﻿NOTES 
  AND 
  QUERIES. 
  191 
  

  

  escape 
  their 
  prying 
  eyes. 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  before 
  known 
  a 
  Robin 
  to 
  build 
  

   among 
  the 
  leaves 
  of 
  a 
  tree 
  or 
  bush, 
  in 
  a 
  situation 
  similar 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  a 
  

   Blackbird's 
  or 
  Greenfinch's 
  nest. 
  Can 
  anyone 
  tell 
  of 
  a 
  similar 
  in- 
  

   stance 
  ? 
  — 
  Allan 
  Ellison 
  (Watton 
  at 
  Stone, 
  Herts). 
  

  

  [A 
  few 
  years 
  ago 
  a 
  Robin 
  built 
  in 
  a 
  high 
  hedge 
  at 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  my 
  

   garden 
  on 
  the 
  Surrey 
  hills. 
  The 
  egg 
  of 
  a 
  Cuckoo 
  was 
  also 
  deposited 
  in 
  

   this 
  nest. 
  The 
  Cats 
  which 
  destroyed 
  all 
  the 
  young 
  nesting 
  birds 
  did 
  

   i 
  not 
  spare 
  this 
  interesting 
  family. 
  — 
  Ed.] 
  

  

  Crossbill 
  in 
  West 
  Suffolk. 
  — 
  A 
  male 
  Crossbill 
  (Loxia 
  curvirostra) 
  was 
  

   unfortunately 
  shot 
  near 
  Bury 
  St. 
  Edmunds 
  on 
  March 
  31st 
  by 
  a 
  school- 
  

   boy 
  gunner, 
  from 
  whom 
  a 
  mutual 
  friend 
  kindly 
  begged 
  it 
  for 
  me. 
  From 
  

   the 
  post-mortem 
  examination 
  I 
  have 
  little 
  doubt 
  but 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  one 
  of 
  a 
  

   pair 
  of 
  breeding 
  birds. 
  It 
  is 
  in 
  orange-red 
  plumage, 
  with 
  bright 
  

   yellowish-green 
  feathers 
  appearing 
  here 
  and 
  there, 
  and, 
  having 
  care- 
  

   fully 
  inspected 
  these 
  green 
  feathers 
  with 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  a 
  powerful 
  glass, 
  

   they 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  a 
  new 
  plumage 
  rather 
  than 
  the 
  last 
  

   of 
  an 
  old 
  one. 
  It 
  will 
  be 
  remembered 
  that 
  the 
  male 
  of 
  the 
  pair 
  of 
  

   Crossbills 
  now 
  exhibited, 
  with 
  their 
  nest 
  and 
  eggs, 
  in 
  the 
  National 
  

   Collection, 
  which 
  the 
  donor 
  has 
  fully 
  described 
  in 
  this 
  Journal 
  (1889, 
  

   p. 
  181), 
  is 
  a 
  yellow-green 
  bird. 
  — 
  Julian 
  G. 
  Tuck 
  (Tostock 
  Rectory, 
  

   Bury 
  St. 
  Edmunds, 
  Suffolk). 
  

  

  Observations 
  on 
  the 
  nesting 
  of 
  Rooks. 
  — 
  For 
  some 
  days 
  past 
  I 
  have 
  

   been 
  watching 
  the 
  efforts 
  of 
  a 
  pair 
  of 
  Rooks 
  (Corvus 
  frugilegus) 
  to 
  

   establish 
  a 
  nest 
  in 
  a 
  small 
  plantation 
  situated 
  a 
  few 
  hundred 
  yards 
  from 
  

   a 
  colony 
  of 
  about 
  forty 
  nests. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  the 
  nest 
  is 
  about 
  half- 
  

   finished, 
  a 
  raiding 
  party, 
  consisting 
  usually 
  of 
  about 
  six 
  Rooks, 
  comes 
  

   up 
  and 
  demolishes 
  it. 
  Sometimes 
  a 
  single 
  bird 
  will 
  come, 
  and 
  then 
  

   the 
  aggrieved 
  pair 
  give 
  battle, 
  but 
  on 
  the 
  arrival 
  of 
  reinforcements 
  they 
  

   retire 
  from 
  the 
  struggle. 
  Another 
  couple 
  started 
  building 
  operations 
  

   in 
  an 
  adjoining 
  tree, 
  but, 
  curiously 
  enough, 
  the 
  marauders 
  have 
  so 
  far 
  

   taken 
  no 
  notice 
  of 
  them, 
  though 
  they 
  still 
  continue 
  to 
  harass 
  the 
  

   original 
  pioneers. 
  I 
  have 
  been 
  speculating 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  

   unpopularity 
  of 
  these 
  latter. 
  Are 
  they 
  the 
  leaders 
  of 
  a 
  revolt 
  from 
  the 
  

   maiu 
  body, 
  or 
  newcomers 
  into 
  the 
  neighbourhood, 
  or 
  are 
  they 
  a 
  weak 
  

   couple 
  that 
  can 
  be 
  robbed 
  with 
  impunity 
  ? 
  Can 
  any 
  of 
  your 
  readers 
  

   who 
  have 
  studied 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  Rooks 
  supply 
  any 
  other 
  explanation 
  ? 
  

   At 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  writing 
  the 
  nest 
  is 
  about 
  half-finished, 
  but 
  a 
  rowdy 
  crew 
  

   keeps 
  coming 
  up 
  to 
  see 
  how 
  things 
  are 
  going 
  on, 
  and 
  one 
  or 
  two 
  

   scowling 
  sentinels 
  remain 
  on 
  duty, 
  evidently 
  to 
  report 
  progress. 
  — 
  

   B. 
  H. 
  Ramsbotham 
  (Elmhurst, 
  Garstang). 
  

  

  