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POR oe Pe Pee AEE, Agee, lente) 7 q a ‘~ « he ; » : ' . 4 ; 7 4 > . i" » a 1 - , . . - “ ah. j ‘ I x ot 5 a) y ‘ ~ ‘ i e fe’ « % * ‘ r é . . it 7 Coe . k: ns B A (og ae ; rt he Pale ay or" iy | ‘ ‘hos bade i) \ 4 = . _ THE ZOOLOGIST FOR 1849. > . 2333—2636. Appendix i—Ixi on Spl awey abCiaee LONDON: PRINTED BY E, NEWMAN, DEVONSHIRE STREET, BISHOPSGATE. THE ZAUOLOGIST: A POPULAR MISCELLANY OF NATURAL HISTORY. CONDUCTED BY EDWARD NEWMAN, F.LS., ZS., &c. —— VOLUME THE SEVENTH. LONDON: JOHN VAN VOORST, PATERNOSTER ROW. M.DCCC.XLIX. _ Thy desire, which tends to know The works of God, thereby to glorify The great Workmaster, leads to no excess That reaches blame, but rather merits praise The more it seems excess ; * x * * * * * * For wonderful indeed are all his works, Pleasant to know, and worthiest to be all Had in remembrance always with delight.”—MIttTon. PREFACE. SEVEN years have passed away since the ‘ Zoologist’ commenced its career: a Seventh Volume is this day complete. It may truly be said that each volume has exceeded its predecessor in interest and in value. It remains to be seen whether this progressive improvement can continue: my own opinion favours the idea that it can and will. Nature is a treasury so inexhaustible, that the greater the number and the greater the zeal of those who draw on her stores, the greater will be the yield of new and valuable facts: and most true it is that the number of observers, and consequently of observations, increases day by day, month by month, year by year. ‘The ques- tion, cuz bono ?—the inquiry whether an increase of pounds, shillings and pence, of food and raiment, result from our labours,—is not now brought so prominently forward as it used to be: it is considered not altogether unprofitable that the mind as well as the body should be clothed and fed, and there are many, even among the wisest, who advocate a search for mental food and clothing amid the works of the great Creator. The number of such advocates must increase: the education which is now given tends to a more just appreciation of corporeal and mental advantages, and even regards the possession of pecuniary wealth rather as a means of obtaining mental wealth than as the ultimate goal of the race we are running. The study of Nature is amongst the most healthy and invigorating of mental occupations ; the love of the study is instinctive; the mind, even in childhood, revels in it; and it is not until the authority exercised over us by others, or avarice and ambition germinating in ourselves, have sug- gested more worldly-profitable occupations, that we abandon the v1 PREFACE. Heaven- planted love of birds and butterflies, roses and honeysuckles : the lisping infant gathering buttercups and daisies bears its testimony to the force of this instinctive impulse, which always, when un- checked, “ grows with our growth, and strengthens with our strength.” I have said that the present volume exceeds those which have preceded it in interest and value: the merit of this improvement is entirely due to my contributors; my own labours have been even lighter than heretofore, and my communications, in almost every instance, have emanated from observations made by my friends. Although the merit of the present volume does not consist so much in the discovery of novelties as in the continuous stream of observations on well-known species, yet, in accordance with custom, I shall assign to the novelties the most prominent place. In Mammalia, we have the occurrence of a new Bat, supposed to be Vespertilio pruinosus ; it was caught by some people digging pota- toes in the island of South Ronaldsha; and Mr. Wolley, the gentle- man who communicated the fact (Zool. 2343), seems content to regard the species as purely North-American, although he does not attempt to account for its presence in the Orkneys: the subject requires more minute investigation. Many months ago I mentioned the occurrence of a Seal (Zool. 1870) in the Orwell river, which was supposed to belong to a species pre- viously unknown in.Britain. Mr. Ransome, whose zeal for Natural History has been laudably displayed in founding the Ipswich Museum, has most kindly forwarded me drawings and admeasurements of this unique specimen, together with the information that the skull has been submitted to Professor Owen, who pronounces it to be that of the Crested Seal (Phoca cristata, Zoo). 2380). In Birds, five additions have been made to the number of species occurring in the British Isles. One of these has hitherto been es- teemed East Indian, three North American, and one European: their respective claims to a place in our catalogue must be adjudicated PREFACE. Vil after a dispassionate consideration of the facts narrated by the several correspondents to whose communications I shall refer, and I hope that in every instance the reader will form his own opinion, unin- fluenced by mine. Mr. Cater announces (Zool. 2391) that two specimens of the Minor Grackle (Gracula religiosa) had been seen on the coast of Norfolk, and that one of these had been shot, and formed part of his collection. Knowing this bird to be a native of India, and never having heard of its occurrence in England, I ventured, in an editorial note, to suggest that the pair had escaped from an aviary. In contravention of this suggestion, Mr. Cater subsequently urges (Zool. 2496) that there were a pair, and not a single bird; that they were first observed within a hundred yards of the sea; that the birds were evidently exhausted, as if with a flight across the sea; and that no aviary likely to contain such birds exists within twenty miles of the spot where they were seen. A specimen of the Greater Northern Shrike (Lantus borealis) has been shot at Aberdeen, at the commencement of the present year, as recorded (Zool. 2495) by the Rev. James Smith. Professor Macgil- livray, who determined the species, observed, at a meeting of natural- ists in Aberdeen, that he believed this to be the first and only instance of this North-American bird having been noticed in Britain, or even in Europe. In this, however, I believe this learned ornithologist is mistaken, as several other instances of its occurrence have come to my knowledge since the publication of Mr. Smith’s paper. Copious information on the subject, together with one or more carefully en- graved figures, will appear in an early number of the ‘ Zoologist.’ A bird has re-appeared which fifty years ago passed current as Bri- tish, but which has been almost unanimously rejected by later authors. To use the words of a correspondent, “ Mr. Yarrell altogether ignores it, and other modern ornithologists only mention the reports for the purpose of doubting them.” I allude to the Hairy Woodpecker (Picus villosus). Lewin gives this bird as British on the authority of a Mr. Bolton, who met with it at Halifax; but subsequent authors have suggested that Halifax in Nova Scotia, and not Halifax in Yorkshire, Vill PREFACE. was the locality which Mr. Bolton intended to indicate, and thus infer that this North-American bird has only been met with on its own ground. Be this as it may, other naturalists besides Lewin fully be- lieved that it had occurred in England; and a specimen shot at Whitby at the beginning of the present year, and placed in the hands of Mr. Higgins, who fully describes it in the July number (Zool. 2496), renders the older accounts perfectly credible, and entitles them, in my opinion, to be regarded as satisfactory. Mr. Higgins was not aware of the species, and naturalists are greatly indebted to Mr. Bird for de- termining its name (Zool. 2527). The volume for 1848 contained a record (Zool. 2067) by Mr. Curt- ler, of the occurrence of the Summer or Tree Duck (Dendronessa sponsa) at Tenbury, in Worcestershire. This interesting announcement did not seem to attract the attention it deserved, probably from a sus- picion that some mistake might have occurred in naming the species. In the present volume, Mr. Hulke, of Deal, records (Zool. 2353) that two male specimens of this beautiful North-American duck were shot on the 6th and 8th of November, 1848, on the coast of Kent,—one at Walmer, the other at Marsh Side, Chislet; and Mr. Newton states (Zool. 2382) that two males and a female were killed at Livermere, near Thetford, on the 24th of October, in the same year, and that _ some others were subsequently seen: this gentleman, however, sug- gests that they had escaped from a preserve, a remark which calls from Mr. Hulke (Zool. 2421) the observation that the Kentish speci- mens were shot within two hundred yards of the sea, that they were in perfect plumage and were not pinioned. The occurrence of this remarkably conspicuous duck on the southern coast, between the dates mentioned above, namely, October 24th and November 8th, 1848, was noticed anonymously in several local papers; but I concluded, and, as it now appears, somewhat too hastily, that a wrong name was assigned to the species. It would therefore seem that certain individuals of this duck made their appearance on the south-eastern coast at the usual migrating period of the duck tribe ; but whether they were spon- taneous visitors from their far distant home, or mere escapes, it will perhaps be impossible to determine. PREFACE. 1x In the November number of the ‘ Annals and Magazine of Natural History’ is a notice, by Sir William Jardine, of the occurrence of Scolopax Brehmi in Scotland, unaccompanied by any expression of doubt as to this bird being specifically distinct from the common snipe. Turning, however, to Temminck’s Manual (part iv. p. 433), I find that eminent ornithologist totally discards the idea that the vari- ation in the number of tail-feathers, among specimens of the common snipe, constitutes a specific difference. Writing of Scolopax Brehmi, he says, “ I] n’est guére possible de trouver dans les formes, ni dans la coloration du plumage, aucune difference constante ou remarquable entre celui-ci et les individus pourvus de quatorze pennes a la queue.” S. Brehmi has sixteen feathers in the tail, S. Gallinago fourteen, and S. Delamotti only twelve. The variation is of common occurrence, and the birds so varying are always found in company with those having the normal number. The difference, not only in number, but in the size and comparative length of the tail-feathers in snipes, is well known to ornithological sportsmen: the last-named discrepancy occurs particularly at this period of the year (October 9th and 10th), when the autumnal moult has scarcely become complete. I am in- debted to Mr. Tomes for a copy of Sir William Jardine’s commu- nication (Zool. 2621): that gentleman’s inquiry is answered by the above quotation from Temminck. The last addition to our British birds is a new species of warbler (Sylvia Orphea), the occurrence of which at Wetherby, in Yorkshire, is recorded by Mr. Milner in the October number (Zool. 2588). It is very remarkable that this Italian songster should have been first de- tected as British so far north as Yorkshire. Viewed as an addition to our Fauna, this is perhaps the most interesting of the species I have enumerated ; first, because no doubt whatever can be thrown on its genuineness as a voluntary migrant ; secondly, because it was evidently nesting here; and thirdly, because its occasional occurrence in the alpine regions of central Europe renders its re-appearance here a matter of probability. In Ornithology there are four other incidents of so much interest that I think it right to invite more particular attention to them. The b x PREFACE. first relates to the Cuckoo, and was obligingly communicated by Mr. Yarrell: it is related by Mr. Newby (Zool. 2589) that a yellow hammer’s nest, on a Saturday, contained some young birds just hatched; on the Sunday the old bird was found sitting in the same nest on the solitary egg of a cuckoo, and the young yellow hammers were lying dead on the ground: there is no evidence to show that the parent yellow hammer or parent cuckoo turned the young ones out of the nest; but it is quite certain that their forcible ejection was not served on them by a young cuckoo hatched in the same nest, which is the hypothesis almost universally received. The second fact is the hybernating of Swallows in fissures of the rock at Hastings, related by Mr. Fitton (Zool. 2590), and this in such immense quantities as to fill three railway barrows: this seems to realize the views of our older naturalists; but the facts relative to migration are so well known that we must ever regard migration as the rule, hybernation the exception. The third incident is the appearance of the Great Bustard on Salis- bury Plain, as recorded by Mr. Waterhouse (Zool. 2590), who supposes the bird to have been a female: this supposition is extremely proba- ble, as the males have been long known to leave the task of incuba- tion and the cares of education to the females, while they migrate southward at the approach of autumn. Although the bustard is so large and heavy a bird, it is quite capable of long-continued flight ; and, being extremely abundant in Spain and many parts of France, it is not at all unlikely that it would frequently visit our shores in the summer, if allowed to remain in peace; but there is now so great a desire to obtain ornithological rarities when they occur, that so con- spicuous a bird as the bustard has little chance of escape. The only other occurrence I shall mention is the woodchat (Zanius rufus), one of our very rarest British birds, at the Scilly Isles, a notice of which is communicated (Zool. 2620) by my very obliging contributor, Mr. Rodd; and from his description of the specimen there is scarcely a doubt that it was a bird of the year, and bred in this country. In British Reptiles nothing remarkable has occurred; but I have been favoured with a communication, published in the February PREFACE. xl number (Zool. 2356), announcing the present existence of huge marine animals closely related to the Enaliosauri of by-gone ages, that ap- pears to me in all respects the most interesting Natural-History fact of the present century, completely overturning as it does some of the most favourite and fashionable hypotheses of geological science. ‘The published opinion of M. Agassiz (Zool. 2395) certainly favours the idea that Enaliosaurians may still exist: he says it would be in pre- cise conformity with analogy that an animal should exist in the Ame- rican seas which has long been extinct and fossilized in the eastern hemisphere: he instances the gar-pike of the western rivers, and says that, in a recent visit to Lake Superior, he has detected several fishes belonging to genera now extinct in Europe. Scarcely less remarkable is the record of the actual capture and admeasurement of enormous Fishes, allied to the rays, in the Gulf of Mexico. Some of these extraordinary creatures appear to have been at least 23 feet in width, and, including the tail, double that length. The communication on this subject is from Captain C. B. Hamilton, of H.M.S. Frolic, and was most kindly handed me for publication (Zool. 2357) by his brother, Captain Hamilton, Secretary to the Ad- miralty. This valuable record elicited another on the same subject from Mr. Guyon, who relates (Zool. 2396) that a similar monster ray had been seen by Captain Triscott, when in H.M.S. Diana, in the Gulf of Mexico. In an anonymous pamphlet, published during the present year, and containing recitations of most of the newspaper accounts of Sea-Serpents, the authors relate an instance of a ray having been taken near Guadaloupe, which measured twenty feet across the back. These huge fishes bask on the surface of the ocean only in fine summer weather, and move the continuous lateral fins gently up and down. Such a creature, fifty feet in length, seen on the surface, with the sharp pointed head above water, and the long line of fin offering its undulations alone to view, is far more likely to have been denominated a sea-serpent than the floating spars, sharks, sea-weeds and seals, which last year were contending for the honour. In the Appendix, a part of the work commencing with the present xii PREFACE. volume, Mr. Couch has described (App. xxvi), under the name of Brama pinna-squamata, a new species of bream, taken on the coast of Cornwall, and (App. xxix), under the name of Scomber punctatus, a new species of mackerel, taken in a seine off Looe, on the 6th of July, 1848. These are valuable additions to the Ichthyology of Britain. In Insects, as usual, we have had the greatest amount of novelty ; and the most elaborate papers, as was the case last year, relate to Micro-Lepidoptera, and are from the indefatigable pen of Mr. Stain- ton, This gentleman has published a monograph of the European species of Argyresthia (App. i) ; a description of a new British species of the same genus (App. xl); a systematic catalogue of Micro- Lepidoptera, from which I have extracted descriptions of twenty- eight new British species (App. Ixi). Mr. Sircom has also described three new British Micro-Lepidoptera (App. xlii). Mr. Smith has described, with his accustomed careful accuracy, two new British Nomade (App. xli), one Ceratina (App. lvii), one Megachile, one Osmia, one Halictus (App. lvili), and four Andrenz (App. 1ix); all of them new to Britain, and all but one new to science. Mr. Bold has described (App. xxiv) a new British Colymbetes. Mr. Walker has described (App. xxxi and xliii) no less than seventy-nine new British species of Aphis. The occurrence of Rhodaria sanguinalis at New Brighton, as recorded by Mr. Doubleday (Zool. 2547) is an in- teresting fact in the Natural History of Britain. The Appendix to which I have just alluded was commenced with a view of giving to Monographs, and other papers of a scientific and technical character, that prominence which all careful and elaborate productions deserve, and at the same time of avoiding all clashing between such papers and the more amusing details of the economy of living animals. I believe this arrangement has given general satis- faction, and I purpose continuing it during the ensuing year. The subject of nomenclature has received some attention during PREFACE. xii the later months of the year. In the August number I reprinted a document on this subject which had been issued with the signatures of nine of our entomologists, and had been extensively circulated: I attached to the reprint (Zool. 2549) a brief observation of my own. The matter was discussed at greater length, and my remark criticised with more seriousness than it required, in a paper read by Mr. Stain- ton before the Entomological Society, on the 3rd of September, and reported zz extenso in the October number (Zool. 2579). In this paper, the principal point advocated by Mr. Stainton is the absolute authority of the law of priority, irrespective of casual error, inadvertent reiteration, or want of uniformity in termination. ‘Taking an exactly opposite view of this absolute authority of a law, the authors of the admirable catalogue of Oxfordshire Birds actually change the ear- liest published name of a bird, because they consider a subsequently published name more appropriate (Zool. 2599).* The right path appears to me to lie between the absolute restriction and the unfettered license. As to the uniformity of termination in certain groups of Lepidoptera, it was a classical and elegant design on the part of the great founder of scientific nomenclature, and the carrying out of this design by the disciples of Linneus is a tribute to his merit as graceful as itisjust. It seems to me that there. are certain prescriptive laws of nomenclature by which the majority are willing to abide, and that all attempts to improve them fail in their object: this is not a matter of necessity, but a very probable consequence, since the prescriptive laws result from the collective wisdom of naturalists during three quarters of a century; the modified printed laws generally emanate from a single individual, to whom the subject is comparatively new, and to whom certain unavoidable difficulties and contradictions in * This change appears to me objectionable on a second ground: the name se- lected (Andalusica) conveys an erroneous idea, the bird being common to Europe, Asia and Africa, and, although met with in Andalusia, being a rarity in that pro- vince; and I learn from good authority that its sojourn in the open country is excep- tional, or perhaps more properly seasonal: no error would therefore be propagated by the earlier, while an error is propagated by the later name. I merely notice this as exhibiting the danger of assuming the right of selecting, since scarcely two natu- ralists will agree in the selection. X1V PREFACE. the prescriptive code have presented themselves. In connexion with the subject of nomenclature, I must take this opportunity of strongly recommending Doubleday’s List of British Lepidoptera, which has just issued from the press: it is the most carefully elaborate publica- tion of the kind I have ever seen, and has cost the author a really: enormous amount of time and labour: I sincerely hope that all ento- mologists will adopt it for their arrangement, and that all future lists will be written as well as printed on a similar plan. My readers will, I trust, be pleased with the regularity with which official Reports of the Zoological, Entomological and Microscopical Societies are now published in these pages. It has always been my wish to accomplish this, but I have heretofore met with considerable difficulty in obtaining the reports. It is gratifying to find so great an increase of visitors to the gardens of the Zoological Society, in Regent’s Park,—an increase, I believe, almost entirely attributable to the zeal, judgment and assiduity exercised by Mr. Mitchell, in his office of Secretary. I consider these gardens a valuable addition to the rational amusements of our citizens, and highly deserving of pub- lic patronage and support. The Entomological Society appears also to be prospering; and [I trust we shall find, when the President delivers his annual address, that great increase in the number of members has taken place. To the Microscopical Society we are in- debted for completely negativing (Zool. 2616) the extraordinary hypo- thesis that cholera is caused by a fungus: it seems that the originators and supporters of this hypothesis erred simply from a deficiency of knowledge; the suspected bodies being of various but well-ascertained origin; existing at all seasons and in a diversity of media; being taken into the stomach with bread and other ordinary food; and passing through the intestinal canal, under ordinary circumstances, quite as abundantly and as unchanged as during the prevalence of cholera. EDWARD NEWMAN. 9, Devonshire Street, Bishopsgate, November 11, 1849. CONTENTS. The Roman numerals in the following alphabetical lists refer to the Appendix. ALPHABETICAL LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS. ATKINSON, Rev. J. C., M.A. On reason and instinct, 2233 Atkinson, W. Cole titmouse in London, 2390 ; Note on the Cobra di capella, 2394 Barixiz, Wn. Batrour Landrail remaining in England during winter, 2499 Baker, Wm. Reply to the inquiry of Mr. Duff as to the best mode of preparing skele- tons, 2522 Barton, STEPHEN Note on the habits of Lamia textor, &c., 2551 Bates, FREDERICK Captures of Coleopterous insects in light sandy situations, 2437 Beab.Es, Joun, N. Description of the eggs and nest of a British Sylvia, 2453 Bexiars, Henry I. Supposed egg of Sylvia Hippolais, 2386 Benson, HENRY Nest and eggs of Sylvia Hippolais, 2412; Avocet near Ramsgate, 2455 Birp, W. F. W. Plumage of the hobby, 2409; Com- mon bittern in Norfolk, 2421; Red- necked grebe in the Medway, 2422 ; Capture of the yellow-breasted mar- ten in Glamoganshire, Is the pole- cat rare in Suffolk? Can the ferret exist in England in a state of na- ture? A white or cream-coloured polecat, The ermine taken in Wor- cestershire and near London, 2440; Audacity of the sparrow hawk in attacking crows, 2452; Moths in birds’ skins, 2494; Ring ouzel sup- posed to be nesting in Worcester- shire, 2495; Capture of the black tern at Chertsey, 2500 ; New British woodpecker killed in Yorkshire, 2527 Botp, THomas Joun Capture of Chleneus nigricornis in Cumberland, Capture of Notaphus obliquus at Gosforth, Northumber- land, 2373; Note on Broscus cepha- lotes, Note on Pissodes Pini, Note on Hylesinus crenatus, 2374; De- scription of a new British Colym- betes, xxiv Bonn, FREDERICK Colias Edusa and C. Hyale, 2612 Borrer, W., JUN. Great gray shrike near Shoreham, 2386 ; Fork-tailed petrel near Brigh- ton, 2392 Brees, C. R. Great gray shrike in Suffolk, 2412; Nesting of the linnet and nightin- gale, 2418; Two-barred crossbill in Suffolk, 2419 ; Smaller spotted wood- pecker near Stowmarket, Hooded crow at Drinkstone, 2454; Late ap- pearance of the swallow, 2455; Oology and ornithology, 2523 Bree, Rev. W. T., M.A. Remarks on the migration of swal- lows, 2391 ; Pamphila Comma near Salisbury, 2541; Seasonal abun- dance or scarcity of the common wasp, 2614 Xvl Bripeman, W. K. On leaves adhering to the casts of worms, 2576 Braices, J. J. Defence of previous statements about the sparrow, 2388; Notes on the bat and shrew, 2408; Inquiry re- specting the egg of the common fowl, 2419; The birds of Melbourne, 2475, 2559, 2603 Butt, HENRY Cats and Nemophila insignis, 2380 ; Sand lizard at Godalming, 2394 Butt, W. J. Capture of Lepidoptera at Exmouth, 2368 ButtTEcE., C. J. C. Occurrence of eight night herons in Devonshire, 2528 Burroucues, T. H. Rough-legged buzzard in Norfolk, 2452; Tufted duck in Norfolk, 2456 Burton, W. D. Caspian tern near Great Yarmouth, - 2499 Bury, Rev. Cuarzes A., M.A. Cat chirurgery, &c., in Spain, 2439 ; Extract from Diary, 2450; Note on the griffon vulture, 2451; The masked gull, 2457 Cater, W. E. Minor grackle in Norfolk, 2391 ; Early arrival of fieldfares, 2412; Arrival of the snow bunting, 2415 ; Minor erackle in Norfolk, 2496; Ringed plover, turnstone, spotted crake and grasshopper warbler in Cambridge- shire, 2497 CHENNELL, F. A. Note on the length of song of some of the British song birds, as re- marked in the year 1848, 2355; great-crested grebe near Reigate, 2421; Ring ouzel near Esher, 2567 Curisty, J. F. Singular nidification of a robin, 2495 CocswEL., C., M.D., F.LS. © Combat with a swordfish, 2396 Cox.tns, JOHN Whistling mouse, 2474 Coiman, J. F White variety of the swallow, Late stay of the martin in Suffolk, 2392 Cooke, H. Captures of Lepidoptera at Brighton, 2402; Capture of Glea erythro- cephala in England, 2404 Cooker, NIcHOLAS Extraordinary nest of the song thrush, 2453; Heliothis marginata at New Brighton, 2547 Coucn, R. Q. Mailed gurnard in Cornwall, 2398 Coucn, JonaTHan, F.LS., &e. Description of Brama pinna-squa- mata, a supposed unrecognized British fish, xxvi; Description of Scomber punctatus, a species of mackerel not hitherto recognized by naturalists, xxix Crewe, H. H. Hawfinch at Tring and Berkhamp- stead, 2454 Curt.er, M. Honey buzzard near Worcester, Va- riety of the tawny owl, 2411; Late- remaining cuckoo, Oyster-catcher in Worcestershire, 2455; Cormo- rant in Worcestershire, 2456 Dawson, Rev. J. F., M.A. Capture of rare Coleoptera, some of them new to Britain, 2552 Dey, JULIAN Note on the natterjack, 2395 DovuBLEDAY, HENRY Note upon four European species of the genus Cucullia, 2364 ; The ge- nus Eupithecia, 2404; Plumage of the hobby, 2409 ; Supposed early arrival of the fieldfare, 2412; Rho- daria sanguinalis in England, 2547 Dove tas, J. W. Larve on the leaves and catkins of sallows, &c., 2364; On setting Micro-Lepidoptera flat, 2500, 2548 Doveuas, Rev. R. C., M.A. Note on Episema ceruleocephala, 2403 Durr, JosEPH Reply to Mr. Briggs on the destruc- tive power of the sparrow, 2350; Ornithological observations at Bishop’s Auckland, 2354 ; Extraor- dinary example of the common fox, 2380 ; Great gray shrike near Bishop’s Auckland, 2386; Variety of the fieldfare, 2386; Granivorous ropensity of the sparrow, 2415; ode of destroying moths in birds’ skins, 2450; Osprey near Bishop’s Auckland, 2452; Chains of colour in the bullfinch, 2454; Inquiry as to the best mode of preparing ske- letons, 2474; Spotted sandpiper near Bishop’s Auckland, 2499 ; Singular variety of the redbreast, Crossbill nesting in Durham, 2526; Yellow-breasted marten breeding XVii near Bishop's Auckland, 2588 ; Avocet at the Tees Mouth, 2591 Dunnine, J. H. . Capture of Lepidoptera in Suffolk during the months of June and July (1848), 2365 Exviman, JaMEs B. Note as to the stoat changing its coat, 2343 ; Are moles injurious or bene- ficial to farmers? 2344; Osprey at Udimore, Sussex, 2346; Late stay of swallows at Rye, 2352; Provin- cial names of birds, 2392; Capture of Lithosia pulchella at Lymington, 2404 ; Polecat at Udimore, Further note as to pied stoats, 2407; Anec- dote of rats, 2408; Golden eagle near Rye, 2409; Merlin at Rye, Varieties of the sparrow hawk, 2410 ; Honey buzzard at Udimore, 2411 ; Fire-crested Regulus at Rye, Haw- finch and crossbill at Rye, 2418 ; Effect of frost upon fowls, Bar- tailed godwit in December and the landrail in December and Febru- ary, Great white heron in Romney Marsh, 2419; Errata in a previous communication, 2422; Supposed variety of the hedge sparrow, 2458 ; Cirl bunting at Rye, Frequent oc- currence of the hawfinch at Rye, 2454; Avocet in Romney Marsh, 2455; Note on sea gulls, 2456; Arrival of migratory birds at Rye, 2457; A gamekeeper’s stratagem, 2494 ; Golden oriole in Kent, 2496 ; Nesting of the great and lesser woodpeckers in Sussex, 2497; Dis- coloured eggs of the kestrel, 2526 ; Nesting of the cirl bunting at Rye, 2527; Avocet in Romney Marsh, 2528 ; Little stint at Rye, 2529, 2569 Fitron, Epwarp Brown Swallows hybernating in the cliff at Hastings, 2590 Foortit, W. F. On sewing up the mouths of snakes in India, 2433 Foster, T. W. Black-tailed godwit on Guyhirn Wash, Gannet or solan goose near Wisbeach, 2499 ; Sturgeon at Wis- beach, Marine lamprey, 2500; Night heron, white egret and stork near Wisbeach, 2568 ; Eared grebe at Wisbeach, 2569; Rare birds at and near Wisbeach, 2623 Fox, GEorGcE Curious fact in the economy of the honey bee, 2613; Extraordinary produce of honey, 2614 Frere, Rev. H. T On useless records in the ‘ Zoologist,’ 2493; Little bittern at South Wal- sham, 2498 GarTH, JaMEs C. Green cormorant and hooded crow near Borobridge, 2353; Wild cat in Lancashire, 2408 ; White-tailed eagle in Somersetshire, 2409 ; An- eedote of a sparrow hawk, 2410; Black variety of the bullfinch, Albino variety of the swallow, 2568 Grant, F. Colias Hyale, &cv., at Dover, 2583 Gray, RoBEeRT Notes on the marine zoology of Dun- bar, 2464, 2518 GREEN, JOHN Interesting to bee-keepers—a virgin swarm, 2437; Note on a hive of bees working without a queen, A certain indication of swarming, 2501; Singular occurrence amongst bees, Erratum, 2502; Notes on honey bees not always being pre- pared with a place to go to when swarming, 2613 GuRNEY, J. H. Pectoral sandpiper near Yarmouth, 2392 ; Great eagle owl nesting in confinement, 2452 ; Hoopoe in Nor- folk, Avocet near Lynn, 2455; Gray-legged goose in Norfolk, Eared grebe in Norfolk, 2456; Pied flycatcher near Norwich, 2495 ; Spoonbill, &c., near Yarmouth, 2499; Food of the water vole, 2558, 2587; Eagle owl breeding in con- finement, 2566; Correction of an error respecting the pectoral sand- piper, 2568; Gull-billed tern at Yarmouth, 2569 ; Ring ouzel nest- ing near Lowestoft, 2589; Gull- billed tern near Yarmouth, 2592 ; Inquiry respecting the gray-legged goose, Fork-tailed petrel near Yar- mouth, 2622 Gurney, J. H., & Fisuer, W. R. Ornithological observations in Nor- folk for September and October (1848), 2353 Guyon, GEORGE Note on the New-Forest hybrid, 2380 ; Brachioptilon Hamiltoni in the gulf of Mexico, 2396; Preparing skeletons, 2557 G XVlll HamBrovucH, WINDsoR Partiality of cats for cigars, 2439 HansEt., Peter E. Remarkable colour of the yelk in the eggs of the common duck, 2353 ; Curious nesting-place of robins, 2453 ; Jack snipe breeding in Nor- folk, 2456 Haropine, H. T. Capture of Lithosia pygmeola, 2547 Haw ey, JoHN Reply to Mr. Briggs on the destruc- tive power of the sparrow, 2348 ; Provincial names of birds, 2354 Henstow, Rev. Joun Srevens, M.A., ele. O.P.S., &e. Parasitic larve observed in the nests of hornets, wasps and humble bees, 2584 Hewett, Wo. The heronry in Coley Park, Berks, 2420 Hiecains, Epmunp THoMas Spotted sandpiper near York, 2456 ; Supposed new British woodpecker near Whitby, 2497; Oviparous li- zard and natterjack near Liverpool, 2541; Rare birds in Yorkshire, 2569; Buffon’s skua near Redcar, 2592 Hopextnson, J. B. Capture of Polia Lichenea, 2404 ; Capture of Cerura bicuspis at Pres- ton, 2500 Horsrat., H. Curious fact in the nesting of the long-tailed tit, 2567 Howven, JamEs C. Reply to Mr. Newman’s inquiries respecting the bones of the Stronsa animal, 2397; Capture of Lepidop- tera in Scotland, 2401 Hou ke, J. W. Arrival of fieldfares, 2346; Summer duck near Deal, 2353; Snow bunt- ing near Deal, 2388; Kingfisher near Deal, 2391; Late appearance of the house martin near Deal, 2392; White-tailed eagle at Deal, 2409; Migration of the common partridge, 2419; Departure of the snipe in 1849, The summer duck a British bird, 2421; Dates of the arrival of winter visitors at Deal, 2422; Moorhens roosting in trees, 2621 IncHBALD, PETER Record of the rarer Lepidopterous in- sects occurring in the neighbour- hood of Huddersfield in 1847-8, 2366 ; Capture of Anisopteryx es- cularia, 2404; Partiality of Mi- cropteryx calthella for other flowers besides those of the Caltha palus- tris, 2501; Ravages of the grub of the cockchafer, 2555 Jacquss, F. V. Capture of Lamia textor near Bristol, 2374 ; Jounson, Henry Rare gulls near Liverpool, 2422; Pre- servation of Crustacea, 2434 Jones, J. M. The hedgehog, 2558 Kennaway, Rev. G. G., M.A. Curious anecdote of a duck, 2456 Kine, W. D. List of zoophytes, &c., found near Dover, 2376; Downy epidermis of Paludina vivipara, Extraordinary abundance of Bulla akera at Wal- ton-on-the-Naze, 2399; Supposed monstrosity of Planorbis carinatus, 2462 Knox, A. E., M.A., F.L.S. Capture of the sea eagle in Sussex, 2386 Lean, WILLIAM Note and inquiry respecting the me- lodious willow wren, 2346; Note on Lamia textor, 2404; Egg of Sylvia Hippolais, 2412 Lewis, Rev. W.S., M.A. Singular anecdote of a canary, 2454 Loaan, R. F. Glyceria fluitans attractive to moths, Moths and honey-dew, On setting Lepidoptera flat, 2626 Lucas, WILLIAM Water ouzel and bearded tit near Hitchin, 2346 Loxis, I. W. ' Great gray shrike at Heacham, Nor- folk, 2411 Marris, Ropert Crossbill at Wisbeach, 2527 Marruews, Revps. ANDREW & Henry The birds of Oxfordshire and_ its neighbourhood, 2423, 2531, 2592, 2623 May, WILLIAM Roller in Sussex, 2497 Mc'Intosu, J. Occasional occurrence of the blind- worm throughout the year in Dor- setshire, 2394; Frequent occurrence of the badger, otter and polecat in Devonshire, Cats and Nemophila — a, = ee a ’ XIX insignis, 2407 ; Oology and ornitho- logy, 2565 Mc’Puerson, Wo. Second brood of silkworms, 2613 Metvitie, A. G., M.D. Note on the Physeter bidens, 2441 Micuaet, AtBert D. Vanessa Antiopa, Hipparchia Davus, Charadrina glareosa, &c., near Cromer, 2369 Mitner, W. M. E., M.P. Great gray shrike near York, 2452 ; Spotted sandpiper at Whitby, 2455 ; Sylvia Orphea in Yorkshire, 2588 Mores, A. G. Fire-crested regulus and crossbill at Bembridge, 2526 Morris, Bever ey R., A.B., M.D. Note on the partridge, Black grouse breeding in Devonshire, Note on the tail-feathers of the green sand- piper, 2352; Note on the heron as an article of food, 2353; Inquiry respecting the wireworm, 2375; The yellow-breasted marten, 2619 ; Note on the colour of the down of - water birds, 2622 Morais, Rev. Francis Orpen, B.A. Purple heron near Driffield, Moorhen roosting in willow-trees, 2591 ; Fulmar petrel near Bridlington, 2592 Mos ey, Sir Oswa.p, Bart., F.LS., &c. On the economy of Atherix Ibis, 2586 ; Food of the water vole, 2619 Newsy, W. C. Note on the cuckoo, 2589 Newnan, Epwarp, F.L.S., Z.S. Abundant occurrence of the crested tit in Scotland, 2348; Enormous undescribed animal, apparently al- lied to the Enaliosauri, seen in the gulf of California, 2356 ; Enormous undescribed fish, apparently allied to the Raiide, killed off California, 2357 ; Inquiries respecting the bones of a large marine animal cast ashore on the island of Stronsa in 1808, 2358; Melitea Dia in Warwick- shire, 2364; Crested seal in the river Orwell, 2380; Probability of the present existence of Enaliosau- rians, 2395; Breeding of trout by the artifivial process, 2398; Note on Melitea Dia, 2403; Colias Hyale, 2546; Inquiry respecting the wild cat, 2587; Capture of a finner whale in the Thames, 2620 Newton, ALFRED Badger, otter and polecat in Suffolk, 2379 ; Singing of birds at Elveden, 2381; Departure of migratory birds at Elveden in 1848, Arrival of mi- gratory birds at Elveden in 1848, Rare birds near Thetford, 2382; Inquiry respecting the spur-winged goose, 2421; Polecat in Suffolk, 2523; Rare birds near Thetford, 2524; Arrival of migratory birds at Elveden in 1849, Nidification of birds near Elveden in 1849, 2525 ; The summer duck a British bird, 2529 NicHo ts, H., sun. Black rat in Devonshire, 2344 Norman, G. Sylvia Hippolais in Britain, 2387; Opah or king-fish on the Yorkshire coast, 2397 Oxans, JOHN Note on the water ouzel, 2526 Peacock, Epwarp Weasels hunting in packs, 2344; Fur- ther observations on the sparrow, 2389 ; Reasoning power in the dog, 2406 ; Can the ferret exist in Eng- land in a state of nature? Is the water rat entirely herbivorous ? 2474 PEppER, J. R. Cream-coloured polecat, 2619 Rains, ALFRED Cats and Nemophila insignis, 2343, 2619 REECE, GEORGE Blindworm in December, 2356 Rosson, THomas Bat flying by day, 2380 Ropp, Eowarp HErARLE Squacco heron near Penzance, Night heron at Scilly, 2498 ; Temminck’s stint near Penzance, 2591; Osprey, pied flycatcher and reed wren at Scilly, Woodchat at Scilly, 2620; Great northern diver at Penzance, 2621; Autumnal migration of birds at Scilly, 2622 Rupp, T.S. Anglesey morris and argentine at Redear, 2434 Satmon, J. D. Egg of Sylvia Hippolais, 2387 Scott, JoHN Curious habitat of Tinea ustella, 2633 Scorr, W. R., M.D. On some of the rarer birds found in Devonshire, 2383; Collecting of birds’ eggs, 2451 xx Sircom, JOAN, JUN. / On setting Lepidoptera flat, 2547; More about setting flat, 2584; De- scriptions of three new British Ti- neide, xlii SmitH, FREDERICK Observations on a mixed colony of Halictus abdominalis, H. morio, Andrena nigro-enea and Sphecodes subquadratus, 2370; Capture of Hymenoptera in Devonshire, 2378 ; On the habits and economy of va- rious species of British fossorial Hymeuoptera, 2550; Descriptions of two new species of British No- made, xli; Descriptions of new British bees, lvii Smitu, Rev. James Notes on the different species of wil- low wren, 2413; American greater northern shrike near Aberdeen, 2495 ; Purple heron in Aberdeen- shire, 2497; On the purple colour of the ancients, especially considered in reference to its connexion with natural history, 2506; Error in describing the American shrike, 2567 SmitH, JOHN Little bittern at Yarmouth, 2528 ; Caspian tern at Yarmouth, Little gull at Yarmouth, 2529 SPENCER, J. B. Pure starch discharged by the larva of Cossus ligniperda, 2612 Stainton, H. T. Examine the dry burdock-heads, In- formation concerning new Conti- nental Tineide, 2369; Note on the interesting habits and economy of the larve of Porrectarie (Coleo- phore), 2436; Which is the best pin for small Micro-Lepidoptera ? 2548; Correction of a_ previous error, 2613; Notes of captures of Tineide, 2627; A monograph on the European species of the genus Argyresthia, i; Description of a new British species of Argyresthia, xl; Descriptions of new British Micro-Lepidoptera, 1xi STEVENS, SAMUEL Captures of rare Coleoptera on Leith Hill, Surrey, 2502; Non- occurrence of Colias Hyale in 1849, 2584 Thompson, T. Two-toothed whale at Hull, 2409 THORNCROFT, THOMAS Arrival of the wheatear at Brighton, 2412; Early arrival of the tree pipit, 2415; Peregrine falcons at Beachy Head, 2494 Tomes, Roserrt F. On the preservation of small Mam- malia, 2378; Scolopax Brehmi in Scotland, 2621 Tompkins, H. Colias Hyale at Lewes, 2583 ; Chareas cespitis near Worthing, 2613 TueweE .., H., sun. Remarkable instance of sagacity in the common house sparrow, 2351 Unwin, W. C. Great gray shrike near Lewes, 2452; Cream-coloured variety of the song thrush, 2453 . Vaucuan, P. H. Capture of Lepidoptera in the neigh- bourhood of Bristol in 1848, 2365 ; Colias Edusa near Exmouth, 2369 WatkeER, Francis, F.LS., G.S., Z.S. Note on the hop fly, 2555; Descrip- tions of new British Aphides, xxxi, xliii WateERHOovsE, G. R. Bustard on Salisbury Plain, 2590 Wayne, RoBert Blackbird’s eggs sucked by a rat, 2495 Wayne, W. H. Inquiry respecting the name of a bird, 2422 Wess, G. J. Remarkable change in the plumage of a bullfinch, 2390 Wess, J.S. On the sense of touch in spiders, 2400 ; Granivorous propensity of the spar- row, 2417 WesstEr, THOMAS A rat killed by a frog, 2474; Little bittern near Manchester, 2499 WeEpDpDERBoRN, J. N. Colour of the eyes in the night heron, Landrail in Bermuda, 2591 Witp, J. W. Colias Hyale near Brighton, 2612 Wicutams, Rev. JAMES Bearded tit near Tring, 2418; Gar- ganey near Tring, Golden-eye at Tring, 2421 W oLLeEY, JoHN Foreign bat in Orkney, 2343; Ham- _XXi ster not in Orkney, 2344; Rein deer in Orkney, European elk, Red deer in Orkney, 2345 ; Ca’ing whale, 2346; Common crane in Shetland, 2352; On the viper swallowing its young, 2355 ; Elk formerly in Scot- land, 2381; Buffon’s skua in Hun- tingdonshire, 2392 WrieutT, J. Bittern at Lymington, 2392 ALPHABETICAL LIST OF SUBJECTS. -Accentor modularis, 2482 Accipiter fringillarius, 2427 Aichmia subdentella, 1xii Alauda arborea, 2489, 2597 » arvensis, 2429, 2489 » pratensis, 2488 » trivialis, 2488 Alcedo Ispida, 2603 Alligators, lake of in Scinde, 2611 Anas glocitans, 2539 »» querquedula, 2602 » Ssponsa, 2353, 2421, 2529 » strepera, 2539 Ancients, purple colour of, 2506 Andrena constricta, lix bs extricata, lix » frontalis, lix ‘ nigro-enea, 2370 a similis, lx Anglesey morris at Redcar, 2434 Animal, enormous undescribed, 2356 ; large marine, inquiries respecting the bones of, 2358; reply to inquiries, 2397; wonderful new, 2407; strange marine, 2433 Anisopteryx escularia, 2404 Annelides found at Dunbar, 2464, 2518 Anser albifrons, 2538 », Canadensis, 2538 » LEgyptiacus, 2538 » ferus, 2538 Aphis addita, xxxiii » adducta, xxxiv » adjecta, xlvi » advena, xlviii » alterna, xliii » assidua, xl », assueta, xlix » atomaria, | 3 aucta, XXxili Aphis Bartsiz, xlix bellula, xxxvi cadiva, Xxxii Capree, lv certa, Xxxii Chrysanthemi, lvi confusa, xlvi consona, XXxvi conspersa, xlvi consumpta, liv contermina, xxxi convecta, XXXvii conviva, XXxvVi derelicta, | despecta, lili detracta, Xxxvili devecta, Xxxvlii Dianthi ? xlvi, li, lv, lvi ss var ? lvii dissita, xxxiv egressa, XXXVIli Epilobiina, var ? liii Euphorbia, xliii EKuphrasia, li extranea, Xxxi exul, xlvili flaveola, lv Gnaphalii, 1 illata, xliii impacta, xxxv, xlvii incerta, xlv inculta, xliii incumbens, xxxv indecisa, xlv indistincta, xlvi inducta, Xxxv inserta, XXXixX insessa, XXXli insita, Xxxix internata, xxxvii Aphis introducta, lvii » Inula, xlv » Lactuce ? liv, lvii » Mactata, Xxxix » Malva, xlvii » Metiva, XXXVI » nutricata, xxxix »» persorbens, xxxvii » picta, xlvii »5 pilosa, liv » pollinosa, lii » preterita, lii »» querens, xlvili » vredundans, xxxli » relata, xliv » robusta, xliii » Rubi? liv ~ futola, xlvi » Rumicis ? xxxiv 9 99 var.? xlix, li, lii » secunda, xliv » tenuior, xlix ». tertia, xiv 7 Aumcia,, Li » transiens, xliv » translata, xxxv », transmutata, xxxvii » transposita, XXXvli 5, tribulis, xxxiv » Ulmarie? liii » Urtice ? liv » vacillans, xlvii Aquila Chrysaetos, 2594 Ardea alba, 2600 » purpurea, 2600 Argentine at Redcar, 2434 Argyresthia ” abdominalis, xii albistria, vi amiantella, xxii Andereggiella, xiv aurulentella, x1 arceuthina, xix Brockeella, xviii certella, xix conjugella, vii curvella, xiv dilectella, xiii ephippella, iii farinatella, xxili fundella, xi glabratella, xxi glaucinella, x Geedartella, xvii Gysseleniella, xxii illuminatella, xx literella, xvii nitidella, iv piniariella, xxiii precocella, xx XX11 Argyresthia pulchella, ix » purpurascentella, v ” pygmeella, xvi ‘ retinella, xii » semifusca, viii = semitestacella, vi ” sorbiella, xv 9 spinosella, ix Artificial breeding of trout, 2398 Atherix Ibis, economy of, 2586 Auk, little, 2623 Avocet, 2601 ; near Lynn, 2455 ; in Rom- ney Marsh, 2455, 2528; near Rams- gate, 2455; at the Tees Mouth, 2591 Badger in Suffolk, 3379; in Dorsetshire, 2407 Bat, foreign, in Orkney, 2343; flying by day, 2380 Bat and shrew, notes on, 2408 Bedellia Orpheella, xiii Bees, a virgin swarm of, 2437; working without a queen, 2501; a certain in- dication of swarming, 2501; singular occurrence, 2502; humble, parasitic larve in the nests of, 2584; honey, notes on the swarming of, 2613; cu- rious fact in the economy of, 2613 Bell, Thomas, ‘ History of British Rep- tiles, 2575 Bird, inquiry respecting the name of, 2422 Birds, provincial names of, 2354, 2392; length of song of some of the British, 2355; singing of at Elveden, 2381; departure of migratory at Elveden, 2382; arrival of migratory at Elveden, 2382, 2525; rare, near Thetford, 2382, 2524; rarer, found in Devonshire, 2383; arrival of migratory at Rye, 2457 ; nidification of at Elveden, 2525 ; rare, in Yorkshire, 2569; autumnal migration of at Scilly, 2622; water, colour of the down of, 2622; rare, at and near Wisbeach, 2623 Birds of Oxfordshire and its neighbour- hood, 2423, 2531, 2592, 2623; of Melbourne, 2475, 2559, 2603 Birds’ eggs, collecting of, 2451 Birds’ skins, mode of destroying moths in, 2450, 2494 Bittern at Lymington, 2392 ; common, in Norfolk, 2421; little, at South Wal- sham, 2498 ; near Manchester, 2499 ; little, at Yarmouth, 2528; common, 2600 ; little, 2601 Blackbird, 2428, 2482; eggs of sucked by a rat, 2495 XXili Blindworm in December, 2356 ; through- - out the year in Devonshire, 2394 Bombycilla garrula, 2487, 2597 — Botaurus minutus, 2601 . yg Stellaris, 2600 Brachioptilon Hamiltoni in the gulf of Mexico, 2396 Brama pinna-squamata, xxvi » aii, xxvii Bream, Ray’s, xxvil ‘ British Reptiles, 2575 Broscus cephalotes, 2374 Bubo maximus, 2596 Bucculatrix aurimaculella, lxiv 5 vetustella, Lxiv Bulimus, note on a species of, 2399 Bull and stag, combat between, 2345 Bulla akera, abundance of at Walton-on- the-Naze, 2399 Bullfinch, 2430, 2493; change in plumage of, 2390, 2454; inquiry respecting, 2567 ; black variety of, 2568 Bunting, snow, near Deal, 2388 ; arrival of, 2415; cirl, at Rye, 2454, 2527; snow, 2489, 2536; common, 2489 ; black-headed, 2489; yellow, 2490; cirl, 2597 Burdock-heads, examine the dry, 2369 Bustard on Salisbury Plain, 2590; great, 2599 ; little, 2599 Buteo Lagopus, 2595 » Vulgaris, 2595 Buzzard, 2476 ; honey, at Udimore, 2411 ; near Worcester, 2411; rough-legged, in Norfolk, 2452; common, 2595; rough-legged, 2595 ; honey, 2596 Calamophilus biarmicus, 2597 Canary, singular anecdote of, 2454 Canine instinct, 2557 Canine patron of railway travelling, 2557 Caprimulgus Europeus, 2607 Carduelis spinus, 2429 Cat chirurgery, &c., in Spain, 2439 Cat, wild, in Lancashire, 2408; in Sur- rey, 2439; inquiry respecting, 2587 Cats and Nemophila insignis, 2343, 2380, 2407, 2619 Cats, partiality of for cigars, 2439 Ceratina albilabris, lvii Certhia familiaris, 2565 Cerura bicuspis at Preston, 2500 Chaffinch, 2490 Charadrina glareosa near Cromer, 2369 Charadrius hiaticula, 2536 og morinellus, 2541, 2611 is pluvialis, 2610 Chareas cespitis near Worthing, 2613 Chiff-chaff, 2486 Chimpanzee, importation of another spe- cimen of, 2379 Chleneus nigricornis in Cumberland, 2373 Ciconia alba, 2601 Cinclus aquaticus, 2478 Circus cineraceus, 2596 » cyaneus, 2596 » rufus, 2596 Clangula vulgaris, 2540 Cobra di capella, 2394 Coccothraustes vulgaris, 2429 Cockchafer, ravages of the grub of, 2555 Coleoptera, rare, on Leith Hill, Surrey, 2502; rare, some new to Britain, 2552 : Colias Edusa near Exmouth, 2369 ; abun- dant at Ventnor, 2612 Colias Hyale, septennial visits of, 2546 ; at Dover, 2583; at Lewes, 2583; non-occurrence of in 1849, 2584; at Ventnor, 2612 ; near Brighton, 2612 Columba enas, 2432, 2607 = livia, 2598 a palumbus, 2606 A Turtur, 2607 Colymbetes dispar, xxiv Colymbus arcticus, 2540 ow glacialis, 2540 = septentrionalis, 2540 Combat between bull and stag, 2345 Corallines found at Dunbar, 2464 Cormorant, green, near Borobridge, 2353 ; in Worcestershire, 2456; common, 2624; green, 2624 Corvus corax, 2560, 2598 » cornix, 2561, 2598 » corone, 2561 » frugilegus, 2430, 2561 » glandarius, 2564 » monedula, 2563 » pica, 2563 Cossus ligniperda, pure starch discharged by the larva of, 2612 Coturnix vulgaris, 2535 ms spotted, 2602 ; in Cambridgeshire, 2497 Crambus Warringtonellus, lxi Crane, common, 2600; in Shetland, 2352 Creeper, 2565 Crex Porzana, 2602 » pratensis, 2535 Crossbill, 2493 ; at Rye, 2418; two-barred, in Suffolk, 2419; at Bembridge, 2526 ; nesting at Durham, 2526; at Wis- beach, 2527; common, 2597 Crow, hooded, near Borobridge, 2353; at Drinkstone, 2454; carrion, 2561; hooded, 2561, 2598 XXIV Crows, audacity of the sparrow hawk in attacking, 2452 Crustacea, inquiry respecting the preser- - vation of, 2400 ; preservation of, 2434 ; at Dunbar, 2518 Cuckoo, 2534; late-remaining, 2455 ; note on, 2589 ; common, 2603 Cucullia, four European species of, 2364 Cuculus canorus, 2534, 2603 Curlew, 2601 Curruca hortensis, 2534 Cygnus Bewickii, 2539 » ferus, 2538 Deer, red, in Orkney, 2345 ; rein, in Ork- ney, 2345; extinct Irish, gigantic skeleton of, 2558 Diary, extract from Rev. C. A. Bury’s, 2450 Dipper, 2478 Diver, great northern, 2540; black- throated, 2540; red-throated, 2540 ; great northern, at Penzance, 2621 Dog, reasoning power in, 2406 Dotterel, 2541, 2611 Dove, stock, 2432, 2607; rock, 2598 ; ring, 2606 ; turtle, 2607 Duck, summer, near Deal, 2353, 2421, 2529 ; common, remarkable colour of the yelk in the eggs, 2353; tufted, in Norfolk, 2456 ; curious anecdote of a, 2456; bimaculated, 2539; eider, 2539 ; ferruginous, 2539; scaup, 2539 ; long-tailed, 2539 ; garganey, 2602 Dunlin, 2537 Eagle, sea, in Sussex, 2386; golden, near Rye, 2409; white-tailed, in So- mersetshire, 2409; at Deal, 2409; golden, 2594; white-tailed, 2594 Eel fascinated by a snake, 2397 Eggs of Sylvia Hippolais, 2386, 2387, 2412; of a British Sylvia, 2453; of blackbird sucked by a rat, 2495; of kestrel, discoloured, 2526 Egret, white, near Wisbeach, 2568 Elachista apicipunctella, lxiv a niveipunctella, 1xiii 8 patriciella, lxiii - Regificella, xlii bs Stephensi, xiii * trapeziella, lxiv Elk, European, 2345; formerly in Scot- land, 2381 Emberiza Cirlus, 2597 citrinella, 2490 glacialis, 2489 miliaria, 2489 scheeniclus, 2489 Enaliosauri, enormous animal, apparently allied to the, 2356 Enaliosaurians, probability of the present existence of, 2395 Entomological Society, proceedings of, 2363, 2375, 2405, 2435, 2462, 2503, 2530, 2556, 2578, 2615, 2634 Episema ceruleocephala, 2403 Ermine in Worcestershire, 2440 Eupithecia, the genus, 2404. Falco Hsalon, 2476 » buteo, 2476 » cyaneus, 2476 » Halizetus, 2476 » Aslandicus, 2594 » Milvus, 2476 » Nisus, 2476 » peregrinus, 2476, 2595 » Trufipes, 2595 » subbuteo, 2476, 2532 » Tinnunculus, 2426, 2476 Falcon, peregrine, 2476, 2595; at Beachy Head, 2494 ; gyr, 2594; red- footed, 2595 Ferret, can it exist in England in a state of nature ? 2440 Fieldfare, 2481, 2536 ; variety of, 2386 Fieldfares, arrival of, 2346, 2412 Finch, mountain, 2490 Fish, enormous, apparently allied to the Raiide, 2357; riband, supposed new species of, on the coast off Cullercoats, 2460; a supposed unrecognized Bri- tish, xxvi Fishes of Dunbar, 2518 Flycatcher, spotted, 2478; pied, 2478, 2532; near Norwich, 2495; at Scilly, 2620 Fowl, common, inquiry respecting the egg of, 2419 Fowls, effect of frost upon, 2419 Fox, common, extraordinary example of, 2380 ; attached to a lamb, 2558 Fratercula arctica, 2624 Fringilla carduelis, 2490 9 celebs, 2490 * domestica, 2490 ™ montana, 2490 . montifringilla, 2490 “ montium, 2493 sb spinus, 2491 Frog, rat killed by, 2474 Fuligula Marila, 2539 7" Nyroca, 2539 Gadwall, 2539 Gallinula chloropus, 2432 Gamekeeper’s stratagem, 2494 XXV ; Gannet, 2624; near Wisbeach, 2499 Garganey near Tring, 2421 Glea erythrocephala in England, 2404 Godwit, bar-tailed, in December, 2419 ; black-tailed, seen on Guyhirn Wash, - 2499; black-tailed, 2602; bar-tailed, 2602 Golden-eye, 2540; at Tring, 2421 Goldfinch, 2490 Goosander, 2540 Goose, spur-winged, inquiry respecting, 2421; gray-legged, in Norfolk, 2456; gray-legged, 2538; white- fronted, 2538; Egyptian, 2538 ; Ca- nada, 2538; gray-legged, inquiry respecting, 2622 Grackle, minor, in Norfolk, 2391, 2496 Grebe, great crested, near Reigate, 2421 ; red-necked, in the Medway, 2422; little, 2433; eared, in Norfolk, 2456 ; at Wisbeach, 2569; great crested, 2623 ; red-necked, 2623 ; Sclavonian, 2623; eared, 2623 Greenfinch, 2498 Greenshank, 2537 Grouse, black, 2598 ; breeding in Devon- shire, 2352 Grus cinerea, 2600 Guillemot, common, 2623 Gull, masked, 2457; little, at Yarmouth, 2529 ; black-headed, 2624 ; common, 2624; Iceland, 2625; lesser black- backed, 2625; herring, 2625; great black-backed, 2625 Gulls, rare, near Liverpool, 2422; sea, note on, 2456 Halizetos albicilla, 2594 Halictus abdominalis, 2370 oe gramineus, lviii + morio, 2370 Hamster not in Orkney, 2344 Harelda glacialis, 2539 Harrier, hen, 2476, 2596; marsh, 2596 ; Montagu’s, 2596 Harvey, W. H., ‘ Sea-side Book,’ 2468 Hawfinch, 2429, 2490; at Rye, 2418, 2454; at Tring and Berkhampstead, 2454 Hawk, sparrow, 2427, 2476; varieties of 2410; anecdote of, 2410; audacity of in attacking crows, 2452 Hedgehog, 2443, 2558 Hedgesparrow, 2482 ; supposed variety of, 2453 Heliothis marginata at New Brighton, 2547 Hemipode, Andalusian, 2598 Heron, note on as an article of food, 2353; great white, in Romney Marsh, 2419; purple, in Aberdeenshire, 2497; squacco, near Penzance, 2498; night, at Scilly, 2498; in Devonshire, 2528 ; near Wisbeach, 2568; purple, near Driffield, 2591; night, colour of the eyes in, 2591; purple, 2600; great white, 2600 ; night, 2600 Heronry in Coley Park, Berks, 2420 Himantopus melanopterus, 2601 Hipparchia Davus near Cromer, 2369 Hirundo Apus, 2606 :, riparia, 2605 fe rustica, 2534, 2604 = urbica, 2534, 2605 Hobby, 2476, 2532; plumage of, 2409 Honey, extraordinary produce of, 2614 Hooper, 2538 Hoopoe, 2598; in Norfolk, 2455 Hop-fly, note on, 2555 Hornets, parasitic larve in the nests of, 2584 Hybrid, remarkable, 2345; New-Forest, 2380 Hylesinus crenatus, 2374 Hymenoptera in Devonshire, 2373; Bri- tish fossorial, habits and economy of 2550 Ibis falcinellus, 2601 Ibis, glossy, 2601 Insects, rarer Lepidopterous occurring in the neighbourhood of Huddersfield, 2366; captures of Coleopterous in light sandy situations, 2437 Jackdaw, 2563 Jay, 2563 Kestrel, 2426, 2476; discoloured eggs of, 2526 Kingfisher near Deal, 2391; common, 2603 Kite, 2476, 2595 Kittiwake, 2624 Knox, A. E., ‘ Ornithological Rambles in Sussex, 2569 Lamb and fox, friendship between, 2558 Lamia textor near Bristol, 2374; note on, 2404; habits of, 2551 Lamprey, marine, in the river Nene, 2500 Landrail, 2535; in December and Fe- bruary, 2419; remaining in England during winter, 2499; in Bermuda, 2091 Lanius collurio, 2478 » excubitor, 2478, 2536 » rutilus, 2478 d XXV1 Lark, sky, 2489 ; wood, 2489, 2597 Larus argentatus, 2625 » canus, 2624 » fuscus, 2625 » Leelandicus, 2625 » Marinus, 2625 » ridibundus, 2624 » Tissa, 2624 Larve on the leaves and catkins of sal- lows, 2364 Lepidoptera, capture of at Bristol, 2365 ; in Suffolk, 2365 ; at Exmouth, 2368 ; in Scotland, 2401; at Brighton, 2402 Lestris Pomarinus, 2625 » Richardsonii, 2625 ‘ Letters of Rusticus,’ 2442 Limosa melanura, 2602 , fala, 2602 Linnet, nesting of, 2418; common, 2491; mountain, 2493 Linota cannabina, 2491 » linaria, 2429, 2492 Lithocolletis Fagifoliella, xlii Lithosia pulchella at Lymington, 2404 » pygmeola, capture of, 2547 Lizard, sand, at Godalming, 2394 ; ovi- parous, near Liverpool, 2541 Loxia chloris, 2490 » coccothraustes, 2490 » curvirostra, 2493, 2597 » pyrrhula, 2493 Machetes pugnax, 2537 Mackerel, a species of not hitherto recog- nized by naturalists, xxix Magpie, 2431, 2563 Mailed gurnard in Cornwall, 2398 Mammalia, preservation of small, 2378 Marine zoology of Dunbar, 2464, 2518 Marten, yellow-breasted, in Glamorgan- shire, 2440; breeding near Bishop’s Auckland, 2588; yellow-breasted, 2619 Martin, 2534, 2605; late stay of in Suf- folk, 2392; house, near Deal, 2392; sand, 2605 Marvel, an American, 2393 Megachile odontura, lviii Melitea Dia in Warwickshire, 2364 ; note on, 2403 Melizophilus provincialis, 2597 Men with tails, 2618 Merganser, red-breasted, 2540 Mergulus Alle, 2623 Mergus albellus, 2540 » Merganser, 2540 5, serrator, 2540 Merlin, 2476; at Rye, 2410 Merula torquata, 2541 » Vulgaris, 2428 Micro-Lepidoptera, on setting them flat, 2500, 2547, 2548, 2584, 2626; best pin for, 2548 Micropteryx calthella, partiality of for flowers, 2501 Micropteryx subammanella, ]xi Micrroscopical Society, proceedings of, 2504, 2505, 2506, 2616, 2636 Milvus vulgaris, 2595 Moles, are they injurious or beneficial to farmers ? 2344 Moorhen, 2432 ; roosting in trees, 2591, 2621 Motacilla boarula, 2488, 2536 ab flava, 2488 - neglecta, 2488 > Yarrelii, 2487 Moths and honey-dew, 2626 Moths, Glyceria fluitans attractive to, 2626 Moths in birds’ skins, mode of destroying, 2450, 2494 Mouse, whistling, 2474, 2475 Muscicapa atricapilla, 2478, 2532 5 grisola, 2478 Natterjack, note on, 2395; near Liver- pool, 2541 Nemotois minimellus, 1xi Nepticula angulifasciella, lxiv , Louisella, xlii 3 septembrella, lxiv Nest of Sylvia Hippolais, 2412; of a Bri- tish Sylvia, 2453 Nightingale, 2484, 2534; nesting of, 2418 Nightjar, 2606 Nomada armata, xli 3 rubra, xli Nomenclature, laws of, 2548 Notaphus obliquus at Gosforth, 2373 Numenius arquatus, 2601 pheopus, 2601 3 ‘Nuthatch, 2603 Nycticorax Europeus, 2600 (Ecophora fuscifrontella, 1xii im incongruella, lxii 5 pseudo-spretella, 1xii y subaquilea, 1xii Oidemia fusca, 2539 ~ nigra, 2539 Oology and ornithology, 2523, 2565 Opah or king-fish on the Yorkshire coast, 2397 Oriole, golden, in Kent, 2496 Ornithological observations in Norfolk, 2353 ; at Bishop’s Auckland, 2354 ‘ Ornithological Rambles in Sussex,’ 2569 XXVI1l Osmia purpurascens, lviii Osprey, 2476, 2594; at Udimore, 2346 ; near Bishop’s Auckland, 2452; at Scilly, 2620 Otis tarda, 2599 » Letrax, 2599 Otter in Suffolk, 2379; in Dorsetshire, 2407 Otus brachyotos, 2536 Ouzel, water, near Hitchin, 2346; ring, 2482 ; supposed to be nesting in Wor- cestershire, 2495; water, note on, 2526 ; ring, 2541; near Esher, 2567 ; nesting near Lowestoft, 2589 Owl, tawny, variety of, 2411; barn, 2427; tawny, 2427, 2477; great eagle, nest- ing in confinement, 2452; eagle, 2477 ; long-eared, 2477 ; short-eared, 2477, 2536; snowy, 2477; white or barn, 2477 ; little, 2478 ; eagle, breed- ing in confinement, 2566; scops-eared, 2596 Oyster-catcher in Worcestershire, 2455 Paludina vivipara, downy epidermis of, 2399 Pamphila Comma near Salisbury, 2546 Pandion Halizétos, 2594 Partiality of cats for cigars, 2439 Partridge, 2607 ; note on, 2352 ; common, migration of, 2419; red-legged, 2598, 2610 Parus ater, 2487 » caudatus, 2429, 2487 4 cCeruleus, 2429, 2487 » Major, 2487 » palustris, 2487 Pastor, rose-coloured, 2560, 2598 Pastor roseus, 2560, 2598 Pelican in France, 2591 Pempelia adornatella, 2629 e dilutella, 2628 a obductella, 2628 ‘- ornatella, 2629 - sororiella, 2628 at subornatella, 2629 thymiella, 2628 Perdix cinerea, 2608 ee Coturnix, 2610 » rubra, 2598 3 rufa, 2610 Pernis apivorus, 2596 Petrel, fork-tailed, near Brighton, 2392; fulmar, at Bridlington, 2592 ; fork- tailed, near Yarmouth, 2622; fulmar, 2625 ; fork-tailed, 2625 : storm, 2625 Phalacrocorax carbo, 2624 cristatus, 2624 Phalarope red-necked, 2538; gray, 2602 Phalaropus hyperboreus, 2538 i lobatus, 2602 Phasianus colchicus, 2432, 2607 Pheasant, 2432, 2607 Philomela luscinia, 2534 Physeter bidens, 2441 Pica caudata, 2431 Picus major, 2431, 2564 » minor, 2564 » Villosus, 2496, 2527 » Viridis, 2431, 2564 Pike, remarkable instance of instinct in, 2356 Pipit, tree, 2488; early arrival of, 2415 ; meadow, 2488 Pissodes Pini, 2374 Planorbis carinatus, supposed monstrosity of, 2462 Plectrophanes nivalis, 2536 Plover, ringed, 2536 ; in Cambridgeshire, 2497; golden, 2610 Podiceps auritus, 2623 Be cornutus, 2623 ‘3 cristatus, 2623 a minor 2433 - rubricollis, 2623 Polecat in Suffolk, 2379, 2523; in Dor- setshire, 2407; at Udimore, 2407; is it rare in Suffolk? 2440; white or cream-coloured, 2440, 2619 Polia Lichenia, 2404 Porrectariz, habits and economy of the larve of, 2436 Procellaria glacialis, 2625 Puffin, 2624 Puffnus Anglorum, 2625 Purple colour of the ancients, 2506 Pyrrhula vulgaris, 2430 Quail, common, 2535, 2610 Raiide, enormous fish apparently allied to, 2357 Rat, black, in Devonshire, 2344; killed by a frog, 2474; water, inquiry re- specting, 2474; blackbird’s eggs sucked by, 2495 Rats, anecdote of, 2408 Raven, 2560, 2598 Reason and instinct, 2333 Recurvirostra Avocetta, 2601 Redbreast, 2482 ; singular variety of, 2526 Redpole, lesser, 2429, 2492 Redshank, spotted, 2537 Redstart, 2483 Redwing, 2481 Regulus, fire-crested, at Rye, 2418; golden-crested, 2428, 2486; fire- crested, 2487; at Bembridge, 2526 XXV1l1 Regulus auricapillus, 2428, 2486 » ignicapillus, 2487 Reptiles, British, 2575 © Rhodaria sanguinalis in England, 2547 Robin, singular nidification of, 2495 Robins, curious nesting-place of, 2453 Reeslerstammia perlepidella, ]xii Roller in Sussex, 2497 Rook, 2430, 2561 Ruff, 2537 Rusticus, Letters of, 2442 Salicaria arundinacea, 2533 ¥ Locustella, 2532 Sandpiper, green, note on the tail-feathers of, 2352; pectoral, near Yarmouth, 2392; green, 2432; spotted, at Whitby, 2455; near York, 2456 ; near Bishop’s Auckland, 2499; curlew, 2537 ; com- mon, 2541; pectoral, correction of an error respecting, 2568 Saxicola Ginanthe, 2541 a rubetra, 2532 Scolopax Brehmi in Scotland, 2621 ‘ Gallinago, 2537 a major, 2537 5 rusticola, 2537 Scomber punctatus, xxix Scops Aldrovandi, 2596 Scoter, velvet, 2539; common, 2539 Sea birds, 2445 Sea-serpent, Hon. T. H. Perkins’s ac- count, 2359; on the Orkney Isles, 2395 ; Mr. Davidson’s account, 2458; seen off Cumberland Island, 2459 ; Lieutenaut Sanford’s account, 2459; Commander Herriman’s account, 2541 ‘Sea-side Book, 2468 Seal, crested, in the Orwell river, 2380 Shearwater, Manx, 2625 Shell, new, 2399 Shieldrake, common, 2539 Shrike, great gray, near Bishop’s Auck- land, 2386; near Shoreham, 2386 ; at Heacham, 2411; in Suffolk, 2412; near York, 2452; near Lewes, 2452; great gray, 2478, 2536; red-backed, 2478; American greater northern, 2495 ; error in describing, 2567 Silkworms, second brood of, 2613 Siskin, 2429, 2491 Sitta Europea, 2603 Skeletons, inquiry as to the best mode of preparing, 2474; replies to inquiry, 2522, 2557 Skua, Buffon’s, in Huntingdonshire, 2392; near Redcar, 2592; pomarine, 2625 ; Richardson’s, 2625 Skylark, 2429 Smew, 2540 Snake, eel fascinated by, 2397 Snakes, on sewing up the mouths of in India, 2433 Snipe, departure of in 1849, 2421; jack, breeding in Norfolk, 2456; great, 2537; common, 25637 | Somateria mollissima, 2539 Sparrow, destructive power of, 2348, 2350; house, remarkable instance of sagacity in, 2351; defence of previous state- ments about, 2388; further observa- tions on, 2389 ; granivorous propensity of, 2415, 2417; tree, 2490; house, 2490 Sphecodes subquadratus, 2370 Spiders, sense of touch in, 2400 Spoonbill, &c., near Yarmouth, 2499 Stainton, H. T., ‘ Catalogue of Tineide, 2549 Starling, 2430, 2559 Sterna arctica, 2624 » Boysii, 2624 » Dougallii, 2624 » Hirundo, 2624 » IMminuta, 2624 » nigra, 2624 Stilt, black-winged, 2601 Stint, little, at Rye, 2529, 2569; Tem- minck’s, near Penzance, 2591; little, 2602; Temminck’s, 2602 Stoat changing its coat, 2343 Stoats, pied, further note as to, 2407 Stonechat, 2483 Stork near Wisbeach, 2568; white, 2601 Strix brachyotos, 2477 » bubo, 2477 » flammea, 2427, 2477 » hyctea, 2477 9, Otus, 2477 »» passerina, 2478 » stridula, 2477 Sturgeon at Wisbeach, 2500 Sturnus vulgaris, 2430, 2559 Sula Bassana, 2624 Swallow, 2534; white variety of, 2392, 2568 ; chimney, 2604 Swallows, late stay of at Rye, 2352; mi- gration of, 2391; late appearance of in 1848, 2455; hybernating in the cliff at Hastings, 2590 Swan, Bewick’s, 2539 Swift, 2606 Swordfish, combat with, 2396 Sylvia arundinacea, 2484 » atricapilla, 2485 » cinerea, 2485 » Hippolais, 2486 +! hortensis, 2485 XXIX Sylvia locustella, 2484 » luseinia, 2484 » cenanthe, 2483 »» Orphea in Yorkshire, 2588 -5, phoenicurus, 2483 » provincialis, 2486 » rubecula, 2482 » rubetra, 2483 » rubicola, 2483 » salicaria, 2483 » Ssibillatrix, 2534 » Sylvicola, 2485 » sylviella, 2485 » Lroglodytes, 2603 Sylvia, eggs and nest of a British, 2453 Sylvia Hippolais, supposed egg of, 2386 ; in Britain, 2387; egg of, 2387, 2412; nest and eggs of, 2412 Tadorna Vulpanser, 2539 Taleporia inconspicuella, 1xi Tern, Caspian, near Great Yarmouth, 2499; black, at Chertsey, 2500 ; Cas- pian, at Yarmouth, 2529; gull-billed, at Yarmouth, 2569, 2592; Sandwich, 2624 ; roseate, 2624 ; common, 2624 ; arctic, 2624 ; lesser, 2624 ; black, 2624 Tetrao Tetrix, 2598 Thalassidroma Leachii, 2625 PA pelagica, 2625 Thrush, 2428; song, extraordinary nest of, 2453; cream-coloured variety of, 2453 ; missel, 2479; White’s, 2480 ; song, 2480 Tinea argentimaculella, 1xi » ruricolella, lxi 5, ustella, curious habitat of, 2633 Tineidz, information concerning new Continental, 2369 ; Catalogue of, 2549 ; correction of an error, 2613; captures of, and descriptions of new British species, 2627 Tit, bearded, near Hitchin, 2346; crested, in Scotland, 2348; near Tring, 2418 ; great, 2487; long-tailed, curious fact in the nesting of, 2567 Titmouse, cole, in London, 2390 ; blue, 2429, 2487; long-tailed, 2429, 2487; cole, 2487; marsh, 2487; bearded, 2597 Toad in solid wood, 2458 Totanus fuscus, 2537 " glottis, 2537 a5 hypoleucos, 2541 z ochropus, 2432 Trifurcula pulverosella, lxiv squamatella, lxiv Tringa minuta, 2602 » subarquata, 2537 Tringa Temminckii, 2602 » variabilis, 2537 Troglodytes vulgaris, 2431 Trout, breeding of by the artificial pro- cess, 2398; structure and mode of growth of certain tissues and organs in, 2543 Turdus iliacus, 2481 » merula, 2482 » Musicus, 2428, 2480 » pilaris, 2481, 2536 » torquatus, 2482 93 -ViScivorus, 2479 » Whitei, 2480 Turnix Andalusica, 2598 Turnstone in Cambridgeshire, 2497 Ulula stridula, 2427 Upupa Epops, 2598 Uria Troile, 2623 Vanessa Antiopa near Cromer, 2369 Viper swallowing its young, 2355 Vole, water, food of, 2558, 2587, 2619 Vulture, griffon, 2451 Wagtail, pied, 2487; gray, 2488, 2536; gray-headed, 2488; Ray’s, 2488 Warbler, grasshopper, 2484, 2532 ; sedge, 2484; reed, 2484, 2533; blackeap, 2485; garden, 2485, 2534; wood, 2485, 2534; Dartford, 2486, 2597; grasshopper, in Cambridgeshire, 2497 asp, Common, seasonal abundance or scarcity of, 2614 Wasps, parasitic larve in the nests of, 2584 Waxwing, Bohemian, 2487, 2597 Weasel, 2444 Weasels hunting in packs, 2344 Whale, caing, 2346; two-toothed, at Hull, 2409; finner, capture of in the Thames, 2620 Wheatear, 2483, 2541; arrival of at Brighton, 2412 Whimbrel, 2601 Whinchat, 2483, 2532 Whistling mouse, 2474, 2475 Whitethroat, common, 2485; lesser, 2485 Winter visitors, dates of arrival of at Deal, 2422 Wireworm, inquiry respecting, 2375 Woodchat, 2478 ; at Scilly, 2620 Woodcock, 2537 Woodpecker, green, 2431, 2564 ; great spotted, 2431, 2564; smaller spotted, near Stowmarket, 2454; supposed new British, near Whitby, 2496 ; great and lesser spotted at Pease- XXX marsh, 2497; new British, killed in Yorkshire, 2527; lesser spotted, 2564 Worms, leaves adhering to the casts of, 2576 Wren, 2431, 2603; melodious willow, note and inquiry respecting, 2346; notes on the different species, 2413; name and distinctive marks, 2414; reed, at Scilly, 2620 Wryneck, 2565 Yorkshire Naturalists’ Club, 2617 Ypsolophus Durdhamellus, 1xii Yunx torquilla, 2565 Zelleria fasciapennella, 1xili 5 hepariella, 1xiii » insignipennella, lxiii Zoological Society, proceedings of, 2502, 2529, 2578, 2636 ‘Zoologist,’ on useless records in, 2493 Zoology, marine, of Dunbar, 2464, 2518 Zoophytes found at Dover, 2376; at Dunbar, 2464, 2518 ADVERTISEMENT. ‘Tue ZoowoeisT’ will be continued both as a monthly and an annual publication. As a monthly, it will contain thirty-two pages of letter-press, occastonally accompanied with illustrations engraved on wood; will be on sale three days before the end of every month ; and will be charged one shilling. As an annual, it will be sold on or about the \st of December ; will contain twelve monthly numbers, bound and lettered uniformly with the present volume; and will be charged thirteen shillings. An alphabetical list, both of contributors and contents, will be published once in the year. THE ZOOLOGIST FOR 1849. On Reason and Instinct. By the Rev. J. C. Atxryson, M.A., Domestic Chaplain to the Viscount Downe. THE full meaning of the word “ prejudice,” as I understand it, is a notion or belief taken up and adopted antecedent to such judgment or decision of the understanding as can be come to only after careful and impartial consideration of all the bearings of the subject in ques- tion, including, of course, whatever reasons and arguments may be alleged in favour of or against each several view of it. Perhaps, then, the most unfortunate position, as regards the admission of the truth, into which the human mind is apt to throw itself, 1s that which may be called the position of prejudice,—a position, that is, which prevents it from reasoning on, no matter how fair the premises, lest the antici- pated consequence should be the establishment of a doctrine incon- sistent or at variance with certain preconceived notions, or impressions, or estimates, as the case may be. And besides that the nascent in- quiry is thus as it were “burked” in its infancy, to the complete prevention, necessarily, of its resulting in the discovery or the esta- blishing of the truth, the mind from habit becomes not only hardened in its prejudice, but increasingly less inclined to, and less capable of, the due exercise of its functions in the examination of any future question or matter of inquiry which may chance to be presented to it. Moreover, it for the most part happens that in the preconceived notion or fancy alleged in bar of the inquiry, there is, and naturally enough, some great fallacy, if not absurdity. Thoughts of this kind have more than once been suggested to me when conversing with people on the subjects of Reason and Instinct, Vil B 2334 Reason and Instinct. and the probable possession of a degree of the former by other fami- lies of animated creation besides the human. The moment I began to contend for the doctrine that certain brutes are evidently endowed with something that is certainly more than instinct, and by no means so certainly less than reason, I have once and again been met with the objection, “ No, I can never admit that; for if admitted you destroy a great part of the distinction between man and the brutes: you bring the latter far too near the standard of the former to be agreeable.” And so ends the matter, of course; for there is no scope for reasoning when once such a position as this is laid down. It certainly seemed to me somewhat strange that objectors of this class should not only be insensible to the fact, that they themselves were by no means taking the best way of proving their superiority as reasoning creatures by urging such an objection as this, but insensi- ble, likewise, to the fact that their objection involved both fallacy and glaring absurdity. For, supposing the question raised, “ Are not cer- tain animals possessed of something which is more than instinct, and which is, moreover, either reason, or so much like it as to be easily mistaken for it?” I ask, Is it not plain that from the day of Creation the relative position of man and beast have been unalterably fixed? Whether we admit or whether we deny the animal to be endowed with certain attributes,— can our admission or our denial be in the least tittle efficient towards altering such unalterable relative position ? Unquestionably not! There is the gulf which cannot be passed over between man and beast,—a gulf not placed by man, and which nothing that can be said or done by man can either narrow or bridge over. ‘The man who has suffered from the pecuniary propensities of the Pennsylvanian “ men of drab” might as well fear lest the Atlantic should be materially narrowed by the admission that, after all, there are many honest men and true in the family of Brother Jonathan,— as the sensitive stickler for human superiority over the brute creation in every point, be apprehensive lest that superiority should be affected by the concession of reasoning powers to certain members of the brute family. For facts are facts, whether we concede that they are such, or whether we dispute and deny them. _ If a town is currently said to be fifty miles distant from another, while in point of fact it is only forty-five, no one, I suppose, will undertake to say that these towns are actually brought nearer to one another than they were, when once the distance between them has been demonstrably ascer- tained to be forty-five miles, instead of fifty, as was wont to be alleged. And so with respect to the brute. If any individuals or species are Reason and Instinct. 2335 endowed, in any degree, with reason, they have been so endowed from the first; and our admission that such is the fact in no wise in- terferes to alter their grade in the general scale of Nature. When they were created they were placed at a certain distance below man, him- self made “ a little lower than the angels;” and nothing whatever— least of all accurate knowledge concerning their nature and attributes —can ever raise them nearer to the human standard than they were originally placed. Let not, then, our objectors be apprehensive lest we should raise the brutes too near the human ’vantage-ground of in- tellect, even if we contend that some of them at least, and under certain circumstances, may be fairly and reasonably proved to be possessed of something besides their instinct,—something that is more than Instinct, but scarcely less than Reason. Let them rather fear lest by neglecting or refusing to exercise their intellectual attri- butes properly, or by the undue indulgence of their faculties that are not intellectual, they should lower—not the whole human race, but— themselves in the scale of Nature, and in this way lessen the vast dif- ference which the All-wise has placed between man, whose “ spirit goeth upward,” and the beast, “ whose spirit goeth downward to the earth.” It is no new theory that the brute creation are endowed, in some degree or other, with the gift of Reason. Some, we know, have even gone so far as to assign to them the possession of undying souls,— partly, as it seems to me, out of a total misconception of words and passages in the apostolical writings, and partly out of what seems lit- tle better than a visionary conceit. But, passing this by without fur- ther notice (for the present at least), we may remark, that among those - who have given it as their opinion that brutes are capable of reason- ing, we find one or two of the acutest intellects and soundest judg- ments that ever shed lustre on their time and race. I refer particularly to Locke, the great author of the ‘Essay on the Human Under- standing’ and other admirable metaphysical and philosophical works. These are his words: “It seems as evident to me that some of them” —that is, of the brutes—“ do in certain instances reason, as that they have sense; but it is only in particular ideas, just as they received them from the senses. They are the best of them tied up within nar- row bounds, and have not, as I think, the faculty to enlarge them by any kind of abstraction.”