MISCELLANEOUS NOTICES. 20o 



Note on the Starling, (Sturnus vulgaris.) — In looking over my notes I find some observations 

 on the number of times a pair of Starlings fed their young, which I give in the hope that it 



may prove useful. The hours in the table were in the days between May 20th. and 2oth. 



On the 21st., thirty-four times between five and six, and twenty times between six and seven- 

 a.m.; twenty-five times between one and two; twenty-five times between three and four 

 twentj^-four times between four and five; and twenty times between five and six, p.m., which 

 is twenty-four times per hour on the average. Then suppose they began at five, a. m., and con- 

 tinued feeding until eight, p. m., which is sixteen houi-s, in that time they destroyed nearly four 

 hundred grubs and worms. And when we consider that within twenty yards from where I sat 

 there were half-a-dozen nests of Starlings alone, the quantity of larvae destroyed must appear 

 very great. And yet there are many other bii-ds besides Starlings that consume as many. 

 These are facts, for I watched them myself for hours. — Eblana, Dublin, February 18th., 1852. 



Early appearance of the Swalloto, (Hirundo rustica,) at York. — It is we believe universally 

 admitted that one Swallow does not make a summer, but it is not accurately defined what number 

 does. To-day, when walking near the river Ouse, about half-a-mile above York, at half-past 

 five, p. m., I saw ttvo Swallows hawking over the river. The wind was blowing fresh in squalls 

 from the east, in which quarter it had been for some time past. The weather was bright and 

 sunshmy.— B. R. M., York, April 23rd., 1852. 



The Swallow, (Hirundo rustica.) — The Swallow was seen here for the first time this year, 

 on April 11th. I saw five of them myself sporting and twittering about this afternoon, as if 

 it were the height of summer; wind in the south-east. This is four days earlier than last year. 

 — George B. Clarke, Wobum, Beds., April 12th., 1852. 



The Swift, (Cypselus apiis,) was first seen at Heacham Hall, Norfolk, on the 12th. of May. 

 —J. W. LxJKis, Heacham Hall, May 21st., 1852. 



Arrival of tlis Hirundinidce. — In looking over the notices in your pages of the first appearance 

 of the Swallow, (Hirundo rustica,) in various localities, I find only one mention of it earlier 

 than I and my friends have observed it this year in our neighbourhood; I therefore think 

 it worth recording among your notes on the subject. The notice in No. 8 of three Swallows 

 being seen on the 3rd. of April, 1851, by a boy at Fleetwood, in Lancashire, may perhaps 

 be considered a little doubtful, as the writer did not observe them himself till the 12th., and 

 the situation of that westerly county almost precluding the possibility of so early an arrival, 

 so that without calling into question the veracity of the young gentleman, we may doubt the 

 act. At Lynn, in Norfolk, they appeared on the 18th. ; at Upper Helmsley on the 20th. ; at 

 Great Bcdwyn, AVilts, on the 13th. ; at Norwich on the 18th. ; at Black Hall, Devon, about 

 the 11th., for some years; at Plymouth on the 13th., etc. This year on the 9th., (Good 

 Friday,) during the prevalence of the north-east wind, between six and seven in the evening, 

 my sister observed two Swallows fly over this place, but they appeared to be only passing, as 

 the}' or others were not seen again till the 15th ; but in the valley within a mile of this to^vn, 

 at a village called Wooburn, a friend of mine driving there, saw them on the 12th. They 

 seemed to prefer the sheltered situation and milder air of the lower ground, and were not again 

 seen by us till the 15th. Then only a few had ventured, but on the 17th., many made their 

 appearance, and they soon became general. I shall be anxious to know if they were observed 

 equally early in other parts of the country. This town stands on the Chiltem Hills, and is 

 very cold. — Agnes Catlow, Beaconsfield, May 7th., 1852. 



A List of the Winter Birds of Passage, 

 Banged in the Order in which they appeared at Henley-upon-Thames in 1851.— By C. Stubbs, Ese. 



No. 



1. Wild Goose August 19th. 



2. Lapwing October 3rd. 



3. Wild Duck " 8th. 



4. Woodcock " 20th. 



5. Black Scoter " 25th. 



6. Fieldfare " 26th. 



7. Redwing " 28th. 



No. 



8. Wood Pigeon November 1st. 



9. Bleater Snipe " 3rd. 



10. Widgeon " 6th. 



11. Mountain Finch " 20th. 



12. Gray Wagtail '* 25th. 



13. Jack Snipe " 30th. 



