438 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
thought if any readers of ‘ The Zoologist’ have met with anything like it 
they would kindly mention it. — Epwarp James Moor (Great Bealings 
Rectory, Woodbridge, Suffolk). 
Curious Place for a Wren’s Nest.—In the picture gallery of Charlton 
Park, near Malmesbury, the seat of Lord Suffolk, is a glass case containing 
the skin and feathers of a crow. It had been caught and nailed to a tree 
with other vermin, and between the wings a Wren built a neat little nest. 
With wonderful dexterity the tiny bird contrived to fasten together the 
wings, the entrance to the nest being where the crow’s breast had been, and 
here the family of little Wrens was reared. The nest was observed, and, 
when its occupants had flown away, Lord Suffolk had it carefully removed 
and placed in his picture gallery. 
Wood Sandpiper in the County of Wicklow.—Hitherto the Wood 
Sandpiper has only been included in the Irish avifauna on very slight and 
unsatisfactory evidence, and I felt obliged to exclude it from my recently 
publishad ‘ List of Irish Birds.’ But I am now enabled, through the kind- 
ness of my friend Dr. Benson, to announce the occurrence of the first 
well-authenticated example, which I have just examined, and which was 
shot by Mr. Smith Cregan (of the Royal Engineering Department) on the 
Q3rd of last August at Calary Bog, near the Sugar Loaf Mountain, 
Wicklow. It was alone, and its flight was thought to resemble that of a 
Snipe.—A. G. Morr (Science and Art Museum, Dublin). 
FISHES. 
Hybridization of the Salmonide.—At the recent meeting of the 
British Association Dr. Francis Day read a paper on this subject, based 
upon the results of experiments made at Howietown, near Stirling. From 
these experiments it would appear that the following conclusions may be 
drawn :—(1) Salmon and Trout, ‘Trout and Char, and different species of 
Char may interbreed and give rise to fertile hybrids; (2) Hybrids reared 
from Lochleven Trout eggs fertilized by Salmon breed in their fourth 
year, like young female Salmon kept under similar conditions; (3) The 
anodromous instinct is not lost in these Trout and Salmon hybrids; 
(4) Judging from the period of breeding in the above-mentioned hybrids, 
the male element is prepotent; (5) In hybrids reared from Lochleven Trout 
eggs, fertilized by American Char, the male is prepotent, judging by the 
colour of the offspring; (6) In hybrids reared from American Char eggs, 
fertilized by Lochleven Trout, the female element is prepotent, judging by 
the colour of the offspring ; (7) In hybrids reared from American Char eggs, 
fertilized by British Char, the male element is prepotent; (8) In all cases 
of hybridization numerous instances of malformation occur amongst the 
offspring, and great mortality; () The age of the parent fish has an 
important bearing on the vitality of the offspring. 
eee r tT a 
