Great Invasion of Crossbills in 1909. 349 
island until quite late in tlie year, some of them indeed 
having actually been seen in the neighbourhood of Palermo 
in January of the present year. As a rule, the very irregular 
and fitful appearances of the Crossbill in Sicily occur during 
the late summer and autumn months, and the species is not 
seen there in winter. 
The first arrivals of Crossbills in Sicily last year appear to 
have been noticed early in July. One of my gardeners at 
the Villa Malfitano, near Palermo, reported having seen some 
of the species on the 3rd or 4th of that month. On the 
10th of July I myself observed several Crossbills 4n my 
garden, feeding on the pine-trees (Pinus maritima) which 
are plentiful there, and I secured a few specimens of them. 
The birds were in small flocks of from half a dozen to twenty 
individuals, young of the year predominating. On the lltli 
of July some of the birds were again observed in my garden, 
but in diminished numbers, and during the next few days the 
species was only observed occasionally. During the first 
fortnight of July the weather at Palermo was exceptionally 
cool for the season, northerly or north-westerly breezes pre¬ 
vailing most of the time. On the 10th of July the breeze 
was particularly fresh. 
According to information received from various sources. 
Crossbills were seen in considerable numbers on the 10th 
and 11th of July throughout the entire plain of Palermo, as 
well as in the neighbouring districts. About that date they 
appear to have also been observed in the vicinity of Trapani 
and Marsala, whence examples of the species were for¬ 
warded to me. Towards the end of July a good many 
individuals were reported as having been seen at Syracuse, 
as well as at Lentini and other localities on the east coast of 
Sicily. 
Later, during the month of August, fresh arrivals of 
the species were observed throughout the plain of Palermo, 
as also in the more inland districts of Corleone, San Giuseppe 
d’Jato, and Piana dei Greci. Crossbills appear to have been 
observed, at intervals, throughout the entire month of 
August in the neighbourhood of Palermo. 
