670 EEPOET— 1881. 



2. On the Birds which have hred in the Barnsley and South Yorlcshire 

 District. Bij Thomas Listek. 



The district of the author's ohservations is that part of the county of York called 

 the South Yorkshire coal-formation, chiefly between the Calder on the north, and 

 the Don, west and south, with the Dearne, its tributary, flowing through the 

 middle region by Barnsley, the central point of observation. The country extends, 

 in a series of well-wooded undulations, from the magnesian limestone on the east 

 at about 300 feet elevation, to the millstone grit, from 1,000 to 1,700 feet, which 

 it attains at Black Tor, north-west of ShelHeld. The birds may be said to be 

 characteristic of the varied districts, from the sub-alpine regions west (the Pennine 

 rano-e, or great backbone of England, where the moorland birds predominate), the 

 woodland and cultivated grounds in the centre, frequented by our resident song- 

 birds and migratory warblers, to the lower tracts beyond the magnesian limestone 

 in the south-east of the Riding, where birds of the marsh and tidal rivers mingle 

 with the inland birds. In this paper there is not space to give dates, places, and 

 authorities, except in some remarkable or recent instances. He believes additions 

 could be made to the list of birds breeding in the district, by observation or 

 enquiries respecting the moorland and marsh regions. One main object the author 

 has always kept in view is, to show what birds have been known in past times, 

 what have been lost to modern observers, aud what we might still possess, to gratify 

 the field-naturalist, if means were taken by public Acts, by protection societies — 

 which have done good as far as they have gone — and by proprietors like the late 

 Charles Waterton and the owner of Wentworth Castle, F. V. T. Wentworth, Esq., 

 and other landowners, to encourage the preservation of our lessening rare bu-ds. 



In the list appended to the longer article it will be seen that there are a few 

 birds extinct, or nearly so, in South Yorkshire. The only one which is quite lost 

 to us — the kite — he is justified in introducing here. Its nest and yoimg were taken 

 by bis elder brother in his school-days ; it is also recorded by the late Dr. Farrar in 

 the same woods, two miles from Barnsley. The author quoted from his list, 

 written in 1844, in his paper on the birds of the West Riding, delivered at the 

 British Association meeting at Bradford, inserted in its ' Transactions ' for 1873. 

 Dr. Farrar records also the peregrine falcon in the same woods and at Walton, 

 The veteran Waterton complained to him then, and since to the author, of the 

 gi-adual disappearance of these and other members of the falcon family from the 

 grand lake and woods of Walton. 



The list of birds breeding in this part of Y''orkshire is of course much fewer 

 than that of birds which have occurred. To give a brief resume we may divide 

 them, as is sometimes done, into land and water birds. Of the former there 

 are 92 : 11 raptorial or birds of prey ; 73 insessorial or perching and climbing 

 birds; 8 rasores or scratchers. Of water-birds there are 21, of which 13 are 

 waders and 8 swimmers, making 92 in aU. The most rare of these are the green- 

 shank, of which only a few instances of nesting are recorded ; the red-backed 

 shrike, of which the old and young were snared by Dr. Farrar in Clifi'wood, one 

 mile from Barnsley, in 1829 ; the reed-warbler at Walton HaU, Hemsworth Dam, 

 Thome Moor, &c., the stone-chat on Brierley Common, and towards the moors 

 westward ; the woodlark, a few surviving in the south of the county ; the mealy 

 redpoll, the dunlin, the marsh, and Montague's harrier (occasionally occurring 

 about Thome, Doncaster, Shefiield) ; the gi-een woodpecker, wryneck, lesser spotted 

 woodpecker, turtle-dove. The pied flycatcher occurs locally at Wentworth Castle, 

 Cannon Hall, and WharncliflPe woods. These are sufficient to indicate that some 

 rare birds may yet be found. 



3. On the Foot of Birds, and on the Use of the Serrated Claw} By Philip 



M. C. Kermode. 



As regards the serration, the following characters appear to be constant. It is 

 on the middle toe of each foot, which is longer than the other toes ; the serration is 



' The original paper was published in the Isle of 3Ian Times of Saturday, Sept. 17, 

 1881. 



