yoL. viL] BRITISH BIRDS MARKING SCHEME 191 



and this number should provide sufficient returns* for 

 a comprehensive report, and this Messrs. F. W. Smalley 

 and H. W. Robinson have very kindly promised to 

 undertake when sufficient time has elapsed to allow 

 the bulk of returns to come in. It seems therefore 

 unnecessary to ring more of this species, and I hope 

 that other gulls may receive more attention in con- 

 sequence. 



The recoveries reported during the twelve months 

 have been numerous, and now that the purpose of the 

 ring is becoming more widely known, there is no doubt 

 that a greater proportion of recoveries are reported. 



Attention may here be drawn briefly to a few of the 

 more interesting recoveries during the year. Adults 

 of the Jackdaw, Starling, Robin, Chaffinch, Swallow, and 

 Blackbird ringed in the breeding-season from 1910-12 

 were found in the same places in the summer of 

 1913. Examples of the Rook, Jackdaw, Starling, Meadow- 

 Pipit, Willow- Warbler, Song-Thrush, Martin, and Wood- 

 cock ringed as juveniles in 1910-12, were reported from 

 the places where they were reared in the breeding- 

 season of 1913, while other juveniles have been reported 

 in following summers from near the place at which they 

 were ringed, and others far away. Of recoveries abroad 

 we have had the two notable Swallows — ^Mr. Masefield's 

 from Staffordshire to Natal, and Mr. Blyth's from Ayrshire 

 to Orange Free State. A Starling has been reported from 

 Holland ; Mistle-Thrush, Wheatear, Whinchat, MaUard, 

 Common, Sandwich and Little Terns, and Herring- 

 Gull from France ; Lapwings and Turtle-Dove from 

 Portugal ; a Pochard from Mecklenburg, and a number 

 of most interesting records of Cormorants and Lesser 

 Black-backed GuUs from France, Spain, and Portugal. 



In my last report I promised some statistics with 

 regard to the proportion of recoveries as compared to 

 birds ringed, and I am now able to give some information 

 on this point. Of the birds ringed to the date of my 

 last report, viz. 31,980 in number, we have had reported 



