80S THE ZOOLOGIST. 



for insertion in 'The Zoologist.' — T. G. Laidlaw (St. Andrew Street, 

 Edinburgh). 



Reported occurrence of the Little Egret in Yorkshire. — T would 

 suggest that the Little Egret alleged to have been obtained at Aike, near 

 Beverley (Zool. 1884, p. 177), fide Mr. Raskin, endorsed by Messrs. Clarke 

 and Roebuck, was probably an example of the Great White Heron, Ardea 

 alba. The evidence is as follows : — Both captures are said to have been 

 made by labourers of Mr. James Hall, of Scorborough, near Bridlington. 

 Particulars of the capture of the White Heron are given in the British 

 Association Report for 1838 (p. 106), and Mag. Nat. Hist. 1839 (p. 31), 

 but unfortunately we are not sufficiently supplied with the requisite 

 particulars about the Little Egret. In 1871 I corresponded with Mr. 

 Hall, when no mention was made of more than one bird, which he said was 

 killed about two miles from his house, adding, " I bad it here in its dirty, 

 bloody, disfigured state, sending it myself to Read, of Doncaster, who 

 restored it." In Gould's ' Birds of Great Britain,' and in Yarrell's ' British 

 Birds,' it is alluded to as a Little Egret, the assumption being that there 

 were two Egrets, one said to have been killed about 1835 and one about 

 1840 — the former Ardea alba, the latter A. garzetta. Mr. Gould told me 

 he had the late Lord Hotham's authority for the Egret killed in or about 

 1840 being a Little Egret, and that he assured him it belonged to the 

 smaller species (A. garzetta) ; if this was so there were two birds, and the 

 discrepancy in the dates is accounted for. — J. H. Gurney, juu. (Keswick 

 Hall, Norwich). 



Young Rooks with white Chin-spots. — Two years ago (Zool. 1886, 

 p. 339) I called attention to the curious fact that a very large number of 

 young Rooks have a more or less obvious spot of white between the rami of 

 the lower mandible — that is to say, on the chin. This spot is sometimes as 

 large as a halfpenny, but is seldom so large as a farthing, and is often 

 indicated only by a few white feathers. It seems to have no connection 

 with sex. In 1886 1 examined 191 young Rooks, of which 78 only 

 (considerably less than one-half) had the white chin-spot. This year I have 

 examined 179, of which no less than 101 (or considerably more than one- 

 half) had the white spot. Altogether, therefore, of 370 birds examined 

 179 have had the white spot, and 191 have not. I may add that all young 

 Rooks certainly do not lose the feathers round the base of the bill at the 

 first autumnal moult. Last January I obtained a couple which still 

 retained them. — Miller Chkisty (Chignall St. James, Chelmsford). 



Golden Oriole and Stock Dove in Cornwall. — I have to record the 

 capture of an adult male Golden Oriole in the Trebartha Valley last April. 

 It was in company with some Thrushes. The Stock Dove, which in Rodd's 

 * Birds of Cornwall' is stated not to breed in this peninsula, has within the 



