The Zoologist— October, 1869. 1881 



NOTICES OF NEW BOOKS. 



* The Birds of Sherwood Forest ; with Notes on their Hahils, Nesting, 

 Migration, dec' By J. W. Sterland. 244 pp. L-jUevprcss ; four 

 coloured Lithograph Plates. Loudon : Lovell, Reeve & Co., 

 Henrietta Street. 1869. 

 Why of Sherwood Forest ? not only is there no bird peculiar to 

 Sherwood Forest, but there is not a single species, so far as I am 

 aware, at all connected by fact or by tradition with that once cele- 

 brated resort of freebooters. Then why of Sherwood Forest ? I can 

 conceive no other reason than that the author lives in its vicinity : per- 

 haps a sufficient reason : I will not dispute it. Still I think that before 

 complying with the "wish" of his numerous readers " for the separate 

 publication" of these pages, — for they have previously appeared in the 

 colunons of that excellent newspaper the 'Field,' — and before he had 

 introduced such copious notes on the habits, nesting, migrations, &c., 

 of birds generally, he should at least have informed himself more fully 

 of what had previously been done under these most interesting heads. 

 It will be admitted that Pennant, Latham, Bewick, Montagu, Selby, 

 Meyer, Hewitson, Yarrell and Gould are the authors who have built up 

 our bird lore into a respectable and permanent edifice, and yet this 

 volume contains evidence that Mr. Sterland is totally unacquainted 

 with all these authors excepting Montagu, and with him only through 

 Rennie's edition ! the name of Yarrell does certainly occur once, — 

 I think once only, — and then he is cited second-hand, via Mac- 

 gillivray, thus : — " In Macgillivray's account of this species [the cross- 

 bill] he quotes YarrelFs description of a young one that was taken 

 when only just able to fly, the mandibles of M'hich were quite straight, 

 the under just shutting into the upper." I believe Yarrell expresses 

 no opinion on the subject : the passage to which Mr. Sterland objects 

 was written by Mr. Long, of Farnham, and is only quoted by 

 Mr. Yarrell. 



I will venture a second criticism. I entertain a decided opinion 

 that no bird should be introduced into a local fauna unless the evi- 

 dence of its presence was clear and decisive. Now a large number of 

 Mr. Sterland's Birds are introduced on evidence that 1 cannot help 

 regarding as unsatisfactory : let me give the first as a specimen. 



The Golden Eagle at Sherwood.—" The lake was fiozen over at the 

 time, except in one place, where a flush of warm water entered from a 



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