58 Capt. A. W. Boyd on [Ibis, 



An early passage of a good uumber of species was noticed 

 on 28 February, 1917, on our way from Egypt to France, a 

 few hours after we had passed to the north-east through the 

 straits of Messina ; many small birds came on board the 

 boat : stonechats, redbreasts^ song-thrushes, chaffinches, 

 skylarks, pipits, white wagtails, etc. ; but in the north of 

 France the weather was cold until mid-April and nothing 

 of interest happened till then, when the summer migrants 

 began to arrive. 



The very severe winter of 1916-17 no doubt reduced the 

 numbers of many species in France as it did in England ; I 

 did not see a single fieldfare in France, and redwings were 

 not at all abundant, and probably the absence or com- 

 parative scarcity of a number of species of resident birds 

 is to be accounted for in the same way. 



I have seen nothing of numbers of species which other 

 observers have found so common in other parts of the line 

 or in the same parts in different seasons : owls, for example, 

 which others have seen so commonly, I failed to find ; the 

 same holds good of a number of water-birds, as I only 

 occasionally visited the river Somme and its floods, where 

 duck gather in large numbers in the winter; similarly I 

 never saw the large flights of geese reported from some 

 parts in late autumn. 



The period covered is from March 1917 to March 1918, 

 so that except for the month of March the year of an obser- 

 vation is not given, I have added also a few observations 

 made in July and August, 1918. The nomenclature used is 

 that of the B.O.U. list, 1915. 



Corvus corone. Carrion- Crow. 



Fairly common iu Somme. In October and November 

 they were frequently to be seen in the Canche estuary and 

 on the sand-dunes at Etaples with the hooded crows and 

 rooks. 



Corvus cornix. Hooded Crow. 



Throughout March 1917 very common in the area of the 

 Somme battle and in some numbers round Peronne during 



