191 1- hish Societies. 159 



BRITISH AND IRISH BIRDS. 



The British Bird Book : Edited by F. B. Kirkman, B.A. Oxon. 

 Parts II. to V. London and Edinburgh : T. C. & E. C. Jack. 



The expectations that were raised by the issue of Part I. of the British 

 Bird Book (reviewed in the December number) are more than fulfilled by 

 the succeeding Parts (II. to V. inclusive), which not only impress one 

 at sight by the great beauty of the numerous coloured plates, but also 

 repay attentive reading by the originality with which many of the chapters 

 are written and the general truthfulness to nature that is shown in all. 

 Irish naturalists will be pleased to find that the newly distinguished 

 Irish Dipper and Irish Coal Titmouse are duly recognised in their proper 

 places in Parts III. and V., though Part I., in which the Corvidae are dealt 

 with, had unfortunately appeared too soon to allow of a similar compU- 

 ment being shown to the Irish Jay. One is inclined to ask whether, now 

 that these distinctions have been made out, Mr. Jourdain, who contributes 

 most of the notes on distribution, should have stated without some 

 indication of uncertainty that the British Coal Titmouse " occurs in 

 the Isle of Man." This is, no doubt, probable, in view of the fact that 

 the Coal Titmouse of the Isle of Man is generally supposed to be only a 

 recent settler — even more recent than the Blue Tit — in that island. This 

 belief, however, only lends additional interest to the question whether 

 the Coal Tit of Man marks a departure from the general rule of affinity, 

 which so strikingly connects the Manx and Irish faunas. 



One of the most interesting chapters in any of the five parts that have 

 yet appeared is Mr. Kirkman's careful study of the Robin, in the course 

 of which he presents us with a map showing how a particular piece of 

 and under his observation was parcelled out during winter among six 

 individual Robins, none of whom would tolerate any trespass on the part 

 of any of his neighbour Robins on his jealously watched domain. It was, 

 as Mr. Kirkman says, no easy matter to define the limits of the several 

 properties, since to do this one had to guard against the risk of confusing 

 the identity of neighbouring Robins ; but it will be acknowledged by all 

 ornithologists that the result of Mr. Kirkman's care was well worth the 

 labour. An examination of his map shows that some of the six birds had 

 to content themselves with absurdly small areas, while others, presumably 

 the best fighters, possessed properties "of considerable size and value 

 but these last were ceaselessly on the look-out to punish intrusion, and it 

 would probably have been quite impossible for a seventh Kobin, unless 

 by expulsion of one of the original six, to establish himself anywhere 

 within the area under survey. 



Some doubt may be expressed as to whether Mr. Kirkman does not 

 dismiss too summarily the belief that the Nightjar's pectinated claw is 

 sometimes of use in enabling the bird to hold its position sitting length- 

 wise on its perches. His chief argument to the contrary — that the 

 pectinations are of too yielding a character to be of use in preventing 

 side slips — would be a strong one if the bird always roosted in such a 



