19-26 The Zoologist — November, 1869. 



considered these respective garbs as seasonal, and indicative of summer and winter. 

 Not havii)-,' heard of any similar instance, I think it rather nnusual. 



Badger. I have not heard of the occurrence of a Norfolk hadger since I recorded 

 one io 1664 (Zo(d. 9016), and a second in the fulllowing year (Zool. S. S. 162) ; but 

 osnitted to record the occurreuce of a female in 1862 in this neighbourhood. In 1865 

 a female and two young ones were captured alive in Suffolk, just beyond the boundary 

 of this couniy, and were kept alive for some time in the possession of a person named 

 Clarke, hut what has since become of ihem I cannot ascertain. 



Oiter. The otter is still of frequent occurrence iu Norfolk, and will probably 

 remain with ns as long as their haunts, our fau)Ous Broads, are undisturbed by culti- 

 vation ; nuUvithstandiug several are killed off e> ery year. 'J'he undermentioned are ibe 

 specimens ihat have passed under my examination :— January, 18o8. A female and 

 two young froui North \Vooton. February 27, 1869. Young one from Hickling. 

 March 9, 1869. Two young were caught alive at Trigby, near Yarmouth, in a straw 

 slack: the old one was with them, but succeeded in making good her escape. She is 

 believed to have littered there — a most unusual locality, as the stack was more than 

 three-quarters of a mile from the river. Mr. T. Siulliwell informs me of a Cue speci- 

 men taken at Barsham about this date. An old otter, a female, and two young (about 

 a fortnight old) were captured, about the same time, in the neighbourhood of Yar- 

 mouth ; the coats of the latter presented two distiuct shades of colour, one being of a 

 verv pale brown, and the other very dark, nearly as dark as the adult ; the mother was 

 slightly piebald, having a few small patches of white on the crown of its head and 



luck. 



Mole. A beautiful cream-coloured variety was captured, in July last, in this 



neighbourhood. 



Hedgehog. October, 1867. A gamekeeper near Norwich has lately informed me 

 of a curious fact, illustrating the carnivorous propensity of the hedgehog. Ue says, 

 " On going my rounds one morning to examine the traps I had set the night previous, 

 I found, on ap|>roaching one that was placed at the foot of an old gate-post, a rabbit 

 caught by its hind legs; it was jerking and tearing itself about in a fearful manner: 

 I stood still and watched it a minute or two, when I saw u hedgehog emerge 

 from some foliage opposite, and attack it by springing at it and fastening itself to 

 its head, which it commenced biting and tearing, whilst the poor victim was making 

 everv attempt to escape its two-fold misfortune. So intent was the hedgehog on its 

 prey that I approached and despatched it before it made an endeavour to escape. I 

 then examined the rabbit and found one side of its face eaten and torn away by the 

 repealed attacks of its foe." The carnivorous propensity of the hedgehog has been 

 before observed, but I do not remember an instance where au individual has made so 

 bold au attack on so large a prey, but have no doubt the fact in this case was owing to 

 the iuabiliiy of the rabbit to escape. 



Rat. October 4, 1867. A male, whose entire coat was of a creamy white, excepting a 

 few brownish hairs scattered over the crown of its head, was killed by a dog at f lorden : 

 it had black eves. On referring to some former notes of mine I find a record of a 

 similar variety killed near Aylsham on the I2th of October, 1860. 



Squirrel. I have on several occasions been informed that the squirrel indulges in 

 the habit of sucking birds' eggs, and in support of this assertion individuals have 

 occasionally been caught in traps baited with eggs when actually engaged in the fact, 



