OTES 



ROSE-COLOURED STARLINGS IN SUSSEX. 



On August 9th, 1914, I was shown a male Rose-coloured 

 Starling {Pastor roseus) that had been obtained the previous 

 day on the Marsh at Pevensey, Sussex. It was an adult 

 bird in full plumage. Another has been seen on several 

 occasions up to the time of writing (August 24th). I have 

 also heard of a bird being seen " in the companj' of 

 Starlings " on the Pett marshes, which from the description I 

 am satisfied belongs to this species. H. W. Eord-Lindsay. 



FECUNDITY OF THE HOUSE -SPARROW. 



I HAVE, in a wood adjoining my garden near Chelmsford, 

 about twenty Selborne Society nesting-boxes, nearly all of 

 which have been occupied this year (much to my annoy- 

 ance) by House-Sparrows. Yet the result of my periodical 

 examinations of the contents of these boxes has not been 

 without interest, as it has afforded striking evidence 

 (though httle was needed) as to the phenomenal fecundity 

 of this noxious and pestilent bird. Thus, from one box 

 (No. 2), I removed a nest containing either eggs or young 

 on 15th May, 13th June, 4th July, 25th July, and 13th 

 August : that is to say, on five occasions within ninety 

 consecutive days — an average of only eighteen days between 

 each brood. From another box (No. 3), I removed a nest 

 containing either eggs or young on four occasions within 

 the same period. From two other boxes (Nos. 5 and 10), 

 I removed nests containing either eggs or young on 15th May, 

 13th June, 4th July, and 25th July : that is to saj*. on 

 four occasions within seventy-two days — again an average 

 of only eighteen days between each brood. I cannot prove, 

 of course, that all the nests I removed from these four 

 boxes respectively were the product in each case of one pair 

 of birds ; but there is, I think, no reasonable doubt that 

 they were. In view of such facts, need one wonder at the 

 extraordinary abundance of the Sparrow 'i Miller Christy. 



NOTES ON THE YOUNG OF THE SPOTTED 

 FLYCATCHER. 



This summer I have spent considerable time watching 

 nests of the Spotted Flycatcher {Muscicapa s. striata) and 

 the following points have seemed especially interesting. 



