BLACK-HEADED BUNTING. 129 



over its monotonous notes, which I have sometimes likened to the 

 jingling of a chain or the sound of breaking glass. 



I have seen great numbers of this bird on North Uist and 

 Benbecula, where it is known by the name of 'sparrow;' but even 

 in these islands it is only to be found on the west side, where the 

 lands are flat, and where cultivation extends to the sea shore. 



In the east of Scotland, where this bunting cannpt be called an 

 abundant species in summer, very large flocks sometimes appear 

 in the winter season. All the specimens shot from these flocks 

 which I have examined appear to be much larger than our native 

 birds, and are better clad the plumage being thick and rich 

 coloured, very unlike the faded specimens I have met with in the 

 autumn. One of these birds in my own collection is of a rich 

 cream colour, with a few brown spots: it was shot some years ago 

 in Banffshire. 



THE BLACK-HEADED BUNTING. 

 EMBERIZA SCHCENICULUS. 



THIS species appears to be very widely distributed over Scotland. 

 It is found in Shetland occasionally, and is known to have bred 

 in Orkney; it likewise extends to the Outer Hebrides, where 

 a few pairs breed every year. The nest has been taken in North 

 Uist and Harris, and on some of the inner islands it is resident all 

 the year. 



On the mainland of western Scotland it is also a permanent 

 resident in many localities, although of restless habits during the 

 winter season, leaving its sedgy haunts for the more substantial 

 attractions of the farm-yard. It is particularly common, at Loch- 

 winnoch, frequenting tall hawthorn hedges in the vicinity of the 

 water; and in spring time I have seen parties of thirty or forty 

 of this species frequenting a large patch of marshy ground, form- 

 ing the old bed of the Fruin, on the banks of Loch Lomond. 

 It breeds there on the banks of ditches, selecting occasionally 

 the sides of deep drains. I have never, indeed, found the 

 nest of the Black-headed Bunting away from water, and have 

 always seen it situated on the ground, with the exception of a 

 single instance in North Uist, where the structure was built in a 

 heather bush growing close to the water's edge. 



