BIRDS. 



125 



Mr. J. G. Millais puts on record the obtaining of two adult — 

 male and female — Parrot-Crossbills and three young out of a flock 

 of about twenty birds. Mr. Millais tells us that at about one month 

 after leaving the nest, the young had beaks larger than the largest of 

 the Common CrosshiUs. He does not tell us that the mandibles were 

 or were not crossed. It had not been previously proved as a breed- 

 ing species in Scotland. This was first noticed in the old Proc. Perth 

 Sac. (vol. i. p. 182). 



Mr. Marshall claims to have got specimens of the Parrot-Cross- 

 bill, shot in the Five-mile "Wood, near Stanle3\ One in his collection 

 bears the authentication label, "Five-mile Wood, Stanley, 11th 

 November 1884," by James Leish — male; and two females got in 

 the same locality, 22nd December 1884, by John Gow. 



Loxia curvirostra, L. Common Crossbill.^ 



Resident. Very abundant, though scarcely to compare in numbers 

 with the population in Moray and along the Spey forests, and 

 north of the western Grampians beyond Dee, or north of the Cairn- 

 gorms at date of 1904. A rapidly increasing species wherever the 

 woods and plantations are reaching maturity and are becoming of 

 sufficient age to provide the necessities of their food-supplies, etc. 



An interesting note occurs in the old Statistical Account (vol. xx. 

 p. 439) to the effect that — "Since the Larix (larch-trees), on the 

 cones of which they live, has been cultivated, the Crossbill {Loxia 

 curvirostra) has appeared at Dunkeld." This date is interesting at 

 least as fixing a very approximate time of their first or early appear- 

 ance in Tay. This is followed by Don in 1813, and he speaks of the 

 destruction done during the past two years. 



In 1839 also there was an unusually abundant crop of cones on 

 the larch-trees in the Carse of Go\vrie, and that district was visited 

 by lOO's (hundreds) of Crossbills, and duly recorded by Col. 

 Drummond Hay, writing in 1877 ; and that gentleman added, "and 

 since 1839 I have never seen them in the same locality again'' ; and 

 further, "the canes Jmve n£ver hem in similar abundance." Col. 

 Drummond Hay also remarks upon " the enormous number of these 



Crossbills which I had left over from the disaster of my fire iu 1879 : viz. that fornitrly 

 I had a large series of Scottish Crossbills, and that every one of the sub-species 

 he has described were represented in the series, including what he has named Loxia 

 curvirostra Scotica.'' I think larger series still require examination, not forgetting a 

 series representing ages ! Also, do aft ages migrate? 



^ Recent!}' elevated to sub-specific rank by Hartert as Loxia ciirvirostra Scotica. 



