61 
NOTES ON THE MERLIN.* 
F, H. EDMONDSON, 
I was interested in Mr. Taylor’s paper read to the section on 
the Merlin, particularly when in March last I saw them on a 
moor. Mr. Taylor said they fed morning and evening. My 
birds fed every two hours, all through, possibly they were a 
little slacker about noon. The male never brought food to the 
nest. I never saw the hen take food on the wing from him as 
Mr. Taylor reported, but always from one of three rocks across 
the narrow valley. Mr. Taylor said his nest was untidy ; con- 
siderable refuse bones, feathers and carcasses being left. My 
bird was the opposite. The nest was clean and tidy, though 
perhaps dead bracken tended in this direction in burying some 
of the refuse ; but I saw very few feathers and only two or three 
bones. When flushed, the female invariably flew off with, or 
swallowed what was left. 
The information as to what food was brought when I was 
not there, I got from the Plucking Stones. 
I never saw the slightest trace of grouse, although there 
were many broods of young near. One brood hatched within 
two yards of a Plucking Stone. 
The keeper reported that they had killed a young grouse 
250 yards away. On going to look, I found a young grouse 
disembowled and partly eaten. I think, however it was the 
work of rats, or perhaps a stoat. The male and female have 
a quite distinct voice; the male being much higher and 
shriller than the female, he was always good and easy to 
distinguish. During the day time the young were brooded 
up to about seven days old; never afterwards. 
The birds were on the moor by the end of March ; were 
pairing by April 21st; there were four eggs on May 22nd; 
the eggs were chipped on June 17th; young flew 200 yards 
on July 22nd ; there were two large eggs and two small; two 
females were hatched, one male, and there was one small addled 
egg. Therefore the large eggs would seem to contain females, 
and the small ones, males. Both the male and female sit on 
the eggs ; both kill, though the male mostly ; the female only 
once. The female only was at the nest after the eggs were 
hatched ; the male hovered over once, or twice, but never 
alighted. Among the birds eaten were :—tit-lark, many sky- 
larks, young thrush, pied wagtail, sand piper, and old sky-lark, 
which was very tough. 
20; 
In The Mineralogical Magazine for December, Dr. H. L. Bowman has 
“Notes on Calcite from the Chalk at Corfe Castle, Dorset.’ 
* Read at a meeting of the Vertebrate Section of the Yorkshire 
Naturalists’ Union. 
1915 Feb, 1. 
