34 GREAT TITMOUSE 
Lezayre,’ in which parish Mr. Kermode states the species 
was first noticed in 1890. In November 1893 Mr, Adams 
had in his hands a local specimen, and on Christmas day 
in that year I saw a party of half a dozen in the planta- 
tions near Tromode. On 18th February 1895 Mr. Crellin 
observed some, and Mr. Kermode, since its first record in 
Lezayre, has several times heard of it there during the 
winter. Mr. Leach (1903) says that he has three times 
met with it near Douglas. Though perhaps increasing, at 
least as a winter visitor, it is evidently still uncommon. 
Though a pretty general species in Great Britain, it 
is practically unknown in the further islands of Scotland. 
In Ireland generally it is well distributed, and probably 
increasing. It is resident both in Galloway and north- 
western England, being in the latter at least more numerous 
in winter. Mr. Aplin has met with it in Lleyn in winter, 
and also in one instance in summer, and heard of it as 
common in one locality. 
PARUS MAJOR, Linn. GREAT TITMOUSE. 
BLACKCAP. 
Until recently this was the only Tit that could fairly be 
called common in the island ; it is well distributed, frequent- 
ing the neighbourhood of houses, shrubberies, gardens, and 
hedges, and mixing in plantations with Chaffinches and 
Goldcrests. Here, as elsewhere, it nests sometimes in 
curious situations, gaining it the notoriety of a newspaper 
paragraph. Mr, W. A. Stevenson tells me that in 1904 it 
bred in an old cannon on his lawn at Ballakeigan, a relic of 
the disastrous wreck on Langness, in 1867, of the James 
Crossfield. Mr. Allison relates that for many years a nest 
was regularly placed in the letter-box at Ballaglass, Maug- 
