FIELD MEETINGS FOR I910 203 



had its mournful accompaniment in the plaintive voice of the 

 mother bird hard by. 



The district is not at present particularly rich in plant life, 

 perhaps the most distinctive feature being the number of 

 plants of the rarer cotton-sedge with its mass of cottony seed 

 vessels at the summit of a single stalk, the ordinary cotton 

 sedge having several pendent clusters below the top of the 

 stalk. Cowslips and marsh marigolds were still to be found; 

 while the water ranunculus and plaintain, with other 

 distinctively marsh plants, were just beginning to show them- 

 selves in flower. The warmer sun of the past few days had 

 brought out insects in some abundance. Several rare beetles 

 were found, as also one of those very minute centipedes, 

 Pauropus, of a species which was recorded last year for the first 

 time as British. Three rare Thrips taken from birch and pine 

 were considered by Mr. Bagnall, who is an authority in this little- 

 known department of natural history, to be probably additions 

 to the British fauna, the most interesting being Oxythrips 

 brevistylis, previously found in Bohemia and Scandinavia. 

 Spring-tails were abundant, and numerous spiders were taken 

 by Mr. Turner. The party met for tea at the Bungalow, and 

 closed a most enjoyable afternoon with an inspection of the 

 ancient church with its Norman tower, Decorated nave and 

 chancel, and Early English transept, as also the remains of the 

 castle before reaching the railway station, on the way to 

 which they passed the square tower of the old fortified 

 vicarage, a relic of the old moss-trooping days. 



The Third Field Meeting was held on Saturday, the 25th 

 June, at Piercebridge and Gainford in conjunction with the 

 Darlington Society. The Newcastle contingent left the Central 

 Station at 9.30 and proceeded through Darlington to Pierce- 

 bridge. This is the site of an old Roman station at the point 

 where Watling Street crossed the Tees, and traces of the mound 

 and ditch are still visible ; and it was also the scene of some 

 fighting in the Civil Wars between the troops of Newcastle and 

 Fairfax. The party proceeded up the north bank of the river, 



