144 Northern Observations of Inland Birds 



no great impression of speed it is out of range almost 

 immediately, and if missed with the first barrel it is 

 seldom bagged with the second. Personally I have no 

 experience in the art of shooting merlins, and do not 

 specially anticipate acquiring it. The merlin is becoming 

 a very rare bird, and it has repeatedly been proved that 

 it is seldom destructive to the interests of game preserva- 

 tion. Much as one would prefer the sorry task to fall 

 upon others, there are unquestionably times when it is 

 necessary to stay the ravages of the peregrine, but according 

 to my own life-long observations nothing is to be gained 

 by making further inroads into the merHn's numbers. I 

 have, however, known a merlin to attack and kill an adult 

 mountain hare in snow time, and know that they often 

 do so, returning time after time to the attack with a 

 persistency and devilish intentness of purpose parallel to 

 that of the peregrine. Yet I would set the merlin down 

 as even less destructive than the rook and the jackdaw, 

 but though the latter two may nest uninterruptedly about 

 the keeper's very doorway I know few who spare the 

 merlin. 



It is time that the lovers of bird life realized that this 

 beautiful little falcon is in real danger of extermination. 

 Even within my own comparatively brief period of 

 observation I have been much impressed by its ever- 

 increasing rarity. The merlin does not seem to possess 

 great powers of recovery — why, it is hard to say. Possibly 

 it is a more delicate bird than our commoner hawks, and 

 its habitat being more exposed the natural death-rate 

 is higher. Even if none were destroyed by man, I very 

 much doubt whether the merlin would become a common 

 bird. It did not recover during the war as did most other 

 birds of prey. Immediately succeeding the war an 

 enormous increase in buzzards, owls, even peregrines, 

 was noticeable, while kestrels were to be seen flying about 



