240 THE ZOOLOGIST. 
the moment they saw the male bird flying to the rescue they 
dispersed in the most sneaking manner with a peculiar caw, 
quite unlike their usual notes. A bird will never attack or pilfer 
alone; he must be supported by others, and is apparently quite 
aware that the attack is debasing and unauthorised. What 
become of the young Rooks after they have left the authority of 
their parents? Where do they go? In this rookery the young 
birds were never shot, yet the nests did not increase to any extent 
during the seven years—perhaps one or two, certainly not more. 
In the rookery at Wimbledon the young birds are shot in great 
numbers every spring, yet the number of nests remain about 
the same. 
The Jackdaw is common enough, but the Magpie is becoming 
very scarce. A pair built ina high poplar tree near us in the 
spring of 1870. The Jay with his harsh scream frequented our 
neighbour’s garden and shrubberies, and possibly built there. A 
pair constantly frequented the thickets at the lower part of the 
common before the shooting became so prevalent. 
During the summer months the Swallow and Martin were 
common everywhere, and occasionally in the spring the Sand 
Martin appeared. In 1871 Swifts were extremely plentiful at 
Wimbledon. They appeared to congregate towards evening, and 
the air resounded with their shrill squeak or whistle whilst they 
gyrated and twisted with wonderful rapidity in all directions—now 
here, now far away, all gone one moment, all around you the 
next. 
Of the Nightjar (Caprimulgus ewropeus), I have noticed some- 
times as many as three in an evening walk, and too far apart 
as regards distance to be the same bird. The Cuckoo is 
plentiful on all parts of the Common. In 1867 they were very 
numerous. 
In 1872 I saw the Green Woodpecker pretty frequently in my 
morning ride on the lower part of the Common. The Wryneck 
has been noted as frequenting both Putney Heath and Wimbledon 
Common, and the Common Creeper (Certhia familiaris) observed 
among the trees on Putney Heath near the pond. 
On November 7th, 1873, a Hoopoe was flushed on Wimbledon 
Common. The Nuthatch was a regular frequenter of our garden. 
We were accustomed to put a nut in a particular cleft on one of 
the acacia trees, and it was amusing to watch the bird seek it 
