The Zoologist — October, 1869, 1805 



form me whether it is very r.tre, and when and where it has been seen or shot ?— 

 F. N. Pignll; Bones Hill, Horsham, Matj 12 {Id.) 



[Several specimens have been observed near the Land's End this spring. — E. N^ 



Robin and Wiffeon breeding in confinement. — As neither of these birds frequently 

 breed in confinement I send you the following notice of their doing so for insertion in 

 the ' Zoologist.' Until this year I have never been able to keep a pair of robins in my 

 aviary, as one always killed the other; now, however, I have not only succeeded in 

 doing so, but they have actually made a nest and succeeded in rearing a brood of three 

 young ones. One curious fact connected with the robins is that they established a 

 connexion with a robin outside, who constantly supplied ihem with food through the 

 wire netting : as the aviary is close under my diessing-room window, I had frequent 

 opportunities of watching this curious proceeding. I have a pair of wigeon in the 

 pond, but until this year they never attempted making a nest, though the drake was 

 always very attentive lo and jealous of the duck; this year, however, the duck made 

 a nest in a field of mowing grass and laid five eggs, and sat on them for nearly a 

 month : the eggs, however, were unfortunately addled, probably because the bird was 

 so often driven from her nest by mowers and haymakers : the nest was on the ground 

 in a ihickish clump of grass made of a few long bents twisted together and lined with 

 down from the bird's own body, looking, consequently, much like the nest of the Mus- 

 covy duck: the eggs are a rich cream-colour, smaller and much more pointed than 

 those of the wild duck — two inches two lines in length, and one inch five Hues ia 

 breadth at the broadest part. — Ceeil Smith ; Lydeard House, Taunton. 



Beautiful Variety of Nightingale's Eggs.— In June last a friend took a nest of the 

 nightingale, containing five eggs, in a wood at Hetherset, near Norwich: four of the 

 eggs were of a beautiful rich blue colour, spotted with red on the larger end ; the fifth 

 egg was if a pale olive, spotted and streaked with darker olive colour. One of the 

 former and the latter my friend kindly presented to me. The blue variety of the 

 nij;htingale egg is, I believe, of rare occurrence. — T. E. Gunn; Regent Street, Nor- 

 wich, September, 1869. 



Painted Bunting in Oxfordshire. — A note of mine in your last week's issue, on 

 the occurrence of the painted bunting {Spiza ciris) in this neighbourhood, has called 

 forth questions from several of my acquaintances. My offence consists in having 

 intimated a doubt as to whether this species has ever occurred in Britain otherwise 

 than as an escaped cage-bird. I see in the ' Zoologist' list of birds only one instance 

 of its occurrence mentioned. As I believe that it has occurred in Britain several times 

 since, perhaps those of your readers who have met with specimens will let us know iu 

 what slate they were, and if they showed any signs of captivity. — Everard F. im Thurn ; 

 Adderbury Rectory, June 8, 1869 (jProm the 'Field'). 



Brambling breeding in confinement the second time. — In the ' Zoologist' for 1868 

 (S.S. 1218) 1 recorded the fact of a pair of bramlings breeding in confinement in this 

 city : I have again to notice that the same pair of birds has nested this season, two 

 eggs being laid, which, after a day or two, were forsaken. — T. E. Gunn; Sept., 1869. 



Serin Finch at Worthing. — A very fine example of this rare English visitant was 

 shot at Worthing on the 4ih of May, 1869. It has been very carefully mounted, and 

 has been kindly sent by Mr. Frederick W. Lucas to our office, where it may be seen. 

 The serin finch has only been captured a few times in England, and is not noticed by 

 Macgillivray or Yarrell, but is described in Newman's Montagu. Allhough so 

 SECOND SERIES — VOL. IV. 3 C 



