OF SELBORNE 23 



in the air, and hardly ever touching the ground, but returning 

 still to the same stand for many times together. 



I perceive there are more than one species of the motacilla 

 trochilus : Mr. Derkam supposes, in Ray's Philos. Letters, that he 

 has discovered three. In these there is again an instance of some 

 very common birds that have as yet no English name. 



Mr. Stillingjleet makes a question whether the black-cap (mota- 

 cilla atricapilld) be a bird of passage or not : I think there is 

 no doubt of it : for, in April, in the first fine weather, they come 

 trooping, all at once, into these parts, but are never seen in 

 the winter. They are delicate songsters. 



Numbers of snipes breed every summer in some moory ground 

 on the verge of this parish. It is very amusing to see the cock 

 bird on wing at that time, and to hear his piping and humming 

 notes. 1 



I have had no opportunity yet of procuring any of those mice 

 which I mentioned to you in town. The person that brought 

 me the last says they are plenty in harvest, at which time I will 

 take care to get more ; and will endeavour to put the matter out 

 of doubt, whether it be a iion-descript species or not. 2 



I suspect much there may be two species of water-rats. Ray 

 says, and Lijinceus after him, that the water-rat is web-footed 

 behind. Now I have discovered a rat on the banks of our little 

 stream that is not web-footed, and yet is an excellent swimmer 

 and diver : it answers exactly to the mus amphibius of Linnaeus 

 (See Syst. Nat.), which he says " natat in fossis fy urinaiur".* I 

 should be glad to procure one " plantis palmatis ". Linnceus seems 

 to be in a puzzle about his mus amphibius, and to doubt whether 

 it differs from his mus terrestris ; which if it be, as he allows, 

 the "mus agrestis capite grandi brachyuros" of Ray, is widely 

 different from the water-rat, both in size, make, and manner of 

 life. 



1 [See Letters XVI. and XXXIX. to Pennant.] 



2 [This is the first mention of the harvest-mouse (Mus minutus, Pall.). Pennant 

 inserted the species from White's description in the Appendix to his British Zoology, 

 8vo ed., 1768. The harvest-mouse has been known to weave its nest from the 

 panicles and leaves of the common reed. Bingley observed that, when kept in 

 a cage, it hid away grains of maize, taking care to bite out the embryo, as the 

 harvesting ants also do. Although well supplied with food, it devoured most 

 of the grains in the following November. See also Letters XII., XIII., XV. to 

 Pennant.] 



3 [The water-vole (Arvicola amphibia, L.). Linnaeus followed Willughby and 

 Ray in saying (erroneously) that the hind feet are webbed. The mus terrestris 

 of Linnaeus is the common field-vole (Arvicola agrestis, L.).] 



