120 



The Irish. Naturalist. 



October, 



unlike the normal. And whether mateless birds had any- 

 thing to do with the volume of May song I was unable 

 to tell. But it is highly probable many of them did not 

 breed, as otherwise I should have come across much more 

 of subsequent breeding operations. 



MiSTLE Thrush. — These birds shew signs of pairing 

 in the beginning of January. The normal early nesters 

 have the clutch laid up in the first days of April, but such 

 birds had not sung for a long time previously— I am not 

 sure how long. The 14th April was the last song I heard 

 anywhere. There was thus no song connected with all the 

 later nests, or second broods, which may not be laid up 

 till say May 8th. 



With reference to ending of summer song of Blackbird, 

 Thrush and Missel Thrush, my dates above are — before 

 June 6th, June 22nd, April 14th. Messrs. Alexander, as 

 quoted in my previous article, give for S.E. England — 

 fourth week of July and occasionally into October, third 

 week of July and occasionally into early August, fourth 

 week of May and occasionally into early August. I think 

 ray Blackbird and Song Thrush dates are normal here, 

 but Mr. D. C. Campbell, writing from Londonderry, (50 

 miles north of us), in the July issue, 1921, gives his records 

 for these birds in 1893 and 1894 as ending — for Blackbird 

 25th June and i8th July, for Song Thrush 22nd July, for 

 Missel Thrush 20th and 23rd May. These were all about 

 a month later than I have given. These are the more 

 puzzling as his other birds of those years fairly correspond 

 with mine of recent years. 



Before passing on to song in general I may jot down 

 a few somewhat irrelevant points about some other birds. 



Robin. — No song here in at least three weeks of June 

 and all July. Moulting can be seen in these months but 

 chiefly in July. 



Wren. — Complete song is as follows : — one beat, 5 quick 

 double beats, 5 beats, twirl, 3 double beats. It is seldom 

 finished complete I think out of the breeding season. 



