The Zoologist/4th series, vol 6 (1902)/Issue 730/Notes and Queries
NOTES AND QUERIES.
AVES.
Notes on the White-breasted Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis).—In 'The Zoologist' for 1901 (p. 451), Mr. E.L. Gill notices the slow sailing flight of certain birds, not normally singing on the wing, when they occasionally do this. I have observed a similar peculiarity in the White-breasted Kingfisher here (Calcutta). This bird occasionally flies about slowly and aimlessly high in the air, uttering a peculiar wailing cry, very different from its usual harsh cackle; though this, too, is given either on the wing, or just before starting on an ordinary flight. I should like also to draw attention to two other peculiarities of this bird. One is, that it occasionally practises piracy. An individual which haunts the Museum pond, whereon there are some Dabchicks, has several times been seen by me to attempt to rob one of these birds of a fish which it had captured, and once, at all events, with success. On one occasion I saw the Kingfisher hovering over something in the water, which turned out to be a Dabchick washing itself; evidently he had for a moment mistaken the actions of his victim, and thought it had caught something. The other point is, that although this Kingfisher is as big as a Thrush, with plumage of brilliant blue, bay, and white, and with a scarlet beak, it is not at all conspicuous when seen across the Museum tank (about sixty yards wide), whether it sits on a bamboo, or on a dark-foliaged tree; indeed, if one's eyes are taken off it, the bird is very hard to find again. Yet in flight, at the same distance, it is a most striking object. This shows that a plumage which appears most glaringly conspicuous close at hand does not necessarily render its wearer easy to see some distance off, if the colours are suitable for blending with the normal environment of the species. If the bird were all bay or white instead of partly blue, it would catch the eye at once.—F. Finn (Indian Museum, Calcutta).
A Little-known Action of the Kingfisher.—While recently fishing on the Bela, my son saw a Kingfisher (Alcedo ispida) splashing about on the top of the water in rather a deep pool. Thinking the bird was in difficulties, he ran forward to rescue it, if possible; but when he got to the place he saw that there were two birds in the act of treading, the hen being scarcely visible till both rose from the water and flew off. Hitherto I have been under the impression that Kingfishers only entered the water after their prey, leaving it again as soon as they had secured it. I may mention that the river-watcher, who is well versed in the habits of birds, and has been about rivers all his life, has never met with a similar instance.—R.H. Ramsbotham (The Hall, Meole Brace, Shrewsbury).
Golden Eagle in Co. Donegal.—On the 17th or 18th of March I had the pleasure of seeing a fine Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaëtus) at the establishment of Messrs. Sheals, the taxidermists here, where it had been sent for preservation; it had been caught in a vermin-trap by one of the keepers on Sir James Musgrave's estate in Co. Donegal. Sir James tells me that they protect them as much as possible, although they destroy many Grouse, Hares, and young Lambs. Some time ago he sent a fine specimen to the gardens of the Royal Zoological Society, Dublin, where it was much appreciated, and where, I understand, there were either none or a very poor representative of this species at the time. He also tells me that they breed every year in the mountains round his shooting; he does not grudge them their share of the game, and I sincerely wish every game-preserver throughout the British Isles would look on the few birds of prey left to us in this light.—W.H. Workman (Lismore, Windsor, Belfast).
I have also examined the Golden Eagle referred to above. It is a male in splendid plumage, weighing 8¾ lb., and measures 6½ ft. from tip of wings.—W.C. Wright (Charlevoix, Marlborough Park, Belfast).
Allen's Gallinule near Yarmouth.—I learn from the Duchess of Bedford that a pair of Porphyriola alleni were certainly turned out with other birds at Woburn Abbey, but this took place in 1889, and it seems quite impossible that either of this pair can be the example captured on a boat off Yarmouth on Jan. 1st, 1902 (cf. ante, p. 98). Even if they had survived so long, they would by that time have been in the adult plumage, which is purple, whereas the Yarmouth specimen is immature.—J.H. Gurney (Keswick, Norwich).
PISCES.
