176 



first to arrive at the boat-house had the privilege of landing there to look up at 

 them. The keeper states that he counted 40 birds on their return this spring after 

 the two or three months' absence, which they make every winter ; and 28 of them 

 have been seen fishing at the same time. The nests are bnilt on the top of some 

 very tall firs and beech trees. There were three upon one Scotch fir, but it was not 

 possible to count the number of nests from the abundance of the foliage beneath. 

 It is thought there are from 14 to 20 nests there. The only other heronry in Here- 

 fordshire at this time, so far as is known, is one of three nests in the horseshoe 

 bend of tlie Wye near Letton Court. It was pleasant to hear that Lord Rodney 

 has given special instructions for their preservation. 



Mr. James W. Lloyd brought a box of very interesting Herefordshire birds' 

 eggs. Two eggs of the Curlew, Numcnius arquata, which were taken on the 12th 

 of May from a nest of four eggs on Bradnor hill, within a mile and a half of the 

 town of Kington. A nest of young curlews were hatched out last year on the 

 same spot. Four eggs of the common Snipe GalUnago ccelestis, were also shown 

 which were taken from two nests near Kington by Mr. J. W. Lloyd, on April 

 18th, within a hundred yards of each other. Two Cuckoos' eggs, Cuculus canorus, 

 were also in the bo.x, taken successively from the same robin's nest on the 18th 

 and 20th of May. And lastly, three eggs of the Hawfinch, Coccothraustcs vulrja- 

 ris, taken on June Sth from a nest in an apple tree. 



Mr. J. B. Pilley also brought very fine specimens of a butterfly from Borneo, 

 Oniithvopeva Brookiana. Each wing was three inches and three-quarters in length, 

 and had a succession of metallic markings in green, the size of the ordinary fea- 

 thers of a bird. 



The dinner took place at the Royal Oak Hotel, Leominster, and after dinner 

 a very excellent practical i)aper was read by the Rev. Augustin Ley on " The 

 Recent Additions to the Moss Flora of Herefordshire ; " and this was followed 

 by the completion of the paper on " The Birds of Herefordshire," which had been 

 partly read at the Bach Camp in the morning. Thus ended a \ery enjoyable day. 



The gentlemen who attended the meeting were the Rev. Charles Burrough 

 (President), George H. Piper, F.G.S., J. Giitfith Morris, the Revs. Wm. Bowell, 

 E. R. Firmstone, Edward Hewitt, Thos. Hutchinson, W. R. Jenkins, Augustin 

 Ley, H. B. D. Marshall, R. J. Palmer, Stanley Pelly, H. W. PhiUott, Wm. P. 

 Stanhope, J. R. G. Taylor, J. Tedman, T. W. Trumper, and R. H. Williams, 

 Drs. Bull, Chapinan, and J. H. Wood, Major Doughty, Captain du Boulay, R.E., 

 Messrs. P. Renel Atkinson, F. Bainbridge, H. Barker, R. A. Billiald, J. Du 

 Buisson, T. D. Burlton, D. R. Chapman, Robert Clarke, H. Gortneck, J. Greaves, 

 W. H. Harrison, W. Hebb, J. Hewitt, T. Hutchinson, Lacon Lambe, Jas. W. 

 Lloyd, J. Lloyd, J. Maynard, H. C. Moore, J. B. Pilley, A. J. Purchas, O. Sliel- 

 lard, J. H. Southall, and T. Lane. 



The following gentlemen were elected members at tlie meeting : — Rev. G. E. 

 Ashley, Messrs. R. A. Billiald, A. A. Hancocks, aud Rev. J. W. Lee, and two 

 others were proposed. 



