356 Ornithological Notes. By George Bolam. 



extremely weak condition ; and when skinned, no food of any kind was 

 found in its stomach. 



On 3rd January 1888 a very fine male was shot by Mr John K. 

 Douglas of Amble Hope Farm, and preserved for him by Mr Balmbra, at 

 Acklington. Mr Douglas was out partridge shooting, when the Bittern 

 rose in front of him out of a field of turnips, and it was killed befoi-e he 

 was aware what it was. 1 had opportunities of seeing all these three 

 birds shortly after they had been set up. Another Bittern, now in the 

 possession of Mr George Longstaff of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea, was shot 

 near that place about the same time as the Alnwick bird, as I am 

 obligingly informed by Mr Charles E. Purvis. 



Grey Lag Goose. Anser cinereus, Meyer. 



Mr Ernest Paynter of Alnwick, showed me a recently set up example 

 of this goose, which had been shot on Elwick farm, on the mainland 

 opposite to Holy Island, about the middle of November 1891, by a man 

 named Harvey, living at Detchant Cottages. He had shot three geese 

 one night ' at the darkening,' but as they fell amongst a bed of whins he 

 had to leave them until next morning, when only this one could be 

 recovered. It was an adult bird undergoing a change of plumage, and 

 had a considerable quantity of black feathers scattered over the under 

 parts. 



White-fronted Goose. Anser alhifrons, Scopoli. 

 During the winter of 1890-91, five or six White-fronted Geese were shot 

 at intervals out of a flock originally numbering about eighteen, which 

 frequented the coast at Goswick, and came up to feed upon the fields ; 

 their habit of always returning to the same parts of particular fields, 

 rendering them more easily accounted for than is often the case. 



Snow Goose. Chen hyperboreus, Pallas. 



During the hard weather which prevailed in the winter of 1890-91, wild- 

 fowl generally were very abundant all over the country, and upon the 

 Northumberland coast many speoies were present in greater numbers than 

 since the memorable wild fowl year of 1879-80. Scaups appeared in very 

 large numbers, and many flights of Wild Swans were seen ; while amongst 

 other rarities that were met witl;, perhaps the most rare was the Snow 

 Goose, a nearctic species, which had only once or twice previously been 

 noticed in the British Islands. 



On Friday, 2nd January 1891, my brother, Mr W. J. Bolara, and a friend, 

 were upon the sands to the north of Holy Island, when they came upon a 

 flock of some twenty large white birds, which at first sight they thought 

 must be Swans. The birds were sitting upon one of the sand ridges, and 

 in close proximity to them sat several Great Black-backed and Herring 

 Gulls, and a single Cormorant. After allowing my brother to approach 

 •yvithin about 400 yards of them, the whole flock rose together, and the 



