1720 The Zoologist— June, 1869, 



sound proceeilecl : here T found a frog making feeble attempts at escape, hopping and 

 crawling short distances, and every lime he stopped a mnsk-r;it rushed at him and 

 gave him a bite, on wiiicii he cried out; be was evidently getting weaker and weaker. 

 Undeterred by my presence, this went on till they reached my bath-room door, when 

 the musk rat, seeing me, made a bolt into a small drain, and so escaped me. I ex- 

 amined the frog, and fouud that he had been bitten in many places and was very 

 weak: had 1 not come, the musk rat would undoubtedly have made a feast on liim. 

 Again, as to the insect-feeding of the musk rat. On the evening of Jnne 28th, 1861, 

 as we were sitting in our drawing-room at Jauupur, we had placed the large lamp on 

 a small round table nearly in the corner of the room, away from us, on account of the 

 swarms of insects which were attracted by the light. These insects, at least many of 

 them, fell to the t;rouiid against ihe corner wall, and as I was watching them for 

 specimens, a fine musk rat appeared, and amused himself and us by catching them 

 and eating them : he stood on his hind legs to reach up the wall, which the grass- 

 hopper and other insects were endeavouring to climb up, and even jumped at them 

 every now and then. This scene was repeated several nights. 1 believe the reason 

 that musk rats are so fond of frequenting bath-rooms is on account of the frogs often 

 found there, and the foregoing incident confirms the idea; although, as a rule, this 

 animal may be held to be an insect feeder. — C. Home, B. C. S. 



Ornitholoyical Notes from South Devon. Little Gull. — One of these birds was 

 caught in Torbay on the 14ih of January. Another was shot in the same locality a 

 few weeks later. Buth these birds were brought to Mr. Shoplaud, the naturalist, in 

 Tor (Torquay), in the flesh to be stufi'ed, where I saw the one first named. 



Pintailed Duck.— These ducks have been very numerous this winter, and especially 

 in January, in the neighbourhood of Torquay. 



Early Nesting of the Robin. — A robin's nest was found on the 7th of January, in 

 Smale's Nursery Garden, Torquay. 



Variety of the Sparrow. — In the beginning of January I saw, near the Torquay 

 Harbour, a male sparrow with the primaries of a pure white. 



Common Scoter. — On the 17th of February two of these birds were shot in 

 Torbay. 



Cream-coloured variety of Chaflinch. — In the early part of February a chafiinch, 

 entirely cream-coloured, with the usual white bands on the wings, was brought to 

 Mr. Shopland, the naturalist in Tor, to be stufi'ed, where I had an opportunity of 

 seeing it. 



Cinereous Shearwater.— One of these fine birds was shot near Berry Head in 

 February. The bird swam up to the boat so daringly that it had to be driven off some 

 yards, in order that in shooting the bird it might not be blown to pieces. 



Mountain Finches. — A pair of these beautiful finches was shot in the neighbour- 

 hood of Paignton in February. They are of rare occurrence in South Devon. 



Ganuets and Redihroated Divers. — These birds were shot in considerable numbers 

 this winter in Torbay. Mr. Shopland had no less than fifteen gannets for slufl^ng at 

 one time. 



Abundance of Goldcrests and Wrens. — Great numbers of these birds have been 

 observed in this neighbourhood. 



Early Nesting of the Ali.ssel Thrush. — A nest containing four eggs was discovered 

 near Torquay on the (jtli of March. 



