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VII. — Natural History. — Notes on the OriiitJiology of Cornwall 

 for the year 1867-8. — By E. Hearle Eodd. 



THERE has been a dearth of ornithological news in Cornwall 

 during the past year ; and I am unable to report the occur- 

 rence of any new addition to the avi-fauna of Cornwall since the 

 interesting fact of the " Grey Shrike " which was killed at Scilly 

 in 18-51 proving to be the "Lesser Grey Shrike" (Lanius minor), 

 a European species figured and described in Gould's Birds of 

 Europe and in Dr. Bree's work on European Birds not found in 

 Britain. This is the first instance, according to Mr. Gould, of its 

 occurrence in Great Britain. Professor Alfred Newton, of Cam- 

 bridge, had this specimen submitted to his inspection by Mr. 

 Gould, to whom I sent the bird ; and the Professor's letter to me, 

 in referring to the value of this new British bird, was highly con- 

 gratulatory to the County which claims title to the occurrence. 



On different occasions I have observed on our eastern moors 

 in the Kilmar and Dosmare Pool district, hybrid specimens of a 

 cross between the Common Pheasant and Black Grouse, but only 

 one or two examples at a time presented themselves. On the last 

 instance of their occurrence, however, in September last, I received 

 information from my nephew that he had seen a brood of nine to 

 eleven on the moors not far from Dosmare Pool. He at first 

 thought they were a pack of Black Grouse. He shot a brace, 

 which proved to be hybrid males ; in moulting, which had then 

 set in, the grey feathers were giving way to new black feathers, 

 which were gradually cropping out and forming patches. The old 

 Grey Hen or Female Black Grouse was very perceptible amongst 

 the rest ; and, there being no Black Cock seen, the hybrid char- 

 acter of the flock or pack was at once suspected, and this suspicion 

 was subsequently confirmed ; my nephew, about the same time, 

 found an old outlying Cock Pheasant in or about the same locality 

 in the open moors. Some years since, I received a hybrid specimen 

 of the same kind from the same locality, with the tail longer and 

 tapering, approaching in fact the form of the Pheasant's tail, and 



