A HISTORY OF BERKSHIRE 



some numbers about the end of April or 

 early in May and returning at the end of 

 September, though a few remain far later and 

 I have shot one in November. It is partial 

 to the Thames meadows, where its harsh 

 notes may often be heard throughout the 

 night. 



157. Spotted Crake. Porzana maruetta (Leach). 

 This species is a spring visitor, and owing 



to its retiring habits probably not nearly so 

 uncommon as might at first sight appear. I 

 have no actual proof that it has bred within 

 our limits, but strong presumptive evidence 

 that such is the case. Mr. Wallis tells me 

 he has often flushed them in the breeding 

 season at Thatcham, and has the skin of 

 one killed there ; and Mr. Aplin mentions 

 one killed in its first dress near Newbury in 

 July, 1889. The records of its capture in 

 the county are numerous. 



158. Carolina Crake. Porzana Carolina. 

 Although the true home of this bird is 



temperate North America, yet it has been 

 known to visit our shores on at least three 

 separate occasions and cannot any longer be 

 denied a place amongst our accidental visitors. 

 The first example was shot in October, 1865, 

 on the banks of the Kennet near Newbury 

 by Mr. H. S. Eyre, and exhibited by Profes- 

 sor Newton at a meeting of the Zoological 

 Society on February 14, 1866. The second 

 was taken near Cardiff in 1888 (Birds of 

 Glamorgan, p. 113), and the third shot in the 

 island of Tiree, Scotland, and exhibited by 

 Mr. E. Lort Phillips at a meeting of the 

 B.O.C., November 20, 1901. 



159. Baillon's Crake. Porzana baillonl 



(Vieillot). 



Clark Kennedy says (Birds of Berks and 

 Bucks, p. 1 96), ' a single specimen was shot 

 near the town of Newbury in Berks several 

 years ago, but I have been unfortunately un- 

 able to gain any further information.' 



1 60. Water-Rail. Rallus aquaticus, Linn. 

 The water-rail is resident in suitable locali- 

 ties, but very local as a breeding species. I 

 have seen several nests taken in the marshes 

 not far from Reading, but in other places 

 where the conditions seem similar I have 

 never found this bird in the nesting season 

 though numerous in winter. On April 26, 

 1896, Mr. Lindley found a nest with eight 

 eggs near the Great Meadow Pond, Wind- 

 sor Park (Bucknill in lit.). 



161. Moorhen. Gallinula chloropus (Linn.). 

 Very numerous on the river, and almost 



every pond has its pair or two. Although a 

 beautiful bird in itself it is not desirable that 

 protection should be afforded to an indefinite 

 extent as the water-hen is a sad destroyer of 

 ducks' eggs, and I have many times caught 

 them in the act of eating the eggs of our 

 tame waterfowl. 



162. Common Coot. Fulica atra, Linn. 

 Locally, Bald Coot. 



Resident, though not nearly so common as 

 the last species ; it is seldom seen on the 

 banks of the Thames except in winter, and I 

 doubt if ever it breeds there, though it 

 undoubtedly does so on many lakes and 

 ponds throughout the county. Mr. Aplin 

 tells me he saw numbers on the Kennet in 

 1889. 



163. Great Bustard. Otis tarda, Linn. 

 There is little doubt that this magnificent 



bird was at one time resident and bred on the 

 open downs of Berkshire, but it has long 

 since passed away and the records left behind 

 are meagre in the extreme. The only note 

 I can find is from the pen of Dr. Lamb, who, 

 writing in or about 1814, says of this bird : 

 ' Sometimes seen on Lambourn Downs (par- 

 ticularly March, 1802) before they were 

 enclosed.' The only actual case of its having 

 been taken in the county that has come under 

 my notice is that mentioned by Yarrell 

 (Zaol. 1856, p. 4995) wherein he records 

 the capture of a wounded bustard by a small 

 boy at a farm called ' Starve-all ' near Hun- 

 gerford on January 3, 1856, which proved on 

 dissection to be a male, and he considered 

 about eighteen months old. It passed into 

 the possession of Mr. W. H. Rowland and 

 was preserved for him by Lead beater. The 

 Rev. A. C. Smith (Birds of Wilts, p. 385) 

 considers that this bird was wounded by one 

 of Lord Ailesbury's keepers who fired a long 

 shot at a bird which he supposed to be an 

 eagle flying over a part of Marlborough 

 Forest called Henswood. 



164. Little Bustard. Otis tetrax, Linn. 

 One was shot in September, 1858, by 



Messrs. Burgis and Meyrick, Fellows of 

 Magdalen and St. John's, Oxford, while 

 shooting together on one of the St. John's 

 farms near Bagley Wood (W. D. Mackenzie 

 in lit.). 



165. Stone-Curlew. (Edicnemus scolepax (S. 



G. Gmelin). 



The ' thick-knee,' as this bird is sometimes 

 called, is a regular summer visitor, but from 

 its partiality to open heaths and waste lands 

 it is very local in its distribution. As a rule 



l6o 



