. British birds. Birds. nOTES. BIRDS' METHOD OF EATING BUTTERFLIES. \\ rrii regard to Mr. C. I. Evans's query in the Deceinl)er (1914) number (Vol. VIII., p. 171),one evening in August, 1904, I watched a pair of Stonechats {Saxicola t. hihernans) near Beachy Head catching chalk-hill blue butterflies {Agriades corydon), and feeding their fully-fiedged young on them, in an elder tree. After catching the butterflies they settled on a branch and nipped the wings off. The ground under the tree was strewn with the severed wings. On July 2Sth. 1909, at Heme Bay Station. Kent. I watched a pair of Hous
. British birds. Birds. nOTES. BIRDS' METHOD OF EATING BUTTERFLIES. \\ rrii regard to Mr. C. I. Evans's query in the Deceinl)er (1914) number (Vol. VIII., p. 171),one evening in August, 1904, I watched a pair of Stonechats {Saxicola t. hihernans) near Beachy Head catching chalk-hill blue butterflies {Agriades corydon), and feeding their fully-fiedged young on them, in an elder tree. After catching the butterflies they settled on a branch and nipped the wings off. The ground under the tree was strewn with the severed wings. On July 2Sth. 1909, at Heme Bay Station. Kent. I watched a pair of House-Sparrows (Passer d. domcsticus) bring meadow- brown butterflies {Epinephele janira) to their yovmg in a nest in the ornamental ironwork at the top of one of the platform posts. Before feeding the young they severed the wings, which floated down to the platform. I have made observations for a number of years and in most cases have found that l)ir(ls nip off the wings of butterflies and moths before eating the bodies. C. W. Colthrup. ADDER EATING YOUNG BIRDS. At the foot of the Downs near Folkestone, I have from time to time had under observation a luunber of nests of small birds, built on and in the sides of a bank, and had often been unable to account for the sudden disappearance of the young until one evening I found the solution. While walking along this bank I met a fisherman with an adder on the end of a ])iece of string. He had been Avatching a Skylark's nest in the hope of taking the fully-Hedged young, and on visiting the nest found that the adder had killed the four young, and had already swallowed one, which could be seen iialf-way down its body. C. W. Coi/nuur. RUSTIC BUNTINC; IX SUSSEX. A MALE Rustic Bunting [Emheriza rnstica) was shot at Westfield, Sussex, on December 4th, 1914. There are two previous records for the county, one near Brighton, October 2:ird. ISOT, and one. also at Westfield. on September 22nd. ]<H)2. J. B. Please note that these image
Size: 1462px × 1708px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookpublisherl, booksubjectbirds
