than that wherein they were soonest observed—namely, the neighbourhood
of Ratham, in Sussex. Situated on the flat country between the downs and
the sea, about three miles from the former and seven from the latter,
with an arm of harbour within two miles, it offers, with its attractions
of wood and water, a tempting resting-place to these small winged
invaders on their arrival, and furnishes, moreover, a fine post of
observation to the inquiring naturalist. Here, throughout April and May,
the woods of West Ashling and the copses around Kingley Vale resound
with the songs of various warblers, but especially of Nightingales,
which find in this safe retreat an immunity from traps which is not
everywhere accorded them. On April 10 their remarkable note was detected
at Reigate; on the 12th they were singing at East and West Woodhay, in
Berkshire; while from the last-named date until April 18 they were daily
noticed in various parts of Norfolk and Suffolk. From thence, through
Leicester, Derby, and Nottingham, we trace this bird to Yorkshire, where
on May 5 we find it at Barnsley, the temperature, according to that good
observer Mr. Lister, standing at 50°, and the wind W. Further north than
this in 1872 there were no tidings of it, although in former years I
have both seen and heard it in the woods by the waterside at Walton
Hall, near Wakefield, and have been informed of its occurrence five
miles to the northward of York.
I had proposed in these “General Observations” to confine attention
strictly to the facts disclosed by “The Field Calendar;” but the subject
of the distribution of the Nightingale in England is of such interest to
ornithologists, and even to those who, without professing to be
naturalists, take a pleasure in listening to the bird, and are not
unwilling to learn something about it, that I venture to give an extract
from another source which I feel assured will be considered most
instructive.
Writing upon this subject in his new edition of Yarrell’s “British
Birds,” now in course of publication, Prof. Newton says (vol. i. p.
315): “In England the Nightingale’s western limit seems to be formed by
the valley of the Exe, though once, and once only, Montagu, on this
point an unerring witness, heard it singing on the 4th of May, 1806,
near Kingsbridge in South Devon, and it is said to have been heard at
Teignmouth, as well as in the north of the same county at Barnstaple.
But even in the east of Devon it is local and rare, as it also is in the
north of Somerset, though plentiful in other parts of the latter county.
Crossing the Bristol Channel, it is said to be not uncommon at times
near Cowbridge in Glamorganshire. Dr. Bree states (‘Zoologist,’ p. 1211)
that it is found plentifully on the banks of the Wye near Tintern; and
thence there is more or less good evidence of its occurrence in
Herefordshire, Salop, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, and in Yorkshire to
about five miles north of its chief city, but, as Mr. T. Allis states,
not further. Along the line thus sketched out, and immediately to the
east and south of it, the appearance of the Nightingale, even if
regular, is in most cases rare, and the bird local; but further away
from the boundary it occurs yearly with great regularity in every
county, and in some places is very numerous. Mr. More states that it is
thought to have once bred in Sunderland, and it is said to have been
once heard in Westmoreland, and also, in the summer of 1808, near
Carlisle; but these assertions must be looked upon with great suspicion,
particularly the last, which rests on anonymous authority only. Still
more open to doubt are the statements of the Nightingales occurrence in
Scotland, such as Mr. Duncan’s (not on his own evidence, be it
remarked), published by Macgillivray (“British Birds,’ ii. p. 334),
respecting a pair believed to have visited Calder Wood in Mid Lothian in
1826; or Mr. Turnbull’s (‘Birds of East Lothian,’ p. 39) of its being
heard near Dalmeny Park in the same county in June, 1839. In Ireland
there is no trace of this species.”
It has long been well known that the male birds arrive in this country
many days before the females; but, of twenty-three observations made
upon the Nightingale, not one refers to or confirms this fact.
The Nightingale has been pictured by poets and naturalists in various
romantic situations, but perhaps never before in so unromantic a spot as
“under a bathing-machine”! Yet Mr. Monk states that on the 13th of
April, 1872, there were “Nightingales on the beach _under the
bathing-machines_ along the whole length of the shore at Brighton.” The
explanation which suggests itself is that the birds had just arrived,
and had sought the first shelter which offered—a woody shelter, it is
true, and a shady one, although of a very different kind to that which
the birds had been accustomed to.
The observations made upon the Tree Pipit, twenty-one in number, call
for no particular comment, save that the direction of the wind at
several dates of supposed arrival was from a S.W. or S.E. quarter,
corresponding with what has been observed of other migratory birds, and
tending to show that they prefer to travel with a side wind rather than
with a head wind or the reverse.
