280 Report of Meetings for 1880, by James Hardy. 



parents were close at hand, and in plaintive notes, lamented the 

 loss of their young one. After examination, I had the pleasure 

 of safely restoring it to their care. On liberating the bird, it 

 flew into the middle of a water-hole, alighting on a reed, in the 

 very attitude in which Morris in his book on British Birds, has 

 pourtrayed it. The stone-chat ( Saxicola Eubicola) and the whin- 

 chat {Saxicola Rubetra) were in considerable numbers in the bogs ; 

 and many other warblers — which owing to the wet state of the 

 weather we were unable to examine more particularly." This is 

 still one of the haunts of the reed bunting, "coal -hood" or 

 ''black-cap" {JEmberiza Schoeniclus), of which considerable num- 

 bers breed here. The common bunting frequents the neighbour- 

 hood in spring. 



Since the meeting, Mr Stobbs has sought out a resident bird- 

 fancier, from whom he obtained some ornithological data, which 

 are always welcome in regard to a neglected locality. Concern- 

 ing the chimney swallow {Rirundo rustica) he states that in the 

 summer of 1876 or 1877, the season was so cold that only about 

 a couple of pairs could be observed in Gordon parish. They 

 generally depart in the last week of September for the old birds, 

 and about ten days later for the young ones. The swift ( Cypse- 

 Im Apus) called " cran," occurs occasionally. The favourite ren- 

 dezvous of the swallows before starting for the south is the 

 steading of Grreenknowe, or the church-roof. A great many rare 

 birds come to Gordon Moss, at all seasons of the year. The 

 grasshopper- warbler is an yearly visitant to the moss, where he 

 has seen its nest. He often sees the bullfinch in the woods. 

 This summer he saw a pair of goldfinches. The parish is rich 

 in species of titmice. He speaks of a wren with a spot on its 

 crown, called the "weary" or "wheary" (^Regulus aurocapillus.) 

 Siskins {Fringilla Spinus) were very numerous in the moss, when 

 Mr Stobbs wrote, Nov. 5. He has a number of stuffed starlings 

 with varied plumage, for they are much given to " sports." He 

 has twice seen wild swans, but they were in flight. A great 

 variety of ducks and aquatic birds visit the parish. He once got 

 a pair of shovellers {Anas clypeata) ; and shewed a wigeon 

 {Mareca Penelope) that he had shot lately. He has seen the king- 

 fisher on the Eden, and pretty frequent on the Leader. He has 

 got other birds, which he does not know properly, among others 

 a rare owl. In regard to the screech-owl {Strix stridula) I notice, 



