NOTES—ORIGINAL AND SELECTED.
125
on Mr. J. Bateman's estate, about a quarter of a mile west of Brightlingsea
Church. There were forty years ago quite 100 nests, but the felling of the large
trees, the shootings of a cantankerous tenant, and the ravages of the rooks, finally
forced the herons to desert the Wood in 1872. Since that date Mr. Bateman has
tried to encourage their return for many years fruitlessly, but we are now very
glad to hear from him, in a letter dated September 13th, that his meritorious
efforts have succeeded as they deserved. He writes : "It may interest you to
know that in 1892, late in the season, the first pair of herons (for 21 years) bred
in the Heronry Wood here, and hatched out four or five young in June. They
chose an ash tree to build in. This year (1893) five pairs built at the usual time.
Four nests were in one tall old bird-cherry and the fifth in a tall oak ; both close to
trees used by rooks. Some twenty young were hatched, and I have now no
doubt that they have recovered confidence—never being shot at or bullied—and
that they will, as of old, regularly nest at Brightlingsea." We hope that Mr.
Bateman's anticipations will be realised and that the Heronry Wood will merit
its name in the future as in the past. On the flat shires of Mersea this
summer and autumn the sight of herons feeding has been a common and
welcome experience with us ; half-a-dozen or so can generally be seen with a
glass, on the margins of the retreating tide.—Ed.
Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) at Brightlingsea.—Although by no
means an uncommon bird on the Essex coast, particularly near Harwich, it may
be worth noting that the "Essex County Standard" of August 12th records that
"while duck shooting up the Brightlingsea Creek the other day, Messrs. Burck-
hardt, of Rydal Lodge, Clacton-on-Sea, shot a fine specimen of the Cormorant.
It measures from beak to tail 331/2 inches, the expanse of wings being four feet, and
the weight five pounds. The gullet contained, when shot, several eels about a
foot long, some being still alive, while others were partially digested. This bird
is extremely difficult to shoot, owing to the swiftness of its flight and its habit of
taking to the water on the least alarm. The last specimen shot in the locality was
taken two years ago at Maldon. It is now in the hands of Mr. Coleman, of
Holland Road, Clacton-on-Sea, for preservation."
Ruff (Machetes pugnax) near Thorrington.—A ruff in poor plumage was
killed on August 6th, just over the boundary of Brightlingsea and Thorrington.—
John Bateman, Brightlingsea Hall, September 13th, 1893.
Colias edusa, etc., in South Devon.—The editor having informed me that
this butterfly, so common last season in Mersea, was not seen there this year, it
may be of interest to record by way of comparison that at Budleigh Salterton in
South Devon it was the prevailing diurnal lepidopterous insect from about the
middle of August, and was still common at the time of my leaving that place on
September 14th. The specimens first captured were in a perfect condition as
though freshly emerged ; later, of course, they became somewhat worn, but down
to the time of leaving a few perfectly fresh specimens were to be seen on the wing.
It appears to me that this observation indicates that the emergence of the butterfly
extends over a period of some weeks ; this carries with it the conclusion that the
present brood at any rate did not consist of immigrants, but were true natives. I
was informed by a collector that the species had been seen there in June ; this
earlier brood may or may not have consisted of immigrants, it is impossible to
form any decisive opinion on the point without further information. I only saw