SUSSEX CROSSBILLS 49 



Later than this, and up to the end of June, I 

 saw few Crossbills, such as there were chiefly con- 

 sisting of family parties leading a nomadic life ; 

 while in July I hardly saw a bird. The " irrup- 

 tion ' ' subsided and disappeared almost as magically 

 as it arrived. When will the next " irruption "be ? 



Now more than ever do I think that those 

 nests found with young even as early as April 15th 

 were real second broods, not only because the 

 Crossbill is often such a phenomenally early nester, 

 but also because a close search round the spots 

 where I found these revealed, in some instances at 

 remarkably close quarters, obvious Crossbills' nests 

 from which young had just as obviously flown. If 

 this surmise be correct, then a few pairs appeared 

 to be triple-brooded. Witness the nests with 

 young and the one with eggs discovered during the 

 latter half of May in spots where is was known 

 broods had already been reared during April. 



