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SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



Sabine's Gull in Yorkshire. — A specimen of 

 this rare bird was shot on October ioth, 1895, and 

 sent to us from the Wolds of East Yorkshire. — ■ 

 T. Cooke and Son, 30, Museum Street, London, W. 



Helix Nemoralis as Ornament.— Although it 

 is news to me that this species has been used for 

 ornament as far back and in the several countries 

 of our realm as stated by your correspondents 

 (ante pages 109 and 138), it may interest them to 

 hear that some ten years ago I made several pairs 

 of bracelets with this species, and when mounted 

 on black velvet they formed very artistic and novel 

 articles of personal adornment. — Edwin E. Turner, 

 Coggeshall, Essex ; September, 1895. 



Volvox in a Horse-trough. — On October 7th, 

 a friend sent me a small bottle of water taken from 

 an old horse-trough in a village near Bedford. The 

 water contained Volvox globator in abundance. 

 When examined under the microscope, the Volvox 

 were seen to have Vorticella attached to them, and 

 I should like to know if this is a common occur- 

 rence, not having seen it before myself. I may 

 mention that watercress (Nasturtium officinale), -was 

 growing in the water and was covered with a 

 species of Vorticella. — Arthur John Hulatt, 6, Silver 

 Street, Bedford. 



Notes from Norfolk. — I send you a bunch of 

 grapes (of good flavour, Ed. S.-G.) grown and 

 ripened entirely in open air this season. It is a 

 fair average bunch. Vines are grown around here 

 up the walls of cottages with a west or south-west 

 aspect, and often do very well. Can any collector 

 of algae tell me whether Hydrodictyon is scarce this 

 year ? I have looked for it carefully, but have not 

 found it where it was plentiful enough in preceding 

 years. A species of Cystopus (? Cystopus spinulosus) 

 has been very frequent on thistle leaves this year, 

 especially on Cardials arvensis ; the resting spores 

 are comparatively large, and when ripe are brown. 

 J. Leivton Brain, Swanton Morley, East Dereham ; 

 October, 1895. 



Autumnal Flowering. — As an instance of the 

 mildness of the present season, I noticed at Enborne, 

 near here, on October nth, the honeysuckle 

 (Lonicera perichymenum) and the dogwood (Cornus 

 sanguineus) in full bloom. Wild roses are also still 

 in flower in the neighbourhood. In a garden near 

 my house, there is an apple-tree which is blooming 

 for the second time this year. — A. B. Jackson, 

 Mapledene, Enborne Road, Newbury; October 12th, 

 1895- 



Autumnal Flowering. — There appear to have 

 been many instances throughout the South of 

 England of exceptional inflorescence of various trees 

 and plants during the past autumn. In the middle of 

 September a large bunch of ox-eye daisy flowers 

 was gathered, and hundreds of others left on a slope 

 facing east on the South Downs of Sussex, between 

 Lewes and the sea. Dogwood appears to have 



flowered generally in September throughout the 

 South of England. Among cultivated plants, Mr. 

 Bailey, of 75, Broke Foad, Dalston, reported that 

 chestnut trees, in the neighbourhood of Dalston and 

 Islington, were bearing both flowers and fruit in 

 October, and we hear of a laburnum tree bearing 

 flowers in the same month, near Swiss Cottage 

 Station, in North-west London. Miss F. Winstone 

 participated in a large dish of raspberries of full 

 flavour, gathered in her father's garden in Essex, 

 on October 19th. We hear of apple-trees bearing 

 flowers during October in various parts of the 

 country, in some instances these second flowers 

 producing small apples. 



House Martins in Shetland. — So far as I can 

 find out, these birds only became regular visitors 

 to the Shetlands after the Scotch fishing boats 

 made annual fishings off these islands. This was, 

 I believe, in 1881, after a great storm had destroyed 

 the Shetland fishing fleet. The birds followed the 

 boats over each year, but I am not aware of their 

 nesting in South Unst before the spring of 1894. 

 I have had ample opportunity of observing them 

 during various collecting expeditions, extending 

 over many months in each of several years since 

 1879. A pair of these birds, as just stated, built a 

 nest inside the post-office at Cunningsberg, finding 

 ingress through an opening over the door. Here, 

 under the protection of the post-master, they reared 

 a brood of four young ones from four eggs laid, and 

 were the admiration of the people of the neighbour- 

 hood, some walking in from miles away to see these 

 local curiosities. In 1895, one bird returned and 

 stopped a week, frequently visiting the nest, and 

 then disappeared for about another week, It 

 returned again singly, but was, much to the distress 

 of the post-master, shortly afterwards found dead 

 in the nest. I could not hear of any other martins 

 or swallows having visited Unst. — H. Mac Arthur, 

 35, Averill Street, Hammersmith ; October, 1895. 



Suspended Animation in Fish. — A rather 

 curious instance of suspended animation has 

 recently come under my notice. On February 19th, 

 1895, a goldfish was brought to me to be stuffed. 

 While handling it I noticed a very slight movement 

 round the eyes and expressed my opinion that it 

 was not dead, but as it had been out of the water 

 for over forty-eight hours, and a large proportion 

 of that time in the inside breast-pocket of the 

 wearer's coat, the gentleman who brought it was 

 loth to believe this. I suggested placing it in spirit 

 for preservation. Two days afterwards I was 

 informed that the fish was alive and swimming as 

 merrily as had been its -wont for the past seven 

 years. The circumstances being peculiar I asked 

 the owner to furnish me with complete details from 

 which I subtract the following : " On Sunday, 

 February 17th, at about 11 a.m., I noticed the 

 fish lying at the bottom of the aquarium apparently 

 dead. I removed it with the net and placed it on a 

 cabbage-leaf and put it by to bring down to you. 

 Next morning I put it in my pocket, but being 

 busy I passed your shop and took it home with me 

 again and placed it on the window-sill. On the 

 19th, I brought it to you. After leaving your shop, 

 I went home and placed it in water to keep it fresh. 

 About an hour afterwards, upon looking into the 

 bowl, to my surprise I found it had revived." Was 

 this case of suspended animation produced by the 

 extreme cold of that period ? I should not forget to 

 add the fish was quite limp when it was brought in 

 tome. — A.E.Cook, Taxidermist, 31, Lozver Road, 

 Rotherhithe, S.E. 



