Birds. 9581 



the bird is, however, harsh and shrill. Sometimes a number assembled 

 together at the top of a tree utter this in a low tone in concert, and 

 then it falls on the ear with pleasing effect." These few lines would 

 appear to agree with the ideas expressed by Mr. Harling (Zool. 

 9106). 



Grai/ Wagtail. — A bird of this species, shot on the 22nd of March, 

 had the black patch on the throat nearly perfect; the white line 

 bounding the black was not, however, very distinct. The change of 

 plumage in this bird is very rapid. The bird above mentioned had 

 frequented the place where it was shot for some time, and on the 13th, 

 being nine days before it was shot, no black was visible. The change 

 appears to be a moult, not merely a change of colour, and is not con- 

 fined to the throat, new feathers appearing on the forehead of a clearer 

 gray than the old ones, and on the breast new feathers of a clearer 

 and deeper yellow than the old ones. I have not seen a bird of the 

 sort about since, but heard of one having been seen on the 31st of 

 March. In the specimen obtained the testes were very large, about 

 the size of No. 1 shot. 



Lesser Redpole. — I shot two of these birds on the 14th of March; 

 they were feeding on the seed of the alder ; both were females, and 

 neither uttered any note : after one was shot the other merely flew to 

 the next alder, a few yards off, to await its doom. None seen since. 



Green Woodpecker. — A female of this species was brought me on 

 the 28th of March : it was trapped by a gamekeeper, and I have no 

 doubt at a wood-ant hill, as the stomach contained several of these 

 insects. The largest ova were about the size of No. 9 shot: I had 

 anticipated finding them larger, as I have always understood this bird 

 to be an early breeder. 



Golden Plover. — Last seen on the 25th of March, when a flock of 

 about thirty, on being disturbed, rose high in the air and disappeared 

 in a N.E. direction. Some of the golden plovers that 1 have examined 

 lately have had black feathers intermixed with the white ones on 

 the breast. 



Gray Plover. — On the 22nd of March I saw five gray plovers, 

 which had recently been killed on the coast. None of these had 

 any of the black feathers on the breast peculiar to the summer 

 plumage. 



Redshank. — A few redshanks are to be met with on the coast, and 

 curlews winter with us. No whinibrels, godwits, or any of the waders 

 which arrive in the spring, either to breed in this county or to go 

 further north, have yet made their appearance here. 



