-z.S.7 Q

British Birds

v.

i

c

^AKi

Editors
Stanley Cramp
I J Ferguson-Lees
M A Ogilvie
J T R Sharrock
DIM Wallace

Photographic Editors
Eric Hosking
and M. D. England

Volume 69

!976

Macmillan

List of photographs

BLACK-AND-WHITE PLATES

1-4 Studies of Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis: Austria and
Germany (R. G. Carlson, A. N. H. Peach, and H. Lohrl); com-
pared with Pied Flycatcher F. hypoleuca, Cumbria, Powys and
Germany (J. B. and S. Bottomley, Graham F. Date, and H.
Lohrl) facing

5-8 Starlings Sturnus vulgaris: flocks in flight and at roosts, Lothian,
Shropshire, Dyfed, Suffolk and London (James Brodie, H. R. Sykes,
A. O. Chater, and Eric Hosking) facing

9 Aerial views of colony of Gannets Sula bassana on Grassholm, Dyfed
(Royal Air Force, and Studio Jon Ltd) facing

10-12 Birds in Ireland: Barn Owl Tyto alba, Co. Cork; Hen Harrier Circus
cyaneus, Co. Cork; Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaroptis tricolor, Co. Cork;
Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria, Co. Cork; Common Terns Sterna
hirundo, Co. Wexford; Glaucous Gull Larus hyperboreus, Cork City
(Richard T. Mills) facing

Editorial Address British Birds, Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex
Street, London WC2R 3LF ( telephone 01-836 6633)

Editors Stanley Cramp, I. J. Ferguson-Lees, M. A. Ogilvie and
D. I. M. Wallace Photographic Editor Eric Hosking

News and comment Peter Condcr, 12 Swaynes Lane, Cambridge CB3 7EF

Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL
© The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd

British Birds is published monthly by Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex
Street, London WC2R 3LF ( telephone : 01-836 6633). ISSN 0007-0335

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London WC2R 3LF ( telephone : 01-836 6633)

Birds of Nepal

Thomas Cook are
repeating their very
successful Bird Trek to
Nepal in April 1 976.
199 different species
were identified on the
1975 trek.

For further details and a list
of the birds seen write to :

Mr. P. A. S. Goodwin,
Thomas Cook Ltd.,
Group Travel Service,
45 Berkeley Street,
London, W1 A 1 EB.

Thomas Cook

i

NATURALISTS’ AND
BIRD WATCHERS’
WINTER HOLIDAYS

with

TONY SOPER
and

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on

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COAST

4 days inclusive price £45.

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brochure:

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1
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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER I JANUARY I 9 7 6

Editorial

The conservation of wetlands

On 2 1st December 1975 the ‘Convention on Wetlands of Inter-
national Importance, Especially as Waterfowl Habitat’ came into
force. The Council of Europe’s Information Centre for Nature
Conservation has launched a publicity campaign for 1976, dedicated
to the conservation and management of wetlands. These two actions
taken together show the great importance that is now attached on
an international scale to the protection of this particular habitat
and its wildlife.

Wetlands are probably now receiving, and deserving, more
attention than any other type of habitat, apart perhaps from tropical
forests. The reasons for this are clear. The number and extent of
natural wetlands, marshes, estuaries and coastal lagoons, are strictly
limited and they are difficult and costly to create artificially. Their
richness in terms of the enormous and specialised range of animal
and plant life is unequalled, at any rate in temperate climates. The
pressures on them are immense, both from reclamation and drainage
schemes involving their destruction, and from recreational activities
which may leave the habitat relatively untouched, but drive away
much of the wildlife.

Man-made wetlands, mainly reservoirs and gravel pits, are still
increasing but concern over the loss of agricultural land has put a
brake on the creation of further large reservoirs, at least in lowland
Britain. We are also past the peak of undisturbed reservoir acreage,
which until a few years ago formed an extremely important network
of freshwater bird refuges. The striking growth in water sports has
led to the opening up of previously sacrosanct waters, and the
virtually compulsory use of all new reservoirs for recreation.

I

2

Editorial

It sometimes might be thought that wetlands receive more than
their share of attention. But apart from the reasons already given for
their conservation a glance at any list of major sites of scientific
interest that have been seriously threatened in the last ten years
will show that a high proportion of them are wetlands, for example :
the Waddensee, Netherlands; Foulness, the Cromarty Firth and the
Medway estuary, Britain; North Bull and Wexford Slobs, Ireland;
Thjorsarver, Iceland; the Lower Elbe estuary, West Germany; and
the Danube delta, Romania. Threats to these places, and several
more, have been the subject of action by conservationists throughout
Europe and further afield, because it has been recognised that their
importance is truly international.

The wildfowl and wader counts organised throughout much of
Europe and North Africa in the last eight years by the Inter-
national Waterfowl Research Bureau have for the first time provided
reliable criteria against which to assess the importance to these birds
of a particular site. Comparable studies on other parts of the fauna
and flora of wetlands have lagged well behind those on the birds but
it is fair to assume that any wetland capable of sustaining a wealth
of bird life is necessarily very rich and productive in other ways.

It was in 1962 that an international convention on wetlands and
waterfowl conservation was first mooted. It gradually took shape
over the years, helped by a series of firstly European and later fully
international conferences on the subject. The final text was agreed
at an international conference held in Ramsar, Iran, in February
1971. Countries which sign the Convention agree to promote the
conservation of wetlands and waterfowl within their territory and
in particular to designate at least one of their wetlands for inclusion
in a List of Wetlands of International Importance. The Convention
thus becomes the first multilateral agreement which modifies
national land-use planning, an extremely important precedent.

It was agreed at Ramsar that the Convention would come into
force four months after its ratification by the seventh contracting
country. The Convention may be signed as a declaration of intent
by a country which will then subsequently ratify it, or countries may
sign without reservation as to ratification. Iran was the first country
to sign, followed by Finland, but before either had ratified Australia
signed without reservation and thus became the first fully contract-
ing party to the Convention. Norway, Sweden and South Africa
followed suit and by March 1975 these six countries had ratified.
A further seven countries, the Soviet Union, Switzerland, West
Germany, Italy, Ireland, Belgium and the United Kingdom, had
signed only. It was hoped that the United Kingdom might become
the seventh country to ratify and thus trigger the convention into
action but the wheels of government moved too slowly and it fell

Editorial

3

to Greece, who acceded on 21st August 1975, to perform this
historic act. Since then Bulgaria has also become a Contracting
Party.

Each ratifying country has duly designated one or more wetlands
for inclusion in the List, and may, of course, add further wetlands
at any time. Sweden leads with 20, followed by Iran with 18, and
Finland and Greece each with eleven, while the remaining countries
have each designated either one or two. They total in the region of
2,000,000 hectares of wetland habitat. As more countries become a
party to the Convention, a world-wide network of wetland reserves
ofvital importance to waterfowl will be established, thus guaranteeing
them an assured future.

It has taken nearly five years of bureaucratic delay from the agree-
ment on the Convention to its coming into force. During this time
valuable wetlands have been threatened and lost, perhaps only
partially compensated in some areas by the creation of the Conven-
tion List. There is still a long and uphill struggle to ensure that more
and more countries ratify the Convention and that they designate
not just a token few wetlands, already fully protected, but a compre-
hensive and significant number. The Council of Europe’s 1976
Wetland Campaign is much to be welcomed as providing a forceful
stimulus through publicity and educational material aimed not just
at the man in the street but also at the relevant government autho-
rities to remind them of their responsibilities to the conservation of
wetlands and waterfowl.

Voice, behaviour and display of
Mediterranean Gulls

J.H. Taverner

Since 1966, Mediterranean Gulls Larus melanocephalus have bred or
held territories in the seabird colony at Needs Oar Point, Hampshire
(Taverner 1970, 1972). The colony is wardened at all times during
the breeding season and this constant coverage, often from a hide
at close range, has offered many opportunities to study behaviour
and display of Mediterranean Gulls. It must be remembered, how-
ever, that the birds are in a colony of other species, mainly Black-
headed Gulls L. ridibundas, and every Mediterranean Gull territory
has been separated from others of its own species; their behaviour,
therefore, might not be typical of a pure melanocephalus colony. For
instance, a typical situation has been that of a male Mediterranean
Gull defending a territory among a mass of Black-headed Gulls,
which may have resulted in more aggression than would normally
occur.

Typical behaviour and display seen at Needs Oar are categorised
below, most of the postures adopted being illustrated in figs 1 to 9.
My experiences, with those of D. A. Thelwell and Dr G. Fisher,
have been much in line with Mauersberger’s, who described the
behaviour of Mediterranean Gulls in a major paper (1970).

VOICE

In territory, an unattached male was understandably very vocal,
calling frequently until the end of May and easily audible in the
middle of several thousand Black-headed Gulls. Once two birds
had established a territory, they were mostly silent, though they were
quite vocal whilst searching for a site. All calls that we heard were
variations of one basic ‘whaa’ sound, not unlike the similar note of a
Herring Gull L. argentatus in tone and quality, varying from a
short monosyllabic ‘whaa’ through a disyllabic ‘whaa-oo’ and a
trisyllabic ‘whaa-oo-ah’ to a full ‘whaa-whaa-whaa-whaa-whaa-
oo-ah’. When delivered on the ground, these notes were obviously
a proclamation of territory, and each was delivered with a different
and characteristic pose.

(1) When the single ‘whaa’ and disyllabic ‘whaa-oo’ were uttered
the bird leaned forward with outstretched neck, and returned im-
mediately to a normal standing position when the call was completed
(fig. 1). These notes were also the standard ones uttered by birds
flying calmly over an undisturbed colony, and also by birds flying
over the head of an intruder in their territory; we could detect no
difference in the calls used in these two very different situations,

4

[Brit. Birds, 69: 4-8, January 1976]

Figs, i -9. Display postures adopted by Mediterranean Gulls Lams melanocephalus
at seabird colony at Needs Oar, Hampshire. See text for full explanation

(drawings by David A. Thelwell)

6

Mediterranean Gull behaviour

and I have heard exactly the same call from flocks of Mediterranean
Gulls migrating through the Aegean in spring.

(2) Each syllable of the ‘whaa-oo-ah’ call was uttered from a
different position (fig. 2). For the first syllable, the bird would lean
forward and slightly downward, with the neck outstretched and
the tail raised a little above the horizontal. The head would then be
brought sharply upwards, with outstretched neck, at an angle of
about 6o° to the horizontal and the tail depressed for the ‘00’
syllable. Finally, the head and neck were jerked forward to a position
slightly above the horizontal for the final and rather explosive ‘ah’.
The whole performance took about three seconds. It was not used
in aggression towards surrounding Black-headed Gulls but appeared
simply to advertise the male’s presence. We never saw a known
female use this call, but most of the Needs Oar birds whose sex was
determined were males; thus, this possible sexual difference in
calling is not necessarily significant, although it would be normal
for the male rather than the female to advertise the territory.

As with the flight note, I have also heard this trisyllabic note
given by small flocks of migrating Mediterranean Gulls in spring in
Greece, far from their colonies, and I have seen birds there use
precisely the same three positions, but from a swimming position on
the sea.

(3) The full development of (2) is an excited ‘whaa-whaa-whaa-
whaa-whaa-oo-ah’. The first note is quiet and low with the follow-
ing ‘whaa’ syllables increasing in volume and intensity. These are
all uttered from a similar position to that adopted for the first note
of the trisyllabic call described above, but the bird is obviously
more excited and the wings are drooped slightly (fig. 3). The last
two ‘oo-ah’ notes are uttered with the same movements as in the
trisyllabic call.

STOMPING

An unattached male in territory would spend much of its time just
standing in a prominent part of its territory or simply sitting as
though it were brooding, but every now and again it would patrol
not only its own ground but the area for a metre or two around. At
such times, the bird would often use a characteristic walk with the
breast pushed out in front and the bill pointing downwards so that it
rested on the breast (fig. 4). On occasions the wings would be very
slightly drooped and the whole impression to human eyes was that
of a bird trying to make the most of itself. Sometimes the neck
feathers were slightly raised, giving the neck a swollen appearance,
and we frequently noticed a sharp break in the contours of the bird
where the black hood met the white body feathers resulting in a
‘broken neck’ look (fig. 7).

Mediterranean Gull behaviour

7

PAIR DISPLAY

We had limited opportunities of watching a pair together prior to
nesting, but three types of behaviour seemed typical.

Bill rubbing The birds would stand side by side in their territory
with necks slightly arched and bills pointing downwards at about
6o°-70°, and in this position would gently rub bills together for a
second or two (fig. 5).

Kissing The two birds would face one another, the presumed
female crouching with head and bill pointing upwards so that the
bill tip just touched the tip of her partner’s bill, the presumed male
standing with slightly arched neck and bill pointing downwards

(fig- 6)-

Overtures by a male A male making advances to its mate or to a
female Black-headed Gull would shuffle forward with breast pushed
out, bill depressed, wings drooped and held a little forward, neck
‘swollen’ and often with the ‘broken neck’ appearance (fig. 7).

HEAD SHAPE

Two characteristic head shapes were noticed which did not seem
entirely to correspond with the bird’s moods. In profile, the first
of these showed a very rounded, woolly-headed appearance with the
outline not quite smooth because the head feathers were slightly
raised (fig. 8). Birds usually showed such a head shape when
completely at ease (e.g. a brooding or off-duty bird in a period of
calm for the whole colony) but some individuals showed this shape
most of the time, even when not completely at ease. The second
characteristic head shape (fig. 9) was particularly associated with
aggressive males, though once again certain dominant individuals
showed it most of the time. In this pose, the crown feathers were
flattened so that in profile there was not much break in the sweep
of the head from bill tip to crown, and the back of the head had a
very angular appearance. This had the effect of making the bill
look particularly long and massive, and the bird’s head took on a
very sleek appearance. The rvvo outlines were so different that the
species had two quite separate ‘jizzes’.

BILL COLOUR

In view of bill descriptions by Hume and Lansdown (1974), it
seems worth while making the following points about the Needs
Oar birds. Bill colour varied considerably, to the extent that we
were able to recognise individually most of the birds by this
character. Nearly all the adult and second-year birds had light and
bright yellow tips to their bills, usually beyond a dark band of
varying size and intensity. East German opinion based on birds
breeding along the Baltic coast is that the degree of yellow changes

8

Mediterranean Gull behaviour

with age (G. Mauersberger in litt.), but two males which held the
same territories at Needs Oar from 1970 to 1974 appeared to have
maintained the same pattern. As the yellow is so bright, it is sur-
prising how difficult it is to detect at any range. A yellow- tipped bill
that is striking when seen at close range from a hide can be impos-
sible to see at 40 metres, even in excellent light. Great care should
therefore be taken when analysing bill colours of birds seen in the
field.

SUMMARY

The displays and calls used by Mediterranean Gulls Larus melanocephalus in a sea-
bird colony at Needs Oar Point, Hampshire, are described. Two characteristic
head shapes adopted by the species are also described, and attention is drawn to a
possible error in interpreting the bill colour of birds seen in the field.

REFERENCES

Hume, R. A., and Lansdown, P. G. 1974. ‘Mediterranean Gulls at Blackpill,
Glamorgan’. Brit. Birds, 67: 17-24.

Mauersberger, G. 1970. ‘Verhalten und taxonomische Stellung der Schwarz-
kopfmowe ( Larus melanocephalus)' . Beitr. Vogelk., 15: 209-319.

Taverner, J. H. 1970. ‘Mediterranean Gulls nesting in Hampshire’. Brit. Birds,
63: 67-79.

1972. ‘Mediterranean Gulls in Hampshire in 1970-71’. Brit. Birds, 65:

185-186.

J. H. Taverner, 13 Stockers Avenue, Winchester, Hampshire

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain in 1969-73
R. S. R. Fitter

This is the second of what is intended to be a series of quinquennial
reports, based largely on records appearing in local bird reports.
The first of the series (Fitter 1971) dealt with the years 1964-68.
The historic counties are still used, to preserve continuity.

During 1969-73 the recorded breeding and territory-holding
population of the Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros in Britain
fluctuated rather more sharply than it had done in the previous 29
years (see fig. 1). The East Anglian population of Black Redstarts

Fig. 1. Black Redstarts Phoenicurus ochruros in Britain in the breeding season from
1940 to 1973 (years along horizontal axis). The lower line shows the numbers
of pairs, whether proved to have bred or not (first two columns in table 1 com-
bined), and the upper the totals of territory-holding males (last column in table 1)

remained more stable than that of south-east England, where
county totals varied gready from year to year. In particular, 1971
showed a steep downward fluctuation which appears to have been a
mere hesitation in a generally upward movement culminating in a
record total of 63 breeding pairs and 90 territories held in 1973,
the fifth such peak since 1940. There is no reason to suppose that
these fluctuations were due to inadequate observation and record-
ing, and it must be presumed that they represent real population
changes. Incidentally, the figure is substantially greater than that
given by the Rare Breeding Birds Panel in their first and second

[Bnt. Bird s, 69: 9-15, January 1976]

9

IO

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73

Fig. 2. Breeding distribution of the
Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros
in Britain during 1968-72 (repro-
duced, by permission, from the
BTO/IWC Atlas of Breeding Birds
in Britain and Ireland) : the smallest
dot indicates possible breeding,
the next probable and the largest
confirmed breeding

reports (Sharrock and Ferguson-Lees 1975, Sharrock et at. 1975),
largely because the present paper is based on local bird reports
instead of ad hoc reports.

• ' ' - / \

Table 1. Numbers of breeding pairs of Black Redstarts Phoenicurus dchruros,
and of singing males holding territories, in Britain from 1967 to 1973

1967 and 1968 are included to cover the additional records for those years listed

at the end of this paper

Territory-holding Total

Pairs proved Pairs not proved males not known territory-holding
Year to have bred to have bred to have paired males

1967

l9

6

7

32

1968

18

5

4

27

1969

24

8

IO

42

1970

26

8

20

54

1971

12

6

7

25

1972

3i

4

IO

45

!973

63

5

22

9°

SUMMARY OF BREEDING RECORDS IN 1969-72

The number of historic English counties which have never yielded
even a territory-holding male is now reduced to three: Cumberland,
Rutland and Westmorland. There are, however, another four where
a pair has never been proved to have bred: Gloucestershire,
Herefordshire, Oxfordshire and Somerset.

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73 1 1

1969 The upswing from the low levels of 1966-68 began, with 24
breeding pairs, the largest total since 1964, the previous peak, and
a grand total of 42 territories held. Both the total of breeding pairs
and the total of territories were the second largest since 1958.
Breeding was proved in eight counties: Essex (Harlow, Parkeston
Quay, Stratford, West Ham) ; Hertfordshire (Digswell) ; Kent
(Dover, Dungeness, Ramsgate, St Margaret’s Bay); Norfolk
(Great Yarmouth); Suffolk (Lowestoft, Sizewell); Surrey
(Croydon); Sussex (Bexhill); and Warwickshire (Birmingham).
The absence of Middlesex from this list for the first time since 1940
is most striking. Elsewhere, there were pairs of singing males at
Windsor, Berkshire; Barking, Dagenham and Walthamstow,
Essex; Littlebrook, Kent; and Brentford, Brompton Cemetery and
Cripplegate, Middlesex; thus, apart from the outlying population
in Birmingham, the area occupied by breeding pairs continued to
be the south-eastern, mainly coastal, stretch from Norfolk through
London to Sussex.

1970 There was a minimal increase in pairs actually proved to have
bred, and a larger one, to 54, in the total of territory-holding males,
representing the second highest total since 1951. Breeding was
proved in ten counties: Cambridgeshire (Cambridge), for the
first time since 1958; Derbyshire (Drakelow), for the first time ever;
Essex (Barking, West Ham, West Thurrock) ; Kent (Dartford,
Dover, Littlebrook); Lincolnshire (Scunthorpe), for the first time
ever; Middlesex (Tottenham) ; Norfolk (Cromer, Great Yarmouth) ;
Staffordshire (Bilston) ; Suffolk (Oulton Broad, Sizewell) ; Surrey
(Croydon); and Sussex (Brighton, Hastings). Elsewhere, there were
pairs or singing males at Beckton, Rainham and Stratford, Essex;
Dover, Dungeness and Ramsgate, Kent; Brentford, Cripplegate
and Park Royal, Middlesex; Ipswich, Suffolk; and Brighton and
the Hastings area, Sussex. The most interesting feature of the year
was the spread of breeding to two new Midland counties.

1971 A puzzling hiccup in the upswing occurred, with proved
breeding pairs down to 13, the lowest since 1962, and total territory-
holders reduced to 25, the lowest since 1963. Breeding was proved in
only six counties: Kent (Dover); Middlesex (St Katharine’s Dock,
Tottenham); Norfolk (Gorleston, Great Yarmouth); Staffordshire
(Bilston); Suffolk (Lowestoft, Sizewell); Surrey (Croydon); and
Sussex (Brighton). Elsewhere territories were held at Portland,
Dorset; Stratford, Essex; Dover and Thamesmead, Kent; Leicester,
for the first time ever in Leicestershire; Peterborough, Northamp-
tonshire; Oulton Broad, Suffolk; and Southwark and Surrey Docks,
Surrey. The collapse of the Essex and Sussex populations inevitably
makes one wonder whether this is not an effect of observer error,

12 Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73

but such collapses have often happened before, e.g. in Kent and
Middlesex.

1972 The upswing was resumed, with 3 1 pairs known to have bred
and at least 45 territories held in all, the first figure the second
highest since 1952, and the second representing the second highest
total since 1958. Breeding was proved in ten counties: Bedfordshire
(Luton), for the first time ever; Essex (Bromley by Bow, Romford) ;
Kent (Dover, Dungeness, Northfleet) ; Middlesex (Fulham, Isling-
ton, Tottenham); Norfolk (Great Yarmouth, Hellesdon Mill);
Staffordshire (Bilston) ; Suffolk (Ipswich Docks, Sizewell); Surrey
(Croydon, Southwark, Surrey Docks) ; Worcestershire (Stour-
bridge), for the first time ever; and Yorkshire (Flamborough Head),
for the first time since 1951. Elsewhere territories were held at
Chester, Cheshire; King George V Reservoir and Stratford, Essex;
Cripplegate and Park Royal, Middlesex; Norwich, Norfolk;
Lowestoft, Suffolk; and Hastings, Sussex. The frequency with
which familiar names such as Cripplegate, Dover and Hastings
recur in the list of total territory-holders strongly suggests that the
principal effect of observer error is failure to record actual
breeding.

1973 This proved to be the outstanding Black Redstart year so far,
the total of 63 breeding pairs exceeding by a substantial margin
the previous highest of 40 in 1950, and the total of 90 territories
held being similarly higher than the previous top figure of 69 in
1964. Breeding was proved in 15 counties: Bedfordshire (Luton);
Berkshire (Maidenhead); Cheshire (Chester), for the first time
ever; Essex (Grays, King George V Reservoir); Hampshire
(locality not stated) ; Hertfordshire (south-east) ; Kent (Chatham,
Dartford, Dover, Dungeness, Littlebrook, Northfleet, Ramsgate) ;
Middlesex (Hendon, Kings Cross) ; Norfolk (Great Yarmouth,
Norwich, Sheringham) ; Suffolk (Lowestoft, Oulton Broad, Sizewell,
Felixstowe Docks, Ipswich Docks) ; Surrey (Croydon, Surrey Docks) ;
Sussex (Bexhill, Brighton, Eastbourne, St Leonards-on-Sea) ;
Worcestershire (Redditch) ; Yorkshire (Hull); and Orkney (Copin-
say), for the first time ever in Scotland. Elsewhere territories were
held at Windsor and Bracknell, Berkshire; Stratford and Tilbury-
Docks, Essex; Brimsdown power station, Heathrow airport,
Tottenham and City of Westminster, Middlesex; Bilston, Stafford-
shire; Deptford, Kent; Northampton, Northamptonshire; and
Birmingham, Warwickshire. There was also an unusual and
suggestive group of three August records far to the west of the
normal breeding range: Skokholm, Pembrokeshire, on the 1st;
Llangorse Lake, Breconshire, on the 14th; and Clifden, Co. Galway,
on the 29th.

13

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73

SUMMARY OF RECORDS BY COUNTIES

I Bedfordshire A pair at Luton in 1972 was the first breeding
record for the county, followed by another breeding pair and a
singing male in 1973. Females, believed to be all different, at
Sandy in May, June and August 1970 suggested the possibility of
breeding nearby.

Berkshire A pair bred at Maidenhead in 1973. Singing males
were present at Windsor in 1969 and 1973, and at Bracknell in
1973-

Buckinghamshire Last bred 1965.

Cambridgeshire A pair bred at Cambridge in 1970, the first
since 1958. One near Cambridge station on 17th May 1973 could
have been a migrant.

Cheshire A pair bred at Chester in 1973.

Cornwall Last bred 1939.

f Derbyshire A pair at Drakelow in 1970 was the first breeding
record for the county. A female at the same place in July 1969
suggested possible breeding in that year too.

Devon Last bred 1949.

Dorset A pair, not proved to have bred, at Portland in 1971
was the only record for the period. Last bred 1965.

Durham Last bred 1845.

Essex Up to four pairs were proved to have bred in four out of the
five years, and up to seven territories were held in each year, in
eleven different localities, mainly in the London suburbs not far
from the Thames estuary, but also inland at Harlow and on the
coast at Parkeston Quay.

| Gloucestershire A male seen at Rendcomb on 13th May 1972
might well have been a migrant, but a male on 18th June 1972
near Colesbourne only about five kilometres away was probably
not, so that a territory may well have been held in this district.

Hampshire A pair bred in Hampshire in 1973. One (sex not
stated) at Fort Purbrook on iothjune 1972 is suggestive of potential
breeding.

f Herefordshire Last breeding-season record 1958.

Hertfordshire A pair bred at Digswell, near Welwyn, in 1969,
and another pair in the south-east of the county in 1973.

Kent Up to ten pairs were proved to have bred in each of the five
years, and up to ten territories were held in each year, mainly on

f Indicates no breeding record before 1969

14 Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73

the coast between Thanet and Dungeness and along the upstream
part of the Thames estuary. Dover maintained its record of being
one of only four towns in the whole country where breeding took
place in each year.

Lancashire A female or immature at Rossall on nth and 27th
August 1971 is the only record suggestive of breeding. Last bred in
1950.

f Lincolnshire A pair at Scunthorpe in 1970 was the first breeding
record for the county.

Middlesex Up to four pairs were proved to have bred in four out
of five years, and up to eight territories were held in each year.
Tottenham was the most constant breeding site, with other pairs
also at Islington, Fulham and St Katharine’s Dock. Breeding was
never proved at Cripplegate, though it seems likely that it must
have occurred at least in 1972, when a pair was present.

Norfolk Up to 19 pairs were pi'oved to have bred and up to 20
pairs held territories in each year. Great Yarmouth was one of the
only four places in the whole country where one or more pairs bred
in each of the four years, culminating in the astonishing total of 17
pairs proved to have bred in 1973. Breeding also took place in
Cromer, Norwich and Sheringham.

Northamptonshire A pair present at Peterborough in 1971.
A territory held in Northampton in 1973. Last bred in 1967.

Northumberland A male on Coquet Island on 27th June 1972
seems unlikely to have been a migrant. Last bred in 1962.

Nottinghamshire Last bred in 1958.
f Oxfordshire Last breeding-season record 1958.

Shropshire Last bred in 1963.

Somerset Last breeding-season record 1968.

Staffordshire A pair bred at Bilston power station in each year
from 1970 to 1972, and a male was singing there in 1973.

Suffolk Up to eleven pairs were proved to have bred and up to
13 pairs held territories in each year. Sizewell power station was
another of the four places in England where pairs were proved to
have nested each year. Other breeding localities were Ipswich,
Lowestoft, Oulton Broad and Felixstowe.

Surrey Up to four pairs were proved to have bred and up to
seven territories were held in each year. Croydon power station
was the fourth constant breeding site in England, Southwark
being the only other proved one in Surrey, and Surrey Docks an
unproved one.

l5

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain 1969-73

Sussex Up to four pairs were proved to have bred and up to
five territories were held in each year. The breeding pairs were in
Brighton in four out of five years, in the Hastings area in two years,
and in Eastbourne in 1973.

Warwickshire A pair bred in Birmingham in 1969, and a male
sang there in 1973.

| Wiltshire Last breeding-season record 1966.

f Worcestershire A pair at Stourbridge in 1972 was the first
breeding record for the county, not the Redditch pair in 1973 as
claimed by Sharrock and Ferguson-Lees (1975).

Yorkshire A pair bred at Flamborough Head in 1971, and
another in Hull in 1973.

f Wales Birds seen on Skokholm, Pembrokeshire, on 1st August
and at Llangorse Lake, Breconshire, on 14th August suggested the
possibility of breeding somewhere in south Wales.

fScotland A female sat on a nest containing infertile eggs on
Copinsay, Orkney, and was seen by those (including the author)
who attended the opening ceremony of that island as the James
Fisher Memorial in July 1973. No male was ever seen. This con-
stitutes the first nesting, if not first breeding record, for Scotland.

jlreland An adult male at Clifdcn, Co. Galway, on the unusually
early date of 29th August.

ADDITIONAL RECORDS FOR FORMER YEARS

1967 Dover, Kent: one pair bred, one non-breeding pair (G. E.
Took).

1968 Digswell, Hertfordshire: one pair bred ( Hertfordshire Bird
Report , 1969). Dover, Kent: one pair bred, one non-breeding pair
(G. E. Took).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I thank the following for supplying information for this paper: D. Berkeley,
R. Cobbold, B. R. Dean, C. M. James and G. E. Took.

REFERENCES

Fitter, R. S. R. 1971. ‘Black Redstarts breeding in Britain in 1964-68’. Brit. Birds,
64: 1 17-124.

Sharrock, J. T. R., and Ferguson-Lees, I. J. 1975. ‘Rare breeding birds in the
United Kingdom in 1973’. Brit. Birds, 68: 5-23.

, and The Rare Breeding Birds Panel. 1975. ‘Rare breeding birds in the

United Kingdom in 1974’. Brit. Birds, 68: 489-506.

R. S. R. Fitter , Drifts, Chinnor Hill, Oxford

Viewpoint John Gooders

John Gooders is a philosopher by training and a birdwatcher by profession.
He writes books , films and articles about birds and is worried by the persistent
parochial nature of bird and wildlife conservation.

A question of priorities

There is, I believe, a prevalent tendency to think of birds (and any
other form of life come to that) as the preserve of the scientist. This
I dispute. It is the same as saying that steam engines belong to
engineers, paintings to artists, or nuclear power to physicists.
Anything and everything can be approached from a variety of
different directions. Thus there is no reason why an artist should
not comment on the aesthetic value of a steam engine, or a nuclear
power station, as well as a painting. Of course, if an expert judge-
ment is required it is relevant to ask an appropriate authority. I
make these brief points simply because my approach to the question
of priorities is essentially philosophical and, I hope, logical. With
any luck I shall avoid making value judgements and keep emotion
tightly under control.

Philosophers are generally unpopular because of their tendency
to say something awkward about absolutely anything at all. Thus
we have philosophers of science, of religion and of history, as well as
moral philosophers and logicians. The question whether or not
we should conserve and protect birds is essentially an ethical one.
For though we hear a great deal about economic benefits, about
harmful and beneficial species, about recreational value and so on,
the ultimate question is ‘have we any obligation to conserve birds?’.
It can be argued that, if there were no birds, insect pests would get
out of control, that many flowers would not be pollinated and,
indeed, that the whole intricate system of life would collapse. This,
for me, is sufficient in the philosophical sense. If the ecological
structure of the life of the planet depends on the maintenance of the
variety and populations of bird species then we ourselves are
dependent on birds for our existence. Thus our being able to ask
why we should conserve birds is dependent on the very existence
of birds; it is a presupposition of asking the question. (Apologies to
Professor R. S. Peters who is responsible for pointing out the
validity, albeit in a different sphere, of this dialectic.)

Given that we ought to conserve birds, the next question is
‘which ones?’ Rather than attempt (falsely) to value one species
against another in terms of human or even ecological usefulness, a
simple and attractive answer is that we should conserve as many
different species as possible. Variety is not only interesting, appeal-

16

Viewpoint 1 7

ing and a good form of insurance, it is presupposed in our previous
argument. For those who have borne with me so far the main course
is not too far away.

If then we should seek to preserve all birds, some clearly are
more in need of our help than others. The Red Data Book of the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
provides us with a firm and well-founded basis. Among its pages
are many species confined to small, isolated islands where, although
the populations are low, there is no great cause for alarm. Thus the
Waved Albatross Diomedea irrorata of the Galapagos receives an
entry simply because its total world population is small, not because
it is in any particular danger. On a similar basis a number of
endemic island rails (Rallidae) merit a place. Alongside such
highly localised birds, which have presumably never enjoyed a
really large range, are species that were once more widespread but
are now in the gravest danger of extinction. In this category the
Cahow Pterodroma cahow , Japanese Crested Ibis Nipponia nippon.
Western Tragopan Tragopan melanocephalus and Whooping Crane
Grus ainericana come to mind. For some of these species much is
already being done and if the Whooping Crane, for example, does
not survive it will not be for lack of time, money and effort. Other
species are less well served, particularly in the emerging countries
of the third world. The Siberian White Crane G. leucogeranus may
number no more than two thousand individuals which commute
between their remote, but increasingly disturbed, breeding grounds
in Siberia and a few wintering grounds in China, India, Afghanistan
and perhaps still adjacent parts of the Middle East. There wetlands
are drained and the birds shot, and only a small proportion of the
population can be said to be even partially safeguarded.

It is in the nature of evolution to eliminate species and the cranes
are a declining family. No doubt there are some birds that will
continue to decline no matter what steps are taken to conserve them,
but world-wide there are several hundred species that need help,
need resources and need our care. It is significant that not one of
them breeds or winters in Britain and Ireland.

Britain shelters several interesting endemic subspecies, only one
of which, the Red Grouse Lagopus lagopus scoticus, has even tentatively
been regarded as a full species. There is no evidence that this, or
any other, British subspecies is in any imminent danger of extinction.
We also provide a winter home for vast numbers of geese, ducks and
swans that pour out of the Arctic to inhabit our estuaries and
marshlands. Only one of these, the Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis,
has ever been in any real danger and a simple ban on shooting has
had a dramatic effect on the population, which is now apparendy
strong and healthy. No doubt Britain is an important wildfowl

1 8 Viewpoint

refuge and effort spent on protecting both the birds and their
habitats is of international importance.

Similarly our estuaries are of importance to waders. Perhaps as
many as a third of the birds that use the eastern Atlantic flyway
are dependent to a greater or lesser extent on their maintenance
and preservation. Yet we were remarkably slow in waking up to the
fact. Systematic wader counting in Holland, Germany and even
France predates our estuarine concern by several years. There are
no species in danger here, but the destruction by development of a
very few of our major intertidal areas could change the situation
at a stroke.

Yet another area of international importance is our seabird
colonies. Above all else it is the seabird colonies that attract overseas
visitors to come birdwatching in Britain and Ireland. Only in very
recent years have we devoted the time and resources to finding out
just how many seabirds we actually have. Protection of colonies is
still rather poor, though some famous reserves have been established
for many years. Our seabirds are of major international importance
and we should and must protect them.

Turning to the ‘rare’ birds about which we make such a fuss we
find that Snowy Owls Nyctea scandiaca, Ospreys Pandion haliaetus ,
Marsh Harriers Circus aeruginosus, Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta,
Black-tailed Godwits Limosa limosa, Red-necked Phalaropes Phala-
ropus lobatus and Dartford Warblers Sylvia undata are all widespread,
numerous and doing quite well in other parts of the world. Several
of these species are right at the edge of their range in Britain and
cannot really be expected to prosper and increase unless the
population as a whole increases. Why then do we lavish so much of
the meagre resources available on them? Clearly it is not tied up
with saving a species from the imminent danger of extinction.
What we spend in a year on this little group of predominantly
cosmopolitan species could be used with real effect in other parts
of the world on other far more needy cases — on the Siberian White
Crane in India for example, or on the Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita
in Turkey and Morocco. ‘But surely’ I can hear ‘isn’t that just
what the World Wildlife Fund is doing?’ Unfortunately it is not.
Of the money raised by the WWF a significant proportion is
allocated to national projects within the country in which it is
raised. Fair enough? Possibly. But of the remainder (a larger
amount) a further, if variable, proportion is spent in the country of
origin on projects of ‘international importance’. So the very means
by which we, the richer and more affluent countries, seek to channel
our money into world conservation actually channel much of it
straight back into national conservation. Further, as a large pro-
portion of all money spent directly by the WWF in Britain (i.e.

Viewpoint i g

not on science and research connected with wildlife) is spent on
ducks, geese and swans, the WWF might well consider itself a
branch of the Wildfowl Trust. Perhaps it would be better to give
the money to the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds ?

No case benefits from overstatement and my critics will be quick
to point out that large sums of WWF money do find their way into
really worthwhile overseas projects. My point is that the little old
lady who pops a pound into a panda really believes that she is
giving a pound to international conservation — not just a small
proportion left after administration, home projects, and inter-
national projects at home have been deducted.

The RSPB is also responsible for spending a fortune every year
in its efforts to ‘protect’ our birds. I am sorry that it is unable to
spend money on other people’s birds, or other people’s animals
come to that. Thus we have the benefit of the most expensive
Ospreys, Marsh Harriers and Avocets in the world before our
binoculars. It would sadden me not to have them, but that is being
selfish. I do not suggest that the RSPB is wasting its money. Its
conservation programme may be ideal, efficient and real value for
money. Its educational and public relations efforts may be highly
effective. And its research and support of scientifically based con-
servation research, like Operation Seafarer and the various projects
of the British Trust for Ornithology, may be quite admirable and of
inestimable importance. This is not at question. The point is that
there are too many birds around the world which have, erroneously
I am sure, chosen not to live in Britain. Instead they live alongside
people for whom a bowl of rice and a few vegetables a day is all
that can be expected from life. I am simply suggesting that spending
the limited amount of money available where it is most needed and
where it will do the most good in global terms is itself not just a good
idea, but actually involved in the justification for conserving birds
at all.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Studies of less familiar birds
iyg Collared Flycatcher
H. Lohrl

Photographs by R. G. Carlson , H. Lohrl and A. JV. H. Peach

Plates 1-4

The Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis is a rare vagrant to
Britain with only six accepted records, all since 1945, in Shetland
(May 1947), Gwynedd (May 1957), Essex (September 1962),
Orkney (May 1963), Cumbria (June 1964) and Norfolk (May
1969) (BOU 1971, Smith 1970). Five other records in Sussex
during 191 1-22 were rejected with the Hastings Rarities (Nicholson
and Ferguson-Lees 1962). The species has featured previously in
this series (Brit. Birds, 47: 302, plates 49-50, 52), but that was over
20 years ago and a number of studies have been published since
then. Much of the information summarised here has been taken from
the author’s published papers on this species (particularly Lohrl
I95I, 1954, 1957) and, where no references are given, these should
be regarded as the source.

The Collared and Pied Flycatchers F. hypoleuca are siblings with
a partly overlapping breeding range, though the Pied is found only
sparsely within this area of overlap and, in general, the Collared
has a more south-easterly distribution which is not continuous but
comprised of many areas often isolated from each other. It breeds
most commonly in Austria, southern Germany, Hungary, Czecho-
slovakia and southern Poland across to the Ukraine, but it also
nests very locally in eastern France, southern Switzerland (one
isolated area), Italy, Yugoslavia, northern Greece, Bulgaria,
Romania, and Russia to Moscow; the most northerly population,
completely isolated, is on the Swedish island of Gotland, in the
Baltic (e.g. Brattstrom 1946).

The Collared Flycatcher is replaced in parts of Greece and
Bulgaria, and in Asia Minor and the Caucasus east to Transcaspia
and Iran, by the Half-collared Flycatcher F. (a.) semitorquata.
This bird is morphologically intermediate between the other two
and is often regarded as a race of the Collared, but Curio (1959)
showed that its social behaviour, particularly during pair-formation
ceremonies, differs conspicuously from that of both the Collared
and the Pied and, for this reason, he gave it the rank of a full
species; this conclusion is being increasingly accepted.

Like the Pied Flycatcher, the Collared is found mainly in
broadleaved woodland, but in relatively warm climates, with a
distinct preference for old oaks Qiierctis, and thus both in open

20

t Bril. Birds, 69: 20-26, January 1976]

Collared Flycatcher studies 2 1

forest and well-timbered parks and avenues. Secondarily, it also
inhabits orchards, and gardens with fruit trees, though pairs
which breed in such places return to the woods immediately the
young have fledged; and in some areas it is found in conifers.
In general, it is confined mainly to fairly low-lying districts and
river valleys, as along the Danube, and it shuns situations above
600 metres. In south-west Germany, for example, the lower hills
at 300-600 metres in the region of the Neckar river and its tributaries
are thickly populated by Collared Flycatchers, while the lower parts
of the Rhine valley at 200-250 metres, the higher hills between the
Bodensee and the Schwabische Alb at 700-1,000 metres (where the
Collared goes up the valleys to about 600 metres) and the forests
of the upper Rhine are inhabited exclusively by Pied (Lohrl 1965).
Again, in Poland, Collared Flycatchers breed in numbers in the
primeval forest of the Bialowiecza (Sokolowski 1958).

In breeding plumage, male Collared Flycatchers (plates ia, 2a,
4b, 4c) are easy to distinguish from Pied (plate ib), not only by the
conspicuous white neck band, but also by a generally much larger
white patch on the forehead and by a clear white area on the
primaries, usually separated from the broad white wing bar above
it. The greyish-white rump, often not visible in the field, is hardly
necessary as an additional character. About half of all older males
have a completely black tail (Lohrl 1954), without white on the
outer feathers like the Pied; older males also have black primaries
with the white area clearly larger and more sharply defined than
that of the first-year males, which have much browner primaries.
The male Half-collarecI Flycatcher is more like a Pied Flycatcher
and quite likely to be overlooked as such, though it has a suggestion
of a collar at the sides of the neck, and is intermediate between the
other two species in the amount of white on the forehead and
primaries and in its greyish rump; on the other hand, it shows more
white at the sides of the tail than either of the others and this is a
useful field mark.

Males in non-breeding plumage, females and juveniles are much
more difficult, often impossible, to distinguish. Many female
Collared Flycatchers (plates 2c, 4a) do, however, have the neck
band visible as a light region of ruffled feathers and also show
the white area on the primaries (plate 4a), though sometimes the
latter is completely lacking (plate 2c) ; some females also have a
white patch on the forehead. (A female Pied is shown for compari-
son on plate 2b.) The juveniles of both are speckled grey-white and
often cannot be separated, but many young Collared, especially
males, already show the white area on the primaries and have a
more pronounced wing bar, as well as a hint of the neck band
(plate 3b and compare with plate 3a).

22 Collared. Flycatcher studies

The characteristic calls of the two species, heard when the
birds are excited, are easily distinguished: the short ‘bit bit’ of the
Pied becomes a long-drawn ‘sieb’ in the Collared. The songs are
also clearly separable: the Collared’s is slower, more drawled and
of a different frequency. The remaining notes of the two species,
however, particularly those used when mating and rearing young,
are generally indistinguishable. This may be why, in areas where one
species is much commoner than the other, interbreeding occasion-
ally takes place, producing fertile hybrids (von Haartman and
Lohrl 1950, Lohrl 1950b).

Male Collared Flycatchers begin a body moult from their non-
descript winter plumage around February and return to their
breeding areas from mid-April in the conspicuous and contrasted
summer dress. There are occasionally a few first-year males among
the early arrivals, but generally the older males predominate.
The return takes place over four weeks or more and the later
arrivals are mainly the young of the previous year. Like the Pied,
the Collared nests in holes (plate ia, etc.) and is not too particular
in its choice of these. As most other hole-nesting species already
have eggs by the time it arrives, it must often make do with bad
and unprotected sites. Indeed, it occasionally breeds in very large
holes, more suitable for Stock Doves Columba oenas or Tawny Owls
Strix aluco. It also readily takes to boxes (plates 4a, 4b). If there is a
choice, however, the Collared Flycatcher likes to nest at considerable
heights, the preference being about 15 metres above the ground,
and it is most reluctant to use low holes.

Again like Pied, Collared Flycatchers will often build their
nests in a few hours on top of those of tits Parus spp at which the
female is not yet incubating and so is seldom there: when the tit
returns, she no longer finds her own nest but the flycatcher’s, made
of quite different materials. In this way occupation of the tit’s nest
comes about without a fight (Lohrl 1950a). In a fight a Collared
Flycatcher is invariably defeated by either a Great Tit P. major or
a Tree Sparrow Passer montanus. Indeed, if a flycatcher slips in to
inspect a hole in which there is a nesting Great Tit, it is often killed.

The male chooses the nest hole, performing a display flight to the
entrance and there uttering a characteristic call ; the Pied Flycatcher
shows the same behaviour. After he enters the hole, a subdued song
can be heard coming from it. The female also enters, whereupon
the male immediately leaves (Lohrl 1951). In areas where there
are many holes, the male tends to select several and offer them in
turn to the female; occasionally a male will offer up to five holes in
this way. After pairing, the male at first confines himself to the
chosen hole, but at the time of egg-laying he loses interest and begins
to display again at other, empty holes. A second female may be

it i. Male Collared Flycatcher
ula albicollis by nest, Austria,
t<)7'-2: note white forehead, nock
1. and patch on primaries i pages
it i photo: R. G. Carlson . Inset,
Pied /•. hypoleuca, Cumbria, May
(photo: J. B. and S. Bottomin')

/

Pi.ates 2-3. Facing: top and lower right, male and female Collared Flycatchers
Fictdula albicollis, Austria, June 1972 [photos: J. .V. //. Peach ; lower left,
female Pied /■'. hypoleuca , Powys, May 1974 [photo: Graham /•'. Date . The female
Collared is greyer, often with a pale neck band of rufllcd feathers ' page 21 1.
Above, Pied and, below. Collared in post-juvenile moult. Germany photos: //.
Lohrl): the latter individual has more white on the wing, but the diagnostic
point is the white primary patch often already present, especially in males

I

Plate 4. Above, female and male Collared Flycatchers Ficedula albicollis at
nest box, Germany ( photos : H. Lohrl): this is a well-marked female with both
neck band and white patch on primaries (cf plate 2c) ; the male has a beakful
of caterpillars, with a blade of grass probably inadvertently picked up from
the ground (page 24). Below, male, Austria, June 1972 {photo: R. G. Carlson )

3

F 'L

[y * *
J|Sl ' <

23

Collared Flycatcher studies

attracted and the result is polygamy, especially in the case of older
males. A polygamous male may then either feed the young of two
broods or at first favour the earlier hatched one, later turning to
the other.

The behaviour of polygamous males leads to other males not
finding females during the courtship period and therefore remaining
unmated. Such unmated males may then attempt to adopt the
young of a neighbouring nest. If the male at this nest is a first-year
bird and the unmated one is older, the latter and the nesting pair
may jointly bring up the young, in which case the one-year-old is
inferior at the nest hole and must wait until the older male has fed
the young. Sometimes as many as three different males, as well as
the female, can be seen entering a hole with food. Thus rarely does
the second female of a polygamous male have to bring up the young
alone or with only occasional participation by a male (Lohrl 1949,

*959)-

The nest is built entirely by the female, of dry grass, dead leaves,
stalks and, in oak woods, sometimes of the fallen male flowers of
the oak. It is lined with fine grass, not hair or feathers. The nests of
Collared and Pied Flycatchers are inseparable, the eggs of both
being uniform light blue. Clutch size depends on the time of laying:
the earlier this begins, the more eggs are laid. In very warm springs,
laying may start as early as the end of April and only then do
clutches of eight eggs occur. In south-west Germany Collared
Flycatchers lay an average of 5.8 eggs, this varying from 5.5 to 6.2
in different years (Lohrl 1957). In Czechoslovakia an average of
5.7 eggs was recorded, with a figure of 5.8 for broadleaved woods
significantly higher than one of 5.5 for coniferous areas (Balat 1971).
In southern Poland the average was 6.1 eggs and during three years
never fell below 6.0 (dowacinski 1973).

Incubation generally starts with the penultimate egg and lasts
for 13 days, though longer periods do occur. Fledging is also
variable: in favourable weather and feeding conditions, the young
leave the nest after 15 days, but at times of rain this period may be
extended up to 18 days. The young do not always leave at the same
time: it is not at all uncommon for part of the brood to leave the
hole and be looked after by one of the parents, while the remaining
young in the nest continue to be fed by the other. About six days
after leaving the nest, the young start to take food for themselves;
after ten days, at the latest, they are independent. After about three
weeks, they begin their first moult; and they then usually migrate
before the moult has finished. The adults begin to moult as soon as
the young are independent, but in cases of late broods adults may-
be found in moult while still tending young in the nest.

In south-west Germany 90% of the eggs laid produced hatched

24 Collared Flycatcher studies

young and 77% fledged young, and in Czechoslovakia Balat (1971)
recorded an even higher breeding success. It must be pointed
out, however, that these success rates were achieved in nest boxes;
in tree holes the figures would probably be significantly lower.
Recent research in south-west Germany has also shown that nest
losses are sometimes high in woods where there are Dormice
Ghs glis.

