The Zoologist/4th series, vol 5 (1901)/Issue 715/Notes and Queries
NOTES AND QUERIES.
MAMMALIA.
cetacea.
Lesser Rorqual Whale.—An adult female example of the Lesser Rorqual (Balænoptera rostrata) was washed ashore two miles north of Caister (five miles north of Yarmouth) early on the morning of Dec. 3rd last. T went to see it in the noon-hour, and found the dimensions as follow:—Length, 30 ft.; width of tail-fluke, 7 ft. 6 in.; pectoral flippers, 4 ft. It had evidently followed the Herring-shoals, and, getting into diflBcuhies amongst the sand-banks, had succumbed. It had been dead five or six days, and was already becoming very "high and gamey." The deeply furrowed belly had expanded with putrefactive gases, and answered to pressure like a huge bladder. No traces of having been run into by steamer or other craft were visible, but the outer skin had been much abraded from contact with the sands. Someone had been before me, and had cut out all the baleen but a seven-inch length near the snout. This example is identical in size with the one that afforded such an exciting chase in Yarmouth Harbour in June, 1892, and which the writer exhibited, stuffed, on the marine parade in the following season.—Arthur Patterson (Ibis House, Great Yarmouth).
AVES.
Habits of the Ring-Ouzel.—Referring to Mr. Fox's interesting article in 'The Zoologist' (1900, p. 1), on the Ring-Ouzel (Turdus torquatus) in Derbyshire, it will be seen that Lord Lilford says, "I have observed the bird in our immediate neighbourhood, on its return migration, about the end of April"; and the Rev. H.A. Macpherson ('Fauna of Lakeland,' p. 89) writes, "The last days of March witness the return of the Ring-Ouzels to their upland home." From what is known of its migratory habits, one would think that this species should arrive in Northamptonshire much before the end of April; but if the date of arrival is fixed late for Northamptonshire, Mr. Macpherson's date for Lakeland would appear to be early. Of course they may arrive in the Lake District earlier than here, but this seems hardly probable. We have seen it here in March, but this has been in an exceptionally mild season, and in normal seasons it cannot be expected to arrive before the first week in April. In its general habits we quite agree with St. John ('Sport in Moray,' p. 103) and Macgillivray ('British Birds,' vol. ii. p. 102), that they are similar to the Blackbird, more so than between those of the Fieldfare and Song-Thrush, as stated by Mr. Fox. On the other hand, we quite agree with Mr. Fox that the Ring-Ouzel does not manifest any skulking habits during the breeding season—at least when it has young—at which time it is often bold and fearless, and advances to within a short distance of any intruder who may be playing with its young. Contrary to Mr. Fox's experience, we have never found the male bird to take part in incubation. They appear to be fond of berries (Vaccinium and Empetrum), and in autumn, just before migration, may be seen feeding upon elder-berries. When flushed from the nest, we have never seen them "reel and tumble on the ground to decoy one away," as Seebohm states ('British Birds,' vol. i. p. 248), but have seen them, when flushed from hard-sat eggs, or when having young, flutter for a few yards in a lazy sort of fashion over the top of the heather. Regarding the date of nesting, Mr. Fox mentions one which he found (April 29th) as ten days or a fortnight earlier than he usually sees them; but this date we should not regard as at all being early. They commence nidification very soon after their arrival, much more so than most of our summer visitants. In this district it much prefers to build its nest where the ground is much broken up, more so than on the flat portions of the moorland; a "gully" or steep declivity seems to be a particularly favourable nesting site, and I have, like Mr. Fox, found it breeding occasionally at some distance from the moors; and have also found its nest built in trees, but never at any great height. The eggs vary, even in the same nest, and it not unfrequently happens that, whilst three or four are of the typical colour and markings, one is hardly to be discriminated from the egg of a Blackbird. Four is the usual number of eggs, sometimes five, but we have never known it to sit upon three.—E.P. Butterfield (Wilsden, Yorkshire).