— (‘ Essay on the Human Understanding,’ Book ii. ch.11). Again, the author of the ‘ Natural History of Ani- mals’ goes even further than this. He contends, that their “ natural operations are performed with a view to consequences ;” that they are 2336 Reason and Instinct. “the result of a train of reasoning in the mind of the animal,”—at the same time acknowledging that their reasoning and thinking powers are “remarkably deficient when compared with those of men; that they cannot take so full a review of the past, nor look forward with so penetrating an eye to the future ; that they do not accumulate obser- vation upon observation, or add the experience of one generation to another;” and so on. While yet another writer of eminence says, “We shall readily allow that some of the inferior animals seem to have perceptions of particular truths, and, within very narrow limits, the faculty of reason.” Now I propose, in the following remarks, to inquire how far it may be truly alleged of the brute creation, or of any part of it, that they are possessed of the faculty of reason. And, in the conduct of this inquiry, it appears to me the best plan to ascertain clearly what is meant wy Reason, and what by Instinct; in other words, to lay down such definitions, both of the one and the other, as may suffice to show most plainly the difference there is between them; and then, by bringing the actions of animals to the test thus afforded, to prove whether they are not—at least in some cases and in some degree—re- ferrible to Reason, and not simply to mere Instinct. In the first place, as to Reason. The same writer from whom we have already once quoted speaks thus: “ The perception of Truth, as it is in itself, is commonly ascribed to our rational faculties; and these have, by Locke and others, been reduced to two,—Reason and Judgment. The former is said to be conversant about certain truths ; the latter chiefly about probabilities.” Dr. Reid says, “ We ascribe to Reason two offices, or two degrees: the first is, to judge of things self-evident ; the second, to draw conclusions that are not self-evident from those that are.” Secondly, as to Instinct. Instinct is a certain power or disposition of mind, “by which, independent of all instruction or experience, without deliberation and without having any end in view, animals are unerringly directed to do spontaneously whatever is necessary for the preservation of the individual or the continuation of the kind.” “ In- stinct,” writes the author of ‘ Ancient Metaphysics,’ “is a determina- tion given by Almighty Wisdom to the mind of the brute to act in such or such a way, upon such or such an occasion, without intelli- gence, without knowledge of good or ill, and without knowing for what end or purpose he acts.” One more quotation, which serves as it were to bring together and contrast these two sets of definitions, and we will be content: “ Actions performed with a view to accomplish a Reason and Instinct. 2337 certain end are called rational actions; and the end in view is the motive to their performance. Instinctive actions have a cause, viz., the internal impulse by which they are spontaneously performed ; but they cannot be said to have a motive, because they are not done with any view to consequences. Thus a man gives charity in order to re- lieve a person from want: he fights for his country in order to repel its enemies. Each of these actions is performed from a motive, and therefore they are rational actions. An infant is impelled to suck the breast, but he knows not that it is necessary for his preservation. It is an action that has no motive, and therefore is not rational; but as it is performed by a spontaneous exertion of the infant it is not to be attributed to mere mechanism: * it is therefore an ¢nstinctive action.” The first question, then, is, Do the brutes, or any of them, in addi- tion to their “ znstinctive actions,” perform others which may rightly be termed “rational actions?” Do they ever, in any part of their conduct, afford instances of actions—over and above those performed in virtue of that internal impulse which causes their spontaneous ac- complishment—that give evidence of their having been done with some end in view as a motive to action? Do they ever appear to judge of or draw conclusions from things self-evident? And, in answer to these questions, I think abundance of instances may be alleged which will fully warrant an unqualified affirmative reply. Take the dog, the horse, the elephant, the pig,—even the ass and the goose, creatures whose names are proverbs for stupidity and simpleness,— and hosts of examples may be produced of actions performed by them that are clearly rational, inasmuch as they are characterized by regard to an end, by connexion of effect with cause, by evident judgment on matters of fact. With respect to the dog, so many are the tales on record, which would amply serve our purpose, that one is ata loss to select from them. I will, however, instead of selecting from any that may be al- ready before the public, rather mention one or two instances which have occurred under my own observation, or been narrated to me by a late officer of the Indian army, who was fully assured of the entire truth of his narrative. ‘To begin: I was one day fishing in the Wye, accompanied by a Scotch terrier, the property of a neighbouring clerical friend. While I was engaged in my pursuit, Pepper was busy hunting a narrow bed of reeds just below me. Ina few moments I * “The action of breathing is mechanical, being performed without either motive or spontaneous exertion.” 2338 Reason and Instinct. heard the plunge of a water-rat which he had disturbed. I listened for the plunge of the dog; but to my surprise—for I knew him by no means slack in the pursuit of such game—it did not follow. TI turned to see the reason, and it was at once apparent. The dog had, the moment the rat plunged, gone four or five yards down the bank; and there he stood at the edge of the water, one foot up, ready to dash up- on his victim the moment it appeared at or near the surface. In ano- ther second I saw him make his spring, and a few moments later he was at wy feet with the dead rat in his mouth. Now, surely we can- not say that the dog acted thus by instinct. We cannot say he acted “ without intelligence,” “ without any view to consequences,” “ with- out knowing for what end or purpose he acted,” or even “ without deliberation” and “independently of experience.” For why did he not dash into the water in instant pursuit? Why did he not run up- stream instead of in the contrary direction? Why, because he must have “ judged of self-evident things” and “ drawn conclusions from them,” viz., that in the water the rat would very likely elude him,— that the rat would not swim acainsT, but wiru, a tolerably strong current,—that the rat must emerge some little way down-stream, therefore,—and that, if he went down to be ready, he would be sure to capture his prey; this being the end and motive of the action of his in question. I might mention several other instances of sagacity, as they are generally called, presented in the actions of this same dog. But I will rather go on to one performed by another, a retriever—to use the name given in sporting phrase. His master was shooting in a preserve in Norfolk, which, like multitudes in some parts of that county, was surrounded by a kind of earthen or turfen wall, with holes or meuses cut at intervals at the bottom of the wall, to allow of the free exit and ingress of the game. The sportsman shot at and wounded a hare, which, however, contrived to make its escape through one of these holes, and was not seized by the retriever until it had gone to some little distance on the common which bordered the pre- serve. On returning to the wall with the hare, the dog endeavoured to leap the wall, as it had done when coming out in pursuit. The weight of the hare in its mouth, however, rendered the endeavour fruitless once and again. The dog soon discontinued its useless efforts, but instead of returning—like a creature sans resources—to its master without his game, he quietly trotted along to one of the meuses, laid the hare down at the outlet, pushed it as far through as he could, and then, easily leaping the wall, seized the hare on the other side, dragged it through, and carried it to its destination. Was all this Reason and Instinct. 2339 done by mere instinct '— or, rather, was not this judging of and draw- ing conclusions from self-evident things, and truly acting for a given end or under a given motive? Once again: a gentleman connected with the Newfoundland fishery was possessed of a dog of singular fidelity and sagacity. On one occasion a boat and crew in his employ were in circumstances of considerable peril, just outside a line of breakers, which—owing to some change in wind or weather—had, since the departure of the boat, rendered the return-passage through them most hazardous. The spectators on shore were quite unable to render any assistance to their friends afloat. Much time had been spent, and the danger seemed to increase rather than diminish. Our friend, the dog, looked on for a length of time, evidently aware of there being great cause for anxiety in those around. Presently, however, he took to the water and made his way through to the boat. The crew supposed he wished to join them, and made various attempts to induce him to come aboard; but no! he would not go within their ‘reach, but continued swimming about a short distance from them. After a while, and several comments on the peculiar conduct of the dog, one of the hands suddenly divined his apparent meaning: “ Give him the end of a rope,” he said, “ that is what he wants.” The rope was thrown,—the dog seized the end in an instant, turned round, and made straight for the shore; where, a few moments afterwards, boat and crew—thanks to the intelligence of their four-footed friend—-were placed safe and undamaged. Wasthere no reasoning here ? no acting with a view to an end or for a given motive ?—or was it nothing but ordinary instinct? Nay, a man who had acted with such forethought and presence of mind would have been thought worthy of high com- mendation for the intellectual superiority so manifested at the hour of need. And will it not savour something of unfairness if we deny si- milar credit to the sagacious and intelligent dog? So far, then, and going on the sure ground of laying down precise de- finitions of Reason and Instinct,—definitions, moreover, not framed by ourselves, or with any reference to any particular theory of our own or other men’s,—and then testing, by a reference to these definitions, actions which must come under the one or the other of them, so as to prove under which of them they do come, I think we may venture to say that instances have been alleged in which individuals of the dog tribe evidently performed “ rational” actions. These instances might be multiplied to an almost indefinite extent from the volumes and parts of volumes which have been composed on the subject of the in- telligence and sagacity of the dog. May we not therefore assert, that, 2340 Reason and Instinct. as regards this family of the brutes, our questions are answered in the affirmative. Now I do not know that it is altogether necessary to adduce re- corded instances of the sagacity of divers other animals,—for instance, the horse or the elephant. Every one knows there is no lack of them. And I think it an assertion which may be very safely made, that if we apply the same test to these instances as we have already done in the case of the dog, we shall meet with the same result; that is to say, we shall make good the point that both the horse and the elephant, in multitudes of recorded cases (and in multitudes more unrecorded, doubtless), have manifested by their conduct that they are not only impelled by instinct in general, but also capable of rational actions. Again, as regards the pig: when you see one or more of these ani- mals, having lost their companions, and engaging in a regular search for them by scent, on their coming to the meeting of three or four tracks, try first one and then another, and, if in vain, take the remain- ing one without similar trial,—what are you to infer? That they act as they do by instinct? Nay, surely, but by induction; by drawing conclusions from things self-evident, viz., that since their missing companions have not taken either of the roads they have tried by scent, they must have taken the other: and this is an observed fact. Now it may have occurred to the reader, that all the instances which have been adduced or referred to are in connexion with a pecu- liarly designated class of the brute creation; namely, such families and species as are more or less familiarised with man, more or less ac- customed to his society, as it were, or to his influence. I believe, from the results of observation which has been directed to the subject now for many years, that you will meet with comparatively but few instances of what we believe is reason in the brute, among such as have not been domesticated, or at least accustomed to feel the influ- ence or observe the actions of man. The wild elephant and horse— how different the history of their demeanour and actions from that af- forded in the case of the same animals when domesticated! You may certainly meet with what looks like—if I may be allowed the use of such language—untutored intelligence, or nascent power of reasoning, in some of the actions of certain wild animals under certain circum- stances ; the horse and the buffalo, for instance, when their herds are exposed to the attacks of beasts of rapine, or the fox in pursuit of its prey. But still they are very far from coming up to such instances of evident and close ratiocination as those upon which we have been commenting. In fact, we believe that the thoroughly developed power Reason and Instinct. 2341 is confined * to those creatures which have come into contact with him, who, as the poet says, “in reason” is so “noble.” The question, How far, or to what degree, are they possessed of the power of reason- ing? is one by no means easy satisfactorily to answer. It involves comparisons which require the nicest calculation and considerations of a highly complex character; and perhaps, after all, it might not be practicable to arrive at any very definite conclusion. One thing, however, is certain, that if entered into here it would expand the pre- sent observations beyond anything like moderate limits, and still pos- sibly fail of meeting with proper discussion. At some future time, however, we hope to return to it. It may, perhaps, be objected, as regards the soundness of the con- clusion we have come to, that our reasonings are not supported by a sufficient array of facts,—that we have arrived at our induction with- out having examined the requisite number of individual phenomena. Our reply must be, that if this seems to any one to be the case, we have at all events given a full and practical account of the way in which we have arrived at the conclusion: we have, so to speak, put our own formule and means of calculation within the reach of all and every, objector or not. Let the objector take the first volume he meets with of records of animal sagacity, and test the actions described by a reference of them to the definitions given above, and I have not the slightest doubt that long before he has gone through one half— nay, one-tenth part—of the instances given (one little book, we believe, professes to give five hundred !), he will own himself amply satisfied * Since writing the above I have had the opportunity of looking into Mr. Couch’s * Illustrations of Instinct.’ With the appearance of considerable discrepancy between his views and my own, I am yet inclined to think there is at bottom much more of real coincidence, when he says “I have purposely avoided drawing any illustrations of intellect from the history of the dog ; because, however sagacious many of its actions are, an objection might be raised that its proceedings are influenced by the long-con- tinued habit of receiving instruction from man.”—(p. 187). This goes the whole length of what I have contended for above ; while, as I conceive, what I have called * untutored intelligence or nascent power of reasoning” differs not very widely from the capacity to “ pursue a process of reasoning from facts or principles recognized by themselves,” (p. 197), which he claims for animals (in general) ; inasmuch as, in his preface, he expresses an opinion that “ if a higher degree of training were founded on a close study of their (the animals’) individual faculties, the result would be of im- portance to human interests.” I trust I may be allowed to take this opportunity to express the pleasure which the as yet unfinished perusal of Mr. Couch’s book has given me: I cannot but think it a valuable contribution in aid of the pursuits of the practical naturalist and observer. Vil C 2342 Reason and Instinct. with the conclusion that such animals at all events as are habituated to association with, or to the influence of, man, however exercised, possess besides their instinct a very sensible amount of reason. I do not say that this process would be altogether so simple and plain that the indifferent or careless inquirer should never blunder or trip: on the contrary, I think there is often a sufficiently appreciable degree of difficulty in distinguishing between the promptings of Instinct and the workings of Reason. Indeed no mind but that accustomed to the consideration and use of definitions will find it at all easy to make the distinction, even so as to satisfy itself eventually. Moreover, writers on the subject allow themselves great latitude in their ex- pressions ; and this produces inaccuracy and leads to misconceptions, especially with that numerous class to whom it is a rare and somewhat distasteful task to think for themselves, or really to think at all. As an example of what I mean,—some would assign to birds the exercise of a low degree of reason in the construction of their nests, particu- larly in their attempts to conceal them. I think, on the contrary, that this is a purely instinctive operation,* and I hold it proved by the fact that the first nest constructed by a bird is as perfect in shape, de- sign—if we may so speak—and fabric, as any future one. Instances have even been affirmed in which the first nest appeared to be the best. I think it instinct, too, which—in case of discovery of the nest —prompts the endeavour to conceal it, by whatsoever expedient. I think it instinct, and not reason, which leads the partridge, the grouse, the peewit, to act as they do when surprised, with a brood of young ones about them, by either man or dog. And, on the other hand, I incline to the opinion that it is not even instinct, far less reason, as some think, which induces the hare to maintain its seat, instead of hastily making its escape, although very nearly approached by the intruder. I strongly suspect, not that it is simply terror (See ‘ Illus- trations of Instinct,’ 202—204; Zool. 295) so much as indecision, or animal loss of presence of mind, which prevents instinctive action ; and every time I have had an opportunity of verifying the fact, the animal that.so conducted itself was a young one. The cases men- tioned in Mr. Couch’s book, just referred to, are of a different charac- ter, and his conclusion seems quite satisfactory. The fox did not simply remain inactive, as the hare does, but presented the semblance of death, which the hare does not; and I certainly think terror is a more satisfactory means of accounting for the fact than the animal’s * Certainly, if tried by the definitions of Instinct, it is. Quadrupeds. 2343 cunning or subtlety. There is marvellous little subtlety, as Mr. Couch intimates, in lying still to be taken up by the tail, when a moderate use of the four legs would instantly place their owner in safety. - But still, though the distinction between reason and instinct, and the actions originating in each, not very easy in itself, is rendered still less easy to many by that vague use of terms which we have just re- ferred to, there is no doubt that common attention and accuracy will enable any one to satisfy himself, in the way above suggested, con- cerning the question which forms the subject of these observations ; that is to say, if he thinks our adduced instances insufficient in num- ber, or too unsatisfactory in themselves, to furnish the necessary sub- stantiation for the conclusion we have come to, as to the undoubted possession—by certain families of the animal creation—of the gift or power of reasoning. J. C. ATKINSON. Danby, Whitby, November, 1848. Occurrence of a Foreign Bat in Orkney.— About September, 1847, a bat was caught, by some people digging potatoes, in the island of South Ronaldsha, and it was kept alive for some weeks, on sugar and water I believe. It was considered a very great curiosity there, though any bat would have been equally so. I obtained the kind permission of the Rev. John Gerard to take it to London for examination. Mr. Waterhouse informs me that Mr. Gray believes it to be a large specimen of Ves- pertilio pruinosus. It isa native of North America. Its general appearance is not unlike the Noctule: the general colour may be called badger-like. A bat isa very likely animal to be brought in a ship: insects we know are brought from America to Liverpool in great plenty.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, Novem- ber 16, 1848. | Cats and Nemophila insignis.—Having read in the ‘ Zoologist’ (Zool. 2252 and 2289), of instances in which cats are represented to have destroyed the Nemophila in- signis, I think it but right to the feline race to say that such is not the case with all; for in the garden at the house in which J live, the plant in question occupies a most prominent position, it being the border to a long walk,—and although the garden is the rendezvous of the whole street for courtship and fighting, yet I have never ob- served (and I look rather closely to such matters) a single instance of their even touch- ing the plant. May not the cases in question be the exceptions, for I cannot learn from any of my friends of a like complaint against Pussy ?—Alfred Rain; 14, West Derby Street, Liverpool, December, 1848. Note as to the Stoat changing its Coat.—Mv. Briggs inquires (Zool. 2282), ‘‘ whe- the ‘ pied’ stoats are merely varieties of the common species, or individuals changing from their winter to their summer coats?” Stoats commence changing their coats 2344 Quadrupeds. about the end of December ; by the end of January they are about “ half-and-half,” and by the beginning of March are quite white. The best method of ascertaining the truth of this will be for him to examine the keeper’s “ racks” through the winter, when I have no doubt he will find this statement correct.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, No- — vember 7, 1848. Weasels hunting in Packs.—There have been several communications (if my me- mory does not fail me) in the ‘ Zoologist, with regard to weasels hunting in packs ; perhaps the following may be deemed worthy of a place in that periodical. John . Skinner, a labourer of my father’s, informs me, that one day, about noon, while sitting in a field of corn which he had been cutting, he observed a hare run quickly past him, which was shortly after followed by nine or ten weasels ; he thinks that they were two old ones and their family: they were uttering a low cry like fox-hounds.—Edward Peacock ; Messingham, Kirton Lindsey, Lincolnshire, December 13, 1848. Are Moles injurious or beneficial to Farmers ?—The subject having been again noticed by Mr. Briggs (Zool. 2280), I venture to add a few observations, but chiefly in reply to the paragraph at page 2009. It is undoubtedly true that in some soils moles will do a vast deal of good, while in others they cause more mischief in work- ing the soil than counterbalances the good they do in destroying wire-worms, &c. On stiff soils (and these I believe are very prevalent in Essex) they will do a great deal of good, by loosening the earth and thoroughly draining it by their subterranean galleries, thereby rendering them much lighter, and consequently more productive. Such I presume to be the nature of the Rev. Mr. Wilkins’ land ; and if so, the more the earth is worked so much the more will they improve and lighten it. But some soils—for instance, the downs and highlands and some pasture-lands of Sussex—are so light and loose, that the farmers are compelled to roll and press the ground over and over again, with the heaviest rollers they can procure, in order to render it firm, other- wise there would be no protection for the root of the young plant as soon as it is up, —the stalk would grow weak, the ears would be thin, and a moderate July breeze would lay the whole field. Of what use, then, would a mole be in this case? If Mr. Wilkins had taken a living among the Sussex Downs, I expect he would not have been so strenuous an advocate for the encouragement of moles, as I fear he would have found that “ the remedy was worse than the disease.” In conclusion, I say it is with the question propounded at the head of this paragraph as with the greatly dis- puted question of draining, “‘ No general rule can be laid down as to what is best to be done, but each farmer must use his own discretion, by considering the nature of his soils, and act accordingly.”—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, December 1, 1848. Occurrence of the Black Rat in Devonshire.—A few days since a specimen of the black rat (Mus Rattus) occurred at Salcombe, a few miles from Kingsbridge, and is now in my possession : in this part of Devon they appear to be almost exterminated. —H. Nicholls, Jun. ; Kingsbridge, South Devon, October 1, 1848. The Hamster not in Orkney.—We see a report, copied from one book to another, that the hamster is naturalized in South Ronaldsha, having been brought there in a Norway vessel, which suffered shipwreck. After much inquiry in that island, I came to the conclusion that this is a mistake. The black rat, as well as the common rat, is found there; and the black rat is there called the blue rat, which name is well applied from the colour of the animal. One man told me this blue rat was said to have come in a shipwrecked Norway vessel : hence I think the story is traced to its origin.—John Wolley ; 3, Roaburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, November 16, 1848. - Quadrupeds. 2345 The Rein Deer in Orkney.—A small pair of horns of the rein deer, still attached to part of the skull, were found in the island of Sanday not long ago, and are now in the Kirkwall Museum. At the back of the skull there are still traces of ligament, which would indicate the relic to be of no great antiquity. It is said that rein deer were once introduced into these islands, and that it was so appears probable from their horns not being more frequently met with in the more modern formations of our islands. Owen tells us, nevertheless, that at one period—that of the hyenas—they did exist here.—Id. The European Elk.—This animal has escaped a place in any of Mr. Van Voorst’s series of books illustrative of British Natural History ; yet that it should not have been a contemporary of the wild bull, the aurochs and the rein deer, in our ancient forests, seems, @ priori, improbable: accordingly we find its remains have been discovered in Scotland. Mr. Owen mentions a donation to the Royal Society of Edinburgh, of “a painting in oils of the head and horns of an elk, found in a marl-pit, Forfarshire,” but he suggests that they belonged to a rein deer, not having seen them. The painting now in the College Museum of Natural History is evidently that of the head and horns of the European elk,—not of the great Irish deer, the rein deer, or the fallow deer.—Id. The Red Deer in Orkney.—This animal was in all probability extirpated by man. In the Museum at Kirkwall are three or four fragments of antlers, found in Pictish towers, in different parts of the country. Its horns are very common in the peat. In Shetland its remains are, I believe, unknown.—ZId. Remarkable Hybrid.—* This remarkable filly (seven months old) was found a short time since in the New Forest, and is evidently of a mixed breed between the horse and the deer. Her mother, a pony mare, was observed to associate with some red deer stags in the New Forest for some months, and at last this foal was seen by her side. The nose shows a proximity both to the stag and horse: her forehead is round, like that of the deer: legs slender and distinctly double: hoofs pointed and partly double: colour brown, lighter under the belly; and tail like a deer. This extraordi- nary animal is the property of T. G. Attwater, Esq., of Attwater, at the village of Bodenham, three miles from Salisbury. Dr. Fowler, of that city, has inspected the hybrid, and is quite satisfied of the correctness of the preceding statement; and Colonel Buckley, a keeper of the New Forest, has likewise seen the animal, and is of a similar opinion.”—*‘ Illustrated London News, December 9, 1848. [This statement is accompanied by a figure drawn by George Landseer, which bears sufficient evidence of its fidelity, but which, excepting in the shortness of its tail, does not differ from the portrait of any ordinary foal. I should much like further information on the subject: at present I am disposed to discredit the possibility of a hybrid between a soliped and a ruminant animal. The description quoted above is most unsatisfactory— Edward Newman. | Combat between a Bull and a Stag.—The ‘ Salisbury Herald’ states, that, a few days since, at Ashton Keynes, in that county, a two years old bull and a fat stag fu- riously attacked each other, and fought till the latter dropped dead, covered with wounds, and it was with the greatest difficulty that the victor was removed from the dead body of his fallen foe.—From the ‘ Sussex Agricultural Express, November 4, 1848. 2346 Cetacea.—Birds. The Ca’ing Whale——It seems to have been a bad season for the inhabitants of Shetland. At the time I was there, the herring season nearly over, there had hardly been one successful “ ca’ing” or driving of a herd of “ bottle-noses,” as they are there called.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, November, 1848. Occurrence of the Osprey at Udimore, Sussex.—A very fine adult male osprey was shot at the above place about three weeks ago by the gamekeeper of F. Langford, Esq., and is now in the possession of Mr. Henley, of the same place.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, December 7, 1848. Arrival of Fieldfares (Turdus pilaris). In the preface to the ‘ Zoologist’ for 1848 you mention having received several contributions touching the early arrival of the fieldfare, and you consider that the missel thrush may have been mistaken for it. Last year I was several times deceived, taking small flocks of missel thrushes for early fieldfares ; but was soon convinced to the contrary. This year fieldfares and redwings were very plentiful on the 21st of October; and in order to satisfy myself as to the reality, I shot specimens of them both. Can you inform me if the colour of the field- fare’s beak depends on the age of the bird, since some I have shot had the beak dark brown, others dirty yellow.—J. W. Hulke ; 155, Lower Street, Deal, Kent, December 5, 1848. [I regret not being able to throw any light on this subject. With regard to the early arrival of fieldfares in the autumn of 1848, I am really much in doubt: several contributors still speak of having shot them early in September, but our best ornitho- logists seem of opinion that there is some accidental mistake.— Edward Newman. | Occurrence of the Water Ouzel (Cinctus aquaticus) and Bearded Tit (Calamophilus biarmicus) near Hitchin.—A specimen of the water ouzel has recently been met with near this town (Hitchin, Herts): it was shot ‘at Westmill, in the little river Orton, by the. son of the tenant, who had observed it in the shallow water of the mill tail, fre- quently dipping after its food: it appears to be a young male bird, in perfect plumage. On the banks of the same stream, a few days since, I had the pleasure of seeing—for the first time alive—the bearded tit. I think there was a small flock of them in a bed of reeds; but a pair allowed me to approach almost close to them, and observe their movements. I do not mention the occurrence of this bird as anything very extraor- dinary, for Yarrell describes it as common in reed-beds over various parts of England ; but I believe it has not been seen before in this locality,—long the favourite field of observation with several friends attached to Natural History and keenly on the look out for rare birds. Last winter, a large bed of reeds, which has for many years been shaded with old willows and other trees, was denuded of timber; and consequently the reeds are much stronger this season, and generally seeded: the birds appearing for the first time under these circumstances, proves that they make extensive flights in search of “ fresh fields and pastures new.”— William Lucas ; Hitchin, December 8, 1848. Note and Inquiry respecting the Melodious Willow Wren (Sylvia hippolais).—I have been interested by the announcement in the ‘ Zoologist’ (Zool. 2228) of the occur- rence of the Sylvia hippolais of Temminck near Dover, and also by the editorial re- marks in the preface to the volume for 1848, relating to the probability of this bird Birds. 2347 being one of our regular migrants in the South of England. I think it can hardly be doubted that the number of the species, arranged under the third section (Muscivores) of Temminck’s genus “ Bec-fin,” which are to be found in some parts of England, is not yet accurately determined. The small size of the birds, the general similarity of their appearance, and their retiring habits, are quite sufficient to throw a degree of obscurity over the group ; and when we find Temminck saying of the figures of such an ornithologist as Gould, that his willow wren (Sylvia trochilus) and his chiff-chaff (S. hippolais) are both willow wrens (see ‘ Manuel d’Ornithologie, vol. iii. page 153), humbler naturalists may certainly be excused if they have confounded one species of this section with another. But I write at present to inquire if the egg of the true Sylvia hippolais (Temminck’s Bec-fin a poitrine jaune) is known with certainty. I have long thought, from some acquaintance with the nidification and eggs of this group of birds, that the number of species commonly allotted to England was insuffi- cient; and I have considered the determining of the nest and egg of each species, with accuracy, to be worth some attention, as being likely to assist in fixing the num- ber of the species. My observations have been made, not on specimens furnished by egg dealers, but on those procured by myself or my friends, at various times, through- out a period of many years, in the natural habitats of the birds ; and the conclusion I have arrived at is, that I possess the eggs of four distinct species. It is very possible that I am mistaken in my opinion, for I have not been a “ bird-shooter ” as well as a “ bird-nester,” and therefore I have not any anatomical examination of the birds them- selves, wherewith to support my conclusions with respect to their eggs; but I will briefly describe my four varieties, and shall be glad of any information tending either to confirm or confute my views on the subject. The nest of the willow wren (S. tro- chilus), which is far more frequently found than that of either of the other species, is always constructed on the ground, as far as my observation goes. The materials are, generally, moss, dry grass and feathers. The eggs vary very considerably in size, shape and markings, but the colour of the markings is always the same,—that is, they are of different shades of brick-red. I possess specimens covered all over uniformly with pale freckles ; and others passing through all the gradations from that appear- ance up to large dark blotches round the thick end. The nest of the wood wren (S. sibilatriz) is also, as far as I have seen, built on the ground ; though Temminck says that it is formed likewise in the trunks of old trees. The external materials are pretty much the same as those of the willow wren, but the lining is said to be generally fine grass or horse-hair. The eggs are thickly covered over with spots and marks of deep purple. The nest that usually passes for that of the chiff-chaff, the S. hippolais of English authors, is almost always placed in a low bush, where it is mingled with tall grass and weeds, and at an elevation of about a foot from the ground. The eggs are clear white, with a very few purple spots. The form of all three of the varieties above described is more or less oblong. The appearance of the fourth variety differs mate- rially from all these. I never knew it to be found anywhere but in the neighbourhood of Bristol; neither have I ever seen any specimens of it except such as came from that neighbourhood. When I resided near that city, twenty years ago, we used to find a nest in my father’s garden now and then, but not very frequently. These nests were always constructed in the grass, if my recollection serves me right, and generally under the overhanging edges of the turf-borders of the walks through the shrubberies. They were true wren’s nests, arched over, and with the entrance-hole in the side. The eggs were invariably almost globular, five or six in number, and of a pure milk-white. 2348 Birds. If they ever had any spots on them, it was never more than one or two very small ones. The four specimens still in my possession are as nearly as possible milk-white. It appears to me scarcely possible that this should be the egg of either S. trochilus or S. sibilatrix: neither does it correspond with Temminck’s description of the egg of the true S. hippolais; nor with the egg that passes commonly for that of the chiff-chaff. Both nest and egg very much resemble those described by Temminck as belonging to the S. Nattereri ; but then he says that bird is never seen in the North of Europe. May not Sylvia Icterina—which frequently occurs in Holland, and which appears to be often confounded with S. trochilus—be also one of our occasional summer visitants ? Temminck says that he has never even seen the nest or the egg of “ Icterina,” and he gives no description of them with which the egg in question might be compared. I shall end by repeating my request for information, through the pages of the ‘ Zoolo- gist,’ as to whether the egg of Temminck’s Sylvia hippolais is certainly known.— Wm. ~ Lean ; Birmingham, 12th mo. 14th, 1848. Abundant occurrence of the Crested Tit (Parus cristatus) in Scotland.—I have heard that this rare British bird has made its appearance, during the past autumn, in unusual numbers, in Scotland. At a late meeting of the Zoological Society, Mr. Gould exhibited several specimens in the flesh,—the first instance within my know- ledge of their having been seen in London in that state-— Edward Newman. Reply to Mr. Briggs on the destructive power of the Sparrow.—Before I offer any comment on the communication of your correspondent, Mr. Briggs —and lest he should suppose I am “no naturalist,” and therefore incapable of distinguishing be- tween the sparrow (Fringilla domestica) and the hedge warbler (Accentor modularis)— let me inform him that there is not, I do believe, a boy 12 years of age, in this district, who would not at once tell him that the ‘ billy hedge sparrow’ is a dull gray-brown fellow, who lays blue eggs and warbles his simple lay in the hedges ; while the ‘ tile sparrow, with more variegated plumage, utters his incessant chirp upon the tiles and lays a gray mottled egg. Then, as to being a “ practical matter-of-fact man,” I may state that, having lived upwards of thirty years sufficiently in the country to allow of the practice, I have devoted every hour that I could spare from business to the con- templation of God’s creatures; and study of their habits and economy has taught me how infinitely more perfect are the arrangements of Deity, for the universal benefit of His creatures, than any which man in his folly may attempt to devise,—and, also, that infringement of His laws of compensation is invariably productive of infinite mischief. And now for Mr. Briggs’ communication. Certainly the murderous plan devised by his “ intelligent matter-of-fact ” friends is calculated to prove something; and it seems to have proved that sparrows to the number of 3500 may find a subsistence on about 3400 acres of land: this is rather more than a sparrow to an acre. What a serious inroad must one poor pitiful sparrow make on an acre of corn! ‘Then as to the calcu- lation founded on the observations of these “ matter-of-fact” gentlemen: one sparrow eats one quart of corn a month! twelve quarts a year!! Will Mr. Briggs allow me to ask him how he imagines the sparrow contrives to get it? During one or two months, when the corn is ripening in the ear, the sparrow may—and no doubt does—feast him- self gloriously; but during winter, spring, and the early part of summer, I fear if he had nothing to eat but the grain he could collect from corn-stacks and barn-doors, his numbers would not greatly annoy even Mr. Briggs. What then becomes of his cal- culation ? With regard to the grain found in the sparrow’s crops,—if Mr. Briggs will try the experiment he will find that any corn exposed to warmth and moisture will 2/2 Sf Birds. 2349 become “ plump,” precisely as it does under the same circumstances in the sparrow’s crop. But now to the point: Mr. Briggs asks, “ What is that bill” (the sparrow’s) “made for? To crack grain or to pick up insects?” Both, most undoubtedly! as I will endeavour to prove. In the vicinity of my residence were some unoccupied buildings, much resorted to by sparrows and starlings, during great part of spring and summer, for breeding purposes. These buildings, about 200 yards in length, stand between an open common on one side, and corn and grass fields on the other. I have frequently watched these birds feed their young, and found that they did so invariably with insects. I have seen the old birds repeatedly shot at these times by tenting boys, and have taken as many as six or eight larve of the common brimstone moth (Rumia crategaria) from one bill. Ihave also found larve of Pontia brassice and rape, Abraxas grossularia, of several species of flies and beetles, &c., &c.; but I have never, at this season, found any corn in their crops, though occasionally seeds of various. kinds mixed up with other matter. In autumn I have found their crops distended with corn and other seeds, and in winter I have shot them near corn-ricks and farm- yards with corn in their crops; so that it is certain they do partially feed on corn. But I dare not say with Mr. Briggs, “if the sparrow is a grain-destroyer he ought to be destroyed,” hecause I believe the good he does in ridding farmer’s crops from my- riads of destructive larve, &c., amply compensates for the few grains of corn he may occasionally take from him. Mr. Briggs agrees with me that the young sparrows are fed on insects: I will, therefore, endeavour to place another calculation by the side of his, which will not, I hope, be without its value. I have watched pairs of sparrows repeatedly feeding their young, and have found that they bring food to the nest once in ten minutes, during at least six hours of the twenty-four, and that each time from two to six caterpillars are brought: every naturalist will know this to be under the mark. Now, suppose the 3500 sparrows destroyed by the “ Association for Killing Sparrows” were to have been alive next spring, each pair to have built a nest and reared successive broods of young during three months, we have, at the rate of 252,000 per day, the enormous multitude of 21,168,000 larve prevented from destroy- ing the products of the land, and from increasing their numbers from fifty to five hun- dred fold! Granted the sparrow does destroy corn—let the farmer prevent him by all means; but not surely by the wholesale slaughter counselled by Mr. Briggs: let him employ the tenter. A friend of mine found that blackbirds ate his strawberries, and argued like Mr. Briggs, ergo, ‘ they ought to be destroyed ;” accordingly he placed rat-traps on his beds, and thus put several to a miserable death. I also caught ‘blackie’ feeding on my strawberries: I did not altogether approve the practice, but, not being desirous of punishing a creature with death for following the dictates of that instinct implanted in it by its Creator and mine, I spread nets on hoops over my beds, and thus saved my fruit, and left the blackbirds to that enjoyment of existence which was their right equally with my own. Undoubtedly the undue increase of sparrows, mice, &c., is attributable to the indiscriminate destruction of hawks, owls, &c., by ig- norant gamekeepers; but must we therefore imitate their pernicious example, and, by still further carnage, most probably let loose myriads of noxious insects to devastate our woods and fields? No! let us rather try to teach men that the sparrow and hawk have each their office,— each forms a link in the great chain of compensation. And let the ‘‘ Society for Killing Sparrows” beware, lest, when they find their turnips de- voured by hosts upon hosts of creeping things that they can neither shoot nor trap, they may wish they had paused in their work of destruction, and left a few of their VII D 2350 Birds. poor enemies—the sparrows—to rid them of the pest.—John Hawley ; Doncaster, No- vember G, 1848. Reply to Mr. Briggs on the destructive power of the Sparrow.—Being one of those who think that nothing was made in vain, but that everything, in its proper place, has its beneficial use in the wise arrangements of the whole,—that other opinions are held by many I am well aware; but how often, when the why and wherefore is examined, do we see it to be pounds, shillings and pence that are interfered with! and when such a party does investigate any subject—for instance, the food of sparrows—how often is it done partially, looking with a microscopic eye for causes to condemn, magnifying the evil, real or apparent, while every good property is either cast into the shade or al- together overlooked! Now, I am afraid these matter-of-fact men, who have formed themselves into an Association to kill so many sparrows in a given time, or submit to a fine, are of this class ; because the evils ennmerated by your correspondent, Mr. Briggs, are enlarged to an unwatrantable extent. That the sparrows do destroy grain during a certain period of the year none will deny; but that they rob the agriculturist during twelve months is too had! Since reading Mr. Briggs’ letier I have waited upon three of our most eminent and enlightened farmers in this district, for their opinion on this subject ; and they agree on one point, that six weeks is the very out- side (but two of them think a mouth nearer the truth) that sparrows do in any way injure the agriculturist. But say six wecks; this reduces the evil to an eighth part, which will reduce the quantity destroyed by a thousand sparrows to 5 quarters, 6 strikes, 1 peck, which, at the assumed price of 35s. per quarter, would be £ 10 2s. 4d., instead of £84. as stated by Mr. Briggs. But it may be asked, where do they obtain the grain found in their stomachs during the other period of the year? Need we say that sparrows are foul feeders, and that wherever we see the exuvia of animals fed on grain we are almost sure to find sparrows feeding: and we think they pick up much in the fold or stubble-fields that would be trodden under foot, or otherwise wasted, if they did not get it. As it regards robbing the corn-ricks, it must only be stray heads,—for it is well known that the ears of com are placed inward and the straw towards the outside,—and it is very likely these would either perish by the weather or be devoured by mice. Is it not more likely, when they are burrowing up to the tail in ricks, that it is either for warmth or in quest of insects? But Mr. Briggs says, he never found insects in any of the stomachs of the 1000 sparrows examined. How were they ex- amined ? was it by a microscope ? without it how often are we deceived. Often what I have thought was a concrete mass of sand and other matter has proved to he the re- mains of insects when examined hy a microscope ; and it is well known, or ought to be, that insects are assimilated into the system much sooner than grain. How often do we see grain, berries, seeds, &c., voided, apparently entire and uninjured, while in the meantime all traces of animal food are gone. But it may be said that proof posi- tive is wanted that sparrows do feed on insects. As your correspondent has pointed to the bill of the sparrow, as a proof that they are grapivorous and not insectivorous, may we be allowed to point to the pheasant, partridge, and our domestic Gallinew, which eat insects whenever they can obtain them. And, again, we have a case in hand showing that the formation of the bill is not in all cases conclusive as to what the birds feed upon. Look at the account, by your correspondent Mr. Smith, of the roller taken at Banff, whose crop was filled with insects; yet the whole of the roller family have stout bills, sufficient to enable them to eat any grain. Now, it would appear that grain-feeders can and do eat insects, but that many of the insectivorous birds cannot Birds. 2351 eat grain, or, in other words, are not omnivorous: but I have seen sparrows, while on the wing, take meadow Tipulas, moths, butterflies, &c. On one occasion, when a boy, I was placed in “ durance vile” for an offeuce: it happened to be in a room the window of which overlooked some neighbouring yards, in one of which was a common bakehouse: under the eaves were two sparrow-nests, and, not having any other part of animated nature in view, I set myself the task of counting how often the sparrows visited their nests with food during half an hour. One male bird, which was darker than the other, thus enabling me to distinguish him, captured fourteen flies on the wing, and the four birds went from their nests to a water-spout and back 104 times. Now, so soon as I obtained my liberty, I went to the place to see the object of attrac- tion, and found it to be a large, dead cat, eutirely covered with the larve of (I sup- pose) the blue-bottle fly. Now, if they are as prolific as the common house-fly, which is computed to produce in one season no less than 20,000,900,—but say in round num- bers 20,000,000,—thus were prevented, by the capture of fourteen flies, the amazing number of 280,000,000 ; and hy the destruction of the 104 larve, in the same ratio, 2,080,000,000 : now if this be a corrcct caleulation, what an amazing quantity of in- secis 3500 sparrows will destroy in one season! Would it not be better to lay aside for a time this killing propensity, at least until our late sanitary enactments come into full operation, and until dunghills are removed, sewers cleansed, and the filthy fold- yards cease to pollute the atmosphere—no longer suitable places for the production of such myriads of insecis as are now produced? These ave the principal places where they breed; and as hedye-sparrows and robins leave our abode at this season of the year for nidification, it would appear that the housc-sparrow is the only bird, or nearly so, to keep these troublesome insects in check. I will give you another fact. While taking a walk in Newton-Cap Park, in the spring of 1847, the gardener came and asked me to go into the gardens to sce the state of the fruit-trees, caused by insects which he said had been brought by the east wind. It was just after the cold wet weather in April and May, which caused us to have so few of our summer visitants : aud although he had two women and a hoy employed every day to destroy the insects, yet many of the trees were denuded of almost every leaf: the cause I pointed out, and advised him not to destroy the birds (as I was aware he had killed some), but to sow his seeds a little deeper, and employ a boy to prevent them eating his peas, &c., when they made their appearance above ground. Some nine or ten days after I saw him agaiv, when he told me that the sparrows from the old hall adjoining had found out the pesis, as he called them, and had done more in clearing the trees in a few days than the people employed had in as many weeks,—and that for the future, instead of killing them as enemies, he would do what he could to protect them. Here we see the good and evil placed in a balance: I think the good considerably prcponderates ; and still hope that the impartial investigator will think that Yarrell, Jesse and Knapp are right.—Joseph Duff; Dishop Auckland, November 15, 1848. Remarkable instance of Sayacity in the cominon House Sparrow (Fringilla domes- tica).—This morning it happened that a sparrow had vot his head fixed between two tiles, which were placed perpendicularly against a wall in our yarden, so as to com- pletely prevent its extricating itself, when, on being discovered by its companions, se- veral of them, by their united efforts, endeavoured to extricate him by laying hold of his head with their beaks and flying backwards, but without effecting their purpose. Their earnest solicitude for their brother in affliction, coupled with the awkwardness 2352 Birds. of the position, soon caused the death of the unfortunate bird. After extricating him, by means of a pole, I found the head quite bared of the feathers, so earnest were his mates in their attempts to release him.— William H. Tugwell, Jun.; High Street, Reigate, Surrey, November 24, 1848. Late stay of Swallows (Hirundo rustica) at Rye—On the 13th of November I saw two young swallows. On the 14th the same again. On the 17th I saw another. On the 18th the same again. On the 28th I saw nine. On the 29th the same again: these were the last I saw. None of these were our swallows, which departed long be- fore—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, December 6, 1848. Note on the Partridge (Perdix cinerea).—When shooting, in December, 1841, near Hatfield, in Lincolnshire, I saw a pack of partridges, probably forty in number: they were very wild, and it was quite impossible to get near them. — I was told that it was not at all an uncommon occurrence in that district. It is the first and only instance that has fallen under my own observation.— Beverley R. Morris, A.B., M.D.; York, November 22, 1848. The Black Grouse (Tetrao Tetrix) breeding in Devonshire.—This bird breeds regu- larly, but in very limited numbers, on the high ground between Axmouth, Devon, and Lyme Regis, in Dorset ; and in 1845, when passing through Taunton, in Somerset, in September, I saw a male bird, at the hotel at which J stopped, which had becn shot in that neighbourhood the day before. The landlord told me that some were shot there every year.—Id. Note on the Tail-feathers of the Green Sandpiper (Totanus ochropus).—In his description of this bird in the ‘ Naturalist’s Library,’ Sir W. Jardine describes the three outside tail-feathers thus : “‘ The third from the outside with only two (distinct broad black bars towards the tip). The second with a spot on the outer web, the ex- terior feather entirely white.” In my specimen—I have but one—the third feather from the outside has one distinct bar, and two dots on the outer web; the second, one imperfect bar, and one dot on the outer web; the third, one very obscure bar, and one dot on the outer web. My specimen has all the appearance of being an old bird, and is in fine plumage. I have no doubt that in birds of a certain age these marks would be found uniform. Of what age is my specimen ? and which is the older bird, Sir W. Jardine’s or mine? Or are these the distinctions of sex? It may be thought hardly worth while to notice such trifling differences ; but any fact, however small, is of some value, and, in the confessedly imperfect state of our knowledge as to the changes of plumage in the sandpipers, may assist in ultimately elucidating the subject.—Jd. Occurrence of the Common Crane in Shetland.—I saw one of these birds on the mainland of Shetland, on the 14th of August last. At that time it was very shy, and my only chance of getting a shot at it was spoiled by a hooded crow, which got up and gave the alarm; but I had a good view of it with my glass. I watched it for some time, during which it stood with its neck raised and the feathers pressed close to the body, just like a heron when alarmed. It flew like the stork and spoonbill, with the neck stretched out ; the wings did not appear so arched as those of the heron. I had been looking for it several days; but it appears I was always too late, as it crossed a narrow arm of the sea usually towards the middle of the day, or after having been disturbed. It frequented an isthmus of good pasture-land, called Hillswick Ness, on the west of the mainland, not very far from Ronas Hill. What its usual food was I do not know: the people about thonght it grazed like a goose ; but when first Birds. 2353 seen, some six or eight weeks before I was there, it was at the carcass of a sheep, and it flew several times round the head of the boy who disturbed it, screaming and frightening him much. Curiously enough, when last seen, it was also “ pecking the body of a dead sheep.” This was on the 13th of October, moon fnll, as Mr. Gideon Anderson, the laird of Hillswick, has kindly informed me. A stay of so rare a visitor three or four months in the same neighbourhood is very interesting ; if it were to re- turn another year with a mate it would be still moreso. Willughby’s authority, and the old law against taking their eggs, are conclusive as to the fact of their formerly frequenting the Cambridgeshire fens and breeding in this country. Several years since one was shot in the island of South Ronaldsha, in the Orkneys, and one or two instances are recorded of its visiting Shetland. The people about had exaggerated stories of the great bird that had appeared at Hillswick. Many had seen it, yet from their descriptions I had some doubts whether it was a bustard or a crane: one man had been near enough to see the red about the head.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, November, 1848. ; Note on the Heron (Ardea cinerea) as an article of Food.—In the accounts of feasts in the olden time, we often see mention made of the heron, as one of the delicacies set before the guests. Some four or five years ago I had the curiosity to taste one, which had been shot on Strensall Common, near this city. It was kept a reasonable time, and dressed in the most approved mode. It was not at all fishy, but was hard and dry, and of no very agreeable flavour. There was little encouragement to make a se- cond attempt. In justice to the heron, I must, however, admit that this was an adult bird in full feather: possibly a more juvenile specimen might have proved more pa- latable. Even this one might, I should think, have passed muster if made into what is known to all sailors as a sea-pie, and which makes almost anything savoury and tasty.— Beverley R. Morris, A.B., M_D.; York, November 22, 1848. Occurrence of the Summer Duck (Anas sponsa) near Deal—On Monday, Novem- ber 6th, a fine specimen of this bird was shot in the meadow at Walmer Castle: I am not aware that it has previously occurred in this neighbourhood. Another specimen was shot in a dyke at Marsh Side, Chislet, by a person of the name of Rogers, on the 8th of November. Both birds are males—J. W. Hulke ; 155, Lower Street, Deal, Kent, November, 1848. Remarkable Colour of the Yelk in the Eggs of the Common Duck.—At a farm near Norwich I was shown some eggs of the common duck, the yelk of which was of a dark brown colour, not unlike melted glue: the eggs were laid that day and smelt quite fresh. They are perfectly good for hatching ; but the young lay the same sort of eggs, and therefore, of course, the breed is not worth keeping. There are a great many ducks kept at the same place, but only a few lay these peculiar eggs.— Peter E. Hansell ; Thorpe, December 14, 1848. Occurrence of the Green Cormorant (Phalacrocorax graculus) and Hooded Crow (Corvus cornix) near Borobridge—Last week, the keeper on the estate of Andrew Lawson, Esq., at Roecliffe, near Borobridge shot an immature specimen of the green cormorant, and also a very good specimen of the hooded crow. — James C. Garth ; Knaresborough, October 27, 1848. Ornithological Observations in Norfolk for September and October, 1848.—In Sep- tember: the Sandwich tern, at Lynn, about the end of the month: the red-necked phalarope, at Waxham, on the 26th and 30th; and the hobby, at Brixton, about the 2354 Birds. same time. In October: the rough-legged buzzard, at Winterton,—a female on the 25th, and a male a few days laier; several oiher examples have also occurred, and they all appear to be of the plumage of the second or third year, beivg older than the birds usually captured in other seasons: the gray shrike, at Yarmouth and other places: the tithys or black redstart (female), killed near the old battery at Yarmouth, on the Slst; this species has not been hitherto included in the Norfolk list: the adult gannet, at Cromer: Richardsou’s skua (immature), at Lynn and Yarmouth, and the pomarine skua (iminaiure), at the latter place: the sturm petrel, at Lynn: a hybrid between the pheasant and black game was killed, early in the month, at Kew Hill, in the parish of Sneitisham, in West Norfolk, and was supposed by the gamekeeper who killed it to have been bred from a pheasant and a gray hen.—J. H. Gurney, W. R. Fisher ; November, 1848. Ornithological Observations at Bishop's Auckland.—In 1844 I received a fine ma- ture rough-legged falcon, shot near Sunderlaud ; it had been seen and followed about a fortnight before it was captured: also, in November, the saine year, an ash-coloured shrike or large butcher-bird was shot near this place ; and a few days afterwards, ano- ther, also a male, was seen, but not capiured : in the same month a female red-backed shrike was shot in a field near this place. In December, 1846, I received a fine male ash-coloured shrike, shot a little west of this place. On the 8th of April, 1848, a ma- ture maish-harrier, with us very rave, was shot at Whitworth: on September 4th, a fieldfare was shot on Sunderland Moor: September 15th, I received a very pale buff sparrow (I*ringilla domestica), from Coundon, where there was a brood of five, four of which were of the same colour; the other oue appeared to be buff, with two small patches of light brown on the breast.—Joseph Duff; Bishop's Auckland, November 15, 1848. Provincial Names of Birds.—In pursuance of the example set by several of your correspondents, I forward a list of names applied in this neighbourhood to the com- moner species of birds. The long-eared owl is known os the ‘ horned owl’ or ‘ hoo- lei ;’ the white owl as the ‘ screech owl’ or ‘ hoolet-a-hoo.’ The rook is a ‘ crow, or ‘craw, as it is pronounced; and the crow is the ‘ carrion craw.’ The missel thrush is the ‘ misseltoe thrush’ or ‘ storm cock.’ The fieldfare is sometimes called the ‘ blue-tail’ or ‘ blue-rump.’ The redwing retains this appellation. The common linnet is the ‘ gray linnet’ or ‘ goss linnet.’? The lesser redpole is the ‘ chippet lin- net. The goldfinch is the ‘red-cap.’ The chaffinch is the ‘spink.’ The greenfinch is the ‘ green linnet.’ The bunting is the ‘ ground lark.’ The lark is the ‘ skylark.’ The tree pipit is the ‘tree-lark.2. The meadow pipit is the ‘ tit-lark.’ The redstart is the ‘ fanny red-tai].’ The yellow bunting is a ‘ yold-ring.’ The wagtails are called ‘water wagtails.’ The titmice are generally ‘ tom-tits ;’ the blue titmouse a ‘ blue- cap;’ and the great titmouse an ‘ ox-eye. The stonechat and whinchat are indiseri- minately ‘ whinchats.’ The wheatear is a ‘ white rump.’ The hedge warbler is a ‘billey’ or ‘ billy hedge-sparrow.’ The reed bunting is the ‘ reed -sparrow’ or ‘ black- cap. The summer warblers are generally ‘ peggies,—as ‘ peggy whitethroat,’ ‘ little ‘peggy,’ ‘ black-capped peggy, &c. The common wren is a ‘jenny wa-ren. The willow wren is a ‘ ground feather-poke.’ The long-tailed titmouse is a ‘ bottle-tit’ or ‘hedge feather-poke. The ring dove is called ‘ stock dove.’ The swift is a ‘ deviling,’ or, as it is pronounced, ‘dewlin.’? The heron is a ‘ heron shaw’ or ‘ herrin srew.’ The plover is a ‘ teewit, and the landrail a ‘ corn crake.’ The hawks are indiscrimi- Birds—Reptiles. 2355 nately ‘ kestrils’ or ‘ hawks.’ ‘The goatsucker is a ‘ night-hawk.’ The magpie is a ‘maggy.’ And I have heard some old people recite a doggrel rhyme referring to the bittern, which, though now never found here, used—in their youthful days—to be not uncommon in the vicinity of Doncaster :— : “ There ’1] either be raiu or else summat waur, When ‘ butter-bumps’ sing upo’ potterie car.” —J. Hawley ; Hall Gate, Doncaster, Yorkshire, October 5, 1848. Note on the length of Song of some of the British Song Birds, as remarked in the year 1848.— Opens. Song ends. Reassumes. Robin (E'rythaca rubecula) .......0.000 00+ Jany. 22 June 27 Septr. 8 Common Wren (Troglodytes ial meee July 14 nee ae Skylark (Alauda arvensis) . Te ae tae site saliel velar Song Thrush (Turdus ein Mite ere) Octr. 6 Missel Thrush (7. visctvorus).......0.0+5 pny Oe May 27 Chaffinch (Fringilla ccelebs) ......0000 29 June 27 Septr. 10 Hedge aceentor (Accentor RATES TY cs eee. 23 May 30 Blackbird (Turdus merula).........6006. March 7 July 29 Yellow Hammer (E'mberiza flava)...... esi) Augt. 6 Chiff-chaff (Sylvia hippolats)............ April 9 meen Linnet (Linota cannabina) ......suss00e 95 Al June 14 Ne wgmecek (Vane 10rgwilla), sor scnsnsasnenns, 99, Oh May 30 Nightingale (Philomela ae caecas ia ae June 27 MCMEKOO (CHCults, CANOTUS) cesses sincnanaee > 590. QD se ehVueel Willow Wren (Sylvia rohit. male Augt. 6 Tree Pipit (Anthus arboreus) ....cccsee0e 59-28 July 13 Blackcap (Curruca oem a ey | OS ee as Garden Warbler (C. hortensis) ......... ie 4 m 3 Wood Wren (Sylvia sylvicola) ......66 wi 6 Augt. 27 F. A. Chennell ; Esher, Surrey, November, 1848. On the Viper swallowing its Young.—Mr. Percival’s interesting note (Zool. 2305) on this subject reminds me of a very similar anecdote, told to me several years ago by a gentleman who is an accurate observer, and who has had long experience in all kinds of field sports. He one day shot a viper, and almost immediately afterwards it was surrounded by young ones, in what appeared to him the most mysterious manner. But here the grand link was wanting, which Mr. Percival has supplied,—the young ones were not seen to come out of their mother’s mouth. I may be allowed to men- tion an anecdote, told to me in 1842, by an illiterate shepherd of Hougham, near Dover: he met me catching vipers, and, on my entering into conversation with him, he volunteeved—without any allusion of mine—to tell this curious story. One day his father came suddenly upon a viper surrounded by her young ; she opened her mouth and they all ran down her throat : he killed her, and, leaving her on the ground, propped her mouth open between two pieces of stick; presently the young ones 2356 -Reptiles—Fishes. crawled out: on the slightest alarm they retreated back again,—and this they did re- peatedly for several days, during which time many people came to see it. The young which White of Selborne cut out of the old female, and which immediately threw themselves into attitudes of defiance, had probably not then seen the daylight for the first time. Mr. Bell, in a note in Bennett’s edition of White’s Selborne, mentions the wide-spread belief in this alleged habit of the viper ; but appears to consider the fact not proved. Accounts of similar habits in foreign viviparous snakes, common re- port, and, above all, Mr. Percival’s observation, leave no doubt on my mind about the matter.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh. Enormous undescribed Animal, apparently allied to the Enaliosauri, seen in the Gulf of California.—Captain the Hon. George Hope states, that when in H.M.S. Fly, in the gulf of California, the sea being perfectly calm and transparent, he saw at the bottom a large marine animal, with the head and general figure of the alligator, except that the neck was much longer, and that instead of legs the creature had four large flappers, somewhat like those of turtles, the anterior pair being larger than the posterior: the creature was distinctly visible, and all its movements could be observed with ease: it appeared to be pursuing its prey at the bottom of the sea: its movements were somewhat serpentine, and an appearance of annulations or ring-like divisions of the body was distinctly perceptible. Captain Hope made this relation in company, and as a matter of conversation: when J heard it from the gentleman to whom it was nar- rated, I inquired whether Captain Hope was acquainted with those remarkable fossil animals, Ichthyosauri and Plesiosauri, the supposed forms of which so nearly cor- respond with what he describes as having seen alive, and I cannot find that he had heard of them; the alligator being the only animal he mentioned as bearing a partial similarity to the creature in question.—Edward Newman. Occurrence of the Blind Worm (Anguis fragilis) in December.—A young specimen of the blind worm or slow worm, of the length of 3 inches, was brought alive to me for the Worcestershire Museum, on Saturday, the 9th instant, on which day it was picked up in the road near the foot of Houlton Hill, by J. H. Woakes, Esq., who presented it. It is stated in Bell’s ‘ British Reptiles’ that it retires in the autumn under masses of decayed wood or leaves, or into soft dry soil, where it is covered with heath or brushwood, and penetrates to a considerable depth, in such situations, by means of its smooth rounded muzzle and even polished body. The mildness of the season may probably be the cause of this deviation from its wonted course of hyber- nation.— George Reece ; Worcester, December 16, 1848. Remarkable Instance of Instinct in a Pike.—At a late meeting of the Liverpool Literary and Philosophical Institution the following curious facts were narrated by Dr. Warwick, one of the members, with respect to instinct in animals. He stated that when he resided at Dunham, the seat of the Earl of Stamford and Warrington, he was walking one evening in the park, and came to a pond where fish, intended for the table, were kept. He took notice of a fine pike, about six pounds weight, which, when it observed him, darted hastily away. In so doing, it struck its head against a tenter-hook in a post (of which there were several in the pond, placed to prevent Fishes. 2357 poaching), and, as it afterwards appeared, fractured its skull, and turned the optic nerve on one side. The agony evinced by the animal was most horrible. It rushed to the bottom, and, boring its head into the mud, whirled itself round with such velo- city, that it was almost lost to the sight for a short interval. It then plunged about the pond, and at length threw itself completely out of the water on to the bank. He (the Doctor) went and examined it, and found that a very small portion of the brain was protruding from the fracture of the skull. He carefully replaced this, and, with a small silver tooth-pick, raised the indented portion of the skull. The fish remained still for a short time, and he then put it again into the pond. It appeared at first a good deal relieved, but in a few minutes it again darted and plunged about, until it threw itself out of the water a second time. A second time Dr. Warwick did what he could to relieve it, and again put it into the water. It continued for several times to throw itself out of the water, and, with the assistance of the keeper, the Doctor made a kind of pillow for the fish, which was then left in the pond to its fate. Upon making his appearance at the pond the following morning, the pike came towards him to the edge of the water, and actually laid its head upon his foot. The Doctor thought this most extraordinary ; but he examined the fish’s skull, and found it was going on all right. He then walked backwards and forwards along the edge of the pond for some time, and the fish continued to swim up and down, turning whenever he turned ; but being blind on the wounded side of its skull, it always appeared agitated when it had that side towards the bank, as it could not then see its benefactor. On the next day he took some young friends down to see the fish, which came to him as usual; and, at length, he actually taught the pike to come to him at his whistle and feed out of his hands. With other persons it continued as shy as fish usually are. He (Dr. War- wick) thought this a most remarkable instance of gratitude in a fish for a benefit received, and, as it always came at his whistle, it proved also what he had previously, with other naturalists, disbelieved—that fishes are sensible to sound.—‘ Dumfries Chronicle.’ Enormous undescribed Fish, apparently allied to the Raiide, killed off California. —The following extract from a letter addressed to the Admiralty by Commander (now Captain) Cospatrick Baillie Hamilton has been obligingly placed in my hands, for publication in the ‘ Zoologist,’ by the writer’s brother, Captain Hamilton, Secre- tary to the Admiralty. The document is dated H.M.S. Frolic, at sea off the west coast of Mexico, December 17, 1846. “In the gulf of California we fell in with some flat fishes of enormous size: at first we were unsuccessful in our attempts to capture them. I therefore made careful preparations, in the event of falling in with them again,—having harpoons constructed of a very large size, and attaching to them a coil of 13 inch rope, by way of line. These precautions proved in the end successful, for we subsequently killed two of these monstrous animals. The larger afforded great sport to the ship’s company, as well as to myself and the boat’s crew. We were in a small, light, four-oared boat, built by Waterman, of Plymouth, and a more beautiful little sea-boat I have never seen. Immediately I had struck the fish with the harpoon it made off, apparently in a great rage, in a direct line for the ship : two harpoons were well fixed in the creature, and he very soon got out all our line, and then our light little boat seemed absolutely to fly over the water, our weight being scarcely perceptible to so powerful a creature. I never before experienced such rapid motion; the sensation was most exciting and delightful. The fish was still taking the exact direction of the ship; and it seemed as though the boat must pass under her Vil E 2358 Fishes. bottom, unless I cut the harpoon lines, and I was reluctant—in the excitement of the chase—to do this and give up my prize; so, as the four men, as well as myself, could swim, I merely warned them to jump overboard in case of need; but this was not necessary, as I managed to steer clear of the ship, passing her at a rapid rate, to the amusement of all on board. After this the creature made such sudden turns that it was no easy task to steer the boat. We made no attempt to lift the fish, and I had no opportunity of measuring him, but I imagine him to have been about 23 feet in width across the back. The smaller fish of the same species we hoisted on board. I could not ascertain its weight; but of this some idea may be formed by the fact that sixty men were unable to lift him on board with the yard tackles: the heaviest pur- chases in the ship, with one hundred and fifty men, were required for this purpose. The following measurements were taken :— ft. in. Width across the back.. Pepe ccuipageati« CeCe Width of mouth, aa ae, was 1 faruished with t two rows of POCTOIa DIG LECUL 25 sta cc tanaats tas sa enaenenedticeeeeaestast 1. Cnet MICE WENS OF WME GES soc oes’ sasencpniedgitaaceseod. cs uageaurs= ere Omer There was a sort of arm projecting from the shoulder, as represented in the sketch, which gives a general idea of the creature’s figure. These fish usually remain at the bottom of the sea; but on a calm day, when the heat of the sun is great, they occa- sionally bask on the surface, in which position they were when I struck them.” Capt. C. B. Hamilton considers his sketch too imperfect for publication. I hope, however, to give further particulars before long, and in the meantime beg to propose the provi- sional name of Brachioptilon Hamiltoni to this enormous inhabitant of the deep.