Male Collared Flycatchers usually return in the following spring
to the previous year’s territory, and females are also generally
faithful to one locality. The young are probably even more strongly
attached to their birthplace: this is shown by the way in which
many first-year birds, returning late, have to be persistently and
aggressively pursued by the superior, established, older males
before they will leave the area. The greatest recorded age of a male
Collared Flycatcher is six years, and of a female five years.

Like other flycatchers, the Collared Flycatcher does not only
catch flies. The adults take both imagines and larvae of a variety'
of flying and wingless insects. The young are fed to a considerable
extent on caterpillars (plate 4b): indeed, of 671 prey animals of
early broods identified in south-west Germany, 32.5% were
caterpillars, these forming 87% of the butterflies and moths
(Lepidoptera) taken, which in turn amounted to 40% of the total
food. For later broods, the percentage of caterpillars dropped
quickly and the proportions of flies (Diptera) and ants (Hy-
menoptera) increased from 19% to 35% and from 11% to 21%
respectively.

In orchard areas, Collared Flycatchers frequently take both
caterpillars and other prey from the ground, though in doing so
they drop down only momentarily. In tall, broadleaved woods,
on the other hand, they seem never to descend to the ground in
normal conditions, but only in bad weather or when there is a
lack of food in the trees. This difference may be due to the height
above ground of the lowest branches. In prolonged periods of rain,
many young die even when there is a rich food supply: this is
because few Collared Flycatchers appear to recognise motionless
insects as prey.

There is a marked difference in the migration routes of Pied
and Collared Flycatchers from the area of overlap in west-central
Europe. The Pied pass mainly through Spain and Portugal to
Africa, and the Collared exclusively through Italy (Lohrl 1958),
though of course the east European populations of both species
also migrate through the eastern Mediterranean. All recoveries of
ringed Collared Flycatchers from Germany have been in Italy and
two from Gotland have been found in Italy and Malta, while
recoveries of German Pied Flycatchers have largely come from

Collared Flycatcher studies 25

Iberia. This dichotomy implies that, as Salomonsen (1955) sug-
gested, the two species had separate breeding ranges in the Ice Age,
the Pied being confined to south-west Europe and the Collared to
south-east, and that they have met again only secondarily.

Collared Flycatchers leave the breeding areas early. From July
they live silently in the canopies of tall trees and some south-
west German birds even reach Italy during that month, though
most recoveries there have been in August and some even as late
as October. The winter quarters are still not well known, partly
because of the difficulty of identification at that season, but from
published observations they appear to extend farther south than
those of the Pied, into Zambia, Malawi and southern Zaire. The
only two ringing recoveries in Africa, of birds from Hungary
and Gotland, have both been from south-west Zaire in early
spring.

REFERENCES

Balat, F. 1971. ‘Clutch size and mortality among the young of the Collared
Flycatcher, Ficedula albicollis (Temm.), in Southern and Central Moravia’.
Zool. Listy, 20: 161-175.

Brattstrom, H. 1946. ‘Iakttagclser over Halsbands Flugsnapperen ( Aluscicapa
a. albicollis Temminck) pA Nordgotland’. Fauna och Flora, 1946: 21-31.

British Ornithologists’ Union. 1971. The Status of Birds in Britain and Ireland.
Oxford.

Curio, E. 1959. ‘Beobachtungen am Halbringschnappcr Ficedula semitorquata
im mazedonischen Brutgebiet’. J. Orn., 100: 176-209.

Glowacinskj, Z. 1973. ‘Phenology and breeding success in a population of
Collared Flycatcher, Ficedula albicollis (Temm.), in the Niepolomice Forest
(southern Poland)’. Ekol. Polska, 21: 219-228.

Lohrl, H. 1949. ‘Polygynie, Sprengung der Ehegemeinschaft und Adoption beim
Halsbandfliegenschnapper ( Muscicapa albicollis)’. Vogelwarte, 15: 94-100.

1950a. ‘Zur “Verdrangung” von Meisen durch Fliegenschnapper’. Vogelwelt,

7i: 39-41-

1950b. ‘Ein Bastard Halsbandschnapper-Trauerschnapper ( Muscicapa

albicollis X At. hypoleuca)’. Orn. Ber., 3: 126-130.

1951- ‘Balz und Paarbildung beim Halsbandfliegenschnapper’. J. Orn., 93:

41-60.

1954- ‘Gefiedermerkmale bci einer Population des Halsbandschnappers

(Aluscicapa albicollis)’. Bonn. <W. Beitr., 5: 33-48.

1 957- ‘Populationsokologische Untersuchungen beim Halsbandschnapper

(Ficedula albicollis)’. Bonn. Z°°t- Beitr., 8: 130- 177.

1958- ‘Vom Zug des Halsbandschnappers (Ficedula albicollis) nach

Beringungsergebnissen’. Vogelwarte, 19: 192- 193.

1959. ‘Weitere Falle von Polygynie und Adoption beim Halsbandschnapper

(Ficedula albicollis)’. Vogelwarte, 20: 33-34.

1965. ‘Zwei regional und okologisch getrennte Formen des Trauerschnappers

(Ficedula hypoleuca) in Sudwestdeutschland’. Bonn. Zool. Beitr., 16: 268-283.
'Nicholson, E. M., and Ferguson- Lees, I. J. 1962. ‘The Hastings Rarities’.
Brit. Birds, 55 : 299-384.

Salomonsen, F. 1955. ‘The evolutionary significance of bird-migration’. Dansk
Biol. Medd., 22: no. 6.

26 Collared Flycatcher studies

Smith, F. R. 1970. ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1969’. Brit. Birds,
63: 267-293 (286).

Sokojlowski, J. 1958. Ptaki Pjem Polskich. Warsaw, vol 1.

von Haartman, L., and Lohrl, H. 1950. ‘Die Lautausserungen des Trauer- und
Halsbandfliegenschnappers, Muscicapa hypoleuca Pall, und M. a. albicollis Tem-
rainck’. Orn. Fenn., 27: 85-97.

Dr H. Lohrl, Vogelwarte Radolfzell, 7761 Moggingen , West Germany

A review of waterthrush identification with
particular reference to the 1968 British record

D. I. M. Wallace

I NTRODUGTION

Following the publication of my note on the second record of
the Northern Waterthrush Seiurus noveboracensis in Britain (Brit.
Birds, 65: 484-485), criticism of the identification came from G. J.
Oreel in the Netherlands and Dr A. D. Brewer in Canada. Both
suggested that the published details were insufficient in the light of a
recent American study of the problems of waterthrush identification
(Binford 1971). In particular, they considered the dismissal of
the Louisiana Waterthrush S. motacilla, because of the bird’s ‘finely
spotted throat’, very unsafe. Further comments from Dr Brewer,
B. K. MacKay and B. Zonfrillo showed beyond all doubt that
field guide comparisons of the two species were dangerously incom-
plete. A full review was therefore undertaken by the Rarities
Committee, aided by eight observers on both sides of the North
Atlantic, the British Museum (Natural History) and, most impor-
tantly, lengthy study of Binford’s conclusions. Unfortunately
unanimity of opinion has not been achieved on the identification of
the 1968 record but the reasons why the Rarities Committee con-
tinues to accept it as a Northern Waterthrush are detailed in an
appendix.

WATERTHRUSH IDENTIFICATION IN THE FIELD

Binford (1971) demonstrates that the compression of waterthrush
characters into one plate and a few text comments in all current
field guides and even some handbooks promotes a facile approach
to the separation of the two species. For example, Robbins
et al. (1966) state that ‘Northern is separated from Louisiana by its
streaked throat and smaller bill’. In fact both these characters are
subject to overlap (and the risks of varying visual acuity or judge-
ment). Neither can now be regarded as diagnostic. Other characters
suffer from similar confusion. There follows a precis of Binford’s all
important analyses and where relevant the comments of other
expert observers.

General character : No differences in general character are evident.
Both waterthrushes exhibit horizontal posture, furtive movements —
most characterised by a teetering walk that recalls the Common
Sandpiper Tringa hypoleucos — and skulking behaviour.

Size : Louisianas average larger than Northerns but all measure-
ments overlap. The only useful character is bill size, which in
Louisianas appears large and robust in relation to head and total

[Brit. Birds, 69: 27-33, January 1976]

27

28 Waterthrush identification

bulk. It is much less obvious in Northerns, being in scale with the
rest of the bird. Nevertheless Binford and Dr Brewer et al. warn of
overlap and consider bill size to be only ‘a minor aid to field
identification’.

Colour of supercilium : This is often described for Louisianas as pure
white overall, but Binford notes that the forepart (from bill to eye)
is ‘always washed with grayish-olive or grayish-buff’. Dr Brewer
has also shown that in about 20% of Louisianas some faint buff
marks are visible on the rear part (from eye to nape) . These do not
mask the strikingly white ground colour which, when unmarked as
in most birds, is diagnostic. In Northerns the colour of the super-
cilium is ‘usually buffy-yellow’, though in some (particularly
western) birds in worn spring and summer plumage it may be ‘so
white as to be inseparable from motacilla' . Binford concludes that
‘any bird in which [the rear supercilium] is yellowish or buffy must
be a Northern’. Dr Brewer’s findings require the colour to be
uniform for such a rule to stand.

Shape of supercilium'. Binford, working mainly from skins, does not
comment on this but it has become evident that there are differences
between the two species. In Louisianas supercilia are very striking,
not only in their normal whiteness but also in their width, parti-
cularly behind the eye. In Northerns supercilia are striking but their
width is uniform overall and narrower. This difference is indicated
in all plates in current literature and it is used by American field
ornithologists to separate the two species. It immediately caught
the eye of P. J. Grant, who was reminded of the similar difference
between the superciliary tones and shapes of the Moustached and
Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus melanopogon and A. schoenobaenus.

Underpart markings : The spots and streaks on Louisiana underparts
are ‘usually paler (more brownish or grayish and less blackish)’
and more diffuse than those on Northern. Binford stresses that this
difference can be masked by the strength and tone of ground colour
and that again there is a small overlap in mark intensity. He con-
siders that this character is only ‘an additional minor aid’ in
identification.

Throat colour and markings : Louisianas always have throats coloured
‘pure, gleaming white’. Only in a few Northerns does this occur;
Dr Brewer found such (combined with a lack of spots) in only one
in 452 that he recently examined. In most Northerns the ground
colour of the throat is ‘yellowish or off-white’.

Throat spots (not streaks) are variably present in both species.
Some Louisianas have larger and better defined spots than some
Northerns. Binford demonstrates the invalidity of earlier statements
on this character with a striking photograph and Dr Brewer has
fully confirmed a dangerous overlap between the two species. Thus,

Water thrush identification 29

far from being the clincher in field diagnosis, the distribution of
throat markings has now been reduced to only ‘a percentage field
character’. Identifications can no longer be based upon it. This said,
W. Russell has opined that there is a useful field character in the
pattern of marks across the lower throat and upper chest. If there are
many sharp spots noticeably clustered there, the conspicuous collar
or gorgette so formed is indicative of Northern.

Flank ground and under tail covert colour : In Louisianas this is ‘clean
pale [to] ochraceous buff’, ‘pale cinnamon or fawn’ and is ‘usually
rather bright, often very bright’. Binford has never failed to detect
such tones in the field since they stand out as a noticeable patch
against the whitish ground colour of the rest of the underparts. In
Northerns such patches are rarely visible since the underparts usually
show a uniformly ‘yellowish’, ‘lemon yellow’ or ‘nearly white’ ground
colour. At one point in his paper, Binford chooses this character as
‘by far the best field mark’ for separating the two species, but in his
conclusions he links it with the colour of the rear supercilium. In the
often difficult circumstances of waterthrush observation, judging the
ground colour of heavily streaked underparts is, however, not easy
and Dr Brewer stresses that the absence of a buff flank patch does not
exclude Louisiana. Unlike Binford, he has also detected a yellowish
tone in the flank ground colour of that species. Once again there
appears to be a dangerous overlap.

Calls: Binford doubts that any but the most experienced water-
thrush observers will be able to distinguish the ‘somewhat louder,
sharper, more emphatic and more penetrating’ calls of Louisianas.

Clearly it is not sensible to quarrel (from this side of the North
Atlantic) with any of the cautions given by Binford on waterthrush
identification. I sense however that there is a residue of confusion
and that there is a risk of parts obscuring the whole ol field identifi-
cation. P. J. Grant, the only member of the Rarities Committee to
have seen both species recently, feels that the separate debating of
the various characters in Binford’s paper and elsewhere may exag-
gerate the problem of separation for European observers used, for
example, to the difficult identifications posed by the genus Phyllo-
scopus. To give a clearer impression of the appearance of the two
species in typical plumage, fig. 1 has been drawn using illustrations,
photographs and field sketches as references.

WATERTHRUSH IDENTIFICATION IN THE HAND

Binford gives a table of measurements which show that the wings of
male Northerns did not exceed 79.1 mm and those of females
reached only 77.4 mm. The longest bills were respectively 10.5 mm
and 10.7 mm. He found overlaps with all these measurements in
small Louisianas but larger males and females of that species had

dim. Hothce- t<f(S-

Fig. i. The two species of waterthrush Seiurus spp. Upper (full figure), typical
Louisiana S. motacilla; (inset) head of variant Louisiana, showing occasional
throat pattern like that of other species. Lower (full figure), typical Northern
S. noveboracensis; (inset) head of variant Northern, showing rare throat pattern
like that of Louisiana. See text for fuller discussion (drawings by D. I. M.

Wallace)

wing lengths reaching 82.8 mm and 80.5 mm respectively, and bills
reaching 12.2 mm and 11.2 mm respectively. It should be noted
that the bill (culmen) measurements were taken from the tip to the
front of the nostril, and that the number of specimens was low (from
five to 27 in each species X sex).

In the hand the colour pattern of the vent and undertail coverts
is diagnostic. In the Northerns all these feathers are invariably
marked with a ‘grayish-brown sagittate mark between the whitish
tip and the filamentous dark gray base’. In Louisianas the small
feathers are ‘always immaculate’ and such marks that are present
on any are irregular and discontinuous with the dark base. Binford
does not allow earlier claims that the colour of the axillaries or the

Waterthrush identification 31

concealed coronal patch assists waterthrush identification. He also
doubts Peterson’s (1947) description of Louisianas as greyer birds
than Northerns.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

Two other points are worthy of comment. Firstly there is the origin
of vagrant waterthrushes (and the likelihood of their crossing the
Atlantic in mid-autumn). Both Dr Brewer and W. Russell have
commented on this and, to quote the latter directly, the Louisiana
is ‘a lousy candidate for a vagrant to Britain’. Its breeding range in
the east Nearctic only just reaches Canada (in Ontario) and
significantly it both enters and leaves the northern part ahead of its
congener. In autumn it is rare after mid-August and it is virtually
unrecorded at coastal ringing stations in September and October.
In distinct contrast, the Northern is known to have crossed the
North Atlantic thrice (in 1955, 1958 and 1968). Its breeding range
extends over much higher latitudes and throughout Canada except
the central North. Its autumn migration is protracted and quite
compatible with equinoxial vagrancy. Thus, although Dr Brewer
quite rightly points to the possibility of a southerly origin for a
Louisiana (quoting the occurrence of a Hooded Warbler Wilsonia
citrina in the Isles of Scilly as a telling analogy), the balance of proba-
bilities indicates that Northerns are the more likely vagrants to
western Europe. Secondly there is the question of habitat. While
nobody disputes that migrant and vagrant waterthrushes must feed
where they can, the two species do exhibit partly different preferences
in both breeding and wintering habitat (Godfrey 1966, Lack and
Lack 1973). Louisianas normally inhabit higher, dryer ground with
fast-flowing streams. Northerns normally frequent lower, wetter
levels with standing water.

CONCLUSIONS AND SUMMARY

Waterthrush identification is much more difficult than most current
literature indicates. It appears that observers faced with a water-
thrush (particularly a pale one) should concentrate on bill size in
relation to head, the colour of the rear supercilium, the shape of the
supercilium, throat markings and the ground colour of the flanks.
II, respectively, these are large, white, deep, diffuse and obviously
buff, the bird is a typical Louisiana. If they are unexceptional,
tinged uniformly yellowish or buff, uniform (and narrow), sharp
(and forming a collar) and lemon-yellow, it is a typical Northern.
However, many variants occur and, in their case, most hope is
afforded by the closest possible observation of bill and supercilium,
particularly the latter’s shape. The previously accepted best
character (throat markings) is untrustworthy. In the hand, the

32 Waterthrush identification

pattern of marks on the greater undertail coverts is diagnostic.

The balance of probabilities indicates that the Northern is a far
more likely candidate for trans-Atlantic vagrancy on grounds of
both its more northerly breeding range in the eastern Nearctic and
its protracted autumn migration period.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The preparation of this paper would have been impossible but for the willing help
of Dr A. D. Brewer, who has performed a useful service to the Rarities Committee
in bringing L. C. Binford’s study to its attention. In its completion, I have also been
assisted by P. F. Bonham, P. J. Grant, D. Goodwin and W. Russell. I thank them
all.

REFERENCES

Binford, L. C. 1971. ‘Identification of Northern and Louisiana Waterthrushes’.
Calif. Birds, 2: 1-10.

Eaton, S. N. 1957. ‘Variation in Seiurus noveboracensis’. Auk, 74: 229-239.
Godfrey, W. E. 1966. The Birds of Canada. Ottawa.

King, B. 1973. ‘Feeding behaviour of a Northern Waterthrush in the Isles of
Scilly’. Bristol Orn., 6: 37.

Lack, D., and Lack, P. 1973. ‘Wintering warblers in Jamaica’. Living Bird,
11 : 129-153.

Peterson, R. T. 1947. A Field Guide to the Birds. Boston.

Robbins, C. S., Bruun, B., and Zim, H. S. 1966. Birds of North America. New York.
Wallace, D. I. M. 1972. ‘Northern Waterthrush in the Isles of Scilly’. Brit. Birds,
65: 484-485.

Appendix. Further notes on the Northern Waterthrush on
Tresco, Isles of Scilly, 3rd to 9th October 1968

The identification of the Tresco waterthrush has been hotly disputed for over two
years. Canadian criticism, marshalled by Dr A. D. Brewer, forced two recircula-
tions, and in the course of these the record has also been reviewed by D. Goodwin,
W. Russell and Davis Finch. In March 1975, the Rarities Committee accepted it
for the third and final time. The following notes explain their decision and add
certain facts to the rather brief description published in 1973:

General appearance and racial attribution : Even allowing for the deep shade of its
habitat, the Tresco bird was unusually pale or white for a Northern Waterthrush.
So struck were D. B. Hunt and I by its paleness and its similarity to the ‘pale race’
depicted by A. Singer in Robbins et al. ( 1 966) that we tentatively assigned it to that
(western) race, so called notabilis. This was an injudicious act, not only because of
the problems of variant plumages discussed in the preceding paper but also
because of the continuing confusion over waterthrush systematics (Godfrey 1966
cf Eaton 1957). How an apparently pale bird got to Tresco remains a most trying
puzzle, since both Dr Brewer and W. Russell make it clear that the incidence of
such morphs in coastal north-east America is almost infinitesimal.

Bill size: The primary reason for the dashed hopes of the Tresco bird being
a Louisiana was the joint judgement of D. B. Hunt and myself that the bill was
unexceptional in size. R. J. Johns came to the same conclusion in an independent
observation.

Supercilium colour and shape: All four observers who submitted notes during the
review, and the Rarities Committee, judge that the compound of these characters
in the Tresco bird is compatible only with a Northern. Following Binford’s

Waterthrush identification 33

analysis, a Louisiana is totally excluded. The supercilium colour was noted as
‘yellowish’ (by two observers), ‘buffish’ or ‘whitish-buff’ and it appeared uniform
in tone. The supercilium shape as drawn by myself and noted independently by
R. J. Johns was considered by W. Russell as ‘specifically . . . indicative’ of Northern.

Throat markings : As drawn, the pattern on the chin and upper throat is typical
of more than 50% of Louisianas, as assessed by Dr Brewer, but its presence does
not exclude the other species. Indeed the bird appeared more heavily marked
than the typical Northern illustrated by Binford, and Dr Brewer himself found
eight matching Northerns in a sample of 452 skins. Importantly, W. Russell
commented without prompting that the clustered appearance of the lower throat
markings was again indicative of Northern.

Flank ground colour: The lack of strikingly buff flanks is incompatible with most
Louisianas.

Colour of vent and undertail coverts : One coloured drawing shows this coloured with
pale ‘yellowish-buff’ but it often looks just white. King (1973) noted it as ‘dull
dirty white’. It is doubtful if either record of a plumage area so ‘difficult to observe’
(Binford) is certain.

Of six disputed or puzzling characters on the Tresco bird, two (general paleness
and vent and undertail coverts colour) cannot be argued to a conclusion; three
(bill size, lower throat pattern and flank ground colour) favour Northern; one
(supercilium colour and shape) is diagnostic of Northern ; and only the upper
throat colour and spot pattern favour Louisiana, and arc not exclusive of Northern.
It is this balance of conclusions that forms the basis of the continued acceptance
of the record.

(For help in the second and third submissions of the record, I am grateful to
P. H. Dukes, D. B. Hunt, B. King and R. J. Johns. For assistance in the evaluation
of all notes and drawings and the criticisms of Dr Brewer, B. K. MacKay and
B. Zonfrillo, I thank D. Goodwin, P. J. Grant, Davis Finch and W. Russell. The
Rarities Committee also acknowledges much assistance from the last seven.)

D. /. M. Wallace, 9 Woodhill Rise, Heads Lane, Hessle, North Humber-
side hu 1 3 OHZ

Notes

Association between male North American Ruddy Ducks
and stray ducklings On 21st May i960, at Chew Valley Lake,
Avon, I saw a female North American Ruddy Duck Oxytirajamaicensis
emerge from the reeds with two ducklings less than a week old. It
may have been the first recorded breeding of the species in the wild
in Britain. Thereafter Ruddy Ducks sporadically bred at Chew
Valley and one or two broods were occasionally seen in summer. I
also sometimes came across a single duckling, no more than a day
or so old, and usually well away from cover on the open water.
These odd ducklings would readily dive when gulls flew closely over-
head, but always seemed agitated as they swam quickly to and fro.
At first I assumed that they had temporarily become separated from
a brood and parents somewhere in the vicinity. However, one day
while watching one of these small ducklings I noticed a drake Ruddy
Duck appear from the reeds, swim towards the stray and, without
any of the elaborate display so characteristic of the males, escort it
into cover. The association was readily accepted by the young bird
and I sporadically saw them together when they appeared in the
open. Subsequently I noticed the behaviour many times, and the
drake would fuss around the stray ducklings and seemed to remain in
their company for long periods; in fact, once the bond had been
established I never witnessed its dissociation, though it must have
taken place because I never came across a drake in company with a
duckling more than two or three weeks old. Similar associations
between odd ducklings and female Ruddy Ducks were never wit-
nessed; indeed, there were occasions when females with or without
broods vigorously drove away the stray and so let it fend for itself.

The above observations perhaps suggest that these single duck-
lings had been incubated by species of other waterbirds when odd
eggs had been laid in their nests. A. C. Bent (1962, Life Histories of
North American Wild Fowl) has mentioned Ruddy Ducks frequently
laying eggs in nests of other ducks and grebes. Furthermore, a re-
lated South American species, Heteronetta, is completely parasitic.
Dr Janet Rear of the Wildfowl Trust, Slimbridge, Gloucestershire,
feels that my explanation accounting for these stray ducklings at
Chew Valley is reasonable, though there are many records of males
accompanying broods in the early stages or throughout the fledging
period (F. H. Kortright, 1942, The Ducks , Geese and Swans of
North America-, Bent 1962). Bernard King

Gull Cry, g Park Road, Newlyn, Cornwall

Long-tailed Tit feeding young Great Tits In 1971 and 1972 a
pair of Great Tits Partis major nested in an old hollow apple tree in

34

Notes

35

a large orchard at my home in Milnthorpe, Cumbria. On 21st
May 1972, when the nest contained four well-grown young, I
noticed that not only were the two Great Tits feeding the nestlings
but a Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus was also entering the hole
with food. Thereafter I saw the Long-tailed Tit feed the Great Tit
young daily until they fledged on 28th May. The Long-tailed Tit,
which I sometimes observed collecting insects and moth larvae in
nearby trees, fed less frequently than the Great Tits; on the evening
of 24th May, for example, it made only one visit to the Great Tits’
three, and during a 50-minute watch on 25th May I saw it feed the
Great Tit young only twice. Cyril Scott

Thorn/ell, Carr Bank , Milnthorpe , Cumbria

Long-tailed Tits feeding on lawns From 1st to 2ist January
1975, a flock of Long-tailed Tits Aegithalos caudatus , varying in
numbers from nine to 16 birds, fed persistently on the lawns around
my house at Blackboys, East Sussex, Sometimes the flock settled as
far as 40 metres from the nearest flower bed or shrubbery, staying on
the grass for upwards of 20 minutes. This behaviour was frequendy
observed at dusk just before the birds went to roost but also occurred
at other times of the day. Although I watched the birds closely with
binoculars at distances down to three metres, I was unable to identify
the food taken, though I assumed it to be small invertebrates. As
each bird fed at an average rate of every four seconds, the bobbing
tails of the flock presented an attractively animated appearance.

Guy Mountfort

Plovers Meadow, Possingworth Park, Blackboys, East Sussex TN22 5NA

Long-tailed Tits feeding on white bread crumbs On 1st

February 1975 I visited a car park in a woodland area near Cott-
ingham, Humberside, which, as it is used by local people as a bird-
feeding area, attracts a good number of tits, finches and thrushes. I
was surprised to see a party of seven Long-tailed Tits Aegithalos
caudatus at a pile of white bread crumbs on the ground. The birds
fed on the crumbs for more than 15 minutes before flying into the
surrounding trees. Bags of suet hanging nearby were ignored, though
numerous Blue Tits Parus caemleus and Great Tits P. major fed from
them. Christopher Wright

13 Eppleworth Road, Cottingham, Humberside

It is sometimes stated that Long-tailed Tits rarely feed on the
ground and come to bird tables only occasionally in hard weather.
Such behaviour has, in fact, been fairly frequently recorded in
the Garden Bird Feeding Survey organised by the British Trust for
Ornithology, though this is not yet widely appreciated. Eds

Notes

36

Multiple nests of Spotted Flycatcher Since 1972 I have kept
records of the nesting activities of Spotted Flycatchers Muscicapa
striata at my home near Okehampton, Devon. The nest site is a
ledge at the head of a doorway in the wall of an old barn which
is used as a garage. The ledge is about 5 cm wide and when the
doors, which open outwards, are shut their tops form a parapet,
about 3 cm high, at the front of the ledge. In 1972 a pair of Spotted
Flycatchers attempted to build on the ledge but, owing to regular
use of the garage, they eventually abandoned the site and moved
elsewhere. The garage was not used during the 1973 breeding season
and a pair again began to build on the ledge. The birds simul-
taneously built two nests at the right-hand end of the ledge; both
nests, which were just touching, were complete and fully lined.
One nest was apparently used for roosting and the other contained
a clutch of four eggs which was completed by nth June but was
unfortunately predated three days later. Both nests disintegrated
during the winter and the remains were removed.

Soon after 13th May 1974, when the first Spotted Flycatcher
was seen, a pair started building a nest in the usual place at the
right-hand end of the ledge. A few days later there were two nests,
then three and finally, by 26th May, a row of four complete nests,
all touching and built in sequence from right to left. All but the
first nest were fully lined. Laying began on 29th May in the second
nest from the left and continued in that nest until a clutch of four
was completed by 4th June. On 1st June, however, a single egg was
also laid in the end nest on the left but this was deserted thereafter.
The full clutch had hatched by 15th June and fledged on 28th.
Despite the apparent abundance of nests available to them, the same
pair began their second brood in a new nest built some distance
away in some ivy on the main house.

Two of the nests used in 1974 fell down during the following
winter. The birds returned on 16th May 1975, repaired the two
remaining nests and built two more alongside. As in the previous
year all four nests were completed and just touched each other,
three were fully lined, and one of the old nests unlined. Five eggs
were laid in the third nest from the left (one of the 1974 nests) and
four young fledged. Shortly afterwards the pair built another nest,
in a pear tree about 8 metres away, and successfully fledged a
second brood of four. Christine A. Martin

Northlew Manor , near Okehampton , Devon EX20 3PP

Reviews

Watching Birds. By James Fisher, revised edition by Jim
Flegg. T. & A. D. Poyser, Berkhamsted, 1974. 159 pages;
14 black-and-white photographs, line illustrations. £2.80.

Many birdwatchers have been guided in their first steps in orni-
thology by James Fisher’s book Watching Birds. All will have kept
this charming little book at heart, and will surely welcome the re-
vised reprint that has been edited by Jim Flegg. James Fisher first
published his book in 1941, when he acted as secretary to the British
Trust for Ornithology, so it seems most fitting that the last
director of the BTO should have undertaken the revision. A con-
siderable part of the success of the Trust in its early days was due to
the impact of Watching Birds with its healthily practical approach to
the subject.

Jim Flegg modestly states in his Preface that he has only up-dated
the book, but in scanning its pages one soon discovers that he has
had to rewrite several chapters entirely. The original author could
not have foreseen the enormous development in ‘the tools of bird-
watching’ and the sophistication of some of the present-day equip-
ment. Nor would he have imagined that the number of birds ringed
per year should rise from 50,000 to over half a million, presenting
us with a far more detailed knowledge of migration. Census work
has grown from accurate figures for a very few species and rough
estimates for the rest to a sentitive tool monitoring the quality of
Britain’s environment for its birdlife. On the other hand, though
adding much information of recent date (admittedly generally well
known to keen birdwatchers), the reviser has maintained the organi-
sation of the book as he found it. Today it would be considered old-
fashioned to start a book on watching birds with a description of
internal anatomy, but it adds to the charm of nostalgia which
surrounds the re-issue of a classic. However, this is no excuse for
retaining some of the few mistakes of the original text, e.g. the
suggested direct attachment of the shoulder blades to the breast-
bone, or the curious remark that the Fulmar strays further south in
summer than in winter. Nor does it seem true that the primaries are
of only slight importance in propulsion. A new mistake is the
illustration representing the bird’s knee at its ankle, making one
wonder how it manages to get its centre of gravity at that level.

Jim Flegg has succeeded admirably in blending his own writing
with James Fisher’s. In many cases one has to refer to the original
edition to see who was responsible for a particular statement.
Almost all the illustrations have been drawn anew, the little vig-
nettes by Crispin Fisher adding considerably to the visual appeal of
the book. The whole is attractively produced. Jan Wattel

37

Reviews

38

A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of British
and European Birds. By Colin Harrison. Collins, London,
I975* 432 pages; colour plates; many line drawings. £3.50.

The Pocket Encyclopedia of Birds’ Eggs and Nesting Habi-
tats. By Siegfried Hoeher. Blandford Press, London, 1974.
194 pages; 32 colour plates. £1.60.

Die Eier der Vogel Europas. Volume 1. By Wolfgang
Makatsch. Neumann Verlag, Radebeul, D.D.R., 1974* 4®®
pages; 67 colour plates; over 400 black-and-white photo-
graphs; over 200 maps. 96 (East German) Marks.

The fascination of birds’ eggs will never die. The element in our
society which wants to destroy the life contained in them and place
the empty and useless shell in a cabinet may be declining but these
three books are clear evidence that general interest continues. All
place some emphasis on the whole breeding cycle, including the
nest and the chick, but the dominance of the egg remains.

Dr Colin Harrison has produced a companion volume to The
Birds of Britain and Europe , with North Africa and the Middle East, by
Heinzel, Fitter and Parslow (Collins 1972). It covers the same
geographical area and gives an account of the nesting habits of the
588 species that breed therein. Approximately 250 words are
devoted to each species, describing the habitat and nest site, the
nest itself, the egg and the nestling, plus breeding season, clutch
size, incubation and nestling periods. The last term covers the
development of the young and the care given it by the parents.
Philip Burton has contributed 16 colour plates of the young of 145
species, and there are 48 plates of colour photographs of eggs.

There is a good introduction to the book and a brief but usable
key. The text information is necessarily written in an abbreviated
style but is very clear. It is a pity that diagrams showing the breed-
ing season of each species could not have been given as this is easily
the weakest section of the book. It is confined to an imprecise
statement of when breeding begins. Dipping into the text of the
species I know best it is apparent that there has been heavy reliance
on the standard reference works with perhaps less literature search-
ing than might have been expected. For example the incubation
and fledging periods of Cory’s Shearwater are cited as unknown
but were in fact given in a paper published four years ago, and
there are other similar examples. All three swans are described as
carrying their young on their backs whereas only the Mute Swan
does this. There is also frequent ambiguous use of the word ‘inde-
pendent’ which is used to signify both fledging and independence
from the parents, which are by no means coincident.

The plates are of high standard, especially the paintings by Philip

Reviews

39

Burton. For identification purposes it would perhaps have been
better to have placed the downy waterfowl in swimming rather than
standing postures and, in my copy at least, the plates of young
waders are very pale, but the overall effect is excellent. The colour
photographs of the eggs are also good. The line drawings of nests
and incubating birds are less successful.

Both this book and the one by Siegfried Hoeher contain the usual
statements about the legal position in Britain regarding disturbance
to birds’ nests. One doubts whether either will have any more
effect than the loose wording of the 1967 Protection of Birds Act.

The book by Hoeher is yet another example of a foreign book on
birds being translated into English, roughly adapted to fit a
British market, and published for the sole apparent reason that the
colour plates are available and therefore cheap. Thus the blurb,
more honest than most, states that the book describes: ‘the breeding
habits of 280 species which nest in the British Isles and/or central
Europe’ (my italics). This says all that is needed about the species
covered. Thirty pages are taken up with a rather complicated guide
to nest and egg identification. The species accounts are even more
abbreviated than in Harrison’s book, but in the main accurate. The
colour plates are principally of nests, supplemented with some of
eggs alone. In comparison with Harrison’s book, this one is of little
use to anyone living either in Britain or thinking of travelling to
central Europe.

The third book is very different from the others. It is the first of
two volumes that will cover all European breeding birds. Despite
the title, the coverage is of the entire breeding cycle with paragraphs
on the breeding habitat, nest site and nest, clutch size, incubation
and fledging periods, and season. However the largest section under
each species is devoted to between one and eight sets of egg measure-
ments and weights, giving means, ranges and sample sizes. The
author’s own data makes a sizable contribution to this, plus material
culled from many other sources. Such data has fairly limited value,
and indeed interest, and it may be for this reason that rather than
publish a dry catalogue of figures, as is being done by Schonwetter
in his Handbuch der Oologie (Akademie-Verlag, Berlin, 1967 et seq.),
Makatsch has added the other breeding biology data, together with
a breeding distribution map and between one and four black-and-
white photographs of each species. This amount of illustration, and
the generous format, make it an attractive book, and although it is
in German, only a limited knowledge of that language is required in
order to extract information from the text. The latter seems quite
accurate and is much fuller than in either of the two English-
language books reviewed here. The maps contain a number of
strange errors and should not be relied upon. M. A. Ogilvie

Request for information

BTO Garden Bird Feeding Survey This survey is checking each winter the
species, numbers and food preferences of those birds coming to gardens to take
foodstuffs artificially presented (natural foods such as berries on shrubs are omitted) .
A countrywide sample of 200 varied feeding stations is watched. New participants
are not required but observations are welcomed from anybody on the numbers,
dates and feeding habits of rare or unusual garden feeders, e.g. Water Rail Rallus
aquaticus. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor, Treecreeper Certhia
familiaris, Garden Warbler Sylvia borin, Firecrest Regulus ignicapillus, Hawfinch
Coccothraustes coccothraustes. Notes are also welcomed on hawks, falcons, owls and
shrikes coming to scavenge food or to chase birds in the feeding area. All records
will be gratefully received by David Glue, Populations Section, British Trust
for Ornithology, Beech Grove, Tring, Hertfordshire HP23 5NR.

News and comment — New author

This feature was started in 1963 by R. P. Cordero, who three years
later was compelled by the pressure of his activities to relinquish it
to J- L. F. Parslow, who, in turn, on his appointment to the Nature
Conservancy, handed over to Robert Hudson in March 1968.
Robert Hudson, who faces many other pressures, has now asked to
be relieved. We are especially grateful to him, not only for bearing
the considerable burden of preparing this feature for over seven
years, but also for maintaining throughout such a high level of
interesting news items and incisive comment. We are pleased that
Peter Conder, who has recently retired as Director of the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds, has agreed to take over. He would
welcome news items of ornithological or conservation interest,
which should be sent to: Peter Conder, Old Orchard Close,
12 Swaynes Lane, Cambridge CB3 7ef. Eds

News and comment Robert Hudson

Nightingale census The British Trust for Ornithology has announced ( BTO
News no. 76) that an attempt is to be made in 1976 to make a first full census of the
Nightingale. This attempt to cover the species’ entire range in southern Britain
will be based on surveys of tetrads (2x2 km squares of the National Grid)
visited in May and early June. Observers will be asked to record six-figure grid
references of all singing Nightingales; and the opportunity may be taken to cover
other nocturnal species as well. The organiser, Maurice Davenport, is setting up a
network of regional organisers who will be named later.

40

News and comment

4i

Council of Europe on conservation The Council of Europe’s European
Committee for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources held its 14th
annual session in Strasbourg in November. The conclusions of its sub-committees
were all accepted and will be forwarded to the Committee of Ministers. The
European Diploma (awarded to outstanding safeguarded areas of natural beauty)
was recommended for the Pyrenees and La Vanoise National Parks in France and
the Kuscenneti National Park in Turkey. Under the heading of natural environ-
ments in danger, resolutions on hedgerow landscapes and on the Mediterranean
maquis were adopted; and the Committee also gave active support to a plan to
work out a European legal instrument on the conservation of flora, fauna and
natural habitats, a subject to be discussed further at the second European Minis-
terial Conference on the Environment (to be held in Brussels in March). The
Committee also approved a draft resolution on the setting up of a European net-
work of ‘biogcnetic reserves’ by which it is hoped to safeguard representative
samples of various typical European biotopes. ( Council of Europe Newsletter 75-1 1.)

Oil again During the early morning of 12th November 1975, the 219,913 ton dwt
Onassis supertanker Olympic Alliance turned to starboard when she encountered two
vessels sailing the wrong way in the northbound traffic lane through the Straits of
Dover, and was struck squarely amidships by the frigate HMS Achilles coming up
behind her. Fortunately, the first part of the 10,000 tons of oil in the damaged
tanker was blown ashore smartly around Folkestone by southerly winds ahead of
an approaching front, and only about 150 birds were killed, though there is little
news of what happened to the rest of the cargo before the tanker was finally allowed
into Wilhelmshaven five days later. During the evening of 12th November the
I Royal Fleet Auxiliary Olna also apparently lost what was at first said to be a few
hundred gallons of fuel oil at Invergordon on the Cromarty Firth, and the crew
tried to clear it up themselves w-ith detergent. Two days after a successful cleaning
operation had been announced, and everyone had gone home for the weekend,
birdwatchers noticed oil coming ashore at the Nigg Bay SSSI further down the
1 Firth; as the wind backed through west to north over that weekend, both sides of
this bay and the Udale Bay SSSI on the other side of the Firth were plastered with
it. Three to four thousand waterfowl and waders are said to have been affected,
though apparently rather few of their bodies have been found. The first of these
incidents illustrates the need for more official action to deal with leaking tankers,
iand the second for more to deal with spilt oil. This is apparently at least the
sixth time that the Royal Navy has spilt oil in the Cromarty Firth in recent years,
though, as the inhabitants of Kent wall now presumably also discover, they still
remain exempt from pollution control legislation. It seems time that our drowsy-
civil authorities arranged for them to be kept under permanent surveillance.
(Contributed by Dr W. R. P. Bourne.)

[Dutch Ebm Disease In recent years Dutch Elm Disease has been wreaking
mavoc among elm trees in the British countryside; and a recent Forestry- Com-
mission report shows that there is no sign of the outbreak abating. Aided by the
i tot summer, a further 1.9 million elms became afflicted in 1975, and 6.5 million
elms have now been killed, which is perhaps 25 % of the total. As a consequence,

• he pastoral landscape is changing rapidly, and fears are being expressed whether
he elm can survive in Britain. While the disease may in the short term benefit
nsectivorous birds which occupy the tree-bark feeding niche (such as wood-
peckers and the Treecreeper), birds which use elms as nesting sites (e.g. Kestrel,
Tawny and Little Owls, and Rook) are likely to be faced with problems.

Wew BTO journal For several years the BTO’s Ringing and Migration Com-
nittee and ringers at large have been discussing the possibilities of producing a

42

News and comment

new journal to cover their special field of interest; Bird Study , the Trust’s main
journal, attracts a wide range of papers and thus has a long waiting list. These
discussions reached fruition, and the first number of Ringing and Migration has
just appeared. This is a 64-page issue, and contains papers on migration, weights,
moult, chick survival, feeding behaviour, longevity, and abstracts of over 100
papers that have appeared in local ringing publications. This first issue is available,
price £1, from the BTO, Beech Grove, Tring, Hertfordshire HP23 5nr; at present,
annual publication is planned.

Bird photography Dennis Avon and Tony Tilford have co-authored a new book,
Birds of Britain & Europe in Colour, published by Blandford Press (Poole, Dorset)
at £3.25. This deals with too familiar species, each having a short text, a world
distribution map and one or two colour photographs; the latter are excellent, and
undoubtedly are this book’s main attraction. The introduction refers delicately to
some of these photographs having been taken ‘under controlled conditions’. In
practice, this relates to the photographing of a trapped bird in a special ‘studio
cage’, which has previously been decked out with vegetation and a photographic
background simulating a suitable habitat for the species concerned. The bird is
held for only a short period, being released when the required photograph has
been taken. There is no doubt that this method can produce pleasing results, as
this book shows, though the technique is strongly disapproved of by advocates of
the conventional school, which believes that birds should be photographed while
at liberty. It remains to be seen whether this type of studio photography will
prove acceptable, for it is understood that the Nature Conservancy Council is
of the opinion that it contravenes the 1954 and 1967 Protection of Birds Acts.
Under these Acts, wild birds can be trapped only for scientific purposes such as
ringing, and only then by people holding a special licence; studio photography for
its own sake hardly falls within the realms of science, though there is a difficult area
when birds are caught for scientific purposes and photographed before release.

New Year Honours It was with much pleasure that we saw in the New Year
Honours list that two distinguished ornithologists, Peter Conder and Dr Bruce
Campbell, had been awarded the OBE. Peter has recently relinquished the onerous
position of Director of the RSPB, which he guided through a period of great
expansion and to an influential position in the British conservation movement
generally. Bruce received his award on retirement as Chairman of the Berkshire,
Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Naturalists’ Trust; but he has been a key figure
in British ornithology for many years, and will long be remembered for the
valuable work he did as Secretary to the BTO. We offer our congratulations to
both.

Over and out Sadly, this will be my last ‘News and comment’. I have enjoyed
my stint, but now, alas, pressure of other work has compelled me to stand down.
An announcement concerning my successor is made elsewhere in this issue. I
cannot sign off without thanking the many organisations and individuals who have
supplied me with information over the years; and in particular I am grateful to the
Nature Conservancy Council, the British Trust for Ornithology, the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds, and (in private capacity) Dr W. R. P. Bourne,
all of whom have been especially helpful. I can depart knowing the ‘News and
comment’ is in good hands, and I wish my successor well.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Breeding season summary D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

As in 1974 (Brit. Birds, 68: 51), exceptionally early breeding by Great Crested
Grebes Podiceps cristatus was reported: at Weston Turville Reservoir (Hertford-
shire) apparent incubation was observed on 19th January and sitting birds were
noted on two nests on 26th, and with one egg hatched on 7th February laying
must have taken place about 10th January; while at Corsham Lake (Wiltshire)
a pair was seen with one small young on 14th February.

Although Gannets Sula bassana are not usual breeders on Fair Isle (Shedand)
nine large nests were found there in July, chicks being seen in four, an egg in a
fifth and adults sitting on the remainder; and 96 chicks were counted at England’s
only gannetry, at Bempton cliffs (Humberside), where, incidentally, 53,000 pairs
of Kittlwakes Rissa tridactyla were a significant increase on the 22,000 censused
in 1 964. At least 1 83 nests were contained in Britain’s largest colony of Herons
Ardea cinerea, at Northward Hill (Kent), this being the highest number ever
recorded. Bitterns Botaurus stellaris were booming on 1st January at Leighton
Moss, the earliest date ever at this Lancashire reserve, and good numbers of
young both there and at Minsmere (Suffolk) indicate a successful breeding season.

On the Ouse Washes (Cambridgeshire/Norfolk) rarer ducks included five pairs
of Pintail Anas acuta and nine of Garganey A. querquedula, and at Chew Valley
Lake (Avon) 138 Gadwall A. strepera were raised from 21 broods. Several Golden-
eye Bucephala clangula summered in England, mainly in the north and the
Midlands.

We received little information on breeding successes or otherwise of raptors,
but the following may be of interest. At Minsmere there were four female Marsh
Harriers Circus aeruginosus and two males: one pair raised five young; the other
male was mated with the remaining three females, two of which each succeeded in
rearing four young, while the third, perhaps not surprisingly, failed. The total
of 13 young raised is, however, most encouraging. Montagu’s Harriers C.
pygargus were present in the breeding season in Somerset, Hampshire and Kent
but no reports of proved breeding were received. Unhappily the Ospreys Pandion
haliaetus at Loch Garten (Highland) failed owing to a faultily constructed nest.

There were 55 pairs of Black- tailed Godwits Limosa limosa on the Ouse Washes,
twelve more than in 1974, but only 20 pairs raised young, the others attempting
to nest in unsuitable habitat on farmland ; several breeding pairs were also reported
on the Somerset levels. Twelve Reeves Philomachus pugnax were on the Ouse
Washes throughout the season but breeding success is not known. Avocets
Recurvirostra avosetta had a very good breeding season in Suffolk: at Minsmere 41
pairs raised 60-64 young, and at Havergate 107 pairs reared 80 young (86 pairs and
only six young in 1974) ; nine other pairs were known to have bred in the county,
making a total of 157 pairs, the highest number since the area was re-colonised in
1947. Two male Mediterranean Gulls Larus melanocephalus were in the gull colony
at Needs Oar (Hampshire) intermittently during the breeding season but ap-
parently no nesting was attempted.

The Snowy Owls Nyctea scandiaca on Fedar (Shetland) raised four young to
the flying stage. At Matfen (Northumberland) a young Wryneck Jfiw: torquilla was
found on a window-sill on 15th July, an interesting sign of possible successful
breeding in the area. The mild winter of 1974/75 was probably responsible for
a number of instances of abnormally early breeding by several species. A nest
of Blue Tits Pams caeruleus containing four eggs was found in a nest box at
Epperstone (Nottinghamshire) in the first week of February, and a pair was
building at Henbury, Bristol, on 19th. At Brockton (Salop) eggs were present
in the nest of a Wren Troglodytes troglodytes on 1st February. Early-nesting Black-

43

44 Breeding season summary

birds Turdus merula were found at Guide Post (Northumberland) on 12th January
(nest with eggs), at Bearsted (Kent) on 28th (feeding young) and in the Coombes
Valley (Derbyshire) in the second week of February (fledged young) ; and a
completed nest of a Song Thrush T. philomelos was discovered at Graveney (Kent)
on 2 1 st January. A pair of Starlings Sturnus vulgaris was feeding young near
Dartford (also Kent) on the exceptional date of 15th January.

A Dipper Cinclus cinclus feeding young near Edcote in July provided the first
proved breeding of the species in Northamptonshire. Cetti’s Warblers Cettia
cetti continued their increase in Britain: in the Stour Valley (Kent) possibly 56
singing males were estimated in spring, and successful breeding took place in
south Devon (see Brit. Birds, 68: 393-408). Two singing male Reed Warblers
Acrocephalus scirpaceus were at Teesmouth in June and one pair held territory
there in July, the last breeding in the Cleveland area having been in 1907. Numbers
of Sedge Warblers A. schoenobaenus were reported to be well below the normal
level in the Tyneside area but Whitethroats Sylvia communis continued the slight
comeback noted in the last two years after the 1969 collapse: in Tyneside numbers
were probably approaching normal again, and a further improvement was
noted in the Trent Valley, while a satisfactory increase was recorded in south-
west England. In central southern England Dartford Warblers S. undata fared
well, although first broods generally suffered heavily owing to the sudden cold
spell in the spring. First ever breeding of Wood Warblers Phylloscopus sibilatrix
occurred in Northamptonshire, a pair nesting in Badby woods ; and three pairs of
Firecrests Regulus ignicapillus in Worcestershire (one nest found on 6th June)
constituted the first breeding of the species, now expanding its range, in the west
midlands area. A pair of Red-backed Shrikes Lanius collurio, also in Worcester-
shire and accompanied by two juveniles, in August was well outside the usual and
contracting breeding range of this species in England.

