MISCELLANEA 219 



Plumage-changes of Ducks. — The section of the ducks in 

 the Hancock collection at the museum is largely made up of 

 birds provided by Mr. Crawhall, and two of the further con- 

 tributions made by him to this section during the winter of 

 1907-8 are rather particularly worthy of notice as showing 

 interesting stages of plumage. A young male Wigeon (case 

 82, specimen 2) shot in January, and therefore eight or nine 

 months old, has attained nearly perfect adult dress, except 

 that the white feathers on the wing-joint are only just 

 appearing ; and a young Pintail drake (case 86, specimen 3) 

 that was shot at the end of November also shows an interest- 

 ing stage in the assumption of mature plumage. It is still 

 mainly in the plumage of the young, but the pencilled feathers 

 of the adult are beginning to appear on the back, and a 

 broken line of white represents the broad white band on each 

 side of the neck in the mature drake. 



Swallows and Swifts. — On the coast between Whitley Bay 

 and St. Mary's Island, on May ist, 1908, we witnessed what 

 was evidently a migration flight in progress. All the morning 

 small parties of Swallows were passing northward up the 

 coast, flying chiefly just above the sea banks. In contrast to 

 their usual manner of flight, the steady and undeviating way 

 in which these birds pushed forward towards the north was 

 very striking. We saw at the same time a single party of five 

 Swifts, similarly flying directly northward, but at probably 

 three times the speed of the Swallows. This is a very early 

 date for Swifts to be seen in Northumberland, and it is 

 interesting therefore that one was noticed on the same day 

 inland, at Haydon Bridge, by Mr. Crawhall's keeper. There 

 were many other evidences of migration that morning at St. 

 Mary's Island. Numbers of Wheatears and Pied Wagtails 

 were about on the rocks, and we also saw a pair of Yellow 

 Wagtails ( AI. rati), rather scarce birds in this district at any 

 time. 



In a note in the last volume of these Transactions (New 

 Ser., vol. ii., p. 304) I remarked that here, as in other parts of 



