464 Letters, Extracts from Correspondence, Notices, &^c. 



with only one, two, or three feathers to them. I liave never met 

 with birds in such bad plumage before ; they look as if escaped 

 from confinement. They tell me that some species breed in the 

 rains, and others in the midst of the dry season, and that the latter 

 will commence in about a month. Humming-birds are rare 

 here, and of Tanagers I have as yet only one species." 



We have received the following letter from Mr. Blyth : — 



Calcutta, August 1st. 



My dear Sir, — It will interest you to learn of the capture 

 of a fine adult Catarractes pomarinus in the vicinity of Moulmein 

 during last July (lat. 16° .20' N.). This bird was procured by 

 Major S. R. Tickell, who has presented it to the Asiatic Society's 

 Museum, Calcutta. He writes — " It was picked up, or rather, 

 I should say, knocked down, by some village boys in a swampy 

 meadow about five or six miles south of Moulmein. There had 

 been very heavy weather in the bay for some days past ; but the 

 singular thing is, that this bird should have ranged so wide 

 from its usual haunts as to come within the influence of our 

 tropical monsoon." 



Major Tickell adds, "Another singular occurrence is the breed- 

 ing of the Garganey in this part of the country (Moulmein). 1 

 have a young one now alive, which was brought to me just 

 fledged from a pond or small lake about twelve miles off"." 



Here, in Lower Bengal, the two commonest species of Ducks 

 during the cold season are A. acuta and A. querquedula ; but I 

 have never heard before of either species staying to breed south 

 of the Himalaya. 



On May 11th, 1846, I obtained, in the Calcutta Provision 

 Bazaar, a Phalaropus lobatus in good winter dress, though so 

 late in the season; but it was exceedingly lean and out of 

 condition. 



The late Prince C. L. Bonaparte mentions this species from 

 the great lake of Nicaragua, which is in latitude as low as 

 about 10° (Compt. Bend, xxxviii. p. 663). A more remark- 

 able occurrence, however, was that of Lohipes hyperboreus in the 

 vicinity of Madras, where it was obtained by my friend Dr. L. C. 

 Stewart, in winter dress, but in what month I know not exactly. 



