﻿NOTES 
  AND 
  QUERIES. 
  431 
  

  

  is, 
  however, 
  quite 
  different 
  when 
  the 
  ground 
  is 
  bare 
  — 
  not 
  covered 
  by 
  

   snow. 
  At 
  that 
  time 
  I 
  have 
  never 
  seen 
  any 
  Willow- 
  Grouse 
  perch 
  on 
  

   trees, 
  and 
  this 
  is 
  the 
  experience 
  of 
  several 
  sportsmen 
  I 
  have 
  consulted 
  

   on 
  the 
  point. 
  I 
  am 
  therefore 
  inclined 
  to 
  believe 
  that 
  during 
  that 
  time 
  

   of 
  the 
  year 
  the 
  Willow-Grouse 
  never 
  perches 
  on 
  trees. 
  Certainly 
  the 
  

   Willow-Grouse 
  does 
  not, 
  when 
  scared 
  by 
  hunting-dogs, 
  take 
  its 
  refuge 
  

   in 
  trees, 
  but, 
  as 
  everybody 
  knows, 
  this 
  is 
  almost 
  the 
  rule 
  when 
  young 
  

   Black-game 
  are 
  scared 
  similarly 
  in 
  a 
  woody 
  district. 
  (The 
  peasantry 
  

   in 
  Scandinavia 
  do 
  therefore, 
  and 
  especially 
  did 
  in 
  former 
  days, 
  hunt 
  

   the 
  young 
  Black-game 
  in 
  the 
  autumn 
  with 
  barking 
  Dogs.) 
  In 
  con- 
  

   sequence 
  of 
  this 
  I 
  think 
  that 
  I 
  was 
  perfectly 
  right 
  in 
  pointing 
  out 
  the 
  

   contradistinction 
  in 
  this 
  respect 
  between 
  the 
  parental 
  birds 
  of 
  the 
  

   " 
  Riporre," 
  and 
  in 
  saying 
  that 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  the 
  hybrids 
  were 
  similar 
  to 
  

   those 
  of 
  the 
  Black-game 
  when 
  they 
  perched 
  on 
  trees. 
  It 
  must 
  of 
  course 
  

   be 
  remembered 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  paper 
  quoted 
  I 
  speak 
  about 
  the 
  habits 
  of 
  

   the 
  hybrids 
  "during 
  the 
  summer 
  and 
  autumn 
  of 
  1901," 
  and 
  that 
  I 
  

   state 
  that 
  the 
  last 
  of 
  them 
  were 
  " 
  shot 
  in 
  the 
  month 
  of 
  October." 
  The 
  

   criticism 
  of 
  Mr. 
  J. 
  A. 
  Harvie-Brown 
  appears 
  accordingly 
  to 
  be 
  hardly 
  

   necessary. 
  — 
  Einar 
  Lonnberg 
  (Stockholm). 
  

  

  Spotted 
  Crake 
  (Porzaua 
  maruetta) 
  in 
  Co. 
  Antrim. 
  — 
  A 
  Belfast 
  

   gentleman, 
  whilst 
  Snipe-shooting 
  at 
  Silversprings, 
  near 
  Temple- 
  

   patrick, 
  Co. 
  Antrim, 
  on 
  October 
  8th 
  last, 
  shot 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  rare 
  

   visitors 
  along 
  with 
  a 
  Common 
  Snipe, 
  both 
  birds 
  falling 
  to 
  the 
  one 
  

   barrel. 
  Thinking 
  it 
  was 
  a 
  Water-Rail, 
  the 
  bird 
  was 
  thrown 
  away, 
  but 
  

   fortunately 
  was 
  recovered 
  again, 
  and 
  brought 
  to 
  Messrs. 
  Sheals, 
  taxi- 
  

   dermists, 
  Belfast, 
  who 
  identified 
  it, 
  and 
  by 
  whom 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  admirably 
  

   set 
  up. 
  On 
  dissection 
  it 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  young 
  female. 
  Ussher 
  and 
  

   Warren, 
  in 
  their 
  ' 
  Birds 
  of 
  Ireland,' 
  record 
  five 
  occasions 
  on 
  which 
  this 
  

   bird 
  has 
  been 
  obtained 
  in 
  Co. 
  Antrim 
  ; 
  so 
  this 
  makes 
  the 
  sixth. 
  A 
  

   strange 
  coincidence 
  is 
  that 
  on 
  the 
  same 
  date, 
  viz, 
  Oct. 
  8th 
  in 
  1898, 
  

   Messrs. 
  Sheals 
  had 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  birds 
  sent 
  to 
  them 
  for 
  preservation, 
  

   shot 
  at 
  Cullybackey, 
  Co. 
  Antrim. 
  — 
  W. 
  C. 
  Wright 
  (Belfast). 
  

  

  Swimming 
  Powers 
  of 
  the 
  Oystercatcher. 
  — 
  I 
  was 
  much 
  struck 
  with 
  

   the 
  swimming 
  powers 
  of 
  an 
  Oystercatcher 
  {Hcematopus 
  ostralegus) 
  which 
  

   I 
  witnessed 
  at 
  the 
  North 
  Bull, 
  Dublin 
  Bay, 
  when 
  in 
  company 
  with 
  

   Messrs. 
  A. 
  and 
  E. 
  Williams 
  on 
  Oct. 
  23rd 
  last. 
  The 
  bird, 
  when 
  we 
  

   first 
  saw 
  it, 
  was 
  wading 
  along 
  the 
  water's 
  edge, 
  and, 
  as 
  we 
  mounted 
  

   the 
  sand-hills 
  and 
  appeared 
  in 
  full 
  view, 
  it 
  commenced 
  to 
  race 
  along 
  

   the 
  beach 
  for 
  a 
  short 
  distance, 
  and 
  then 
  took 
  to 
  the 
  water. 
  It 
  was 
  

   slightly 
  wounded, 
  and 
  unable 
  to 
  fly. 
  Swiftly 
  and 
  strongly 
  it 
  headed 
  

   out 
  to 
  sea, 
  retreating 
  from 
  us 
  as 
  we 
  ran 
  down 
  to 
  the 
  water's 
  edge 
  to 
  

  

  