140 THE ORNITHOLOGIST. 



The Green Woodpecker. — I should like to have the experience of jour 

 readers on a point connected with the nesting economy of the Green Wood- 

 pecker, In Mr. H. Witherby's interesting little book on "Forest Birds," I 

 find the following statement : — " The chips are not left . . . in a white, 

 staring heap at the bottom of the tree, to mark the position of the hole above, 

 but each chip is carried to a distance by the industrious bird." Now, without 

 wishing to cast any imputation upon the truth of Mr. Witherby's observa- 

 tion, I should like to ask, Is this commonly the case ? During the last two 

 seasons I have examined some seven or eight nests of this interesting species, 

 and in every case my experience has been exactly opposed to that of Mr. 

 Witherby ; the chips beiog invariably littered about the ground in such a 

 conspicuous heap as to make it impossible for the most casual observer to 

 pass the nests by unnoticed. I may say that my observations were made 

 in Herefordshire, while Mr. Witherby mentions that he pursued his re- 

 searches in the New Forest, Hampshire. It would be interesting to know if 

 this characteristic of the bird differs in the two counties. — D. E. McCaus- 

 land (42, Shooter's Hill Road, Blackheath, S.E.) 



Breeding Habits of the Sparrow-Hawk. — In spite of the papers 

 that have appeared, it seems to me that this subject is still shrouded in a 

 certain amount of perplexity. Writing in the June number of the 

 Ornithologist, Mr. A. H. Macpherson quotes, with apparent approval, 

 Mr. J. J. Baldwin Young's dictum to the effect that "the fact that there 

 are sometimes remains of an old nest underneath, is really a detail; it is 

 certainly not the rule" ; while, in the August issue, Mr. Macpherson remarks 

 on "the Sparrow-Hawk's well-known habits of utilising other birds' nests." 

 Contrariwise, in the same issue, Mr. Boyd Alexander says that all the nests, 

 upwards of a score, he has met with during the last six years have invariably 

 been built by the birds themselves. Mr. C. Milburn has nailed to the mast 

 a discrepancy in Mr. Kearton's teachings ; and Mr. H. S. Davenport declares 

 that, in his experience, Sparrow-Hawks make a rule of founding new nests 

 on the battered-down remains of those of other birds. It certainly seems 

 strange that what Mr. Macpherson has characterised as a "well-known 

 habit " should have been falsified in every single instance in Mr. Alexander's 

 experience of the last six years ! Can it be that in many cases the ancient relics 

 are so sparse as to be entirely hidden by the new structure ? — R. C. Davenport, 

 24, Princes Square, W.) 



I do not question the accuracy of the observations of those of your 

 correspondents who state that this bird generally builds on the old nests of 

 Owl, Magpie, or Woodpigeon, nor take part in the discussion, beyond 

 merely stating my experience of the building habits of this Hawk in Ireland, 

 in the counties of Cork and Sligo. When a boy, residing in the former 



