MISCELLANEA. 499 



MISCELLANEA. 



Waxiuing at Raveiisivoi-tli. — On the 26th December, 1906, 

 in the afternoon, just a few hours before the severe thunder- 

 storm which was followed by the heaviest snowfall we 

 have experienced this winter, I was walking along the coach- 

 road of the Ravensworth estate when I noticed, in the wood 

 which borders the road, a Waxwing. The bird was feeding 

 busily on the berries of a guelder-rose tree. I was able to 

 get quite near it without disturbing it, and so got a very good 

 view of the details of its plumage. Its colouring was very 

 bright, but the wax-like tips to its secondaries were feiv and 

 small. It had no wax tips to its tail feathers. Though I 

 watched the guelder-rose trees for some considerable time, I 

 could not see any more than this one solitary bird. — George 

 W. Teniperley. 



Local Breeding of the Tufted Duck. — It has been frequently 

 remarked lately that the Tufted Duck {FuHgula cristaia) is 

 becoming commoner as a breeding species in the northern 

 counties of England. It is therefore of interest to record a 

 local instance. Mr. Geo. E. Crawhall reports that a pair of 

 Tufted Ducks bred last year (1906) on a piece of water near 

 Haydon Bridge ; he saw them with their brood on July 23rd, 

 the young ones then appearing to be about three days old. 



A Cat-fish new to British Seas. — On July 25th, 1906, Mr. 

 Andrew Thomson, fishmonger, of Elswick Road, brought to 

 the museum a large cat-fish which had been landed that 

 morning at North Shields, where the fishermen said that its 

 like had never been seen before. Its most obvious point of 

 difference from the common cat-fish {Anarrhiclias litpus, Linn.) 

 was in colour ; instead of being slate-green with dark bars it 

 was of a uniform grey-brown or dark stone-colour, finely 

 mottled and streaked with whitish. Its snout also was not 

 quite so blunt as in the common species, the dorsal fin was 

 very low, thick and fleshy, and the tail very small. Its total 



M 



