198 BIRDS OF THE WEST OF SCOTLAND. 



a mouse both in size and colour, and, like the mouse, creeps in 

 through the chinks in their wind houses and feasts on their dried 

 meat. It builds a large compact nest of straw and horses' hair in 

 cavities of the earth, where it lays eight eggs. In a morning 

 before sunrise it sings in a very agreeable manner." 



In writing of an American species T. Mexicanus, Mr Baird 

 mentions, on the authority of Dr Heermann, that it is found 

 " occupied in searching for insects between and under the large 

 boulders of rock which, along some portions of the Calaveras 

 river, are there thrown together in confused masses as if by some 

 terrific convulsion of nature." 



Taking into account the total absence of trees in some parts of 

 the Outer Hebrides frequented by wrens, I should not be surprised 

 if T. borealis should yet be discovered there. 



THE HOOPOE. 

 UP UP A EPOPS. 



CAN only be regarded as a straggler in any part of Scotland. It 

 has occurred in Berwickshire, Fifeshire, Aberdeenshire, and Banff- 

 shire, on the east coast, and I have seen specimens from various 

 other counties, including Sutherlandshire, Perthshire, and Dumfries- 

 shire, but have only three instances to record of its occurrence on 

 the western mainland, namely, a specimen that was shot near Port- 

 Glasgow in October, 1863, and exhibited shortly afterwards at a 

 meeting of the Natural History Society of Glasgow; another which 

 was observed in October, 1852, on the property of Blair-Skaith, about 

 six miles from Glasgow, where it remained about ten days; and a 

 third at Tonderghie House, Wigtownshire, in 1862, as I have been 

 informed by H. Stewart, Esq. Mr Yarrell states that it has been 

 killed in Ayrshire, but gives no particular locality. It has like- 

 wise occurred in the Hebrides, two specimens having been seen 

 in North Uist in 1859. Mr J. M 'Donald, Newton, states that 

 one of these was shot. 



The Hoopoe has several times been taken in the Orkney and 

 Shetland islands. In the latter district it occurred in August 

 and September, 1861, and I find it stated in a manuscript note 

 by Dr Baikie that an example of the bird was shot in Orkney 

 in 1852. 



