ORNITHOLOGICAL BEPOBT FOR NORFOLK. 5 



February. 



2nd. — Great Northern Diver shot off Heacham (' Field'). 



6th. — Bittern at Ingoldisthorpe (E. Clarke). 



9th. — Bittern near Hick ling (E. Saunders). Others reported 

 (d.u.) in the neighbourhood of Lowestoft (Bunn). This is not 

 too early for their spring " booming" to be heard. 



20th. — N.N.E. In spite of snow and a cold "north-easter," 

 Mr. J. Cox found a Hedge- Accentor's nest containing two eggs at 

 Gresham, and another nest complete without eggs. A pair of 

 Black Swans belonging to Mr. Knight have two eggs,t and Mr. 

 Southwell informs me of another pair which have three (d.u.). 

 Mistle-Thrush's nest at Brunstead (Bird). This is the month in 

 which Blackbirds fight, and Partridges pair ; Kestrels look out 

 for breeding-sites, and the note of the Lapwing is heard. 



27th.— Wild Duck flushed from nest (M. Bird). Five days 

 later Mr. Bird knew of another nest containing twelve eggs of 

 this always early species. At this season the Garganey Teal 

 which I usually keep on my pond give utterance to a most peculiar 

 note, which can be best described by the word " crick." It is 

 quite unlike the note of any other wildfowl, resembling more that 

 of one of the Crakes. It is only made by the drake Garganeys, 

 and lasts for several weeks. 



28th. — Mr. Pashley tells me that in the last week of February 

 (d.u.) three Scandinavian Eock-Pipits were detected on passage, 

 and it is not unlikely that this vinous-tinted race is less rare than 

 has been supposed {cf. Zool. 1897, p. 128), and may be looked 

 upon as an early spring visitant. 



March. 



23rd. — S.E., 4. Bay's Wagtail already in Norfolk (Bull. 

 B.O.G., xvii. 73). 



29th. — Hybrid Linnet. — A Linnet x Greenfinch hybrid! — a 

 male, of course, or it would not have been detected — taken near 

 Yarmouth whilst consorting with Greenfinches (E. Saunders). 

 It exhibits very distinctly the double parentage, closely resembling 

 a bird of this cross in the Museum, with which Mr. Saunders and 

 I compared it. Possibly it had escaped, as this cross is occa- 

 sionally bred by bird-fanciers. Similar hybrids were caught at 

 Yarmouth in 1882, and August, 1889, and were recorded at the 

 time. 



