Bird Notes and News 



83 



The Swallows 



" What has become of our Swallows ? " 

 is a question often asked by country people 

 during recent years, for there is a general 

 agreement that there has been for some 

 time a shortage of these delightful summer 

 visitors. 



It has been assumed that the scarcity 

 of the birds in the country is largely due 

 to the persecution which they underwent 

 on their migration through other countries 

 lying to the south of these islands ; and 

 especially in the south of France, in 

 certain districts in and about the Delta 

 of the Rhone. There is no doubt that, 

 some years back, cruel havoc was played 

 in the Camargue, a district of arid plains, 

 marshes and lagoons, some of the latter 

 of great extent. Light nets were stretched 

 over the lagoons, ostensibly for catching 

 Starhngs (probably coming to roost in the 

 reeds) and certain marsh birds, which 

 was permitted : but many thousands of 

 Swallows and Martins were taken in these 

 same nets, each Spring, though the 

 " chasse " of these birds was really pro- 

 hibited. 



For about 20 years I have spent some 

 weeks of each Spring, excepting the War 

 period, near Hyeres, which is well placed 

 for observing spring migrants ; and have 

 met there several naturalists, notably Dr. 

 P. Siepi, late of the Museum at Marseilles. 

 While greatly deploring the slaughter, 

 they have told me something of the 

 destructive work, winked at by those who 

 should have enforced the law ! Tens of 

 thousands of Swallows and Martins were 

 sent to Paris plumassiers, for millinery 

 purposes ; while huge quantities were 

 eaten as " petit gibier," at certain auberges 

 in the district, frequented largely by 

 commercial travellers, while the season 

 lasted ! A letter before me, written by a 

 M. A. Soubeiran, of St. Gilles (Gard), to 

 my friend M. L. Coulet, of Hyeres, who 

 most kindly undertook to write to M. 

 Soubeiran, as having formerly been one 

 of the chief local agents in the business, 

 states that " From the year 1885 to 1895 



approximately, the fashion for stuffed 

 birds for ladies' hats being in great vogue, 

 the Chimney Swallows in spite of their 

 ' gentilesse ' (!) received no pity : and 

 for some years in the month of May, at 

 the time of their passing, a great number 

 were taken in nets in the Plain of Beau- 

 caire, the Marshes of Bellegarde, Aries, 

 and St. Gilles — in spite of the fact that 

 hunting these birds was prohibited, and 

 that one could only obtain them clandes- 

 tinely. Now the use of nets is com- 

 pletely prohibited, and has been for a 

 long time past. There are no longer any 

 net hunters, and the Swallows have no 

 longer any need to fear the ' Chasseurs,' 

 at any rate in the region with which I am 

 acquainted." 



Dr. Siepi, in La Feuille des Jeunes 

 Naturalistes, says that he considers that 

 the worst time for the birds was between 

 1876 and 1890, a period commencing nine 

 years before that given by M. Soubeiran, 

 and terminating five years earlier. But 

 it is to be noted that neither of these 

 gentlemen considers that there has been 

 any demand in Paris for these birds since 

 1895, owing to the change of fashion. 

 Exactly when the diminution of Swallows 

 and Martins, summering in this country, 

 became so marked as to attract attention 

 is difficult to estimate. Probably it varied 

 in different places. But amongst the 

 chief causes which prevented the numbers 

 of our birds from recovering, after the 

 wholesale destruction in France to supply 

 the milhnery trade came to an end 

 in 1895, probably climatic influences 

 have played their part, and among 

 seasons since 1895, no Spring can have 

 been less favourable to spring migrants 

 than that of 1917. In France an im- 

 provement began to be noticed. Dr. 

 Siepi writes in the paper above referred to : 

 " Since the mode for wearing Uttle birds 

 changed to the made-up plume, the 

 destruction of Swallows has been less 

 profitable : and now we witness {in France) 

 an increase in their numbers.'^ I am 



