INTRODUCTION. 



with a favourable wind, the birds preferring what is called a " beam " 

 wind, and for which they will wait for many days, and the moment it 

 arrives, with a common impulse, they will start on their journey. True 

 migratory birds generally depart in the following order, but they do not 

 invariably travel in flocks. The lead is taken in the first week by all the 

 spring birds, in the second week the males follow, in the third the females, 

 the last batch being composed of the maimed and crippled birds. A 

 Committee of the British Association is at present engaged in investiga- 

 ting the subject of the migrations of birds, and it has already published 

 several interesting interim reports. 



Closely connected with the subject of migration, and equally deserving 

 of systematic observation, is the congregation or flocking of birds in the 

 autumn and winter months, as it is probably correlated with hibernation of 

 fishes and reptiles. Referring to this subject, Gilbert While says, " As 

 these animals are actuated by instinct to hunt for necessary food, they 

 should not, one would suppose, crowd together in pursuit of sustenance 

 at a time when it is most likely to fail ; yet such associations do take 

 place in hard weather chiefly, and thicken as the severity increases. As 

 some kind of self-interest and self-defence is no doubt the motive for the 

 proceeding, may it not arise from the helplessness of their state in such 



I rigorous seasons ? " And he thinks the flocking of different species in the 

 autumn, such as rooks and starlings, may be due to the greater skill of 

 one species for finding food. 



Animals. 



Our native wild animals are few in number, and as they are nearly all 

 of them looked on as pests or vermin, they are rarely seen. The section 

 of the Diary set apart for observations on animals will, however, be avail- 

 able for recording facts relating to our domesticated animals, whether on 

 the farm, the hearth, or the kennel, and a list of all our common animals 

 is included in the general index for this purpose. 



Meteorological Observations. 



The whole of the meteorological data refer to the twenty years 1865-84, 

 and was collected at Marlborough under the usual conditions, and the 

 averages have been worked out from the original observations. The 

 average mean, maximum, and minimum temperatures are given for each 

 ■day of the year ; and the accumulated temperatures above 42° for each 

 ■day of the year, counting from ist January. The mean barometrical 

 pressure is given for each month, and is repeated every day of the month- 

 The rainfall and the number of days on which rain fell are given for each 

 ■month (and after being distributed equally ov6r each day of the month) 

 for every day : the accumulated rainfall is given for each day of the year, 

 counting from ist January. The mean relative humidity is added to this 

 latter entry. In Leap Year the accumulated temperature and rainfall are 



