NOTES AND QUERIES. 31 
a field, a considerable distance, usually at least the breadth of a field, 
separated their nests. All the nests I saw, except two, were built in very 
low whitethorn bushes, on an average about seven or eight feet from the 
ground.—W. W. Fiumyne (Clonegam Rectory, Portlaw, Co. Waterford). 
Crossbills in Co. Cork.—On the 13th and 30th of November last 
two small parties of Crossbills—consisting of two and seven birds respec- 
tively—visited some Scotch Firs close to this house. I shot four of them, 
two in red and two in green plumage. They were very tame, particularly 
on the last occasion, when they took no notice of the report of the gun, 
but remained on the tree; and it was not till I had thrown two or three 
stones into the tree that they at length flew away. I heard them again 
among the firs on the lst of December, and on the 2nd I saw two of 
them flying over my head, going in the direction of a fir wood. I heard 
Crossbills last year in a grove of silver firs close to Myross Wood. I was 
not sure at the time what birds they could have been, but now, since I 
have heard the notes of the Crossbill, I have no hesitation in saying that 
they were of that species.—C. Donovan, Jun. (Westview, Glandare, Leap, 
Co. Cork). 
Black Redstart in Oxfordshire.—On the morning of November 7th I 
watched for some time a Black Redstart which was enjoying the sunshine 
on some walls and heaps of stones near here. The bird seems rarely to 
have found its way into this county. Judging by the very dark colour of 
head and neck, I think this specimen was an old male. I have not 
been able to discover it a second time—W. W. Fow rer (Kingham, 
Chipping Norton, Oxon). 
Short-toed Lark in Kent.—Passing, by chance, a bird-catcher’s shop, 
I stepped in to ask the owner if he had ever caught any rare birds. He 
told me that in June, 1883, he had caught, near Orpington, in Kent, a 
peculiar lark which no bird-stuffer or bird-catcher of his acquaintance had 
been able toname. The bird died, but he had it preserved, and showed 
it to me, when I found it to be the Short-toed Lark, Alauda brachydactyla, 
Leisler. The bird-catcher kept it for some time; and it soon became 
accustomed to confinement; but, unfortunately, died soon after completing 
its moult. ‘Its song,” he remarked, “ resembled that of a Sky Lark, but 
was more varied.” —THExo. FisHEr (Erfurt Lodge, Greenwich). 
Hairy Variety of the Moorhen.—A specimen of the hairy variety of 
the Moorhen, Gallinula chloropus, was procured on the 138th of October 
last at Claughton, Lancashire. Owing to the hair-like nature of its wing- 
feathers it was unable to fly, and was caught by a little boy and brought 
to me. The ends of the longer wing-feathers have been worn away, 
presumably by its efforts to fly, In the ‘ Transactions of the Norfolk and 
