280 Game birds and their Broods Killed by Lightning. 
and always in pairs, which, of course, was a good sign. But 
my satisfaction was great a few days ago, to hear from Ake 
that, on the 26th June, he had seen a pair of old ones followed 
by two or three young in the reed beds near the boathouse. 
I quite think that there may be other broods, but the cover 
is very dense, and until the leaf falls, we shall not know how far 
the experiment really has succeeded. 
I am sure I need not impress upon my fellow members 
who may visit Hornsea Mere, the desirability of assisting in 
every possible way in the protection of this interesting little 
colony. .It is some comfort to think that, being ‘ Continen- 
tals,’ no stranger will find it worth his while to interfere with 
these birds, as, of course, they possess no interest to a collector 
of British specimens. 
OR 
GAME BIRDS AND THEIR BROODS KILLED BY 
LIGHTNING NEAR HARROGATE. 
Ry HORDUNE) sheZns. 
Harrogate. 
(PLATE XVI.). 
DuRING the night, between June 25th and 26th, this district, 
in common with many others, was visited by a heavy thunder- 
storm. In the morning a hen Pheasant and ten poults were 
found to have been struck by the lightning and killed. They 
were quite in the open, in the middle of a large seeds field, and 
had evidently “ jugged ’’ down for the night. 
Strange to relate, at a distance of 160 yards in a straight 
line, a Partridge was found to have been killed in the same way. 
This bird was sat upon her nest covering her chicks, which had 
only just been hatched—there were twenty of them. The 
keeper knew they were due to hatch off, and peering into the 
fence bottom, where the nest was situated, he at first thought 
the bird was still brooding, but a closer inspection showed she 
was dead, as were all the chicks. 
Curiously enough, both birds appear to have suffered during 
the previous shooting season. The Pheasant had had a shot 
through one of her legs, the one prominent in the photograph, 
and the Partridge had lost an eye. 
It must be almost a unique occurrence to find two game 
birds with their broods struck down in this way, and at such 
a short distance from each other. 
A post mortem examination did not reveal the slightest 
trace of disease of any kind. 
N.B.—Since the above was written, a Hare was found 
which had without doubt been killed in the same way. 
Naturalist 
