March 



strong butterflies, as they dashed about their breeding 

 fields, uttering their strenuous " Pee-wit ! " which 

 became more querulous as the time drew near when 

 the four earth-brown eggs, laid on the open ground, 

 disposed their owners to regard every passer in a 

 neighbouring field as an invader of their domestic 

 privacy. The golden plovers, of which one attained 

 summer plumage as early as the 22nd February, 

 and a score out of some hundred and fifty birds 

 exhibited the black markings in every stage of de- 

 velopment at the time of departure, left during the 

 last week of March the fields where they might be 

 seen almost at any time since the preceding October. 

 Bands of starlings, each composed of several hun- 

 dreds of birds, passed over during the last week of 

 the month, leaving our local birds to hail one another 

 in detached pairs from the chimney-pots. Fieldfares 

 were present in unusually large bands at Barlow 

 Moor, and in a spot in fact, in a few particular 

 trees to which they return, and in the neighbour- 

 hood of which they remain, every winter. 



The " early " cuckoo was announced in the local 

 prints, as usual, on the 1 1 th March ; but cuckoos, 

 like men, were "deceivers ever ; " although, unlike 

 men, they are probably not often self-deceived. 



March closed with the wheatear and chiff-chafF at 

 home again, and already in mind one heard the sound 

 of many wings. We were still able to count our 

 wanderers as they returned ; but in a short while we 

 should have to throw up our hands, and fall back 



95 



