410 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



towards Bruern Abbey wood, for which they were doubtless 

 making, and where they were perhaps breeding. They passed 

 within a short distance of the train, and I had a good view 

 of them. The Hobby in flight is a curious-looking and strik- 

 ing bird. It has been likened to a Swift, but to my mind the 

 long narrow tail takes away much of the resemblance, though 

 the long narrow curved wings are much alike. The Hobby 

 breeds, it is believed, annually, in or about the woods lying 

 between the valleys of the Evenlode and the Windrush. Eggs 

 were found in 1902, and young were found hatching in 1906 ; 

 while from the latter year to 1912 inclusive the eggs have been 

 found every year. Some of them I have seen. These were 

 (except in one case when they were of the plain brown hawk 

 type and much worn from incubation) more distinctly marked 

 and less yellow or warm buff- coloured than many Continental 

 eggs — a colder and greyer shade. The birds are seen in May, but 

 do not have eggs until well on in June, generally the latter half 

 of the month. Some eggs have not been hatched at the 

 beginning of July. The Hobby lays in old Crow's nests (of the 

 same year) on the edge of a wood or in a detached tree close to 

 it. When the observer is at the nest the birds fly round and 

 over him and are very noisy, looking (says an informant who 

 knows them well) like great Swifts. Hobbies have been observed 

 also (as I have mentioned in former notes) nearly every year 

 lately in a wood south-east of Oxford. Old birds have been shot 

 there on several occasions, but this year, I heard later in the 

 season, young were hatched and seen about the wood. A Hobby 

 was shot this year at Yarnton on June 9th. 



The severe drought lasted until the end of the month. The 

 total rainfall for the three months (June, July and August) only 

 amounted to 2*12 in. at Bloxham Grove; and at Banbury (three 

 miles away) to 1*96 in. The dry weather, I believe, put a stop 

 to many birds rearing second broods. Although early coveys 

 of Partridges were seen in summer, we did not meet with 

 many very strong birds in early September, the coveys being for 

 the most part composed of rather small birds in the first part of 

 the season ; the inference being that the early broods died. 



September 1st. — The drought broke to-day, of all days in 

 the year ! One of the wettest and, I think, quite the coldest 