— Edward Newman. . Inquiries respecting the Bones of a large Marine Animal cast ashore on the Island of Stronsa in 1808.—In the ‘Memoirs of the Wernerian Natural History Society’ (vol. i. p. 418) is a paper by Dr. Barclay, on a large animal cast ashore on the island of Stronsa. In illustration of his paper, the Doctor figures the head with a vertebra at- tached, four other vertebre and a sternum with a paddle “ and two parts correspond- ing to scapule” attached. He speaks of the originals of these figures as specimens then before the audience he was addressing. He gives seven inches as the diameter of the head, and two inches as the diameter of the cervical vertebre then still attached to the head. The total length of the animal is given as fifty-five feet, and this from actual admeasurement. It is now positively asserted that the animal in question was a shark ; but the utter impossibility of a shark fifty-five feet in length having a head only seven inches in diameter, and cervical vertebre only two inches in diameter, is so manifest that further inquiry seems desirable ; and I shall esteem it a great kindness if any naturalist who may possess the means of doing so will reply to the following questions :— | 1. How were the bones described by Dr. Barclay obtained ? . What is the evidence that they belonged to one animal ? . Where are these bones preserved ? . What is their present state ? . Has the skull ever been denuded of skin, muscle, &c. ? 6. Has it ever been examined by a competent comparative anatomist? and if so what opinion has he pronounced on it ? Surely there are naturalists in Edinburgh who can answer the questions at once. of & 0 Reptiles. 2359 It seems very irrational to speculate on the genus, order or class, to which a recent animal belongs, while the head and sternum of the creature are still in existence.— Edward Newman. The Great Sea-Serpent.—The following communication from our highly-respected fellow-townsman, the Hon. T. H. Perkins, will be read with interest, especially as the sea- serpent has been recently seen, as related in the English paper to which Col. Perkins refers in his note. ** Boston, November, 1848. “ In the paper called the ‘ Illustrated London News,’ of 28th October, is an ac- count given by Capt. M’Quhea, of H.B.M. ship Dedalus, of a sea-serpent, seen from his ship in August last, on her passage from the East Indies, and between the Cape of Good Hope and St. Helena. The perusal of several articles on the subject leads me to send you a letter written by me on my passage from England to the United States, in August, 1826, to Jno. P. Cushing, my friend and then partner, residing at Canton, in China. I also send you a memorandum from Commander Bolton, of the U.S. Navy, giving the report of the gentlemen of the Navy who were on board a ten- der called the Lynn, and who had a very favorable opportunity of satisfying themselves of the existence of the animal which had caused so much excitement. The serpent was seen in 1817, 719 and ’20, from the shore, and the reports show the bunches to be produced by the vertical motion of the body when in action. From the drawings which accompany the letter of Capt. M’Quhe, there are none of the protuberances, and which would lead to the epinion that the animal seen on the other side of the Equator differs in genus from that which has been seen on our coast. The drawings of the sea-serpent seen on the coast of Norway, given in the report of the Bishop Pontoppidan, are identical with the appearance of the animal which has been so often spoken of as visiting our northern seas. T. H. Perkins. * On board the ship Ann Maria, at sea, lat. 46, long. 44. Oct. 13, 1820. “* My dear sir,—When on shore I have little time to spare from business to devote to details which I am now to communicate. “‘ During the past three years you will have seen accounts in the newspapers, or reports will have met you in another form of an immense sea-serpent having infested our shores in Boston Bay. The first appearance he made was in the summer of 1817, in the harbour of Cape Ann. Wishing to satisfy myself on a subject on which there existed a great difference of opinion, I myself visited Gloucester with Mr. Lee. On our way down we met several persons returning who had visited the place where he was said to have exhibited himself, and who reported to us that he had not been seen for two or three days past. We however continued our route to Gloucester, though with fears that we should not be gratified with the sight of the monster “ich we sought. I satisfied myself, from conversation with several persons who had seen him, that the report in circulation was not a fable. All the town were, as you may suppose, on the alert ; and almost every individual, both great and small, had been gratified, at a greater or less distance, with a sight of him. The weather was fine, the sea per- fectly smooth, and Mr. Lee and myself were seated on a point of land which projects 2360 Reptiles. into the harbour, and about 20 feet above the level of the water, from which we were distant about 50 or 60 feet. “Whilst thus seated, I observed an agitation in the water at the entrance of the harbour, like that which follows a small vessel going five or six miles an hour through the water. As we knew there was no shoal where the water was thus broken, I imme- diately said to Mr. Lee that I had no doubt that what I had seen was the sea-serpent in pursuit of fish. Mr. Lee was not directing his attention to the spot which I speak of, and had not seen the foam of the water, the animal having immediately disap- peared. “In a few moments after my exclamation, I saw on the opposite side of the har- bour, at about two miles distance from where I had first seen, or thought I saw, the snake, the same object moving with a rapid motion up the harbour, on the western shore. As he approached us, it was easy to see that his motion was not that of the common snake, either on the land or in the water, but evidently the vertical movement of the caterpillar. As nearly as I could judge, there was visible at a time about 40 feet of his body. It was not, to be sure, a continuity of body, as the form from head to tail (except as the apparent bunches appeared as he moved through the water) was seen only at three or four feet asunder. It was very evident, however, that his length must be much greater than what appeared, as, in his movement, he left a considerable wake in his rear. I had a fine glass, and was within from one-third to half a mile of him. The head was flat in the water, and the animal was, as far as I could distin- guish, of a chocolate colour. I was struck with an appearance in the front part of the head like a single horn, about nine inches to a foot in length, and of the form ofa marline-spike. There were a great many people collected by this time, many of whom had before seen the same object and the same appearance. From the time I first saw him until he passed by the place where I stood and soon after disappeared, was not more than fifteen or twenty minutes. “ T left the place fully satisfied that the reports in circulation, although differing in details, were essentially correct. I returned to Boston, and, having made my report, I found Mrs. Perkins and my daughters disposed to make a visit to Gloucester with me when the return of the animal should be again announced. A few days after my return I went again to Cape Ann with the ladies: we had a pleasant ride, but returned ungratified in the object which carried us there. “Whilst at Cape Ann I talked with many persons who had seen the serpent, and among others with a person of the name of Mansfield, one of the most respectable in- habitants of the town. His account to me was, that a few days before, as he was taking a ride with his wife in a chair, the road taking them close to a bank which overlooks the harbour (and is nearly a perpendicular precipice), he saw an uncommon appearance, which induced him to descend from the carriage, when he saw the sea- serpent, in which until then he had been an unbeliever. The animal was stretched out, partly over the white sandy beach, which had four or five feet of water upon it, and lay partly over the channel. He desired his wife to get out of the chair, which she did. He said he had made up his mind as to the length of the snake, but wished the opinion of his wife on the same subject. He asked her what she should consider his length ; she answered that she could not undertake to say how many feet in length he was, but that she thought him as long as the wharf behind their house, an object with which she had always been familiar. Mr. Mansfield said he was of the same Reptiles. 2361 opinion. The wharf is 100 feet in length. It is to be observed that the person above spoken of had been such an unbeliever in the existence of this monster, that he had not given himself the trouble tu go from his house to the harbour where the report was first made of such an animal being there. Subsequent to the period of which I have been speaking, the snake was seen by several of the crew of our coasting vessels, and in some instances within a few yards. Captain Tappan, a person well known to me, saw him with his head above water two or three feet, at times moving with great ra- pidity and at others slowly. He also saw what explained the appearance which I have described of a horn on the front of the head. This was doubtless what was ob- served by Capt. Tappan to be the tongue, thrown in an upright position from the mouth, and having the appearance which I have given to it. “ One of the revenue cutters, whilst in the neighbourhood of Cape Ann, had an excellent view of him at a few yards distance: he moved slowly, and upon the ap- proach of the vessel, sank and was seen no more. *‘ Besides the instances I have mentioned, there were many others reported of his having been seen the same year. In that year, 1818, although there were several re- ports of his having been seen, yet they were not well authenticated, nor do I place any confidence in them. “In the month of August, in the last year, he again made his appearance in our vicinity, and under very satisfactory circumstances. The weather being hot, many of our citizens resorted to Nahant to pass a few weeks. Of the number were Mr. and Mrs. Cabot and their children. Mr. Cabot had a view of him for more than half an hour at one time. He was in a chair, and had reached what is termed the long beach, when he saw several persons collected half a mile from him, which called his attention to the object which occupied them. Mr. C. had heard me often describe the view I had had of the serpent in 1817, and recognized in what was visible just without the breakers, and within a quarter of a mile, the monster which was supposed by many to exist nowhere but in the imaginations of those who had reported to have seen him. Mr. Cabot immediately rode back to Nahant, took Mrs. Cabot into his chair and re- turned to the beach; but the animal was no longer visible. By this time the inha- bitants of Lynn had assembled to the number of some hundreds, on and near the beach, and all the visitors of Nahant were upon the alert. Having given over the hope of seeing him, Mr. Cabot was returning to leave his wife at her lodgings, when, to their mutual delight, he came in view just without the surf of the little beach, and within a quarter of a mile or less of where they stood. “ Marshal Prince, James Magee, and many persons of my acquaintance, had a fine sight of him, and all agreed in their account of him in the principal particulars. They all agreed as to the rapidity of his movements, being very much beyond any- thing living they had ever seen. The apparent bunches on his back they consider as arising from the construction of his body, and that the movement was vertical and not horizontal. At one time his head was about two or three feet above water, but soon depressed to the level of the sea. When not seeming to be in pursuit of his prey, his motion was not rapid. They saw him turn and bring his body into a letter S, the head being at right angles with the tail. From fifteen to twenty-three bunches, or apparent bunches, were counted by the different persons who saw him, and his size round they thought to be that of a common firkin or half barrel. “No one thought they saw the whole of the body at a time, the tail seeming 2362 Reptiles. always to be considerably under water. The greatest length given to him was one hundred feet, and no one who had a good sight of him thought him less than eighty feet in length. If the number of protuberances is twenty-three (and it seems there are at least that number), and calculating them to be distant from centre to centre four feet (and I think, considering their thickness, they cannot be less than this), he would be ninety-two feet long. They all agreed, too, as-to the colour being quite dark, ap- proaching to black. From all these circumstances, thus testified by honourable men, one would have supposed that the existence of a sea-serpent in our waters would have met the belief of every one. So far, however, was this from being the case, that the whole was ridiculed in the Southern States from New York southward as a Yankee trick. “ As it happened, a circumstance took place which did not do much credit to the actors in it, but which served to fortify the unbelief of our southern brethren. Be- lieving that the possession of the sea-serpent would be a fortune to those who should have him in their power, many boats were fitted out from Cape Ann and other places in the neighbourhood of his haunts, armed with harpoons and other implements, and manned with persons used to the whale fishery, in hopes of getting near enough to him to fasten their harpoons in his side. Among others a Captain Rich (not Benjamin Rich), of Boston, took command of a party, which was fitted out at some expense, and went into the bay, where they cruised along shore two or three days without seeing the serpent. With a view, however, to keep the joke from themselves, they determined to throw or attempt to throw it upon others, though at the expense of truth! They spread a report that they had caught the serpent, or what had been taken for one, and that he was to be seen at a place mentioned in the advertisement. ‘“‘ Thousands were flocking to see this wonder, when it was found to be no other than a large horse mackerel, which (though a great natural curiosity, weighing some- times 600 or 700 pounds) very much disappointed those who had been induced to visit it. Those who had declared their disbelief of the existence of the sea-serpent amongst ourselves were delighted to find their opinions were confirmed, and gave themselves great credit for their judgment and discrimination. The report spread from Boston to New Orleans, that what had been thought by some persons to be a sea-serpent had proved to be a horse mackerel ; and even those who had been believers now supposed that those who had reported that they had seen the serpent had either misrepresented or had been themselves deceived. As no report of the snake having been seen after the capture of the mackerel was made, during that year, Captain Rich had the laugh with him, until circumstances, which have transpired since, have borne rather against him. Thus much for the transactions of the past years.” In addition to this interesting narrative, our venerable correspondent gives letters from several members of his family, who the next summer had opportunity to see the sea-serpent, in which the appearance of the animal is minutely described. He was several times seen in the month of August, 1820, from the piazza of the house of Col. Perkins, at Nahant. ‘This correspondence is very interesting ; the description of the animal agrees entirely with that given above, and we regret that want of space must prevent the insertion of it. We close this article by a memorandum addressed to Col. Perkins by Capt. Bolton, of the U.S. Navy, referring to the same subject. “In the year 1817 I was the first lieutenant of the Independence, of 74 guns, then lying in the harbour of Boston. Entomological Society. 2363 “In the course of the spring or summer a party of officers were detailed, by order of Commodore Bainbridge, to survey the coast of the bay, to a limited extent, north- eastward and outside of the light-house. “The officers selected for this duty were the sailing-master of the ship, Wm. T. Malbone, and the Rev. Cheever Felch, the instructor of the midshipmen. “To assist in the service several of the most competent and elder midshipmen were designated. As they alternated periodically with other gentlemen of the same grade, I cannot with any degree of precision venture to name them. I hope that some of them are yet living, and, further, that they have advanced in professional distinction. There were also added a sufficient number of seamen and boys. ** Commodore Bainbridge, Mr. Malbone and Mr. Felch died some years ago. “TI recollect that on the first occasion when the Lynx returned to the Indepen- dence, of which ship she was the tender, that Mr. Malbone reported as having seen a monstrous sea-animal, not before known to him, of the snake species; the length doubtful, but estimated at some eighty or more feet ; and added as an incident, that the officers and men employed in a small boat to carry out the soundings had returned in haste, and indeed alarm, to the Lynx, which was at anchor. . “‘ These statements were corroborated by Mr. Felch, the officers and crew. “Subsequently it was seen several times, by some of the party, who, being soon satisfied that it was harmless, approached comparatively near, and no doubt gave me a minute description of its appearance as it presented itself to them; but if so, the particular details have escaped my memory. | “‘ These facts are all that I can with distinctness and certainty mention. Wm. Compton Botton, Captain in the Navy of the United States, Saratoga Springs, July 14, 1846 ; to Hon. T. H. Perkins, Boston.”—‘ Boston Daily Advertiser, November 25, 1848. Proceedings of the Entomological Society. January 1.—W. Spence, Esq., President, in the chair. A beautiful and extensive collection of Indian insects, presented to the Society by Mrs. R. Hamilton, was exhibited. Certificates, as members, in favour of Dr. Lee, F.R.S., W. S. Dallas, Esq., W. J. Wild, Esq., H. F. Farr, Esq., and P. H. Vaughan, Esq.; and as subscribers in fa- vour of W. Bell, Esq., W. P. Saunders, Esq., H. Jobson, Esq., and G. Bedell, Esq., were read. J. Dawson, Esq., of Carron, was elected a subscriber. _ Mr. J. W. Douglas exhibited the cocoon and pupa of Oxypate gelatella, found by Mr. May in Fulham Fields, under the bark of the whitethorn. Mr. May states that the larve are interval feeders, living chiefly in the decayed branches of whitethorn, and not unfrequently under the bark of living branches, where they form a beautifully woven cocoon. Mr. Stainton remarked that this account differed from that of Lienig in the ‘Isis,’ and also from Freyer’s account in his ‘ Beitrage.’ The larva is there stated to be pale greenish gray, with the head, the fore part of the thorax and the legs blackish, becoming, as it grows older, of a light grass-green, with long whitish stripes down the back. It is said to breed on whitethorn, currant, elm, barberry, &c., and to form a covering by drawing the leaves together, living therein in a net-like, silken canal, in which it undergoes its metamorphosis; the pupa being grass-green. This 2364 ; ' Insects. difference in the habits makes it doubtful if our insect and Freyer’s be really identical. The President called the attention of the meeting to a letter from Dr. Davy, pub- lished in the ‘ Barbadoes Agricultural Reporter,’ relative to an insect which attacks the tubers of the sweet potato. Specimens of the insect, which is of a genus near to Cryptorhynchus, were shown by the President, who also exhibited specimens of a Ca- landra near to C. Oryze, which destroys the grain of Sorghum vulgare. Mr. S. Stevens exhibited a large series of insects, collected near Para sei Messrs. Wallace and Bates.—E. D. - Occurrence of Melitea Dia in Warwickshire-—A correspondent informs me that five specimens of Melita Dia have been sent to him as British, and as having been captured in Mr. Weaver’s old station, in the vicinity of Birmingham : he further adds that they have all the appearance of British specimens. It will be a source of great gratification to me to find Mr. Weaver’s statement on this subject corroborated, and I shall be anxious to publish every particular as soon as ascertained.—Edward Newman. Note upon four European Species of the Genus Cucullia.—In ‘ Lepidoptera Britan- nica, Mr. Haworth introduced as British the following species of Cucullia,—tanaceti, W. V., lucifuga, E'sp., lactuce, Esp., and umbratica, Linn.,— copying the Fabrician or Linnean descriptions of each, and giving no information on his own authority about them: every succeeding writer upon British Lepidoptera has followed Haworth ; and Mr. Westwood, the latest author who has noticed them, has added nothing new. Being unable to detect any difference in the specimens of the four supposed species contained in the cabinets of my friends Mr. Stephens and Mr. Bentley, I long ago suspected that they were all referrible to Cucullia umbratica ; but not then possessing authentic continental specimens of the four species described by Fabricius, I could not speak with any certainty about them. Through the kindness of my friend M. A. Pierret I now possess fine bred specimens of each, and my supposition has proved cor- rect. All the specimens preserved in British cabinets under the names of lactuce, tanaceti, lucifuga and umbratica, belong to the latter species, as do figures 6, 8, 10 and 12 in plate 49 of Westwood and Humphrey’s ‘ British Moths. When my Cata- logue was printed I did nut possess an authentic specimen of lactuce, and doubtingly gave it as a British insect: it must, however, be discarded for the present from the British list. I may just add that any entomologist having once seen genuine exam- ples of the four species could never afterwards confound them: in fact, the veriest tyro in Entomology would at once see the distinguishing characters.—Henry Double- day ; Epping, January 22, 1848. Larve on the Leaves and Catkins of Sallows, &c. (Zool. 2199).—These larve pro- duced Cosmia trapetzina, Cymatophora viminalis, Euthalia elutata, Peronea divisana, Lozotenia levigana, L. xylosteana, L. roborana, L. acerana, Ditula semifasciana, Pseudotomia populana, Pecilochroma piceana, Anacampsis populella, A. sororculella, Hub. (Erice, Westwood). From beech leaves I reared Lozotenia cinnamomeana. From last year’s stems of Artemisia vulgaris, inside which the larve feed, I reared Spilonota foenella. From rose leaves I reared Lozotenia oporana, Spilonota aquana, S. ,n.s. All the above appeared in June and July.—J. W. Douglas ; 19 Nelson, Square, Peckham, December 28, 1848. Insects. 2365 Capture of Lepidoptera in the Neighbourhood of Bristol in 1848. Astyages grandipennis. May 20 to 25, flying over furze, Durdham Downs. Eupithecia venosata. May 24, attracted by lights. Acidalia subsericeata. May 25 to June 5, by beating, Durdham Downs. Epione advenaria. May 29, by beating nuts, Portshead. Hadena adusta. May 29, at sugar, Portshead. Hadena Geniste. May 25, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Neuria Saponarie. May 30, attracted by lights. Leucania comma. Abundant, June 6, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Apatela leporina. One, June 9, on a birch, Durdham Downs. Xylophasia hepatica. Abundant, June 6 to 27, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Xylophasia sublustris. Three, June 14, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Agrotis corticea. Twenty, June 14 to July 3, at sugar and on lime blossoms. Acronycta Ligustri. June 14, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Porrectaria ornatipennella. June 19 to July 6, by sweeping, Durdham Downs. Porrectaria ochrea. Thirty-five, July 17 to 29, by sweeping, Durdham Downs. Chilo forficellus. June 24, lights. Luperina furva. June 28 and July 17, at sugar and lime bloom. Depressaria venosa. One, July 13, flying, Durdham Downs. Cledeobia albistrigalis. Five, July 18, at sugar, Durdham Downs. Bryophila glandifera. July 21 to August 14, on old walls. Trichiura Crategi. August 26, on a hedge. Ennomos angularia. August 23 to September 2, at lights. Heliothis peltigera. One, September 25, at ivy. Xanthia aurago. Common, but nearly all worn; October 5 to 12, at ivy. Xanthia citrago. Common, but nearly all worn; September 18 to October 12, at ivy. ; Xylina petrificata and oculata. Very sparingly, October 5 to 14, at ivy. Agrotis saucia. One, at ivy.—P.H. Vaughan; Redland, near Bristol, Decem- ber 5, 1848. Capture of Lepidoptera in Suffolk during the months of June and July, 1848.— The first order in which I have anything to mention is that of the BOMBYCES. Callimorpha dominula. Rather abundant, on the wing in the day-time. Psilura monacha. One male, bred. Cossus ligniperda, ‘Two wasted specimens and a larva of this species were eiuatiele to me in July. NOCTUZ. Apatela leporina. One, at sugar, early in July. Ceropacha ocularis. Four wasted examples, at sugar, July 1 to 8. Xylophasia sublustris. Sparingly, at sugar. Rusina tenebrosa. Abundant, at sugar. Agrotis valligera. One at the beginning, and two towards the nd of July. Hadena Atriplicis. Four, at sugar, June 22 and 23. Dypterygia Pinastri. Three. Heliothis dipsacea. ‘Two, in a clover field, darting about in the hottest sunshine. Hydrelia uncana, One, in a marshy field. VII F 2366 Insects. PYRALIDH. Margaritia cinctalis. Several, in a clover field. TORTRICIDE. Pseudotomia trauniana. One, on the wing. Anchylopera derasana. One. Carpocapsa cecimaculana, Dup. One, on the wing. Ablabia quadripunctana. Several, among reeds. YPONOMEUTIDE. Anacampsis terrella. Abundant. Anacampsis guttifera. One, on a Scotch fir. Argyromiges nivella. One, on the wing. Argyromiges spartifoliella. Common, among broom. Argyromiges Clerckella. One. TINEIDE. Ilythia sociella. In houses. Eudorea crategella, Hub. One, in a crevice of the bark of an Acacia: Westwood makes this synonymous with mercurella of Linneus, but Zeller preserves them as dis- tinct. Crambus arbustorum. Four, among broom. Crambus pinetellus. Several, at sugar. Crambus cerusellus. 'The male of this species occurred in abundance, but I met with only one female. : ALUCITIDE. Piterophorus rhododactylus. One. The above, together with the large quantity of Agrophila sulphuralis before men- tioned (Zool. 2199), are some of the best of my captures in the neighbourhood of Brandon : it is indeed a rich and favoured locality, and well worthy of further ex- ploration.—J. H. Dunning ; Elmwood Lodge, Leeds. Record of the Rarer Lepidopterous Insects occurring in the Neighbourhood of Hud- _ dersfield in 1847-8.— Papiliones.. Polyommatus Argiolus may not unfrequently be seen during the month of May hovering over the tops of hollies, on the leaves of which it feeds in the larva state. Sphinges. Several of this tribe hav€ occurred in this neighbourhood. Macro- glossa stellatarum, which—as its specific name implies—feeds, in the caterpillar state, on some of our stellate plants, particularly the genus Galium ; Cheerocampa Celerio, already recorded (Zool. 1653); Sphinx Convolvuli and S. Ligustri. A fine specimen of Acherontia Atropos was brought to me in June last, which had been taken while at rest on a corn-stack. Ino Statices—by no means so exclusive a feeder as its specific name would lead us to imagine—appears with“ts about the beginning of June, flying about the heads of the common clover (Tvrifoliwm pratense). Bombyces. The moors in the neighbourhood furnish examples of Saturnia Car- pini. Cycnia mendica is common about Huddersfield, frequenting marshy places during the month of May: the caterpillar of this singular species feeds on various aquatic plants. Drepana falcula (removed by Boisduval to its present station) was this year taken at rest on the bole of a beech. Noctue. A few specimens of Ceropacha flavicornis were attracted to the sugar in Insects. 2367 March of last year: it is a shy insect, its wings being in constant motion while it is feeding : two or three were again taken this year on the boles of trees. Nonagria Ty- phe and N. extrema occur with us in low marshy tracts overgrown with typhaceous and cyperaceous vegetation. Hydrecia nictitans is extremely abundant with us. A single example of Luperina cespitis was taken in August, 1847. Several specimens of Xylophasia scolopacina—a local species—were beaten from horse-chesnut trees during the same month of the same year. Chersotis porphyrea occurs in tolerable abundance on the moors, and Noctua glareosa is occasionally seen in our oak-woods. Heliophobus popularis, notwithstanding its fear of broad daylight, was taken on a blade of grass long before sunset, in August, 1847. Numbers of Trachea piniperda appeared at the close of March in a fir-planting consisting chiefly of Pinus sylvestris : when taken they had evidently but just emerged from the chrysalis. Teniocampa rubricosa, T. Populeti and T. gracilis were last year attracted to the blossoms of the round-leaved willow (Saliva caprea): no fewer than a dozen specimens of T. Populeti were shaken from a single Salix. Orthosia congener occurred in a small plantation of larches and Scotch firs, in August, 1847: several were attracted to the composition, but owing to their extreme aversion to the light being thrown suddenly upon them only very few were secured. Dianthecia Cucubali and D. capsincola have occurred, though very sparingly: the former was taken on the flowers of the Rhododendron (R. ponticum), the hypogynous disk of which is nectariferous, and thus accounts for the shrub proving such an attraction to the Noctue. Hadena adusta was very plenti- ful with us during June and the early part of July. Aplecta occulta I took in 1846: I have not heard of a specimen of this rare insect being since taken in the neighbour- - hood. Aplecta herbida has been tolerably abundant this season. Crymodes templi was attracted to the gas-lamps at Huddersfield some years ago; and late in the au- tumn of last year a specimen of this exceedingly scarce insect, scarcely recognizable, was picked up in the street. Calocampa vetusta, a feeder on the Carices, occurred here in 1846 and 1847: I have not seen it this year. Probably the best capture of last year is Plusia interrogationis, which was taken on the moors while flying in the midday heat of a July sun. Two pretty little day-flyers, Anarta Myrtilli and Helio- des Heliaca, have been netted here; the former somewhat abundantly, the latter only sparingly. 1 am glad to say that a wing of a Brephos was found this year, thus proving the existence of this beautiful insect in our own neighbourhood. Geometre. Pericallia syringaria has been taken on one or two occasions. Maca- ria lituraria, recorded by Boisduval as occurring in the pine-woods of France, is met with in the south-west of Yorkshire in similar localities. Mesia favillacearia, taken, according to Westwood, originally in Yorkshire, is not uncommon on the moors. A perfect swarm of Nyssia hispidaria (both male and female) appeared in March last on the boles of oaks, in several of the woods in this neighbourhood, as many as a hundred being noticed in a single day. A wing of Biston betularia, found in May of the pre- sent year, proves its existence in these parts. Owing to a profusion of the Hypericinee in this district we have Anaitis plagiata in abundance: the larva feeds, I believe, on the most common of the family—Hypericum perforatum. A few examples of Mela- nippe hastaria have been noticed during the past and present year, chiefly among young birches. Of the numerous genus Emmelesia three may be worthy of record as occurring in our northern latitude-—Emmelesia sylvata, E. rivulata and E. heparata. Pyralide. Paracolax nemoralis is abundant in these parts of our oak-woods, where the golden saxifrage (Chrysosplenium oppositifolium) flourishes. The moors offer 2368 Insects. examples of a beautiful little gem, the Ennychia octomaculana, which rejoices in the hottest beams of the summer sun. Margaritia sticticalis occurs with us, though sparingly. Tortricide. Of this tribe I may record Tortrix Galiana, plentiful on the moors ; Philedone Gerningiana, beaten occasionally from oaks ; Spilonota aquana, appearing in gardens in June and July; Heusimene fimbriana, of which a single specimen was taken on the wing, in the afternoon, in April last; Anchylopera Lyellana and Teras emargana. Yponomeutide. Anacampsis longicornis—a northern insect—is common on the moors in May; A. affinis and A. diffinis in gardens in June. Individual specimens of Argyromiges Clerckella, A. Sircomella and A. spinolella, have been taken here,— the first and third among oaks, the second at rest on the bole of a beech. Tineide. A single specimen of Eudorea murana—taken on stone walls in Scot- land—has occurred here. Lampronia concinella was discovered, in June, on a nettle. Alucitide. Of the Plumes we have taken, Pterophorus leucodactylus is most worthy of record.—Peter Inchbald ; Storthes Hall, Huddersfield, December, 1848. Capture of Lepidoptera at Exmouth.—Colias Edusa appeared this year in some plenty, but not nearly so abundantly as last year, and fully a month later. The first specimen taken this year was a pale variety of the female (Helice, Haw.), on August 27th, between which and October 20th about fifty specimens were taken, including another Helice which I took September 17th; last year about 150 specimens were taken here, including two specimens of Helice. Perhaps it may be worth noticing that the proportion of females to males this year was much larger than last year—that in the former case being nearly as two females to seven males, in the latter as one fe- male to six males. The captures at sugar were—with a very few exceptions—made in a small planta- tion under the cliff shore to the beach. They are as follows :— Agrotis puta. Twenty-five, at sugar, from August 11 to September 7. Cerigo cytherea. One, at sugar, August 16. Cosmia affinis. Five, at sugar, August 11 to 18. Lytea umbrosa. Three, at sugar, August 16 to 19. Agrotis tritici. Four, on ragwort flowers and long grass on Dawlish Warren, August 28 to September 18. Agrotis cursoria. Four, on ragwort flowers and long grass on Dawlish Warren, August 28 to September 18. Agrotis valligera. Seven, on ragwort flowers and long grass on Dawlish Warren, August 28 to September 18. Agrotis lunigera. One, at sugar, August 29. Catocala nupta. Three, at sugar, August 29 to September 5. Graphiphora C-nigrum. Two, at sugar, August 28. Caradrina hebraica. One, in long grass on Dawlish Warren, September 20. Calocampa vetusta. Four, at sugar, September 25 to 28. Agrotis pascuea. One, at sugar, about September 25: from not knowing the name at the time I had omitted to register this properly. Xanthia citrago. One, at sugar, October 4. Xylina semibrunnea. One, at sugar, October 6. Xylina rhizolitha. One, at sugar, October 6; one, at ivy, October 24. Insects. 2369 Chlorissa viridaria. In some plenty, on heath, at the end of May. Piychopoda incanata. Abundant, on the cliffs, in August. Heliophobus hispida. I took one specimen of this rare Noctua late in September, on the sand-hills, but have only just succeeded in getting it named, by the kindness of Messrs. Shepherd and E. Doubleday. I have omitted from this list a number of the commoner species,—as Agrotis suffusa, Xanthia ferruginea, Orthosia lota, pistacina, &e.—W. J. Bull; Exmouth, February 8, 1849. Occurrence of Colias Edusa near Exmouth.—In reply to Mr. Bromfield’s inquiry (Zool. 2331) whether Colias Edusa has occurred this year, I may state that several specimens were taken during August, September and October last, under the hill at Exmouth, where it has been seen annually for some time past, occasionally in abun- dance: last year (1847) it occurred in plenty, both at Exmouth and in the country round. I took it as late as the first week in November, at Dawlish. The pale variety, C. Helice, was also taken in company with it—P. H. Vaughan ; Redland, near Bris- tol, December 16, 1848. Occurrence of Vanessa Antiopa, Hipparchia Davus, Charadrina glareosa, §c., near Cromer.—On the 24th of August last I captured a fine pair (male and female) of Caradrina glareosa, at the Beeston Hill, near Cromer, in Norfolk, which had crawled out of the heath which covers the place. I also saw a fine specimen of Hipparchia Davus on the cliffs, which I was unable to capture, as it quickly disappeared over the edge. Iwas shown by a collector at the same place a singular variety of Argynnis Adippe, having the upper side of all four wings of a deep brown colour, without spots, but with a lighter margin, in which were three or four darker lunules, and which had been caught in the neighbourhood; and I heard from the same person that there had been another specimen of Vanessa Antiopa taken there this spring. My specimen, which was captured there last autumn, was the first known to have been taken in that locality —A. D. Michael ; 9, Red Lion Square, December 18, 1848. Examine the dry Burdock-heads (Arctium lappa).—In Mr. Stephens’ cabinet are placed as specimens of Cleodora silacella, lucidella, falciformis and ochroleucella, se- veral—at first sight—different looking insects: in my opinion they are all referrible to one variable species,—the true Tinea lappella of Linneus,—which is now in the larva state in the dry heads of the common burdock (Arctium lappa). Mr. Douglas, who has examined attentively Mr. Stephens’ specimens, doubts the correctness of my bold assertion; and in order to settle the disputed point, as well as to enrich their collections with an insect most people want, I call upon every entomologist in the country to collect all the burdock heads they can get, and put them in their breeding- cages: the larve require no feeding or attention, and the moths will appear in June and July. Thistle-heads afford sustenance to other Micro-Lepidopterous larve, and the teazle-head is well known as the habitat of Antithesia gentianeana and Cochylis roseana.—H, T. Stainton ; Mountsfield, Lewisham, February, 1849. Information concerning new Continental Tineide.—I have been informed, by Herr P. C. Zeller, that there is a species of Lithocolletis extremely abundant near Paris which closely resembles Messaniella, but has a hook on the cilia: and the following new species have been discovered on the Continent in the group monographed by him in the third volume of the ‘ Linnea Entomologica, viz., one allied to scitella, from Hypericum ; two allied to spartifoliella, one of which frequents Cytisus Laburnum, and 2370 Insects. the other poplar; one allied to gnaphaliella, on Artemisia campestris ; and another allied to Boyerella, which flies amongst Euonymus europeus. (This last may be my Demaryella, which is certainly allied to Boyerella, but I am not aware that it frequents the spindle-tree). In Argyresthia two new species have been discovered ; one allied to dilectella, and frequenting juniper; the other very much resembling fagetella, but larger: this I have no doubt is our semitestacella, consequently the spiniella of Zel- ler—which I have given as a synonyme for semitestacella (Zool. App. vi.)—is proba- bly a species unknown to us. I thought the above information might give a useful hint to some of your readers to examine, during the ensuing season, the plants above mentioned, and thus lead to the discovery of these novelties.—Id. Observations on a mixed Colony of Halictus abdominalis ( female, Melitta fulvocincta, Kirby), H. morio, Andrena nigro-enea and Sphecodes swbquadratus. By Freopx. SmitH, Esq., Curator to the Entomological Society. Asout the middle of the month of April I met with a colony of Halictus abdomi- nalis, at a short distance from my residence at Newington ; and this afforded me an excellent opportunity of observing the habits of the species. The situation which the colony occupied was a bare patch in a sloping sand-bank, about three yards in length by one broad. In mixed community with Halictus was a colony of Andrena nigro- enea, another of Halictus morio, and also one of Sphecodes subquadratus. The latter genus being generally considered to be parasitic upon Halictus, I was ex- tremely anxious, if possible, to satisfy myself whether this supposition is correct or not, since I am not aware that any one has satisfactorily proved such to be the fact. I have, in former observations upon Sphecodes, expressed an opinion against their pa- rasitism, founded upon observations of my own; and one of the most eminent Hy- menopterists of the present day thus expresses himself: “The insects upon which these are parasitical, the most careful research has not yet discovered.” In my observations upon the colony, it may be readily supposed that I lost no opportunity of carefully observing the operations of these bees ; yet, notwithstanding the most careful watching, I could not detect, in a single instance, the supposed parasite entering the burrows of Halictus: the burrows which Sphecodes entered were of a size intermediate between those of H. abdominalis and those of H. morio; in fact, the head of the insect exactly fitted the mouth of the burrow,—and I do not think the Halictus could possibly have entered them. I repeated my observations on several occasions, on days when all the species were numerous, but with exactly the same results. It occurred to me, one cloudy morning, that it would be an excellent opportunity for digging out the bees: this I did with the greatest care, and in every instance, in the burrows of Halictus, I found that bee the sole oceupant. In the burrows into which I had observed Sphecodes enter on previous occasions, I found in each a single female, but no Halictus. The burrows of both insects were about six inches deep: at the extremity of those of Halictus were four or five cells divergent from the per- ‘2 Insect. | 2371 pendicular burrow, having short passages leading to them from the common one ; each contained a ball of pollen and honey about the size of a pea, on some of which a small larva was feeding. I endeavoured to trace the burrows into which I had ob- served Sphecodes enter; but I did not succeed in satisfactorily ascertaining whether some small cells, which in one instance I met with, were those to which the burrow led, as I had previously lost the track of it: it is possible that these cells were those of H. morio,—and as the food which they contained exactly resembled that found in the cells of H. abdominalis, I am inclined to believe that to have been the case. The food stored up by those bees which are not furnished with pollenigerous organs consists of semi-fluid honey, as that of Ceratina and Hyleus. After the most careful observation of the colony, I am still inclined to believe that Sphecodes is not a parasite. The Baron Walckenaer, in his history of H. terebrator, which is synonymous with our insect, says, that it is principally during the night that these bees construct their burrows ; but although I visited the colony on such nights as he describes as being favourable for their operations, I never saw any bee thus employed : the nights in this country are probably never sufficiently warm to favour the interesting opera- tions described by Walckenaer. These bees may be seen labouring most assiduously early in the morning, and also on dull warm days, but not in the great heat of mid- day. Walckenaer says, that during the day either the male or female remains on guard at the entrance of the burrow, retreating to the bottom on the return of either from their excursions: I spared no pains in watching for an opportunity of witnessing so curious and interesting an instance of insect economy, but I must admit that in this account I think the Baron has fallen into an error: the female (and sometimes the male) will retreat to the burrow on the sun being obscured by a cloud, or after having returned from one of her excursions, and, having deposited the fruits of her industry, she will on such occasions station herself for some time with her head at the mouth of her burrow, as if to rest herself after her labour. The precaution described by Walckenaer, he attributes to the instinct of the bee to prevent the intrusion of ene- mies; but amongst the innumerable occasions on which I have observed parasites entering the nests of other bees, not a single instance ever occurred in which the slightest opposition was shown ; in fact, there does not appear to be the slightest ani- mosity existing between them; on the contrary, a bee, on arriving with her load of provisions, should a parasitic bee be found in the burrow, will patiently retreat, and fly off to a short distance until the parasite reissues from her nest. At the time when I first observed the colony (about the 15th of April) and met with Sphecodes subquadratus, I was anxious to secure a supply of specimens, having previously only taken four or five during several years’ assiduous collecting : in this I succeeded, but by the end of May or the beginning of June not a bee of any of the species was to be met with, and all traces of their burrows became obliterated. About the middle of July I again visited the spot: a few of the burrows were again turned up, the little hillocks of sand surrounding the entrances as before: I found a few males of Halictus and also of Sphecodes, including the males of the Halictus morio: at this time I did not observe a female of any but the latter species, but a week later I found all of them in plenty,—Andrena nigro-enea having disappeared altogether until next spring. I have now arrived at a point in the economy of Halicti which I do not know to e 2372 Insects. have been previously observed ; or if so, I am not aware of the fact having been pub- lished. These bees, it will be seen, are double-brooded,—a fact which I think is pe- culiar to Halictus and Sphecodes. Truly “ we are as yet scarcely upon the threshold of the great temple.” ‘The experience of every ensuing season proves to me the truth of this observation : compared with our knowledge of individual species, how limited our knowledge of their economy in all its ramifications! Even the history of those which are daily before us, how incomplete ! It will thus be seen that, independent of structural differences, these bees are dis- tinctly separated from the rest of the Andrenide. The males of those bees forming the genus Andrena disappear some time before their partners have completed their la- bours,—the reverse of which obtains in the Halicti. On the 9th of October I met with males of H. abdominalis, as well as of H. morio ; but not a female could I find, although a month earlier they were plentiful upon the flowers on the same bank, at which time the males also were in great profusion. Great numbers of the male Halicti I observed were preyed upon by the earwig (Forficula) : I found remains of their bodies and wings, at the roots of a species of Leontodon, in quantities : I therefore conjecture, that during the night, when numbers of these bees are enclosed by the petals of flowers, the earwig ascends the plant and devours them. Forficula I have observed to be a most destructive insect to bees, both in the early and perfect stages of their existence,—whole colonies of Osmia bicornis, Colletes and Anthophora being sometimes almost annihilated by them: it is a matter of no consequence to them in what stage of progress the bees may chance to be; they devour pollen, pupa or imago, indifferently. Osmia and Anthophora, I have also this year discovered, are subject to the attacks of small Chalciditous insects: as many as thirteen larva were in one cell of Osmia, and about the same number in that of An- thophora. Both these parasites belong to the genus Monodontomerus, each being a distinct species: that found in the cells of Anthophora is about to be described by Mr. Newport, he having bred it about the same time as myself,—the species not being previously known. It will perhaps be said, that the fact of Sphecodes, as well as Halictus, being double-brooded, is in favour of the opinion of the former being parasitic : such I freely admit to be the case, and also that my observations are not conclusive. The indivi- duals of the genus Nomada which are parasitic may be seen entering the burrows of Andrenide constantly and frequently : one species I have bred from the cocoons of Eucera: here there is no difficulty, but having so repeatedly met with Sphecodes in community with Halictus, and also with Andrena, and having so carefully watched their operations, I cannot but think I must have observed them entering the burrows of one of the genera; but by the most careful observation I could never detect them so doing. I would also observe, that the fact of my observing Sphecodes gibbus in community with Andrena argentipes speaks in favour of their non-parasitism ; for it must be obvious, that the eggs for the autumnal brood must be deposited in the nidus of an Halictus or of an autumnal species of Andrena ; and I must admit that I can- not reconcile to my mind the idea of a parasitic bee being parasitic upon two distinct species, or first upon an individual of the genus Halictus, and then upon one of that of Andrena ; still such an occurrence is possible, and it would be exceedingly inte- resting to determine the question. A record of all observations made upon these genera will probably some day settle Insects. 2373 this doubtful question ; and conceiving this to be most desirable, I have been induced to record the result of my at present imperfect investigation. ji FREDERICK SMITH. _ 5, High Street, Newington, December 5, 1848. Capture of Hymenoptera in Devonshire.—In my early collecting days Devonshire was the county, par excellence, which teemed with entomological treasures; and in the order Hymenoptera I have still a pleasing belief in the early visions of my ima- gination. As far as the order Coleoptera is concerned, I must admit that I am considerably shaken in my early faith, two of our best collectors having diligently searched in vain for the promised treasures in this order within the last year or two ; and when I state that Mr. 8. Stevens has spent two months during the past summer without success, I am constrained to abandon my preconceived notions of its coleop- terous riches. The following list of hymenopterous insects, captured by Mr. 8. Ste- vens (which of course were only casually taken, not diligently searched for, since that gentleman is not a collector of the order, and they are only the result of just what fell in his way, and which he kindly presented to me), shows, I think, that Devonshire is most probably extremely rich in Hymenoptera, since two species are enumerated as new to me, and the list contains several others very local in their distribution, and one or two of considerable rarity. Chrysis austriaca Halictus quadrinotatus Elampus Panzeri Andrena Gwynana Myrmosa melanocephala cingulata Tiphia femorata —— fulvicrus Ceropales maculata —- connectens Tachytes pompiliformis —— Afzeliella Nysson dimidiatus — hemorrhoidalis Trypoxylon clavicerum new species Crabro tarsatus Dasypoda hirtipes — podagricus Panurgus ursinus elongatulus Nomada Jacob Cemonus lethifer —— cornigera Mimesa equestris new species unicolor Epeolus variegatus Cerceris labiata Saropoda furcata arenaria Osmia leucomelana Colletes succincta hirta Sphecodes sphecoides Eucera longicornis. — Frederick Smith ; 5, High Street, Newington, December, 1848. Capture of Chleneus nigricornis in Cumberland.—My brother took a specimen of this common southern beetle on the banks of one of the Cumberland ‘tarns,’ in June. —T. J. Bold ; 42, Bigg Market, Newcastle-on-Tyne, December 26, 1848. Capture of Notaphus obliquus at Gosforth, Northumberland.—I caught a beautiful Vil G 2374 Insects. specimen of this rare insect at Gosforth, in the beginning of August last. It was run- ning about on the dry muddy bottom of the lake, in company with Philocthus fuscipes. —Id. Note on Broscus cephalotes——When alarmed this common beetle simulates death in rather an odd manner: opening wide its mouth, it throws back the antenne, brings together the anterior and intermediate legs, which project at a right angle downwards, at the same time stretching outwards and upwards the posterior pair, somewhat in the manner of lethargic humble bees. Thus it patiently remains, like a dead sun-dried creature, until it finds a fitting opportunity of escape.—Id. Note on Pissodes Pini.—I have, at various times during the last season, picked up - in the before-recorded locality (Zool. 1805) a few more specimens of this beetle,—per- haps half a dozen in all. One of them I dug out of a stump of Scotch fir (the stump of a tree felled last winter), on the 22nd of July: it was in an oval chamber in the thick rough bark, about two inches from the top, and had evidently undergone its transformations there, as it was softer, of a paler ferruginous, and had the scaly bands and spots much darker coloured than the generality of specimens.—d. Note on Hylesinus crenatus.—On the first symptoms of decay, our ash trees (espe- cially those in hedge-rows) are attacked by this beetle, whose galleries, running in all directions, admit the air and moisture to the inner bark and sap-wood, which, rapidly decaying, forms a proper pabulum for the larve of Sinodendron cylindricum— an agent which quickly completes the work of destruction. I frequently pass in my walks a large partially decayed oak, where a numerous colony is established: there (espe- cially on warm summer evenings) you may see some members of the community wan- dering over the trunk, in search of a suitable situation for a burrow, which is generally selected at the upper end of some chink or crevice in the bark: the hole runs directly upwards for the first inch or two, and is then continued onwards, across or otherwise, as circumstances or the fancy of the excavator may direct. Not a few may be seen with their abdomens protruding from the orifice of their galleries, into which they ra- pidly retreat when alarmed. When seized, this species produced a brisk chirping noise, by rubbing the abdomen against the elytra.—Id. Capture of Lamia textor near Bristol—Of this fine and much-desired species no less than twenty-seven examples have fallen to my lot, viz., twenty-six in this and one in the past year. I quite agree with my friend Mr. Barton in considering it to be nocturnal in its habits (Zool. 2245), because, first, I never took a specimen until after 7, P.M., and sometimes when so dark that I could not distinguish between the leaf and the insect, except by feeling the difference; and secondly, with two exceptions, they were crawling up the stems of the willows when taken. It is a very local species, only one small portion of the willow-bed affording it; but I luckily discovered what I call its metropolis, and on one evening captured six specimens. It appears to be fond of moisture ; for the greater number of evenings on which I took it were either those of very wet days or on which the dew fell heavily, and I generally got wet through from pushing my way among the willows,—to say nothing of my boots, which on every occasion were thoroughly soaked. On the evenings of one or two very fine and hot days, when I expected to do much execution, not a single insect appeared. It clings firmly to the branch up which it is climbing, and is not dislodged without some effort. The dates and numbers captured are—1847, August 18, one: 1848, July 18, the one recorded (Zool. 2245); August 2, one; August 8, three; August 18, three ; Entomological Society. 2375 August 19, three; August 23, six; August 24, two; August 25, two; September 3, one; September 5, four.—F. V. Jacques; Redcliff Crescent, Bristol, December 12, 1848. Inquiry respecting the Wireworm.—There was a curious fact mentioned in the newspapers lately, relating to the destruction of considerable numbers of partridges, by their feeding on seed grain which had been steeped in a solution of arsenic for the purpose of preventing the ravages of the wireworm. That it is effectual for this pur- pose I think is highly probable ; and the fact of the destruction of the partridges which I have mentioned is a proof that a considerable quantity of arsenic must be taken up by the seeds,—and it does not seem to have rendered the grain in any way unpalatable to the birds. I should be glad to know whether this preparation of the grain not only prevents the wireworm from destroying the seed, but also whether it allows them at the same time to feed on it sufficiently to destroy life: in fact, whether sowing grain thus prepared is a cure for the wireworm or only a palliative ?—Beverley R. Morris, A.B., M.D.; York, January 5, 1849. Proceedings of the Entomological Society. January 22, 1849 (Anniversary Meeting).—W. Spence, Esq., President, in the chair. T. Desvignes, H. T. Stainton, G. R. Waterhouse, and J. Walton, Esqrs., were elected members of the Council in the room of A. Ingpen, G. Newport, J. F. S. Parry, and J. O. Westwood, Esqrs., and the following were elected to the respective offices for 1849: G. R. Waterhouse, Esq., President; W. Yarrell, Esq., Treasurer; E. Dou- bleday and J. W. Douglas, Esqrs., Secretaries. The President then delivered an Address, for which and his services to the Society a vote of thanks was passed by acclamation, and he was requested to allow this ad- dress to be printed, when he intimated his intention of printing it for distribution among the members and subscribers at his own expense. Votes of thanks were then passed to the Treasurer, Secretaries, and the retiring members of the Council. February 5, 1849.—G. R. WatEernovseE, Esq., President, in the chair. The following gentlemen were balloted for and elected as members, viz., W. S. Dallas, Esq., John Lee, Esq., LL.D., F.R.S., &c.; as subscribers, G. Bedell, Esq., H. Jobson, Esq., W. F. Saunders, Esq., John Bell, Esq., M.D. Mr. A. White, on the part of Mr. Whittingham, exhibited a specimen of Velleius dilatatus, found in Epping Forest, in June, 1848, in decaying matter at the root of a tree. Mr. Westwood exhibited a larva of Velleius dilatatus and Volucella ————, found in a hornet’s nest by Professor Henslow; also drawings of a species of a new British genus of Aphides, which he proposed to call Smynthurodes Bete, having found them in January last on the roots of common beet, where they live in small communities. He also exhibited a male of Osmia bicornis, from Albert Way, Esq., 2376 Zoophytes. of Reigate, found by him in the keyhole of a door, fully developed in its cocoon, on the 5th of December. The President observed, that most, if not all, of the Coleoptera and Hymenoptera that appear early in the year undergo their change to the perfect state in the autumn previous. Mr. Westwood, referring to the experiments of Mr. Crosse in galvanism, and the supposed production of Acari by galvanic agency, stated that he had received speci- mens of insects from Mr. Heal, of Knightsbridge, occurring in fluid on which a gal- vanic current was in operation, and which it was supposed had been developed by its agency, and found them to be Ptinus Fur. It was most probable that their presence was accidental, and in no way due to galvanic power. Mr. Stainton exhibited specimens of Cucullia Lactuce, which Mr. H. Doubleday had received from M. Pierret, of Paris. It was evident that this species has hitherto been erroneously reported as British. Mr. Douglas exhibited living larve of Tinee in poppy leaves, found in a chest of opium from India, accompanied by the perfect insect, found in the same chest. Mr. Douglas also exhibited a specimen of Glea erythrocephala var. glabra, as figured by Duponchel, taken by H. Cooke, Esq., of Brighton, in the autumn, at sugar. It is the first specimen of this species known to have occurred in Britain. Captain Parry, on behalf of Mr. Turner, exhibited a remarkable specimen of Go- liathus, apparently intermediate between Cacicus and Drurei. A letter from C. A. Wilson, Esq., of Adelaide, South Australia, corresponding member, was read, announcing that he had sent various insects to the Society, and containing many interesting observations on their habits and economy. Mr. Gould mentioned that a species of Coccus, in Australia, served as food for a Platycercus. Mr. A. White exhibited a spider’s nest, remarkable as being the receptacle for the female as well as the eggs. It appeared to belong to a genus allied to Lycosa. A paper was read on the Hemipterous insects from Boutan, East Indies, describ- _ ing several new species, by W. 8. Dallas, Esq. A paper was read on the Lepidopterous genus Erycina, describing several new species, and accompanied by three plates, presented by the author, W. W. Saunders, Esq. The President and Mr. Doubleday made some remarks on the range and geo- graphical distribution of species of insects and other animals.—J. W. D. List of Zoophytes, §e., found near Dover.—Having, during a visit to Dover, about three months since, derived much pleasure from observing and collecting the zoophytes, &c., thrown up on the shore, I send the names of such species as occurred. Perhaps the number is not unusually large, but I do not remember to have met with so many at any one spot before; and certainly the abundance and exceeding beauty of the plumes, wreaths and silky or pearly tufts of these animal-plants, could scarcely fail to attract the admiration of the most unobserving, even of those who, regarding them merely as “sea-weed,” are unaware of their wondrous structure and history. In this Zoophytes. 2377 affair I merely acted as collector for a lady of our party, who, as an invalid, was often unable to roam far from our lodgings; and it is from her specimens and memoranda the present list has been compiled. As a novice, doubtless many species might escape my observation, especially of the small incrusting kinds. We placed many of the spe- cies in sea-water, hoping to obtain a view of their interesting inhabitants, but only in _ one instance with a satisfactory result: this was in Laomedea geniculata, so frequently “infesting” (say the botanists, but surely a better term would be ornamenting) that most common of sea-weeds, Fucus serratus. In many of the fine purplish bunches of Tubularia indivisa the polypes protruded from the tubes, but hung down in an appa- rently lifeless state. Perhaps the heavy rains, which almost continually prevailed during the few weeks we spent on the coast, might, by soaking the specimens left by the tide, seriously impair the health of these minute creatures ; as immersion in fresh water is, I believe, said to be almost instant death to them. One day, whilst we were closely watching a number of corallines placed in a glass of sea-water, a most elegant little animal made its appearance, moving along the sides of the glass by means of its tentacula (four or five in number): it was very conspicuous, from its snowy whiteness, and somewhat resembled (except in size) the magnified figure of Hydra vulgaris given in Johnson’s ‘ British Zoophytes,’ pl. 1, fig. 2, only far more delicate and beautiful. On one of the very few fine mornings we had whilst at Dover I walked along shore to St. Margaret’s, and a mile or two beyond it. Here I was exceedingly struck with the quantity and beauty of the corallines, especially Sertularia operculata, bunches of which, driven by a high wind, were caught by every little plant growing above high water-mark, and their slender ramifications were so thoroughly separated by the blast as to present an exquisite and inimitable softness: I had never before seen it in such beauty or profusion. Zoophytes found at Dover, 10th mo. (October), 1848. Alcyonium digitatum. Common. Antennularia antennina. Frequent. Antennularia ramosa. In scattered fragments. Cellepora pumicosa. Spoiling other corallines continually with its stony lumps. Cellularia reptans. Crista eburnea. Abundant. Flustra carbasea. Frequent. Flustra foliacea, truncata and membranacea. Abundant, very large. Laomedea geniculata. Common. Lepralia variolosa. Common. Membranipora pilosa. Common. Notamia loriculata. Not common. Plumaria cristata. Occasional, on Halydris siliquosa. Plumaria falcata. In great abundance and of large size. Serialaria lendigera, Frequent. Sertularia abietina. Abundant. Sertularia argentea. Frequent. Sertularia cupressina, and also (apparently) intermediate forms between this and the preceding species. Sertularia operculata. In profusion. Sertularia polyzonias. Occasional. Sertularia pumila. Common. 2378 Quadrupeds. Sertularia rugosa. Occasional, on Flustra foliacea. Thoa halecina. Frequent. Tubularia indivisa. Abundant. Tubularia larynx. Occasional. Tubularia ramia. Frequent. Tubulipora patina. Growing on Tubularia indivisa, &c. Vesicularia spinosa. A single fine and perfect specimen, found about three miles east of Dover: this, whilst matted together and still wet from the retiring tide, so nearly resembled a bunch of wet wool that I had well nigh passed it without further | notice.— W. D. King; Sudbury, 9th of 2nd mo., 1849. On the Preservation of small Mammalia.—I hope to be excused if I take the liberty of instructing the readers of the ‘ Zoologist’ in a small matter of taxidermy; but my wish to do so arises from having read some account of a shrew by Mr. Briggs (Zool. 2281), which description does not seem to agree with any other description of shrews, either by Bell, or by Jenyns in his ‘ Manual,’ or papers in the ‘ Magazine of Natural History. Mr. Briggs says, “ When I saw it the flesh was in a state of decomposition, and after taking a description of the colours, &c., it was put away as useless.” In the small quadrupeds, especially the shrews and voles, decomposition commences very soon after death, and the fur of the belly comes off in pieces or flakes if handled roughly: nevertheless, I have found that if the skin can be taken off and the preserva- tive applied, the fur will, when the specimen has become dry, remain firmly attached to the skin. The best method I have seen is, to lay the animal on its back, with the head pointing to the right shoulder of the operator, then with a pointed instrument separate the fur in a line along the middle of the under parts, from the front of the sternum to the vent; a pair of very sharp fine-pointed scissors must then be taken, and an incision made where the hair has been parted: with a pair of dissecting forceps take hold of the edges of the skin, and with the spatula end of the scalpel, or, what is better, a narrow piece of ivory flattened and curved at one end, very carefully separate the skin from the body, and as fast as so separated apply powdered burnt alum to its inner surface. This, besides tawing it, will very rapidly absorb all the moisture, and thereby render the operation more easy: it is advisable, however, to take care that the alum does not set on the outside of the skin, amongst the fur, if there is any moisture, because it will unite with, and be taken up by, the alum, as water of crystallization. This, solidifying in the fur, cannot be removed without injury to the latter. The bones of the legs and tail, when arrived at, must be snipped in two with a pair of scissors kept for that purpose (nail scissors are the best,—the cutting part is short, and the ends strong but pointed). All this must be done with the animal still lying in the position mentioned, and it is not at all necessary that it should be moved until the present stage of the process. With the forceps the pelvis can now be taken up in the left hand, so that the skin will hang down: this is to be detached along the back, un- til the neck is reached, when it must be very gently shoved (not pulled) over the skull with the end of the scalpel. The body is then to be detached from the skull, and the latter—as well as the leg bones, &c.—cleaned in the usual way, and the pre- servative applied liberally to all the mside of the skin. This should be cither some Quadrupeds. 2379 preparation of arsenic or corrosive sublimate ; for although the alum will preserve it from decomposition, it will not prevent the attacks of insects. Bullock’s preservative powder I have found to answer better than arsenical soap, because it absorbs the moisture. After it has been applied the skin should be partially filled with tow, and then remain for about a day before being sewn up. The chief points to be attended to are, the careful separation of the skin after the animal is first opened, and the libe- ral application of the alum during that part of the process. Birds can be treated in the same way when too far gone to admit of the usual method ; but as they often de- compose rapidly about the head, it is necessary to open them the entire length, 2. e., from the chin to the vent. I believe that in however putrid a state the body of a small animal may be, the alum will effectually fasten any fur or feathers, provided they have not been loosened at their insertion in the skin. This has been written chiefly to take the attention of Mr. Briggs, hoping that if another shrew should occur similar to the one mentioned by him he will make the attempt to save it. In this way I have prepared numbers of the square-tailed shrew, as well as the Irish shrew of Mr. Je- nyns, both of which are common here, also the water and oared shrews. Among the bats it is equally applicable; and as the time for their capture is usually in the sum- mer or autumn, they are often in a bad state for preservation. It may be well to re- mark, that mammals, particularly small ones, keep much best suspended by the hinder legs,—the viscera then retreat to within the cavity of the ribs, instead of coming into close contact with the skin of the belly and flanks. Before concluding, I hope Mr. Briggs will pardon me if I express some surprise at his not having found more than two species of bats: Warwickshire,—like Derbyshire,—a midland county, is more prolific in Cheiroptera. Within a few miles of Stratford I have met with nine species, some of which are considered rare in Britain, and I have no doubt there are others.— Robert F. Tomes ; Welford, Stratford-on-Avon, December 20, 1848. Occurrence of the Badger, Otter and Polecat in Suffolk.—A fine badger was trapped at Cavenham, near Bury, in the winter 1846-7: another was supposed to have been about there at the time, but I have never yet heard of its being taken. A large otter was shot at Shadwell, near Thetford, in the winter 1844-5. A polecat—a veritable one, and not an escaped ferret, was caught in a trap at Elveden last October, being only slightly hurt: it is now alive and doing well— Alfred Newton ; Elveden, January 31, 1849. Importation of another Specimen of the Chimpanzee.—A specimen of this valuable animal has lately been added to the Earl Fitzwilliam’s collection of animals, &e., at Wentworth. It was brought to this country from the southern part of Africa, and presented to the noble Earl by a relative who is a captain in the Royal Navy. A well- prepared room in the house is appropriated to its use, having a little domicile in the centre, and warm blankets to repose on, as these animals are extremely susceptible of cold. There is likewise a good fire in the apartment, but well guarded from a too near approach. It runs or walks perfectly erect, and is about three feet in height. It uses both hands with great nimbleness—undrawing knots with dexterous ease, handles everything like a human being, and is the nearest approach to the human form, the ears being almost a fac simile, also the bosom and so on downwards. It is very quick in detecting any unkindness, and runs immediately to the keeper for pro- tection. Its food is choice, and wine a favourite beverage, holding the glass till the contents are disposed of: figs are a portion of its favourite food. The arms are long, 2380 Quadrupeds. thin and hairy, and the fingers and nails finely developed. Wombwell, we believe, had one in his collection; but this is considered the finest specimen which has been seen in this country.—‘ Doncaster Gazette.’ Bat flying by Day.—Taking a walk with a friend in Axwell Park, I saw a com- mon bat flying among trees, with as much spirit as ever I saw one flying on a sum- mer’s evening, and making rapid evolutions amongst thickly-studded branches of trees, and never touching them. I watched it for more than half an hour, expecting it to alight, but it never lingered, until it took a rapid dart forward amongst trees, and I could see it no more. Bats seem to fly quicker than birds, rising frequently a little upwards, then dropping instantly down and making beautiful sallying curves in rapid succession. Sun, at the time of flying, both clouded and clear; clouds moving fast and a fine day; rather warm at this season: bat evidently taking food. Thomas Robson ; Swalwell, December, 1848. Cats and Nemophila insignis.—If it is desirable to multiply instances of the fond- ness of cats for Nemophila insignis, in answer to Mr. Rains’ observation (Zool. 2343) I may mention that out of a large clump that I had in the spring of last year, only about half a dozen plants came to maturity after having been rolled, evidently by cats, while all the other plants in the same border were unmolested. My garden is not very extensive, measuring but eleven feet by two feet ; but why the particular spot on which the Nemophila grew was that most preferred for the recreation of the cats did not occur to me till I saw Mr. Lawson’s contribution on this subject (Zool. 2252).— Henry Bull; Portsmouth, January 16, 1849. Extraordinary example of the Common Fox.