NOTES AND QUERIES. 23 



Swallows in December. — In ' The Zoologist ' for Feb., 1881, details 

 were given of the occurrence of Swallows and Martins in the South 

 of England on the 7th, 11th and 18th of December, 1880. In December, 

 1885 (about the third of the month), a Swallow was seen on Clifton Down, 

 close to the river, as reported by Mr. E. Clutterbuck (Zool. 1887, p. 269). 

 In December, 1891, Swallows were seen at Retford on the 3rd, Norwich on 

 the 10th, and Findhorn Bay, N.B., on the 12th, while House Martins were 

 observed at Norwich on Dec. 3rd. (See an article on " Belated Swallows " in 

 ' The Field ' of Jan. 30, 1 892.) And now once more, in December, 1894, we 

 have to record the appearance of a few loiterers, or individuals of late broods, 

 which were unable apparently to join the majority on their autumnal migra- 

 tion. On Dec. 1st, as reported by the Rev. Prebendary Gordon, of Harting 

 Vicarage, Sussex, a Swallow was seen at Fishbourne. In Gloucestershire 

 on the same day, Mr. C. H. Witchell saw a young Swallow flying about at 

 Stroud, although in the shade the ground was white with frost. In Lincoln- 

 shire, on the same day, as well as on Dec. 2nd, a Swallow was seen by 

 Mr. S. E. Harrison, of Roughton, " flying to and fro over his farmyard, and 

 about the pond and buildings, as in summer." On the 3rd and 5th two or 

 three were observed at Bognor. On Dec. 4th Mr. A. B. Percival reported 

 that he had just examined, "in the flesh," a young House Martin, which 

 had been obtained near Derby. On Dec. 5th a House Martin was shot by 

 Mr. H. Butler, of Bournemouth, at Whitecliff Farm, Swanage. On Dec. 6th 

 Mr. T. Lewis, of Brook Villa, Falmouth, saw eight or ten Swallows skimming 

 about, and watched them for an hour or more. The circumstance was con. 

 sidered the more remarkable because the weather for some time had been 

 cold and the wind north-east. On the 7th three Swallows were noticed at 

 Chichester, and one at Bognor. On the 8th and 10th a few House Martins 

 appeared at Fishbourne, and on the 11th one was seen at Arundel, where on 

 the 15th a solitary Swallow was noted. At Sittingbourne, Kent, on the 

 afternoon of Dec. 12th, one of these birds was observed flying to and fro 

 over some fields, actively engaged, apparently, in hawking for insects. The 

 day was very mild, though there was not much sunshine, and the air seemed 

 full of insects. At Fishbourne, in Sussex, a solitary Martin was seen on 

 the 17th, and three more on the 22nd. Finally, on the 23rd of the month, 

 the latest report of a December Swallow reaches us, also from Sussex, a 

 single bird having been seen on that date at Chichester. With these and 

 other instances before us, reported by independent witnesses in different 

 parts of the country, it is clear that in future it will not do to write about 

 the late stay of Swallows in November, although it is of course true that 

 the majority of these birds quit our shores even before November has 

 set in.— J. E. Harting. 



Ivory Gull and Dusky Shearwater in Iceland.— I have the pleasure 

 of adding two more birds to the Iceland list, not hitherto (so far as I am 



