NOTES. 165 



RETURN OF MARKED SWIFTS TO THEIR 

 BREEDING PLACES. 



Some interesting results of the " ringing " of Swifts have 

 recently appeared in the Ornithologische Monatsherichte, 1911, 

 pp. 156, 168. Dr. Thienemann writes that on July 4th and 

 15th, 1910, Herr A. Gundlach of Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg, 

 marked with rings two old Swifts {Cypselus apus) which were 

 breeding in a Starling's nesting-box. At the beginning of July, 

 1911, the same birds were again found breeding in the same box. 

 Ritter von Tschusi zu Schmidhoffen also states that in 1909 

 he succeeded in " ringing " a female Swift which was breeding 

 under the eaves of a Starling's box, but failed to mark the 

 male bird. In 1910 the " ringed " hen returned to the nesting 

 place, and this time the male bird was also marked. On 

 capturing the birds this season (1911), it was found that both 

 male and female were the birds which had been marked in 

 1909 and 1910 respectively. One result of these observations 

 is to show clearly that the rings have no injurious effect on 

 the birds, for the female Swift " ringed " by Ritter von 

 Tschusi has now worn the ring for three seasons without 

 any ill effect. It would seem from these records that the Swift 

 is a life-paired bird, returning to the same nesting place year 

 after year. F. C. R. Jourdain. 



THREE BROODS OF BLACKBIRDS REARED IN 

 ONE NEST. 



In the October number of British Birds {antea, p. 143) 

 appears a note of a pair of Blackbirds {Turdus merula) rearing 

 three broods of young in the same nest, from w hich it seems 

 that there is only a single record known of such an occurrence 

 having taken place in England. It will be of interest, therefore, 

 to note that in the spring of 1907 I knew of a case at Troutsdale 

 Mill, near Scarborough, Yorkshire, where a pair of Blackbirds 

 reared three broods of five, four, and three respectively from 

 the same nest. The last brood left the nest on July 28th, 

 and the old birds immediately set about repairing and re- 

 lining it, presumably with a view to a fourth family, but 

 unfortunately the nest was discovered and destroyed b}^ some 

 lads before the eggs w^ere deposited. W. J. Clarke. 



NESTING OF THE GREY WAGTAIL FAR FROM 

 WATER. 



Referring to the Rev. F. C. R. Jourdain's note {antea, p. 133) 

 on the nesting of the Grey Wagtail {Motacilla melanope), I 

 found, on June 15th, 1911 , at Sandymount, Tipperary, Ireland, 



