162 Mr. J. L. Bonliote — Mi<jrati<rn 



VIII.— MIGRATION NOTES FROM NORTH HOLLAND. 

 By J. Lewis Bonhote, M.A. 



DüKiNG tlie last week of August, 1908, a short trip was 

 undertakeu to one o£ the Islands of: tlie North Sea off Holland 

 for the pur[)ose oü oliserving the birds on migration ; this 

 autumn I visited the Island again and spent a month closely 

 observing the various birds as they passed through. The 

 connection between the migration in Holland and on the 

 corresponding coasts o£ Great Britain will be dealt with at 

 a future time, when the report of the autumn migration is 

 published by the B. 0. C. Migration Committee, but in the 

 following pages I propose to bring forward certain ideas and 

 notes bearing on the general aspect o£ Migration. It should, 

 however, be clearly understood that these observations will 

 require considerable conti rmation before they can be in any 

 way considered ns conclusively proved ; but I think it desirable 

 that they should be published, as being likely to stimulate further 

 investigation on certain points, and tlius lead to their confirma- 

 tion or othervvise. 



In Order to gauge more accurately the movements of the 

 various si)ecies, my observations were contined to a small strotch 

 of shore covering an extent o£ about six Square miles at low 

 tide, and of rather less than hal£ that extent at other times, 

 cxcept in the case o£ exceptionally high tides. The shore con- 

 tained tracts of both sund and mud, and in many places large 

 quantities o£ growing weed. Near the dyke and above the 

 level o£ the high tides were Stretches of grass and puzzle-weed 

 intersected by deep muddy drains, and within the dyke were 

 large grass-fields bounded by ditches. On the dyke itself large 

 quantities of sea-lavender were to l)e £ound, and a £ew clumps 

 of a very prickly bush which grevv to a height o£ two or three 

 feet. 



On both occasions Passeres, with £ew exceptions, were found 

 to be very scarce ; doubtless had I more carefiiUy examined the 

 £ew small woods which were to be found round the vilhigc, 

 examples of many more species would havc bcen seeiij but, on 



