252 BIRDS OF NORFOLK. 



return. I cannot think they were all English hatched 

 birds. Starlings build in churches and buildings. 

 Portion them off, therefore, so many to a church ; if you 

 like let a few go to chapel. But that is a question for 

 the mathematically minded naturalist or ornithologist to 

 determine." It would be impossible to account for such 

 an influx as this, otherwise than as caused by arrivals 

 from a distance, and this view is quite borne out by the 

 observations of naturalists in other parts of the king- 

 dom."^ The late Mr. Thompson, of Belfast, gives much 

 valuable information on this point in his " Birds of 

 Ireland," remarking from his own observations, " In 

 that portion of the north of the island with which I am 

 myself best acquainted, there is nothing irregular in the 

 migration of starlmgs ; they do not await any severity 

 of weather ; and although they may occasionally change 

 their quarters when within the island, yet of all our 

 birds they present the clearest evidence of migration, as 

 they are annually observed for several weeks to pour 

 into Ireland from the north, and wing their way south- 

 ward." As residents, also, the starlings are spoken of by 

 the same author, as by no means " generally spread 

 over Ireland as they are over England in the breeding 

 season ; but are confined to comparatively few favourite 

 localities, which are chiefly in pasture districts." Very 

 recently a notice appeared in the "Zoologist" (p. 9211) 

 of ^'an extraordinary arrival of starlings in Ireland" 

 during the month of June, 1864 ; more particularly re- 

 markable for their appearance, in large flocks, at so early a 

 season. In this instance they were seen to arrive " across 

 the sea as if from the Welch coast, due east, and pass 

 over the island in a westerly direction." Being an ex- 

 tremely sociable species, starlings may be seen con- 



* In Professor Ansted's interesting work on the " Channel 

 Islands," the starling is described as a winter visitant only." 



