40 The Field Naturalist's Quarterly Feb. 



thousand acres are under grass, 20,000 under cereals, and 

 8000 under roots and leguminous crops. Characteristic of 

 the district are stretches of open undulating country with 

 small villages scattered at considerable distances from one 

 another. The rivers and streams are small, and apparently 

 diminishing in volume. 



All this being so, it is not surprising to find that the total 

 number of species of birds found in Rutland is not large. 

 Less than 200 have been recorded in all. Some of these rest 

 upon but a single observation, and can only be regarded as 

 the merest stragglers. Such are the Eagle Owl (1879) and 

 Bonaparte's Gull (1900), if the instances recorded are ad- 

 mitted as authentic, and the Bee-Eater, which bird seems 

 actually to have nested in Rutland (see Lord Lilford's ' Birds 

 of Northamptonshire '). 



But the real bird population of Rutland consists of 



1. Residents that remain all the year and nest in regular 



course. These number fifty-eight, if the Heron be 

 included, which nests close to the county boundaries. 



2. Migratory Summer birds that 



(a) nest regularly. These are thirty-one in number, 



if the Wood-Wren be included ; 



(b) nest occasionally. These are the Quail, the Teal, 



the Pied Flycatcher, the Snipe, the W T ater-rail, 

 and the Redshank, the last a bird which has only 

 just added itself to our nesting species. 



3. Migratory visitors on passage, such as the Ring-Ouzel, 



Osprey, and Sandpiper ; and the Winter visitors. 

 These together amount to about thirty. 



The total comes out at about 125, of which less than 

 100 breed in the county. 



Many interesting species that used to nest in Rutland 

 have long ceased to do so, such as the Kite, the Buzzard, and 

 the Raven. Less than a hundred years ago all these used to 

 be quite common, the Kite more especially so, but none 

 of the three has been known to breed since 1840. There 

 are still at least three Kite's eggs in existence, which were 

 taken in this district. It would be no very difficult matter, 

 with the co-operation of the farmers and landowners, to 

 reinstate the Kite in its ancient haunts. The county is 



