154 THE BIRDS OF YORKSHIRE. 



county it may be noticed a few days earlier than in the 

 middle and north ; Neville Wood, in 1837, mentioned the 

 loth as the average date, and at Barnsley the same estimate 

 was arrived at after an analysis of many years' notes. In 

 the central and northern districts its appearance may be 

 expected in mid-April, and so far back as 1784 that able 

 Yorkshire ornithologist, Marmaduke Tunstall, writing from 

 Wycliffe-on-Tees, calculated its arrival at this period, though 

 it does not reach the higher dales and remote upland localities 

 until the third week or even the end of the month. Two 

 authentic instances of March Swallows are reported ; one 

 by Thomas Allis, who noticed two near Pontefract on 30th 

 March 1830 ; and, in more recent years, Mr. J.J. Emerson 

 of Easby-in-Cleveland, saw a pair on the 25th of the same 

 month in 1897. Solitary birds have not infrequently been 

 recorded from various parts of the county in the first week 

 in April, but the old adage " one Swallow does not make a 

 summer " holds good in Yorkshire as elsewhere, and these 

 first arrivals are merely the advance guards of the main hosts 

 that follow at the end of April and early in May. 



The departure of the main body takes place at the end of 

 August and throughout September, a few sometimes remaining 

 till mid-October, whilst exceptional cases have been known 

 of odd birds being observed in the winter months. At Spurn 

 some were seen on 8th November 1891, at the time when our 

 winter migrants, the Snow Buntings, were coming ; at 

 Redcar I have seen individuals as late as the 22nd of November 

 in the year 1891, and two were noted there on 3rd December 

 1846 {Zool. 1846, p. 1368) ; three were noticed at Huddersfield 

 on i8th January 1837 '■> ^^^ ^^^ ^ea-r Halifax on 4th February 

 1862 (See J. E. Harting on "Belated Swallows," Field, 30th 

 January 1892). These lingerers probably belong to late 

 broods, or are from more northern regions. The first birds 

 moving south are young ones, and in September they may 

 be seen the whole day passing along the coast ; on the 3rd 

 and 4th September 1898, there were continuous flights 

 passing Redcar to the south-east ; and at Flamborough 

 they have been frequently observed in mid-September 



