deals with the autumn 

 display of various British birds. j\Tuch has been written 

 on spring display and courting, but little is recorded about 

 these iiabits at other times of the year. Misses Rintoul 

 and Baxter liave noticed that Ducks seem much given to 

 autumnal antics, and have noticed the same in the case 

 of the Missel-Thrush and Meadow- Pipit. Another question 

 discussed by Misses Rintoul and Baxter is that of the pale 

 and dark-breasted forms of the Brent Goose which occur in 

 Scotland in winter. Are they two races or subspecies, or 

 are they dimorphic forms of the same race? Contributions 

 to this discussion from Mr. Abel Chapman, Mr. Wm. Evans, 

 and Mr. J. Gr. Millais are given ; and while Mr. Chapman 

 states that both forms are found in mixed packs in winter, 

 Mr. Millais states that the dark and light-breasted forms 

 occur separately and in different localities, and are not 

 found in the same flock. There can be little doubt that 

 the pale-breasted form, at one time supposed to be exclu- 

 sively American in origin, breeds in Spitzbergen and 



