262 A HUNDRED YEARS IN THE HIGHLANDS 



is now quite rare. The House Martin deserted us thirty 

 or forty years ago. Prior to that they came in swarms, 

 not only nesting under the eaves of many of the bigger 

 houses, but also in thousands in the precipitous Tolly rock 

 on Loch Maree. The Rooks, which used almost to 

 darken the sky with their multitudes, and the Jackdaws 

 are gone, for which, however, we are truly thankful. 



In 1918 we had about the heaviest crop of rowan- 

 berries I have ever seen, and they remained on the trees 

 in scarlet masses right through November and long after 

 every leaf had fallen. In former years huge flocks of 

 Fieldfares and Redwings came from Norway at the end 

 of October and very quickly finished them off; this year 

 all I saw was a tiny flock of Redwings, about a score 

 all told, which, with the few Blackbirds, Song Thrushes, 

 and Missel Thrushes (also in very reduced numbers), 

 were quite unable to make any impression on the berries, 

 which were nearly all wasted. In summer I did not see 

 a single Ring Ouzel, neither breeding among our rocks 

 nor later on descending with their broods to feed on our 

 cherries and geans . Can anyone explain what has caused 

 so many of our birds to disappear ? 



I have seen the following uncommon birds in the 

 parish of Gairloch during my lifetime — viz., Quail, 

 Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, Golden Oriole, Hoopoe, Rose- 

 coloured Pastor, Chough, Crossbill, Great Grey Shrike, 

 Bohemian Waxwing, and Pied Flycatcher. 



