6922 Birds. 



twenty miles from its natural haunts by the sea. A fine adull male of ihe black- 

 throated diver, with the throat white, was shot on Barton Broad about the 28th of 

 January, and two or three redthroated divers, but all immature, have also occurred. 

 A female redbreasled merganser and three female goosanders appeared about the same 

 time, but no male birds of either species have been met with to my knowledge. — 

 H. Stevenson; Norwich^ February 16, I860. 



Wood Pigeons in Paris. — During a fortnight's visit to Paris, in November last, I 

 was rather surprised to find that vyood pigeons frequented the gardens of the Tuileries 

 in considerable numbers. Every evening, from my rooms in the Rue Rivoli, I saw 

 from ten or a dozen to about twenty birds on some three or four trees, as if settled for 

 the night. They were often to be seen, in the trees or on the wing, during the day, 

 occasionally flying within a few feet of the numerous pedestrians like tame pigeons. 

 That a bird so shy and wary as the ring dove should thus adopt as its haunt a large 

 city, swarming with a bustling population, affords, I think, a strong proof of the 

 readiness with which some of our wildest birds would live on social terms with us if 

 we would aflford them protection, or at least abstain from persecuting them. I have 

 several times seen (or heard) wood pigeons in Kensington Gardens, but not, I think, 

 in the winter, and they always kept well out of shot distance, never evincing the fami- 

 liarity of the Paris birds. — Henry Hussey ; 7, Hyde Park Square, February 25, 1860. 



Wild-fowl in the London Ornamental Waters. — Having for several years paid par- 

 ticular attention to the aquatic birds in the different London waters, T have often seen 

 there wild-fowl (as they are commonly called), of some four or five species, with per- 

 fect wings. As no wild bird, with its powers of flight unimpaired, would be likely to 

 slay for half an hour after it was turned out in any of these waters, I have always 

 supposed that these birds must be London bred, that is, hatched in the Zoological 

 Gardens (or perhaps in the Regent's or St. James's Park), and that they merely staid 

 in town for the season until their migrating lime came. Some of your correspondents 

 can perhaps enlighten me on the subject. I have notes of the following birds with 

 perfect wings, when and where seen : — 



1851 : July. In the Serpentine. A male wigeon. 



1852 : February. Round Pond, Kensington Gardens. A female wigeon. 



1853 : December. Lake in the Regent's Park. A male wigeon. 



1854: March. Pond in the Botanical Gardens, Regent's Park. A pairof gadwalls 

 (male and female) and a pair of shovellers (male and female). 

 „ February. Ditto. A male wigeon. 

 1856: February. Regent's Park Lake. A male wigeon. 



„ February, March and December. Botanical Gardens. A pair of hybrid 



wigeons (mallard and wigeon), male and female. 

 „ December. Regent's Park Lake. A female tufted duck. 



1857 : February. Botanical Gardens. A male gadwall. 



1858 : January. St. James's Park. A male gadwall. 



1859 : January. Regent's Park. A female hybrid wigeon (mallard and wigeon). 

 „ April. St. James's Park Canal. A male gadwall and a whitefronted goose. 

 „ December ; and February, 1860. Ditto. Two male gadwalls. 



1860 : January.. Ditto. A ferruginous (or whiteeyed) duck 



1859: December ; and January and February, 1860. Regent's Park Lake. Two 

 male hybrid and one female hybrid wigeons. 



