THE GREEN AND WOOD-SANDPIPERS 503 



wood-sandpiper lies east of the British Isles. It occurs as a straggler 

 in the eastern counties in April and May, and has been noticed as 

 early as April 15th in Cornwall. 1 



The green-sandpiper, although visiting us in fair numbers in 

 autumn, is seldom seen in parties of more than three or four birds. 

 The vast majority of these are immature. Those that remain through- 

 out the winter appear to commence the spring migration very early, 

 as in the South Kent marshes the numbers decrease considerably in 

 February, and in March all appear to have gone. 2 



The green-sandpiper is not by any means general on the spring 

 passage. In the south-eastern counties it is certainly a bird of 

 double passage, and to a certain extent a winter visitor. Mr F. 

 Boyes states that in Yorkshire it is a bird of autumn passage and 

 a winter visitor, and that the birds seen in spring are those that 

 have remained through the winter. 3 Mr. Caton Haigh says it is the 

 same in Lincolnshire, that it is most abundant on the autumn 

 passage, and that considerable numbers stay through the winter, 

 especially in severe winters. He has not noticed a spring passage, 

 but the winter visitors gradually leave in March and April.* This 

 corresponds with the date given by Dr. Ticehurst for the disappear- 

 ance of the winter visitors in Kent. The probable explanation is 

 that the line of the spring passage from abroad is across the south- 

 eastern counties, leaving the country in North Norfolk. Another line 

 may be taken by the birds that enter by the extreme south-west, viz. 

 up through the western counties, as there is said to be a double 

 passage in Breconshire ; 5 it has also been recorded in April in Shrop- 

 shire ; 6 and in March to the end of April in Somersetshire, 7 but in 

 these last the numbers seen were too small to indicate a regular line 

 of migration. The spring passage from abroad commences about the 



1 Howard Saunders, Manual of British Birds, p. 617. 



* Ticehurst, op. tit., pp. 475-6. 



J Field, 1900, vol. xcv. p. 32. Ibid., p. 57. 



5 Ibid., 1897, vol. Ixxxix. p. 1015. B. O. C. Migration Report, October 1910, p. 188 



' Ibid., 1911, p. 177. 



