4762 THE Zoo.Locist—J sNUARY, 1876. 
P.S.—Mr. Wharton will find that the sundry records of blackcaps seen 
and shot in this country (chiefly in Ireland) in the winter, for the most 
part mention the examples to be blackheaded.—J. H. G., jun. 
Black Redstart near Loddeswell.—A male black redstart, in full plumage, 
was procured near Loddeswell on the 8th of November, and its mate was 
with it: others have been seen in the neighbourhood.--R. P. Nicholls. 
Black Redstart at East Looe, Cornwall, — Black redstarts have been 
very numerous this year—I have seen as many as four in a short walk; 
they were frequently to be seen on the houses and in the streets of Looe, 
busily feeding, in November. I had at one time in the scope of my 
binocular two redstarts, one white wagtail, one gray wagtail, two Yarrell’s 
wagtails and a stonechat. All the redstarts I have seen this year have been 
in gray plumage.— Stephen Clogg. 
Waxwings without Wax (S.S. 4723).—In reference to a notice upon this 
subject by Mr. Gurney, jun., I offer the following remarks. In upwards 
of ninety skins sent to me from Lapland, collected by poor Wheelwright’s 
collectors, I selected seven with the following characteristics :—One has 
the smallest possible vestige of a red wax appendage; six have very small 
drops, from one to three. In these seven birds the yellow mark‘ngs and 
eross band of white in the primaries are wanting. Each secondary is, 
however, tipped with white; and the white feathers to which the red wax 
ought to be appended are there, but smaller than usual; the vellow at the 
tip of the tail is also paler. Of the seven specimens four were killed in 
January, one in March, one in February, and one is without label. Ouly 
one of the specimens is dressed, and that isa female. The rest of the 
skins are also properly defined. These birds contrast much with the fine, 
pale-plumaged birds, with their seven or eight drops of wax, and fall 
brilliant yellow colour. What is the cause I will not venture to suggest. 
The birds do not show any appearance of general moulting, and it is 
certainly not sexual. I suppose they are ill-developed waifs in the waxwing 
community. ‘The appearance of wax is certainly very irregular, as seen 
When a large number of specimens are together, varying from eight spots 
to one.—C. R. Bree; Colchester. 
Shore Lark in Moly Island.—'I'wo shore larks were noticed on Holy 
Island, about fifty miles north of Neweastle-on-T'vne, on the 15th of October 
last, by Mr. Isaac Clark, of Blaydon, one of which he shot, and it is now in 
my collection along with two others which [ obtained from Mr. Thomas 
Robson, of Swalwell, in whose memorandum-book [ see one of the latter (a 
female) was purchased for one shilling and sixpence in Newcastle Market 
on the 28th of June, 1851, of a birdeatcher, who had it ina cage with a 
number of sky larks caught on the banks of the Tyne; it, however, died on 
the 22nd of October, in the same year.—Thomas Thompson ; Newcastle-on- 
Tyne, November 20, 1875. 
