BIRDS OF DUMFRIESSHIRE 29 
The Willow- Wren's winter-quarters are in the countries 
bordering the Mediterranean and in central and southern 
Africa. 
THE WOOD-WREN. 
Phylloscopus sihilatrix (Bechstein). 
Local name — Yellow Wren. 
A summer-visitant, very locally distributed. 
Sir William Jardine writing of the birds of the parish of 
Applegarth and Sibbaldbie in 1832, says of this species 
that it is " chiefly confined to the woods on Dryfe."* A 
specimen (probably collected prior to 1840) from the collec- 
tion of the Rev. W. Little, now in the possession of Mr. R. 
Service, is labelled : " Not very abundant. Inhabits tall 
trees in woods. A spring-visitant ; builds on the ground." 
Mr. R. Service in his paper on " The Sylviidae of Solway " 
states that the Wood- Wren " appears to be confined to oak 
and spruce plantations or their immediate vicinity. And 
yet all oak and spruce plantations do not harbour it, for 
I know many where it is not found. With us in Solway 
it occupies a rather narrow belt of country in contiguity 
to the bare hillside or sheep-farm district. Outside of this 
particular locaHty it is in rather isolated colonies, mostly 
in wooded glens of the small streams."t In mid-Nithsdale 
this species has been reported as more common than the 
Willow- Wren, and although I regard this statement as an 
exaggeration, it is of frequent occurrence both in this district 
and Upper Nithsdale, whence I have seen a clutch of seven 
eggs from Kirkconnel. Throughout Annandale it would 
appear to be very local, and in the lower part of Eskdale 
Mr. WiUiam Laidlaw writes me that it is "very scarce 
but still a few." 
* New Stat. Acct. Scot., Vol. IV., p. 179. 
t Trans. Nat. Hist. Soc. Glasg., 1905, Vol. VII., p. 143. 
