430 
VI.— NATURALIST'S CALENDAR, 
FOR MARCH. 
BOTANY. 
March is a month of promise ; vesetatinii is almost universailv in nsotion, and llie presence 
of spring is every-where manifest. Tlie he(l>;e» present a cheerful appearance witli tlie catkins 
of the Hazel and Willow, and the snowy blossoms of the Sloe; the banks are adorned with 
" the sweetest of all flowers, the Violet,'' and towards the end of the month, with the Prinarose 
and Pilewort ; the fields are studded with the Oaisy, and the gardens are brilliantly decorated 
with the Crocus, the Snowdrop, the flepatira, and the Arahis. 
The wild plants in flower are too numerous to allow of a complete list of them bcincr given 
here; amona: them, however, may he mentioned the following: Marsh Marij^old or Gowan, 
CAUhapalisiris; Bear's-foot, Hell'borus /ae\'idus; Pilewort, l^'iaWia vrrna , Hairy Lady- 
cress, Cardamine hirsuta ; Yellow Alpine U hitlow.cress, Drnba aizbides ; Mountain Dittan- 
Atr, Hutch'nsia petris^a ; Sweet Violet, f^iola odorrtn ; Little Mouse-ear, Cerastiuni semide- 
crindrium ; Sloe, Priinus spinisa ; Barren Strawberry, Potentilta FragaTia, (Kragraria sterilis;) 
Coltsfoot, TvxsUago FaTf,'''Tf: ; Spunre Laurel, D^'ipkne Laureola ; Wood Spiirge and Hed 
Spurg'e, EvphSrbia amt/ijdalii/des and ChnrilcvJS ; several species of Elm. Ulmus ; and Willow, 
S'Wix ; Dwarf Ixia, Trickon'^Tna llidbncddium ; Spring Crocus, CrJc!/« t'^rnw.?,— this plant now 
presents a most beautiful appearance in the Meadows, it Nottinsjliam ; many acres being en. 
tirely covered with it, and appearing to the eye at a short distance, one vast slieet of purple. 
The flowers are generally stronger and finer than those a^rown in gardens, and mostly of various 
shades of purple or white. Daffodil, Anrc/sstis Pse'cdo-nuTchsiis ; Two-leaved .Snuill, Scilla 
hifulia ; Butcher's ISroom, Khscvs acvleatiis ; Mairy Wood Rush, Litzida pilha; Hares- 
tail Cotton-grass, Erijphorum vayinatiim ; Least Rent-grass, CluimaprUlis minima; Heath 
Broom-Moss, Dieranvm scoprTiuni; and Yew-leaved Broom-Moss, D. taxtfCUuin. 
ZOOLOGY. 
INSECTS. — The Humming-bird Hawk-Moth, MacroglJssom stellai'^um, may frequently be 
found in gardens, and in lanes near woods. Its flig-ht is swift and remarkable. The caterpil- 
lar is found on stellated plants (StellatiB) The Great and Small Tortoise-shell Butterflies, I'a- 
nessa polt/chldros and f/?7iC<iP, and the Red Admirable, K. ataldnfa, having lived through the 
winter, now come forth. The Sprinkled Wood Butterfly, Hippnrcliia regiria -, the Oak 
Beauty Moth, Ji/slonprodromdrius ; the March Moth, Anis'ipteryi eBSCvldria ; and the Orange 
Underwing Moth, Br>p/ia Purth'inias, may now be met with. 'Tlie caterpillars of that scarce 
butterfly, the Plantain Fritillary, MelUrsa cinxiii; leave their winter nests in the begin- 
ning of the month, to feed on the leaves of the Mouse-ear Hawkweed, Plaintain, and Grass. 
They are blackish, with rows of spines alternately white and red. 
The larva? of the beautiful Rose Beetle or Chater, Cetdnia aurata. may now be found among 
the roots of Rose-trees, — they are of a cream-colour with brown heads and f^et. 
"It is now the proper time to collect many species of Wild Bees, and Diptera, not afterwards 
to be met with ; and various other insects begin now to emerge from their winter quarters, or 
are produced from the pupa." — Kirby 8c SrENCE. 
BIRDS. — The Woodcock, Scjlopax rusiicJla-, the Snipe, S. GaUin'gn; and the Jack-Snipe, 
iV. Gallinuh; leave their winter haunts for the sea-shore, previous to their departure for their 
breeding places in more northwardly climates, though some remain the whole year, and breed 
in this country. 
The Merlin, Falco JEsnIon; the Woodcock Owl, Str)x hnchydtus; the Hooded or Rovston 
Crow, Curi'vs Cjrnii; the Redwing, Tiirdvs iliaciis; the Wigeon, Jllar-ca fistuMns, fAnas 
Penelope, Lin.); the Pochard, Ayrdcaferina, (A. ferina, Lin.); the Teal, Querqu'dulfi crrcca, 
(A. crpcca, Lin.); and the White-Fronted Goose, Anser albifrom ; also migrate northward 
A few of the summer birds-of-passage begin to arrive; the first is the Wheat-ear, Saxic'la 
(Endnthe, which arrives about the middle of the month, and is found generally on stone walls 
on moors, or unfrequented places. The Stone Curlew, (FAicn>mvs crfpitans, (Charndriiis 
CEdicnemus, Lin.) arrives in the southern counties. The Lesser Pettycliaps, or Chiff-chalT, 
Sylvia Hippolais, may towards the end of the month be heard in the woods It takes its station 
on the tops of the highest trees, and there repeats in a deliberate and monotonous manner, the 
simple call from which it takes its name, "chiff'-chafi' chiff-chaff," its sameness rendered more 
remarkable, by the full choir of voices with which it is surrounded. 
Many birds are now busy in buildin?, or preparing for it, their songs are every-where heard, 
and a general bustle and activity seem to pervade their whole race 
ftUADRUPEDS. — The Squirrel, Sciurus vulgaris; and the Dormouse, My'xvsmnscordinvs 
OT avellaaorius; awaken from their winter sleep and leave their retreats; though in mild .sea. 
sons this sometimes takes jilace earlier. 
REPTILES. — The Common Viper, fipera communis; and the Toad, Bi'ifo cmnvinnis; re- 
vive from their torpidity. 
METEOROLOGY. 
Baroemter— ^lean Height 29,843. Highest 30,770. Lowest 28,870 inches. 
Thermometer — Mean 'Temperature 43,9 degrees. Highest 74. LoM'est 24 degrees. 
Rain. — Mean quantity 1,440 inches. 
Evaporation. — Mean quantity 1.483 inches. 
Duffield Hank, February. 1832. O. J 
