Birds. 9629 



their dress " de parade," were not the same diversity in colouring observable in other 

 species, the Indian sand grouse and the Cornmandel quail, for instance. See my notes 

 in the ' Zoologist ' (Zool. 5748 and 5750) : the italics in the above quotation from 

 Montagu are my own. — Henry Hud field; Ventnor, Isle of Witjht, Mtiy 9, 1865. 



N'He on the Great Northern Diver (Colymbus septentrionalis). — This bird, which, 

 in common with tlie other divers, is termed by the fishermen the " sprat loon," is very 

 common on the Colne durinj; the winter, and since the horrid and barbarous taste has 

 sprung up of sticking a poor bird's wing into ladies' bonnets, many move of them tbaa 

 usual have been killed. During the six years I have lived on the banks of the Colne, 

 and for thirty years previously in which I have been more or less engaged in the study 

 of birds, I have never seen the red mark on the neck of Colymbus septentrionalis in 

 winter. The neck and breast, on the contrary, according to my experience, are always 

 in both young and old birds pure while, without even the dusky shadows which portend 

 the black markings in the other. I do not think that any question in ornithological 

 history is belter established than this by the concurrent testimony of modern observers. 

 Temminck must not be quoted in favour of a contrary opinion, because he says nothing 

 about it. Degland, however (Ornith. Europ. tome ii. p. 494), says, " Male et femelle 

 en hiver * * * bas desjones, gorge, devaut et coles du cou, poitvine, abdomen et 

 sous-caudales d'un blanc pur lustre." Mr. Yarrell combats the opinion of Montagu, 

 Audubon and Dana as to the permanency of the red mark, by attributing the excep- 

 tional cases which have occurred to the accidental variation of the second moult, and 

 I think satisfactorily sets at rest the assumption of Selby and others as to the great 

 proportion of fifty to one of our winter visitants being young birds, by the remark that 

 they only bring up two young and often only one, so that, iu fact, the old ones must 

 be more numerous than the young : therefore if the latter flocked so must the former. 

 A most unlikely and altogether improbable assumption, but, if true, one that must 

 settle the question at once by the number of red-marked birds which would be shot 

 every winter. Surely the question, if it be still seriously entertained, can be easily set 

 at rest by getting specimens of red-tnarked birds in winter. If Captain Hadfield will 

 be kind enough to send me one in the flesh I shall be very much obliged to him. All 

 the pretty screens made by Mr. Rogers in the Isle of Wight that I have seen have 

 been made willi white-breasted birds. He would hardly, I think, throw the red ones 

 away. — C R. Bree; Colchester, June 6, I860. 



Whiskered Tern on the Coast of Devon. — An adult specimen of that exceedingly 

 rare tern Sterna leucoparia was obtained near Plymouth, a few days since. I acci- 

 dentally detected it in the hands of a young birdstuS'er, who had just finished setting 

 it up, hut who had not the least idea of its name or rarity. He told me that it was 

 picked up alive on the water by some fishermen and brought on shore, but soon died, 

 apparently from exhaustion. I secured the specimen, which is now in the collection 

 of Mr. F. C. Hingston, of Plymouth. — John Gatcombe. 



Arrival of Summer Birds. — The following ornithological observations were made 

 by the members of the King's Lynn Natural History Society: — 

 April 15. Swallow and yellow wagtail arrived. 



„ 17. Cuckoo arrived. 



„ 18. Wryneck arrived. 



„ 21. Whilethroat arrived. 



„ 29. Sedge Warbler arrived.— £^. L. King. 



