39 
The Greenshank (Totanus glottis). 
Sparingly distributed along all the shores in autumn and 
winter. In the months of August and September we have seen it 
ascending the courses of our larger streams, and coming to a dis¬ 
tance from the sea-coast. Two very fine specimens now before us 
were shot by Dr Anderson in the pebbly bed of Girvan Water, on 
Enoch Farm, some years ago. 
The Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa rufa). 
In the Bay of Luce and also in Wigtown Bay this bird 
finds an agreeable resting-place in its flight southwards at the 
close of summer. On the coast of Ayrshire, however, it is much 
seldomer observed, probably from the fact of the western 
migratory flocks coming down from the Hebrides, and taking 
the southern point of Scotland as their guide to the Solway 
Firth, where considerable numbers remain during the whole of 
the winter months. 
Obs. —The Black-tailed Godwit {Limosa melanura) has occurred 
on two occasions on the confines of our district. One was shot 
on the Renfrewshire side of the Clyde estuary on 25th November, 
1867; another was killed on the Castle Semple Estate, near Loch- 
winnoch, in the last week of August, 1869. 
The Ruff {Machetes pugnax). 
So far as we can judge, this species is rare in any part of our 
district. The Solway Firth appears to check its progress north¬ 
ward in autumn, or rather to divert the line of its flight eastward 
through the southern portion of the counties of Roxburgh and 
Berwick to the shores of Haddington and Fife. The Ruff has 
occurred in Renfrewshire, and we lately heard of a specimen 
having been shot near Kilbirnie, in Ayrshire—an inland situation. 
The female is apt to be overlooked by ordinary sportsmen, owing 
to its small size. 
The Woodcock {Scolopax rusticola). 
A common winter visitant. It arrives generally in September, 
and leaves in April. Many of these birds are taken in lighthouses 
about the time they pass northward. We have not yet heard of 
the nest having been taken in any part of our district. 