—A very extraordinary male fox was found on Tuesday, January 30th, 1849, imbedded in the sand on the banks of the Wear, about half a mile west from this place, by Robert Halem, animal preserver. It had evidently been shot, and either thrown into the river, or, I think more likely, had perished in the stream by attempting to escape after being wounded ; for it was shot in the left shoulder with No. 2, but none, that I could detect, had entered a vital organ. The weight was 70 Ibs.: I did not see it weighed, but was so informed by two respectable men who did. The following are the dimensions, which I took: length 4 feet 9 inches (including the tail, which is a very bad one, not longer than that of a fox of the ordinary size); height at the shoulder, 1 foot 103 inches; girth round the body, behind the fore legs, 2 feet 9 inches; girth round the neck, 1 foot 93 inches ; breadth between the ears, 44 inches; breadth between the eyes, 33 inches; length of head, from the centre of the ears to the muzzle, 9 inches; canine teeth, from the sur- face to the gums, 1 inch 1 line.—Joseph Duff; Bishop's Auckland. Occurrence of the Crested Seal (Phoca cristata) in the Orwell River.—Some months ago (Zool. 1870) I inserted the description of a seal captured near Ipswich, and which I then supposed to be new to Britain. The skull was subsequently examined by Pro- fessor Owen, who has decided it is that of the crested seal, and states that this is the first instance of its occurrence in Britain —Edward Newman. Note on the New Forest Hybrid.—I observe in your note on the new forest hybrid (Zool. 2345), you remark that Landseer’s sketch, “ excepting in the shortness of the tail, does not differ from the portrait of any ordinary foal.” You must surely have overlooked the partially divided hoof, which is clearly indicated in the engraving, and I think the most remarkable character in the animal.— George ing sabe Ventnor, Isle of Wight, February 8, 1849. Quadrupeds— Birds. 238 1 [I observe that the artist has represented a kind of notch in the hoofs, but there is no resemblance to the hoof of ruminants. Has no correspondent an opportunity of examining the animal’s hoofs and teeth ?— Edward Newman.) The Elk formerly in Scotland.—Sir Walter Scott was aware of the former exist- ence of the elk in this country, as appears from the following lines: “ Here grins the wolf as when he died, And there the wild cat’s brindled hide, The frontlet of the elk adorns Or mantles o’er the bison’s horns.” Lady of the Lake, Canto i. 27. They occur in the description of the stronghold of the Douglas, in Loch Katrine. I have no means of ascertaining whether Sir Walter had any other authority for intro- ducing the elk than the evidence of its horns, dug up more than once in Scotland. He perhaps would say, that even if he had no kind of proof of the living elk so late as the time of James V., its horns might be nailed up in the castles of the nobility, just as the antlers of the great Irish deer are in England or Ireland at the present day.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, January 8, 1849. Dates of the Singing of Birds at Elveden.—I beg to enclose you a notice of the singing of birds at this place, which has been recorded during the past year by my brother: one such has appeared in your magazine by a northern contributor (Zool. 1067), and a comparison of the different dates and periods recorded in that, in the present, and in the “ methodus” of White,* will show that they agree on the whole very well, considering the difference of the localities. It must be observed that this list cannot be of such good authority as either of the two I have mentioned, as it is only the record for one year, while both the others have the advantage of being the averages of several. I have used the Roman numerals as a short way of expressing the respective weeks of the different months. Singing of Birds at Elveden from 1 January to tv December, 1848. Thrush, from tv January to 1 July, and from tv November to 111 December. Blackbird, from 1 January to 1 July, and 1 December. Robin redbreast, from 1 January to 11 May, at intervals till m June, and from Iv July to rv December. Hedge sparrow, from 1 February to Iv May and at intervals, and from 1 June to 1 July. Redstart, from 111 April to 111 June. Wheatear, from trv March to 1 May. Nightingale, from 11 April to m1 June. Blackeap, from m1 April to 1 July. Wood warbler, from 11 to 1v May. Willow warbler, from m1 April to rv June. Chiff-chaff, from rv March to tv June and at intervals, and from 1 to 111 Septem- ber. Pied wagtail, from 1 March to rv April. Meadow pipit, from tv March to 1 July. Skylark, from 1 January to 1 August, and from tv September to 11 October. Yellow hammer, from 1 March to 1 August. Chaffinch, from 1 January to 111 June, and at intervals till 1 July. * Letter ii. (Barrington), ‘ Natural History of Selborne.’ ¥H H 2382 Greenfinch, from 1 March to 1 August. Goldfinch, from 1 April to 1v May, and from tv January to tv July. Common linnet, from um March to mr May. Starling, .... cember. Wryneck, from tv March to 1 June, and at intervals till 111 June. from 11 July to 1v De- Birds. Wren, from 1 January to 1v June, and from tv August to rv December. Cuckoo, from 1 April to 1v June. Swallow, from 1 April to rv August. Ring dove, from 1 February to 11 June and at intervals, and from 1 July to tv September. Turtle dove, from 1 May to tv June, and at intervals till 1v July. | In the above list are several birds which can hardly be said to sing, yet I know of no better word to express my meaning.— Alfred Newton, Elveden, January 31, 1849. Dates of Departure of Migratory Birds at Elveden in 1848. Hooded crow.......ss00 last seen April 24 Swallow........s.ssse+e0eeeelast seen Oct. 6 Common swift ......... » Augt. 30 EME ANGI: «acca gh abs sp.c vo cmap oy)ciri (Oe Spotted flycatcher ...... >, mept..15 The different species of Hirundinide departed each in a body, leaving no strag- glers.—Id. Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Elveden in 1848. CGOIGER PIOVET o,5s00cecirecnsipsies Sept. 30 Wield tare - .0cccsnecense> one euurenues | Ee Woodcock Oct. 5 HeGWiMG ...jcc0cccnescassecverssene SOC Hooded. crow.} .s;.sxs- scaeacessoi Oot. 1.8 Wild (bean ?) goose.........+++... Nov. 14 With all due deference to the opinion you have expressed in the preface to the late volume of the ‘ Zoologist, * I feel sure that both the fieldfare and redwing, as the above testifies, were somewhat earlier in their arrival last autumn than usual. My brother and myself, in different places, on October 14th, saw and heard fieldfares, and both of us came to that conclusion before we saw one another; and the note of the missel- thrush cannot be mistaken for that of the fieldfare by any one who has heard the two. On October 19th a fieldfare was shot here. The first intimation which I had of the arrival of the redwing was finding, on October 18th, the remains of one which had been killed and partly eaten by a hawk, and the feathers and other remains abun- dantly testified to the species.—Id. Rare Birds near Thetford.—A fine rough-legged buzzard was killed at Santon- Downham in July last. An adult male marsh harrier was trapped at Croxton in the beginning of last September. A female hawfinch was shot at Riddlesworth some time last summer; it had probably bred there: two also have been killed in the neighbourhood in the present month,—one at Garboldisham, the other near Bury St. Edmunds. A male mealy redpole, in full breeding plumage, was shot at Riddles- worth last July: I have no doubt that this bird had bred there. A sanderling, in perfect winter plumage, was shot at Gasthorpe the first week of this month: another was seen with it, but having been shot at and missed once it became very wild, and was not again approached. A bittern was shot near Bury about December 14th. A curlew was shot on Foulmire, Wretham, at the end of August last. Three summer ducks (Aix sponsa, Boie), two males and one female, were shot at Livermere, October 24th ; some others have since been seen there: these had doubtless strayed from some- * The dates to which I alluded were September 9 and September 12. Birds. 2383 body's piece of water, as the bird has not yet occurred in a wild state in Britain, al- though one or two instances * like the present have been recorded; and if it were to occur, it would probably not be inland or in an eastern county. I may here take the opportunity of observing, that it seems to me that it would be very convenient to zoologists if persons—having had foreign or rare British birds escaped from them— were in some way or other to let them know of the fact, as it would clear up doubts as to the character of additions to our general and local fauna ; and I know of no better means of conveying this intelligence than the pages or cover of the “Zoologist, which I have no doubt would be open to this as to every other way of assisting in the know- ledge of Natural History: for this purpose a couple of lines would, in most cases, I should think, be sufficient. An immature Richardson’s skua was shot on the warren here, October 30th: it had been seen the day previously, and was so tame that it set- tled within a few yards of a man who was mending a road, and who mistook it for an eagle which had been occasionally seen here about that time, but of the capture of which I have not yet heard authentically. While on the subject of skuas, I may say that I saw at Cambridge, last autumn, a beautiful adult Buffon’s skua, which had been shot near St. Neots, Huntingdonshire, in September last. I may also as well add, that within the last ten days a black-throated diver has been taken off the coast at Lynn-Regis.—Jd. On some of the Rarer Birds found in Devonshire. By W. R. Scort, M.D. I rorwarpD you a few remarks on some of the rarer birds which have come into my possession since I last addressed you, and which I trust may not be considered unworthy of your notice, nor useless as adding to the statistics of Ornithology. A fine specimen of the hobby (Falco subbuteo ?) was shot here in 1846, and I have seen one or two others shot since. I am uncertain whether the bird I have is the common hobby or Falco rufipes, as the specimen does not altogether agree with either of these birds as described by Mr. Yarrell. The general markings correspond pretty well with the male of F. subbuteo, but the thighs are of a deep rufous colour, which is one of the distinctions of F. rufipes, while the tarsi of my bird are of a lemon-yel- low, and the orange-legged hobby as described in Yarrell has legs and toes of a red- dish flesh-colour; and though the bird in its different ages is recorded as passing through several changes of plumage, still the legs appear in all cases to be the same. In the common hobby we have the legs and toes yellow, without the thighs rufous, while the other parts of the birds very closely resemble each other. A specimen of the Falco peregrinus has been killed here, and I have also heard of another which has been taken in this neighbourhood. These birds I am told are yet found breeding on Dartmoor, but they are by no means common in this neighbourhood. A specimen of the ring ouzel (Turdus torquatus) was taken in a trap a little way from this place, and from its plumage I should think it was a young bird, and which — * * Zoologist, 2067, and Jenyns’ ‘ Manual of British Vertebrate Animals, 237. 2384 Birds. most likely had strayed from Dartmoor, where these birds breed regularly and are far from uncommon, though out of the moor districts they are very rarely seen. When this bird was taken it was considered a great rarity, none like it ever having been ob- served there before, though the place was not above six or seven miles from Dartmoor. They appear to confine themselves principally to high and lonely torrs, and there—as you wander amongst the huge detached blocks of granite—they may be observed hop- ping from stone to stone, and in the breeding season are by no means difficult to ap- proach sufficiently near so as to be easily shot. Several specimens of the small spotted woodpecker (Picus minor) were killed near to this city during the summer of 1847, and I found a nest in an old apple-tree in one of the nursery gardens. Two specimens of the P. major have been killed in the neighbourhood, and are considered rare: one was in the young plumage, the other in the old. I have also procured a specimen of Yunx torquilla, and which I am told is not unfrequently found here, but I cannot consider them plentiful, from the very few peo- ple who appear to know the bird,—even those who make a habit of observing. Mr. Selby remarks that only a few of these birds are to be found in Northumberland, but in one part of that county (near Stamfordham), and where I spent the earlier years of my life, they were certainly not uncommon, for I have frequently taken their nests and kept their young; and on an evening I have often watched them gambolling, as it were, amongst some old willow-trees, and uttering their sharp note, until the deeper shades of evening closed upon them. I should almost think that evening is a time when these birds are most active, for I do not remember to have seen them at any other period of the day fluttering and chirping about so much as in the twilight. We had here, in the winter of 1845, immense numbers of the gray phalarope (Phalaropus platyrhynchus). Every winter we have a few, but on this occasion they came in such flocks as had never been before noticed. They appeared to have had a long flight and to be quite worn out, so much so that many were caught with the hand, others knocked down with sticks, and shot in large numbers as they sat till very closely approached. There were several killed on the quay at Exeter; and it appeared, from the many notices in the local papers, that these birds oc- curred in large quantities on the whole southern part of this county. The time of their visit was in October; and an old and intelligent wild-fowl shooter, well ac- quainted with the birds that visit our coast, informed me that whenever the equinoc- tial gales blew strongly from the south-east these birds always appeared in considerable numbers, and in an exhausted condition; and this year they certainly appeared after very strong south-east winds. Several specimens of Anas albifrons were shot here in the latter part of 1846, and also specimens of the brent goose. Some specimens of Colymbus glacialis were procured in our rivers, but all these were young birds and in their immature plumage. I have never yet seen a full- plumaged bird shot here. A good specimen of the osprey (Pandion Haligetos) was shot in December, 1847. This bird is not a very uncommon visitor, as almost every winter one or two are shot in the neighbourhood. A specimen of the common skua (Lestris cataractes) was found dead in a field about twelve or fourteen miles from the coast : it is a fine old bird and in good plumage. In skinning it I could find no place indicating its being wounded, but it appeared to Birds. 2385 be in poor condition, as if from some cause it had suffered much before its death. We had during the cold weather of 1847 many of our usual winter visitors —small flocks of the golden-eye, goosander and merganser; but the continual warfare that is kept up against them hardly allows them any time to settle in the rivers,—and there can be no doubt that the constant firing which is going on prevents many of the shyer and rarer visitors from coming near us. A specimen of the spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia) was shot at on the warren sands at Exmouth, in December, 1847—the only one which I have heard of being seen for some time past. We had a larger number of the siskin (Fringilla spinus) this winter than I have ever before seen here: many were captured by the bird-catchers, with a fishing-rod covered with bird-lime for a few inches, at the pond, as these interesting little birds are so tame, or so taken up with seeking out their food on the alder-bushes, that they sit till you come close upon them. A snow bunting (Emberiza glacialis) was also shot here this winter: this bird is not frequently met with in this county: it was shot upon the warren at Exmouth, and no other was seen near it. During the same win- ter a specimen of the glaucous gull (Larus glaucus), in its young plumage, was shot at Budleigh Salterton, on this coast. The winter of 1848 has not been one of very severe weather, and hence we have not had many of our northern visitors yet with us. The fact of fieldfares having arrived very early this year has been alluded to in the ‘ Zoologist.’ The same circumstance was mentioned to me by a friend, who, though not much of a scientific naturalist, is a keen sportsman, much out of doors, and a close observer of all the “goings and comings” of our different birds and beasts,—so that there can be no doubt of the fact, whatever may have been the cause. I obtained a fine specimen of the hawfinch (Lowia coccothraustes), and two others were sent to Mr. Truscott, bird-preserver, of this city, which were shot in the neigh- bourhood. The Lestris pomarinus and the black tern (Sterna fissipes) have both been killed in the Eye this winter: the latter is now in the extensive and beautiful collection of Major Godfry, of this city. In the first week of 1849 an exceedingly fine specimen of the Egyptian goose (Anser Egyptiacus) was shot upon this coast, and which I bought in the Exeter market. This bird had never been seen before by any of the dealers in wild-fowl here, and may be considered of very rare occurrence indeed. I have therefore much pleasure in recording its having been killed in this county. The bird was ex- ceedingly thin and in poor condition, though its plumage was fine. In skinning it I found two old wounds, one in the breast and another near the vent,—the latter one having been rather extreme: both, however, had healed, or rather were in the process of healing, when the bird was killed. W. R. Scorr. St. Leonard’s, Exeter, January, 1849. 2386 Birds. Capture of the Sea Eagle (Halizétos albicilla) in Sussex.—I have received infor- mation from Sir Charles Taylor that a large eagle, lately observed in this neighbour- hood, had been subsequently trapped in one of the great woods on the Cowdray estate. Being naturally anxious to examine, or perchance obtain a specimen of an eagle found so near me, I was just preparing to start in quest of it, when Lord Egmont kindly anticipated my wishes by sending it tome. It proved to be a male cinereous or sea eagle, in immature, but uninjured plumage. I have ascertained that the last chapter in his biography was as follows :—The bird had for three weeks frequented the wooded district in that picturesque portion of the weald which lies between Hollycombe and Henley Hill, about twenty miles from the coast, and was evidently hitherto indebted for his escape rather to the impracticable nature of his haunts than to any cunning or vigilance of his own. He had been frequently seen near some old pollard oak trees, among which, it was afterwards ascertained, he had roosted. Having, at length, im- prudently ventured to make a foray upon a neighbouring farm-yard, and carried off a goose, matters began to assume a serious aspect. A council of war was called: the farmer, the game-keeper and the rat-catcher met in conclave; an alliance offensive and defensive was formed; the eagle was denounced; and all measures, whether of force or stratagem, were declared lawful, to destroy such a marauder: the first sub- scribed a pigeon, the second a trap, and the third a rat. Operations were commenced by laying down the pigeon near the supposed retreat of the robber, as if to test his -gullibility: this was immediately carried off. The trap was then set on the same spot, baited with the rat, and by means of this ignoble lure was the poor eagle deluded and captured.—A. B. Know ;* Petworth, December 14, 1848. Occurrence of the Great Gray Shrike (Lanius Excubitor) near Bishop’s Auckland. —On the 24th of last December a female great gray shrike was shot on Byer’s Green Moor—the only female I have known got in this neighbourhood.—Joseph Duff; Bishop's Auckland, February 12, 1849. Occurrence of the Great Gray Shrike near Shoreham.—Several specimens of this bird have occurred along the coast: two of them were shot during November last, one at Lancing, the other at Southwick, both near Shoreham, and both appeared to be adult males.— Wm. Borrer, Jun. ; 1, Silwood Place, Brighton, January 19, 1849. Variety of the Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris).—On the 6th instant a beautiful pied fieldfare was brought me; the fifth, sixth and seventh quill-feathers in each wing being white; the greater coverts white; the scapulars mottled; the rump a cloudy white; the six middle tail-feathers white, with a dark brown bar across the end; the rest of the tail-feathers tipped with white.—Joseph Duff; Bishop’s Auckland, February 12, 1849. Supposed Egg of Sylvia hippolais.—In an inquiry respecting the melodious willow wren (Sylvia hippolais), by Mr. W. Lean (Zool. 2346), he seems to ask whether the fourth variety of the eggs described by him may not be those of Sylvia Icterina or of S. hippolais? In reply, I can assure him that I have found eggs agreeing with his description, and in the same situation as he describes, and that they are of the common wren (Troglodytes europaeus). It was in the fens of Cambridgeshire; and on my coming to reside in Norfolk last year, I was struck with the dissimilarity in shape of the eggs of the common wren which I got there, compared with those found in Cam- * Extracted, by permission, from Mr. Knox’s forthcoming ‘ Ornithological Rambles.’ Birds. 2387 bridgeshire ; the latter being almost globular and milk-white, seldom spotted; the former of an oval shape, sometimes with the small end prolonged, something like those of the plover tribe. I took the bird out of the nest in two or three instances, and it was most certainly the common wren. But I have eggs of the chiff-chaff taken in Norfolk, also nearly globular: the difference in size of some of the specimens of _ both this bird’s and the common wren’s eggs is very remarkable. Neither of the spe- cies is rare in this locality, although the chiff-chaff is not so common as the wren. May there not be two species of 'Troglodytes? as it is singular that eggs should be globular in one locality and oval in the other. There is a difference in the colour of the common wren, those in Cambridgeshire seeming very much smaller and darker coloured than those I have seen here. I may mention that the bird I last took off the nest in Cambridgeshire was sitting on only seven eggs, of the globular shape above mentioned.—Henry I. Bellars, Curator of the Museum, Norwich ; January 20, 1849. Sylvia hippolais in Britain.—With pleasure I noticed the announcement (Zool. 2228) of the occurrence of the melodious willow wren (Sylvia hippolais of continental authors) in this country, a specimen being recorded by Dr. Plomley to have been ob- tained near Dover. I have also observed the remarks by Mr. Lean (Zool. 2346), and also those by the editor in the preface to the volume for 1848, relating to the possi- bility of this species being a more regular visitant to the southern counties of England than has hitherto been believed, and that the great similarity existing between this and other nearly allied species may have prevented its being previously noticed. Mr. Lean wishes to know whether the eggs of Sylvia hippolais are known; and my object in making the present observations is chiefly on this head, as I believe I am pretty well acquainted with the eggs and nidification of this pretty songster,—and this may perhaps help to throw some light on the matter in question. Eight or nine years ago I passed two years at school in the neighbourhood of Hamburg, where the bird in question is far from being uncommon during the summer months, and where it goes under the name of ‘ bastard nachtigall,’ or bastard nightingale,—I suppose from the qualities of its song. I should suppose that no person could easily confound it with any other of the Sylviade after having once seen it, as the light sulphur-yellow of its breast and under parts is much more vivid than in any other that I am acquainted with ; but writing only from memory I am unable to give the precise colour, markings, &e., and can only again repeat that it cannot easily be mistaken for any of its con- geners. The nest, however, furnishes a much better subject than the bird itself to distinguish it from those of other species. I have repeatedly found and taken them, and have always been struck with the extreme beauty and neatness of the construc- tion, differing in the materials as well as form from any other nest that I am acquainted with. I will endeavour to describe its appearance, and also the eggs, to the best of my recollection. The nest is generally placed pretty high up in the hedges and thickets, and in form most resembles that of the chaffinch, but is somewhat smaller. The materials used were invariably the fine white shavings of the bark of the birch tree, mixed with white lichens and cobwebs, so that the whole outward colour of the nest was white. I do not remember what composed the inner lining. The eggs were of a fine uniform rosy pink colour, with small purple—almost black—spots, and could not easily, Iam sure, be confounded with any others that I am acquainted with. The nest without any dome or covering.—G. Norman ; January 2, 1849. Egg of Sylvia hippolais.—In reply to the inquiry of Mr. Lean (Zool. 2346), as to whether the egg of Temminck’s Sylvia hippolais is certainly known, I would refer 2388 Birds. him for the information to the ‘ Field Naturalist, vol. i. pp. 49—53, where he will find figures of the bird and nest under the name of the ‘ arbour bird’ (Philomela po- lyglotta, Rennie). In that article the eggs are described as “ the size of a linnet’s, of a bright but pale pink, with deep scarlet or crimson spots, rather large, and irregularly scattered over them. A friend who had spent the summer of 1835 at Montpellier, on his return sent me a specimen of an egg obtained from thence, the ground colour of which is a pale pink or rose colour, with deep brown or chocolate spots, small and ir- regularly sprinkled over the whole surface: the man who supplied him with the eggs stated that “the nest was fixed in a batch of peas, at a little distance from the ground,” but did not know to what species they belonged. At a subsequent period - my lamented friend, the late J. D. Hoy, Esq., presented me with some specimens identical with the one obtained from Montpellier as the Sylvia hippolais of Temminck : they were obtained by him during one of his bird’s-nesting excursions on the Conti- nent, and his principal inducement in sending me the eggs was to prove that the continental species was different from our chiff-chaff, which has since been generally admitted.—J. D. Salmon ; Godalming, January 10, 1849. Occurrence of the Snow Bunting (Emberiza nivalis) near Deal On November 4th I shot a specimen of this winter visitor, out of a small flock on the beach: about the winter of 1847 I shot another. Both were in the plumage of the tawny bunting,— probably young birds of the year.—J. W. Hulke ; 155, Lower Street, Deal, February, 1849. Defence of previous Statements about the Sparrow.—I perceive that Mr. Hawley and Mr. Duff are defending the character of the sparrow. Passing over without com- ment all prefatory remarks, I will proceed at once to dissect the more important parts of their communications, commencing with Mr. Hawley’s (Zool. 2348). The first ob- servation demanding notice is, “that 3500 sparrows may find subsistence on 3400 acres of land,—rather more than one sparrow to the acre.” _ Perfectly true it is that such number may be at the rate of rather more than one sparrow to the acre; but it does not follow that the destruction which the birds effect falls in an equal proportion — on every acre. Two farms lie parallel to each other—one grass, the other arable ; the owner of the former escapes, whilst the loss falls in an increased degree on the owner of the latter. I am next asked, “‘ how the sparrow contrives to get at the corn?” Let me explain to Mr. Hawley that here oats and barley are not sheaved, but put into stacks loose, and he will readily perceive that the sparrow has not the difficulty he imagines in getting at this kind of corn; and that although wheat is sheaved, and when stacked the sheaves are so arranged that their corn ends incline inwards, yet the most careful reaper cannot avoid binding many ears in the outer ends, which generally fall a prey to the sparrow. Mr. Hawley again remarks, “ during winter, spring, and the early part of summer, I fear that if he had nothing to eat but the grain he could collect from corn-stacks and barn-doors, his numbers would not greatly annoy even Mr. Briggs.” This gentleman himself admits “that during some of the summer months the sparrow feasts gloriously,” that in autumn he has “ found their crops dis- tended with corn,” and that in winter, too, he has “ shot them near ricks with corn in their crops.” It therefore only remains for me to show that corn still is their food in the spring. Now, upon referring again to the entries in my journals, I find that as much, if not more corn, was taken from the crops of those examined during the vernal months than at any other period during the year ; but no remains of an insect were visible. During the months of January, February, March, April and May, I must have Birds. 2389 opened many hundred sparrows; and found that if their crops contained anything, that food was corn or seeds. I took, on one occasion, 220 grains of good wheat from the crops of eight birds. I say good plump wheat, not swollen,—as Mr. Hawley would make me to say,—but perfect grains, not chipped or broken in thrashing, which had evidently been procured from a barn or stack, and not tail-end or refuse stuff which had passed the winnowing-machine and been blown into the yard. Next comes the point about the sparrow’s bill. I never denied that the bill’ of this bird might and could take insects ; but I should certainly judge—from its short, thick, stunted forma- tion—that its principal business was not to pick minute beings from the buds of trees, the leaves of plants or the crevices of bark. Lastly, Mr. Hawley says “ tend the sparrows, not destroy them.” For thirty years or more this tending system was tried, but without effect; and, in another district, the system of destroying had been tried for years with complete success, with less loss to the corn, and without increased destruction of the vegetables by insects: this led to its adoption here, and so far with equal success. If the birds really do destroy the amount of insects recorded by Mr. _ Hawley, undoubtedly those who devised the “murderous plan” will suffer for their folly, and if so the readers of the ‘ Zoologist’ shall know it. My calculation about the grain consumed by the sparrow was based upon the opinions of fourteen persons, all living in the country, being about their farms almost daily, and the very nature of whose occupation made them conversant with the habits, manners and characters of the feathered inhabitants which people them. After replying to Mr. Hawley’s com- munication there is little to notice in Mr. Duff’s. Mr. Duff has one ingenious con- jecture, viz., that the sparrow burrows into corn-ricks for warmth or insects. May I inquire why the bird burrows into ricks of corn, and not into those of hay, clover or stubble hard by? Wonld they not be found equally warm and full of insects ?—John Joseph Briggs ; King’s Newton, Melbourne, Derbyshire, February, 1849. Further Observations on the Sparrow.—Messrs. Hawley and Duff (Zool. 2348), as counsel for the sparrows, have most vigorously defended them against Mr. Briggs’s charge of “ picking and stealing ;” and indeed I in a great measure agree with those two gentlemen, in thinking it both bad policy and cruel to take the lives of so many—I was about to say harmless creatures; but when all is said and done they are arrant thieves, and in harvest time do great harm, but in the spring months—during their breeding time—I think quite counterbalance it with the good. At Bottesford Moors, the place where I live, there are a great many sparrows, and until lately I was a dreadful enemy to them, as I thought for a very good reason, which was this: a field of wheat grew adjoining to the farm-yard; as soon as it began to ripen it was attacked by a whole army of sparrows, and I should think that the part nearest the farm (probably about an acre) did not yield one quarter of wheat, while all the rest would yield three quarters and a half per acre: this enraged me I must confess, and I commenced a fiery persecution against them, which lasted with unabating vigour until the spring, when one day, having been informed there were some nests under a cart-shade, I went in search of them, and not finding them sat down to wait for the coming of the old birds. I had not waited long before one came, darted under a tile, and in a few seconds flew away again. ‘“ Well,” thought I, “now is my time to catch the young rascals;” so up I climbed to the roof of the building and drew out the nest, which contained four newly-hatched sparrows. I took the young ones in my hands, when lo! a green caterpillar crept from the mouth of one. I killed the four young birds, and each had caterpillars in it: this caused me Vil I 2390 Birds. to relent a little; but what struck me much more forcibly was, finding several wire- worms loose in one of the nests, which had obviously escaped from the young ones. I scarcely as yet know what plan to adopt. Mr. Briggs’s I think is too sanguinary, and Mr. Hawley’s would soon make their numbers become unbearable. I think of adopting the following one,—that is, every year—just before harvest—to shoot some when they are destroying the corn, and at all other times to let them go free. Ano- ther “ grievous fault” of the sparrow is, that they pick the buds off the gooseberry bushes every year, but I opine that they have minute larve in them, or they would not do it; for I have observed that there are some trees, growing within a dozen yards of those they have stripped, from which they have not taken a single bud.— Edward Peacock, Jun. ; Messingham, Kirton Lindsay, Lincolnshire, February, 1849. — [The picking of buds off gooseberry trees is more often attributable to the bull- finch than the sparrow.—E. Newman. ] Cole Titmouse (Parus ater) in London.—As some of the readers of the ‘ Zoologist’ may fancy that our little russet friend, the sparrow, is the only bird we ever see in London, it may prove interesting intelligence if I state that in the latter part of last November my little garden was visited by that pretty little bird, the cole tit, who perched and jerked about with that beautiful pert activity so peculiar to this little fel- low, and with a confidence that surprised me. As I suppose this bird to be a decided countryman, I should like to be informed if its appearance amongst the mass of brick and mortar of this great metropolis is not an occurrence of rarity.—W. Atkinson ; Gordon Street, Gordon Square, February 8, 1849. [I have often seen this little bird in my garden at Peckham; also its congeners Parus major, ceruleus and palustris: all these will come to feed on suet if put out for them. Chaffinches and greenfinches come fearlessly to hempseed ; blackbirds to rot- ten apples and raw meat; sparrows and robins to crumbs; thrushes, starlings, wrens, and, very rarely, hedge-sparrows, also make their appearance—F. Newman. | Remarkable Change in the Plumage of a Bullfinch (Loxia pyrrhula).—A lady, a friend of mine, related to me the following account of a favourite bullfinch, which she had some years in her possession. It was a great pet with the whole family, being a very handsome male bird and exceedingly tame. Its food consisted generally of a mixture of hemp and canary seed, plantain and green food occasionally. About two years from the time she first had it, at the usual moulting season, it shed its feathers, and instead of the reappearance of its natural plumage an entirely black one appeared. From that time to the day of its death, which took place about eighteen months after- wards, its sable hue remained unchanged, and the most minute inspection failed to discover one single coloured feather. This alteration did not appear in the least to affect its health or cheerfulness ; and during the remainder of its life the black bull- finch became an object of curiosity to many, and a more important member of the family than it was when in the ordinary garb of its kind. The stuffed specimen is now in my possession, Can any one afford a clew to the reason of this peculiar change ?—-the more remarkable as the feathers on the breast are of the same deep black as those upon the whole bird.—G. J. Webb ; Milford House, near Godalming, January 28, 1848, [Montagu says, “In confinement this bird not unusually turns wholly black.” Bewick says this bird “sometimes becomes wholly black during its confinement.” White of Selborne says that “a cock bullfinch fed on hemp-seed becomes coal-black at the end of four years.”—Hdward Newman. Birds. 2391 Occurrence of the Minor Grackle (Gracula religiosa) in Norfolk.—In the latter end of March, 1848, I was informed by a gamekeeper and others that two very cu- rious birds had been seen by them, at Waxham, near Yarmouth, resembling the blackbird, but with a white bar on each wing. I concluded a mistake had been made, and that the birds were ring ouzels; but a week after the above-mentioned time unfolded the mystery, for a bird to a distant observer answering the same description was shot at Hickling, two miles from Waxham. I have examined it (it now forms one of my collection), and find it to be a beautiful male specimen of the minor grackle (Gracula religiosa, Lewin), the only one I believe ever killed in Eng- land, although the gamekeeper remembers having seen a pair in the same place some years before. From which four occurrences, considering one has been killed and three seen, I think it deserves a place in our list of British birds, especially when we find birds counted “ British,” of which but one or two specimens have ever been obtained. In size equal to a blackbird: colour black, with blue, green and bronze reflections : head small, tapering towards the bill, which is rather more than an inch in length and of a bright orange colour, growing pale towards its edges ; both mandibles are slightly feathered half the length; under each eye a small portion of the skin is bare and of a yellow colour, as also is behind the ears,—but here the skin is about three-fourths of an inch in length, part is detached, which, rising up, forms a kind of tuft on each side of the head: legs yellow: white band about midway of the greater quills. From the appearance of its plumage when shot, from the look of its feet, claws and beak, it seems never to have been a caged bird.— W. E. Cater ; Queen’s College, Cambridge, January 23, 1849. [This is not even a European bird: it must have escaped from an aviary.—E. N.]| Occurrence of the Kingfisher (Alcedo Ispida) near Deal.—February 6th: I saw a kingfisher in the marshes to-day,—a very rare occurrence in this neighbourhood. May not this be owing to the great number of water-rats which swarm all the streams, destroying their eggs, as I believe they do those of the moorhen and water-rail ?—J. W. Hulke ; 155, Lower Street, Deal. Remarks on the Migration of Swallows (Hirundo rustica).—They who have paid any attention to the subject of the migration of swallows must have frequently ob- served, that after the general flight has departed, and not a swallow is to be seen, a few will often appear again after a considerable interval, later in the season. This remark was well exemplified here last autumn. I lost sight of the swallows on the 5th of October, on which day I observed a few. Ten days elapsed, and not a swallow to be seen in this neighbourhood. On the 16th, however, I observed one flit across the window as I was dressing in the morning; on the 17th two appeared; and on the 18th, though it was very cold and snow had fallen in the morning, five or six swallows and one house martin were to be seen sporting throughout the greater part of the day on the south side of the house, and between the church and the sheltered walk of trees, occasionally perching and sitting in a row on the sill of one of the south attic windows of the house. In this situation they allowed us to approach them through the chamber from behind, the window being closed. They were evidently all of them young birds, which had but recently left the nest, and had yet had no great experience of the world. They remained with us on the 19th and 20th, joined, on the latter day, by a second martin, one of which, however, before evening, was found dead on the sill of the window, having perished probably from cold, to the no small grief of some members of the family, to whom they had become objects of considerable inte- rest. On the 21st and 22nd the party was reduced to one or two swallows and one 2392 Birds. martin: on the latter day, a little before dusk, one of the swallows permitted itself to be caught by hand as it sat on the window-sill, and, after having been duly caressed as a matter of course, was soon restored to liberty, and flew away briskly. After the 22nd we saw no more of our little feathered favourites ; and whether they migrated to more genial climes (as was earnestly hoped) or perished from the inclemency of the weather, remained a problem, which, however interesting, we were unable to solve. Mr. Ellman, I perceive (Zool. 2352), observed young swallows at Rye, probably under circumstances very similar to the above, so late as from the 13th to the 29th of No- vember.—W. T. Bree; Allesley Rectory, February 15, 1849. White Variety of the Swallow.—I have a perfectly white variety of the swallow, shot here about a year and a half ago.—J. F. Colman ; Stoke Holy Cross, near epue December 22, 1848. Late stay of the Martin (Hirundo urbica) in Suffolk.—I beg to mention that a single specimen of the house martin was flying about very briskly this day, on the beach at Gorleston, in Suffolk: on shooting it I found it to be a remarkably small bird : it is now in the process of. being stuffed.—Id. Late appearance of the House Martin (Hirundo urbica) near Deal.—December 8th: I saw three house martins at Kingsdown, under the cliff. I watched them for some time, in order to be sure what they were. Had they not perhaps been hybernating in some cleft, which they had left on account of the unusually warm weather?—J. W. Hulke ; 155, Lower Street, Deal. Occurrence of the Pectoral Sandpiper (Tringa pectoralis) near Yarmouth.—I have recently purchased, of the man who shot it, a specimen of the pectoral sandpiper, which was killed on the Denes, near Yarmouth, in the last week of September, 1848. The plumage is in a state of transition from the nuptial to the winter dress: the sex unfor- tunately was not ascertained by dissection, and therefore cannot be given. It appears, when shot, to have been a solitary individual.—J. H. Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, February 2, 1849. Occurrence of the Bittern (Ardea stellaris) at Lymington.—Three of these birds have been shot within a few miles of Lymington, Hants, within the last three weeks ; all fine specimens.—J. Wright ; Lymington, January 11, 1849. Occurrence of Buffon’s Skua (Lestris Buffonii) in Huntingdonshire—A specimen of Buffon’s skua was shot in the parish of St. Neots, Huntingdonshire, in October, 1848, after a very windy night: it was sitting in an arable field, very tame. It is now in the possession of the gentleman who shot it, G. D. Rowley, Esq., of the Priory, St. Neots, who has kindly communicated these particulars.—John Wolley ; 3, Roxburgh Terrace, Edinburgh, January 8, 1849. Occurrence of the Fork-tail Petrel (Thalassidroma Leachii) near Brighton.—A very perfect specimen of this bird was picked up alive, but in an exhausted state, on the 14th of December, 1848, at Rottingdean, near Brighton. I saw it the next morning at Mr. Swaysland’s.— William Borrer, Jun. ; Brighton, January 19, 1849. Provincial Names of Birds.—None of your correspondents have provincialized the names of our water-birds. I see no reason for the neglect, and therefore, by way of commencement, send the following list. The thick-knee is a ‘ night curlew. The ringed plovers are ‘ stone-runners. The peewit is a ‘green plover. The oyster- catcher an ‘olive. The dunlin an ‘ox bird. The redshank a ‘red-leg. The god- wits are ‘petrels. The avocet bears the very significant title of ‘a cobbler’s awl.’ These are all I can make out among the Grallatores, nearly all the Scolopacide being ‘sandpipers. ‘The Natatores are better known, as will he seen below. |The hooper Reptiles. 2393 is well known, and bears its proper name; but the mute swan is a ‘ wild swan, and Bewick’s swan the ‘tame swan. I have been very particular in ascertaining the cor- rectness of this, as it seemed to me extraordinary for a ‘tame’ swan to be a genuine Cygnus ‘ferus;’ yet such is the case: my informants describe the head and bill of each very correctly. The white-fronted goose is the ‘ speckled-belly goose” The gray-legged, bean and thick-footed geese are all ‘ gray geese. The brent goose is either a ‘crocker, black, Scotch, or Seaford parson goose,’ but most commonly the ‘crocker’ (Zool. 1501). The Egyptian goose is the ‘ horse-shoe goose.’ The spur- winged goose is a ‘ ferret-eye. The Canada, bernicle and red-breasted geese are un- known here. The sheldrake is a ‘ bar-gander. The gadwall a ‘ bastard,’ (considered a hybrid between the wild duck and wigeon by wild-fowl shooters). The shoveller is a ‘spoonbill. The common and surf scoters are ‘black ducks ;’ the velvet scoter being a ‘ white-winged black duck.’ The wigeon is a ‘cock winder. The pochard is a ‘snuff-headed wigeon.’ The scaup duck is a ‘sea wigeon.’ The tufted duck the ‘least wigeon. The golden-eye is a ‘ wigeon, ‘spectacle duck, or ‘ pudding ass duck.’ The smew is a ‘small herring-bar. The red-breasted merganser a ‘ saw-bill duck.’ The black cormorant an ‘Isle of Wight parson.’ The tern is a ‘kip. The lesser tern a ‘scurrit.’ The black tern a ‘black kip.’ The ‘crocker kip’ is, I be- lieve, applicable to the Sandwich tern; and the ‘screecher’ I take to be the Caspian or gull-billed tern. The black-headed gull is a ‘crocker. The kittiwake a ‘ sprat mew’ or ‘ cackareer,’ so called from its note. The two black-backed gulls are ‘ par- son mews. All other gulls are ‘ cobs.’ The common skua is a ‘ wease-alley ;;—what can this mean? The petrels are ‘ storm petrels, in contradistinction to the godwits. The little grebe is a ‘spider diver.’ The three divers are ‘ herring-bars.’ The com- mon guillemot is a ‘ willy,’ and the thick-billed guillemot is a ‘ puffin. There are a few more names which as yet I cannot classify, owing to the extraordinary terms used here. I shall devote some time to provincialism, and may at some future period give a more lucid account. With reference to the ‘ crocker goose, I trust I may be par- doned in expressing my opinion that Dr. Plomley is under a mistake in taking it to refer to the Egyptian goose: as before stated, that is the ‘ horse-shoe, —a self-evident name. The brent goose is more applicable, when we consider that on all occasions when the term ‘crocker’ is used the bird has a black head—J. B. Ellman; Rye, February 16, 1849. An American Marvel.—A dead alligator, as newspaper readers may remember, which was lately found floating in the bay of New York, awakened much speculation among naturalists: the recent discovery of the skeleton of another, almost as far north, in New Jersey, is therefore not a novelty of wonder in these regions, except from the immense size of the latter, and from a matter of most curious antiquarian interest connected with its exhumation. This last alligator or crocodile, measuring thirty feet in length, was found in Eaton-town, New Jersey, about ten miles from Long Branch, while digging for marl. The skeleton lay about six feet beneath the surface in a stratum of green sand; and underneath this skeleton, as if it had dropped from the mouldering stomach of the monster, was found an ancient coin. This coin is described to us by an intelligent correspondent, who has handled it, as about the size of a dol- lar; its composition, in which there is a large share of silver, being probably Corin- thian brass. On the face of it is the figure of a lion, with the date “ 6—48” in 2394 Reptiles. Arabic numerals; on the reverse, amid several illegible letters, the fragmentary words “ Arg. Procon. Latia Mo.” may be deciphered round two larger letters in the centre, one of which is the Greek “JI” with an “ R” interwoven with it. We understand that the whole of this curious matter is to be brought before some antiquarian society in the regular mode, with all the necessary testimony as to facts particular of the dis- covery. But while those learned gentlemen are puzzling themselves as to the pro- consulship in which this coin was cast, and calling in the aid of the geologist to account for its locality, our quick-minded readers will instantly jump to the honest conclusion that this crocodile, who found burial amid the sands of New Jersey, had, 2000 years ago, half digested some Roman soldier in the rivers of Africa, ere he floated westward for a new meal, with the poor fellow’s last coin still preserved in his maw.—* New York Literary World.’ Occurrence of the Sand Lizard at Godalming.—I captured several specimens of the green variety of the sand lizard (Lacerta agilis), in the summer of 1845, in Mil- den’s Wood and on the wooded slope nearer Hurtmore: these I kept for some days, in company with two or three common lizards (Zootoca vivipara, Wagl.), intending to notice their habits in confinement, and to communicate anything that I might observe of sufficient interest for the pages of the ‘ Zoologist.’ Having, however, to leave home for some time, and fearing they might come to harm in my absence, I gave them their liberty, expecting I could get more on any sunny day that I might look for them, for they were then in plenty: other matters, however, occupying my attention afterwards, the lizards were neglected until the following year, when I again searched for them in the old locality ; but they had apparently become more scarce, and although I saw several I was unable—owing to the increased growth of the underwood—to secure one. During the time I kept the specimens mentioned above I noticed nothing new in their habits. Side by side with the common lizard, their superior “ weight for inches” was very apparent, particularly about the head and neck. I need hardly remind you that the neighbourhood of Poole is the only other locality actually ascer- tained for Lacerta agilis in England, although, as Professor Bell and Mr. Jenyns _have suggested, there is little doubt that the “ green Lacerti on the sunny sand-banks near Farnham, in Surrey,” seen by Gilbert White, the green lizard alluded to in one of White’s letters to Pennant (No. 22), and, as Professor Bell observes, “ all the ac- counts we have on record of the occurrence of the green lizard (L. viridis) in Ireland and in England, are to be referred to individuals of the same variety of our present species, —the green variety of L. agilis. I have frequently heard my father speak with admiration of some green lizards he saw many years ago in the Isle of Wight. And in connexion with Pennant’s account of a specimen having been procured for him in Devonshire, I cannot help thinking that Mr. Hore, in his hurry to reach the station for Trifolium Bocconi (Phytol. ii. 236), mistook the L. agilis for what he has described as “a beautiful specimen of Zootoca vivipara, of a splendid green colour,” that he found on Goonhilly Downs.— Henry Bull ; Portsmouth, November 6, 1848. Note on the Cobra di Capella.—No doubt you have heard that the “ Cobra di ca- pella,’ that was recently in the gardens of the Zoological Society, after its death was found to have had its mouth sewed up. If this be fact, can any of your friends who have been in the East state whether this is known to be a common practice? Other- wise it seems to throw some light upon the celebrity the Indians have acquired for their art of taming the most venomous snakes.—W. Atkinson ; Gordon Street, Gor- don Square, February 8, 1849. Occasional Occurrence of the Blindworm (Anguis fragilis) throughout the year, in Reptiles. 2395 Dorsetshire.—This reptile is often met with in Dorsetshire throughout the year, on fine sunny days, basking on banks exposed to the sun. On the 9th of January, 1849, I killed one on a grass drive in Milton Park Coppice. The thermometer on that day stood at 50° in the shade; the morning fine, with sunshine; the afternoon turned out wet. On the Ist of February I met with one which had just been killed by the blacksmith on a private grass-walk leading from the Abbey to the village: it mea- sured nine inches in length: I did not girth it. Again, on the 18th of December, 1847, while my men were engaged in taking down an old brick wall, close to the pri- vate walk above alluded to, in a crevice of this wall were found seven full-grown ones and five small or young ones: when taken up and laid on the turf close by, they im- mediately began—as Paddy would say—to take “leg bail ;” but they were all killed. I find, by my note-book, that the thermometer on that day stood at 48°. On the 24th of the same month, and same year, I killed another, not twenty yards from where the old wall formerly stood: this one was basking in the sun: the thermometer on that day stood at 52°. From the above it appears that 50° of heat, with sunshine, is suffi- cient to awaken this agile creature. I generally meet with them under large stones in our woods; also under old decayed stumps of trees. Some future day I will for- ward an account of vipers, snakes, &c., which are abundant in our woods.—J. Me'Intosh ; Milton Abbey, near Blandford, Dorset, February 7, 1849. The Sea-Serpent ?—“ A snake (my friend Telford received a drawing of it) has been found thrown on the Orkney Isles, a sea-snake with a mane like a horse, 4 feet thick and 55 feet long: this is seriously true. Malcolm Laing, the historian, saw it, and sent a drawing of it to my friend.’—‘ Life and Letters of Campbell.’ Probability of the present existence of Enaliosaurians.—In reference to the sea- serpent a correspondent writes thus: “ M. Agassiz said it would be in precise con- formity with analogy that such an animal should exist in our [the American] seas, as he has found numerous instances in which the fossil forms of the old world were re- presented by living types in the new. He instanced the gar-pike of the western rivers, and said he had found several instances, in his recent visit to Lake Superior, where he had detected several fishes belonging to genera now extinct in Europe.” In con- nexion with the extraordinary discovery announced in last number (Zool. 2356) of a huge marine animal having the general figure of an alligator with the flappers of a turtle, the opinion of Professor Agassiz becomes of great interest Edward Newman. Note on the Natterjack (Bufo calamita).—The Bufo calamita is very common around Liége, in the small pools and ditches along the railway leading towards Ver- viers. It is found in great numbers in the pond of the Botanic Garden at Verviers, the water of which is tepid and comes down from the collieries. It breeds much later than the common toad (Bufo vulgaris), spawning at the end of May or beginning of June. During the greater part of the day they lie hid in holes in the banks or under stones; but on the approach of night they creep out of their hiding-places and take to the water, where they croak incessantly: their croaking is peculiar, and more re- sembles that of the tree frog (Hyla arborea) than that of the common toad: when a great number are croaking together the effect is very unpleasant: the sound may be heard at a great distance: they do not croak as the common frog does, by repeated notes, but go on nearly indefinitely in two or three tones, the sound produced being something like the churring of the mole-cricket—Julian Deby ; St. Josset-en-Norde pres Bruzelles, January 13, 1849. A Young Sea-Serpent.—On Friday, while some fishermen belonging to Usan were at the out-sea fishing, they drew up what appeared to them a young sea-serpent, and 2396 Reptiles. lost no time in bringing the young monster to the secretary of our Museum. The animal, whatever it may be called, is still alive, and we have just been favoured with a sight of it; but whether it really be a young sea-serpent or not, we shall leave those who are better acquainted with Zoology than we are to determine. Be it what it may, it is a living creature, more than 20 feet in length, less than an inch in circumference, and of a dark brown chocolate colour. When at rest its body is round; but when it is handled it contracts upon itself, and assumes a flattish form. When not disturbed its motions are slow; but when taken out of the water and extended, it contracts like what a long cord of caoutchouc would do, and folds itself up in spiral form, and soon begins to secrete a whitish mucus from the skin, which cements the folds together, as ° - for the purpose of binding the creature into the least possible dimensions.—‘ Montrose Standard.’ [This creature was probably a specimen of Gordius marinus. I am obliged for the extract.—H. Newman.] Occurrence of Brachioptilon Hamiltont in the Gulf of Mexico.—A few days since, as I was reading the account of the large species of ray killed off California (Zool. 2357) to my friend Captain Triscott, R.M., he related the following incident :—When in H.M.S. Diana, in the gulf of Mexico, in the year 1808, the launch being employed in watering the ship from the Mississippi, as he was waiting to tow her off in the cut- ter, about two miles from the shore, one of the men called his attention to an immense flat fish on the bottom, immediately under the boat, the shape of which reminded him of a skate or ray-fish, which it also resembled in colour, having apparently a dark grayish back, paler towards the fins. The width of the fish, comparing it with the floor of the room I am writing in, he estimates at about 18 or 20 feet. The fish kept gently raising and depressing its finny sides, and moved on almost imperceptibly. The day was calm, the water perfectly clear and little more than a fathom in depth. It was seen of course by all the boat's crew, who were equally surprised at its appear- ance. The mention of the circumstance, on regaining the ship, caused much surprise to all on board, none of whom had ever met with anything of the kind. I think the incident worthy of recording, as it is highly probable it is the same species as that taken by Captain Hamilton.— George Guyon; Ventnor, Isle of Wight, February 8, 1849. Combat with a Swordfish.—In September last the beautiful bay of Chester, Nova Scotia, was the scene of a curious encounter with a swordfish, ending in its defeat and capture. The animal having been seen approaching, by a man on board an outward- bound vessel, notice was immediately given to the shore, and two boats started in pursuit, one bearing a harpooner,—or spearman rather,—with a hay-fork for his instru- ment of warfare; the fighting hero of the other armed with an axe. | Having suc- ceeded in hemming him in towards the land, they first wounded him severely with the fork, and finally despatched him with the axe ; after which he was taken on board, and landed at a wharf amid the acclamations of a crowd assembled to witness the sport. This specimen measured ten feet in length, including the sword, which was four feet long. There was a thrasher also in company, who basely deserted his ally in the hour of need, and was afterwards seen making off towards the ocean.—Commu- nicated by Dr. Cogswell. Fishes. 2397 Eel fascinated by a Snake.-—“ On approaching an almost dry drain, I saw a snake slowly extending his coils, raising his head, and stedfastly gazing on what I saw to be an eel of about a foot in length. The eel was directly opposed to the snake, and glance seemed to meet glance, when the snake, having gained the requisite proximity, darted on the eel and caught it about an inch behind the head, and carried it off; but the captor was soon himself the captive, for with a blow on his head I secured both.” —‘ Journal of the Indian Archipelago.’ \ Occurrence of the Opah or King-fish on the Yorkshire Coast.—My attention was attracted the other day, in passing through one of the streets of this town, by a flaming advertisement, setting forth that the most wonderful “ monster of the deep” was being “exhibited within, at the small charge of two-pence.” I was of course drawn in among the eager sight-seers, thinking it was nothing less than the veritable sea- serpent, which of late has caused so much discussion, and has been one of the chief wonders, second only to the golden discoveries in California. My expectations were, however, not gratified by viewing this monster, but found instead a fine specimen of the opah (Zeus imperialis), weighing about 80 Ibs., which had been caught the day before, off Flambro’ Head, in a fishing-net. It certainly was the most beautiful fish I ever beheld: the coral-red fins and tail, and the reddish coloured and glittering scales, made it a really magnificent object. I believe this fish is very rare on our coast, and therefore thought its occurrence worthy of being noted.—G. Norman ; Hull, February 28, 1849. Reply to Mr. Newman’s Inquiries respecting the Bones of the Stronsa Animal.— Seeing your queries (Zool. 2358) regarding the bones of an animal cast on shore at Stronsa, described by Dr. Barclay in the ‘ Memoirs of the Wernerian Society, —after some little trouble I have been able to answer most of these questions. 1. How were the bones described by Dr. Barclay obtained ?—It will be seen in the ‘ Wernerian Memoirs’ (vol. i. p. 438), that George Sherar, one of those who saw the animal, mentions that he brought away, to deliver to Mr. Laing (the Scotch his- torian), the skull, two joints of one of the largest limbs next the head, with different parts of the back-bone, besides the bones that were formerly sent in. Mr. Laing, I suppose, forwarded them to Dr. Barclay. 2. What is the evidence that they belonged to one animal ?—The answer to this is simply that the aforesaid George Sherar took them from the same animal. 3. Where are these bones preserved? 4. What is their present state ?—Three of the vertebre are in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh, in a dried state, and are 6 inches in diameter; and four in the University Natural History Museum, preserved in spirits, and are still articulated to each other, whereas the other three are separate. 5. Has the skull ever been denuded of skin, muscle, &c.? 6. Has it ever been examined by a competent comparative anatomist? and, if so, what opinion has he pronounced on it ?—This is answered by the annoying fact that the skull has not been preserved. On inquiring of Professor Goodsir with regard to the vertebre, he tells me he has examined them, and that they are undoubtedly those of a shark (Squalus maximus), as are the skull, sternum and scapule, figured in the ‘ Wernerian Memoirs,’ p. 418. We would naturally suppose that the affidavits of those who saw this extraordinary animal would be of some avail; but on closer inspection even these will be found to have little weight in the argument. In the first place it is unfortunate that no well- Vil K 2398 Fishes. educated person saw it: they were all ignorant, illiterate men, who most likely knew nothing further of a shark than that it was an animal with a huge mouth, capable of discussing so many seamen at a bite, and whose teeth were peculiarly adapted for amputating limbs. In the next place we find these witnesses agreeing in one most absurd particular, viz., in the animal having six legs: on this point it is needless to expatiate ; every one knowing anything of comparative anatomy must see at once the impossibility of such a structure: moreover, even granting its possibility, it is at once cancelled by Mr. Urquhart’s figure of the sternum and scapule with an ordinary fin thereto attached (Wern. Mem. vol. i. p. 418): the third pair of appendages Dr. Fle- ming, in his ‘ British Animals,’ supposes were claspers. In the last place we may notice one striking contradiction in the evidences: Thomas Fotheringhame seems to have been astonished at such a large animal having such a narrow throat,—so narrow indeed that it would not admit his hand; while George Sherar would have had no difficulty in putting his foot down it: and as there is nothing to prove that Thomas Fotheringhame’s hand was larger than George Sherar’s foot, we are led to the con- clusion that one or other must have made a mistake in his calculation. We might further suggest the improbability of any animal sixty feet long having a head only seven inches in diameter, and we might even suspect the carpenter's foot- rule of showing a decided taste for the marvellous; but we must now conclude with this single remark, that if the Stronsa animal was not a shark it was certainly not the great sea-serpent, which, if it does exist, will most likely be allied to the Plesiosauri of by-gone days, and to which the animal seen by the Rev. Mr. Maclean, Eigg Island (Wern. Mem. vol. 1. p. 442), seems to have borne a strong resemblance.—Jas. C. Howden; Musselburgh, February, 1849. Occurrence of the Mailed Gurnard (Peristedion malarmat) in Cornwall.—A spe- cimen of this very rare British fish was taken in February, at the south-western en- trance to Mount’s Bay, about eight miles from the shore. It was taken in a trawl net. It is 113 inches in length: the colour is of a yellowish vermilion tint, fading to a light flesh colour towards the abdomen. Mr. Yarrell’s description of this fish is very accurate. The edges of the nasal plates are finely serrated ; about half an inch posterior to the inner margins of each is a stout sharp spine, and behind another smaller one; about half an inch behind these, and in the median line, are five others closely aggregated. The margin of the orbit and the supra-orbital ridge are strongly denticulated; the superior ridge is continuous with the denticulated angles of the body. Body octangular and cased in armour, with stout spines at each angle point- ing posteriorly. The fin rays are—dorsal 7, 18; pectoral 10, 2; ventral 1,4; anal 18; caudal 13. The tendrils of the first dorsal are very short. The first recorded British specimen of this fish was taken in 1836 near Plymouth, and fell into the hands of Dr. E. Moore, who communicated it to Mr. Yarrell. It was caught in deep water over rocky ground, and, according to the trawler, is very rare.—R. Q. Couch ; Pen- zance, March 2, 1849. Breeding of Trout by the Artificial Process. — My. Samuel Gurney, Jun., has kindly given me some specimens of embryo trout raised by the artificial process so fully described by Mr. Boccius (Zool. 2364). He informs me that the experiment has been attended with the most entire success. The little animals are extremely curious, and differ fully as much from the adult trout as the young of various Crus- tacea do from their parent: they consist mainly of a transparent oval gelatinous mass, very evidently the yelk of the egg, and the fish itself is attached to the upper surface Mollusks. 2399 of this, and is extremely thin, transparent and fragile: the head has something like a neck: the face is prone and not porrected ; and the eyes extremely large, black and prominent: the pulsations of a large artery which passes from the neck of the fish into the attached egg is distinctly visible— Edward Newman; March 18, 1849. New Shell.—‘ We are informed by Mr. Strange, the naturalist, that he has re- cently discovered a new species of the genus Myochama, of which but one has been hitherto known to conchologists, and is described by Sowerby as Myochama anomi- oides: it is strictly a parasite shell, but not confined to one genus, as Mr. Strange had been led to believe. It had been always supposed by scientific men that the Myochama only attached itself to the Trigoine pectinata, but Mr. Strange has found it on the Pectunculus Struthiolaria, the Pandora, the Venus, and Crassatella. A se- cond species of this genus was found in sixty feet water on a sandy bottom: the first specimen brought up by the dredge was on a dead valve of a species of Mytilus, since which he has found it attached to dead valves of the Cleidotherus and a species of Lima; and he has one attached to a piece of flat sand-stone. It is rather singu- lar that he has never found one of the new species attached to a Trigoine or any other shell which the Myochama Anomioides generally appends itself to.— Sydney Paper. Note on a Species of Bulimus.—“‘ Here (near Sinope) I observed an elongated shell, a species of Bulimus, peculiar to the basin of the Black Sea, hanging in great numbers from the branches of almost every shrub. The appearance of this graceful shell, in such abundance as to resemble the fruit of a plant, is very striking, and pre- sents a remarkable instance of the manner in which Nature adapts herself to the va- rious exigencies of animal life. The slimy secretion of the animal is dried up as the hot weather comes on, forming an air-tight substance, by which it is defended from the effects of the heat, and at the same time suspended from the branch ; with the re- turning moisture the slime is dissolved, and the animal is at liberty to seek its food. Thus these creatures remain in a state of torpidity during the summer, whereas others generally pass the winter in that state. Tournefort (Engl. Transl. ii. 330) calls this shell a Buccinum.’— Hamilton’s ‘ Researches in Asia Minor, i. 319. Downy Epidermis of Paludina vivipara.—Is it generally known that the young shells of Paludina vivipara are, sometimes at least, clothed with a downy epidermis, rising into short spines round the middle of each volution? The first such specimen which I met with had so striking an appearance that I was ready to pronounce it something quite new ; but it is impossible to preserve the covering in perfection, as much of it disappears in drying. I cannot find this peculiarity mentioned in any of the works on Conchology within my reach— W. D. King ; Sudbury, 13th of 3rd mo., 1849. Extraordinary abundance of Bulla akera at Walton-on-the-Naze.—I do not know whether the extraordinary abundance in one locality of a mollusk which, at least in my experience, had appeared rare, or not easy to obtain, may be worth recording in the ‘ Zoologist ;’ but, possibly, to any conchologist who should chance to visit the coast of Essex, the information may not be unwelcome that, at Walton-on-the-Naze, the delicate Bulla akera is to be found in countless multitudes; not, as far as I have 2400 Cruslacea—- Arachnida. observed, in the open sea, but in the creek or “ back-water,” near a tide-mill, and al- most at the back of the village. At this place the retiring tide leaves upon the mud thousands of the above-mentioned fragile and elegant shells: such, at least, was the case at the time of my visit, early in the summer of 1847; every bunch, or heap of drift, &c., being clustered thick with them, generally containing the dead and decay- ing animals. But it was in the water that the sight of these curious creatures most delighted me; and here I watched their movements at leisure, after securing an abundant supply of specimens for the cabinets of my friends. As in the other Bulle, the animals are so large in proportion as to make the shells appear but an inconsiderable appendage, and, when at rest, partially to envelope them ; but in swimming the Bulla akera seemed alternately to expand and contract the lobes of the mantle on each side of the shell,—thus propelling itself forward, as well as sinking and ascending at plea- sure, with a most graceful and peculiar motion. It was only in the hot sunshine that we could succeed in obtaining a sight of these proceedings, and not always even then. When brought home and placed in a glass of sea-water, they quite refused to gratify us, merely hanging to the sides of the vessel, or moving only in the manner of a leech. Amongst the multitudes left on the banks of the creek, and those obtained in a living state from their native element, none were of large size, scarcely any ap- pearing more than half grown, as compared with Devonshire and Irish specimens. Few other shells occurred in company with these: there were two or three small spe- cies of Littorina in some plenty, with Conovulus denticulatus and albus; also the young of one or two common bivalves. Cardium fasciatum has been found on the shores of the creek, but I believe only as a rarity; Bulla aperta in the open sea not far distant, its pure glossy shells being blown like bubbles along the sands.—Id. Inquiry respecting the Preservation of Crustacea.—Many of the readers of the ‘Zoologist’ are doubtless interested by the suggestions of the Rev. G. Gordon for obtaining specimens’ of Crustaceous animals, and would gladly avail themselves of the proposed plan if acquainted with the method of preserving them. —E. N.] Errata in Mr. Newton’s Communication (Zool. 2381).—The following misprints occur in my note on the singing of birds. Under the heads of “‘ Hedge sparrow,” “ Chiff-chaff,” and “ Ring dove,” the “, and” between “intervals” and “ from” should be omitted; and under the head “ Goldfinch,” for “ January” should be read “ June.”—Alfred Newton ; Elveden, March 8, 1849. Errata in Mr. Ellman’s Communication (Zool. 2392).—In the sixth line from the top, for “ thick-footed geese” read “ pink-footed geese.” The twelfth line from the top, leave out the words “ and surf.” Dr. Plomley informs me that neither the Egyptian goose nor brent goose is the ‘ crocker, but that this name refers to the young of the white-fronted goose. I do not for one moment doubt that such is the case at Lydd and its neighbourhood, but here I am satisfied it is not. No later than Satur- day, a coast guardsman, who is constantly with wild-fowl shooters, called me and. said he had a ‘crocker’ for me: this was a brent goose.—J. B. Ellman; Rye, March 5, 1849. Dates of the Arrival of Winter Visitors at Deal. Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola), October 13. Royston crow (Corvus cornix), October 13. Golden-crested wren (Sylvia Regulus), October 13. Redwing (Turdus iliacus), about October 14. Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris), October 21. Snipe (Scolopax gallinago), about October 21. Mallard (Anas boscha), about October 30. Snow bunting (Emberiza nivalis), November 4.—J. W. Hulke. Birds. 