﻿NOTES 
  AND 
  QUEBIES. 
  313 
  

  

  in 
  my 
  possession, 
  stated 
  that 
  this 
  was 
  the 
  first 
  appearance 
  of 
  the 
  

   Meadow-Bunting 
  in 
  Great 
  Britain, 
  and 
  made 
  an 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  British 
  

   list 
  (cf. 
  Bull. 
  British 
  Ornithologists' 
  Club, 
  No. 
  xciv. 
  pp. 
  38, 
  39).— 
  C. 
  J. 
  

   Carroll 
  (Bocklow, 
  Fethard, 
  Co. 
  Tipperary). 
  

  

  Albinism 
  in 
  the 
  Magpie. 
  — 
  I 
  have 
  recently 
  added 
  to 
  my 
  collection 
  

   an 
  albinic 
  example 
  of 
  the 
  Magpie 
  (Pica 
  rustica). 
  This 
  bird, 
  which 
  is 
  

   immature, 
  was 
  captured 
  with 
  birdlime 
  at 
  Kirbymoorside, 
  in 
  Yorkshire, 
  

   on 
  June 
  4th 
  last, 
  but 
  died 
  from 
  inanition 
  a 
  week 
  later. 
  The 
  plumage 
  

   is 
  pure 
  white 
  throughout 
  ; 
  the 
  feet, 
  legs, 
  and 
  beak 
  are 
  also 
  white 
  ; 
  and 
  

   the 
  eyes, 
  as 
  iu 
  all 
  true 
  albinos, 
  are 
  pink. 
  I 
  have 
  only 
  two 
  previous 
  

   records 
  of 
  albinism 
  in 
  the 
  Magpie 
  — 
  one 
  for 
  Cornwall, 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  

   for 
  "Wexford. 
  — 
  C. 
  J. 
  Carroll 
  (Bocklow, 
  Fethard, 
  Co. 
  Tipperary). 
  

  

  Young 
  Cuckoo 
  in 
  a 
  Twite's 
  Nest. 
  — 
  "With 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  note 
  by 
  

   Mr. 
  Wilson 
  (ante, 
  p. 
  264), 
  giving 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  a 
  young 
  Cuckoo 
  in 
  a 
  

   Twite's 
  nest, 
  it 
  might 
  be 
  pointed 
  out 
  that 
  the 
  occurrence 
  of 
  a 
  young 
  

   Cuckoo 
  in 
  the 
  nest 
  of 
  a 
  Twite 
  would 
  be 
  in 
  itself 
  a 
  very 
  interesting 
  and 
  

   unusual 
  fact, 
  and 
  also 
  that 
  May 
  25th 
  would 
  be 
  a 
  rather 
  early 
  date 
  for 
  

   a 
  young 
  Cuckoo 
  to 
  be 
  hatched 
  out, 
  at 
  least 
  as 
  far 
  north 
  as 
  Aberdeen- 
  

   shire. 
  May 
  1st 
  is 
  mentioned 
  as 
  the 
  date 
  of 
  the 
  bird's 
  first 
  appearance 
  

   in 
  that 
  neighbourhood 
  this 
  year. 
  If 
  the 
  identification 
  was 
  correct, 
  a 
  

   far 
  more 
  interesting 
  question 
  in 
  connection 
  with 
  the 
  occurrence 
  would 
  

   have 
  been 
  as 
  to 
  how 
  the 
  Twites 
  were 
  capable 
  of 
  feeding 
  a 
  young 
  

   Cuckoo, 
  and 
  whether 
  the 
  death 
  of 
  the 
  latter 
  may 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  due 
  to 
  

   the 
  fact 
  that 
  they 
  did 
  not 
  give 
  it 
  its 
  natural 
  insect-food. 
  The 
  Twite 
  is 
  

   not 
  an 
  insectivorous 
  bird, 
  and, 
  in 
  common 
  with 
  the 
  Linnet, 
  Redpoll, 
  

   Goldfiuch, 
  Greenfinch, 
  Bullfinch, 
  and 
  other 
  seed-eating 
  Finches, 
  feeds 
  

   its 
  young 
  by 
  disgorging 
  seeds 
  already 
  partly 
  digested 
  in 
  its 
  own 
  crop, 
  

   although 
  the 
  adult 
  birds 
  doubtless 
  at 
  times 
  eat 
  insects 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  seeds. 
  

   I 
  have 
  often 
  watched 
  these 
  seed-eating 
  Finches 
  in 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  feeding 
  

   their 
  young, 
  and 
  so 
  closely 
  that 
  I 
  could 
  see 
  the 
  food, 
  a 
  white 
  creamy 
  

   substance 
  being 
  passed 
  by 
  the 
  parent 
  bird 
  into 
  the 
  open 
  gapes 
  of 
  the 
  

   nestlings, 
  each 
  of 
  which 
  received 
  a 
  full 
  meal 
  on 
  the 
  visit 
  of 
  the 
  parent 
  

   bird 
  to 
  the 
  nest. 
  Is 
  a 
  young 
  Cuckoo 
  capable 
  of 
  being 
  fed 
  in 
  this 
  way, 
  

   and, 
  if 
  so, 
  can 
  it 
  be 
  successfully 
  reared 
  on 
  such 
  food 
  ? 
  I 
  should 
  like 
  

   to 
  know 
  whether 
  any 
  good 
  field 
  naturalist 
  has 
  ever 
  settled 
  this 
  question. 
  

   It 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  the 
  usual 
  foster-parents 
  of 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  are 
  the 
  

   small 
  insect-eating 
  birds, 
  but 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  has 
  been 
  known 
  to 
  deposit 
  

   its 
  egg 
  in 
  the 
  nest 
  of 
  one 
  or 
  other 
  of 
  the 
  seed-eating 
  Finches, 
  but 
  

   whether 
  the 
  latter 
  are 
  successful 
  in 
  rearing 
  the 
  young 
  intruder 
  is 
  a 
  

   different 
  matter. 
  Occasionally 
  the 
  Cuckoo 
  entrusts 
  its 
  young 
  to 
  the 
  

   Zool. 
  4th 
  ser. 
  vol. 
  VIII., 
  August, 
  1904. 
  2 
  b 
  

  

  