452 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Early in February Dr. Tomlinson, of Oundle, reported to us 

 hiiving several times seen a Blackbird, Turdus merula, var., of a 

 light golden sandy colour, at a certain spot on the road between 

 Oundle and Lilford cross-roads, not a mile from this house. 



On March 1st authentic reports reached me of Wild Ducks 

 beginning to sit on full complements of eggs near the house. On 

 the IHth the Rev. F. M. Stopford reported a nest of Wood Pigeons, 

 Coliunha paliunhus, containing two eggs, in the garden of his 

 rectory at Tichmarsh. On the 19th a pair of Stock Doves, 

 Columha cenas, were busy at nesting in a thick Pinsapo pine tree 

 immediately in front of the house and my bed-room windows. 



On March 2Gth one of our gamekeepers brought me a Tawny 

 Owl, Strix aluco, alive, with an egg, one of four upon which the 

 bird sat without moving till the hollow tree in which the nest was 

 situated was felled and about to be sawn up. The woodmen had 

 been at work at the tree all the previous day, unconscious of the 

 Owl's establishment therein, and she remained on the debris of 

 her productions till caught. We let her go out of window about 

 half an hour after receiving her, and were glad to see her sail off 

 in the direction of her ruined home, uninjured, but hotly pursued 

 by " Sankey," a tame Spanish Haven, Coi-vus corax, taken from 

 the nest near Santander by us in 1876, who has, and takes every 

 every advantage of, complete liberty of action. 



On March 27th we received from the Rev. W. Finch Hatton 

 an escaped Silver Pheasant, Euplocamus nycthemcrus, female, 

 which had been caught a few days previously on the high road 

 road near Deene, and remained unclaimed. 



On April 2nd Mr. Hunt reported large flights of Fieldfares, 

 l^nrdus inlaris, and Redwings, T. iliacus, going northwards on 

 March 2'Jth, and Wood Pigeons still in large flocks about the open 

 fields, though many of this species are now sitting. I imagine that 

 these flocks consist principally of our autumnal immigrants on 

 their return journey, and that those employed in domestic duties 

 are our home-bred birds. 



On April 5th my son put a Wild Duck from her nest full of 

 eggs, on a broken elm at some fifteen feet from the ground ; and 

 reported that on enquiring from one of the gamekeepers about 

 the "golden" Blackbird above mentioned he found that the bird 

 was well known to, and had been repeatedly seen by, that indi- 

 vidual, who took him to the spot previously alluded to, and soon 



