CHAP. XI. ] Rare Birds. 197 
phalcanthus longispinus, from the fossil diggings of Gam- 
rie. “ How strange!” he says. “ Here we have an animal, 
or perhaps I should rather say a stone, part of which had 
once been a creature enjoying life, but now how changed! 
How long is it since it lived, died, and became thus trans- 
formed? Years ago, nay ages, many ages, long anterior to 
the creation of man. How wonderful, and yet how true!” | 
Of another specimen he says: 
“ Here, again, is a black, pink, yellow, and brown creature, 
with crests and ornaments like a duchess—just, in fact, like 
a lady of the olden time dressed up and decorated for a 
ball, with her head stuck full of feathers, her ribbons flying, 
and fan in hand; in other words, a caterpillar of the vaporer 
moth, found in a garden at Buckie. 
“ And, lastly, though not least, a specimen of the mount- 
ain bladder fern (Cystopteris montana), found on Benrinnes 
by a gentleman from England, and sent to me as a rarity. 
It was only in 1836 that this fern was made known as Brit- 
ish, having then been for the first time met with by a party 
of naturalists on Ben Lawers. Since that time, however, it 
has been found in a ravine between Glen Dochart and Glen 
Lochy, Perthshire. It is also found on the mountains of 
North Wales, on the Alps, and on the Rocky Mountains of 
North America.” 
Many rare birds were sent to him for examination, no- 
tices of which he recorded in the local paper. Thus, he ob- 
tained the little crake (Crex pusilla), a bird that had not be- 
fore been found in the neighborhood, from a land-surveyor 
at Whitehills. The mountain finch (Fringzlla montifringil- 
a) was sent to him from Macduff, where it had been driven 
ashore during a recent storm. A greater shrike or butcher- 
bird (Lantus excubitor)—a bird that had not before been 
found in Scotland—was found dead at Drummuir Castle, 
and sent to him for preservation. The spoonbill (Platalia 
lucordia) and bee-eater (Merops apiaster)—very rare birds— 
were also found at Boyndie. 
