340 



THE ZOOLOGIST. 



but in most cases that have come under rny notice the nest has been either 

 so small, or so situated, that the Cuckoo could only have deposited the egg 

 in it with her beak. — E. A. Butler (Brettenham Park, Bildeston, Suffolk). 



I have several times heard and seen the Cuckoo calling on the wing, 

 but always at a period of high domestic excitement. I have seen two 

 Cuckoos chasing one another, both calling, and uttering their other peculiar 

 June notes. This is a great district for Cuckoos. — H. Chichester Hart 

 (Carrablagh, Lough Swilly, Co. Donegal). 



[This observation is confirmed by several other correspondents. — Ed.] 



Young Cuckoo reared in a Swallow's Nest.— Here at Harswell 

 Rectory, in the East Riding of Yorkshire, a Cuckoo has been hatched and 

 reared in a Swallow's nest, in the verandah attatched to my house. The 

 young bird has flown, and as I write is sitting on the wire fence in front 

 of the house, and is still being fed by its foster-parents, who catch flies and 

 supply its wants. Is not this an unusual incident, and is there any 

 precedent for Cuckoos depositing their eggs in Swallows' nests? A few 

 days ago I saw a white Swallow at Harswell. — E. W. Atkinson. 



[The Swallow is included in a list of birds in whose nests the egg of 

 the Cuckoo has been found, given by Professor Newton in the fourth edition 

 of Yarrell's • British Birds,' vol. ii. p. 394, note, but such an occurrence is 

 exceptional. In ' The Ibis ' for October, 1892 (p. 524), the Rev. C. Wolley 

 Dod mentions a case of the kind which occurred at his residence, Edge Hall, 

 near Malpas. The Swallow's nest was built on a ledge in a gardeuer's " pot- 

 ting shed " formed against a garden wall, with a lean-to roof, and an opening 

 in front fifteen feet long by six feet in height. The nest was so situated 

 that the Cuckoo's egg could only have been introduced by means of the 

 Cuckoo's beak. The egg was duly hatched, and the young bird reared, and 

 as soon as it could fly took its departure. — Ed.] 



Green Woodpecker pursued by a Sparrowhawk— Although not of 

 common occurrence, yet in the New Forest I have, on two occasions at least, 

 seen a similar chase to that already reported (p. 58), but in neither case was 

 the hawk successful in securing her quarry. Had it been otherwise, I should 

 imagine, the strong beak and claws of the Woodpecker would have ^proved 

 formidable weapons against even the Sparrowhawk's dexterity and power. 

 In one of the instances referred to I was both interested and amused. It 

 was, I think, in July, some years ago, I had been insect collecting in the 

 forest, and about mid-day sat down under a large tree in a comparatively 

 open space in the wood to refresh the " inner man," as well as to watch the 

 wild life in such a charming spot. Whilst seated there, I saw a Green 

 Woodpecker come from a distant tree, and like a flash of undulating yellow 

 light, make towards a trunk at no great distance from the one that offered 

 me shelter. But suddenly it began to scream in a most terrified manner, 



