THE BLACK IHIH). 
G5 
garden fifty yards square, liaunted by seven spoiled cats, what 
bird can have a chance of hatching in peace ? It is most 
plentiful in October and April, although a few males remain 
throughout the winter, in those few localities which suit their 
habits. In spring and autumn considerable numbers frequent 
the shore, seeming as happy and as lively among the scattered 
rocks as among the thickets and hedge-rows at home, and quite 
as jealous of intruders. Althougli apparently thus partial to 
the shore, it gi’eatly dislikes tlie damp sea-breezes so prevalent 
in these islands. At such times I have, by way of experiment, 
chased the birds round the little garden for twenty minutes or 
more before tliey would rise above the wall. In severe weather 
they scrape away the snow under the bushes in their search for 
food ; and when the ground is too thickly covered, they betake 
themselves to farm -yards and enclosures where ponies and 
cattle feed, humbly picking up such small chips of turnip as 
may happen to drop during the process of eating. In very 
hard weather I have known them seek shelter in pigeon-boxes, 
even in the daytime. In the month of October they arrive in 
small but distinct flocks, the number of males exceeding that 
of the females by about one-third. These flocks soon disperse, 
each bird providing independently for itself. 
THE RING OUZEL. 
Turdus torquatus. 
Messrs Baikie and Heddle include this species in their cata- 
logue of the birds of Orkney as “ an occasional winter visitant,” 
but the instances quoted all occurred in April and October, the 
tw'o months in which it is usually observed in Shetland. Single 
individuals or small parties mostly occur in spring, but in 
autumn we are generally visited by females, each accompanied 
by two or more young birds. They seldom remain longer than 
a couple of days, unless the rowan-berries in the gardens happen 
to be plentiful, Exanqfles killed in autumn are always 
E 