Finally, a most interesting case of nest-usurping was reported from Dipton
(Northumberland) : the nest contained initially five eggs of Pied Flycatchers
Ficedula hypoleuca; Blue Tits then proceeded to build on top of these and laid nine
eggs, the flycatcher adding one more of its own to this clutch; seven of the tits’
eggs and the single flycatcher egg hatched and all the young were subsequently
reared by the Blue Tits.

stop press Surf Scoter, King Eider and a Spoonbill at Loch Fleet (Highland)
at end of December and into January. Lesser White-fronted Goose at Slimbridge
(Gloucestershire) from 4th January.

k

\

jh

/

(Prizes worth more than £1,000 to be won by amateur recordists

Last year, secretary Mrs Jean Clamp
of Atherstone won an original wildlife
I watercolour with her recording of a

! rookery at daybreak in 3M’s annual
wildlife recording contest. Could you
do better with your recorder?

Prizes in the 1976 contest include
I a Sennheiser gun microphone and
I accessories worth £275. A Wollensak
4766E hi-fi cassette deck worth £288;
a pair of Monitor Audio MA5 series 1 1
speakers worth £135; Grampian
parabolic reflector and microphone,
and Rotel headphones.

■fc Many other valuable prizes—
including six original wildlife water-
colours specially commissioned to depict

the subjects of the winning recordings,
and lots of Scotch recording tape.

Categories for novices and experienced
recordists.

Special award for most original entry,
best cassette recording and best stereo
entry.

Classes for birds, mammals and
insects, and ‘atmosphere’ recordings.

•fc All entrants invited to the London
prizegiving.

No entry fee.

Entry forms and rules from : W. R. Bowles,
3M United Kingdom Limited,

380 Harrow Road,

London W9 2HU.

Closing date: March 31, 1976.

3M 231 5 3M, Scotch and Wollensak are trademarks

British Birds

Volume 69 Number 1 January 1976

1 Editorial : The conservation of wetlands
4 Voice, behaviour and display of Mediterranean Gulls J. H.
Taverner

Black Redstarts breeding in Britain in 1969-73 R. S. R. Fitter
Viewpoint: A question of priorities John Gooders
Studies of less familiar birds 179 Collared Flycatcher Dr H.
Lohrl, Dr R. G. Carlson and Dr A. N. H. Peach Plates 1-4
A review of waterthrush identification with particular reference
to the 1968 British record D. /. M. Wallace

9

16

20

27

Notes

34 Association between male North American Ruddy Ducks and stray
ducklings Bernard King

34 Long-tailed Tit feeding young Great Tits Cyril Scott

35 Long-tailed Tits feeding on lawns Guy Mountfort

35 Long-tailed Tits feeding on white bread crumbs Christopher Wright

36 Multiple nests of Spotted Flycatcher Miss Christine A. Martin

Reviews

37 Watching Birds by James Fisher, revised edition by Jim Flegg Dr Jan Wattel

38 A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of British and European Birds
by Colin Harrison, The Pocket Encyclopedia of Birds' Eggs and Nesting
Habitats by Siegfried Hoeher, and Die Eier der Vdgel Europas. Volume 1
by Wolfgang Makatsch M. A. Ogilvie

Request for information

40 BTO Garden Bird Feeding Survey David Glue
40 News and comment: new author
40 News and comment Robert Hudson
43 Breeding season summary D. A. Christie

Front cover: Barn Owl Tyto alba with prey {photo:

Printed by Henry Burt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

Editorial Address British Birds, Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex
Street, London WCaR 3LF ( telephone 01-836 6633 )

Editors Stanley Cramp, I. J. Ferguson-Lees, M. A. Ogilvie and
D. I. M. Wallace Photographic Editor Eric Hosking

News and comment Peter Conder, 1 2 Swaynes Lane, Comberton, Cambridge CB3 7ef

Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2dl
© The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd

British Birds is published monthly by Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex
Street, London WC2R 3LF ( telephone : 01-836 6633). ISSN 0007-0335

Annual Subscription £ 8.00 including index

(Orders must be accompanied by remittance. Prices applicable only to orders
received before 31st December 1975)

Cheques should be made payable to Macmillan Journals Limited:

Subscription Department, Brunei Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG2 i 2xs, England

Enquiries concerning advertising space and rates should be addressed to :
Advertisement Department, Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex Street,
London wc2R 3LF ( telephone : 01-836 6633)

British Birds publishes material dealing with original observations on the birds of
the west Palearctic or, where appropriate, on the species of this area as observed in
other parts of their range. Except for records of rarities, papers and notes are
normally accepted only on condition that the material is not being offered in
whole or in part to any other journal. Photographs and sketches are welcomed.

After publication, 25 reprints of each paper are sent free to the author (two
co-authors receive 1 5 each and three or more co-authors ten each) ; additional
copies, for which a charge is made, should be ordered in advance of publication.
Reprints of notes and other short items have to be specially ordered and are
charged for.

Papers should be typewritten with double spacing and wide margins, and on one
side of the sheet only. Shorter contributions, if not typed, must be clearly written
and well spaced, and notes should be worded as concisely as possible. Authors of
papers and notes, especially of those containing systematic lists, reference lists,
tables, etc., should consult the ones in this issue as a guide to general presentation.
English names of birds and other animals should have capital initials for each
word, except after a hyphen, but group terms and names of plants should not.
Both English and scientific names of birds, and the sequence, follow A Species List of
British and Irish Birds (BTO Guide 13, 1971). All scientific names should be under-
lined immediately after the first mention of the English name, though it is some-
times more convenient instead to list them in an appendix. Subspecific names
should not be used except where relevant to the discussion. Dates should always
take the form Tst January 1974’, except in tables where they may be abbreviated.
Conventions concerning references, including their use in the text and the form
of citation used in reference lists, should follow the examples in this issue.

Tables should be numbered with arabic numerals, and the title typed above in
the style used in this issue. They must either fit into the width of a page, or be
designed to fit a whole page lengthways. All tables should be self-explanatory.

Figures should be numbered with arabic numerals, and the captions typed on a
separate sheet. All line-drawings should be in Indian ink on good quality tracing
paper, drawing paper or board (not of an absorbent nature) or, where necessary,
on light blue or very pale grey graph paper. It is important to consider how each
drawing will fit into the page when reduced. Any lettering or numbering that is an
integral part of a text-figure should be inserted lightly in pencil.

British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 2 FEBRUARY I 9 7 6

Laying dates of four species of tits in
Wytham Wood, Oxfordshire

E. K. Dunn

It has been argued by Perrins (1970) that laying a large clutch
imposes a considerable extra load on the food -gathering abilities of
a small bird. From this, he suggested that the date at which indivi-
dual birds in a population begin laying is related to the food supply
at the start of the breeding season: egg-laying cannot begin until
food has become sufficiently abundant for each female to find
enough to start producing eggs without risk to her own body
maintenance. Jones (1971) provided indirect support for this
hypothesis by demonstrating that small female Great Tits Pams
major tend to lay earlier than large ones, probably because smaller
birds require less food for body maintenance (Gibb 1957).

Perrins (in prep.) has extended this interpretation to explain why
the smaller tit species lay earlier than the larger ones. Although the
tits of the genus Pams have been the subject of detailed research
(Lack 1971, Barnes 1975) our knowledge of their laying dates is
surprisingly incomplete. It is known that in deciduous woodland
Blue Tits P. caemleus start laying before Great Tits (Lack 1966,
Frederiksen et al. 1972). Coal Tits and Marsh Tits P. palustris,
however, breed rather sparsely in deciduous woodland and little
has been published on their time of laying. The data collected by
Frederiksen et al. in Denmark suggest that Coal and Marsh Tits
begin laying at about the same time as Blue Tits, but their sample
sizes were small. Ryves (1943) has shown that in north Cornwall
Coal Tits fledge before Blue Tits, though this docs not necessarily
imply an earlier laying date for Coal Tits since they usually lay the
smaller clutch; in other words, a Coal Tit could start laying at the

[Bril. Birds, 69: 4.5-50, February 1976]

45

46 Laying dates of tits

same time as a Blue Tit and still fledge its young earlier. Thus there
is no conclusive evidence that either Coal Tits or Marsh Tits differ
significantly in their laying dates from Blue Tits.

The study of tits in nest boxes in Wytham Wood near Oxford,
started by Lack in 1947, had, by 1975, yielded 133 records of laying
dates for Coal Tits and 80 for Marsh Tits. Here, these are compared
with the now more extensive data on Blue Tits and Great Tits, and
with published information on Long-tailed Tits Aegithalos caudatus
in Wytham (Lack and Lack 1958, Gaston 1973).

METHODS

For each species in each year, the mean date on which the first egg
was laid, excluding repeat and second clutches, is taken as a measure
of the timing of breeding. Following Kluyver (1951) and Lack
(1966), laying dates have been numbered from 1st April, which is
1, so that 30th April is 30 and 1st May is 31 and so on, and the
means are taken to one place of decimals. The nest boxes in Wytham
are distributed over eight areas of woodland which differ to varying
extents in elevation, slope, aspect and vegetation. These differences
are reflected in the laying dates of the tits which inhabit each area,
though in the cases of Blue and Great Tits, which breed in relatively
large numbers throughout the wood, laying dates for the whole
wood are little affected by area-specific differences.*

RESULTS

The data are shown in table 1. Coal Tits and Marsh Tits were only
occasionally recorded in nest boxes before 1959. The year before,
Dr G. M. Perrins had begun to expand the study by putting up
boxes over a much wider area of the Wytham estate and, since 1964,
about 900 boxes embracing all the 240 ha of woodland have been
available to the tits. In addition, laying dates tended to be more
advanced in these early years of the study (1947-61 : Blue Tits 24.0,
Great Tits 26.9; 1962-75: Blue Tits 27.0, Great Tits 30.8). Thus,
laying dates for 1947-75 as a whole tend to underestimate the real
gap separating Coal and Marsh Tits from the other two species. A
more meaningful comparison uses only those years when all four
species were recorded breeding in nest boxes. The table shows that
there was considerable variation in the order of laying over the 1 8
years concerned, but Coal Tits appeared on average to lay first,
a day before Marsh Tits, two days before Blue Tits, and almost
six days before Great Tits. Matched pairs t-tests showed that each
of the three smaller tits laid significantly earlier than Great Tits.

*Each year’s laying dates of the small breeding populations of Coal and Marsh
Tits have been corrected for area differences by weighting means, but those of
Blue and Great Tits have not.

Laying dates of tits 47

Table i. Mean annual laying dates of four tits Parus ipp in Wytham Wood,

Oxfordshire

The dates are calculated from ist April, which is i, so that 30th April is 30 and
1st May is 31, and the means are taken to one place of decimals

COAL TIT MARSH TIT BLUE TIT GREAT TIT

P. ater P. palustris P. caeruleus P. major

Year Date No. Date No. Date No. Date No.

•947

—

—

—

—

28.7

'5

33-5

'7

1948

—

—

—

—

10.2

4'

10.5

39

'949

20.5

I

'9-4

I

22.3

48

23-4

60

‘950

10.5

I

24.4

2

22.9

34

23.8

3'

'95'

3 ' -3

4

—

—

364

34

39-6

32

»952

20.0

2

—

—

23-9

'7

23-5

20

'953

23-5

I

22.4

I

28.1

'4

32.7

21

'954

—

—

12.4

I

22.2

18

26.6

33

'955

—

—

—

—

29.1

'3

33-2

32

'956

24-5

I

—

—

32.1

'5

33-7

24

'957

—

—

—

—

'4-9

32

17.4

5°

'958

—

—

3'-'

2

32.1

47

35-7

56

'959

22.0

2

22.5

I

20.0

108

22.4

127

i960

18.3

3

'7-5

3

20.1

'35

25.6

*47

1961

'5-5

I

—

—

16.3

209

21.4

253

1962

26.0

2

27.6

I

3'-9

'35

32.3

172

'963

22.7

6

19.6

I

30.0

'99

28.3

165

1964

28.3

4

33-2

2

28.9

182

32.5

243

'965

20.0

3

22.2

3

24.2

202

27.8

224

1966

31.6

5

27.7

4

29.8

260

34-o

186

'967

22.7

I I

22.4

. 4

22.5

244

28.6

126

1968

23.8

'4

28.1

7

26.3

210

27.4

161

'969

27-3

l6

3'-4

3

32-5

217

33'

172

'970

3'-7

8

28.5

5

34-3

237

34-3

124

'97'

28.3

12

—

—

27-9

254

33-3

206

1972

24.7

8

18.5

6

18.1

214

25.6

'52

'973

21. 1

1 1

23.8

I I

22.5

282

3*-5

'7'

'974

18.8

8

18.5

I I

'9'

333

29-9

129

'975

28.4

9

30.6

I I

29-4

423

32.0

170

MEANS

and

23-5

'33

24.1

80

25-4

4172

28.7

3343

TOTALS

MEANS FOR

YEARS 23.4 24.4 25.7 29.2

IN COMMON

Coal Tits also laid significantly earlier than Blue Tits (t = 2.35
p < 0.05, Q-tailed), but not earlier than Marsh Tits, which, in turn
did not lay significantly earlier than Blue Tits.

Laying dates of tits

48

DISCUSSION

Laying date and clutch size
It used to be thought (Dr J. Gibb, in Lack 1955) that the Blue Tit’s
larger clutch might explain why it started laying a little before the
Great Tit in deciduous woods. By starting earlier, its young would
therefore hatch at about the same date as those of the Great Tit, and
both would benefit from the peak emergence of caterpillar food.
Perrins (1965, 1970) suggested that other factors were likely to be
involved, and a simple relationship between clutch size and laying
date is unlikely. If the clutch sizes of the four Parus species in Wytham
are listed in order of the laying dates found here, no consistent trend
emerges: Coal Tit 9.7, Marsh Tit 7.7, Blue Tit 10.7, Great Tit 9.5.
(The last two values are from data for 1 947-64 in Lack ( 1 966) , the
other two from Wytham nest record cards for 1949-75.)

Laying date and body weight

The laying dates follow in the same sequence as the body weights of
the species concerned. Average winter weights of birds caught in
Wytham are: Coal Tit 8.9 g (204 birds), Marsh Tit 10.5 g (83), Blue
Tit 10.7 g (450), and Great Tit 19.2 g (490). (The figure for Marsh
Tits was calculated from recent records, and those for the other
species from data in Owen (1954).) The Great Tit, which is by far
the heaviest of the four species, lays markedly later than the other
three. Furthermore, the lightest tit species in the wood, the Long-
tailed Tit, weighing on average 7.7 g (42 birds, this study), is by far
the earliest breeder, sometimes starting as early as the end of March,
and on average probably not later than about 21st April (Lack and
Lack 1958, Gaston 1973). Thus the general pattern emerges of
progressively earlier laying with descending order of body size,
which agrees with Perrins’ (in prep.) predictions. Unfortunately
Willow Tits P. montanus, which at 10.0 g (20 birds, this study) are
intermediate in weight between Coal Tits and Marsh Tits, do not
breed in the Wytham nest boxes and therefore there are no records of
their laying dates in the wood.

Laying date and habitat

Van Balen (1973) has shown that the maximum food supply in
oakwoods is much larger, and peaks earlier, than that in pinewoods.
For several years, Lack (1955, 1958) compared the laying dates of
tits in a number of broadleaved (mainly oak Quercus robur) and
coniferous (mainly Scots pine Pinus sylvestris ) habitats in the south
of England. In Lack’s analysis, the data for broadleaved woods
were lumped for the purpose of comparison with conifers; he found
that there were no consistent differences between laying dates in the
two sorts of habitat. In table 2, the laying dates for 1949-53 °f Great

49

Laying dates of tits

Tits and Coal Tits in Mousehall, a Scots pine plantation in Norfolk,
are compared with the corresponding figures for Marley Wood
in Wytham; there is again no difference (matched pairs t-test).
Lack concluded that Great Tits, and also Blue Tits, are primarily
adapted to broadleaved woods and unable to adjust their laying
dates to coniferous woods. Van Balen (1973) replicated Lack’s
findings for the Great Tit and provided support for Lack’s con-
clusion by demonstrating that the tits’ mean hatching date in Dutch
pinew'oods correlated well with the earlier caterpillar peak in nearby
oakwoods, but not at all with the peak in the pinewoods. The Great
Tits were apparently unable to time their breeding to profit from
the later emergence of caterpillars in the coniferous habitats.

Lack did not attempt to assess the situation for Coal Tits, which
are known to prefer coniferous habitats (Partridge 1974). The
Marley data for this species were very limited for 1949-53 but * lhere

Table 2. Mean annual laying dates of Great Tits Parus
major and Coal Tits P. ater in Marley Wood, Oxfordshire,
and Mousehall, Norfolk

Data for Coal Tits in Marley from this study, but not weighted
for area, the rest from Lack (1955). The dates are calculated
from 1st April (see table 1)

GREAT

TIT

COAL TIT

Year

Marley

Mousehall

Marley

Mousehall

<949

23

25

21

>7

•95°

29

30

1 1

12

«95»

40

39

32

28

>952

23

22

21

18

*953

33

36

24

22

MEANS

29.6

304

21.8

•9-4

DIFFERENCES

+ 0.8 days

— 2,

.4 days

is some indication (table 2) that laying tended to be earlier in
Mousehall than in Marley. Thus the Coal Tit may be able to start
breeding earlier in its preferred coniferous habitats in spite of the
fact that food during the spring is probably much more abundant
in broadleaved woods.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to thank Derek Onley, who first suggested this topic to me a long time ago,
and Dr C. M. Perrins, who suggested it independently. The data have been
collected by numerous fieldworkers climbing an estimated 160 km of ladder in
Wytham Wood since 1947. I wish to thank Dr Perrins, Dr A. W. Diamond,
Dr L. Partridge and M. C. Garnett, who kindly read and criticised an earlier
draft.

5°

Laying dates of tits

SUMMARY

Few data have previously been published on the breeding seasons of Coal Tits
Parus ater and Marsh Tits P. palustris in deciduous woodland. From a long-term
study of tits in Wytham Wood near Oxford, typical laying dates of these two
species have been calculated, along with those for Blue Tits P. caeruleus and Great
Tits P. major. Comparisons between these and dates for Long-tailed Tits Aegithalos
caudatus, which also breed in the wood, suggest that the order of laying follows a
sequence of increasing body size, beginning with the Long-tailed Tit. This trend is
consistent with current theory on the timing of breeding seasons. The Coal Tit fits
into the sequence of laying despite the fact that its preferred habitat is coniferous
woodland. However, it is suggested that its breeding season may start slightly
earlier in coniferous than in deciduous woodland.

REFERENCES

Barnes, J. A. G. 1975 The Titmice of the British Isles. Newton Abbott.
Frederiksen, K. S., Jensen, M., Larsen, E. H., and Larsen, V. H. 1972. ‘Nogle
data til belysning af yngletidspunkt og kuldstorrelse hos mejser (Paridae)’.
Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidsskr., 66: 73-85.

Gaston, A. J. 1973. ‘The ecology and behaviour of the Long-tailed Tit’. Ibis,

”5: 330-351-

Gibb, J. 1957. ‘Food requirements and other observations on captive tits’. Bird
Study, 4: 207-215.

Jones, P. J. 1973. ‘Some aspects of the feeding ecology of the Great Tit Parus
major L.’. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of Oxford.

Kluyver, H. N. 1951. ‘The population ecology of the Great Tit Parus major L.’
Ardea, 39: 1-135.

Lack, D. 1955. ‘British tits ( Parus spp) in nesting boxes’. Ardea, 43: 50-84.

1958. ‘A qualitative breeding study of British tits’. Ardea, 46: 91-124.

1966. Population Studies of Birds. Oxford.

1971- Ecological Isolation in Birds. Oxford.

and Lack, E. 1958. ‘The nesting of the Long-tailed Tit’. Bird Study, 5: 1 - 1 9.

Owen, D. F. 1954. ‘The winter weights of titmice’. Ibis, 96: 299-309.

Partridge, L. 1974. ‘Habitat selection in titmice’. Nature, 247: 573-574.

Perrins, C. M. 1965. ‘Population fluctuations and clutch-size in the Great Tit
Parus major L.’. J. Anim. Ecol., 34: 601-647.

197°- ‘The timing of birds’ breeding seasons’. Ibis, 112: 242-255.

(in preparation) Tits. London.

Ryves, B. H. 1943. ‘Fledging of tits in north Cornwall’. Brit. Birds, 37: 77.
van Balen, J. H. 1973. ‘A comparative study of the breeding ecology of the Great
Tit Parus major in different habitats’. Ardea, 61 : 1-93.

Dr E. K. Dunn, Edward Grey Institute, £ oology Department, South Parks
Road, Oxford oxi 3PS

The flight behaviour of Starlings
at a winter roost

James Brodie

Plates 5-8

INTRODUCTION

Co-ordinated flying displays by flocks of Starlings Sturnus vulgaris
are often a feature at pre-roosting areas, but the most spectacular
displays occur at the main roost, when very large numbers of birds
fly together, prior to final roosting. On many evenings, however,
the Starlings may quickly enter the roost on arrival, or give only a
brief flying display.

At roosts in central London which are occupied throughout the
year, mass evolutions occur only from mid-July to late March
(Cramp el al. 1957), but according to Spencer (1966) aerial evolu-
tions are independent of season and size of roost and are at their
best when high winds make it difficult for flocks to alight, and when
the Starlings react to the presence of a Kestrel Falco tinnunculus or
similar predator. However, Bickcrton and Chappie (1961) observed
that on very windy or wet evenings Starlings flew straight into their
roost, often without rising more than a metre or two above ground;
and Wynne- Edwards (1929) observed that Kestrels and Buzzards
Buteo buteo moved off when caught near the roost by incoming
flights of Starlings. In the absence of a satisfactory explanation for
the Starlings’ complex flight behaviour at the roost, Wynne- Edwards
(1962) said of their aerobatic display: ‘it seems quite irrational to
dismiss what is certainly the starling’s most striking social accom-
plishment merely as a recreation devoid of purpose or survival
value, and wiser to assume that a communal exercise so highly
perfected is fulfilling an important function’.

In order to obtain further information about Starling flight
behaviour prior to roosting, and the apparently spontaneous changes
in location of the roosting site, evening observations of Starlings
were made during the winter of 1970/71 at a rural roost near
Edinburgh, in the old county of West Lothian.

ROOST SITE

During September 1970 Starlings moved from their usual roosting
site on the Forth Road Bridge and established a roost almost two
km inland on Dundas Hill, a rounded outcrop of wooded land which
rises from a coastal strip of undulating farmland (see fig. 1). Dundas
Castle stands approximately 80 metres above sea level, surrounded
by mixed coniferous and deciduous trees which were used by the

IBrit. Birds, 69: 51-60, February 1976]

51

0-75m 75 -150 m

53

Starlings' winter Jlight behaviour

Starlings as their main roosting site during the winter of 1970/71
(see roost A in fig. 2), and in this position, nearly 20 metres below
the summit, roost A was protected from winds blowing from direc-
tions between the approximate compass bearings of 1600 and
256°. As protection was given from prevailing south-westerly winter
winds, this directional segment will be referred to in the account
which follows as the ‘normal-shelter zone’.

200ft /61m

275ft /84m

250ft/ 76m
225ft/ 68m
200ft /61m

175ft /53m

175ft /53m

1km

Fig. 2. Topography of Dundas Hill, Lothian

POPULATION CHANGE AND ASSEMBLY

The number of Starlings using roost A increased steadily during
winter, from approximately 30,000 at the end of September to
almost 75,000 at the beginning of February; the total then rose
quickly to around 150,000 before the mass departure of birds from
the study area at the end of February (Brodie 1974).

Fig. 1 (opposite). Topography of the land around Dundas Hill, Lothian

54

Starlings’ winter flight behaviour

During October, November and December, Starlings assembled
above their roost on arrival from distant pre-roosting areas, but at
the beginning of January an intermediate pre-assembly area was
established i km north-east of Dundas Castle. This disrupted the
usual flight behaviour, as many flocks displayed in the pre-assembly
area and flew back and forth between this area and their final
roosting site. From the end of January until the roost broke up on
23rd February all the birds gathered together on farmland 3 km SSE
of Dundas Castle, where they formed great swarms that milled about
the sky and fields. Large scale display at the roost site was almost
absent during this period as mass flight took place in this new area
and departure to roost was made as darkness fell, with a steady
stream of flocks flying almost directly into the roost.

The analysis of flight patterns presented in this paper is therefore
based on the results of observations made during October, Novem-
ber and early December, when roosting assembly was of a direct
nature, i.e. pre-roost to roost.

METHODS

Details of flight patterns were recorded from a point 1 km north of
Dundas Castle, and observation began about one hour before sun-
set. A comprehensive account of weather conditions prevailing in
the area of the roosting site was obtained from the meteorological
station at neighbouring Turnhouse Airport.

Initially, flight displays were grouped according to the duration
and intricacy of the spectacle provided, but when these groups were
related to prevailing conditions of wind speed, temperature and
vapour pressure no relationship could be established to show that
any one or combination of these factors exerted a controlling in-
fluence on the Starlings’ behaviour. However, when it was noticed
that wind direction influenced the Starlings’ performance, the
topography of the roosting site was then considered and it became
apparent that wind currents in the immediate area of the roosting
site could be related to four major categories of flight behaviour
(see results), namely (I) mass aerobatic display over the roost,
(II) mass aerobatic display over the roost, followed by division
into large ranging flocks, (III) brief display by individual flocks,
and (IV) no flight display.

For the purpose of analysis, wind directions have been converted
into positive or negative values by designating winds outwith the
normal-shelter zone (160° to 256°) as positive, and those within the
zone as negative. Dividing all possible directions into two sets, by a
line bisecting the angle made between 160° and 256°, then allowed
all kinds to be referred to these compass bearings, e.g. 276° = -f 20,
140° = + 20, 236° = —20, 1800 = —20.

Starlings' winter flight behaviour

55

RESULTS
Category I

Mass aerobatic displays over the roost. Various flight patterns were
formed when Starlings flew in and out of different air streams pro-
duced by south-westerly winds flowing over the contours of Dundas
Hill. The usual type of display (la in table i) consisted of large
flocks flying in long, low, streaming movements above the roost
with small detached flocks flying in tight formation, and nearly
half the total number of birds flying above the others in a high
column, the overall effect (reminiscent of a ‘ten-gallon-hat’)
reflecting the flattened ‘head and shoulder’ contour section of the

Table i. Summary of distribution of observations and weather conditions
relating to flight categories I to IV (all results expressed as mean values)

An explanation of the category sub-groups a, b and c is given in the text

FLIGHT CATEGORY

I II III IV

a

b

rapid

c

slow

a

b

a

b

Number of
observations

5

2

2

4

2

3

4

I

Temperature in °C
(dry bulb)

9-i

10.4

2.6

8.7

10.9

8.8

9.6

9-5

'Vapour pressure
(millibars)

97-2

106.0

65.6

74.8

1 10.0

81.7

109.8

85.0

'Wind speed
(km per hour)

21.4

38-5

4-5

24.8

26.0

”■3

29.0

57-o

Rainfall
(i/io mm)

-

-

-

-

-

-

4.8

-

Wind direction

— 29.6

— 36.0

— 16.0

35-5

— 31.0

69.33

-18.5

4.0

hill. On other occasions the birds flew together in one vast cloud-
like column, the top of which was just visible at a great height above
the roost. Within such a cloud, Starlings were observed flying very
rapidly on windy evenings (lb), or very slowly on calm evenings
(Ic), and in both cases formation-flying occurred only shortly before
entry to roost. It is noticeable that slow-flying cloud formation
occurred when wind speed and temperature were both low. Also,
wind speed on ‘rapid-flying-cloud’ evenings is higher than on sub-
group la evenings and so it is possible that as wind speed increased
the sheltering effect of the land mass was reduced and ‘streaming
movement’ Starlings were obliged to soar on upeurrents with the
others.

Starlings’ winter flight behaviour

56

Category II

Mass aerobatic display over the roost, followed by a division into
very large ranging flocks. When winds blew from a direction out-
with the normal-shelter zone, Starlings gathered above their usual
roosting site, roost A, until nearly all had arrived, and then the
whole mass split into two or three very large flocks which flew in
great ranging sweeps, low across woodland and/or over to the near-
by Forth Road Bridge (used as a roosting site earlier in the winter,
and in previous years), before returning to roost in some sheltered
area or areas of woodland (Ila). This large scale searching flight was
observed to a lesser extent on a few other occasions when wind blew
from within the normal-shelter zone. On these latter occasions
(lib) the Starlings had spent the previous night roosting at an
alternative site to roost A, and their apparent indecision about
returning to roost A resulted in a great deal of flying back and forth
between both sites.

Category III

Brief display by individual flocks before flying in to roost. On some
occasions an alternative roosting site to roost A was quickly entered
on consecutive evenings when Starlings arrived at the roosting area
with wind still blowing from a direction outwith the normal-shelter
zone. Possibly owing to lack of favourable wind currents, the birds
did not fly about for long before entering the roost. In this group,
and in category II, occasional minor resettling movements across
tree tops were observed a short time after the birds had apparently
settled for the night.

Category IV

No flight display. When Starlings arrived at the roost with rain
falling and strong winds blowing, they flew straight in to roost,
and when rain began to fall during an aerobatic display they dived
quickly into their roost (IVa). Very strong winds produced a similar
effect, the birds entering their roost almost directly on arrival (IVb).

In order to consider the individual importance of several factors
which might simultaneously affect flight display the evening obser-
vation results were examined statistically by the method of analysis
of variance. The results of this analysis are shown in table 2, and it
is evident that the only statistically significant (P = < 5%) factors
affecting flight performance were rainfall, wind speed and wind
direction. These results support the observations that (a) rainfall
and very strong winds inhibited display and that (b) winds of vary-
ing speed blowing from different directions relative to the roosting
site were largely responsible for the flight behaviour described in
categories I to III, for the period October to early December.

57

Starlings' winter flight behaviour

Table 2. Results of an analysis of variance with data relating to observations
of flight behaviour of Starlings Sturnus vulgaris described in categories I to IV

CATEGORIES I TO III CATEGORIES I TO IV

INCLUSIVE INCLUSIVE

(degrees of freedom 5 X 12) (degrees of freedom 7 X 15)

Variance

ratio

(F)

% probability
of variance
being due to
chance (P)

Variance

ratio

(F)

% probability
of variance
being due to
chance (P)

Temperature (°C)

2.07

>5

1. 14

>5

Vapour pressure (in bar)

2.01

>5

1.44

>5

Wind speed (km per hour)

3-95

<5

5-75

<1

Rainfall (1/10 mm)

-

-

5-98

<1

Wind direction

5-4°

<1

4-97

<1

CHANGES IN LOCATION OF THE ROOSTING SITE
Minor changes in location of the roost were frequently observed and
each move was associated with a change in wind direction which
made roost A unfavourable because of exposure to wind. Flight
behaviour on such occasions is described in category II, and
examples of the alternative choice of roosting site are given below:

(i) 3.10.70. No rain and wind direction 280°. The Starlings divided into two
small flocks and one large flock. The small flocks moved into lower trees south-
east of roost site A, and the large flock moved into lower trees slightly north-cast
of roost site A.

(ii) 20.10.70. No rain and wind direction 320°. The Starlings divided into two
flocks of unequal size, the smaller of which roosted in lower trees to the south of
roost site A, while the larger flock established a roost at the east end of the woodland
(roost B in fig. 2), approximately 600 metres away from roost site A.

(iii) 5.1 1.70. No rain and wind direction 290°. A large-scale move from roost
site A over to the Forth Road Bridge (approximately two km away) where several
thousand Starlings roosted for the night, but the great majority of birds returned
to roost in sheltered lower trees a little to the north-east of roost A.

During February the number of Starlings roosting on Dundas
Hill increased greatly and roost A was eventually abandoned in
favour of a succession of new roosting sites in areas C, D and E
shown in fig. 2. Changes in wind direction were not associated with
these moves, which took place amid great agitation before the birds’
departure at the end of February. Similar erratic changes of roost
site were observed by Wynne-Edwards (1962) at a roost near Bristol
shortly before it broke up around mid-March.

METHOD OF ENTRY TO THE ROOST

Entry to the roost was in no way hampered by strong winds as
suggested by Spencer (1966), and throughout winter Starlings

58 Starlings’ winter flight behaviour

showed no regular method of entry which would allow calculation
of their number, as suggested by Symonds (1961). The methods of
entry to the roost each evening were :

(1) Directly in small groups or streams on arrival (see category
IV).

(2) Continuously dropping from large flocks above the roost in
‘showers’ over a wide area.

(3) Rapid blanket-like drops over a wide area.

(4) Funnelling down from the main swarm, which swung in
pendulum-like motion above the roost. Up to three funnels at one
time were observed.

DISCUSSION

Display was a feature of roosting activity throughout winter, al-
though the area where display took place changed from the im-
mediate vicinity of the roosting site to more distant areas around the
roost as the number of Starlings increased and their method of
assembly altered. These communal manoeuvres may possibly
provide Starlings with an opportunity to assess their numbers for
dispersionary purposes, as postulated by Wynne-Edwards (1962),
but the nature of the flight behaviour observed at this roost suggests
that the primary function of display may simply be to provide the
birds with an important visual marker which will facilitate their
detection of the roosting, or pre-roosting, mass of Starlings.

The indicative nature of display was evident when changes in
location of the roosting site were made (see category II). Starlings
first displayed en masse above the previous evening’s roost site until
nearly all had arrived, and then they formed detached ranging
flocks which bunched into display patterns over ‘possible’ alternative
roosting sites, until one (or several) of these locations then became a
focal point for mass gathering of the ranging flocks prior to their
roosting at this spot.

The involvement of display as a marker, rather than as an oppor-
tunity for population assessment, was perhaps most clearly demon-
strated on evenings when unfavourable weather conditions pre-
vailed at roosting time. On such occasions each flock displayed above
the roost only until the arrival of the next flock, whereupon the
later arrivals displayed while the earlier arrivals entered the roost
(category III). On favourable evenings it was also common for
many Starlings to detach themselves from display flight and enter
the roost long before the total roosting population had arrived. A
further demonstration of display marking was also observed during
the pre-migration increase in numbers, when small roosts from the
Forth Railway Bridge and Rosyth Dockyard flew over to the
vacant area of roost A, where they circled briefly, then quickly

59

Starlings' winter flight behaviour

flew south-east to join the mass of birds which were displaying in this
‘new’ area. Similarly, Starlings flying to roost were observed to
change direction and fly back to join pre-roosting flocks after the
latter rose off the ground in brief formation flight.

As a visual signal there can be no doubting the effectiveness of
flight display, which is often mistaken at a distance for smoke.
Tight aerobatic formations continually alter the opacity of the
display and create changes in the swarm shape, thus increasing the
chance that the display will be noticed. North American Indian
smoke signals embody similar principles.

In the central London area roosting Starlings were not observed
to change their position on buildings in response to changes in wind
direction (S. Cramp in litt.), but, as demonstrated in the section
dealing with changes in location of the roosting site, protection from
wind is an important factor which must be considered by the birds
when choosing their roosting site. This is perhaps evident when one
considers that protection from wind is the only common factor
provided for by the many diverse roosting sites used by Starlings
during winter months, e.g. reed beds, woodland, cranes, bridges
and buildings (Potts 1967), and strange places like the barrel-
shaped beacons which marked the sailing channel of the River
Clyde (Stewart 1928), or on the ground in tunnels formed in thick
grass (Kennedy 1929).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to thank M. J. Richardson and J. M. Todd of the Department of Agriculture
and Fisheries for Scotland, East Craigs, for advice and helpful comments given
during the preparation of this paper.

SUMMARY

The flight behaviour of Starlings Stumus vulgaris prior to roosting, and changes in
location of the roosting site, are described and related to prevailing weather
conditions. It is suggested that the primary function of flight display may be to
provide Starlings with a visual marker which will facilitate their detection of pre-
roosting or roosting areas. Consideration is also given to the importance of ‘shelter
from wind’ as a factor influencing the Starling’s choice of roosting site.

REFERENCES

Bickerton, B. M., and Chapple, W. 1961. ‘Starling roosts and their dispersal’.
Agriculture, 67: 624-626.

Brodie, J. 1974. ‘Evening assembly of Starlings at a winter roost’. Scot. Birds, 8:
63-71.

Cramp, S., Parrinder, E. R., and Richards, B.A. 1957. In The Birds of the London
Area, edited by R. C. Homes. London.

Kennedy, P. G. 1929. ‘Starlings roosting on the ground’. Brit. Birds, 22: 324.
Potts, G. R. 1967. ‘Urban Starling roosts in the British Isles’. Bird Study, 14:
25-42.

Spencer, K. G. 1966. ‘Some notes on the roosting behaviour of Starlings’.
Naturalist, no. 898: 73-80.

6o

Starlings' winter flight behaviour

Stewart, W. 1928. ‘Studies of some Lanarkshire birds’. Scot. Nat., pp 81-84.
Symonds, A. E. J. 1961. ‘The counting of Starlings at country roosts’. Bird Study,
8: 185-193.

Wynne-Edwards, V. C. 1929. ‘The behaviour of Starlings in winter’. Brit. Birds,
23: 138-153.

1962. Animal Dispersion in Relation to Social Behaviour. Edinburgh and London.

pp 284-288.

James Brodie, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries for Scotland, East
Craigs, Edinburgh 12

Plate 5. Above, pre-roost swarm ol Starlings Slurnus vulgaris, Kirkliston, Lothian.
1 970/7 1 (photo: James Brodie). Below, a huge mass ol Starlings blacken the sky.
Shropshire (photo: H. R. Sykes) (pages 51-60)

mw-.

|p'

it>»

k'

V

NCsAr

Plate 6. Starlings Sturnus vulgaris near Rhostic, Llanilar, Dyfcd, 1966 ( photos :
A. 0. Chater). Above, dense swarm display similar to the figure-of-eight pattern
(page 55) ; below, a ranging flock

f

J

1

t

* * * *•../*•*.* ^ | m/ Si * « * • ' * i j + ’ . ; % ■*• ,

' *i ? - * »f > # f* * '* , * j • ( .* • ' * * 4

•* •. ■>,.•■ '* '■,>*' '.«/ ■*.'/* «•.'»-.•• J .*< 4 f , V *. • • • • *

; » V' • * •* ••.,••• .• r , f

> « .* v* „ ^ jv • */ « • • *,• i > /. i < /.

• .•••♦» * ;vi. 1 , < »< *-* •' * *.• .

/ _ •. • .. »•'*, <• '*'•* •« 'i#-* .< • i

. •*. • ' l7> 1 V.V ' ' . \ Y- \ •/ ’• • ■ - •* t -

r*

Plate 7. Above, pre-roost flock of Starlings Sturnus vulgaris rising and falling,
Kirkliston, Lothian, 1970/71 {photo: James Brodie). Below, Starlings assembling
before flying to roost, Suffolk, 1950 {photo: Uric Hushing)

Plate 8. Above, Starlings Sturnus vulgaris gathering together before going to
roost, Suffolk, 1950. Below, Starlings at roost in a tree on the Embankment
near Waterloo Bridge, London, February 1951 ( photos : Eric Hosking)

Notes

Peregrine and Raven possibly contaminated by Fulmar oil

With reference to R. A. Broad’s paper on Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis
oil contamination (Brit. Birds, 67: 297-301), the following observa-
tions of possible oiling may be of interest. On 10th June 1 97 1 , I
disturbed a female Peregrine Falco peregrinus from a low cliff near
Waulkmill Bay, Orkney. The bird’s plumage appeared very wet
and bedraggled as though the feathers were saturated with some
substance. It flew away with some difficulty across the bay. On 14th
May 1973, at Backaskaill, Sanday, Orkney, I came upon a Raven
Corvus corax resting under a bank. Again, the feathers appeared
saturated and stuck together. As it flew away it managed to rise
only a metre or two above the ground. Both these birds allowed
much closer approach than is usual and I do not think they would
have survived for very long. On neither occasion had it been raining
and there were no pools suitable for bathing. Fulmars were plentiful
on the cliffs near both areas, however, and it is highly likely that the
state of the plumage of the Peregrine and the Raven was due to
contamination by Fulmar oil. C. J Booth

34 High Street, Kirkwall, Orkney kw i 5 iaz

Injury feigning by Red-legged Partridge in water Whilst
walking along the towpath of the canal near Bull’s Lock, Thatcham,
Berkshire, on 29th June 1974, R. G. Wilkinson and I noticed an
adult Red-legged Partridge Alectoris rufa leading a party of chicks
along the path in front of us. The towpath at this point was flanked
on both sides by overhanging rank vegetation and on the opposite
side of the canal was a steep slope down to a reed bed. As we gained
on the family party the chicks left the path and disappeared into the
vegetation. When we were about level with the place where they
were hiding the adult flapped across the canal — perhaps the only
feasible direction in which to perform a distraction display —
feigning an injured wing. It foundered in the middle of the canal
and floated with the current. It was rather low in the water and at
first pointed its bill straight ahead but after a second or two dropped
its head so that the bill pointed diagonally' down towards the water
in an attitude which possibly' indicated exhaustion or shock. It
stayed in this position for about 30 seconds while the current
carried it downstream, its body lying across the direction of flow.
After it had floated along like this for about 20 metres the current
brought it close to the opposite bank of the canal, whereupon it
struggled to the shore and disappeared into the thick vegetation.

Roger Frankum

16 Berry's Road, Upper Bucklebury, Reading, Berkshire

61

62

Notes

Inland records of Kittiwakes H. G. Alexander, in his book

Seventy Tears of Birdwatching (1974, pages 159-160), briefly mentioned
the question of overland migration by Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla
and quoted the idea which he put forward in 1937 that there may
be a cross-country migration in February and March. On 5th March
1975 I saw Kittiwakes flying about over the regular evening gull
roost at Cannock Reservoir (Chasewater), Staffordshire; eventually
they bunched together and flew off steadily to the north-east in a
compact flock of 37 adults. At least two others remained in the roost,
giving an exceptional total of at least 39 adult Kittiwakes. The
weather was fine and calm. This observation and some earlier
sightings of adults in March and April which were apparently mov-
ing through in fine weather, together with my interest in Alexander’s
suggestion, prompted me to analyse the Kittiwake records in the
Midlands area for the ten-year period from 1964 to 1973.

In the old counties analysed there were about 151 records in
the period, distributed as follows: 46 in Staffordshire; 45 in Derby-
shire; 21 in Northamptonshire; 12 in Nottinghamshire; 12 in
Warwickshire; 7 in Leicestershire and Rutland; 7 in Worcestershire;
1 in Shropshire. The localities involved were widely scattered
(though the Nottinghamshire records were all from the Trent
valley, as were some of those from Derbyshire) and mostly con-
cerned the larger reservoirs, though a very few were away from
water. There were 25 records from Ogston Reservoir, Derbyshire,
16 from Cannock Reservoir, 15 from Blithfield Reservoir, Stafford-
shire, 13 from Pitsford Reservoir, Northamptonshire, and 13 from
Belvide Reservoir, Staffordshire.

The annual totals were as follows: 13 in 1964; 11 in 1965; 9 in
1966; 7 in 1967; 20 in 1968; 24 in 1969; 9 in 1970; 19 in 1971 ; 20
in 1972; 19 in 1973. Of these records, 1 3 1 (86.8%) involved single
birds; there were six records of two, two of three, five of four, one
of five, two of six and one of seven birds. The largest flocks were ten
at Blithfield Reservoir on 14th August 1968, 25-30 at Cannock
Reservoir on 5th November 1967 and 34 (six adults) at Pitsford
Reservoir on 16th November 1969.

Table 1 summarises the total number of records in each month
over the ten-year period but it should be noted that the information
concerning the age composition of the records is very incomplete.
There seem to be three peak periods of occurrence, namely March/
April, August and November/December. Immatures predominate
in the autumn whilst adults occur chiefly in the winter and early
spring. Though Kittiwakes were recorded in seven of the ten years
in March and seven in April, the March/April period combined
produced records in nine of the ten years, as did the February/
March period. All ten years produced records at some time between

Notes 63

Table 1. Monthly distribution of inland records of Kittiwakes Rissa
tridactyla in the Midlands area for the ten years from 1964 to 1973

J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

Number of years
with records

4

6

7

7

6

2

3

9

5

6

8

8

Number of records

8

10

17

23

I I

3

4

24

7

7

18

19

Number of birds

12

10

>9

26

12

3

5

54

12

7

81

>9

Records of adults

4

2

10

12

5

I

3

I

7

9

Records of imms

2

1

2

I

2

4

6

1

4

2

February and April and it seems that there is some regular move-
ment of adults in the early spring, not necessarily connected with
rough weather. The autumn peak seems to be due primarily to
very young birds wandering inland (since any bird in first-year
plumage in August must have fledged that summer) and the Novem-
ber/December peak is perhaps largely due to storm-driven birds.
The reports give almost no indication of the prevailing weather
conditions but certainly the flock of 25-30 birds at Cannock Reser-
voir in November occurred in gales and about four more were at
Blithfield Reservoir on the same day. An Arctic Skua Stercorarius
parasiticus was at the former locality and a Great Skua S. skua at the
latter at the same time.

The local recorders, K. Allsopp, D. Amedro, C. J. Coe, A. Dobbs
and C. Wright very kindly gave me the records for their respective
counties and their prompt response was very helpful. The Stafford-
shire, Warwickshire and Worcestershire records were taken from
the annual West Midland Bird Reports. R. A. Hume

31 Lime Grove, Burntwood, Walsall WS7 oh a

t

Large numbers of Swifts killed by traffic On the evening of
27th June 1974 I investigated a report that many Swifts Apus apus
were being killed by road traffic on the A5 near the sewage works
just north of Dunstable, Bedfordshire. On reaching the site I counted

32 dead Swifts over a distance of 50 metres and there were probably

more lying in the grass on the verges. There was a flock of about
80 Swifts still in the area, feeding on small, winged insects, probably
aphids, which were abundant on one short stretch of the road.
Because of the drizzling rain and general dampness the insects were
flying very low, some just a few centimetres above the ground, thus
creating the unusual conditions which resulted in such abnormally
high mortality of their predators. B. D. Harding

26 Woodlands Avenue, Houghton Regis, Dunstable, Bedfordshire

Dr K. E. L. Simmons comments that Swifts normally feed at high
levels free of obstacles, the lower levels being exploited more by the

64 Notes

hirundines which are more adept than the Swift in evading hazards
by rapid changes in flight direction. Eds

Great Tit eating bumblebee I should like to record an observa-
tion relating to T. R. Birkhead’s paper, ‘Predation by birds on social
wasps’ {Brit. Birds, 67: 221-229), in which he quotes references to
Great Tits Barns major removing the stings of dead Honey Bees
Apis mellifera and feeding on wasps Vespula spp.

On 19th April 1974, in a wood near Rotherfield, East Sussex,
I was watching a Great Tit foraging in the undergrowth. It seemed
to be holding a piece of nesting material in its bill but when I
approached the bird to within about four metres I could distinguish
the object as a queen bumblebee (either Bombus lapidarius or
Psithyrus rupestris ). The Great Tit released the insect several times,
fluttering cautiously around it before recapturing it. When it was
released, the bee flew slowly about the undergrowth but seemed
incapable of flying away. Eventually the bird flew up to a nearby
branch with the prey in its bill. It then held the bee down on the
branch with its feet and pecked at it as if feeding on, for example, a
peanut. Unfortunately I was unable to see whether the sting was
removed but I suspect that this may have been accomplished when
the bee was finally recaught in the undergrowth. After about 30
seconds of feeding, the Great Tit, still with its prey, flew into the
upper canopy of an oak tree where I lost sight of it and so was
unable to determine whether the bee was totally devoured.

Birkhead suggests that birds may take advantage of torpid
insects, on which they would not otherwise feed. Such torpidity
may be induced by certain weather conditions such as high humidity
or mist. My observation was made at about 06.45 hours on a damp
morning and would seem to support Birkhead’s theory, though it
was difficult to tell if the bee was in a torpid condition as I did not
see it before the Great Tit first caught it. Free and Butler (1959,
Bumblebees) stated that lethargy and drowsiness can be caused by the
bee spending the night away from its nest or feeding on certain
flowers, such as those of lime Tilia and Rhododendron ponticum, whose
nectar, in a concentrated form, is mildly toxic.

Andrew Cramb

Dunbar Hall, Don Street, Old Aberdeen, Grampian ABg 2UA

Presumed female Chiffchaff singing On 27th April 1975, at a
farm near Maidstone, Kent, I was listening to a Chiffchaff Phyllo-
scopus collybita singing some five metres away when a second bird,
carrying nest material, appeared nearby. It transpired that I was
standing within a metre of the nest site. According to The Handbook
the nest is built by the female alone and I therefore presumed this

Notes

65

second bird to be the hen of the pair. As I watched her, she dropped
the short pieces of dried grass and uttered two or three phrases of
normal song before flying off. Within the next few minutes I was
able to watch her resume nest building whilst the male bird con-
tinued to sing. D. W. Taylor

14 Boughton Lane , Maidstone, Kent me 15 gQN

Fierce attack by Starling on House Sparrow An atypical
case of a dispute between birds leading to a physical attack was
observed by my mother, Mrs M. P. Abraham, in our garden at
Amersham, Buckinghamshire, on 5th January 1975. Food in the
form of kitchen scraps had been placed on the lawn and this had
attracted numerous Starlings Sturnus vulgaris and House Sparrows
Passer domesticus. In a dispute over a piece of bread a Starling
managed to push a House Sparrow over on to its back. It then stood
on the House Sparrow and pecked violently with a stabbing motion
at its victim’s breast. This behaviour continued for some seconds
until a sharp rap on the window pane interrupted proceedings.

