130 



BIRDS. 



Emberiza citrinella, L. Yellow Bunting. 



Resident. Very abundant. Breeds. Probably the most abundant 

 among our small birds with the exception of the Chaffinch, vrhich, 

 besides being more abundant, has also a more general dispersal. 



It is particularly noticeable, and I have often been struck with 

 the fact, that the yellow portions of the plumage of this species, and 

 especially those of the males, become brighter and purer according 

 to the selected haunts of the birds in springs and during the breeding 

 season. Thus birds seen perched upon the twigs and tops of broom 

 and furze in bloom are conspicuously brilliant, vicing indeed with the 

 vividness of the gamboge yellow of the blossoms. 



[Emberiza cirlus, L. Cirl Bunting. 



Of extremely doubtful occurrence. 



I have seen eggs said to belong to this species, which " was breeding in 

 numbers upon Kinnoull Hill,' but on my holding these up to the light, I 

 completely failed to find any trace of the ground-colour which I have always 

 associated with the ground-colour of this buxVs eggs, as distinguished from that 

 of the closely allied Yellow Bunting's eggs. I do not insist that the eggs of 

 the two species never run into the colorations of one another ; but in the 

 absence of irrefragable evidence I decline to enter the species in the Tay fauna 

 except in brackets. I simply adhere to these facts, without going into any 

 arguments about the ridiculous supposition that a bird like the Cirl Bunting 

 should breed in an isolated colony in Scotland so far away from its home in 

 the southernmost counties of England. Such indeed, if fact, would afford 

 much rumination to students of geographical distribution.] 



Emberiza hortulana, L. Ortolan Bunting. 



Rare. Occasional visitant. 



Ornithologists know what a restricted area this species has as 

 breeding haunts in Great Britain. 



Messrs. R. and J. Henderson, of Dundee, writing to me on May 

 2, 1898, enclosed one in the flesh along with a Pied Flycatcher, a 

 Whinchat, and a Redstart. In my absence from home at that season, 

 these were forwarded by my directions to Mr. Eagle Clarke at the 

 Museum of Science and Art, Edinburgh (now the Royal Scottish 

 Museum). The Messrs. Henderson wrote as follows : "During all 

 last week we have had an almost Uninterrupted Strong Easterly Gale 

 prevailing " (the italics are mine, as also the introduced capitals, as 

 these words, to my mind, represent migrational values), "varying," 

 continues my correspondent, "from SSE. to E. and NE,, which has 



