250 
PROCEEDINGS OP THE PERTHSHIRE SOCIETY OP NATURAL SCIENCE. 
to creep and hop about amongst the plants which grow 
below the window where I am writing. Of the titmice, 
two, if not three, species occur, and occasionally nest—an 
old pump was a favourite place for their nesting, the birds 
entering by the spout. If any one wishes to see titmice to 
advantage, let them stretch a cord in sight of the window, 
and hang on to it some bits of suet or bones. The titmice 
will soon find these out, and their antics as they come to 
feed are very amusing. Often they run along the under¬ 
side of the cord with body and head hanging downwards. 
The species seen are the great titmouse and the blue 
titmouse. The tree-creeper is another bird that is 
more interesting from its habits than its beauty, 
It gets its name from the manner in which it creeps about 
the bark of trees, peering into every cranny for its insect 
prey. When ascending the bole of a tree, its tail is used 
to assist its claws in climbing. It is not common in the 
garden, and I have not seen the nest. Merely mention¬ 
ing the wren and the pied wagtail, neither of which are 
common with me, we must devote a line to the spotted 
flycatcher on account of the frequency with which it 
selects the same spot for its nest year after year. One 
pair only nests here, and their favourite place is a quite 
exposed hollow in the trunk of an old pear tree against a 
wall. There is not the very slightest attempt to conceal 
the nest, and as it is directly exposed to the sun, the bird 
when sitting in it must be nearly roasted. 
Swallows and house-martins are frequent. There are 
always several nests of the former, and though I have not 
found the nests of the latter, I think there must be some 
close at hand. Of late years the house-martin seems to be 
getting commoner in Perthshire than it used to be; and if 
this is so, I do not know the reason. A very pretty sight 
that I saw one autumn was that of two or three hundred 
martins sunning themselves on the roof of the house pre¬ 
paratory to their migration. 
Passing over the greenfinch, chaffinch, and linnet, all of 
which nest in the garden, the house-sparrow deserves a 
word of mention. When I came to this house, sparrows 
were not common here, nor were they for some years. 
One day a travelling threshing-mill came to the farm be¬ 
hind the garden, and with it came a lot of sparrows, and 
ever since that time they have been more abundant here, 
though not so common as they are in the streets of the 
town. 
The yellow-hammer is rare, but every year during the 
nesting season a pair may frequently be seen at one corner 
of a hedge, and from the constancy with which they come 
to this spot it is probable that they are the same in¬ 
dividuals. 
Starlings are abundant, and very pretty a flock of them 
looks as they diligently hunt for food on the lawn, their 
iridescent plumage glittering in the sunshine; but their 
waddling gait looks awkward in contrast with the active 
hops of the blackbird and thrush. Jackdaws and rooks 
are also common, and scarcely deserve special mention, 
except to point out that the latter seem rather crotchety in 
selecting nesting-places. There are, as you know, numbers 
of nests in various places in Bridgend, but though there 
are many suitable trees here, the rooks have never, except 
on one occasion, attempted to build, and then they never 
completed the nest. 
The swift, heron, sparrowhawk, and blackheaded gull 
can be included in this list only on account of their more 
or less frequent passage over the garden; and the cuckoo 
ought perhaps not to find a place either, as I have not seen 
it. As, however, I have heard it on various sides, it may 
possibly come into the garden sometimes. Considering 
how abundant this bird is on some of the moorlands of 
Perthshire, it is a little curious how comparatively scarce 
it is near Perth. 
Woodpigeons—so common in the woods on the hill— 
rarely come into the garden, and only when compelled by 
stress of weather and want of food. Then they do come, 
and the vegetables suffer in consequence. Of game birds, 
partridges and pheasants are not unfrequent visitors, but 
rarely stay for any length of time. 
As I write, I am enabled to add another bird to the 
garden fauna, having just seen a redwing on the grass in 
front of the window. 
The last bird that remains to be noticed is the corncrake. 
Though its note is so harsh, there is something pleasing in 
it from its association with the sweet evenings of early 
summer. Though essentially a country bird, I have yet 
heard it within a few yards of Perth Bridge, and it is a 
regular summer visitant, if not to the garden, yet to the 
close vicinity. One day when writing at this window I 
was much surprised to see a corncrake running along close 
to the house, and trying, or appearing to try, to look in at 
the windows. 
I feel that a word of apology is due to you for having 
occupied so much of your time with an account of the bird 
fauna of my own garden. My excuse must be the desire 
to show how much pleasure can be derived from a study 
of the bird life of even a limited town garden. 
Of the birds that occur in the district beyond the muni¬ 
cipal boundaries much need not be said. The kingfisher I 
have seen once at the Willowgate. The capercailzie and 
woodcock nest on the hill. In the cliffs the swift, 
jackdaw, and kestril find a congenial home; and there is 
