REVIEWS 



OrnitJiological Notes from a South London Suburb, 1874-1909. 

 By F. D. Power, M.R.C.S. 60 pages, 5 illustrations from 

 photographs and a chart. Henry J. Glaisher. 3s. 6d. net. 



In this unpretentious little volume of less than sixty pages 

 the author has summarized the results of thirty-five years' 

 observations on the birds of some of the South London suburbs. 

 — Dulwich, Brixton, Heme Hill, Sydenham, etc. 



It might perhaps be considered that observations in such 

 apparently uncongenial localities would hardly be worth 

 pursuing, still less recording, but it must be at once admitted 

 that the author has fully justified his labours by the surprisingly 

 valuable nature of his notes, and his book stands out as an 

 object lesson to all " Nature Students," and it is safe to 

 say that it is crammed full of first-hand records, without doubt 

 those of a careful and accurate observer. 



In suburban districts change is constantly going on ; the 

 neighbouring country districts are gradually invaded by the 

 builder and certain species must inevitably disappear, and 

 it is such records as Mr. Power here gives us that in years 

 to come will be especially valuable to the naturalist-historian. 



Omitting the six casual occurrences of birds that have 

 without doubt escaped from captivity, the author enumerates 

 119 species as found in his district, and divides them into 

 29 residents, 22 summer-visitors, of which 13 breed regularly 

 and 4 others have been known to do so, 18 winter-migrants 

 and 24 occasional and 26 accidental visitors, of which 15 

 occur in summer and 35 in autumn and \\inter. In the 

 main part of the little book the species are considered under 

 these various heads, and it is perhaps a matter of opinion 

 whether this arrangement is the best that could have been 

 used. It is not easy here to pick out any particular items 

 from the mass of records, but amongst the most interesting 

 are those of the breeding of genuine wild Tufted Ducks 

 {F. cristata) in Dulwich Park from 1901 to 1904; the recent 

 discovery of the breeding of the Wood- Wren (P. sibilatrix) ; 

 the abundance of the Hawfinch (C. vulgaris) ; the facts that 

 the Carrion-Crow (C. corone) still breeds in the district ; the 

 diminution of such species as the Jay {G. glandarius), Nut- 

 hatch {S. ccesia) and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker {D. minor), 

 House-Martin (C. urbica), Swallow {H. rustica), and Swift 

 (C apus) as breeding species ; the great increase of the Wood- 

 Pigeon (C. palumbus), which now breeds regularly in Brixton 



