The Zoologist— March, 1874. 3911 



Laira, with a party of eight dabchicks on the river, and immense 

 flocks of lapwings and some golden plovers on the low flat grounds 

 of the Plvmoulh race-course close by. Amongst some birds brought 

 to a birdstuffer for preservation lately, I examined two ringed plovers 

 in perfectly adult plumage, one being almost, if not quite, as large 

 again as the other — capital illustrations of the supposed large and 

 small races of this species. A few days ago I saw a great black- 

 backed gull in that interesting state of plumage, apparently quite 

 adult about the head, breast and back, but with the tail beautifully 

 freckled or mottled with dark brown and white. 



I have lately examined the stomachs of two more shorteared 

 owls, each of which contained the perfect legs of a redwing and 

 the remains of other birds. 



On the 17th I observed a large number of curlews, lapwings and 

 ringed plovers on the banks of the Tamar j also a few fieldfares in the 

 neighbourhood, which latter were no doubt driven in from the hills 

 of Dartmoor, at the time covered with snow. It had been blowing 

 very hard up to the 20lh, on which day many great blackbacked 

 gulls made their appearance in our harbours. 



On the 23rd I examined an old pied wagtail, which had as com- 

 plete a black back as in spring, though perhaps a little duller in 

 colour ; the front of its head, cheeks and throat were, however, very 

 Avhite. I do not mean that the dark plumage of the back had been 

 recently assumed, but it must have been produced at the last 

 autumnal moult. 



On the 27th I saw an old guillemot which was already assuming 

 the breeding plumage, some dark feathers having appeared about 

 the chin and throat. 



29th. There was a moorhen in the market in beautiful plu- 

 mage, with the naked skin on the forehead and base of the bill 

 of the brightest blood-red or crimson ; the garters on the legs, too, 

 were of a very bright colour. Examined the slomach of a dipper, 

 which contained nothing but the remains of insects and their larvae, 

 among which were several very small beetles with dark brown and 

 yellow elytra. 



Two or three years since I mentioned having seen a nest con- 

 taining three young blackbirds perfectly white, belonging to a 

 person in Plymouth, and a few days since one of these identical 

 birds was brought to a birdstufler to be mounted, having died only 

 the day previously. Its head and neck were quite naked, and its 



