Short Botes imb Queries. 



Cardnus eriophorus. — 1 have to thank Mr. Webster for correcting my 

 error as to this plant not having been recorded for South-East Yorkshire. 

 It was scarcely likely that so conspicuous a plant should have escaped 

 notice. I have not Baines's "Flora " by me ; but it is not given in 

 " Topographical Botany," nor mentioned specially for the East Riding in 

 Baker's Supplement. In the south of England I have noticed the stems 

 of this thistle to be commonly inhabited by a white grub, which eats the 

 pith, and finally, having gone through the pupa stage, perforates the 

 stalk (I do not know how), and emerges as a small slender-bodied moth 

 with forewings, white spotted with black, ermine-fashion. — H. F. 

 Parsons. [Halonota sciitulana feeds in thistle stems in the manner 

 stated above, but the moth is brown with white blotch ; it is common 

 in the north of England as weU as the south. — Eds. Nat.'\ 



The Common" Scoter. — On the 10th of August I shot a nice specimen 

 of the common scoter {Oidemia nigra?), a male bird, in the Ryburne 

 valley ; it was evidently an adult, and in very good plumage. This 

 species is not common in this part of Yorkshire, though occasionally 

 observed — one having been shot in this district a coujile of years ago. 

 Being such excellent divers, and able to swim a long distance under water, 

 and seldom remaining many seconds on the surface when distiu'bed, makes 

 them rather difficult to shoot. The bird is being preserved. — F. G. S. 

 Rawson, Thorpe, Halifax. 



Spring Migrants. — In Mr. Butteifield's list of spring migrants I 

 notice the yellow hammer and the pied wagtail. May I ask if these two 

 birds are absent in winter in the district from which Mr. Butterfield 

 writes ? Both of them are constantly resident here (Lofthousej. The 

 latter-mentioned is said to leave the inland parts of the country and to 

 resort to the coast in winter, but I have observed them here in the fallows 

 in all the winter months. May not the accession of wagtails on the coast 

 in winter be from Norway or some other northern country 1 — George 

 Roberts, Lofthouse, Wakefield. 



Stonechat. — Since my note on this bird in the March number, I have 

 been anxiously looking for further information concerning its habits in 

 the Huddersfield and Halifax districts. Mr. Yarley contends that the 

 stonechat is only an accidental visitor, and not a breeder. I notice that 

 it is entered in Mr. Hobkirk's work (2nd ed.) as remaining all the year 

 round ; it therefore must breed, otherwise Mr. Hobkirk is wrong. It is 

 not conceivable that a species should remain permanently in a district 

 and not breed. In this instance we have two excellent observers residing 

 in one and the same district giving us contradictory information. It is 

 not with a view of re-opening a dispute, but rather to elicit further details 

 respecting the economy of the bird, that I have recurred to the subject. 

 If any readers of the Natwcdist have made any observations during the 

 past season, I hope they will favour us with an account of them ; a little 

 more light seems desirable. — George Roberts, Lofthouse, Wakefield. 



