NOTES ON NOVA SCOTIAN ZOOLOGY—PIERS. 263 
precisely like the first in form, construction and materials. Both 
were built in moss, which was constantly saturated with water 
trickling from the bank above and slowly flowing over the top 
of the stone upon which the moss grew. ‘The present nest con- 
tained a number of young, which we could just reach with 
the tip of the finger. There is not the slightest doubt about 
identitication, for one of the parent birds was seen entering and 
leaving the opening a number of times. It is quite likely that 
this nest was constructed by the same birds which built the one 
found in May, 1891. 
RuBY-CROWNED KINGLET (Regulus calendula). Mr. Austen, 
to whose exertions we owe much of our knowledge of the eggs 
and nest of this little bird, found two more nests at Dartmouth 
during the month of June, 1895. One of these contained eleven 
egos, the other seven. Both were suspended beneath the limbs 
of black spruces. He tells me that nests of both the Ruby- 
crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets may be found either on 
the limb or suspended beneath, so that the situation of the nest 
does not decide to which species it belongs. 
REPTILES. 
RING SNAKE (Diadophis punctatus). On July 24th, 1896, 
Mr. Augustus Allison saw one of these very rare snakes in 
Point Pleasant Park, Halifax, but he was unable to capture it. 
As well as he could judge, it measured about 10 or 11 inches in 
length. On the 17th of the succeeding month, on passing near 
the same place, he picked up a snake that had been crushed by 
a wheel. It proved to be D. punctatus. He kindly lent me 
the specimen, which I examined after it had been in alcohol 
for about a day. It furnished the following description: 
back, bluish black with slightly violet reflections in some lights. 
Beneath, orange buff, deepest about anus, palest on throat. 
Occipital stripe two scales wide, yellowish orange (nearly as 
deep in colour as abdomen near anus). Blackish spots on centre 
of each abdominal scutellum from near throat to near anus. 
These spots are small and round on anterior part of body, 
