THE BIRDS OF CORNWALL. 201 



June, 1861, and St. Buryan, Oct., 1887; not recorded from Scilly ; 

 nests commonly in central and southern Europe, and in winter is 

 spread over soutliern Africa. 



Bee -Eater ; a very rare accidental summer visitor, breeding 

 abundantly in southern Euroi^e, and wintering as far south as 

 the Cape; a flock of four seen at Madron, in 1807, a flock of 

 twelve (eleven shot) at Helston, in May, 1828, and one repeatedly 

 seen at Scilly, June, 1878. 



Hoopoe; a regular spring visitor, occasionally re-passing 

 in autumn ; often observed at Scilly ; nests abundantly in 

 southern Europe, and in gradually diminishing numbers as far 

 noith as South Sweden ; winters south to Senegambia ; nested 

 last year near St. Columb ; persecution alone prevents this bird 

 from becoming a regular su.mmer migrant. 



Cuckoo ; a common summer migrant, generally distributed , 

 at times much more abundant at Scilly than on the mainland ; 

 usually appears in the middle of April and departs in July, 

 though young birds are often seen in September and October ; 

 this year (1902) all old birds had left the Truro district before July 

 1 1th ; has been heard and seen in Cornwall, on April 2nd, Miss F. 

 E. Tripp's earliest record for Altarnon being April 7th ; breeds 

 throughout Europe and central Asia, and in winter reaches 

 Natal, Ceylon, Burmah, and the Philippines. 



Yellow-billed Cuckoo; an extremely rare accidental visitor 

 from North America ; one Cornish specimen referred to by 

 Yarrell and one picked u^) dead near Helston, October, 1887. 



Barn Owl ; resident ; commoner in the east than in the 

 west, but much less frequent than formerl}' ; only a single speci- 

 men recorded from Scilh' ; common throughout western Europe 

 from Denmark southwards. 



Long-eared Owl ; a winter visitor to the southern half 

 of Cornwall, but a casual in the north ; commoner in the west ' 

 than in the east of the coimty, but evidently local; a casual 

 visitor to Scilly ; resident in fir plantations throughout the greater 

 part of England. 



Short-eared Owl ; a winter visitor arriving about the 

 middle of September, and leaving before the end of March ; 

 frequents upland moors, heather and gorse land, and turnip 



