The Zoologist— J cly, 1868. 1283 



had young in the nests. On the 20th of April, looking after a blue 

 pigeon on the top of a lofty rock, I noticed, half way up, the head of 

 a "Neophron" peering over a ledge: this was evidently a nesting- 

 place, for the face of the rock was streaked white with the drainings 

 from the nest, and at the bottom of the rock lay a pile of bones. 

 1 endeavoured to climb up to the nest, but failed. Clapping my 

 hands and shouting made the bird fly off slowly: lazily circling two 

 or three times round the rock, it returned to the ledge and looked 

 inquiringly at me, putting its head first on one side and then on the 

 other. I went in search of my horse-keeper, who can climb like an 

 ape, and, returning with him to the rock, found both old birds 

 silting on the ledge : the horse-keeper with his bare feet scrambled 

 up the face of the rock with great ease; when within three feet of the 

 ledge one of the old birds flew off; the other would not budge, but 

 put its head down, snapped its bill and bristled up its feathers : 

 before it was dislodged 1 had to cut a stick and hand it to the man, 

 and not until the bird was pushed with the stick would it leave the 

 rock. There were two young birds in the nest, one apparently about 

 a week old, the other just hatched: they were bare of feathers, and 



looked like large pigeon squabs. 



H. W. Feilden. 

 Secunderabad, May 5, 1868. 



Ornithological Notes from North Lincolnshire. 

 By John Cordeaux, Esq. . 



(Continued from Zool. S. S. 1252). 



Wliimbrel. — May 2. First appearance. Some large flocks of these 

 birds have frequented the marshes during the month: on the 13th 

 1 counted up to sixty-one feeding in some low meadow land; and, on 

 the same day, spent some time in attempting to stalk another lot, in 

 the same neighbourhood, not less than double this number. These 

 birds are far more a land bird than the curlew, feeding almost 

 exclusively in our marshes, retiring occasionally to the flats to rest 

 and bathe : they are verj' fond of washing themselves, and when thus 

 employed it is an interesting sight to watch them through a glass : 

 they splash about in the water like ducks, wading out breast deep, 

 and striking the water with their wings, flinging it around in showers. 

 After the bath they stand on the fore-shore preening their feathers, or 



