THE MYRTLE BEE. 153 



Durii\g a residence of many years in Australia, I amused myself, by en- 

 deavouring to introduce some of the English birds into that country; and, 

 although I did not succeed, (except with the Canaiy bird,) yet, if you think 

 the account would be of sufficient interest to your readers, I shall be happy 

 to send you a Paper on the subject. 



Porchester Square, London, April 27th, 1855, 



We shall be very glad to receive the account referred to. — B. R. M, 



SHORT NOTES FROM MY NOTE-BOOK.— No. 2. 



BY CHARLES H. DASHWOOD, ESQ. 



The Bearded Tit. (Parus hiarmicus.) These little birds make their appear- 

 ance in the marshes, in this neighbourhood, about the second week in Febru- 

 ary ; where after remaining a fortnight or three weeks, they disappear, and 

 few, if any, are to be observed during the rest of the year. 



Mason Wasp. One day last summer, one of these little insects entered 

 my room, and after buzzing abovit for a short time, alighted on the table 

 near which I was sitting, and on which was a small hollow ruler. This was 

 soon minutely examined by the little architect, and having apparently satis- 

 fied herself as to its fitness for the purpose, she flew away. In about five 

 minutes, she again made her appearance, bearing between her forelegs and 

 mouth, a small lump of clay, which was immediatelj'' carried into the hole 

 in the ruler. Finding that she had thus established herself, I moved the 

 ruler nearer to the window, and having fixed it, so as to prevent its indus • 

 trious little inmate from being disturbed, I set myself to watch her move- 

 ments. She continued to work incessantly for eleven days, bringing a lump 

 of clay, about the size of a small hemp seed, to the nest every five or ten 

 minutes. On the twelfth, it was completed ; and having carefully closed the 

 mouth of the hole with clay, she finally took her departure. During the 

 progress of the work, she would frequently arrive at the window early in the 

 morning, and if she did not find it open, would wait patiently outside — some- 

 times for several hours, before she could gain admission. What struck me 

 most was, her extreme care, lest any trace of her work should be discovered ; 

 if the smallest portion of earth happened to be dropped outside the hole, 

 it was carefully gathered up and carried into the nest. I much regret, that, 

 in attempting to cut the ruler open, the nest was destroyed. The quantity 

 of earth taken out more than filled a dessert spoon One Wasp, apparently 

 in the pupa state, was found in the nest. The Rev. L. Jenyns, in his 

 " Observations in Natural History," gives an account of several similar nests, 



H 2 