2423 The Birds of Oxfordshire and its Neighbourhood. By the Reverends ANDREW and Henry MatrHews. From the valuable articles which have from time to time appeared in the ‘ Zoologist,’ a great and increasing impulse has of late been given to the study of the various branches of Natural History, and of Ornithology in particular. The lists already published from many of the maritime and remote parts of the kingdom well prove the zeal with which they have been explored. But while such care has been bestowed upon these more favoured districts, the midland counties have hitherto received but little atten- tion. To supply in some way this deficiency, we have been induced to draw up the following list. It contains, as far as a careful research and the experience of the last few years have enabled us to ascertain, the names of all the birds which have up to the present time been met with, either as visitors or residents, in the county of Oxford and its immediate neighbourhood. It cannot be expected that so far inland the same interesting variety of subjects will be found, as in the localities above alluded to; but, nevertheless, its inhabitants, such as they are, seem to have acquired a more indisputable “right of settlement” than a mere visitor of our coasts from the opposite continental shores can assert; and it is on this account we trust that a list of the birds of Oxfordshire and its neighbourhood will not prove altogether useless or uninteresting. In collecting the materials for our purpose, we have received much valuable assistance and information from Dr. Tomkins of Abingdon, H. Roundell, Esq., of Fringford, Mr. Goatley of Chipping Norton, and Mr. Kirtland of the Ashmolean Museum: where a species is in- serted solely upon the authority of any one of these gentlemen, the initial letter of his name is appended to the notice, to indicate from what source our information was obtained: where no such distinction appears, the notes are for the most part the result of our own observa- tion. To Dr. Tomkins we are much indebted for the perusal of an old manuscript list of birds, collected by the late Dr. Lamb, of New- bury, extending as far back as the latter part of the last century. The plan we have followed in the arrangement of the species is si- milar to that lately published in the ‘ Letters of Rusticus.’ In pre- paring a local list of birds, the classification of each species according to its residence in that district clearly offers many solid advantages over any system derived from their natural affinities: if this plan be 2424 Birds. generally adopted, we shall soon be able to ascertain, with little or no trouble, the comparative distribution of every species throughout the kingdom. ‘The arrival and departure of the migratory birds we have in most cases left unnoticed in the general list, but propose, at its conclusion, to give a summary of our regular visitors, both in the order of their appearance, and, as far as practicable, of their departure also: we hope, by so doing, to render our observations upon this in- teresting part of their economy more intelligible than they would appear if intermixed with other matter. We have introduced no species into the list on what appeared to us doubtful authority, and for this reason we have been obliged to exclude a few whose rarity pleaded strongly in favour of their admis- sion. Foremost among these is the collared pratincole. Of the iden- tity of the specimen in question we have but little doubt: its appearance occurred in the following manner. In passing from this place to Ox- ford, in May, 1845, we observed a curious-looking bird, of the peculiar colour of the pratincole, flying along a ditch by the road-side, in the bottom of which it very soon settled; but the depth and overhanging twigs prevented our discovering in what manner the bird had alighted. On our arriving at the spot it arose again, and, flying for a few yards, again alighted. After this had been repeated several times, we betook ourselves, with all possible speed, to the nearest house, for the purpose of procuring a gun: unfortunately we were disappointed, and were with much reluctance compelled to abandon any further pursuit of this to us most interesting object. Although many times within a few yards of this bird, we were unable to see any more than its back, owing to its never having risen above the bank of the ditch along which it was flying, nor could we, from the nature of the places where it settled, discover whether it had fairly alighted on the ground or on the neighbouring twigs: still we should have no hesitation in at once pronouncing it a veritable pratincole, but for these two reasons; that it had no white mark on the rump, and that we did not perceive any forking in the tail, which, indeed, was not expanded during the time we were watching the bird: in general colour, size and shape, it agreed exactly with that species. Another case, very similar in its circumstances to the foregoing, oc- curred with regard to a thrush, which, at the time, we had every reason to believe to be a specimen of White’s thrush; but this we were, from the same cause, disappointed in ascertaining. In concluding these preliminary remarks, a few words respecting the drawings which accompany them will not be out of place. As to Birds. 2425 the hemipode, we feel that no apology will be required for presenting your readers with an accurate figure of this rare and very curious bird, and one, moreover, so peculiarly adapted to ornament a list of the feathered tribes of Oxfordshire. With regard to the grasshopper war- blers somewhat more may be said. We have always felt much inte- rest in investigating the habits of this singular species, and have been very successful in our pursuit of it: it is one of the most elegant and graceful of all the British birds, and we often observe with regret the injustice done to it by the majority of the figures already before the public : the attitude in which we have represented the male is one we have often seen it assume while running up a twig in the act of singing —if such a term be applicable to its curious ticking note: in the spe- cimen from which our figure of the female was taken, the spots on the throat are wanting: it must not be supposed, however, that this is intended for a sexual distinction, as both males and females are not uncommonly found without them. We cannot offer the subjoined as a perfect catalogue of the birds of Oxfordshire and its neighbourhood, but merely as a list of such as have come under our observation, in recent specimens, and of those which are fully authenticated as having been killed in the localities described ; but, whenever any additional species occurs, we shall feel great pleasure in recording its appearance in subsequent numbers of the ‘ Zoologist.’ Crass 1.— Residents. The various species comprised in this class may be met with at all seasons of the year in inland districts; in this county perhaps amount- ing to fifty-nine: of these there are six whose claim of residence may admit of some doubt, viz., hawfinch, siskin, lesser redpole, great spotted woodpecker, stock dove and green sandpiper ; but our reasons for thus classing them will appear in the notes below. Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus). Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola). Sparrow hawk (Accipiter fringillarius). Whinchat (Saxicola rubetra). Barn owl (Strix flammea). be Golden-crested Regulus (Regulus aurica- Tawny owl (Ulula stridula). pillus). Missel thrush (Turdus viscivorus). Great titmouse (Parus major). Thrush (Jurdus musicus). Blue titmouse (Parus ceruleus). Blackbird (Merula vulgaris). Cole titmouse (Parus ater). Hedge sparrow (Accentor modularis). Marsh titmouse (Parus palustris). Robin redbreast (EHrythaca rubecula). Long-tailed titmouse (Parus caudatus). 2426 Pied wagtail (Motacilla alba). Meadow pipit (Anthus pratensis). Skylark (Alauda arvensis). Common bunting (E'mberiza miliaria). Black-headed bunting (£. scheniclus). Yellow hammer (E'mberiza citrinella). Chaffinch (Fringilla ccelebs). Tree sparrow (Passer montanus). House sparrow (Passer domesticus). Greenfinch (Coccothraustes chloris). Hawfinch (Coccothraustes vulgaris). Goldfinch (Carduelis elegans). Siskin (Carduelis spinus). Common linnet (Linota cannabina). Lesser redpole (Linota linaria). Bullfinch (Pyrrhula vulgaris). Starling (Sturnus vulgaris). Carrion crow (Corvus corone). Rook (Corvus frugilegus). Jackdaw (Corvus monedula). Birds. Jay (Garrulus glandarius). Green woodpecker (Picus viridis). Great spotted woodpecker (Pzcus major). Lesser spotted woodpecker (Picus minor). Common creeper (Certhia familiaris). Wren (Troglodytes vulgaris). Nuthatch (Sitta Europea). Kingfisher (Alcedo Ispida). Ring dove (Columba palumbus). Stock dove (Columba enas). Common pheasant (Phasianus colchicus). Common partridge (Perdix cinerea). Peewit (Vanellus cristatus). Common heron (Ardea cinerea). Green sandpiper (Totanus ochropus). Water rail (Rallus aquaticus). Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). Coot (Fulica atra). Mute swan (Cygnus olor). Wild duck (Anas boschas). Magpie (Pica caudata). Little grebe (Podiceps minor). Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus). We have occasionally had five or six kestrels at the same time in the garden, with the feathers of one wing clipped: in this and in their natural state, worms and beetles— especially cockchaffers—form a great part of their food. Much de- light was shown by them when they could discover a robin or a hedge sparrow in a currant-bush, covered—to preserve the fruit—with a garden-mat: on such occasions the whole pack would set upon him at once; some inside the mat, and the rest scattered over the outside, watching the apertures: as soon as the unlucky bird had been run down, which now and then happened, the good-fellowship of his | pursuers vanished at once, and “ detur fortiori” became the rule by which the spoil was divided. One of these birds—a male—had been allowed the whole use of his wings from the first: he remained with us for several years, and during that period never left the premises for long together: towards ourselves he never showed the least symptom of temerity or ill-temper; he would come into the house whenever he pleased, and sometimes intrude his company at very unseasonable hours: on one occasion, the windows being open, at luncheon-time, he pounced upon a hot roasted pigeon, and bore it in triumph to the roof of the house : mutton-chops and sundry other small eatables have been thus abstracted. Of all its genus the kestrel is, we think, the least destructive to the Birds. 2427 feathered race. We killed one, on the sea-shore near Brighton, in the act of devouring a small crab,—-showing a taste for crustaceous ani- - mals, with which till then we were unacquainted. Sparrow Hawk (Accipiter fringillarius). This is the most com- mon and the most untameable species of the whole family. In Febru- ary, 1843, we killed a remarkably fine pair: when alive, these birds had all the upper parts of their plumage of a beautiful slate colour,— a little darker, perhaps, than that of the hen harrier,—but within two hours after death it faded to the dusky brown usually seen. Is this change of colour after death anywhere noticed? We are inclined to think it takes place in other species of this family. In young gyr falcons, when alive, the slate-coloured tinge is very distinct, although in preserved specimens of the same age we have never seen it. Barn Owl (Strix flammea). Much has lately been written respect- ing the hooting of the barn owl; but as few persons can have enjoyed better opportunities of observing their habits, we beg to offer the fol- lowing remarks—the result of an unbiassed inquiry into the matter. These birds not only rear their young, but constantly reside through- out the year in the tower of Weston Church, which stands within a hundred yards of the front of the parsonage-house. Scarcely a day passes without our seeing or hearing them; and often in the dead of night, perched on the roof of the stable, they favour us with a serenade of their mellifluous screech, but with no sound approaching to a hoot. We cannot positively assert that this species never hoots; but thus far we can safely say, that, with every opportunity, we never heard it ; and (we say it with all deference to those who have advanced a con- trary opinion) we must conceive that its character of hooting has originated in error. This may possibly be accounted for in this way: the call-note of both the white and the tawny owl is very similar; it has much the sound of “ tee-whit,” the first syllable being prolonged, and the last short and loud. This call is generally repeated by the tawny owl as a prelude to hooting, and has thus, we think, confounded the two species. A pair of these owls hatched and reared a single young one ofa second brood, in the latter part of the autumn of 1846: the last time we had the young bird in hand was at the end of No- vember; he was then full-fledged, and could fly a little. Tawny Owl (Ulula stridula). Is very abundant here in the woods. Our remarks on the supposed hooting of the barn owl are much strengthened by an intimate acquaintance with a bird of this species, which a few years since we reared from the nest. He was allowed his full liberty from the first, and as he grew up acquired an extraor- 2428 | Birds. dinary degree of tameness: at any hour, night or day, he would come to a whistle, and either settle on the shoulder or run along the walks by your side, from time to time pulling your clothes to attract atten- tion. While this owl was alive, the large trees around the house were nightly the resort of many wild birds of his species, who never left us in any doubt of their vocal powers. Since the death of our favourite, the screech of the white owls remains as musical as ever, but the hooting has altogether ceased. Thrush (Turdus musicus). Besides claiming our regard by the li- berality of its lively song, the thrush is one of the most useful birds we have. Their destruction by-gardeners is a vulgar and most perni- cious error; they rarely, perhaps never, molest the fruit, while the benefit they render to the garden—by destroying snails, and other like vermin—is incalculable. The perseverance with which some of these birds will sing is really astonishing. Early in the season, about three years ago, a thrush took up his residence in this garden, and remained here all the summer: day after day, from the earliest dawn till dusk, his cheerful notes were almost incessant. One might have fancied that he allowed himself no time for anything else; indeed, he has been often seen, while on the grass-plot picking up worms, sing- ing in the intervals with all his accustomed volubility. He soon be- came a great favourite with the villagers, and to this day his departure is remembered by all with regret. A bird of this species which we once had in confinement gradually became pied, till at length nearly the whole of the wings and tail was white: we have also sometimes met with pied specimens in a wild state. Blackbird (Merula vulgaris). So much cannot be said in favour of this species as of the song thrush. Its full and rich—though rarely uttered—notes do not at all compensate for the sad havoc it makes in a fruit-garden. In confinement it is well known with what accuracy a blackbird will learn to whistle a tune; but on this point he is sub- ject to much caprice: we have known several good songsters, when removed from the places where they had been brought up, refuse in future to utter a note. Pied varieties of this bird are not. unusual with us. Golden-crested Regulus (Regulus auricapillus). Ona very cold evening in January, we once witnessed a curious and interesting scene, in which three of these beautiful little birds were the chief actors. We were standing concealed in a wood, watching for hawks, as they caine to roost; a bush of oak-underwood, upon which some dry leaves were still hanging, grew within a yard of us: hearing a twittering in Birds. 2429 this bush we looked round and saw three golden-crested wrens hop- ping about it: presently one of the party discovered a twig, above which two or three oak-leaves had formed a canopy, just high enough to permit of his sitting under it: on this twig he immediately hopped, and, finding it an eligible roosting-place, communicated the fact to his companions, who joined him without delay, and, side by side, pressing close together, formed one of the snuggest and most pictu- resque little groups imaginable. Blue Titmouse (Parus ceruleus). I once shot a curious any of this species, in which all the feathers of the wing were more or less marked with large brown spots. Long-tailed Titmouse (Parus caudatus). The regularity with which this little wanderer will return to the same place to build is very curious. A pair of them, and probably the same pair, have for some years built their nest in our garden, and frequently in the same tree. We have often been amused by their vigorous efforts to twist the raw materials into the beautiful form of their nest, and, as the work pro- ceeded, by the skill with which they fitted small pieces of lichen into a close covering on the outside. They seem by no means shy, and will allow us to watch them at their work for as long as we please. It appears rather extraordinary, that although eight or ten, or even more, are annually bred here, the number of nests in one season has never increased ; one pair only having hitherto built in this spot. Skylark (Alauda arvensis). At the commencement of very severe frost vast flocks of larks leave this part of the kingdom for the south ; on some days, from light till dark, the air is never free from them: the multitude which must pass during that time is almost incredible. Pied larks have sometimes been killed here. Hawfinch (Coccothraustes vulgaris). We feel some hesitation in classing the hawfinch as a resident, on account of its rarity in this part of the kingdom; but since its appearance has occurred at all seasons of the year, and its nest has also been found near Oxford, it does not seem properly referrible to any other class. We met with a small flock at Wytham, near Oxford, in January, 1842, and succeeded in killing a male and two females. This party was feeding on the seeds of the tulip tree. Siskin (Carduelis spinus). Our remarks upon the hawfinch are also applicable to the present species: it is, however, more plentiful than that bird, and the instances of its nidification more frequent. In the winter of 1847 siskins were unusually abundant near Oxford. Lesser Redpole (Linota linaria). This is again a rather doubtful Vil O 2430 Birds. resident: it is common enough in the winter, but we have only once met with it during the breeding-season. On that occasion we found a family of full-fledged young with the parent birds. The summer plumage of an adult male is very beautiful. Bullfinch (Pyrrhula vulgaris). The natural song of the bullfinch, however thrown into the shade by the deserved celebrity of the piping birds, is yet in itself possessed of no mean charms. In confinement they are very sociable, and soon become attached to any one who is in the habit of feeding them. They delight much in being noticed, and express their pleasure by strutting about the cage, throwing them- selves into many grotesque attitudes, and singing at the same time a short simple air, in the low sweet tone of their better-educated brethren: this is their natural song; for we have often heard a wild bird, ignorant of our proximity, chanting the same air for his own amusement, or to exhilarate his mate during incubation. Starling (Sturnus vulgaris). The power of imitation possessed by the starling is equalled by no other British bird. It is hardly possi- ble to conceive any sound, however difficult, which his voice is inca- pable of attaining. A male, who for some years built his nest in the roof of our stable, possessed this talent in an eminent degree. Among others, we have often heard him imitate, with great clearness, the fol- lowing heterogeneous sounds, viz., the notes of the peewit, wryneck, blackbird, jackdaw, kestrel, thrush, moorhen, coot, and partridge: his imitation of this last, perhaps the most difficult of all, was so perfect, that, when we first heard it, we looked around for some time expecting to see the covey close at hand. It appears rather odd that we have never met with a pied starling, although perfectly white specimens are not very unusual. To the agriculturist no bird is more service- able than the starling in the destruction of his dreaded. pest, the wireworm. : Rook (Corvus frugilegus). In deep snows, when these birds are much pressed for food, they will often assume a character greatly at variance with their usual inoffensive habits. At such seasons we have sometimes seen them endeavour, with much pertinacity, to capture the smaller birds. One day, whilst snipe-shooting, we observed a pair of rooks making a fierce attack on a missel thrush: so intently were they engaged in the pursuit, that they either did not perceive or else disregarded our approach. At length, after several stoops, they suc- ceeded in striking their quarry, which fell on the snow: we were then | so close to the scene of action that they deemed it prudent to with- draw : the thrush lay stunned and motionless for some time, but after- Birds. 2431 wards recovered and flew away. At another time, as we were going early in the morning towards some traps baited with small birds, for hawks, a large number of rooks flew up from the spot: on arriving there, we found, in two traps, the mangled and still warm remains of rooks, who, having been caught in their endeavours to get at the spar- rows with which the traps were baited, had been set upon and de- voured by their own companions. Magpie (Pica caudata). The sagacity and the love of mischief often exhibited by the magpie when tamed are equally surprising. We have at different times reclaimed many of these birds, and have derived much amusement from their tricks. The degree of calculation displayed in some of their actions seems to reach far beyond the bounds of instinct, and to invest them with a share of that reasoning power which the jealousy of our nature is so unwilling to allow to the inferior animals. Among the various proofs of the existence of some anomalous faculty of this kind in the magpie, which have occurred to us during a long and familiar intercourse with his species, the follow- ing anecdote will perhaps serve to illustrate these remarks, exhibiting a power certainly not comprehended in the ordinary notion of instinct. The bird whose “ sayings and doings” are the subject of this story was in the habit of using as a larder, for food not immediately re- quired, some long grass at the bottom of a row of iron hurdles. This hoard was discovered and often robbed by a favourite terrier. One morning Mag was observed in great excitement, hopping up and down the hurdles, chattering incessantly, and rapidly repeating every word in his vocabulary at the dog, who was quietly pursuing his nefarious practices. But the dog in his search had overlooked a tuft of grass in which a piece of beef was concealed. Mag was at the spot ina moment, drew forth his treasure, and securely fixed it on the highest bar of the hurdles, far above the dog’s reach. He then, at a little distance, began pruning his feathers, chattering to himself with a very self-satisfied air, occasionally hopping back to take another look at his recovered meal, and apparently priding himself on his skill. Green woodpecker (Picus viridis). We have frequently seen this bird busily employed in boring conical holes into ants’ nests, and then securing with his tongue the insects, which—falling down the sloping sides—lay in great numbers at the bottom of the hole. Great spotted woodpecker (Picus major). This is not a common species, but its nest has been found near Oxford, and the bird itself is occasionally met with throughout the year. Wren (Troglodytes vulgaris). This little bird is very useful to the 2432 Boule. gardener, in the destruction of chrysalides deposited under the sills of windows, the eaves of greenhouses, pits, &c. The care with which they will explore every crevice in the small trellis-work of a verandah, never ascending till every point has been accurately searched, has been—early in the morning-—often observed here. In April, 1846, a pair of wrens built their nest in a shed which is used for potting plants: the spot selected was a very singular one. There is a beam passing under the thatch immediately over the potting-tables, and so low that it touches the head of any one standing there: upon this beam the wrens built their nest, above the table at which we were for the time daily employed; nevertheless they completed their work, and hatched and reared their young with as much confidence as they could have done in a barn. The celerity with which they constructed the nest was quite marvellous; the whole outside wall was finished in one morning between sunrise and noon: the material was procured very readily from a large heap of moss lying underneath the table. The adventures of the wren’s nest did not, however, end here; for in the following summer a humble bee (Bombus hortorum) took posses- sion, and colonized it with her own brood ; and in the last year (1848) the bees again resumed their tenancy, but were at last forcibly ejected by a plague of moths (Ilythza colonella), whose larve destroyed their combs, and upset the whole economy of the tribe. Stock dove (Columba enas). The stock dove is occasionally seen in this neighbourhood at all seasons, and its nest has sometimes been found. “ It breeds in holes of trees in Heythrope Park, and is a resi- dent.” —G. Pheasant (Phastanus colchicus). A beautiful variety of this bird, having the usual markings of the plumage on a pale stone-coloured ground, has several times been shot in this neighbourhood. By some | sportsmen this variety is called the. Bohemian pheasant, and consi- dered a distinct species. Green Sandpiper (Zotanus ochropus). Although not a common bird, the green sandpiper may now and then be found throughout the year in this county. On the 26th of July, 1838, we met with a family of six, four young and two old birds, by the side of a pond in this parish (Weston-on-the-Green): the young birds could fly well, and were full grown. This is the only instance in which we have seen more than one bird of this species at the same time. Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). Little notice seems to have been taken of the nocturnal flight of this bird, although there can be but few who have never heard its oft-repeated cry when on the wing, Reptiles, &c. 2433 sometimes at a considerable elevation, during the fine warm nights of summer. For a long time we attributed this note to the nightjar, un- til one fine evening we suddenly heard the familiar cry just above our heads, and, stooping down to obtain a clearer sight of our visitor, soon discovered him to be a moorhen. After flying once or twice round, _he very opportunely alighted in a pond close at hand, where, in the -clear moonlight, we had a full view of him for some minutes. Little Grebe (Podiceps minor). The voracity of this bird seems to bear no proportion whatever to his powers, for many times we have found them choked by attempting to swallow fish, generally bull- heads, which have proved much too large for their throats. In all these instances they had forced the fish into their gullets beyond the gills, which in the above-named species terminate in a sharp point, and were from that cause unable to eject them. The little grebe is a very spirited bird: if caught alive, and placed in a tub of water, it will attack any object within its reach, raising itself on its toes, and inflicting very vigorous and rapid blows with its bill. A. & H. MaTrHews. (To be continued). On sewing up the Mouths of Snakes in India.—Mx. W. Atkinson inquires (Zool. 2395), whether it is a common practice for the natives in India to sew up the mouths of venomous snakes? In January, 1840, I bought of a native, in Calcutta, a small beautiful pale green snake: it lived about a month. I offered it both vegetable and animal food, but it could not eat: it drank occasionally a little water. After death I found its mouth was closely sewed up.—W. F. Foottit; Newark, Notts, March 3, 1849. A strange Marine Animal, of great size and strength, was captured on the 26th of March, off Cullercoats, near Newcastle. By the enclosed handbill, which has been forwarded to me, it appears to be quite unknown to the neighbouring savans. The honest fishermen who drew the struggling monster to land are not, however, over- scrupulous about the name, provided it be attractive enough to extract from the pockets of “ladies and gentlemen, 6d.; working people 3d. each:” they therefore boldly announce him as “ the great sea-serpent caught at last.” My correspondent very judiciously observes, that, whatever the animal may be, it adds another to the many evidences constantly occurring that there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of by the most experienced practical observers. Some thirty-five years since, the distinguished anatomist, Dr. Barclay, was fain to reproach his 2434 Fishes, &c. contemporaries with the folly of affecting to suppose that they knew everything. What additions have five-and-thirty years not given to Science! As the animal in question must be at least a rare local visitor, may we not hope that some resident na- turalist will favour us with a notice of it? “ The Great Sea-Serpent caught at last, by fourteen fishermen, off Cullercoats, on Monday last, March 26, 1849. ‘This most wonderful monster of the deep was dis- covered by a crew of fishermen, about six miles from the land, who, after a severe struggle, succeeded in capturing this, the most wonderful production of the mighty deep. This monster has been visited by numbers of the gentry and scientific men of Newcastle, and all declare that nothing hitherto discovered in Natural History affords any resemblance to this. As an object of scientific inquiry, this ‘ great unknown’ must prove a subject of peculiar interest. Many surmises as to its habits, native shores, &c., have already been made, but nothing is really known. The gene- ral opinion expressed by those that are best able to judge, is, that this is the great sea-serpent, which hitherto has only been believed to have a fabulous existence, but which recent voyagers declare they have seen. Now exhibiting, at the shop, 57, Grey Street, opposite the High Bridge. Admission: ladies and gentlemen, 6d. Working people, 3d. each.” Occurrence of the Anglesey Morris (Leptocephalus Morrisii) and Argentine (Argen- tina sphyrena) at Redcar.—The other afternoon (21st instant) I found, on the high water-mark between this place and the Tees mouth, a fine specimen of the Anglesey morris; length 5 inches. At the same time and place I also found a mutilated spe- cimen of the argentine; length 14 inch —7. S. Rudd; Redcar, March 23, 1849. Preservation of Crustacea.—In answer to the inquiries of “ Scoticus,” I beg to say that I have had a good deal of practice in the preserving of Crustacea; and the most simple plan, if they are small, is to treat them as you would a Coleopterous insect,— by pinning the legs in the position you want them, and placing them in a current of air to dry; but when large a very different mode must be resorted to. The plan I am mostly in the habit of practising is to leave them until they begin to smell; then, if it is a crab, I with care remove the carapace. After having scraped and washed the fleshy matter, I take my knife and make a slit in the cartilage of each joint; then from the inside I push a little cotton down through the leg: this cleans out all the fleshy matter that is likely to be disagreeable. If the specimens are moderately large, I usually insert a wire in every leg, leaving about 2 inches inside; on these ends I make a crook. I then fill the carapace with plaster of Paris, and fix the legs with their wires into it; and in a few minutes the specimen is fit to be handled with impu- nity. Ifthe specimen is a lobster, I pull the tail from the carapace, and proceed as _ above.—Henry Johnson ; Royal Institution, Liverpool, April, 1849. | Entomological Society. 2435 Proceedings of the Entomological Society. April 2.—G. R. Watrrnouse, Esq., President, in the chair. The following presents were announced: ‘ Entomologische Zeitung, by the Ento- mological Society of Stettin. The ‘Atheneum, by the Editor. ‘Transactions of the Literary and Philosophical Society of Liverpool, four volumes, by that Society. _A most interesting collection of insects from Adelaide, South Australia, by — Wilson, Esq., Corresponding Member of this Society. A number of British Lepidoptera, by H. T. Stainton, Esq. The thanks of the Society for these presents were voted to the respective donors. The following gentlemen were balloted for and elected, viz., Edward Newman and S. J. Wilkinson, Esqrs., as members; James L. Michael, J. P. G. Smith, John F. Burton, and Nicholas Cooke, Esqrs., and Mrs. Vines, as subscribers. Mr. Westwood announced that the remainder of the drawings stolen from the rooms of the Society had been found, and that he believed they would be recovered by the Society, though in a mutilated state, having been cut up to decorate an album. Mr. Doubleday laid on the table a prospectus of a new Catalogue of the Curculi- onide, including all the species enumerated by Schonherr and those published since his work, which it was proposed to publish by subscription by M. Jekel of Paris. Mr. Westwood read a paper by himself, on two new genera of exotic Coleoptera, illustrated by drawings of the species, viz., Erichsonia dentifrons and Cossyphodes Wollastonii. This paper was prefaced by observations on modern nomenclature, re- ferring especially to some examples of insects named after individuals in such a manner that malice as much as esteem would appear to have been the motive of the authors in bestowing such names. He also described some new Hemipterous insects from the East Indies, and exhibited drawings thereof. Mr. Stainton read a paper quoting an inquiry of Herr Zeller in the ‘ Entomolo- gische Zeitung, as to the Papilio Cinxia of Linneus, and stating that he had exa- mined the specimen in the collection of the Linnean Society, and found it with the name “ Cinxia,” in the hand-writing of Linneus, attached. He added that it is the species known to us as Melitea Cinxia, and that it is the Delia, W. V., and Atha- lia, E'sper. Mr. Douglas brought for distribution some specimens of HMgialia globosa and Phylan gibbus, found by him at New Brighton, in Cheshire. He exhibited a speci- men of Necrophorus humator, one of three found last autumn by Mr. Gregson, of Liverpool, in a bee-hive, out of which the comb, honey and bees had disappeared. It was suggested that the comb and honey had been destroyed by some other agents, and that the Necrophori had entered to feed on the dead bees. Mr. Douglas stated that Mr. H. Doubleday had informed him that last year he had bred the Phoxopteris upupana of Hubner, a very rare species of Tortricide, and new to this country; and that the Tortrix, taken last season at Leith Hill, Surrey, by Mr. Benjamin Standish, was the true Penthina sauciana of Hubner, also a rarity. Mr. J. F. Stephens exhibited a female Pygera Bucephala, found last week at Epping, and communicated to him by Mr. H. Doubleday as a remarkable instance of the early appearance of this species, its usual time of appearance being in June. Referring to the insects on the table from — Wilson, Esq., of Adelaide, Mr. Westwood remarked that there was a specimen of Cerapterus Macleayii, a species still rare, though known to and figured by Donovan many years since. 2436 | Insects. Mr. Doubleday observed that there were in this collection specimens of the Lepi- dopterous genus Lynemon, which in New Holland represents the genus Castnia of South America, and many very interesting Hymenoptera and Diptera.—J. W. D. Note on the Interesting Habits and Economy of the Larve of Porrectaria (Co- leophore).—These insects are very easily detected in the larva state, and it is probably mainly owing to our ignorance of when and where to look for them that we have still so few species in this country. Nearly a hundred are known on the Continent, and I have no doubt that with a little perseverance and research we might increase the num- ber of our species to considerably above fifty. There have been occasional notices of the habits of some of the species, such as Mr. Weaver's notice of the habits of Vibicella (Zool. 947), and several species have been bred in this country ; a concolo- rous dark species by Mr. Edleston, and others by Mr. Bond. My attention was first directed to these larve by finding, in the first week of last May, a wild rose-bush, the leaves of which were spotted with large pale patches ; and, on examining it for the cause, I found in most cases a grayish brown case, about half an inch in length, ad- hering to the underside of the leaves: these I took home with me, and kept them sup- plied with fresh branches of rose, till in about ten days the larve became full fed, and produced me several specimens of a concolorous gray insect, which is certainly not one of our named species. The larva feeds only on the parenchyma of the leaves, which it obtains by attaching the case firmly to the underside of the leaf; and then removing the lower epidermis (or perhaps adding it to the case?), it commences devouring the inner substance all round, which immediately gives the leaf a singular blotched ap- pearance: as it continues to devour the parenchyma, it gradually protrudes more and more of its body from the case, till, ultimately, the larva may frequently be seen in the middle of the leaf completely out of its case, to which, however, on any alarm, it hurriedly retreats backwards : when it has devoured all it finds to its taste on the leaf to which it was attached, it moves case and all to a fresh leaf, and there renews the same process: when full fed, it attaches the case firmly to a leaf, or stem, or some ex- traneous object, the perfect insect making its escape from the opposite end of the case. Anatipennella, Hbn., has a very peculiar case, very much in the shape of a pistol: I have found it on blackthorn. The somewhat similar anseripennella has a very differ- ent case, and should occur on plum, cherry, or other orchard trees. My young friend Dunning has some case-bearers which he obtained last autumn from the heads of rushes: they are doubtless cxspititiella, Z. (leucapennella, St.) Of the concolorous species I have bred several: lutarea, Haw., St., from oak and blackthorn ; coracipen- nella from elms and alders, and nigricella, St., from hawthorn. I have likewise ob- served the larve of laricella on larch trees in October. But I believe it is the labiate plants which should furnish us with the greatest variety of species. The exertions of Mr. Douglas and Mr, Weir have proved that the perfect insect of one species (lineola, St.) frequents Stachys sylvatica, and no doubt the larva also feeds on that plant. Ballota nigra affords food to more than one species; but, somewhat singularly, one species never attacks the plant unless growing under trees or bushes. Lamium pur- pureum likewise affords food to one or more species, and probably there are few plants but what would produce us larve of Porrectaria (or some other genus) if diligently Insects. 2437 searched. I hope this notice will be of use in turning the attention of some Lepidop- terists to this interesting group ; and should they meet with any case-bearers in plenty, I should be obliged by their forwarding me living specimens, as the case is frequently of great use in determining species.— H. T. Stainton ; Mountsfield, Lewisham, March 27, 1849. Interesting to Bee-keepers ; a Virgin Swarm.—The following unusual occurrence transpired in a small apiary belonging to me, on Saturday, May 31st, 1845. On the morning of the day mentioned above, a three years’ old stock of bees threw off a large swarm, which was put into an empty straw hive, rather less than the ordinary size, and in the evening was placed on a stool in a south-western aspect; the weather sub- sequently being very fine and genial, and evidently suited to the fecundity of the queen bee. For two days previous to the 12th of June the usual symptoms which precede swarming were manifested; and so late as five oclock in the afternoon of that day (a very unusual hour for swarming)—the heat very oppressive, and not a - breeze stirring—the swarm alluded to threw off a virgin swarm, containing about 41 tbs. of bees, to the great astonishment of the owner and other amateurs. This seems extraordinary, considering that the bees had occupied their domicile but little more than twelve days. Mr. Robert Huish, in his ‘ Treatise on the Practical Management of Bees, says, “ There appears to be almost an impenetrable veil spread over the operations of these insects, and it is that very mystery which makes the study so interesting.” Most certainly the occurrence above alluded to is calculated to excite interest in the minds of many persons, as naturalists and others allow a longer time for the propagation and perfection of a young queen as leader than the interval be- tween the 31st of May and the 12th of June, and a still longer time for the perfection of drones and working-bees. The author of this note, who has had more than thirty years’ practical experience amongst bees, ventures to suggest that a great many young bees were bred in the new domicile which came forth with the virgin swarm. The old stock threw off a second swarm on the 10th of June, making an increase of three hives of bees from the original stock in twelve days. All went on prosperously, and the virgin swarm was as vigorous as any in his possession, The existence and conduct of these insects in their government present phenomena which are peculiarly inte- resting and instructive to persons curious in the prodigies of nature; and it is curious to reflect, in reference to these surprising insects, that science has been gradually unlocking her stores, and the mists of prejudice have been dispersed by the pene- trating rays of philosophy. The treasures of nature are inexhaustible, and there is certainly no department in her vast domain in which curiosity and amusement are more intimately blended than in the study of the bee.—John Green; Melbourne, Derbyshire, April 6, 1849. ) Captures of Coleopterous Insects in light sandy situations—The northern portion of Broadgate Park (situated about five miles from Leicester) rises into several bold rocky ridges, whose rugged slopes are slightly covered with a loose, gritty, sandy soil, supporting a light mossy-grassy vegetation, and covered here and there with chippings of the slate rocks, which generally “crop out” at their summits. It was to the ex- amination of these hills that I paid particular attention during the whole of last year, and on their southern sides I captured the following :— Byrrhus sericeus. Very common, under stones, from March to September. Byrrhus fasciatus. Rare, under stones, July. Vil P 2438 Insects. Oémorphus concolor. Rare, under stones. I took one specimen of this rare Leicestershire beetle early in March, this year. | Typheus vulgaris, Geotrupes vernalis and G. sylvatica. Sparingly, from March to September. These three insects are generally found wandering about the broad grassy pathways of these hills; and it is to this habit, I think, we may attribute their comparative scarcity in this district, for they thus become an easy prey to the birds. I have frequently found about here faces of birds almost wholly composed of them. Trox sabulosus. Very rare, rabbit-skins. The specimen I have was taken early in April. Serica brunnea. Very rare, under stones, July. Gymnaétron niger. Very rare, under stones on little sand hillocks, July. Nedyus erice. Rare, under stones, July. Rhinonchus Castor. Very common, under stones and rambling about in cracks of the soil, March to October. Leiosoma ovatula. Plentifully, under stones, May and June. Otiorhynchus ovatus. Very common, under stones, March to October. Otiorhynchus ligustici and fissirostris (Schdn.) have been taken here by my brother, Mr. H. W. Bates, but I searched for them in vain. Trachyphleus tesselatus. Sparingly, under stones, March to September. - Trachyphleus aristatus (hispidulus, Herbst). Sparingly, under stones, March to September. I took three specimens of this insect about the middle of March, this year. ; ' Strophosomus obesus and squamulatus. Very common, under stones, March to October. Strophosomus pilosellus. Rare, under stones, September. Brachysomus hirsutulus. Rare, under stones, August. Apion rumicis and hematodes. Common, under stones on little heaps of sand thrown up by the rabbits in burrowing. Thyamis pallens. Common, under stones, &c., August. Sarrotrium muticum. Until last year this insect had been esteemed a great rarity amongst us; in fact, only three specimens had ever been taken, although it has been well searched for: but last year I had the good fortune to meet with it in great abundance. I took upwards of 130 specimens, after two days’ search ; and met with it in equal abundance in March this year. It occurs under very small stones; and it is somewhat singular, but out of the great quantity I took I never met with one under a stone that reposed on the bare soil. They seem to delight to dwell about the wiry stems of the grass, and are very sluggish in their habits, appearing to be ina constant state of torpidity. Cistela murina. Sparingly, under stones, June. In a plantation which caps the summit of one of these hills, I took three speci- mens of Coccinella ocellata, in May, from the larch: it is far from being a common beetle in Leicestershire. Coccinella M-nigrum and Otiorhynchus singularis may be taken in great plenty from the larch and firs of this plantation; and on the dwarf poplar a friend of mine found Melasoma populi, in great plenty, in June last. Besides the insects enumerated above, there also occur in great plenty on these hills a number of commoner insects, such as Dromius foveolus, Olisthopus rotundatus, Amara tibialis, Bradytus apricarius and ferrugineus, Trechus fulvus, Notiophilus Quadrupeds. 2439 aquaticus and biguttatus, Helophorus granularis, Prosternon holosericeus, Ctenicerus cupreus and Selatosomus eneus. On the wood sage (Teucrium scorodonia), Adimo- nia halensis ; and crawling on their grassy pathways, Galeruca tanaceti and Timarcha coriaria, in the wildest profusion. The entomologists here have hitherto confined their investigations to one of these elevations ; and as there are several others of a precisely similar description, we may hope, by an industrious search, to bring many valuable insects to light as yet unknown in the fauna of this district.— Frederick Bates ; King Street, Leicester, April 3, 1849. Partiality of Cats for Cigars. — As the pages of the ‘ Zoologist’ have lately pre- sented many interesting notices of the partiality of cats for Nemophila insignis, I am emboldened to offer a fact which lately came under my notice, and which appears to me to be no less interesting. I had placed a box of cigars upon a table, on which was seated in Grimalkin majesty a tabby cat. Happening to turn my head for a minute or two, I heard the lid of the box rattling behind me, and upon looking round to dis- cover the cause, beheld Puss displacing the same with her nose. What next? thought I. |The lid was soon pushed off upon the table, and the cat took her seat at the side of the box as contentedly as she would have done at a saucer of new milk. She then proceeded (purring all the while) to smell the contents—these appearing to be much to her satisfaction, she rubbed her head among them, and ended with licking them without the least regard as to which end underwent the operation. This mode of pro- ceeding, however, was not much to my taste, however much it may have been to Pussy’s. So the box was withdrawn. In the evening I again (to make sure) put some cigars before her, and again they were subjected to the saliva operation. I do not recollect having seen in the ‘ Zoologist’ any similar notice, and, therefore, think- ing it might not be uninteresting to some of your readers, have been tempted to place this anecdote at your disposal. I may add, that on some lighted tobacco being placed near her she avoided it, as being probably too pungent.— Windsor Hambrough ; Earl Soham, Suffolk, April 4, 1849. Cat Chirurgery, &c. in Spain.— Nov. 18 (Seville). The orange groves very beau- tiful ; gathering and packing for England were going on. Brouse (our Newfound- land dog) not quit of his cat-hunting propensities — missing him for a moment, Puss on the top of an almond-tree, intimated too truly that he was at the bottom. At Cadiz earless and tailless cats swarmed ; and I was perpetually in hot water: but Brouse would not condescend to hunt these mutilated animals. In Spain the panacea for feline maladies appears to be the docking of the tail (one joint at each successive indisposition) : so that you may always judge of a cat’s constitution by the state of its caudal extremity. Feb. 22 (Malaga). Cats very noisy: emitting such sounds as none but Malaga cats (I should think) are capable of producing—said to do so always during the months of January and February, explained by their “ teething.”— Charles A. Bury ; Cheshunt, Herts, April 19, 1849. Occurrence of the Wild Cat in Surrey.— Chalcroft once had the extraordinary luck to trap a wild cat, the rarest of British quadrupeds: not an old Tom tured poacher, as some of my readers will at once conclude, but a true, genuine wild cat.— Letters of Rusticus, page 6. 2440 Quadrupeds. Capture of the Yellow-breasted Marten in Glamorganshire—Through the kindness of my friend Mr. Edward Bradley, I have this day received a very handsome male specimen of the yellow-breasted or pine marten (Martes abietum), which was killed in the neighbourhood of Newbridge a couple of days ago. This is the most beautiful, and, in England, the rarest of the two species or varieties of the marten. The yellow colour of the throat in this individual is particularly rich, deepening towards the cheeks. This animal has become so rare in the South of Britain, that it is very sel- dom indeed that an opportunity occurs of seeing it in the flesh.— W. F. W. Bird ; 5, King’s Road, Bedford Row, April 14, 1849. Is the Polecat rare in Suffolk ?—Whilst on the subject of the Mustelide, I cannot avoid offering a few words upon the communication of Mr. Alfred Newton (Zool. 2379). That gentleman mentions the capture of the polecat in the following terms :— ‘“‘ A polecat—a veritable one, and not an escaped ferret, was caught in a trap last Oc- tober.” This clearly infers that such an event is there of very uncommon occurrence, and as it is evident, from his frequent contributions to your pages, that Mr. Newton is an observant and intelligent naturalist, I cannot suppose he would mention the trapping of a polecat, if he did not think it worth recording. Now, the polecat or fitchet (Mustela putorius) is in nearly every county and district of England, the most common of all our carnivorous Mammalia; in some parts it is so numerous as to be a perfect nuisance to the farmer and preserver of game. There must, therefore, be some pecu- liarity in the country round Elveden, to make this animal a stranger there; and I should feel greatly obliged to Mr. Newton for an explanation of this circumstance. —Id. Can the Ferret exist in England in a state of Nature ?—Auother expression of Mr. Newton’s in the same paragraph, has also excited my attention. I allude to the words used above, “not an escaped ferret.” Now, I believe I only share the general opinion, in supposing that the ferret (Mustela furo) cannot live in this country, except in a state of artificial warmth ; and that when one is, by accident, lost in a rabbit-hole, he is sure to die of cold, or at all events, never to be seen again alive. Indeed I have always un- derstood that in no part of Europe can the ferret be acclimatized, it being originally a native of Africa. I should be very glad to know, whether Mr. Newton is aware of any authentic instance of a ferret being seen at large, at any distance from human ha- bitations, or of its being taken in a trap set for polecats or other vermin.—Id. A White or Cream-coloured Polecat.—In the summer of last year I received from a relative in Devonshire, a large polecat, which was of a uniform light yellow or cream-colour all over. Have any of your readers ever seen a similar one? The per- son who stuffed it for me has had much experience, and it was quite a novelty to him. Fitchet-coloured ferrets are common, and are supposed (I know not why) to be stronger and more hardy than those of the ordinary colour; but a ferret-coloured polecat I never saw before. I do not think it is an albino. Some continental naturalists state that, in the north of Europe, the polecat turns white in winter, but this animal was sent to me in summer.—lId. The Ermine taken in Worcestershire and near London. — Before I quit the Muste- lide let me say a few words on another of the family, namely, the stoat or ermine (/. erminea). Many of our authors seem to think that this animal never assumes its er- mine coat, with us, except in Scotland or the most northerly English counties ; and Professor Bell gives a long and interesting account, by Mr. Hogg, of two ermines seen in Durham, during a period of nine years ; with some speculations on the compara- Cetacea. 2441 tive heights of the ground where they were respectively met with. Now I have seen several individuals of this species, caught within twenty miles of London, which were _ partially white, and one in particular, all white, except the head, and of course the black tip of the tail. And Ihave a very beautiful perfect ermine, which was killed on the estate of my friend, Mr. Moore, at Shelsley Beauchamp, in the southern part of Worcestershire, on the 10th of March, 1847. It had been repeatedly noticed for some time previous to its capture, its whiteness making it a conspicuous object in the fields and hedge-rows ; and the worthy proprietor of the land kindly gave particular direc- tions, that if it could be killed, it should be saved for me. Accordingly it found its way into my collection. The head and body are pure white, tinged with yellow on the belly and inner sides of the legs; the first half of the tail is yellow, and the extremity jet black. Many speculations have been formed to account for the fact, that, with us, a few stoats assume the ermine in cold weather, while the far greater number, in the same locality, retain their russet garb. My own opinion is, that though, in cold countries, every stoat becomes an ermine, on the approach of winter, yet that those which turn white, in our climate, are the very old ones, and those alone. —Id. Ce eee Note on the Physeter bidens.— Allow me to mention that your correspondent at Hull, Mr. T. Thompson, is in error regarding the supposed Physeter bidens in the museum of that town (Zool. 2407). Mr. Thompson has given the distinctive charac- ter by which it may be pronounced to be a Hyperoodon, namely, two (procumbent co- nical) teeth concealed beneath the thickened gum at the anterior extremity of the lower jaw. Inthe male of the Physeter bidens (Delphinorhynchus micropterus), there is a greatly compressed tooth placed in the alveolar groove at its commencement near the middle of each ramus; while in the female, several teeth of much smaller dimen- sion, but similar in form, are arranged along the alveolar groove. A figure of the for- mer may be seen in Mr. J. E. Gray’s article on “ Whales” in the zoological portion of the Antarctic Voyage, under the name of Ziphius Sowerbei; and of the latter in F. Cuvier’s volume on the Cetacea in the ‘ Suites 4 Buffon.’ Ihave had the good fortune to dissect two females of the Hyperoodon, stranded at Boness in the Firth of Forth ; and Dr. Cogswell and myself saw last summer the skeleton of one in the museum of the Royal Institution of Liverpool, prepared by the obliging curator, Mr. Johnstone. An elaborate monograph of the anatomy of the Hyperoodon has recently been given by the great Dutch naturalist Vrolick, confirmatory of the fact previously detailed by our celebrated Hunter, whose preparations of this animal may be seen in the College of Surgeons. There is an excellent account of one stranded near Belfast by Mr. W. Thompson, the distinguished president of the Natural History and Philosophical Society of Belfast, in the ‘ Annals of Natural History,’ about four years ago, to which I cannot, unfortunately, now refer. The supposed rudimentary baleen filaments have no existence in the Hyperoodon, as stated in various books ; and there is in addition to the two larger teeth at the front of the jaw, a series of small ones which never ad- vance beyond the sacular stage, and are, perhaps, absorbed in aged individuals; in young specimens, they are removed with the gum when the latter is stripped off the shallow continuous alveolar groove, as demonstrated by vertical sections, transverse or longitudinal, of the gum itself. I now throw out, as a conjecture for future inquirers, 2442 Letters of Rusticus. that the mutilated skull in the British Museum, on which Mr. Gray has founded the Hyperoodon latifrons, is but the skull of the adult male of the common species. We require much information regarding the sexes of the whales stranded on our coasts, and I cannot refer at present to the elaborate papers on the Cetacea by the illustrious Eschricht, who may have touched on these questions. Your correspondent on the great sea-serpent question in the ‘ Zoologist ’ (Zool. 2397), tells us that Professor Goodsir regards the vertebre of the Stronsa shark as those of the Squalus maximus ; which is, however, merely retailing the opinion advanced by Sir E. Home and Profes- sor Owen. No one practically acquainted with these. subjects will venture to assert, or attempt to prove, that specific identity in the family of sharks can be predicated from similarity, or identity of structure, in the vertebre alone. Such a statement might, doubtless, flow from a full belief in the Cuvierian dictum, which, however, is no longer entertained by cautious inquirers, though still employed to overload our catalogues with nominal species of extinct animals to exercise the credulity of mere geological writers or readers. Your correspondent also undervalues the practical knowledge and honesty of the Orkney observers, who are, from race and local circumstances, an intel- ligent and shrewd people; and I may be allowed to bear this testimony the more rea- dily, from having spent many pleasant weeks in the Orkney Isles dredging, &c. But they need no defence from me, seeing that so many of them are well able to take up the cudgels. They have described very graphically the spiral valve of the small intestine, and the bristles pulled from the putrid fins, and Dr. Fleming has correctly referred the third pair of legs to the claspers—a mistake which might have occurred to more initiated zoologists' than the honest Orcadians. What an invaluable specimen this great sea-monster would have been in the library of the Royal Institution after the lecture on the “ Nature of Limbs.” How much obliged should homologists be to this stray observation of the Orkney fishermen, who, doubtless, saw further into the true nature of legs than the anatomist or “ anthropotamist” of the schools, men evidently not endowed with a faculty for the reception of homologies, and who wan- dered in darkness until light beamed from the Hunterian chair, on the benighted intellects of councillors and lecturers. The learned Secretary of the Royal Institu- tion should be instructed to offer a reward for the capture of Captain M‘Quhe’s iden- tical sea-serpent, for certainly it would require such irrefragable evidence to convince any but the undoubtedly profound anatomist, who listened to that learned discourse, of the accuracy, not to mention the philosophy (Okenian), of those views. Our won-. der-loving cousins across the Atlantic will speedily claim the reward, and give to the anxious world of science a great vertebrated sea centipede or millepede, as the case may be.— A. G. Melville ; 31, Pelham Road, Brompton. : The Letters of Rusticus.* [My own interest in this work prevents my mentioning it with anything approach- ing to praise: the publication having been undertaken at my sole charge, and every © page having passed under my eye, both as editor and printer, I am too much identi- * “The Letters of Rusticus on the Natural History of Godalming ; extracted from the Magazine of Natural History, the Entomological Magazine, and the Entomolo- gist. London: John Van Voorst, Paternoster Row. 1849. Letters of Rusticus. 2443 fied with the production to form an impartial opinion respecting it. The transference of the following quotations to these pages will enable the readers of the ‘ Zoologist’ to judge for themselves of the merits of Rusticus as an observer of Nature.—E. N.] The Hedgehog —“ The walks about Godalming are truly delicious, whether in winter or in summer, in spring or in autumn: one can never time one’s peregrinations amiss as regards season. Eshing has ever been a favourite haunt with me; its old, old bridge, and its old, old mill, are bits for painters. There is a bank close by this bridge where I made my first acquaintance with the hedgehog. My little dog, Cap —his name was once Capsicum, it afterwards shortened itself to Capsy, and finally settled in Cap—my little dog Cap, in the course of a journey of discovery on a keen, crisp, frosty day in January [Letter dated 17th January, 1835] poked his nose into a deserted rabbit-hole in this said bank at Eshing bridge. After a while, I heard from the bowels of the earth a yelping that plainly announced the discovery of some phe- nomenon in Natural History. The hole was very large, and the end was filled with leaves: after trying a good many contrivances that did not answer, I hit on one that did, and I hauled up a lump of dried leaves about as big as my head; outside, the leaves were loose; further in, close and tight, and after taking off layer upon layer, I felt some sharp instrument run into my hand, and I knew for certain that I had in my hand what I had often longed for, a somnolent hedgehog. I took him home, woke him up with a gentle warmth, and had the intense satisfaction of seeing him wander about a Brussels carpet, with his leafy great coat on his back, making him look for all the world like some new species of armadillo. When he had satisfied my curiosity, I had a sackful of dry leaves shot down in a corner of the cellar, and in these I let piggy take out the rest of his nap, of which, as it afterwards appeared, a term of forty-one days was then unexpired. “ Begging pardon of naturalists for such an accusation, I can't help saying that I think a great many fibs have been told about the hedgehog. In the first place the old wife’s fables, about sucking cows and so forth, were so horridly unbelievable, and yet so damaging to little hoggy’s reputation with the vulgar, that the more erudite and more humane became his patrons and apologists, and made much more of him than he deserves. “ Dear old White of Selborne must have been taking a nap when he told us about hoggy’s liking for plantain-roots. ‘The manner,’ says White, ‘in which hedgehogs eat the roots of the plantain in my grass walks is very curious: with their upper man- dible, which is much longer than their lower, they bore under the plant, and so eat the root off upwards, leaving the tuft of leaves untouched. In this respect they are very serviceable, as they destroy a very troublesome weed.’ Boy and man this passage tormented me many years, because I knew hoggy to be a blood-thirsty poacher, a re- gular knight-errant for attacking vipers, and a tyrant over all manner of mice and such small deer, and I thought it passing strange that he should take to cooling his copper with the roots of the old gentleman’s plantains. However, the tastes of pigs and men are every now and then somewhat eccentric, so I left the matter sub judice, until chance solved the mystery. In a grass walk I saw some flattened plants of the common plantain withering and half dead; by the side of each I found the hole, bored, as White supposed, by the long upper mandible of the hoggy, but it was scarcely big enough to admit a lead pencil, and so round and smooth that I said di- rectly to myself, ’tis the burrow of a night-eating caterpillar: I got a trowel, and in a 2444 Letters of Rusticus. trice the fellow was unearthed, and he afterwards turned to a ghost-moth or yellow underwing, I can’t say which, for both came out in one cage. “ The hedgehog is properly a nocturnal carnivorous animal; he prowls about at night, like an owl, looking after the nests of pheasants, partridges, corncrakes and larks: he kills the old ones if he can, and sucks their eggs if he can’t: now and then he overruns a rabbit; but his favourite dish is a snake or an adder: he catches these while dozing under cover, and suffering from repletion caused by four or five mice lying undigested in their stomachs, tail on ; and it is then that desperate fights ensue : it is then that his armour stands hoggy in good stead: the deadly adder, infuriated at feeling hoggy’s teeth griping her back, lashes her head against a skin less vul- nerable than that once said to have been worn by a Mr. Achilles. The pluck and power of both is tried to the utmost, but hoggy is almost sure to triumph in the end, and the adder, half devoured, is often found next morning by the countryman, who wonders ‘how he come so mauled.’ I take it that the spiny coat of the hedgehog is Nature’s defence against the poison fangs of his favourite prey.’—p. 109. The Weasel.—* While seated on a stile there a very large rat came bustling down the hedge just before us, bringing with him a lot of loose earth: my friend was just jumping down for a stone to whirl at him, when a little bit of a weasel followed the rat down the bank, holding his head well up, like a fox-hound running breast-high. The rat had crossed the path, and got into a little, low bank on the other side of the foot-path, over which he scrambled, and came out among some swede turnips in the adjoining field, at the very moment the weasel went into the low bank hunting him. The turnips were so small, and so far apart, that we did not once lose sight of the rat. He ran in and out among them, continually crossing his own track, and then, making a little circle, he came to the bank a good way from where we sat, and, climbing over it, got into the foot-path about a hundred yards from us; he then ran towards us with all his might, straight along the middle of the path, and passed un- der the stile on which we were perched, motionless and smiling, like the statues of Tam o Shanter and Souter Johnny, and about ten yards behind us he went into the thick bank, and was lost to our view. The weasel hunted well in the little, low bank, and seemed a good deal puzzled, staying there much longer than the rat; at last he seemed to find out that the game had taken to the turnips: here he pursued him with great earnestness ; but, finding the trick that had been played to puzzle him, he made a cast, like a well-trained fox-hound, going completely outside all the trail: by this scheme he gained on the rat by hitting off the scent just where he had gone over the little bank the last time. In a few moments he was in the foot-path, and came gal- loping towards us in fine style, his back arched, his head up, and his tail in a straight line behind him. He passed under us, and in his eagerness overshot the spot where the rat had gone into the bank: it was only for a moment, he came back, quartered the ground, found the trail, and was in the bank in no time. A blackthorn overhung the path; we saw something move in it; it was the rat; the weasel was going upthe | stem; he was close after him; he evidently viewed him; he gained on him; the rat | dropped himself into the foot-path; the weasel did the same, and followed him up | the bank within a foot: we heard a shrill cry, first long, then short, shorter, then all was still; we went quietly to the place; the weasel left his prey, hissing at us like an | angry cat; the brain of the rat was laid completely bare, but his little heart continued beating for nearly a minute as [ held him in my hand.’—p. 118. “ When I got home I sat down and made these notes for you, and as they do not Letters of Rusticus. 2445 fill my paper, I will add one or two mems about the weasel, which have for a long time been standing by to be let go. The weasel is a very awkward-looking animal when running on level ground; his great length and slenderness of body, and the shortness of his legs, are very much against speed; but in climbing trees, or thread- - ing the long and narrow galleries of field-mice, this seeming disproportion is of the greatest use to him. I have seen him coursing along the boughs of a tree, winding himself round, above or below, just as suited his purpose, with all the ease and agility of a squirrel. I have watched him enter a wheat-rick at the bottom, and in less than a minute seen him peeping out under the thatch: but in mentioning this I am on dangerous ground; I fear I shall neither make you nor your readers believe that wheat-ricks are very often a complete honeycomb, with the galleries made in them by mice and rats, extending from the very crown to the faggots on which they are built ; and that hundreds of these vermin are frequently found in one rick. However, where there are many rats there are few mice, and where there are many mice there are few rats ; because the rats, being strongest, expel the mice. To return to the weasel : his usual habitation is the gallery of a field-mouse on whom he has served a writ of eject- ment, and he usually chooses one in a bank in which the roots of bushes are tolerably plentiful and strong, as he well knows that these will effectually prevent his being dug out by any evil-disposed person or persons: he also invariably takes the precaution to select a burrow with two openings, so that, if one is besieged, he makes his exit at the other. I very well recollect seeing a weasel go into a little round hole, scarcely big- ger than the hole of a wasp’s nest; I immediately put my foot on it, and despatched a lad who was with me for a spade, determined to take the little fellow alive. The spade came, we dug away, cut through roots, pulled down the bank, and did no end of mischief; and, after two hours’ labour, found that the hole went right through the bank, and came out on the other side. “ The weasel has an excellent nose, as I think I have pretty clearly shown above ; but it is not exercised on the trail of rats only. I have, on two occasions, seen rab- bits pursued by him, run down, and killed: one was on Munsted Heath, the other on Highdown Ball. In both instances, the rabbit seemed stupified or fascinated by fright; in one instance running round and round, and not taking the right precaution for escape; in the other, starting, stopping, and, as I fancied, trembling with fear. When its prey is taken, the weasel rarely eats more than the brain.’—p. 120. Sea Birds, Isle of Wight.—* We had reached the region of birds. Between the highest part and Sun Corner the cliff is more than perpendicular, it positively over- hangs: here, then, is the retreat of innumerable sea-birds ; here the foot of man has never trodden ; here patent percussions were of no avail. The inmates were already on the move: guillemots and razor-bills, in parties of tens, twenties, and thirties, were continually dropping from their stations, and whirling on rapid wing towards the ocean ; the great burgomasters, far, far above the summit, were wheeling round and round, like eagles, and uttering continually their sonorous and piercing call; while in the distance the smaller herring-gulls were collecting by hundreds about the Needles. The fishermen now pulled us right in for the cliff; and, as we approached, what a sight did we witness! Every inch of projecting rock was oceupied: there were hun- dreds, thousands, millions of birds. I should premise, that throughout the surface of the cliff are excavated ledges, which are caused by layers of a softer substance inter- vening, that has crumbled, perhaps partly with frost, and partly with the operations of the tenants: these softer strata are perforated like honey-combs by the puffins. Vil Q 2446 Letters of Rusticus. Along these ledges the birds were crowded so thickly, as positively to push the fore- most ones off by the pressure from behind, as fresh troops issued from their holes : these would fly a little way, and, returning, settle on the heads of others, and thus, by slipping in, find themselves a footing, the foremost birds being obliged to tumble off, as these intruders had previously done. Some ledges were occupied solely by puffins, whose conspicuous bills, and squat though upright position, rendered them instantly distinguishable. The little fellows turned their heads sharply on their shoulders, first on one side, then on the other, like people holding an animated con- versation. They have white cheeks, with a black hood, which seems fastened under the chin with a band of the same colour. A few of the delicately white kittiwakes were perched here and there on a projecting crag; and, scattered at regular intervals, like stern, upright, solitary sentinels, stood the corvorants, spotting with black the whole surface of the cliff. There seemed little disposition on the part of any one spe- cies to consort with another: though crowded together on the cliff, yet each species kept in degree separate: willock crowded willock; puffin, puffin. A noise, as one might suppose like that of disembodied spirits in purgatory, issued from every part of the rock; whether it proceeded from the razor-bills, willocks or gulls, we could not make out; but, of all the horrid and piteous groanings I have ever heard, these were the most so. Perhaps it was only a morning hymn of thankfulness and happiness ; perhaps the soft note of love; perhaps the united cry of thousands of the young for food. Being sufficiently near to see very clearly the whole mass of living creatures before us, the fishermen suggested that a single barrel should be fired at random, at — the same time they both gave a tremendous shout. Words cannot describe the scene that followed: corvorants, ravens, gulls, kittiwakes, puffins, razor-bills, guillemots, all left their stations ; the very surface of the cliff came towards us. The remaining bar- rels were soon emptied, and all was one wild uproar: the sky was positively darkened ; the air filled with heterogeneous sounds: the screams, the calls, the groans of the — birds ;—the continued ringing of the fishermen’s shouts ;—the almost everlasting echo of our guns, which every crag and cranny seemed determined to reiterate; and, above all, and harmonizing all, the tumultuous roar of the restless ocean, as its long and heavy swell dashed against the perpendicular but rugged cliff;—produced such a combination of sights and sounds, as, once seen and heard, can never be forgotten. / “ But where was the produce of our united discharge? Twenty or thirty birds, at least, ought to have fallen plump into the sea; for we fired right in their faces, and some of them seemed to be within ten yards of us: however, not a bird fell, nor did there appear to be a single feather touched. We stood gaping at one another in un- feigned astonishment. Was the miss to be attributed to the rolling of the boat, or the swell? Certainly not; for in such a crowd all nicety of aim would have been useless. Had we forgotten to put in the shot? Still very improbable. The fisher-— men explained the mystery; and I doubt not your ornithological readers have done the same: the feathers on the breasts and necks of sea-birds are so closely matted to- _ gether, and form a covering so smooth and compact, that shots striking in front will not enter, but instantly glance off, without doing the slightest injury. As soon as we understood our error we were determined to rectify it, and were loading again in an — instant. Now, as each little covey (for they fly in coveys, like partridges) passed over — us, we took them in the rear, and to every barrel a bird fell thud into the water, This plan answered delightfully ; and finding its efficacy, our spirits, which were somewhat — damped by the first disappointment, now rose with the excitement of the scene; and | r Letters of Rusticus. 