ORNITHOLOGICAL REPORT FOR NORFOLK. 125 



fine view of a Peregrine Falcon, which stooped twice at a drake 

 Pochard on the ice, at the second stoop felling it as it rose, and 

 at the same time recovering with wonderful adroitness, just when 

 it seemed as though it must dash itself to pieces on the ice. 



February. 



7th. — Twelve Long-eared Owls counted by Mr. Bird as they 

 flew out of one Scotch fir-tree adjoining Calthorpe Broad, near 

 the sea ; this was a notable number to see in one flock. 



17th. — Luminous Barn-Owls. — Under this date Mr. L. C. 

 Farman writes from Haddiscoe about the shining Owl which was 

 seen there last December (Zool. 1908, p. 135) : — " I have again 

 seen the luminous Owl ; this time it was on a marsh near where 

 I first saw it [on Dec. 25th, 1907]. I endeavoured to get to it, 

 but the ditch was wide, and whilst going round to the gate it 

 moved off across the marshes." The identical bird had been 

 seen shining in the same locality by another observer on 

 Feb. 12th, the week before Mr. Farman encountered it. In a 

 second letter, describing its appearance more fully, Mr. Farman 

 says:— " The light was exceedingly bright, resembling an electric 

 light, but of course more dim as distance widened, but even at a 

 great distance at times it showed very bright." Sufficient 

 evidence has been brought forward to prove that luminosity in 

 nocturnal birds is after all not so very rare a phenomenon, 

 though seldom approaching the exceptional brilliancy of these 

 Norfolk Owls, but often enough to be the origin of a good many 

 will-o'-the-wisp stories. As has been pointed out by Sir Digby 

 Pigott, who was the first to bring these circumstances before 

 naturalists, similar birds have been seen before. It will be re- 

 membered that it was the pair at Twyford, some thirty miles 

 from Haddiscoe, which aroused the chief interest in 1907. They 

 seem to have covered a great deal of ground in their nocturnal 

 wanderings, for one of them was twice seen in March, 1908, 

 at Dereham by Mr. H. Wormald, glowing with exceptional 

 brilliancy. At Twyford a luminous Owl was seen as late as 

 May, 1908. On May 3rd Mr. R. Purdy and Mr. Hegg watched 

 its shining light as it hunted the meadows about 11 p.m. for 

 field-mice ; but it was never seen again though searched for, and 

 Mr. Purdy is of opinion that it moulted its feathers, and with 



