68 REPORT ON THE MIGRATION OF 1URDS. 



22nd to 23rd, the same ; 27th to 28th, numerous nights 

 passing on. 



General Remarks. 



The report for the East Coast of England shows that a great 

 migration was carried on for six months in the autumn and 

 winter of 1884-f). The schedules returned indicate that no one 

 place had special preference, and that the inflow of migrants 

 was equally distributed over the entire coast line. 



The southerly movement of migrants was well established 

 in July, and from this time to the end of the third week 

 in January, 1885, there has been a steady flow, with slight 

 intermissions, of birds either passing up the coast to the 

 south or moving directly inland, the vast majority coming 

 from the east across the North Sea, and moving westward 

 or in westerly directions. Occasionally there have been heavy 

 rushes or persistent bird waves continuous for days, and even 

 weeks. 



The periods of migration occupied by different species vary 

 greatly, from four weeks to as many months ; no general rule 

 can be laid down in this respect. 



As a rule, the young birds of the year migrate indepen- 

 dently of the old, and some weeks in advance ; there are, 

 however, frequent exceptions to this, more especially late in the 

 season, when the flocks are sometimes composed of old and 

 young. With some of our shore birds, as Grey Plover, Knot, 

 Sanderling, a few old birds, still in summer plumage, arrive 

 very early in the season, some weeks later the main body of 

 the young, and lastly the bulk of the adults, the latter having 

 then assumed the ordinary winter dress. 



The lines of migration have been those followed in previous 

 years, the vast majority of immigrants coming either directly 

 from east to west or from points south of east to others north 

 of west. The records of birds travelling from points north of 

 east are comparatively exceptional. 



There was an immense and continuous rush, a gigantic 

 feathery tide, on to the coast from the middle of October (loth) 

 to the end of the month, migrants arriving continuously night 

 and day. This rush was continued at some .of the stations 

 with but slight intermissions to the middle of November, 



