174 THE BIRDS OF DEVONSHIRE. 



had lost but little of its summer plumage. Adult 

 birds in such plumage are rarely met with in 

 Plymouth Sound at any time, much less so late in 

 the autumn." In 1882, the first appeared at the 

 Devil's Point on the 5th of November. A period of 

 more than ten years of close research at Plymouth 

 having thus been covered. Reference may be made 

 to other localities. At Kingsbridge, an adult was 

 shot in November, 1865. From Torquay, Baron 

 A. von Hiigel writes : " These birds in immature 

 plumage, are unusually numerous this winter 

 (1869-70) in Torbay The first of these fine Divers 

 was shot on the 17th of December, since which I 

 have heard of no less than eight or nine of these 

 birds being obtained in the bay, and of course many 

 others have been seen." He adds that a pair in full 

 summer dress had been killed in Torbay some years 

 before. Of the Exe, Mr. D' Urban writes : " Several 

 immature birds were shot in November and 

 December, 1870, and ^ne on January 16th, 1879. 

 Others, both adult and immature, have occurred 

 on the Exe, in summer as well as in winter " (Zool. 

 1881, p. 58). In the north of the county, the Great 

 Northern Diver is less often seen, but the Rev. M. 

 A. Mathew records the presence of several immature 

 specimens on the Taw in December, 1857 ; and Mr 

 G. F. Mathew reports two birds in nearly full 

 summer dress (only a few grey feathers appearing 

 on the head and throat), shot on the Taw, near 

 Barnstaple, in the last week of November, 1880. 



