272 WHISKERED BAT AT GOATHLAND. 
coast of Berwickshire, it is more numerous than anywhere else that 
I am acquainted with, and hawking along the top of the cliffs, it will 
often carry off a moth from a flower head, under the very nose of 
the lepidopterist. Mr. William Shaw, who collected moths a good 
deal upon the sea-banks in the neighbourhood of Eyemouth, informs 
me that he has occasionally been robbed of a prize in this way, ‘ by 
this bold marauder,’ and that, ‘though he had often succeeded in 
netting the short-eared species, the long-eared bat was always too 
quick upon the wing for him.’ Specimens from the coast have 
always appeared to be considerably larger than the few I have met 
with in inland stations. An individual, captured alive, at Paxton 
House, on 29th May, 1881, and which appeared to be adult, was 
noted to be ‘smaller in the body than a common bat,’ but it was 
again restored to liberty, and no measurements were taken. While 
one or two, which were flying high, round the trees at Abbey 
St. Bathan’ mM just before dawn, on 29th June, 1885, were remarked as 
being apparently very small in comparison with the ordinary species. 
he habit bats have of congregating together in large assemblies 
during winter is well known, sometimes apparently more than one 
species being found in the same retreat. In the Proceedings of the 
Berwickshire Naturalists’ Club it is recorded that, in 1888, upwards 
of four hundred were counted, one evening during summer, as they 
emerged from a hole in the wall of a house; and a cutting from the 
‘Kelso Mail’ of 11th January of the same year, which is praia mé, 
states that :—‘A few days ago, some men were cutting up 2 
branch of a tree, near Bonchester Bridge, in Rule Water. While 
one of the logs, about a foot in length, and the same in diameter, 
was being sawn through, it gave signs of being hollow, and the 
appearance of blood, showed that some living creature was contained 
in the cavity. It was accordingly split open, when a colony of bats 
was discovered, enjoying their winter’s sleep, and packed so tightly 
together, that it was not without some difficulty that they could be 
separated. As they were set free, they were counted, and were found 
to number no fewer than one hundred and forty-two, besides a few 
which had been killed by the saw.’ It is a pity, however, that in 
neither of these cases, does any attempt seem to have been made to 
have the species identified. 
NOTE—MAMMALTA. 
Whiskered at Goathland.—Whilst at Goathland on Augu t Bite 
I obtained an example of the Whiskered Bat ( Vespertilio myst fi 
appeared to fly much more leisurely than V. pipzstrellus, and se erie xhibt 
less fear, and a although I struck at it several times with a stick it pores et again cae 
and eat nae is es ee . its flight that I fetched an ento fenieges al net a isk 
IT have made many attempts to net V. pipistret 
secured it e 
but hitherto Fig ern failed. —Epear R. Waire, Leeds. Savuralists 
