The Zoologist/4th series, vol 1 (1897)/Issue 671/Editorial Gleanings
EDITORIAL GLEANINGS.
A considerable amount of interest attached to the sale by auction, on April 13th, at Messrs. J. C. Stevens's Rooms, in King Street, Covent Garden, of a very fine and perfect specimen of an egg of the Great Auk. There was a large attendance, and after a spirited competition, the bidding starting at 100 guineas, quickly rose by five and ten-guinea bids until the sum of 280 guineas was reached, at which price it was knocked down to Mr. T.G. Middlebrook. During the last twenty years the pages of this Journal have recorded the sales of several of these high-priced eggs, in the same well-known sale-rooms:—
| 'Zoologist,' vol. iv. | p. 365 | ... July 2nd,1880 | ... 2 eggs... | ₤100 and £105 2s. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xii. | p.28 | ... Dec. 13th, 1887 | ... 1 egg... | £168. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xii.„ | p. 143 | ... Mar. 12th, 1888 | ... 1 egg„ | £225. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xviii. | p. 108 | ... Feb. 22nd, 1894 | ... 1 egg„ | £315. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xix. | p. 193 | ... April 23rd, 1895 | ... 1 egg„ | £189. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xii.„ | p. 269 | ... June 25th, 1895 | ... 1 egg„ | £173 5s. |
| 'Zoologist,'„ vol.„xx. | p. 192 | ... April 20th, 1896 | ... 1 egg„ | £168. |
Mr. Thomas Thompson writes ('Newcastle Daily Journal,' April 28th), that "on the 20th March he noticed a Thrush's nest in a yew tree in his orchard at Winlaton, and on the 27th it contained Blackbird's eggs, the old female Blackbird flying off. He also saw the male Thrush at different dates sitting very close in the nest on the young birds, but on Friday, the 23rd inst., on examining the nest, he was grieved to see that it had been interfered with by some small animal, most likely a Mouse, as a hole had been made through the side. This work must have alarmed the parent birds. The nest contained one young bird only, and though warm it was dead. Mr. Duncan, of Newcastle, received it the same day for preservation. Mr. Thompson adds that in over fifty years' experience he never came across a like instance or yet ever heard of such."
In the 'Annals of Scottish Natural History' for April, Mr. William Eagle Clarke records the occurrence of the Frigate Petrel, Pelagodroma marina, on the west coast of Scotland. It was captured alive on the margin of a stream on the west side of the island of Colonsay, on Jan. 1st of the present year. The weather immediately preceding this bird's visit to the west coast of Scotland was characterized by severe gales from the southwest, and these may, perhaps, have been instrumental in driving it from its accustomed haunts, the nearest of which are in the vicinity of the Canary Islands; but it is a wide ranging species in the Southern Seas. The only other visit of this Petrel to Europe was also to the west coast of Britain, a specimen having been washed up dead on the sands of Walney Island, Morecambe Bay, in November, 1890, as recorded by the Rev. [[Author:Hugh Alexander Macpherson |H.A. Macpherson]].
We are indebted to Lt.-Gen. Pitt-Rivers for a copy of 'A Short Guide to the Larmer Grounds, Rushmore; King John's House, and the Museum at Farnham, Dorset.' The acclimatization of animals in the park and paddocks at Rushmore is a very pronounced feature. "The Fallow Deer has been crossed with the Mesopotamian Deer, the Japanese Deer with the Red Deer, and these again with the Formosan Deer. The Yak has been crossed with the Pembroke, the Highland cattle, the Kerry, and the Jersey. The Zebu (Indian humped cattle) with the Jersey, producing a very fine animal, and these again with the Jersey. The park and small menagerie contain Llamas, Emus, Rheas, and Kangaroos; also a small brown breed of Sheep from St. Kilda, which resembles the Roman Sheep found in the Romano-British villages here; a breed of black four-horned Sheep, piebald Assyrian Sheep, and Aden Sheep. The Prairie Dogs have bred, but are now dead. Australian Parrots stand the climate fairly well, whilst those from South America are difficult to rear. The White Peacocks do not breed true, but reproduce their like occasionally. The Impeyan Pheasant has been found difficult to rear. Piebald Peacocks and Javanese Peacocks have also been bred here. The Australian Bower-bird has built its bower in the bird-sheds, but it is now dead. The animals in the menagerie vary from time to time. Reindeer have been let loose in the park, but have succumbed to the heat of the summer months."
