30 MISCELLANEA. 



Referring to the scarcity of Thrushes, the writer was recently 

 visiting in the Sonth of England where the same circumstance 

 had been noticed by the friend with whom he was staying ; he 

 stated that these birds used to be abundant in his gi'ounds, but 

 this spring he had not one. During the winter he picked up one 

 in an exhausted condition, but all his endeavours failed to resus- 

 citate it. He blamed the severe winter and their destruction to 

 supply British poulterers. 



Surely Societies like ours should make some protest against 

 our song birds being sacrificed to please the palate of a few 

 gourmands. Spring scarcely seems like spring without the clear 

 sweet notes of this favourite bird. — WilUam Green, Thornely 

 House, Lint% Green, May \st, 1881. 



It may be mentioned in connection with the foregoing inter- 

 esting note that all the smaller birds in the above list, with the 

 addition of several Thrushes and numerous Starlings, which 

 latter generally came in flocks of twelve or more, visited the 

 gardens and enclosures even in the more central parts of this 

 town during the six-months' winter of 1880-1. They came 

 very regularly every morning during the continuance of the snow- 

 storms and the snow in search of food. The old Blackbirds be- 

 fore they began to search for food displayed their pugnacity by 

 driving away every other bird, especially young Blackbirds and 

 Thrushes. — Ed. 



A Statement as to recent Publications relating to Anodonta Ju- 

 kesii, hj G. A. Lelour, M.A., F.G.S., Professor of Geology in 

 the University of Burham College of Physical Science. — In the 

 last-issued part of the joint Transactions of the ISTatural Histoiy 

 Society of Northumberland and Durham, and the Tyneside Na- 

 turalists' Field Club (Vol. YII., Part II., p. 376), there is printed 

 a paper entitled " Note on the Priority of Discovery of Archanodon 

 {Anodon) Jukesii, Porbes, in the Loiver Carhoniferous Pocks of 

 Northumberland,''^ by Richard Howse. 



As the Societies in question have by their silence since the 

 publication of the paper apparently sanctioned its appearance, I 



