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PROCEEDINGS OF THE PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCE. 
ends (Clausilia ruyosa). The appearance they present 
is rather curious, as the shell is carried sticking out from 
the surface of the rock at an oblique angle, and not only 
the rocks, but the stems of many of the trees are serrated 
with these tiny spear points, On one rock, which I need 
not particularise, are found some shells belonging to an 
allied species, which are considerably larger, paler, and 
more glossy (G. laminata). This little colony, confined 
within an area of not many square yards, presents one of 
those problems of geographical biology which are so diffi¬ 
cult to solve, as we should have to travel southwards for 
200 or 300 miles before we came upon another colony of 
the same species. Is this isolated group the last remnant 
of a more extended distribution of the species, or is it the 
result of some individual specimens naturally or artificially 
introduced ? And if the climate is suited to its habits, 
why is it not found in other parts of Scotland? We are 
indebted to Dr Buchanan White for the discovery on 
Kinnoull Hill of this most interesting species. 
We shall now conclude our hasty excursion by going 
down to the rocks at the foot of the hill. Here we 
meet with another example of isolated distribution, not 
so remarkable as the last, but yet presenting some in¬ 
teresting features. The snail which, in England, is by 
far the most abundant of the shell - bearing species, is 
almost entirely confined, in Scotland, to the maritime 
districts. A colony of this species (Helix aspersa ) at the 
foot of Kinnoull Hill presents one of the exceptions to 
this, and a still more remarkable exception is to be found 
in the case of a specimen which I lately learned had been 
met with by the side of Loch Tay. This single specimen 
probably owes introduction into the Breadalbane High¬ 
lands to some accidental circumstance, but it seems to me 
just possible that the occurrence of the Barnhill colony 
may point to a time when the surface of the country was 
at a lower level than it now is, when the Tay at this 
point was a broad, brackish estuary, and when the con¬ 
ditions of the district were distinctly maritime. That 
such estuarine conditions did once obtain, we have ample 
evidence from the marine diatoms of the Carse clays, 
of which we had an account in the interesting paper 
lately read by Dr Trotter. 
Although we have been examining chiefly the rocks and 
stones, it must not be inferred that these form the only 
habitats of land mollusca. There is one genus in particular 
whose favourite hiding-place is underneath loose tufts of 
damp moss (Zonites). Of this genus seven species are 
found on Kinnoull Hill. These are characterised by their 
flat coiled shells, which are semi-transparent, and generally 
amber or pale horn coloured. One species makes its 
presence known by the powerful odour of garlic which it 
emits. 
Fresh-water shells are, of course, but meagrely repre¬ 
sented in one or two pools at the top of the hill, unless 
we include the River Tay, which flows at its foot, and 
forms one of its boundaries. 
[The List of Species will be found at the end of the series 
of papers .] 
VII.—The Vertebrates. 
By Dr Buchanan White, F.L.S. 
A district such as Kinnoull, presenting a varied mixture 
of gardens and cultivated fields, woodland and rocky de¬ 
clivities, is, as may be supposed, not destitute of a rather 
large population of birds and the smaller mammals, though 
at the same time it is rather too near the abodes of men 
for the wilder denizens of the fields and woods. The most 
interesting point of this portion of our subject lies in the 
comparatively large number of species that occur actually 
within the boundaries of the town itself, and within less 
than half-a-mile from St John's Church, round which 
Perth has been built. In this account, therefore, of the 
vertebrate animals of the district, it seems desirable to 
chiefly notice those that have been observed within the 
municipal boundaries. Of these I have seen by far the 
greater part in my own garden, which, though not more 
than about three acres in extent, has a rather large fauna, 
which, however, it doubtless shares with other gardens in 
the neighbourhood. 
To begin with the mammals. We have about nineteen 
species in the district, and of these no less than thirteen or 
fourteen occur within the town boundaries. Of these, three 
—the common bat or pipistrelle, the brown rat, and the 
house mouse—are ubiquitous, and require nothing further 
than mere mention. The long-eared bat I have not actually 
seen, but I believe that certain shrill squeaks which may 
be heard after dark on autumn nights indicate its presence. 
The hedgehog is of common occurrence, and 6eems to be 
permanently resident. Some years ago I gave the Society 
a short account of the winter nest of one in my “ rock- 
garden." For two successive years there was a winter 
nest in the same spot, but whether made by the same 
individual it is impossible to say. This year, however, I 
have not seen it. Squirrels—whose graceful movements 
