BIRDS 



and his companion at Lilford are the only 

 individuals of this species that I have been 

 fortunate enough to see in Northamptonshire. 



76. Carrion-Crow. Corvus corone, Linn. 



Neither do I hold a brief for this bird ; I 

 am afraid it is inexcusably bad. I would have 

 every bird protected but the sparrow, jackdaw, 

 carrion-crow, grey crow, and, on trout and 

 salmon streams, the heron, merganser and 

 cormorant. No doubt the carrion-crow feeds 

 to some extent on insects, but I cannot believe 

 that it anything like compensates thereby for 

 the harm it does in other ways. It is fairly 

 common with us in wooded districts, breeding 

 at the end of April, placing its nest in a high 

 tree, usually one with a good look-out all round. 



77. Grey or Hooded Crow. Corvus cornix, 



Linn. 



A regular and undesirable winter visitor in 

 considerable numbers, breeding numerously in 

 north and west Scotland and crossing the sea 

 from northern Europe in October. It is as 

 predatory as the last species ; but, as it leaves 

 us before there are eggs or young birds, the 

 harm it does in our country is comparatively 

 little. 



78. Rook. Corvus frugllegus, Linn, 



This bird, which with us is commonly 

 spoken of as a ' crow,' is a gregarious and 

 common resident. Builds its nest during 

 March, as is well known. Numbers cross 

 the North Sea in the autumn ; I have seen on 

 the east coast a more or less constant stream 

 of rooks and jackdaws coming in from the sea, 

 which lasted all day. I am convinced that 

 the main and favourite food of this bird con- 

 sists of insects and larvae, and that, though it 

 cannot be denied that they feed their young 

 partly on half-digested corn, and that some 

 individuals imitate the predacious habits of the 

 carrion-crow with regard to game eggs, I do 

 not believe that the rook offends nearly so 

 much in this respect as his sly associate the 

 jackdaw, and that on the whole he is a most 

 useful friend to agriculture. But the numbers of 

 the rooks ought to be kept within bounds, and 

 any individuals that develop a poaching ten- 

 dency (they are easily to be recognized) should 

 be dealt with summarily. 



79. Skylark. Alauda arvensis, Linn. 



A common resident, migrating southwards 

 in autumn, and replaced by large flocks from 

 further north. Breeds in April, nesting on 

 the ground amongst vegetation, and raising 

 two broods in the season. 



80. Woodlark. Alauda arborea, Linn. 



A scarce and local resident, or summer 

 visitor, somewhat intermittent in its appear- 

 ance. It haunts clearings in woods, where it 

 breeds, nesting on the ground amongst grass, 

 from the middle of March to the end of April. 



81. Swift. Cypsrlus apus {Lmn.). 



A summer visitor, locally common, reaching 

 us about the last week in April, breeding in 

 holes in buildings or under eaves, raising but 

 one brood in the season, and leaving us about 

 the first week in September. 



82. Nightjar. Caprimulgus europtsus, Linn. 

 Locally, Night-Hawk. 



A local summer visitor, not uncommon in 

 the eastern part of Northamptonshire, which 

 it reaches the second week in May, breeding 

 on the ground in the edges or clearings of 

 woods, and leaving early in September. 



83. Wryneck, lynx torquilla, Linn. 



A not uncommon summer visitor, arriving 

 towards the end of March, breeding about 

 mid-May in a hole in a tree at low elevation, 

 and leaving about the middle of September. A 

 shy, unobtrusive bird, and one which but for 

 its note would be little noticed. 



84. Green Woodpecker. Gecinus viridis 



(Linn.). 



A not uncommon resident, somewhat local 

 in distribution, from reasons mentioned under 

 species 85. I was struck, in February, 1886, 

 by noticing that this bird, not very abundant 

 about Irchester previously, suddenly seemed to 

 have its numbers largely increased, and became 

 a comparatively common bird. I ascertained 

 subsequently that a good deal of old wood 

 in the vicinity had been recently felled. In 

 east Northamptonshire it is not uncommon, 

 and I have known of several nests in most of 

 the years I have been here. Breeds in April, 

 in holes in trees, and has eggs about the middle 

 of the month. 



85. Greater Spotted Woodpecker. Dendro- 



copus major (Linn.). 



A scarce resident, affected, like other tree 

 borers, by the limited quantity of older timber 

 now existing, and therefore to be seen most 

 commonly in old parks. The present is the 

 rarest in Northants of the three British species, 

 but it escapes notice from being to a great 

 extent a tree-top bird. It nests in holes in 

 dead branches or decaying trees, at a good 

 height from the ground, about the middle of 

 May, 



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