252 THE. .ESSEX SNATURALIST, 
Zoologist for 1864, and trouble has recurred ever since when 
the matter 1s mentioned. Some field students say that the 
Redwing sings frequently in England ; others deny it altogether. 
I do not want to enter into a controversy on this point, but I 
cannot avoid saying that I myself hold the singing of the Red- 
wing to be a very familiar feature of English landscapes. The 
reason may be that I have always paid rather close attention 
to this common bird ; like those of Bullfinch or House Sparrow, 
its song is not one that forces itself on one’s notice ; but when 
we begin to watch Redwings we soon detect how fond they are 
of singing on fine days. 
The song varies in a remarkable way, a fact that has been 
noticed in the northern breeding haunts of the bird. The 
Redwing has, besides the song, at least three distinct calls. The 
rarest is an alarm note, a chuckle nearly as loud as the rattle 
of a Blackbird. Much more frequent is a soft, almost explosive 
“Chup ” or “ Yup,” a note without any sibilant quality. The 
commonest call, and the most important now, is a shrill piping 
squeak or whistle, a sort of long-drawn-out “‘ Seep ” or “ Tzeee- 
e-ep.’’ Sometimes this is so thin as to resemble a common call 
of the Blackbird; but I do not think it can ever be confused 
with the short “ tzip ’’ of the Thrush. 
A remarkable fact, not to my knowledge ever discussed in 
the literature of birds, is that this “‘seep”’ of the Redwing 
is by far the commonest night-call to be heard in Great Britain ; 
and, moreover, there is no corner of this country where it may 
not be heard. Twelve years ago, in the Zoologist for 1911 
(pp. 361-366), I drew attention to this curious habit of the 
Redwing and since then have accumulated a great number of 
additional observations. Many of these were made in Essex, 
where the Redwing is a common bird; but the most valuable 
observations refer to the Pennine moors, places where the bird 
is never seen during the hours of daylight. I would like to refer 
the reader who happens to feel interested in the matter to this 
Zoologist paper, which contains particulars not necessary to 
quote here. 
Perhaps our two most ubiquitous birds are the House Beret 
and the Cuckoo. Outside the towns there is no British locality 
without Cuckoos; but the bird avoids urban districts where 
fields are scarce ; on the other hand, the House Sparrow finds 
