92 



BIRDS. 



— pierced by small birds. This refers to the present autumn (1905). 

 I believe that the skin of the fruit was pierced in some cases by 

 Titmice whilst in search of small insects, and the abrasions thus 

 made were seized upon afterwards by wasps. The appearance of 

 some — the ripest — certainly showed the after-attacks of wasps quite 

 clearly, the skin remaining drooping over the cavity, and the flesh 

 of the fruit being hollowed out around. The attacks of Blackbirds 

 (and Starlings 1) left a quite different appearance. There was no 

 overhanging of the skin of the fruit, but the holes were made 

 directly down through both skin and flesh, and the bill-marks of 

 birds were quite apparent and easily traced. 



During his visit to the Killin district in August 1905, Mr. W. 

 Evans remarked upon the number of this species in that vicinity, 

 and considered their numbers to be greater than those of the 

 Cole-Tit. 



[Lophophanes cristatus (L.). Crested Tit.^ 



The old and oft-repeated statement of birds seen in the Pass of Killiecrankie 

 has never been verified ; and I completely agree with the late Col. Drummond 

 Hay, when he expresses the opinion that that locality was quite unsuited to 

 the requirements of such a pine-loving bird, and that he would sooner have 

 expected to hear of its presence in the old Black Wood of Rannoch. Were 

 the Crested Tit conspicuous as a migratory bird — as none of the genus or 

 immediate allies can be said to be — such an occurrence might become pos- 

 sible ; or if at one time within reach of our knowledge there had been any 

 old decadent haunts of the species in any part of Perthshire or south of the 

 Grampians, it would also become possible that the Roving habits of the bird, 

 which it holds in common with its congeners, might lead it from such 

 haunts as far northwards and upwards to these birch-clad slopes of Killie- 

 crankie. But this is all against our more recent teaching. It is essentially 

 a bird of the pine or the immediate neighbourhood of the pine woods. 



Likewise— though I regret to throw doubt upon records made in all 

 sincerity of belief and purpose, when men were young — for the sake of truth 

 I must still further criticise several past records of the occurrence of this bird 

 which have been often quoted. There is, I think, an account of its occur- 

 rence, or of a casual appearance, somewhere near Dumfries, but I cannot lay 

 hand upon the reference at present. I may, however, safely leave that in the 

 hands of Mr. Robert Service, when he comes to complete his volume upon 

 the fauna of Solway. It may be possible that, just as at one time isolated 

 small colonies of Crossbills were known to frequent certain portions of pine- 

 growth in that district, a far south remnant of Crested Tits survived ; but 

 I prefer not to accept that theory unproved, or in the absence of stronger 



^ Mr. E. Hartert assigns this bird now in synonymy to Farm cristatus scoticus 

 (Prazaki). 