Kevin D. Abraham

16 Deep Acres, Chesham Bois, Amersham, Buckinghamshire

Role of birds in moss dispersal In 1973, during a study of the
ecology of mosses in several Oxfordshire woods of beech Fagus
sylvatica of various ages, it was found that besides lateral growth and
spore dispersal, an important factor in the spread of mosses was
fragmentation of existing clumps. In several cases, birds, by their
feeding activities, were the agents of this last-mentioned method of
dispersal.

Blackbirds Turdus merula, Robins Erithacus rubecula and Great
Tits Parus major are particularly common in the older beech woods,
which generally have less leaf litter than the younger woods and
consequently more undergrowth and a greater abundance of moss
on the woodland floor. The birds obtain a large part of their food
by foraging on the ground, scraping or tossing aside leaves and other
debris. During October and November 1973 Blackbirds were
observed feeding among moss growth. In so doing they broke up and
scattered portions of the robust mosses Mnium homum and Poly-
trichum formosum over distances of a metre or two. In the two-month
period 34 clumps of moss, averaging some two square centimetres
each, were moved from one place to another within an area of five
square metres and 18 similar pieces were transported into the same
area. Not all the clumps so moved would survive but fragmentation
presumably occurs throughout the year and there would be a high
survival rate during autumn when wet weather produces extensive
growth. Blackbirds, and probably also Robins and Great Tits, thus

66

Notes

have a significant role in the small-scale dispersal of mosses in wood-
land. Their role in long-range dispersal is difficult to assess; small
fragments of moss on the feet or plumage might later grow, and moss
spores must frequently be transported on birds’ feet. Such spores of
an unidentified moss were found in soil on the feet of a Song Thrush
T. philomelos found dead in beech woodland.

G. W. H. Davison

8 Eastwick Road , Walton-on- Thames, Surrey KTI2 5AN

Reviews

Watching Sea Birds. By Richard Perry. Croom Helm,
London, 1975. 230 pages; 16 line-drawings; 2 maps. £4*75*

This is not really a new book but a reprinting of parts of two of the
author’s earlier books, both of which — Lundy Isle of Puffins (1940)
and Shetland Sanctuary (1948) — are now out of print, though not
difficult to obtain second-hand. The newly published version lacks
some of the original detailed breeding chronologies and incidental
discussions but has gained a series of attractive sketches by R. A.
Richardson.

An account of the breeding activities of Puffins, Kittiwakes,
Razorbills and Guillemots on the island of Lundy in the Bristol
Channel, and of Great Skuas, Arctic Skuas and Gannets on Noss in
the Shetland Isles, takes up most of the book. Richard Perry was
among the first of the early naturalists to record detailed observa-
tions of breeding biology and behaviour in the birds he watched ;
much of the information presented here is as original today as it
was when first published. The book provides a valuable source of
reference for modern workers in the fields of seabird breeding
biology and recent studies, aided by ringing, have sometimes only
confirmed Perry’s speculations on the basis of his observations.

There was some controversy over the counts of seabirds on Lundy
given by Perry; this is referred to in the foreword of the second
edition of Lundy Isle of Puffins. In spite of this, Perry’s work illus-
trates the decline in numbers of birds on the island in 35 years.
Today Puffins are reduced to a few scattered pairs in areas where
they were described by Perry as an ‘endless army’ of thousands.
Less well appreciated perhaps, but also illustrated by this account,
is the decline in numbers of the Guillemots and Razorbills on
Lundy, from 6,000 and 5,000 birds respectively to 1,700 and 1,250

Reviews

67

birds in 1973. One hundred and twenty Guillemots now nest in
Devil’s Chimney where Perry apparently counted a thousand
chicks in 1939.

The book makes easy and engaging reading, giving one the feeling
of the many hours of watching that went into the observations. The
descriptions move from one species to another rather as one might
walk round the island of Noss or Lundy and pause to look at the
life on the cliffs below. Clare Lloyd

The Birds of Nottinghamshire. Edited by Austen Dobbs for
the Trent Valley Bird Watchers. David & Charles, Newton
Abbott, 1975. 226 pages; 16 black-and-white plates; several
line drawings, maps and diagrams. £6.50.

This book is substantially a product of the work carried out by the
Trent Valley Bird Watchers during the past 35 years. The historical
aspects are covered in a short first chapter which credits Joseph
Whitaker with the main impact up to 1907. There is a brief chapter
on the topography of the county, followed by a substantial one on
habitats — perhaps the most valuable part of the book — in which
the results of several censuses are given. A chapter on migration
outlines the importance of the Trent Valley as a migration route.

Unfortunately the systematic list falls far short of being the
comprehensive description of Nottinghamshire ornithology that
the book claims. On the dust jacket is a statement — ‘The system-
atic list, the first comprehensive one since 1907, is designed to
answer the innumerable questions on arrival and departure times
of migrants, on recorded visits by rarities, or changes in numbers
and distribution’; this it fails to do in anything like sufficient detail,
especially for the rarities, where the information is so meagre as to
be almost valueless. It is not enough for the second British record
of American Nighthawk to be dismissed as ‘Rare vagrant. 1 in
1971’ without details or reference. The only British record of
breeding by the Black-winged Stilt is summarised in a mere three
lines. Surely this book is the place where all such county records
should be fully documented — under one cover for easy reference.

The often abbreviated style is relieved at times by such gratuitous
prose as ‘The Willow Warbler is a favourite migrant of the bird-
watcher because it will travel during the day at low level, sometimes
in loose groups, and also it attracts attention by singing’. Exactly
what is meant by ‘Close contact with the Greenfinch suggests that
it is not very intelligent: however, as it is obviously successful in a
variety of habitats, including woodland, this conception must be
wrong’ ? Similar examples are legion. The detail given for some of
the commoner species is basically sound but in some cases it is too
general and needs qualifying with Nottinghamshire in mind.

68

Reviews

The inclusion of 16 photographs of common birds with no cross
references in the text is pointless, especially as some are of poor
quality. A series of county site and habitat photographs would have
been more useful.

At £6.50 I would have expected a book on a grander scale,
sufficient in itself to enable the reader to learn, in some detail,
about the birds which have been recorded in Nottinghamshire.
This is far from being the case; future workers will have to start
all over again and delve into historical documents and annual
reports to find such simple and necessary facts as dates. Why has
it not been done thoroughly here ? Despite a statement in the intro-
duction that ‘More Nottinghamshire birdwatchers asked for, or
wanted, more background information which they could obtain
only with difficulty — hence this book’, I am afraid their lot is now
only slightly improved. John R. Mather

News and comment Peter ConcLer

Appointments to the Scientific Authority for Animals The Secretary for the
Environment has appointed twelve members of the Scientific Authority for
Animals to give advice on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The appointments take effect from 1st January
1976, the date of the implementation of the Convention in the United Kingdom.
The appointments are Professor V. C. Wynne-Edwards CBE FRS (Chairman),
Dr M. R. Brambell, P. J. Conder OBE, Dr G. B. Corbet, R. S. R. Fitter, Miss
A. G. C. Grandison, Dr C. J. O. Harrison, Professor Sir Andrew Huxley FRS,
J. Reid CB DVSM, T. H. Scott, E. H. Tong FRICS and R. C. Upton. Further
appointments are expected to be made. The main functions of the Scientific
Authority for Animals will be to give advice on applications for licences to import
animals of endangered species and certain products, such as fur skins, and to advise
on amendments to the list of species to be controlled.

It is gratifying to see that the Government is at least implementing some of the
provisions of the Convention through the Import, Export and Custom Powers
(Defence) Act 1939, even though it has not yet ratified the Convention. Readers
will remember that Lord Melchett promised that the British Government would
ratify by the end of 1975. However, we understand that the Dependant Territories
whose consent is necessary before such a convention is ratified were rather slow in
taking the necessary action, and that further delay has been caused since the
European Economic Community wish all member countries to ratify together,
and not all member countries are ready to do so.

It is expected that the Government will soon introduce a Bill into Parliament
which really will fulfil all the conditions without weakening existing legislation.
The provisions of the 1939 Act has many loopholes which conservationists wish
to see closed as quickly as possible.

Mauritius Kestrel Dr Stanley Temple paid a three-week visit to Mauritius
in October 1975 according to the President’s Newsletter of the ICBP. He found

News and comment

69

that at least six and probably all of the seven Kestrels that were alive before the
February cyclone have now been located: these seven birds include two adult
pairs and three young birds from the 1974 breeding season. Two of the latter are
together and may be attempting to pair. As to the adults, the pair that nested so
successfully on a sheer cliff face last year have once again chosen a cliff site, unfor-
tunately vulnerable to monkeys. Dr Temple believes that this apparently new
propensity to choose cliff nest sites may be one of the major factors in saving the
kestrel for posterity since tree sites are so much more open to predation by monkeys.
He accordingly spent two days on the cliff face chosen this year, attempting to
modify the likely nest holes to make them inaccessible to monkeys. It is indeed
good news that these kestrels are continuing to hold their own but who is going
to continue to be nursemaid for them when Dr Temple has finally to retire from
the scene?

Canada Geese in the west midlands The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries
and Food arc co-operating with the Wildfowl Trust and local ornithological
societies to study the behaviour of Canada Geese in the west midlands; 712 geese
have been fitted with unique rings for easy identification on six waters in Stafford-
shire, and in addition 224 geese on one water have been marked with a special
dye. It is hoped that reports of sightings of these specially marked geese will be
sent to MAFF so that a survey of their movements can be made. Further infor-
mation and survey forms can be obtained from Miss B. E. Jones, MAFF, Agricul-
tural Development and Advisory Service (ADAS), Woodthorne, Wolverhampton,
West Midlands vvv6 8tq, to whom sightings should also be reported. (By courtesy—
Habitat.)

Dyed waders from Africa The studies of the migration of waders in Africa are
still in their infancy when compared with those in north-western Europe. This is
partly due to the fact that wader enthusiasts are few and far between, the majority
being found in Kenya and South Africa. Also waders are smallish birds and there-
fore do not lend themselves to high recovery rates, and it is significant that the
majority of recoveries are made by other ringers. As a result, the recovery rates of
African ringed waders is very low. We therefore know little about the migration
routes through Africa and between the African and Palearctic regions. In an
attempt to improve our understanding of the migration patterns of waders, large
numbers of Knots, Sanderlings and Curlew Sandpipers will be dye-marked in the
Cape Province by the Western Cape Wader Study Group in early 1976 before the
birds depart for their northward migration.

The Group appeals to all birdwatchers to look out for these marked birds during
the spring and autumn passages of 1976. If you do see a marked bird, which should
be especially obvious in flight, please contact either A. J. Prater, British Trust for
Ornithology, Beech Grove, Tring, Hertfordshire, or Dr R. W. Summers, Percy
FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, South
Africa, giving as many details as possible, including the colour of the dye and its
position on the bird.

The scanty ringing evidence suggests that the migration routes of these three
species may cross anywhere between western Europe and central Asia, so if you
know a site where any of these species occurs on spring (April-May) or autumn
(August-Octobcr) passage, please keep a special lookout.

3M’s Wildlife Sound Recording Contest Top award for the overall winner
of this contest, which is open only to British amateur tape recordists, is a Sennheiser
MKH 815T transistorised condenser gun microphone, together with power pack
and accessories, donated by Hayden Laboratories. New to the competition are
special awards for cassette recordings and stereo entries: a Wollcnsak 4766E hi-fi

?o

News and comment

cassette deck with Dolby noise reduction circuitry (recommended price £288)
goes to the entrant submitting the best entry made on a cassette machine, and a
pair of Monitor MA5 Series II speakers will go to the recordist entering the best
stereophonic recording. In addition, a Grampian parabolic reflector w’ith DP6
microphone, and a pair of Rotel stereo headphones, will be awarded for the most
original recording. There is no entry fee, and copies of the rules and entry forms
— together with hints on wildlife recording by lecturer, author and international
recording contest winner Richard Margoschis — are available from Bill Bowles,
Public Relations Executive, 3M United Kingdom Ltd, 380 Harrow Road, London
wg 3HU. Closing date for receipt of entries is 31st March 1976.

Further New Year Honours In addition to those mentioned in the last ‘News
and comment’, Ivan Hills has been awarded the OBE and Ernest Neal and Neville
Whittaker the MBE. Ivan Hills is Chief Land Agent of the National Trust; many
Trust properties hold great ornithological interest, and Ivan himself has been a
very keen birdwatcher for many years. Ernest Neal’s name has been associated
with Badgers but he has also been a leader in conservation in Somerset. Neville
Whittaker must, as the Manager of the RSPCA’s hostel at Heathrow airport, have
one of the most heart-breaking tasks, seeing as he does so much death and suffering
among imported birds ; all who have seen the work he has done will be particularly
pleased at this award.

Final comment The title of a paper in the December 1975 issue of the Bulletin
of the BOC reads: ‘The first records of the Mongolian Plover, Charadrius mongolus
Pallas, for Mongolia’. Perhaps there is some hope for the Loch Ness Monster.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

September and October reports D. A. Christie

The weather in early September was mainly anticyclonic but an airstream from
the west and south-west took over, being particularly prominent from mid-month
with gale force winds on several occasions. In October the picture changed, with
many warm, dry days as an anticyclone established itself over the Baltic region,
this allowing easy immigration of eastern species. Depressions from the Atlantic
followed at the very end of the month. The two months were notable for the
unprecedented arrival of vagrants, from both the west and the east.

ALBATROSSES, SHEARWATERS, SKUAS, GULLS AND TERNS

A Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis on Fair Isle (Shetland) on 19th and 20th
October was the first record for the island since 1970. An unidentified albatross
Diomedea sp was noted off Cemaes Head (Dyfed) about 3rd September (another
also reported about 20th August). The only report of a Great Shearwater Puffmus
gravis was of one between Lands End and Scilly on 6th September, and similarly
the one report of Balearics P. puffmus mauretanicus concerned three flying south off
the Calf of Man on 23rd. As many as eleven Cory’s Shearwaters Calonectris
diomedea were seen in the Irish Sea off Dyfed on 4th of that month. Sooty Shear-
waters P. griseus were more numerous: we received records from eleven places,
almost all on the east coast, and passage was most heavy from about die middle
of September with several counts of double figures; by far the highest number
was seen at Spurn (Humberside) where 240 were noted on 14th; in October there

September and October reports 7 1

were only four reports, a total of ten or so birds, the last at Fair Isle on 28th.

Four Long-tailed Skuas Stercorarius longicaudus were reported during September,
and a late single was seen off Unst (Shetland) on 28th October. Vagrant gulls
from the Nearctic involved a Bonaparte’s Larus Philadelphia in Claggain Bay
(Strathclyde) on 12th September and a Laughing Gull L. atricilla at Fair Isle
the next day. Sabine’s Gulls L. sabini were more common than usual, with eight
September records and six October: again the east coast was favoured, 14 birds
being seen, while one was well up the River Thames at West Thurrock on 7th
September; on the south coast two were in Rye Bay (East Sussex) on 28th of the
month, when one was also found in the west off Bardsey (Gwynedd). Rarer
European terns were few: a Gull-billed Gelochelidon nilotica at Boston Point
(Lincolnshire) on 7th September, and White-winged Black Chlidonias leucopterus
at four places: Covenham Reservoir (Lincolnshire) on 2nd September, Laugharne
(Dyfed) on 6th, Heysham (Lancashire) on 12th and 13th, and Dungencss (Kent)
from 24th to 4th October.

HERONS, STORKS AND SPOONBILLS

The only Purple Herons Ardea purpurea in the period were one at Flamborough
(Humberside) on 10th October and one between Lands End and Scilly on the
last day of October, while no Little Egrets Egretta garzetta were reported at all.
A Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax was at Rye Harbour from 2nd to 4th Septem-
ber. On 24th September a White Stork Ciconia ciconia bearing a Heligoland ring
was found injured (believed shot) at Pendine (Dyfed), and there was a report of a
Black Stork C. nigra inland from Littlehampton (West Sussex) on 1 ith. The only
information which reached us concerning Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia was a
sighting of one in Southampton Water (Hampshire) on 18th October.

WILDFOWL

A pair of American Wigeon Anas americana in Surrey Docks early in September
were thought to have been escapes from captivity. More likely to be genuine
vagrants were several Surf Scoters Melanitta per spicillata and King Eiders
Somateria spectabilis : singles of the former were found at Murcar (Grampian)
from 23rd September, in the Tresco area of Scilly from 5th October and in Burg-
head Bay (Grampian) on 26th October; and King Eiders were present at Fair Isle
from 8th September to 2nd October, at Murcar from 23rd September and in
Loch Fleet (Highland) at the end of October. Two Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna
ferruginea at Whitton Sand on the Humber estuary on 13th and 14th September
may possibly have been wild. Almost certainly a wild visitor, a Red-breasted
Goose Branta rujicollis appeared on the Essex marshes towards the end of October
with the wintering Brent Geese B. bernicla, and what must surely have been the
same individual later turned up, again with the Brents (which move from Essex
to the south coast), at Langstone Harbour (Hampshire) in November.

RAPTORS TO BUSTARDS

The only Rough-legged Buzzards Buteo lagopus brought to our notice were at
Upper Derwentdale (South Yorkshire) on nth and 12th October (one, possibly
two birds), at Worth marshes (Kent) on 14th and at Cley (Norfolk) on 19th, while a
Steppe Buzzard B. buteo vulpinus was at St Ives (Cornwall) on 27th October and
2nd November. There were two sightings of Red Kites Xlilvus milvus, singles at
Warsop (Nottinghamshire) on 20th September (flying north-west) and at Lizard
(Cornwall) on 31st October. There were eight reports of Ospreys Pandion haliaetus,
five of them inland and including the latest, at Pembury (Kent) on 6th October.
Spotted Crakes Porzana porzana continued to show themselves and one on Fair
Isle on 2nd October coincided with an arrival of Water Rails Rallus aquaticus,
while several were noted in Scilly during the same month. Single Corncrakes

72

September and October reports

Crex crex appeared on Bardsey on 26th September and on Skokholm (Dyfed) the
following day, and one was seen at Rye Harbour on 12th of the month. Of the
many vagrants during the two months summarised a Little Bustard Otis telrax
was one of a number which appeared in Scilly, this bird on St Agnes on 29th
October and on St Mary’s on 2nd and 3rd November.

VAGRANT WADERS
Palearctic

Great Snipes Gallinago media were discovered at Scvenoaks (Kent) on 3rd Septem-
ber (staying until 15th) and at Crabley Creek (Humberside) on 6th. A Sociable
Plover Vanellus gregarius was watched by many at Langton Herring (Dorset)
during its stay of several weeks from 28th September. On the south coast a pratin-
cole Glareola sp was identified at Selsey Bill (West Sussex) on 3rd September,
though it could not be assigned to a particular species.

Nearctic

No fewer than 15 species of Nearctic waders were reported during September and
October. In a short summary it is simplest to list these in systematic order, begin-
ning with a Killdeer Charadrius vociferus which arrived at Eye Brook Reservoir
(Leicestershire) on the last day of September and stayed until 19th October; it
was later relocated at Swithlands Reservoir in the same county on 2nd November,
where it remained until 16th November, and one may speculate whether a Killdeer
on Thorne Moors (Humberside) on 29th and 30th November was the same
individual. Lesser Golden Plovers Pliwialis dominica, some perhaps of Asian
origin, were seen at Bempton (Humberside) on 1st September, at Stithians Reser-
voir (Cornwall) from 2nd (two), at Culdrose, Helston (also Cornwall), on 19th,
and at Siblyback Reservoir (again Cornwall) on 26th. Four reports of dowitchers
Limnodromus sp reached us: at Keyhaven marshes (Hampshire) from 20th Septem-
ber, on Jersey (Channel Islands) from 21st to 24th, on St Mary’s (Scilly) from 5th
to 13th October and at Stithians Reservoir on 14th (two); apart from the Jersey
bird, all were identified as Long-billed L. scolopaceus. An Upland Sandpiper
Bartramia longicauda appeared at Dale Aerodrome (Dyfed) on 1st September and
another arrived on Fair Isle on 25th September, a Solitary Sandpiper Tringa
solitaria was on Tresco on 12 th September, and a Spotted Sandpiper T. macidaria
in the Dovey estuary (Dyfed/Gwynedd) from 9th October until 20th November.
Two Greater Yellowlegs T. melanoleuca reached Britain in September, at Tresco
from 3rd to 6th (when found dead) and at Breydon Water (Norfolk) from 8th to
13th; and four Lesser Yellowlegs T.Jiavipes turned up, at Washington (Tyne &
Wear) during 4th-8th September, at Pwllheli (Gwynedd) on 9th and 10th and at
Wick (Highland) on 20th, and at Chlenick Creek, Truro (Cornwall), from 1st
to 22nd October.

A Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla was found at Brimpton, Newbury (Berk-
shire), on nth October. Surprisingly, there were only two reports of White-
rumped Sandpipers C. fuscicollis, both in September, at Washington during
4th-8th and near Kidwelly (Dyfed) from 25th to 27th. With so many Nearctic
vagrants it was surprising also that there were not more Pectoral Sandpipers
C. melanotos, just ten at seven localities but including two together at Chew Valley
Lake (Avon) at the end of September and beginning of October. A small stint at
Hurworth Burn Reservoir (Durham) in the first three days of September caused
much argument and was identified as a Semipalmated Sandpiper C. pusilla by
some observers and as a Red-necked Stint C. ruficollis (from the east Palearctic)
by others. A belated report from Stanpit marsh (Dorset) referred to a Western
Sandpiper C. mauri on 24th August. The wader for which the autumn will be
remembered was, however, Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites subruficollis :
during August-October reports came in from over 30 places all over Britain and it

73

September and October reports

would seem likely that more than 50 or so individuals were involved in this massive
influx ; there were at least eight, and probably more, in Scilly alone while inland
odd birds turned up at reservoirs and lakes in widely scattered parts of Britain ;
although we have no details of Irish records, this must be one of the largest arrivals
of an American wader ever recorded in these islands. In contrast there was just one
Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor in the period, at Chew Valley Lake
from 17th to 20th September.

NEAR-PASSERINE VAGRANTS

From the Palearctic a Great Spotted Cuckoo Clamator glandarius was reported in
Belfast about the end of September; and an Alpine Swift Apus melba was at
Staines Reservoir (Surrey) on 19th September, with another at Dawlish Warren
(Devon) on 4th October.

A Yellow-billed Cuckoo Coccyztis americanus was reported ‘somewhere in
Ireland’ during September, but more specific details were received of a Black-
billed Cuckoo C. erythropthalmus trapped at Redcar (Cleveland) on 23rd of that
month which stayed for the next day. From the middle to the end of the month a
Nighthawk Chordeiles minor was present in the Newlyn area of Cornwall. Another
of the remarkable scries of American arrivals was a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
Sphyrapicus varius, a first for Britain if accepted, on Tresco from 26th September
until 6th October.

VAGRANT PASSERINES

.Vearctic

A quite remarkable influx of American passerines took place which brought many
observers to different parts of Britain in the chase to catch up with both the
New and Old World species which made the autumn so different from so many
preceding ones. Nine individuals of seven species crossed the Atlantic in September
and October. First there was a Rufous-sided Towhee Pipilo erythrophthalmus
which was identified at Spurn on 5th September (though it may have been present
from 27th August) and which remained until at least the end of November. This
was followed by a Tennessee Warbler Vermivora peregrine on Fair Isle from 6th
to 18th, the first for Britain and Ireland if accepted. On 18th a Bobolink Doli-
chonyx oryzivorus arrived on Out Skerries (Shetland), and then, incredibly, a second
Tennessee Warbler was trapped on Fair Isle on 24th. In the last week of Septem-
ber a Red-eyed Vireo Vireo olivaceus was on Bardsey on 26th and 27th, and a
Black and White Warbler Mniotilta varia stayed on St Mary’s from 27th to 30th,
while a Scarlet Tanager Piranga olivacea occupied the same group of islands
on Tresco from 27th until 3rd October. In October another Bobolink turned up,
this one on St Mary’s on 9th ; and Scilly proved its attraction to American vagrants
yet again when a Blackpoll Warbler Dendroica striata stayed on St Agnes on 19th
and 20th, while what was almost certainly the same bird was seen there on 31st and
1st November.

Palearctic

If the invasion of Nearctic passerines was astounding, the number of Palearctic
vagrants which reached the shores of Britain was even more noteworthy. Over 40
species were recorded and many individuals were involved, most arriving in Octo-
ber. A Bimaculated Lark Melanocorypha bimaculata was on St Mary’s from 24th
to 27th October, the second ever. Short-toed Larks Calandrella cinerea were
found in September at Walberswick (Suffolk) on 7th and on Fair Isle from
2 1 st to 27th; and in October in Scilly during the first half of the month (at least
six estimated), on Whalsay (Shetland) on 4th and 5th and 19th, on Fair Isle on
8th and 9th (two, one staying to 14th), on Bardsey from 17th to 19th and at
Holme (Norfolk) from 27th until 16th November. A Crested Lark Galerida

74

September and October reports

cristata allowed close views at Dungeness (Kent) from 28th September until 1st
October, and one was also sighted at nearby Lade on 16th October. A Black-
throated Thrush Turdus ruficollis was reported on St Agnes on 7th October and
another was present at Holkham (Norfolk) from 21st to 24th, while in Scotland a
White’s Thrush Z oothera dauma arrived on Whalsay on 11th October. On 1st
September a Desert Wheatear Oenanthe deserti was reported at Cley. Stonechats
Saxicola torquata of one of the Siberian forms were described at Holy Island (Nor-
thumberland) on 1 8th October and at Portland (Dorset) on 24th. An immature
male Siberian Rubythroat Luscinia calliope trapped on Fair Isle will be the first
British and Irish record if accepted; it was present from 9th to nth October.
Cetti’s Warblers Cettia cetti are now being discovered often enough for their
status as vagrants to be fairly ignored : in September birds were found in the usual
coastal sites and in October new arrivals were seen at Dungeness on 14th and, most
interestingly, on Cape Clear Island (Co. Cork) during yth-gth. An astonishing
influx of Lanceolated Warblers Locustella lanceolata occurred on Fair Isle in
October, when three birds were found on 1 ith (two trapped), of which one remained
to 14th, and yet another was seen on 14th. A Blyth’s Reed Warbler Acrocephalus
dumetorum was reported on Tresco from 9th to 12th October. The much more
common Aquatic Warbler A. paludicola was widely scattered on the south coast
and at several other places, 1 5 or more birds altogether including one at Blakeney
Point (Norfolk) on 5th and 6th September and a second for the autumn at Kenfig
Pool (Mid Glamorgan) on 21st. Late reports were also received of nine trapped
during August at Wick Hams (Dorset), where during the same month a Mou-
stached Warbler A. melanopogon was sighted on the last two days.

A Siberian Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca blythi stayed at Spurn during the
second half of October, and at the same peninsula a Desert Warbler S. nana
which was present from 20th to 24th was trapped. (Interestingly, a Desert Warbler
was also trapped in Finland on 17th October.) Greenish Warblers Phylloscopus
trochiloides occurred at Portland on 5th (trapped) and 13th September, and at
Dungeness on 20th (trapped), and in October on St Mary’s and Tresco, both on
14th, and at St Just (Cornwall) on 28th. Bonelli’s Warblers P. bonelli were
reported in September from St Agnes on 2nd and Holkham on 9th, and another
late notification was of an immature trapped at Hengistbury Head (Dorset)
on 23rd and 24th August. There were only two reports of Arctic Warblers P.
borealis, both in October, at Ythan (Grampian) on 12th and on St. Agnes from 23rd
to 27th (two).

The autumn of 1974 was without precedent as far as Pallas’s Warblers P.
proregulus were concerned, but 1975 bettered it without a doubt. At least 30 indi-
viduals arrived in Britain, from Fair Isle to Scilly, the first on Fair Isle on 10th
October and the last reported at Flamborough on 10th November; at Spurn
three were trapped between 14th and 19th and at Sandwich Bay (Kent) at least
four birds arrived between nth and 24th. From the same part of Asia Dusky
Warblers P. fuscatus and Radde’s Warblers P. schwarzi reached Norfolk: the
former were found at Wells from 14th to 16th October and at Blakeney Point for
several days until 1 8th ; and Radde’s at Brancaster on 17th and at Holkham from
17th to 26th and another there for a few days from 25th. It is in addition worth
mentioning here that Yellow-browed Warblers P. inornatus also appeared
in abnormally large numbers from the end of September onwards: five were on
Fair Isle on the last day of September (an early date for so many) and three others
were seen elsewhere at the end of the month, then in October a huge arrival took
place, mainly on the east coast, when in the region of 1 00 individuals were noted ;
maximum counts were 15 in the Wells/Holkham area on 12th and at least 19 in
Scilly during the month.

The first Richard’s Pipits Anthus novaeseelandiae were recorded at the end of
September, in Scilly, at Spurn and at Swinister (Shetland), then at eleven localities

75

September and October reports

in October, including an unusual inland record at Cheddar Reservoir (Somerset)
on 20th; only a dozen or so birds were reported though there were accounts of
‘many’ in Scilly during the first half of the month. The last comment was also
applied to Tawny Pipits A. campestris in the same area, but elsewhere only about
eight were brought to our notice, including three at Beachy Head (East Sussex)
on 17th September. The rarer pipits were an Olive-backed A. hodgsoni at Wells on
10th October, a Pechora Pipit A. gustavi on Fair Isle on the same date, and Red-
throated A. cervinus on Fair Isle from 8th to 17th, 20th to 25th and on 26th and
27th September, on Out Skerries from 14th to 18th September, and in October
on St Mary’s from 10th, on St Agnes on 1 ith (two), and at Hauxley (Northumber-
land) from 1 6th. Citrine Wagtails Motacilla citreola made appearances on Fair
Isle from 7th to 18th September and on VVhalsay on 16th, and at Tyninghame
(Lothian) on 11th October.

A Lesser Grey Shrike Lanins minor was found dead near Belford (Northumber-
land) on 20th September and there were four October reports, at Urafirth (Shet-
land) in the first week, at Ferryside (Dyfed) on 13th, at Saltfleetby (Lincolnshire)
on 19th and at Holme from 25th until 3rd November. An Isabelline Shrike
I., collurio isabellinus was also reported, at Holkham from t2th to 14th October,
but there were only two Woodchat Shrikes L. senator, an adult on St Mary’s
on 9th October and an immature there the next day. Rose-coloured Starlings
Sturnus roseus also turned up in Scilly in October, on St Martin’s from 3rd to 6th
and on St Mary’s from 13th to 17th (both immatures).

Several Arctic Redpolls Acanthis hornemanni were reported in October, during
an invasion of Mealy Redpolls A. Jlammea which will be summarised later.
Arctics were trapped on Fair Isle and at North Ronaldsay (Orkney), while others
showing the characters of this species were seen at Flamborough, Spurn
and Saltfleet (Humberside). From the south Serins Serinus serinus arrived at
Tetney Haven (Lincolnshire) on 9th October, at Stiffkey (Norfolk) on 25th and at
Porthgwarra (Cornwall) on 26th. The highest number of Scarlet Rosefinches
Carpodacus erythrinus on any one day at Fair Isle was four on 7th September and the
last there was on 24th October, while very few were found elsewhere. Rustic
Buntings Emberiza rustica were recorded on St Martin’s on 5th October, on Fair
Isle from 10th to 25th, at Blyth (Northumberland) on 15th and 16th and at Clcv
(two) from 18th to 22nd. The only September occurrence of Little Bunting
E. pusilla was on Fair Isle on 29th, staying to 1st October, and the island played
host to further birds from 10th to 16th (two), on 19th and from 22nd to 25th; other
October records came from Fingringhoe Wick (Essex) on 1st, St Martin’s from 6th,
Lundy (Devon) on 12th and 13th and Tresco on 15th and 16th. Predictably, the
last word belongs to Fair Isle, which held a Yellow-breasted Bunting E. aureola
from 7th to 1 8th September and a different individual on the last two days, though
another possible first for Britain and Ireland was reported at Holkham on 19th
October, a Yellow-browed Bunting E. chrysophrys.

SCARCE MIGRANTS

Very surprisingly, there were no Hoopoes Upupa epops reported during September
and only one in October, on Fair Isle on 24th. In the last week of October a
Golden Oriole Oriolus oriolus was reported at Hartlip (Kent). Twelve Blue-
throats Luscinia siecica were found in September, only one away from the east
coast at Steart (Avon) on 1 7th, and six more turned up in October in Scodand and
at Spurn; also at Spurn there were singles on 9th November and from 16th to 18th.
A Melodious Warbler Hippolais polyglotta was seen on Bardsey on 9th September
and another on Skokholm from 22nd to 26th. A total of eleven Icterine Warblers
H. ictcrina was not very impressive: away from the east coast there were singles
on Lundy on 7th and from 1 idi to 15th, and on Fair Isle one on 8th October was
the latest ever recorded there. Passage of Barred Warblers Sylvia nisoria was

76 September and October reports

good, over 70 individuals including eight in the west; up to eight were on Fair
Isle in the first ten days of September, and the last singles were on 12 th October,
on Fair Isle and at Spurn. About 40 Red-breasted Flycatchers Ficedula parva
were recorded up to 27th October when one was on Lundy; many arrived during
the east coast ‘fall’ in mid-October. Ortolan Buntings Emberiza hortulana were
more numerous than in recent years with seven in September including four
at Sandwich Bay from 28th, and singles in October on Tresco on 17th and at
Spurn on 19th.

MISCELLANEOUS

Several species do not fit easily into the above categories. Grey Phalaropes
Phalaropus fulicarius were found at Blakeney Point on 14th September, at All-
hallows (Kent) on 21st and at Pennington marshes (Hampshire) on 28th, and
inland at Bough Beech Reservoir (also Kent) on 12th October. A Woodlark
Lullula arborea was at Sandwich Bay on 20th September, and in October one was
at Eye Brook Reservoir (date unspecified) and others occurred at Dungeness on
14th, 1 8th, 19th and 23rd, at Spurn on 17th, and at Portland on 26th (three).

2 3 FEB 1976

Binding ‘British Birds’

The comprehensive index for 1975 was published in
December 1975. There will be no short index to
British Birds in future and all subscribers will receive
a copy of the comprehensive index automatically.
Volumes for binding (with the form on the back cover
of the index filled in) should be posted, not to the
publishers, but direct to the binders :

P. G. Chapman & Co. Ltd.

Kent House Lane
Beckenham
Kent BR3 1LD

the charge is £3-65 per volume, which includes the cost
of packing and return postage. The binding will be in
the same style as in previous years and earlier volumes
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Volume 69 Number 2 February 1976

t45 Laying dates of four species of tits in Wytham Wood, Oxford-
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51 The flight behaviour of Starlings at a winter roost James Brodie
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61 Peregrine and Raven possibly contaminated by Fulmar oil
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6 1 Injury feigning by Red-legged Partridge in water Roger Frankum
62 Inland records of Kitti wakes R. A. Hume
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h64 Presumed female Chiffchaff singing D. W. Taylor

65 Fierce attack by Starling on House Sparrow Kevin D. Abraham
65 Role of birds in moss dispersal G. W. H. Davison

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67 The Birds of Nottinghamshire edited by Austen Dobbs John R.

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68 News and comment Peter Conder
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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 3 MARCH I 9 7 6

Raptor migration across the Strait of
Gibraltar

J. C. Finlay son, E. F. J. Garcia, M. A. Mosquera and
W. R. P. Bourne

The concentrations of large soaring birds at short sea crossings when
on migration have long been recognised as being among the most
spectacular ornithological phenomena. These birds rely to a large
extent on upcurrents, either thermal or relief-induced, to obtain
lift. Therefore they tend to avoid long sea crossings where such
updraughts are lacking.

In Europe large concentrations of soaring birds are known to
occur annually in several localities, notably at Falsterbo in southern
Sweden, the Bosporus and the Strait of Gibraltar. The situation at
the last locality (fig. i) has been discussed by Bernis (1973), whose
account agrees with long-standing local opinion that the migration
is usually most obvious at the down-wind end of the Strait. Simul-
taneously Evans and Lathbury (1973) concluded that visible
movements are but a fraction of the total migration on each day,
that the absence of records with east winds at Gibraltar, at the east
end of the Strait, results from the birds’ passing too high to be seen
from the ground, and that the numbers observed are dependent on
the types of upcurrents of air formed with different wind conditions.

The first three authors of this paper, who supplied data to Evans
and Lathbury, were not entirely satisfied with their conclusions,
which were based on largely unpublished radar observations
(Houghton 1970). They consulted WRPB, who had already
published some contradictory' observations made with radar at
Gibraltar in autumn 1964 (Bourne and Norris 1966), and discovered
that he had similar reservations. The full resolution of this disagree-
ment clearly depends on the publication of the controversial radar

77

78

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

Fig. i. Strait of Gibraltar showing localities mentioned in the text

observations, which we understand have already been modified
(Houghton 1973) although they will not be completed until 1976.
Meanwhile it may be useful to set out the conventional interpretation
of migration at Gibraltar again and list a number of questions which
need to be answered about the recent radar investigations.

THE PATTERN OF MIGRATION AS OBSERVED
FROM THE GROUND

Inland, soaring birds can be seen to migrate in loose parties on a
broad front. As they approach the Strait they soar along the wind-
ward slopes of the hills until they are funnelled to the shortest sea
crossing. Visual observations from all parts of the area indicate that
the largest numbers of birds are seen behind the down-wind coasts
leading to the Strait (Bernis 1973, Pineau and Giraud-Audine
1974). The precise routes followed by different populations at
different seasons appear to be as follows.

1 . Southward passage

(a) Continental migrants. These comprise birds from the area north of
the Pyrenees and eastern Spain. They include great numbers of
Black Kites Milvus migrans and the vast majority of the Honey

79

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

Buzzards Pernis apivorus. They approach the Strait from the north-
east. When it is calm, or the wind is light, they maintain a steady
south-west heading, bypassing Gibraltar inland to the vicinity of
Tarifa, where they cross the Strait to Africa by the shortest route,
15 km, as in fig. 2. With moderate to fresh westerly winds an

□ Routes followed during
westerly winds

[ ' Routes followed during
easterly winds

Fig. 2. Southward
passage of raptors
across the Strait of
Gibraltar, showing
routes followed in
relation to wind
direction

increasing number drift east and cross the eastern end of the Strait
in the vicinity of Gibraltar. With east winds they continue to the
Tarifa area and depart there and further west to enter Africa over
Tangier.

(b) West and central Iberian migrants. These include a considerable
number of Black Kites and the majority of the Short-toed Eagles
Circaetus gallicus, Booted Eagles Hieraaetus pennatus and Egyptian
Vultures Neophron percnopterus. Such populations fly south or south-
east towards the Tarifa area in calm weather, as in fig. 2. With
fresh westerly winds they drift east, but seldom as far as Gibraltar,
where Short-toed Eagles, for example, are scarce at this season.
They arrive in Africa east of Punta Ceres in proportion to the
strength of the wind. With easterly winds departures occur west of
Tarifa and arrivals along the opposite shore are a variable distance
west of Punta Ceres, according to the strength of the wind (Pineau
and Giraud-Audine 1974).

The pattern is sometimes disturbed after periods of prolonged
east winds when a coasting movement into the wind may bring
numbers of raptors to Gibraltar. This movement has been observed
in progress along the Spanish shore of the Strait during the south-
ward migration in autumn (Bernis 1973) and along the Moroccan
shore during the northward migration in spring (Pineau and
Giraud-Audine 1974), with fresh easterly winds in both cases. It
has been explained by Evans and Lathbury (1973) as due to the

8o

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

easterly heading adopted by west Iberian birds, but if this were so
it seems likely that they would be commoner with west winds than
with easterlies. It seems more probable that the birds are reluctant
to set out across the Strait with east winds liable to blow them out
into the Atlantic, and continue along the shore in search of a
resting place instead. Many species may reach Gibraltar under
these conditions but Booted Eagles often predominate; possibly
since they are strong fliers they find it easier to make headway
against contrary east winds than the larger soaring species such as
the Short-toed Eagle. The birds arriving with east winds nearly
always turn back north or north-west after lingering briefly, though
some occasionally set out across the Strait to the south, especially
when the east wind is diminishing.

2 . Northward passage

Soaring birds are particularly exposed to drift while crossing the
sea, since they have no opportunity to compensate for it by soaring
in updraughts and then gliding into the wind in the way possible
over land. It is therefore not surprising that the effect of the wind
on the routes followed is more obvious along the north shore of the
Strait in the spring than the autumn, as shown in fig. 3. The

MM?. Routes followed during
: westerly winds

■ Routes followed during
easterly winds

Fig. 3. Northward
passage of raptors
across the Strait of
Gibraltar, showing
routes followed in
relation to wind
direction

appearance of raptors at Gibraltar with east winds is now excep-
tional. Conversely, fresh or strong west winds now bring large
numbers to the Rock, and Short-toed Eagles become common there
when they were rare in the autumn. This suggests that, being large
and ponderous fliers, they are especially prone to drift when over
the open sea, and helps to explain their reluctance to move with
unfavourable winds in the autumn.

Raptor migration at Gibraltar 81

INTERPRETATION OF VISIBLE MIGRATION

We consider that the appearance of the largest visible migrations
at the down-wind end of the Strait is due to the accumulation of
birds drifted down-wind over land along the coastal guiding-lines
leading to these areas, and further drift of birds crossing the Strait
before they reach the far shore. This is not necessarily a passive
process; it is possible that the birds deliberately allow themselves to
drift a certain amount to secure the most economical passage
across the Strait, though involuntary drift doubtless also occurs
with strong winds. Evans and Lathbury (1973) considered instead
that birds must pass over at least Gibraltar at the east end of the
Strait with all wind conditions but that they are visible from the
ground only with westerlies, because with easterlies they soar high
over the Rock, where the wind from the sea is directed upwards by
its vertical east face in a ‘standing wave’.

There are several disadvantages to this last hypothesis. In the
first place, if many birds are normally passing over the area, they
should appear when the weather is calm and ‘standing waves’
break down, but they are not noticeable then. Secondly, the Rock
is an isolated massif so that if birds gather there to soar at least some
of them should be seen arriving from the north or south first. In
fact, those of 11s resident at Gibraltar have failed to detect any sign
of such a movement in ten years, with the exception of the coasting
movement of Booted Eagles mentioned above.

Evans and Lathbury (1973) gave several instances of raptors
appearing over Gibraltar in the spring when the surface winds were
easterly but the upper winds were westerly, and explained their
presence as the result of lulls in the easterly airflow’. Casement
(1966) has already remarked that the wind is exceptionally variable
in the vicinity of the Strait, so that too much faith should not be
placed in local meteorological records. However, if they are reliable,
these isolated events can also be interpreted differently. The birds
could have soared high over Morocco until they reached the
westerly airflow, drifted out to sea to the east with it, and then lost
height until they descended into the easterly winds as they ap-
proached Gibraltar.

Specific observations

WRPB (in Bourne and Norris 1966) visited Gibraltar airfield
during a period of sustained light easterly winds between 7th and
1 2th September 1964. On the morning of 8th September it was
possible to see the main raptor movement passing south-west along
the slopes of the hills inland, both through binoculars and on the
unsatisfactory airport radar. F. G. H. Allen (who lives immediately
below the flvline at Los Barrios), and other local witnesses, confirmed

82

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

that the birds were Honey Buzzards which were crossing the
Strait near Tarifa throughout this period, when none was seen over
Gibraltar. Thousands were observed to come in low across the
Strait from the direction of Tarifa and soar rapidly out of sight as
they passed inland at Tangier on the opposite side of the Strait on the
morning of the nth, while 243 Honey Buzzards were seen flying
south across the Strait from Tarifa while WRPB was sailing west
through the Strait next day.

Similarly, when EFJG crossed the Strait between Gibraltar and
Tangier with east winds on 3rd and 4th September 1973, no
raptors were seen at Gibraltar or anywhere east of Tarifa on either
day. However, flocks of Honey Buzzards were seen flying south
from Tarifa and arriving at Tangier on the first day, and over 2,000
appeared between Tangier and Gape Spartel to the west in two
hours around noon on the second day. They approached Tangier
from the north-west, which suggests that they must have drifted
west while crossing the Strait and then turned to head for land.
This suggestion was confirmed by Giraud-Audine (in Pineau and
Giraud-Audine 1974), who saw hundreds of Honey Buzzards make
a landfall along the Atlantic coast of Morocco between Tangier and
Asilah 40 km further south with force 6 east winds on 2nd September

I973‘

We are puzzled by the statement by Evans and Lathbury (1973:
578) that ‘Honey Buzzards are scarce at Tangier at both migration
seasons’. We find it an exceptionally good place to observe them
when the wind is in the east, and these authors postulated that they
are soaring over the Rock of Gibraltar too high to be seen.

The converse situation, with fresh west winds, occurred on 4th
September 1972 and 31st August and gth September 1974, when
large numbers of Honey Buzzards arrived over Gibraltar from the
north-east and flew south along the Rock. On the second occasion
some passed to the east of the Rock, a frequent occurrence with
fresh westerlies, and on the third some passed to the west. When the
west wind began to slacken on 5th September 1972 the birds which
had been passing over the Rock the previous day began to cross the
Strait further west, though still east of Tarifa. With light west winds
on 15th September 1974 some flocks, possibly the fringe of the main
stream, were seen flying south-west towards Tarifa over the hills
inland, but none crossed the Rock until the wind strengthened
during the afternoon, and then 3,600 passed during the evening.
Another 5,000 Honey Buzzards, which must have roosted nearby,
also passed south-west over Gibraltar as the wind died away
between 07.00 and 08.00 hours the following morning, travelling
progressively further inland as it fell so that the last were seen
about 08.50 hours. By 1 1.00 hours the wind had changed to east.

Raptor migration at Gibraltar 83

Similar examples can be quoted for the spring. For example, no
soaring birds were seen around Gibraltar while east winds prevailed
from 7th to r 1 th March 1973, though northward passage was
noticed along the hills north of Tarifa at the other end of the Strait
on the first day. On 10th a limited number of Black Kites, Short-
toed Eagles and Marsh Harriers Circus aeruginosus were also seen
moving north up the Atlantic coast of Morocco and out to sea at
Cape Spartel west of Tangier. Then when the wind changed to
west a strong passage occurred over Gibraltar from 12 th to 14th
March. This included 3,000 Black Kites and 300 Short-toed
Eagles on the second day, when the birds arrived low over Europa
Point from the south and soared north in the standing wave over the
Rock, in exactly the way postulated to occur with east winds by
Evans and Lathbury (1973). When WRPB sailed east through
the Strait the following day he saw another 107 birds crossing the
narrows from Jebel Musa to Punta Carnero between 13.30 and
14.00 hours. This is the time when they usually fly highest, yet
they could still be located and identified with ease, and it seems
doubtful if many high-flying birds were missed.

ALTITUDE OF MIGRATION

Observations at Gibraltar suggest that the altitude at which raptors
fly shows a regular daily rhythm during the southward migration
but less fluctuation during the northward. Southbound birds arrive
at Gibraltar below 300 metres from sunrise until about 10.00 hours,
appearing later as the season advances. They arrive higher as
thermals develop later in the day, so that between 12.00 and 16.00
hours they may be difficult to see at all early in the season, though
after mid-September the weather is cooler and they seldom rise so
high. The birds descend later in the day and the passage ends
about an hour before sunset, when they seek roost sites.

Northbound birds usually lose height crossing the Strait and
arrive below 100 metres. During the afternoon they may come in
higher when they have made use of thermals which have formed
over the land and drifted out to sea. While they may well start
to move over Morocco at sunrise, it takes them some time to gain
altitude and find their way across the Strait, and they do not appear
over Gibraltar until at least a couple of hours later. Birds which have
left Africa during the afternoon may continue to arrive over
Gibraltar until dusk at this season.

It is difficult to correlate the morning radar observations of
‘presumed raptors’ reported by Houghton (1970) with this pattern.
It is contrary to anything known by direct observation of the
behaviour of soaring birds for them to have first gained height
and then crossed a wide expanse of sea to arrive in Gibraltar early

84 Raptor migration at Gibraltar

in the day too high to be seen, as postulated by Evans and Lathbury
(x973) * On ^e other hand, this agrees well with WRPB’s experience
of some water birds, such as herons, in Cyprus. Likewise, the
appearance of low-flying raptors later in the day, which Evans and
Lathbury ( 1 973) apparently interpreted as the descent of birds which
flew high earlier, seems more easily explained as the normal arrival
of birds which had been unable to maintain their altitude during a
difficult sea passage.

We note that, in his latest report, Houghton (1973) said little
about the time of day at which birds were observed with radar to
be travelling at different altitudes, and indeed that he appeared to
interpret the pattern of movement largely as we do, as the result of a
varying amount of drift by beam winds.

RADAR OBSERVATIONS

The interpretation of the migration of soaring birds across the
Strait of Gibraltar put forward by Evans and Lathbury (1973)
appears to differ from the locally accepted view, both as the result
of the misinterpretation of limited observations in the immediate
vicinity of the Rock, with which some of the participants disagree,
and as a result of deductions from provisional reports of inaccessible
radar observations in departmental memoranda that have already
been modified. Until full information about the radar observations
is made available it is difficult to disprove Evans and Lathbury’s
hypothesis that a substantial amount of raptor migration is passing
the Rock too high to be seen. Meanwhile the information already
available provokes a number of questions which it is hoped will be
answered in the final report on the radar observations, as follows.

