BIRDS. 



225 



upon Loch Tay — the only one he had ever seen. This was in 

 February 1901. 



Mr. W. Berry, Tayfield, Fife, gives the date of their earliest 

 appearance there — i.e. Tents Muir — as about September 29th in 1892 

 (Annals Scot. Nat. Hist, 1893, p. 158). 



In 1897 an unusual occurrence as regards date is recorded by 

 Mr. A. H. Meiklejohn, St. Andrews. He saw "a small flock, about 

 twenty in number, of ' Wild Geese ' fly over the Links at St. Andrews, 

 going in an easterly direction." The species was undetermined, but 

 supposed to be of this species, "which is common here in winter" 

 (Zool, 1st July 1897, p. 363). 



Albinos of the Pink-footed Goose were obtained by Mr. W. A. 

 Brown, and one was sent to me for identification. The albinism only 

 extended to the " nail " and toes. A subsequent examination by 

 Dr. Bowdler Sharpe, to whom a specimen was sent — the same I had 

 seen — resulted in his verification of my identification. I think 

 Mr. Brown shot either two or three out of a party, and reported 

 one or two more in the same lot. 



Large flocks used to remain in the fields of Cairnton and Pitarrow 

 as a resting place in autumn and spring (J. Milne's list). By a slip 

 he had assigned this note to the Bean Goose, which, it is now 

 scarcely necessary to point out, is not the Goose which usually 

 frequents inland pastures. 



[Obs. — Chen hyperboreus (Pall). Snow-Goose. 



"Four Snow-Geese," so Millais makes note, "arrived at Glencorse in Oct. 1889 

 and stayed for some weeks, feeding near, but apart from the Greylags. 

 0. Maclnnes tried hard to obtain one of them for me but failed to do so. 

 I have little doubt they belonged to the above-named species."] 



Anser albifrons (Scoj).). White-fronted Goose. 



Said to be rarer by 1880 than thirty or forty years ago — say than 

 in 1850 or 1840. 



One was shot in March 1878 at Inchbrackie by P. J. F. Graeme, 

 who still possesses it. One was seen in the flesh at Newburgh by 

 Mr. W. Evans ; weight about 4 or 5 lbs. 



It is marked "very rare; winter visitant," on the authority of 

 Dr. Dewar. 



An exanjination of several White-fronted Geese sent to me from 

 Tiree and the Outer Hebrides a year or two ago, convinced me that 

 the white appearing at the base of the under mandible was a decided 



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