HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



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sufficient interest, and I enclose some printed matter 

 giving particulars of the discoveries referred to, in 

 view of the remarks made ky Mr. W. A. Carter, at 

 Forest Hill, recorded in the following page of your 

 journal under the heading of " Science-Gossip." — ■ 

 James Davison. 



Rabbit Swimming a River. — On 17th of 

 February last, while waiting to see the university 

 boat, I witnessed what is I believe a rather un- 

 common occurrence. It was an extremely cold day, 

 several men were trying the skill of two fox-terriers 

 in hunting a wild rabbit. The rabbit was very hard 

 pressed, and, notwithstanding there were a number of 

 people on the bank, it ran past them, closely followed 

 by the dogs, down the bank into the river (the dogs 

 however did not take the water), and swam bravely 

 across to the opposite side, where there were several 

 people waiting to receive it ; one of them lifted it out 

 kicking vigorously. — F. L., Cambridge. 



Lesser White Fronted Goose in Somerset. 

 — I see Mr. Gyngell, of Wellington, in this county, 

 Somerset, has recorded in the March number of 

 Science-Gossip the occurrence of the lesser white 

 fronted goose at West Buckland. He kindly sent the 

 head, legs and wings of this bird, all that remained of 

 it, to me for the purpose of identification. I certainly 

 made the parts sent to be parts of the lesser white 

 fronted goose (Anser erythropus), the small size of 

 all the parts sent, when compared with the same parts 

 of any other of our grey wild geese, at once led to that 

 conclusion ; moreover "the straight ridged bill forming 

 a line with the forehead," * which was very marked 

 in the head of this bird, is a very decided distinction. 

 The white on the forehead though not very clearly 

 marked having some brown feathers intermined, 

 probably owing to the bird being a young bird, 

 reached farther on the forehead than in A. albifrons, 

 extending quite as far as the eye. The bill, legs and 

 feet, and wings were much smaller than any of our 

 grey wild geese. I compared them carefully with skins 

 of A. albifrons, A. cinereus, and A. segetum, and also 

 with my live A. lonchyrhynchus, and could not make 

 them agree with either. They agree however very 

 exactly with the measurements of those parts given 

 by Dresser, in his "Birds of Europe," namely, tarsus 

 2'2 in. culmen 1*3. The wing I could not take a 

 measurement of as there was not sufficient of it sent 

 me ; but, compared with the other skins mentioned, 

 it was very short, and the quill feathers were smaller. 

 I did not record the occurrence of the bird anywhere, 

 as I took it for an escape, one wing to all appearance 

 having been pinioned. I admit I did not in passing 

 my fingers along it find for certain that a joint had 

 been taken off, but the quill feathers were some 

 wanting altogether, and one or two cut very short 

 off. There was no primary quill feather at all on 



* See Yarrell, ed. 4, v. 4, p. 263. 



that wing. Mr. Gyngell has however since written 

 to me to say, that he has since seen the person who 

 shot the bird, and he reports that it was perfectly 

 able to fly, and when first put up ilew nearly a mile 

 before it pitched again.— Cecil Smith, Lyndurst House, 

 Somerset. 



Lacuna Pallidula, Da Costa.— Referring to Mr. 

 Gubbins' enquiries in your January issue, I would 

 refer that gentleman to vol. iii. of Jeffery's " British 

 Conchology," where he will find the habitat of the 

 species stated to be " on Laminarias and other sea- 

 weeds having flat and smooth fronds, at low-water 

 mark, and in a few fathoms seawards, chiefly on our 

 southern and western coasts," nothing being said 

 regarding its frequency of occurrence. L. pallidula 

 may be a commoner species than supposed. In the 

 West of Scotland it will usually reward search on the 

 surfaces of the "waving tangles" at spring tides, 

 where immature specimens are sometimes plentiful. 

 L. divaricata, Fabr. (= vincta, Mont.) is a much 

 more abundant form. It is a favourite food of wild 

 ducks, and may be found in their crops. I have 

 taken it in numerous localities from the Butt of Lewis 

 to the Island of Arran. L. puteolus, Turt., is not 

 in the West of Scotland, a common species : any I 

 have obtained — and they have been of var. coniea, 

 Jeffr. — have been by dredging. It seems to be 

 abundant in the English Channel, where at low tide 

 in the neighbourhood of Teignmouth a correspondent 

 has obtained for me a large series, with great variety 

 of marking. L. crassior, Mont., is widely distri- 

 buted, but local species occurring generally in deep 

 water.— A. Somerville, B.Sc., F.L.S., Glasgow. 



LIMN.4EA Palustris, var. albida, Nelson.— I 

 found two specimens of this variety in a pond near 

 Doncaster last year along with a large number of 

 the type of the ordinary colour. 



SpjleriumRivicola, var. flavescens, Pascal.— 

 Mr. J. A. Hargreaves, of Shipley, has shown me two 

 specimens of S. rivicola of a yellow colour from 

 Lancashire, which I take to be this variety. 



Helix Hortensis. — Last summer I found a speci- 

 men of H. hortensis, with a dark brown peristome. 

 This, I presume, is the variety called by Kreglinger 

 fasco-labris. I have not seen it recorded before in 

 any British list. — Geo. Roberts. 



Vinegar Eel. — In consequence of the author of 

 this interesting paper not having sent his address, no 

 proof could be forwarded to him. Mr. Thomas now 

 writes to make the following corrections :—" serru- 

 lated " instead of "sacculated;" "broad pouch" 

 instead of " brood pouch;" "excretary" instead of 

 "excretory." 



Bats in Scotland. — I wonder if any of your 

 Scotch readers are within easy reach of Crookston 



