﻿BIRDS. 
  

  

  made 
  an 
  attempt 
  to 
  build 
  a 
  nest, 
  the 
  remains 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  still 
  

   visible 
  in 
  April 
  1893, 
  and 
  of 
  which, 
  at 
  that 
  time, 
  under 
  the 
  belief 
  

   it 
  was 
  the 
  true 
  nesting-tree, 
  Mr. 
  Norrie 
  and 
  Harvie-Brown 
  took 
  

   photographs. 
  It 
  was 
  about 
  seven 
  or 
  eight 
  years 
  previous 
  to 
  that 
  

   date 
  that 
  the 
  birds 
  made 
  this 
  attempt, 
  no 
  doubt 
  in 
  consequence 
  of 
  

   the 
  other 
  nesting-tree 
  having 
  been 
  blown 
  down. 
  This 
  site 
  was 
  

   never 
  used, 
  nor 
  probably 
  the 
  nest 
  ever 
  finished. 
  A 
  path 
  passes 
  

   close 
  to 
  this 
  tree, 
  and 
  old 
  roots 
  of 
  forest 
  pines 
  — 
  many 
  no 
  doubt 
  of 
  

   those 
  cut 
  down 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  already 
  mentioned, 
  between 
  1846 
  and 
  

   1852 
  — 
  are 
  visible 
  everywhere. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  first 
  article 
  in 
  Good 
  Words 
  is 
  an 
  effective 
  view 
  of 
  Loch 
  

   an 
  Eilein 
  and 
  the 
  castle, 
  from 
  photographs 
  taken 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Jolly 
  

   and 
  his 
  companions 
  ; 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  supplementary 
  paper 
  — 
  ' 
  A 
  Second 
  

   Glance 
  at 
  the 
  Osprey 
  in 
  the 
  Highlands 
  ' 
  (Good 
  Words, 
  September 
  

   1880), 
  another 
  nearer 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  nest 
  in 
  the 
  occupancy 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  

   and 
  young 
  birds, 
  copied 
  from 
  a 
  sketch 
  by 
  Mrs. 
  J. 
  Blackburn, 
  is 
  

   given, 
  showing 
  the 
  peculiar 
  manner 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  old 
  birds 
  carry 
  

   their 
  prey. 
  

  

  On 
  September 
  14th, 
  1879, 
  our 
  friend 
  Mr. 
  James 
  Stirling 
  of 
  

   Garden, 
  Stirlingshire, 
  sent 
  to 
  us 
  an 
  account 
  of 
  his 
  visit 
  to 
  Loch 
  

   an 
  Eilein, 
  when 
  he 
  saw 
  one 
  young 
  bird, 
  and 
  a 
  young 
  gull 
  beside 
  

   it, 
  picking 
  up 
  fragments 
  of 
  fish-food 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  left; 
  and 
  

   Mr. 
  Stirling 
  also 
  informs 
  us 
  that 
  he 
  also 
  noted 
  that 
  two 
  were 
  

   reared 
  in 
  1880. 
  

  

  In 
  1881 
  Messrs. 
  J. 
  Young 
  and 
  Kawson 
  of 
  London 
  visited 
  the 
  

   site 
  and 
  saw 
  the 
  birds 
  there. 
  

  

  In 
  1885, 
  the 
  Eev. 
  W. 
  Forsyth, 
  D.D., 
  Abernethy, 
  assured 
  us 
  

   that 
  Ospreys 
  bred 
  in 
  Abernethy 
  forest 
  in 
  a 
  giant 
  solitary 
  pine, 
  

   until 
  quite 
  of 
  late 
  years: 
  and 
  he 
  added 
  (in 
  lit.) 
  : 
  — 
  'It 
  is 
  doubtful 
  

   even 
  now 
  (1885) 
  if 
  the 
  Loch 
  an 
  Eilean 
  pair 
  is 
  the 
  only 
  pair 
  in 
  the 
  

   district.' 
  

  

  The 
  Ospreys 
  formerly 
  had 
  a 
  nest 
  on 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  an 
  old 
  pine, 
  

   about 
  two 
  miles 
  or 
  less 
  above 
  Forest 
  Lodge 
  on 
  the 
  Nethy 
  (already 
  

   noticed), 
  of 
  the 
  stem 
  of 
  which 
  a 
  portion 
  is 
  still 
  standing. 
  It 
  is 
  

   a 
  solitary 
  old 
  monarch 
  of 
  the 
  forest; 
  and 
  stands 
  on 
  a 
  grassy 
  

   meadow, 
  on 
  the 
  right 
  bank 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  Nethy, 
  about 
  one 
  mile 
  

   above 
  Forest 
  Lodge. 
  

  

  In 
  1887, 
  Ospreys' 
  eggs 
  were 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  too 
  easily 
  accessible 
  

   ruin 
  of 
  Loch 
  an 
  Eilein, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  feed 
  the 
  maw 
  of 
  an 
  insatiable 
  

  

  