Tue ZooLocist—JuLy, 1876. 4981 
trust they will be incorporated in the new edition of “Selborne” 
so long promised by Professor Bell. 
Amongst the published papers is one by Mr. C. B. Plowright 
upon Fungi observed on one of the Society’s field days. We wish 
there had been further observations upon this little-worked branch 
of Cryptogamic Botany, which may be studied with pleasure, inte- 
rest, and truly profit, when the student can dine off them. He who 
has eaten Hydnum imbricatum need wish for no better dinner. 
Those of our readers who live in the country—in the true 
meaning of the word—will do well to read Mr. Frank Norgate’s 
paper upon the “ Nesting Habits of certain Birds, and Remarks 
with a View to their Encouragement by the erection of Nesting- 
Boxes,” of which a brief outline has already appeared in the May 
number of the ‘ Zoologist’ (S.S. 4891). If these readers had once 
seen the joyous crowd of birds we once saw around a fine old 
farm near Marston Moor, in Yorkshire, all of which built in artificial 
boxes and holes made purposely for them to nest in, they would 
scarcely hesitate to encourage their nesting, especially when they 
found the difference in their crops from the almost total disap- 
pearance of ‘‘ wireworms,” &c., besides the constant amusement 
and knowledge obtained by watching their operations. The fol- 
lowing by no means exceptional case, quoted from Mr. Norgate’s 
paper, is sufficiently suggestive :— 
“Some birds use extraordinary materials for their nests. A missel 
thrush once made a nest here almost entirely composed of thin strips of 
green and white paper which had been hung up to scare sparrows from a 
seed bed. Thrushes’ nests have been recorded which were built with string, 
lace and linen collars, &c. On one occasion I had turned out of my col- 
lection a pair of stuffed squirrels, which the gardener placed near some 
fresh sown peas to scare the enemy. (I think he had a very vague idea as 
to whether the dreaded enemy was a mouse ora titmouse.) For some days 
afterwards it was quite amusing to see a pair of great tits plucking the 
stuffed squirrels in order to line their nests with the red fur: these birds 
seem to prefer red fur, or the rust-coloured cottony down from the seed of 
the reed mace, to anything else for lining or even for the entire structure 
of their nest, though they sometimes use rabbits’ felt or moss.” 
Mr. Stevenson’s valuable Ornithological Notes for 1875 must 
receive a passing nolice; but as many of these have already 
appeared in the ‘ Zoologist,’ we forbear to quote. 
Some useful work appears at the end of these ‘ Transactions,’ 
SECOND SERIES—VOL. XI. ork 
