BIRDS. 



259 



to John Wolley show that eggs were procured for Sir W. Milner 

 at these dates, by his brother, as well as for Wolley. 



As this is a British bird with a very limited breeding range, we 

 would take this opportunity of making a few remarks which may 

 not be considered altogether out of place. It is curious to find 

 such marked isolation and restricted dispersal of the Crested Tit. 

 Nowhere in Britain can it be said to have a home, except in Strath- 

 spey, and a question of some interest may be thereby suggested. 



If, as is probable, the Crested Tit was always a resident species 

 in Scotland, it no doubt at one time covered a much larger area 

 of the old Caledonian forests, and the remnant of to-day may 

 perhaps be considered as indicating a declining race, declining in 

 numbers, or vacillating, restricted in area, and laying a smaller 

 number of eggs than most of our other resident Titmice. On the 

 other hand, if this curious local distribution, and slow rate of in- 

 crease, if it increases at all, be considered as of later acquisition to 

 our fauna, whence has Strathspey drawn its present population ? 

 Let us look at its known distribution on the continent of Europe. 

 Dresser tells us ' its habitat is extensive, ranging from the Medi- 

 terranean far into Northern Scandinavia, and from the extreme 

 west of Europe, probably, as far to the east as the Ural ' ; and 

 that, as with us in Scotland, it principally affects pine woods at 

 lower or higher elevations, and whether on the plains or on the 

 hills. In any case, it is reasonable to suppose that Scotland was 

 either part of a continuous tract which may have been inhabited 

 by the species before the separation from the Continent took place, 

 or have become the scene of a sudden or gradual invasion at some 

 later period. The interest of this does not, perhaps, attach in so 

 marked a degree to the species at present under discussion as to 

 a general principle of laws which may regulate the dispersal of 

 many other species, some of which have of late years increased 

 so much in numbers in Britain, amongst which we may instance 

 the Stock Dove, Tufted Duck, and, in a less patent degree, the 

 Blackcap (as found in the Moray Basin area). At present the 

 Crested Tit is believed to be again on the increase locally, and 

 this may partly be accounted for by the careful system of forestry 

 and the planting of Scots fir, which has been carried on for over 

 one hundred years. 



We believe that we have some grounds for saying that in 



