CORVIDAE—NUTCRACKER.
131
garded as rare and accidental stragglers. The first of the two follow-
ing records of its occurrence in Essex may, from the description
given, be accepted, but the second is very doubtful.
Mr. John Cordeaux, a
member of the British As-
sociation Migration Com-
mittee, writes as follows (40.
185): " In a migration sche-
dule received this morning
from Mr. Owen Boyle, of
the Landguard Light-house,
is the following entry :—
'April 2nd, 1888 : Two
Crows put in an appear-
ance, 7.30 a.m. ; larger than
Jackdaws ; they had red
beaks and legs, and went
north-west.' "
In Stifford and Its Neigh-
bourhood, by the Rev. W.
Palin, occurs the following
under West Tilbury:—" There were at that time [1840] 'the Chough,' and of
course the Crow and Herons. All (except the Crow) are happily being frightened
away by the plough," There is probably some mistake here. West Tilbury is
not a place at all likely ever to have been frequented by Choughs. Mr. Palin,
however, again alludes to the subject in More About Stifford (p. 45), saying that
the Chough was " common enough here only thirty years ago."
Nutcracker: Nucifraga caryocatactes.
A rare and irregular straggler to Britain during autumn. The
only records I have of its occurrence in Essex are the following :
Dr. Bree writes (29. May 7, 1870), " I have lately heard of three unrecorded
cases of the capture of Nutcrackers in this neighbourhood in the month of
September, ten or twelve years ago. They were all shot in the same locality and
about the same time. I saw one of them a few weeks ago." One of the speci-
mens thus recorded is now in the Colchester Museum, to which it was presented
by the late Dr. Maclean, as I understand on the authority of Dr. Laver. The
following interesting note from Mr. C. Nicholls of Bovill's Hall, Ardleigh, who
has another of the specimens, gives all the details of the occurrence which seem
to have been preserved :—
" The Nutcracker in my possession was shot by myself one day when I was
out Partridge shooting in the month of September, in Horkesley parish, consider-
ably more than thirty years ago. There was only one bird seen when I shot
this ; but within a short time, two more were seen in the neighbourhood, and
one shot by Mr. Osborne's keeper in Ardleigh parish. The other was shot in
the neighbourhood, but I am uncertain where. For a long time no one knew
what bird it was, but on showing it to the late Dr. Bree he told me it was a
Nutcracker. I had it stuffed in Colchester, and I think by Mr. Ambrose."
Mr. Ambrose himself has informed me that this was the case, and that he
also preserved the specimen shot in Ardleigh parish, which was killed by a man
K 2