on Rambles a?no?ig the Wild Birds. igi


This species in former days nested frequently on trees, and

there must be few readers of bird books who cannot claim some

acquaintance with the “ Raven Trees” immortalized by Gilbert

White and A. E. Knox. A great many of these inland nesting

haunts on trees have now been deserted, and so perhaps I am

fortunate, considering that I am still a member of the “ younger

generation,” in having, not many years ago, visited an inhabited

“ Raven Tree.” We were spending part of an Easter vacation at

a farm house on the wilds of Dartmoor. On April 23rd, during

one of our daily tramps, we heard the hoarse croak of a Raven

above us, and this was soon answered by its mate, and the two

flew over our heads evidently annoyed at our intrusion. From

their behaviour it was evident they had a nest somewhere near*

and this we thought would probably be placed in some of the

wilder crags or tors in the neighbourhood. But we were nearer

to the nest than we thought, for 011 looking up we saw it, a pile of

large sticks, among the topmost branches of a tree almost over

our heads. It was a huge Scotch Fir, towering above its neigh¬

bours, with a wide bole and not a branch anywhere near the

ground. Of course we soon determined that one of us must see

into that nest, but the task of scaling the tree looked a most

formidable one. Fortunately there was a pair of climbing irons

at the farm, a mile or so away, and so with the help of these the

most agile member of the party began the assault. It was a long

business and not without danger. The parent birds were very bold

and swooped so close to the climber that we thought they meant

to attack him, so we had to shout and clap our hands to keep them

off. At length the nest was reached, and there, on a lining of

soft material lay one young bird, nearly fledged, the sole occupant

of the nest. We felt that now we had outwitted the crafty birds,

so their ugly offspring was left in peace ; the male bird, however,

seemed much upset by this unwonted intrusion ; and many a

mile did he follow us over the moor to see us safely off the

premises. Perhaps “ Raven Trees ” may be commoner than we

think ; we only hope they are, but w T e would advise anyone

who wishes to see this grand bird at home, to visit the wilder

mountainous parts of Wales or the rugged sea cliffs in the South

West of England. Many a nest have I seen in this latter



