The Zoologist — Apkil, 1871. 2535 



the weather, they keep their times of arrival and departure with 

 marvellous exactness. 



Wren. — Early in September wrens were singing cheerily at 

 Halligarth, They never breed there, but merely resort to the 

 garden as soon as the leaves begin to fall, remaining until the 

 winter fairly sets in, when they betake themselves for shelter to the 

 thatch of cow-sheds and the crevices of rocks near the sea. 



Pied and Gray Wagtails. — A considerable number of the former 

 and a iew of the latter species visited us on the 19lh of September, 

 and remained for about a fortnight. 



Hen Harrier. — Although the hen harrier formerly bred here, it 

 is now rare, even as a visitor. A beautifully marked female 

 appeared here on the 18lh of September. 



Knot. — Small parties of knots began to arrive on the 13th of 

 October. The greater number were, as usual, birds of the year. 

 Some of the old ones still exhibited the red tints of the summer 

 plumage upon the upper parts. 



Arrival of Water-fowl. — A larger number of mallards than usual 

 bred with us this year, possibly on account of the very iew gunners 

 who now venture to disturb their haunts, but they received con- 

 siderable reinforcements about the middle of September, from which 

 time until the second week in October goldeneyes constantly arrived. 

 Tufted ducks and pochards are comparatively scarce here, and 

 seldom appear before the frosts and snows of winter have fairly 

 set in. 



Snow Bunting. — The heavy and continued gales, accompanied 

 with snow, which occurred at the very time when the grain was fit 

 for reaping, brought our usual winter visitors early and in large 

 numbers. It was sad indeed to behold the strange harvest scene 

 on the first morning of the change in the weather. Every man and 

 boy who was able to use a scythe was out with the first daylight, 

 and it was truly pitiful to see the poor fellows labouring without a 

 pause to secure the remnant of their scanty crop, until they sank 

 exhausted upon the snow. Then when the straw — for it was little 

 else — was carried to the yards, and the snow had vanished, the 

 ground appeared yellow with the shaken grain. The small 

 quantity which usually falls always attracts numerous flocks of 

 snow buntings; but large as these flocks are, they appear almost 

 as nothing in comparison with countless multitudes which now 

 descended upon the cultivated grounds. There they remained for 



