106 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
Captain Tyson crossed Davis Strait in his vessel, called in at Godhavn, and 
afterwards returned to the United States. I think it highly probable that 
the supposed Curlew Sandpiper’s eggs were obtained by Mr. Kumlein from 
Mr. Fencker during this visit to Godhavn, and that Mr. Kumlein did not 
personally find Tringa subarquata nesting in the district of Christianshaab, 
North Greenland.” Under these circumstances, therefore, we must await 
further evidence, before giving implicit credence to the report that the eggs 
of the Curlew Sandpiper have really been discovered.—J. E. Harrine. 
Earty ASSUMPTION oF SumMeR PLUMAGE IN THE BLAeK-HEADED 
Guit.— A specimen of this elegant Gull, caught inland during the 
second week of January, was beginning to assume the summer dark 
hood. The disk of the “mask” was very distinctly marked, and the border 
did not extend beyond the face behind the eyes,—not reaching the neck,— 
resembling the representations of the so-called “ Masked Gull,” which, 
by-the-bye, is neither figured nor referred to by Mr. Gould, in his ‘ Birds 
of Great Britain.’ The upper part of the breast, the whole of the tail and 
tail-coverts of this specimen are pure white, but the lower part of the breast 
and belly are light buff-yellov—probably this was rose-colour when the bird 
was alive; the bill and feet bright coral-red. I have sent this notice more 
especially to call attention to the unusual early change of plumage in this 
specimen, which appears to be quite adult, both from the absence of any 
black at the end of the tail, and from the unsullied character of the delicate 
French grey of the dorsal plumage.—Epwarp Hearve Ropp (Penzance, 
January 19th). 
(With unfeigned regret we mark this communication as the last we 
shall ever receive from our late friend and correspondent, Edward Hearle 
Rodd, by whose death we have lost one of the oldest and most valued 
contributors to the pages of this Journal. See page 113.—Ep.] 
Ixmicration oF Lonc-EARED Owxs IN WILIsHIRE.—In reference to 
Mr. Gatcombe’s account, in the number of ‘ The Zoologist’ for February 
(p. 49), of the strange irruption of Long-eared Owls in Devonshire, and his 
surprise that nothing has been said of their appearance in like manner in 
other places, I beg to state that I received information not long since from 
the south of this county, that two gentlemen while shooting in Groveley 
Wood, not far from Salisbury, about the middle of November last, came 
upon a flight of Long-eared Owls, whose numbers they estimated at about 
twenty, and which seemed to fly out of every tree. The same sportsmen 
were again in Groveley Wood in the following week on November 29th, 
and four Long-eared Owls flew out of one tree. The frost was very severe 
at the time. As this was the first occasion on which I had heard of such a 
flight of Long-eared Owls, I ventured very delicately to enquire whether 
there might by possibility be any mistake as to the species, and whether 