2447 although, partly owing to the motion of the boat, our shots were not invariably suc- cessful, yet we soon managed to cover the greater part of the bottom of the boat with the slain. , * “ The birds, after the first rush, soon diminished in numbers, and in about an hour - became so thin as scarcely to afford us the chance of a shot; so we proceeded on our way past Sun Corner, and found that between this point and the Needles a whole co- lony of corvorants had established themselves: the old hens were visible by dozens sitting upon their nests. Precisely under the spot where the corvorants were sitting was a narrow slip of beach. On this we landed with great difficulty, as the swell of the sea continued very heavy, and the bottom is here very bad; and, being almost perpendicularly under the birds, we could plainly see their long necks and stiff still heads poked out to seaward: so we spent much time, swan-shot, bullets, and excellent powder; and finding that they did not move their heads one inch to the right or left, we got into our boat, and floated onward with the tide towards the Needles ; resolving, however, to try the effect of shots from above, as it was very clear they took no effect from below. To accomplish this, we had to pass through the Needles, and land in Alum Bay, whence there is a decent foot-path up the cliff, and across to the top of that other cliff, on the ledges of which the old hen corvorants were so sedately plan- ning for the welfare of their future progeny; in fact, where they were reckoning their chickens before they were hatched. The water had gone down about three hours, and the passage through the Needles was a ticklish affair. The gap which we were about to attempt was little wider than our boat, and had a constant current running rapidly at ebb tide towards Alum Bay. The depth varied as each successive swell rolled in from the ocean, from 1 foot to 20 feet, and at low water was left quite dry. Two of us knew something of old ocean and old ocean’s ways; and though we were ignorant of this particular spot, we learned sufficient from the fishermen to know the thing was to be done. Off went the coats; two men to each oar: we held our craft steadily against the current, which was tremendously strong, and kept her head right for the opening. An enormous swell rolled seaward, leaving us almost aground : rattle, rattle, and thump, thump, we heard the stones and fragments of rock beneath us; it seemed an hour running out: at last another came: “ Here she comes again! keep her head right, and stand by!”—up, up, we rose. ‘One stroke, up oars, let her drive!”—and through we went, in gallant style, on the very crest of the swell. “On the Alum-Bay side of the Needles there was no swell to be felt; but the meeting of opposing tides and currents, the influence of the winds, and the rough rocky bottom, keep the water in a sort of perpetuai boil. As we approached the shore, we had to pass over a good many lobster-pots, which we took the liberty of examining, and found, among other contents, a great many soldier crabs, which had established themselves in the shells of the common whelks: we did not rob the poor people of their lobsters, but carried off the soldiers and a few species of crabs which could only be useful to a naturalist. The geology of Alum Bay must be very interesting ; the cliff above it presents all the colours imaginable. The poor people in the neighbour- hood get sands from it of a dozen different colours ; and, running them into a phial, make each colour form a distinct ring, which has a very pretty effect: these phials, so filled, they sell for a shilling each. “We ascended the cliff, examined the lighthouse, purchased a variety of eggs, and crossed the hill to the corvorant colony: then, by lying down on our bellies on 2448 Letters of Rusticus. the turf, we quietly peeped over the edge of the cliff, and obtained an excellent view of the amiable company, from which a stench arose almost enough to suffocate us. There were young ones of*all sizes,—some almost ready to fly, some only covered with down; some nests had one or two eggs, which are very small in proportion to the size of the bird, and of a dirty white colour: many hens were sitting, and here and there a solitary old cock (the crested corvorant of Bewick) was perched on his triple support of tail and feet, contemplating the expanse of ocean as motionless as a statue. One of the party now determined on the hazardous experiment of leaning over the cliff and shooting them as they sat; the other two remonstrated, but to no purpose: so a line was formed; the first held tight the coat-tails of the shooter, the others locked hand in hand; thus making a dead weight of four against one, in case of any propensity on the part of the first to lose his balance. Thus arranged, the adventurer shouldered his double-barrelled, and, actually bending over the cliff, he pulled the trigger. An old corvorant fell five hundred feet down the cliff, upon the little narrow beach before mentioned ; another trigger was pulled, and down went another corvo- rant. The shooter then exchanged guns with him who held him by the coat-tails, and with each barrel of this he also sent a corvorant to the bottom; so there were four, as we supposed, quietly waiting our return. Emboldened by this success, we proceeded more than a mile along the top of the cliff, continually peeping over. We discovered two nests of a gull (perhaps the herring-gull), each with three eggs, of an olive-brown colour, with darker spots: the nests are made of dried grass and fern. The fishermen told us that these gulls will lay three eggs again, if the first three are taken, and three more when the second three are taken, but no more than this, nine -being the whole stock for one year. But the greatest curiosity we observed was the © nestless and solitary egg of the guillemot, balanced, as if by a geometrician, on the bare rock, and looking as though the least puff of wind would blow it off its station into the sea. We learned from the fishermen, and some boys of the neighbourhood, that the puffins never expose their eggs, like the corvorants, razor-bills, guillemots and gulls, but lay them at the end of long holes, which they hollow out of the softer parts of the rock. We bought a few of these eggs to bring home; they were dirty white, with darker spots. “ Along the circuitous edge of this cliff the egg-collectors plant the iron crow-bars for attaching the ropes by means of which they descend. Two ropes are commonly used; one goes round the body, and the other is held in the hand: the first is warped _ round the crow-bar, so as to be let out at pleasure ; the second is fixed to it by a noose, and when the suspended sportsman wishes to reascend, he shakes this second rope as a signal, and two men on the top of the cliff begin hauling at the first, or waist-rope, while he assists the operation by climbing up the second, hand over hand. The crow- bar is rarely stuck so deep as eight inches in the ground, so that at every movement of the collector it may be seen to give most fearfully; but impunity creates valour, and as no ill has yet resulted from this careless mode of planting the bar, they seem to fear none. At some parts of the face of the cliff are shelving ledges of the most slippery turf, and when arrived at these, the collector throws off his waist-rope, and walks or clambers along for fifty or a hundred feet, and sometimes even more. This, though less striking to a stranger than the act of dangling from a rope, after the fashion of a spider from his thread, is in fact the most dangerous feat of all, for the slightest slip is fatal. Another constant source of danger is the detaching of small pieces of rock or loose stones, by the friction of the rope against the cliff: to avoid Letters of Rusticus. 2449 these, the cliff-man has to keep an incessant look-out, and to bob his head this way and that, to escape a broken sconce. “The guillemot, or ‘ willock,’ as it is here called, sits with its egg under its wing, or pressed to one side of its breast, and always on the same side, so that a mark on the breast of the bird plainly shows the situation of the egg whilst she is sitting. Af- _ ter the day when the egg is laid, it is very rarely left, and it is only for this one day that the collectors have much chance of getting it. They tell you that when the bird has once begun sitting, she will never suffer herself to be robbed; but that when all chance of saving the egg is gone, she rolls it off the ledge and flies away. This story is partly true, but there is some doubt whether she acts on the true dog-in-the-manger system of smashing her egg because no one else shall have it: its position is so ticklish, that when the bird is forced to take flight to avoid capture, she may very easily upset her charge and pitch it over the precipice, in the mere flurry attendant on the act of self-preservation. ‘¢ Man is not the only robber this poor bird has to fear: the gulls and ravens are ever on the alert to secure her eggs. This is horrid unkind of neighbours, but per- haps not inconsistent with our own practice. The gulls are for ever scanning the face of the cliff, hoping to catch a glimpse of an unprotected egg. Directly a gull has found one, he charges point blank at its small end, using his beak as a lance: the huge egg, thus pierced, sticks on his beak, and he flies away as though he was carry- ing a great pear in front of his head: in this way he sucks out all the goodness while on the wing, and drops the shell when empty. These shells, with a great hole at one end, may often be found upon the downs above, and naturalists profoundly assert that stoats and weasels are the aggressors; thus assigning to those lithesome quadrupeds a marvellous extent of cliff-scaling capability. “ The raven has no less taste for willock’s eggs than the gull, but his manceuvres are somewhat different: he never pierces the egg, but seizes it suddenly and darts off to the top of the cliff, amid the uproar of the colony. While on the look-out, he tra- verses silently and slowly the face of the cliff, making little circles, and returning again and again to the same hunting-ground; but the moment he spies an unpro- tected egg, he darts in, seizes it,—I suppose with his feet,—and makes off like an arrow to the summit, there to enjoy his meal at leisure. You may mark him down, and then by vociferous shouting and running to the place, make him leave his booty, which is always sound and whole. “ The peregrine falcon has had her eyrie here from time immemorial; and these noble birds are often to be seen soaring about the cliff, the terror of jackdaws, whose young at this season constitute their favourite prey, or perhaps the favourite food of their own young. The fishermen told me that this falcon always breeds here, and that it is constantly following the kestrels, which abound all along the cliff, as if to drive them away from his territory. “ After having satisfied our curiosity here, we returned to our boat, and crossing Alum Bay we again passed through the Needles, and pulled in for the beach at Sun Corner, where the corvorants had fallen. Three were quite dead, the fourth had got into the water and was swimming about in style. We chased him more than an hour, firing at him about forty times, but to no purpose, as he dived the instant the trigger was pulled: at last we very reluctantly gave up the pursuit as hopeless, the wind having freshened, and made the swell rather too heavy for an open boat; the tide, too, was quite out, and the rocky bottom occasionally peeped up all round us in 2450 Birds. the hollows of the sea, looking very black and disagreeable. Two of us took a spell at the oar, by turns, with the fishermen, and worked away like Britons, till a noble swell laid us high and dry on the shingles at Freshwater.’—p. 35. Extract from the Rev. C. A. Bury’s Diary.—I have an idle half-hour, and as re- ference to Mr. Wolley’s trip down the Guadalquivir has led to my taking out of its drawer my ‘ Spanish Journal,’ I will copy an extract or two. “ Sunday, Oct. 25, 1846. On the passage from Lisbon to Cadiz,—‘ a whale seen.’ “ Gibraltar, Oct. 31. Our Newfoundland dog (alas! now no more) has become quite at home, made innumerable quadruped acquaintances in the sheets, and a suffi- cient number of biped friends in the kitchen. On board the ‘Madrid’ he was popu- lar with all but the head steward, whose attempts to keep him from coming down into our cabin he generally contrived to evade. On one occasion, not obtaining admission, he made his way to the omnibus (so called because therein were stowed, in small space, eight gentlemen). Here he was accosted by the veteran soldier—* Holloa, old fellow, no room for you here!” whereupon he again made his way to our door, and set all the servants who tried to arouse him at defiance. | ““The growth of vegetation on ‘the Rock’ is wonderfully rapid after rain, The fences are formed of the large aloe. One or two species of Cactus abound. The most elegant tree is the black pepper tree: the castor oil tree thrives well. The birds observed are the herring gull, purple sandpiper (numerous), Kentish plover, common sandpiper, coot, little grebe, blackbird, skylark, black redstart, gray and white wag- tails, house sparrow, willow warbler, a species of chat not British, and a warbler nearly resembling the Dartford warbler. “Cadiz, Nov. 10. In the market this morning observed sparrow hawk, great shrike, hawfinch, blackbird, thrush, common bunting, starling, red-legged partridge, quail, wigeon, black-tailed godwit: on the rocks yesterday, turnstone, ring plover, gray and pied wagtails, titlark, linnet, robin, black redstart. ‘Noy. 12. Embarked at 7 a.m. on board the ‘ Rapido’ for Seville. Passage as far as San Lucar rather rough...... After entering the Guadalquivir and getting some breakfast, all better. Banks very uninteresting but for the birds, which abounded. Among them the stately bustard, of which we saw considerable numbers; wild ducks and geese and wigeon swarmed. Twenty-three or twenty-four species were counted during our ascent. Among them, peregrine falcon, kite, moor buzzard in great plenty, sparrow hawk, raven, short-eared owl, vulture (Neophron?), spoonbill (only one), he- ron, bean goose, pink-footed goose (?), wild duck, wigeon, teal, golden plover, gray plover, lapwing, curlew, little bustard, squacco heron (?).”—C. A. Bury. Mode of destroying Moths in Birds’ Skins —Some five or six years ago a gentle- man sent me a golden eagle, shot in Norway: the bird was not dead, but winged only ; and although every attention was paid to it, yet at the end of about ten months it expired. The bird was mounted; but not being much more than a year old, and consequently not perfect in plumage, I did not case it, hoping at some future time to obtain a better specimen. About two years ago I was sorry to find my bird very much mothed, and on examination found it in several parts covered with ova. Now, to plunge a golden eagle in a bath of prepared corrosive sublimate is no joke, at the Birds. 2451 price we have to buy it. I therefore thought of trying heat, which I am glad to say has fully answered the purpose. The plan adopted was to take out the wires and the whole of the stuffing,—to wrap the skin in a coarse cloth, which was laid on a board, and placed in the oven of a common bakehouse for about six or seven minutes, the heat being about 208 degrees. Since then I have never seen any signs of life, either _ from pupa or ova.—Joseph Duff; Bishop's Auckland, May 7, 1849. [I believe that heat is an effectual temporary cure for the moth in bird-skins, but I have not found it a preventive—H. Newman.| Collecting of Birds’ E'ggs.—I cannot but think that the present rage for collecting eggs, both amongst the scientific and non-scientific, must have a powerful influence in rendering our rarer species of birds still rarer, and so in some degree curtail the pleasures of the study of ornithology,—since much of the pleasure resulting from that pursuit lies in studying birds in their native habitats, and marking their peculiarities and manners. Nothing else can indeed make us acquainted with the true character- istics of any object of nature but such kind of observation. We may admire the race of falcons in a museum or in a zoological garden ; but the person who has only seen these birds in such condition will have a very poor conception of their real character compared with him who has seen them on their native wilds,—seen their daring dash, their power of wing and activity of momentum when in pursuit of their prey. I know that dealers of eggs now give boys general orders to bring them all the eggs they can find, and the rarer the kinds of eggs are of course they pay the better for them, so that there can be no doubt, if this rage continues much longer, many of our species must become very rare indeed, if not extinct. I cannot but think, also, that robbing the bird of its eggs is inflicting the greatest possible misery upon it which it can suf- fer ; for its chief pleasure—indeed the greatest object of its existence—appears to be the propagation of its species. It is at the period of nesting when the song of birds delights us most,—when, in fact, their measure of joy is so full that they must give expression to it in their notes of gladness, which Lord Byron has classed amongst the “‘ sweets” of Nature. How great their suffering, then, when their treasure is gone, who can say! Their melancholy note after such a loss, and their expressions of alarm at our approach to their nest, may well assure every egg-collector that his treasures must have produced many an aching heart and anxious breast ere he could become possessed of them. The knavery, too, which is practiced by dealers, ought to make collectors feel very little confidence in the truth of their specimens, and more espe- cially of their most valued kinds. St. John’s ‘Tour in Sutherland’ may give them information on this subject.—W. R. Scott, M.D.; St. Leonard’s, Exeter, May 4, 1849. Note on the Griffon Vulture (Vultur fulvus).—I believe Mr. Woolley is correct in supposing the bird he saw on the banks of the Guadalquivir to have been Vultur ful- vus. I did not see this bird in Spain, but made its acquaintance some years ago in the East. Mr, Wolley’s description, and that of a friend who saw it at San Lucar, satisfy me as to its species. I allude to the subject chiefly in order to point out the fact of this vulture, like the neophron, being migratory. When we descended the Guadalquivir, February Ist, no vulture was to be seen (and I kept a pretty sharp look- out for all that was ornithological). In March, my friend, while staying at San Lucar, very nearly succeeded in knocking down with a stick one of these huge fellows who had over-eaten himself,—a temptation, by the way, to which a featherless biped, in the shape of an Englishman, is little exposed in Spain. I heard of this large vul- ture both at Gibraltar and at Malaga, but saw it not; and therefore made no allusion 2452 Birds. to it in my notes sent to the ‘ Zoologist.. I was much amused at tracking our mi- gratory friend, Mr. Wolley, in Spain: there was his name in the visitors’ book at Fonda de la Reyna, Sevilla; then, again, was it to be seen at the worthy Mrs. Cow- ison’s, Rogers Ramp, Gibraltar; and, if I remember aright, at Senora Romagnoli’s, Malaga, also,—or at Granada. The modern Athens seems to be his favourite habitat just now; and, I think, since his Spanish wanderings, we heard of his attaining the summit of Mont Blanc. Be he where he may, however, I am sure your readers are always pleased to see his name and address in the ‘ Zoologist.—C. A. Bury; Ches- hunt, Herts, May, 1849. Occurrence of the Osprey (Falco Halieetus) near Bishop's Auckland.—Last week a very fine osprey was taken in a trap at Windlestone Hall, the seat of Sir Wm. Eden, Bart., about three miles from here. It has been presented to the Durham Museum. —J. Duff; Bishop’s Auckland, May 7, 1849. Audacity of the Sparrow Hawk (Accipiter nisus) in attacking Crows.—I send an extract from the ‘ Hereford Times’ of April 7th. ‘‘ An instance of the ferocity and daring courage of this feathered marauder occurred near Cenfpare, on the old road to Trecastle, a few days ago. A fine crow was at rest on the branch of a tree, basking in the sunshine, and no doubt feeling himself quite comfortable and secure, when he was suddenly assailed by a sparrow hawk, who swooped down upon him with great fierceness. A struggle ensued between the diminutive assailant and his gigantic in- tended victim, which resulted in both birds falling into a pool of water; whereupon a spectator rushed forward and captured them, still engaged in conflict,—indeed so fast was the beak of the hawk affixed at the back of the crow’s head, that much difficulty was found in separating the combatants. Both birds are now living in captivity.” Singular enough, on reading this paragraph to my friend, Mr. Moore, he tells me that he saw a very similar occurrence on Friday, April 13th. He was walking with his brother, in a wood at Shelsley, Worcestershire, when they saw a crow (Corvus corone) skulking through an opening in the trees. A little sparrow hawk pounced down upon him from above; but after a struggle the crow extricated himself, and took refuge in the upper branch of a tree.—W. F. W. Bird. Occurrence of the Rough-legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus) in Norfolk.—A speci- men of the rough-legged buzzard was trapped at Mantley, in Norfolk, in the early part of last December.—7. H. Burroughes ; Harrow-on-the-Hill. The Great Eagle Owl (Otus Bubo) Nesting in Confinement.—My. Edward Foun- | taine, of this parish, has a pair of the great eagle owl in confinement; and the hen bird is now incubating three eggs, on a nest formed of straw, on the ground, in the further corner of the cage: both birds have become unusually bold and savage since this operation has been in progress.—John Henry Gurney; Easton, near Norwich, May 1, 1849. Occurrence of the Great Gray Shrike (Lanius Excubitor) near York.—A very fine specimen of the great gray shrike was shot by a tailor, close to the city of York, on Clifton Strays, on Wednesday, April 18th, while chasing some fieldfares,—a fine adult female, having five very distinct eggs in her—W. M. E, Milner ; Nunappleton, Tadcaster, April, 1849. Occurrence of the Great Gray Shrike near Lewes.—A fine specimen of the great gray shrike was caught on the 3rd of February, at Stoneham, near Lewes, by a bird- catcher, whilst attempting to carry off one of his “ call-birds;” it at first attracted his attention by pursuing a sparrow down a hedge-row: he immediately placed his Birds. 2453 net near the spot, and in a few minutes the bird was his prisoner. —_ It is now in the possession of a gentleman in the neighbourhood.— W. C. Unwin ; St. Ann’s, Lewes, February 19, 1849. 3 An Extraordinary Nest of the Song Thrush (Turdus musicus).—W hen looking for a moth (Nyssia zonaria), at New Brighton, on the 11th instant, I found the strangest _ thrush’s nest I ever saw or heard of. It was placed near the top of a ridge of sand, some of which the wind had blown away, so as to leave a ledge of matted roots, &c., which overhung and sheltered the nest from the weather. It was composed of a few bits and roots of star-grass, stuck into the sand, and woven together in front, about an inch and a half in height; but at the back there were not more than half-a-dozen bits of roots. The eggs—three in number, and quite fresh—were laid on the bare sand: there was no lining whatever. I have known the thrush build on the ground before, but then the nest was lined in the usual way.—WNicholas Cooke ; Warrington, April 19, 1849. Cream-coloured Variety of the Song Thrush.—In November last, Harris, a bird- stuffer in this town, when out looking for small birds, shot a beautiful cream-coloured variety of the song thrush, at Old Malling. Is not this of rather rare occurrence with this species? Itis frequently seen in the house sparrow, skylark and common bunting. —W.C. Unwin; St. Ann's, Lewes, February 19, 1849. Supposed Variety of the Hedge Sparrow (Sylvia modularis).—A very curious spe- cimen, supposed to be a variety of the hedge sparrow, was shot a few miles from here not long since. It is a pale fawn colour all over: it does not to me appear at all like a hedge sparrow, being altogether more slender; but it is pronounced by compe- tent authority to be that bird.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, April 17, 1849. Curious Nesting-place of Robins.—A pair of robins have built their nest behind a figure on the top of a small monument, in Thorpe church. There are now young ones in the nest; and the male bird—without any fear—brings them worms every now and then, even during divine service: a small broken pane of glass affords him an easy entrance. Two other instances have also come under my notice this year. One, where a pair have built their nest in a school-room, in which a continual bustle is going on all day; and the other, in the bed-room of a gentleman’s house: the win- dow is left open during the day, to enable the birds to obtain food for their progeny. —FPeter E. Hansell ; Thorpe, May 7, 1849. Description of the Eggs and Nest of a British Sylvia.—That there is a British Sylvia besides the species already described is made pretty evident by the following facts, corroborating as they do the remarks of your late correspondents, Messrs. Lean and Benson. Last week, when searching in a coppice near this place for nests of the _Sylviade, I found one in a wild rose-bush, having three rosy white, unspotted and nearly globular eggs in it, and placed about a foot and a half from the ground: the bird, which was on at the time, darted off so suddenly as to prevent my noting its appearance. From the number of the eggs I judged the bird had not finished laying, -and therefore brought one of them away with me, as I have frequently done with im- punity with the other Sylviade ; but to my great disappointment, on visiting it again two or three days afterwards, I found it had been forsaken. I must, therefore, con- tent myself at present with the nest and eggs only, which I will proceed to describe. Nest.—Made of the dried stems of small plants, finer in the inside, mixed with a little wool, and lined with long black horse-hair ; in short, very like that of the whitethroat, but thicker; the cavity two inches in diameter, and an inch and a half in depth. Vil R 2454 Birds. Eggs.—Long diameter {ths of an inch; transverse diameter {ths. On attempting to blow one of them it was found to be far advanced in incubation, the embryo being too large to admit of its passing out. From this circumstance it is probable this species lays but three eggs,—the number found in the nest mentioned by Mr. Benson.—John N. Beadles ; Broadway, Worcestershire, May 8, 1849. Occurrence of the Cirl Bunting (Emberiza cirlus) at Rye—I shot a very fine male specimen of this bird last week, from a thorn. Iam not aware of its having been noticed more than twice in this district, and I cannot find any one who knows the bird.—J. B. Ellman; Rye, April 17, 1849. Singular Anecdote of a Canary.—I fancy I have discovered rather a curious fact with regard to a pet canary in my possession. I find that though, when asleep, he is readily roused by being brought to the light of a candle, or by any movement which disturbs his equilibrium on his perch, no noise I have yet been able to make has been sufficient to interrupt his sleep. I have talked, bawled, whistled, clapped my hands, and sounded even the loudest and most braying notes of a cornopean close to him, without producing apparently the slightest effect. When awake, however, he takes notice of every noise that is made. Can any of your readers account for this, or tell me whether it is peculiar to my individual or the species? Will those who possess caged birds be kind enough to make the experiment for themselves, and forward the result to the ‘ Zoologist’ ?—W. S. Lewis ; Ripon, Yorkshire, April 17, 1849. Change of Colour in the Bullfinch.—I find, from inquiry of two bird-fanciers in this place, that they both have had bullfinches whose plumage has changed to black ; and they attribute it to the birds having been fed on hemp-seed, though it was par- tially mixed with canary seed; but in both instances in less time than four years, as mentioned by White,—one at the second time of moulting, and the other at the third. —Joseph Duff; Bishop’s Auckland, May, 1849. Frequent occurrence of the Hawfinch (Loxia coccothraustes) at Rye.—This bird has been almost common since Christmas in this neighbourhood, and last week eight were seen together. Several have been shot; and from the late appearance I incline | to think that they are going to nest with us. I know an instance of a nest with five eggs having been found at Tenterden, in Kent, ten miles from here—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, April 26, 1849. Occurrence of the Hawfinch at Tring and Berkhampstead.—I have now in my pos- session a beautiful pair of the hawfinch, which were shot here last week by a relation _ of mine. The birds were in full plumage, and would no doubt have bred here if al- lowed to remain: they were not observed previously to the day on which they were killed. I have since observed another pair in a wood near Tring. A male specimen was killed at Berkhampstead, six miles from here, about six years ago: I cannot hear of any other instance of the occurrence of the hawfinch in this locality —H. H. Crewe ; Drayton Lodge, Tring, Herts, April 16, 1849. Occurrence of the Smaller Spotted Woodpecker (Picus minor) near Stowmarket.— A specimen of this bird was shot at Haughleigh, near this town, two years ago. About the same time a specimen of the cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) was picked up in a ploughed field, twenty miles from the sea, and kept alive a few days, by a person entirely ignorant of its habits: when dead, he brought it to me to give it a “ local habitation and a name.”—C. R. Bree ; Stowmarket, March, 1849. Occurrence of the Hooded Crow (Corvus corone) at Drinkstone—In January last I saw a pair of hooded crows at Drinkstone, twenty-eight miles from the sea.—ZJd. Birds. 2455 Occurrence of the Hoopoe (Upupa Epops) in Norfolk.—A few specimens of the hoopoe have of late occurred in this county, as they often do, especially in the spring. —J. H. Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, May 1, 1849. Late-remaining Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus).—A cuckoo was shot close to the city of Worcester, on the 14th of October last—M. Curtler ; Bevere House, near Worcester, April 19, 1849. , Late appearance of the Swallow (Hirundo rustica) in 1848.—On the 25th of Octo- ber, 1848, some workmen being engaged upon the roof of my house, I was surprised by the appearance of three swallows flying about the men. I had not seen one since the beginning of the month. By the side of the edge of the gable end of the house the plaister was broken away, forming a hole, which led under the roof. While watching the birds, which came occasionally quite close to my face, I saw first one, then another, alight upon the ledge of the gable end, near the hole. Now, I thought, I am about to settle the question of hybernation: but I was disappointed. Though I watched them for several hours—though I sent the workmen to another part of the house, yet, although they frequently settled about the hole, they never entered it. They were evidently young birds, and -had been disturbed. One of them rested upon the chimney, and appeared weak and dull. I lost sight of them during the day; but the following morning, the weather being warm, I saw several flying about high up in the air. There is some mystery about these things. Why have these late appear- ances been more remarked this year than other years? How did the birds obtain food during the three weeks of bitter cold weather when they were not seen in October ?— C. R. Bree; Stowmarket, March, 1849. Occurrence of the Oyster-catcher (Hematopus ostralegus) in Worcestershire—A good specimen of the British oyster-catcher was shot on Monday last, on the river Severn, near Kempsey, about five miles from Worcester. For this bird to be met with so far inland is a circumstance I believe to be unrecorded.—M. Curtler ; Bevere House, near Worcester, April 19, 1849. Occurrence of the Avocet (Avocetta recurvirostra) near Lynn.—A specimen of the avocet was seen near Lynn a few weeks since.—John Henry Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, May 1, 1849. Occurrence of the Avocet in Romney Marsh.—A specimen of this bird was shot about four miles from here, by a fisherman, a week or two since. These birds are now very rare in this part, though formerly they used to breed here.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, April 17, 1849. Occurrence of the Avocet near Ramsgate-—A pair of avocets were shot during the month of March, in the marshes between Ramsgate and Sandwich. The man who shot them told me that they had been seen in nearly the same place for some weeks before. They are-very fine specimens; and I do not doubt that, had they remained undisturbed, they would have bred in the marshes.—Henry Benson ; Trinity College, Cambridge, April 29, 1849. Occurrence of the Spotted Sandpiper (Totanus macularius) at Whithy.—A beauti- ‘ful adult female was shot just to the north of the pier, at Whitby, on Thursday, the 29th of March, by a sailor on the beach. The bird came in the flesh the next day to Mr. Graham, my bird-stuffer, in York, by whom it has been very well set up, and is now in my collection. It is, I believe; the first instance of this bird being taken in Yorkshire ; though Mr. Higgins, of York, tells me he saw one in March, 1848, but was unable to secure it, on the same coast as my bird was found on, about thirty 2456 Birds. miles south. Of this I see a notice in the ‘Zoologist’ (Zool. 2147).—W. M. E. Milner ; Nunappleton, Tadcaster. Occurrence of the Spotted Sandpiper near York.—Last spring I sent you a notice of a specimen of spotted sandpiper seen by me at Bridlington Quay. I have much pleasure in being able now to send a more satisfactory account of the occurrence of this exceedingly rare British bird, of which a very fine and well-marked specimen was shot near Whitby, at the end of last March. I saw it while in the flesh; but the intestines, &c., having been removed, the sex could not be ascertained. It was remarkably tame. When shot, it was in company with a flock of dunlins (Tinga al- pina). ‘This (which I believe is the second instance recorded of the capture in Britain of this American species) certainly entitles it to be without hesitation included in the British list— Edmund Thomas Higgins ; York, May 1, 1849. The Jack Snipe (Scolopax gallinula) breeding in Norfolk.—Whilst walking over the marshes between Thorpe and Postwick, on the 2nd of May, I flushed a jack snipe; but it was in a very weak state, and could hardly fly. I have since been in- formed, by a bird-stuffer in Norwich, that one or two nests have been taken here this year.— Peter .. Hansell ; Thorpe, next Norwich, May 7, 1849. Occurrence of the Gig: legged Goose (Anser palustris) in Norfolk.—The week be- fore last a fine specimen of the gray-legged goose was shot on Breydon Water, near Yarmouth. The last specimen which came under my notice in Norfolk of this bird (previous to the present one) exhibited both the white front and the black bars on the breast, which have sometimes been supposed to’be exclusive characteristics of the white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons). The present specimen has the white front to a greater extent than the last, but is quite without the black bars. At the same time, I may add that I have never seen a specimen of the gray-legged goose exhibiting either of these characteristics to so great an extent, or so definitely marked, as is the case in the adult white-fronted goose. The present specimen is a male.-—John Henry Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, May 1, 1849. Occurrence of the Tufted Duck in Norfolk.—A specimen of the tufted duck was shot on Wroxham Broad, on Saturday, the 20th January last.—T7. H. Burroughes ; Harrow-on-the- Hill. Curious Anecdote of a Duek.—This morning I observed a duck, now sitting, take from her nest an egg. Being curious to see the result, I watched her proceedings. Taking it in her bill, she carried it a short distance to the gravel-walk, when she laid it down and broke it with her bill. She then returned to her nest, and resumed in- cubation. Upon examination, the egg proved an addled one. Is this instinct? I should be glad to know if any of your correspondents have observed similar instances. —G. G. Kennaway, M.A.; Exeter, May 10, 1849. Occurrence of the Eared Grebe (Podiceps auritus) in Norfolk.—Last week a speci- men of the eared grebe, in full breeding plumage, was shot at Sutton, in this county. —John Henry Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, May 1, 1849. Occurrence of the Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) in Worcestershire.—A beautiful specimen of the cormorant (a female) was shot at Hewell Park, about sixteen miles from Worcester, last week.— M. Curtler; Bevere House, near Worcester, April 19, 1849. Note on Sea Gulls.—A few days since I was walking in the marsh, in the after- noon, about the time that the gulls return to the sea for the night: over-head I saw two flights of gulls, of about 200 each, coming at right angles to each other; and as Birds. 2457 I conjectured that they must come in contact, I watched their motions. When within about thirty yards of each other, each flight made a rapid swoop, descending in a curve _ about fifty feet below their former height, as near as I could judge, with a tremendous rushing noise, which I can only compare to as many sticks struck rapidly through the air; and then—which pleased me most—each flight passed completely through the other, gracefully regained their former height, and pursued their undeviating course to their stormy abode.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, April 26, 1849. The Masked Gull (Larus capistratus).—I have to apologize to Mr. Strickland for having allowed his inquiry (Zool. 2068) respecting the masked gull to remain so long unanswered ; but the fact is, that having left home in consequence of the illness of a member of my family, I did not receive the number of the ‘ Zoologist’ containing that inquiry; and it was not until a few evenings back, on taking up the last year’s volume, I chanced to meet with it. At this distance of time I find some difficulty in giving Mr. Strickland a definite answer. I can give only my general impressions ; and such impressions are worth little in the cause of science. We left Malaga early in May, and at that time the masked gull might be seen in considerable numbers flying about in the harbour; and, if I remember aright, with the exception of one or two species of tern, it was then the only sea-bird frequenting that locality. The com- mon gull, which had been very abundant, and the lesser black-backed gull, had some time previously deserted the coast. My impression is, that I did not see at Malaga a single example of the black-headed gull; and I remember the idea crossing my mind that the masked gull was the representative of the genus in the Mediterranean, and occupied the place filled by the black-headed gull in our own country. I could not obtain specimens, because the harbour only was frequented by this gull; and it was not allowable, or at least would not have been agreeable, to use one’s gun in that vicinity. But of the species I feel quite certain; for the birds would constantly pass and repass within half-a-dozen yards of the spot I was standing on. I was not aware at that time that any doubt existed respecting the specific identity of the masked gull. My own specimen, obtained at Shanklin, certainly possesses some characteris- tics distinct from those of the black-headed gull: and I think the fact that this bird had not left the coast, for the purpose of breeding, so late as the first week in May,— when, if the black-headed gull be found in those parts, it must have retired to the breeding-place some time before,—is not unworthy the attention of naturalists in helping to decide the question in dispute.-—Charles A. Bury ; Cheshunt, Herts, May, 1849. Dates of Arrival of Migratory Birds at Rye, Sussex.—The following list is very incomplete, since there are many birds of which I have not had an opportunity of noting the first arrival: such are therefore excluded; but I will vouch for those enumerated being correct. Wheatear, March 23; willow wren, April 2; swallow, April 7; nightingale, April 9; blackcap and wryneck, April 11; ring ouzel, April 14 and May 9; redstart, yellow wagtail and common whitethroat, April 17; tree pipit, April 26 ; lesser whitethroat, April 28 ; red-backed shrike and cuckoo, April 30; sedge warbler, May 1; swift, May 2.—J. B. Ellman ; Rye, May 14, 1849. 2458 Reptiles. Toad in Solid Wood.— A correspondent residing at Serampore has sent us the following account of a phenomenon not often to be seen in India :—Last Wednesday (February 7th), on severing the branch of a tree, apparently of the tamarind species, I found a toad in the centre of the wood, entirely excluded from light and air. The appearance of the animal was rather extraordinary. The body seemed full of air and the skin soft and puffy, and of a light yellowish colour, with the exception of the extremities of the feet, which were hard and dark. The creature when exposed to the air seemed rather uncomfortable, and drew in its head just like -a turtle when alarmed. It was thrown into a tank, when the water around, to the space of about a foot on either side, became perfectly white, like milk. It jumped out of the water immediately, apparently not liking the coldness. I did not have the opportunity of observing it further, which I regret, as the animal got concealed in the long grass on the side of the tank, and was thus lost. The general supposition as to the mode by which animals get enclosed within trees is, their taking shelter in the cavity of a tree when very young, and the growth of the tree filling up the cavity, and thus impri- soning the animal. | But this supposition, if true in the present case, makes the cir- cumstance now related the more extraordinary. The tree is an old one, upwards of fifty feet high, and having a trunk more than three feet in diameter; and the height from the ground at which the toad was found was about twelve feet. We must sup- pose the toad to have got into the tree when within a foot from the ground: how many years old then must the animal be?”—‘ Bombay Bi-monthly Times. The Great Sea-Serpent.—* I see in your paper of the 30th December, a paragraph in which a doubt is expressed of the authenticity of the account given by Captain M’Quhe of the ‘ great sea-serpent.. When returning to India, in the year 1829, I was standing on the poop of the Royal Saxon, in conversation with Captain Petrie, the commander of that ship. We were at a considerable distance south-west of the Cape of Good Hope, in the usual track of vessels to this country, going rapidly along (seven or eight knots) in fine smooth water: it was in the middle of the day, and the other passengers were at lunch; the man at the wheel, a steerage passenger, and ourselves, being the only persons on the poop. Captain Petrie and myself at the same instant were literally fixed in astonishment by the appearance, a short distance ahead, of an animal of which no more generally correct description could be given than that by Captain M’Quhe. It passed within thirty-five yards of the ship, without altering its course in the least ; but as it came right abreast of us, it slowly turned its head towards us. Apparently about one-third of the upper part of its body was above water in nearly its whole length, and we could see the water curling up on its breath as it moved along, but by what means it moved we could not perceive. We watched it going astern with intense interest, until it had nearly disappeared, when my com- panion, turning to me with a countenance expressive of the utmost astonishment, exclaimed, ‘ Good heavens! what that can be?’ It was strange that we never thought of calling the party engaged at luncheon to witness the extraordinary sight we had seen; but the fact is, we were so absorbed in it ourselves that we never spoke, and scarcely moved, until it had nearly disappeared. Captain Petrie, a superior and most intelligent man, has since perrshed in the exercise of his profession: of the fate of the others then on deck I am ignorant, so the story rests on my own unsupported word, but I pledge that word to its correctness. Professor Owen’s supposition that the ani- mal seen by the officers of the Daedalus was a gigantic seal I believe to be incorrect, because we saw this apparently similar creature in its whole length, with the exception Reptiles. 2459 of a small portion of the tail, which was under water; and by comparing its length with that of the Royal Saxon (about 600 feet), when exactly alongside in passing, we _ calculated it to be in that, as well as in its other dimensions, greater than the animal described by Captain M’Quhe. Should the foregoing account be of any interest to you, it is at your service: it is an old story, but a true one. Iam not quite sure of our latitude and longitude at the time, nor do I exactly remember the date, but it was about the end of July. R. Davipson, Superintending Surgeon, Nagpore Subsidiary Force ; Kamptee, 3rd January, 1849.” [In a letter addressed to the Editor of the ‘ Bombay Times. —Z. N.] The Great Sea-Serpent—* Captain Adams, of the schooner Lucy and Nancy, which arrived at Jacksonville, Florida, on the Ist of April, from New York, had sight of a monster in many respects resembling the sea-monsters described by many others. Captain Adams states that on the morning of Sunday, the 18th of February, about nine o'clock, when off the south point of Cumberland Island, about twelve miles from the St. John’s (Florida) bar, the attention of himself, crew and passengers, was sud- denly rivetted upon an immense sea-monster, which he took to be a serpent. It lifted its head, which was that of a snake, several times out of the water, seemingly to take a survey of the vessel, and at such times displayed the largest portion of its body, and a pair of frightful fins or c!aws, several feet in length. His tail was not seen at any time; but, judging from the dimensions of the body, the captain supposes the leviathan to be about 90 feet in length. Its neck tapered small from the head to the body, and it appeared to measure about seven feet across the broadest part of the back. The colour was that of a dirty brown. When first seen it was moving towards the mouth of the St. John’s. The monster moved from the side of the vessel, and placed itself athwart its track, in front of her bows; but Captain Adams, not feeling partial to an encounter with his snakeship, ordered the vessel to be kept off. A boy on the deck, not knowing his antagonist, had seized a harpoon, and was in the act of striking, when he was prevented by the vessel’s moving off.”—‘ Boston Atlus.’ The Great Sea-Serpent.—‘ What degree of confidence the following story may gain is to me a subject of very little consideration; for as I can have no view of gaining anything by it, so it certainly will appear that it would hardly be worth the trouble of invention: but as a story of this sort has made its appearance among our transatlantic friends, without being at all credited, it is as likely in Europe this may have the same fate; yet if it can afford any amusement or information for intelligent and scrutinizing minds, for their gratification I freely give it to the press, assuring them, on my sacred honour, of the truth of what I am about to describe. On Sunday, about 5 p.m., being then in latitude 46, longitude 3, by dead. reckoning, observed an immense body on the surface of the water, apparently without motion, but water spouting from it, not unlike the blowing of a whale. I immediately got my glass; and, from its rugged appearance and showing nothing where the water issued from, I began to entertain some doubts, that this must have been the vigia laid down for Barenethy’s rocks or the three chimneys, and, so prepared in my own mind, I directed the steering sails to be taken in and the ship prepared for going about. Some of my ship’s company were of opinion it was a ship bottom-up: this I thought not unlikely, and went into the main cat harpens to look more distinctly at it: the appearance then was still steady, but irregular. I saw neither head nor tail above the water, but a hump from one extreme resembling the rise or point of rather a triangu- lar rock: this tapered to a distance,—I certainly believe 70 or 100 feet, and the water 2460 Fishes. broke over it, a little beyond it: it discharged the spout; but nothing showing itself, undetermined in mind what it could be, or whether I should tack the ship, it all at once disappeared, and, to my great astonishment, a head and neck—resembling some- thing of a serpent’s—made its appearance, erected about six feet above the surface of the water. After taking a survey towards the vessel, it all at once vanished, leaving us full of conjecture and surprise. It gives me more confidence in making the above statement, as one of the seamen, whose name is Jonathan Townsend, was in the main top, and saw the creature I have described, and would feel no hesitation in taking an oath to it. Grorcr Sanrorp, Lieutenant R.N.” [Copied from a memorandum-book of Lieut. Sanford, and communicated by Dr. Scott, of Exeter. There is no date to the above statement, but it is presumed to have been written about the year 1820. Lieut. Sanford then commanded a merchant ship, the Lady Combermere.—E. N.] Occurrence of a supposed New Species of Riband Fish on the Coast off Cullercoats. —At the annual meeting of the Tyneside Naturalists’ Field Club, a paper was read, being the joint production of Mr. Albany Hancock and Dr. Embleton, on the speci- men of riband fish (genus Gymnetrus) lately found off the coast at Cullercoats, which is intended for presentation to the Museum of the Natural History Society, by its proprietor, Mr. Edward Whitfield. It will probably be printed at length in the Transactions of the Society, but we cannot forbear giving one or two extracts. First, with regard to the general appearance of the fish. The fishermen who caught it state that when first taken it was all over of a brilliant iridescent silvery hue, which soon faded; but when seen by Mr. Hancock and Dr. Embleton, all traces had disappeared of the iridescence, except about the pectoral fin and head, and the colour was a silvery gray, with a few dark spots and streaks towards the anterior part of the body. The fish presented somewhat the form of a double-edged sword-blade, being excessively compressed. Its length was 12 feet 3 inches. Immediately behind the gills it mea- — sured 10 inches in depth. From this point it gradually enlarged to a distance of upwards of two feet further back, where it attained its greatest depth, of 114 inches. The skin was covered over with a very fine pigment-looking matter, to which the sil- . very colour was owing, and which came away from the skin on the slightest friction. The whole surface of the skin was studded with very numerous small, distinct, and irregularly-disposed tubercles of bone. The dorsal fin extends from a little way above and behind the eye, uninterruptedly to within three inches of the posterior end of the fish. In front of it was a tall prominent crest, directed forward, which was stated by the captors to be 12 or 14 inches in length when the fish was taken; it con- sisted of twelve spiny rays. . Exclusive of the crest, there are 267 rays in the dorsal fin. The head is small and short; the tongue very small, smooth and fixed. No teeth were discovered. The eye was an inch and a half in diameter; the iris of a — beautiful silvery white, and rather broader than the diameter of the pupil. The writers, after some further minutie, proceed to give the results of an internal exami- — nation of the fish. They then observe that, on referring to what they had been able to find recorded respecting the genus Gymnetrus, they discovered that the figures, as well as the descriptions of the external parts, were very imperfect, and the anatomy — . | ; Fishes. 2461 little known: hence they had been induced to draw up a minute description, which they hoped would be of service should this specimen even prove to belong to any of the species already noticed. They were, however, disposed to look upon the Culler- coats fish as a distinct species. Of this rare genus five species are known; two of these are Norwegian, two belong to the Indian seas, and probably a fifth, which was captured off the Cornish coast. The Norwegian species appears generally to precede or accompany the shoals of herrings, and hence is called “ king of the herrings.” Of these the G. Ascanii of Shaw seems to be the most nearly allied to our fish, but is distinguished from it by the following marks. The former is 10 feet long and 6 inches in depth; its length is, therefore, to its depth as 20 to 1; the latter, accord- ing to the measurements above given, is 13 times longer than it is deep; the former has, according to some 120, and according to others 160, rays in the dorsal fin; the latter has 267 rays. There are other peculiarities which show a great difference be- tween G. Ascanii and the Cullercoats fish. The other Norwegian species, named G. Grillii, is noticed in Griffith’s Cuvier as being 18 feet long, and having upwards of 400 rays in the dorsal fin: this also is concluded to be distinct from our specimen. There is another species, figured in Cuvier and Valenciennes, vol. x. pl. 298, which comes near to our fish, but, from its markings and in other respects, it is a species different from ours. Of the Indian species, one, the Russelian, described as a proba- ble variety in vol. iv. part 2 of Shaw’s Zoology, is only 2 feet 8 inches long, and has 320 rays in the dorsal fin; and it differs in several other respects. The other, named by Bloch G. Hawkenii, is described by him as 2 feet long and 6 inches deep; its proportions are therefore very different from any other member of the genus. The writers next refer to the specimen caught off the south coast of Cornwall, in February, 1791, and, after describing its peculiarities, they incline to the opinion that the Cornish species is distinct from the Northumberland specimen; but even if they adopted the contrary opinion, it would be necessary to give a new name to our speci- men, as it is evidently distinct from all the species hitherto named. Notwithstanding the rarity of this genus, they go on to remark, there is some reason to believe that species belonging to it have been taken before this on our eastern coast. An elderly gentleman, residing in Newcastle, stated that about fifty years ago a silvery fish, re- sembling in its general characters the subject of this paper, was taken off Tynemouth ; and it appears by the ‘Annual Register’ that a fish was captured at Whitby, January 23, 1759, closely related to it, if not identical with our species. The writers had, moreover, learnt from a Norwegian captain, who frequents this port, and has traded to Archangel, that in the White Sea, fish closely resembling the Cullercoats specimen have been, though rarely, seen,—the silvery colour, long attenuated form, and the rapid undulating motion, being their chief characteristics. They are there called Stone serpents. It has occurred at once to many here, on first viewing the Gymne- trus, that it may have been taken for the famous sea-serpent; and the Archangel name of the fish seen there strengthens the idea that it possibly may, at times, have deceived the eye of the credulous mariner, from its rapid undulating motion and linear form, and from its occasionally swimming at the surface. On consulting the accounts, however, which have appeared of the sea-serpent, it was found that they related to creatures widely different from the riband fish; such as whales, seals, sharks, &c., seen under disadvantageous circumstances, or imperfectly observed. Still, though the Gymnetrus may not have originated the idea of the existence of a marine serpent, the occasional appearance of this fish may very materially have tended to keep up, among VIL Ss 2462 Mollusks, &c. the Norwegian fishermen, the faith which they are stated to hold in the existence of such a monster. ‘Thanks were voted to Mr. Whitfield, for the facilities he had afforded for the examination of the fish, and for his generous intention to make a do- nation of it to the Natural History Society of this town. A special vote of thanks was given to Mr. Hancock and Dr. Embleton, for their interesting and valuable paper. [It is almost needless to say that this is the marine animal referred to in the last number (Zool. 2433).—H#. Newman. | Supposed Monstrosity of Planorbis carinatus—While searching yesterday for some fresh-water shells, amongst a quantity of drift thrown up from our river, I found one _ of a very remarkable appearance, differing entirely from any that I had met with during some years of collecting in this neighbourhood. It has the flattened form of a Trechus at the base, and tapers upwards to a sharp, cone-shaped spire, or what would have been such, but that the extreme point is slightly broken, the shell being dead and bleached. At first it puzzled me to determine ; but, on a close examination, I have no doubt it is a distorted and much-produced individual of Planorbis carina- tus or marginatus, probably the former: the aperture is decidedly that of a Planorbis, and the keel is observable, following the suture of the volutions. Still, the whole ap- pearance of the shell is so regular, and even elegant, as to make one almost hesitate at pronouncing it a monstrosity. There is a certain finish about the base, which for- bids the idea of its being a Bulimus in the young, unformed state, which at first sight it somewhat resembles. Dr. Turton gives a figure, in his ‘ Conchological Dictionary, of a shell found near Dublin, which he calls Helix terebra, and which is certainly very similar, only the summit of the spire is more completely uniwisted than in my specimen: no doubt it was a like distortion of some Planorbis, as Dr. T. seems to have suspected, and I believe stated in a subsequent work.—W. D. King; Sudbury, 5th mo. 1, 1849. Proceedings of the Entomological Society. May 7.—G. R. Warteruouse, Esq., President, in the chair. The following gentlemen were present as visitors: M. Chevrolat, M. Javet, Mr. Swanzy, Mr. Hogg and Mr. Marshall. The Secretary announced that Part 6 of vol. v. of the Transactions was on the table ; also that the following presents had been received :—p. 34. ** Much lower in the scale of being than bivalve Mollus¢a, but elaborately or- ganized, and offering many interesting points in their history, are the heart urchins, a tribe of animals enclosed in egg-like shells, coated with spines, which inhabit all our sandy bays. There are several recent British species, but I shall only mention the common heart urchin (Amphidotus cordatus), mermaid’s head, or sea egg, as it is variously called, which is found all round the coast. When alive, it is thickly clothed with fine hair-like spines, each of which is articulated at base with a minute nipple, forming a ball-and-socket joint, so that the spine can move freely in all directions. The spines are of different forms and length on different parts of the body, and, frail as they appear, serve the purpose to which they are applied, of enabling the animal to sink itself in the sand, shovelling the fine particles out of the way, and throwing them over its back. When thrown upon shore, the spines are usually more or less broken, and soon are completely worn off, when the dead shell resembles a heart- shaped egg, of a dirty-white colour, frosted over with minute tubercles, which are_ largest on its under surface, where the orifice of the mouth is seen; and it is marked, both on the back and lower surface, with five radiating smooth depressions, bordered with a double row of pin-holes. These spaces, which are much more developed on the back than on the oral surface, are called ambulacra ; and through the pores or pin- holes which border them, the animal protrudes long worm-like suckers, which serve the office of feet, and enable him to move about by a sort of warping motion (to speak nautically), fixing the sucker of one fibrous cord in advance of his position, gradually bringing the rest forward, and so dragging the body along. Those on the oral sur- face are much less developed, and chiefly serve to hold the ground. It is curious to finda creature whose organs of locomotion are most developed on the upper surface ; but we may be assured that they are not so placed without a wise design. It is easy to see that such an organization enables the creature to recover its natural position with ease, if accidentally inverted ; but the arrangement probably serves many other purposes. . “The affinity of the heart urchin with the common egg urchins is readily seen; their connexion with starfishes is, at first sight, less obvious. Nevertheless, a careful comparison of the living animals will show many points in common: thus the five- rayed ambulacra on the back of the Amphidotus represent the rays of the starfish ; and when we place a large number of species, recent and fossil, under review, the pas- sage from the most branching starfish to the roundest sea-egg may be clearly made out through a beautiful gradation of forms. * * * The family of Echinida, to which these animals belong, was much richer in forms in the earlier world than it at present appears to be; and from the great facility with which the hard parts of the shelly integument may be preserved, the remains of these creatures have come down to us in a very perfect state. The study of them, therefore, is quite as interesting to the geologist as to the zoologist. It is of importance to the former to know the habits of the living species, that he may form a judgment on what those of the extinct kinds may have been, and thus arrive-at just conclusions on the circumstances under which the rocks and gravels, where their remains are preserved, have been deposited. Of 2472 The Sea-side Book. the sub-tribe of heart urchins (Spatangacee), very numerous species, many of them of highly curious and elegant forms, exist in the oolite and the chalk, and abound in many tertiary deposits. They all characterise marine strata, and generally indicate shallow parts of the sea. Very few of the kinds now living have.been found fossil- ized, except in deposits which are evidently of a recent date. Thus in these, as in other races of animals, there have been successions of species, each marking its own era. ) ** Among the common productions of sandy shores several species of zoophytes present themselves, generally in a dead state, the fleshy parts having wholly disap- peared, leaving merely the skeleton or skin behind. These skeletons often resemble sea-weeds, both in the plant-like forms they assume, and in bearing along the branches little membranous sacs, which look like minute flowers or seed-vessels, and are, indeed, organs of a similar nature, being the ovaries in which the germs of the young polypes are contained. From sea-weeds the skeletons in question may always be known by their horny or bony texture, and their generally pale, testaceous colour. There is but one group of sea-plants, the jointed corallines, which so far resemble some of them in being hard, and indeed stony in substance, as to lead to their being commonly con- founded, even by naturalists, with skeletons of zoophytes. But these are rock plants, which we shall speak of in another chapter. Most of the zoophytes, also, are natives of rocky places, or of shingly ground, such as oyster-beds, beyond the reach of the tide. And it is only the species which are accidentally thrown up by the waves which we meet with on strands. Of these, one of the most common is Flustra foliacea, * * a much-branched species, of a papery substance and dirty-white colour, flat, and built up of innumerable little oblong cells, placed back to back, like those of a honey-comb, and each crowned (as may readily be seen with the help of a pocket-lens) by four stout spines. It is these spines which give the surface of the polypidom (as the plant-like body is called) its peculiar, rough or harsh feel, observable if the finger be passed over the surface from the apex toward the base. “This structure of cells (polypidom or leafy-body) is not the remains of a single animal, but of a community of individuals as numerous as those of one of our cities, each of which dwelt within the narrow compass of one of the cells, in which he was born, lived and died. This cell was his house, more literally his skin, within which he enjoyed an independent existence, at the same time that he was linked, by a com- mon circulation, to the cells above and below him; and thus had a double existence, being at the same time himself and a part of ‘the neighbours ;’ or rather, a part of a compound animal represented by the polypidom itself, and whose individuality is exhibited by the regularity of its growth; just as a plant, which may be considered as a community of separate leaves, proves its individuality by the orderly manner in which those leaves are arranged. The life enjoyed by this common Flustra may be taken as an example of that of a class of animals to which it is related, the compound polypes whose remains, recent and fossil, constitute an enormous portion of the fossil- ized crust of the earth. The general form and structure of the individual polypes may be illustrated by the largest members of the group, the sea Anemones, whose flower-like bodies are seen expanded in every rock-pool left by the tide. The little polypes which dwelt in the cells of the Flustra were animals of a something similar form, though different structure, each crowned with a star-like flower; and the whole together exhaled an odour, when fresh, compared by some observers to that of the orange, by others to that of violets, and, again, to a mixture of the odour of roses and The. Sea-side Book. 2473 geranium. The sea has its gardens as well as the land, and their denizens more wonderful, for the flowers of the sea enjoy animal life. “ Tt is common, in speaking of coral banks and islands, to attribute the formation of these vast submarine deposits to the work of the polypes, and to extol the industry of the little creatures in building up monuments whose vastness leaves the pyramids an immeasurable distance behind. And, in some sense indeed, coral islands are their work ; but scarcely in a higher sense than peat-bogs may be said to be the work of mosses, or the coal-fields those of other classes of vegetables. In speaking of coral islands as the work of the polypes, we lose sight of the fact that the island itself is one vast polypidom, all whose living parts have, in the aggregate, as much individu- ality—so far as they consist of a single species—as the polypidom of the Flustra we have been examining. In coral banks several species unite together, and each, of course, preserves its individuality; but it is quite conceivable to suppose a single spe- cies, forming a single mass, and gradually constituting a bank or island. Now, the growth of the insular mass no more depends on the will of the polypes, of whose branches it consists, than the growth of any other skeleton depends on the will of the animal whose organs secrete it. “‘ A very common zoophyte, frequently thrown up on sandy shores from deep water, very different in aspect from the Flustra, but belonging to a neighbouring family of animals, is what is commonly called dead men’s toes or hands (Alcyonium digitatum). This constitutes a fleshy, semi-transparent mass, coated with a tough orange-coloured skin, and exceedingly sportive in shape: sometimes forming a mere crust on the sur- face of the shell to which it adheres; at other times pushing up a trunk which divides into finger-like branches. As it lies on the shore it certainly offers few inducements from its beauty, to recommend it to further notice; yet it is one of the many natural productions which only require to be looked at with a moderate attention to elicit from them much that is curious and beautiful in structure. Ifa piece of this zoophyte, newly cast up, be placed in a vessel of sea-water, it will soon acquire favour in our eyes. The tough, orange skin, when closely looked at, will be found studded with in- numerable star-like points, each furnished with eight rays, and marking the orifice of the cell in which a polype is lodged. When the polypidom has remained a while in the water, its polypes, if still alive, will gradually protrude themselves from the starry points, pushing out a cylindrical body, clear as crystal, fluted like a column, and ter- minated by a flower-like, eight-rayed mouth; the whole surface, at last, becoming densely clothed with these animated flowers. The unsightly aspect of the trunk, which reminded us of fingers or toes, is now forgotten, just as we forget the fleshy branches of a Cactus when we see it clothed with its gorgeous flowers. Nor is the in- ternal structure of our zoophyte less worthy of examination and admiration. Not to speak of its minute anatomy, a simple longitudinal section, if examined with a mode- rate lens, will reveal a complicated system ‘of inosculating canals, which form a sort of circulation through the mass, by connecting with the rest of the body the polype cells, which are placed immediately under the outer skin. These tubes are bound to- gether by a fibrous net-work, and lie imbedded in a transparent jelly, which forms the fleshy part of the compound animal. The eggs are lodged in the tubes, and at length discharged through the mouth. Such is the simple structure of these animals, which are nevertheless arranged with as much care and nicety, in proportion to their organi- zation, as we find in animals much higher in the scale of being.”—p. 41. 2474 Quadrupeds. Inquiry as to the best mode of preparing Skeletons.—If some of the contributors to the ‘ Zoologist’ will, through its pages, be kind enough to give some instructions as to the best method of preparing skeletons, they will confer an esteemed favour on my- self, and perhaps others also. Dissecting some of the smaller animals by the knife is very tedious. I have often buried my specimen in an ant-hill for that purpose, but invariably before the work was completed have I lost it—I suppose by some predatory animal. I have thought, in these days of chemical knowledge, some of your cor- respondents might know of some substance that would destroy the flesh without injury to the bone.—Joseph Duff ; Bishop’s Auckland. [Carrying out the plan of employing ants as the anatomists, the animal may be placed in a perforated tin box or canister—Hdward Newman. | ay Can the Ferret exist ina state of Nature in England ?—Mr. Bird asks (Zool. 2440) if the ferret can exist in England in a state of nature. On this point I am not able to answer him in a positive manner; but it is my opinion that it can, for which I will give my reason. Six or seven years ago I kept ferrets for the purpose of destroying rats: on one occasion, having put a ferret into a rat-hole, I lost sight of the animal for about a week, when he was found wandering in a plantation in search of food: this happened in cold weather. Some time after I lost him again, and he was not heard of for a fortnight; but was at last found near some rabbit-holes, half a mile from the place where lost.—E. Peacock, Jun. ; ; Messingham, Kirton Lindsey, May 7, 1849. A Rat killed by a Frog.—As James Ashworth, who resides at Gravel Hole, near Thornham, had occasion to go into a plot of ground, in which is a pool of water, his attention was drawn to a rat, which plunged into the water and swam nearly across, but suddenly disappeared: he then went round the pool, thinking it might have taken refuge under some brink of the water, but being unable to rouse it he was about leav- ing the place, when, to his great astonishment, he saw—at a few yards from the side —the rat dead, although still warm, with a large frog holding it by the throat. sie municated by F. Webster. Is the Water Rat (Arvicola amphibius) entirely Herbivorous >—Can any of the - correspondents of the ‘ Zoologist’ inform me if the common water rat is entirely herbivorous in its habits; or if it does not now and then, just for a treat, feast on a young duck or chicken?—£’. Peacock, Jun.; Messingham, Kirton Lindsey, May 8, 1849. Whistling Mouse.—A remarkable fact has lately come under my notice, of the au- thenticity of which I have not the slightest doubt. A family, residing in this county, frequently heard in one of their rooms a shrill whistle, resembling in tone and power the highest note of a canary. At first little notice was taken of the circumstance; but its repeated occurrence, and the sweet trilling note, sometimes loud and piercing, at others dying away in the softest cadence, led to an investigation, and, much to their astonishment, the delightful little songster was discovered to be a mouse. They fre- quently saw it as it crossed and recrossed the room, and, as if conscious that he afforded amusement to his listeners, appeared in no haste to retreat. This continued for about two months, when, workmen being employed to do some repairs to the room, Quadrupeds— Birds. ; 2475 the little fellow disappeared, and was never afterwards heard.—John Collins ; Kirk- burton, Huddersfield, May 19, 1849. . [Several singing mice have been exhibited in London. See an account of one I _ visited in 1843 (Zool. 288).—#. Newman.] Whistling Mice—*“ Much has been written of late years about singing mice (whistling mice would be a better term). There is nothing particularly new in the discovery, for I well remember, when a boy, being, with the rest of the family, repeat- edly summoned by my brother intg the cellar, to listen to the performance of one of these little musicians. The whistling, which was varied, though low, was evidently a voluntary act, and seemed peculiarly indicative of ease and enjoyment; for when at all startled it immediately ceased; nor did it reeommence till the little creature re- sumed its composure. This was heard at intervals for many weeks; and a few years after a similar instance again occurred.”