H, LYNES: MIGRATION OF BIRDS. 75 



in winter as well as in the breeding time (vide also 

 Messrs. Alexanders' Song -periods, British Birds, 

 Vol. I., pp. 367-372), and if, in non -migratory birds which 

 habitually sing in the winter, it is the moult that causes the 

 cessation of song in the autumn, then in migratory birds 

 the passage itself would seem to be the governing factor, 

 since in such species it is reasonable to suppose that no 

 extensive migratory flight could be successfully undertaken 

 by a bird moulting any of the more important parts of its 

 plumage, a supposition which is supported by the speci- 

 mens obtained at Port Said during the period in question. 



So far as migration goes, therefore, it would appear 

 that under such conditions as governed the process in the 

 Port Said district, bird-song had no existence whatever, 

 the isolated records during the migration period showing 

 every probability of having come from individuals which 

 had already settled down in the quarters in which they 

 proposed to spend the winter. It would have been 

 interesting to have discovered whether any of these 

 songsters were young birds of the year — but though alive 

 to the desirability of such an investigation I was unable 

 to procure any satisfactory data. 



Feeding, generally speaking, seemed to take place 

 towards the close of the day, after the hours of rest. 

 Small insects, such as mosquitoes, were available for the 

 lesser insectivorous birds in great abundance in the 

 evenings and probably also well into the night ; since 

 great swarms of insects are frequently attracted to the 

 navigation searchlights used by ships passing through 

 the Suez Canal in the dark. Thus, the feeding time of 

 these soft-billed little birds was mainly about sunset. 



The Shrikes seemed to feed considerably earlier, and 

 by 2 or 3 p.m. became conspicuous by taking up points 

 of 'vantage on posts, telegraph wires and bush tops, and 

 their prey being the larger ground and day-flying insects, 

 such as grasshoppers, this would seem quite natural. I 

 never saw the Shrikes molest small birds in any way, 

 in spite of the fact that they were constantly sitting 



