38 Mr. G. D. Rowley on the Tawny Pipit. 



bird I always expected to turn up in England ? " Ultimately I 

 sent it up to Mr. Gould, whose answer I give in his own words : 

 — " The bird is Anthus rufescens ; apparently a fine old male in 

 summer plumage. It is unusual for it to have spotted markings 

 on the chest ; but I have no doubt I am right as to its name. 

 Others ought to be found on the south coast, as the bird is com- 

 mon in the central parts of France and Spain.^^ 



1 had previously thought, and Swaysland with me, that it 

 was a young bird of the year, and still incline to that view, 

 though hesitating to differ from so great an authority. We did 

 so partly on account of the fine hair-like feathers about the 

 vent, and the spangles or light edges to the feathers on the back, 

 which all our Larks and Pipits have in their first plumage. It 

 now came to our remembrance that another specimen, which 

 had been sold to Henry Collins, Esq., of Aldsworth, near Ems- 

 worth, for an Anthus ricardi, was exactly the same as the one 

 under examination. Upon this I wrote to Mr. Collins, a gen- 

 tleman whose collection is rich in British-killed birds ; and 

 he, in the most liberal manner, directly placed it at my disposal. 

 I knew that there could not be the smallest doubt that this 

 latter was a bond fide British bird, as it had been shot by Harding, 

 a domestic servant in Brighton and a highly respectable man, 

 with whom I am well acquainted, and can quite depend upon. I 

 was therefore much pleased to find it exactly correspond with 

 the other (particularly in the shoi't hind claw, which is long 

 in^. ricardi), and to observe that Mr. Collins's example is even 

 finer than Swaysland^s. I ascertained the particulars of its cap- 

 ture from Harding myself. It was shot by him, August 17, 

 1858, about 7 o'clock in the morning, close to a shallow pool (a 

 good locality, which I hold in great respect), near Shoreham 

 Harbour, where I have, as the wished-for daylight began to 

 appear, come upon a Grey Plover ( Vanellus melanog aster), heard 

 " his signal-whistle," and traced his tracks upon the mud. I 

 asked Harding what called his attention to this bird more than 

 others, since he said there were several Rock Pipits about at the 

 time, and the Meadow Pipit [Anthus pratensis) is abundant. He 

 said the note struck him as different to the Titlarks. " It came 

 piping down from above," and allowed him to approach with 



