294 



THE YOUNG 



NATURALIST, 



Lastly, I may mention that the eggs of 

 such insects as bees, wasps, &c., which live 

 in community, are so carefully laid and 

 jealously guarded, that there is little danger 

 of their being attacked by parasites and 

 other foes. 



A WALK TO STRATFORD- 

 ON-AVON. 



By Geo. F. Wheeldon, Birmingham. 



The other Sunday (the 2nd inst.) I started 

 with a friend to walk to Stratford-on-Avon, 

 a distance of twenty-two miles. We started 

 from here at eight o'clock in the morning, 

 directed our steps to King's Heath, some 

 three miles, and here got on the towing 

 path of the Stratford Canal. One of the 

 first plants I noticed was the herb bennett 

 (Geum urhanum). Although it had almost 

 done flowering, its peculiar seed vessels 

 were to be found in abundance. The most 

 abundant plant here was the bird's-foot 

 trefoil (Lotus coimiculatus). We had not 

 gone many yards before the dog rose (Ilosa 

 canitia), honeysuckle (Lonicer.i j^eryclyme- 

 nuni), and elder (Savibucus nigra,) made 

 their appearance ; but two or three miles 

 further the hedges were nothing but one 

 mass of them, accompanied by the common 

 blackberry (Rubm fructicosa), and the 

 woody nightshade {Solanvm Dulcamara). 

 A little further along on the top of the 

 embankment we found the field poppy 

 (^Papaver Rliceas), the ox-eye daisy yCliry- 

 santhemwn Leucanthemum) , the strawberry- 

 headed and white Dutch clovers {TrifoUv/ni 

 fragiferv/ni and rejpens) ; and in a field at 

 the foot, the crimson clover {Trifolivm in- 

 ca/rnatmn) and yellow rattle ( RJiinantliiis 

 major) in abundance. We now began to 

 pass several detatchments of fishermen, and 

 saw several small roach pulled out as we 

 passed. Another mile brought us to where 

 we found the ladies' bedstraw {Galium 

 veinim) and common speedwell { Veronica 

 officinalis. Hearing a bird fly out of the 



hedge above, I looked up, and found a nest 

 of the chaffinch {Fringilla coslebs) containing 

 a nearly fledged young one and an addled 

 egg. Presently we came to where the canal 

 ran through a deep cutting, whose banks 

 were covered on each side with the furze 

 {Ulex eur opens) , broom {Cytisus sooparius), 

 and the common bracken {Fteris aquilina)^ 

 now some three or four feet high, with the 

 red flowers of the fox-glove {Digitalis pur- 

 purea) picturesquely interspersed. This 

 plant, of course, was to be seen rearing its 

 purple head from amongst all the other 

 herbage in the hedges all the way. In the 

 canal we found in flower the water crow- 

 foot [Ranumuhis aquatilis), the water plan- 

 tain {Alisma plantago), and the yellow flag 

 [Iris Pseudacorus), the latter in abundance. 

 A short distance further, where the canal 

 ran on the level again, we found the knap- 

 weed [Centaur ea nigrescens), the cut-leaved 

 geranium [Geraniutii dissectuTri), and the 

 hedge woundwort ( Stachys sylvatica), while 

 the hedge was one mass of honeysuckle, 

 which scented the path for some yards 

 ahead. While enjoying a quiet pipe for a 

 few minutes, we studied a pocket map to 

 find the nearest way, and found it would be 

 nearer by four miles to leave the canal at 

 Hockley House and take to the main road, 

 a course we decided to adopt, especially as 

 for the last two miles we had been walking 

 over " shag " and small pieces of rock which 

 they had lately put tiown to mend the path, 

 and which was far from pleasant to walk 

 upon. A few yards from the house we found 

 two or three closed flowers of the white 

 campion {Lychnis vespertina), a.nd on a bank 

 some quarter of a mile further, found the 

 male fern {Nephrodiimi filix-mas) growing 

 in all its glory. Under a bridge near here 

 a canal boat was moored for the day, and a 

 few yards from it we saw the boatman cut- 

 ting a supply of grass for fodder. The only 

 butterflies or moths we saw along the canal 

 side were one common white {Pier is rapee), 



