558 MURID^— MICROMYS 



is certainly not to be found anywhere near Bridgnorth. It is recorded 

 from Staffordshire by Garner and Masefield, and Gloucestershire by 

 Knapp and Mitchell (in Harting). From Devonshire it is recorded by 

 Montagu, Rowe (who states it to be not common), Bellamy, Parfitt (in 

 Millais), and Donovan (who had a specimen). In Cornwall one was 

 caught by E. H. Rodd, 20th February (^Zoologist, 1857, 5592); it was 

 stated by Couch, i., 3, to be common, and was well known to 

 C. W. Peach {ibid., 5664) ; J. Clark {Zoologist, 1908, 416) describes it as 

 very common locally about Penzance, Falmouth, and in the middle of 

 the county, but as scarce or very local on the north coast. In 

 Somerset, Charbonnier describes it as local, decidedly scarce in the 

 winter, but fairly common a few miles from Yeovil ; in the Bristol 

 district it is rare and local. From North Wales, Forrest has no certain 

 record, but he has received reports from Carnarvonshire and other 

 localities {North Wales, 49) ; Phillips describes it as very rare indeed in 

 Brecon, and Coward makes no mention of it in his list {in lit.) from 

 Anglesey. It is sparingly present in Lancashire and Cheshire, accord- 

 ing to T. A. Coward, who mentions {Zoologist, 1895, 175; 1896, 16) a 

 nest from Southport in the Museum of Owens College, Manchester, 

 1864; in the former county many were found by the reapers near 

 Garstang, in September 1843, and sometimes the nest and young were 

 accidentally bound up in the sheaves without discovery or injury 

 (M. Saul, Zoologist, 1843, 349) ; in the latter county it is now very rare, 

 and has not been noticed in recent years (Coward). In the Lake 

 District it is so rare that Macpherson knew of only two instances, 

 namely, a nest taken many years ago at Blackwell, and a specimen 

 captured at Silloth by J. H. Doeg in 1888 ; Macpherson ( Vic. Co. Hist.) 

 describes it as rare in Cumberland, but mentions specimens captured in 

 isolated instances in the north. There is a vague record of it from 

 Derbyshire (Jourdain). In Yorkshire it is very irregularly and thinly 

 distributed (Clarke and Roebuck ; copied by later writers) ; in Nidder- 

 dale, George Charlton said he saw it nesting in a cornfield — but no 

 specimens were seen by authors ; and Oxley Grabham {in lit.) writes 

 that though he will not " go so far as to say it never has been taken in 

 the county, the few records are so unsatisfactory that he holds it 

 non-proven at present." J. T. Sewell {in lit.) claims to have found the 

 nest near Helmsley, Yorkshire. It is recorded from a few localities in 

 Northumberland and Durham (Mennell and Perkins, 1864, 171); it 

 was taken by William Backhouse, at St John's, Weardale, 800 feet 

 above the se& {Trans. Tyneside Nat. Field Club, iv., 94; for Durham, 

 see also Vic. Co. Hist.). 



The species thus seems to be much rarer in the north of England 

 than in the south. It undoubtedly has occurred and probably still 

 occurs in Scotland, but it must be very local and cannot be anywhere 



