A HISTORY OF CORNWALL 



of exposed upland are insignificant. The scarcity of trees, save towards the 

 north-west, the absence of valleys, and the general monotony of the feature- 

 less surface make the number of resident species of land birds in the island 

 promontory relatively small. The coast-line is one of great magnificence 

 and beauty, with many inaccessible cliffs, numerous sea caves, and strips of 

 narrow beach of sand, shingle and pebble. There is an entire absence of 

 estuaries and creeks, as the Helford river, which forms one of the geographi- 

 cal boundaries of the peninsula, is for ornithological purposes more appro- 

 priately included in the Truro-Falmouth district. In the north-west, however, 

 is the Loe Pool, a narrow winding stretch of fresh water, a mile and a half 

 long, and separated from the sea by a bar of pebbles. Here the oak coppice 

 that creeps down to the water's edge, the sloping tangled banks, the park of 

 Penrose, the shelving meadows at the top of the lake, and the pretty wooded 

 valley of the Cober, attract a bird population in many respects similar to that 

 around the Fal. Several sheltered dells and charmingly-wooded grounds 

 occur, too, on the north-western slopes of Goonhilly Downs. The most 

 southerly strongholds of woodland birds in England are at Bochym and 

 Bonython, half way between Helston and Lizard Point. Mount's Bay, from 

 its geographical position, its remarkable climate, its splendid marshes, its 

 orchards, groves, and the timber brakes that are scattered over the southern 

 slopes for about two miles inland, is one of the most remarkable ornithological 

 centres in England ; while to the north St. Ives Bay, with its circling towans 

 and great expanse of sandy beaches, presents unusual attractions to all kinds 

 of wading birds. 



The Land's End peninsula consists of granite and slate, the former 

 predominating. Outside the zone just indicated, there are practically no trees, 

 but for the most part a rough ragged country, with no taller cover than gorse. 

 The interior consists, for the most part, of chains of granite hills, wild crofts, 

 and desolate moors. To the north the scenery is wild and harsh, and dotted 

 with granite tors. The fresh-water pools and marshes in the west naturally 

 attract a large number of surface-feeding ducks during the winter. The 

 coast presents a magnificent series of headlands and cliffs, chiefly of granite, 

 jointed and weathered into enormous slabs of titanic masonry. On the south' 

 the granite barrier is broken at intervals by sheltered porths and coves ter- 

 minating seawards in a patch of sandy beach. Such of the cliff-land along 

 the south as is well sheltered from prevailing winds is, where practicable, 

 devoted to the cultivation of broccoli, early potatoes, and narcissi. 



With the exception of Montagu's harrier, which still breeds on Goon- 

 hilly Downs, there is no nesting bird peculiar to the district. The extreme 

 westerly position and the exposed character of much of the surface result 

 in a thinning-out of land species that, during the breeding season, are well 

 represented in the Truro-Falmouth district, and a very local distribution of 

 birds that elsewhere are fairly common throughout the southern half of the 

 county. The nuthatch, lesser spotted woodpecker, garden -warbler grass- 

 hopper-warbler, grey wagtail, marsh-tit, coal-tit, and wood-lark have not 

 been recorded as breeding in this district, though they all do so in the 

 neighbourhood of the Fal. The magpie is abundant, but it is doubtful if 

 the jay has nested anywhere except in the neighbourhood of Meneage. 

 Lhe latter bird has been seldom seen at any time of the year either about 



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