52 BRITISH BIRDS. 



Leicester. — A small flock seen at Loughborough on April 

 3rd by G. Frishy. 



Northamptonshire.^ — A pair is reported from Kettering by 

 Mrs. C. E. Wright on March 28th ; these were seen almost 

 daily up to April 3rd, when four were seen. " Many " were 

 also reported by her at Harlestone Firs, near Northampton, 

 on April 2nd. All had disappeared before April 20th, 

 except a single pair, and though no nest was located, 

 a single male only was seen after this date {cf. Vol. III., 

 p. 260). 



Suffolk. — From the Ipswich district Mr. H. H. A. Miller 

 reports as follows : — " A flock of forty to fifty, consisting 

 of both sexes, on December 2nd, 1909, and eight on 

 December 4tli ; a few on March 29th, 1910." Between 

 April 11th and 14th the numbers appear to have increased, 

 and a nest was found on the 3rd and others in two different 

 localities between the 11th and 14th. "Flocks" seen 

 at Sutton on September 26th, 1909 {G. D. Hope). The 

 bkds referred to (Vol. III., p. 403) by Miss J. M .Wilkinson 

 as being in the Brandon district appear from her reports 

 to have decreased somewhat after April 10th, but were 

 seen in numbers of from three or four up to a dozen as 

 late as May 3rd. Four seen and others heard at Fritton 

 on April 7th by Major-General Upcher. 



Sussex. — During the last week of July, 1909, a flock of from 



twenty to thirty Crossbills appeared near Barcombe and 



attacked the spruce trees which were affected by some 



kind of disease ; they nipped off large quantities of the 



young shoots. October 1st, two parties of eight and five 



seen. October 23rd, five or six visited the garden for 



a few minutes ; they never stayed very long, and were 



very erratic in their movements and appearance {Miss A. 



Shenstone). August 25th, 1909, one seen at Eastbourne 



{Miss F. Maude). 



Worcester. — Mr. T. J. Beeston records a pair in the Cookley 



district on March 30tli. These were seen at intervals 



during April and on the 6th and 8tli of May, AAlien it 



Avas susj)ected that they were nesting, but the finding of 



a nest is not recorded. A j^air is recorded at Earls Croome 



by N. G. Hadden as late as May 1st. 



With regard to Miss Shenstone' s note on the Crossbills 



attacking the spruce trees which were affected by some kind 



of disease, she kindly sent a specimen of one of the young 



shoots bitten off by the birds. It is apparent from this that 