—‘ A Paper on the Study of Natural History, by W. D. King, p. 15. The Birds of Melbourne. By J. J. Bricas, Esq. THE migration of birds is so important a feature in the natural history of any district, that I shall make no apology for alluding to it frequently in my investigation of this. Naturalists in general appear to have paid more attention to the arrival than the departure of birds, yet both are equally important. This defect has arisen, no doubt, from the greater degree of difficulty which attends it,—a circumstance I have previously pointed out (Zool. 440). During the course of many years, I have observed that our earliest spring visitor is the chiff-chaff, our latest the spotted flycatcher. The arrival of birds ap- _ pears to be more influenced by the state of the season than by any other cause; yet be the weather ever so fine about the usual period of arrival, and though vegetation has considerably advanced in ‘its progress, if the moon be not at the full their arrival will be delayed until it is. The arrival of certain birds may be foretold to a day or two, by a person who keeps a journal of rural occurrences, and then turns to an almanack and ascertains at what particular time in April the moon is at the full. Thus, for instance, I know the swallow arrives here somewhere about the middle of April; and if a full moon occurs about the 15th, I am pretty confident to see him a day or two either before or after. The following coincidences have struck me:—the _chiff-chaff usually arrives a little before the larch is visibly green; the _willow warbler when the willows are in infant leaf, and the wood war- bler when the oak and elm are budding: when the gooseberry is in full leaf the garden warbler appears, and the blackcap scarcely ever before the hawthorns are expanded: the yellow wagtail arrives 2476 Birds. generally when spring corn is sown, and first frequents fallow ground ; and the landrail when the vegetation of hedgerows has just sprung sufficiently high to hide it: the Hirundines appear when flies become pretty abundant; the cuckoo when the weather becomes pleasant and sunny: the sedge and reed warblers rarely visit us until the rank flags and reeds are a foot high, and afford them concealment. I think that the males of most species arrive some days before the females ; and all birds seem to commence their cries and songs immediately on their arrival. Osprey (Falco Halieetus). See Zool. 553. Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus). See Zool. 553. Hobby (Falco subbuteo). See Zool. 553. Merlin (Falco Atsalon). See Zool. 644. Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus). Called the ‘standing hawk,’ from its habit of hovering or remaining almost motionless over its object of prey. Sparrow Hawk (Falco nisus). The late Mr. Bowman, who was keeper to the Right Hon. Lord Viscount Melbourne, commuicated to me the following anecdotes, which show the fierce and daring dispo- sition of the sparrow hawk. He was once out shooting, when he sprang a covey of partridges, out of which he killed two birds, and wounded a third, which lay bleeding on the ground and still in a death-flutter. A sparrow hawk, which had either sat perched on a neighbouring tree or was hovering overhead, beheld the captive, and, instantly descending, seized the partridge, and was bearing him away in his talons, when a second gun being levelled at him he was brought to the ground. On another occasion, a snipe being wounded and flying with difficulty to a sedge-brake, a sparrow hawk pounced upon it, and, within thirty yards of Mr. Bowman’s gun, bore it away tri-- umphantly. A labouring man, in this parish, was taking a nest from — the top of a tree, and had put the eggs into his hat, which he held in his hand, when the old birds came home, and, perceiving the intruder, dashed at him with great fury, beat their wings about his face, and made him loose the eggs, which fell to the ground. This hawk is not uncommon here, but since the more strict preservation of game his ranks have been thinned by the gamekeepers. Kite (Falco milvus). Sometimes seen sailing over our grass fields, | at a considerable height, and in a steady and graceful manner. Buzzard (Falco buteo). Occasionally trapped at Donnington Park : the latest bird was killed in 1845. Hen Harrier (Falco cyaneus). See Zool. 645. ee Birds. 2477 _ Eagle Owl (Strix bubo). Several have been killed hereabouts, but none in this parish. One shot at Shardlow in 1828. -Long-eared Owl (Strix otus). Rather scarce in these parts. One seen near Gorstey Leys, November 29; and another shot here No- _ vember 24, 1844. Short-eared Owl (Strix brachyotos). Migratory, but irregular in its visits. Arrives in the autumn, somewhere about old Michaelmas day, and departs about the middle of March. It frequents the most exposed parts of the country, caring little for woods, rarely settling on trees. It destroys mice, reptiles, and numbers of beetles, which it procures principally in turnip-fields. October 15, 1838: one killed close to Melbourne. Snowy Owl (Strix nyctea). On May 20, 1841, I observed in the meadows a majestic and beautiful owl, almost as large as an eagle, which I have no doubt was a bird of this species. It departed in a few days, after baffling the endeavours of several persons to shoot it. White or Barn Owl (Strix flammea). Breeds in the old oaks of Donnington and Calke, and comes down to our low meadows towards evening to feed, beating them over with exactness and care. In a neighbouring village is a barn which has in its interior a small wooden box, of dovecote-like appearance, which a pair of owls bas occupied for a great number of years. Year by year they live unmolested and undisturbed, being encouraged rather than otherwise on account of their predatory propensities. Hundreds of individuals have been reared in this spot, but it is never occupied by more than one pair at the same time; for no sooner is a brood fully fledged and able to maintain itself, than a pair of the strongest drive the rest of the family from the spot, and occupy it themselves. Their larder is supplied on a most baronial scale. The floor of the place is a foot thick with the indigestible parts of their food, which are reproduced from the stomach in pellets or castings; and it may be perceived upon what food they feed by the bones and refuse. Their favourite food is rats, mice, sparrows, buntings, and beetles, and on this account are truly valuable about farms. They deposit their eggs without nest on the castings, and I have found as many as eight. Snowy nights oblige owls to seek for food in barns and out-buildings: if unmolested they soon clear them of rats and mice. Their name, I think, must be derived from the dismal noise they make in the night. The word ‘ owl’ was for- merly, perhaps, written ‘ howl.’ Tawny Owl (Strix stridula). Haunts our woods and copses, espe- cially the young plantations of Donnington, and sometimes the largest Vil U 2478 Birds. oak trees in the hedgerows near them. It. sleeps most of the day, if not disturbed, on.a bough near the bole, and its plumage serves in some measure to conceal it from observation. Its favourite food is hares and rabbits, and when these are not at hand it captures water- rats, moles, and various kinds of field-mice; but it rarely takes the latter when the former are to be obtained. I have examined many pellets cast up beneath some favourite tree, but they were generally composed of the fur of rabbits and hares: they are usually shaped like a pear, being enclosed in a tough husk or covering, resembling brown paper when dried, but immediately after ejection from the sto- mach are wet and slimy, and on that account more easily effect a passage through the throat. They remain with us the year round in limited numbers, and keepers find them very destructive to young game. an) Little Owl (Strix passerina). Once or twice has occurred in this neighbourhood, but not very recently. Great Gray Shrike (Lanius excubitor). Very rare. Red-backed Shrike (Lantus collurio). A pair shot July 25th, 1848, which had just reared a nest of young. | : Woodchat (Lantus rutilus). Ihave a note of observing a wood- chat, May 19, 1839, operating upon a yellow bunting, which it had firmly impaled to a thorn: the entrails were eaten, and the bird half- plucked. It appeared rather shy, and deserted its prey as I ap- proached. I have never noticed the red-backed shrike to butcher small birds. Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa grisola). This bird chooses the most singular situation for its nest, and the partiality it displays for any particular spot year after year is most remarkable. For more than twenty years a pair built a nest on the branch of a pear-tree which was trained up our house; and another pair, for nine or ten successive springs, built their nest on the hinge of an out-house door in aneighbouring village. The people upon the farm were continually passing and repassing through the door, yet in every instance the birds succeeded in rearing their brood. Another pair built their nest on the branch of an apricot-tree that grew immediately over the entrance-door of a house, which, whenever it was opened, occasioned the birds to fly off the nest. Pied Flycatcher (Muscicapa atricapilla). During the whole time that I have paid attention to ornithology, I have never seen this rare bird but once. Dipper (Cinclus aquaticus). Of all the feathered visitants which oe 2 te Birds. 2479 severe weather brings to us the dipper is the most engaging in his habits and manners. Parties come here occasionally through the winter, and depart as spring approaches. I imagine that the bulk of them breed on the brinks of our more northern streams,—such as the _ Dove, the Wye, and their smaller rocky tributaries,—and then come down to the Trent after the breeding-season is over, keeping moving along those streams which fall into the Trent (and so adjourn until fine weather appears next spring), in our less rigid locality. I always notice them in the greatest numbers when the most severe weather occurs. In the winter of 1841 they appeared upon the Trent in con- siderable numbers, the river being partly frozen over, and snow lying on the ground fourteen inches deep. In 1844 I observed ten birds, but throughout the mild winter of 1846 no dipper was seen. Some- times when the Trent is partly frozen over they may be seen on the ice, but their motions are clumsy and inelegant ; and when perceived they hurry, as well as they can, towards the liquid parts, and bury themselves from sight. When they are swimming on the surface, and find themselves discovered, they usually dive and come up once to the top; but if the person continues in sight they again disappear, and are not seen that time for a very long period. The migration of the dipper is certainly regulated very much by the seasons. If winter sets in about October, they reach us during that month, and stay a few weeks; and if it increases in severity they proceed lower down until the frost disappears, and then come again: but if no frost ap- pears until about January, they come at that time, and remain until spring. The greater part depart about March, but an occasional straggler sometimes remains the summer through, but has never been known to breed. Their manners are very pleasing when the birds are seen in the distance; but owing to the width of the stream, and the little screen afforded by the banks, it is impossible to observe their manners under water: still during a snow, when few animals are abroad, their lively forms—now momently seen as they emerge from the clear blue waters, and then dropping instantaneously from the sight—add animation to the scene, and are very agreeable adjuncts to the river. Mr. Jordan states (Zool. 450) that the dipper sometimes sings in winter. Those birds which visit us are quite mute. The dipper when alarmed on ice will occasionally make use of its wings. Missel Thrush (Turdus viscivorus). Sparingly scattered over our more open meadows and uplands. Sometimes called the ‘holm thrush,—I suppose from a habit it possesses of frequenting low holms or willow-holts occasionally: called also ‘ thrice cock.’ If the 2480 Birds. missel thrush is listened to attentively, whilst engaged in song, he will, I think, generally be heard to give forth three distinct notes to- gether; then leave a short pause; then three notes again, and so on: the cock bird is the chief songster, who essays his powers in the early spring to induce a partner to join him: and this is the reason, perhaps, why most country people call this bird ‘ thrice cock,’ from the male giving forth his thrice-repeated note. White’s Thrush (Turdus Whitei). In certain seasons a thrush comes here, which—from the descriptions given by authors—I sup- pose to be Turdus Whitei. ‘These birds are met with in company with redwings and fieldfares, are very difficult to shoot, about the size of the song thrush, but heavier. On October 25, 1847, some appeared at the same time with the song thrushes; but I was not sufficiently fortunate to shoot one. Song Thrush (Tusdus musicus). It is now some years since I paid attention to the migration of the song thrush, and I have now no he- sitation in recording the fact. Every autumn, sooner or later according to circumstances, but always just when the leaf is falling, our neigh- bourhood is visited by numbers of thrushes: the most ordinary ob- server would almost notice this circumstance, for it is very apparent from the increased quantity that are feeding in the bottoms of hedges, by copses, and even amongst turnips in the open fields; nevertheless these thrushes, unless passing over, are not in flocks, but in parties of from two to five or six. If you wander by a brook fringed with thorn and alder bushes, which is a very favourite haunt, you will notice that from the first bush you get to perhaps will spring up two or three thrushes: as you proceed, the next bush will furnish two or three more, and so on; so that, should you follow the course of the brook for a mile, you will find that you have started several hundred, al- though never more than four or five may take wing at one time. The greater part of these stay perhaps a week or a fortnight, and then dis- appear, leaving, however, a considerable number behind, which stay till spring. Occasionally flocks pass over on the wing, taking a south and south-easterly direction, as if on the way to their winter quarters. A flock perhaps consists of sixty or seventy birds, which generally keep compactly together, like starlings, making steadily for their des- tination, and not alighting on any object. Sometimes they fly very near the ground, almost within gun-shot. I have no doubt that num- bers every year leave the forests of Scotland and the North, as pointed out by Mr. Jordan (Zool. 493), and repair to the warmer counties of England on the southern border. The habit which thrushes have of Birds. 2481 . breaking snail-shells against a stone has been noticed: their adroit- ness in this accomplishment I have often observed, and I have seen a favourite stone in a wood against which many thousands must have been broken ; indeed the refuse shells lay round the stone some inches thick, and. scattered in greater or less quantities for several feet. I have seen a tame thrush which would eat house flies with avidity, and the earnestness which he exhibited when a person was feeding him with them was truly amusing. These birds sometimes commence their songs at nightfall, and I have heard their music when I could scarcely distinguish either bush or tree. My journal contains records of my having heard this bird during all the winter months except De- cember. Redwing (Zurdus iliacus). Heard one in May, 1843, give forth a wild melodious warbling, in tone not unlike the mellifluous music of the blackbird. Redwings are most plentiful down the Trent meadows, owing to the greater luxuriance of the hedges, which afford them fruit, and the greater amount of grass-land, which supply them with slugs, snails, &c. When the water has overflowed our low grounds these birds are constantly feeding in them, and after such periods are plump on the breast and in excellent condition. During mild weather they roost on the ground, and in willow-beds and sheltered situations when the weather is severe ; and I think that a small party nestles down to- gether, keeping their tails in the centre, like partridges: I infer this from the position of the droppings which are left in the morning. During the mild winter of 1846 exceedingly few redwings appeared. October 25, 1847 :—Redwings have been passing southwards for se- veral days: four or five flocks pass in a day, consisting of from one to two hundred birds; and each flock takes exactly the same line, which is over a particularly high tree that is often used by them as a resting station: almost every flock, as it approaches a certain part of the air, appears to meet with some impediment (probably an adverse current of wind), for it is invariably driven backwards, but as invari- ably doubles again and makes a vigorous effort to regain the original line of travel, which is due south. I mention this circumstance to show that the birds must have a very clear knowledge of the precise geographical position of the locality to which they are journeying. . Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris). If severe weather sets in early, field- fares are earlier in their arrival; and if the weather continues open and mild towards spring, and wild fruit is plentiful, it will continue here until the last week in April or beginning of May. Few birds, _ however, are more regular in their time of arrival than these: they 2182 Birds. appear about a week or ten days after old Michaelmas day: indeed, when we consider the amazing distances migratory birds have to travel, the accidents to which they are liable, the adverse winds they have sometimes to encounter and the rough weather they have to brave, the accuracy of their comings and goings is almost miraculous. If a table were kept year by year of their motions on these occasions, perhaps they would not be found to vary a fortnight in a hundred years; and yet what seas, rocks and continents have many of them to traverse ! I had once an opportunity of seeing a flock of fieldfares immediately on their arrival, and they appeared completely worn down by fatigue, “yet comparatively the distance from their native Norwegian forests is very short. Not a bird had been visible in the neighbourhood before, and on going my rounds I observed a large flock, which, after wheel- ing about, took possession of some tall oaks. Although generally shy, they allowed me to approach them within about twenty paces, seeming to take little notice, but immediately descended on some hawthorn bushes and ate the fruit greedily. When departing, in spring, the flocks are sometimes very large. On February 26, 1844, an assem- blage took place here, consisting of redwings and fieldfares, which covered the tops of twelve trees. Fieldfares exist here in smaller numbers than redwings, flock together less, and feed almost exclusively on the fruit of the wild rose. They are partial to watercourses and drains, apparently going there to drink; and snipe-shooters bag a good many, killing them as they rise from the water’s edge. Both this bird and the redwing are here called ‘ feldifare,’ but the former is distinguished from tbe latter by the name of ‘ pigeon feldifare,’ on account of its larger size and lighter coloured plumage. Blackbird (Turdus merula). In the autumn these birds resort to turnip-fields, to feed on the slugs. I have put up seventeen from one > field. In hard winters they feed on the scarlet berries of the Pira- cantha tree, even when trained close to a house door. Ring Ouzel (Turdus torquatus). Breeds on our northern Derby- shire streams, and is occasionally seen when crossing our parish on its periodical passage. Hedge Accentor (Accentor modularis). : Redbreast (Sylvia rubecula). ‘The redbreast is a bird so engaging in his manners, so sprightly in his actions, so confiding in disposition, that no wonder he is almost universally known and a general favourite. He is associated with the rambles of childhood, when the woods were green and pleasant sights greeted the eye and pleasant sounds the ear ; and we remember him also as the welcome petitioner, who, when ——_ =. ee ee ee OP fi ieee Birds. 2483 winter had stilled his song and ruffled his plumage, came hopping to our door, lightly printing the untrodden snow in his footstep, and up- turning ever and anon his eye to solicit a boon “with that mute elo- - quence which passeth speech.” No bird seems so equally distributed over this district as the redbreast. Leta man shoulder his spade and go forth into the woods or far-off fields, and commence upturning the fresh moist mould, and quickly. from the tree that overshadows him will descend this welcome guest to share his solitude and procure an humble meal. He hops and looks and looks and hops with fearless- ness and familiarity,— picks up the writhing worm or close-rolled chrysalis, and seems peculiarly shielded from harm under man’s pro- tection. His appetite appeased, he again ascends the tree — re- pays his benefactor with a song. During the breeding-season they fight most obstinately ; and I once saw a conflict between two males in which one left his antago- nist on the ground quite dead. On January 2, 1844, the snow was six inches deep, but a readbreast was in full song. Young birds hatched in spring make an essay at singing about the middle of Au- gust—oftentimes before they have received the red tinge on their breast. ‘Their first essays are of a low, pleasing, inward, warbling character, but towards October they become tolerable songsters. Redstart (Sylvia phoenicurus). ‘Two or three pairs may be found here every summer. The young are fed with soft green grubs. After the breeding-season they retire from the village and are little seen. Stonechat (Sylvia rubicola). Before Melbourne Common was en- closed this bird remained here all the year, wintering amongst the gorse and fern and hillocks made by the rabbits. Since that period its numbers have considerably decreased, and it is now only known as a very rare summer visitant. It frequents the coldest clay lands or bleak uplands; and if startled, makes a short undulating flight, settling again upon the most prominent clod of earth, uttering at the same time its melancholy notes. One killed here on December 13, 1844, on the common, the weather being intensely cold and frosty— a circumstance which doubtless forced the bird to leave its more northern haunts. Whinchat (Sylvia rubetra). Wheatear (Sylvia cananthe). A few pairs reach us annually; but cultivation is fast banishing this bird from our fauna. They formerly ‘abounded amongst the rabbit-warrens on the common, and bred in _ the deserted holes. Now they frequent the meadows at a distance from the village; and having fixed upon a certain spot, rarely wander 2484 Birds. a hundred yards: from it that summer. The same parts are chosen by them annually. Small parties touch here on their autumnal pas- sage. They commence their nest about May 15; it is composed of dried grasses, lined occasionally with a few patches of hair. They are very pretty denizens of the pastoral parts. . . Grasshopper Warbler (Sylvia locustella). Rare, but met with in the least frequented and wildest parts. Sedge Warbler (Sylvia salicaria). Reach us often in a very ex- hausted state. In 1843 I noticed a pair fluttering about in a grass- field, so fatigued with their journey that I nearly picked them up ® with my hand. In May, 1845, one was picked up dead, having flown against a window in the night, and could not recover itself. They arrive in small parties of from two to five or six birds at once, I once took a nest curiously enwoven of gardeners’ matting, which is sometimes left on the banks of the Trent by floods. The young birds may be seen about June clinging to and fluttering about the reeds and sedge, and keep sometimes with the parents after leaving the nest. Reed Warbler (Sylvia arundinacea). A few pairs come annually to breed in the small reed-beds which skirt the outlets of the Trent, and visit the same parts annually. There is a particular bed in which a pair has bred for fifteen years. Nest contains eggs about June 20, sometimes by the 14th, and is built in the thickest part of the reeds, which afford the best concealment. I have found it suspended between four, fi¥e and six reeds. One season floods came and spoiled the nest three times, but the birds persevered and built a fourth. The nests of birds of the first and second years have not the finished neatness of those which are built at a more advanced age. Sitting aslant on a dead reed the birds pour forth their hurried song with great rapidity, seldom hushing it for any length of time during the twenty-four hours. A pair killed, May 30, 1848. Nightingale (Sylvia luscinia). The nightingale visits us every spring, coming to a large wood of 500 acres on the outskirts of the parish ; but 1 have never known more than one bird killed here. .On May 4, 1848, a person brought to me a little bird which he had shot off a furze-bush on Stanton Hiles, a rough uncultivated piece of ground covered with bushes. He told me that “he had got a bird like a big sparrow, which he was sure when alive would have beat all England for a bit of music,” and forthwith lugged from his capa- cious velveteen the creature that was to astonish me. I soon dis- covered in its person a specimen of this “Jenny Lind” of songsters. Birds. 2485 His attention was attracted to it by the superb melody which it uttered ; and not being aware that it was so admired a bird, he lay in wait to kill it. Never having heard such exquisite notes before, he was induced to listen to them for a considerable time, and described most enthusiastically “the doubling and redoubling of her voice.” Sometimes they seemed emananating from the bushes below, some- times from the trees above; sometimes near, at others distant; but always delightful. It proved to be a fine male. The nightingale hushes his notes on cold damp nights, but is heard to perfection on those which are still and warm: he commences about ten o’clock, and continues at intervals until towards three in the morning; but his song does not attain full power immediately upon its commencement. They love woods of thick undergrowth. 1 had once an opportunity of seeing a beautifully constructed nest of the nightingale : it consisted of oak and beech leaves, externally arranged—with much neatness and regularity—around the soft dissected leaves of the poplar. It was found in a wood, on the ground, situated in a shallow hole made by the foot of a huntsman’s horse during the previous winter. Blackcap Warbler (Sylvia atricapilla). In 1845 I recorded each day when the blackcap’s song was heard, and found that he com- menced on May 3 and continued almost daily to June 14. Garden Warbler (Sylvia hortensis). This sweet sylvan bird is very sparingly distributed here. I have heard his song up to August 2. He keeps pretty close to the village, hiding himself amongst hollies, laurels, the thick bushes of shrubberies, or the vegetables of horticul- tural grounds. His wild and singularly flute-like melody renders him one of the most attractive visitants, and he richly deserves the praise which naturalists have heaped upon him. Common Whitethroat (Sylvia cinerea). Abounds in all the sylvan and pastoral parts. Lesser Whitethroat (Sylvia sylviella). Quite as numerous as the former. Amongst the eggs which are annually taken by our village boys, those of this bird form a distinguished proportion. They are sad enemies to our gardens and vegetable fields, eating with avidity red currants, peas, and raspberries. His song ceases here about June 18. The young are hatched about July 7. Wood Warbler (Sylvia sylvicola). The wood warbler, willow war- bler and chiff-chaff are all confounded together by country people, and called by the name of ‘bank jug.’ The first name is derived from the situation of the nest; the last from its habit of skilfully hiding it from observation. A partridge is said to ‘jug’ when it Vil xX 2486 Birds. cowers or squats down on the ground. The wood warbler is sparingly scattered over the champagne country, but pretty plentiful in the woods of Calke and Donnington, though it is not found in all our woods. It is certainly a delightful little bird. His song is neither musical nor varied, and yet it is so clear and wild that it seems a fit accompaniment to the unfolding spring: if watched during its deli- very, the delicate musician seems gently agitated; he shivers his wings, stretches his silken throat, and appears to undergo considerable emotion: he gives forth his notes, then waits a few moments, picks up a grub from a leaf or examines a blossom, and then gives out again the same series of sounds. His song ceases July 12. Chiff-chaff (Sylvia hippolais). The chiff-chaff haunts the Don- nington woods, the thickets about Calke, and the tall noble pine trees in Melbourne gardens, coming oftentimes before the trees have made an effort to bud, and continuing with us until the fall of the leaf, and occasionally afterwards. He is a blithe, cheerful bird, throwing off his two notes—which fall most pleasantly on the ear—on the tops of the tallest trees: when they are heard we have the assurance that fine weather is at hand and early flowers are springing. He keeps close to the woods during the summer, and is rarely to be seen in the cham- pagne parts of the neighbourhood. During the mild winter of 1846, I was frequently on the listen to catch the notes of this merry bird, thinking he might be induced to linger with us; but neither then nor in any other genial winter could I detect his existence in this neigh- bourhood. Dartford Warbler (Sylvia provincialis). A pair was shot off the top of a furze-bush half covered with snow, on Melbourne Common, during some very severe weather, in the winter of 1840. The birds appeared hardy and lively in their manners. Gold-crested Regulus (Regulus awricapillus). In Melbourne gar- dens these birds are very abundant, even in the severest seasons, sporting on the tops of the loftiest pines, haunting the noble ever- greens, and in summer hanging their curious nests on the lower sides of the yew-branches. They are amusive, interesting little birds, hop- ping about the plants and bushes, twisting themselves in fantastic attitudes, and displaying to advantage their burnished crests, To- wards December we receive accessions to our resident birds, which in particular seasons cause these birds to be very numerous. They de- part again towards March. During summer the resident birds keep much to woods, and are little seen, but towards October creep out into the open country, and seem partial to low alder and willow- Birds: 2487 bushes, which skirt our streams. They examine branch by branch in a careful manner, in order to pick from the crevices any insect or grub which may lie enfolded there: whilst pursuing these operations they give utterance to a delicate pleasing song, which I have heard even in mid-winter. Two nests have been found attached to the _ same branch of a yew-tree. : Fire-crested Regulus (Regulus ignicapillus). An individual of this species was certainly shot here in 1838. Great Tit (Parus major). Common in old woods and parks, espe- cially where decayed oaks, elms and maples abound, from which they may be seen pulling the moss and lichens to procure the insects which lie beneath. Its notes are recorded in my journal as being audible generally about January 20. Blue Titmouse (Parus ceruleus). The number of insects which these birds consume during the breeding-season is truly surprising. I have observed a nest to be visited by either male or female generally three or four times in ten minutes, each visit bringing some grub or insect to the young. The old birds hang in a skilful manner with their claws upwards, to procure insects rolled up in the under part of the leaves of plants and trees. So nimble are they during this opera- tion, that having once alighted on the stem of a plant—be it ever so fragile, and although it bends from its perpendicular until the end almost touches the roots—the bird rarely quits his hold until he finishes his examination of the leaves. I have known a pair breed in the same hole for twelve years. Another pair occupied the hole in the wart of a tree, the female sitting on the eggs until the wart was sawn off, when I took her up in my hand. Cole Titmouse (Parus ater). Marsh Titmouse (Parus palustris). Frequents old willows. Rarely seen in the upland or hilly parts. Long-tailed Titmouse (Parus caudatus). Seen most frequently in winter in small parties. Their minute forms and deeply-marked and ruffed plumage have a very pretty appearance when contrasted with the cheerless sprays which they frequent. They breed here before the hedges are in leaf. Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrula). Appears in flocks in winter, at uncertain intervals. Twice taken here. Pied Wagtail (Motacilla Yarrelii). Some stay the whole year; others depart after the breeding-season, and arrive again towards March. Those that winter here frequent sheepfolds and newly- ploughed grounds, but have not that “neat and clean” appearance 2488 Birds. which marks those that visit us in the spring. In the latter, the light parts of their plumage are of more snowy whiteness, and the dark parts of a deeper black: they may be readily distinguished by these characteristics. Previously to the departure of the migratory portion (which consists chiefly of young birds) after the breeding-season, they roost at night on the thorn and alder bushes by our small rivulets. Where the bushes grow thickly together, fifty or sixty birds may be startled in as many yards; and I have no doubt they collect together in this manner for the purpose of migrating in a party. Gray Wagtail (Motacilla boarula). Some few remain here the summer through, but the greater number may be considered winter visitors. I have never seen a nest. During the mild weather of win- ter they haunt the rapid streams or drains in irrigated meadows; but when frosts occur they draw nearer to the village, frequently. coming about sinks and gutters, close to house doors, and perching on the tops of houses. Gray-headed Wagtail (Motacilla neglecta). November 23, 1846: one killed near Melbourne. Ray’s Wagtail (Motacilla flava). October 18, 1846: noticed one so late in the season as this,—an unusual occurrence, as they usually leave in September. In my mind this bird is always associated with the different spring operations of husbandry, for he invariably appears when such take place. During the sowing of barley they may always be seen in the field sporting lightly around the industrious teams, tak- ing short flights from one clod of earth to another, moving their tails with a buoyant fan-like motion, and delightfully displaying to the sun their brilliant yellow breasts. Their nests are found by agricultural labourers when weeding young corn, about the middle of May, placed on the ground. On May 12, 1845, I noticed by the Trent eight indi- viduals of M. Rayii, all males and in one party, which I considered singular, as the generality had paired and were occupied with nests and eggs. ‘They might have been birds just arrived. One autumn I counted seven, which seemed to be a family party on their way south- wards. Tree Pipit (Alauda trivialis). See Zool. 658. Meadow Pipit (Alauda pratensis). Freely distributed over the meadow grounds in summer, and uplands in winter, at which latter season it is found amongst sheep which are folded on turnips. They commence their song frequently in February, which gives additional interest to a pastoral district. ‘ December 16, 1846: very severe frost and some snow. lLarks and meadow pipits have nearly all dis- Birds. 2489 appeared; probably gone southwards. A few days ago some pipits were picked up just alive, owing to the severe weather, apparently not having strength either to get further south or to bear the rigour of these parts. Their bodies were complete skeletons.” On the occurrence of snow they usually leave us. Sky Lark (Alauda arvensis). See Zool. 658... “ February 8, 1845: to-day a large fall of snow. Many large congregations of larks passed southwards.” ‘ March 1, 1848: large flocks of larks came to this neighbourhood (consisting of thousands) : they fed upon the leaves of field cabbages and frequented gardens that were at any distance from the village.” In some seasons they commit serious damage to newly- sown wheat-fields (more particularly if sown late), pulling up the blade just when it is springing from the ground, more for the purpose of getting at worms at the roots than feeding on the plant. Wood Lark (Alauda arborea). This sweet bird is apparently be- coming more rare here every year, and now is but very thinly distri- buted over the upland parts that are studded with copses. Snow Bunting (Emberiza glacialis). December 19, 1846: snow buntings were seen in the neighbourhood. Common Bunting (Emberiza miliaria). Partially migratory, and breeds. During the summer months they may be seen perched on almost every hedgerow hereabouts, and are contented with their quar- ters so long as any corn remains, either standing, cut, or even un- gleaned, but the great body of them leave when the corn is taken away, some half-dozen stragglers occasionally remaining for many weeks after the main body have departed. On January 14, 1844, I observed one here, and also on February 4, 1845; but they are rarely seen at Christmas. They disappear in small parties of from five to ten birds, keeping together a short time before departure; but appear by single birds. Black-headed Bunting (Emberiza scheeniclus). Many depart in autumn and appear in spring, but many also remain, and when pressed for food in severe weather come to ricks and farms to feed with chaf- finches. On June 3, 1842, as I was fishing by the margin of the Trent, my attention was arrested by the rustle of something in a clump of sedge near to which I was standing, and scarcely a moment had elapsed before a bird crept slowly from the herbage. It fluttered along the ground in a curious zigzag manner, as if lame and wounded, its right wing trailing on the ground and appearing to be broken. I followed it to some distance; but when I approached too near it flew in the natural manner a few yards further, and then dropped its wing 2490 Birds. as before. Presuming that it was one of those ingenious stratagems to which birds resort when their nest is in danger, I loooked in the sedge, and found a nest: the bird no doubt feigned to be wounded in order to attract my attention from its treasure. Yellow Bunting (Emberiza cttrinella). Chaffinch (Fringilla celebs). Our winter congregations consist of both sexes. They will feed on the seeds of the radish, cress, lettuce, mustard, carraway and flax, and are a great nuisance to our horticul- tural grounds. Mountain Finch (Fringilla montifringilla). In May, 1840, I no- ticed one hopping on a piece of fallow ground. In 1839 I saw one which had been shot out of a flock that had come to feed at a rick- yard; and on February 9, 1845, I had three specimens sent to me which had been killed at Weston Cliff. The latter were all males, in fine plumage. Snow was on the ground and the weather very keen, and doubtless the birds were forced southwards to us by stress of weather. Tree Sparrow (Fringilla montana). Common, but less numerous than the house sparrow. They flock with buntings and chaffinches in winter, and frequent farmsteads. One killed March 13, 1845, near Newton. Eleven taken by one person with a bird-net, on March 30, 1846, near Foremark, where it is plentiful, owing to there being plenty of wood for the birds to breed in, Their nests are found in the heads of pollard-trees, or holes in sound timber, and they manifest consi- derable obstinacy in quitting a spot in which they have been accus- tomed to build. Some boys found a nest in a stunted elm, which they pulled from its hole with a stick and fish-hook, and took from it five eggs. The birds built another, in which they laid four eggs: this shared the same fate. Lastly, they deposited three more eggs in the same hole, without any nest, and reared their brood. They have eggs about the end of March. House Sparrow (Fringilla domestica). From January to Septem- ber, 1848, 4579 sparrows were sent to the “ Melbourne Sparrow Club.” Greenfinch (Lozia chloris). Hawfinch (Loaia coccothraustes). During the winter of 1846 the hawfinch was occasionally seen in this neighbourhood, and one was killed from a flock near Repton. Goldfinch (Fringilla carduelis). Small parties of goldfinches re- main here throughout the year, wintering upon the pastures at some distance from the village, picking up a scanty maintenance upon the Birds. 2491 _ few thistles which have escaped the scythe and run to seed. The seeds of this plant are here their principal support; and I am pretty sure, since a closer attention has been paid to mowing it before run- ning to seed, that the goldfinch has decreased in numbers, the supply of food being cut off. Towards the second week in April they appear again in considerable numbers; and I am convinced, from repeated observation, that they then exceed those wintering here by ten to one. Ten or twelve may be seen together. It might be argued that the birds, which during the winter have dwelt apart from villages, now draw nearer for the purpose of breeding, and so bring themselves more constantly beneath the eye; and this may in some measure be true, but still I am quite sure that an accession of numbers takes place in spring. Small parties are seen in almost every lane and field, and a pair or two nest in almost every orchard. They are particu- larly partial to the seeds of the elm-tree as a lining for their nests. When a brood is to be reared for the cage, the nest and young are taken from the branch and put into it, and hung on the tree, where the old birds find them, and bring food (feeding them through the wires of the cage) until they are able to provide for themselves. If not strictly looked after at this period the young birds die, and a sin- gular notion prevails amongst country people that their death is caused by poison which is brought to them by their parents. The real cause of death no doubt is that they are abandoned by the old birds when fully fledged, as in the wild state, and not having the means as in that state of providing food for themselves. Siskin (Pringilla spinus). Small parties occasionally make their appearance in winter at uncertain intervals, but rarely stay many days, and never pass the summer here. F locks visited us December 9, 1844, February 1, 1845, and January 18,1846. ‘They keep close to the streams, feeding on the alder-seeds, and are very familiar. They seem to appear when the weather is most severe, and I have noticed them on the alders when they have been whitened over with hoar frost. Their chief business seems with those trees, for they rarely settle on the neighbouring thorns or willows. Common Linnet (Linota cannabina). Linnets congregate in au- tumn, sooner or later, according to circumstances, but never later than October or earlier than August. If the spring has been favourable, and they have been enabled to bring out their broods early, large flocks may oftentimes be seen by the middle of August and corn harvest. These congregations consist of many hundreds, which rove from field to field in order to pick from amongst the corn the seeds of 2492 Birds. wild plants (especially the charlock), to which they are very partial. When the corn is harvested, they repair to stubbles until the ground is winter-ploughed, when they are driven to seek food from the seeds of trees: those of the ash seem their favourite, and I once fell in with a flock so busily feeding that I killed seventeen at one shot. “ April 9, 1844: I have long noticed that a particular field, always when on the plough, is visited by a very large flock of the common linnet: they repair to it in the autumn, and continue there until the following spring. Until last year I could not account for their singular partiality to that particular spot, when I imagined that I discovered it. These birds, as I have stated, subsist chiefly on charlock seeds, and as that field towards May is completely yellowed over with these flowers, I think they must repair thither in search of food. If this is their ob- ject, such a body of birds, continuing there for so long a time, must prove of infinite use in freeing the ground from these noxious weeds. From minute observation I cannot discover that they touch the larger grain, nor have the crops of those which have been shot contained any corn whatever; so that this harmless bird ought to be accounted one. of the most serviceable of its species to British agriculturists.” Since writing the above I have seen particular fields affected with charlock, visited by hundreds (thousands 1 might almost say) of these diminutive creatures, for months together. Lesser Redpole (Lénota linarta). Myr. Yarrell considers Halifax, in Yorkshire, “the southern limit of its breeding in this island.” I have twice known it to breed here. The nest was fixed on the top of a stunted, mossy hedge, in one case, and contained eggs on June 14; and the birds, whilst building, would allow a person to approach them within three or four_yards, without displaying the least fear: indeed fear does not seem to be part of their nature, if one may judge by cir- cumstances. I shall not easily forget once falling in with an immense flock, which occupied some alders by the river Derwent, during a se- vere winter: they were in thousands, making the catkins seem quite alive as they expertly crept under and over them incessantly. Having a gun I pitched a shot into the whole party, and expected that every bird would have taken wing at the report, but they were “not to be frightened from their propriety.” Six of them fell dead, but the rest fed quietly on, as though nothing was amiss; and their obstinacy was such that the party seemed as if they would stay to be annihilated ra- ther than quit their feeding-stations. F locks visited us on March 8 and November 20, 1844. ‘They come at uncertain intervals in hard winters. Birds. 2493 Mountain Linnet (Fringilla montana). A pair bred in the summer of 1840 on a rocky bank called Anchor Church, a few miles distant from Melbourne. The nest was found in June, built in a low bush of bramble and furze, about two feet from the ground, and contained five eggs. This is the only instance which has come to my knowledge of the appearance of this bird here. Bullfinch (Loxia pyrrhula). As the villages hereabouts are almost belted with orchards, the bullfinches commit serious damage upon gar- deners and horticulturists. They frequent our gardens about February, and prefer the buds of the cherry, plum, damson and gooseberry, and pass over the currant, apple and pear with little molestation. They are particularly fond of stone fruits. I have seen a single bird clear more than a dozen twigs in a very short time: he commenced at the bottom of each twig, twisting off every bud until he arrived at the top, when he moved to another. ‘They certainly prefer the blossom buds. Towards spring they seek the plantations and woods to breed, and are little seen. Crossbill (Loaia curvirostra). Crossbills have been shot off some fir trees in a small planting on Melbourne Common. They were stripping the fir cones and cracking them for the seeds. JOHN JOSEPH BRIGGs. » Melbourne, Derbyshire. (To be continued). On useless Records in the ‘ Zoologist.—There is one subject to which I wish to call the attention of the writers in the ‘ Zoologist,’ namely, to be sure that their notes really record something new, or at least worthy of record. I ffad intended to notice this on the receipt of the March number, containing an account of the capture of a pole- cat in Suffolk, of a bittern near Bury, and a curlew on Foulmire, recorded by Mr. Newton in that number: now the polecat, I will venture to say, is to be found on most rabbit-warrens; in some parts of Suffolk it is fartoo common. The bittern, though rarer than before the marshes were drained, cannot be considered as an extra- ordinary bird; and the curlew is not at all rare on any of the inland meres. The consequence has been that one or two of your correspondents have gathered that these animals are rare in Suffolk, and think it worth while to record their appearance in their own counties. Mr, Newton, however, has been fairly surpassed, in the June number, by Mr. Burroughes, who gravely records the death of a tufted duck, the commonest of all the lobe-toed Anatide in our inland waters; nor can his other note of the capture of the rough-legged buzzard be considered as worthy of remark, I would not wish to disparage the efforts of my brother naturalists in the common cause, still less to discourage a young naturalist like Mr. Burroughes; but when erroneous VII ¥ 2494 Birds. notions as to the scarcity of birds are likely to arise from their recording circumstances of no importance, I would wish them to pay more attention to the abundance or scarcity of the animals whose occurrence they record; for by neglecting this they en- cumber the pages of the ‘ Zoologist,’ and, I am sorry to say, expose its supporters and friends to ridicule, from those who are prompt enough to note an occasional blot, while unable to appreciate what is really good and useful in it—H. 7. Frere. [My contributors will perhaps appreciate the difficulty I feel in rejecting papers which have been written with the double motive of obliging me and of recording what is supposed to be a novel and interesting fact. I also labour under another difficulty, in common with all residents in large cities—that of being supposed incapable of forming any judgment about rural matters. I have occasionally written to cor- ‘respondents whom I have thought made communications that were rather unimpor- tant, and not unfrequently have I declined such communications altogether; but I think I may say that my reputation as a competent editor of the ‘ Zoologist’ has in- variably suffered in such cases. Under these circumstances I can do nothing better than request contributors to ascertain—by corresponding with competent naturalists in their own counties—the value of such observations as may be of doubtful interest or novelty, before sending them for publication. I entirely agree with the Rev. Mr. Frere; and feel much obliged to him for the matter as well as manner of his note.— FE. Newman. | A Gamekeeper’s Stratagem.—I have lately seen a curious method of attracting magpies practised at Peasemarsh. The keeper procured a live hedgehog, and sus- pended him by one leg to a tree or shrub. All the magpies within hearing of poor piggy’s cries came to see what was the matter, and in half an hour six were shot. The keeper then went to another part of the wood to practise his ingenuity; and I returned home wiser than I went.—J. B. Ellman; Rye, June 13, 1849. Moths in Birds’ Skins.—In reference to the communication of Mr. Duff (Zool. 2451) and your comment thereon, I would beg to observe, that although baking the skins effectually destroys all the larve or eggs for the time being, yet it by no means prevents the moth from again visiting the same skins. The plan which, after some years’ experience, I have found most effectual for preserving my specimens, is to bake the skins twice a year, in spring and autumn, and during the summer months to keep them in tight drawers, with a sponge dipped in turpentine placed in a corner of each drawer. My method of baking is to place the skins in a Dutch oven, or (if large) in what is called a meat screen, and expose them to the front of the fire for a few mi- nutes. I think Mr. Duff will find this a more safe, clean and convenient plan, than that of putting them in an oven, and I should think more effective than when the skins are wrapped in a cloth; and there is no necessity to take out wires or tow.— W. F. W. Bird. Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) at Beachy Head.—I brought home with me to-day three of the young of those very interesting birds, the peregrine falcon, which were taken from their nest yesterday at Beachy Head, by a man who descended the perpendicular cliff with a derrick, about 250 feet, the height being at that part about 500 feet: the birds—a male and two females—are very fine. The man that obtained them said that round about their nest was literally strewed with all kinds of bones. I watched the parent birds to-day for nearly an hour with much delight, seeing them take their beautiful circular sweeps in the immediate neighbourhood of the recent abode of their young. If any of your readers should be passing, I should be most Birds. 2495 happy to show them. The railway being now opened to Eastbourn, there is every facility for the lover of nature to have a rich treat, as the scenery is beautiful and boasting of an earthly paradise.— Thomas Thorncroft ; 33, North Lane, Brighton, May 30, 1849. Occurrence of the American Greater Northern Shrike (Lanius borealis) near Aber- deen.—A specimen of this North-American bird was shot near Aberdeen, about the commencement of the present year, and was exhibited at a meeting of a natural-his- tory association, in the city now mentioned, by Professor Macgillivray. That eminent and most accomplished naturalist remarked, upon the occasion, that the bird in ques- tion had never, so far as he was aware, been previously met with in Scotland, nor, in all probability, in any other part even of Europe. The specimen was a male: it was for a considerable time confounded by naturalists with our own cinereous shrike (La- nius excubitor), of which, indeed, it may be regarded as the representative in the New World. A good distinction for practical purposes will be found between them, in the circumstance that in the American male there are two small bars of white on the wing, whereas in the European there is but one. We are informed by Dr. Richardson, that the Lanius borealis is found, in considerable numbers, amid the wooded fur countries, as far as the sixtieth parallel of latitude; and, moreover, that it spends the winter in these remote and inclement regions. In the Fauni Boreali-Americana (vol. ii. p. 111) there is a coloured lithograph of the female, by Mr. Swainson: it is marked by that exquisite softness, that natural outline, and that life-like expression and attitude, which are so conspicuous in almost all the ornithological drawings which proceed from his pencil.—James Smith ; Manse of Monquhitter, June 16, 1849. Occurrence of the Pied Flycatcher (Muscicapa luctuosa) near Norwich.—The pied flycatcher, which generally visits this district in very small numbers at this season, appears to be occurring this year in greater abundance than usual, as many as nine- teen specimens having come under my notice since the 9th instant,—all killed within thirty miles of Norwich.—J. H. Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, May 17, 1849. Blackbirds Eggs sucked by a Rat.—About three- weeks ago a blackbird built its nest in the ivy, on a wall close to the house: it laid one egg, which soon afterwards was broken: from the situation of the nest and from the season it is not probable that a cuckoo sucked the egg: what, then, could it be? Since that time a robin has built its nest in the ivy, some feet nearer the ground: it laid five eggs, and was sitting. This morning, on going to the nest, I saw in it what at first I took to.be a kitten: it proved, however, to be a large rat, which escaped on seeing me: all the eggs were gone; and as I distinctly saw the rat in the nest, I now attribute both robberies to him.—Robert Wayne ; Wenlock, May 19, 1849. The Ring Ouzel (Turdus torquatus) supposed to be nesting in Worcestershire-—A male ring ouzel was killed at Kidderminster on the 9th of May last. Two others, supposed to be nesting, were seen a short time previous, at Witley, in the same county, and one of them (the male) was shot.— W. F. W. Bird ; 5, King’s Row, Bedford Row, June 6, 1849. Singular Nidification of a Robin.—In the spring of last year, a small watering- pot, hanging in a potting-shed, at Woodbines, Kingston, was selected by a robin as a suitable locality for her nest, where she sat and reared her brood, undeterred by the many curious visitors who came to look. The gardener, to prevent the nest being “* poured out,” inscribed below the pot, in chalk,— There is a robin’s nest in this pot, so please do not take it down.” The inscription remained after the birds had flown; 2496 | Birds. and the robin again this year visited the spot, and, finding the pot hanging above the “taboo,” thought it a safe speculation again to occupy it, and accordingly made ano- ther nest,—thus again safely rearing her progeny. It will be curious to see if she should return another year.—J. F. Christy ; Stangate, June, 1849. Occurrence of the Minor Grackle (Gracula religiosa) in Norfolk.—On my observa- tion, headed as above, and dated January 23rd, the editor expressed his opinion (Zool. 2391) that this, being not even a European bird, must have escaped from an aviary. By stating a few facts connected with its capture, such opinions will, I think, appear to have less ground than at present. When first discovered this bird was ac- companied by its mate; both were in distance one hundred yards from the sea, and evidently so tired that an attempt was made to capture them, which they avoided, _ proceeding inland. When next seen they were about a mile from the sea; and at Hickling, two miles from the same, the bird in question was shot. All this happened in the space of two or three days. From these statements one would naturally con- clude they had migrated ; first, because of their position, so near the sea; secondly, because of their condition, a state of weariness; and lastly, because of their proceed- ing inland, as would be the case with most migratory birds. Again, no aviary I be- lieve exists (at least containing such birds) within twenty miles of the place in which these were first seen; and it seems curious that they should escape from a distant aviary and not be seen till approaching so near the sea, and that the owners of such (considering their value as Indian specimens) should make no inquiry respecting their loss. - If the aviary was near at hand we should most probably have heard of the es- cape; if far distant, how could the deserters so long have avoided detection, espe- cially in a place so open and ill-wooded as the above mentioned? The question which now remains, is, supposing a migration took place, what was the cause of such ? This I can answer but indifferently, merely stating that strong south-east winds had been prevailing two days, and on the third the birds were discovered.— W. E. Cater ; Queen’s College, Cambridge, May 25, 1849. Occurrence of the Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula) in Kent. =e specimens, male and female, of this rare and beautiful bird were obtained near Elmstone last week, together with their nest (of very rare occurrence in this country), which was suspended from the extreme end of the top branch of an oak tree, and composed entirely of wool carefully bound together with dried grass: it contained three eggs, of a pure white, mottled with black. The note of the male bird precisely resembles the whistling of the common parrot, and is very powerful.—J. B. Ellman; Rye, June 5, 1849. Occurrence of a supposed new British Woodpecker near Whitby.—Shot near Whitby at the beginning of this year. Sex not determined. Beak narrow, slight and pointed, about as long as the head; a tuft of dirty yellowish white hair-like feathers projecting over each nostril. Crown of head, occiput and nape black. Lore black and white intermixed. A broad white band over each eye, extending to base of skull. Ear- coverts black. A white band from gape passing under the eye, and continued so as to form an almost complete ring round the back of the neck: beneath this is a black band from base of lower mandible to scapulars. Scapulars and upper part of back black: middle of back white, without spots or bars. Upper tail-coverts grayish black. Both sets of wing-coverts black, each feather with two or three roundish white spots on the outer and inner web. Quill-feathers black, slightly tinged with brown, with eight well-defined, rather elongated spots of white on the outer web, and rounded patches of white on the inner web, forming eight distinct bands: third, fourth, fifth Birds. , 2497 and sixth feathers tipped on outer web with white: shafts of feathers black. Four middle tail-feathers black, stiff and pointed: the next on each side black; terminal half white, occupying a larger space on the outer than on the inner web; two outer feathers on each side white. Chin, throat, breast, belly, vent and under tail-coverts white. Legs, toes and claws blackish. Length of specimen 8 inches. From carpal joint to end of wing 43 inches. First feather very short; second feather two inches longer than the first and one inch shorter than the third ; third, fourth, fifth and sixth feathers nearly the same length, but the fourth and fifth rather the longest in the wing. There is not a trace of red on any part of the bird. The above-described spe- cimen was bought by me as a variety of the great spotted woodpecker ; but as soon as I began to examine it, the immense difference between it and the two described British species of black and white woodpeckers was very apparent. The great amount of white, the entire absence of red, and the size being intermediate between our British species, readily distinguish it from the great and little spotted woodpeckers ; but not having any books of reference by me, I am unable to determine its species. (Query, what is the Picus medius like?) Now that attention has been called to it, perhaps it will be found to have occurred many times in England. When it came into my possession, portions of the flesh were still adhering to the wing and leg-bones and to the head.—Edmund Thomas Higgins ; York, June 2, 1849. [I have shown this description to two eminent ornithologists, neither of whom has decided on any species to which it can refer.—EH. Newman. | Nesting of the Great and Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers at Peasemarsh, Sussex.—I was informed yesterday that there was a nest of young ‘ nuthatches’ in a plum-tree, in a garden at the above place; and, being anxious to obtain some young ‘ nuthatches,’ I accordingly went to Peasemarsh last evening, and found the hole in which the said nest was placed, and which was not more than four yards from the house, to contain five lesser spotted woodpeckers, nearly full-fledged. I shot the old birds, and then took the five young ones, all of which are in my possession. A few days since I found in an ash tree a nest of the great spotted woodpecker, containing one egg: I obtained the female bird. —J. B. Ellman; Rye, June 13, 1849. Occurrence of the Roller (Coracius garrula) in Sussex.—A specimen of the roller was shot on the 29th of last May, near Nutley, on the borders of Ashdown Forest. It proved on dissection to be a male; and a cockchaffer, with the remains of several other large Coleoptera, were found in its stomach.— William May; East Grinstead, Sussex, June, 1849. Occurrence of the Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula), Turnstone (Strepsilas in- terpres), Spotted Crake (Crex porzana) and Grasshopper Warbler (Salicaria Locustella) in Cambridgeshire.—Three ringed plovers and a turnstone were shot on the banks of the Cam, in the second week of May, 1849; and in the first week of the same month, near Cambridge, a spotted crake and grasshopper warbler.—W. EH. Cater; Queen’s College, Cambridge, May 25, 1849. Occurrence of the Purple Heron (Ardea purpurea) in Aberdeenshire.—I have ascer- tained beyond a doubt that a specimen of the purple heron occurred in the parish in which I reside, about the beginning of March, 1847. It came from the south-east, and alighted in a marshy piece of ground near to a farm-house, where it was shot. It was a large and very handsome bird, and measured five feet across from tip to tip of the expanded wings. As the individual by whom it was killed was much struck with the beauty of its plumage, and as he had never seen a heron of a similar 2498 Birds. description before, he resolved on making a present of it to me. Previously, however, to his doing so, he sent it to a neighbouring village to be stuffed: while there it ex- cited general attention and great admiration, people coming, even from a distance, to obtain a sight of it, and all of them declaring that it was the first of the kind which had come under their notice. The common heron, on the contrary, is of daily occur- rence in this quarter, and is in consequence familiarly known to the most careless and unobserving. The person to whom it was sent had occasion to leave his home for some considerable time, before the process of stuffing had been properly completed, and on his return he found, to his mortification, that it had been all but gnawn to pieces by rats. Its remains are now in my possession. The play, in varying lights, of purple, red and green, along its plumage, or, as it was termed, its glancing colour, _ gave rise to much admiration among those who saw it while fresh and uninjured. From those books on natural history to which I have access, it would appear that the purple heron has not been hitherto recorded as having occurred in Scotland. In all probability a tempest of wind had driven it across from the opposite continent, amid the low-lying marshes of which it is said to be as abundant as its congener, the com- mon heron (Ardea cinerea)—James Smith ; Manse of Monquhitter by Turriff, Aber- deenshire, June 15, 1849. Occurrence of the Squacco Heron (Ardea comata) near Penzance.—I expect that we have a good flight of these elegant herons in this neighbourhood. I have seen three individuals to-day in the hands of our naturalist, Mr. W. H. Vingoe. All these are males, one of which exhibits the occipital and dorsal plumes almost fully deve- loped: the other two show the commencement of the growth of the plumes, some just appearing beyond the level of the general plumage, others actively progressing under- neath, as pen-feathers. Another fortnight would have rendered the plumage of these birds beautiful beyond expression; and I am not without hopes that I shall succeed in procuring a bird in full nuptial livery. Two of the above specimens were procured by James Trembuth, Esq., near the Land’s End; and the other was killed whilst perched on a tree, in the parish of St. Hilary— Edward Hearle Rodd; Penzance, May 15, 1849. Occurrence of the Night Heron at Scilly—I beg to report the occurrence of the night heron at Scilly, which I received yesterday from Mr. James, the steward of the Islands. Another example was seen at the same time, and I believe secured.—Zd., May 19, 1849. Occurrence of the Little Bittern (Ardea minuta) at South Walsham.—A specimen of the little bittern has recently been killed at South Walsham in this county. On two or three successive nights, when sailing on the broad, we had heard a noise in the marsh at the side, resembling the bark of a dog, or more nearly the grunt a paviour gives when dropping his rammer. Though all the party were tolerably well acquainted with the notes of the marsh birds, this was a novelty to us. A marsh-man, however, recognized it as the note of the little bittern, one of which (at present in the possession of Mr. Jacy, of South Walsham) he had shot some thirty years before. I sent him a message offering him a price for the bird, and on Saturday night or early on Sunday morning he shot it, but took it to another person and sold it for the price I had offered, much to my annoyance and disappointment. It is something, however, to have heard this rare bird. When he shot the other it was after several attempts to get it to rise, in which he had failed: he then waited, and about four o’clock in the morning it rose spontaneously. The marsh is very shaky and wet; but, unless I had Dips | 2499 made certain of obtaining the bird from the shooter, I should have watched on Friday night myself—H. T. Frere ; Blofield, June 14, 1849. Occurrence of the Little Bittern near Manchester.—On the 19th of May last, a gen- tleman, who was out with a gun in the immediate vicinity of the Water-works Com- pany’s reservoir at Gorton, shot a very fine specimen of the little bittern, which is now in the possession of Mr. Harrop, bird and animal preserver, 13, Cooper Street, where it may be seen. There is no instance of this bird having been previously met with in this neighbourhood. — Thomas Webster; Ormond Street, Manchester, June 11, 1849. Occurrence of Spoonbill, &c., near Yarmouth.—The following rather scarce birds occurred at or near Yarmouth, early in this month: a spoonbill (male), a pair of wood sandpipers, and one or two specimens of the Kentish plover. More recently a beautiful male specimen of that rare bird, the gray-headed wagtail (Motacilla neg- lecta) has been procured at Lowestoft.—J. H. Gurney ; Easton, near Norwich, June, 1849. Occurrence of the Spotted Sandpiper (Totanus macularius) near Bishop's Auckland. —A fine specimen of that rare bird, the spotted sandpiper, was shot by Mr. H. Gor- nal, animal preserver, on the margin of the river Wear, a little west of this place, and is now in my collection: it was shot early in April, and appeared to have arrived a few days earlier than the common sandpiper.—Joseph Duff ; Bishop's Auckland, June 16, 1849. Occurrence of the Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa melanura) on Guyhirn Wash.— Four beautiful specimens of the black-tailed godwit, in spring plumage, were shot on Guyhirn Wash, six miles from Wisbeach, on the 18th ultimo. It is many years since the godwit was seen on this Wash, at this season of the year.—T. W. Foster, Curator ; Wisbeach. The Landrail (Crex pratensis) remaining in England during Winter.—In the ‘ Zoologist’ (Zool. 2419) it is mentioned that a landrail had been seen near Rye, in December, and that another occurred in February. This supports me in believing that, in many parts of the country at least, landrails do not migrate, but remain all the winter. I know of many instances of their being observed during that season in Orkney, and of their having been dug out of turf-dykes and peat-mosses in a torpid state. I mentioned several such cases in the first part of the ‘ Natural History of Orkney,’ about a year ago, and have given also other facts and reasons opposed to their supposed migration — Wm. Balfour Baikie ; London, May 22, 1849. Occurrence of the Gannet or Solan Goose (Sula bassana) near Wisbeach.—I have un- der preparation two fine adult male specimens of the solan goose, both of which were taken in this neighbourhood during the present month. The wind for some days previously had been blowing from the north-east, and the birds appeared to be in an exhausted state, so much so that in both instances they were taken by the hand. I have a third specimen, which was taken in 1843, in company with some tame geese. —T. W. Foster. . Occurrence of the Caspian Tern (Sterna Caspia) near Great Yarmouth. — A fine specimen of the Caspian tern was shot by Mr. Harry Barber, of this town, on Satur- day morning, June 9th, on Breydon Walls, about a mile from Yarmouth. It is a remarkably fine bird, and measures from tip to tip of the wings 4 ft. 33 inches, and from the tip of the tail to the point of the beak 22 inches. It is a male specimen in 2500 ) Fishes— Insects. full plumage, and is now in the hands of the stuffer. The last specimen. shot near Yarmouth was, I believe, in 1839.—W. D. Burton; Great. Yarmouth, June 15, 1849. Capture of the Black Tern (Sterna nigra) at Chertsey.—A pair of black terns were killed at Chertsey, in Surrey, the week before last— W. F. W. Bird ; 5, King’s Row, Bedford Row, June 6, 1849. Occurrence of the Sturgeon (Accipenser sturio) at Wisbeach.—A specimen of the sturgeon, measuring 5 feet 10 inches, was caught in the Nene, about four miles below this town, on the 19th instant. The capture was quite accidental. Some fishermen had on the preceding evening placed nets across the river, for the purpose of catching flounders, or ‘ butts, as they are here commonly called; and the royal fish, becom- ing entangled, was secured. A fine specimen, caught at the mouth of the river about sixteen years ago, is in the Wisbeach Museum.—T7. W. Foster, Curator ; Wisbeach, May 23, 1849. 3 Occurrence of the Marine Lamprey.—A fine specimen of this fish, which is rarely met with on the eastern coast, was caught in the river Nene, on the 22nd instant, at a place called the Dog and Doublet, midway between Wisbeach and Peterborough, a distance of more than twenty miles from the Wash. I purchased it, and have pre- pared it for the Museum: it is 30 inches in length, and 8 inches in circumference. This fish had no doubt come up the river for the purpose of spawning, it being a fe- male and full of ova.—Id. Capture of Cerura bicuspis at Preston.—I have great pleasure in recording the capture of a magnificent specimen of Cerura bicuspis, by my friend Mr. John Cooke, of this town: he found it at rest on the trunk of an alder, on the 14th of May last. This is the second British specimen on record of this truly elegant species ; the first being taken about two years ago, in the same place, and at rest upon an alder, by Mr. James Cooper, formerly of this town. Mr. Cooke brought me this specimen alive, and has very kindly added this almost unique British species to my cabinet: bicuspis and carmelita are my best acquisitions this season. In my opinion the larva of bi- cuspis feeds upon the alder. I am led to believe this to be the case, because I have found empty cocoons of a Cerura on the alders this spring, and, moreover, there is no possibility of the larva travelling from any willows or poplars in the neighbourhood. All the British Cerure have been taken in this locality, and within a mile of the town. —J. B. Hodgkinson ; 12, Friday Street, Preston, May 27, 1849. On setting Micro-Lepidoptera flat.—On the cover of the ‘ Zoologist’ for April appeared a notice that a certain triumvirate intended to set their Micro-Lepidoptera flat, in the continental fashion, for which intention they have been called ‘‘ Depres- sarie,” “ the three flats,’ &c. Well, that does not matter; three flats may indicate a major key, and these dissonant parties may hereafter learn our tune. I cannot tell Insects. 250] how the curved method of setting came to be adopted in this country: it certainly is not natural, and in small moths increases the difficulty of distinguishing characteristic markings, more particularly under a lens, as so small a portion of wing can be brought into focus. Let any one make trial of the two methods, and the comparative facility of observation offered by the new one will be at once apparent. On the Con- tinent the flat system is universal. To accomplish the end proposed, I have cork, not less than } inch thick, papered and fastened with glue to a board, with a groove to receive the bodies, varying from less than 7,th to ;ths of an inch wide, and of pro- portionate depth. The moth, previously pierced, is then placed so that the pin is upright, and the wings are extended till they are at a right angle, in which position they are maintained by a small piece of glazed card on apin. If, as is often the case, the wings will not stay in the proper position until these cards are put on, they may be held right by a pointed paper “brace,” placed at the base of each. The moths should not be removed until perfectly dry: much of the bad setting seen in cabinets has arisen from this cause.