CORVID-E. 85 



flock in his garden in Colleton Crescent, all having been reared from 

 young ones obtained on the coast of Cornwall. Several of these birds are 

 preserved in the A. M. M. and other collections. He informed us that 

 his Choughs attempted to build several times, but never really nested, 

 and he felt pretty conhdent that they never laid an egg, and that he had 

 some doubts at the time whether any of them had even mated, and 

 whether the carrying sticks did not proceed more from their restless dis- 

 position than anything else. When we saw them in 1^53 they were 

 extremely tame and fearless, and the little iiock had a remarkably pretty 

 appearance wandering about in a body. 



In a manuscript Note-book of Col. Montagu, lent us by the late Rev. Jobn Hellins, 

 under date 1795^, he says, '''J he Chough is frequent on this co.ist (S. Devon) where 

 tLie clifik are higli." Dr. E. Muore says in 1837 it was not so numerous as in Corn- 

 wah, but many specimens occurred in winter (Mag. Nat. Hist. n. s. i. p. 17<J). It 

 appears to occur occasionallv in autumn and winter on the coast in the neighbourhood 

 uf Plymouth (Zool 1S7U, 'p. 114; 1880, ^d. 47; 1881, p. 5; 1885, p. 21). Mr. 

 Bolitho had specimens sent to him for preservation January 20th, 1853, April 20th, 

 1855, and September 12th, 181)4. Tiie late Mr. J. Gatcombe wrote as follows : — "July 

 l(5th, 1873. My friend, Mr. Eignell, of 8touehouse, told me that he had seen a 

 family uf six Cornish Choughs at the Bolt Head, near Salcombe, on the Devonshire 

 coast, and the same gentleman having observed a pair of these birds a month or two 

 before at the same place, I have no doubt that they had bred and brought out four 

 youijg ones, which would account for the family of six seen on the second occasion. 

 ±>olt Head is, I think, quite a new locality tor the Cornish Chough " (Zool. 1873, 

 p. 3717). Mr. R. P. ISicholls says that about a dozen specimens have occurred 

 between the Holt He.id and Danthain in tvventy-iive years (MiS. Notes). iSpeciaiens 

 killed near Torquay and Kingsbridge are in the Torquay Museum, where also are 

 preserved two eggs found at i3erry Head in 1880. Mr. t\ Pershouse, Jur., found a 

 dead Chough lying on the sands at Paignton on January 8th, 1880 (Trans. Devon. 

 Assoc, xii. ]). 9lj. One was shot at Kingswear about 1881 after a gale (II. Balfour, 

 i/i lift.). A pair were shot at Folly Clitls, Bantham, about 1885 (E. A. S. E., MS. 

 Notes). Half a century ago Choughs were always to be seen on any part of the 

 north coast between Lynton and Hartland Point, the cliffs at Abbotsham being a 

 favourite locality. A few are still sometimes met with in certain localities, as at 

 Braunton Burrows, Morthoe, and Laiigleigh Cleave, near Ilfracoinbe. A few were 

 seen at Morthoe in August and October 1874 (Zool. 1874, pp. 4229, 4254), A flock 

 of seven was seen by Mr. J. Gatcouibe on Braunton Burrows, October 25th, 1875 

 (Zool. 1875, p. 4718). Mr. O. V. Aplin saw .six flyiug about the cliffs at Little 

 Hangman on August IGth, 18b6 (Zool. 1887, p. 71). 



Nutcracker. Nucifraga caryocatactes (Linn.). 



An accidental visitor of rare occurrence. 



The iS'utcracker is an inliabitant of Northern and Central Europe, 

 preferring mountainous districts and pinc-t'orests, where it feeds on tlie 

 seeds of the hr-concs, and is only an accidental straggler to this country. 

 It is about the size of a Jackdaw, brown in colour, and is speckled all 

 over with triangular spots of white. It is such a singular-looking bird, 

 in con.scfiuence of this spotted plumage, that it is easily to be detected, 

 and can hardly be confounded with any other l)ird when seen clo.se at 

 hand, and it is for this reason that we are disposed to accept the 



