236 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. 



with a large white wing spot covering I suppose the three 

 middle primaries. It flew alongside the ship in the early 

 moraine, and several times alighted on deck, twice upon the 

 sweetly slumbering forms of passengers. It would not, how- 

 ever, let itself be caught and eventually we lost sight of it. 



The only other birds I noticed in particular in the voyage 

 were what the passeugers called Boobies, in the Red Sea, elegant 

 looking Gulls, with delicately marked heads, which followed us 

 in great flocks. This kind is always seen in crowds in the Red 

 Sea, and I need not describe it further, as of course, you know 

 it. Perhaps you would tell me the real name of it, as also of 

 the Boatswain bird, a maguificent Gull which we saw three 

 days off Bombay. It whistles like a Syrang, aud hence its 

 name. We saw three or four of these and some Storm Petrels 

 about the same time. 



Calcutta, H. E. M. James. 



10th June 1880. 



[The Kestrel was of course Oerchneis naumanni, the Lesser 

 Kestrel of Europe. As for the other birds nothing positive 

 can be said — " Boobies/' are huge clumsy goose-like birds, like 

 the Solan Goose. Perhaps ci the passeugers" meant " Noddies." 

 Smoky chocolate brown birds with bluish grey crowns. If so 

 the birds were probably Anotis stolidus. Then Boatswain birds 

 {Phaeton indicus) are not "magnificent Gulls/' but slender Tern- 

 like birds, with long pointed tails, so that here likewise it is 

 impossible to guess what species our correspondent refers to. — 

 Ed., S. F.] 



Sir, 



I don't know if any one has noticed before the fact 

 that young painted Snipe ( Rhjnchcea bengalensis) swim capi- 

 tally. This morning, while walking up a large rocky nullah, a 

 Snipe fluttered up at my feet, and on looking down I found four 

 young. As their quills were just beginning to grow, I think they 

 must have been about 10 days old. On touching them they at 

 once ran to the water then about a foot deep, and two deli- 

 berately swam right across a pool about 15 yards wide and 

 sought refuge in a large tuft of grass on the other side. 



Khandesh District, J. Davidson. 



2Qt/t May 1880. 



Sir, 



I saw a most amusing natural history fact here the 

 other day. Talk of the principles of natural selection, &c, &c, 

 I believe birds are awful muffs at choosing the fittest. 



