112 BIRDS OF MIDDLESEX. 



Col. Montagu, in the supplement to his ' Orni- 

 thological Dictionary,' states that a Great Black 

 Woodpecker was shot, in the winter of 1805, on the 

 trunk of an old willow tree in Battersea Fields. It 

 is not very likely that the author could have mistaken 

 the bird, or intended to refer to the Great Black and 

 White Woodpecker (Picus major), seeing that he 

 has given the latter species a separate consideration 

 in thejsame volume. It is, moreover, observable 

 that, besides being an accurate observer himself, 

 Col. Montagu was usually careful to sift and prove 

 the correctness of reports furnished to him whenever 

 they related to the occurrence or capture of rare 

 species. 



With regard to the other instance to which I 

 have referred, I am assured of the facts by no other 

 than the person who saw the bird, and whose word 

 I have never had reason to doubt. 



Mr. Spencer, the well-known taxidermist of Great 

 Portland Street, having a brother who was keeper 

 to Lord Mansfield at Hampstead, had many oppor- 

 tunities of visiting and exploring the large woods 

 called Caen Wood, Mutton Wood, Wild Wood, and 

 Bishop's Wood, and of observing, shooting, and 

 examining many of our rarer birds whose shy habits 

 conceal them from the general observer. Early one 

 morning in May, 1845, while walking through the 

 thickest part of Caen Wood, Mr. Spencer was sud- 

 denly startled to see a Black Woodpecker dart 



