MAMMALS. 



9 



And in the East of Fife Mr. W. Evans has met with it at 

 Strathtyrum near St. Andrews. 



Order CARNIVORA. 

 Family FELID-ffi. 



Felis catus, L, Wild Cat.i 



At the date of 1881-2 I brought the history of this species up to date 

 in an 'article often referred to in past volumes of this series, from 

 which I now extract such items of interest as relate to our present 

 area: "Throughout the whole of the county of Perth south of a 

 line from the Firth of Tay through the city of Perth, and thence to 

 Loch Earn and Tyndrum, it must by that time have been considered 

 extinct. One was killed at Dupplin Castle about 1852 by Mr. 

 William Pitcaithley, junior. The last killed in the district south of 

 Glen Dochart was by Malcolm iMacpherson, upon Ben More, near 

 Suie, in 1863 or 1864. It had been quite extinct for thirty years 

 in the valley of the Allan Water and between Stirling and Perth. 

 One was killed about that time (say 1850) on the east hill of 

 Gleneagles by Mr. Anderson, gamekeeper ; it was worried by dogs. 

 The last obtained in the Callander district was trapped in or about 

 1857, and is now preserved in Leny House, where I have seen it. 

 (Since I saw it, it has been restored or restuffed, and is in good pre- 

 servation.) Another was seen by Mr. J. B. Hamilton of Leny about 

 1827 or 1828, which was got in the same place, viz. in the Glen of 

 Leny. (This and the following strictly belong to the area of Forth.) 

 The keeper on Balquhidder killed Wild Cats among other vermin 

 about twenty -five years ago (say 1855), but they are extinct now 

 (1881). None have occurred on the Braes of Doune for many years 

 (Forth), and it appears to have become extinct in the Methven, 

 Crieff, and Lyndoch districts. For more than forty years none had 

 been seen around Blairgany in the Callander district. At Cromlix 

 the last was trapped by Mr. J. Macnaughton upwards of twenty 

 years ago (say 1857 or 1858); it was taken in Cambushinnie Wood 



^ Regarding the discovery of bones of the prehistoric Cat in a marl-pit in Forfarshire, 

 Dr. Edward Hamilton has written very fully in a paper in which he endeavours to trace 

 the real origin of the race. I do not attempt to enter here into such an obscure question, 

 but will merely refer my readers to his exhaustive statements {Annals Scot. Nat. Hist., 

 1807, p. 67). 



