3578 Birds. 



endeavour to obtain it, in which however I was unsuccessful, as after missing at a long 

 shot, it dived down amongst the underwood of a thick hedge, and I saw no more of it. 

 This bird was in company with another of the same species in the ordinary plumage. 

 I have said above that it was white, but this, strictly speaking, is hardly correct, for 

 the real colour was a very pale canary-colour, or white with the slightest possible tinge 

 of yellow. I have frequently heard of, and several times seen, white varieties of some 

 other birds, as sparrows, robins, &c, but never before knew that the willow-wren was 

 subject to this occasional variation in plumage. — Octavius Pickard Cambridge; Blox- 

 worlh House, near Blandford, Dorset, July 31, 1852. 



The Kingfisher does make a Nest, at least in every case that has occurred to me, 

 of which I will give you a few instances. In No. I, which I saw opened, or rather the 

 hole enlarged so as to admit the hand and arm, there was at the end a nest or bed of 

 clean fish-bones, but no eggs. The old birds were so busy in and out of the nest every 

 few minutes, as to induce the idea that they had young. In No. 2, which I opened, 

 I found in the hole, just before coming to the nest, maggots creeping about in a small 

 quantity of damp ejected matter, but the nest of bones was quite dry and clean, and 

 contained seven eggs, half hatched, but capable of being blown. No. 3, which I saw 

 opened, had maggots about the same spot, but the nest of bones was dry and clean. 

 The birds had been seen to frequent this hole for about a month or six weeks previous- 

 ly, and each generally had something in its bill when going in. From this nest were 

 taken six eggs, which had not been sat upon. No. 4 I opened; here were maggots as 

 usual, and the nest of bones dry and clean : from this I removed seven eggs, not sat 

 upon. This was certainly a new excavation. No. 5 also I opened ; no eggs, nest of 

 bones dry and clean. This was an old mouse-burrow, which extended beyond the ca- 

 vity containing the nest. About a yard from this I opened No. 6, which was in a 

 most disgusting state, ejected and evacuated matter lining the hole for more than a 

 foot before coming to the nest. I was quite satisfied with just feeling the young birds 

 nearly feathered at the extremity of the hole. All the above were in the banks of the 

 Trent, and I could give you many other cases, all of which fully prove that the king- 

 fisher does build a nest, and that of fish-bones. I do not deny that they may some- 

 times make no nest, but I think this the exception, not the rule, for it is highly proba- 

 ble that when deprived of the nest (as iu Nos. 1 and 5), the birds may possibly hol- 

 low out a a fresh hole, and deposit their eggs upon the bare earth, time not permitting 

 them to furnish it with the usual bed of bones. — R. W. Hawkins ; Rugeley, Stafford- 

 shire, August 7, 1852. 



Instances of the Woodcock (Scolopax rusticola) breeding in England. — Although it 

 is now pretty generally known that one or more woodcocks regularly stay in this coun- 

 try throughout the summer, and breed here, yet the published cases are so few, that I 

 think every well authenticated occurrence of the kind should be made known to orni- 

 thologists. Through the kindness of Mr. John Cooper, the naturalist and bird-pre- 

 server, of Radnor Street, St. Luke's, I have just been shown a beautiful woodcock, 

 which was killed this morning, very early, at Tunbridge Wells. It is a female, and, 

 from the appearance of the feathers on her breast, she has evidently been nesting. The 

 markings on her upper parts are very dark in colour. I take this opportunity to men- 

 tion another instance, which was detailed to me four years ago, in the following com- 

 munication from my friend Mr. H. C. Beddoe, of Hereford, a keen sportsman, and a 

 lover of Ornithology, and I am very sorry to have allowed his letter to remain so long 

 in my portfolio : — " On the 3rd of May, 1848, as the keeper of Thomas Clarke, Esq., 



