72 
SYLVIA!)^. 
though they might have taken a much shorter cut, and had 
crept all that distance among the stones every time they 
brought food. The former passage having been destroyed by 
my clearing the gap, they thenceforth used my new passage. 
I accidentally left a feather lying near the nest, but it was 
immediately carried away to a distance of about twenty yards. 
I repeated the experiment four times, and each time with a 
precisely similar result. On the occasion of my first visit, the 
eyes of the young birds were just beginning to open, and food 
was carried by both parents as late as eleven o’clock at night. 
I have seen the eggs of a pure white, resembling those of 
the black redstart, but larger, and in one season I was led to 
remark in the “Zoologist” on an apparent exceptional preva- 
lence of the spotted variety, more than one-fourth of the whole 
number of eggs shown to me that year being of that kind. It 
afterwards turned out that these had been especially selected 
by the birds’ nesting boys, who were aware of my wish to 
obtain unusual varieties of eggs. 
Macgillivray considers it unusual for Wheatears to perch in 
trees or shrubs. This was, however, a constant habit with the 
species at Balta Sound, where I often used to see them in the 
little sycamores. I at first thought that the habit was more 
common with the young birds, but now believe that the 
greater abundance of the latter led me into error. Both old 
and young seem to prefer the topmost twigs. 
THE BLACKCAP WAEBLEE. 
Curruca atricainlla. 
This species has not hitherto been recorded as a visitor to 
any part of Shetland lying south of Unst ; doubtless it has been 
merely overlooked, many lc)calities, Gairdie and Busta, for 
instance, being better suited to its habits. It is only during 
the last few years that I have observed it. Now, however, a few 
— males, females, and young — appear regularly in the gardens 
