70 BIRDS OF NORFOLK. 



brought to me in the flesh, having been shot in Novem- 

 ber, 1855, whilst hovering over the river between the 

 Foundry bridge and the ferry. It is not a little singular 

 that a bird so accustomed to the clear running streams 

 of the north, and the quiet haunts of the " silent 

 angler," should be found as in this case, almost within 

 the walls of the city, sporting over a river turbid and 

 discoloured from the neighbouring factories, with the 

 busy noise of traffic on every side. About the same 

 time that this bird appeared near the city, three others 

 were observed on more than one occasion on the 

 Earlham river, by Mr. Fountaine, of Easton, who 

 is well acquainted with our British birds, but these 

 suddenly disappeared, and were not seen again. Mr. 

 Cremer, of Beeston, has one killed in that neigh- 

 bourhood, on the 25th of December, 1860 ; another 

 in the possession of Mr. Hubbard, a bird-stuffer, 

 in Norwich, was also procured in that year ; and a 

 third, in my own collection, on the 29th of January, 

 1861. All these birds were shown me in the flesh, 

 and had black breasts like my first specimen, and 

 were in good plumage and condition. There is also a 

 similar example in the late Mr. L'Estrange's collection, 

 at Hunstanton-hall, amongst the birds said to have 

 been killed in Norfolk, and which was most probably 

 obtained on that part of the coast. From the winter of 

 1861 I know of no others either seen or procured 

 in Norfolk until the 24th of November, 1864, when a 

 male bird was shot at Buxton by Mr. J. Gambling, 

 who very kindly presented it to the Norwich museum 

 (British series, No. 40.c). This specimen, which was 

 brought to me in the flesh, is the one before alluded to as 

 slightly exceptional in plumage, as, when fresh killed, 

 there was a decidedly reddish tinge below the white on 

 the breast, but by no means so bright or so extended as 

 in two Scotch skins in my possession. This tinge, 



