34 



SCIEXCE-GOSSIP. 



island contains a considerable proportion of lime. 

 Barite, generally tinged red, is occasionally to be 

 obtained. At places the amygdaloidal cavities are 

 either empty, or contain one or two small crystals 

 of some substance ; and sometimes they are seen 

 to be drawn or lengthened out by the semi-liquid 

 trap, having moved a little after their formation. 



Parts of the island, especially along the east 

 coast, are seeD to be intensely glaciated, and the 

 finest striae are on the island on which the Castle 

 is situated. Especially is this so near the large 

 split boulder, where the striae, running parallel with 

 the shore, are still very sharp, extending in long 

 lines on a smooth polished surface. Smith, of 

 Jordanhill, has figured the above split boulder in 

 his " Newer Pliocene," and accounts for its breaking 

 up by having fallen from an iceberg ; but the block 

 is not a far-travelled one, and probably never was 

 much higher than it is at present. It belongs to 

 the traps of the island, almost sharp at the angles, 

 and very likely was not carried more than a few 

 hundred yards. The frost, which has split it, will 

 evidently break it up still further. 



A few bits of West Highland schist were noted 

 at several places, and a small boulder, apparently of 

 Arran granite, was seen on the west side of the 

 island lying amongst the gravel of the old beach. 

 This beach is at several parts well marked, the 

 pebbles fying as the waves left them many centuries 

 ago, and is the finest illustration of an ancient 

 pebble-beach we have ever seen. At no place was 

 any boulder clay observed. 



The view from the summit of the island, 409 

 feet above tide, near the old lighthouse, is some- 

 what extensive. Ailsa is visible awav down channel, 

 and many of the Highland peaks are to be observed 

 in an opposite direction. Towards the west are 

 Bute and Arran ; and the Ayrshire coast with the 

 cliffs of Goldenberry Head — the finest of the 

 raised beach cliffs on the Clyde — are towards the 

 east. 



The higher parts of the Wee Cumbrae are 

 covered with rough pasture on which a considerable 

 flock of sheep and a few cattle are fed, rabbits 

 being numerous all over. Several whaups and 

 lapwings break the stillness of the moorland with 

 their cries, and numerous oyster-catchers, gulls 

 and wild ducks are seen away down on the 

 shores. 



Of butterflies, we observed three species, the 

 small-heath, meadow-brown, and red-admiral ; the 

 last one being represented by a single specimen. 

 There are a considerable number of plants on the 

 island, the bourtree growing freely along the 

 eastern side under the shadow of the old sea-cliffs. 

 The English stone-crop appears to be the pre- 

 vailing plant, and we find it in flower all over. 

 The zostera grows to a greater length in the little 

 bay to the north of the Castle, than I have seen it 



anywhere else. The mullen, the horned - poppy, 

 and marine spleenwort, are still to be found, but 

 are evidently destined to extinction. 



Springtails were numerous, leaping about on the 

 rocks near the shore. The scales with which some 

 of the species are covered are highly interesting, and 

 used as test objects for the microscope. 



On a former occasion, when approaching the 

 island in a small boat, the water being still and the 

 sun shining strongly, a jelly-fish was seen floating 

 at the surface of the water, its stinging threads 

 being extended all round about it, each to the 

 length of six feet. On their being touched by the 

 end of an oar, it withdrew its threads towards it 

 with a rapid but jerky motion. This faculty of 

 extending its stinging threads all round it will no 

 doubt be of great use in defending it from its 

 enemies. Whether, or not, any of the threads hung 

 down in the water I did not observe, those I saw- 

 seemed to float on the water, radiating out from it 

 like the slim spokes of a bicycle. 



Except in the garden at the cottage nothing is 

 done by way of cultivating any part of the island. 

 There has been an enclosure on the higher part, 

 near the old lighthouse, and at the south base of the 

 platform on which the old lighthouse stands there 

 is a row of large boulders, as if the)- had formed 

 part of an ancient fortification. 



The Tan is situated at the western edge of the 

 channel which divides the Big from the Wee 

 Cumbrae, and is capital dredging ground, the 

 beautiful swimming shell, Lima hiaus, being common 

 at this spot, reposing in its self-spun silken nest, 

 which is well fortified by a rough covering of 

 ~t'.:'_t5:a e:: 



Monkrcdding, Kilwinning; February, 1895. 



CURIOUS DEATH OF RABBIT. 



"HPHE following incident occurred last month, 

 and may be worth recording. A maple-tree 

 arrived at a timber-yard situated close to the 

 Midland Station at Stamford, from a park in the 

 neighbourhood, and the following day was sawn up 

 by a circular steam saw. On reaching a hollow part 

 of the tree the saw passed through the body of a live 

 rabbit, and at the same time a second rabbit 

 bolted out of the hollow trunk and escaped into 

 the timber slacks, where it was eventually caught 

 and killed by the workmen. As the timber yard 

 in question is a most unlikely place for rabbits to 

 be found in, it is only reasonable to conclude that 

 the rabbits travelled to Stamford inside the tree, 

 and remained there till thev met their death as 

 described. Vernon B. Crowthek-Beyxon. 



Tkt Grange, Edith Wes'on, Stamford; 

 March 13/A, 18,-5. 



