576 A FEW AUTUMN NOTES. 



seen in this part of the country, which is so very well suited 

 to them. 



In 1882 all the conditions were fulfilled which would have 

 led one to expect an unusually large immigration of Rough- 

 legged Buzzards, and yet I never saw more than three on one 

 day. The first, however, appeared on October 18th, which 

 was exceptionally early. 



This autumn Montagu's Harrier (Circus cineraceiis) stayed 

 with us longer than usual, for between November 15th and 

 20th, when plenty of snow had already fallen, I observed some 

 birds of this species on the great tracts of cultivated ground. 



On November 22nd I still remarked several Kestrels (Falco 

 ttnnunculus)] while the Sparrow-Hawk (Astur nisus), the 

 Goshawk (A. palumbarius), and the Peregrine (Falco pere- 

 grinus) visited us in particularly large numbers, and were 

 everywhere to be met with among the covers and the clumps 

 of wood in the fields. 



I was this year able to make interesting observations in con- 

 nection with the migration of various species of birds, and, if 

 I may make so bold a statement, I should say that there is no 

 fixed order in their times of departure. Many species left us 

 exactly at the times given by naturalists in their works the 

 Swallows and most of the small song-birds for instance. Not 

 so the Quail, some of which I saw in a turnip-field as late as 

 October 14th. The Corn-Crake also stayed much longer than 

 usual, for I still met with several at the end of October, and on 

 November 6th I killed an old bird among some thick bushes 

 in the middle of a wood. The Woodcock, too, were excep- 

 tionally abundant this year in the neighbourhood of Prague, 

 and at the end of October and the beginning of November 

 were everywhere to be found in the large woods. On 

 November 12th I killed one in a low little copse among the 

 fields, the weather being very cold and the ground frozen but 

 free from snow. 