In the eastern counties, for example, it was observed that the Tree
Pipit arrived in Norfolk with a S.S.E. wind, the temperature being 52°;
in Lincolnshire with a wind veering from S. to S.E. and E., the weather
dry, cold, and cloudy; in Yorkshire with a S.W. wind, weather fine, and
temperature 47·5°. It was first observed at Bushey, in Hertfordshire, as
if arriving directly from the eastward, on the 8th of April; and was
last heard at Ratham, near the coast of Sussex, on Sept. 15. The
furthest point north at which it was noted was near Stirling on May 1.
In Ireland it is unknown.
In the case of the Sedge Warbler, we again remark observations on the
wind at the presumed dates of arrival in all respects confirmatory of
what has been already stated. Four good observers in the counties of
Norfolk, Lincoln, Derby, and York noted the direction of the wind when
first meeting with this bird as S.S.E., S.W., S.E., and S.S.W.,
respectively. No record of its occurrence in 1872 either in Scotland or
Ireland was received. The general period of its arrival in England seems
to be during the last fortnight of April.
About the same period arrives the Yellow Wagtail, or Ray’s Wagtail, as
it is called by many, respecting which bird sixteen observations were
received from different parts of the country. It does not appear to have
been met with further north than Wakefield, and no notice was taken of
it by correspondents in Scotland and Ireland.
The Wryneck, or Cuckoo’s-mate, long preceded the Cuckoo in the date of
its arrival, having been heard at Reigate as early as March 31, and at
Ratham, in Sussex, on April 2. On the 6th and 7th of the latter month it
was observed at several localities in Norfolk, and its appearance
generally throughout England in 1872 seems to have been noted during the
first fortnight of April. Mr. Lister states that, although found in the
neighbourhood of Barnsley in previous years, it was not observed there
in 1872.
The Nightjar seems to have been generally met with throughout the
country as far west as Llandderfel, in Merionethshire, and as far north
as Garvoch, in Perthshire. Mr. Gatcombe observed it in the neighbourhood
of Plymouth on April 10, but this must be regarded as an exceptionally
early date, for the majority of my correspondents did not meet with it
until quite the end of April and beginning of May. On the 15th of June
Mr. P. Henderson found two young Nightjars on Tents Muir, Fife, _amidst
a colony of terns_ (!), and kept them alive for some time on moths,
worms, and pieces of raw meat.
The Wheatear and Whinchat received an equal share of attention in the
fifteen observations upon each which were forwarded. The first-named
appeared at Plymouth as early as March 6, but the observer in this
instance, Mr. Gatcombe, states that he hardly ever knew it so early
before. It was observed, however, on the same day at Feltwell, Norfolk,
by Mr. Upcher; and Mr. Rope reports that in 1871 he saw it at Leiston,
in Suffolk, on March 2. In 1872 in the same neighbourhood it did not
arrive until March 18, and was much scarcer than in former years. The
calendars enable one to trace it that year as far north as Falkirk,
where it was seen on April 1; but this is by no means its northern
limit, as there is abundant evidence to show.
The Whinchat is not generally seen in this country until the last week
of April, and this is confirmed by the notes before me. Mr. J. J.
Briggs, however, met with it near Melbourne, in Derbyshire, on April 3;
but he appends the remark that he considers this an unusually early
date. Mr. J. A. Harvie Browne states that the Whinchat during mild
winters occasionally remains in Stirlingshire.
The Lesser Whitethroat was noticed almost exclusively in the midland
counties, the earliest date for its arrival being April 12, at Sparham,
Norfolk, and the most northerly locality Barnsley. It goes much further
north, however, than this, but is considered rare in Scotland, and is
unknown in Ireland.
The Grasshopper Warbler was met with throughout the month of April in
about a dozen different localities, and, like the last-named species,
chiefly in the midland counties. It goes at least as far north, however,
as Oban, in Argyleshire. To the westward, it was noted at Taunton in the
middle of May. It is a regular summer migrant to Ireland, although in
1872 it was not noticed there by any correspondent.
Like several of the preceding, the Turtle Dove is oftener observed in
the southern and midland counties of England, although stragglers are
occasionally met with as far north as Northumberland, and even in
Scotland. In the Hebrides specimens have been shot in Islay and Skye,
but not in the outer islands. Dr. Saxby has recorded several instances
of its occurrence in Shetland, and it has twice been procured in Orkney.
In Ireland it is regarded as an annual summer visitant to the cultivated
districts.
The Wood Wren was noticed nowhere earlier than the 23rd of April, on
which date it was heard by Mr. Inchbald at Hovingham, near York; and the
paucity of observations on this and the four following species show that
they must be very local in their distribution, or less frequently seen
than many of their more obtrusive congeners. The Wood Wren apparently
comes very much later than either the Chiffchaff or the Willow Wren.
