Ll.NES OF MIGRATION. Ixui 



Devon in autumn and winter ; and in spring the same route 

 is followed by the Nightingale^ Common Redstart (in part), 

 Sedge-Warbler J Grasshopper Warbler, Garden- Warbler, 

 Whitethroat (in part), Spotted Flycatcher, and sometimes 

 the House-Martin and Cackoo, their route being dependent 

 on the prevailing winds and character of the season. 



b. Another branch from the main stream going down the 



Bristol Channel enters Devonshire through Barnstaple Bay, 

 supplies the basin of North Devon, and, passing up the 

 valleys of the Taw and Torridge, a portion finds its way 

 down the valley of the Tamar to the Plymouth district. 

 South-western Devon, and East Cornwall. The Black 

 Bedstart in autumn especially appears to adhere to this 

 route (having been observed by Mr. Gatcombe to arrive 

 at Plymouth with a northerly wind), and the Pied Fly- 

 catcher and Golden Oriole in summer : this explains, we 

 think, the peculiarity of their distribution in Devonshire, 

 and shows why they are so scarce in Eastern Devon. The 

 valley of the Tamar is also a route much followed by 

 migratory Waders in spring on their return northwards — 

 e. g. the Curlew Sandpiper. 



c. A third branch from the main stream coming down the 



Bristol Channel strikes Lundy Island, skirts the north coast 



of Cornwall, and passes on to the Scilly Islands and 



southwards. The Fire-crest seems to follow this route as 



well as the Wood-Warbler, Lesser Whitethroat, Pied and 



Bed-breasted Flycatchers, Quail, Land-Bail (in part), and 



Woodcocks (in part). This accounts for the abundance 



of Woodcocks on Lundy and Scilly Islands when they 



first arrive, and the curious fact of their arriving on 



the islands before they do on the mainland. (Chanter, 



Trans. Devon. Assoc.) Reed-Warblers, although so rare 



in Devon and Cornwall, occasionally strike the Lighthouses 



of the south-west coast of England. 



Great streams of autumn migrants from the north-cast and 



south-cast are focussed together to pass through the Pentland 



Firth between Scotland and the Orkneys, and joining similar 



streams from the Faroe Islands, Iceland, and even Greenland, 



follow the western coast of Scotland, pass down the Irish and 



