452 Short Communications : — 



and appearance are good. The bird figured as the " grande 

 mouette blanche" is evidently the same gull in its winter dress, 

 or a young bird during the summer months. It is by far 

 the most numerous of the gull tribe on this coast. I subjoin 



A List of the Birds seen by me, within the last Twelve 

 Months, in this Neighbourhood. — Sparrow hawk ; kestrel, 

 male and female ; hobby, very destructive to larks ; short- 

 eared owl (I w T as told by the servant that a bird with horns 

 was sitting on the top of a tent bed. When it was captured, 

 I was delighted to find it was a specimen of this rare owl. I 

 suspect, from my proximity to the sea, and from the sea- 

 son of the year, that he was a new comer. When I had 

 thoroughly examined him, I let him go. It was only during 

 a quiescent state that the horns were visible : they appeared 

 like single feathers, though they consisted of many); white 

 owl, brown owl, red-backed shrike, raven, hooded crow, 

 rook, jackdaw, magpie, jay, blackbird, thrush, missel thrush, 

 fieldfare, redwing ; starling, in immense clouds in the marshes; 

 cuckoo, hedge sparrow, redstart, redbreast, nightingale, pied 

 or common wagtail, yellow wagtail, yellow willow wren, 

 whitethroat, wren, golden-crested wren, wheatear, whinchat, 

 green woodpecker, nuthatch, greenfinch, bullfinch, bunting, 

 yellow bunting or yellowhammer, reed bunting, sparrow, 

 chaffinch, goldfinch ; linnet, in immense flocks on the sea 

 shore ; skylark ; ^lauda campestris, on the sea shore ; wood- 

 lark, titlark, greater titmouse, blue titmouse, cole [query, 

 coal] titmouse, marsh titmouse, long-tailed titmouse, swal- 

 low, martin, swift, wild pigeon, ringdove, turtle dove, par- 

 tridge, quail, landrail, golden plover, lapwing ; grey plover 

 (Tringa Squaturbla) ; dunlin, purre, curlew, woodcock, snipe, 

 jack-snipe ; redshank, it breeds on the edge of the marshes ; 

 whimbrel, grey lag goose, white-fronted wild goose, brent 

 goose, black duck, wild duck, wigeon, pintail duck, teal, 

 black-backed gull (iarus marinus), herring gull (L. fuscus), 

 laughing gull (L. ridibundus), common gull (L. canus), tern, 

 water hen or gallinule, sprat loon (Cblymbus stellatus), goos- 

 ander (Mergus Merganser), oyster-catcher, kingfisher; heron 

 (y^'rdea major). Of the heron, I have counted twenty-three 

 standing together in the marshes. I omit one bird, which 

 I have twice seen so closely that I cannot have mistaken it, 

 the purple sandpiper (Tringa maritima) ; but, till I have 

 acquired a specimen, I cannot pronounce upon it certainly. 



The Water Shrew (Vol.V. p. 79. 298.) is common in the 

 ditches about this place : several have come under my notice. 

 — Walter Henry Hill. Southminster Vicarage, Essex, May 6. 

 1833. 



[A Notice of an Individual of the Great Black-bached Gull 



