150 THE BIRDS OF YORKSHIRE. 



it disappeared, probably destroyed by some collector ; R. Leyland 

 says that a few years ago it was frequently found breeding at Luddenden 

 Dean in the Parish of Halifax, but that one or two bird-stuffers have 

 nearly extirpated it ; it is very rarely seen in the East Riding or the 

 immediate vicinity of York. 



Of this conspicuous bird, whose distribution in Britain 

 as a summer resident is exceedingly limited, Yorkshire is 

 one of the chief headquarters, and perhaps the most southern 

 county in which its occurrence in any numbers can be 

 considered regular. Although single individuals are occasion- 

 ally observed in April, yet the usual time for its appearance 

 is from the first to the second week in May ; the earliest 

 record is the 12th of April 1878, at Barnsley ; at Masham 

 one was seen in 1882 on the 22nd of the same month ; on 

 the 24th of April 1893, I watched a male bird for some time 

 in Borrow Greens Wood, Easby-in-Cleveland, and five days 

 subsequently one was caught asleep, soon after daylight, 

 on a garden hedge behind Redcar sandhills. On their first 

 arrival in spring I have noticed the birds in considerable 

 numbers in the fishermen's garden plots, and on the loth of 

 May 1899, I saw one sitting on a post within a few j-ards of 

 my smoke-room window. They only remain to rest for a 

 few hours in the vicinitj^ of the coast, soon dispersing inland 

 to their breeding haunts. 



The choice of localities in which this species annually 

 breeds shows a strong predilection for the combination of 

 woodland and water, preferring as it does either deeply 

 wooded river valleys, or woods in close proximity to extensive 

 sheets of water. In the North Riding it nests annually 

 on the Yorkshire side of the Tees near Barnard Castle, and 

 also higher up the dale ; on the banks of the Lure near 

 Sedbergh ; by the river Wiske in the neighbourhc od of 

 Northallerton ; in the woods at Castle Howard ; and at 

 Duncombe Park, Helmsley, and Hovingham in Ryedale ; 

 near Easby and Ingleby in Cleveland ; in the Esk valley 

 and the small dales branching therefrom ; Mulgi'ave Woods ; 

 and also at Haxby, Hambleton, Coxwold, Swainby, Loftus- 

 in-Cleveland, Whitby, and Scarborough. In Wensleydale it 



