The Birds of Pembrokeshire. SI 
Sparrow-hawks, until we have known them all to be killed one 
after the other. The Ring-doves in the plantations were also 
frequent victims, being knocked off their perches on the trees, 
then eaten on the ground below. The appearance of two or 
three Sparrow-hawks about the places where the young 
Pheasants were fed was also regarded as ominous of mischief, 
but they succeeded in carrying off very few, as there was plenty 
of cover for the Pheasants to hide themselves in from the 
destroyer. Needless to say that we waged war against the 
Sparrow-hawks, taking their nests and shooting all we could, but 
we never seemed to make any impression upon their numbers. 
The young Hawks, while they are still in the nest, keep up a 
wailing cry, which generally betrays its position, although it 
might otherwise have remained undetected in the thick upper 
branches of some old spruce. 
KITE, AMlvus ictinus—Once a common resident, now only a rare 
occasional visitor. The Rev. C. M. Phelps states that when he 
was a boy he often heard of, and saw the Kite glide over the 
farm yards, and threaten the unhappy hens with the loss of their 
chickens. This was on the mountains, ‘‘ some seven miles from 
Fishguard.” But it is now long since there were any resident 
Pembrokeshire Kites. Indeed, sixty years ago, the Kite had 
become a scarce bird in South Wales. Mr. T. C. Heysham, 
the well-known naturalist, of Carlisle, was anxious to obtain a 
specimen from Monmouthshire, but had to wait for three years 
before his correspondent in that county was able to secure one. 
At last he had a male Kite forwarded to him in April, 1837, 
that had been caught in a trap, and was informed that the game- 
keepers had by that time rendered the Kite a very rare bird. 
For this interesting note we are indebted to the courtesy of the 
Rev. H. A. Macpherson, of Carlisle. We have ourselves heard 
from old people that they can remember the Kite as quite a 
common bird when they were young. We have been informed 
by Mr. Mathias that a Kite was killed about 1835, upon the 
Moat Estate, by a keeper of the late W. H. Scourfield Esq., 
