1406 The Zoologist-^Octobek, 1868. 



flock had I not stopped him. March 21 — April 4. No diminution in 

 the magpie family : I do not miss the six shot. 



Willow Wren : early arrival in 1867. — Though the past winter 

 has been the hardest for very many years, and this month particularly 

 severe, being a continuation of snow storms and easterly gales, yet 

 to-day (March 27th) the little willow wren made his appearauce — con- 

 siderably earlier than usual. The wheatear, too, has come very early. 

 This should prove that climatic influence cannot sway migration. 

 Here we have birds leaving their winter quarters in the face of snow 

 and storm to reach a country not yet free from the thrall of winter, 

 even earlier than their appointed lime. 



Sand Martin: early arrival in 1867. — April 2nd. 



Spotted Flycatcher: occurrence in the County Dublin. — May 16. 

 Shot one of these rare little Irish migrants : it was perched on the 

 branch of a tree, and was shot without knowing the species: there 

 were other birds with it, perhaps of the same kind. I never met with 

 it before in Ireland, though 1 know of instances of its occurrence in 

 this county. Watters, in his little book on Irish birds, says, " Un- 

 usual" in the "eastern counties," and "Very seldom remarked in any 

 of the counties about Dublin." Thompson says, "A regular summer 

 migraut to some parts of Ireland." This bird is in my collection. 

 My English experience of grisola is that it only frequents gardens and 

 shrubberies, preferring to build between the boughs of old limber in 

 such places to any other. It is therefore only known to such as 

 frequent such places, and therefore may be more common than 

 believed in this country. 



Variety of the Sparrow. — There is a sparrow frequents the Ulverton 

 Road, Dalkey, with a white tail. 



Decrease of the Martin: Query on Name. — The martin has been 

 a rare bird in my district this year: at Howth and Lambay Island, 

 where it breeds usually in great numbers, on the face and edges of the 

 bold sea-cliffs, amongst razorbills, guillemots and herring gulls, 1 saw 

 nothing like the usual numbers. Why is this bird called " urbica" 

 (city-frequenting) ? In Ireland it is far more "maritima." 



Swift : decrease and its cause. — The line of the Dublin, Wicklow 

 and Wexford Railway Company is skirted by the sea-shore for many 

 miles immediately on leaving the Dalkey tunnel : under Killiney Hill 

 it is a considerable height above the shore, and so close is it built to 

 the edge of the cliff that it has been fouud necessary to build immense 

 walls from the sands below to the summit, to prevent the natural 



