348 



NOTES — ORNITHOLOGY. 



December [continued). 



29th. — W., moderate, thick, clouded. 



Asio otus, a couple ; Turdus pilaris, very many ; 

 Alaiida arvensis, tolerable party. 

 30th. — N.E., fresh, thick, clouded, some frost. 



Turdus pilaris, a great flight; Alauda arvensis, small 

 flights; Turdus merula, many during night, also Chara- 

 drius pluvialis and Nume7iius arquata overhead. 

 31st. — N.E., slight, misty. 



Aquila albicilla, one ; Turdiis merula, pretty many ; 

 T. pilaris, very many ; Otocorys alpestris, thousands ; 

 Alauda arvensis, many. 



CORRECTION. 



Under date August 29th and 30th, and September ist, omit 

 Sylvia hortensis, inserted by mistake for Emberiza hortulana. 

 Mr. Gatke writes that the former does not occur so early in the 

 year, and commences to appear about the time that Emberiza 

 horiula7ia begins to disappear. — Eds. 



NO TES— ORNITHOL OGY. 

 Late stay of Swift near Rotherham. — I have to report a late 



appearance of the Swift [Cypselus a/>us), which I think beats the record. Last 

 night (September i6th) one of the members of the Rotherham Naturalists' Society- 

 reported that he had just seen a Swift flying around our parish church. I felt very 

 dubious of the fact, and thought it a case of mistaken identity. On reaching the 

 place, however, I saw the bird many times. It appeared weary, and frequently 

 alighted clinging underneath a projecting ledge of the church only a few yards 

 overhead, leaving no doubt as to the fact that it was a Swift. Have you heard of 

 a later occurrence ?—F. W. Dickinson, Rotherham, September 17th, 1887. 



Grey Plover and Greenshank in Northumberland.— I have 



just obtained a very fine specimen of the Grey Plover {Sqiiatarola helvetica), 

 immature, shot on the Northumberland coast on the 7th September. This bird 

 is sufficiently rare on the Northumbrian coast to be of interest to naturalists. 



An immature specimen of the Greenshank {Totanus glottic) was also shot 

 on this coast on the i6th August. — H. T. Archer, Newcastle-on-Tyne, 15th 

 September, 18S7. 



Kingfisher and Sparro-whawk.— Early this year I was standing by 

 the Fell Beck, I heard a scream of a Sparrowhawk [Accipiter nisits)^ which was 

 in pursuit of a Kingfisher [Alcedo ispida), which on the Hawk nearing 'ducked' 

 into the stream, to be re-pursued on appearing. This occurred several times and 

 no doubt would have ended badly for the Kingfisher had I not interfered to save 

 it. — ^JOE KiRKBY, Brimham, August 1887. 



Extraordinary behaviour of a Kestrel.— On the loth of April a 



Kestrel [Tinnunculus alaudariiis) was observed in hot pursuit of a Pipit, which 

 alighted close to a feeding horse for protection, whereupon the Kestrel perched 

 upon the horse's back for a few moments on look-out for its quarry. — W. Storey, 

 Pateley Bridge, August 1887. 



Naturalist, 



