14 THE BIRDS OF KENT 



church, Snave and Ivychurch. October 16 was a brihiant, 

 warm, sunny morning, and the Blackbirds were still there 

 in great numbers, in sheltered lanes, sunning themselves, 

 preparatory to leaving for the south. On visiting these 

 places again on the 25th and 26th, the majority of these 

 birds had disappeared, leaving only a straggler here and 

 there. Among the hundreds observed while they were 

 collecting, it was noticed that although the males had 

 assumed the black plumage, very few had yellow bills, 

 showing that these batches were composed of young 

 birds of the year. The few old males with bright yellow 

 bills which were among them were perhaps their 

 leaders or guides in their migration. In the spring 

 no batches were observed coming back, although the 

 numbers of individuals and pairs spread over the 

 same district had largely increased, especially in the 

 Orlestone, AVarehorne, Kingsnorth, and Aldington dis- 

 tricts. Mr. E. T. Filmer says it was very common 

 about Orlestone and the neighbourhood. 



The Blackbird is included in Boys' Birds of Sandicich, 

 1792. The Kev. G. Pemberton Bartlett in his Ornith- 

 ology of Kent {ZooL, 1844), says it is "abundant." 

 In his Birds Observed at Bainham, 1865, Mr. W. H. 

 Power writes: "Blackbirds and Thrushes appear very 

 fond of mulberries ; a tree in the garden was continually 

 under contribution. I have seen a Blackbird with his 

 head, throat and breast thoroughly stained with the 

 juice." 



Mr. H. Lamb says this is a " common bird about 

 Maidstone, coming about the houses in winter and retir- 

 ing to the hedges and woods in the spring, where it 

 breeds." In the Bethersden district, according to Captain 

 J. D. Cameron, it is resident. Mr. W. Prentis, in his 



