SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



4i 



J. 117. L869. Apical spot, of f.w. obsolete, or ;it 

 most represented by a slight grey shading. Tunis. 

 IV., V. (R. & H.) Hab. Italy (Kirby, Cat- 

 154). 



//. var. debilii Alph. Body more slender. The 

 apex of Eorewings lighter grey, often disappearing. 

 In Q the spot of the upper side small, in <J scarcely 

 or not at all visible. Hab. Lobnoor (Mongolia), 

 Amdo, N. Thibet. R. & H. 



h. var. henteana Stgr. The <? specimen I have 

 was received from Dr. Staudinger, and does not 

 differ very much from the type, except that it is 

 somewhat larger, and the grey marking at the apex 

 more extended. U.s. lighter and not speckled 

 with black on h.w. Hab. Siberia, Kentei. 



i. var. i inmaculata Fologne. The dark shading 



at the apex of the f.w. ami o| tin- base absent 

 Hab. Belgium. R. & H.. p. 12.".. 



j. var. novangliae Scudd. Bull. Soc. Ent. Fr. ('<). 

 III., p. 57. 187:'>. A form of the .species in which 

 bhe ground colour of tin- wings is yellow instead 

 of white. This is the N. American form of /'. 

 ■raptie. The species was introduced from Europe 

 in 1856 or 1857 into' North America, where it has 

 spread rapidly and lias developed this yellow variety 

 which is very rarely found as an aberrant form in 

 other parts of its range. British specimens of the 

 yellow form are occasionally to be found in col- 

 lections, but are always considered great rarities. 



Note. — Delete the var. veris placed under /'. 

 deota, ante p. 10. 



(To be eontimied.') 



BIRDS AT LYNMOUTH. 



By Thomas H. Mead-Briggs, M.A., F.E.S. 



(Continued from page 4.) 



Corvus monedula Lin. Jackdaw. Resident and 

 common. In June 1898 a pair of these birds built 

 their nest in a fir-tree on the hill above the 

 Esplanade. With field-glasses they could be seen 

 feeding their young. I have observed flocks of 

 young birds in the autumn in the woods near 

 Watersmeet, in East Lyn Valley. The facts of these 

 birds building in a tree, and of the young assem- 

 bling in autumn, are not, I think, common. 



Corvus corax Lin. Raven. Resident ; a few 

 seen every year on the coast here, and occasionally 

 they fly down on to the beach below our house. 

 They nest in the neighbourhood, one pair having 

 done so last year close to a high road. 



Corvus eorone Lin. Carrion-crow. Resident, but 

 not very common. 



Corvus frugilegus Lin. Rook. Resident and 

 abundant. 



Alauda arvensis Lin. Skylark. Resident and 

 common. 



Cypselits a/pus Lin. Swift. Common, but not 

 plentiful, on arrival and just previous to departure 

 during migration. I was recently told by Arch- 

 deacon Bree that he had seen a bevy of these birds 

 at Ilfracombe on September 9th, 1899 ; and on 

 August 3rd last year my brother and I saw about 

 a hundred of these birds flying high in the air and 

 circling over our garden. We did not see any after 

 that date. 



Capriniuhjus europaeus Lin. Nightjar. One 

 seen flying by my son (H. Mead-Briggs) round our 

 house on May 25th, 1898, and its note heard. I 

 am surprised that I have not seen this bird here 

 more frequently. 



lynx torquilla Lin. Wryneck. I heard and saw 

 this bird once, near Lynniouth Vicarage, on 

 April 26th, 1897. I have never heard or seen it 

 since, and it seems very rare all over the country. 



Gecinus viridis Lin. Green Woodpecker. Resi- 

 dent and common. 



Aleedo ispida Lin. Kingfisher. Resident, but 

 rare. One seen (November 10th, 1898) flying 

 about, and perched on the edge of the fountain 

 pond in our garden. Another has been seen there 

 since that date, and we were told that one had 

 been shot there before we came here. I have never 

 seen any of these birds up the valley of the East 

 Lyn, where, considering the shallowness of the 

 river, except when in flood, and the multitude of 

 small trout, it ought to be common, especially as 

 all wild birds are strictly preserved in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Lynniouth. 



Cueulus eanorus Lin. Cuckoo. Common in the 

 summer. It stays quite as late as in other parts of 

 the country. Mr. E. B. Jeune told me on Septem- 

 ber 11th, 1898, that he had seen one about ten days 

 before. It was not a young bird. 



Buteo vulgaris Leach. Common Buzzard. Resi- 

 dent and fairly common. I have seen young birds 

 in the autumn. The range of country in which I 

 have observed the bird is from Lee Abbey on the 

 west, to two miles beyond Countisbury on the east. 

 and about a mile to the north of Barnstaple inland. 

 Sometimes they may be seen flying in circles, and 

 at others hawking along the top of the hills and 

 cliffs. It is most interesting to watch this bird. 

 especially as it is getting very scarce in most parts 

 of Britain. 



c3 



