FIELD NOTES. 



MOLLUSCA. 



Helicetla gigaxii in Lincolnshire. — Mr. C. Oldham recently 

 directed my attention to the specific characters of H. gigaxii 

 differentiating it from H. caperata. I at once turned out my 

 small and long neglected collection of the latter species, amongst 

 which I found several examples of H. gigaxii, collected, in 

 iqo4, at Redhill near Goulceby ; these were almost identical 

 with examples sent to me by Mr. Oldham from Hettfordshire ; 

 also several much larger and darker examples collected in 1907 

 at Ruckland. As far as I know this species has not been pre- 

 \nously recorded for Lincolnshire. — C. S. Carter, Louth, Lines. 



— o — 

 BIRDS. 



Nuthatch near Louth. — Mr. E. H. Cartwright, North 

 Elkington, reported to me that while shooting in Maltby Wood, 

 near Louth, November 1916, he saw a Nuthatch. This bird 

 is extremely rare in the Louth District. — C. S. Carter, Louth. 



Common Puffin Caught Alive at Cullingworth. — The 

 other night I was asked to go to Cullingworth to see a 

 strange bird which had been caught alive in a field near 

 Denholme on the 7th instant, and although somewhat late, 

 I immediately set off and found the bird to be a Common 

 Puffin. The person in whose possession the bird is at 

 present could hardly believe it was a Common Puffin, never 

 having seen this species before in its winter appearance, 

 and this is not to be wondered at, since its beak and sides 

 of the head are totally different from what obtain in the 

 breeding season. This species, which is essentially pelagic 

 in its habits, is never seen near the land except in the breed- 

 ing season, unless driven by stress of wind. It is even more 

 rare in this district than its near relation the Little Auk, of 

 which I had a specimen brought to me, perhaps two winters 

 ago, which had been picked up alive near this place, having 

 injured itself by flying against the telegraph wires. At about 

 the same time as the above Puffin was picked up, the caretaker 

 of the Many wells reservoir saw a Gull from his house window 

 try to fly over the embankment of the reservoir, in the teeth 

 of a very strong wind, but was driven back. This was repeated 

 v/ith the same effect. In making its final effort, the wind so 

 disabled it, as to render it incapable of flight ; indeed, my 

 informant said one wing of the bird was broken. — E. P. 

 BUTTERFIELD, Wilsden, Decem.ber 14th, 1917. 



At the recent annual meeting of the Yorkshire Geological Society, 

 :\Ir. H. E. Wroot was elected Hon. Secretary and Editor. Mr. A. Gilligan, 

 the retiring secretary, was elected on the Council in place of Mr. Cosmo 

 Johns, resigned. 



Naturalist, 



