He spent hours playing with his waterwheels, changing their shapes and 
     
     sizes, the number of paddles, and the position of the wheel in the waterfall. 
     
    

    
     He would leave the wheel spinning in the evening, and would run down the 
     
     next morning before leaving for schbol. He was always delighted to find the 
     
     wheel still going, and would marvel that the little wheel had been turning all 
     
     night long when he had been asleep! 
     
    

    
     He soon grew out of his play with the waterwheel, and the spring became 
     
     overgrown and forgotten; but all his life, whenever he came across a new 
     
     spring, he would imagine just how a mud dam could be built, with a flat stone 
     
     to form a waterfall, with the little wheel placed beneath it to spin the hours 
     
     away, throwing off a spray of shining drops and singing its pattering song. 
     
    
   
   
    
     UNUSUAL REDPOLL by Ray Cooke 
     
    
   
   
    
     On February 10, 1992 just outside the Brackley entrance to the P.E.I. 
     
     National park, four Common Redpolls were seen feeding on alder cones. within 
     
     a few minutes, they were joined by three other birds from a‘flock passing by. 
     
     One of these birds was noticeably more pale than the birds with it. 
     
    

    
     The pale bird was studied for several 
     
     minutes from a variety of angles as it moved 
     
     through the alders. The pale colour of the 
     
     bird was first noted when the bird joined 
     
     the feeding group. Using 7 X 35 binoculars 
     
     .and a 25 X spotting soope, the bird was 
     
     studied from a distance of 35 to 40 feet at 
     
     11:00 a.m. on a sunny day. Field notes were 
     
     made during the observation period and 
     
     shortly afterwards. 
     
    

    
     The bird had a much brighter 
     
     appearance than that of the birds it was 
     
     with, which appeared more dusky. The brown 
     
     streaks along the nape and mantle were finer 
     
     when compared to those of the other birds and, between the stripes, the birds' 
     
     had a much cleaner white. The redpoll in question had much less streaking on' 
     
     its sides and the pair of streaks it did have were fine and extended down the 
     
     flanks to the level of the primary coverts. »The other birds had heavier 
     
     streaking which extended the full length of their flanks.' The rump of the 
     
     pale bird was seen very well as the bird used its tail to help keep balanced 
     
     as it fed.’ At times, the bird was upside down with its tail toward me and the 
     
     rump was well exposed. The manner of feeding from the alder cones gave 
     
     several good looks at the rump of this bird and those of the birds with it. 
     
     The pale bird was noted to have a white rump where the others had brown 
     
     obviously streaked rumps. The ear coverts were noted to be a more even tawny 
     
     colour while the other birds had uneven, more brownish ear coverts. The pale 
     
     bird also appeared to have a very faint eye-ring when compared to those of the 
     
     other birds. Red colouration was confined to the forehead and crown and was 
     
     not noted to be less extensive than found on the other six redpolls. The 
     
     yellow bill appeared small and stubby but did not seem to be much smaller than 
     
     that of the others. Undertail coverts were not noted at the time. 
     
    

    
     V This pale redpoll seems to be a Hoary Redpoll. Unfortunately, pictures 
     
     were not obtained at the time. 
     
    
   
   
    
       
     
    
   
   
    
     Editor's Note: Ray's excellent description of this sighting provides the 
     
     necessary information for species documentation. The Society has blank forms 
     
     available on request or utilize the list on the newest Checklist's inner 
     
     cover. These completed documentation forms are used to update the check list. 
     
    
   
   
    
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