350 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
NOLES AND 40 U ERLE Ss 

AVES. 
Nesting of the Lesser Redpoll (Linota rufescens) in Sussex.—Last 
year I reported the undoubted nesting of the Lesser Redpoll in the 
parish of Maresfield (Zool. 1907, p. 352), and am pleased to say 
that a pair again nested at the same spot this year. I first saw Red- 
polls there on May 19th, when there were either four or five appa- 
rently engaged in courtship. On the 21st there was one pair, the 
female collecting materials for building, which consisted of fine dead 
twigs of birch and willow-down, and on the 26th I discovered the nest 
in a small birch tree. On the 30th the female was sitting, but I did 
not examine the contents of this nest, thinking that any damage done 
to the tree would be likely to lead to its detection. I regret to say 
that the nest was robbed of the young birds somewhere between June 
18th and 25th. However, as the birds remained in the vicinity, it 
seemed most probable to me that they would make another attempt 
to bring off a brood, and though I quite failed to find the nest, yet the 
female was there with the young birds on Aug. 4th. There need be 
very little doubt that others have bred in the immediate district, and 
on July 25th I met with a cock bird at a spot in the parish of Fram- 
field, where the Lesser Redpoll has only been seen by me during the 
winter months hitherto.—Rosertr Morris (Uckfield, Sussex). 
Early Flocks of Starlings.—Referring to the note on this subject 
(ante, p. 312), I do not consider June 21st an early date for young 
Starlings to be seen in flocks. In this part of the country the Starling 
is the first bird to gather into small flocks. Directly the young broods 
leave the nests they follow the old ones into the fields, and they prefer 
small grass fields surrounded by tall hedgerows. Here they meet 
with other broods, with which they join company, and as day after 
day other broods emerge the flocks grow to some size. It is now a 
good many years since I first noted down these facts. In 1884 young 
birds flew on May 18th, and I saw a flock of sixty or seventy birds on 
June 9th. In the previous year the young broods were following the 
old ones on May 23rd. In 1890 I saw a small flock of twenty or 
twenty-five as early as May 24th. With us the Peewit is the next 
