186 



THE YOUNG NATURALIST. 



colour. Truly early autumn has its charms, and not the least of these is the 

 gorgeous appearance put on by the leaves before they fall off the trees. We 

 notice birds are very plentiful. They begin to flock together about this time, 

 and the number of our resident birds is increased by others of the same 

 species, which begin now to move down from the north. The migratory 

 birds which have been staying with us during the summer, have now for the 

 most part taken their departure, and their places are being filled with a num- 

 ber of species which retreat from the more northerly regions, as winter comes 

 on in those parts. The cuckoo has long left us, as has also the nightingale, 

 the willow warbler, the wagtails, and the tree pipit. We miss the flycatchers 

 from the gardens, where we have been accustomed to see them all the sum- 

 mer. The hirundines are fast departing to the sunny south, where they will 

 find insect food in greater plenty than here. The swifts left us about the 

 end of August, and the swallows have either departed already or are pre- 

 paring to leave us, and it will not be long before we see, for the present, the 

 last of the martins. The redstart, the goatsucker, and the butcher bird, have 

 also by this time left us. The chiffchaff left us at the end of September, and 

 we no longer hear its nearly monotonous chant. The great bulk of the 

 whinchafcs are also moving off to southern climes, although a few will continue 

 with us all the year round. Many of the stonechats also will be leaving us 

 now, although considerable numbers will stay behind. There are other birds 

 too which take their departure as autumn comes on, such as the wryneck, 

 the ruffs and reeves, the land-rails, and the terns, which latter will be absent 

 from the British coasts for some time. 



On the other hand, autumn and winter brings us a number of visitors from 

 the north, many of which are identical with our resident species, as, for in- 

 stance, the chaffinch, large flocks of which arrive on the east coast in the 

 autumn. The curlews and snipes also have their ranks greatly swelled by 

 migrants from the north. But besides these there are some birds which we 

 only see in the colder months of the year, as, for instance, the fieldfare, the 

 redwing, the long-legged plover, the brambling, and the snow bunting. 

 Woodcocks, too, as is well known, visit our comparatively mild climate in 

 order to escape the rigour of a northern winter. 



We shall do well, perhaps, to try a little pupa digging before we go any 

 further. Probably these trees on the outskirt of the wood will prove pro- 

 ductive. Let us try this oak, perhaps we shall find something worth having. 

 We may hope for Boarmia consortaria, Nyssia hispidaria, Notodonta came- 

 liua, trepida, chaonia, or dodonea, also Taniocampa stabilis and munda, all of 

 which occur at the foot of oak trees. However, we are unfortunate, and 

 none of the expected rarities turn up, so we will go to another tree and if that 



