Lord Lilford on the Oi-nithology of Spain. 177 



without, apparently, any present intention of nesting. The 

 Great and Bhie Titmice, Parus majo7' and P. ccei-ukus, were very 

 abundant ; and I noticed on this occasion, besides the species 

 above mentioned, Hirundu rustica, Sylvia atricapilla, Ruticilla 

 phcenicura, Krythacus ruhecula, Philomela luscinia, Accentor 

 modularis, Turdus iliacus, Turdus musicus, Tardus merula, Sturnus 

 nnicolor, Alauda crisfata, Fringilla coelehs, Passer domesticus, 

 Gallinula chloropus, and Podiceps minor. 



On my return to Madrid I found that a man had brought to 

 our hotel a Common Cuckoo, Cuculus canorus, alive for me: 

 this bird was in the barred plumage of the first year, in fact 

 precisely similar, to all appearance, to a nestling; but at this 

 time of year it was impossible that this should be the case. Its 

 owner insisted that it was no relation whatever to the Common 

 Cuckoo. I do not remember to have ever before seen a bird of 

 this species in this plumage at this time of year, and imagined 

 that it assumed the grey adult plumage at the first moult ; but 

 I find that in Spain the country people all affirm that the red 

 Cuckoos arc to be seen at all times of the year between -April 

 and September, and consider them entirely distinct from the 

 Common Cuckoo. This perhaps does not go for much ; but I 

 mention it as I had never before heard of the idea, and I 

 should be glad to know whether any of my readers can throw 

 any light on the subject. 



On the next day, April 9th, I was again down early at the 

 Casa de Campo, and, on this occasion, found that Manuel de la 

 Torre had just returned. I made acquaintance with him, and 

 found in him a man very much to my mind, well acquainted 

 with all the birds of the country, evidently a keen observer, and 

 full of information on local zoology. The chief facts I gathered 

 from him were, that the Booted Eagle, Aquila pennata, about 

 which I particularly inquired, does not arrive in Spain till the 

 end of April, and that the Great Spotted Cuckoo, Oxylophus 

 glandarius, was then due, and lays its eggs in the nests of the 

 Common Magpie, Pica caudata, very soon after its appearance in 

 country. We wandered about the southern boundary of the 

 grounds of the Casa de Campo, where 1 had the pleasure of 

 observing for a considerable time the actions of two pairs of the 



N. S. VOL. II. N 



