ORNITHOLOGY OF OXFORDSHIRE. 325 



December 23rd. — A few Bramblings with small birds near 

 some beech trees. Very few Fieldfares and Eed wings this 

 autumn ; there are no haws. 



1911. 



January 6th. — A Hawfinch in my garden. 



14th. — A few scattered Bramblings about. Weather frosty 

 lately. About 4.30 p.m. I saw a Great Tit perched on a lump of 

 fat which hangs on a string in front of one of the windows, fast 

 asleep, with his head "under his wing" — other birds had gone 

 to roost. I went out and caught him. He seemed drowsy but 

 quite well, and probably was so full of fat that he went to sleep 

 at the table ! 



February 25th. — A female Goldcrest has been here yesterday 

 and to-day picking up small bread-crumbs. 



March 27th. — Our one pair of Nuthatches continue with us 

 and I hope will breed. 



April 1st. — A pair of Hawfinches in the kitchen garden. Bull- 

 finches now most destructive to primroses ; they bite off the 

 flowers for the sake of the green seeds in the nectaries. 



3rd. — Goldcrests which have been noticeably abundant all 

 the latter end of the winter are still about here. Jays, too, 

 have been unusually common. 



10th. — A fine male Hawfinch in holly tree by study window. 

 They always come into the village when the crop of haws fails, 

 as it did last autumn. Many were seen in a plum orchard at 

 Milcomb in the latter part of the winter. 



13th. — News of a cream-coloured Snipe shot in Milcomb 

 gorse at the end of February. It was badly shot, forgotten, and 

 then thrown away ! Water -Bails have been seen lately about 

 the small pond near the railway station. 



27th. — Examined Little Owl shot at Barford about the middle 

 of the month, a small warmly coloured Buzzard shot at Somer- 

 ton on March 11th, and a male Ring-Ouzel shot at Westbury, 

 Bucks, early in April. 



May 6th. — Two Nightingales near the village this year. 



15th. — A male Bed-backed Shrike here. The leaves came 

 out so early this year that it is now very difficult to see young 

 Rooks. An adult Redshank, which I afterwards saw, was shot 



