10 



The Irish Xaturalist. 



januar>% 



unmated Yellow-hammer males singing from almost the 

 one perch for at least six weeks ; and in some cases I think 

 it was the same bird for three months. I left one such 

 bird still singing on August 5th. These birds may sing at 

 intervals of ten or fifteen seconds throughout almost the 

 entire day. The " regular " song period of this bird is one 

 of our longest, being 5! months, ending mid-August. 

 Does it not moult very late ? 



The renewal of song for second broods of certain species 

 can be noted in individual examples, and more easily in 

 isolated pairs, but I also think I can detect a marked 

 general recrudescence round about dates which would 

 correspond with second broods. Thus I fancy I have 

 marked it for our Chaffinches about the last week in Mav ; 

 for Snipe in hrst week in June ; for Yellow-hammers in 

 beginning of June and again at mid-July : for Sedge 

 Warblers at end of June ; for Grasshopper Warblers at 

 beginning of July. But we might ask why a male who 

 has a mate should re-sing, if the purpose of song be to get 

 a mate. Well, the unmated males, who get mates so late 

 that the latter can hardh' be late arrivals, perhaps get 

 females who have left their hrst husbands. And thus 

 the male who has a mate may sing after the first brood 

 for fear of losing her. 



But in any extended study of this subject the question 

 will arise : what is song ? Is that easy of definition ? Some 

 sounds may be denoted as not only a song but also an alarm 

 or a mate's call or a family note, or a general company 

 note. The Lapwing's note seems to fulfil all these purposes. 

 Is it a song ? — and is the Tern's and even the Blackheaded 

 Gull's not one, though the use of the note among these 

 three seems to fairly correspond ? 



In some cases even the Warblers' song comes in as an 

 alarm in addition to the more regular alarm note. Commonly 

 so in the case of the Sedge Warbler, but also in the 

 Grasshopper Warbler. The Whitethroat sometimes blurts 

 out a peculiar whortUng variation of his song if you are 

 near the nest ; and the Chiffchaff may insert a bar or two 

 of song amongst the ordinary alarm notes. 



Enniskilleii. 



