BIRDS 



82. Cirl Bunting. Emberiza cir/us, Linn. 

 Resident but local ; breeds south of Liskeard, in 



most years at the Lizard, and sparingly elsewhere on 

 the south coast ; has been seen on the Gannel near 

 Newquay, and may have nested there. So far only two 

 specimens recorded from Scilly, one obtained Novem- 

 ber, 1857, and one December, 1859. 



83. Ortolan Bunting. Emberiza hortulana, Linn. 



One example of this accidental visitor was shot by 

 Pechell on a wall at Tresco Abbey, 7 October, 1851. 



84. Reed Bunting. Emberiza schoenldus, Linn. 



Resident in small colonies throughout the county, 

 on the moors at Trebartha, at St. Germans, at Gunwon, 

 Luxulian, and at Marazion. An occasional autumn 

 and winter visitor at Scilly, singly or in small 

 parties. 



85. Snow Bunting. Plectropblanes nivalis (Linn.). 



A fairly constant but not very common winter 

 visitor to the high lands near the coast, occasionally 

 singly, but usually in pairs or in small parties ; almost 

 invariably in immature plumage. A regular early 

 autumn visitor at Scilly, occasionally appearing during 

 the winter and rarely in spring. All have been in 

 autumn plumage except one splendid specimen in full 

 breeding attire, shot by Dorrien-Smith on 29 April, 

 1890. 



86. American Red- winged Starling. Agelaeus phoe- 



niceus, Vieillot 



A specimen of this accidental visitor from N. 

 America was shot at Swanpool, Falmouth, in August, 

 1881. 



87. Starling. Sturnus vulgaris, Linn. 



Up till 1854 only a winter visitor to the county, 

 though in great numbers ; that year a pair bred at 

 Trebartha, and by 1860 fourteen pairs were breeding 

 there. From 1855 to 1858 a single pair bred yearly 

 at Bodmin ; then they began to increase in numbers 

 and to spread. They were first observed breeding at 

 St. Germans in 1865 by Furneaux, at Liskeard in 

 1866 by Harris and Trathen, at Truro in 1873 by 

 the late Alderman Worth, at Falmouth in 1887 by J. 

 Tilly, at Camel ford in 1890 by H. H. M. Lawrence, 

 at Penzance about 1892 by A. W. Hawey, and at the 

 Lizard about the same time by R. Harris. Enormous 

 numbers still come in the autumn and leave in 

 February and March. At Scilly it is one of the 

 earliest of the winter visitors ; its numbers fluctuate 

 considerably during the winter, and at times many 

 thousands roost in the reed-beds and low plantations 

 on Tresco. As a rule, only a few stragglers remain 

 after the middle of April. 



88. Rose-coloured Pastor. Pastor roseus (Linn.). 



A casual visitor of not infrequent occurrence in the 

 west of the county from April to October. Probably 

 many young birds pass unnoticed on account of the 

 closeness of their resemblance to young starlings. One 

 specimen was shot by Pechell at Scilly, probably in 

 1848, and another in June, 1892, by David 

 Smith. 



89. Chough. Pyrrhocorax graculus (Linn.). 



This bird, still fortunately a resident with us, has 

 been associated with Cornwall for over 400 years, 



(i 602) speaks of it as a daw ' peculiar to Cornwall and 

 there-through called a Cornish chough ' ; and the 

 name was in use long before his time. Upton, a 

 canon of Salisbury, writing about the middle of the 

 fifteenth century, speaks of it as specially found in 

 Cornwall (Newton). Camden, in his Britannica 

 (1607) singles it out as the only bird of the county 

 worthy of special comment. Till early last century it 

 was common all round the Cornish coast. It used to 

 breed at Looe, but Stephen Clogg (born 1812) could 

 not remember it. It nested at Turbot Point, to the 

 south of Mevagissey, till after 1820, at Kynance and 

 Mullion till about 1832, at Tol-pedn-penwith, near 

 the Logan Stone, till about 1849, and a nest was 

 found at Trewavas Head in 1854. It used to be 

 caught on the sands at Perran by means of barbed 

 steel traps, and Dr. Bullmore says he has seen as many 

 as five lying dead at one time, and that seven dozen 

 used to be sent annually to Falmouth for sale during 

 the game season. A nest was found on the cliffs near 

 Zennor in 1870, and it may have bred there for a 

 few years later. The last nest at Newquay was 

 destroyed, along with the sitting bird, about 1882, 

 and since that date it does not appear to have bred 

 west of Mawgan Forth. In 1901 only seven nests 

 could be found as the result of a careful survey of the 

 coast between Newquay and Hennacliff. A less 

 thorough examination in 1904 showed the presence 

 of ten nests, and this year (1905) twelve have been 

 recorded. The only example obtained at Scilly was 

 shot by some fishermen during Christmas week, 

 1899. 



90. Jay. Garrulus glandarius (Linn.). 



Resident ; common throughout the woodlands of 

 the east and south as far west as Meneage, and locally 

 in the north ; a very scarce casual in the Penzance 

 district. Has not been recorded for Scilly. 



91. Magpie. Pica rustica (Scopoli). 



Resident ; very common throughout the county, 

 including the Lizard and by no means confined to 

 wooded districts. Two were blown over to Scilly 

 from the mainland with a flock of rooks during a 

 violent gale in October, 1859. One was shot at St. 

 Agnes and the other on St. Helen's by Pechell. 



92. Jackdaw. Corvus monedula, Linn. 



Locally, Chaw. 



Resident ; has greatly increased in numbers during 

 the past sixty years, and is now most abundant 

 throughout the county. Occasionally carried over to 

 Scilly by winter storms along with rooks, as in 

 November, 1870, January, 1885, and November, 

 1901. On 2 November, 1905, a flock of about 400 

 put in at Tresco. 



93. Raven. Corvui corax, Linn. 



Resident and increasing especially about Launceston 

 and in the north-east of the county generally ; nests 

 at intervals along the cliffs both on the north and on 

 the south coasts, and regularly at many inland stations. 

 A casual wanderer to Scilly, but appears to have 

 bred at least once on Gorregan about 1 840. 



94. Carrion Crow. Corvus corone, Linn. 



Resident ; fairly general in the east and south of 

 the county, but absent from much of the north coast. 



though by no means confined to that county.* Carew The only representative of the genus in permanent 



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