14 
THE NATURALISTS’ JOURNAL. 
whereas my intention was just the reverse of this, and I would 
seem to have made the remarkable statement that an aestival 
bird occurs here especially in winter. Curious, however, as it 
may seem, and at variance with what the books say, it seems to 
be, nevertheless, a fact that the hobby was seen in this county 
in winter! My authority for this is the naturalist aforesaid. 
In a very interesting letter communicated by him to the 
“ Newmarket Journal,” of February 19th, 1892, he says, “ two 
or more of the fine old buzzards have been seen during the last 
few days in the neighbourhood of Newmarket ” and also, 
“ several of the beautiful little hobby hawks have been seen at 
Newmarket lately,” 
In a letter from Mr, Wm, Howlett—the naturalist referred to 
above—and which communication lies before me, he says : 
“ The hobby was rather common in this district last year. I 
had three if not more sent me. I really cannot say the exact 
date but somewhere about March. One was picked up in a 
large field where coursing was going on, it had either been 
shot or struck with something that injured it very much. Two 
I had from the Soham or Wicken fen.” 
So there is no doubt that a small number of hobbies were to 
be seen in Cambridgeshire in February and March last year. 
At the time, as my readers may remember, the weather was 
very wintry and we had snow up to Easter, 
It may perhaps be as well to say that with such an experienced 
naturalist as Mr, Howlett there can be no doubt that they were 
hobbies and not merlins ; besides he had “ three or more ” in 
his hands, so could not possibly be mistaken. 
The occurrence of the hobby in the early part of the year is 
not unprecedented, for Mr. Montague Brown in his “ Notes on 
the Vertebrate Animals of Leicestershire,” (Zoologist, vol. X, 
page 166) writes of it having been seen at Rothley in March, 
1880. 
PASSERES, Confirmed. 
I omitted to mention the golden oriole [Oriolus galbula\ as I 
have not myself been fortunate enough to come across a 
specimen in this county, but in a letter to me dated June 6th, 
1893, Mr. Wm. Howlett, of Newmarket, informs me that he 
had a specimen about three weeks previously. It would seem, 
then, that this bird of tropical plumage, so very rare in Britain, 
may be added to the list of the summer visitants to Cambridge¬ 
shire. 
The ring ouzel (Turdiis fotquafus) flies across the county on its 
way to and from its northern breeding ground, but so far I have 
not come across its nest within the limits of this district. 
Hedge accentors or “hedge warblers” [Accentor modnlaris), 
u hedge sparrows ” in schoolboy parlance, are common in the 
