Birds. 9719 



preening is rendered necessary by the constant disordering and ruffling 

 of the plumage in forcing its way through the cover and tangled brake 

 when searching for grubs, or in pursuit of insects and moths. The 

 cuckoo, having no family ties or cares, like other beaus, spends much 

 of his time in dress, and is a showy, handsome bird, and perhaps 

 second to none, if we consider the elegance of its form, as well as the 

 beauty of its plumage. It would appear from MacgiJlivray and other 

 writers that the cuckoo lays its eggs towards the latter end of May or 

 beginning of June ; but if this is its habit, they cannot be deposited 

 unld the second nesting of the titlark, as the first eggs of that species 

 must be laid by the second or third week in April to have young fully 

 fledged by the middle of May. By the bye, Temminck says of the 

 titlark, " Habile les bruyeres huraides et les lieux marecageux proche 

 des lacs et des fleuves. En Hollande." 



Richard's P^>^7.— Having early in the month observed a strange 

 bnd alight on a bank in the garden, approaching it cautiously 

 I managed to get within a dozen yards, but could not make out the 

 species, for though like a pipit it appeared a shorter bird, but with 

 longer legs, and differing in colour from any pipit known to me ; but 

 on looking over Temminck's coloured lithographs I felt convinced of 

 Its being that rare bird, Richard's pipit that had been seen, and the 

 description agrees with my observations, though I should call the 

 white patch on the lower part of the throat gorget-shaped; this, 

 together with its white temples and ear-coverts, and the elongated 

 tarsus, is very remarkable. Macgillivray says nothing of the white 

 crescent, but it is distinctly shown in the coloured engraving referred 

 to, and is also indirectly pointed out by Temminck in the following 

 description :— «La gorge, le ventre et rabdomen,son d'un blancjowr; 

 sur la poitrine qui est legerement roussatre, se dessine un large cein- 

 turon de taches lanceolees." Macgillivray says, " the lower parts are 

 dull white," and compares it to Anthus aquaticus. As Temminck 

 remarks that its food is unknown, it may be as well just to state that 

 during the few minutes that I observed it, it was feeding among the 

 grass, and I saw it stretch out its neck to reach the groundsel, which 

 was seemingly preferred to the other weeds and herbage. 



Rook and Hooded Crow.— Yom Lanarkshire correspondent, writing 

 on the 11th of April, says (Zool. 9752), "Rooks have now eggs" 

 Ours had young on the move by the end of the month, and there was 

 rook-shooting near Shanklin on the 4th of May; but at Bonchurch, 

 owing to the nests having been blown down early in the season the 

 young did not perch till a week later. Mr. Alston also remlrks 