Nine observations only on the Pied Flycatcher were forwarded. These,
however, contain one or two notes of interest. The bird has become much
commoner of late years, or more observed; and in 1872 it appears to have
been met with much further north than usual. A specimen was shot at N.
Berwick by Mr. W. Patterson, and exhibited at the Glasgow Natural
History Society on the 24th of September, 1872; and another was procured
at Biora, in Sutherland, on the 31st of May, by Mr. T. E. Buckley. In
Yorkshire it seems to have been very numerous, a score being heard at
once in one locality, near York, on the 29th of May. It was found
nesting in Norfolk, at Sparham, eggs being laid and the hen bird
sitting, on the 3rd of June. To the westward, it was noted at
Cirencester; and was found nesting, as in previous years, at
Llandderfel, in Merionethshire.
The Red-backed Shrike, or Butcher-bird, is almost confined to the
southern midland counties of England, and although stragglers have been
met with occasionally in Scotland, it is always regarded as a rare bird
there; and in Ireland it is quite unknown. Mr. Cordeaux states that he
has never observed it in Lincolnshire. It is always a late comer,
seldom, if ever, arriving before the first week in May; and the earliest
date recorded for its appearance in any of the calendars is May 2, on
which day it was seen at Ratham, near Chichester. Mr. Donald Mathews has
observed, in the neighbourhood of Redditch, that it commences
nidification immediately on its arrival. The custom which now prevails
of “plashing,” or laying the tall hedgerows in which the Butcher-bird
delights to dwell, has caused it in many localities to forsake haunts
where once it was quite numerous. This has been particularly remarked,
in Middlesex and the counties adjoining.
The observations upon the Garden Warbler, of which eight only are
furnished, do not call for any particular comment, save an expression of
surprise that a bird with so good a song should not have attracted more
attention. The 21st of April is the earliest date recorded for its
arrival, at Burton-on-Trent. One would certainly have expected also to
find more notice taken of the Reed Warbler, a noisy little bird, whose
incessant babbling by reedy ponds and at the riverside makes it almost
impossible to overlook it. Nevertheless, but three notes were forwarded
of its occurrence in 1872—two in Norfolk, at Lynn and Hempstead, and one
in Wilts, at Marlborough; at the last-named place on the 31st of May, at
least six weeks after its usual time for arriving. It is not easy to
account for its being so overlooked, for it cannot be regarded as by any
means a rare bird, although it may be a local one.
Colonel Irby, who has had opportunities of seeing many of our summer
migratory birds on passage, from two good posts of observation,
Gibraltar and Tangier, thus refers to the subject in his
recently-published volume on the “Ornithology of the Straits of
Gibraltar:”—
“Most of the land birds pass by day, usually crossing the Straits in the
morning. The waders are, as a rule, not seen on passage; so it may be
concluded they pass by night, although I have occasionally observed
Peewits, Golden Plover, Terns and Gulls, passing by day.
“The autumnal or return migration is less conspicuous than the vernal;
and whether the passage is performed by night, or whether the birds
return by some other route, or whether they pass straight on, not
lingering by the way as in spring, is an open question; but during the
autumn months passed by me at Gibraltar, I failed to notice the passage
as in spring, though more than once during the month of August, which I
spent at Gibraltar, myself and others distinctly heard Bee-eaters
passing south at night, and so conclude other birds, may do the same.
“The best site for watching the departure of the vernal migration is at
Tangier, where just outside the town the well-known plain called the
Marshan, a high piece of ground that in England would be called a
common, seems to be the starting-point of half the small birds that
visit Europe.
“Both the vernal and autumnal migrations are generally executed during
an easterly wind, or Levanter. At one time I thought that this was
essential to the passage; but it appears not to be the case, as whether
it be an east or west wind, if it be the time for migration, birds will
pass, though they linger longer on the African coast before starting if
the wind be westerly; and all the very large flights of _Raptores_
(Kites, Neophrons, Honey-Buzzards, &c.), which I have seen, passed with
a Levanter. After observing the passage for five springs, I am unable to
come to any decided opinion; the truth being, that as an east wind is
the prevalent one, the idea has been started that migration always takes
place during that wind. Nevertheless, it is an undoubted fact, that
during the autumnal or southern migration of the Quail in September,
they collect in vast numbers on the European side, if there be a west
wind, and seem not to be able to pass until it changes to the east; this
is so much the case that, if the wind keeps in that quarter during the
migration, none hardly are to be seen.
“On some occasions the passage of the larger birds of prey is a most
wonderful sight; but of all the remarkable flights of any single
species, that of the common Crane has been the most noteworthy that has
come under my own observation.