1 . Identity of the birds seen with radar

The radar study was originally mounted at the request of NATO to
provide advance warning of the arrival of migrating Cranes Grus
grus across the Strait since they present a hazard to aircraft further
north, though in point of fact it was already known that Cranes
winter in western Spain (Bernis i960) and are rarely seen around
Gibraltar. While it is comprehensible that the attention of the
observers was soon diverted to the large raptors which are the
most conspicuous migrants actually visible at Gibraltar, it remains
doubtful whether they are the only large birds crossing the east end
of the Strait, since pilots have reported the occurrence of a wider
variety of species at higher levels (Bourne and Norris 1966). The
identity of the higher-flying birds seen with radar therefore remains
debatable. While Houghton (1964, 1973) suggested that their
identification is possible from their flight and signal characteristics,
Emlen (1974) reported that these are in fact so variable that they

Raptor migration at Gibraltar 85

provide only a crude guide to the identity of birds of different sizes.
Therefore it still remains unclear how those of the same size are
being separated, and how the identity of the highest-flying ones
critical for the present discussion is being confirmed. They seem
likely to include high-flying shore- and waterbirds, which are
always difficult to see from the ground, as well as raptors.

2. Field of view

Any radar has a limited field of view, determined by the curvature
of the earth, by the local topography, which is rugged around
Gibraltar, and by variations in the propagation of the signal, which
are particularly marked in warm climates. Low-flying birds are
usually difficult to detect, especially among broken terrain which
gives rise to irregular ground returns and obstructs the view,
whereas high-flying birds may show up better, especially beyond
the horizon where the radar beam rises above the earth and there
are no longer ground returns. Thus it seems desirable that we
should be supplied with much more information about what can
be seen with radar from Gibraltar before drawing conclusions about
the birds detected there. It seems likely to give a better view of birds
crossing the eastern part of the Strait than of those bypassing it
inland to cross further west.

3. Number of birds visible with radar

Single birds or dense flocks may produce similar well-defined
signals on the radar screen, while birds in loose formation may be
recorded as ill-defined masses of light. While small, high, broad-
front movements may be comparatively conspicuous on distant
early warning radars, they may be overlooked on airport ground-
controlled approach radars, which give a better view of events in
the immediate vicinity including large low-level passages. Observa-
tions of migration across the entire width of the Strait of Gibraltar
during the southward migration of 1972 revealed the passage of
some 189,000 raptors, including 114,000 Honey Buzzards and
39,000 Black Kites (Bernis 1973), and it is difficult to believe that
many more were passing unseen overhead. On the other hand, few
shore- and waterbirds are ever seen on the move there, and while
most of the Cranes may winter in western Iberia many other
aquatic species are known to migrate to Africa. These must there-
fore be passing overhead unseen, presumably on a broad front, and
seem likely to participate in high-flying passages detected with radar.

4. Timing of migration

While many passerines are known to migrate by night and soaring
birds when updraughts are best developed in the middle of the day,

86

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

some other species, such as the diurnal passerine migrants and shore-
and waterbirds, are known to move at dawn or dusk. So far little
precise information has been published about the timing of migra-
tion observed with radar at Gibraltar, except that apparently it
often disagrees with that of visible raptor migration. It is desirable
that more information should be provided about this as well. It
seems likely that the passage of many species, or at least larger
groups of species, could be identified by the careful consideration
of the season and time of day when they passed by.

It is important that more information should be provided about
these radar observations. Attempts to assess the numbers of large
raptors surviving in western Europe at a time when they are
under increasing pressure may depend on an accurate interpreta-
tion of the radar data. So does the object of the radar investigation,
the safe deployment of aircraft. It might be disastrous if air move-
ments were planned in relation to those of low-flying birds of prey
when high-flying waterbirds present a greater hazard. It seems
desirable that here, as elsewhere, the information upon which
decisions likely to affect public safety may depend is made available
for public scrutiny.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are grateful to John Cortes, Charles Perez, Michael Grech and William
Buckley, who assisted with the observations. M. H. Bland & Co Ltd generously
granted EFJG fare concessions to enable him to travel on the Gibraltar-Tangier
ferry Mons Calpe for the purpose of making ornithological observations, and Captain
Delf and his officers provided hospitality on board. WRPB is similarly indebted
to the Royal Navy and Natural Environment Research Council for transport to
Gibraltar and around the Strait; his second visit was made in the course of research
into the distribution of birds at sea, financed by a grant from the second body to
Professor G. M. Dunnet.

SUMMARY

The view that soaring raptors normally tend to migrate across the down-wind
end of the Strait of Gibraltar owing to the influence of drift by the wind from a
median path is restated, with some critical observations from both ends of the
Strait at both seasons of migration. It is concluded that the suggestion by Evans
and Lathbury (1973) that, when raptors are not seen at Gibraltar with easterly
winds, it is because they soar above the limit of vision in a ‘standing wave’ above
the Rock is incompatible with the fact that they are not seen to approach the Rock
first, whereas they can be seen crossing the opposite end of the Strait at such times.
The timing of high-flying movements observed with radar in the early morning
seems incompatible with the observed tendency for raptors to soar higher later in
the day. It is suggested that there is a need for more information about the field
of view obtained with the radar, the timing of the movements observed, and how
the birds were identified and enumerated. The critical interpretation of these
results seems important because both attempts to assess the number of raptors
remaining in western Europe and the safe routing of aircraft depend on them.

87

Raptor migration at Gibraltar

REFERENCES

Bernis, F. i960. ‘About wintering and migration of the Common Crane Grus grus
in Spain’. Int. Orn. Congr., 12: 110-117.

1973- ‘Migration de Falconiformes y Ciconia spp. por Gibraltar, verano

otono 1972-1973. Primera parte’. Ardeota, 19: 151-224.

Bourne, W. R. P., and Norris, A. Y. 1966. ‘Observaciones durante una traversia
de ida y vuelta entre Gran Bretana y Gibraltar Septiembre 1964’. Ardeota, 1 1 :
57-63-

Casement, M. B. 1966. ‘Migration across the Mediterranean observed by radar’.
Ibis, 108: 461-491.

F.mlen, S. T. 1974. ‘Problems in identifying birds by radar signature analysis:
intra-specific variability’. In Gauthreaux, S.A. Jr. (ed.), Proceedings of a
conference on the biological aspects of the bird/aircraft collision problem, February 5-7
1974. Department of Zoology, Clemson University, South Carolina, pp 509-524.

Evans, P. R., and Lathbury, G. 1973. ‘Raptor migration across the Straits of
Gibraltar’. Ibis, 115: 572-585.

Houghton, E. VV. 1970. ‘Spring migration at Gibraltar’. Royal Radar Establishment
Memorandum 2993. Malvern, VVorcs.

1973- ‘Highlights of the NATO-Gibraltar bird migration radar study’.

Supplement to the Proceedings of the Bird Strike Committee Europe, Paris Conference.
May 1973.

Pineau, J., and Giraud-Audine, M. 1974. ‘Notes sur les migrateurs traversant
l’extrdme nord-ouest du Maroc’. Alauda, 42: 159-188.

While this paper was in press five additional papers on migration in Spain also

appeared in Ardeola, 21 : 489-655, for October 1975.

J. C. Finlayson, Department of £ oology , University of Liverpool, Liverpool

L69 3BX

E. F. J. Garcia, 50 Governor's Street, Gibraltar

M. A. Mosquera, 32 Ross House, Red Sands Road, Gibraltar

Dr W. R. P. Bourne, Department of £ oology , University of Aberdeen,

Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen AB9 2TN

A census of the Gannet nests on Grassholm in

1 975

M. S. Cullen and R. Pratt

Plate g

The history of the increase in the number of nests comprising the
colony of Gannets Sula bassana on Grassholm is well documented,
with records of periodic counts between i860 and 1969. This short
paper gives details of the 1975 count, the method used and certain
observations made.

METHOD AND OBSERVATIONS

The 1975 count was made from aerial photographs taken during
the 1975 breeding season. These photographs were taken in two
series: (a) 7th May, at a height of 500/600 ft (152.40/182.88 metres)
and (b) 5th August, at a height of 400 ft (121.92 metres). The May
photographs revealed that very few Gannets other than those on
nests were present, while the August photographs showed many
birds on the eastern fringe of the colony and on the large rock to the
south-west of the colony. From examination of the photographs
little or no disturbance was caused to the nesting birds by the air-
craft used to take the photographs. During the August flight one of
us was a passenger in the aircraft and saw that only the birds on the
fringe of the colony, and particularly on the south-west rock already
mentioned, showed any sign of alarm and took to the air. As the
aircraft left the island only some 400-)- birds were observed in the
air over the colony. During this flight the aircraft circled the colony
three times but did not pass directly over it.

On the photograph enlargements used the colony size measured
approximately 60 cm X 20 cm. The count was made using a power-
ful magnifying glass with which nests, and in many instances details
of the sitting bird, could easily be identified. Both of us made indivi-
dual counts on both series of photographs, and when count totals
were compared there was a maximum difference between them of
1 T% • Several photographs were examined and notes were taken
during visits to the island in order to ascertain the colony nesting
area.

RESULT AND COMPARISONS

The total count was 20,370 occupied nests with, we believe and as
stated, an element of inaccuracy not exceeding ij%. Gannets were
first noted nesting on Grassholm in the 1860’s, and since then there
have been 18 counts, including that in 1975, which have monitored
the growth of this colony. These are given in the following summary :

88

89

Garnets on Grassholm in 1975

1883 20 pairs
1890 200+ pairs
1895 about 300 pairs
1905 about 300 pairs
1914 less than 300 pairs
1922 800-1,000 pairs
1924 1,800-2,000 pairs
*933 about 4,750 pairs
1937 about 5,000 pairs

1939 about 6,000 pairs

1946 about 6,000 pairs

1947 about 6,100 pairs

1948 7,000 pairs

*949 9>5°° Pairs ± 13%
*956 10,550 pairs
1964 about 15,500 pairs
*969 16, 128 pairs
*975 20,370 pairs

Since 1 949 the rate of growth of this colony ( 1 2 1 .4%) is interesting,
the colony having experienced two population explosions during
this time, as can be seen by comparing the following percentage
increases:

*949-*956 14%

1956-1964 48%

*964-1969 4%

*969**975 26%

KEY

1 1924-33
f . j pre 1924
pre 1956
rwr\ 1956-64
M 1964-75

Southwest Rock

Fig. 1 . A diagrammatic representation of the spread of the colony of Gannets
Sula bassana on Grassholm, Dyfed

90

Garnets on Grassholm in 7975

Unfortunately we do not know if other colonies have experienced a
similar double increase during this period, but at least one major
one has occurred in each of the three other major British colonies.

We do not intend to postulate why this growth fluctuation occurs
but would draw readers’ attention to the similar trends shown by
comparing the percentage growth from known figures for the
gannetries of St Kilda, Ailsa Craig and Little Skellig during the
period 1949-1969/70 (table 1). It can be seen that the fluctuation
in the northern colonies is reversed while that of Little Skellig shows
a fluctuation similar to that on Grassholm.

The Gannet population of Britain and Ireland increased by 1 15%
between 1949 and 1969/70 (Cramp et al. 1974), whilst during the

Table i. Percentage growth in colonies of Gannets Sula
bassana during 1949-1969/70

YEARS YEARS

1949-59 1959-69/70

Grassholm

>4% (*956)

54%

St. Kilda

162%

17%

Ailsa Craig

90%

39%

1949-66

1966-69/70

Grassholm

69% (1964)

4%

Little Skellig

47-5%

13%

same period the Grassholm population increased by 75%. By
comparing the Barrett and Harris (1965) map and photograph
showing the spread and extent of the colony it was seen that the
colony has extended south beyond the steep ridge mentioned in
their text, and also to the north-east of the northern edge of the
colony.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are most grateful to Group Captain P. H. Champniss, Commanding Officer
Royal Air Force Brawdy, and Squadron Leader A. Stagg, also of Royal Air Force
Brawdy, who were responsible for having the May photographs taken ; and to the
Studio Jon Limited, Haverfordwest, for the August photographs.

REFERENCES

Barrett, J. H., and Harris, M. P. 1965. ‘A count of the Gannets on Grassholm
in 1964’. Brit. Birds, 58: 201-203, plates 33-34.

Cramp, S., Bourne, W. R. P., and Saunders, D. 1974. The Seabirds of Britain and
Ireland. London.

M. S. Cullen, Runwayskiln, Marloes, Haverfordwest , Dyfed
R. Pratt, Ramsey Island, St Davids, Dyfed

Birds in Ireland during 1970-74
M. A. Ogilvie

Plates 10-12

This is the fourth in an irregular series of summaries of observations
of Irish birds. The previous three (Andrew 1964, Wallace 1967,
Flegg 1971) have set the pattern which this one follows though
with two variations. As foreshadowed by Flegg, records of rarities
seen in Ireland have, since 1968, been included in the annual
‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain’ so the complete list of rarities
which concluded each of the earlier summaries is here omitted.
Instead there is appended a list of the papers which have appeared
in the five Reports with brief notes on their contents.

The principal source from which this summary is compiled is, of
course, the annual Irish Bird Report. Further information has been
gleaned from other relevant publications, including the annual
reports of the Birds of Estuaries Enquiry and newsletters and other
circulated papers of the Irish Wildbird Conservancy.

In the middle of the period under review Major R. F. Ruttledge
retired from the editorship of the Irish Bird Report. He had founded
it 19 years before, established it immediately to a high standard, and
had maintained it there throughout his long tenure of office. A
fitting tribute is paid to him in the introduction to the 1972 Report.
The daunting task of succeeding him fell to K. Preston and one can
state without hesitation that there has been no lowering of standards
in either record assessment or quality of the Reports' content. Major
Ruttledge continues as an advisor to the Irish Records Panel.

The co-operation in the vetting and publication of records that
existed between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland broke
down in 1972 and 1973 but it is a cause for satisfaction that the
Introduction to the 1974 Report was able to announce that this co-
operation had been renewed. The 1974 Systematic List includes a
number of 1972 and 1973 records from Northern Ireland.

Irish ornithology took several great strides forward in the late
1960s and early 1970s. The major surveys of different groups of
birds, initiated in Britain, were rapidly and successfully adopted in
Ireland. ‘Operation Seafarer’ was inconceivable without coverage
of Ireland, and this was practically complete. The full results have,
of course, been published (Cramp et al. 1974) and little or no men-
tion of them is to be found in the Irish Bird Reports , nor will they be
discussed in this summary. The British Trust for Ornithology, when
it embarked upon its Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland
(later sponsored jointly with the Irish Wildbird Conservancy), was

91

92

Birds in Ireland during igyo-74

not at all hopeful of obtaining sufficiently good quality data for
Ireland, but in the event a combination of massive effort by
indigenous observers supplemented by British birdwatchers taking
holidays carefully directed by the Atlas organiser ensured a remark-
ably high degree of coverage. The Irish Bird Reports for 1972 and
1973 each include a number of provisional Atlas maps, and these
are commented upon later in this summary.

Irish birdwatchers have been partaking in the Wildfowl Trust’s
wildfowl count scheme for some years, though in a somewhat random
fashion and with no local organisation. Since 1971/72 however, the
IWC has been organising systematic monthly counts not only of
wildfowl but also of waders, having joined wholeheartedly in the
Birds of Estuaries Enquiry, which is run jointly by the BTO, the
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and the Wildfowl Trust.
By combining knowledge of both coastal and inland wetlands they
have managed, within a very short space of time, to produce some
good estimates of the numbers of the different species wintering in
Ireland and a list of the most important sites for the various species.
It is recognised that some of the figures may have to be modified in
future, and that Ireland’s true value to wintering birds cannot
properly be assessed until there is another severe winter. However,
within three years of starting these counts, the IWC was able to
produce a report pinpointing the really important sites and species
and to put forward proposals for their conservation (Hutchinson

1974)-

BREEDING AND SUMMERING BIRDS

In 1972 the five years of survey for the Atlas of Breeding Birds were
completed. With admirable promptitude the Irish Bird Reports for
1972 and 1973 each contain provisional maps for 14 species. Inter-
pretative comments are provided and, perhaps not unexpectedly,
these reveal that for a number of species the Atlas results were
pleasantly surprising with a denser and more widespread distribution
than had been previously suspected. For many others, though, the
picture shown by the Atlas map was close to the known situation.
Caution is advocated for some of the declining species because an
apparent widespread distribution may be the result of the minimum
of just one pair in each 10 km square.

In four of the five years covered by this summary Red-throated
Divers Gavia stellata bred at two sites in Co. Donegal, while birds
were present at a third, undisclosed site in 1971. Great Crested
Grebes Podiceps cristatus have a predominantly north and west
distribution in Ireland, as shown by the Atlas map, with few breed-
ing records south and east of a line from Carlingford Lough to the
Shannon estuary. However, there has been recent colonisation in

Birds in Ireland during 1970-74 93

Go. Cork and on the Wexford Slobs, while steady increases are
reported for a number of areas within the species’ main range.

Proven breeding is particularly difficult to establish for many
duck species and the maps for Shoveler Anas clypeata and Pochard
Ay thy a ferina should be treated with some caution. The former
shows scattered breeding in several localities from the north-east
through the midlands to the west coast, while the latter is now a
regular breeder in small numbers in the midlands but rather
sporadic elsewhere. Among rarer breeding ducks the Gadwall Anas
strepera bred on the Wexford Slobs for the first time in 1970 and
probably each year since, while the Tufted Duck Aythya fuligula
almost certainly bred on the South Slob in 1970, and extended its
range into Go. Waterford in 1974. A pair of Shelduck Tadorna
tadorna bred 27 km inland in Co. Wicklow in 1972. The Atlas map
for the Eider Somateria mollissima demonstrates the restricted range
of this species, confined as it is to the coast of Co. Sligo round to the
extreme north of Co. Down; numbers have apparently increased in
some sites in recent years but there has been little or no range
expansion.

Birds of prey present a mixed picture. After many years of decline
the Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus was thought to be undergoing a
recent recovery and the Atlas map gives it a very widespread distri-
bution with breeding proved in nearly 500 squares and suspected in
many more. Only the extreme north-west and some southerly areas
are without records. A special survey of the Peregrine Falco pere-
grinus in 1970 involved visiting 62 known breeding cliffs. Definite
breeding was recorded at only 15 of these and, although one or two
birds were present at 30 more sites, 17 were without any at all;
additionally, only four sites were known at which there had been
successful breeding in every year from 1965 to 1970. In contrast to
this rather gloomy picture from the Republic, the population in
Northern Ireland has increased from just one breeding pair in 1965
to no less than seven in 1970, with an average brood size of 3.0. The
Merlin F. columbarius is also provided with a provisional Atlas
map and, although it is almost certainly under-recorded, there are
probably few squares with more than one breeding pair. It is
scattered fairly evenly through the country, though with a con-
centration in Co. Galway. Hen Harriers Circus cyaneus continue to
increase and spread; the number of counties in which they breed
rose from 1 1 to 13. A pair of Montagu’s Harriers C. pygargus bred
successfully in 1971.

Except in 1970 when Quail Cotumix coturnix were recorded as
present in unusually large numbers, both that species and Corn-
crake Crex crex seemed scarce in the early 1970’s and the map for
Quail shows only 30 occupied squares. Many of the records were

94

Birds in Ireland during igyo-y4

isolated instances with no repetition of breeding in subsequent
years. The Corncrake was thought to have recovered a little in 1974
from a low point in 1972 and 1973. The Partridge Perdix perdix has
suffered a massive decline in Ireland in the last few decades as in
England, and the results of the Atlas were far more cheerful than
had been suspected, with breeding reported widely in the midlands
and through much of the eastern half of the country. Nowhere, how-
ever, is density great and there is a long way to go before the
species is as plentiful as it formerly was.

Maps are produced for four species of waders, Golden Plover
Pluvialis apricaria , Common Sandpiper Tringa hypoleucos, Redshank
T. totanus and Dunlin Calidris alpina. All show a bias towards the
north and west but, whereas the Golden Plover is now confined to a
very restricted range from Co. Galway to Co. Antrim (having once
been much more widespread and plentiful), the Common Sandpiper
and Redshank are both comparatively widespread. The latter,
however, is thought to be declining at inland sites. The Dunlin was
found in more sites than expected but virtually all within the
previously known range in the midlands, west and north-west.
Among other species of waders, inland breeding of Oystercatchers
Haematopus ostralegus was reported from Co. Roscommon in 1970.

One of the less happy items is the apparent disappearance of the
Red-necked Phalarope Phalaropus lobatus from its traditional Irish
station in Co. Mayo. It had bred there without interruption for many
years, though only two or three pairs each summer. Then in 1967
a sudden increase took place in the number of birds at the site though
the number of actual breeding pairs seemed to remain the same.
This promising state of affairs continued to 1971 when about 20
birds turned up and three or four pairs bred. Then, without warn-
ing, only a few birds were seen in 1972 and there was no breeding,
while just one bird arrived and stayed for about ten days in 1973,
and none was seen in 1974. It is always a matter for regret when a
species ceases to breed in a country even though, as in this case, it is
at the extreme edge of a range that, climatically, belongs to a very
different region. Notwithstanding the ready-to-hand reasons of
climatic amelioration plus the sheer vulnerability of a small isolated
breeding colony, and paying no attention to the fact that the
extinction of the Red-necked Phalarope from the whole of Britain
and Ireland would be a matter of no importance whatsoever for
the species as a whole, one ought to be allowed a pang of sadness
over the loss of quite such a charming and confiding bird.

Following the example of many English Herring Gulls Larus
argentatus, those in Ireland are beginning to nest on roofs on build-
ings, both in Dunmore East, Co. Waterford, where the habit has
been known for some years, and in Dublin, where it was first

95

Birds in Ireland during 1970-74

recorded in 1972. The Atlas map of the Common Gull L. canus
reveals a north and westerly distribution coupled with a marked
spread inland in the midlands, and an expansion to the coasts of
Co. Kerry in the extreme south-west. ‘Operation Seafarer’ surveys
discovered Roseate Terns Sterna dougallii nesting on no less than four
islands off the west coast, though only in small numbers compared
with the 1,300-1,500 pairs on Tern Island, Co. Wexford, in 1970. In
the same year there were 700 pairs of Common Terns S. hirundo
on the same island.

Before the Atlas the Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur was thought to
be an extremely irregular breeder but the five-year survey produced
four definite and five probable breeding squares plus nearly 20
possibles, though the last may well have included summering, non-
breeding birds or even late migrants. Breeding is confined to the
east and south, and south-west coasts. Stock Doves Columba oenas,
also mapped, breed very widely throughout Ireland except in the
extreme west and north-west. They are nowhere common. The
Collared Dove Streptopelia decaocto gets scarcely a mention in the
five Reports under review, from which it may be assumed that it is
now too widespread and numerous to warrant comment.

The Reports for 1 970 and 1 97 1 remarked on widespread and drastic
declines in the status of the Barn Owl Tyto alba , but the Atlas map
published in the 1973 Report showed a rather more encouraging
picture with breeding records from most coastal and some inland
counties, though the species was absent from much of the midlands.
However, the comment on the map suggests that many of the squares
contain only one breeding pair where they once held many so that,
although the overall distribution may still look quite good, the
density is only a fraction of what it used to be. Another declining
species, the Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus, was probably under-
recorded by the Atlas but it is now only very locally distributed and
much reduced from its former common and widespread status.

The remaining eleven maps refer to passerine species. One of
these, the Ring Ouzel Turdus torquatus, is definitely in decline; two
others, the Garden Warbler Sylvia borin and the Twite Acanthis
Jlavirostris, have shown little recent change; while all the remainder
(Raven Corvus corax, Stonechat Saxicola torquata, Whinchat S. rubetra,
Grasshopper Warbler Locustella naevia, Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla,
Siskin Carduelis spinus, Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra and Tree
Sparrow Passer montanus ) are on the increase, though some of these
only after serious declines. The Raven, in particular, was found by
the Atlas survey to be far more widespread than suspected and this
has been coupled with a steady increase in the number of pairs
nesting on buildings and trees. The Blackcap was known to be
increasing and spreading west for some years past, but the Atlas

96 Birds in Ireland during 1970-74

work revealed the true extent of this with breeding now regular
throughout the greater part of the eastern half of the country, and
several outliers in the west. Not all of the latter are regular as yet,
but the promising trend continues. The closely related, and in
England often closely associated, Garden Warbler is by contrast
much rarer with only a very scattered and local distribution, mainly
to the north of a line from Dublin to Galway, with little sign of
recent change.

WINTER VISITORS

All three common divers winter round the coasts of Ireland in small
numbers, usually being seen singly. A tight flock of 55 Great
Northern Divers Gavia immer reported off Garretstown, Co. Cork, in
February 1974 is exceptional by any standards. Small numbers of
Red-necked Podiceps grisegena, Slavonian P. auritus and Black-necked
Grebes P. tiigricollis were seen in most years, with a total of 22
Slavonian in 1974 well in the lead. The by-now regular Spoonbill
Platalea leucorodia continued to appear in Ballymacoda, Go. Cork, in
each winter covered by this review, while another which wintered
at Rogerstown, Co. Dublin, in 1972/73, reappeared there the fol-
lowing winter and stayed throughout 1974 and into 1975.

Wintering waterfowl have, as already mentioned, been receiving
increasing attention in Ireland in recent years with the establishment
of regular winter counts, including aerial surveys of the more remote
or inaccessible areas. In the IWC’s circulated report submitted to
the 1974 meeting of the International Waterfowl Research Bureau
(Hutchinson 1974), these counts were used to identify 24 wetlands of
international importance for waterfowl and a further 1 3 of national
importance within the Republic. The criteria used in the selection
of these sites have been drawn up by the IWRB and are, for inter-
national importance, that a site should hold 1% or more of the
north-west European flyway population of ducks or swans, 2% of
the geese, or regular flocks of over 20,000 waders; and, for national
importance, over 5% of the total mid-winter population of any duck,
goose, or swan species in the Republic of Ireland, or a regular count
of over 10,000 waders. The report also included estimates for the
mean total numbers of several species wintering in the Republic.
These are reproduced in table 1, together with the level
required for international importance, the number of sites for each
species which qualify at the international and national levels, and
the largest single count so far made for each species.

Among species not included in the table are two, the Scaup Aythya
marila and the Common Scoter Melanitta nigra, which have declined
in recent years. The former’s main haunt is Carlingford Lough, Cos.
Louth/Down, where up to 2,500 were regular in the mid- 1960’s. In

■ Late 9. Aerial views of the
lony ol Ciannets Stila bassana
1 Grassholm, Dyfed, 1975.
r oove, view towards the south-
I st ( photo by courtesy of the
1 ^lr Force); right, the
•tin part ol the gannetry
•m the north, earlv August

Plate io. Above, Barn Owl
Tyto alba , Co. Cork, 1974;
breeding density in Ireland is
now much reduced. Left, Hen
Harrier Circus cyaneus, Co.
Cork, 1974; continues to in-
crease in Ireland, breeding
in 13 counties ( photos : Richard
T. Mills) (pages 91-103)

Plate 1 1. Two of the many American waders which reached Ireland during 1970-
74: above, Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor, Co. Cork. 1974; below,
Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria, Co. Cork, 1971 (photos: Richard T. Mills)

Plate 12. Above, Common Terns Sterna hirnndo, Co. Wexford, 1974; 700 pairs
bred on Tern Island in 1970. Below, Glaucous Gull Larus hyperboreus in Cork City,
1974; there were 81 sightings of this northern species in Ireland in 1974 alone

( photos : Richard T. Mills)

Birds in Ireland during 1970-74

97

iTnai JMean ,t0talS °f VVildfowl Entering in the Republic of Ireland, criteria for inter
mportance, number of sites of international and national importance, and largest
single count, based largely on counts during 1971-74 S

International
importance
requirement

Species

i.rd Anas platyrhynchos
H. crecca
jail A. strepera
>n A. penelope
A A. acuta
. ler A. clypeata
1 Duck Ay thy a
f’ula

rd A.ferina
ack Tadorna tadorna
ag Goose Anser anser
land Whitefront
1. Ibifrons Jlavirostris
l bellied Brent Goose
ta bernicla hrota
tie Goose
uucopsis
wer Swan Cygnus
us

’s Swan
w vickii

lijSSwan C. olor
s

Mean winter
population

NUMBER OF SITES OF
IMPORTANCE

International National

Largest

single

count

20.000
32,500

500

70.000
4,250

5,500

10.000
2,500

100

5.000
650
700

2
4

3
2

5

3
2

4
4

6

3,800

4,600

150

9,900

2,000

2,000

12,500

35,ooo

6,000

750

5.250

2.250
1,000
1,700

o

2

2

o

5

2

1

5

2,800

22,000

2>4I5

275

8,500

3°o

7,000

1 1 ,000

4,500

Not given

240

800

6,000

»75

2,500

600

Not given
Not given
Not given

100

1,200

20,000

3

o

5

o

o

3

700

Not given
Not given

1970/71 the maximum count was 1,022, and this dropped to only
490 in 1972/73 before recovering a little to 758 in 1973/74. In Wex-
ford Harbour, too, numbers remain well below earlier levels

USbd t0Abe numerous off the east coast but a flock
Of 300 off Go Meath in August 1974 was the largest seen there for

ven years. \ el vet Scoters M. fuse a and Long-tailed Ducks Clangula
hyemalts ^ occurred each winter, though in varying numbers. Single
Smew Mergus albellus were reported each winter
The Greenland White-fronted Goose Amn ' albifrom Jlavirostris
continues to grye cause for concern. The principal haunt at the
exford Slobs is not protected but shooting, though still relatively
heavy, is limited to a fixed number of organised shoots per winter
Elsewhere, however, the picture is very gloomy with bogs being
drained or disturbed and several small flocks disappearing Further
more the Wexford Slobs flock has not increased in corresponding
ashion, not that this would necessarily be welcomed wholeheartedly
as one can already argue that the population is even now over-
concentrated at this one haunt. A number of other geese were

g8 Birds in Ireland during igyo-y^

regular in small numbers, mostly at the Wexford Slobs, including
European Whitefront A. a. albifrons, Pink-footed A. brachyrhynchus ,
Snow A. caerulescens and various races of Canada Branta canadensis.

The Light-bellied Brent Goose B. bernicla hrota population fluc-
tuated widely, as is usual in such a high arctic breeder. Recent
colour marking has shown that the proven breeding range for this
population extends across arctic Canada rather further than had
previously been thought with at least one bird reaching Ireland
from Bathurst Island at about ioo°W. Counts were made in each
of the winters under review and the peak varied from over 12,000
in November 1970 to a record high of 16,140 in December 1973.
As is to be expected, the variations in the counts correlate well
with the breeding success in the previous summer.

Another in the irregular series of censuses of the wintering Barn-
acle Goose B. leucopsis population was carried out in April 1973 and
revealed that the total in Ireland (4,400) had remained at much
the same level as in the three previous surveys of 1961, 1962 and
1966, though the whole population had increased two-fold in the
same period, all of the increase occurring in Scotland (Ogilvie and
Boyd 1975).

Just as regular counts have greatly increased knowledge of Ire-
land’s waterfowl, so the decision of the IWC to join in the Birds of
Estuaries Enquiry has led to enormous advances in knowledge of
the numbers and distribution of waders and the relative importance
of different estuaries. On the basis of the criterion already given
under the waterfowl, five estuaries, Shannon/Fergus, Dundalk,
North Bull, Ballymacoda and Cork Harbour, have been shown to
be of international importance, while a further three, Wexford
Harbour, Little Brosna, and the River Suck, Co. Roscommon, are
of national importance. To these can be added the Northern Ireland
sites of Strangford Lough and Lough Foyle, both of international
importance. Strangford and the Shannon, at their peak, rank about
10th equal in the whole of Britain and Ireland.

The detailed distribution of the waders has not yet been given
the same treatment as the waterfowl, but some information on the
Knot Calidris canutus and the Dunlin has been published in the
IWC Newsletter while other peak counts appear in the Reports.
Strangford Lough is far and away the most important site for Knot
with a peak count of 22,000, while North Bull has had 1 1,000 and
Dundalk 10,000. The Irish total of 50-55,000 amounts to around
12% of the European-North African winter population. The
Shannon has easily the largest population of Dunlin (peak count
33,000) with only Dundalk Bay (at 12,000) otherwise getting into
five figures, though six other estuaries have over 2,000. Approxi-
mately 100,000 Dunlin winter in the whole of Ireland compared

99

Birds in Ireland during igjo-j4

with about three times that number in Britain. Peak counts which
have been published for other species include 26,700 Oystercatchers
at Dundalk in mid-winter; 16,400 Black-tailed Godwits Limosa
limosa on the Shannon estuary, and 6,000 in Dundalk; nearly 4,000
Bar-tailed Godwits L. lapponica at Dundalk; and about 27,000 Lap-
wings Vanellus vanellus in Co. Wexford. Small numbers of Common
Sandpipers, Spotted Redshanks Tringa erythropus, Ruffs Philomachus
pugnax and Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta winter most years.

Glaucous Gulls Larus hyperboreus and Iceland Gulls L. glaucoides
are regular winter visitors to Ireland with the former species amass-
ing 81 sightings in 1974. Two Shore Larks Eremophila alpestris seen
in Co. Louth in February 1970 were the only ones recorded in the
period. Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus occurred in every winter,
particularly in 1970/71 when there were a number of records of
over 50, and a highest count of 1 10 near Belfast. Great Grey Shrikes
Lanius excubitor were recorded in most winters, but there were only
two records of Lapland Buntings Calcarius lapponicus.

PASSAGE MIGRANTS

As previous authors of these summaries have found, the distinction
between a passage migrant and a vagrant is not always straight-
forward, particularly as a species may change from one to the other
over a period of years.

Regular sea-watching, especially at Cape Clear Island but also at
several other prominences, was rewarded with sightings of several
species of shearwaters. The most numerous were Great Shearwaters
Puffinus gravis , of which several hundred were seen off Cape Clear
in autumns 1970 and 1971, only a handful in 1972, then a massive
14,374 in a six-week period in August-September 1973, including
nearly 4,500 on one day; in contrast relatively few were reported
in 1974. Sooty Shearwaters P. griseus , too, had one outstanding
passage, in August 1970 when over 5,000 were seen off Clear, then
many fewer in the next two years but large numbers again in 1973.
Small numbers of Balearic P. p. mauretanicus , Little P. assimilis and
Cory’s Calonectris diomedea were seen in most years.

One or two Little Egrets Egretta garzetta are normal each year
but the 18 or 19 reported in the spring of 1970 almost doubled all
previous records. This influx parallelled a similar one in Britain.
Garganey Anas querquedula were recorded each spring, mostly two
or three but seven in 1971. A wide variety of waders occurred
regularly on passage through Ireland but some which are relatively
common in Britain are much less often reported, including the Little
Stint Calidris minuta and the Curlew Sandpiper C. ferruginea.

Skua passage continued to receive attention at a number of sea-
watching sites but full details were published only in 1970 and 1971.

100

Birds in Ireland during igjo-jq

Arctic Skuas Stercorarius parasiticus remained the commonest, though
Great S. skua ran them close at some stations. The total of 113
Pomarines S. pomarinus reported from Cape Clear in 1971 was more
than the total for the previous five years combined. Sabine’s Gulls
Larus sabini and Mediterranean Gulls L. melanocephalus continued
to be reported regularly.

Little Gulls L. minutus have previously been dealt with as passage
birds but must now be regarded as winterers as well. Numbers
increased spectacularly in the period under review from 49 in 1969
(corrected from the previously published 44) to 81 in 1971, at least
150 in 1972, not less than 370 in 1973, and probably as many in
1974. The presence of quite large flocks, particularly along the
coasts of Cos. Dublin and Wicklow, has made the calculation of a
total of individuals involved now almost impossible. The peak
count was on 12th January 1974, when two flocks of 164 and 90 were
seen. As is so often the way, the birds have timed their dramatic
change in status immediately to follow the publication of a useful
paper by G. D. Hutchinson in the 1971 Report. He covers status
changes from 1950 to 1970 and so provides excellent background
material to the current upsurge.

Ireland, like Britain, received regular visits from overshooting
birds that breed in southern Europe, and during the five years
small numbers of Hoopoes Upupa epops and Golden Orioles Oriolus
oriolus have appeared, though with no signs so far of staying to breed.
Wrynecks Jynx torquilla were reported in three of the five years while
a small influx of Great Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos major took
place in autumn 1972, with up to 16 records in the following winter.

As a possible precursor of future breeding, it was interesting to
note the appearance of a flock of Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus at
Cape Clear in October 1972, and of a flock of four in Co. Wicklow
in October 1974. As these are respectively the second and third
Irish records they should properly be called vagrants but to a
British observer this classification would seem strange.

Cape Clear Bird Observatory was regularly manned throughout
the period under review but sadly that on Great Saltee was visited
only occasionally. This will undoubtedly introduce a bias into the
records of those migrants and rarer visitors whose presence is so
much more easily detected on a small offshore island than elsewhere.
In particular the species which formerly turned up regularly on
Saltee and hardly at all on Clear are now missing from the Reports
and are certainly being under-recorded.

European warblers turn up in Ireland, particularly at obser-
vatories, as they do in Britain, and Melodious Hippolais polyglotta,
Icterine H. icterinus, Barred Sylvia nisoria and Yellow-browed
Warblers Phylloscopus inornatus all put in an appearance in at least

IOI

Birds in Ireland during 1970-7 4

three of the five years under consideration. However, it is perhaps
more thought-provoking for a British ornithologist to note that
Lesser Whitethroat Sylvia curruca and Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis fell
into the same category of reporting frequency. Granted that these
species may be leaving Britain on a southerly or even south-south-
easterly heading, and that the closure of Saltee Bird Observatory
has removed one of the more likely places for them to be seen, but
if the other species can wander or be drifted from the Continent
as far as Ireland it is perhaps strange that these others, breeding as
they do so much nearer, are not more regular in occurrence.

There was one influx of Crossbills Loxia curvirostra, in autumn
1972. The largest flock seen was about 70. Many stayed through the
winter and display and song was reported in spring 1973 but
apparently none bred.

VAGRANTS

Throughout the period under review, the annual ‘Report on rare
birds in Great Britain’ in British Birds has contained full details of
Irish vagrants, also published in the Irish Bird Reports and kindly
made available by the Irish Records Panel. This summary is there-
fore the first which will not list all Irish vagrants, but attention is,
however, drawn to the wealth of rarity descriptions that are pub-
lished in each Irish Bird Report. From 1970 to 1973 these were incor-
porated in the body of the Systematic List, but in 1974 they were
grouped together at the end. Full field notes and descriptions are
printed for all species which have occurred in Ireland five times or
less. It was previously the custom to print brief extracts from field
descriptions for most other rarities, but this practice ceased in 1972,
no doubt for sound economic reasons. It seems worth listing the full
field descriptions for the information of readers as they contain so
much that is potentially valuable in the way of critical identification
points. Some of the shorter descriptions published in the 1970 and
1971 Reports are also added as they serve the secondary function of
demonstrating the wealth of vagrants, particularly of American
origin, that the Irish are fortunate enough to receive.

White-billed Diver Gavia adamsii 1974
White Stork Ciconia ciconia 1974
Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris 1974
(two different sightings)

Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus 1973
Killdeer Charadrius voci/erus 1971
Lesser Golden Plover Pluvialis dominica
1970, 1971

Dowitcher Limnodromus sp 1970, 1971
Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria 1971.
>974

Greater Yellowlegs T. mdanoleuca 1971
Lesser Yellowlegs T. flauipes 1970, 1971
Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla 1970
Baird’s Sandpiper C. bairdii 1970
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper C. acuminata
1 973

Semipalmated Sandpiper C. pusilla
1970, 1971

Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites subru-
ficollis 1970, 1971

Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor
•970. 1971

102

Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola
1970

Bearded Tit Panurus biarmicus 1972,

1974

Rock Thrush Monticola saxatilis 1974
Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica
*973

LIST OF PAPERS PUBLISHED
IN IRISH BIRD REPORTS 197O-74

Evans, P. G. H., and Lovegrove, R. R. 1973. ‘The birds of the
south west Irish islands’. A brief description of the islands is followed
by details of all known ornithological visits, starting in 1850. The
systematic list is very full and includes tables of the counts of the
principal seabirds breeding on the islands. The bibliography is
commendably comprehensive.

Hutchinson, C. D. 1971. ‘The changing status of the Little Gull
Larus minutus in Ireland’. As already remarked, this paper has been
overtaken by events, but it analyses counts from 1966 to 1970 with
some earlier material back to about 1950.

Hutchinson, C. D., and Keys, J. M. 1972. ‘The numbers of wild-
fowl on the North Bull Island, Co. Down’. A valuable paper with a
description of the site and an analysis of the wildfowl counts that
go back to 1951. A causeway has recently been built out to the
island and the effects of this are being watched closely.
Hutchinson, C. D., and Rochford, J. M. 1973. ‘The number of
waders on the North Bull Island, Go. Dublin’. A complementary
paper to the one in the 1972 Report on the wildfowl of this impor-
tant haunt.

Merne, O. J. 1974. ‘The spring departure of Greenland White-
fronted Geese from Ireland’. Observations on the ground and from
the air revealed the timing and routes taken by flocks leaving the
Wexford Slobs. The various factors affecting the geese are discussed.
Moore, C. C. 1974. ‘An analysis of large scale autumn seabird
passage in the north-west Irish sea’. An analysis of observations
made principally at Clogher Head, Co. Louth, in autumn 1974.
Divers, shearwaters and skuas were particularly prominent; gulls
and terns also passed.

O’Meara, M. 1974. ‘Status of the Kittiwake and other seabirds in
east Waterford’. There has been a considerable increase in numbers
since 1964 and two new breeding sites established. Mortality, pre-
dation and behavioural adaptations are covered, while other
seabird species nesting in the area are mentioned.

Prater, A. J. 1970. ‘Counts of waders made in Ireland in January
1971’. An account of an exploratory visit to east and south coast

Birds in Ireland during 1970-74

Dartford Warbler Sylvia undata 1972
(two different sightings)

Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus 1971
Serin Serinus serinus 1974
Scarlet Rosefinch Carpodacus erythrinus
1971

Birds in Ireland during igjo-74 103

estuaries producing some of the first estimates for total wader
populations for the Republic.

Ruttledge, R. F. 1973. ‘Decrease in Greenland White-fronted
Geese wintering in Ireland’. This topic has already been covered
earlier in this summary. The continued welfare of this goose remains
one of the more intractable problems faced by Irish conservationists.

REFERENCES

Andrew, D. G. 1964. ‘Birds in Ireland during 1960-62’. Brit. Birds, 57: 1-10.
Cramp, S., Bourne, W. R. P., and Saunders, D. 1974. The Seabirds of Britain and
Ireland. London.

Flegg, J.J. M. 1970. ‘Birds in Ireland during 1966-69’. Brit. Birds, 64: 4-19.
Hutchinson, C. D. 1974. ‘Wetlands of importance for waterfowl in the Republic
of Ireland’. Cyclostyled report of Irish Wildbird Conservancy.

Ooilvie, M. A., and Boyd, H. 1975. ‘Greenland Barnacle Geese in the British
Isles’. Wildfowl, 26: 139- 147.

Wallace, D. I. M. 1967. ‘Birds in Ireland during 1963-65’. Brit. Birds, 60: 205-
213.

M. A. Ogilvie, The Wildfowl Trust , Slimbridge, Gloucestershire GL2 7BT

Obituary

Charles Vaurie, dds (1906-1975)

Dr Charles Vaurie, Curator Emeritus at the Department of Orni-
thology at the American Museum of Natural History, died at his
home in Reading, Pennsylvania, USA, on 13th May 1975 after a
short illness. He was 68 years of age.

Born in Beaulieu, Correze, France, it was as a young boy that
Dr Vaurie went to the United States, receiving his higher education
at New York University and at the University of Pennsylvania. At
the latter institution he was awarded the degree of Doctor of
Dental Surgery in 1928. He continued post-graduate work at the
Eastman Clinic, Rochester, before beginning his dental practice
in New York City. It was while he was in practice there that an
acquaintance, the late Dr James P. Chapin, awakened in him his
initial interest in ornithology.

In 1942 Dr Vaurie offered his services free to the Museum. Four
years later he was appointed a Research Associate, and in 1956
accepted the post of Assistant Curator, at the same time relinquish-
ing his dental practice entirely. He became a full Curator in 1967
and, when he retired in 1972, Curator Emeritus.

Dr Vaurie will be best remembered for his monumental two-
volume work on the classification and distribution of birds of the
Palearctic region from Britain and Ireland through Europe to
Japan: Birds of the Palearctic Fauna, published in 1965 ( Non-Passeri -
formes) and 1969 {Passeriformes) , has become a standard reference
book for all ornithologists. Perhaps it was because of his great
interest in geography and cartography that his principle work
should deal with the distribution of birds, a field in which he was
recognised as an expert. Though less well known, his book on the
avifauna of Tibet also carries much weight. For this project he had
to search museums and archives throughout Europe in order to
catalogue every specimen of bird ever collected in Tibet, and his
access to the great collections in Russia of Tibetan birds obviously
assisted him in his task; he listed more than 500 species, over twice
the number which had been previously expected, and the result
was the publication of Tibet and its Birds in 1972.

While engaged on the Tibetan project, Dr Vaurie also published
a major study of a family of gamebirds from tropical America, work
which he undertook, he claimed, because it offered him the oppor-
tunity to take a vacation from one study by working on the other.
He once commented ‘I like the idea of having one foot in one part of
the world and one foot in the other’. His interests were not, however,
confined to the study of birds alone: he accompanied his wife,

104

105

Charles Vaurie (1906- 1975)

Patricia, a former Research Assistant in the Department of Ento-
mology at the Museum, on collecting expeditions to Mexico, Central
America and the West Indies, and during one of these travels in
1952 they together collected 20,000 specimens of unusual and
valuable insects on the island ofTiburon and in the State of Sonora
in Mexico.

Besides being the only American who was a corresponding mem-
ber of the Museum of Natural History in Paris, Dr Vaurie was
elected a Fellow of the American Ornithologists’ Union. DAC

Notes

Feeding behaviour of BufHeheads From late December 1973 to
early February 1974, in Florida, USA, I found small parties of
Buffleheads Bucephala albeola in markedly different habitats. In
the Gulf of Mexico, in deep water, they actively and communally
dived for their food below the surface, when they often submerged
together and reappeared within seconds of each other; individuals,
however, occasionally dived on their own. In marked contrast and
well inland at Zellwood, where a vast farm complex of flat arable
land was intersected by dykes, a few Buffleheads were found wading
in muddy water, ‘grubbing’ in the way that Shelducks Tadoma
tadorna feed in Europe. With heads quickly moving from side to
side and shoulders partly submerged, they were apparently obtain-
ing vegetable matter in the water as well as insects on the surface.
At Cape Canaveral, on the Indian River, a straggling line of Buffle-
heads was feeding almost entirely by upending, the birds keeping
their balance by rapidly paddling with their feet.

A. C. Bent (1923, Life Histories of North American Wild Fowl,
2 : 28) said that Buffleheads are usually to be found in small parties
feeding by diving, but rarely all at once. A. J. Erskine (1972,
Buffleheads, Canadian Wildlife Service, series 4: 21-22) mentioned
that they prefer to dive, even in shallow water. He has informed me
(in litt .) that he has seen them with heads submerged and bodies in
the normal floating position for brief periods but has never observed
them upending. Bernard King

'Gull Cry’, 9 Park Road, Newlyn , Cornwall

Jays taking food from peanut feeder The interest in House
Sparrows Passer domesticus and other species learning to take peanuts
from a feeder in the same way as tits Parus spp (see, for example,
Brit. Birds, 67: 356) prompts me to write on the same subject. In

io6

Notes

the garden of my home at Grange Park in north London I have a
helical spring peanut feeder suspended from a rather flimsy branch
of a lilac bush. In the spring and summer of 1972 and 1973 the
garden was visited regularly by two Jays Garrulus glandarius which
eventually learnt to take nuts from the spring. Of particular interest
was that the two birds developed quite different techniques: one
hung on to the feeder and obtained nuts in exactly the same way
as do tits and Greenfinches Carduelis chloris but the other landed on
the ground and then flew up to the feeder, making a stab at it with
its bill. It then either flew into a tree or back to the ground and,
after a few moments, repeated the performance. Occasionally this
technique failed to produce a nut but more often than not was
successful. Considering the size of the Jay’s bill in relation to the
small space between the coils of the spring, the success rate seemed
to indicate very good co-ordination of the bird’s movements in
obtaining a nut without the use of the feet. P. R. Greenwood

44 Cheyne Walk , Grange Park , London N2 i

Reviews

Ducks of Britain and Europe. By M. A. Ogilvie. T. & A. D.
Poyser, Berkhamsted, 1975. 206 pages; 15 pages of colour
illustrations; numerous line drawings and maps. £5.00.

For many ornithologists, and all wildfowlers, ducks have a special
fascination. This very interesting book gives a high proportion of
the known facts about the forty-two species or subspecies of ducks
which have been recorded in Europe.

