1 92 1.] Velocity of Migratory Flight among Birds. 



235 



Species. 



Place. 



Pacific Plover Pacific. 

 (Gh. domiulcus). 



Lapwing S. Palestine. 



Lapwing France. 



Lajjwing do. 



Lapwing do. 



Little Stint East Africa. 



Terek Sandpiper... do. 



Greenshank do. 



Marsh-Sandpiper .. do. 



Oystercatcher . . . do. 



Ciirlew do. 



Whimbrel do. 



Grronnd 

 speed : 

 m.p.h. 



50-75 



37 



50 



*40-45 

 42 



49 

 48-51 

 46,49 

 48,51, 51i 

 45-49 

 42-48:^ 



43-52 



Remarks. 



Not founded apparently on accu- 

 rate observation. {Henshatv, 

 Smithson. Inst. Eep. 1910.) 



Single bird, flying against head 

 wind of 12 m.p.h. Altitude of 

 flight 860 feet. See note D. 



Altitude of flight 5500 feet. 

 Flying against a north wind 

 on spring passage. Means of 

 estimate imknown. {Portal, 

 'Field,' 17.iii.l7.) 



Observation by air-speed indi- 

 cator. (E.A.F.) 



Altitude of flight 1410 feet. 

 Slight side wind at ground- 

 level. See note F. 



One observation. See note C. 



Four observations. See note C. 



Two observations. See note C. 



Three observations. See note C. 



Seven observations. See note C. 



Seventeen observations. See 

 note C. 



Nine observations. See note C. 



* Air- 



So much for observations on the flight of wild birds. 

 I shall now briefly record some of the more accurate 

 observations on the rate of flight of Carrier Pigeons. 



Tegetmeier declares (' Field/ 22. i. 87) that the average 

 speed of Carrier Pigeons is 36 miles per hour, whilst on 

 two occasions a speed of 55 miles per hour was maintained 

 for foiir hours in succession. 



From experiments carried out in a covered gallery 

 (' Field,' 1887, p. 242) it was shown that a Pigeon flew 

 at 33*8 miles per hour, whilst in the open another flew at 

 27'9 miles per hour. 



In the ' Homing Fancier's Annual ' of 1892 it was recorded 

 that in covering 82 miles in good weather a bird maintained 



