C84 The Zoologist — April, 18(57. 



summer, but I would put another question, What becomes of black- 

 birds, old and young in the same season ? I am sure that many must 

 have noticed that dining the spring they breed in numbers, and rear 

 quantities of young, but from June very few are to be seen, except 

 those that frequent gardens ; I speak of Ireland generally : I know that 

 in September and October miles of hedges may be traversed and not 

 one seen, but in November, when the haws are ripe, every hedge and 

 garden is full of them, old and young. Nowhere can we go country- 

 ways but we hear their cheery cries, and I know persons who have at 

 this season shot several dozens in a day for making pies. They are 

 capital eating, at this lime of year, if treated like game, kept till high, 

 and served up underdone. In a few weeks the bulk of the haws are 

 devoured, and the body of the blackbirds disappear with them; I 

 attribute this to the tide of emigration ; but still, where do our 

 breeding birds and their young go to during summer. My theory 

 would be, and take it for what it is worth, that the birds who have 

 successfully reared their young in time, who have not been delayed 

 by robbery, and many of the young migrate, southwards after the 

 breeding season to meet the early fruit, and that they gradually advance 

 northwards again in a body following the ripening haws, and then 

 winter as best they can in their old spring haunts. Constant watching 

 has confirmed my belief in the migratory part of this theory. 



Nocturnal Melody of the Robin. — In the ' Field' newspaper there has 

 lately been a discussion concerning "nocturnal melody," some blaming 

 frogs and others birds of making a low, plaintive, vcntriloquous " weet- 

 weet." All through 1 believed this to be simply the note of the 

 common sandpiper, and I remark that others are of the same opinion, 

 though not the first speaker. Well, I am not going any further into 

 this class of nocturnal melody ; I wish to state another kind, and also 

 the bird that makes it; 1 allude to a long drawn " iz-weet," though 

 sharply and quickly pronounced, if a long-drawn sound can be quickly 

 sounded, made by the robin, rarely at any time but night. At first on 

 hearing the cry, whilst night-shooting on our wild granite-coast (by- 

 the-bye, during winter the robin is very partial to our sea-rocks, cold 

 and bleak as they are), I could not think what made it : its lowness, 

 yet piercing distinctness, now in my ear, now a long way off, yet 

 always proceeding from the same spot, used to raise most uncom- 

 fortable fancies in my mind, and also cause a peculiar tingling sensation 

 about the scalp— next thing to the hair standing on end. Although 

 for ghost, mortal or danger I do not know fear, nor am I at all 