Separate chapters deal with genei'al behaviour, identification,
breeding, distribution and status, migration and conservation. The
author has been a member of the research staff of the Wildfowl
Trust for fifteen years and this experience enables him to write
about ducks with authority. He also writes well, steering a path
between the popular and the erudite, and every reader— except,
possibly, another duck specialist — will find much to interest and
inform.

The section on identification is the longest, taking up about one-
third of the text, and is accompanied by colour plates by the author’s
wife, showing the male and female of each species in flight. The
breeding and eclipse plumage of both sexes is described in detail
and there are notes on the appearance of downy young and imma-
ture birds. The book does not set out to be a field guide, but more
information is given than is compressed into the standard guides

Reviews

107

and the author suggests it may be of assistance for checking or con-
firmation. Indeed it may, but it would have to be after the event as
the book is too large to carry in the pocket.

The section on distribution and status includes maps showing the
winter and summer distribution of each species in Europe and the
text gives population figures taken from the international wildfowl
counts and other sources. It is a pity that more information is not
given about distribution within Britain.

A short chapter on conservation and exploitation discusses the
threats to the breeding and wintering areas of ducks. It is stated
that there was formerly a considerable amount of ill-feeling between
shooters and conservationists in Britain: it is true that this misunder-
standing is largely a matter of the past but it is hardly helpful for
the author to stress the possible disturbance by birdwatchers and
fail to mention the surely much greater disturbance of indiscriminate
wildfowling.

The division of the book into chapters means that a great deal of
page-turning is necessary if the reader requires all the information
about one species; the identification and distribution sections, in
particular, would be more useful if amalgamated. The saving in
space might have been used for giving more information derived
from ringing returns and on the arrival and departure dates of
summer residents and winter visitors. E. R. Parrinder

Birds of Town and Suburb. By Eric Simms. Collins, London,
1975. 256 pages; 50 black-and-white photographs; 144
figures. £3.50.

Throughout an energetic and successful career, from schoolmaster
to director of wildlife sound recording at the BBC and, more recently,
as freelance TV producer and broadcaster, Eric Simms has studied
the birds around him, at home and on his frequent travels. His
detailed, long-term research into the birds of Dollis Hill (the London
suburb where he has lived for 25 years), covering breeding and
winter censuses, migration, roosting and other behaviour, forms the
inspiration and the basis for this book. But only the basis, for the
scope is much wider than the title might suggest. After discussing
the rise of suburbia, his chapters deal with the nearer suburbs; the
outer ring (including estates, factories and open spaces) ; the edge of
the countryside ; rivers, lakes and reservoirs ; marshes, sewage farms
and gravel pits; and then, following these habitat chapters (which
go well beyond the suburbs to other areas where man-made develop-
ments have influenced birds), there are discussions of birds and the
pursuit of sport (covering game-keeping as well as playing fields,
golf courses and water sports), suburban roost and flvlines, and, a
lifelong interest of his, birds on the move.

io8

Reviews

He draws vividly on his own experience, from Rugby and central
London, Tring, Hilbre, north Kent, the Cotswolds, the Somerset
coast and elsewhere throughout. These personal observations bring
life and richness to the book, but in addition he covers the literature
in detail (local reports as well as the national journals) and gives
much unpublished data from other observers. The critics of amateur
ornithologists have often complained that the majority of bird-
watchers live in towns and suburbs yet rarely study seriously the
birds of their home areas. After reading this massive compilation,
their case can hardly be sustained. Indeed the only possible com-
plaint left to them is that the sheer mass of facts is almost overwhel-
ming, making it hard to trace the general principles which underline
the avian ecology of the built-up areas. This can hardly be blamed
on the author, for we are still largely at the fact-gathering stage
(and there are serious gaps in relevant data from other disciplines —
and all too often an ignorance by ornithologists of what information
is available), while so complex is the subject that it probably needs
professionals of diverse interests to begin work on a synthesis.
Perhaps a wider approach is also desirable, for elsewhere, especially
in central Europe, much relevant research is now being done on
this subject, often beginning to tackle the more fundamental
problems. Meanwhile, here are the basic facts for many areas in
Britain set forth lucidly and well, and reflecting always the skill
and enthusiasm which Eric Simms has brought to his birdwatching.

Stanley Cramp

A Guide to Bird-watching in Europe. Edited by James
Ferguson-Lees, Quentin Hockcliffe and Ko Zweeres. Bodley
Head, London, 1975. 335 pages; 22 maps; 24 drawings. £3.95.

Most of this maxipocket-sized volume consists of 25 essays on bird-
life in every European country, or occasionally group of countries,
west of the USSR border. The units and grouping are ornithological
rather than political; thus the Channel Islands are treated separately
but appended to France, Corsica goes in with Italy, Albania and
Turkey-in-Europe with Greece, and the two Germanies are inte-
grated in keeping with the major ornithological association which
serves both countries. Resulting coverage is complete if somewhat
variable, although seldom to the extent of unduly skimpy treatment.

Some of the unevenness stems from the multiplicity of authors,
although the editors have been commendably successful in securing
consistency of approach. This usually includes some account of the
organisational and conservation situation, topography, climate and
ecological subdivisions, as well as the avifaunal review, in which
inevitably place-names and (English) bird-names predominate.
Nineteen authors are responsible for the 25 essays, the discrepancy

Reviews

109

accounted for by all four Fennoscandian reviews being undertaken
by Dr Curry-Lindahl, the Germanies and Austria by Dr Bruns, the
Benelux trio by the last-named and Bulgaria as well as the United
Kingdom by the first-named editor. It is perhaps a pity that, doubt-
less for good practical reasons, nearly half the contributors are non-
natives or non-residents of the country concerned (witness the mar-
kedly superior scope and content of the essay on Sweden compared
with those on its three nearest neighbours).

Each chapter-heading includes a drawing of a bird apparently
chosen as a typical ‘bonne bouche’ of the country. The selection is
occasionally a trifle odd (e.g. the Great Bustard for Poland), but the
drawings, by H. J. Slijper, admirably convey the character of both
bird and habitat. Edgar Holloway’s sketch-maps are also excellent
for orientation purposes, though in one or two instances a little more
detail could have been accommodated with advantage.

The last 35 pages contain tables of status for 432 species in a
slightly re-arranged panel of 31 countries or areas, each species
being allocated to one of six ‘common’ and six ‘scarce to doubtful’
categories. This provides a quick and useful way of ascertaining
whether a particular bird occurs, even if it may not be mentioned
or is difficult to find in the relevant essay. In general, a handy ‘aide
m^moire’ rather than practical guidebook would probably best
describe this book, drawing attention, in countries one knows, to
what one has missed or the authors have missed (often no doubt
because of the need for compression) ; and, in other countries, pro-
viding an obviously reliable introduction and stimulus to look into
the ways, means and costs of making a visit. Hugh Elliott

Letter

Lanceolated Warblers and vagrancy patterns Commenting
on the records of Lanceolated Warblers Locustella lanceolata at Fair
Isle (Shetland) on 22nd September 1973 and Out Skerries (also
Shetland) on the same date, following one on Fair Isle on igth-2ist
September 1972, the ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1973’
states ‘Three in two years is quite exceptional for this species which
is an erratic vagrant at best, with 15 records all told’ (Brit. Birds,
67: 332). This statement is actually the opposite of the truth.

Records of Lanceolated Warblers in Britain were distributed as
follows: three in 1908-10, three in 1925-28; singles in 1938, 1953
and 1957, three in 1960-61 and three in 1972-73. Small spates of
records appear to be the norm rather than the exception; with

1 1 o Letter

such a skulking and difficult species, one wonders what the true
size of these periodic arrivals here may be.

Many other vagrant species show comparable non-random
patterns, with records falling in groups. To quote just a few
examples: Marsh Sandpipers Tringa stagnatilis were recorded on
seven occasions in the seven years 1963-69 and six of the previous
twelve records were in the six years 1951-56, with none between
1956 and 1963; American Robin Turdus migratorius records were in
1891-94, 1952-55 and 1961-67; Olive-backed Pipits Anthus hodgsoni
have occurred in autumn in 1964-65 and 1973-74 (with one in
spring 1970)..

Vagrancy is most likely to occur when populations are at a high
level and the patterns of records in Britain and Ireland are likely to
be reflecting such periodic events. J. T. R. Sharrock

jp Curlew Crescent, Bedford MK41 7HY

News and comment Peter Conder

United Kingdom ratifies International Wetland Convention The Con-
vention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl
Habitat — the Ramsar Convention — has already been treated in an earlier editorial
(Brit. Birds, 69: 1-3). Two days before it came into force the British Government
formally ratified its signature and on 5th January 1976 the Instrument of Rati-
fication was formally deposited by our ambassador at UNESCO headquarters in
Paris. The United Kingdom thus becomes the ninth member of a group of
countries pledged to conserve their wetlands, one of the most threatened ecosystems
at the present time. The Convention is unique in that the contracting parties
undertake to modify their land-use because of environmental considerations.
Besides accepting a series of general provisions, both positive and restrictive, each
country nominates a List, for especial conservation, of Wetlands of International
Importance existing within its borders. The nine countries have so far nominated
79 wetlands in this category, covering over 2 million ha. The British List at
present comprises 13: England — Bridgwater Bay, Bure Marshes, Hickling Broad
and Horsey Mere, Lindisfarne, Minsmere and Walberswick, North Norfolk
Coast, Ouse Washes; Wales — Cors Fochno and Dyfi; Scotland — Loch Druidibeg,
Loch a’Machair, Loch Stilligarry, Loch Leven, Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor;
and Northern Ireland — Lough Neagh and Lough Beg. The International Waterfowl
Research Bureau, whose director is Professor G. V. T. Matthews, Deputy Director
of the Wildfowl Trust, has been the main driving force in getting this important
international convention agreed and accepted, through a series of conferences
in France, Scotland, Netherlands, USSR, Finland, Iran and West Germany over
the past 14 years. The IWRB will continue to stimulate and coordinate the
research needed to provide a proper scientific basis for such a convention through-
out the world. The continuing bureau duties pass to the International Union for
the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN), which has its head-
quarters in Morges, Switzerland.

News and comment

1 1 1

XVII International Ornithological Congress On the occasion of the XVI

International Congress in Canberra the International Ornithological Committee
accepted the invitation of the Deutsche Ornithologen-Gesellschaft to hold the
XVII Congress in Germany. It elected Professor Donald S. Famer (Seatde) as
President of the Congress. In consultation with the President the German members
of the International Ornithological Committee decided to hold the congress in
the Kongresshalle in West Berlin from June 4th to nth 1978; Rolf Nohring of the
Berlin Zoological Garden was designated as Secretary General.

For the first time, the Scientific Program Committee is an international one.
Its members are Immelmann (Bielefeld) (Chairman), Berthold (Moggingen),
Bock (New York), Dorst (Paris), Gwinner (Erling-Andechs), Ilyichev (Moscow),
Snow (Tring) and Wiltschko (Frankfurt/Main). Five plenary sessions are planned.
There will be about 30 symposia arranged in four parallel sessions. Contributed
papers will be presented as ‘poster papers’ for which the Kongresshalle has excellent
facilities. Instructions for preparations of materials for poster papers will be
available later. Time and space for round-table discussions will be assigned
to appropriate individuals or groups, on application to the Secretary General.
The themes and structures of these discussions are prerogatives of the organisers
or organising groups in consultation with the Chairman of the Scientific Program
Committee. These themes as well as those of the poster papers will be announced
in the program of the congress. An extensive film program is being arranged by a
committee chaired by Georg Riippcll (Erlangen). All-day and evening sessions
are projected together with ‘replays’ of those that prove to be most popular.
Excursions, no longer restricted to the inviting country but leading to several
European countries, will precede and follow the congress. Details will be included
in the second announcement, which will be available for mailing in August 1976
and will contain forms for preliminary registration for the congress and excursions.
Those interested in participating in the congress are urged to inform the Secre-
tariat as early as possible in order to obtain the second announcement and com-
munications concerning the congress. Enquiries should be addressed to the
Secretary General Rolf Nohring, Zoologischer Garten, Hardenbergplatz 8,

1 Berlin 30, Germany.

Further investigations into importation Following reports that regulations
established by the International Air Transport Association governing the con-
ditions under which birds and other animals are transported by air were being
widely ignored both by importers and exporters, the RSPB has set up a new
enquiry into the conditions of birds arriving at London’s Heathrow airport. Tim
Inskipp, the research biologist who painstakingly compiled All Heaven in a Rage, is
undertaking the six-month enquiry with the co-operation of the RSPCA’s staff
at Heathrow. The possibility of such an investigation was envisaged in Mr Inskipp’s
first report if it later became apparent that the IATA regulations were not being
observed. The deaths at the end of last year of more than 2,000 birds— mainly
finches and parrakeets en route from Calcutta to London — as a result of over-
crowding, thirst and starvation show how necessary such action and further
protests are. The 2,000 birds were packed into 19 boxes and were left unattended
during a 48-hour delay at Kuwait.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Autumn summary D. A. Christie

The remarkable incidence of vagrants has been dealt with in previous summaries;
this one covers some of the more common birds which complemented the best
autumn ever in Britain and Ireland.

DIVERS TO RAPTORS

The largest gathering of Red-throated Divers Gavia stellata reported was o
20 at Formby Point (Merseyside) on 19th October. Passage of Manx Shearwaters
Puffinus puffinus was relatively small : the well-watched Seaton Sluice (Northumber-
land) recorded highest numbers with 202 north and 20 south on eight dates in
August, maximum figures being 81 on 30th, when over 60 were noted at both
Spurn (Humberside) and Hartlepool (Cleveland); seven flew north at Seaton
Sluice on 7th October; only two inland records involved birds in Salop and in
Lancashire, both in September; in Scotland over 1,100 flew past Troon Harbour
(Strathclyde) in three hours on 24th July. Movements of Gannets Sula bassana
included 1,200 north at Seaton Sluice on 14th September, and at the Calf of Man
1 ,500, mostly flying south, in five hours on 20th and 1 ,000, again mostly south, on
25th; one was found exhausted inland at Crosspool (South Yorkshire) on 2nd
October and released three days later on the south coast. Shags Phalacrocorax
aristotelis turned up at several inland localities, at Tunstall Reservoir (Durham) on
1 6th and 17th October and at Hambleden Weir (Buckinghamshire) on 17th, and
in the last seven days of November at Sevenoaks (Kent) and at Oxshott brick-
works (Surrey).

There was a good passage of Garganey Anas querquedula, with maximum
numbers at Cliffe (Kent) on 13th August (20) and at Belvide Reservoir (Stafford-
shire) on 15th (16). Good numbers of Kestrels Falco tinnunculus passed south at
Spurn in October, maximum numbers being 37 on 3rd and 36 on 6th. A late
Hobby F. subbuteo was noted at Dungeness (Kent) on 30th October.

WADERS

Only five Kentish Plovers Charadrius alexandrinus were brought to our notice,
in East Sussex (two), Kent and Suffolk (two), though others may not have, been
reported. A total of 14 Dotterels Eudromias morinellus was seen between 17th
August (Hampshire) and 12th October (Merseyside), including four at Hauxley
(Northumberland) on 14th September. The first Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus
arrived at Chetney (Kent) on 30th August, a few more were noted in September
and the highest October count was of 26 at Lower Stoke (Kent) on 18th. Abnormal
numbers of Woodcock Scolopax nisticola appeared on Fair Isle (Shetland), arrivals
of 50 or more taking place on 21st and 22nd October and over 100 being present
on 10th November. Passage of Black-tailed Godwits Limosa limosa was about
average, with Steart (Somerset) again holding the most, 1,200 on 1 7th August. Three
or so Wood Sandpipers Tringa glareola were reported from mid-June, another
23 followed in July, and in the peak month of August 50 were found in singles and
parties of up to eight; 16 were reported in September and three October birds
included the latest at Tinsley sewage farm (South Yorkshire) on 7th. Passage of
Common Sandpipers T. hypoleucos was above average, particularly in Kent
where 120 were counted on the River Stour at Sandwich on 13th August (still go
there on 19th) and a maximum of 75 was at Sandwich Bay on 16th (still 15 on the
late date of 2nd November) ; an interesting report concerned four individuals
which landed on a road at Whitley Bay (Northumberland) during heavy rain on
30th August, some even perching on garden walls.

An excellent passage of Little Stints Calidris minuta took place from 16th
June when one was at Bittell (Worcestershire); the majority of birds passed
through at the end of August and beginning of September, the largest parties

I 12

Autumn summary 1 1 3

being found at Cresswell (Northumberland) on 31st August (27) and at Cliffe
on 1st September (25); good numbers were present until the second week of
September, including nine inland at Blithfield Reservoir (Staffordshire) on 7th;
33 or more were found in October, and several November records included a
single at Blithfield on 1st. Curlew Sandpipers C. ferruginea were even more
obvious: again there were few birds from mid-June until August (though eleven
were at Minsmere (Suffolk) on 27th and 28th July) and then a huge influx occurred,
starting with 1 6 at Cliffe on 1 1 th ; the main peak was in the last few days of that
month and the first half of September, more protracted than the Little Stint
passage, and large parties included 45 at Cliffe on 30th with 65 there on 7th
September, 74 at Teesmouth (Cleveland) on 26th increasing to 84 on 31st, and 60
at Holme (Norfolk) on 8th September; exceptional numbers were found inland,
for example 24 at Belvide and 21 at Blithfield on 31st August, 36 at Eye Brook
Reservoir (Leicestershire) on 8th September, 25 at Blithfield on 10th, 29 at Chew
Valley Lake (Avon) on 12 th, and a further ten at Blithfield on 20th; there was
evidence of continuing passage in October with at least 40 birds including seven at
Blithfield on 12th, and in November six were still at Cliffe on 1st. Temminck’s
Stints C. temminckii were recorded at 14 sites, all singles and most on the east coast,
but including four inland. Ten Red-necked Phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus were
found at eight localities away from Scotland, a small total which included four
inland birds of which one was at Pitsford Reservoir (Northamptonshire) on the
exceptionally late date of 1 ith October. The peak count of Knot C. canutus on the
Ribble estuary (Lancashire) was 103,000 on 5th September, while the largest
gathering of Ruffs Philomachus pugnax was in the same county, 168 at Martin Mere
on 1 8th October.

SKUAS TO AUKS

Skua passage was as usual heaviest on the east coast, particularly at the end of
August when day counts totalled over 300 at several places. Great Skuas Stercora-
rius skua were commonest in the north-east of England, especially in the Northum-
berland/Cleveland area in mid-September when 40 to 50 were noted on 13th;
the maximum at Dungeness, however, was nine on 2nd October, with late birds
there on 19th and 20th November, and a late individual was at Girdlencss
(Grampian) on 16th November. Few Pomarine Skuas S. pomarinus were reported
but a good number of twelve passed Spurn on 17th August; a late bird was noted
off Snettisham (Norfolk) from 21st to 23rd November. Arctic Skuas S', parasiticus
comprised the largest part of the skua passage and an indication of the numbers
involved is provided by sightings off Hartlepool of 341 flying north and 29 south
on 30th August, 300 passing Spurn the next day, and 334 off Spurn on 13th
September with 300 there the next day. Skuas appeared also inland: four Arctics
at Staines Reservoir (Surrey) on 1 7th August and another there on 28th September,
when there was also a Pomarine at the same place; two Arctics at Draycote
(Warwickshire) at the end of August, three flying west over Church Wilne Reser-
voir (Derbyshire) on 27th September, and one at Chew Valley Lake on 7th
October.

Fifteen or more Glaucous Gulls Larus hyperboreus were reported from mid-
June to October, particularly on the north-east coast of England, and just five
Iceland Gulls L. glaucoides in the same period. A few Mediterranean Gulls
L. melanocephalus were widely scattered on the south and east coasts of England
and Wales with no particular pattern emerging. While numbers of Little Gulls
L. minutus were generally poor, a large build-up took place at Castle Eden Dene
(Durham) from the end of July which reached 103 on 30th August; 180 was
the maximum at Dungeness, on 1 3th September. The only movements of Kitti-
wakes Rissa tridactyla of any note were of up to 1 ,800 north off Hauxley on three
dates in September, 1,500 north in one hour off Whitburn (Tyne & Wear) on

1 14 Autumn summary

13th, and 2,000 (nearly all flying south) off the Calf of Man on 20th.

A very good number of Black Terns Chlidonias niger was noted at Dungeness,
where the maximum was 550 on 23rd August; at no other place did flocks exceed
100, and the largest inland flock was of 66 at Chew Valley Lake on 9th September,
when there were also 34 at Belvide Reservoir; October reports came from ten
places, with the last in Peel Harbour on the Isle of Man on 28th and 29th. A roost
of Little Terns Sterna albifrons at Yantlet (Kent) which reached 200 on 1st
August may be of interest. Little Auks Plautus alle were first noted in October, with
five moving north at Seaton Sluice on 1 ith and one found inland at Dale of Walls
(Shetland), and in November some large numbers were observed on the east
coast, particularly at Spurn which recorded its first on 2nd and day totals of 180
(7th), 120 (8th), 10 (9th) and 26 (18th).

NEAR-PASSERINES

A large assembly of 360 Turtle Doves Streptopelia turtur was at Levington (Suffolk)
on 10th August, and one on the Calf of Man on 7th October was the latest ever
recorded there. A remarkable influx of Long-eared Owls Asio otus occurred on
the east coast from mid-October, many birds staying on through the winter:
eight were trapped on Fair Isle between 15th and 22nd and Spurn had a maximum
of seven on 20th; the invasion continued through November and spread to the
south coast. Late Swifts Apus apus were found at 14 places in October and three
in November, the last being one flying south at South Shields (Tyne & Wear) on
6th. Northern Great Spotted Woodpeckers Dcndrocopos major occurred at three
places on the east coast from the end of August, with up to three at Spurn during
the second half of October. The autumn was not, perhaps surprisingly, especially
good for passage of Wrynecks Jynx torquilla: almost all records concerned singles
and a total of only about 50 was reported to us, though this did include an ex-
tremely late bird at Chew Stoke (Avon) in the first week of November.

PASSERINES

The last Sand Martin Riparia riparia of the autumn was at Sandwich Bay on 1st
November. The first arrivals of Fieldfares Turdus pilaris were mainly in Septem-
ber, though late June and July records may possibly have referred to very early
returns; Fair Isle’s first was on 6th August and the largest flocks came in from
9th October when 1,000 arrived at Spurn; 1,500 were at Spurn on 17th and
3,000 there on the following day, while in the Tyneside area flocks of up to 1,000
were found all along the coastline during i8th-25th. Redwings T. iliacus did not
really show themselves until late September, and then only in very small numbers,
and the only large figures were again at Spurn, 5,000 on 9th October, 2,000 on
17th and 4,000 on 18th. On the last date there were also 1,600 Blackbirds T.
merula on the same peninsula, though the only really noticeable arrival of Song
Thrushes T. philomelos was on Fair Isle where over 400 were counted on 30th
September and over 750 on 1st October.

No large ‘falls’ of chats were reported, the most Whinchats Saxicola rubetra
for example being 60 or more at Sandwich Bay on 17th September; six were at
Westbere (also Kent) on 2nd November and one at Thornham (Norfolk) on 23rd.
Thirty- five Redstarts Phoenicurus phoenicurus on Fair Isle on 30th September
increased to 60 the next day, and a late bird was at Spurn on 2nd and 3rd Novem-
ber. Up to 18 Black Redstarts P. ochruros were at Portland (Dorset) in October,
and 18 on 28th was the highest daily count on the Calf of Man since 1939; else-
where numbers were not exceptional, though reports of many hundreds were
received from Scilly. A Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos appeared on Lundy
(Devon) on 5th October.

A very heavy passage of Reed Warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus was concentrated
in Kent: at Dungeness 163 birds were ringed during August and 101 in September,

Autumn summary 1 1 5

and at Sandwich Bay totals were 237 and 85 for the same months, both new
records; an extremely late bird was trapped at Graythorp (Cleveland) on 15th
November, and there were several records from the Shetland area during the
autumn period. On Fair Isle a Sedge Warbler A. schoenobaenus appeared on the
exceedingly late date of 1 1 th November. The peak number of Blackcaps Sylvia
atricapilla on Fair Isle was 70 on the last day of September and ten appeared there
on 10th November, while late migrants were at Dungeness on 1st November (four)
and 1 2 th. With the Fair Isle Blackcaps in September were ten Garden Warblers
S. borin, while the last of that species were seen at Portland on 2nd November and
at Chew Stoke about 6th. Wood Warblers Phylloscopus sibilatrix, uncommon on
passage at the coastal stations, appeared in August on Fair Isle on 17th, 18th
(three), 21st and 22nd, 23rd (two) and 30th and 31st; at Spurn on 18th; on the
Calf of Man on 13th; and at Dungeness on 24th.

Peak numbers of Firecrests Regulus ignicapillus at Dungeness were 25 on 24th
and 28th October, but far more exciting was the unprecedented influx of Gold-
crests R. regulus. Passage of the latter was normal until October, but on 10- nth
a massive arrival was apparent on the east coast: at Spurn 250 were counted on
10th and 1,000 on 1 ith; at Holkham 500-1,000 were estimated on 12th; 600 were
at Sandwich Bay on 1 oth ; and at Dungeness there were 600 on 1 1 th and 750 by
14th, with a total of 731 ringed during the month; record numbers occurred also
on the Calf of Man, and 100 were found in one garden at Bishopstone (Kent) on
1 ith October. It is notable that in Finland 1,634 were trapped on the island of
Signilsliar in September, 10,000 or more were on the same island on 29th Septem-
ber, and of that number 997 were ringed in just four hours. A Spotted Flycatcher
Aluscicapa striata at Boddam (Shetland) on 1st November was unexpectedly late,
especially so far north. Some good ‘falls’ of Pied Flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuea
occurred, 75 at Dungeness on 13th August being described as exceptional while
20 on the Calf of Man on the same day was a record, and on 16th 17 were found
in Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens (Greater London). There were three November
records of Yellow Wagtails Motacilla flava , at Chilwcll (Nottinghamshire) on
4th (six), Dungeness on 7th and Loch of Strathbeg (Grampian) on 9th.

A smallish invasion of Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus was noted, principally
from the end of October but with most being seen in November. The first were
on 1 2th October at Fair Isle and Stakeford (Northumberland) (six), and in
November the largest flock was one of 42 at Hamsterley Mill (Durham) on 29th.
The earliest Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor appeared at Newton by the Sea
(Northumberland) on 13th September, and this was followed by four at Spurn on
1 ith October, one at Fair Isle on 12th and five at Spurn on 15th. Only 13 or so
Red-backed Shrikes L. collurio were reported, all on the east coast apart from
a rather late bird near Churchill (Avon) on 1 1 th October.

A large influx of Mealy Redpolls Acanthis flcanmea flammea was apparent from
the last five days of September, when up to four were on Fair Isle: higher numbers
were seen in October with several flocks of 100 in Shetland and a maximum of
500 on Fair Isle on 15th; the records seemed to be confined to the east coast. Of
interest was a bird trapped at Dungeness which appeared to be a hybrid Mealy X
Arctic Redpoll A. hornemanni; and at the same place on the previous day a Red-
poll of the Greenland race rostrata was also trapped. Bullfinches Pyrrhula pyrrhula
of the nominate northern race were also seen in October, in Tyne & Wear and
Northumberland, and on Fair Isle regularly from 14th to 28th with a maximum
of 14 on 22nd ; three were at the last locality on 8th November. A male Brambling
Fringilla montifringilla was seen near Bozenham Mill (Northamptonshire) on the
very early date of 30th August, though few were reported in September; the main
arrival occurred in mid-October and an incredible 2,250 were estimated at Spurn
on 1 8th, when there were 600 at Dungeness. Fair Isle’s first Snow Buntings
Plectrophenax nivalis of the autumn arrived on 6th September (20) and the maximum

1 1 6 Autumn summary

on any one day there was 1,200 on 6th November; most of the early arrivals were
on the east coast, though one was on Skokholm (Dyfed) at the end of September;
inland sightings were made at Staines Reservoir from 6th October, at Alport
Castles (Derbyshire) on i8th, on Broomhead Moor (South Yorkshire) on 2nd
November, at Belvide Reservoir on 7th and at Attenborough (Nottinghamshire)
on 8th. Three early Lapland Buntings Calcarius lapponicus were on Out Skerries
on ist September, and one on Fair Isle the following day was the forerunner to
that island’s maximum of 20 on 24th; elsewhere about 20 birds were reported,
including one inland at Hurworth Burn Reservoir (Durham) on 28th and, in the
west, one on Skokholm on 1 6th and one on Lundy on 28th with two there on 29th ;
the highest reported number in October was ten or more at Cley (Norfolk) on 19th,
and the only report from the west in that month was of one flying south at Berrow
(Somerset) on 26th; November records came from Spurn, a total of about eleven
between ist and 26th, and Kent (five). On 10th October 1,000 Chaffinches
F. coelebs flew north-west at Dungeness, but that was the only report received of
any substantial movement of this species. Finally, there were two rather unusual
reports from the east coast in October, the first a Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis on
Fair Isle from 22nd to 26th and then a Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes at
Spurn on 26th.

FLIGHT IDENTIFICATION
OF EUROPEAN RAPTORS

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A detailed guide to the 41 species
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PINE CROSSBILLS

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VISION
IN THE
ANIMAL
WORLD

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• A cock robin can see a
female and recognise her
sex at thirty yards. On
the other hand it can be
deceived by a tiny piece
of red rag stuffed between
the branches of a garden
bush and will attack it
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0 Hawks and owls can spot
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0 An elephant's vision com-
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MACMILLAN

PRESS

British Birds

Volume 69 Number 3 March 1976

.

77 Raptor migration across the Strait of Gibraltar J. C. Finlayson,
E. F. J. Garcia , M. A. Mosquera and Dr W. R. P. Bourne

88 A census of the Gannet nests on Grassholm in 1975 M. S.
Cullen and R. Pratt Plate 9

91 Birds in Ireland during 1970-74 M. A. Ogilvie Plates 10-12

Obituary

104 Charles Vaurie, DDS (1906-1975)

Notes

105 Feeding behaviour of Buffleheads Bernard King
105 Jays taking food from peanut feeder P. R. Greenwood

Reviews

106 Ducks of Britain and Europe by M. A. Ogilvie E. R. Parrinder

107 Birds of Town and Suburb by Eric Simms Stanley Cramp

108 A Guide to Bird-watching in Europe edited by James Ferguson-
Lees, Quentin Hockliffe and Ko Zweeres Sir Hugh Elliott

Letter

109 Lanceolated Warblers and vagrancy patterns Dr J. T. R.
Sharrock

1 10 News and comment Peter Conder

112 Autumn summary D. A. Christie

Front cover Kingfisher Alcedo atthis in winter, Cornwall (photo:
J. B. and S. Bottomley)

Printed by Henry Burt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

iritish Birds

Volume 69 Number 4 April 1976

Editorial Address D. A. Christie, British Birds, Macmillan Journals Limited,
4 Little Essex Street, London WCxR 3LF ( telephone 01-836 6633)

Editors Stanley Cramp, I. J. Ferguson-Lees, M. A. Ogilvie and
D. 1. M. Wallace Photographic Editor Eric Hosking

News and comment Peter Conder, 12 Swaynes Lane, Comberton, Cambridge CB3 7EF

Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire so 19 2dl
© The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd

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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 4 APRIL I 9 7 6

Identification of European treecreepers
C. J. Mead and D. I. M. Wallace

INTRODUCTION

Although its arrival as a British bird was widely announced in
January 1972, the Short-toed Treecreeper Ccrthia brachydactyla was
not admitted to the British and Irish list until 1975, on the basis of a
vagrant trapped at Dungeness on 27th September 1969 (British
Ornithologists’ Union, in prep). Fifteen other reports of coastal
vagrants, breeding birds and inland singletons have not yet been
fully reviewed but it is likely that there are several other acceptable
records. Research into such records prompted a growing loss of
confidence in the criteria of treecreeper identification extant in 1974
and the resulting need to review the entire subject. The outcome is
far from pleasing.

Before 1820, nobody had suggested the presence of more than one
Certhia species in Europe. In 1907, Dresser was still lumping them.
Modern systematists have, however, successfully separated them and
demonstrated marked subspecific radiation in both (e.g. Vaurie
1959). Research, both in the field and in captivity, continues (e.g.
Thielcke 1972, Purroy 1973, Mead 1975, Osieck 1975). The product
of our separate reviews of characters in the field (DIMW) and in the
hand (CJM) does not confirm statements in the current literature
dealing with identification. It shows them to be not inherently false
but certainly facile. We are forced to express serious caveats on the
differences in voice and bill/hindclaw ratios, hitherto supposedly
safe bases for separating the two species. If further advances are to
be made in treecreeper identification, the studies will need to be
long and complex. The odds are very much against observers
suddenly faced with just one strange bird.

[Brit. Birds, 69: 117-131, April 1976]

I 17

Treecreeper identification

1 1 8

IDENTIFICATION IN THE FIELD

A Short-toed Treecreeper in Britain is most likely to have originated
from the seaboard of western Europe. It needs to be distinguished
from the two races of the Treecreeper C. fiamiliaris that occur in
Britain. These are the partially migratory nominate race (so-called
Northern Treecreeper), which is an occasional vagrant to North
Sea coasts and isles, and the indigenous britannica which is a wide-
spread resident in mainland woods in Britain and Ireland, reaches
Stornoway in the Western Isles and undertakes occasional autumn
movements (British Ornithologists’ Union 1972). No differences in
the shape, actions and general behaviour of brachydactyla and
fiamiliaris are known and both exhibit very similar, remarkably
disruptive plumage patterns. Attention has previously been drawn
to visible differences in both bare part lengths and plumage marks
and these are now discussed.

Bill and hindclaw length

Typically, the bill of brachydactyla does look longer and more
decurved or bent downwards than that of fiamiliaris. As demon-
strated later, however, there is no real difference between the mean
adult bill lengths of the closest European populations of brachydactyla
and the British population of fiamiliaris and both show marked
growth variation in bill length. Thus, while a long, bent bill may
be a clue to brachydactyla it is not proof.

Although the hindclaws of treecreepers are surprisingly easy to
see, visual judgement of their length is hardly practicable. Since
the curve of the hindclaw varies in both species, the clearer
dichotomy in structure is likely to be masked in the field.

Plumage

Compared with typical British and most Northern fiamiliaris , west
European brachydactyla have duller, greyer upperparts (with white
spotting less obvious and distinctly less rufous or not at all rufous
rumps) and dirtier, less contrasting underparts (often with throats
only pure white, the rest sullied grey and flanks and vent usually
buff or brown). They also have shorter, more indistinct supercilia.
These differences, very evident in the vast majority of skins in
drawers, support the practicability of field identification in well-
marked birds, but it must be stressed that many fiamiliaris in southern
England are themselves dull birds with reduced spotting on the
mantle, little rufous on the rump and obvious buff on the flank
edges. When such birds are also sullied on the belly and vent (as
loose plumaged juveniles often are), the danger of confusion is
high. Photographs illustrating the two species have been published
in Avon and Tilford (1975) (in colour) and in Osieck (1975).

Treecreeper identification

“9

Fig. i. European treecreepers Certhia spp. Compare typically dull Short-toed
C. brachydactyla (left), with indistinct supercilium and dirty underparts, with
typically clean Treecreeper C. familiaris (right), with obvious pale spotting
and strong face pattern in Northern race (upper) ; beware southern British form
(lower), which often has buff wash on rear flanks

It follows that only the combination of very dull plumage with an
indistinct supercilium gives worthwhile cause to suspect brachydactyla.
The complement of an obviously long, bent bill will further indicate
that species (but the absence of such does not rule it out). Fig. i
visualises some of the above points.

VOICE

Until 1972, the separation of brachydactyla from familiaris on
differences in voice was thought to be a relatively simple and certain
exercise. Then, however, Thielcke (1972) demonstrated that both
species may learn at least part of the other’s song pattern and that
familiaris singing mixed patterns held territories against brachydactyla.
It is clear that familiaris has less vocal rigidity than brachydactyla and
thus there is the danger of the most infuriating plagiarism by the
former (since, to make an odd call, it must presumably have heard
something like the real thing from the latter somewhere).
Remembering this, the essential differences and similarities in voice
are now summarised.

Song

In full song, familiaris sings a phrase that is high-pitched (about
7 khz dropping to about 5 khz) and quite long, lasting nearly three

1 20 Treecreeper identification

seconds on average. It is a silvery cadence, very thin and tremulous
to begin with but sounding increasingly fuller and confident
towards the end and with a noticeably accelerating pulse in the
middle. As The Handbook (Witherby et al. 1938-41) states, the song
suggests a loud Goldcrest Regulus regulus or, as E. D. H. Johnson has
perceptively said (in litt.), a Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs raised a couple
of octaves (and with basically the same rhythm and timbre).
In addition familiaris has a sub-song which is shorter, more halting
and less plaintive in quality. In distinct contrast, brachydactyla sings
a phrase that is lower pitched (about 5 khz rising to 6 khz) and
short, lasting just over one second. Importantly, its full song is
much louder and has a more emphatic rhythm. It does not suggest
any other species. Fig. 2 portrays the essential difference in song
phrase. (The mixed songsters studied by Thielcke 1972 occasionally

Fig. 2. Normal song phrases of (upper) Treecreeper Certhia familiaris and (lower)
Short-toed Treecreeper C. brachydactyla (after Thielcke 1972)

amended the structure of notes but mostly they reassembled the two
basic phrases in a wide variety of combinations.) It should also be
noted that brachydactyla may sing less than familiaris during inter-
specific competition (Schnebel 1972).

Calls

The Field Guide (Peterson et al. 1974) gives ‘a thin high-pitched
“tsee” or “tsit” ’ for familiaris and ‘a high, shrill “ srrieh ” or “ zeet ” ’
for brachydactyla. If only it were that simple. Listened to carefully,
treecreepers have many more calls than these. In special studies in
1972 and 1973, H. P. Medhurst and DIMW distinguished at least
seven in the case of familiaris in Epping Forest, Essex, and K. E.
Vinicombe at least six in the case of brachydactyla in southern France.
There can be no doubt that the two species share calls that sound
identical to human ears. Table 1 attempts to compare the two
vocabularies, demonstrating in particular that calls like those of a

1 2 I

Treecreeper identification

Table i. Analysis of calls of Treecreeper Certhia familiaris and Short-toed

Treecreeper C. brachydactyla

Commonest Character in Character in

transcription Treecreeper Short-toed

‘tsee’

tsit

‘tsreee’ or
‘smell’

‘tsiew’

‘tsut’

‘zeet’

‘chink’

Very thin, tremulous,
barely audible, often
trilled or uttered in
series; also ‘sie’, ‘zii’,
‘see-tee-see’

Thin, soft, not tremulous,
repeated but rarely in
series; also ‘sit’, ‘tit’,

‘sit-tit’

(i) Vibrant, medium-
pitched, singly or in
series, also ‘sriiiii’

(ii) Shrill, piercing,
tremulous, loud, very
audible, often in
series and with ‘tsee’
and ‘tsew’ interjected,
with or without abrupt
ending

Plaintive, medium pitch,
singly or in series; also
‘tsew’, lower pitched
Plaintive, loud, recalling
Coal Tit Partis ater\ also
‘tsu’ and ‘tsuit’ as precursor
to song or in series

Thin, plaintive; also ‘seee’

Thin, high-pitched, repeated;
also ‘sit’, ‘tsup’

Clear, explosive, loud,
penetrating, singly or in series;
also ‘sree’

Clear, high-pitched, explosive,
loud, also recalling Coal Tit,
singly or in series of three or
four (with descending pitch) ;
also ‘tsoot’

Shrill, piping, explosive, loud,
recalling Dunnock Prunella
modularis ; also ‘seek’, ‘peep’,
‘sreet’ and ‘tseep’

Penetrating, quite loud,
slighdy recalling Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebs but just
disyllabic; also ‘chip’

Coal Tit Par us ater are given by familiaris, that the first Field Guide
transcription for brachydactyla is relevant to both species and that
only two note types are unique to brachydactyla.

Happily, nobody has so far suggested that the ‘zeet’ note which
recalls the penetrating monosyllables of several other species in a
way that no call of familiaris does is anything but specific to
brachydactyla. This is true also of the ‘chink’ call. It is worth stressing
the fact that British observers do hear the voice of known Continental
brachydactyla as immediately distinctive. They all comment on the
loudness and clear emphasis of its calls compared with the sibilance

122 Treecreeper identification

of most sounds uttered by familiaris. All in all, brachydactyla has a
louder voice than familiaris and its less sibilant calls, particularly
the ‘zeet’, are recognisable to the experienced ear.

HABITAT AND BEHAVIOUR

Recent research into the ecology of the two treecreepers in Lower
Saxony, West Germany, by Schnebel (1972) has suggested that
familiaris is the dominant sibling in areas where the two species
cohabit. Furthermore it inhabits more species of trees, particularly
broadleaved ones with slippery bark. Only the branches of the latter
are readily climbed by brachydactyla, which shows a marked pre-
ference for oak Quercus. Schnebel stated that the difference in
climbing ability is obvious and it seems that details of precise
habitat and ecological behaviour will help identification. Schnebel
never saw brachydactyla as any but the loser in clashes with familiaris.
This suggests that brachydactyla may find it difficult to gain more than
a few footholds in Britain.

Unfortunately, there is clear evidence from the Pyrenees that
Schnebel’s observations do not provide rules for the whole of
Europe. Purroy (1973), in a full study of treecreeper distribution in
various habitats from 750 metres to 1,900 metres in altitude, found
that brachydactyla was favoured by human disturbance of natural
habitats and an earlier start to its breeding cycle. In the Pyrenees,
brachydactyla exhibited a wider habitat tolerance than familiaris and
was the dominant species in the highest and lowest levels. It was
certainly not ‘the treecreeper of gardens’ only. Clearly, there is
much to be learnt of treecreeper biology.

Isolating vagrant brachydactyla from British familiaris in the field
will be no easy task. The plumage overlap with southern English
or atypical familiaris is wide and the difficulty (to untrained
observers) of certain voice distinction creates formidable barriers
to field identification. Separation of the two species is clearly
practicable in Europe where both are present, but it has yet to be
proven possible in Britain.

IDENTIFICATION IN THE HAND

Specific diagnosis of skins or live birds in the hand of very similar
species is sometimes possible using the size of readily measured
features. Just such a technique, involving bill and hindclaw lengths,
has been published by Svensson (1970) for the two European tree-
creepers. Knowing that brachydactyla was supposed to have been
discovered breeding in England CJM started to measure the bills
and claws of all the treecreepers he handled from January 1970.
The measurements of live birds came from a wooded area near
Tring, Hertfordshire, and the calls, song and plumage of the birds

Treecreeper identification 123

trapped and seen in the area conformed with familiaris in all
particulars.

Since such fine differences in measurements are involved and
they are not easy to reproduce between different observers, only
those measured by CJM have been included. Metal vernier callipers
were used and the results recorded to 0.1 mm. Fig. 3 shows precisely
how they were taken. It soon became apparent that the measure-
ments for the Tring population did not wholly conform with those
given for either species by Svensson (1970). Since the explanation
could lie in differences in measuring techniques, through shrinkage
of the museum specimens measured by Svensson or because the
Tring birds actually had longer bills, the study was extended to
museum specimens.

Fig. 3. The technique used in measuring bill and hindclaw lengths of treecreepers
Certhia spp. The bill is measured from the tip to the angle formed above the bill
by it and the skull, one arm of the callipers being tucked into this notch and the
other screwed out until it reaches the bill tip. The hindclaw measurement is taken
on the upper part from the tip to the edge of the skin sheath at the base

All the Palearctic Certhia specimens in the British and Liverpool
Museum collections were measured during 1974. Although several
races of each species have been described, the variations in measure-
ments within named subspecies was wide and the skins were grouped
on a geographical basis to provide samples from relatively compact
areas. The results of this study have already been published (Mead
1975), but ^ie information from populations within and close to
Britain and Ireland will be used later. The conclusions of this
analysis, relevant to the European populations, were as follows:

1. Certhia brachydactyla is a good species with a very significantly
shorter hindclaw' than familiaris. European population means for
the former range from 7.49 mm to 7.87 mm compared with 8.91 mm
to 9.28 mm for the latter. Unfortunately the theoretical and actual

124 Treecreeper identification

ranges of these measurements overlap considerably in the region of
8 mm.

2. Unlike claw lengths, which show little geographical variation
within Europe, bill lengths vary considerably. This variation,
mainly in brachydactyla populations, means that, although the
average European treecreeper of that species has a longer bill than
a familiaris, some French populations have mean bill lengths very
similar to those found in both British and European familiaris.
Indeed the brachydactyla population (north-east France, the Channel
Islands and the Netherlands) nearest to the sites in southern
England where that species has been claimed has a mean bill length
of 17.63 mm, only 0.0 1 mm longer than the mean for all British and
Irish familiaris. Within Europe as a whole, only about 10% of the
bill measurements for each species lie outside the range observed
for the other.

3. Wing lengths of familiaris populations were, on average, longer
than those of brachydactyla, but most measurements lay within the
area of overlap. Unfortunately British familiaris have shorter wings
than other European populations and are thus even closer to the
European mean for brachydactyla. Irish birds have slightly shorter
wings than those from mainland Britain (62.31 mm compared with
63.24 mm, P < 0.05) but, otherwise, in none of the features
measured did any of the three populations from Great Britain and
Ireland, which were treated separately, differ.

4. Bill width, at the nostril, was also measured but there was little
variation within European populations and the difference between
British familiaris and close populations of brachydactyla was negligible.

5. The feature advocated by Harrison (1935), who suggested that
the outer web of the largest alula feather had a complete pale
margin in brachydactyla which was lacking in familiaris, was also
tested. Although more often right than wrong, up to 40% of the
birds from European populations of brachydactyla and 17% of
familiaris would have been wrongly assigned using this character
alone. In any case it was often difficult to decide whether the
margin was present or not.

6. Since many of the museum specimens being measured were
sexed by their collectors it was possible to compare measurements
within some populations by sex. The results showed a markedly
greater sexual dimorphism in bill length than claw length. This
means that the simple discriminant advocated by Svensson (1970)
of hindclaw — 0.456 X bill will necessarily include a sexual bias.

The search for a means of specific identification was, of course,
complicated by the results from live birds. The ideal was to find a
discriminant function, involving as few measurements as possible,
which would determine the species of any individual. The informa-

Treecreeper identification 125

tion provided by Svensson (1970), in the first edition of his invaluable
guide, gave hindclaw greater than 0.456 X bill for familiaris and
hindclaw less than 0.456 X bill for brachydactyla. These formulae mean
that, if bill is plotted on the y- and claw on the x-axis, all brachydactyla
would be above and left of the line x = o.456y and all familiaris
below and right of it. Fig. 4 shows that this was not so.

THE SEARCH FOR A NEW DIAGNOSIS

Fully-grown birds

Since measurements were now available, taken by the same person
with the same equipment, for skins of both species and from live
familiaris, plots could be constructed for fully-grown birds. In the
first, fig. 4, skins from the two closest populations of brachydactyla
(two regions including Belgium, the Netherlands, Channel Islands
and north and mid-France) (Mead 1975) are plotted as stars, skins
of familiaris from south and east England as solid dots and live
birds from Tring as open circles with triangles. Where birds were
retrapped and remeasured a mean measurement is plotted. The
thicker, more vertical, line is the best discriminant on these data
alone. The heavily circled symbols arc the birds (nine out of 143 =
6.3%) which fall on this line or on the wrong side of it. Many more
are within 0.5 mm of it (combining the two measurements): almost
50% of brachydactyla, 20% of live familiaris and 8% of familiaris
skins. This line is hindclaw = 0.14 X bill + 5.4 and the other is
Svensson’s ratio, which would give 15 wrong identifications (10.5%).

Fig. 4 shows only birds from a very restricted area but, in dealing
with the possibility of identifying a vagrant, other populations must
be investigated. Fig. 5 shows, on the left, brachydactyla and, on the
right , familiaris plots from a wider area. On each plot the thicker,
left-hand line is hindclaw — 0.14 X bill -f- 5.4, but the thinner, right-
hand line proved to be the best discriminant on these more extensive
data; it is hindclaw =0.14 X bill + 5.6. Table 2 summarises the
performance of both discriminants and shows that the best efficiency
is about 95%. This is on data provided by measurements made
by one person and takes no account of individual systematic
differences in technique which are very likely to exist. A com-
parison of the live bird measurements from Tring with those from
British skins suggests that shrinkage in skins may account for a
loss of almost 1 mm in bill measurement but that claw measure-
ments are unaffected. Further problems may arise since both bill
and claw, on full-grown birds, grow continuously. The data were
analysed by three-month periods to see whether there were seasonal
differences. The three-month means for both bill and claw are
different, but not significantly so, and therefore date of capture
does not seem to have a systematic effect on these measurements.

