BIRDS OF DUMFRIESSHIRE 
a female, bearing a ring which proved that it had been 
marked at Netherby,* in the spring of 1908, was shot about 
February 17th, 1909, in the estuary of the Nith. 
Possibly off -shoots from this, so to speak, " acclimatized 
stock " may soon be found nesting within the Kmits of our 
county. The Pintail has of recent years nested on Loch 
Leven, and is beheved to be extending its breeding-range. 
Throughout northern Europe it nests abundantly, migrating 
southwards in winter. 
In a wild state the Pintail has been known to hybridise 
with the Mallard, and Sir WiUiam Jardine in 1843 writes : 
We have seen a hybrid between it and the mallard purchased 
from a poulterer in Dumfries, who procured it in a wild state ; 
this bird is now in the coUection of W. T. Carruthers, Esq., 
of Dormont. It combined the resemblance of the form 
and plumage of the pintail, but with a few minor 
differences ; the curled feathers of the tail were completely 
developed, as much so as in an adult mallard."t I liave 
been unable to ascertain whether this was a Dumfriesshire 
bird or not, and Major F. J. Carruthers, of Dormont, writes 
me that he knows nothing whatever about the specimen. 
THE TEAL. Nettion crecca (Linnseus). 
Local name — Jay-Teal. 
A common resident, whose numbers are increased by immigrants in autumn 
and winter. 
Both the Statistical Accounts of Scotland contain 
many local references to the abundance of Teal ; Lochar 
Moss and the Castle and Hightae Lochs (Lochmaben), 
being especiaUy mentioned. The drainage of many of its 
* Ann. Scot. Nat. Hist., 1909, p. 247. 
t Nat. Lib., 1843, Vol. XIV., p. 121. 
