Occasional JS^otc^'. 141 



South Africa, the former at Durban and the latter at C^ape 

 Town, This last statement should be reversed. 



The English Starling was introduced into Cape Colony by 

 the late Mr. Rhodes about 1898, when a few pairs were 

 turned out at Grook Schuur at Rondebosch. It has now 

 well established itself in Cape Town and the suburbs round 

 Table Mountain, and has even been seen at Stellenbosch ; it 

 nests freely, and will no doubt rapidly extend its range 

 (Annal. S. African Museum, vol. iii. part viii. p. 366). 



The Common English Sparrow was recently introduced 

 near Durban, where it was first noticed in 1902 ; it is 

 rapidly increasing, and a specimen has already been shot in 

 the neighbourhood of Pretoria (Annals S. African Museum, 

 vol. iii. part viii. p. 37). 



That the English Sparrow is a curse to agriculture there 

 is now not the slightest doubt, and its establishment in 

 S. Africa should be most carefully watched. 



The English Starling, though primarily insectivorous, is a 

 terrible fruit thief, and in England has, within the last fifty 

 years, increased so enormously as to be the cause of serious 

 trouble to both professional and private fruit growers. 



This country will probably be much the better without the 

 presence of either species. 



(17) Occurrence of Amadina fasciata in South Africa. 

 — Mr. A. Duncan (Johannesburg) writes : — " The specimen 

 of Amadina fasciata (vide this Journal, vol. i. no. iv. p. xiv) 

 exhibited by me at the Third Annual Meeting of the Union 

 was one of a pair which I bought at Scott Wakeford's, the 

 local bird-fancier. He informed me that they were brought 

 with other birds from ' Plum Tree,' a station on the 

 Rhodesian Railway north of Mafeking. The male died the 

 following day, but the female is still alive in my aviaiy " 

 (20.9.06). 



This is perhaps hardly sufficient to prove this species' claim 

 to inclusion in the S. African list, as it is conceivable that 

 the birds may have been brought in from outside our limits. 

 As, however, Plum Tree is in Southern Rhodesia, this does 



