328 BRITISH BIRDS. [vol. vii. 



With light mantles : 1913. — ^November 10th one and De- 

 cember 6th, two. 1914. — ^February 19th one, 23rd and 24th, 

 two, 25th five, 26th and onwards several seen every day. 



I might add that Lesser Black-backed Gulls were very 

 scarce this winter in this neighbourhood — indeed, I have 

 never known so few. 



On May 29th, 1913, I saw on Walney Island a Lesser 

 Black-backed Gull, which was quite as dark as a Great 

 Black-backed Gull near to it, and I think there is no doubt 

 that this was an example of Larus f. fuscus, though the date 

 may seem abnormal enough. H. W. Robinson. 



BLACK GUILLEMOT IN LANCASHIRE. 

 On February 18th a specimen of the Black Guillemot {Uria 

 g. grylle) was captured alive on a pond at Hare Tarn, 

 near Carnforth, north Lancashire, by a farm hand, who 

 took it to Mr. E. Murray, the Carnforth taxidermist. 1 

 saw the bird there, and found that it was an immature 

 female. The only other occurrence of this species in 

 Lancashire is one mentioned in the Report of the Bury 

 Natural History Society of 1871, where it is stated that a 

 young bird was found dead at Summerseat by Mr. H. 

 Pickup of that place. H. W. Robinson. 



Parasitism in relation to birds. — Mr. H. V. Jones 

 writes under this title (ZooL, 1914, pp. 41-53) of various 

 species of tapeworms found in a number of species of birds. 

 Mr. Jones considers it probable that the occurrence of 

 particular jDarasites in a certain species of bird may have 

 relation to the diet characteristic of that species. 



Summer-migrants in winter. — ^Mr. C. S. Ticehurst 

 states {Field, 21.11.14, p. 409) that a solitary Swallow [Chelidon 

 r. rusiica) frequented Playden, Sussex, up to December 5th, 



1913, and that another appeared on February 12th, 1914, 

 and remained for ten days. Mr. P. F. M. Galloway records 

 that a Sand-Martin {Biparia r. riparia) was seen near 

 Reading about ten days before Christmas {AvicuUural 

 Mag., v., p. 178). Mr. F. J. Stubbs states that a Land-Jlail 

 {Crex crex) was shot at Oxted, Surrey, on January 27th {ZooL, 



1914, p. 76). 



Status of the Gadwall in Staffordshire {antea, 

 p. 261). — Mr. J. R. B. Masefield calls our attention to another 

 record of the Gadwall from Patshull in 1908. On investi- 

 gation we find that the species has been definitely reported on 

 five occasions from Staffordshire, viz., at Comberford, near 

 Lichfield, in 1873, at Lichfield, in 1881 ; at Patshull in 1905 

 and 1908, and at Stretton in 1913. 



