NOTES. 121 



It may therefore be worth recordmg that on July 14th, 1910, 

 while examining some Swallows' nests on the horizontal 

 beams of an old barn I was surprised to find three young 

 Spotted Flycatchers occupying one of the old nests ; on 

 July 17th, the young having flown, I examined this carefully, 

 and found quite a large quantity of fresh moss had been added, 

 together with a little hay and wool and some feathers as lining. 



On the same date I found, in some ivy covering a railway- 

 bridge, a second nest which had as its foundation an old 

 Song-Thrush's nest, the cup of which was filled up with a 

 large stone ; in this case the Flycatcher's nest was quite 

 complete and of the ordinary type and materials, simply 

 resting on the Thrush's nest. A. G. Leigh. 



[Instances of the Spotted Flycatcher utilising old nests of 

 other species for nesting-purposes are very numerous, but in 

 most cases some building-material is added. Among those 

 species whose nests have been utilised Ave may mention : 

 Song-Thrush, Blackbird, Mistle-Thrush, Greenfinch, Gold- 

 finch, Hawfinch (on at least two occasions). Chaffinch and 

 Swallow. Even in ordinary nests the amount of material 

 used varies greatly, and one nest in a hollow behind the hinge 

 of a stable-door consisted merely of a few tiny fragments of 

 moss round the edge. — F.C.R.J.] 



CROSSBILLS NESTING. 



Probable Nesting in Lincolnshire. 



The Crossbills reported as seen by me in the Hartsholme 

 Woods, near Lincoln (Vol. III., p. 410), appear to have 

 remained in the district throughout June, 1910, though none 

 seem to have been noticed during July. I have been hoping to 

 get proof of the species having nested, as I know of no records 

 of the finding of a nest in the county. A keeper to whom I 

 pointed out the birds, and who has been observing them since 

 last April, tells me that in May he watched a Crossbill gathering 

 dry grass from the roadside and flying with it into the thick 

 fir woods. It is, therefore, practically certain that the species 

 has nested in these woods this year, though further proof is 

 perhaps desirable. F. L. Blathwayt. 



In Somerset. 



A nest and four eggs are reported by Mr. W. J. Kempe {Field, 

 4. vi. 10, p. 994) to have been found in a larch plantation in 

 the village of Long Ashton, near Bristol, Somerset, on April 

 28th, 1910. 



