16 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



found liira feeding in a small creek not far from the sea, but 

 though I wanted a specimen, the ubiquitous Ringed Plover, on 

 one or two different occasions, gave the alarm prematurely. A 

 few minutes later a fine Godwit, wearing the red breast, got up 

 suddenly very close to me, showing the white rump beautifully ; 

 four or five Godwits then rose on the other side of the marsh 

 and flew around, but did not pitch near me. 



September 5th was very wet, and I could hardly persuade A. to 

 turn out in the evening with his gun ; two large parties of 

 Dunlins and of Ringed Plover were feeding about 6 p.m. near 

 his cottage, out of which he pointed out to me a couple of Pigmy 

 Curlews ; the one he secured was in full winter dress, whereas 

 an example which Messrs. Burton, of Wardour Street, received 

 at the same time, with several others, — shot, as the gentleman 

 who shot them kindly told me, out of a party of nineteen, at 

 Winchelsea, on September 4th, — had still much of the red breast, 

 suggesting that it had not left its breeding cmarters very long. 

 On September Gth a Whimbrel turned up, and answered A.'s 

 call, but did not come within shot ; it was killed a few days later 

 by a Thorpe man. 



On September 7th we sailed down the Aide river hoping to see 

 some Terns, as they breed in some numbers on a certain part of 

 the beach ; not a Tern however did we find, and it seemed pro- 

 bable that they had gone away south. Near Orford we were 

 surprised to see a brace of Wigeon feeding on the left bank upon 

 the mud ; the wind being with us we got at them with difficulty, 

 and A. missed a rather hard chance. Mr. E. G. Waddilove tells 

 me that he killed two couple on Poole harbour on Sept. 22nd, 

 this autumn, and fancied that even they were early birds. Near 

 the mouth of the Aide, A. missed a common Scoter which came 

 down to us, as we waited for it, with the tide. CEdemia nigra 

 was not much disconcerted, and when we began to "tack" 

 home, after seeing nothing but a few Curlews, Redshanks, 

 Common Sandpipers, and Ringed Dotterel, besides a single 

 Godwit, the old fellow was on the feed and diving away in the 

 same place. He had strayed from a party of sixteen or seven- 

 teen of these sea ducks, which were enjoying the shelter of the 

 outer bank of the river, not at all far from land. After walking 

 round the marsh from before daylight on September 8th, without 

 securing a bird, we found that a pair of Golden Plover had pitched 



