150 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



which is a true Bunting, and in no way deserving the trivial name of 

 " Sparrow," which the Americans apply to so many of their finches and 

 huntings. There is not the slightest trace of its ever having been in confine- 

 ment, either in feather or feet, in this Holderness example, which was 

 undoubtedly a wild bird. The following is its description : — There are two 

 almost black stripes on the crown, separated by a median one of pale buff 

 or dirty white ; a broad superciliary stripe from the base of the mandible 

 to the occiput, yellow as far as the middle of the eye, and then pale buff; 

 a broad dark patch on side of head enclosed between darker lines, one of 

 these running through region of eye, the other forming the rictal streak; 

 throat a smoky silky white, and sharply defined against the bluish grey of 

 sides of head and breast— this is margined with a narrow black maxillary 

 line. Edge of wing and axillaries a bright yellow ; the whole of the breast 

 and flanks are marked with indistinct and very fine horizontal lines, 

 visible only in certain lights. Back and scapularies rufous-brown, with 

 darker streaks. Wings comparatively short, and extending little beyond root 

 of tail; tail rather long and only slightly rounded, a dark olive-brown ; two 

 narrow white bands across wing-coverts. Legs and edges of mandibles 

 flesh-coloured. Length, 7 inches. — John Cokdeaux (Eaton Hall, Retford). 



Reported occurrence of the Two-barred Crossbill and Scarlet 

 Grosbeak in Norfolk.— In the ' Zoologist,' 1892 (p. 400), a Two-barred 

 Crossbill is recorded to have been obtained at Yarmouth ; but it turns out 

 to be only a very streaky young Common Crossbill, with faint buff tips on 

 its wing-coverts, such as led Brehm to institute his Crucirostra rubrifasciata. 

 At p. 401 a Scarlet Grosbeak, Pyrrhula erythrina (Pallas) is mentioned 

 with some hesitation, as I had not then seen it. It is a female, and was 

 caught on the denes, between Yarmouth and Caistor, by a local bird- 

 catcher named Jessup. It moulted all its feathers in October ; and on 

 November 16th, though still rather ragged, agreed with a skin from Asia, 

 except that it had lost all its dark striations. When first caught, Mr. W. 

 Lowne — to whom the bird belongs — described it to Mr. Southwell as 

 having a streaked breast, and a greenish tinge which it lost at the moult. 

 It has done very well since, and grown tame on soft food and gentles. The 

 eye on Jan. 24th was dark brown, the legs and beak horn-colour, and the 

 general tone of the plumage very like that of a hen House Sparrow. — 

 J. H. Gurney (Keswick, Norwich). 



Rare Birds in Lancashire. — Knowing the couuty, I have read with 

 great interest your remarks on Mr. Saunders' new edition of Mitchell's 

 ■ Birds of Lancashire.' With regard to the Sociable Plover, it seems only 

 just to the author that a brief explanation should be offered as to how he 

 acquiesced in the identification of the bird in question as a Courser. The 

 fact is, Mr. Mitchell had known the bird for years as a reputed Cream- 



