PoREiTT : Collecting Expedition to the New Foeest. 121 



acquainted with either one or the other. The botany is very varied, 

 and doubtless includes many rare plants, but these 1 do not recognise 

 when I see them. We noticed the pretty ivy-leaved bell flower, 

 Wahlenhergia hederacea in some plenty, in one spot ; and Anagallis 

 tenella was abundant. 



Of birds, the hobby, honey-buzzard, and Montagu's harrier all breed 

 in the Forest, though the second mentioned is now becoming very 

 rare. On Sunday afternoon, after I had returned from church, two 

 men brought me a most beautiful young sparrow-hawk, just at that 

 stage of plumage when it looks prettiest. One of them had climbed 

 up to the nest in a tree, but before reaching it the young ones had 

 jumped or flown out ; they had managed, however, to secure this one 

 alive. They evidently thought I should buy it from them, but this I 

 declined, as I did not care to kill small birds as food for it, and more- 

 over had no wish to encourage Sunday birds'-nesting. The tawny 

 owl is very abundant, and the long-eared one breeds not uncommonly, 

 whilst the short-eared species occurs on the heaths in winter. The 

 nightingale is common ; and the rare Dartford warbler occurs, 

 occasionally building in the thick furze bushes on the open heaths. 

 Gold crests are about the firs, and three woodpeckers — the green, 

 spotted, and lesser spotted — are pretty generally distributed, as is 

 also the nuthatch. Herons are common, but unfortunately decreasing, 

 and black game are said still to occur. Two hundred species are 

 reported as occurring in the Forest, and of these 74 are residents. 



Of reptiles the viper is very abundant, both on the open heaths 

 and in the rides of the woods. We frequently saw a boy with his 

 arm in a sling, through the bite of one of them. The vipers vary 

 much in colour, too, some of them being nearly as black as coal, with 

 hardly any trace of the usual markings. We did not notice this form 

 ourselves, but Mr. Tugwell, of Greenwich, saw some when he was 

 there. The common ringed snake is also as common, I was told 

 afterwards, but did not notice it apart from the viper. One day we 

 picked up a very fine slow-worm, and no doubt it is plentiful enough. 



Of the lepidoptera we have said sufficient, so will very briefly 

 glance at some of the other orders. Coleoptera are abundant, and 

 the largest representative of the order, the stag-beetle, was repeatedly 

 found on the palings, or in the road, in front of our cottage ; and 

 another nearly as large, but a different species, was also picked up, 

 'In the sun the beautiful polished green rose beetles were common on 

 the flower heads of Heracleiim SpJiondyliumj or plants of that kind. 

 Neuroptera abounded, and I was very much pleased with the variety 



