Ornithological Notes. 



333 



October ; another on the 16th of October, at Fenton Barns, 

 East-Lothian; a third by Sir George Leith, in Dumbarton- 

 shire, in the beginning of December ; and the last was shot 

 near Broughton, in Peeblesshire, on the 2d of December. 

 The stomach of one of these birds contained a field mouse, 

 and the remains of a small bird were found in the stomach 

 of another specimen. 



3. Picus major (Penn.), Great Spotted Woodpecker. 



This specimen was killed at Ninewar, East-Lothian, on 

 the 20th of October. It is considered to be one of our rarer 

 permanent residents, although some naturalists believe we 

 occasionally have an addition to the number of these birds 

 in early winter, from their migrations in Northern Europe. 



4. Thalassidroma pelagica (Delby), Stormy Petrel. 



On the same date, the 20th October, a Stormy Petrel 

 was caught, in a very weak state, near Liberton, close by 

 Edinburgh. 



5. Bombycilla garrula (Flem.), The Bohemian Wax wing. 

 This bird was shot at Archerfleld, East-Lothian, on the 

 21st November. Its stomach was found to be filled with 

 the fruit of the hawthorn. One was shot at the same place 

 forty years before. 



6. Astur palumbarius (Selby), The Goshawk. 

 The specimen exhibited w T as a young male, and was shot 

 near Tynehead, Mid-Lothian, on the 13th December. This 

 fine bird, now one of our rarest hawks, was formerly much 

 used in falconry, and flown at the larger game. It measured 

 1 foot 10 inches in length from beak to point of tail, and 3 

 feet 4 inches across the extended wings ; the length of 

 wing from the flexure to the point of the fourth, the longest 

 primary, was 13 inches. The closed wiugs are comparatively 

 short, reaching to about half the length of the tail. The 

 upper parts are of a dark rich reddish-brown colour, some 

 of the feathers being edged with lighter ; the head and nape 

 with feathers edged with light reddish brown. The tail 

 is 11 inches in length, with alternate bands of dark brown 

 and light greyish-brown — the terminal being of light greyish- 



