52 



of being able to protect himself from septicaemia — 

 which the Woodpigeoii has not had the opportunity 

 of doing by the same means. 



THE GREAT CRESTED GREBE IN SURREY :— 



lu the summer of 1902 a pair of these birds nested on 

 the Penn Pond in Richmond Park, and on two of the 

 days I visited them I had the satisfaction of seeing 

 the one I took to be the male bird feeding the young. 

 To the best of my recollection these were two in 

 number. On one occasion they were not more than 

 thirty yards from tlie bank, where I was quietly 

 crouching behind the reeds, and with glasses I got an 

 excellent view of them. The old bird would dive, and 

 after a short interval would come up with a roachling 

 in his beak, which was promptly swallowed by the 

 particular young one which managed to "get there" 

 first. At least once in every five or six minutes, while 

 I was there, this performance was repeated, and I 

 remember it struck me that, if what I saw was a fair 

 sample of what went on during the whole of the day- 

 light hours, the labours of the old and the appetites 

 of the young were at least of respectable dimensions. 



This year, according to the Monii?ig Postoi March 

 19th, there were three of these birds already at that 

 date on the same pond, two males and one female. 

 Considering their gregarious habits and the strict 

 preservation carried on in Richmond Park, it is 

 curious that the number of these Grebes visiting the 

 spot for breeding purposes does not materially 

 increase. 



TAXIDERMISTS' PATHOLOGY :— A gentleman 



having recently lost a rare and valuable bird after 



