FACTS IN THE HISTORY OF THE COMMON CUCKOO. 173 



Mr. Turner, "Mag: Nat: Hist:" vol. 8, page 286, "A Cuckoo sang in the 

 neighhourhood of the garden at the time the young was growing strong enough 

 to fly ably." Was this bird male or female, I must leave my readers to 

 pronounce. To this I may add that I have shot them, male and fernale, 

 '^Cuckoo cuckooing" so late as the 8th. of August. See ^^Gardeners' Journal," 

 page 484, for 1851. 



It has been positively stated that it is well known ^'^that the Cuckoo leaves 

 this country in the end of June or beginning of July." How far the correctness 

 of this positive statement can be relied upon, the following extracts will show: — 

 In "Mag: Nat: Hist:" vol. 4, page 184, Mr. White says, "On the 28th. of 

 July, heard my favourite C. canorus at five a.m. last seen a few days afterwards. 

 Professor Macgillivray, "Manual of British Birds," page 82, says in July or 

 August. ^'^Grave's British Ornithology," vol. ii., (this loorh is not paged,) quits 

 towards the end^of July, though we have known them killed so late as the 

 month of October" Again he says, ^'We have seen two birds, one on the 

 26th., and the other on the 27th. of August: the former was a male, and 

 was uttering its well-known cry of Cuckoo; the sex of the -latter one we did 

 not discover." In the "Zoologist," page 2455, the following notice occurs: — 

 "Late-remaining Cuckoo, (Cuculus canorus.) A Cuckoo was shot close to the 

 city of Worcester, on the 14th. of October last." — M. Cutler, Bevere House, 

 near Worcester, April 19th., 1849. 



'^Mag: Nat: Hist:" page 275, vol. 4., "This bird does not depart, or leave 



this country, till long after it has ceased to sing; not I believ^e till the autumn, 



or at least till late in the autumn." — Rev. W. T. Bree. Can this be the same 



Mr, Bree, who in the "Gardeners' Chronicle" of August 2nd., so strongly 



denies the truth of my statements? Vol. 8, page 340, "Mag: Nat: Hist:" 



Mr. Blyth says, '^'^a very accurate observer informs me, that in the north of 



Scotland, he once saw a flock of sixteen Cuckoos in September!" In a note 



Mr. B. adds ^^ Another person also, whose authority in these matters I have 



reason to respect, tells me that the old Cuckoos also congregate in flocks of 



twenty to thirty towards the close of summer." The Bishop of Norwich, in 



his Lordship's "Familiar History of Birds," at page 290, says, "that from the 



18th. to the 22nd. of July, at one time forty Cuckoos were seen in a garden in the 



County of Down, Ireland." Were there no old birds in this flock? "Mag: Nat: 



Hist:" vol. 8, page 288, Mr. Turner, of the Botanic Gardens, Bury St. Edmunds, 



who has i-ecorded some interesting facts on the history of this bird, says, "On 



July 29th., one of the young Wagtails was dead upon the nest, and the others sat 



shivering upon the ground beneath. I again replaced them; but, on Avigust 2nd., 



they were not in the nest, nor could I see them afterwards. The young Cuckoos 



continued to thrive for some days, and then fell a prey to a cat.""^ 



* In corroboration of tliesc statements, we may mention than an old Cuckoo was sliot near 



Thirsk, by Mr. Jolinston, son of the Rev. C. Johnston, Canon of York, on the 14th. of August, 



in the present year, and was stuffed by Mr. Graham, of this city; who also stuffed a young 



J, Cuckoo, shot on the same day; and an old one shot near Leeds, by Mr. Bond, of that place, on 



July 24th. last.— J5. R. M. 



