544 ORNITHOLOGICAL NOTES. 



winters birds overcome all their fear of man and come into 

 the gardens of the town ; for in the winter of 1878-79, which 

 was so very hard, both these gardens were uncommonly poor 

 in birds, while during the very mild one just past I compiled 

 a list of species which, considering the position of the locality 

 where they were seen, is remarkably full. 



Before enumerating them I will divide the period of ob- 

 servation into two sections, namely, from January 1st to 

 March 1st, and from March 1st to April 30th. I should also 

 mention that I killed with a small collecting-gun some 

 specimens which struck me as being particularly dark. These 

 birds were all so blackened by the smoke of the town that 

 they looked quite peculiar. This blackness, which yielded, 

 however, to an application of soap, occurred chiefly among 

 the Sparrows and Woodpeckers. 



From January 1st to March 1st I observed the Great 

 Spotted Woodpecker (Picus major], much blackened, the 

 Middle Spotted Woodpecker (P. medius), the Grey-headed 

 Green Woodpecker (P. canus], the Goshawk (Aster palinn- 

 barius), the Sparrow-Hawk (A. nisus], the Robin (ErytJiacus 

 rubecula), the Blackbird (Turdus mcrula\ the Common Wren 

 (Troglodytes parvulus], the Gold en -crested Wren (Regulus 

 cristatus) , the Fire-crested Wren (/?. ignicapillus] , the Crested 

 Lark (Alauda cristata], the Chaffinch (Fringilla Calebs) , up to 

 the beginning of February only females, afterwards males. 

 Also the Siskin (Chrysomitris spinus), the Common Sparrow 

 (Passer domesticus) , much blackened ; the Tree-Sparrow 

 (P. montanus), the Greenfinch (Coccothraustes vulgaris], the 

 Bullfinch (Pyrrhula europcea) , the Hooded Crow (Corvus cor- 

 nix], the Rook (C.frugilegus), the Jackdaw (C. monedula), 

 the Great Tit (Parus major], the Blue Tit (P. cceruleus), one 

 specimen of the Coal Tit (P. ater], the Marsh-Tit (P. paint- 

 tris), the Crested Tit (P. cristatus), the Long-tailed Tit 



