Mr. W. Thompson on the Birds of Ireland. 55 



possibly be worth observing, that more than once the martin has 

 been noticed by me in company with the swallow in autumn, at 

 places remote from its breeding-haunts. When with Mr. Wm. Sin- 

 claire at the Falls, on the 6th of September 1832, immense numbers 

 of both species were seen in company, and flying so close to the 

 ground as occasionally to stop for a moment, and apparently take 

 their food from the very grass. They also alighted in multitudes on 

 the fruit-trees in the garden, and notwithstanding their decided pre- 

 dilection for perching on dead branches, they on this occasion chose 

 especially for that purpose two large cherry-trees in full foliage. 

 Amongst these birds appeared a solitary sand martin, a species which, 

 as well as the martin, was never before seen about the place, and 

 near to which neither species has any nestling-place. From obser- 

 ving the swallow and the martin thus congregated for some time pre- 

 vious to migration, I have little doubt, great as is the disparity in 

 their powers of flight, that they often leave this country together ; 

 indeed both species have been observed to alight in company on 

 vessels very far out at sea*. 



Respecting the separate migration of the martin, it may be men- 

 tioned, that on the 24th of September 1834, when about Toome 

 bridge, I observed about a hundred of these birds congregated, no 

 other species of Hirundo being in the vicinity ; and on the eighth of 

 October, when riding near Belfast, a very strong south-west wind 

 prevailing, about twenty martins in a loose flock flew across the road, 

 and proceeded for some time against the wind, at not more than 

 from fifteen to twenty yards' distance from the ground. They, pro- 

 bably from feeling the wind too strong against them, at length 

 wheeled about, rose very rapidly until they attained a great elevation, 

 and in the act of still mounting higher disappeared from my sight, 

 all this time having the wind with them. These birds were believed 

 to be migrating. Feeling the effects of a powerful contrary wind, 

 they may, as some persons believe the Hirundines generally to do, 

 have ascended thus high in search of a more favourable current. On 

 this occasion, however, they may not have been successful, as the 

 clouds (which were moderately high) were borne onwards in the same 

 direction as the wind which swept the earth. 



The martin is generally stated to remain to a later period in En- 

 gland than the swallow, but I do not recollect any year in which the 

 swallow was not the last of its genus to depart from the north of 

 Ireland. 



In the spring and summer of 1841 I observed the house martin as 

 follows : — When sailing from Malta to the Morea, and about fifty 

 miles from Cape Passaro (the nearest land), on the 23rd of April, one 

 of these birds flew into the cabin, and died soon afterwards : it had 

 not met with any molestation on board. No more were seen until 

 the morning of the 27th, when, nearly one hundred miles west of the 

 Morea, a few appeared, and remained through the early part of the 

 day, confining their flight to the lee side of the ship : in the afternoon 



* C. L. Bonaparte in Zool. Journ., and Bloxham in Mag. Nat. Hist. 



