8326 



Birds. 



sides of the nest were pressed in by the bricks, and the whole nest was oval instead of 

 round. The builders reared a family of five in it.— John Whatt; Kirby Moor side >, 

 Yorkshire. 



Thrushes Singing in October. — This fact is noticed (Zool. 8281) by the Rev. H. 

 Hornby as unusual. For five years out of six, for the last twenty, I have heard thrushes 

 sing for a few days in October, generally between the 18th and 25th of that month ; 

 but in this mouth these birds are perched much higher in tall trees than in the breeding 

 season, and it seems to me doubtful whether they are not young birds of the hatching 

 of the same year, six or seven months previously. The birds do not sing so loud, nor 

 do they go on in that unbroken routine usual in nesting time, but mutter out their 

 notes a few at a time, and break off suddenly at the end of three or four notes, and 

 commence again, seldom giving ten or eleven varieties of note at once, as they do in 

 the joyous time of pairing. Their song in October is generally made on an extremely 

 mild day. Considering the thrush as inferior only to the nightingale I have particu- 

 larly noticed its movements at all seasons. On the 9th of February, 1847, I found a 

 thrush's nest with three eggs in one of my shrubberies. This nest must have been 

 begun to be " built," as they term it, in January. But a few days after I found it a 

 heavy fall of snow, to the depth of twelve inches, destroyed all the hopes of the parent 

 birds, as the eggs were never hatched. — H. W. Newman; Hillside, Cheltenham, De- 

 cember 1, 1862. 



[In my brief editorial note the word " old " is omitted. It would have read cor- 

 rectly thus : " My own experience is that the old thrush is usually silent in< October. 

 The male birds of the year always make their first essay in song during that month." 

 — Edwo.rd Newman\. 



Skylarks congregating in October. — The congregating of these birds so early as 

 stated by Mr. Saxby (Zool. 8281) is a very rare occurrence, as I have heard them sing 

 and seen them soar as late as the second week in November, particularly in 1852, — 

 a warm November, and dry up to the 15th. To account for this, it is probable that 

 the larks were sensible by some wonderful instinct that some unusually severe frost 

 was not far distant, and were inclined to get a little more to the southward. In 1837 

 — 8 the winter did not commence in this county until after the 10th of January, 1838 

 (Murphy's year), but three days before that memorable frost visited us. I remarked 

 to a friend that the thrushes, as well as some minor song birds, had ceased suddenly 

 to charm us with their beautiful music. I can add that in the present autumn, about 

 the last few days in October and first week in November, I observed missel thrushes 

 and other birds visiting the berries of the mountain ash in a very public situation, in 

 the road near my dwelling house, and eagerly searching for food ; and the redwings 

 and fieldfares were unusually tame several days before the late severe and early frost 

 set in, and appeared suddenly in great numbers. — Id. 



Golden Oriole (Oriolus galbula) in the Isle of Wight. — In May last a male oriole 

 was seen in the garden of Plumley's Hotel. Mr. Lambert, the proprietor, snapped 

 his gun three times at it, but it missed fire, and the bird sat apparently unconcerned 

 preening its feathers. Many persons saw it and agreed as to the brightness of its yellow. 

 At last some of them threw stones at it and drove it away, so that when Mr. Lambert 

 sent for me it had flown. — Henry Rogers ; Freshwater, Isle of Wight, November 3, 

 1862. 



The Query respecting the Robin. — Like your correspondent Mr. Ransom, I have 

 been in the constant habit of hearing it said that the young robins kill off the old ones. 



