382 The Zoologist — September, 1806. 



Heligoland was as nearly as possible simultaneous with their arrival 

 in England, a circumstance by no means remarkable wlien we 

 recollect that ornithologists have calculated the rate at which birds 

 can fly at the rate of forty, til'ty and even sixty miles an hour, and 

 therefore that onl}' a few hours of continuous flight would be necessary 

 to accomplish the distance between the continent of Europe and any 

 part of the British Islands. No hypothesis can be more plausible 

 than that the very birds which rested on the ocean islet of Heligoland 

 made their appearance, on the days immediately following, on the coast 

 of Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk and Lincolnshire. It is not, however, to be 

 overlooked that the bird arrived almost simultaneously at very distant 

 and very opposite parts of the kingdom ; thus, commencing at Heligo- 

 land, on the 21st of May, we find them on the 22nd of May on 

 Walney Island, off the west coast of Lancashire (Zool. 8687) ; on the 

 23rd, in Norfolk (Zool. 8718) ; on the 2(jth, at Aldershot (Zool. 8683) ; 

 on the 27th, at Forest Gate, in Essex (Zool. 8684) ; on the 28th at 

 Thorpe, iu Suffolk (Zool. 8685) ; on the 29th, in Essex (Zool. 8684). 

 Touching the food of the sand grouse while in England, we have 

 evidence that no imperfection of observation can myslif\', and no 

 future observations can possibly confute : this evidence is derived 

 from a careful examination of the contents of the stomach by botanists 

 in all respects competent to pronounce an opinion : the seeds have 

 also been sown, and the result has in every case verified the previous 

 conclusion. Nothing but seeds and very minute stones has been dis- 

 covered. The seeds belong to seven natural orders of plants ; amongst 

 the Cruciferte,Capsellabursapastoris, Brassicanapus, Sinapis arvensis, 

 and Raphanus Raphanistrum ; amongst the Caryophyllaceaj, Sagina 

 apetala and S. procumbens, Stellaria holostenm and S. media ; 

 amongst the Leguminosa?, Ulex europajus, Genista anglica and G. 

 tinctoria, Cytisus scoparius, Ononis spinosus, Medicago minima, 

 Trifolium repens, T. pralense and T. suflbcatum, and Lotus cornicu- 

 latus ; amongst the Plantaginaceae, Plantago major and P. coronopus; 

 amongst the Chenopodiace{e,Chenopodium olidum,C.Bonus-He.nricus 

 and C. album, and several others doubtfully ascertained; amongst the 

 Polygonaceae, Polygonum aviculare, P. fagopyrum, P. convolvulus and 

 P. persicaria, Ruraex palustris, R. acetosa and R. acetosella ; amongst 

 the Gramineae, Poa annua. It will be observed that all these seeds 

 are of small size, and consequently the numerical supply required to 

 fill the stomach is very large indeed.] 



[Tern, Swift. — Ruppell, pi. 13 : Baron R. K. von Warthaiisen, 



