BIRDS 



78. Sky-Lark. Alauda arvensis, Linn. 

 Very numerous on fields and pastures. Pale 



and pied varieties are not rare. An entirely 

 ' buff-yellow ' variety was shot on December 

 26, 1863, at Weston Turville (R. Tyrer, 

 Zoologist, 1864, p. 8957). 



79. Wood-Lark. Alauda arborea, Linn. 



A rather rare and local bird in Buckingham- 

 shire, being partial to dry, chiefly sandy, dis- 

 tricts with open woods and plantations. It 

 occurs therefore sparingly along the Chiltern 

 Hills, and was observed near Chequers Court 

 by the Rev. H. D. Astley. 



80. Swift. Cypselus apus (Linn.). 



(The correct name, if priority of generic as 

 well as of specific names is recognized, is 

 Apus apus. Cypselus is the third oldest generic 

 term.) 



Sometimes called the ' devil.' Very fre- 

 quent, arriving within the first days of May, 

 more rarely during the last days of April. 

 E. Hartert had some correspondence with 

 several prominent members of the British 

 Ornithologists' Union, showing that, though 

 the usual number of eggs is certainly two, 

 three eggs are not unfrequently found in one 

 nest. 



81. Nightjar. Caprimulgus europteus, Linn. 

 This summer visitor is by no means rare in 



suitable localities, viz. dry open woods, chiefly 

 of conifers, dry ground covered with heather, 

 gorse or ferns. Mr. A. Heneage Cocks says 

 it is plentiful in all the woods in the Humble- 

 don district. It is not rare about Burnham 

 Beeches, and very common on the hills above 

 Halton. There it can be heard and seen on 

 every summer's night. The Rev. Hubert D. 

 Astley calls it numerous near Chequers 

 Court, Coombe Hill and above Wendover. 

 W. Rothschild saw it near Buckingham, 

 E. Hartert near Princes Risborough. It is 

 said to be abundant near Slough and Eton, 

 and Mr. Clark Kennedy described it as com- 

 mon in the woods near Beaconsfield. 



82. Wryneck. lynx torquilla, Linn. 

 Locally, Cuckoo's mate, Nile bird (at Great 



Marlow), Pea bird. 



The first name evidently refers to the time 

 of arrival, which may be much the same as 

 that of the cuckoo ; the third must, we think, 

 refer to its cry, and the second name does 

 perhaps the same. The wryneck is, it seems, 

 somewhat decreasing in number. It is seen 

 or heard in most districts, but nowhere is it 

 common. Mr. Grossman informs us that it 

 used formerly to be plentiful round Farnham 



and Burnham. In 1878 it was heard as 

 early as April 5 at Stoke Pogis Vicarage near 

 Slough. A pure white wryneck, a young 

 one of the year, was killed on October 27, 

 1878, at Wendover Hall. 



83. Green Woodpecker. Geclnus viridis 



(Linn.). 



Though nowhere numerous, it occurs 

 wherever there are old trees in which it can 

 nest. Altogether it is probably the most 

 plentiful woodpecker in the county. Its very 

 loud note makes it easily heard. 



84. Great Spotted Woodpecker. Dendracopus 



major (Linn.). 



(The more exact name of the British great 

 spotted woodpecker is D. major anglicus 

 [Novit. Zool. 1900, p. 528]. It differs very 

 strikingly from the typical Swedish form in 

 its smaller size, especially shorter wing and 

 slenderer bill, as well as less pure white 

 underside.) 



Only found in woods and well-wooded 

 parks, and therefore not universally distri- 

 buted. It breeds near Aylesbury, Aston 

 Clinton and Halton, at Howe Park and near 

 Castlethorpe. Mr. Grossman found it in 

 many places in south Bucks, more especially 

 where the beech is plentiful. It is often seen 

 at Burnham Beeches (Birds of Berks and Bucks, 

 p. 44), and has been observed at Chesham, 

 Eton, Taplow and Ashridge Park. 



85. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker. Dendrocopus 



minor (Linn.). 



A resident bird throughout the year, and 

 perhaps commoner than most people think, 

 being small and less noticeable than the other 

 woodpeckers. It often makes its nests in 

 fruit trees in orchards at variable height. Mr. 

 Grossman knows of nests in the neighbour- 

 hood of Farnham and Newton Blossomville 

 near Olney. We have had a specimen from 

 Wingrave, and it has been obtained or ob- 

 served at Stoke Park, Eton, Dorney near 

 Brill, Latimer, Langley near Stokes, Datchet, 

 Aston Clinton, Buckingham, Ashridge Park, 

 Marsworth, Cheddington, Mentmore, Ayles- 

 bury and Castlethorpe. 



[Great Black Woodpecker. Picus martins, 

 Linn. 



Clark Kennedy (Birds of Berks and Bucks, 

 p. 178) says : 'In March 1867, while walk- 

 ing under some elms in Ditton Park, I saw a 

 great black woodpecker busily engaged on one 

 of the tallest trees within a short distance of 

 me. I was sufficiently near to identify the 

 bird with certainty, and had an opportunity of 



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