xx Journal of Proceedings. 
Lieut.-Col. Russell, J.P., D.L. (of Stubbers), read tlie following paper 
on— 
“Martins and Sparrows. 
“ Although of late years we have heard much of the destruction of birds, 
and of the efforts made to protect them, yet the steady progressive dis¬ 
appearance of one of our best species, the house martin, appears to 
escape general notice. According to Gilbert "White, of Selborne, there 
was hardly a town or village in his time that did not swarm with martins. 
My own observations, extending over nearly half a century, lead me to 
think that there is scarcely one martin now for fifty formerly. The cause 
of this decrease is plain enough to any one who keeps his eyes open—the 
sparrows turn the martins out of nearly every nest they build. In villages 
once frequented by perhaps 500 martins, now only three or four nests can 
be seen, all, or nearly so, occupied by sparrows, which may be seen going 
in or out, or sitting a few feet off, watching the martins build till the shell 
is advanced enough to suit them ; or, again, an untidy bunch of grass or 
straw hanging out shows what has taken place. When the martins, for 
protection from their ‘ fell enemies,’ as White rightly called the sparrows, 
make their nest close to a window or door, it is generally destroyed by 
people who seem to have no notion that, except in a place where the 
sparrows are afraid to come, the martins have scarcely a chance of keep¬ 
ing a nest. I have heard it said ‘ they must do it for mischief—they 
might build anywhere else.’ I could give any number of instances of 
martins being finally banished by the sparrows from houses and buildings 
where for many years they have bred in ever decreasing numbers. Plenty 
of such cases occur every season, and they cannot re-establish themselves 
without help. In some favourite places they build a nest or two every 
year, but are always turned out by the sparrows. The only thing which 
prevents or retards the total extermination of martins in this country is 
that, after building nests all the summer and being robbed of them, they 
sometimes succeed in rearing a very late brood after the sparrows have ail 
left off nesting and betaken themselves to the wheat fields. When thus 
detained the martins often suffer much from cold weather before then 
young can fly, and a frosty night in October will destroy many, old as well 
as young. 
observed the nest of a robin built in tbe porch of his cottage at Putney; some time 
afterwards he found that a humble-bee had taken possession of it, and had adapted it to 
its own purposes. Unfortunately the nest was destroyed before he had ascertained the 
name of the species; but, judging from the description Dr. Bell gave of the bee, there 
can be little doubt of its being B. pratorum. Mr. Walcott, of Bristol, communicated a 
similar account of finding the nest of a robin invaded by B. derhamellus, the eggs of the 
bird being covered with the accumulation of pollen and honey stored up by the bees. 
Mr. Walcott added to this account‘ I have in two previous instances found broods of 
the same bee in birds’ nests.’ Another correspondent gave me the following account of 
B. muscorum :— ‘ This insect took possession of a wren’s nest at Holmbush, near 
Brighton; I had observed the bird building, and afterwards was astonished on finding 
that a bee had taken possession of the nest, and had, as I found, constructed its waxen 
cells amongst the eggs of the wren.’ A very remarkable account of one of the brown 
bees was related to me by a lady, who observed it frequently flying into a stable through 
a latticed window; the bee was engaged in collecting a bundle of horse-hair from a heap 
accumulated from currying the horses. Having made up a small parcel, the bee flew off 
with it a short distance, and settled down with it among some grass. On examining the 
spot a nest constructed entirely of horse-hair was discovered. This very interesting 
nest was unfortunately destroyed before the bee had quite completed its construction.” 
—Ed. 