Treecreeper identification

126

Fig. 4. Bill/hindclaw plotted for one population of Short-toed Treecreepers
Certhia brachydactyla and two of Treecreepers C. familiaris. Stars mark brachydactyla
skins from Belgium, the Netherlands, the Channel Islands and north and mid-
France, dots familiaris skins from southern England, and triangles in circles live
familiaris from near Tring. The thick line is the best linear discriminant between
the species, though heavily circled records would have been incorrectly diagnosed ;
the thin line is Svensson’s (1970) discriminant ratio

Young birds

The previous section was restricted to fully-grown birds. Most
juvenile treecreepers may be aged through the summer and early
autumn (sometimes to October) by their characteristically loose
and fluffy undertail-coverts. Table 3 compares the measurements of

Treecreeper identification

127

Fig. 5. Bill/hindclaw plotted for two populations of Short-toed Treecreeper Certhia
brachydactyla (left) and two of Treecreeper C. familians (right). On the left, solid
dots mark brachydactyla skins from mainland Europe and open circles those from
Cyprus and North Africa. On the right, solid dots mark familiaris skins from Britain
and Europe and open circles live familiaris near Tring. The thicker line (same on
each plot) is the discriminant fitted to fig. 4 but a better function would be the
thinner line to the right for these more extensive data

128

Treecreeper identification

Table 2. Efficiency of two discriminant functions for specific identification
of Treecreepers Certhia familiaris and Short-toed Treecreepers C. brachydactyla
from the bill and hindclaw measurements plotted in fig. 5

‘North Europe’ includes Britain, Scandinavia, Germany, Poland and the Baltic
States, and ‘Mediterranean’ covers Cyprus and North Africa. The Tring measure-
ments are of live birds caught for ringing, while all others are of museum specimens

SHORT-TOED

TREECREEPER TREECREEPER

North Europe Tring Europe Mediterranean

Function: hindclaw = 0.14 bill + 5.4

Correct 159 41 103 37

Wrong 6 1 15 3

Function: hindclaw — 0.14 bill -f- 5.6

Correct 157 39 112 39

Wrong 8361

totals 165 42 1 18 40

juvenile and fully-grown birds: the former are between 8% and
12% shorter than the latter, which can cause additional confusion.
In all four cases where juveniles were later retrapped as fully-grown
birds, both measurements had increased, bills by between 1.8 mm
and 4.0 mm and hindclaws by between 0.5 mm and 1.9 mm. This
means that measurements can be of rather little help on young birds
during June, July and August and may be open to some doubt for
the next month or two. The inclusion of some young birds in his
measured sample may partly explain the discrepancy of more than
1 mm between the mean bill length of some of Svensson’s samples
and those measured by CJM. Hindclaw measurements are in much
closer agreement however : for the four paired geographical samples

Table 3. Mean measurements of bill and hindclaw for juvenile and older
treecreepers Certhia familiaris from two sources

For each measurement the mean 42 s.e. and the sample size (in brackets) are
given. Only the accurately dated museum specimens have been used here

Juveniles

Older birds

Live birds: near Tring

Bill

16.69 ± 0.57 (26)

18.55 ± °-35 (58)

Claw

8.21 ± 0.27 (26)

9.03 ±0.19 (58)

Museum specimens: Britain

Bill

15-75 ± °-63 (8)

17-83 ± 0.21 (122)

Claw

8-33 ± 0.40 (8)

9.00 ± 0.10 (125)

129

Treecreeper identification

the difference in means was never more than 0.25 mm. Recently
Osieck (1975) has published a bill/hindclaw plot demonstrating the
area of overlap on Svensson’s earlier criteria. On his data, the best
discriminant is very near hindclaw = 0.14 X bill -j- 5.6. This is that
proposed on the data presented in fig. 4 and it is very encouraging
that the results from two completely independent investigations
should be so similar.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

The problems of identification of Treecreepers Certhia familiaris and
Short-toed Treecreepers C. brachydactyla in the field and in the hand
are discussed. In the field length of bill and hindclaw are thought to
be impracticable criteria; separation on plumage is possible with
well-marked birds, brachydactyla being generally duller and greyer
above, and dirtier below, with a less distinctive supercilium, than
typical familiaris ; many southern English familiaris arc, however,
dull and easily confused with brachydactyla. Voices are compared: the
full song of brachydactyla is normally much louder and with a more
emphatic rhythm; table 1 compares calls, many of which appear to
be common to both species; generally brachydactyla has a louder
voice and less sibilant calls. Where the two species exist together
familiaris appears dominant (Schnebel 1972), though Purroy (1973)
found brachydactyla to have a wider habitat tolerance and to be the
dominant species at highest and lowest levels in the Pyrenees.
Separation of the two species in the field in Britain has yet to be
proven possible.

Bills and claws of live familiaris from near Tring, Hertfordshire, and
of museum specimens of both species from various parts of their
ranges were measured. Bill lengths varied considerably, though the
average brachydactyla had a longer bill. Brachydactyla has a shorter
hindclaw than familiaris , but a considerable overlap in the theoretical
and actual ranges was apparent in the region of 8 mm. Wing lengths
of familiaris were on the whole the longer but again a great area of
overlap was evident. Sexual dimorphism was greater in bill length
than in hindclaw length.

Svensson’s (1970) criteria of hindclaw greater than 0.456 X bill for
familiaris and hindclaw less than 0.456 X bill for brachydactyla were
shown to be unsound. Measurements from a wider area of Europe,
and North Africa, showed the best discriminant to be hindclaw =
0.14 x bill -f- 5.6. The rate of growth of young birds means that
measurements taken in June, July and August can be of litde help.
A bill/claw plot by Osieck (1975) showed hindclaw = 0.14 x bill -f-
5.6 again to be a good discriminant.

Both in the field and in the hand the identification of the two
species is difficult. While differences do exist (and no doubt attach

130 Treecreeper identification

to their speciation), the observation of such may be impracticable
in many circumstances, and particularly in those likely to surround
the chance record of a single vagrant brachydactyla in Britain. Recent
research has shown that previous statements on field identification
are dangerously facile, while an extensive review of the measure-
ments of both preserved and live specimens has upset the original
criteria set by Svensson (1970) for the separation of birds in the
hand. A much wider overlap has been demonstrated in all characters
and the risks to bird identification from varying human perception
have become nowhere more apparent than in this subject.

This said, we do not doubt that some brachydactyla are safely
separable from even atypical familiaris and that it is worth while to
concentrate on every suspect bird. Where a bird is caught, reference
to this paper or to Svensson’s revised statement (1975) should guide
observers through the morass of previous comments and reviewing
committees through the confused criteria. Finally, we must stress
again the need for disciplined, precise measurements. Anybody
wishing to tackle this problem properly must be prepared to measure
all the treecreepers he catches in order to determine a firm basis for
comparison. Only with this will the discriminants evaluated here
help to support certain identification.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We have received much assistance from British and European observers. CJM
thanks Dr D. W. Snow and P. J. Morgan respectively for allowing him access to
the treecreeper specimens in the collections of the British Museum (Natural
History) and Liverpool Museum. Lars Svensson kindly lent him the raw data of
his measurements from museums. David Sales and Brian Watmough helped with
the data analysis. Other colleagues at the BTO and several ringers contributed to
helpful discussion. DIMW thanks many correspondents, notably P. F. Bonham,
I. J. Ferguson-Lees, P. J. Grant, R. E. Scott, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock and Dr G.
Thielcke. For expert assistance on the vocabulary of the two species he is parti-
cularly indebted to Mrs E. M. Allsopp, D. G. Bell, J. Burton, D. A. Christie,
R. J. Johns, E. D. H. Johnson, H. P. Medhurst and K. E. Vinicombe.

REFERENCES

Avon, D., and Tilford, T. 1975. Birds of Britain and Europe. Poole.

British Ornithologists’ Union. 1971. The Status of Birds in Britain and Ireland.
Oxford.

(in prep) ‘Records Committee: Ninth Report’. Ibis.

Harrison, J. M. 1935. ‘A note on Certhia familiaris and C. brachydactyla’ . Ibis, 77:

437-438.

Mead, C. J. 1975. ‘Variation in some characters of three Palearctic Certhia spp.’.
Bull. B. O. C., 95: 30-39.

Osiegk, E. R. 1975. ‘Identification of treecreepers Certhia in the Netherlands’.
Limosa, 48: 176-187.

Peterson, R., Mountfort, G., and Hollom, P. A. D. 1974. A Field Guide to the
Birds of Britain and Europe. London. Third edition.

Purroy, F. J. 1973. ‘La repartition des deux grimpereaux dans les Pyrenees’.
I'Oiseau, 43 (3): 205-21 1.

Treecreeper identification 131

Schnebel, G. 1972. ‘Die Okologie der Baumlaufer ( Certhia brachydactyla und
Certhia familiaris ) in Ostnicdersachsen’. Vogelwelt, 93 (6): 201-2 15.

Svensson, L. 1970. Identification Guide to European Passerines. Naturhistoriska
lliksmuseet, Stockholm.

1 975- Identification Guide to European Passerines. Second, revised edition.

Stockholm.

Thielcke, G. 1972. ‘Waldbaumlaufer ( Certhia familiaris ) ahmen artfremdes
Signal nach und reagieren darauf ’. J. Orn., 1 1 3 : 287-296.

Vaurie, C. 1959. The Birds of the Palaearctic Fauna: Passeriformes. London.
Witherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W.
1938-41. The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 1.

C. J. Mead , British Trust for Ornithology, Beech Grove, Tring, Hertford-
shire HP23 5NR

D. I. M. Wallace, 9 Woodhill Rise, Heads Lane, Hessle, Hull, North
Humberside HU13 ohz

Ruddy Ducks in Britain
Robert Hudson

INTRODUCTION

The Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis is one of five introduced birds
(three waterfowl and two pheasants) that were admitted to the
British and Irish list in 1971, when it was accepted that they had
succeeded in establishing self-maintaining feral populations in
these islands (British Ornithologists’ Union 1971). Some notes on
the status of the present species were given by Parslow (1973), in
the course of a general review of British and Irish breeding birds ;
but, hitherto, no full account of the Ruddy Duck in this country
has appeared, despite the growing volume of observations scattered
in county and regional bird reports and bulletins. This paper is
intended to correct this deficiency, and at the same time ensure
that the early history of the colonisation of Britain by the Ruddy
Duck is better documented than has been the case for most intro-
duced species.

AVICULTURAL BACKGROUND

The Ruddy Duck, a North American species, is known to have
acquired feral status mainly through strays from the Wildfowl
Trust’s collection at Slimbridge in Gloucestershire. Therefore some
account of the avicultural background is relevant, and this has
been provided ( in litt.) by Wildfowl Trust staff.

Until fairly recently this species was regarded as difficult to
breed or even keep in captivity, and very few waterfowl collections
contained it. During the 1930’s a nesting pair was held at Walcot,
Shropshire (Avic. Mag., 1938: 104- 105), but this collection was
dispersed during the Second World War. The post-war reappearance
of the species in British aviculture was initiated by the Wildfowl
Trust, which imported three pairs from the USA in 1948; these
began breeding at Slimbridge in 1949. However, young Ruddy
Ducks proved difficult to rear by the artificial techniques then in
use. It was soon found that the best results could be obtained by
permitting parents to rear their own young, and from 1955 most
Slimbridge pairs were allowed to do so; four young were raised
naturally in 1952, five in 1954, twelve in 1955, 17 in 1956, about 40
in 1957 and again in 1958, and between ten and 40 annually
thereafter (see Wildfowl Trust Annual Reports).

It has long been the policy of the Wildfowl Trust to pinion the
young of non-native ducks as far as practicable. Where Ruddy
Ducks were concerned, this worked well provided the nests were
located before incubation commenced, so that the hatching date

132

[Brit. Birds, 69: 132-143, April 1976]

133

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

could be calculated. (The ducklings remain in the nest for several
hours after hatching, and it is then they must be caught for pinion-
ing.) Even small ducklings, once they have taken to the water, can
dive well, and they cannot then be caught without causing an
unacceptable degree of disturbance in the pens, which is especially
to be avoided during the breeding season. As the Slimbridge
breeding stock increased (three pairs in 1955, ten by 1958) not all
nests were found in time, and so some broods escaped pinioning.

The first full-winged young left Slimbridge in the winters of
I952/53 (two) and 1954/55 (one); but the first major departure
occurred in the autumn of 1957, when up to 20 birds escaped
(Ferguson-Lees 1958). No accurate figures exist for the numbers of
Ruddy Ducks which left Slimbridge in subsequent years; but
S. T. Johnstone believes that 70 birds would be an approximation
for the total number of escapes up to his retirement in 1973, most
of them during the first half of the period. Certainly all full-winged
Ruddy Ducks left Slimbridge during the terrible winter of 1962/63,
when many of the pinioned birds succumbed. Since that time
fewer birds have avoided pinioning, though there remains the
problem of the occasional Ruddy Duck egg being laid in another
species’ nest and overlooked; while from 1973 Ruddy Duck broods
have again been reared artificially. In recent years (at least since
1969) it is unlikely that more than one or two individuals per
annum have escaped from Slimbridge.

Ruddy Ducks are now included in a number of specialist water-
fowl collections elsewhere (Martin 1974), though no complete list
is available. Several Wildfowl Trust birds were taken in 1957 to
the Peakirk collection in the Soke of Peterborough; but fewer
young are reared there, and the number of strays has always been
insignificant. A fair number of young are reared in private collec-
tions at Apethorpe (also in the Soke of Peterborough), at St Neots in
Cambridgeshii'e, near Grimsby in South Humberside, and at
Monken Hadley near Barnet in Hertfordshire. In such collections
the emphasis is on artificial rearing, improved techniques having
been devised, so that the majority will be pinioned (Dawson 1974,
Wildfowl Trust) ; but it is known that over the years a number have
been allowed to fly free from the Monken Hadley collection. Away
from centres of feral breeding, Ruddy Duck records are often
published in local bird reports as referring to probable escapes;
some undoubtedly are, especially in south-east England, but, in
practice, escapes must nowadays be well outnumbered by wander-
ing birds of feral origin.

The Wildfowl Trust does not now countenance the accidental or
deliberate releasing of non-native birds into the wild. Ruddy
Ducks got away and established themselves ferally at a time when

*34

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

the potential dangers of introducing alien species were not so
clearly appreciated as they are now. However, in the present case
it must be conceded that no harm appears to have been done to
any native species or habitat, nor is there any danger of this
essentially aquatic species becoming an agricultural pest. This is
just as well because, as the following sections will show, feral
Ruddy Ducks are successful and increasing, and all the signs are
that they are here to stay.

FERAL DISTRIBUTION

The first Ruddy Ducks reported at liberty in this country were in
1954, when single drakes were seen at Hingham, Norfolk, in April
and at Carsebreck, Perthshire, in June [per Wildfowl Trust) ; these
were 250 km and 510 km respectively from Slimbridge, and
presumably referred to one or both of those which escaped from
there in the 1952/53 winter. There is also a puzzling record of five
stifftail ducks (three males, two females), possibly jamaicensis, seen
on Aqualate Mere, Staffordshire, in August 1954; if these were
Ruddy Ducks they would be difficult to account for (exceeding the
number of Slimbridge escapes up to then), but the description on
Slimbridge files is not wholly satisfactory.

The initial intimation that a feral population might develop in
Britain was given by King (1961). In 1957, the first year that a
substantial number left Slimbridge, a young Ruddy Duck appeared
in November on Chew Valley Reservoir in what is now the county
of Avon. During the ensuing winter the number present at Chew
increased to four, while four birds (presumably the same ones) were
also seen for long periods on nearby Blagdon Reservoir, as well as a
single bird on Barrow Gurney Reservoir — making five in all. By
the spring of 1958 it was apparent that these were all drakes, as
also were the one or two additional immatures which arrived in
1 958/59. According to contemporary Somerset and Bristol Bird
Reports, the first females appeared at Chew in December i960;
but King (1976) has stated that he saw a brood of ducklings there
in May i960. A single pair bred again in 1961, and this species has
probably nested there in most years since.

It has been generally understood that the English feral popula-
tion arose solely from Slimbridge escapes and their progeny (e.g.
Campbell and Ferguson-Lees 1972). However, in the early years
one deliberate release was made by the Wildfowl Trust, with three
of four immature females from Slimbridge being turned down on
Chew Valley Reservoir in the autumn of 1961 (B. King and Wild-
fowl Trust, in litt.). This was done ostensibly to provide mates for
the drakes already present, though it should be noted that these
young females were released after feral breeding had occurred there.

*35

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

In the event, this deliberate release had no discernible effect on the
development of a feral population, as is shown by the fact that the
Chew breeding numbers remained static at one or two pairs until
the i97o’s (see below).

In September 1959 Ruddy Ducks also began appearing on
certain Staffordshire reservoirs, where feral breeding was con-
firmed in 1961. These west midlands birds, now breeding in six or
seven contiguous counties, arrived and multiplied unaided, and
soon came to outnumber the lower Severn breeding population.
This west midlands stock is also assumed to be derived from full-
winged Slimbridge escapes and their progeny (e.g. Lord and Munns
1970), and I have no doubts that this view is correct, notwithstanding
the problematical (and indeed questionable) 1954 record from
Aqualate Mere mentioned earlier. Certainly, the numbers of
Ruddy Ducks known to have left Slimbridge are well in excess of
those which settled to breed in lower Severn counties.

Details of subsequent expansion and of present status are given
below under counties, beginning in the south-west and continuing
northwards.

Avon First bred in i960 on Chew Valley Reservoir; this remains the sole Avon
breeding site and only one or two pairs nested up to 1971. Four pairs summered
in 1972, six in 1973 and 1974, and about the same number in 1975; but not all of
these necessarily attempted nesting. Significant autumn/winter flocks are a regular
feature, with some commuting between Chew and Blagdon Reservoirs though the
latter has held most in recent winters; these flocks generally reach peak numbers
about December, and disperse during March. Combined totals for these two
waters have increased steadily: November 1962, seven; December 1963, 15;
October 1966, 24; February 1969, 42; January 1971, 55; January 1973, 68;
December 1974, about no; November 1975, about 120 (hi on Blagdon). The
majority of these are winter visitors from elsewhere (a count of 32 at Chew in
September 1975 indicated the maximum size of the local population), but the
areas from which they are drawn have yet to be confirmed. (See discussion under
population and dispersal.) (See also postscript on p.142.)

Gloucestershire Surprisingly, the species is not mentioned at all in Gloucestershire
Bird Reports, whose editors are perhaps conditioned to ignoring strays from Slim-
bridge. Atkinson-Willes (1963) mentioned breeding on pools at Frampton-on-
Severn, but the year of commencement is not recorded ; a pair attempts to breed
there in most years, though few young are reared, perhaps owing to predation by
Pike Esox lucius (M. A. Ogilvie). The maximum number seen there is 14, in
November 1969. No other Gloucestershire feral breeding sites are known.

Hereford & Worcester Since 1967 Ruddy Ducks have occurred regularly
in Westwood Park and Upton Warren (both near Droitwich), and nesting was
proved at both sites in 1971; in 1975 one pair bred at the former and two or
three pairs at the latter. At Pirton Pool (near Pershore) there have been almost
annual spring or summer occurrences from 1970 (four birds present in June 1972) ;
but nesting remains unproven. Further west a single drake was seen at Hereford
in January 1963, but no more until July 1975 when a pair was located on Eywood
Pool (near Titley), a suitable breeding site (A. J. Smith).

136 Ruddy Ducks in Britain

Warwickshire Records from 1962; annually from 1971, following continued
increase in adjacent Staffordshire. Apparently nesting has not yet been formally
proved, but probably is occurring. In 1974 up to four birds were present on
Alvecote Pools from April to December, a pair was seen in Packington Park in
July and August, and up to five birds (some juveniles) were present on Middleton
Hall Pools between July and November. Birds were again present at Alvecote
and Middleton Hall in summer 1975. Future colonisation seems assured, if this
has not already occurred.

Staffordshire First bred in 1961, when single broods were seen on Gailey and
Belvide Reservoirs (Lord and Munns 1970). There has been only one subsequent
definite breeding record for Gailey (in 1962), but Ruddy Ducks are thought to
nest most years at Belvide, where there were three pairs in 1962 and 1974 (other-
wise one or two). In recent years they have occurred regularly in summer on
Copmere near Eccleshall (breeding from 1968, four pairs displaying in April
1974), on White Sitch near Weston-under-Lizard (breeding proved in 1971 and
1972, probably regularly since), at Chillington near Codsall (probably bred 1974,
proved 1975), and on the heavily-reeded Aqualate Mere (assumed to be breeding;
five pairs present in April 1974). Betley is another possible nesting site. Stafford-
shire is also notable for its autumn/winter flocks, involving regular movement
between two main centres — Belvide and Blithfield Reservoirs. In recent winters
flocks have formed on Belvide during September-November, and around
November-December many have transferred to Blithfield and remained there
until the spring dispersal (March- April). Total numbers have increased steadily
despite a temporary setback after the severe winter of early 1963 : December 1962,
13; winter 1965/66, 15 to 20; September 1967, 20 to 25; November 1969, 35 to 40;
December 1972, 70 to 80; November 1974, no; October 1975, about 190 (181
at Belvide). Many must be winter visitors from elsewhere. (See postscript on p. 142.)

Salop First seen in 1962; first proven breeding in 1965 at Crosemere, where it has
probably nested annually since, with four pairs present in May 1975 (C. E.
Wright). Since 1969, Ruddy Ducks have been reported with increasing regularity
from small pools and meres in most parts of the county, but especially from the
area between Ellesmere and Market Drayton and north to the Cheshire boundary.
Breeding has occurred at Ossmere since 1971 (three pairs in 1974; in 1975 two
pairs summered but did not breed owing to low water levels), and at Hawk Lake
since 1974 (six males, five females and six ducklings in September 1975); and is
thought to be occurring at Cloverley Pool (two pairs present in May 1975) and
nearby Shavington (three pairs in June 1975), while in 1975 summering pairs
were also located on Berth Pool and Birchgrove Pool, both in the Fenemere
group near Baschurch. There have also been summer reports from several other
sites where it is conceivable that nesting may have been attempted: Colemere,
Tittenley (near Shavington), Norton Mere (near Tong), Allscott Pools (near
Telford), and Marton Pool (near Chirbury). Small numbers winter on Crosemere
(eleven birds in January 1975), and at least occasionally on Ossmere; but the
general paucity of records at that season, plus the fact that the largest flock
reported from the county in any month is one of only 17 birds (Crosemere in
November 1969), suggest that the majority leave Shropshire for the winter.

Cheshire Date of colonisation is uncertain. It was said in 1968 that Ruddy Ducks
had occurred on several meres, most often Barmere (near Malpas); the species
was not mentioned in local bird reports for 1969 or 1970, but in 1971 it was stated
that this duck had bred previously on Barmere, while the (nearby) ‘colony at
Quoisley Mere continues to flourish’. Breeding occurred at Barmere, Cholmondely
and probably Quoisley (all near the Salop boundary) in 1972, and this is believed

i37

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

still to be the main Cheshire population centre ; 35 birds were present on Barmere
in October 1974 (the largest county flock recorded), while there were three males
(presumed breeding) on Quoisley Mere in June 1975- Further north, in the Mac-
clesfield area, it has occurred annually since 1970, breeding at least from 1973,
at Capesthorne and Redesmere, and there were three pairs on the latter in 1974.
In 1975 a pair nested on Oakmere (near Delamere) ( per Eric Hardy). The afore-
mentioned are the only confirmed breeding waters, but probably there are others;
there were two or three displaying pairs on Rode Pool (near Alsager) in 1973,
1974 and 1975, though no young have yet been seen (R. West), and other summer
occurrences have been reported from Marbury (near Malpas), Combermere,
Doddington Park and Budworth Mere. The Ruddy Duck appears to be successful
and increasing in Cheshire, but numerical data are sparse. Apparently a few birds
winter on Barmere (maximum of 13, in January 1974), but the small number, and
rarity elsewhere at that season, indicate that most Cheshire birds move away for
the winter. Rostherne and Tatton Meres (near Knutsford) have provided annual
non-breeding records from 1972, and are the northernmost ‘regular’ localities in
Britain at present.

Derbyshire Occasional visitor from 1963, but with an increasing number of
records during the last three years. In 1975 a drake was present in Osmaston
Park (near Ashbourne) during July; this site was not visited in August, but a
female with one half-grown duckling was seen there in September (Miss K. M.
Hollick).

Leicestershire First reported in 1961 but only an irregular visitor until 1973,
in which year two pairs bred successfully at Swithland Reservoir, as did two pairs
in 1974. Now resident, with some commuting between there and nearby Groby
Pool. In 1975 three pairs were displaying at Swithland in spring, and two broods
were noted (April, June) though apparently no young were reared; while a pair
also summered on Groby Pool, where display was seen but no evidence of breeding
was obtained. There were eleven Ruddy Ducks in Leicestershire, all at Groby
Pool, in December 1975 (MissJ. Ironside).

Hertfordshire First reported in i960. One pair bred on the Tring Reservoirs
in four consecutive years, 1965 to 1968, but failed to colonise for reasons unknown.
Since that time the Ruddy Duck has been seen only occasionally there or else-
where in the county. Hertfordshire is well separated from other areas of feral
breeding, and records here may relate to strays from an ornamental waterfowl
collection at Monken Hadley near Barnet.

Some mention of wandering Ruddy Ducks will be made in the
following section. It proved impossible to gather non-breeding
records systematically since the majority of county bird reports did
not bother to record this species until its formal admission to the
British and Irish list in 1971, and some still do not do so.

POPULATION AND DISPERSAL

Ruddy Duck drakes are conspicuous, and occupied waters are
therefore unlikely to be overlooked to any significant extent, with
the possible exception of lakes in private parks to which bird-
watchers have limited access. However, proof of breeding is more
difficult to obtain; females are much duller birds, their nests are

138 Ruddy Ducks in Britain

well concealed, while the species tends to breed late in the summer
when broods can remain for much of the time within the thick
cover of reed beds. This has to be borne in mind when interpreting
the foregoing distribution paragraphs.

Based on the records given under the previous section, it would
seem that current county totals of pairs are: Avon, five or six;
Gloucestershire, one; Hereford & Worcester, three to five;
Warwickshire, probably one or two; Staffordshire, ten to 15;
Salop, about 15; Cheshire, twelve to 15; Derbyshire, one; and
Leicestershire, two or three. This indicates a national total in the
region of 50-60 feral nesting pairs, spread over nine counties.

In 1961 the English feral population consisted of three known
breeding pairs, rising to six in 1962 (Avon one, Gloucestershire one,
Staffordshire four). Following the severe winter of 1962/63, which
caused widespread avian mortality, only four breeding pairs of
Ruddy Ducks were known in 1963 and 1964. However, the national
total returned to six pairs (in five counties) in 1965, and increased
steadily thereafter — at least ten pairs (five counties) in 1968 and
20 pairs (six counties) by 1971, about 35 pairs (seven counties) in
1 973> an8 40 to 45 pairs (eight counties) in 1974. On the basis of
the somewhat incomplete data available on breeding pairs and
winter flock counts, it would seem that during the period 1965-75
the overall rate of increase averaged about 25% per annum.

As suitable waters become colonised, it is inevitable that this
rate of expansion will slow down. The increase during the last
decade has doubtless been helped by the series of mild winters,
while the virtual absence of shooting pressure must have aided the
species also. However, the Ruddy Duck could hardly have estab-
lished itself so quickly and so firmly as a feral species unless there
had been a vacant niche for another freshwater diving duck adapted
to breeding on smaller waters. The degree of ecological separation
from the native Pochard Aythya ferina and Tufted Duck A. fuligula
has yet to be ascertained, though the latter is known to take a
much higher proportion of animal foods.

The isolated Leicestershire ‘colony’ appears to be discrete
at all seasons, the birds wintering on or near the natal reservoir.
Elsewhere, there is a pronounced tendency for regular seasonal
displacements, with substantial winter flocks forming on certain
reservoirs in Avon and Staffordshire, and involving larger numbers
than breed or are reared in those counties. As explained previously,
there are rather few nesting pairs in lower Severn counties, the
main breeding strength being in the west midlands. From this, it
follows that the substantial numbers of winter visitors to the Avon
reservoirs must come from the west midlands, possibly involving
some movement up and down the River Severn, which flows

Plate 13. Above, Grcenshank Tringa nebularia, showing fine detail of plumage
and exart shape of bill, August, 1975. Below, Grey Plover Pltwialis squatarola
in characteristic stance on mud, November, 1969; note again the exceptional
detail ( photos : J. B. and S. Bottomley) (page 155, all photographs Cornwall)

Plate 14. Above, the swift running of this Sanderling Calidris alba has been
frozen by the camera, August, 1966. Below, a bathing Dunlin C. alpina leans
forward and splashes water over itself, August, 1975 (photos : J. B. and S. Bottomley)

Plate 15. Above, Knot Calidris canutus standing motionless in water, September,
1975. Below, Little Stint C. minuta , September, 1967; the pale lines on the back
indicating immature plumage are clearly visible ( photos : J. B. and S. Bottomley)

Plate 16. Above, a delicate drop of water on the bill, a Black-tailed Godwit
Limosa limosa stands in quite typical pose, September, 1970. Below, a very
unusual shot of a Curlew Numenius arquata with most of its bill buried in the
mud and presenting a puzzle picture, August, 1969 ( photos : J. B. and S. Bottomley )

z39

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

through Salop and the old county of Worcestershire. It is noticeable
that the Staffordshire flocks reach a peak in late October or Novem-
ber, at least a month earlier than in Avon; and it has been speculated
that there may be onward movement from the former to the latter.
An examination of winter numbers in Staffordshire suggests that
some such movement is possible, but only on a small scale. During
the 1974/75 season the two main Staffordshire reservoirs together
held 94 in October and no in November and, though lower
numbers (up to 80) were reported there in December and January,
92 were counted in February; while in the closing months of 1975,
181 were present in October and up to 150 were accounted for
during November-December. On this basis, it would seem that
many, if not the majority, of Avon’s winter visitors must fly there
direct from breeding waters. There are no ringing data concerning
movements within Britain, and at present the natal counties of
Avon’s winter visitors are unknown. The early flocking on Belvide
Reservoir in Staffordshire (in 1975 there were 100 as early as 6th
September) could be accounted for by this being a major assembly
point for non-breeders and failed breeders. (See postscript on p. 142).

In the closing months of 1975 there were about 120 birds in
Avon, about 190 (apparently dropping later to about 150) in
Staffordshire, and eleven in Leicestershire. Assuming that there
were also small numbers wintering in Salop and Cheshire as in
previous years, and allowing for scattered birds elsewhere at that
time (e.g. three or four each in Derbyshire and Northamptonshire),
it would seem that the 1975 post-breeding population was in the
order of 300 to 350 birds. This includes adults, juveniles and other
immatures, and it should be noted that most Ruddy Ducks do not
breed until two years old (Ogilvie 1975).

Ruddy Ducks are seen from time to time not only on non-nesting
waters in colonised counties, but also in other counties, sometimes
far from any breeding centre. Since many Ruddy Ducks do not
reach maturity until two years of age, it seems likely that these
wanderers include immatures prospecting for future nesting sites.
For this reason alone, all such occurrences are worth recording.

It is impossible to be sure whether isolated records in uncolonised
counties relate to wandering feral birds or to strays from ornamental
waterfowl collections, though (as mentioned earlier) the latter are
believed to be very much in a minority. Escapes are no doubt
equally capable of moving long distances. Before feral breeding
began there were isolated Ruddy Duck records from places as far
apart as Perthshire, Lancashire, Merseyside, Norfolk, Essex,
Berkshire and Buckinghamshire, which, presumably, related to
wandering Slimbridge escapes. As would be expected, reports of
itinerant birds nowadays come most often from counties adjacent

140

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

to those in which there is feral breeding, notably Somerset, Wiltshire
and Northamptonshire; in the latter, a pair was seen on Naseby
Reservoir in June 1975 though there was no adequate follow-up to
check on possible nesting (C. J. Coe in litt.). Had this paper been
written six months earlier, Derbyshire would also have been
included here, but there was a breeding record in the county in
September 1975; it remains to be seen whether this will be con-
solidated. In recent years there have been a growing number of
occurrences in Cambridgeshire and the Home Counties — Greater
London (including a party of five on Island Barn Reservoir in
June 1973), Essex, Hertfordshire (has bred) and Buckinghamshire;
but records from the south-east are complicated by known escapes
from the Hertfordshire collection.

Most of Wales is too high and rugged for this species, which is
only a straggler to the Principality; single birds were seen in Mid
Glamorgan in September 1972 and South Glamorgan in January
1973, a non-breeding pair summered at Montgomery, Powys, in
1974 (R. R. Lovegrove in litt.), and one was seen in Clwyd in
January 1970; these counties are all within reasonable distances
of breeding centres (lower Severn, Salop and Cheshire respectively).

To the north of the breeding range, Ruddy Ducks were recorded
in Lincolnshire in 1968, Greater Manchester in 1975, Lancashire
in 1959, 1968, 1972 and 1975, and in North Yorkshire in 1968,
1969 and 1974. Scotland has produced two records to date; one
from Perthshire in 1954 has already been mentioned, but is easily
eclipsed by the appearance of a drake in May 1974 on the island of
Unst in Shetland. The latter was 840 km from the nearest feral
breeding site, though its actual origin it is impossible to decide.

HABITAT AND BREEDING

The nest of the Ruddy Duck is usually a platform of rushes or reeds
concealed in lush aquatic vegetation, often a floating structure,
like that of a Coot Fulica atra, anchored to stems in a reed bed,
occasionally in a clump of rushes surrounded by water. It follows,
therefore, that a breeding water should have one or more sizeable
areas of emergent vegetation, normally dominated by reed
Phragmites, bulrush Scirpus or reedmace Typha. Another requirement
is that the water must not be too deep, or at least have shallow
edges or bays, since Ruddy Ducks feed on waterweed and on insect
larvae and aquatic plant seeds obtained by straining bottom ooze
during underwater dives to depths of about three metres (Ogilvie
1975, Siegfried 1973). Flowing waters such as rivers are avoided,
the preference being for freshwater pools (including some flooded
gravel pits), lakes and reservoirs, large or small. Meres used for
breeding in the west midlands may be only three ha in extent.

Ruddy Ducks in Britain 141

while, at the other extreme, Ruddy Ducks breed on some large
man-made reservoirs where, however, breeding densities are
restricted by the areas of emergent vegetation available for nesting.
Thus, Chew Valley Reservoir has the low density of five to six pairs
for its 500 ha.

At other seasons, too, Ruddy Ducks remain on still, freshwater
bodies; rarely are they encountered even then on rivers, and I
know of only two occurrences on tidal water: a party of five in the
Dee estuary off Hilbre Island, Merseyside, in September 1959
(Brit. Birds, 52: 436-437) and one at Chittening on the Severn
estuary in December 1974. Went (1975) thought the Merseyside
record indicative of transatlantic vagrancy, but a Slimbridge origin
seems to me more likely. There is a marked tendency for feral Ruddy
Ducks to vacate the smaller breeding pools and meres in autumn
and winter, when large flocks develop on certain reservoirs, notably
at Chew Valley, Blagdon (150 ha), Belvide (80 ha) and Blithfield
(320 ha). All of these are characterised by having largely natural
margins and shallow bays; large reed beds are not essential outside
the breeding season, and do not exist at Blagdon and Blithfield
Reservoirs. The winter aggregations are more often long, straggling
lines of birds than compact flocks, and at times they are scattered
among rafts of other diving ducks.

Ruddy Ducks are aquatic birds at all times; only on rare occasions
does the single bird come out of the water to feed on the banks.
Their legs are set well back like those of grebes (Podicipitidae)
so that they walk awkwardly on land, and no doubt this is one
reason why their nests are usually over water rather than ashore.
When the female is flushed at the nest, she is apt to dive and re-
surface in the centre of the pool, while alarmed birds may swim with
only the head above water. These are further grebe-like character-
istics. On the water, Ruddy Ducks are in their natural element,
swimming buoyantly and diving with ease, and they also have the
uncanny ability to sink gently beneath the surface without a
proper dive.

In the Slimbridge collection the earliest egg date is 17th April
(1964) and the latest hatch is 28th August (1965), the median
date for first eggs over 20 years being 19th May (Wildfowl Trust);
but little information is available on the timing of the feral breeding
season in Britain (Campbell and Ferguson-Lees 1972). Though
one very early brood has been reported in April (Leicestershire
1975, following an unusually mild winter), and a number in May
and June, it is more usual for small ducklings to appear in July,
August or even early September; while a small duckling was seen
at Chew Valley on 31st October 1965. Evidently the Ruddy Duck
has one of the latest breeding seasons of British waterfowl.

Ruddy Ducks in Britain

142

SUBSPECIES

As mentioned at the beginning, the Wildfowl Trust imported its
stock from the USA. Thus the British feral population is of the
Nearctic subspecies, nominate jamaicensis, in which the drakes have
conspicuously white cheeks. In the Neotropical races, andina and
ferruginea, there is progressive reduction in the amount of white on
the head.

EPILOGUE

The way that the Ruddy Duck has established itself so firmly and
within so short a period leads one to assume that it is now a part of
the British avifauna for the foreseeable future. It has found accep-
table conditions in the west midlands and other western counties,
and continues to increase. There is seemingly suitable habitat in
Yorkshire, the east midlands, East Anglia and the Home Counties,
in the form of lakes, broads, reservoirs, gravel pits and flooded
mining subsidence; thus further expansion can be expected.

The ultimate test for a migratory species introduced to another
continent is whether it can tolerate the climatic extremes of its new
environment. This is particularly relevant, since there are indica-
tions that Britain is on the threshold of a cooler climatic phase.
However, in its early days here the Ruddy Duck survived one of
the coldest winters this century, so there is no reason at present to
suppose that this species will fare less well than many native ones
as we move into climatic recession.

POSTSCRIPT

During the short spell of cold weather in late January/early February
1976, many small meres and pools in the west midlands froze over
for the first time in at least six years. On 8th-gth February no fewer
than 221 Ruddy Ducks were counted on the ice-free Staffordshire
reservoirs (1 10 on Belvide and 1 1 1 on Blithfield), the highest number
ever recorded in the county (D. Smallshire). That same weekend
130 were present in Avon, where a record figure of 154 had been
counted on 12th January {per R. Prytherch). Together, these data
further indicate that there can be little same-season movement
between the Staffordshire and Avon winter flocks.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is a pleasure to thank past and present Wildfowl Trust staff for their help:
S. T. Johnstone (curator until 1973) provided much useful information on the
early days of the Ruddy Duck at Slimbridge ; while Professor G. V. T. Matthews,
Dr Janet Kear and M. A. Ogilvie read an early draft and made many helpful
suggestions. Local recorders and observers who provided supplementary records,
and to whom I extend my thanks, are: B. King and R. Prytherch (Avon); A. J.
Smith (Herefordshire) ; E. S. Clare, B. R. Dean, G. R. Harrison, J. Lord, J. N.
Sears and D. Smallshire (West Midland Bird Club); C. E. Wright (Salop); J.

Ruddy Ducks in Britain 143

Davies, E. Hardy, Dr R. J. Raines and R. West (Cheshire); Miss K. M. Hollick
(Derbyshire); Miss J. Ironside (Leicestershire); C. J. Coe (Northamptonshire);
K. G. Spencer (Lancashire); and R. R. Lovegrove (Powys). Finally, I thank all
those bird report editors who had the foresight to record this species prior to its
formal admission to the British and Irish list.

SUMMARY

The Ruddy Duck Oxyura jamaicensis is an introduced freshwater species which was
admitted to the British and Irish list in 1971. This feral population stems from the
Wildfowl Trust’s Slimbridge collection, through escapes and their progeny; one
small, deliberate release proved ineffective. Feral breeding commenced in i960,
and the species has since increased steadily in numbers and range despite a
temporary setback caused by the severe winter of 1962/63. Over the period
1965-75 the rate of increase appears to have averaged about 25% per annum.
Ruddy Ducks are now nesting in eight or nine counties; in 1975 there were 50 to
60 pairs, and a post-breeding population of 300 to 350 birds. Habitat is described;
small meres and pools are mostly deserted in winter, when flocks form on four
large reservoirs in Avon and Staffordshire. Some notes on dispersal are also given.

REFERENCES

Most of the data used have been culled from the many county and regional bird
reports and bulletins. Items cited in the text are:

Atkinson-Wii.les, G. L. 1963. Wildfowl in Great Britain. Nature Conservancy Mono-
graph no. 3. London.

British Ornithologists’ Union. 1971. ‘Records Committee: sixth report
(February 1971)’. Ibis, 113: 420-423.

Campbell, B., and Ferguson-Lees, I. J. 1972. A Field Guide to Birds' Nests. London.
Dawson, L. R. 1974. ‘Rearing the North American Ruddy Duck’. A vie. Mag.,
80: 237.

Ferguson-Lees, I. J. 1958. ‘The identification of the W’hite-headed and Ruddy
Ducks’. Brit. Birds, 51 : 239-240.

Kino, B. 1961. ‘Feral North American Ruddy Ducks in Somerset’. Wildfowl
Trust Ann. Rep., 12: 167-168.

1976. ‘Association between male North American Ruddy Ducks and stray

ducklings’. Brit. Birds, 69: 34.

Lord, J., and Munns, D. J. 1970. Atlas of Breeding Birds of the West Midlands,
ig66-ig68. London.

Martin, R. M. 1974. ‘The North American Ruddy Duck in captivity’. Avic.Mag..
80: 1 32- 1 35.

Ogilvie, M. A. 1975. Ducks of Britain and Europe. Berkhamsted.

Parslow, J. L. F. 1973. Breeding Birds of Britain and Ireland. Berkhamsted.
Siegfried, W. R. 1973. ‘Summer foods and feeding of the Ruddy Duck in
Manitoba’. Canad.J -Zool., 51: 1293-1297.

Went, R. 1975. ‘Rare birds: the North American Ruddy Duck’. Bird Life, 1975:
18-19.

Robert Hudson , British Trust for Ornithology, Beech Grove, Tring,
Hertfordshire HP23 5NR

Owls killing and killed by other owls
and raptors in Europe

Heimo Mikkola

It is well known that owls (Strigi formes) and diurnal raptors
(Falconiformes) sometimes prey on one another, but the records
have been scattered through the literature. Arising out of a study
of the prey of certain owls, particularly Great Grey, Ural, Eagle
and Hawk* in Fenno-Scandia (Mikkola 1970, 1972, etc.), I have
checked all the publications available to me on the foods of birds
of prey in Europe, as well as certain unpublished sources (e.g.
Merikallio archives), and have collated the records of owls as
predators or prey of other owls and diurnal raptors. The results are
summarised here, but it must be emphasised that the owls are the
common denominator and that this paper does not include records
of diurnal raptors killing other diurnal raptors; nor does it embrace
cannibalism, which is a not uncommon habit of many owls and
diurnal birds of prey. I have not attempted any survey of records
outside Europe, though a few from North America are mentioned
where these seem relevant.

The text deals with the 1 3 European species of owls in decreasing
order of size (maximum total length) . There are generally two para-
graphs in each case, the first covering the species as predator and the
second as victim, but the three smallest owls have not been record-
ed killing any other bird of prey and so their treatment is confined
to one paragraph. The records for each species are totalled in tables
1 and 2. As, however, there are 1,165 records in all (604 of owls
killed by raptors, 330 of owls killed by other owls, and 231 of raptors
killed by owls), I have had to be highly selective in the text, which
should therefore be read throughout in conjunction with the tables.
Similarly, the bibliography at the end excludes many owl and raptor
food studies which contain no relevant records and, even so, I have
not put every reference in the text because too many names there
would make it awkward to follow and some would appear under
every species.

Finally, many of the records relate to remains found in pellets
or at nests. In such cases, of course, there is no absolute certainty
that the birds concerned were taken as prey. Many may have
been killed during defence of nest sites or as food-competitors and,
where raptors which scavenge are involved, a few may even have
been found dead. At the same time, some may have been taken
unfledged from the nest and others may have been sick or injured.

"■Scientific names are used in the body of the text only if the species does not
appear in tables 1 or 2

I44

[Brit. Birds, 69: 144-154, April 1976]

Owls killing/ killed by owls and raptors

*45

Table I. Numbers of records of owls killed by other owls and diurnal raptors in Europe

mdicate^that^th^preyls^maller^han le“e*Tg orfer of size (maximum total length). A dash
by the larger s^cfes note^»r^ P^ator, but that there is no record of its being killed

Y larger spectes, note that there are also no records of Short-eared, Little, Scops or Pygmv

as predators of other owls

OWLS AS PREY

? ©

o

p -2 >

3WL and raptor
'REDATORS

Ahite-tailed Eagle
!<ialiaeetus albicilla
joldcn Eagle
iquila chrysaetos
iagle Owl
lubo bubo
ircat Grey Owl
<trix nebulosa
•nowy Owl
' 'tyclea scandiaca
Jral Owl
trix uralensis
ted Kite
dilvus milvus
Lough-legged Buzzard
■uteo lagopus
i loshawk
ccipiter gentilis
lack Kite
tilvus migrans
.uzzard
uteo buteo
yr Falcon
ilco rusticolus
eregrine
dco peregrinus
awk Owl
trnia ulula
awny Owl
fix aluco

eonora’s Falcon
ilco eleonorae
tarrowhawk
cipher nisus
>ng-eared Owl
io otus
•rn Owl
'to alba
sigmalm’s Owl
golius funereus

tals

O-SO-I

c

I -a

1 — 8 ” -S *

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O

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_ ti

s> u

.o

*

o

Ui

a

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-*ii°

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■* c

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8
-a

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•S

§

si?

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LO

t, ~ c ^ 3 v ~ >--5 v J c 30 fU ?: 3

’3)-© S .S o ^ d h £‘c > >< E ^ 0 c o 4JSo'°E'c'

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22-32i3__,___

- 4 2 17 62 23 1 18 5 21 16 6 I

1 - _

1 1

- 1 - 7 - _ ,

“4-3-----
1 ~ 5 1 - - 1 - _

1 ~ 92 65 283 7 25 21 - IO

-12-11 2 — — _ _

1 - 1 - - 1 - - >

1 4144-22--

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- 2

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275

I

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8
504

3

25

4

27

3

32

2
8

3
2

6 23 177 1 12 429 14 70 65 8 21 934

146

Owls killing! killed by owls and raptors

Table 2. Numbers of records of diurnal raptors killed by owls in Europe

Predators and prey are both listed in decreasing order of size (maximum total length) . A dash
indicates that the prey is smaller than the predator, but that there is no record of its being killed
by the larger species. The Eagle Owl/White-tailed Eagle records appear in brackets because they
are not conclusive and because the eagles were well-grown young in the nest; and the Ural Owl
because there was no proof that it killed the Honey Buzzard. These records are excluded from the
totals which do, however, include four unidentified buzzards Buteo spp and one unidentified hawk

Accipiter sp taken by Eagle Owls

OWL

PREDATORS

DIURNAL RAPTORS AS PREY

"3d

w :

V

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3 V

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-3 3

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A w • p

a o ^

oq O ^

S RJ §
.§ N g

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& .<-> AJ a ps ^ f* f
- u

a ^

.s £

r;

£ £

a

a

-o

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jj s ^ w bo ^ ^ ‘E? Jh

B s^>s 8 1 u 8 sj n •'s'^ 3

o fe JS § 3 a r?-*S fc "3 c. ^ ° a

!HaHpp'^Ma30k,P-,tc,co'^K[tl

V

K

C

g

a

<u

* i§

o *3

Eagle Owl

Bubo bubo (2+) 2 10 26 1 5 1 65

Snowy Owl

Nyctea scandiaca - 1 — - — - -

Ural Owl

Strix uralensis — - - — (1) - —

Tawny Owl
Strix aluco

19 11 2 55 4 207

----- 2

9 in 1 22

TOTALS

2 1 1 26 i 5 i 65 2 19 20 3 66 5 231

On the other hand, some may have been killed but not actually
eaten. These various possibilities often cannot be distinguished in
the records, however, and so for the purpose of this paper such
words as ‘predator’, ‘prey’, ‘food’, ‘killing’ and ‘eating’ are used
indiscriminately.

eagle owl Bubo bubo

Food records include 275 owls of 11 species (table 1) and 207
diurnal raptors of at least 13 species (table 2). The Eagle Owl is
known to kill the majority of the other birds of prey dealt with in
this paper, but easily its most numerous victims are Long-eared
Owl (118 records), Tawny Owl (62), Buzzard (65) and Kestrel
(55). Then come six species with around 20 records: Short-eared,
Tengmalm’s, Hawk and Little Owls and, more surprisingly,
Goshawk and Peregrine. Birds of prey form as much as 3-5% of the
total food of the Eagle Owl and 23-36% of its bird food (e.g. Marz
1953, Emmett et al. 1972). The number of owls and raptors it takes
is thus considerably greater than their share of bird populations. It

*47

Owls killing I killed by owls and raptors

is well known that this species does not tolerate other birds of prey
in its territory (e.g. Hoglund 1966, Sulkava 1966); indeed, in some
areas of Norway Eagle Owls kill almost all the other birds of prey
(Hagen 1952). Also in Norway, they are suspected of even having
sometimes taken fairly large young of White-tailed Eagles from
their eyries (Willgohs 1961).

