NATURAL HISTORY NOTES 
33 
We have also a young yellow (abby cat, and one morning, the blue aristocrat find- 
ing his friend on the dining room hearth-rug, went to him and gave him a pat, 
whereupon both went to the side of the room where the picture hangs. The yellow 
cat did not, however, look up, and the blue gave him another pat, which had the 
effect of directing his eyes to the portrait, and they both gazed at it. Later in the 
day I found the yellow one again gazing, having got on the sofa to have a nearer 
view. 
Clifton, M. K. I'. S. 
fanuary, 1902. 
A Retrieving Collie. — Having read in Naturk Notes some instances of 
the cleverness of dogs, I think the following may be interesting. We have a 
sheep dog (whose mother is a pure-bred collie) just two years old, who retrieves 
game of all kinds well, and is much quicker on his birds than any retriever, and 
has an excellent nose. With running birds on a bad scenting day he is most steady 
and painstaking. The other day he retrieved some wounded wild duck out of 
water, though they mystified him a good deal when they dived. I must add that 
as a puppy of a few months old, he used to retrieve a glove or a stick, and even 
would find a penny in the long gr.ass. Since then he has been most useful to me 
out .shooting. 
fanuary 6, 1902. F. R. Gkeen. 
Tengmalm’s Owl. — During a strong north-east wind here I discovererl, one 
morning a fortnight ago, a Tengmalm’s owl cowering on the ground in a corner of 
my premises on the beach, I suppose just arrived from over sea. He let me 
pick him up in my hands and carry him indoors, where I have since caged off 
half a room for him. After some forty-eight hours’ fast he took kindly to “ lights,” 
and has grown quite tame, suffering me to-day to hammer nails into the wall 
within six inches of him, in erecting a perch, without troubling to move. He is a 
beautiful little bird. He seems to be quite unperturbed by any amount of noi.se, 
and except for a little clicking when I first picked him up I have not heard him 
utter a sound. He never moves from one place without first looking coolly 
round to see where he will lodge next, flies so quietly that unless you watch you 
are not aware when he moves. But this stealthiness, I suppose, is common to 
all owls. 
Southwold, Suffolk, L. C. Grubbe. 
November 12, 1901. 
Do young and old wild Birds lay small Eggs ? — A correspondent 
asks me the above question. Personally I am of the opinion that most young 
wild birds lay normal-sized eggs, else how is it that during the nesting season one 
comes across so few undersized specimens ? As regards old wild birds, it is 
generally understood, I believe, that fowls when aged do lay small eggs, but as to 
wild birds it appears a difficult matter to decide. I have, however, submitted 
this question to a very practical bird’s-nester resident in Scotland, and also to a 
local professional naturalist, both of whom state that they agree with my corre- 
spondent’s comments ; also that young wild birds’ eggs are smaller and the 
clutches larger than where normal-sized eggs are laid. 
St. Albans, W. Percival Westell, M.B.O.U. 
fanuary, 1902. 
Does the same wild Bird build a similar Nest each Year ? — 
Another correspondent raises this interesting query. My own experience leads 
me to give a reply in the negative ; but again my Scottish friend states that birds 
which continue in the same locality will build with the same materials. I have 
only space to record one instance recorded to me. A hedge-sparrow’s nest was 
found in a rather exposed situation. The nest was composed of bents outside and 
internally of moss, lined with large white feathers. The nest was removed and 
the spot visited regularly. In about a week another nest was found within a few 
feet of the former one, again lined with white feathers and built of bents and 
mos.s. There was a farm about 200 yards away which would account for the 
feathers, but other hedge-sparrows closer to the farm had not used any in lining 