A Question of Coloration.—On Feb. 8th last, Mr. Alma Nichols, the noted Stalham angler, kindly invited me to go and look at some fish— several Roach, a couple of Dace, a Gudgeon, and a small Pike—which he had kept for nearly three weeks in a foot-bath standing under the drip of a pump in his back yard. All the wells hereabouts are very shallow, and so, susceptible to the influence of surface-water, which may account for the longevity of these fish in pump-water. But the most curious thing connected with them was this—when they were first put into the bath (an unpainted galvanized one), they were all dark and brightly coloured; in about a week they began to lose colour, and so became much less conspicuous. Here was a supposed case of fish assimilating themselves in tint to their surroundings—an instance of the assumption of protective coloration; for now, as seen from above, they were far less conspicuous than when first put into the whitey-grey zinc bath., I suggested that their loss of colour was due to loss of health caused by the pump-water. A few days later, one of the Roach became blind, and soon afterwards returned to its darker normal colour. It subsequently died. On Feb. 12th I made another inspection, and found a second Roach partly blinded by a black fungoid growth on the eyes, and it also was in process of turning back to its former dark hue. The question arises, does light and exposure, acting through the eyes only, tend to bring about a change of colour in fish?—M.C.H. Bird (Brimstead Rectory, Stalham).
MOLLUSCA.
Duration of Life in Helix pomatia.—A few Edible Snails (Helix pomatia) have been living here at large for at least seventeen years. The first batch were brought from Normandy, and turned down in the year 1882. Another lot from Surrey was added to the colony in 1884, since which time no more have been introduced. They do not appear to have bred, or, at any rate, I have seen no young ones, with the exception of two broods reared in a greenhouse, and afterwards turned out, and these soon disappeared, perhaps eaten by Thrushes, and Hedgehogs. Yet a few adults have since appeared almost every summer, with a few exceptions, up to the last (1901), when two were seen. They, or at least two or three of them, always keep to the same spot, only a few yards square, and rarely wander any further from their home. I believe that the two or three Snails just mentioned hibernate under a heap of sticks, for it is close to this that they make their appearance in summer. One venerable-looking Snail, easily recognized by its bleached, weather-worn, and damaged shell, is very regular in its annual appearance abroad. I have not seen any of them moving about earlier in the year than May, or later than the second week in August. If these are the very same individuals brought here in 1882 or 1884, they cannot at the present time be less than eighteen years old, and may be a good deal older, for they were all full-grown, or very nearly so, when first brought here. H. pomatia is not, as far as I am aware, indigenous to any part of Suffolk, even on the chalk, and the soil here is by no means of a calcareous nature, but consists of sharp flinty gravel and sand. When full-grown the shell of this species is so thick and strong as to be proof against the hammering process resorted to by the Thrush, and I doubt whether the jaws of the Hedgehog would be able to crack it. Except among insects, it seems to have few enemies. From its large size, H. pomatia is well suited to the vivarium, for its ways and doings are so much more easily and conveniently observed than is the case with smaller species. The laying and hatching of the eggs, growth of the young, and the elaborate preparation for the winter made by this Snail by burying itself just beneath the surface of the soil, and constructing a sort of temporary operculum, are all interesting processes to watch.—G.T. Rope (Blaxhall, Suffolk).
ARACHNIDA.
Collecting in Australia.—Perhaps the most numerous group of Australian Spiders are the Epeiræ. But, though there are undoubtedly very many species, it is still my opinion that the number tabulated by Herr Koch in his work on Australian Spiders might be greatly reduced. Of course, it is foolish to censure one so immeasurably more conversant in the subject, but I think I am right in saying that specimens which have been bottled some months, and which have travelled all the way to Germany, are rather likely to mislead the describer, and tend to the enumeration of too many species. What is wanted out here is some collector thoroughly acquainted with the subject, who will be able to spend all his time in the study, and so achieve better results. Of course, some good work is being done by the authorities of the Australian Museum, and also by some few private individuals; but these, as a rule, are not able adequately to publish the results of their work. If some institution, such as the South Kensington Museum, or other, were to send a collector to spend some years in Australia, I think it would be found that there is still more to be done than has ever yet been anticipated. Practically speaking, there are no real workers in Australia, and consequently the subject is rather neglected. It is not only to investigate these matters, but to publish the results, that is necessary. I am sure that any such collector would receive co-operation wherever anyone here could give it, and, if supplied with sufficient funds, would do some really useful work. The Spiders of Australia have scarcely been collected at all, and collections from Cape York and the wild parts of Central Australia could not fail to bring to light many undescribed species and genera.
I can only add that I hope this suggestion will be followed up, and that someone will see fit to follow Herr Koch's lead; only let him come here and describe from life, instead of from old and faded specimens.—S.H. Burton Bradley[1] (60, Margaret Street, Sydney).
- ↑ We suppose that this must have been H.H. Burton Bradley (Wikisource-ed.)