March 1, 1SCG.] 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



G3 



Pleurosigma has thirty-seven species which are 

 found in Great Britain, and is distinguished from its 

 allies by the following characteristics : " Valve sig- 

 moid, rarely straight, with sigmoid median line, and 

 fine decussating stria?, which are resolvable into 

 dots : the front view is linear or lanceolate, and 

 narrower than the lateral view " (fig. 79). 



Four other genera complete the first section of 

 the group which includes the foregoing species, in 

 which the frustules are not included in a gelatinous 

 frond. Eor further particulars of which, with 

 references to figures and descriptions of the species, 

 we must commend our readers to the " Handbook " 

 already alluded to. 



ZOOLOGY. 



The Kingfisher.— Mr. Lord asks the question, 

 " Has any one observed the English kingfisher feed- 

 ing on the rocks, as does his American brother?" 

 Although I have never seen our English bird thus 

 employed, I think it is not improbable that it occa- 

 sionally resorts to the sea-shore for a change of diet. 

 The kingfisher is not uncommon in this neighbour- 

 hood ; a very favourite haunt are the " cloughs," or 

 outlets to the drains and streams, where they enter 

 the Humber. These " cloughs," as they are called, 

 are constructed with self-acting doors, during low 

 water permitting the efflux of fresh water, and 

 closing again by the pressure of the rising tide. 

 The surface of these "cloughs" is frequently visited 

 by kingfishers, and there they will sit for hours 

 together on the beams which span the outfall. As 

 a general rule, the water running below is far too 

 much discoloured by mud for even this most sharp- 

 sighted bird to discern any small fish which may 

 occasionally be washed through. I have often won- 

 dered why kingfishers should so persistingly fre- 

 quent these spots. If they are partial to salt-water 

 fare they would have no difficulty in procuring 

 small crabs, and other marine animals, in the small 

 pools and runlets left on the muddy foreshore by 

 the receding tide, or even a more abundant supply 

 amongst the seaweed-draped stones forming the 

 Humber embankment. I have so often seen king- 

 fishers in the immediate neighbourhood of these 

 places, that it is more than probable they some- 

 times resort thither for some favourite food. — John 

 Cordeaux, Great Cotts, Ulceby, Lincolnshire. 



Age of the Cat.— According to J. Timbs, the 

 domestic Cat rarely reaches the age of 15 years, 

 but I can bear personal testimony to a cat which 

 is still alive and brisk at the age of 16 \—Z. 



Sparrow-Hawk.— On the 13th January, a spar- 

 row-hawk flew with such force against my drawing- 

 room window as to break the pane of plate glass, 

 \ inch thick, and 4 feet long by 2 feet wide, into 



numerous pieces, the bird falling dead upon the 

 spot.—/. M. H. 



Snipes without a Toe. — Some snipes that I 

 have recently shot have been miuus a toe ; I won- 

 dered how it was, at last I got enlightened. One 

 rose and seemed to fly very lazily ; when I picked 

 him up (after shooting him) I found he had a large 

 cockle attached to his foot. Now, had his foot got 

 by accident into the cockle and been seized by it ; 

 or do snipes feed upon cockles, and get at them 

 by letting them catch hold of their toe, then flying 

 off let them fall and break, and so eat them ? — J. B. 



The Diadem Spider (Epeim diademd). — Early 

 in last September two Diadem Spiders took up their 

 abode outside the window of my sanctum. Having 

 a very un-naturalist dislike of spiders of all shapes 

 and sizes, I threw a handful of foolscap paper, torn 

 up into small pieces, into the web of the smaller of 

 the two, in hopes that the shock would bring both 

 spider and web to the ground ; it did not, however, 

 but a number of pieces adhered to the web. The 

 owner of it did not seem much discomposed, but, 

 after a short interval, he ran rapidly down the web, 

 and seizing hold of a fragment of paper by its edge 

 with his claws, he commenced cutting away the cross 

 lines to which it adhered, in consequence of the cross 

 lines of the web being covered with glutinous drops, 

 which are plainly visible with the naked eye. He 

 cut two pieces out and let them fall, but a third 

 piece he caught hold of by itself, without retaining 

 his hold on the surrounding web, but previously 

 attaching a line from his abdomen to the web. 

 He then cut away the cross lines as before, and 

 fell down some distance with the piece of paper. 

 After this he returned to the middle of his web, 

 and stayed there, either frightened by his fall — 

 not unexpected, or he would not have prepared 

 so carefully for it— or discouraged by the damage 

 caused by cutting out the pieces. 



The larger spider I served in the same manner 

 as the other, but the effect was different. Although 

 larger than his brother, his courage was smaller : 

 for directly the fragments came into his web, he 

 rushed in precipitate flight into his private office in 

 the window-frame, and there remained for some time, 

 poisoning the tips of his claws with his palpi. He cut 

 one or two pieces away in a similar manner to the 

 other one, but finally came to the same conclusions, 

 and quietly left the pieces in the web. — H. G. 



Wren's Nest. — Having seen in your number for 

 last October some instances of curiously-placed 

 birds' nests, perhaps you will allow me to add one 

 to the number. One of my schoolfellows walking 

 in Barby Wood, near Rugby, last year, found that 

 a wren had chosen as a place for its nest the body 

 of a crow, which, with many other birds, had been 

 hung up by the keeper on a bar between two trees. 

 The crow was in a perfectly dried-up state, and the 

 wren's nest was built in its breast. — G. Sharp. 



