9360 Birds. 
Redbacked Shrike, or Butcher Bird, in Forfarshire—Mr. Maczillivray, in his 
‘British Birds, vol. iii. p. 507, states that this bird, Lanius collurio, had not, when he 
wrote his history, been observed in any part of Scotland. Glancing over the indices 
(save 1863) of the ‘ Zoologist,’ and some other ornithological lists, I find no record of 
its having been yet seen or caught on the north side of the Tweed. However, be this 
as it may, the only Scottish specimen I have seen was one shown to me at Broomlea, 
Bridge of Dun, near Montrose, in July last. I have since received the following par- 
ticulars of its capture from Mr. Fraser, butler to the late Mr. John Gordon, of Charle- 
tov. Mr. Fraser, who has a good eye to detect and a hand to preserve ornithological 
rarities, while returning directly through the fields from Montrose to Charleton in 
June, 1862, observed a strange bird darting frequently from a tree to the ground and 
back again to its perch, and was satisfied that this was the mode of its feeding. About 
two hours thereafter he returned with his gun, found the bird in the same tree, and 
secured it. Its stomach was well stuffed with small beetles.—G. Gordon; Birnie, 
Elgin. 
Moulting of the Bullfinch, and Remarks on its Food, §c.—Though loose feathers 
were first noticed about the cage early in September, my bird had, I believe, begun its 
moult towards the latter duys of August. Owing to an accident, the cage having 
fallen on the 11th of September, it lost, in fluttering about, most of its loose feathers, 
including many of the quills; though this may have accelerated the moult, I observed 
about a week later that the inner quills were then only beginning to appear, but the 
exterior ones were already of considerable length. The tail-feathers seem to be more 
rapid in growth, as the four centre ones, by the 28th of the month, had well nigh 
attained their full size, though some of the lateral ones were barely perceptible, and 
the rest but half an inch or so long; it would therefore appear that the inner quills 
and outer tail-feathers are not shed till the rest are of sufficient length to sustain the 
bird. It is a male of last year, and the breast is now assuming its rosy hue, but has 
not attained the brilliant colouring of the adult, nor do I think it will acquire the 
mature plumage for another year, though being caged may perhaps partly account 
for the want of brightness. The new feathers of the head and tail are more glossy, 
and of a purer black than the old ones, and both the upper and under tail-coverts 
are of a snowy whiteness. Though ruffled and drooping during the early days 
of its moult, it has recovered its spirits, but as yet there has been no attempt at a song, 
nor did I hear its plaintive note till the 11th of October. Notwithstanding its short 
neck and stout beak it manages to preen its feathers with great ease; indeed the nape, 
chin and extremities of the quills are the only parts that its bill cannot reach, but 
here the claws are most effective, both in scratching and combing, the head being de- 
pressed and thrown back, and the fout thrust forward between the wing and the body: 
this operation is often repeated, the bird seemingly taking great delight in it. When 
preening the feathers I observe it frequently swallow pieces of the scaly or fleshy 
covering of the tubes. Though Macgillivray seems to have thought it likely that they 
feed on insects, [ fear we have no sufficient proof of this; but to make amends the 
bullfinch consumes an incalculable quantity of seeds of thistles and other noxious 
weeds: to prove this I have only to state that having collected some spear-plume 
thistles (Cnicus lanceolatus), two hundred and thirty-eight of the seeds were placed in 
the cage, after taking away the hemp-seed on which it had fed up to two o'clock p. m.; 
though the husks had to be removed, the thistle-seeds were all consumed in about 
twenty minutes, the bird merely stopping ouce or twice to cleanse its beak and slake 
