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ON THE MIGEATION OF THE YELLOW WAGTAIL. 

 By John Cordeaux. 



The geographical distribution of this species is very remark- 

 able. Mr. Seebohm (Brit. Birds, vol.ii. p. 213) has described our 

 English Yellow W r agtail, Motacilla rail, as an Eastern form, its 

 true home the basin of the Caspian, and the restricted colony in 

 the British Islands as comparatively small and isolated, — the two 

 being separated by the breadth of Europe,— the summer range 

 of the Blue-headed Wagtail, M.flava, so nearly allied to our own 

 bird. 



Mr. Howard Saunders (Manual Brit. Birds, p. 121) * says, 

 " Although the Yellow Wagtail has been obtained as a straggler 

 on Heligoland, Borkum, and the coast of Holland, it is only 

 westward of Belgium that it is known as a regular migrant, and 

 the Blue-headed Wagtail is still the prevailing species in the 

 breeding season as far as Dieppe, west of which our Yellow 

 Wagtail is said to predominate." 



It is recorded as breeding plentifully in North-west France, and 

 especially in the neighbourhood of Dieppe ; it undoubtedly occurs 

 in localities in Western Europe as a summer resident, nesting 

 locally in Belgium. It has twice nested on Heligoland, where it 

 occurs in limited numbers on migration from the third week in 

 April to the middle of May (' Die Vogelwarte Helgoland '). How 

 far its range may overlap in western and central Europe with 

 that of M.flava is uncertain and not very clearly defined. 



In Ireland it is a summer visitor in small numbers, and very 

 local, but known to nest in two localities near Loch Neagh, and 

 also near Dublin (A. G. More, ' List of Irish Birds,' 1885). A nest 

 also was found by Lord Lilford on the western shores of Loch 

 Corrib in 1853. 



In the autumn it occurs regularly on passage through France 

 and Spain, but more especially along the coast of Portugal. 

 Colonel Irby ('Ornithology of the Straits of Gibraltar,' p. 110) 

 says he has never met the English form of the Yellow Wagtail 

 on either sides of the Straits. Since this was written, however, 

 he has seen specimens collected near Tangiers, also near Malaga 

 (' The Ibis,' 1879, p. 344). Mr. W. C. Tait (" Birds of Portugal," 



