318 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



ones. This fact will doubtless interest many of your readers. The nest 

 was finely sheltered, and the old birds were very busy feeding their brood. 

 In February we had some lovely days ; but March was very severe. In the 

 face of the past month's inclemency these hardy little birds have succeeded 

 thus far in rearing their young. I have in former years found the Dipper's 

 nest in the month of March, but never so early with young. Some ornitho- 

 logists fix the Dipper's nidification about the middle of April. Now, in my 

 experience, which extends over a long course of years, I have found the 

 Dipper building at the end of February and throughout March. — R. N. 

 Kerr (King Street, Dundee). 



Golden Oriole in Co. Galway. — An adult male Golden Oriole, Oriolus 

 galbula, was obtained at Letterfrank, Co. Galway, on the 20th of April 

 last. It is an exceedingly rare bird in Ireland in the adult plumage ; the 

 specimens that have come under my notice (only about three or four) have 

 been all females or immature males, and were met with chiefly on the east 

 coast. — Edward Williams (2, Dame Street, Dublin). 



SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. 



Linnean Society of London. 



June 18.— Prof. Stewart, President, in the chair. 



Messrs. Herbert Jones and John Bidgood were admitted Fellows of the 

 Society, and Mr. C. W. Slater was elected. 



Mr. W. H. Beeby exhibited specimens of Hieracium protractum and 

 other plants collected in Shetland. 



Mr. Stuart Samuel exhibited a dwarf specimen of Acer palmatum, and 

 made some remarks on the dwarf trees artificially produced by the Japanese. 



Mr. R. V. Sherring showed some cases of dried Bananas, and described 

 a new method of preservation adopted in Jamaica to save waste of small 

 parcels of fruit which would be otherwise unsaleable. 



Mr. A. W. Bennett exhibited and made remarks upon a specimen of 

 Selaglnella lepidophylla, which was found to possess remarkable vitality, 

 and upon proper treatment to resume its normal appearance after having 

 been gathered some months. 



Dr. R. A. Prior exhibited samples of the Spiked Star of Bethlehem, 

 Ornithogalum pyrenaicum, and stated that although described in British 

 Floras as a rare plant, it is so abundant in the hill pastures around Bath 

 that it is brought to the market there in large quantities under the name 

 of French Asparagus and sold for a penny a bunch. 



Mr. R. A. Rolfe showed two hybrid Odontoglossums with the parent 



