NOTES. 365 



last ten days of February was very wild, with almost con- 

 tinuous westerly gales, and on March 1st the nest containing 

 young ones was found to be deserted, whilst the second nest 

 had been blown to one side, and a fresh egg was lying broken 

 on the ground under the tree. The keeper considerately 

 climbed uj) and put the nest straight, and on March 3rd the 

 cock was re-lining it with feathers. On March 5th the hen 

 began to sit, and on March 8th the nest contained two eggs. 

 Another gale from the north on March 26th destroyed the nest 

 containing three eggs, blowing it completely upside down, and 

 turning the eggs out. 



All the nests were in Scotch firs, either at the extreme top 

 or at the end of a lateral branch : three were in roadside trees, 

 and three in trees close to cottages. 



From inquiries I have made, I camiot hear of any Crossbills 

 having been seen in this district between May 31st, 1910 — on 

 which day Mr. Meiklejohn and I saw one pair — and January, 

 1911. The keeper upon whose beat the nests recorded above 

 were found, who is a keen observer, tells me that he saw no 

 birds during the last six months of 1910. B. B. Riviere. 



In Kent. 



A nest of a Crossbill was found by the Rev. J. R. Hale 

 and myself near Maidstone, Kent, on March 31st, 1911. 

 The nest contained four eggs, and was built upon the identical 

 branch of the same tree on which a pair of Crossbills nested 

 in 1910. C. D. Borrer. 



BEE-EATER IN SUSSEX. 



On April 7th, 1911, Mr. L. Cooke, of White Gate Farm, Pett, 

 saw a specimen of the Bee-eater {Merops apiaster) in the orchard 

 on his farm. Mr. Cooke told me that he Avas quite certain 

 what it was, as it seemed very tame, and allowed him to get 

 within a few feet. The bird eventually flew off to a wood 

 some distance away. On April 13th a Bee-eater (no doubt 

 the same bird) was brought to me in the flesh for examination. 

 It had been shot the day previous (April 12th) at Winchelsea, 

 a few miles only from the farm at Pett Avhere it had been seen 

 by Mr. Cooke. H. W. Ford-Lindsay. 



HOOPOE IN WINTER IN YORKSHIRE. 



A FEMALE Hoopoe {Upupa epops) was shot on the golf-links 

 at Ganton, Yorkshire, by a youth with a catapult, on 