Occurrence of the Willow Tit in Sussex.—In this Journal (1898, pp. 116–118) Mr. Ernst Hartert announced the discovery in England of the Parus salicarius of C.L. Brehm. The paper did not receive the attention it merited, probably because of a feeling of uncertainty among British ornithologists as to the validity of the species. During August, 1900, I determined to get together a series of Marsh-Tits, in the hope of procuring skins answering to the description of P. salicarius. It seemed to me that it would be best at first to search regularly each day the woods close at hand. By the 12th of October I had a fair series of Tits, and on that day I picked out three skins which I judged to be nearest to the Willow-Tit, and submitted them to Mr. Hartert, who replied that they were doubtless assignable to Parus salicarius. I have since shot three other examples, the last being a fine adult male, which I obtained on the 2nd of December in Pond Wood, close to St. Leonards. When once the characters of the Willow-Tit are known, it may be distinguished without difficulty from the Marsh-Tit (P. communis dresseri) chiefly by its smaller size, the duller crown and nape, the more rufous flanks, and by the two outer rectrices being relatively shorter than in the latter. In the paper referred to, Mr. Hartert expressed the opinion that "British specimens of P. salicarius... differ a little from continental ones in being somewhat darker above, and having shorter wings." These and other differences exist, and have led Herr C.E. Hellmayr, in a recent paper,[1] to separate the British form as Parus montanus kleinschmidti. In the opinion of the present writer this is the name by which the British Willow-Tit should be known. I have not ventured to make any remarks about the habits of the bird, as I hope to make these the subject of a future note.—W. Ruskin Butterfield (4, Stanhope Place, St. Leonards-on-Sea).
House-Martins in November.—On Sunday (Nov. 25th last), at Margate, I watched for some time four or five House-Martins (Chelidon urbica) flying about near the Cliftonville band-stand.—Henry T. Mennell (Croydon).
Hybrid Crow and White Wagtail in Merioneth.—It is with pleasure that I am able to record a specimen of an intermediate form between Corvus corone and C. cornix as having been taken in the county of Merioneth. The bird in question was shot near Barmouth some five years ago by Mr. F.C. Rawlings, of that town, and has since been purchased by the writer, and most carefully compared with the true C. cornix. Although the two Crows are well known to interbreed, as may be seen in the beautiful case shown in the Cromwell Road Museum at South Kensington, the results of such crosses are sufficiently rare—at any rate, in North Wales—to warrant special mention in 'The Zoologist.' In appearance at first sight largely resembling a "Grey Crow," a closer examination shows that the head is of a blackish brown colour; the mantle brownish grey, not clear grey. Below the black throat, and to the middle of the breast, grey preponderates, as in a pure-bred C. cornix, but is of a darker shade. The entire abdominal region and under tail-coverts are brownish black. The bird in question is hardly as large as some specimens we have handled of typical C. cornix. Whilst writing, it may be of interest to mention that a mature White Wagtail (Motacilla alba) was seen at close quarters by the writer on Barmouth Bridge during October last.—J. Backhouse (Harrogate).
Nesting of Long-eared Owl.—On May 3rd a nest of the Long-eared Owl (Asio otus) was found on the ground under a tiny Scotch fir amongst the heather on the peat-moss here. It contained two eggs. The nest wa,s not visited again till May 16th, when the eggs had disappeared. On the 19th, however, a second nest was discovered about a hundred yards from the first, and in an exactly similar position. It contained four eggs, from which three young birds were subsequently hatched. To make certain of the species one of the young Owls was kept. It is a beautiful bird, and has a fine appetite. One night five mice and a young rat were put in the aviary in which it was kept; next morning they had all disappeared. I think the fact that both nests were on the ground, though there was an abundance of trees close at hand, is worth recording. Mr. J.H. Gurney mentions a similar instance in 'The Zoologist' (1900, p. 103), and a case is recorded by Stevenson ('Birds of Norfolk').—Charles F. Archibald (Rusland Hall, Ulverston).
"The Mode of Progression of the Phalacrocoracidæ under Water."—In confirmation of Mr. Meiklejohn's remarks on this subject (Zool, 1900, p. 557), I may say that some years ago, on a very bright sunny day, I was standing on a cliff about thirty feet high, looking down upon a perfectly smooth and glassy sea on the coast of Skye, and saw immediately below me a Shag fishing. He was hunting round and under every stone, as a terrier would for a Rat, and never once used his wings.—J.P. Johnson (Castlesteads, Brampton, Cumberland).
Early Jack-Snipe (Gallinago gallinula).—Will Mr. J. Whitaker kindly say where he twice flushed one of these little birds on August 28th last? (Zool. 1900, p. 557). My experience teaches me that the species does not immediately resort to the marshes on first arriving in England; or, let me rather say, the pioneers of the impending migratory movement, when flushed by me in Leicestershire, are never in marshy tracts, which I invariably beat in September, but are always started from dry out-of-the-way spots where one would least expect to find them. I understand that Mr. A.H. Meiklejohn has met with some experience that tallies with my own.—H.S. Davenport (Melton Mowbray).
