480 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
is a young bird, readily distinguished from the adults by the absence of © 
bright orange-red on the beak. It is thus not beyond the bounds of possi- 
bility that a brood was reared in the immediate vicinity.—CuHarues F: 
ARCHIBALD (Rusland Hall, Ulverston). 
Pectoral Sandpiper in Kent.—I had the pleasure of exhibiting, at the - 
last meeting of the British Ornithologists’ Club, the first Kentish specimen 
of the Pectoral Sandpiper (T’ringa maculata). The bird was shot, from a 
flock of Dunlin, on Aug. 2nd last, along the seashore between Lydd and 
Rye Harbour ; it is an adult male, and its dimensions agree almost exactly 
with those of Mr. Gurney’s Norfolk specimen given in Stevenson’s ‘ Birds 
of Norfolk,’ vol. 11. p. 870. The bird is the property of Mr. Whiteman, of 
Rye, to whom I am indebted for allowing me to examine and exhibit it.— 
N. F. Ticenurst (Winstowe, St. Leonards-on-Sea). 
Notes on the Nesting of the Nuthatch. —In this district at all 
seasons of the year the Nuthatch (Sitta c@sia) is tolerably abundant, and 
for years past I have annually, and in some instances accidentally, discovered 
the nests of from twelve (minimum) to twenty or more of this species ; the 
past breeding season I paid more attention to the loud “ twit twit” of this 
bird as it darted rapidly from branch to branch, resting occasionally to peep 
at the bold intruder who ventured so near the favoured breeding place. By 
remaining perfectly still for a short time, the nest was in most cases easily 
discovered, and I can safely and unmistakably assert that the Nuthatch 
(Sitta cesia) does not in every instance, as is generally supposed, fill up the 
selected natural cavity, whether in tree or wall, with clay and stones; out 
of nineteen nests found by me this year, situated from three to twenty feet 
from the ground, only two possessed the clay ; one of these had, in addition 
to the clay, a quantity of small particles of stone plastered against the bole 
surrounding the nesting hole. All the others had not the slightest sign of 
mud, clay, or stones. The eggs, removed by the aid of a specially con- 
structed spoon, were again replaced upon the loose nesting material, and 
occasionally resembled boldly blotched specimens of Parus major. At 
every nest I identified one or the other of the parent birds. Sometimes by 
gently tapping near a suspicious-looking hole, the sitting bird would quickly 
leave its nest and call its mate, hitherto unheard, with that unmistakable 
and quickly repeated ‘‘ twit twit” of the species. At one nest visited late 
in the evening, and containing young, both parent birds entered the 
nesting hole, and, after remaining quietly until long after the Nightjar had 
commenced his evening “churr,” I retired from the spot, concluding that 
in this instance at least the Nuthatch had not gone to roost back down- 
wards.—STanLey Lewis (Mount Pleasant, Wells). 
Irregular Nesting Sites,—In corroboration of Mr. Stanley Lewis's 
