The Zoologist — January, 1869. 1519 



membranaceous sejitum (in anatomical languap;e), which, so far as I can see, runs 

 along the whole length. This septum would seem to be a prolongation of the ' mera- 

 brana semilemaris' (see Owen, Anat. of Vertebr. vol. ii. pp.221, 222, fig. 102, h) 

 which is found in most liacheas, but in a state which, compared with its development 

 in that of the fulnuir, might be called almost rudimentary." — /. H. Gurney,jun. 



The Waterfowl in St. James's Park.— When, in 1836, a few gentlemen began to 

 stock the lake in St. James's Park with waterfowl, the rough frequenters of the Park 

 — men and women, as well as children — startled at the unaccustomed sight of the 

 birds, destroyed them in immense numbers, and if any one more rare and curious than 

 the rest appeared on the water, he was immediately made a special "cockshy" for 

 stones and killed. A male smew {Mergus albellus), the first that was known within 

 the memory of man to come alive into the Loudon market, was bought one day in 

 1837, and turned out upon the lake. He went rushing up and down, now diving and 

 erecting his wings, till he attracted a great crowd; but, alasl they perseveringly 

 pelted him with stones till he died, within an hour of his first appearance on that 

 watery stage. The Ornithological Society was formed, and once a week the committee 

 received lists of the birds killed and wounded by missiles during the preceding 

 se'nnighl. The losses were so numerous, and the expense of replacing them so 

 diflScuU to be met, that it was seriously debated whether the Society should not give 

 up its enterprise, on acccount of what seemed to be the incorrigible habits of cruelty 

 and mischief of the people. Happily it was resolved to persevere, in the hope that, 

 after awhile, the public would become interested in the birds and no longer persecute 

 and annoy them. Everyone knows that tins hope has been completely realized. The 

 Ornithological Society has stocked all the waters in the Parks with waterfowl ; not 

 only St. James's, but Hyde Park, the Regent's, Victoria and Battersea Parks ; and 

 nothing is more rare than any injury wilfully done to the birds. — Macmillaris- 

 Magazine. 



Rare Birds in the Highlands. — A good many rare birds have been shot in the 

 Highlands of late. Among other curiosities is a specimen of the skua gull, which was- 

 lately shot, by Mr. E. H. Sykes, at Inverernie, a place much further inland than this- 

 bird is usually found. A buzzard was shot at Flitchy last month ; and a specimen of 

 the great spotted woodpecker fell to the gun of Mr. R. Thome, at Portmahomack. 

 But the greatest curiosity of the week is a nutcracker, which was shot at Invergarry,, 

 in the heart of this county : Yarrell says it is so rare that he has gone to the trouble 

 of recording all the specimens that have come under notice since it was seen by Pen- 

 nant in 1766, and during that long time only about half a dozen are recorded. 

 A beautiful specimen of the snowy owl was shot last week at Knockie, by 

 Mr. Charles Peel: it measures fou* feet ten inches from lip to tip of wings^ 

 from the beak to the end of the tail two feet three inches, and is in sjjlendid 

 plumage: the last known to have been killed in these parts was obtained, about four 

 years ago near the same place. Another extremely rare bird, the roller, was killed 

 near Dornoch last week, by Mr. J. C. Ker Eraser. The roller is seldom met with in 

 the British islands: it is a native of Africa, but early in the spring many of them 

 make their way to Europe by Malta and the Mediterranean sea, returning in autumn; 

 accordingly they are found in great plenty in Malta and other islands of the Mediter- 

 ranean, where they are considered excellent for the table, and consequently are killed in 

 great numbers and exposed in the markets for sale. Length of the bird thirteen inches; 



