USS Pochard (AM-375) USS Pochard (AM-375) USS "Pochard" (AM-375) was an acquired by the United States Navy for the dangerous task of removing mines from minefields laid in the water to prevent ships from passing. "Pochard" was named after the pochard, a heavy-bodied diving duck. "Pochard" was laid down by Savannah Machine and Foundry Co., Savannah, Georgia, 10 February 1944; launched 11 June 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Mary E. Kennard; and commissioned 27 November 1944, Lt. Comdr. David D. Long, USNR, in command. After fitting out and shakedown, she departed Norfolk, Virginia, for the Panama Canal Zone on 19 February 1945 escorting .
What Bird is That? to the League for £300. The book was extolled fulsomely by S.R. Thomas, of the NSW Department of Education, as follows; ""What Bird is That?" is the most comprehensive and informative bird book published in the Commonwealth – if not in the world. The coloured plates are a triumph not only of the genius and imagination of the artist – our own Neville Cayley on whom has fallen so fittingly the mantle of his famous father – but also of the block-maker’s and printer’s art. The publishers have done nothing finer of its kind. The life-like portrayals of our feathered