ORDER OF MIGRATION ACCORDING TO AGE AND SEX 105 



to make its appearance — the Redstart and Ortolan Bunting, in 

 most cases, not appearing until a fortnight later. 



The young birds of the Willow Warbler, whose migration com- 

 mences early in July — I have even obtained a very yellow young 

 individual of this species on the 30th of June — are joined at the 

 end of August by the older paler-coloured individuals ; in the case of 

 the Redstart, however, the young of which rarely arrive before the 

 expiration of the first week in August, the old birds follow some- 

 what earlier; thus, among thirty-six individuals of this species, 

 caught on the night of 4th of September 1881, there were already 

 as many as eleven old birds. On the previous day I had made the 

 following entry in my diary : — Wheatear, one-third of number of 

 individuals, old birds ; Redstart, one-half old birds : Ortolans, very 

 numerous — about one-quarter of their number old birds, being the 

 first old individuals seen during the migration. 



It should be noted here, as a fact of some interest, that the few 

 old individuals found among the Wheatears and Redstarts, caught 

 on the night of the 4th September, as mentioned above, did not 

 arrive until late after midnight, probably between three and four 

 in the morning, whereas the young birds had already started on 

 their migration in large numbers some hours before midnight. 

 I am not, however, at present in a position to say whether this 

 order of arrival will prove to be the rule, though I have found it to 

 hold good in repeated instances. 



The young Sparrowhawks commence their migration at the end 

 of the first week of August, and from that date on appear daily 

 in greater or smaller numbers, while the first old bird, in 1880, 

 was seen on the 29th of September; in 1881, on the 22nd of 

 the same month; and in 1883, on the 4th of October. Of the 

 Peregrine Falcon and the White-tailed Eagle, the young birds arrive 

 at the end of August, but the old ones rarely before October. 



As in the case of the Starlings, solitary old examples of the 

 Golden Plover, in much-worn plumage, also made their appearance 

 before the young had commenced their migration. This, however, 

 as will be explained further on, is due to other causes than those 

 which operate in the case of the Starlings. 



The first young Golden Plovers arrive here as early as the 

 beginning of July ; thus, on the 4th of July 1880, about twenty indi- 

 viduals were observed ; after that birds occurred singly up to the 

 23rd of the month. On the 4th, .5th, 6th, and 10th of August they 

 arrived in small flights, and on the 12th, in a flock of about a 

 hundred individuals. These young birds are so utterly devoid of 

 shyness that the majority of them are almost always shot, all 

 doubts as regards their age being in this manner set aside. The 



