44 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES FROM DEVON AND CORNWALL 
DURING THE AUTUMN OF 1876. 
By JoHn GatTcomBE. 
On my return to Plymouth I went to see the variety of Yellow 
Bunting mentioned in my last notes (2nd ser. 5146), and found it 
to be really of a bright yellow canary-colour, and not light buff, 
like Mr. Bond’s specimen. ‘To show how nearly it resembled a 
Canary in colour, I was told by the birdstuffer that when it was 
first brought to him, seeing that it was in arough and mutilated 
condition, aud not for a moment doubting it to be a Canary, he 
advised the servant to take it back to his master, with the message 
that he did not consider it worth preserving. This the man did, 
but brought it again the uext day, saying that his master parti- 
cularly wished it to be stuffed, that it was shot on Dartmoor, and 
hoped he would try to do his best with it; upon which Mr. Peacock 
examined the bird more closely than he did at first, and found, to 
his surprise, that it was not a Canary but a Yellow Bunting. | 
Some Scoters were obtained in Plymouth Sound on the 8rd of 
October, one of which was a very fine adult male. On the following 
day a white Swallow was killed at Huntshill, near Bridgwater. On 
the 14th an immature white Spoonbill was brought to Plymouth 
Market, which was killed on the banks of the St. Germans river, 
Cornwall. On the 2lst a young Black Tern was shot in Plymouth 
Sound, and other Terns seen. The last Wheatear noted by me for 
the season was seen on the rocks at the Devil’s Point, Stonehouse, 
on the 23rd of the same month, 
A young Red-throated Diver, shot in the Sound, had the 
stomach crammed with Sprats: a common name for this species is 
Sprat Loon. The contents of the stomach of a Cormorant, killed 
the same day, consisted of three Wrasses of a tolerably good size. 
A young Merganser was also obtained in Plymouth Sound, and its 
stomach was found to contain several Blennies, showing that it 
must have been fishing close to the rocks. 
Several Long-eared Owls were brought to the birdstuffers on the 
80th of October, and flocks of Ring Ouzels were seen on Dartmoor. 
The following day | observed a Snow Bunting on the cliffs near 
Mount Batten. The wind was N.E., and very cold, after two 
days’ frost. ‘This litle bird was so tame that I got within three 