In the February number of 'Appleton's Popular Science Monthly,' published in New York, is an interesting article by W.S. Blatchley, the State Geologist of Indiana, on "How Plants and Animals spend the Winter." Amongst the many forms of animal life to which reference is made are Myriapoda. "Full forty kinds of myriapods occur in any area comprising 100 square miles in the eastern United States.... All those found in the Northern States are perfectly harmless, the true Centiped, whose bite is reputed much more venomous than it really is, only being found in the South.... In winter three or four species can usually be found within or beneath any decaying log or stump. One species, with very long legs, is often found in damp houses or in cellars. It is sometimes called the 'wall-sweeper,' on account of its rapid ungainly gait, and it is even reputed to prey upon Cockroaches and other household pests."
Mr. A.W. Anthony, of San Diego, California, has recently examined a very large colony of Farallone Cormorants, nesting on San Martin Island, Lower California, to ascertain, if possible, at what age the nostril becomes closed. "This colony had been so often disturbed by the guano schooners, that even at this late date (July 16th) many nests contained fresh eggs; while young birds, ranging from those but just hatched to nearly full grown, were found by thousands." In the newly hatched young, which were blind, the nostril was a mere slit, scarcely noticeable, but those a few days old showed a well developed orifice, which exhibited no sign of closing in the largest young I could find, nearly as large as their parents, but not half fledged." ('The Auk,' April, 1897.)[1]
We are glad to see that our American contemporary, 'The Osprey,' has come to stay, and that the veteran ornithologist, Dr. Elliott Coues, has become associated with the magazine as a consulting editor. From its pages we extract the following report from a collector in Howkan, Jackson, Alaska, which makes that somewhat generally considered inhospitable region to appear as a naturalist's paradise:—
"Have been here now a month and am having a 'great time.' Am nicely located in a cabin on the beach, with a good canoe and enough to eat. Deer are plentiful, and I have four hanging in the shed. A fine Clam bed is in front of the house, a Salmon stream up the beach, a Holibut bank in the channel, and Ducks, Geese and waterfowl everywhere. Bald Eagles are numerous, and I have over a dozen nests located.... I have been so busy with various odd jobs and away on prospecting trips that I have not really settled down to collecting as yet, but I have taken some nice birds—Kowak, Chickadee, Aleutian Song Sparrow, Alaska Winter Wren, Alaska Three-toed Woodpecker, and others. A few Harlequin Ducks are about, but hard to shoot. Ptarmigan are plentiful, but I have not obtained any yet, and do not know of what species they are. Cormorants are abundant; they 'line up' on a rock just opposite the house, and one shot will generally kill as many specimens as can be put up in a day. They are mostly violet-green and white-crested, but there is another kind that I have not been able to capture as yet. Marbled and another species of Murrelet are very common on the open water, in company with the larger Guillemots."[2]
We learn from the last 'Report of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown, South Africa,' that "the alarming spread of insect pests in the Eastern Province has occupied the attention of the committee for some time past, and it was thought that it is largely due to the wholesale destruction of insectivorous birds. As under the provisions of the game-laws of this country, divisional councils and municipalities have, subject to the approval of Government and his Excellency the Governor, the power of protecting any birds for a period of several years, a circular was addressed by the committee to the municipalities and divisional councils of the Eastern Province, recommending (1) that certain birds and their eggs should be protected; (2) that saloon rifles, air-guns and catapults be classed as weapons, and placed under the same restrictions as firearms." It is hoped that "by strictly enforcing these regulations we may see within a short time a considerable increase in the number of our feathered friends."
We have received the fifth volume of the 'Journal of Malacology,' with its excellent bibliography of current literature on its special subject. A. paper by Mr. G.W. Chaster, on "Some New Marine Mollusca from Tangier," is noteworthy, if only by the description of the material from which the specimens were obtained, viz. "heaps of anchor-mud and dredgings" obtained during a Mediterranean cruise. "The material from Tangier consisted of a bag of dredgings (weighing but a few pounds) from about seven fathoms, and a quantity of shore-sand brought on board for the purpose of deck-scrubbing." This produced five new species, and a new genus of Mollusca.
- ↑ See: The Auk, volume 14 (1897), p. 205. (Wikisource-ed.)
- ↑ See: The Osprey, vol. 1, p. 97–98. (Wikisource-ed.)