The Zoologist — January, 1868. 1035 



in a. female, shot on the 29th of October, it is well marked, and is also 

 seen, though less prominently, in a male shot since. I should be glad 

 of an explauatiou of this. 



Kinged Plover. — The gizzard of a ringed plover contained a 

 quantity of small marine univalve shell. 



House Martin. — Nov. 27. To-day I saw four house martins in 

 Chichester, apparently strong and active, but I fear the sharp frost of 

 the following night found them out. 



Falcon and Peewit. — Nov. 28. A farm-workman tells me that a few 

 days ago his attention was attracted by a " large hawk " and a peewit 

 high in the air above him. The hawk, which would appear from 

 his description to have been a peregrine falcon, struck the peewit, and, 

 as he says, carried it to the ground. He allowed some minutes to 

 elapse, and perceiving no farther movement he walked up, when both 

 birds rose, and the falcon, dashing again after the peewit, struck it into 

 a hedge ; here, though not dead, it was captured by the man and 

 found to be severely cut about the breast. 



Nesting of the Sedge Warbler. — In his interesting letter on 

 " distinguishing characters " (Zool. S. S. 968), Mr. Halting states, as 

 his own experience, I imagine, that the nest of the sedge warbler is 

 placed on the ground. It has recently been shown, in the pages of 

 the ' Zoologist,' that the reed warbler sometimes departs from its normal 

 mode of nesting in reeds and builds its deep cup-shaped nest in lilac 

 and other bushes, frequently at a distance from water and at a con- 

 siderable elevation from the ground. Now in this district the sedge 

 warbler places its nest, I may say almost invariably, at some height 

 from the ground, perhaps on an average from one and a half to three 

 feet, and 1 have found it at nearly four feet from the ground. It is 

 also occasionally placed in low bushes over water. Several persons to 

 whom I have mentioned this have expressed opinions that the habit is 

 abnormal, and as such it is perhaps worth recording. 



Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler— -In addition to Mr. Hartings 

 "distinctive characters" in these birds, I will add that I have 

 invariably found in the chiffchaff that the under parts of the feet, the 

 soles, as it were, are yellow, while the same parts in the willow warbler 

 match the general colouring of the legs, a fleshy brown. 



W. Jeffery, jun. 



Ratham, Chichester, December 4, 1867. 



