Dec. 1888.] 



AISHD OOLOGIST. 



191 



Transactions ok the New York Acad- 

 emy OF Science. Edited by Ilenn.in I.clioy 

 Fiiirchild. [previously noted] 



Plain Talk, [monthly] 9 Spencer street, 

 N. Y. ''For l)oys and girls from nine to nine- 

 ty." 



The lloDsiLu N'AriuALisr, [monthly] \al- 

 paraiso, Ind. 



OOLOGISTS ExcHANCE, [monthly] Sharon, 

 Wis. 



The Stamp Woiu.d, [inonllily] Lake \il- 

 lage, N. H. 



Geological and Scientific Bulletin, 

 [monthly] Houston, Texas. 



Ottawa Natikalist. The transactions of 

 the Ottawa Field Naturalist Club, Ottawa, Can- 

 ada. 



West American Scientlst, [monthly] San 

 Diego, Cal. 



ItuoK Chat, [monthly] 5 TTnion Square, 

 New York City. Devoted to informing the 

 public of new and current publications. We 

 recommend all publishers to make themselves 

 known to Brentano's, publisher. 



The Universal Tinker, [monthly] 2!)4 

 Broadway, New York. Devoted to the inte- 

 rests of amateur medianics, and is the only 

 publication of its class in the country. 



BRIEF NOTES. 



A Biiltiiaoix- Oriok', bright ami haiipy, flitted into 

 our j-ani at Hyde Park, Nov. 18 He was not molest- 

 c'd and has our best wishes for his journey South. 

 Snowy Owl seen at Crescent Beach, Mass., abnul 

 November "25. Richardson's Owl. taken at Brockton. 

 Mass., and a Hawk *.)wl :il Middlcboro, both on 

 November *2!). 



A heavy flight of Killdeer Plover has been attract- 

 ing considerable attention. They appeared the 'ilSth 

 of November at Nantucket, Chatham, and other 

 points on Cape Cod, and in scattering bunches made 

 their way all along the coast up to Essex. They 

 were driven in by the storm and seemed in no hurry 

 to depart. Killieer have been of late quite scarce in 

 this l<K-aIity, and the question is, where did they 

 come Irom? 



They were offered in the Boston market at one 

 dollar a dozen, but when it was found that ''those 

 taxidermist chaps'' W4-n' jillrr tliriii, the ])rice rapid- 

 ly advaTiced. 



At the last meeting of the Boston Scientific Society, 

 Mr. F. A. Bates called attention to the effect of the 

 great gale of Xov.i'o upon birds. The killdeer plover, 

 a bird formerly quite conimoTi in New Knglantl, but 

 of late years exceedingly rare, was found by sports- 

 men along the South shore by the hundred. Quan- 

 tities of them were killed and exposed for sale in the 



markets at exceedingly reasonable prices. The 

 birds were in good condition, showing that they had 

 not l>een without food for a very long time, but they 

 were nevertheless very hun-^ry, and easily ap- 

 preached by sportsmen, The habitat of these birds 

 at the present season is nowhere to the north of the 

 Ciirolinas, so that, if from those regions, they were 

 brniiglit hundreds of miles in a eoinpuratively sluirt 

 time lint the storm did not so atTcct even Florida 

 as to make certain that tlie birds were from this lo- 

 cality. Traces of food in the stomachs of some 

 of the birds may, when critically examined, afford 

 evidence of the origin of this extraordinary visita- 

 tion of birds, about whicli so little is known at pres- 

 ent. — {Boston Transcript.) 



"Information is requesteii on the (n'currenee of the 

 Killdeer Plover on the coast north nf Boston during 

 or after the storm." [The stomaelis <)I the«e birds, 

 upon dissi!etion, were foniul tocont;iin remains of in- 

 sects, principally Coleoi)tera.] [Kd.] 



We read in the Good Book of certain fortunate in- 

 dividuals who were furnished witli quail daily, but 

 were not aware tliat some of our city friends were 

 being specially provided for. Tiie day before 

 Thanksgiving,) Mr. Henry J. Thayer, while at the 

 breakfast table, noticed a grouse in his back yard. 

 Getting bis gun he shot the bird and resumed his 

 meal. Mr. Thayer's residence is at Oambridgeport. 



A flue specimen of the Red Phalarope in full plu- 

 mage was shot on May 15th, 1688, at Marshfield, 

 Mass. 



We congratulate that English glass eye dealer on 

 the beautiful reproduction of part of the trade mark 

 originated by A. L.Ellis & Co., of Pawtucket, R. I. 

 some eight years ago. We do not think this attempt 

 at approitriatiou will affect the sale of goods of Mr. 

 Thomas Hursts' manufacture. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 



Tile question of the rights of Naturalists and 

 Taxidermists seems to be receiving considerable 

 attention at present in your columns, and as 

 you request correspondence from all, I will say 

 a few \\()rds. 



Ornithologists in this state ai'e restricted from 

 taking any nests or eggs whatever or any birds 

 except game birds, only, the Law states that 

 " any incorporated society of natural history in 

 this state may designate any proper person of 

 the age of eighteen and upwards, to whom a 

 certificate may be granted, permitting the 

 holder thereof to collect birds, their nests or 

 eggs for scientific purposes only." 



This is all very well, but are we to wait an 

 indefinite length of time for some society (to 

 whom we may be luiknown) to " designate" us? 

 I, for one, would like to know something of the 

 method of procedure in obtaining this certificate 

 — whether one must be a nnuuber of the society, 

 or if not, to whom we nuist apply. 



If the granting of permits is carried on ius 

 we, through reading of the "O. &0." under- 



