Mr. J. Blackwall's Observatio7}s on the Notes of Birds. 15 



habitants, in their most sequestered retreats ; and his writinors 

 bear ample testimony how well his researches were repaid. 

 The subject, however, is still far from being exhausted : know- 

 ledge is acquired slowly ; and even the most careful and inde- 

 fatigable inquirers are liable to errors and omissions. Much 

 yet remains to be supplied, much to be corrected, before the 

 history of British birds can be pronounced complete. 



To the practical ornithologist, who is desirous of promoting 

 and extending his favourite study by the communication of 

 his own personal observations and remarks, an intimate ac- 

 quaintance with the various notes of the feathered tribes is of 

 such vast importance, that any difficulties he may encounter 

 in obtaining it, will be more than compensated by the nume- 

 rous advantages it affords. In many instances it enables him 

 to detect species that might otherwise elude his observation. 

 Thus, the landrail, concealed in the long grass of luxuriant 

 meadows, where it runs with great rapidity, and is sprung 

 with difficulty; the grasshopper warbler, closely embowered 

 in thick hedges and bushy dingles, where it employs every 

 artifice to escape notice; and the sedge warbler, secluded amid 

 the reeds and other aquatic productions of pools and marshes ; 

 are much more frequently heard than seen ; — the harsh call 

 of the first, the sibilous note of the second, and the hurried 

 song of the last, being repeated through the night, in fine 

 weather, during the breeding season. 



It also enables him to identify species with the utmost pre- 

 cision : in some cases, indeed, with much greater certainty 

 than he could by the minutest examination of good specimens. 

 The three species of willow wren, for example, so strongly 

 resemble each other, that even nice observers might have some 

 difficulty in determining them by inspection ; and, accordingly, 

 we find that they have been the source of much confusion 

 perplexity, and error, among writers on ornithology. As their 

 notes, however, are perfectly distinct, a little attention to them 

 is sufficient to remove every difficulty. In the same manner 

 the crow may readily be distinguished from the rook, the 

 raven from both, and the males of most species from the fe- 

 males. 



The arrival of many of the periodical warblers is frequently 

 first announced by their songs ; and the clamorous night-calls 

 of the redwing and fieldfare in the months of October and 

 November, serve to establish the fact that these birds mio-rate 

 and that they perfbrn) their journeys in the dark. 



But these are not the only advantages to be derived from 

 an acquaintance with the notes of birds. As the feathered 

 tribes communicate their sensations and intentions to one an- 

 other 