“On the Andalusian side the number of birds seen even by the ordinary
traveller appears strikingly large; this being, no doubt, in a great
measure caused by the quantity which are, for ten months, at least, out
of the year, more or less on migration; that is to say, with the
exception of June and July, there is no month in which the passage of
birds is not noticeable, June being the only one in which there may be
said to be absolutely no migration, as during the month of July Cuckoos
and some Bee-eaters return to the south.”
CONCLUSION.
As the Swallows are amongst the first to arrive, so they are amongst the
last to depart. Long before chill winds and falling leaves have ushered
in the month of October, the Warblers, Pipits, and Flycatchers have left
the woods and fields, and hurried down to the coast on their southward
route. But the Swallows, loth to leave us, linger on far into the
autumn, and only bid us adieu when they miss the genial influence of the
sun’s rays, and can no longer find a sufficient supply of food. The
sportsman who crosses the country with dog and gun in October cannot
fail to remark the absence of the numerous small birds which were so
conspicuous throughout the summer. The Wheatear has deserted the rabbit
warren; the Stonechat and Whinchat have left the furzy common, to make
way for the Linnet and the Brambling. In the turnip fields, Thrushes and
Meadow Pipits have usurped the place of Whitethroats and Yellow
Wagtails; while in the thick hedgerows and coverts noisy Tits now occupy
the boughs which were so lately tenanted by the less attractive but more
tuneful Willow Wrens.
To the reflecting naturalist, this curious change of bird life furnishes
a subject for meditation in many a day’s walk, and is a source of much
pleasant occupation. Whether we study the birds themselves in their
proper haunts, ascertain the nature of their food and their consequent
value to man as a cultivator of the soil; or inquire into the cause of
their migration, and their distribution in other parts of the world, we
have at all times an interesting theme to dwell upon.
From a perusal of the foregoing chapters it will be seen that “our
summer migrants” may be classified into certain well-defined groups,
according to their structure and habits, and the haunts which they
frequent. Upon the wild open wastes and commons we find the Chats, to
which family belong the Whinchat, the Stonechat, and the well-known
Wheatear. In the hedgerows and copses are to be seen the three species
of Willow Warblers—the Wood Wren, Willow Wren, and Chiff-chaff. Wooded
gardens and fruit trees attract the Garden Warbler, Blackcap, and
Whitethroats; and the thick sedge and waving flags by the waterside
shelter the various species of River Warblers. In the open meadows and
moist places by the river bank of sea coast we need not search long to
find the Pipits and Wagtails; and while the Flycatchers perch familiarly
on our garden walls, or pick the aphis off the fruit trees, the Swallows
build under our very eaves, and claim our protection for their young.
High above all, the noisy Swift holds his rapid, wondrous flight,
wheeling and screaming to his heart’s content.
At all these birds we have now taken a peep. We have found them in their
proper haunts, examined their skill as architects, and their powers as
musicians. We have inquired into the nature of their food, the number
and colour of their eggs, and their mode of rearing their young; any
peculiar adaptation of structure to habits or curious mode of living has
been duly noted; and, not content with studying them at home, we have
followed these delicate visitors to foreign climes, and found them in
their winter quarters.
It is hoped that the reader ere he closes this volume will have gleaned
some little information that may be new to him concerning these most
interesting families of small birds, whose fairy forms in summer time
flit so continually before us, and whose presence or absence makes so
great a difference to the naturalist in his enjoyment of a country walk.
FOOTNOTES.
[1]“Nat. Hist. Ireland;” Birds, i. pp. 176, 177.
[2]“Hist. Brit. Birds,” ii. p. 292.
[3]As to other changes in the fauna and flora which have taken place
since Gilbert White’s day in the district of which he wrote, the
reader may be referred to the Preface to my edition of the “Natural
History of Selborne” recently published.
[4]_Cf._ More, “Ibis,” 1865, p. 22.
[5]Yarrell, “Hist. Brit. Birds,” 4th ed. vol. i. pp. 427, 442.
[6]Mr. Blake-Knox subsequently corrected his statement, remarking that
he had by mistake written _second_ instead of _third_ primary quill.
The first primary is so rudimentary as almost to escape observation.
[7]Dr. Bree states that he has occasionally observed the Willow Wren
taking currants from his trees.
[8]See Professor Newton’s edition of Yarrell’s “History of British
Birds,” vol. i. p. 360.
[9]See Professor Newton’s edition of Yarrell’s “History of British
Birds,” vol. i. p. 360.
