THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



323 



ling (S. semele), High Brown Fritillary 

 (A. adigpe), Azure Blue and Brown Argus 

 (P. adonis and P. agestis). — Ibid. 



Egg Collecting. -I do not know whether 

 other collectors have found it the same, but 

 I think during the past season, the nests of 

 the Greenfinch and Red Backed Shrike 

 were by far the commonest " Hedge " nests 

 of the season. — A. Davis, Junr., High-street, 

 Great Marlow, Bucks. 



Sphinx Convolvuli at Birmingham. — 

 On August 27th, a specimen of Sphinx Con. 

 volvuli was caught by a woman in a court _ 

 in Suffolk Street, Birmingham ; it has since 

 passed into the hands of Mr. Frankli^ 

 Naturalist. — Geo. Y. Wheeldon, Birming- 

 ham. 



Varieties of the Blackbird. — I have 

 recently added to my collection, three very 

 interesting varieties of the Blackbird. The 

 first is very pale grey, nearly white, and is 

 probably a male. I have seen pure white 

 specimens, and should be glad to hear if any 

 person has one they would exchange for 

 other varieties or rare species. The next is 

 an ordinary black male with the upper 

 parts much mottled with patches of white. 

 The third is a reddish clay colour and is 

 probably a female. I am unable to give the 

 locality where any of them were killed. — 

 S. L. Mosely, Huddersfield. 



FLAMBORO' HEAD. 



By S. L. Mosley. 



It is now maDy years since I visited this 

 renowned and much frequented stronghold 

 of some of our native sea-birds. For twenty 

 years previous to the passing of the " Sea- 

 birds Preservation Act," my father visited 

 this headland every summer, and his name 

 is still well-known to most of the old boat- 

 men of the place. 



How well I remember my first visit with 

 him before I was in my 'teens. The bound- 

 less stretch of the mighty ocean ; the 



stupendous cliffs, in some places over a 

 thousand feet in height, with their innu- 

 merable flocks of feathered tenents, were to 

 me objects of the greatest wonder, the like 

 of which I had never dreamed of before. 

 Still fresh upon my memory, too, are the 

 small parties of birds launching out from 

 the cliffs towards the wide expanse of sea, 

 or returning therefrom after a feeding tour 

 with a small glittering fish in their beaks 

 for their newly-hatched young. Then the 

 cry of the young which had gone down to 

 sea still rings familiarly in my ear-" willock, 

 willock, willock." A stroll upon the cliff 

 tops, the discovery of a colony of Burnets, 

 and the quantities of Common Blues, gave 

 me fresh pleasures, the remembrance of 

 which must ever remain. Then when I 

 went down to the beach to go out with a 

 small party of shooters in one of the small 

 crafts locally called "cobbles," O, how 

 anxious ! should I be sea-sick ? Few people, 

 I was told, went on under these high cliffs 

 without being sick, and the probabilities 

 were that I should experience the same 

 sensation. However, I was not sick, though 

 some of the party were so bad that they 

 said they cared not whether the boat sunk 

 or swum. I was never sick, though since 

 I have been on in the same place when the 

 waves have rolled mountains high, dashing 

 with roaring fury against the sturdy rocks, 

 pitching the little bark about like a chip, 

 the crest of each mighty wave splashing 

 over both boat and men, drenching us and 

 filling the boat bottom with water which 

 had to be baled out every now and then. 

 When I last visited this romantic place, ten 

 or a dozen years later, the place was much 

 the same, though a change had come over 

 me. I was prepared for all I saw : I had 

 read and studied the book of nature, and I 

 sought opportunities to verify facts of which 

 I had read in books. My only companion 

 was her who has been my companion since. 

 The weather was fine, and from that time 



