Bolam: The Natural History of Hornsea Mere. 63 
where else, which had abandoned further nesting operations 
for the season, and from this time onwards there were pro- 
bably nearer a hundred than fifty birds on the water. The 
first young were hatched on 5th July from a nest on boat- 
house channel. Two more broods came off on Lady Island 
the next day. Each of these produced six young, the nests 
on Lady Island having contained only six and seven eggs 
respectively, all having hatched. A few days later seven 
young were brought off in Heslop’s reeds, and other broods 
were nearly as numerous when I left. This is in strange contrast 
to the Pochards, which have only broods of one, two, three, 
and four young at most. One Tufted Duck’s nest which I had 
located was still unhatched on roth July, when last visited, 
and others were still incubating a week later. By 6th July 
most of the drakes had begun to loose their powers of flight, 
having a week or so previously gone into eclipse plumage, 
but a few were still flying, and in drake’s plumage, on the 18th 
July. : 
GOLDEN-EYE.—There were several on the Mere on 2oth 
April and the following few days. A pair—the drake in 
full plumage—on the 26th; on 27th a flock of twenty-seven 
immature, one or two of them males in ‘ patchy’ plumage ; 
twelve in another flock on the same date, eleven of them 
being adult drakes !. None were to be seen the next day, nor 
later. 
ScauPp Duck, COMMON SCOTER, and GOOSANDER have all 
been occasionally observed, and shot, on the Mere during 
winter. There are, of course, several other birds, not men- 
tioned in this paper, which occur at the like season, but a 
passing reference to the above may not be without interest. 
Woop PiGcEon.—Numerous, and here called ‘ Stockie.’ 
STOCK-DOVE.—Also numerous, nesting in hollow trees, in 
several cases ousted by Jackdaws, but resumed possession of 
the holes after the intruders had been shot. 
TURTLE-DOVE.—There has usually been a nest or two at 
Wassand, but none this year, though a pair—perhaps more— 
were breeding at Sigglesthorne, only a mile or so distant. I 
saw a single Turtle-Dove fly into the Low Wood on the 21st 
April, but no more till the 21st May, when again a single 
bird appeared, flying over Boat-house Wood. Taylor heard 
one cooing in Fisher Wood, west of the park, on 23rd May, 
and again in the park on the 7th June. These were the only 
instances this year. 
PHEASANT (no artificial rearing done now) and PARTRIDGE 
are both fairly numerous, and would be plentiful but for foxes. 
RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE.—One or two have sometimes 
been shot, but none seen this year. 
QuaIL.—Has occurred, but none this. year. 
1913 Jan. 1. 
