OTES 



UNUSUAL BIRDS AT DUNGENESS. 



I WAS at Dungeness from October 20th to 23rd, 1913, and 

 a great deal of migration was proceeding at the time, chiefly 

 of flocks of finches and other birds flying south in the early 

 morning. i 



Between 12 noon and 1 p.m. on the 20th I saw a party 

 of thirteen Sooty Shearwaters {Puffinus griseus) fly south- 

 west past the point, not far out to sea. The same afternoon 

 I saw a Firecrest {Regulus ignicapillus) in the bushes. 



On the 20th and 21st there were at least five Black 

 Redstarts {Phoenicurus o. gibraltariensis) near the lighthouse ; 

 on the 22nd only one was left, and on the 23rd I saw none. 



On the 21st I saw a bird that I have little doubt was a 

 Continental Great Tit {Parus m. ma.jor) just arrived from 

 the east, but my attempts to ascertain the geograpliical 

 race of the Goldcrests {Regulus regulus) seen each day were 

 unsuccessful. I also saw an extremely dark Lesser Black- 

 backed Gull {Larus f. fuscus (?) ) on Littlestone shore on 

 the 21st, near a much paler one. 



On the 23rd I saw a duck fly past the point, which from 

 its remarkably brown wings I concluded was a Long-tailed 

 Duck {Clangula hyemalis), the other colours also appearing 

 suitable. H. G. Alexander. 



DIMINUTION OF STARLINGS. 



Confirming Mr. E. W. Wade's letter {antea, p. 178) on this 

 subject, it certainly struck me that far fewer Starlings 

 nested here this year than last, although I happened to 

 be able to examine more nests myself. I was also struck 

 by their early flocking and consequently fewer second 

 broods. It may be of interest to state that this year I 

 found forty-one young Starlings in fourteen nests, in 1912 

 sixteen young in five nests, and in 1911 twenty-eight young 

 in nine nests, giving an average of almost exactly three 

 in each nest. In twenty-eight Swallows' nests I examined 

 this year there were one hundred and twelve young birds, 

 in 1912 in eighteen nests there were sixty-eight young birds, 

 and in 1911 in fifteen nests were sixty-one young birds, 

 an average of almost exactly four in each nest. 



John R. B. Masefield. 



