ESSEX PRE-ORNITHOLOGY. 7
Red-throated Diver. Colymbus stellatus Pontopp. Sub-
Arctic, Lea Valley (Bell).
PRE-ROMAN.
The knowledge under this head is the most recently obtained
and is to be found in a paper, The Domestic Fowl in pre-Roman
Britain, by Miss D. M. A. Bate, published in 1934. The author
states that the theory that the Domestic Fowl was first intro-
duced into Britain by the Romans is still commonly expressed,
even although Boyd Dawkins in 1874 had pointed out that the
domestic fowl had been recognised on Gallic coins. This state-
ment, although suggestive, did not appear to have been sup-
ported by osteological specimens. The author claims that the
necessary dated evidence has now been found. Since 1930
important excavations of British and early Roman settlements
near Colchester have been carried out. A considerable number
of animal bones was obtained and included a small number
of bird-bones, representing the following five species:
1. Corvus corax L.; 2. Buteo buteo (L.); 3. Ardea cinerea L.;
4. Cygnus ? bewicki Yarrell; 5. Gallus sp.
This small collection is of great value as twenty-two of the
twenty-five specimens are definitely dated as they were obtained
from a sealed pit known as Ditch I (Lift 4), and were associated
with objects of Belgic-British culture of the half century ending
A.D. 43 at latest. Two other bones may perhaps be of the same
age, for they were included in the material sealing the ditch ;
the third bone, that of a Swan, is from a level (Pit I) dateable
A.D. 25-50.
Twenty of the bones are those of Ravens and the author
argues that probably these birds were present in considerable
numbers. Bewick's Swan and the Common Buzzard are re-
presented by one bone each and the Heron by two bones. It
is claimed, however, that the most valuable specimen is the
anterior half of the sternum of a domestic fowl, which was
obtained from the sealed Ditch I. The only other gallinaceous
birds in this country, the sterna of which might be confused
with the one from Colchester, are Black-Game and Pheasant.
It is pointed out that the Pheasant is not definitely known as
a pre-Roman inhabitant of Britain. We are informed that
very careful comparison has been made of the sterna of these