77 
FURTHER NOTES ON THE 
MIGRATIONS OF THE YELLOW WAGTAIL., 
Fi BY WAHITLocKk, 
Beeston, Notts. 
I am glad to see a reply from Mr. Cordeaux to my notes on the 
migrations of the Yellow Wagtail (Mofacil/a rait). 
The facts I stated were advanced in support of an alternative 
theory explaining the regular appearance of large flocks of this 
species on the Humber coasts in September. I do not, however, 
€xpect a theory which is merely founded on local observation to hold 
ground in the face of Mr. Cordeaux’s acute powers of observation 
and forty years’ experience in the Humber district, but I may point 
out in support of what I have already stated that the Spurn overlaps, 
in an easterly direction, the greater part of the coast included in the 
latter district, and I thought it not improbable that birds travelling 
down the Holderness coast, in crossing the Humber, would, after 
leaving the Spurn, make for the nearest point on the Lincolnshire 
side, and that, as the winds usually blow from some point of west 
during this month, they might be deflected from their course, and 
thus, when merely crossing the Humber, appear to be coming in from 
the east and over the sea. 
Mr. Cordeaux’s remark that the immense flocks of small birds 
passing the Humber district on their return migration do not pass 
inland, is no doubt true of his own locality, but later in the year, 
Le., the end of September and beginning of October, swarms of 
Skylarks, Starlings, Finches, and others, travel down the eastern side 
of the Wash and thus pass directly inland, as I know from personal 
observations, These species, however, Mr. Cordeaux may perhaps 
look upon as winter visitors, and not migrants in the same sense as 
the Ring-Ouzel, Wheatear, Redstart, Willow Wren, Pied Flycatcher, 
and Yellow Wagtail, all of which, with the exception of the latter, 
breed up to a very high latitude. The Yellow Wagtail, however, is 
certainly not a northern breeder, and this makes all the difference. 
Mr. Cordeaux is quite in error in thinking that I look upon the 
Humber and Severn route as the fly-line taken by the species he 
mentions ; I could hardly think that, knowing how rare some of them 
are here. What I wrote in reference to this point was as follows :— 
“If these large flocks (of Af. rait) were travelling by the route 
Suggested by Mr. Cordeaux (i.e., an east to west route) they would 
hext naturally take the Humber and Severn route,’ and that he 
eld the same view himself is evident by his concluding remarks to 
his ‘Zoologist’ paper. He writes :—‘ We think there is sufficient 
March 1894, 
