on 
five hundred birds; and on the morning of the 17th, I heard of 
fifteen hundred being netted by one bird-catcher on a farm at 
Melbourne, near Royston, Cambridgeshire, a distinct flight evi- 
dently by the date, from the “ millions ” seen passing along the 
Sussex coast on the same day. In our open districts there seems 
to have been a sensible decrease in the number of blackbirds and 
song thrushes observed after the first setting in of the sharp 
weather, most of them, after despoiling the trees and shrubs of their 
berries, most likely quitting this county for more southern quarters ; 
but a singular circumstance has come to my knowledge, on author- 
ity 1 can scarcely question, respecting these birds in the exposed 
parts of West Norfolk, about Westacre. The rabbit-catchers 
employed on that estate, especially on Massingham Heath and 
Walton Field, where but little shelter is afforded by trees or fences, 
excused themselves for the small quantity of rabbits taken during 
the frost and snow, by stating that such numbers of blackbirds and 
thrushes had sought shelter and died during the inclement weather 
in the burrows, that the ferrets “ laid up ” in these well stored 
larders, and could not bo induced to work their usual prey. 
Bramblings do not appear to have visited us in more than their 
usual numbers, and snow buntings, so abundant in the mild winter 
of 1873 — 4, have appeared only in their ordinary winter flocks on 
the coast, or a few stragglers inland. Kingfishers have suffered, as 
they always do in a prolonged frost, and far too many found their 
way to our bird stuffers’ shops ; but amongst the waders I missed 
in our streets and markets the usual bunches of dunlins exposed 
for sale, though on Breydon and other waters near the sea, the 
gunners were active and numerous. On the other hand, I have 
seldom seen so many golden and green plovers as were brought to 
our game dealei*s during the frost, and both on the coast and inland 
I have heard of considerable flocks seen of both species. How 
these birds subsisted during the deep snow on our open fields and 
heaths, I cannot imagine, but there they were ; and on the 22nd 
of December, Mr. Gurney was informed that “innumerable quan- 
tities ” of both golden and green plovers frequented the fields near 
the sea at Sherringham. There was a singular dearth of wild fowl 
in the Norwich market throughout the hard weather, and with 
the exception of a female merganser and a red-throated diver 
or two, we had no sea fowl, but I understand that a game- 
