172 THE YOUNG 



position. Saw a number of Wood Pigeons 

 Hurst. I believe they migrate from these 

 parts in the winter time. While I was 

 gathering fern leaves for pressing, I heard 

 a peculiar noise as though it were raining. 

 At every step there would be a clicking 

 sound. I found out that it was caused by 

 a number of little white insects jumping 

 through the grass. 



February 5. Gnats were out in abun- 

 to-day. In frosty weather C. ciliaris hides 

 in houses, and G. nemorosus hides under 

 leaves and bark of trees. Gnats, like fleas, 

 prefer certain people to others for their 

 attacks. Some people they hardly ever bite. 

 A friend of mine says whenever gnats are 

 about he is bound to bitten by them. They 

 make very large and irritable blisters on 

 his hands and face. — W. H. Bath. 



Insects • Captured at Harwich. — On 

 March the 9th I went mothing for the first 

 time this season, having been laid up with 

 bronchitis. I feared I was too late for the 

 winter moths, but I found them fairly abun- 

 dant. Oi H ru/picaprcLJ^a I captured two; 

 if. jprogeimiaricb, two. On the nth, K. 

 rupica])ra/ria, one ; H. jprogemmaria^ one ; 

 and T.gothicay one. On the 13th, H rupi- 

 capraria, five ; H. progemmaria, six. On 

 the 14th, H. rn^pica^raria, four ; and H. 

 jprogemmaria, four. I might have taken 

 many more of H. 7'ujpicapraria, those I took 

 were apparently freshly emerged. At sallow 

 bloom on the 13th I took one T. instahilis, 

 four T. stabilis ; on the 14th, three T stabilis, 

 one T. rubricosa, and one A. ceseularia Q ; 

 on the 15th, two T stabilis; on the i6th, 

 three T. stabilis, two of which deposited eggs 

 in the pill boxes. — F. Kerry, Harwich. 



Birmingham Notes. — February 18. Cratue- 

 gus oxyacantha. Saw two or three pieces of 

 hawthorn in leaf at Edgbas on. On the 24th I 

 saw three or four large patches in leaf at 

 Erdington. I believe a piece was found in 

 flower at Xmas by a farmer. This was very 

 unusual. 



NATUEALIST. 



Salix caprca. — Saw a sallow in flower in a 

 sheltered position at Cannon Hill Park. 

 Some others in the park were not even in 

 bud. Also saw one in flower in the Pebble 

 Mill Fields next day. 



Betula alba. — Saw two or three silver 

 beeches in flower in Cannon Hill Park. 



Passer domesticus — Saw a house sparrow 

 building under the eaves of the boat-house in 

 the park. 



Hybernia progemmaria. — Caught three on 

 two lamps within a few yards of each other 

 in the Pershore Eoad on the 24th February. 

 They were all three varieties ; one a very 

 light one, another the same as No. 2 figured 

 on pi. 2 of vol. iii. of the Y.N., the other was 

 variety Fuscata. On page 103 of vol. iii. you 

 say this variety is not known in the south; 

 but they are not uncommon round here in 

 the midlands. I also took a female on some 

 palings at Cannon Hill Park on the 26th 

 February.— Geo. F. Wheeldon, 6, Newhall 

 Street, Birmingham. 



Note on the Abundance of Nyssia 

 Zonaria on the Lancashire & Cheshire 

 Coast this Season. — Some years ago this 

 species was exterminated on the New 

 Brighton and Wallasey Sandhills, and I 

 determined to re-introduce it, so went to 

 Lytham, at the mouth of the river Ribble, 

 and collected a number of females, and put 

 them out on the Lancashire coast, from 

 Churchtov/n, north of Stockport, and 

 especially in my rabbit warren at Formby, 

 along the coast by Hightown to Crosby on 

 the Lancashire coast, and afterwards I put 

 a few eggs on the Chesire coast at Wallasey, 

 in quiet hollows where I knew they would 

 be safe for some time. Later on I found 

 a strong colony at " North Meols," near 

 Hoylake, whilst shooting, and secured a 

 good supply of females, these I distributed 

 along the coast as I traversed the sand- 1 

 hills all the way to Wallasey, and there I 

 left the balance of my gathering in what is 

 known as the " Great Flat." Our collectors 