[10]This specimen was recorded at the time by Dr. Carte in the “Journal
of the Royal Dublin Society,” vol. i. p. 440.
[11]Note to his edition of White’s “Selborne,” 1836, p. 141.
[12]See Ellis’s “Specimens of the Early English Poets,” vol. ii. p. 356.
[13]Sir Thos. Browne’s Works, Wilkin’s ed. vol. ii. p. 537.
[14]_Cf._ “Handbook of British Birds,” p. 106.
[15]“Syst. Uebers. d. Vögel Nord-Ost Afrika’s,” p. 57.
[16]See “List of British Birds, as a Guide to the Ornithology of
Cornwall,” 2nd edition, 1869, p. 15.
[17]“The Birds of Shetland,” p. 73.
[18]“Ibis,” 1864, p. 67.
[19]“Ibis,” 1860, p. 231.
[20]_Cf._ “Ibis,” 1865, p. 25.
[21]This was in Haddingtonshire, by Mr. Hepburn. See “Ibis,” 1865, p.
24.
[22]“Ibis,” 1865, p. 23.
[23]_Cf._ Newton, P. Z. S., 1866, p. 210.
[24]“Ibis,” 1867, p. 468.
[25]_Cf._ J. H. Gurney, jun., “Zoologist,” 1871, p. 2521.
[26]“Ibis,” 1860, p. 232.
[27]“Ibis,” 1867, p. 426.
[28]The specific name _arundinacea_, which is commonly applied to this
species, belongs properly to the Great Reed Warbler, the _Turdus
arundinaceus_ of Linnæus.
[29]“The Birds of Middlesex,” p. 47.
[30]“Zoologist,” 1865, p. 9729.
[31]Not always, as shown above.
[32]_Cf._ Yarrell, “Hist. Brit. Birds,” vol. i. pp. 300, 301.
[33]_Cf._ “Ibis,” 1865, p. 24.
[34]“Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist.,” 1847, p. 135.
[35]_Cf._ Bellamy’s “Nat. Hist. South Devon,” p. 205.
[36]For this abstract of Mr. Knox’s observations, taken from his
“Ornithological Rambles in Sussex,” I am indebted to Professor
Newton, who has thus ably condensed them in his new edition of
Yarrell’s “History of British Birds.”
[37]For some further points of distinction the reader may be referred to
“The Birds of Middlesex,” pp. 64, 65.
[38]See Professor Newton’s remarks on “The Ornithology of Iceland,”
appended to Baring Gould’s “Iceland; its Scenes and Sagas,” p. 409.
[39]“Ibis,” 1861, p. 6.
[40]“Ibis,” 1860, p. 229.
[41]“Ibis,” 1862, pp. 343, 348; and “Journ. f. Orn.,” 1862, pp. 357,
360.
[42]_Cf._ “Naumannia,” 1858, p. 425, and “Ibis,” 1862, p. 71.
[43]_Cf._ A. G. More, in the “Ibis,” 1865, p. 123.
[44]_Cf._ “Journ. für Orn.,” 1868, pp. 21-37.
[45]“Syst. Nat.,” i. p. 288.
[46]“Consp. Av.,” i. p. 247.
[47]_Cf._ “Naumannia,” 1858, p. 425.
[48]Capt. Beavan recorded it from Simla (“Ibis,” 1868, p. 79), but Mr.
Hume showed this to be an error, the species mistaken for it being
_A. sordida_ (“Ibis,” 1869, p. 120).
[49]_Cf._ Dawson Rowley, “Ibis,” 1863, p. 37, and 1865, p. 113; Bond,
“Zoologist,” 1870, pp. 1984 and 2383; and Rodd, “Zoologist,” 1868,
p. 1458.
[50]See Bree’s “Birds of Europe,” vol. ii. p. 155.
[51]“Syst. Uebers. d. Vögel N.-O. Afrika’s,” p. 61.
[52]“Birds of South Africa,” p. 148.
[53]“Notes on the Birds of Damara Land,” by the late C. J. Andersson;
arranged and edited by J. H. Gurney, 1872, p. 129.
[54]See “The Field” for May 27th, June 8th, and June 24th, 1871.
[55]“Zoologist,” 1863, p. 8444.
[56]“Zoologist,” 1863, p. 8841.
[57]Rodd, “List of the Birds of Cornwall,” 2nd ed. p. 11.
[58]_Cf._ Hume, “Journ. Asiatic Soc. Bengal,” 1870, p. 116, and
Blanford, “Ibis,” 1870, p. 534.
[59]See his “Ornithology of the Straits of Gibraltar,” p. 224.
[60]“Mag. Nat. Hist.,” vol. iv. p. 413.