MIGRATORY BIRDS: SPRING 111 



February) to the return to their nesting quarters of the 

 Pied and Grey Wagtails, Twite, MerHn, Mallard, Teal, 

 Woodcock, Black-headed Gull, and others ; while many 

 Ring-Plovers, Richardson's Skuas, and Fulmar Petrels 

 appear for the summer in the northern archipelagos of 

 Orkney and Shetland, and other boreal localities. The 

 local movements also include the departure from the 

 islands off the west coasts of Scotland and Ireland of a 

 number of species which, having passed the winter in 

 the milder climes of the Far West, are returning to 

 their summer quarters in Great Britain or the Sister 

 Isle. Such migrants consist chiefly of Greenfinches, 

 Chaffinches, Twites, Song-Thrushes, Blackbirds, and 

 Starlings. 



Arrival of Partial Migrants. — The return journeys 

 from their southern Continental winter retreats of the 

 Partial Migrants are continued, and reach their maximum 

 during March, all the species recorded as arriving on the 

 south coast of England for P^ebruary being observed, and, 

 in addition, the Woodcock and Curlew. Considerable 

 numbers of Rooks (occasionally accompanied by Jack- 

 daws) and of Starlings and Skylarks arrive during the 

 daytime on the south-east coast between Kent and 

 Norfolk throughout the month, and their immigrations 

 are sometimes prolonged into the first week of April. 

 These arrivals sometimes occur for several successive 

 days, and the birds returning are doubtless those which 

 were observed leaving these same shores for those of the 

 Continent during the previous autumn. 



Arrival of Stiuimer Visitors} — The Summer Visitors 

 which have been known to appear in our islands during 

 March are thirty-eight in number. Of these, however, 



^ For particulars of dates of arrival of Summer Visitors, see pp. 126-128. 



