794 Birds. 



round the neck, and also on the breast and thighs, have dark margins. The quill 

 feathers are black, the secondaries dark brown, the tertials rather lighter, and in both 

 of these last, as well as on the wing-coverts, may be seen in the lighter tint of the tips 

 of the feathers, the commencement of the change which gives the bird the appearance 

 of figure 2. These parts of the bird also exhibit, on being turned to the light, a 

 beautiful purple gloss. The feathers of the back have black shafts, and are darker in 

 the centre than at the margins. The tail of this specimen has acquired the tip of 

 light yellow, which therefore appears to be assumed very shortly after the bird loses the 

 dark hue of figure 1. It is also barred like the others. The cere and legs were of a 

 pale yellow, the irides grey. The stomach contained the remains of bees, and a 

 quantity of moss, which probably formed part of the bees' nest. — William R. Fisher ; 

 Great Yarmouth, October 24, 1844. 



Note on the Hooting of the Bam Owl. I see that Mr. Waterton, in the continua- 

 tion of his Autobiography, prefixed to the second series of his Essays, is again face- 

 tious at the expense of Sir William Jardine, for asserting that the barn owl hoots. 

 " In Scotland Sir William Jardine's barn owl is known to hoot; but here, in York- 

 shire, this species of owl can do no such thing." Now, if " hearing be believing," 

 I must claim for the Oxford owls, even at the risk of drawing on myself the shafts of 

 Mr. Waterton's wit, the possession of the same accomplishment as their brethren of 

 the modern Athens. It is not frequently heard, nor is it a long, loud, continued hoot, 

 like that of the brown owl ; but occasionally, the usual screech is suddenly interrupted, 

 and succeeded by a single short, croaking, half-choked hoot, as if the barn owl was 

 making an abortive attempt to imitate the note of its congener. Mr. Yarrell cautiously 

 states that u the barn owl screeches, but does not generally hoot,'' and so far I agree 

 with him ; but that it does occasionally hoot, I will maintain even against so redoubted 

 a champion as the Squire of Walton Hall. — F. Holme ; Penzance, October 21, 1844. 

 Note on the occurrence of the Roller in Cornwall. A female specimen of the 

 Roller was shot between the Land's End and St. Sevan's, on the 8th of the present 

 month, the day preceding the late severe gale, and is now in the possession of E. H. 

 Rodd, Esq., of Penzance. It is apparently a bird of the second year, as some of the 

 tail feathers were imperfectly developed, and it presented other marks of the adult 

 plumage not being complete. It was extremely fat, and in good condition : the sto- 

 mach was filled with the remains of Geotrupes stercorarius. The countryman who 

 shot it could give no account of its manners, note &c. — Id. 



Note on the Occurrence of the Black Grouse at Elvedon. On Saturday, October 12, 

 a female of the black grouse (Tetrao tetrix), was picked up dead, at Elvedon, in the 

 mouth of a rabbit-hole. A male bird of this species was seen in an adjoining parish, 

 in the first week of September. I believe this is the first instance of this bird being 

 found in Suffolk. — Alfred Newton ; Stetchworth Vicarage, October 22, 1844. 



Note on the Water-rail. I observe in your September number two articles on the 

 habits of the Water-rail, the one (Zool. 669), expressing a doubt as to whether they 

 breed here, the other (Zool. 669), as to whether they remain here during the winter. 

 With regard to the first, I had the eggs brought to me last May ; they had been found, 

 I believe, on Luy fen, at any rate, not far from this town. With regard to the second, 

 I have, in different years, killed as many as a dozen. On one occasion, I observed 

 one on the only unfrozen patch of water on the fen, which was about double the size 

 of this sheet of paper. I was about ten yards off, concealed by a turfstack, and ob- 

 served its motions, (which were those of a moorhen,) for some time, and at last left it 



