32 PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 



tomy) in future numbers of this journal. My aim in now addressing you is to< 

 ascertain whethery ou have refused Mr. M.'s articles, or whether that gentleman 

 has failed to redeem his pledge. I am in hopes that this little hint may induce 

 him to continue the series if the fault rests with him, or that you will no longer 

 withhold the communications if you possess them. 



I am, Sir, 



Your humble Servant, 

 London, Aug. 12, 1837. A Medical Student. 



[We think it little likely that we should ever feel inclined to reject any com- 

 munications from Mr. MacGillivbay's pen. — Ed.] 



PROCEEDINGS OF NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETIES. 



ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. 



The first general meeting of this society for the present Session, was held on 

 the 3rd of November, at the Society's Rooms, Pall Mall, — N. A. Vigors, Esq., 

 M.P., in the chair. — The minutes of the last meeting having been confirmed, the 

 Secretary proceeded to read the Report, which was highly satisfactory and 

 unanimously adopted. On the motion of Mr. Macleay, seconded by the Rev. 

 C. Page, Charles Lucian Bonaparte, Prince of Musignano, Mons. Temminck, 

 and Mr. Audubon, were elected foreign members of the society. 



Mr. Blyth, having been called upon by the chairman, rose and delivered a 

 conversational lecture on the exquisite adaptation of means to end, exhibited in 

 a variety of interesting modifications of structure, noticeable in various birds, and 

 the purport of which had not been previously explained. — He first called atten- 

 tion to the presence of aigrettes or ear-tufts in the great Snowy Owl, which were 

 very obviously perceptible in the magnificent specimen before him, so much so 

 that he was astonished they had never before been remarked by naturalists. 

 It afforded him more pleasure than surprise to have detected their existence in 

 this bird, as it beautifully corroborated the views he had long previously enter- 

 tained and expressed respecting the systematic relations of the genus to which 

 it belonged. — The announcement of this structure in the bird in question was 

 received with much interest by all the naturalists present. Mr. Blyth then 

 proceeded to call attention to a singularity of habit, rather than a peculiarity of 

 structure, which was practised by the Motmot genus (Prionites), the members 

 of which — as was well known to all conversant with exotic Ornithology — were 



