90 



to those of the Blackbird, but a little larger, greener in the tint, 

 and some of them more blotched, and the spots more decided, 

 than on those of that bird. 



The food of the Ring Ouzel consists of worms, small slugs, 

 snails, and the berries of the Mountain Ash, Bilberry, etc. Even 

 before incubation is over he often makes raids on the gardens on 

 the lower foothills of the Pennine range. Some of my country 

 friends can well testify that he regales himself on the cherries, 

 raspberries, and other fruit, to their cost. 



When nidification is over, the birds commence their southward 

 march, they then are more noticed as they gather up by the way. 

 They arrive in the south-eastern counties in the middle of Sep- 

 tember, and generally spend a week, hence they are called by the 

 country people in those parts Michaelmas Blackbirds. 



Another migrant who often builds near to the Ring Ouzel — in 

 fact his next door neighbour — is 



The Wheatear, Saxicola cenanlhe. 



This bird is widely-spread over Central and Northern Europe, 

 Greenland, Faroe Isles, eastwards across Siberia into Alaska, also in 

 Sweden, Norway, Lapland, Egypt, and Asia Minor. They spend the 

 winter in Africa, Persia, and India. My earliest dates of the arrival of 

 the Wheatear are March 24th, 26th, 27th, and 29th. I first see them 

 in our low-lying lands on the borders of our rivers, never many 

 together, where they stay a day or two, and then make off to their 

 breeding grounds up on our fell sides and along the coast line ; 

 only in one instance have I seen these birds in the breeding 

 season between the shore and the foot-hills of the fells, and that 

 was in a fallow field near to the Spa Well. This bird has a variety 

 of local names, viz., Whiterump, Fallow-chat, Chacker, Charlie- 

 mufti, Chickel, and several others. They run along the ground 

 with great celerity, ever and anon stopping to have a look round, 

 first on one side and then the other, flirting the tail, and showing 

 the beautiful white parts of their plumage, then making a dart 

 forward and picking up insects here and there, taking low slightly 



