1516 The Zoologist-^January, 1869. 



{Raiihidia nphiopsii) or some closely-allied species. — John Cordeaux ; Great Coles. 

 Uk-eby, November 18, 1868. 



Great Black Woodpecker in Hampakire. — I have just received a letter stating that 

 a {jreat black woodpecker (male) was shot a few days since, at Benstead, in Hampshire. 

 My informant (Smithers) had the liird in his hand before it was skinned. I am none 

 the naore certain, however, that it was shot at the place tnenticmed ; for T have known 

 many instances of rare British birds beinp: sent to our markets in the flesh, and from 

 the markets s€nt into the country for the purpose of deceiving the unwary. Still the 

 statement may be true, and I will leave no stone unturned to ascertain if such be the 

 case. — John Gould, in a letter to Mr, Jlodd. 



[I am much oblijjed to Mr. Rodd for permission to copy and publish the preceding 

 note, and shall feel it an increased obligation if he, or Mr. Gould, or any lover of truth, 

 will push the inquiry to a satisfactory conclusion. Auyone visiting Leadenhall 

 JNIarket so frequently as I do (being compelled twice a day to pass the entrance) will 

 admire the unquestionable honesty of the dealers, as demonstrated by the excessive 

 paucity of the records of rarities, which could so readily be obtained from that prolific 

 source: prior to those which have been recently noticed in the ' Zoologist' (without 

 any attempt to prove them British), it is marvellous how very small is the amount of 

 records of rarities purchased in that great marl of Continental and British Ornithology. 

 - — Edward Newman.'] 



Late stay of Swallows. — Mr. J. H. Gurney mentions (Zool. S. S. 1479) the 26th of 

 October as the last day on which he observed Swallows this year near Totnes. 

 I noticed iheni as late as the 8lh of November in this neighbourhood, on which day 

 I saw, I slioiild think, at least a dozen : they were all birds of the year. The day was 

 I old and dark, with half a gale blowing from the eastward. — Gervase F. Malhew ; 

 II. M.S. " Britannia" Dartmouth, December 8, 1868. 



Late stay i<f Marlins.— Oi\ walking down Old Town Street, Plymouth, about 

 4 I', ji. on Thursday last (November 19ih) I was surprised to see four martins (//irimrfo 

 iirbicu) flying aljout over the street and fluttering up against one of the liuuses in it, 

 as these birds do when seeking a suitable roosting-place. On the morning of the 

 following Saturday I noticed a couple more (or perhaps two of the four seen on 

 Thursday) flying briskly about the houses in Brnnswick Terrace, in the eastern part 

 of Plymouth. It is not very unusual for flights of these birds to make their appearance 

 in this nei^hbouihood early in November, a few weeks after those that passed the 

 summer with us have left, but seeing individuals so late in the month as the 19th 

 and 21st is, I think, sufiiciently remarkable to be recorded in the 'Zoologist,' especially 

 as the weather during the early part of the month was unusually cold for the season. 

 During the past summer martins were very scarce in this neighbourhood. — T. R. 

 Archer Briggs ; 4, Portland Villas, Plymouth. 



Scarcity of Marlins in 1868 in the Neighbourhood of East Looe. — I have seen 

 many notices of the scarcity of martins in various parts of England this year: the 

 same scarcity prevailed here. In Pelynt, a small hainiel in this neighbourhood, are 

 to be seen the remains of twenty-one nests, all of which I believe were occupied iu the 

 year 1867, and I know from personal observation there were but nine this year, 

 a falling off of more than one hundred and ten per cent. If this proportion has pre- 

 vailed throughout England, ihu falling off in numbers must be enormous. Swifts and 

 swallows have been in average numbers. — Stephen C'logg. 



