84 REPORTS. 



was believed to be increasing its range northward; may it 

 increase it too in a direction that will include the Channel 

 Islands. 



Dr. Casey Wood, a prominent ornithologist of the 

 United States, who journeyed to England in the spring of 

 this year for the single purpose of hearing the English night 

 ingale, said when re-embarking, " I am satisfied now, that 

 the English nightingale is the finest performer among singing 

 birds. England has the most wonderful collection of spring 

 song birds in the world." Testimony such as this of Dr. 

 Wood is worthy of being put on record, with this addendum 

 — Happy indeed must all those bird-lovers be who are so 

 fortunate as to reside in a nightingale district. 



Since writing the above I have received some valued 

 notes from Miss Mabel A. Brock for incorporation in this 

 Report and incidentally she refers to the nightingale. She 

 writes: " I had the interesting- experience of hearing the 

 nightingale for the first time in my life this year when I was 

 in England. I wish we could broadcast Guernsey's charms 

 to them ! but I am afraid they would never find really suit- 

 able localities in the Island." 



To Miss Brock and to those bird watchers who, having 

 supplied me with notes of their personal observations, have 

 provided much of the material contained in this Report, I 

 tender hearty thanks and shall now proceed to detail the facts 

 in the usual way : — 



ORDER PASSE RES. 



WHEATEAR. — On March 26th, happening to be at L'Ancresse I scoured 

 the common in the hope of seeing some early wheatears and was for- 

 tunate to chance upon one solitary individual. Miss Brock reported 

 wheatears as being numerous on Lihou Island on August 26th, and that 

 on October 19th some were still to be seen at the Vale and Cobo. 



GARDEN WARBLER. — Miss Brock observed garden warblers between 

 May nth (at Petit Bot) and July 14th (at Le Chene, Forest). The 

 garden warbler is not a common visitor. 



CHIFF-CHAFF,— Miss Brock reported hearing a chiff-chaff in the Petit 

 Bot valley on March 16th and two days later I heard one in the 

 Fermain Bay valley. Previous to this year, March 17th was our 

 earliest recorded date for the arrival of the bird here. The chiff-chaff 

 takes a rest from singing in the height of the summer and resumes 

 again with the approach of autumn in a softer, less resonant tone — a 

 tone in keeping with the mellowness of the autumn season. This 

 year the song was recommenced on September 4th, and for several 

 weeks was heard almost daily at St. Martin's. I last heard the bird 

 on October 9th, at St. Martin's and Miss Brock on October 16th at 

 St. Peter's. 



WILLOW WARBLER.— Another usually early arrival is the willow 

 warbler. This little bird, closely resembl ng the chiff-chaff in general 

 appearance but with a very different song Miss Brock believes to be 

 jar more common than the chiff-chaff. She first heard the note, on 



