nS 8t v h er 



AMONG THE BIRDS IN SUMMER. 121 



during the change of plumage, although most 

 birds fly slower, and, indeed, show little desire to 

 go into the air at all. As soon as the change of 

 dress has been safely accomplished, the Robin, Souit n , S i 

 the Wren, and the Hedge Sparrow, begin to Auguk 

 warble just as sweetly as of old ; so, too, does the 

 Willow Wren, and a few other species ; but the wre 

 rule is for birds to lose their song entirely in the Augus" s>8th 

 moult, not to regain it until love dawns anew in 

 their little breasts the following spring. The TL s g T aI " 

 Swallows still warble at intervals as they flit I5th 

 across the fields and over the water, many of the 

 young birds making attempts at song. These 

 birds do not moult until they reach their winter 

 quarters in South Africa, leaving us in their worn 

 and abraded plumage. 



Another prominent feature in bird life during 

 the late summer days is that many species begin 

 to gather into flocks and to change their ground. 

 Some of the birds which have bred on the upland un^Lhorei 

 moors, especially the Dunlin, depart for the mud- IstAugust - 

 bound coasts. Amongst the first to be seen 

 gregarious are the Starling, the Greenfinch, the 

 House Sparrow, and the Twite. These gather- 

 ings are mostly of young birds, which confine 

 themselves almost exclusively to the newly-mown 

 meadows, the pastures, and the corn-fields. In 

 the woods parties of Jays and Magpies may be 

 met with, trooping along in a straggling train 

 before the observer, and hiding themselves as 

 soon as possible amongst the bushes. The timid 



