354 The Field Naturalist" s Quarterly November 



way in which it has been represented. The puffin is wrongly represented 

 in Yarrell; Wood's Natural History; Morris's British Birds ; Bewick; 

 Mudie's Feathered Tribes ; Gould's Birds of Europe ; Booth's Rough 

 Notes ; and British Birds, their A'ests and Eggs (1898). It is correctly 

 delineated in Lord Lilford's plate, and in Willoughby's Ornithology, the 

 puffin is figured with the tarsi off the ground.'" — H. Holyroyd Mills, 

 Camborne, Cornwall. 



Smooth S fiake in Dorset. — "On 16th July I caught a smooth snake 

 alive close to a spot where I had previously taken one. For a time it 

 took no food, but then fed on two occasions, at one time taking a lizard, 

 and at another time a slow-worm about 7 inches long. Over this latter 

 morsel the smooth snake took three-quarters of an hour, spending about 

 half that time with three coils tightly fixed round the slow-worm." — M. 

 Kerr, Dorchester. 



Adders' Enemies. — " I notice in British Serpents an allusion to the 

 opinion that pigs eat adders. I may say that in 1857 in a department 

 of France, a viper's nest was found in a field of truffles. The people 

 thereupon introduced a lot of pigs. The pigs cleared away the vipers, 

 but then took to eating the truffles. The number of vipers caught in 

 that department in ten years amounted to very many thousands. 



"A grouse-keeper in South Northumberland, near Haltwhistle, told 

 me some years ago that the goats (half wild) cleared the vipers away. 

 He added that he had seen scores of vipers' heads, which he could not 

 explain until one day he saw a goat approach a sleeping viper, and 

 catching it by the neck with its cloven fore-foot, began to eat it, com- 

 mencing with the tail. Coming to the head the goat ceased the process, 

 hence the explanation of the number of vipers' heads which he had so often 

 seen:" — A. S. Farrar, D.D., F.G.S., F.R.A.S., Durham University. 



Information on Bats wanted. — " I should be glad if readers of the 

 F. N. Q. would furnish me with particulars of the bats of their respective 

 districts. As far as possible I should like the information classified as 

 follows : — (1) Name of species ; (2) rate of occurrences (common, rare, 

 local, or general) ; (3) method of flight (high, low, flickering, skippish, 

 laboured, swift, etc.); (4) period when on the wing; (5) nature of locality 

 frequented in flight (open country, in woods, etc.) ; (6) the favourite 

 roosting situation ; (7) position when at rest ; (8) food ; (9) colour in 

 particular area under notice (with a view of ascertaining the existence or 

 otherwise of local variations) ; (10) any freaks or varieties known to have 

 occurred ; (11) any other information. 



" The name and address of the observer must be stated, as also the 

 locality in which the observations were made. I shall be glad to identify 

 any species sent me for the purpose, but I do not desire them to be shot 

 or hurt in any way. It is the observing of the living creatures that I 

 emphasise, and do not countenance the killing of these useful little 

 animals."— Charles Mosley, 20 Moor End Road, Lockwood, Hudders- 

 field. 



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