PROCEEDINGS—PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE, lxxxiii 
donor believes that this bird found its way to this country in a wild 
state, and that it is not, as might be supposed, an escape from some 
artificial pond. 
Two specimens of Grouse, Lagopus scoticus, Lath., male and female, 
in the position of flight, have been placed in the Deer Case. Both 
birds are suspended by fine wires, and produce a pleasing effect, 
appearing to rise from the “ mimic moor/’ The Society is indebted 
to Mr. Charles Kirk for the suggestion and gift. 
A number of the fresh-water fishes preserved in spirits have been 
replaced by fresh examples, which have been mounted in formalin. 
The good condition of the fishes mounted in a five per cent, solution 
of formalin in 1895 shows the excellence of this preparation as 
compared with spirit for preserving fish. 
To the Mammal Case has at last been added a specimen of the 
very rare Polecat, Mustela putorius , Lin. This specimen was killed in 
Rannoch about thirty-three years ago, and is in excellent condition. 
The last record of the Polecat in Perthshire, so far as I can find, was 
in 1880, when two specimens were killed at Edinchip. A number 
of valuable additions were made to the Lepidoptera and Diptera 
collections during the past year. 
The geological reference and duplicate material has now been 
arranged and stored in the cabinets below the geological exhibition 
cases in the gallery. 
Index Museum .—The systematic Bird Collection in the north 
wall case of this Museum is now complete, with the exception of a 
few rare birds. The classification adopted is that given by Evans in 
the Cambridge A T atural History. The object of the collection is to 
exhibit an example of each family of both recent and extinct birds. 
Under each family is a card with a small map of the world, on 
Mercator’s projection, on which is indicated, by a wash of red colour, 
the distribution in space of the living members of the group, while 
the distribution in time of the extinct forms is indicated in blue. 
A number of the larger birds, for which there would not be space 
in the cases, are represented by Gambier Bolton’s excellent photo¬ 
graphs, which give a good idea of the characteristic attitudes of the 
birds. Reduced illustrations from Prof. Marsh’s “ Monograph on 
the Extinct American Birds ” have been introduced to represent the 
extinct forms, while a cast has been purchased of the famous 
Archceopterix lithographica , a fossil bird with reptilian affinities, the 
original of which is in the Berlin Museum. These, with the Moa, 
represent the more important extinct forms. The case is strong in 
South American and Indian species. A series of Humming Birds 
from Ecuador illustrates the wonderful variety in size, colour, form 
of bill, tail, etc., as well as difference in sex, to be found in this 
interesting group. 
Two cabinets have been placed in the spaces under the Nest 
Cases in the Perthshire Museum. Externally these are finished so 
as to appear as part of the case, while internally they are fitted with 
sliding trays of varying depths, which are interchangeable. In course 
of time the whole of the available space below the Nest cases will be 
utilised in this way, the cabinets being used for the accommodation 
