42 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE BERMUDAS. 



Mr. Fraser tells me that he saw flocks of Golden Plover 

 in the neighbourhood of Gibbs Hill on Saturday last, and 

 I find from Mr. Wedderburn that he has killed, with his 

 own gun, upwards of twenty couple of these birds since 

 their arrival this autumn. 



October, igt/i, 1847. — Went out at sunset to look for an 

 owl, supposed to be the Snowy Owl {Surnia nycted), which 

 was observed last evening beating the marsh below Govern- 

 ment House. I have reason to believe this bird is the 

 same which visited Mr. Richard Wood's premises a day 

 or two since, and there sat upon a rabbit hutch. Mr. 

 Wood's son describes it as a " White Eagle." Saw nothing 

 of it. 



Mr. Wedderburn showed me another beautiful specimen 

 of the Yellow-breasted Rail, shot by himself in the 

 Governor's Marsh, near the spot on which he killed the 

 former one. 



Two Bitterns, a couple of Golden Plover, four couple of 

 Snipe, one Water Crake, a Semipalmated Sandpiper, and 

 one Rice bird, completed this gentleman's bag for the day. 



October 21st, 1847. — The Master of the " General Grant" 

 tells me that on his recent visit to Antigua, i.e., during, the 

 month of September and the first week in October, Plover 

 were very abundant there, particularly the Golden Plover, 

 and that numbers of them were shot daily along the coast, 

 up to the time of his departure. 



October 22nd, 1847. — Beat the Marshes this evening from 

 the cross-road, near the Admiral's to the centre of the 



