The Zoologist — February, 1873. 8409 



lesser animals, such as the 'mbogo' (buffalo), the 'pundaterra' (zebra), the 

 ' twiga ' (giraffe), the boar, the kudu, the hyrax or coney, and the antelope, 

 come here also to quench their thirst by night. The surface of the lake 

 swarms with an astonishing variety of water-fowl, such as black swan, duck, 

 ibis sacra, cranes, pelicans ; and soaring above, on the look-out for their 

 prey, are fish-eagles and hawks, while the neighbourhood is resonant with 

 the loud chirps of the guinea-fowls calling for their young, with the harsh 

 cry of the toucan, the cooing of the pigeon, and the ' tu-whit, tu-whoo ' of 

 the owl. From the long grass in its vicinity also issue the grating and loud 

 cry of the florican, woodcock and grouse." — 'How I found Livingstone.' 



[This agi-eeable passage (which I extract from a review, and not from the 

 book itself) may hereafter receive revision and modification ; it seems to 

 require it : it would indeed be a treat to our African tourists to find black 

 swans floating on an African lake and serenaded by gorgeous toucans : the 

 passage suggests the idea of a misprint. — Edward Newman.] 



The Chillingham Bull. — In every one of our papers we read of the exploit 

 of H.R.H. the Prince of Wales, in shooting a bull out of Lord Tankerville's 

 flock at Chillingham ; the head and neck have been stuffed by Mr. Ward, 

 and a figure of these parts, drawn by that excellent animal draughtsman 

 Mr. Harrison Weir, has appeared in the ' Field.' AU professional taxi- 

 dermists seem to entertain the idea that length and slimness of neck is a 

 beauty in beast or bird, and probably from this cause the neck in question 

 has the appearance of unnatural and very untauriue slenderness. Never 

 having had the gratification of seeing these Chillingham cattle, I am unable 

 to express any opinion as to their pedigree or kinsfolk, but I do not learn 

 from this figure, or from the numerous descriptions lately published, that 

 there is any specific or varietal character to distinguish them from the 

 smaller breeds of cattle one sees everywhere in the Highlands. The white 

 colour has been thought distinctive : uniformity in this respect has been 

 attained by assiduously killing off the black, brown or piebald individuals, 

 a process by which any colour might be made to preponderate : the redness 

 of the ears is given by Biugley as distinctive of the breed, but I regret to 

 confess my inability to understand his precise meaning. Are we to under- 

 stand that the hair covering the outside of the ears is red in the same way 

 that the hair in Herefordshire cattle is red ? or does it mean that the skin 

 from which the white hair of the ears is growing has a red or pink tinge ? 

 If this last be the interpretation we are to give to Bingley's definition 

 I cannot think it suflicient to characterize a breed. — Edward Newman. 



Ornithological Notes from North If ales for the Sammer and Autumn 

 of 1872.— 



Golden Plover. — In June I found these birds breeding in considerable 

 numbers on all the moors. A few are found on the hills all the year round, 



