﻿202 
  

  

  BIRDS. 
  

  

  As 
  recorded 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Hoy, 
  ' 
  one 
  was 
  shot 
  at 
  Gordon 
  Castle 
  by 
  

   Sir 
  A. 
  Mallett 
  on 
  September 
  6th, 
  1822.' 
  

  

  Edward 
  considered 
  it 
  a 
  rarity 
  in 
  the 
  east 
  of 
  our 
  area, 
  and 
  

   mentions 
  only 
  two 
  which 
  were 
  obtained 
  in 
  the 
  Moss 
  of 
  Banff. 
  

  

  The 
  Greenshank 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  those 
  species 
  which, 
  to 
  our 
  own 
  

   certain 
  knowledge, 
  has 
  extended 
  its 
  distribution 
  in 
  Moray 
  within 
  

   our 
  own 
  vivid 
  recollection. 
  

  

  In 
  1873, 
  only 
  two, 
  or 
  at 
  most 
  three, 
  pairs 
  of 
  Greenshanks 
  had 
  

   nests 
  near 
  the 
  watershed 
  of 
  Truim 
  and 
  Tay, 
  and 
  that 
  season 
  young 
  

   were 
  found. 
  Long 
  prior 
  to 
  that 
  year 
  Harvie-Brown 
  had 
  been 
  

   intimately 
  acquainted 
  with 
  the 
  districts 
  around 
  Dalwhinnie, 
  

   Laggan 
  on 
  Spey, 
  and 
  Loch 
  Laggan, 
  dating, 
  indeed, 
  back 
  to 
  1865, 
  

   and 
  before 
  that 
  year 
  had 
  no 
  knowledge 
  of 
  Greenshanks 
  breeding 
  

   anywhere 
  thereabouts, 
  although 
  the 
  Redshank 
  along 
  the 
  Upper 
  

   Spey 
  was 
  well 
  known 
  to 
  him, 
  and 
  ever 
  present. 
  He 
  is 
  perfectly 
  

   certain 
  none 
  occupied 
  certain 
  localities 
  between 
  Dalwhinnie 
  and 
  

   Laggan 
  which 
  now 
  annually 
  hold 
  their 
  pairs 
  of 
  Greenshanks. 
  

  

  The 
  Greenshank 
  is 
  now 
  observed 
  commonly 
  on 
  migration 
  in 
  

   autumn 
  in 
  the 
  Bay 
  of 
  Findhorn 
  and 
  Culbin 
  shore 
  by 
  Brown 
  of 
  

   Forres. 
  Mr. 
  John 
  Young 
  was 
  told 
  in 
  1885 
  that 
  the 
  birds 
  bred 
  

   among 
  the 
  Culbin 
  sandhills, 
  but 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  corroborative 
  evidence 
  

   forthcoming. 
  Major 
  Chad 
  wick 
  includes 
  it 
  in 
  his 
  lists, 
  but 
  pre- 
  

   sumably 
  only 
  as 
  a 
  passing 
  migrant. 
  Indeed, 
  until 
  much 
  more 
  

   likely 
  areas 
  are 
  filled 
  by 
  breeding 
  pairs, 
  we 
  can 
  scarcely 
  expect 
  

   them 
  to 
  use 
  the 
  Culbins 
  for 
  that 
  purpose. 
  

  

  One 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  Elgin 
  Museum 
  — 
  1 
  presented 
  by 
  Captain 
  Dunbar- 
  

   Brander, 
  15th 
  September 
  1890, 
  and 
  three 
  more 
  were 
  shot 
  from 
  a 
  

   flock 
  of 
  about 
  twenty 
  together. 
  Rare 
  here 
  ' 
  (copied 
  from 
  label). 
  

   Hinxman 
  usually 
  sees 
  a 
  few 
  pairs 
  up 
  among 
  the 
  lochans 
  in 
  the 
  

   Abernethy 
  forest, 
  and 
  adds, 
  'probably 
  breeds,' 
  and, 
  later, 
  positively 
  

   states 
  that 
  it 
  does 
  so. 
  

  

  In 
  1885 
  Backhouse 
  saw 
  a 
  pair 
  at 
  Loch 
  a 
  Choire 
  Glas, 
  close 
  to 
  

   the 
  Laggan 
  road, 
  2nd 
  July 
  — 
  a 
  locality 
  certainly 
  not 
  frequented 
  

   by 
  them 
  until 
  quite 
  of 
  late 
  years. 
  He 
  also 
  found 
  them 
  in 
  mid- 
  

   summer 
  as 
  low 
  down 
  the 
  Spey 
  as 
  Glentruim, 
  where 
  the 
  keeper 
  

   shot 
  one, 
  a 
  splendid 
  old 
  bird, 
  in 
  full 
  summer 
  plumage, 
  on 
  

   July 
  15th. 
  

  

  On 
  May 
  16th, 
  1892, 
  we 
  found 
  the 
  Greenshank 
  exceedingly 
  

   abundant 
  around 
  Loch 
  Morlich 
  and 
  at 
  numerous 
  small 
  lochans 
  

  

  