OBSERVED Ilf HEETFOKDSniRE IN 1895. 75 



particulars, Avliich he gave mc, and lie also most kindly lent me 

 the bird for inspection. I showed it to Mr. Hartcrt, Curator 

 of the Tring Museum, and he, after referring to the late 

 Mr. Seebohm's book on ' British Birds,' decided that it must be 

 L. bifasciata, that is the two-barred crossbill, and not the American 

 species. This bird was shot by Mr. Rivers on January 11th, 1890, 

 in a larch wood at Tharbies, near Sawbridgeworth. It was 

 swinging underneath a branch at the top of a tree, and was alone 

 at the time. From its general plumage, which was a dull green, 

 it appears to be a female, but unfortunately the sex was not 

 ascertained by dissection. According to Saunders' ' Manual of 

 British Birds,' "this bird inhabits the coniferous forests of jS^orthern 

 Russia and Siberia, as far as the Pacific ; wandering in autumn 

 and winter to South Sweden, Denmark, Heligoland, North 

 Germany, Holland, Belgium, the North of France, North Italy, 

 Austria, and Poland." In the British Isles the first recorded 

 specimen was obtained near Belfast in Ireland, in 1802, since 

 which time several specimens have been obtained in the United 

 Kingdom. The American form is considered by many authoi-ities 

 to be only entitled to subspecific distinction. 



3. Baillon's Ce.\ke {Porzana Bailloni). — Mr. "W. H. M. Ayres, 

 in a note to the 'Zoologist' for 1892, recorded the occurrence of 

 this bird in Hertfordshire. The specimen in question was shot on 

 October 24th, 1891, in the marshes near Cheshunt, which were 

 then in flood. The bird was in good plumage, but very thin. It 

 was sent to Mr. Rowland Ward for preservation, and was identified 

 by him. In the fourth edition of Yarrell's ' British Birds,' mention 

 is made that this bird appears to be somewhat irregularly fhstributed 

 on the Continent, but this statement is probably owing to insufficient 

 information. The bird seems to have nested on one or two occasions 

 in England, but even the records of its occurrence are far from 

 numerous. 



Miscellaneous Notes. 



Ring-Ouzel {Turdus torquatus). — On April 7th I saw one of these 

 birds on Berkhamsted Common. It settled on the top of a tree, 

 where I had a good view of it, and I watched it for some time. 

 Mr. Rivers saw one at Sawbridgeworth on April 9th. Most of 

 the former recorded occurrences of this sj)ecies in Hertfordshire 

 have been in the autumn. 



"Wood -Weex {Phylloscopus sihilatrix). — This bird, which is 

 plentiful in most of the woods in the neighbourhood of Berk- 

 hamsted, arrived there very late last spring. 



Gr A sshoppek -Warbler {Locustella ncevia). — This bird occurs 

 plentifully on Berkhamsted Common. AVhen .singing it keeps its 

 bill open all the time, showing up very conspicuously the bright 

 fleshy yellow colour of the inside of its mouth. 



Gke.it Gret Shrike (Lanius excuhitor). — In Mr. Rivei's' note to 

 the ' Zoologist ' about the two-barred crossbill, he also mentions an 

 example of the great grey shrike, which was shot on December 



