MARSH WARBLER 



eggs is from June 18th to 24th. Nests with eggs have been 

 found in Somersetshire on June 26th, in Buckinghamshire on 

 June 14th, in Surrey on June 14th, in Kent on June 22nd, and 

 in Cambridgeshire on June 14th. As far then as can be 

 gathered from these records, the last week in May and the first 

 week in June is the normal period of arrival in England, 

 whereas the last week in April and the first week in May is the 

 normal period of arrival of the Eeed Warbler — so that, broadly 

 speaking, the former bird may be said to be one month later in 

 arriving at its breeding quarters than the latter. Nevertheless 

 it is improbable that the period of arrival is confined solely to 

 these two weeks. The migration is, doubtless, a far more 

 protracted affair, and if we possessed sufficient records we 

 should very likely find individuals still arriving in the middle 

 of June. I am arguing from my experience of other species, 

 of the Eeed Warbler especially, and also from the conditions 

 which prevail in the North of Holland where males continue 

 to arrive up to the middle of June. The species is not suffi- 

 ciently plentiful in England to enable one to reach a very 

 definite conclusion. In the case of the Eeed Warbler observa- 

 tion shows that the period of arrival extends to upwards of a 

 month — that is to say until the latter part of May, and it 

 would therefore seem as if the first of the Marsh Warblers and 

 the last of the Eeed Warblers reach their destination approxi- 

 mately at the same time. We will now turn our attention 

 to the Continent. In the Island of Texel my experience is 

 that they may be looked for in the early part of June, but 

 even as late as the 20th of that month fresh arrivals are still 

 in evidence appropriating territories in the various spinneys 

 and osier beds. Denmark is reached towards the end of May, 

 but Heligoland is passed on migration according to G-atke 

 at the commencement of that month. The South of France 

 witnesses their return as early as the end of March or the 

 beginning of April. Naumann states that in Germany they 

 commence to sing during the first week in May, and Dr. Otto 

 Herman informs me that they may be expected in Hungary 



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