262 Ornithological Notes. By George Bolani. 



then disappeared again as suddenly as they had come ; and as previously 

 nientioned, females were everywhere conspicuous by their absence. Indeed, 

 except in those places where they breed, I have not heard of a single female 

 bird being seen. 



This year many persons expecting the return of the Pied Flycatchers 

 were much disappointed when they did not reappear, and, except at Alnwick, 

 none, so far as I know, have been noticed within the district. 



At Alnwick they were reported to have been seen on 1st or 2nd of May, 

 but they were by no means so numerous as they had been the year before. 

 In the Park four males were seen on 21st May; they were in full song, and 

 one of them was observed to be building a nest in a hole in a tree, but 

 having been disturbed this was afterwards forsaken. No others seem to 

 have been noticed, till on 7th June I was so fortunate as to discover a nest 

 containing six eggs. This like the rest was built in an oak tree, and in so 

 small a hole that a saw had to be brought into requisition before the eggs 

 could be reached. It was at a height of about fifteen feet from the ground, 

 and the eggs were much incubated. The male bird, when first noticed, 

 was flitting about the tops of the trees, darting through the branches in 

 pursuit of insects, and occasionally uttering a few bars of his song, ever 

 and anon descending for a moment to feed the female who sat upon the nest. 



The nest, rather loosely put together, is largely composed of the broad 

 dry leaves of the wood-rush, intermixed with a little grass and the leaves 

 of trees, and is lined with roots. There is no trace of either hair or feathers 

 in the nest, and in this respect, as also in general make and appearance, it 

 exactly resembles that taken in June 1885. Both of these nests together 

 with an egg from that of this year are now in my collection. 



This species, unlike the Spotted Flycatcher, is gifted with a song which 

 if not melodious, is at auy rate not unpleasing to the ear. It much resem- 

 bles that of the Redstart, but is more of a warble and rather shriller, and is 

 uttered every few minutes as the bird flits about from branch to branch in 

 search of its prey, the wings at the same time being generally drooped a little. 



Arriving in early May when insects are comparatively scarce upon the 

 wing, the Pied Flycatcher at this season of the year seems to feed a good 

 deal upon worms and grubs, dropping down to the ground to secure them 

 much after the manner of a Robin. Several birds which have come into 

 my possession in spring have had their feet and bills covered with mud and 

 clav. evidently acquired while searching for food upon the earth. I have on 

 two or three occasions had an opportunity of noticing this habit in the Pied 

 Flycatcher ; and in May 1885 Mr Murdie, in writing about this species, said 

 " a male spent inost of yesterday with us while planting potatoes, picking 

 up worms, etc., in the field, sometimes he perched upon the plough, some- 

 times on a fork shank, within ten yards of the workers." Mr Selby in his 

 work on " British Ornithology" gives an instance of Pied Flycatchers re- 

 sorting in cold weather to dung heaps in search of food ; but in another 

 paragraph of the same work it is stated that their food consists entirely of 

 winded insects. That they occasionally eat earth-worms seems to have 

 hitherto boon overlooked. 



