( -^76 ) 



NOTES ON SOME BIUDS SEEN IN SOUTH UIST 

 IN OCTOBER AND NOVEMBER 1920. 



BY 



CoLOXEL R. MEINERTZHAC.EX. 



Xo attempt has been made in the following notes to mention 

 every bird seen, and only those ol interest are included. 



I was in South Uist from the middle of October to the end 

 of November. We experienced a southerly to south-westerly 

 wind during the whole period, which on November 15th 

 attained the force of a gale with a velocity of over ninety 

 miles an hour. The effect of this on bird-life has already 

 been described {Bull. B.O.C., XLI., p. 57). 



Starling {Stiirniis v. vulgaris). — The resident Starlings do 

 not appear to differ in the slightest from British specimens, 

 except that the spotting in the autumn plumage is perhaps 

 not so intense in the former. A common resident. 



Numbers of migrants were also in evidence, all on the west 

 coast. Only residents were seen on the east coast. 



Corn-Bunting {Emberiza c. calandra). — There is a small 

 resident colony at Grogarry Lodge. Of six obtained between 

 October 27th and November 14th all were moulting in the 

 outer primaries. 



Snow-Bunting {Plecfrophenax n. nivalis). — The first 

 arrivals, a pair, were noted on November loth. 



Blackcap {Sylvia a. atncapilla). — A small party of females 

 on passage were at Grogarry Lodge on the morning of 

 November ist, but were not seen again. 



Hebridean Song-Thrush {Tardus ph. hehridensis). — A 

 common resident, being more plentiful on the east coast than 

 on the west. I never saw, so far as I am aware, any other 

 race of the Song-Thrush. 



Greenland Wheatear {G^nanthe oe. leiicorrhoa) . — A few 

 females were still passing up to October 26th. 



British Stonechat {Saxicola t. hibcrnans). — Quite common. 



Continental Redbreast {Eriihacus r. rubeciila). — I only 

 saw a Robin on one occasion, on October 27th, which proved 

 to be a Continental bird. 



Hedge-Sparrow {Prunella modularis). — Two were obtained 

 in late October. They are both very dark on the back, the 

 one having the wing formula of P. m. occidental is and the 

 other of P. m. modularis. It is impossible to say whether 

 these were resident or migrant birds. 



Wren {Troglodytes troglodytes). — A quite common resident. 