—J. W. Douglas ; 2, E'ton Grove, Lee, Kent, May 28, 1849. Partiality of Micropteryx calthella for other Flowers besides those of the Caltha palustris.—While searching this afternoon for this little gem, in a low marshy tract favourable to the growth of the Caltha, I discovered it not only on the flowers of this plant, but on those of an allied genus (Ranunculus), and on one of the Stellate (Ga- lium cruciatum).’—Peter Inchbald ; Storthes Hall, Huddersfield, May 24, 1849. Note on a Hive of Bees working without a Queen.—On June 15th, 1814, I had a swarm of bees. Two days after they were: placed on the stool they appeared in a state of great confusion, running in and out of the hive and up and down the exterior with great anxiety, whilst at intervals the most profound stillness prevailed ; and again the most lamentable notes were heard, peculiar to them only when they have lost a queen. Upon examination I found a fine young queen, well matured, dead upon the stool. Gradually they became more settled, worked a little, but not with the usual vigour, gradually diminished in numbers, and when taken in August the hive and its contents weighed 20 Ibs., the season for the production of honey having been extra- ordinary. By close observation I found that they had not bred a single bee; but the combs were of the clearest colour, and the honey of the purest character I ever saw. No farina or egg in the cells. I never saw a single bee carry any pellets on its legs all the summer, and I never observed a single drone in the hive.—John Green ; Mel- bourne, Derbyshire, June 6, 1849. A certain indication of Swarming.—In 1844 I discovered the following curious indication of the time when a swarm was about to leave the hive, and have noticed it in every succeeding year. But in order to make observations correctly, it is necessary to have the apiary particularly clean and free from rubbish. It is well known that the cells in which the young queens are bred are closed at the top for some days be- fore they emerge from them: when this takes place the sealing of the cells may be found on the settling-board or on the ground near the hive: these sealings are small and round (about one sixth of an inch in diameter), slightly concave, and of the same colour as a comb about a year old. As certain as these sealings are found (providing the weather be fine and genial) so sure will a swarm rise in the course of a few days: indeed, whenever I have discovered this indication, I have either had a swarm on the same day or within two or three days; and a greater number of these sealings will be found several days before a second swarm arises.—Id, VII Z 2502 Insects, &c. Singular Occurrence amongst Bees—On July 4th, 1812, the following occurrence took place in a small apiary near Melbourne. A swarm rose in the forenoon, which was put into a hive: they continued there a few hours, and then came out again and returned to the original stock. The next day I suppose those that returned were killed and turned out of the hive by the original stock, for thousands upon thousands of dead bees lay strewed upon the ground. The original stock prospered and swarmed the next season.—Id. Erratum.—Line 11 of the article “‘ Interesting to Bee-keepers” (Zool. 2437), for 41 tbs. read 4 tbs.—Id. Captures of Rare Coleoptera on Leith Hill, Surrey—Having occasion to see a gentleman in this neighbourhood on business, last week, I took the opportunity of walking back to Dorking by this route, to see if it was possible to meet with any ra- rities in the entomological world: the season hitherto has been very bad, with a cold searching easterly wind,—which we all know is much against collecting,—so that I did not go with much expectation of success. On the side of the hill, a short distance from the monument, which I believe is situated on the highest point, by the side of the road, is a small sand-pit, about a yard square, which when I looked into it was quite alive with small Coleoptera that had fallen from off the heather, &c., above: it was quite deep enough to prevent the possibility of their getting out when once in. In a quarter of an hour I captured the following :—Acalles ptinoides, fourteen ; Tra- chyphleus Waltoni, nineteen; Mycronyx pygmzus, one; Omias brunnipes, in pro- fusion; Leiosoma, apparently a new species, being much smaller and narrower than ovatula, four; Orobitis cyaneus, one; Strophosomus limbatus, in abundance ; Agathi- dium seminulum ? in abundance; Cryptocephalus Morei, one; Chrysomela varians, one; &c., &c. I afterwards swept the heath above; but the wind was so great, from the very exposed situation, I could meet with nothing. The geological construction of this hill is very remarkable: first of all, on the low ground, we have a stiff clay ; then, as we ascend, a light loam; then sand; then peaty loam ; afterwards sand; and finally, on the top, a mixture of all_— Samuel Stevens ; 24, Bloomsbury Street, June 20, 1849. Proceedings of the Zoological Society. June 5.—PeETER Po rg, Esq., in the chair. William Compton Domville, Esq., was elected a Fellow. Certificates were read in favour of the Earl of Pembroke, William Pennell, Esq., and S. 8. Teulon, Esq. A report of Council was read, presenting a most favourable account of the progress of the menagerie, to which some important additions had been made during the past month: these included a pair of brush turkeys (Zalegalla Lathami) from Australia (this is the bird which was first known to make a great mound or hot-bed, in which the eggs are deposited and hatched by the heat generated by the fermentation of dead leaves, and of which the mound is composed); a specimen of the great kangaroo, from Australia; three lions, received by the Erin, from Malta; a pair of damans (Hyrax capensis), from the Cape of Good Hope; a Dshiggetai (Equus hemionus), from Cutch, presented by Sir Thomas Erskine Perry; &c., &e. Entomological Society. 2503 A bison calf was born in the gardens in Regent’s Park, on Wednesday, May 30th. A large collection was announced as likely to arrive from Egypt at the end of the month. A liberal present from the governor of Singapore was daily expected by the Strathedon. The new reptile-house was opened on Wednesday last, and twenty-one different species of lizards and serpents were exhibited: it was announced that the correspond- ing members of the Society in Africa, South America and the West Indies, would make many additions to this part of the collection during the summer. Proceedings of the Entomological Soctety. June 4.—G. R. Wateruouse, Esq., President, in the chair. Dr. Macdonald was present as a visitor. The following presents were announced: ‘ Transactions of the Zoological Society, vol. iii. part 6, and Proceedings of that Society to December, 1848, by the Zoological Society. The following gentlemen were balloted for and elected: J. W. Dunning, Esq., as member; W. Michael, Esq., as subscriber; and Francis Swanzy, Esq., of Dix Cove, as corresponding member. The Secretary read a letter from Mr. Westwood to the President, stating that af- ter an attendance of five days at the Police Court, and four days at the Old Bailey, he had succeeded in recovering the drawings and coloured patterns of plates stolen from the Society’s rooms in 1848, and which he now restored to the Society: the thief, he added, had been transported for fourteen years. An unanimous vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Westwood for the interest he had taken on behalf of the Society in this matter. Mr. Westwood brought for distribution specimens of Ilythia sociella, which he had reared from the pupe. He exhibited a mass of the cocoons which had been blown out of a tree, and remarked that these coverings were double, each one having a lining, and that both cases were unclosed at one end. Mr. Westwood also exhibited specimens of Ptinus Hololeucus received from Mr. Hart, of Knightsbridge, who found them in open jars. attached to his galvanic bat- tery, in which a strong solution of silica was operated on by a galvanic current for a lengthened period; and Mr. Hart was firmly persuaded that these beetles were deve- loped by galvanic agency. On this point Mr. Westwood observed that the notorious Acarus Crossei had been produced without galvanic power; and it appeared to be the opinion of the meeting that there was no ground whatever for Mr. Hart’s belief. Mr. Weir exhibited a collection of Micro-Lepidoptera, taken within the last month near Tunbridge Wells, including some rare species; also a specimen of Lobophora polycommata, taken near Lewes, on the 4th of May. Mr. Moore exbibited some eggs attached to feathers found in the aviaries at Knowsley. They appeared to belong to some unknown parasite on birds. Mr. S. Stevens exhibited a fine bred specimen of Hypena crassalis: the larva fed on Vaccinium. J 2504 _ Microscopical Society. Mr. Douglas exhibited specimens of Coccyx Strobilana, Z., and read the follow- ing note of their habits: “ Early in May, last year, Messrs. Shepherd and Waring took this species for the first time in this country, in a plantation of fir-trees, about a mile and a half beyond Croydon. I made several expeditions to the place in hope of getting it, but without success, until, on the 19th of May last, I saw it flying in plenty round the tops of the spruce firs, in the hot sunshine, between the hours of 10 and 1, and not afterwards. As the trees are 20 feet high, the handle of my net should have been of proportionate length: as it was I could only capture one occasionally, as it by chance descended within reach. Later in the day I beat the trees all round, but without obtaining one: hence I conclude that it remains and breeds on the top branches. Mr. H. Doubleday considers, and I think rightly, that this species is the - true Tinea Strobilella of Linneus. Tortrix Strobilana of Haworth is the same as Pseudotomia fraternana of Stephens, and is found on oaks. It resembles the present species, but is smaller, and has not so many metallic markings. It is the Coccyx splendidulana of Guénée.” Mr. Douglas also exhibited a specimen of the true Retinia turionana, L., a spe- cies very rare in this country. He had beaten it from a Scotch fir at Wickham, on the 27th of May. At the same time and place he took one of Micropteryx Allionella, F. (T. ammanella, H.), a species that appeared to be more rare in the south than the north of England. Mr. Shepherd exhibited a remarkable variety of Arctia villica and specimens of Coccyx Strobilana, of which he had reared one from cones of spruce fir, one of which he showed. The larva had fed in the centre, changed to a pupa about two inches from the apex, and, when ready to emerge in the perfect state, had worked its way to the exterior along the tube it had previously formed. Mr. Westwood read descriptions of two new exotic Coleoptera. The Secretary read a paper by Mr. Desvignes, on Macrus and Coleocentrus, two of Gravenhorst’s subgenera of Ichneumons, and exhibited specimens taken by Mr. Desvignes at Vienna. Mr. Waterhouse read descriptions of two new beetles from the West Indies, hat he proposed to call Cryptorhynchus Batate and Tricorynus Zee. Mr. Bond said that a dealer was selling pupe of Deilephila Galii as British, but there was good reason to believe they had been imported from the Continent, and he wished to put collectors on their guard.—J. W. D. Proceedings of the Microscopical Society of London. April 25.—GrorcE Busx, Esq., President, in the chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. Certificates in favour of Joseph Bainbridge and Samuel Gurney, Esqrs., were read, and ordered to be suspended in the meeting-room. T. Hudson, Esq., Gideon Mantell, Esq., LL.D., R. Hodgson, Esq., and J. Ma- thieson, Esq., were balloted for, and duly elected Fellows of the Society. A paper by George Shadbolt, Esq., being ‘ A Description of a new form of Hair, from a species of Tarantula, was read. After some preliminary remarks on the in- teresting nature of the study of the various forms and structure of the hairs of animals, Microscopical Society. ni 2505 Mr. Shadbolt stated that those he was now about to describe were taken from a spe- cimen of one of the Tarantulide, in the possession of a friend, which had been found alive amongst some logwood, but whose original locality he had been unable to ascer- tain. The creature is entirely covered with short closely-set hairs, of a dark brown colour, excepting on the abdominal portion, where they are dark red: among these some longer hairs of a light brown colour are pretty plentifully interspersed. The dark brown hairs, and also the longer ones from the thorax, when examined with the microscope, present the appearance of a central shaft, with numerous small hairlets covering the whole length, and presenting very much the appearance of a mouse’s tail. Those from the dorsal part of the abdomen are, however, the most remarkable and curious, being extremely compounded in their structure, and having more the ap- pearance of feathers than of hairs. They consist of a central shaft, formed somewhat like a flattened cylinder, having a number of slight lateral appendages near the base. These are succeeded by a number of flattened blades, situated in the same plane as the former, having their free ends pointed and inclined towards the apex of the hair. Beyond these the shaft is covered with a considerable number of slightly elevated, obtusely pointed projections, which incline towards the base of the hair, being in the opposite direction to those before mentioned. These again are succeeded by six flat- tened blades, similar to those in the lower part of the shaft, and in the same plane with them, but pointing towards the base of the hair, instead of the apex as in the former instance. Beyond these is a slight projection similar to a continuation of the shaft, which terminates the hair. A second paper, by John Quekett, Esq., ‘ On a peculiar form of Elastic Tissue found in the Ligamentum Nuche of the Giraffe (Camelopardalis Giraffa). The au- thor, after noticing the principal kinds of fibrous tissues found in the bodies of the higher animals, went on to describe that known as the elastic, which occurs in the most marked form in the ligamentum nuche of the neck of certain animals, and in none on so extensive a scale as in the neck of the giraffe. In this animal the length of the ligament was 6 feet 2 inches, its weight being nearly 9 Ibs.; and as a proof of its great elasticity, it was stated that immediately on its separation from one of its attachments it contracted to four feet. On microscopic examination the individual fibres presented the usual curled extremities, so characteristic of this form of tissue, but with the addition of transverse markings or strie: the diameter of the largest fibres was about the ;),th of an inch, while others occurred as small as the ;,th. The strie were generally arranged at equal distances, and were of equal breadth, being on an average as far apart as the fibre was wide. The author then concluded by stating that as a striated form of elastic tissue had never to his knowledge been hitherto described by any anatomist, and as the true position of the structure in question would appear to be somewhat intermediate between muscular fibre and ordinary elas- tic tissue, he had thought proper to bring the subject before the notice of the Society. —G. Bush. May 23, 1849.—GerorGE Busx, Esq., President, in the chair. The minutes of the preceding meeting were read and confirmed. A certificate in favour of Frederick Barber, Esq., of Camberwell, was read, and ordered to be suspended in the meeting-room. Joseph Bainbridge and Samuel Gumey, Esqrs, were balloted for, and duly elected members of the Society. 2506 Purple Colour of the Ancients. Mr. Quekett read a paper ‘ On the Structure of Cartilage in the four great classes of Animals ; being Contribution No. 2 on the Anatomy of Cartilage. After giving a brief abstract of the former communication, in which the principal characters of car- tilage in general were described, the Author went on to notice the most simple form under which it exists, viz., that of large more or less hexagonal nucleated cells that could be readily isolated from each other, as such formed the chorda dorsales of many fishes, both in the adult and in the embryonic condition. He then went on to describe the membraniform condition of cartilage, as it exists in the ears of male ani- mals in which the cells were generally well-defined and collected together in a single thin layer, as in the ears of some species of the English bat, or sometimes into two or more layers superimposed, as in the mouse and rat. The Author then concluded -by describing the different modes of arrangement of the cells in osseous fishes, and how such cells in them become ossified,—N. B. Ward. June 20, 1849.—N. B. Warp, Esq., Treasurer, in the chair. Frederick Barber, Esq., was balloted for, and duly elected a member of the So- ciety. The Secretary (J. Quekett, Esq.) read a paper ‘On the Structure and Mode of Growth of certain Tissues and Organs of the Trout, as observed in Specimens pro- duced by the Artificial Mode of hatching the Ova proposed by M. Boccius, and prac- tised in this country by Samuel Gurney, Jun., Esq. —J. W. On the Purple Colour of the Ancients, especially considered in refe- rence to its connexion with Natural History. By the Rev. JAMEs SMITH. THERE is no colour which is so much celebrated by Greek and Roman writers, and which is so familiar to classical scholars, at least by name, as that of purple. It cannot, however, admit of doubt that the Latin word purpura, as used by the authors of antiquity, must be regarded as a generic, and not as a specific, term. They were in the custom, it would appear, of applying this word indiscriminately to the extensive class of tints which is produced by the intermixture of red and blue; and to some colours, moreover, in which blue does not form an ingredient, at least to the outward appearance, and so far as can be ascertained by a common and an unpractised eye. This latter circumstance would seem to have been especially the case with the shade of purple, which was of all others the most esteemed in the an- cient world, and which there is reason to believe, was reserved in the Purple Colour of the Ancients. 2507 more early ages for the robes of kings, and for the most solemn pur- poses of heathen worship. We allude to the double-dyed purple of Tyre. The richness and beauty of this famed colour were owing principally to the skill of the dyers in the city now mentioned, and partly to the excellence of the materials of which they had the com- mand. It was the product, not of a vegetable, but of an invertebrate animal belonging to the division Mollusca. Discoveries of a recent date have indeed proved, in the most conclusive manner, that it was obtained from the juice in a small vein or sac, situated in the throat of the Murex trunculus of Linneus and Lamarck. It is said that one drop only of this precious liquid was all that could be got from each individual animal. When it was wished to produce the most brilliant and costly dye which art could exhibit, the juice of which we are speaking was used in conjunction with that which was procured from other shell-fish belonging to the genus Buccinum. ‘This genus was so named either from the species of which it is composed having a resemblance to a trumpet (Buccinum), or to the human cheek when inflated (Bucca).* They were met with in the clefts and fissures of rocks, whereas the Murex, or proper purpura, had to be fished up from the ocean; and on this account it had sometimes given to it the name of Pelagia, from the Greek word which signifies the sea. The wool to which this gorgeous purple was imparted was uniformly of the finest quality, and was, in all likelihood, purchased from the No- mad or shepherd tribes, which abounded in the vicinity of Tyre. The colour itself was of a highly durable character. In proof of this we are told by Plutarch, that, on making himself master of Susa,t in which was the palace of the Persian kings, Alexander the Great found in the wardrobe—so to speak—of Darius, his amiable but discomfited adversary, no fewer than five thousand talents’t worth of purple of * It is remarked by Pennant that Buccinum Lapillus produces a purple dye of a nature analogous to that of the ancients. This shell-fish is found in abundance on certain parts of our own shores, and in the same kind of locality as the Buccinum of the ancients. So far back as 1684, Mr. William Cole, of Bristol, produced a fine purple dye from a white vein in the head of this animal. He describes minutely the whole process which he went through. The colour in the last stage was, in his own words, “a fair bright crimson.” (‘Penny Cyclopedia, ix. 454). + The ruins of this ancient city are, according to Major Rawlinson, still to be seen at Sus, in Khusistan. { If, as is most probable, the Attic talent is here meant, and if that talent was equal, as is believed to have been the case, to £243 15s. of our present money, the value of the whole purple cloth thus laid up must have amounted to the enormous sum of £ 1,218,750. 2508 Purple Colour of the Ancients. Hermione.* It had been laid up there for 190 years, and, nevertheless, it still retained, in all their freshness, its glossy and shining qualities: and the cause assigned to the conqueror for this remarkable fact was the circumstance, that the dyeing of the purple had been completed by means of honey, and that the shining lustre had been communi- cated by the application of purified olive oil (di elaiow lewkou—Plu- tarchi opera: Francofurti 1595, fol., vol. i. p. 686). This passage, as well as some from other authors, would seem to indicate that the royal purple of antiquity had, as one of its peculiar characteristics, a cer- tain play of colours, such, perhaps, in some measure, as what we see in our own times in shot silk; and, among the works of Nature, in the neck of the pigeon, and—to a greater and still more beautiful ex- tent—in the metallic-like plumage of the African thrush or grackle (Lamprotornis rufipennis). Of Tyrian cloth thus double-dyed, it is said by Pliny :—“ libra denariis mille non poterat emi,” (Lib. 9, c. 39): a pound weight of it could not be bought for a thousand denarii, that is, for £35 8s. 4d. of our present money, reckoning the denarius—as the most accurate numismatologists are inclined to do-—at 83d. (Smith’s Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, p. 325). It is interesting to have some definite idea in regard to this, and to other shades of purple, which were celebrated in the ages of antiquity. It is very evident, however, that words, merely as such, cannot, on a subject of this description, communicate to our mind any precise, distinct and lasting perceptions: but if there are objects and appear- ances in nature to which these colours are likened by ancient writers, and if we ourselves have the power of beholding these objects and appearances in the same circumstances that they did, we shall be en- abled, in this manner, to look on several of the identical shades of the generic term purpura, which the Romans and others were in the cus- tom of admiring. On this point our greatest and principal authority must be Pliny, whose work on Natural History is an extraordinary as- semblage of facts and observations, mixed up, as was to be expected, with the numerous and frequently the ludicrous fables, which were current at a period when physical science could scarcely be said to have made its appearance. In respect to the Tyrian dye, of which mention has already been made, he has, among many other, the * Hermione was a city of Peloponnesus (Morea), on the northern shore and to- wards the eastern point of the Sinus Argolicus (Nauplia gulf). The purple, for which it was famous, is supposed to have been obtained from the Murex trunculus, modified perhaps by locality. Purple Colour of the Ancients. 2509 following words :—“ Erat ejus summa laus similem esse concreto san- guini; aspectu nigricantem, in suspectu refulgentem. Unde et Homero purpureus dicitur sanguis,” (lib. 9, c. 37): its highest excel- lence consisted in resembling clotted blood; of a blackish colour when looked at from above, having a shining brightness when held up to the light: whence, also, in Homer the blood is said to be of a pur- plehue. In his ‘History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,’ Gibbon, a writer of prodigious and very accurate information, observes in a note (vol. vii. p. 92), that the royal purple of the ancients had a strong smell and a dark cast as deep as bull’s blood. The modern reader of the classics, it is, therefore, conceived, may obtain the most accurate and striking idea of the famous double-dyed purple of Tyre by going into a butcher’s shambles, and by looking on the accumula- tions of clotted blood which may there be presented to his view. These, in the modern nomenclature of colours, may. be perhaps cha- racterized as of the deepest and the darkest crimson, where, from be- neath a surface of almost jet black, there shines through a clear, ~ luminous, and intense colour of blood. Of the strong smell emitted by this Tyrian purple, the principal cause is, in all probability, thus indicated by Pliny :—“ In conchyliata veste tingenda, jus temperatur aqua, et, pro indiviso, humani potts excremento” (lib. 9, c. 39):—a passage which the learned reader will be pleased to translate for him- self. The smell in question would appear to have been of an offensive description, and it is not unfrequently alluded to by the satirical poets of antiquity. Thus in Martial (lib. 1, epig. 50), we meet with the ex- pression, “ olide vestes murice,’—garments smelling strongly of the shell-fish. In another part of his writings (lib. 4, epig. 4), when giving an enumeration of the most villanous smells of which he can think, he assigns a prominent place to the “ bis murice vellus inqui- natum,’—the fleece twice defiled by the shell-fish,—that is, a garment of double-dyed Tyrian purple. Wishing, moreover, to hold up to scorn, on account of her habits, a lady of the name of Philenis, the same sarcastic author exclaims :— “ Tinctis murice vestibus quod omni Et nocte utitur et die, Philenis Non est ambitiosa nec superba ; Delectatur odore, non colore.” Lib. 9, epig. 63. Philenis is not ambitious nor proud, because, both day and night, she habitually wears garments dyed with the shell-fish. Her delight is not in the colour, but in the smell. VII : QA 2510 — Purple Colour of the Ancients. There is in Pliny another passage, through the information in which we are enabled to look on the same identical shade of colour as that which was esteemed by the Romans,—a purple of an excellent cha- racter. Speaking of indigo, and of the adulteration to which the article was frequently subjected, he goes on to say :—“ Probatur car- bone. Reddit enim quod sincerum est, flammam excellentis purpure ; et, dum fumat, odorem maris.” It is tested by means of a burning coal: for that which is unadulterated, gives out a flame of an excellent purple colour; and, while it is smoking, a smell of the sea. When employed as a teacher, I procured from London a piece of eastern in- digo, the finest in quality which was to be had in the market: this was laid upon a small surface of iron made red hot: there quickly arose a flame of a very beautiful hue: the colour, so far as I can describe it in words, was an exceedingly rich lake, of great depth of tone, so to speak, and with a tinge, as it were, of black. It may be proper to add that the indigo, while burning, gave out, to a powerful extent, that smell of the sea which is noticed by the Roman natural historian. Vitruvius (lib. 7, c. 7) refers to a purple which was pro- duced by cooling ochra usta, or burnt ochre, with vinegar made from wine. This particular hue of the colour under consideration may, therefore, likewise be still seen by ourselves, on going through the process which is thus pointed out. There are other and numerous objects in Nature to which the epi- thet purpureus is applied by classical writers, and by looking on which we have it completely in our power to see and to identify a considerable variety of those shades of colour which were characterized among the ancients by the general name of purple. Thus in Pliny (lib. 14, c. 1) it is said,— Uve hic purpureo lucent colore, illic ful- gent roseo:” in one place the grapes shine with the colour of purple, in another they are bright with that of the rose. There cannot be a doubt that the grape, thus spoken of as being of a purple colour, is the variety so frequently to be met with, which is of a subdued violet shade, especially before the delicate bloom with which it is covered is impaired or rubbed off. ‘To the same purpose is the line in Horace : —““ Certantem et uvam purpure:”—and the grape vying in beauty with purple (Epod. 2, v. 20). Pliny, moreover, makes mention of “ purpuree ficus,” or purple figs (lib. 15, c. 18); of “ purpurea salix,” or the purple willow (lib. 16, c. 37); of “ purpurea viola,” or the pur- ple violet (lib. 21, c. 11); of “ purpurea lactuca,” or the purple lettuce (lib. 19, v. 8); and of “ purpurea pruna,”* or purple prunes or dam- * This particular shade of purple may be observed in the fruit of the wild sloe Purple Colour of the Ancients. 2511 sons (lib. 15, c. 13). These last are referred to by Ovid (Metam. 13, vy. 817) as “nigro liventia succo:” livid with darksome juice.* In’ describing the oyster, Pliny takes notice of its “ purpureus crinis,”— its purple hair or filaments (lib. 32, c. 6); and to this same appendage there is applied by Martial (lib. 7, epig. 19) the epithet “ lividus,” that is, livid, or black and blue: hence it would seem that a darkish blue of such a description was regarded as one of the numerous shades of the colour to which we are directing our attention. To the sea, also, was given by the ancients the epithet of purple. Homer, in his Iliad, has the expression kuma porphureon,—the purple wave (lib. 1, v. 482); and frequently, as in his Odyssey (lib. 1, v. 183), he speaks ‘of the otnopa ponton, which means literally the wine-faced deep.t We have reason to believe that the earliest wines were of a very dark colour, and that they had a resemblance to deep-bodied port, or to the black wine of Cahors, of the present day. In commenting on these epithets of Homer as applied to the sea, the scholiast Eustathius remarks that they are to be regarded as nearly synonymous with black, since, as he says, the colour of purple approaches to blackness. In Cicero, also, may be found expressions of a similar nature: “ Mare quod nunc, Favonio nascente, purpureum videtur:” the sea, which, now that the west wind is arising, appears of a purple hue (4 Acad. c. 33). And, in a fragment preserved by Nonius (c. 2, n. 717), the same author puts the questions,—“ Quid mare? Nonne ceruleum? At ejus unda, cum est pulsa remis, purpurascit: ” What as to the sea? Is it not of an azure blue? Yet its wave, when it is struck by the oars, becomes of the colour of purple. ‘The particular shades to which Homer and Cicero thus refer, may, in similar circumstances, still be seen by those who have the opportunity, in all the changes of weather, of looking upon the classical and the deep-tinted waters of the Mediterranean. The shell called Conchylium appears to have belonged to the sec- tion Buccinum, and is supposed by eminent conchologists to have (Prunus spinosa), which is found ornamenting in abundance many of the secluded glens so frequently to be met with in Scotland. * JT have seen it mentioned that Murillo derived the beautiful and peculiar shade of purple, which is often to be seen in his paintings, from observing the deeply-stained fingers of the female mulberry gatherers in the south of Spain. + An eloquent writer of the present day describes the sea in the Grecian Archi- pelago as “ofa deep purple, flecked constantly with foam.” (Warburton’s Crescent and Cross.) : 2512 Purple Coluur of the Ancients. been the Helix Ianthina of Linneus: it resembles “in form the in- flated cheek (bucca) of a person blowing a trumpet. Of the purple obtained from this mollusk; when used by itself alone, it is said by Pliny that it was “austerus in glauco, et irascenti similis mari:” a sullen deep blue, and resembling the sea in a rage (lib. 9, c. 36). It was modified, however, by other juices ; and, when it constituted the chief ingredient in the mixture, it exhibited, according to the propor- tion used, three recognized varieties or shades. The first is seen in the purplish parts of the Heliotropium, or sun-flower; the second in those of the Malva, or mallow; and the third in the Viola serotina, or late-flowering violet. This last was highly esteemed, and is termed by Pliny Conchyliorum vegetissimus,—the freshest, or most lively, of the colours obtained from the Conchylium (lib. 21, c.8). It is proba- bly the same colour as that indicated by the above writer in the ex- pression “ianthina vestis” (lib. 21, c. 6): a garment in hue like the flower of the violet. By Martial (lib. 2, epig. 39) the word zanthina is used absolutely in the neuter plural for garments of a violet colour: the adjective is evidently formed from two Greek words, signifying a violet and a flower. This is also, in all likelihood, the same shade of purple as that which was denominated amethystinus, from its resem- blance to the precious stone called the amethyst: a person clad in a garment of this particular hue was termed amethystinatus. Thus Martial says (lib. 2, epig. 57), “hic, quem videtis, gressibus vagis lentum, Amethystinatus media qui secat septa:” the man, whom you behold moving leisurely on with steps uncontrolled, who threads his way through the midst of the public market, clad in a purple garment of the colour of amethyst. Ovid (Art. Am. lib. 3, v. 161) speaks of “ purpuree amethysti,” or purple amethysts. We are thus enabled to see that the flower of the violet, and the precious stone, the eastern amethyst, were both looked upon by the ancients as a shade of purple which was held in great esteem. That the purpura of the ancients, however, included some shades of colour which are indeed well known to ourselves, but to which we are not in the custom at any time of giving the name of purple, is evi- dent from not a few passages in their best and most familiarly known writers. Thus, for example, the pigment which the Roman ladies made use of for imparting a colour to their cheeks was called purpu- rissum, oY purpurissus, although it must at once be evident, that if the application of this pigment had produced a decided, or even a perceptible, tinge of what we denominate purple, it would have proved an unnatural blemish, and not an ornament, on the countenance of an ee ————Eee ee Purple Colour of the Ancients. | 2513 aristocratic beauty of Rome: its colour was no doubt of precisely the same tint as what we call carmine, and the pigment itself answered to the rouge of the present day. Inveighing against the arts to which the females of his time had recourse for the preservation of their fading charms, St. Jerome indignantly exclaims, “ Quid facit in facie Christiane purpurissus?” or, as we would now say, What business has rouge on the face of a female follower of Christ ? (Epist. 10). Of the. particular tint produced by the purpurissum, the most explicit evidence may be deduced froin numerous passages in the Roman poets. Thus Ovid says, “ Conscia purpureus venit in ora pudor” (Tristia, el. 3, v. 70). To translate purpureus pudor as the purple blush would, however, be contrary to what may be daily witnessed in Nature ; and the line must undoubtedly be rendered—the crimson blush arises on the conscious face. ‘The same poet speaks of purpu- ree gene (Armor. el. 4, v. 22): but were this expression to be Eng- lished, and to be understood as the empurpled cheeks, it would indicate a ghastly and unbecoming deformity ; and we need not doubt that the colour known to us by the name of purple would on the cheek of a lady have been no recommendation, but the very reverse, to far worse judges of female beauty than Ovid: it must, indeed, be clear that in this verse purpureus can have no other meaning than crimsoned. ‘The same remark is applicable to a passage from one of the comedies of Plautus :—“ Quia istas buccas tam bellé purpurissatas habes: ” because you have those cheeks of yours so prettily rouged,—not em- purpled (Trucul. 2, 2, 35). There are other circumstances, from which it may be inferred that the ancients gave the name of purple to what among ourselves is uniformly denominated red. It is believed, for example, that their mincum was exactly the same as our modern ver- milion : but, should this point be disputed in words, we have it in our power to look upon an object in nature, to a particular and unchanging - portion of which the epithet méniatus or vermilioned is applied by Pliny. The Romans were not acquainted to any great extent with the varied species of the parrot tribe: all that they knew were com- prehended, it is believed, in the modern genus Palzornis; and the one with which they would seem to have been the most familiar is that which is now known by the name of Palzornis torquatus, or the rose-ringed parakeet.* There cannot be any doubt, we should imagine, * In the vignette to the 19th volume of Sir William Jardine’s Naturalist’s Li- brary there is a characteristic representation of this bird, from the exquisite pencil of Mr. Swainson. The ring round the neck is of a fine re.l.. Your London readers may, 2514 Purple Colour of the Ancients. that this is the bird which is described in the following passage from Pliny, for the evidence furnished by his language is decisive :—* India hance avem mittit, viridem toto corpore, torque tantum mznzato in cer- vice distinctam:” the bird in question is furnished by India; it is green all over the body, being marked only by a ring of vermilion on the neck. We know that it was the practice among the Romans, on festivals and on occasions of more than usual solemnity, to paint with vermilion the statues of their gods. Thus Cicero (Fam. 9, epist. 16) makes mention of menzatus Jupiter, or the vermilioned Jupiter, that ‘is, a statue of the god which had been coloured in the manner now indicated. With a delicate flattery, and in the anticipation of the di- vine honours which awaited Augustus, Horace says of that emperor, “Purpureo bibit ore nectar:” he quaffs the nectar with reddened mouth (lib. 3, od. 3, v. 12). We have seen that this colour was im- parted to the lips of the gods by means of miniwm. We are enabled, in this manner, to ascertain that the expressions minzatus and purpu- reus are synonymous; and we infer accordingly that, by the ancients, vermilion was regarded as one of the many specific shades which were included in the generic term purpura. Among the Romans, more- over, the pomegranate was known as the Malum punicum, or Cartha- ginian apple, and the epithet puniceus was used as descriptive of the blossom of the tree: of this the hue, as is well known, is of a most decided red: notwithstanding this, however, the words purpureus and puniceus are both applied as epithets to the same substance in nature ; and we are hence entitled to conclude that the flower of the pomegra- nate was considered as one of the diversified tints of purple. Ovid says (2 Met. v. 607), “ Candida puniceo perfudit membra cruore :” the ruddy gore flowed all over the snow-white limbs:—and Virgil, in describing a death of the same violent character, makes use of the ex- pression, “ Purpuream vomit ille animam:” his blood of crimson dye he vomits forth (Aneid 9, v. 349). That the colour, properly indicated by the Latin puniceus and the Greek phoinikeos, was dark or blood red, may be clearly perceived from the remark of a scholiast on a line in Homer (Iliad, lib. 11, v. 459). Lycurgus, he says, commanded the Lacedzmonians to wear a deep red dress (estheta phoiniken) in their wars, in order that, if any one were wounded, the circumstance might —from the resemblance of the colour (dia to homochran)—escape the I presume, look at the living bird—which is the most satisfactory method of all— amid the rich collection in the Zoological Gardens. Purple Colour of the Ancients. 2515. observation of their enemies. The same thing is related by Plutarch in his Laconica Instituta (vol. 11. fol. p. 238). It was the opinion of the ancients that the quality of the purple dye ‘was very materially affected by the nature of the ground on which the Murex had its abode, and by the food on which it was nourished. We have already seen the pre-eminent beauty of that furnished by the Murex in the vicinity of Tyre. From the Murex, also, around Tzna- rus, a mountain and promontory in Laconia, now called Cape Mata- pan, there was a purple dye obtained which was accounted of great value, and was at one time the height of fashion. Pliny says, “ Pur-: pura laudatissima in mari circa Tenarum promontorium capiebatur : ” a purple, very much extolled, was in the custom of being procured in the sea surrounding the promontory of Tznarus (lib. 9, c. 36). From what is said of this particular purple by the poet Valerius Flaccus, it would appear to have been of a bright red colour, having a resem- blance to fire. His words are, “ Tzenario ignea fuco purpura” (lib. 1, v. 427): the fiery purple of Tanarian dye. When the Murex lived among sea-weed, the purple which it produced was termed algensis, from alga, a sea-weed; and when on a fetid muddy bottom, Jutensis, from lutum, mud. ‘To both these kinds Pliny applies the epithet v- lissimum, that is, of the most worthless description. When on a bottom where the sea was of a pebbly description, the produce had the name of calculensis, from calculus, a pebble, and was of a finer character than the foregoing two. When the locality and food were of varied materials the purple was considered the finest of all, and was called dialutensis. Lastly he mentioned a kind which was known as the teniensis: this was procured where the Murex had its abode amid reefs of rocks lying like so many fillets, or ribbons (tenze), at the bot- tom of the sea (Pliny, lib. 9, c. 37). During the latter ages of the Roman Empire, when the Latin lan- guage had been adulterated by barbarous and unclassical words, the epithet blatteus came to be almost universally employed instead of purpureus. Silk was then first coming into general use in Europe, and the word of which we are speaking would appear to have been applied in an especial manner to that precious substance, when it was dyed of the colour of purple. ‘Those individuals who made this their trade were termed, blattiarii, or dyers of silk in purple (Cod. Theod. tit. 4, leg. 2); and the Roman senate is styled, by the poet Sidonius, who flourished a. p. 450, “ blattifer senatus,” or the purple-clad senate (lib. 9, ep. 16). The adjective in question is seemingly formed from blatta, the black beetle, or Blaps mortisaga of entomologists ; and, .» 216 Purple Colour of the Ancients. by the more recent and inferior writers of Rome, dlatta itself is used to denote purple cloth. Vossius (Voss), a celebrated German philolo- gist, assigns as the reason of this, “ quod purpureus color illi colori similis est, quo apprehensa blatta manum hominis tingit (Etymol.): because the colour of purple is similar to that colour with which the black beetle, when it is laid hold of, stains the hand of an individual. On the other hand, Salmasius (De Saumaise), a Frenchman and a learned commentator on the classics, maintains that the word blatta is used instead of purpura, from the circumstance of blatta sometimes signifying a bubble, or drop, of clotted blood, and being explained in a Greek glossary by the words thrombos chaimatos, a clot of blood (Adnot. ad Vopiscum, c. 46). This seems the preferable reason,— more especially as we have seen that such is the shade of colour which is assigned by Pliny to the royal and the most celebrated purple of antiquity. In the Codex Justinianus, or Code of Laws of Justinian, who reigned A. D. 530, there is a purple mentioned by the name of oxyblatta (tit. 40,1.1). As the Greek word oxus, which is here in composition, sometimes denotes that which is clear, the oxyblatta was probably a purple of which the colour was more than usually brilliant. In an earthern vase, discovered, if I remember aright, in the baths of Titus, there were found a variety of pigments, or colours, which had belonged to an artist of antiquity. On these Sir Humphrey Davy instituted a series of experiments, and communicated the result of his researches to the literary and scientific world (Transactions of Royal Society, 1815). One of the colours was of the shade of purple, or rather red, which we denominate Jake. He was unable to ascertain whether this particular pigment was of animal or of vegetable origin. If of the former, he supposed that it was, in all probability, the cele- brated marine purple of Tyre. From what we have seen, however, in regard to the royal or Tyrian purple, this is not likely to have been the case, even if it could have been proved that the pigment in ques- tion was in reality of animal origin, So greatly, in its variety of shades, was purple esteemed by the an- cients, and so extensively was it used by all who could procure it, that there was a particular class of individuals who were known by the name of purpurarii, that is, dealers in purple. In the work of Ursatus (Marmor. Erudit. p. 230), there is a stone to the memory of C. L. Micus Purpurarius. On the stone are sculptured representa- tions of the libra or pair of scales, of the ampullz or flasks, and of the vasa or vessels, which the purpurarius made use of in the conducting of his business. In the Acts of the Apostles we are told of a certain Purple Colour of the Ancients. 2517 ‘voman named Lydia, a seller of purple, or, as she would have been called in Rome, purpuraria (Ch. 16, v. 14). The finding and collect- ing of the various mollusks which were employed in producing the purples of antiquity, constituted, in like manner, the means of sub- sistence to a particular class of the community. These were called Conchyte, or sheli-fishes; and sometimes Conchylileguli, or collectors of shell-fish. Thus, in the comic poet Plantus, who lived about 180 years before the Christian era, we meet with the exclamation, “ Sal- vete, fures maritimi, Conchytz, atque hamiote:” all hail, ye thieves of the sea, ye fishers of shells, and ye who make use of the hook, (Rud. 2, 2, 5); and, in the Codex of Theodosius and Valentinian, we find a declaration regarding those “ qui patre Conchylilegulo geniti probabuntur:” who-shall be proven to have been born of a father who was a gatherer of shell-fish (lib. 11, tit. 7). It was sometimes at- tempted, by means of sumptuary laws, to repress the extravagant pas- sion for the wearing of purple which prevailed among the inhabitants of Rome. Of the great Julius Cesar, we are informed by Suetonius, “ Lecticarum usum, item conchyliate vestis, et margaritarum, nisi cer- tis personis, perque certos dies, ademit:” he interdicted the use of sedan chairs, and also of a garment dyed in purple, and of pearls, un- less to particular individuals and during particular days (Jul. Ces. ch. 43). On a review of the whole, the conclusion to which we would be disposed to come is this. Among the ancients the word purpura was a generic term, as the corresponding word purple is among ourselves ; and it included, as purple does at the present moment, a great variety of shades of colour. It embraced all those, without exception, which may be discovered—by the unassisted and unpractised eye—as pro- duced by the intermixture, in varying proportion, of the two primitive colours, red and blue; and in this respect, we, in modern times, go along with them: but, in addition to these now mentioned, the an- cients gave the appellation of purple to various colours of which we never speak by that name. Of these, for example, may be enume- rated, in the language of Mr. Syme, “ scarlet, vermilion, arterial blood red, carmine, lake, crimson, &c.” (Nomenclature of Colours, pp. 42, 43). And among them were some of those shades which, under the name of purple, were most highly and most generally esteemed by the nations of antiquity. In modern times, the discovery in America of the cochineal insect (Coccus Cacti) has superseded the use of molluscous animals in the process of dyeing. By means of this insect it is believed that we are VII 2B 2518 _ Marine Zoology. enabled to produce colours, such as scarlet and crimson, of a more beautiful and permanent description even than those which were in the greatest repute among the ancients. It is the female insect only which is employed for this purpose. Externally she is of a deep brown co- lour, and not much bigger than a peppercorn : the internal substance, when reduced to powder, is of a rich purple. Cloth which has been dyed with cochineal is devoid of any strong or unpleasant smell. JAMES SMITH. Manse of Monquhitter by Turriff, Aberdeenshire, June 15, 1849. Notes on the Marine Zoology of Dunbar.—Fishes, Annelides, Crustacea and Zoophytes- By Ropexrt Gray, Esq. (Continued from page 2468). Ar neap tides the shore of Dunbar presents an interesting field of observation, extending upwards of a mile on each side of the town, with a large exposed surface of black rocks intersected in many places by deep pools. In the latter are found most of the fishes of the Forth which prefer a life among sea-weed, such as Cottus scorpius, Crasterosteus spinachia, Blennius pholis, Murenoides guttata, Zoarces vivi- parus, the young of the ling (Lota molva), Motella quinquecirrata, &c. Many of these, from their small size, escape general observation, and are left to multiply to a great extent, having no human enemy but the prying schoolboy and the rambling na- turalist. In summer, however, there is a more attractive inhabitant, the lump-sucker (Cyclopterus lumpus), which is eagerly sought for by fisher-boys and others. This fish is very plentiful from May to September, especially in the pools farthest distant from the ordinary tide-mark, where the large blades of Fuci affurd concealment to numbers ; but even there they are speedily discovered and torn from their fixture, by the ruthless rock-fishers, to supply the demand in the market. Considerable numbers are killed in this way; but the boats never bring one to land caught by a hook, as this fish rarely takes a bait. The ballan wrasse (Labrus maculatus) and the red or trimaculated wrasse (L. carneus), although common in some localities near the shore, are seldom caught by the fishermen, for they have an aversion to take any fish not in general use as food. A light fishing is the only incentive to bring ashore all that comes in their way, and it is then the wrasses, besides many others, are sold in the streets. On some occasions upwards of fifty specimens of the ballan wrasse, and half that number of the three-spotted wrasse, are offered for sale in a forenoon ; and, as if conscious of the insignificance of its local name, ‘ sea sow,’ as well as the caution of purchasers in taking a fish under such a title, the fish-wives—despite the wide separation of species —do not hesitate to sell the wrasse as perch. That the contents of their baskets may better sustain this valuable transformation of character, the vendors assure their cus- tomers that the said perch have been carried to the sea by the late floods, if such have - Marine Zoology. 2519 taken place; or in some other ingenious manner account for their occurrence in room of haddocks,—a deception which procures an immediate sale, and at the time yields a good profit. The last wrasse which was added to my collection was a large and beautiful specimen of L. maculatus,—a female full of roe in a forward state: the date on the label affixed to it is October 24th, on which day a number were procured from two boats usually employed in attending crab-cages by the side of the rocks. Most of them were females in the same condition as the one selected, thus showing that no definite season can be named for the spawning. In the South of England it takes place in April; but Dr. Parnell thinks that in Scotland it may be later. Large masses of roe, exact in resemblance to that of the ballan wrasse, are washed on the sands at Dunbar in July and August; but even amidst these observations I could hardly venture a decision on the subject. The wolf-fish (Anarrhicus lupus) is much detested by the fishermen, as it too often exceeds in abundance the more profitable fishes. It is not uncommon to find thirty of these savage-looking animals in one boat, some of them of great size; and the mutilated condition they arrive in bespeaks at once the extent of the fisher’s dislike, and the heavy blows which have been dealt to deprive them of life. Like the gray and red gurnards, the wolf-fish is skinned and made use of as food, which, according to the authority of those wlio have enjoyed the dish, is of a quality that would please even fastidious tastes. If this fish should be opened in the hope of finding the small shells and Crustacea on which it feeds, disappointment is invariably the result: its large grinders having crushed to pieces all its prey, nothing can be found but the mangled remains of a few fishes, and, in all instances, large quantities of the little variegated pecten shells reduced to sand. The common plaice (Platessa vulgaris) offers a better reward on dissection : in two average-sized individuals I have found upwards of two hundred shells, all of one species, Pecten fusio. The dab (Platessa limanda) furnishes the same shell in equal numbers, together with another pretty small pecten (P. /evis). Almost every fish brought to land is worthy of more than external examination by the naturalist; but the common cod and the skate (Raia batis) are above all others the most fertile subjects: the former yields many concholo- gical specimens, while in the latter may sometimes be found minute fishes and Ra- diata which are not otherwise easily obtained. The voracity of the cod is well known ; nothing in the wide ocean, whether resting at the bottom or floating on the surface, comes amiss to its ravenous appetite: shells, crustaceans, fishes, annelides and zoo- phytes, all find a grave in its capacious stomach. Nor do more highly organized forms escape: two instances have occurred within my memory where adult specimens of the common guillemot have been found swallowed entire. Throughout the winter season one of the most brilliant and iridescent sea-worms of our Scottish coasts, Aphrodita aculeata, forms its choice morsels; and, from the greater number of cods which are killed, these curious creatures can be taken in a good state for preserving. I have to record the capture of the greater weever (Z’rachinus draco), a fish rare in Scotland, and, as far as I am aware, new to the Frith of Forth. It was found in the herring nets on the 14th of August, near the Bass Rock; and all the fishermen of the shore affirmed they had not before seen a fish like it. The other species in the genus Trachinus (7°. vipera) is common in shallow water over Tyne sands, about a mile west from the town. No one who daily visits the sea-rocks can fail to observe the profuse tenantry of the common Nereis in every channeled pool: not a flat stone can be upturned without 2526 _ Marine Zoology. alarming a host of them. Multitudes may be seen rolling in a languid state, towards the sea, in the rippling course of a small rivulet which spreads over a bed of stones on the beach before joining the ocean. There they furnish a rich repast for the heron, curlew, godwit, redshank, and other Tring. My attention was drawn to the spot by observing daily large flocks of these coast birds feeding ; and I was surprised, on ex- amination, to find that a bushel of worms could have been gathered in a short time. it would appear, from this circumstance, that these singular creatures—during the flowing of the tide—must travel from their usual site and settle under the stones at the mouth of the stream, whence they are ejected when the tide recedes by the rush of fresh water, which destroys numbers before they reach the sea. In its natural bode the Nereis is active, and eludes capture—as well as more perfect animals—by burying itself in the sand or slipping amongst the loose pebbles. There are appa- rently two kinds: one grows to some thickness, equalling in bulk many of the soft- bodied annelides, as the sand-worm (Arenicola piscatorum); the other, which is probably a variety, is more slender, often not half the breadth, although of the same length. But the animal now spoken of is but one of a hundred which inhabit the dark blue waters: stili more interesting members of the tribe are found where no human hand can upset their domicile, and no rivulet wash them from their lurking-place. The lines of the fisherman and the dredge of the naturalist are the only means of re- vealing the diversity of their forms, the nature of their habitat, and the extent of their distribution. The tubicolar species abound amongst old and worn shells long since relieved of their owner; and in almost all of the saucer-shaped valves their tortuous cells are glued to each other, and bound with hair-like zoophytes, broken shells and coarse sand. Flexible sheaths are not less common: they are formed by a large and beautiful species, having a bunch of thread-like tentacles surrounding its mouth, and short cirri along its sides. As formerly noticed, this kind of tube is invariably covered with a crust of Alcyonium digitatum, which, in its turn, is sometimes surmounted by the tree zoophyte (Hudendriwn rameum). The annelide in question is not entirely restricted to this mode of house building; it also forms for itself a covering on the interior surface of a bivalve shell, usually coiled round the edge; and in many cases I have observed its tube wound about the stalks or mattings of dead zoophytes. When so discovered, however, it partakes of the India-rubber nature, and has more or less of that leathery appearance which is so conspicuous in the straight and black- coloured sheaths. The fishermen suppose, and certainly their daily observations almost justify a be- lief, that most of marine animals—especially in the lower scale of beings—live on very friendly terms. They lift a handful of refuse from their baskets, and tell their visitors to witness the congregation of worms in an old shell,—how they live in har- mony, although their mansions of fragments are piled over one another and run across in every shape. ‘The ponderous horse-mussel (Modiola) is adduced as another example, of which I have myself been a witness, carrying on its back two large polypi without resisting the burden, although it will snap asunder the fishing-lines after seizing a baited hook; and even the smaller crabs do not escape notice as rendering important service to some corallines and sponges which grow and flourish on their carapace. Various univalves perform the function of a carrier to many of our grace- ful species: on two or three occasions I have found Antennularia antennina affixed to live shells of Buccinum undatum, each whorl being adorned with a feathery stalk. Marine Z oology. 2521 Almost every animal renders support to some object, displaying a mutual dependance unknown to the same extent in land zoology: even the inanimate polypidoms of the numerous zoophytes are loaded with parasites in the shape of little worms and shells, and sustain bunches of ‘ sea-grapes, a term applied by the fishermen to the eggs of the cuttlefish (Sepia). But amidst these promiscuous obligations, which owe their existence more to accidental contact than harmonious feeling, there is given an occa- sional proof of maternal care, or, to modify the expression, an apparent interest by one animal for the safety of its own species. The mollusk living in the common spindle-shell (Fusus antiquus) illustrates the truth of this remark, by its singular habit of building layers of spawn on the roof of its tenement to the height of three inches, and roving through its native element with the weighty charge. This self-created burden is firmly cemented to the shell, and consists of numerous cells regularly placed over one another, each containing the germs of three young shells, which in due time become fully developed. On a shell of average size, I counted, after opening all the divisions, upwards of two hundred, and each of these had attained a size larger than a grain of barley. Although the spawn of the Fusus is frequently lodged in this manner, yet I believe its general habit is that of depositing it in clusters at the bottom of the sea, at a depth of thirty fathoms and upwards, as I have found in such a situ- ation compact masses as large as a man’s head. It may be presumed that lumps like these were the labours of a community, and not piled by one individual. The long-clawed lobster is not common at Dunbar; but a species nearly allied to it, Galathea strigosus, is very frequently taken in crab-cages, along with a small spider-like crustacean named by Pennant the ‘Weymouth crab.’ Cancer Norvegi- cus of the same author is most abundant: many are got on the fishing-lines ; but the best specimens are to be had from the fish-curer’s, who often find more than a dozen in acod’s stomach. Its ordinary length, from the tip of the claws to the extremity of the tail, is about eight or nine inches, although occasionally it is seen double that size: it is never, I helieve, used as food. Notwithstanding its numbers, no one ever finds it near the shore in the holes of rocks, as in the. case of others of different spe- cies, which in summer shift their position: it appears, therefore, to be a constant resident in deep water. Lithodes arctica, a large spiny crab, proper to the Northern seas, becomes very common, close to the shore, in April, for the purpose it is said of depositing its spawn ; but it is somewhat singular, that out of twenty or thirty obtained from March to May I found only one female. It is sometimes. met with at low water, wedged in narrow crevices of rocks, beside the large edible crab (Cancer pagurus), and in deep pools amongst Fuci leaves; but during the entire winter it abandons the shore, and is seldom got within ten miles from land. Halichondria palmata is the only sponge from deep water which is familiar to the fishermen: they do not often take notice of any others, as from their smaller size they escape general observation, or, if seen, are shaken off their lines without a elance of inquiry. The ‘sea-fyke, however, as H. palmata is termed, is carried home, and sometimes—when the specimen is large—made use of by boys at school for washing writing slates. This fine production does not aiways grow upright, nor are its branches always compressed. It is found growing in broad spreading shapes, forming a union of branches without any stalk. Various pieces procured from the usual fishing-ground had this form; and all the points of the ramifications, as well as the entire surface, were finely rounded, and of a closer texture than is seen in its most common growth like a plant. When taken from the sea the colour is reddish brown ; 2522 Quadrupeds. but when squeezed for some time below a water-pipe it becomes perfectly white, like bleached ginger. Situated as Dunbar is, on a point much exposed to cold and unfavourable winds from the north, it might be supposed that its marine zoology would be barren, espe- cially in relation to those objects which thrive best and grow largest in a milder tem- perature. Its bay and neighbouring sea, however, are known to be almost as fertile as any locality in Scotland which has yet been investigated ; and a series of daily ob- servations, combined with a certain degree of enthusiasm, cannot fail to reveal much that a partial examination would overlook. If there exists a difference in the quality of animals, so to speak, it lies in the size and not the beauty of the specimens. It is a remarkable fact, for instance, that out of thousands of an abundant species of zoophyte,— Pennatula phosphorea,—which is cast out of the fishing-boats, not a single individual can be found longer than two inches; while on the west coast, as is well known, the same object, when gathered from sheltered situations, measures five inches ; and besides, the colour of the small Pennatula got at Dunbar is dark red. The common Echinus, or sea-urchin, and the Spatangus, are other examples of a stunted growth ; but the fishermen assert that the former is found attached to the sides of the Bass rock, in the Frith of Forth, as large as a man’s fist, though true it is that in deep water hundreds exist in a diminutive form. Those affixed to the rock have shelter for growth; but the less favoured, and by far the greater portion of the urchin population, are without support and stunted— a dwarfing influence which may be attributed to the nature of their habitat, in the cold and restless German Ocean. But bleak and inhospitable as the scene may appear, it is not devoid of interest ; there is enough to repay the trouble of research. It yields a fair proportion of the zoophytes, corallines, lithophytes and sponges, described by Dr. Johnston in his much-valued works; and is also famous as being the shore where the indefatigable Captain Laskey pursued his studies in Conchology with so much success, and increased the catalogue of British shells. Since the termination of his labours, many years ago, the field has been unoccupied, without even an accidental visitor to record its productions. Ropert Gray. West-end, Govan, near Glasgow, June 12, 1849. Reply to the Inquiry of Mr. Duff as to the best mode of preparing Skeletons (Zool. 2474).—I have for many years procured clean and perfect specimens of small species of Mammalia, birds, reptiles and fishes, by means of larve of Dermestes lardarius. To prepare the specimens, I skin them, remove the viscera, and as much of the flesh as I can cut away with little trouble; place them in position, on a piece of wood or cork, and fix them with pins; then put them into a box containing the insects. Frogs, toads, newts, and soft-skin fishes, do not require skinning, but the viscera should be removed, and the specimens pinned out on a piece of wood or cork. Fishes with firm scales I preserve with the skin on one side, showing the skeleton on the other. To prepare a specimen I cut away one side of it, leaving half the head, the Quadrupeds— Birds. 2523 dorsal, caudal, ventral, one of the anal, and of course one of the pectoral, fins, and remove the viscera: this I do carefully, to avoid breaking or displacing the bones: then I place it out on a piece of wood or cork, with the skin upwards, displaying the fins, and, fixing them with a few pins, expose the specimen to a current of air,—as much as possible in the dark,—to stiffen the skin and fins before it is put into the box of insects. June and July are the most favourable months for the operations of these little anatomists. I have often had a mouse, a small bird, or specimens of other kinds of the size of these, cleaned thoroughly in a night and a day, but there must be a good assembly of the operators to do this. These beetles, in the perfect and larva state, can be procured in tallow-melters’ shops, warehouses containing dried un- tanned hides and skins, and other places which contain stale animal substances. They should be kept in a box close enough to prevent their escape, and large enough to receive specimens, with some fur, feathers, or a small animal skin or two; and in the absence of specimens a piece of suet should be put into the box, which should be kept dry, and where it will have occasional sunshine.— Wm. Baker ; Bridgwater, July 11, 1849. Polecat in Suffolk.—In answer to to the inquiries of Mr. Bird (Zool. 2440), con- cerning a former note of mine (Zool. 2379) on the occurrence of the polecat here, I have only to say that with us this animal is by no means common, for previously to the capture of the specimen already referred to there has not been one caught here for upwards of ten years. Neither do I think that it ever has been plentiful; for be- fore the making of plantations was generally commenced, the open country—being also flat, dry and sandy—was quite unsuited to its habits; and almost coeval with the spirit of planting has been the system of strict game-preserving, which effectually destroys any predatory stragglers before they have time to stock the neighbourhood. This is the only explanation which I have to offer your correspondent on the subject ; but surely when he speaks of the polecat’s being “ the most common of our carnivo- rous Mammalia,” he forgets the stoat and weasel. With regard to Mr. Bird’s remarks on the ferret, I beg to say that I do not think it is the common opinion among the warreners here that the ferret is very susceptible of cold, but that it can endure it well enough to live even at large throughout the winter. An instance of this occurred in the past season, when a ferret escaped and ran wild for nearly two months ; and when it was at last caught, it was fierce and difficult to handle. It may be said, however, that we have had no very cold weather this past year; but it is of little consequence, for I believe similar cases are perpetually happening. The practice of some of the best warreners about here is to keep their ferrets in a small deep pit exposed to the weather, and as long as they are kept dry they do not appear to suffer from any change in the temperature: such ferrets are generally stronger than those kept in boxes.— Alfred Newton ; Elveden, Thetford, June 6, 1849. Oology and Ornithology.—I quite agree with some of the observations of Dr. Scott (Zool. 2451), that the rage for collecting eggs will render our rare birds still rarer ; but it will not have this effect if egg-collectors will refrain from taking any but the early nests, leaving the second ones alone. In a shrubbery about 200 yards by 10, 2524 | Birds. surrounding my garden, I had three nests of the nightingale this year. Being sur- rounded by footpaths, I am of course subjected to the depredations of rascally boys, cats, &c. The first of my three nests got on very well, and hatched off their young. The second being built close to the path, I took the eggs, substituting those of the chaffinch, which were next morning gone; but the old birds built again near the same spot, and have now young ones. ‘The third nest, for some reason or other (pro- bably the destruction of the female) was abandoned when upon the verge of hatching. There is now, however, a nest with young ones near the same spot; so that, notwith- standing two mischances, I shall have three nests hatched off,—the produce thereof to visit me I trust another year. If it is cruel, and causes a diminution of the spe- - cies, to take the eggs, how much more cruel and unnatural is the practice of shooting every bird that has the slightest pretension to rarity. One of your correspondents (Zool. 2497) describes how he killed the old ones and took away the young of a family of that beautiful bird, the lesser spotted woodpecker. Another equally intelligent correspondent describes seventeen specimens of the pied flycatcher as having been shot near Norwich. Every page, in fact, of your Journal describes captures of this kind. — I confess I read these communications with pain: they do not serve the pur- poses of Natural History; for what do we want to know in the plumage or anatomy of the little woodpecker, the pied flycatcher, or any of the beautiful and useful bir’s of prey, from the king of birds—the golden eagle—to the luckless kestrel ?—all or each of which are becoming rarer and rarer, until many of them in a few years, like the bustard, will be extinct in our island. If naturalists have an opportunity of seeing our rarer birds in the county and national museums, and in the numerous private collections scattered in every town in the kingdom, where is the good of continuing the work of extirpation? It is for these reasons that I have for some years ceased to collect birds, and confined myself to Oology instead. I can only boast of 9 acres of ground and garden, but I am happy to say that no bird of any kind is allowed to be shot there; and had I 900 instead, I should take the same pride in offering to the most beautiful and most persecuted of God’s created things a home and a refuge. I do not understand Natural Science to consist of a mania for collecting: I look upon it rather as a study of God’s works in the world which he has created and peopled,— as a system of observation into the habits and peculiarities of living Nature. Let me advise all who love such pursuits not to encourage the wholesale slaughter of rare birds: if people would cease to buy, the price upon their heads would become nomi- nal, and we might again see the eagle, with his 9 feet of wing, soaring over our rocky mountains,—and the peregrine falcon remain undisturbed at Beachy Head,—and the lesser woodpecker and pied flycatcher become happy, gay, lively, beautiful additions to our national fauna.—C. R. Bree ; Stowmarket, July, 1849. Rare Birds near Thetford.—The white-tailed eagle I have before alluded to (Zool. 2383), as having haunted this neighbourhood for the past autumn and winter, was at last shot at Downham, the first week in March: it was first seen October 19th. Ano- ther was killed at Blickling, near Aylsham, in Norfolk, in December last. A pair of adult peregrine falcons were killed near here this last spring ; the male at Euston, the female at Cavenham. Specimens in immature plumage are by no means uncommon, but I never met with adults near here before. The Euston bird was about the finest I ever saw. A great gray shrike was shot at Merton, near Watton, in Norfolk, the third week in April—Alfred Newton ; Elveden, Thetford, June 6, 1849. Birds. Arrivals of Migratory Birds at Elveden, Suffolk, in 1849. - about April 25 MSI paah ob adh assis» isc Pisin Bale se2tecets is-<: Cuckoo... Ringed plover......... about February 13 POCWibs. atiacs tists onus 55 Sn the Wheatear.......... gieacbie ss March 20 Great plover ......... i a CRB rss ci sccsigiee.: 5, April 6 Willow warbler ...... re 3 6 8. PR ee fad aa SSE eee ee ena Fb 5355.51) 45, wh :2l 1 eee een ee 23 23 Swallow Common whitethro at ... SR PEG: WUD hss oud dota nds nes Ctnit-chatt os etnies +02 Wig ar. iat: 2 toe reens Spotted flycatcher seeeee Turtle G0v6: sccccelseuegied —Alfred elven "Bikes, T hetford, July 2, 1849. Nidification of Birds near Elveden, in 1849. WEE ooo cei cme ex jebnes Willow warbler ........:.0 Common partridge......... Thrush.. Raven .. ht eee Missel aor, us i a ila scien cvs dsanansxs Rook Racneieinsmstane HOCK GOVE Ts... .veeweee Robin redbreast ......... Hedge sparrow Long-tailed tit............ MOA, Gael «65 ss dan sveces Common snipe Ringed plover............ Skylark Saale Common pheasant ...... 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