188 MR. J. H. GURNEY ON THE GREAT WHITE HERON. 
One. Seen at Port Carlisle, on the Solway, in 1840 (‘Naturalist’s 
Library, Birds,’ vol. iii. p. 135), lout since thought to have been a 
Spoonbill (‘Zoologist,’ 1888, p. 330). The genuine occurrence, 
which took place the summer before in the Firth of Forth, to be 
afterwards mentioned, may have given rise to this later report. 
Two. Seen in Orkney, ‘Birds of West Scotland,’ p. 277. 
One. Seen at Penzance, Feb. 4th, 1866, ‘ Cornish Fauna,’ p. 27. 
One. Seen at Scilly : Gould, ‘Birds of Great Britain.’ 
One. Obtained in Norfolk, ‘Birds of Norfolk,’ vol. ii. p. 149. 
This specimen has the appearance of having been stuffed very 
many years, and its antecedents are very doubtful. 
Two. Obtained at Yarmouth, fide Miller, ‘ Birds of Norfolk,’ 
vol. ii. p. 149. Very doubtful. 
One. Obtained at New Hall, Yorkshire, in 1821, by John 
S. Townend ; communicated by Dr. Farrow to Mr. T. Allis : 
(Morris, ‘British Birds,’ vol. iv. p. 115; ‘Yorkshire Vertebratae,’ 
p. 50). Stated to have been former]}' in Sir Joseph Badcliffe’s 
collection, but I am informed it is not there now. 
One. Seen at Komney in Kent, February 1849, ‘Zoologist,’ 
p. 2419. 
One. Obtained in Cambridgeshire, June 1849, fide F. W. 
Foster (‘Zoologist,’ 1849, p. 256S) ; and J. B. Little (Morris, 
‘ British Birds,’ vol. iv. p. 115); and C. J. Strong (Gould, ‘Birds 
of Great Britain ’). This bird is preserved at Thorpe Hall, 
Peterborough, where I have had an opportunity of seeing it, and 
the farmer who shot it is still alive. It is an adult, having fine 
dorsal plumes. 
At page 123 of ‘ The Vertebrates of Leicestershire and Butland ’ 
mention is made of a “ White Heron,” shot at Groby many years 
ago, which had black legs and a yellow bill, and elongated crest. 
Ardea cinerea never has black legs, which A. alba has, and on the 
other hand A . alba has no elongated crest. Mr. Harting’s way out of 
the difficulty is that it was a Spoonbill (‘ Zoologist,’ 1886, p. 197), 
which has a pale beak when not adult. Whatever the bird was it 
was shot by a keeper named Chaplin, who is also credited with 
two Harlequin Ducks (! !) at the same pool (t.c. p. 134). Verily a 
fortunate sportsman. 
Thus we have, including what are given in Harting’s Hand- 
book, thirty-three so-called occurrences, from which we may 
