234 FIRST APPEARANCES OF BIRDS, INSECTS, ETC. 



Melcombe to be calling to its foster parents with a robin's 

 notes, and not those of a cuckoo. (E. E. W.) 



LESSER SPOTTED WOODPECKER (Dendrocopus minor, L.). 

 One seen at Pulham on Mar. 12. (J. R.) 



HERRING GULL (Larus argentatus, Gmelin.). Herring Gulls 

 are much more frequently seen inland all the year round than 

 formerly. (E. S. R., Chardstock.) 



GREY-LAG GOOSE (Ans&r cinereus, Meyer) or PINK-FOOTED 

 GOOSE (Anser brachyrhynchus, Baillon). While fishing on 

 the Upper Water of the Dorchester Club on the morning of 

 June 7th, 1911, I saw flying fairly low over Charminster five 

 grey geese. I borrowed the keepers' glasses, but could not 

 make out for certain whether they were grey-lag or pink- 

 footed. They were flying about E. It is very unusual to 

 see grey geese in the South of England in the summer. They 

 may have escaped from some preserve, but in my opinion 

 they were wild birds. I shoot a good many in Holland and 

 see thousands there in the winter. (G. R. P.) 



The following birds were observed in the early part of 1912 

 and will be mentioned again in the report for that year. They 

 are alluded to now on account of the delay which must 

 necessarily arise before the publication of the latter. Amongst 

 them is the Lapland Bunting, which is of great interest as 

 being not only a rare British species, but also one of which the 

 occurrence in this country has never before been recorded. 



GRASSHOPPER WARBLER (Acrocephalus ncevius, Bodd.) seen 

 and heard by Colonel F. G. Mainwaring in his garden at 

 Upwey, April 22nd, 1912. 



LAPLAND BUNTING (Plectrophanes lapponica, Selby). A 

 bird of this species, which does not appear to have been 

 hitherto observed in Dorset, was seen in a rough field adjoining 

 one of the heaths at Wareham, quite close on the ground, by 

 Rev. S. E. V. Filleul and a gamekeeper on Jan. 30, 1912, 

 and identified by the former as the above rare visitor. A 

 further account will be given in the report for 1912. 



LITTLE AUK (Mergulus alle, L.). A live specimen was 

 picked up near Gillingham on February 2, 1912, but died 



