412 REPORT 1900. 



The White Wagtail is frequently noted in company with its Pied and 

 Yellow congeners (il/. lugubris and M. raii). It sometimes occurs at the 

 lanterns of the lighthouses along with other species ; thus at Skerryvore, 

 on September 8, 1897, several were killed during a rush of 'small birds,' 

 Wheatears (Saxicola oenanthe), and Pipits [Anthus pratensis), and their 

 ivings sent to me for identification. 



It appears to me that the White Wagtails which traverse our western 

 shores and isles are probably en route to and from their western summer 

 haunts in the Faeroes and Iceland. That such is the case is rendered likely 

 not only by the routes followed in Britain, but by the dates of arrival 

 and departure as recorded for Iceland.' 



On the other hand, the comparatively late date on which this bird is 

 observed in the autumn in Southern Scandinavia,^ and the fact that its 

 numbers are so few on our eastern seaboard, seem to indicate that the 

 main route to north-western continental Europe does not lie on the 

 British coasts. 



There can be little doubt that the White Wagtail is still much over- 

 looked as a British bird, or confounded with the Pied Wagtail, a species 

 from which it was not differentiated for many years. We have thus even 

 yet much to learn concerning its distribution in most districts of Great 

 Britain and Ireland. 



In certain areas, notably in the Hebrides, our knowledge has been 

 considerably advanced during recent years, thanks to the excellent 

 observations made by Dr. MacBury and Mr. Peter Anderson. 



The main facts connected with the migration of the White Wagtail 

 are : — 



1. It appears on the southern coast of England dui-ing March and 

 April, sometimes in early May. 



2. During April and May — as late as the middle of the latter month 

 — it occurs on passage on the east and west coast of Great Britain, and 

 has been at that time occasionally observed on the north-west coast of 

 Ireland. 



3. The return passage commences with mid- August, and is over by 

 mid-September. 



4. The west coasts of Britain, and especially those of the Hebridean 

 Islands, form the main route followed by the migrants. 



5. The bird has not been observed on the east coast of Ireland at any 

 season, nor has it been observed anywhere in Ireland during the autumn 

 passage. 



' In 1886 the species was first observed at Keykjanes on April 24, next on the 

 29th, and abundantly on May 9. Lastly, on August! 3 (Gunnlaugsson, Ornis, 1895, 

 p. 344). Grondal says it is the first sunamer visitor, and comes in April to the 

 Reykavik district, where one was shot as late as September 7, 1879 (Ornis, 1886, 

 p. 358). The bird evidently leaves Iceland early in the autumn. Along with 

 jyir. Backhouse, I spent the month of September 1884 in the south-east portion of the 

 island, and we only observed this species on one occasion, namely, a family party 

 seen on the coast on the 10th. 



- Professor Collett (^Orersigt af Christiania Omegns ornithologiske Faima, p. 84) 

 states that it arrives d\iring the first half of April, and leaves at the end of Septem- 

 ber and first days of October. It is occasionally observed in October, and exception- 

 ally as late as November 15. 



