164 BRITISH BIRDS. [vol. xiii. 



LITTLE OWL IN SOUTH DEVON. 

 It may be worthy of record that on September 19th, 1919, I 

 saw a Little Owl {Athene n. noctua) in some stunted trees near 

 my house at Branscombe, south Devon. A week later this or 

 a similar bird could be seen all day in an orchard some half 

 mile from the spot where it was first observed. It was very 

 far from wild and there is no possible doubt as to the 

 species. 



Lewis R. W. Loyd. 



[A Little Owl was recorded in south Devon in November, 

 191 1 {Brit. Birds, V., p. 333), and it now breeds regularly in 

 Somerset and Dorset. — Ed.] 



GOSHAWK IN LINCOLNSHIRE. 



On the afternoon of October 5th, 1919, which was a brilliant, 

 cloudless day, I was sitting in my garden at Normanby, 

 Lines., when suddenly a large number of Rooks, Jackdaws, 

 and Starlings, which were feeding in the field adjoining the 

 garden, came over with a rush and much drumming of wings, 

 evidently greatly perturbed. I jumped up to see what was 

 the cause, expecting a hawk. After a few seconds I saw a 

 large hawk mixed up with the Rooks ; a larger bird than 

 the Rooks : he was round winged and heavy. I watched 

 him go round the garden, some trees being between me and 

 him, so that I could not get a clear view, although I had very 

 strong suspicions as to what he was. However, in a few 

 seconds he came back over me rising fast, and soared at 

 about 100 feet over me, gradually getting higher and higher ; 

 in about four minutes he was out of sight. I watched him 

 all the time through my x8 prismatic monocle, which I 

 always carry, and got a splendid view of him. He was without 

 any doubt a Goshawk {Accipiter gentilis), almost certainly 

 a male. He had no jesses on, and I should say he was a wild 

 bird, from his flight and behaviour. As I have seen these 

 birds wild on the Continent and kept them for hawking 

 rabbits, I know the bird well, and am quite convinced of 

 this bird being a Goshawk. He was too heavy and large to 

 have been even a gigantic Sparrow-Hawk, the only other 

 thing he could have been. 



The Rooks and Jackdaws followed him more or less and 

 eventually were lost to sight up in the blue. It was astonish- 

 ing how they rose to such a height in such a short time without 

 any apparent effort. 



W. S, Medlicott, 



