MAY. 121 



first blood I have been bitterly disappointed, but I find I am by no 

 means the only one, for Mr. Warde Fowler failed to discover in the 

 Chipping Norton district a single Summer Migrant up to April 10th. 

 On that date, he says in the " Zoologist," he rambled without reward 

 for three hours in various localities. 



20th. -Brilliant sunshine, nice gentle breezes. The dark blue of 

 the Iris makes a brave show in the garden now ; Pinks bursting, Ferns 

 making rapid headway, Currants and Plums well set. Lilac and 

 Laburnum in its beauty. Sitting in the garden, what a variety of 

 small insects alight on the hands and other parts of the body and 

 what pretty specimens some of them are. 



Following flowers found in bloom to-day: Shepherd's Purse, 

 Thyme-leaved Veronica, Groundsel, Heartsease, Chickweed, Dandelion, 

 Yellow Rocket, White and Pink Campions, Hedge Parsley, Red, 

 White, and Yellow Dead Nettles, Daisy, Shepherd's Needle the bank 

 of needles looks very curious now that most of the flower petals have 

 disappeared; Charlock, Bush Vetch, Scentless Mayweed, Upright 

 Meadow Crowfoot, Hawthorn, Hop Trefoil, Holly, Cuckoo Flower, 

 Garlic Mustard, Red Clover, Dove's Foot, Crane's Bill, Blue Sherardia 

 Greater Stitchwort, Wild Hyacinth, Cowslip, Herb Robert, Dog's 

 Mercury (going rapidly off flower this latter and the double seed 

 vessels very prominent now), Ground Ivy, Goosegrass (just coming 

 into flower), Common Avens, Woodruff, Cuckoo Pint (the woods and 

 hedgerows covered with these Wild Arums), Dog Violet, Bugle Flower, 

 Field Scorpion Grass, and Germander Speedwell. Oxeye Daisies 

 nicely headed up now. 



Birds heard to-day were: Chaffinch, Skylark (it has been another 

 glorious day of universal Lark song), Swallow and House Martin (is 

 there any rural sound more delightful than the twitter of the Swallow 

 and the warble of the Martin under the eaves), Hedge Sparrow, 

 Redbreast (seems to have resumed singing again this last few days, 

 after a temporary cessation), Greenfinch, Starling, Bullfinch (weeping), 

 Song Thrush, Blackbird, Tree Pipit, Lapwing, Rook, Cuckoo (one 

 particular bird I heard to-day could not get the " koo " at all), 

 Pheasant, Jackdaw, Greater Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Yellow 

 Bunting, House Sparrow, Nightingale, and Green Woodpecker. When 

 a song bird is enumerated, and nothing is said to the contrary, it may 

 be assumed that the species was in song. 



A specimen of the Cachalot, or Sperm Whale, appeared in the 

 Thames, near Greenwich, yesterday. It is stated that this Whale has 

 not been observed so far up the Thames since the Autumn of 1878. 



