A HISTORY OF BERKSHIRE 



94. Cuckoo. Cuculus canorus, Linn. 



A common summer migrant. The male 

 cuckoo arrives first about the second week in 

 April, and the mature birds leave in July or 

 early August, whilst the young of the year 

 remain later, even into October. I kept a 

 young cuckoo alive through two winters, but 

 it never obtained its full plumage, neither was 

 its note heard. Incubation lasts 12 days 2 

 hours, as I proved by placing an egg in the 

 incubator. 



95. White or Barn-Owl. Strlx flammed, 



Linn. 

 Locally, Screech Owl. 



This harmless and useful bird is still com- 

 mon, though it is decreasing in numbers ; 

 even where they are strictly protected they 

 do not seem to multiply. More than twenty 

 years ago we placed three young birds in an 

 old dovecot at Park Place and confined them 

 for three weeks, during which time they were 

 fed on mice. On being liberated one left or 

 was driven away, but the others or their de- 

 scendants have bred annually (with the excep- 

 tion of one year). If we take the average 

 number of young reared at the low estimate 

 of four the large total of at least eighty is 

 reached, yet I have never known more than 

 two nests on the property in one year. Mr. 

 Aplin states (Birds of Oxfordshire, p. 36) : 

 4 Two and sometimes three broods in the 

 season.' My own experience here is different. 

 I have never known more than one brood, 

 though young of different sizes may be seen, 

 as the eggs are laid at intervals of some days. 

 Mr. Wallis informs me at least two broods 

 were reared in his barn near Bucklebury in 

 1901. 



96. Long-eared Owl. Asia otus (Linn.). 

 Locally, Horned-Owl. 



Resident, but not common. I have never 

 known it breed in the parish of Wargrave or 

 Remenham, though it certainly does so near 

 Henley, on the Oxfordshire side. I have met 

 with it at Rose Hill ; and nests have been found 

 in Windsor Forest near Wantage, and in other 

 localities. It is not recorded in the report from 

 Radley College, but is met with further south. 



97. Short-eared Owl. Asia acdpitrinus (Pallas). 

 Locally, Woodcock-Owl. 



A winter migrant in some numbers. Usually 

 seen about the end of October. I once saw 

 a flock of nearly a dozen together, probably 

 just arrived. Mr. Newton says (in lit.) they 

 are usually common about Wallingford in 

 October, and I have notes on their occur- 



rence from many parts of the county, especially 

 the low-lying districts. 



98. Tawny Owl. Syrnium aluco (Linn.). 

 Locally, Wood-Owl. 



By far the commonest of our resident owls ; 

 found wherever timber is plentiful. It is a 

 very early breeder, as I have discovered young 

 in March. ' How can owls hurt young pheas- 

 ants when they only hunt at night ? ' is a ques- 

 tion often asked ; the answer being that owls 

 fly over the coops in search of mice which are 

 attracted by the food put down for the young 

 birds, the hen is alarmed, the little chicks run 

 from the shelter and then are often picked 

 up by the owls. Perhaps this is done at first 

 in mistake for rats or mice, but the result is 

 the same, and individual birds acquire detri- 

 mental habits. If discretion is used and the 

 harmful individual destroyed, there is no need 

 to make war on the whole race. 



99. Tengmalm's Owl. Nyctala tengmalmi 



(Gmelin). 



Two were seen, and one of them, a female, 

 was killed in Windsor Forest about i864(J3/n/r 

 of Berks and Bucks, p. 167). It was preserved 

 by Mr. Hasell, taxidermist, of Windsor, and 

 Clark Kennedy adds : ' Mr. Hasell is well 

 acquainted with this species and the above 

 statement may be depended on.' 



[Eagle-Owl. Bubo ignavus, T. Forster. 



In the autumn of 1843 tne R CV - A. 

 Matthews states that he had a good view 

 of an eagle-owl on the railway embankment 

 near Goring, which is little over half a mile 

 from our boundary (Zool. 1849, p. 2596). 

 He adds : ' The bird at that time was not 

 more than 50 yards distant, so that even if 

 I had not previously noticed its colour, short- 

 ness of tail and general appearance whilst on 

 the wing, I could hardly have been mistaken 

 as to its identity.' One was killed near Oxford 

 in 1833, and Messrs. A. and H. Matthews 

 saw it in the flesh (Zool. 1849, P- 



100. Marsh-Harrier. Circus teruginosus (Linn.). 



Dr. Lamb ('Ornith. Bercheria') says that in 

 1814 this bird was common in the marshes 

 near Newbury, and even as late as 1868 

 Clark Kennedy says : ' Resident throughout 

 the year, but nowhere numerous.' At the 

 present time it can only be considered a rare 

 wanderer. A fine specimen is recorded from 

 Newbury, shot on January 13, 1875 (Zool. 

 1875, p. 4381), which from the description 

 was probably a female. One was shot at 

 Culham Court (C. E. Stubbs, MS.) Mr. 

 Bradshaw very kindly sends me information 



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