VERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY SECTION OF THE 
YORKSHIRE NATURALISTS’ UNION. 
Two Meetings were held at the Leeds Institute on November 15th, the 
President, Mr. H. B. Booth, in the Chair. 
The Chairman referred to the great loss that Natural Science had 
sustained since the last Annual Meeting, in the death of Alfred Russel 
Wallace, and Dr. P. L. Sclater. The whole scientific world was still 
under the shadow of the tragic loss of Captain Scott and his party in the 
Antarctic, and although Scott laid no claim to the title of naturalist, he 
shewed deep interest in that study, and his appreciation of its value as an 
important factor in the education and development of character in the 
young. 
The reports of the West and North Ridings were read by Mr. Rilev 
Fortune, and that of the East Riding by Mr. E. W. Wade, 
The meagre returns for the North Riding inadequately represented 
the result of the year’s observations in that area, and arrangements were 
made for their improvement. 
The co-operation of the Vertebrate Recorders of all the affiliated 
Societies of the Union, was also urged. 
Mr. Hewitt observed that the birds on Bempton Cliffs had been for 
3 years, and were still, on the decrease, and that Puffins, Guillemots and 
Razorbills were also suffering in other localities. Was this not due to 
excessive egg collecting by the “ Climbers ? ” Mr. E. W. Wade strongly 
opposed this theory, as, he said, climbing was yearly becoming slacker, 
and some of the ground was never worked. 
Mr. Rosse Butterfield referred to the Grouse disease, which, during 
1913, had been so prevalent on some Yorkshire Moors, while on neigh- 
bouring ground the bags had been highly satisfactory, and birds in good 
.condition. The only explanation he could advance was that the heavy 
rainfall of last year had left the breeding stock so reduced in stamina 
that the disease had made easy and rapid headway. Mr. T. Roose stated 
that on the Bolton Abbey shoot, the birds had been very patchy, some 
normally good ground being quite devoid of birds. Mr. Oxley Grabham 
had heard it stated that a bad sheep year meant a bad grouse year, and in 
several parts of North Yorkshire he had found this to hold good. He 
pointed out that bad weather resulted in malnutritious heather which 
could not but affect the vitality of the grouse. Professor Garstang 
suggested that the birds sent by Mr. Butterfield for examination, and found 
suffering from ‘ gapes ’ should have the parasite identified, as it would be 
of importance to know whether it was the same as that infesting the com- 
mon fowl. 
The Reports of the Wild Birds and Eggs Protection Acts Committee 
were presented by Mr. R. Fortune, and the ‘Mammals, Reptiles, Amphi- 
bians and Fishes Committee,’ by Mr. A. Whitaker. 
The W ild Birds, etc., Committee was re-elected with the addition of 
.Mr. Joshua Wilkinson, of Huddersfield, and the Mammals, etc., Committee 
was re-elected with the addition of Mr. H. B. Booth. 
At the evening meeting Mr. H. Firth shewed a stuffed specimen of a 
strange Duck which had been shot at Greetland in February, 1913. The 
bird was pinioned, obviously an escape from some aviary, and, in the 
opinion of Mr. Grabham, one of the Far Eastern Teals. 
Mr. A. Whittaker shewed a Grey Shrike shot near Barnsley on March 
23rd, 1913. 
Mr. Jasper Atkinson gave a short paper entitled ‘ The Blacktailed 
Godwit and a Camera.’ Previous to his visit to Holland, the lecturer’s 
acquaintance with this former member of our nesting avi-fauna was 
limited to the specimens in the gardens of the Zoological Society. Like 
1914 Jan. 1. 
