686 The Zoologist — April, 1807. 



November; a wave of them seems to have passed through the county 

 southwards. Rarely would you pass a hedge without seeing some of 

 these beautiful creatures, or hearing their melancholy "T-you." The 

 bills of a few shot were deeply stained with blackberry juice, and I 

 watched dozens feeding on the wild fruit. 



Chaffinch : Separation of the Sexes. — We had immense flocks of 

 chaffinches this year: their great body were females, sprinkled however 

 with males. These flocks frequent old potato-lands more than any 

 other, and I strongly think are composed for the most part of foreign 

 migrants. Plenty of males are to be seen with their females all winter 

 through, by the roadsides and elsewhere, in this county ; these I look 

 upon as our indigenous birds. 



Second Occurrence of the Blackthroated Diver in Dubtin Bay in 

 1866. — On the 19th of November I shot a bird of the year of this rare 

 diver. 



Occurrence of the Longtailed Duck in Dublin Bay in November, 

 1866. — There was an example of this herald-duck shot in the Bay this 

 season. Through some oversight I omitted this species in my list of 

 the migrants to this county in winter. I have seen four or five 

 examples, chiefly young birds shot on the coast, and Thompson 

 mentions several as occurring on our Dublin shores. Will readers 

 kindly add "Longtailed Ditch, occasional winter visitor," to my list 

 in their ' Zoologist ' for 1866. 



Pied Blackbird. — December 15. To-day, whilst driving to Collery 

 to shoot, I saw on the road, outside Sir George Hodson's, a pied 

 blackbird : his misfortune did not tempt me to shoot him, so I hope 

 he is still to the fore among the baronet's beautiful evergreens. 



Pied Woodcock. — I had just shot two snipe right and left on the 

 Sugar Loaf, when a woodcock nearly all white sprang. I had a 

 cartridge in only time enough to hit him hard without killing 

 him. 



Guillemot in Summer Plumage in December. — December 20th. I 

 was greatly surprised to see a guillemot in summer plumage bearing 

 down upon me : enormously rapid as was its flight as it passed me I 

 aimed the right distance ahead, about fifteen yards; and killed it. So 

 great was the velocity of its flight that it progressed about thirty yards, 

 spinning like a wheel before falling. The secret of the reputed 

 impregnability to shot, said to be possessed by the feathers of these 

 birds, lies in not aiming enough ahead. I can kill them hand)- enough 

 with No. 7 on the wing, and my little breech-loader, made by Weekes 