Baird's Sandpiper in Sussex.—On Oct. 11th, 1900, at Rye Harbour, Sussex, I shot a nice specimen of Baird's Sandpiper (Heteropygia bairdi, Coues, cf. Sharpe, Cat. Birds Brit. Museum, xxiv. p. 570), an immature female. It was identified by Dr. Ernst Hartert, of the Tring Museum, to whom I sent it for that purpose, and was seen in the flesh by both Messrs. A.R. Ticehurst and W. Ruskin Butterfield. It was skinned by G. Bristow, of St. Leonards. I found it feeding by a large pool in the beach on the west side of Rye Harbour. Its cry was a shrill kind of twitter. Its flight resembled the Common Sandpiper for the first few yards, when it rose for a considerable height, and then plunged suddenly head first to the ground. It was exhibited by Dr. Hartert to the members of the British Ornithologists' Club at their meeting on Nov. 21st. This is, I believe, the first British record, and also, I believe, the first European one. Its length was 6-61⁄4 in.; length of wing, 5 in.; spread of wing about 66⁄8 in.; tarsus, 7⁄8 in.; hind toe, 2⁄8 in.; bill in length, 1 in., narrow, straight, and tapering; toes slightly webbed at joint of foot; bill and legs jet-black. The specimen is now in my collection.—Michael John Nicoll (10, Charles Road, St. Leonards-on-Sea, Sussex).
INSECTA.
Vanessa polychloros in December.—On Dec. 30th last I had the unexpected pleasure to obtain a large Tortoiseshell Butterfly (V. polychloros), which appeared fluttering against the window. It is a perfect specimen, and is now in my cabinet.—C.S. Buxton (Fox Warren, Cobham, Surrey).
[Of course this was a hibernating specimen allured to its destruction by the mildness of the present season. We have seen and heard of some other species on the Surrey hills during the same month.—Ed.]
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
The Birds of Yorkshire.—Naturalists and others interested in the subject may be pleased to learn that arrangements have been made for the speedy resumption of the publication of Mr. W. Eagle Clarke's excellent work on the 'Birds of Yorkshire,' which has been partly published in the 'Transactions' of the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union, and the continuation of which was interrupted by Mr. Clarke's leaving Yorkshire to settle in Edinburgh. Mr. Clarke and the Yorkshire Naturalists' Union have now secured the services of Mr. Thomas H. Nelson, of Redcar, to continue and complete the task. Mr. Nelson has in his possession the voluminous mass of original and unpublished observations which Mr. Clarke had at his command when writing the instalments which are already in print, and which includes notes, lists, and observations from many of the naturalists who have studied and observed Yorkshire birds. In addition to this is the whole of the information amassed by the late Mr. John Cordeaux relating to the birds of the Humber district, and also the large number of notes which Mr. W. Denison Roebuck has extracted from the very voluminous literature on the subject, and Mr. Nelson's own accumulated series of notes on the birds of Cleveland and other districts, the whole forming an ample mass of material for the purpose. Mr. Nelson will also be pleased to enlist the co-operation of those who have it in their power to assist him with notes on Yorkshire birds, their history, distribution, migration, nidification, variation, vernacular nomenclature, &c. All assistance will be duly and gratefully acknowledged. Mr. Nelson is now actively at work on the families Turdidæ and Sylviidæ, which are to be included in the next instalment sent to press. Communications may be addressed to T.H. Nelson, The Cliffe, Redcar.
We beg to announce that for several years past we have been working upon the subject of the "Birds of Yorkshire," and hope at an early date to publish the result of our labours in book form.—Oxley Grabham, J. Backhouse.
- ↑ "Einige Bemerkungen über die Graumeisen" (Ornithol. Jahrb. xi. pp. 201–217). The following is a translation of the original description of P. m. kleinschmidti:—Nearest to P. mont. salicarius, but the back more intensely coloured dark rust-brown. Secondaries with wide rust-brown margins. The creamy tinge of the sides of the neck extends to the base of the bill, and surrounds also the chin-spot from in front [i.e. from below], and laterally. Sides of the neck creamy yellow. Under side intensely rusty.