﻿96 
  

  

  BIRDS. 
  

  

  specimens 
  are 
  in 
  the 
  Banff 
  Museum. 
  We 
  have 
  not 
  noticed 
  it 
  

   ourselves 
  anywhere 
  except 
  near 
  Gamrie 
  Head. 
  It 
  occurs 
  very 
  

   rarely, 
  or 
  never, 
  inland, 
  and 
  is 
  not 
  included 
  in 
  Dr. 
  J. 
  0. 
  Wilson's 
  

   list, 
  nor 
  any 
  other 
  list 
  from 
  inland 
  localities 
  which 
  has 
  reached 
  us. 
  

  

  Sula 
  bassana 
  (L.). 
  Gannet. 
  

  

  Occurs 
  along 
  the 
  coast, 
  mostly 
  in 
  spring 
  and 
  autumn 
  ; 
  at 
  times 
  we 
  

   have 
  seen 
  them 
  fishing 
  very 
  close 
  in 
  to 
  shore. 
  

  

  The 
  Gannet 
  occurs 
  occasionally 
  inland 
  ; 
  such 
  as 
  one 
  recorded 
  

   in 
  1820 
  at 
  Moss 
  of 
  Eothes, 
  fifteen 
  miles 
  inland, 
  and 
  a 
  young 
  one 
  

   killed 
  near 
  Forres 
  in 
  1856. 
  

  

  Edward 
  speaks 
  of 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  spring 
  and 
  autumn 
  visitant, 
  and 
  

   ' 
  occasional 
  in 
  winter 
  ' 
  ; 
  and 
  Smith 
  says, 
  ' 
  occasionally 
  found 
  dead 
  

   inland 
  after 
  severe 
  gales 
  from 
  the 
  north.' 
  

  

  Order 
  HERODIONES. 
  

   Family 
  ARDEID.E. 
  

   Ardea 
  cinerea, 
  L. 
  Heron. 
  

  

  Local 
  Name. 
  — 
  Lang 
  Craiget 
  Heron. 
  

  

  Very 
  common, 
  but 
  more 
  often 
  seen 
  on 
  the 
  shore 
  in 
  winter 
  than 
  in 
  

   summer, 
  food 
  being 
  more 
  plentiful 
  there 
  than 
  farther 
  inland. 
  

   Herons 
  breed 
  on 
  the 
  rocks 
  at 
  Cromarty, 
  as 
  mentioned 
  by 
  St. 
  

   John 
  as 
  far 
  back 
  as 
  1845. 
  Booth 
  says 
  that 
  in 
  1869 
  there 
  were 
  

   some 
  hundreds 
  of 
  these 
  birds 
  at 
  these 
  same 
  cliffs, 
  and 
  then 
  he 
  was 
  

   not 
  acquainted 
  with 
  more 
  than 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  other 
  similar 
  localities 
  

   in 
  Great 
  Britain 
  where 
  Herons 
  build 
  in 
  such 
  situations. 
  

  

  These 
  birds 
  build 
  in 
  the 
  woods 
  about 
  Loch 
  Brora, 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  

   a 
  heronry 
  in 
  the 
  woods 
  about 
  Skibo, 
  on 
  the 
  Dornoch 
  Firth. 
  

  

  Inland 
  breeding 
  localities 
  are 
  more 
  numerous, 
  such 
  as 
  in 
  

   Glenmoriston 
  (fide 
  Duncan 
  M'Lennan, 
  Guisachan). 
  Herons 
  are, 
  

   however, 
  subject 
  to 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  persecution, 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  that 
  

   they 
  injure 
  the 
  trout-fishing. 
  One 
  very 
  fine 
  heronry 
  had 
  been 
  

   almost 
  destroyed 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  our 
  visit 
  in 
  1892, 
  and 
  although 
  

   there 
  were 
  only 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  pairs 
  left, 
  the 
  keepers 
  meant 
  to 
  finish 
  

   off 
  even 
  these, 
  of 
  course 
  acting 
  under 
  their 
  master's 
  orders. 
  

  

  1 
  There 
  is 
  a 
  heronry 
  about 
  eight 
  miles 
  from 
  here 
  (Struy) 
  on 
  

   an 
  island 
  in 
  Loch 
  Mhuilinn 
  in 
  Glenstrathfarrar. 
  The 
  Herons 
  build 
  

  

  