AN afternoon's RAMBLE. 183 



Localities near Norwich. 



Paludina vivipara, male. Not common. Trowse and Heigham. 



achatina, male. Common. Trowse, Lakenham, and Heigham. 



Bulimus obscurus, male. Uncommon ditto. 



Limneus pereger, male. Common. ditto. 



aurieularius, male. Very fine, common. ditto. 



stagnalis, male. Very fine, common. Trowse and Heigham. 



palustris, male. Common. ditto. 



Planorbis eorneus, male. Very fine, not very common. 



Trowse, Lakenham, and Heigham. 



carinatus, male. Rare. Trowse. 



vortex, male. Uncommon. Trowse and Lakenham. 



marginatus, male. Rather common. Lakenham and Heigham. 



contortus, male. Uncommon. Trowse and Lakenham. 



Cyclas cornea, male. Uncommon. Trowse. 



calyculata, male. Uncommon. Trowse and Lakenham. 



Heard, for the first time this season, the well known note of the Willow- 

 Wren, {Sylvia trochilus,) which called to remembi'ance an incident well worthy 

 of note, which occurred to myself and a brother naturalist, during a stroll 

 on the 19th of May, 1849. Walking round Lakenham early in the morning, 

 with Mr. M., who had recently adopted the study of ornithology; observing 

 one of these birds, and requiring a specimen for his cabinet, he fired. 

 "Down!" says he, but found himself in error; illustrating the old adage — 

 " Many a slip between the cup and lip." The bird was wounded, and was 

 coming down; when, to our great surprise, its mate flew from an adjoining 

 tree to its rescue ; taking the fractured wing between its mandibles, it actu- 

 ally assisted its wounded companion out of our reach. " What do you think 

 of that?" was my exclamation. "Think!" said he, — "that I will never 

 pull a trigger for the sake of gratifying a taste in collecting birds ; " and I am 

 convinced (would that there were more like him !) that he has kept his woi'd. 

 He has not given up this pleasing study ; but is, if anything, more ardently 

 attached to the feathered tribes ; contenting himself with examining speci- 

 mens gracing the cases of our museum, (accessible to non-subscribers every 

 Monday,) and referring to the admirable plates of Morris's Biutish Birds, 

 now publishing. 



Retracing our steps from the river, over the surface of which were skim- 

 ming three species of the family Hirundinidse,* I startled a Water- Vole. 

 (Arvicola ampJdbius.) How gracefully he glides through the water ! After 

 obtaining a portion of weed evidently to his palate, he re-appeared upon the 

 shore, apparently unconscious of my presence, or probably is not so suspi- 

 cious an animal as the Mus decumanus ; for, after filling his rather capacious 



* Dates of their arrival this year : Swallow, (H. rustica,) April ICtli ; Sand Martin, (H. riparia,) April 20th 

 Window Martin, (H. urbica,) May 1st. 



