00 



other small insects unidentified, 9 consignments, the 

 beaks of the birds being generally well filled ; 1 myria- 

 pod (Gcophilus sp., possibly G. longicornis) ; 2 small 

 earthworms and 1 large " lobworm" entire; 7 small 

 molluscs and 1 large one (?Zonites cellarius) ; 14 lots of 

 bread ; 2 large pieces of cooked bacon. 



403. Food of Nestling Young accidentally dropped from the 

 Nest by Parent Birds. — As a rule the parent birds were most 

 careful not to drop the food outside the nest, but on a few 

 occasions a portion of the meal fell accidentally from their 

 beaks,* and on two occasions the birds attempted to regain it. 

 Both the chrysalids or pupae of the Yellow Underwing Moth 

 (Triphaena pronuba) (No. 401) fell to the ground as they were 

 being passed to the young. It is just possible that they were 

 rejected by the nestlings, but of this I could not be quite certain. 

 They were brought in separately. The other objects which 

 were obtained in this way were : — 



3 shells of the mollusc Zonites cellarius ; 1 St. Mark's Fly 

 (Bibio marci) ; 2 crane fly larvae (Tipula spp.), 1 being 

 a fully-developed example of the destructive T. oleracea ; 

 1 larva of the Mottled Umber Moth (Hybernia defoliaria) ; 

 1 dung beetle (Sphaeridium scarabceoides) ; 2 earwigs 

 (Forficula auricularia) . 

 These records are of great value as confirming the observa- 

 tions given in the previous records. 



404. Fceces of Nestling Young ; same locality as previous 

 records ; yth June. — Occasionally the encapsuled faeces of the 

 young were dropped immediately below the nest or on the lawn 

 a few yards away. The examination of these did not yield 

 very satisfactory results, but the following animals were 

 identified : — 



1 brown slug (Limax agrestis)^ ; 1 head of a Geodephagous 

 beetle ; 2 wing cases of a large weevil ; 1 wing case of 

 the red dung beetle (Aphodius ? fimetarius) ; many 

 heads of moth larvae ; a large quantity of fragments , of 

 plant remains. 



* It is highly probable that the loss of these was occasioned by my presence in 

 such close proximity to the nest, though I was careful to screen myself as much as 

 possible. 



+ This animal was quite perfect, and still retained its colour pattern ; no portion 



of it had been digested ! 



