1902 The Field Naturalist" s Library 69 



The Field Naturalist's Library. 



Reviews of Books, Transactions, Etc. 



The Country Month by Month. J. A. Owen and G. S. Boulger. 

 Pp. 492. London : Duckworth & Co. Price 6s. nett. 



The plan of this book is so in accordance with our ideas of the 

 requirements of field naturalists that we give this new edition a very- 

 hearty welcome. Miss Jean Owen, who edited the works of "A Son of 

 the Marshes," is responsible for that portion which treats of birds and 

 other animal life, while Professor Boulger has done the botany and en- 

 tomology. The w^ork is divided into twelve sections — one for each month 

 of the year. Not the least valuable portion is the addition of the notes 

 and comments of the late Lord Lilford, which are in themselves a criticism 

 of each section as far as the birds are concerned. The smaller mammals 

 and the reptiles receive scant attention from Miss Owen (a feature too 

 common in popular works on natural history), and this is the most dis- 

 appointing part of the book. We are not aware of any authentic record 

 of T. nairix, the ring snake, of six feet in length, a measurement stated 

 to occur "sometimes," nor have we ever encountered a specimen of this 

 species which had swallowed a "small rabbit." The evidence in sup- 

 port of both these statements would be very welcome. 



An interesting section is that on mistletoe, though we doubt whether 

 the downward growth of this evergreen parasite is as common as sup- 

 posed. We counted thirty bunches of mistletoe in a Herefordshire lane 

 the other day, of which twenty-seven grew upwards, two horizontally, 

 and only one downwards. Doubtless the mistletoe frequently does 

 grow downwards from the bough, but very often it is otherwise. The 

 statement on p. 225 that the dormouse during the summer "lays up its 

 store of food " for winter use will interest Mr Forrest, whose observa- 

 tions on this mammal we record elsewhere. We heartily endorse the 

 opinion that " the fit place for a wilful destroyer of any owl in our 

 country would be an asylum for idiots." Would that gamekeepers 

 spared them more ! 



The botanical part of this book is excellent, and tells the field worker 

 just what to look for and where to find it. As bearing on the present 

 season we quote the following from the section on February : — 



" It might be supposed that thei-e is but little work for the entomo- 

 logist in winter. Few insects are seen upon the wing, and food-plants 

 are mostly either bare of leaves or dead down to the level of the 

 ground, so that we should not expect to find many larvae. . . . 



" Even in the severest weather, however, there will be some work 

 that can be done out of doors. New districts can be visited, and notes 

 made of the general character of their vegetation with a view of their 

 future value as hunting-grounds. Now, too, is a favourable season for 

 collecting the eggs of moths and butterflies. . . . 



