Tuer ZooLocist—MarcH, 1876. 4847 
Smew near Old Malton.—A male specimen of this bird in full plumage 
was shot on January 14th, on the Derwent, near Old Malton, and is now 
in the possession of Mr. George Edson. 
Smew at Taunton —On Wednesday, January 26th, Mr. Petherick, of 
Taunton, shot a male smew (Mergus albellus) near Durston. The plumage 
of the head is loose and silky. ‘The head, neck, breast, wings and under 
body are white: the wings are crossed with black; the centre of the back 
and wings are also black. In the female the colour tends to chestnut. 
The smew is a rare bird in this locality—H. R. Prince; Fore Street, 
Taunton. 
[Mr. Prince does not mention that a female was obtained.—H. Newman.] 
Hooded Merganser.—Having lately been devoting some attention to the 
subject of rare and doubtful British birds—a subject in which I already see 
there is a great deal to be done—I am interested, and at the same time 
perplexed, to find a record of the death of a pair of hooded mergansers near 
Sheerness, in the ‘ Zoologist’ for June, 1870. I trust I shall not be con- 
sidered as arrogating to myself any special knowledge over and above 
Mr. G. F. Mathew, if I intimate a doubt as to these birds being correctly 
named. I have no wish to act the critic, but I do respectfully wish that he 
would make further investigations, so as to satisfy me and other readers as 
to what the birds were. Ihave seen the original specimen which was shot 
at Yarmouth, and which after passing through several hands was added to 
the collection of Mr. Selby, at Twizell. It is in the plain “dun diver” 
dress. It had never been stuffed, and I believe it is now in the magnifi- 
cent collection of skins at Cambridge. That occurred in 1829. Sixteen 
others are supposed to have been shot or seen since.—J. H. Gurney, jun. 
Retention of Summer Plumage by Grebes.—Mr. Boyes thinks tbat some 
grebes retain much of their summer dress through the winter (S. 8. 4299). 
I do not think they are so prone to it as divers (Colymbus). I have however 
received the great crested grebe with a complete tippet as early as the 25th 
of March. I have frequently noticed that the feet of grebes, and also of 
coots and waterhens, give out a kind of oil, long after they are skinned, to 
the great detriment of other specimens which may be in the same drawer 
with them. A damp room, which is the worst thing there is for a collection 
of birds, will draw it out.—ZTd. 
Waterford Great Auk,.—At p. 1449 (S.S.) I gave some previously un- 
published matter about the Waterford Harbour great auk obtained from 
Dr. Burkitt. I now wish to supplement my paper with some additional 
remarks, which through his kindness I am able to do. Dr. Burkitt 
informs me that being formerly in the habit of preserving the bones of the 
sternum, back, neck and thighs of all but common species, he did preserve 
the bones of the great auk also; but it is not known whether they are now 
in the Dublin University Museum, or where they are. The following is an 
