A. F. GROSSMAN — BIRDS OBSERVED IN 1896. 149 



or their eggs have been seen. Three out of the four occurred at 

 the Tring Reservoirs, and no doubt is likely to attach to the reports 

 of them, inasmuch as the vast expanse of water there would be 

 a very likely spot for them. "With regard to the fourth, however, 

 I hesitated very much at first as to whether I should make any 

 mention of it, but eventually I decided to bring the record before 

 the Society for what it is worth. The fintling of the eggs of the 

 bird referred to was recorded by a man who was one of the first 

 field naturalists of his day. I refer to the late Mr. F. Bond, but 

 of course there is the chance of his having been falsely informed. 



Following the usual order observed in former reports, I will first 

 state what I know about the birds new to the county list, and will 

 then proceed to give such notes on any other birds as appear to me 

 to be of sufiicient interest to introduce into this report. 



1. Great Eeed-Waebler (Acrocephalus Uirdoides). — Mr. A. G. 

 More, in his excellent paper on " The Distribution of Birds in 

 Great Britain during the Nesting Season," which appeared in 

 the 'Ibis' for 1865, stated that the late Mr. F, Bond told him 

 that he had seen three eggs of this bird which were taken in 

 Hertfordshire, Unfortunately, no particulars are given either as to 

 locality or date. I should think from what I have heard about 

 the great reed-warbler that the only place suitable for it in this 

 county would be one of the Tring Reservoirs, but this, of course, 

 is only a surmise. I can get no further infonnation about these 

 eggs, and, as Mr. Bond died in 1889, it is improbable that any 

 more will ever be forthcoming. This bird has only occurred on 

 a few occasions in Great Britain, and hence it seems curious that 

 no other details were mentioned in this instance. It is a bird which 

 cannot be mistaken, and furthermore it is bold and is very con- 

 spicuous fi'om its large size and its loud harsh song. Mr. Howard 

 Saunders states that south of the Baltic the reed - warbler is 

 abundant in summer in suitable localities thi-oughout Europe as 

 far south as the Mediterranean ; he also mentions that it breeds 

 annually as near to us as Calais, and is common in Belgium and 

 Holland. In the breeding-season it need only be looked for in 

 reed-beds. The nest he describes as being a compact cup-shaped 

 structure some five inches deep, composed of dry reeds and grass 

 with a lining of the finer portions and the flowers of the same, the 

 whole being closely bound to and suspended from several upright 

 reed stems. The eggs, four, five, or six in number, are pale 

 greenish-blue, botched and speckled with ash-grey, russet-brown, 

 and dark olive. 



2. White - FRONTED Goose {Afiser albifrons). — Captain Clarke 

 Kennedy stated that he was informed by the Rev. H. H. Crewe 

 that this species had been observed at the Tring Reservoirs. Until 

 I went thoroughly into the old records of the birds of Hertfordshire, 

 for the pui-pose of preparing this paper, I was under the impression 

 that this bird had already been recorded in our ' Transactions,' but 

 I find that this is not the case, and that therefore it is an addition 

 to our county list. It is, however, unfortunate that there is not 



