46 The Irish Naturalist, February, 



which may be clearly seen under the microscope. In the British species 



like Utricidaria ncglecta, there are four finger -cells attached to the basal 



cell. 



Prof. G. H. Carpenter showed the wingless males and egg-laying 



females of the Common Apple Aphid {Aphis pomi) taken in the month of 



November, in Co. Fermanagh. 



BELFAST NATURALISTS' FIELD CLUB. 



December 19. — F. J. Bigger gave a lecture on " The Raths of an 

 Ancient Settlement between the Bann and the Maine rivers on the banks 

 of Lough Neagh," to a large audience. The President (R. Welch) in the 

 chair. A short discussion followed, in which the President, and Messrs. 

 Dickson, Milne, and May took part. Four new members were elected. 



January 3. — Junior Section. — An address was given by Arthur 

 Deane, curator of the Museum and Art Gallery, on forest trees. The 

 chair was occupied by the President (R. Welch). 



January 10. — Zoological Section. — A paper on " Rare Birds in 

 the Municipal Collection," was read by J. A. Sydney Stendall. The 

 chairman of the Section, Nevin H. Foster, occupied the chair. Some 

 of these birds, though shot in the early part of the last century, are in 

 perfect condition. Among the most interesting may be mentioned Sabine's 

 Gull, the first recorded specimen for the British Isles ; Bonaparte's Gull, 

 from the River Lagan, the first British specimen ; Bonaparte's Sandpiper ; 

 the Buff-breasted Sandpiper ; the American Bittern, shot near Armagh in 

 November, 1845 ; the first authenticated Irish specimen of the Red- 

 backed Shrike, a bird common in many parts of England, though of very 

 rare occurrence in Ireland ; the Snowy Owl ; the Black -necked Grebe, 

 one of our rare winter visitants ; the first Irish specimen of the Surf 

 Scoter, a duck of North American origin ; the Pink -footed Goose ; and 

 lastly, a beautiful specimen of the Gyr or Iceland Falcon. 



NOTES. 



ZOOLOGY. 

 Unusual Nesting-site of the Tree Creeper. 



Early in June, 1910, while staying in Connemara, my attention \ras 

 drawn to the nest of a Tree Creeper {Certhia familiaris), built in the skin 

 of a Common Seal, that hung on the branch of a fir tree, outside the motor 

 garage at Kylemore Castle. The skin had been slung across the branch, 

 about five feet from the ground, leaving both ends hanging down and 

 touching each other. The nest was built between the two sides, there 

 being only one entrance, as the edges of the opposite sides rested against 

 the trunk of the tree. Owing to the fact that the skin had been allowed 

 to dry in the sun, it hung down in a very irregular manner, and the space 

 formed between the two sides was very uneven, being rather inclined 



