Birds. 2065 



appears to require explanation. The passage to which I allude is as follows : " We 

 found the bones of five varieties of the cow or ox, five of the deer, two of the goat, 

 and two of the hog or pig, together with those of the hare or rabbit, swan, goose, duck, 

 turkey, and of several game birds." Now I don't like this discovery of the bones of 

 the turkey. This useful bird was not introduced into England very long before the 

 middle, certainly (I think) not before the beginning, of the sixteenth century ; * and it 

 is a native of America. Is there any reason to believe that any species of turkey was 

 indigenous to Ireland ? I never heard of any evidence in support of such an opinion ; 

 but unless we suppose that it was so, we must either conclude that Mr. Glennon has 

 mistaken the bones of some other bird for those of the turkey, in which case doubt 

 would be thrown upon the accuracy of his other anatomical statements, or that they 

 are really the bones of the turkey, and were therefore, with the other bones, placed in 

 their present position at a period far subsequent to the supposed date of the existence 

 of the giant deer. I was much interested in the discussion of which Mr. Glennon's 

 paper forms part, and certainly came to a conclusion in favour of the theory that the 

 giant deer was contemporary with man ; but as accuracy is the very soul of the state- 

 ments upon which this opinion is founded, I have thought it right to point out the ap- 

 parent error which exists in the passage in question. May I also inquire, of what 

 nature were the " several game birds " mentioned in the sentence which I have 

 quoted, and to what existing species were they most nearly allied? — William R. 

 Fisher ; Cambridge, February 24, 1848. 



Occurrence of the Houbara (Otis Houbara) in Lincolnshire. — A short time ago I 

 sent a communication to the 'Zoologist' (Zool. 1969), to the effect that I had ob- 

 tained a male little bustard, which was shot at Kirton Lindsey, in this neighbourhood ; 

 but having since become better acquainted with the bustard family, I am convinced 

 of my error, and beg leave to correct it. The following is a description of the bird in 

 my possession. Length 23 inches, expanse of wing 3 feet 8 inches, weight 2\ fbs. ; 

 the bill is dark lead colour, compressed at the tip, depressed at the base ; irides yellow ; 

 the head and throat rufous, mottled with black, with long loose feathers, of a slate co- 

 lour, hanging over the breast ; the chin white ; back of the neck white, minutely mot- 

 tled with brown ; the sides of the neck are ornamented with a range of feathers two 

 inches long, about two-thirds of the upper portion black, the lower part white ; the 

 back and wing-coverts rufous, mottled with black, with zigzag bars of black across ; 

 the quill-feathers black, extending to the end of the tail when closed ; under parts 

 white; legs lead colour. On inquiring of Mr. G. Hansley, from whom I received the 

 bird, if he could furnish any particulars respecting it, he sent me the following note. 

 " I shot the bird in a stubble field on Kirton Cliff. I did not see it until it got up 

 within twenty yards of me, and I cannot hear of its having been seen in the neigh- 

 bourhood before." I feel quite sure that this bird has never been confined : its wings 

 and tail are in the greatest perfection, not a feather broken or dirty : its craw was full 

 of caterpillars, beetles and small snails. — Alfred Roberts ; Brigg, Lincolnshire , Janu- 

 ary 25, 1848. 



[This bird has been purchased by Mr. T. E. Higgins, of York, and turns out to 

 be the houbara, a well-known North-African species of the bustard family. Mr. G. R. 

 Gray, of the British Museum, has obligingly handed me the following synonyms : it 



* About 1530. 



