128 BRITISH BIRDS. " Lvol. xv. 



once again shown their love for this site by breeding and 

 meeting their inevitable death. There are other spots that 

 seem to be as popular at the present time and will, no doubt, 

 eventually have very long runs. Instances of unbroken 

 ones of five or six years with a fresh pair of birds every year 

 are too frequent to quote. The destruction of the old bed 

 of ling always terminates the series, but as noted above, the 

 ultimate appearance of bracken may reinstate the popularity 

 of the site. 



It is very generally assumed that if a nesting spot is used 

 annually by any given species of bird, it is not merely the 

 same species but the same individuals that return. Even 

 Walpole Bond, in his delightful book, Field Studies of Some 

 Rarer British Birds, infers that it is the same pair of Merlins 

 that go back to a given spot year after year until it has 

 been " improved," when they seek a fresh site. But even 

 if the birds are protected on their breeding grounds — a rare 

 concession — they all too frequently fall victims to gunners 

 during the winter months. In the case of hawks in particular 

 and all avian " vermin " in general, it seems to me that to 

 assume the safe return of any pair of birds to their breeding 

 grounds year after year is travelling beyond the realm of 

 probability. With passerine species the case is very different, 

 for they are comparatively free from molestation, and the 

 ringing of such birds as Swallows has proved that the same 

 pair does return to its old haunts ; but if these birds were 

 destroyed with their nest and eggs, would an unrelated pair 

 choose the same roof the year following ? The answer is 

 probably yes. With the Crow, Jay, Magpie, Kestrel, 

 Sparrow-Hawk, and even the Long-tailed Tit, I have a great 

 deal of evidence which goes to prove that with these birds 

 the same fascination exists in certain nesting-sites as in the 

 case of the Merlin, and that failing the return of the previous 

 owners to one of these, fresh individuals will occupy that 

 same territory rather than any other, however much latitude 

 of choice there may appear to be. 



One other interesting point arises in this connection. 

 Considering the steady persecution to which these birds 

 are subjected, where does the unfailing supply of Merlins 

 come from ? At best, but a small percentage of the nesters 

 can possibly be locally bred. In a successful year from the 

 gamekeepers' point of view, not a single 5/oungster is reared, 

 not a single old bird returns south, and successful years are 

 quite frequent. Is it not possible that even as one site in a 

 district is preferable to any other, so one district in the 