On the debit side, only two raptors have been recorded killing
this species: in Sweden there are single records of White-tailed and
Golden Eagles preying on an Eagle Owl, and in Finland a Golden
Eagle has been seen eating one (Merikallio archives).

great grey owl Strix nebulosa

Despite its large size, the Great Grey Owl is highly tolerant of other
birds of prey in its territory and my analysis of pellets of this species
in Finland showed a single adult Tengmalm’s Owl as the only such
victim (Mikkola 1972a). There is a Swedish record of a Great Grey
Owl attacking a Rough-legged Buzzard which came into its terri-
tory, but the hawk was not even injured (Wahlstedt 1969).

Nor arc there many records of Great Grey Owls as prey. Golden
Eagles have taken this species at least twice (Sulkava 1966) and
in North America a Great Horned Owl Bubo virginianus is believed
to have killed a Great Grey Owl on one occasion (Oeming 1955).
I once saw a female Goshawk fly at a Great Grey Owl which was
diving at me, but she saw me and turned away when still a few
metres from her intended victim.

snowy owl Nyctea scandiaca

Portenko (1972) referred to single records of Snowy Owls killing
a Short-eared Owl, a Rough-legged Buzzard and an adult Gyr
Falcon in Eurasia, and a Peregrine in North America. From this
it would be easy to believe that the species not infrequently takes
smaller birds of prey, but I know of no other records. The reason
may be that, in general, there are few other birds of prey on the
nesting grounds of Snowy Owls : they and Short-eared Owls some-
times overlap in periods of rodent abundance, but the food of Snowy
Owls during southward invasions at such times has been little
studied. In Shetland a Merlin was the only raptor sometimes seen
in the Snowy Owl’s nesting area, but this species is too fast to be
captured; once this particular bird was even watched hovering
over the head of the brooding female Snowy Owl (Tulloch 1968).

Again perhaps because of lack of opportunity, there are only
four records of Snowy Owls being eaten by other birds of prey;
the predators in all cases have been Eagle Owls. Willgohs (1974)
found the remains of one in a pellet in Norway, while in Meri-
kallio’s archives it is recorded that an Eagle Owl was seen eating a

148 Owls killing! killed by owls and raptors

freshly killed Snowy Owl in Norway in December and that the
stomach of another which was shot in Finnish Lapland contained
the remains of two of these birds.

ural owl Strix uralensis

The Ural Owl seems to present more of a threat to smaller owls
than does the Great Grey or the Snowy and the records include
eleven owls of five species: at least one immature Hawk Owl in
Norway; a Tawny Owl in Czechoslovakia; and an adult Long-
eared, seven Tengmalm’s and a Pygmy Owl in Finland. Unlike
some other owls, this species has been little studied and that may be
the reason why no diurnal raptors have certainly been recorded in
its food : its size and the large size of some of its other prey animals
make it very probable that the Ural Owl sometimes takes the
smaller falcons and even buzzards. Indeed, when Ural Owls and
Honey Buzzards nested 30 metres apart in Finland, one of the owls
was believed to have killed a Honey Buzzard found dead between
the nests (Kellomaki 1971).

There are six records of Ural Owls among the food remains of
three other species: Golden Eagle, Goshawk and Eagle Owl.

hawk owl Surnia ulula

Like the Great Grey, the Hawk Owl seems to be tolerant of other
birds of prey nesting in its territory (Mikkola 1972b). In fact,
there are no records of its killing any owl or raptor in the breeding
season, but during winter Hawk Owls have taken Tengmalm’s Owls
on three occasions in Finland.

On the other hand, there are 22 records of Hawk Owls among the
prey of other species and it is clear that the Eagle Owl, responsible
in 17 cases, is their main enemy. The only other owl predator
involved has been a Ural Owl, but there are also two records of
Golden Eagle and one each of Rough-legged Buzzard, Gyr Falcon
and Peregrine eating Hawk Owls. This species has a fast, hawk-
like flight, which may be the reason why there are few records,
compared with other owls of comparable size, of its being killed by
diurnal raptors. There is also a Finnish observation of a Hawk Owl
fleeing into the shelter of a thick spruce on sighting a Goshawk in its
territory (M. Rikkonen in lift.).

tawny owl Strix aluco

Like the Ural Owl, the Tawny is very aggressive towards smaller
birds of prey in its territory and, perhaps because it has been more
widely studied, there are records of its eating 32 other owls and
22 diurnal raptors, of four species in each case. The owls have
comprised three each of Long-eared and Pygmy, six Tengmalm’s

i49

Owls killing I killed by owls and raptors

and 20 Little; apart from single records of Hobby and Merlin, all
the raptors have been Sparrowhawks (nine) and Kestrels (eleven).

In turn, however, the Tawny Owl frequently falls victim to
other birds of prey and there are no fewer than 63 records among
the food remains of two other species of owls and 114 records
among the prey of six species of raptors. Almost all the owl predators
of this species have been Eagle Owls, but there is a single record of a
Ural Owl killing and eating a Tawny in Czechoslovakia (Sladek
1962); it is perhaps surprising that there are not more because
where Ural and Tawny Owls overlap in range, with resulting com-
petition for food and nest sites, the stronger Ural drives away any
Tawny that comes into its territory. Similarly, the diurnal raptor
predators of this species are chiefly Goshawks, with no fewer than
92 records, but there are also significant numbers of records involving
Buzzards (twelve), Red Kites (four) and Peregrines (four).

short-eared owl Asio Jlammeus

So far as I know, there are no records of Short-eared Owls killing
or eating any other bird of prey. This is hardly surprising as they feed
largely on small mammals and some small birds taken on the ground.

On the other hand, the species has quite commonly been recorded
among the food of other owls and raptors, though, as it is a bird of
open country, the predators which hunt mainly in woodlands do
not take it anywhere near as often as they do the Long-eared. Apart
from a single instance of a Snowy Owl, the only known owl predator
involved is the Eagle Owl, with 23 records. By far the commonest
threat to this species is, however, the Goshawk with no fewer than 65
records and it is also sometimes taken by the Peregrine (14 records),
Rough-legged Buzzard, Golden Eagle and Gyr Falcon.

LONG-EARED OWL Asio OtUS

Although the Long-eared Owl kills considerable numbers of small
birds, there are only three records of its taking other birds of prey :
Little Owl (two) and Tengmalm’s (one). The Little Owls were
both in England (Glue 1972, Glue and Hammond 1974).

In contrast, it is by far the commonest victim of all and I have
been able to find no fewer than 429 records, 122 relating to three
other owls and 307 to seven diurnal raptors. The vast majority of
these concern two predators: the Eagle Owl with 1 18 records and the
Goshawk with the remarkable total of 283. The only other owls
involved, which probably kill this species mainly as a result of
territorial competition, are the Tawny and the Ural, but there is a
considerable range of diurnal raptors with Peregrine, Red and Black
Kites, Buzzard and Rough-legged Buzzard, and even two Sparrow-
hawks.

Owls killing! killed by owls and raptors

I5°

barn owl Tyto alba
Barn Owls feed mainly on rodents and, although they do not
infrequently catch small birds, there are only two records of their
taking birds of prey, both Little Owls in southern England in 1971
(personal analysis of pellets) .

They also figure less as victims than do other medium-sized
owls, with Eagle Owls, Goshawks and Buzzards having taken them
a total of 14 times. In addition, there is a North American record
of a Golden Eagle eating a Barn Owl (Gordon 1955).

tengmalm’s owl Aegolius funereus

This is the smallest owl recorded feeding on another bird of prey:
though not very big itself, there have been two instances of its
killing the still smaller Pygmy Owl in its territory (Scherzinger
1970). On the other hand, there is a Finnish record of Tengmalm’s
and Pygmy Owls nesting peacefully in the same tree (Kellomaki
1970).

The many records at all seasons of a wide range of predators on
Tengmalm’s include 39 of six other owls and 31 of six diurnal
raptors. Goshawk and Eagle Owl emerge as the main threats to
this species, with 25 and 21 records respectively, the others being
Ural, Tawny, Hawk, Great Grey and Long-eared Owls, and
Peregrine, Gyr Falcon, Sparrowhawk, and White-tailed and Golden
Eagles.

little owl Athene noctua

Slightly smaller than Tengmalm’s, the Little Owl falls victim
about as often and to a similar range of species, with the Goshawk
again the most frequent predator, but with the Eagle Owl ousted
for second place by the Tawny. I have found 40 records of four
owl predators, comprising Tawny (20), Eagle (16), Long-eared and
Barn, and 25 records of four diurnal raptors, involving Goshawk
(21), Rough-legged Buzzard, Peregrine and Sparrowhawk.

scops owl Otus scops

Unlike other owls, most Scops leave Europe in winter. I have no
information to show whether they are eaten by birds of prey in
the African savannas, but they are certainly sometimes killed on
passage through the Mediterranean by Eleonora’s Falcon (two
records) and they also feature in the prey lists of Eagle Owl (six) .

pygmy owl Glaucidium passerinum

This tiny owl, easily the smallest bird of prey in Europe, is hardly
capable of killing any other species itself, but it is quite frequently
a victim. I have found seven records of it in the prey remains of

Owls killing! killed by owls and raptors 151

four other owls, these being Eagle, Ural, Tawny and Tengmalm’s;
and 14 records in the food of three diurnal raptors, involving
Goshawk (ten), Gyr Falcon and Sparrowhawk.

DISCUSSION

From table 1, the Goshawk and Eagle Owl stand out as by far the
most important predators of owls, together accounting for 83.4%
of the records. The Tawny Owl, Peregrine, Buzzard, Golden Eagle
and Ural Owl, in that order, are the only other species with more
than ten records of owls in their food. Table 2 does not include the
diurnal raptors as predators but, among owls, the dominance of the
Eagle Owl over a wide range of raptors and the significance of the
Tawny Owl in connection with the smaller species are again borne
out. Apart from these two, it can be concluded that most owls do
not kill diurnal raptors, though they do occasionally take other
owls. One reason for this difference is presumably the degree of
overlap in activity patterns: as a broad principle, nocturnal and
crepuscular hunters will tend to clash with one another, but less so
with diurnal species.

The tables also show, as one would expect, that birds of prey
do not generally kill others larger than themselves. Apart from the
suspected instances of Eagle Owls taking young White-tailed
Eagles from the nest, the two exceptions (Goshawk/Ural Owl and
Sparrowhawk/Tawny Owl) are very marginal in that the raptors
may have been large females equal in size to their prey. It is possible,
however, that as records accumulate there will be occasional in-
stances of smaller species killing larger ones, particularly where the
latter are sick or injured.

In any case, where owls are concerned, size is not the most
important factor, but rather their life habits. It is significant
that the three owls most recorded as predators, Eagle, Tawny
and Ural, are all highly territorial sedentary species with a varied
diet. They are much more aggressive towards other birds of prey,
especially during the breeding season, than are such nomadic
species as the Great Grey, Snowy, Hawk and Short-eared, most of
which feed largely on small mammals. Nomadic owls tend to con-
centrate in areas where there is an abundant food supply, thus
often nesting close to other birds of prey and even forming loose
colonies; the territory seems to consist of only the nest site and its
immediate surroundings, so the hunting range may be common to
other pairs and other species (Mikkola 1972). In contrast, terri-
torial species guard their home ranges as well and try to prevent
other birds of prey from settling in them. In cases of sudden food
shortage, nomadic species invade new areas in search of a sufficiency
of suitable prey. At such times, starving individuals will attack

!52

Owls killing! killed b ow^s an^ raptors

competitors for reasons different from those of territorial species,
for which the nutritional value of another predator is probably of
secondary importance. When a territorial fight ends in the death of
the intruder or weaker individual, sometimes only the head of the
loser is eaten.

Among the hole-nesting species, a shortage of suitable breeding
places may lead to fights which have nothing to do with food. The
records summarised in this paper include Ural killing Tawny,
Barn/Little and Tengmalm’s/Pygmy. It is difficult to think of
any reasons for these other than competition for nest sites.

Nevertheless, it seems likely that Eagle Owls, and probably
Tawny Owls, as well as Goshawks and some of the other diurnal
raptors, do take a proportion of smaller birds of prey simply as food,
whether or not they are possible competitors. Hunting owls and
raptors, themselves concentrating on finding prey, are bold and
careless, with the result that they may fall to bigger birds of prey
more often in proportion to their total numbers than do other
birds. For example, a conspicuous Buzzard, or a Tawny or Long-
eared Owl, may be much easier to find and catch than, say,
some gamebirds (Galliformes). Owls are also easily located by
their calling in spring and one can imagine that it would not
be difficult for an Eagle Owl to clear its territory of, for example,
hooting Tawny Owls (62 records) or Long-eared Owls ( 1 18).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I should like to express my grateful thanks to my wife, Mrs Kyllikki Mikkola,
for assisting me in many ways during the preparation of this paper and also for
translating it into English. I am also indebted to the editors of British Birds for
commenting in detail on two drafts, to P. F. Bonham for checking translations,
and to I. J. Ferguson-Lees for extensive help in the preparation of the final version.

SUMMARY

This paper considers the interrelationships of European birds of prey by sum-
marising the published records of owls eating or being eaten by other species
of owls and diurnal raptors; it does not take account of raptors killing raptors. It
deals with a total of 1,165 records, comprising 934 of 13 species of owls killed by
nine other owls and eleven raptors (table 1 ) and 231 of 1 3 or more species of raptors
killed by three or four owls (table 2).

Two species stand out as significant predators of owls, together accounting for
83.4% of the records: these are the Goshawk Accipiter gentilis, with 504 records
involving eight species, and the Eagle Owl Bubo bubo, with 275 records involving
twelve species. The only other birds of prey with more than ten records of owls in
their food are the Tawny Owl Strix aluco (32), Peregrine Falco peregrinus (27),
Buzzard Buteo buteo (25), Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos (14) and Ural Owl Strix
uralensis (11). The Eagle Owl is also much the most regular owl predator of
raptors, with 209 records of at least 13 species, followed again by the Tawny Owl,
with 22 records of four small species.

Certain species are also prominent in the lists of prey. By far the most frequently
eaten owl is the Long-eared Asio otus, with 429 records mostly falling to Goshawk

!53

Owls killing! killed by owls and raptors

and Eagle Owl but also to eight other species. Other common owl victims are
Tawny (177), Short-eared Asio flammens (112), Tengmalm’s Aegolius funereus (70),
Little Athene noctua (65), Hawk Surnia ulula (23) and Pygmy Glaucidium passerinum
(21). The diurnal raptors most frequently taken by owls are Kestrel Falco tinnun-
culus (66), Buzzard (65), Goshawk (26, all to Eagle Owl), Sparrowhawk Accipiter
nisus (20) and Peregrine (19, again all to Eagle Owl). In general, as one would
expect, owls and diurnal raptors do not kill other birds of prey larger than them-
selves.

Although it seems likely that Eagle Owls, and probably Tawny Owls, as well
as Goshawks and some of the other diurnal raptors, do take a proportion of smaller
birds of prey simply as food, it is probable that most records of interspecific killing
among owls result from competition for territory, food or breeding sites. Highly
territorial and sedentary owls with varied diets, such as the Eagle, Tawny and Ural,
are much more aggressive towards other birds of prey, especially during the breed-
ing season, than such nomadic species as the Great Grey Strix nebulosa, Snowy
Nyctea scandiaca, Hawk and Short-eared which feed mainly on small mammals.
Among the hole-nesting owls, a shortage of suitable sites sometimes leads to fights
in which the weaker individual may be killed and partly eaten, but such cases
have little to do with food. Hunting owls and raptors are bolder and more careless
than other prey animals and, perhaps for this reason, fall to bigger birds of prey
more frequently in proportion to their total numbers than do other birds.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Baumgart, P., and Kiihnast, G. (1973): Z°°l- Abh. Atus. Tierk. Dresden, 32:
203-247. Beven, G. (1966) : Surrey Bird Rep., 1966: 32-39. Bezzel, E., and Wildner,
H. (1970): Vogelwelt, 91: 191-198. Bochenski, Z. (1966): Przeglad Zpol., 10:
64-65. Cais, L. (1963): ZesZ- natxk. Univ. im A. Mickiewicza w Poznainiu (Biol.),
4: 1 -2 1. Dementiev, G. P., and Gortchakovskaya, N. N. (1945): Ibis, 87:
559-565. Drost, R., and Schiitz, E. (1940): Vogelzug, 11: 161-191. Emmett,

R. E., Mikkola, H., Mummery, L., and Westerhoff, G. (1972): Brit. Birds,
65: 482-483. Finnila, C. (1916) : Fauna och Flora, 1 1 : 165-172. Fischer, W. (1959) :
Die Seeadler (Wittenberg Lutherstadt) ; (1970): Beitr. zur Vogelkunde, 16: 94-100.
Glue, D. E. (1972): Bird Study, 19: 91-95. Glue, D. E., and Hammond, F. G.
(1974): Brit. Birds, 67: 361-369. Glutz von Blotzheim, U. N. (1962): Die Brut-
vogel der Schweiz (Aarau). Gordon, S. (1955): The Golden Eagle (London). Gron-
lund, S., and Mikkola, H. (1974): Kymenlaakson Luonto, 15: 13-17. Haenscl, J.,
and Walther, H. J. ( 1 966) : Beitr. zur Vogelkunde, 1 1 : 345-358. Hagen, Y. ( 1 952) :
Rovfuglene og Viltpleien (Oslo). Hoglund, N. H. (1964) : Viltrevy, 2: 271-328; (1966) :
Viltrevy, 4: 43-80. Hoglund, N. H., and Lansgren, E. (1968): Viltrevy, 5: 363-
421. Itamies, J., and Mikkola, H. (1972): Porin Lintutiet Thd. Vuosik., 3: 25-26.
Janossy, D., and Schmidt, E. (1970) : Bonn. Z°°l- Beitr., 21 : 25-51. Kellomaki,
E. (1970): Suomenseldn Linnut, 5: 64-70; (1971): Suomenseldn Linnut, 6: 72-82, 103-
109. Konig, H., and Haensel, J. (1968): Beitr. zur Vogelkunde , 13: 335-365.
Kulves, H. (1973): Skrifter utgivna av Alands kulturstiftelse, 9: 1-126. Lagerstrom,
M., and Syrjanen, J. (1969): Omis Fenn., 46: 86-87. Lepiksaar, J. (1954): Dala-
jagaren, 1954: 26-31. Linkola, P. (1963): Omis Fenn., 40: 69-72. Lonnberg, E.

(1928): Fauna och Flora, 23: 236-237. Marz, R. (1953): Der Uhu (Wittenberg
Lutherstadt). Marz, R., and Weglau, I. (1957): Vogelwelt, 78: 105-115. Mebs,
T. (1964): J. Orn., 105: 247-306. Meissel, J. (1937): Vber die Bedeutmg des Habichts
und des Sperbers fur Jagd und Volkswirtschaft (Berlin). Merikallio, E. : Archives in
University of Oulu, Finland. Mikkola H., (1970): Suomen Riista, 22: 97-104;
(1972a): Falke, 20: 196-204; (1972b): Brit. Birds, 65: 453-460. Mikkola, H., and
Jussila, E. (1974): Pdijdt-Hdmeen Linnut, 5: 84-87. Mikkola, H., and Sulkava,

S. (1970): Brit. Birds, 63: 23-27; (1972): Suomen Luonto, 31: 183-185. Munster-
hjelm, L. (1910) : Acta Soc. Fauna Flora Fenn., 33: 1-92. Niethammer, G. (1967) :

J54

Owls killingj killed by owls and raptors

Bonn. Arbeitsgem., 3: 195-196. Oeming, A. F. (1955): ‘A preliminary study of the
Great Gray Owl ( Scotiatex nebulosa nebulosa) in Alberta’ (Dissertation, University
of Alberta, Edmonton). Portenko, L. A. (1972): Die Schnee-Eule (Wittenberg
Lutherstadt). PulUainen, E. (1975): Ornis Fenn., 52: 19-22. Rockenbauch, D.
(1971): J. Orn., 1 12: 43-60. Schaefer, H. (1970): Bonn. Z°°t- Beitr., 21: 52-62.
Scherzinger, W. (1970): Zoologica, 41 ( 1 1 8) : 1-120. Schnurre, O. (1961): Milu,
1: 83-124; (1965): Z- Jugdwiss., 1 1 : 121-135. Sladek, J. (1961): Z°°t • Listy, 10:
331-344; (1962): Sbornik Vychoslovenskeho Muzea, 2-3 A: 221- 236. Sulkava, S.
(1964): Aquilo, Ser. Z°°l-> 3: 1-103; (1966): Suomen Riista, 18: 145-156; (1966):
Aquilo, Ser. Z°°t-> 5: 1'13> (1968) : Aquilo , Ser. Z°°l-> 6 : 18-31. Sulkava, S., and
Rajala, P. (1966): Suomen Riista, 19: 7-18. Tubbs, C. R. (1967): Brit. Birds, 60:
381-395. Tulloch, R. J. (1968) : Brit. Birds, 61 : 119-132. Uttendorfer, O. (1952) :
JVeue Ergebnisse iiber die Ernahrung der Greifvogel und Eulen (Stuttgart). Wagner, G.,
and Springer, M. (1970): Orn Beob., 67: 77-94. Wahlstedt, J. (1969): Var
Fagelv., 28: 89-101. Wendland, W. (1963) :J. Orn., 104: 23-57; (1972) : J. Orn.,

1 13: 276-286. Willgohs, J. F. (1961): The White-tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla
albicilla (Linne) in Norway (Bergen University); (1974): Sterna, 13: 129-177.

Heimo Mikkola, University of Kuopio, P.O. Box 138, SF-yoioi Kuopio 10,
Finland (until 1st August 1976; Centro Investigaciones Pesqueros, Apartado
2433, Cartagena, Bolivar, Colombia, South America)

Waders, water and mud
Photographs by J. B. and S. Bottomley

Plates 13-16

We have received a superb collection of black-and-white photo-
graphs of waders washing, walking, running, feeding and flying,
taken by Brian and Sheila Bottomley, mostly in Cornwall. Eight
are reproduced here and we hope in due course to publish further
selections.

Quite outstanding is the Greenshank Tringa nebularia wading
in shallows and looking for food (plate 13a): every detail of the
plumage is shown (except for the white back and rump, which are
hidden) and the exact shape of the upturned bill can clearly be
seen, while the delicate ripples on the water help to make the
picture. The Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola (plate 13b) and the
Knot Calidris canutus (plate 15a) are two other close-ups which
capture the characters of the species concerned and yet at the
same time show every feather. Although it is not quite so close,
the pose of the Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa (plate 16a) is
very typical and, as in the case of the Knot, a delicate touch is
provided by the drop of water at the tip of the bill.

More evocative, however, are the two shots on plate 14. When
a Sandcrling C. alba runs along the shore, its legs move so quickly
that it seems almost to be on wheels, but here (plate 14a) the
camera has frozen the action and leaves one with the impression of
a small wader with a big stride. No less pleasing is the beautiful
study of the bathing Dunlin C. alpina splashing an arc of water over
itself (plate 14b). The centre spread of Calidris waders is completed
by the small, neat, short-billed Little Stint C. minuta, with the light
lines of immature plumage on its back (plate 15b).

Finally, the wader with its bill buried in the mud almost to the
hilt (plate 16b) makes a good puzzle picture. When one looks at
the plumage it is clearly a Curlew Nurnenius arquata, but at first
sight one thinks of a much shorter-billed species, perhaps a Stone
Curlew Burhinus oedicnemtis, or the eye projects a straight or up-
turned bill, rather than a markedly decurved one, and conjures the
thought of a peculiar Bar-tailed Godwit L. lapponica.

I. J. Ferguson-Lees

*55

Notes

A further note on the wing-spreading of Black Storks In a

recent note (Brit. Birds, 67: 236-237) M. D. England gave details of
an unusual aspect of the feeding behaviour of some Black Storks
Ciconia nigra in north-east Portugal. He described how the birds
shaded the water in which they were fishing by raising and spread-
ing the wings, bringing them forward of the normal flying position,
bowed and inbent. I recorded similar behaviour in a Black Stork
which I watched on the banks of the Danube near Apatin, Yugo-
slavia, in July 1974. The bird was fishing in shallow water and
always adopted the same technique. It made a fast run of a few steps
then stood still and spread the wings forward until they made a
complete canopy over the head, the tips being near, or even
dipping into, the water. The position was exactly that which has
been observed in the Black Egret Egretta ardesiaca, the ‘umbrella’
being much more complete than that described by England.

C. Heip

Zoology Department, State University of Ghent, Ledeganckstraat 35,
B-gooo Ghent, Belgium

House Martins roosting in reed beds The letter by W. Harms
(Brit. Birds, 67: 518-519) relating to the paucity of records of House
Martins Delichon urbica roosting in reed beds prompts me to record
the following observation.

In mid-afternoon on 1st August 1974, in the Meuse valley near
Vise, Liege, Belgium, I saw about 120 Sand Martins Riparia
riparia settling to roost in vegetation resembling a reed bed, situated
in the middle of a dead arm of the river. When, on occasion, the
flock was disturbed by fishermen it temporarily took to the air
and one or two House Martins, which seemed less sensitive to the
disturbance, could be seen remaining in the roost. I do not know,
however, whether the House Martins actually stayed in the roost
with the Sand Martins throughout the night.

Jacques Franchimont

136 rue Louis Demeuse, B-4400 Herstal, Liege, Belgium

News and comment Peter Conder

Endangered Species (Import and Export) Bill The Government has now
produced its Endangered Species (Import and Export) Bill, which provides the
specific powers to implement the Convention on International Trade in En-

156

News and comment

*57

dangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora in Britain and some dependent
territories. The convention will come into force in the United Kingdom in
accordance with its provisions after the deposit of the instrument of ratification.
The convention was implemented, as recorded earlier (Brit. Birds, 69: 68), on
1st January 1976 in the United Kingdom under existing powers as an interim
measure, pending the passage of this bill.

The bill was given its second reading in the House of Lords on 26th February
1976. It covers only some of the provisions of the convention, chiefly the listing
of endangered species, the control measures and the methods of obtaining licences.
The maximum fine for offences against the Act will be £400. Even this sum may not
be a sufficient deterrent against attempts to smuggle some species into this country.
A major omission is the failure to restrict the import and export to a limited
number of named ports of entry, and the establishment at such ports of a staff
competent to identify and care for animals. Nevertheless, in view of the shortage
of time before the next important stage in the progress of this convention, this is
perhaps the best that can be done.

There is now some urgency for the Government to deposit the instrument of
ratification in time to qualify to take its place as one of the ‘parties’ to the con-
vention, at the first meeting of which, in November 1976, it will be possible to
amend the schedules and influence future progress.

Hong Kong trade in wildlife A paper by Michael Webster, of The Conservancy
Association of Hong Kong, has just appeared in Biological Conservation (8:203-21 1)
which assesses the volume of trade in wild birds in Hong Kong, where large
numbers of wild birds, reptiles and amphibians are imported from China. Webster
reports that reliable figures were hard to obtain, and he therefore decided to
concentrate on the trade in birds of prey. A conservative estimate of the number
of birds of prey, including owls, imported annually was 10,000. The list involves
several species in the schedules of the convention on trade in endangered species,
such as Golden Eagle, Imperial Eagle, White-tailed Eagle, Black Vulture and
Peregrine. The most numerous species imported is the Buzzard, at over 1,000
a year. Whilst the possession of any bird or mammal captured in Hong Kong is
illegal, the same species may be imported from China unless it is on Schedule One
of the convention. These regulations came into force on 1st January 1974 but
Mr Webster states that it is not possible to see any beneficial effects from them.
Furthermore, laws covering the trade are too vague to permit strict enforcement.

Mr Webster concludes by saying that the trade in birds and mammals could be
doing a great deal of damage to the ecological system of China and may, since many
species are migratory, affect regions far from China. Birds of prey, he states, are
endangered by the trade. It is a trade which is not permitted in Britain yet which
is defended, so he claims, by British officials in a British colony.

European Wetlands Year 1976 A UK co-ordinating committee has been
established by the Nature Conservancy Council representing the organisations
for which the conservation of wetlands is of prime importance and which are
taking action to ensure that our threatened wetlands are safeguarded. The
campaign was launched by R. E. Boote CVO, Director of the Nature Conservancy
Council, at the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ film premiere at the
Royal Festival Hall. Two of the films had a wetlands theme: the threats to the
Wash and the story of a Heron. A campaign bulletin is being issued regularly by
the Librarian, The Nature Conservancy Council, 19/20 Belgrave Square, London
swix 8py, and single copies are available free of charge. The Council for Europe
has produced a wetlands poster designed by Fulco Pratesi, an Italian artist, whose
work has appeared on the front cover of Birds magazine. Details of the poster and
other publications are given in the first issue of the Bulletin.

News and comment

158

J. Paul Getty prize for conservation Dr Silim Ali, the well-known Indian
ornithologist, has been awarded the 50,000-dollar J. Paul Getty Wildlife Conserva-
tion prize. The decision was made by a jury chaired by Prince Bernhard of the
Netherlands, President of the World Wildlife Fund. At 79 Dr Silim Ali is still very
active. He is co-author with Dr Dillon Ripley of the ten-volume Handbook of the
Birds of India and Pakistan. He still travels widely.

California Condors Only 29 California Condors were spotted by the 80
observers taking part in the ninth annual Condor survey in the mountains of
southern California. From this the Condor recovery team, which consists of
representatives of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Forest Service, California
Department of Fish and Game, US Bureau of Land Management and the National
Audubon Society, extrapolates a total of ‘about 50’ and believes that the population
is gradually declining. One good sign, according to John Borneman, the National
Audubon Society Condor naturalist, is the relatively large number of immature
birds, five, seen this year. But he also fears that the birds may be adversely affected
by activity at two oil drilling sites south of the Sespe Condor Sanctuary.

Lyndhurst Bypass decision The Department of the Environment has refused
the Hampshire County Council permission to build a bypass round Lyndhurst
through the heart of the New Forest, which would have destroyed a swathe of
magnificent unenclosed woodland as well as sections of the Forestry Commission’s
Inclosures areas of heathland and alder carr. This decision follows a public
enquiry at Lyndhurst in December and January 1974/75 at which the Nature
Conservancy Council, the RSPB and the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Naturalists’
Trust made a joint case against the proposal. However, other routes have been
canvassed, all of which involve some destruction of the Forest, and the Hampshire
County Council may well come back with other plans.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

November and December reports D. A. Christie

GREBES TO WILDFOWL

We received a report of a Pied-billed Grebe Podilymbus podiceps which arrived at
Carlingwark Loch, Castle Douglas (Dumfries & Galloway), in November and
was still present in January, though unfortunately no further details are available.
Three Manx Shearwaters Pujjinus puffmus were reported, one flying north off
Hartlepool (Cleveland) on 17th November and two west at Botany Bay (Kent)
on 13th December. An unidentified petrel was noted off Spurn (Humberside)
on 8th November.

In November two Purple Herons Ardea purpurea were located, both in Norfolk,
at Salthouse on 4th and at Wells on 8th. An immature Spoonbill Platalea
leucorodia was at Loch Fleet (Highland) on 30th December, staying through
January. On 5th November a Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus was identified at
Saltfleetby (Lincolnshire), and on 14th December one was reported at Stodmarsh
(Kent). There were continuing reports of Shags Phalacrocorax aristotelis inland,
particularly in the Middle Thames Valley area, while two were at Sevenoaks
(Kent) on several dates in December.

A drake Green-winged Teal Anas crecca carolinensis was at Unifirth (Shetland)
on 15th November, and an American Wigeon A. americana first found at Kenfig

J59

November and December reports

Pool (South Glamorgan) on igth October remained at that site until 2nd
November. Surf Scoters Melanitta perspicillata were still present in Scotland: at
St Andrews (Fife) one was identified on 14th and 15th December and another
found on 18th stayed into January. King Eiders Soniateria spectabilis were also
present in the same part of Britain, particularly in the Loch Fleet area, and one
also turned up at Fair Isle (Shetland) on 4th November. An unusual report
concerned a flock of 30 Eiders S. mollissima at Ogston Reservoir (Derbyshire)
on 23rd November, which finally departed to the south-west in two groups of
13 and 17. A Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus came to Slimbridge
(Gloucestershire) on 28th December and remained throughout January and after;
while the Red-breasted Goose Branta rujicollis mentioned in a previous summary
{Brit. Birds, 69: 71) stayed in the Langstone Harbour area of Hampshire through
December and January.

RAPTORS TO AUKS

After the two previous years numbers of Rough-legged Buzzards Buteo lagopus
were very low, the only report received being of one at Hinton (Suffolk) on 14th
December. A Goshawk Accipiter gentilis was also reported from Suffolk, at Bricks
on 2 1st December, while the only Red Kite Milvus mihus was one near Chewton
Mendip (Somerset) flying towards Chew Valley Lake (Avon) on 2nd November.
A Little Crake Porzana parva was at Lodmoor (Dorset) from 8th to 10th November,
and we heard that it was seen again on 8th December.

As in the previous two winters {Brit. Birds, 67: 220; 68: 219, 254) a Kentish
Plover Charadrius alexandrinus wintered on the North Wirral peninsula (Cheshire),
this time from 2nd November. Of at least equal interest was a Lesser Golden
Plover Pluvialis dominion in the area of Caerlaverock Castle (Dumfries & Calloway)
from 23rd November onwards. A dowitcher Limnodromus sp was reported at Bow-
ness (Cumbria) on 7th December. Whimbrels Numenius phaeopus were still being
sighted in November, one at the Calf of Man on 5th and another two on 10th, and
in Kent nine at Sandwich Bay on 7th with three on 8th and four flying south-west
at Langley, also on 8th. A Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa jtavipes was at Crossens
marsh (Merseyside) from about mid-November to 27th, while one was in the
Teign estuary (Devon) through November until at least February. A White-
rumped Sandpiper Calidris fuscicollis was found at Bridgend, Islay (Strathclyde',
on 20th November ; and Pectoral Sandpipers C. melanotos, comparatively scarce
during the autumn, were at Teesmouth (Cleveland) from 1st November and at
Southport (Merseyside) on 30th, and again at Teesmouth on 25th December.
Curlew Sandpipers C. ferruginea were reported from four sites in November,
including inland birds at Eye Brook Reservoir (Leicestershire) on 2nd (three),
3rd and 8th, and in December one with an injured leg remained at Staines
Reservoir (Surrey) from 6th into the New Year. A Grey Phalarope Phalaropus
fulicarius was at St Mary’s (Northumberland) from 6th to 8th December and
another at Martin Mere (Lancashire) on 27th and 28th.

Several November reports of skuas were not mentioned in the autumn summary
{Brit. Birds, 69: 112-116): these included Great Skuas Stercorarius skua at Hauxley
(Northumberland) on 9th (flying north), at Hartlepool on 8th (north) and 17th
(six, all north), and off Sunderland (Tyne & Wear) on 26th; a Pomarine
S. pomarintis flying north at Hauxley on gth, and one north and one south at
Hartlepool on 17th; and Arctics 5. parasiticus at Seaton Sluice (Northumberland)
on gth (north) and 16th (south), and at Hartlepool on 17th (seven south). In
December at Seaton Sluice an Arctic flew north on 2nd and a Great on 30th. A
Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis returned to the usual locality at Blackpill
(West Glamorgan) on 17th November. Further Sabine’s Gulls L. sabini were
reported in November, at Hartlepool on 17th (flying north) and at North Foreland
(Kent), where singles were seen on gth, 17th and 24th. A Common Tern

1 60 November and December reports

Sterna hirundo was at Chew Valley Lake on 3rd November, while singles of either
Common or Arctic Tern paradisaea were recorded off North Care (Cleveland)
on 1 6th (flying south) and off Hartlepool on the next day (north). Late Sandwich
Terns S. sandvicensis flew north off Seaton Sluice on 22nd November and at
Brean Down (Somerset) on 24th. A strange report was received of a Puffin
Fratercula arctica, standing near the Stoke Ferry Inn beside the River Trent in
Nottinghamshire on 4th December.

NEAR-PASSERINES

The large numbers of Long-eared Owls Asio otus mentioned previously {Brit.
Birds, 69: 1 14) will be treated in a later summary when a fuller picture is available.
Although there were few Hoopoes Upupa epops during the autumn, November
produced three records: on Fair Isle on 4th, in Durham city on 20th, and at
Holkham (Norfolk) on 22nd.

PASSERINES

A Swallow Hirundo rustica was in Osterley Park (Greater London) on 3rd
December, the only one reported during that month. Omitted from the autumn
summary was a report of an unprecedented ‘fall’ of 1 1 o Magpies Pica pica on the
Calf of Man on 7th November. A Dusky Thrush Turdus naumanni was at Firth
(Shetland) from 7th to 13th November, the first since 1968 if accepted. The only
late Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe reported in December was one at Purston
(Northamptonshire) on 7th. A belated report was of a Bluethroat Luscinia
svecica on the Calf of Man on 14th November, an immature female trapped which
is the first ever record of the species for the Isle of Man. There was also a report of
an American Robin T. migratorius in the Netley/Hamble area of Hampshire on
2nd December.

Yet more Cetti’s Warblers Cettia cetti were reported, at Dungeness Bird Reserve
(Kent) from 4th to 6th November and in north Salop from 14th to 27th December.
Omitted from previous reports but of particular interest as a rarity was a Blyth’s
Reed Warbler Acrocephalus dumetorum at Filey Brigg (North Yorkshire) on 30th
August. In addition, another sighting of great interest after the remarkable
autumn influx of vagrants was that of a Desert Warbler Sylvia nana at Frinton-
on-Sea (Essex) on 20th and 21st November, the second of the year. Wandering
Dartford Warblers S. undata were found far from breeding localities, in Kent
at Dungeness on 10th November and at Ham Street on 12th. A Yellow-
browed Warbler Phylloscopus inornatus arrived on Fair Isle on 10th November.
Single Richard’s Pipits Anthus novaeseelandiae occurred on Lundy (Devon)
on 3rd November, at Lodmoor on nth and on Fair Isle on nth and 12th. A
belated report of Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava referred to a bird at Fritchley
(Derbyshire) on 21st November.

Serins Serinus serinus were reported in November on St Agnes (Scilly) on 2nd
and on Lundy on 3rd, and in December at Portland (Dorset) on 4th and on
St Mary’s (Scilly) on 19th (two). Fair Isle’s fourth Rustic Bunting Emberiza
rustica of the year arrived on 9th November, a male, and the same island held
a Little Bunting E. pusilla from nth to 19th of the same month; another Little
Bunting was reported, trapped at Dingwall in the Cromarty Firth (Plighland)
in November. Further Lapland Buntings Calcarius lapponicus in November were
recorded at Marton Mere, Blackpool (Lancashire), on 7th and, unusually, inland
at Cheddar Reservoir (Somerset) on 20th.

erratum: The Red-eyed Vireo Vireo olivaceus reported in the September and
October reports {Brit. Birds, 69: 73) was in fact at Aberdarorf (Gwynedd) on
25th and 26th September, and not on Bardsey on 26th and 27th as stated; we are
grateful to R. S. Thomas for pointing out this error to us.

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Volume 69 Number 4 April 1976

117

132

Identification of European treecreepers
D. /. M. Wallace

Ruddy Ducks in Britain Robert Hudson

C. J. Mead and

144 Owls killing and killed by other owls and raptors in Europe
Heimo Mikkola

155 Waders, water and mud J. B. and S. Bottomley and I. J.
Ferguson-Lees Plates 13-16

Notes

156 A further note on the wing-spreading of Black Storks Dr C.
Help

156

House Martins roosting in reed beds

Jacques

Franchimont

156 News and comment Peter Conder

158 November and December reports D. A. Christie

Front cover Male Whinchat Saxicola rubetra, Cumbria, 1959 {photo:
J. B. and S. Bottomley )

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Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2dl
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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 5 MAY 1976

A

/ot *» * c\
1 5 O ^ *

^ t ■ i7

\ . ' ff V

Viewpoint Co/m Tubbs

Colin Tubbs is an Assistant Regional Officer for the Nature Conservancy
Council and author of '‘The New Forest — an ecological history' ( ig6g)
and ‘ The Buzzard' {igjf). His research interests include interpretation
of the structure of woodland and other lowland habitats in historical terms,
wader feeding ecology and various bird population studies. The views he
expresses here are personal and not necessarily those of the NCC.

A price for conservation?

The nature reserve has been a cornerstone of nature conservationists’
response to the increasing 20th-century pressures for alternative,
more intensive or more destructive land uses for the places to which
he attaches a special value. However much planning policies can be
influenced there is no substitute for the direct control, and pre-
ferably the ownership, of the land. Despite thin purses and a
relatively small input from central and local government, con-
servation organisations in the United Kingdom have enjoyed a
fair measure of success in establishing nature reserves in key areas,
and also in influencing land planning policies and the management
practices of large public landowners such as the Forestry Com-
mission and The National Trust.

If reserves have been one cornerstone of conservation, education
has been another, and inevitably nature reserves have served
increasingly as outdoor exhibitions of nature; natural arenas for
public initiation into the intricate relationships of plants and animals,
whose study forms the underlying discipline of conservation; and
(hopefully) conservation success stories with which to woo the

161

1 62 Viewpoint

subscriber, the voter and the planner — and perhaps sometimes the
sinful developer. At the same time many conservation organisations
have believed that those who pay their subscriptions or support
them through rates and taxes should so far as possible be able to
enjoy the nature in the nature reserves they pay for. Various tech-
niques have been developed for deploying people in reserves with
the least adverse effect. The nature trail remains a hot favourite as
a means of imparting information whilst channelling people along
a predetermined path chosen to avoid sensitive places. The use of
covered approaches and hides on wetland reserves has permitted
large numbers of people to see wildfowl and waders at close quarters
without disturbance. On some reserves (inevitably Minsmere,
Suffolk, springs to mind) a network of such facilities has been
linked with the excavation of new wetland habitats. A further, and
arguably less justifiable, development has been the artificial feeding
of wildfowl to attract them on to prepared and protected wetlands
which can be viewed from incongruously comfortable facilities,
which one hesitates to call hides.

The phenomenon of the nature trail is not confined to the nature
reserve. It occurs today, sometimes in the guise of the forest walk or
country trail, wherever land managers believe or are instructed
that they should encourage a degree of public access, educate the
public about the countryside and its management — but discourage
them from roaming too widely, lest they destroy the features which
attracted them in the first place. The British Tourist Authority,
which evidently sees trails as tourist atti'actions, publishes annually
a guide to nature trails in Britain. In 1968 this covered 101 trails;
in 1974, 410. These lists are far from comprehensive but indicate
the scale on which trails are developing.

Nature trails and other management devices for the painless
enjoyment of nature are unquestionably popular with the public.
Many trails are overloaded and are suffering physical damage
from too many feet. Some reserves (particularly those equipped with
hides, interpretative centres and impressive displays of wetland
birds) are populated to capacity, and sometimes beyond capacity if
the limit of possible control over crowd behaviour is accepted as a
criterion. Demand leads supply. The nature trail tail sometimes
practically wags the nature reserve dog. The suitability of a site for
trails and other ‘educational’ facilities has become almost a standard
justification in any fully persuasive case for a reserve. Before the
supply and demand spiral is permitted to gather further momentum
it is prudent to review what the hide, the trail and the interpretative
centre have achieved, and at what cost. It is valuable first to rehearse
their objectives, which seem to be threefold: to further an under-
standing of the countryside and of conservation; to provide an

Viewpoint 1 63

entertainment; and to provide a means of doing both without
excessive damage or disturbance. Unfortunately there are in-
adequate survey data on which to demonstrate whether these
objectives are being achieved — a gap which needs plugging — but
it seems clear enough that people in large numbers enjoy the
facilities whatever and wherever they are: they come in droves.
Moreover, even in highly sensitive areas they can be accommodated
successfully provided the level of investment in facilities and warden-
ing is high enough. It is less easy to decide whether most really learn
much. My experience suggests that many exhibit a general sympathy
for wildlife and its conservation (but do the facilities not tend to
attract the already partly converted?), but the level of under-
standing is too often superficial and too often weighted in favour of
misleading generalisations. More worrying, perhaps, is a discernible
tendency towards an underlying assumption that nature is found
only on nature trails and in nature reserves. This may be partly
because spoon-feeding induces idleness and partly because trails
and posters and views of ducks and waders from hides seldom in
themselves embody urgent questions or demand a sharpening of the
physical senses. To some extent these are deficiencies in technique,
but they are fundamentally deficiencies in concept. Seeing nature in
comfort inevitably induces a comfortable view of nature in which
its realities and the real conflicts of conservation are evaded.

And what of the costs? The greatest payment is intangible, but
nonetheless valid — loss of wilderness. Only seldom is the furniture
of countryside interpretation introduced into the countryside (and
especially on to relatively small nature reserves) without damaging
the subtle illusion of wilderness. A second payment is also in kind
and is paid by those who find that where they once watched birds
alone they now need to join the organised tours leaving the reserve
centre four times a day for an hour a time. This is an extreme, but
the restrictions on those who originally valued the wild places most,
and who often turn out to be those who clamoured and fought for
their protection as reserves, can be galling and their sacrifice
demands more recognition than it often receives from professional
conservationists. The loner is seldom catered for, much less en-
couraged.

What conclusions can I draw? Clearly, research is needed into
the educational effectiveness of the techniques employed. To
prejudge results I suspect there are better dividends in the enshrine-
ment of ecology and conservation as critical elements of school
curricula than in the countryside education techniques which have
become fashionable. Meanwhile, perhaps this review embodies a
few pointers to some modifications in approach which might be
explored. If, however, my view about the effectiveness of these

1 64 Viewpoint

techniques is correct I am bound to ask if it is justifiable to create a
circus from the wilderness. I think not. This is not to say that I
doubt the desirability of permitting access to reserves and other
areas acquired or managed ultimately from the public’s purse; but
there is also a case for controlling numbers and a case, too, for
catering for those who reject the limitations of the organised tour.
Nor is it to deny the case for wildlife entertainment, but there are
places to embark on such enterprises without invading the limited
resource of wild and biologically rich habitats. You do not need to
build bungalows to create suburbia from the countryside.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Breeding biology of Sanderlings in
north-east Greenland

M. W. Pienkowski and G. H. Green

Plates 17-20

INTRODUCTION

In the first detailed account of breeding Sanderlings Calidris alba,
Manniche (1910) reported that only females incubated and attended
the chicks. Other observers did not always agree, because both
males and females were shot at the nest and one or two adults
found attending chicks (table 1). The confusion was apparently
resolved by Parmelee (1970) who, in a report of a three-year study
on Bathurst Island (750 48' N, 98° 25' W) in arctic Canada, showed
that at least some nests and broods were attended by only one of
the parents, either the male or the female. His findings were based
on a continuous watch of 14 days at one nest, one to 30 visits to nine
other nests and eight observations of adults with family parties. He
also shot two Sanderlings near the start of incubation and sub-
sequent histological examination of their ovaries showed, in one
case, clear evidence of rapid successive ovulation of two clutches
(eight ruptured follicles) with a third developing; and, in the
other, eight post-ovulatory follicles structurally suggesting that
two clutches had been laid in quick succession (Parmelee and
Payne 1973).

From these and other observations, Parmelee and Payne inferred
that Bathurst Island Sanderlings laid two clutches in quick succes-
sion and that each was reared independently by one of the parents.
Furthermore, they suggested that breeding effort could be modified
in response to annual differences in spring snow cover and other
weather conditions by variation of the number of clutches laid by
one female in a season. Their conclusions were based on indirect,
but strong evidence; they did not prove their hypothesis (as far as
we know) by observation of marked individuals. These findings
have often been quoted with the implication that Bathurst Island
breeding strategy is typical of all Sanderling populations. In 1974,
however, a Joint Biological Expedition to north-east Greenland
(fig. 1), which included ourselves, made observations on breeding
Sanderlings and found both adults sharing incubation at one nest,
both in attendance at four other nests and both present with 13 of
the 25 family parties observed.

When we arrived at the Danish air station of Mestersvig (720
14' N, 230 55' W) on 25th June 1974, we were informed by the
station staff that the snow melt was about three weeks later than

[Brit. Birds, 69: 165-177, May 1976]

165

1 66 Sanderling breeding biology

Table I. Nest and brood attendance by Sanderlings Calidris alba as reported

in the literature

Each entry is categorised as present (+), absent (— ) or unrecorded (?)

Author

Locality

NEST

Female Male

BROOD

Female Male

Feilden (1877)

Canada

? +

p

?

Walter, H. (1902)

Siberia

+ +

+

quoted by Dresser ( 1 904)

Koltoff (1903)

Greenland

? ?

+

+

Birula, A. B. (1907)

Siberia

+ +

?

-L

quoted by Pleske (1928)

Manniche (1910)

Greenland

T —

4-

—

Madsen (1925)

Greenland

? +

?

Pleske (1928)

Siberia

? ?

+

+

Pedersen (1930, 1934,
1942)

Greenland

+ —

Male around

+

+

Loppenthin (1932)

Greenland

? ?

+

+

Bertram et al. (1934)

Greenland

? ?

+

+

Bird and Bird (1941)

Greenland

+ Plate in

incubation

+

+

Manning et al. (1956)

Canada

? ?

+

Parmelee and MacDonald

Canada

+ or +

+ or

+

(i960)

One deserts

One deserts

Parmelee et al. (1967)

Canada

+ —

(22-hour watch
at one nest)

?

Rosenberg et al. (1970)

Greenland

Both around, but
sitter not sexed

+

+

Parmelee (1970)

Canada

+ or +
One alone

+ or +
One alone

Parmelee and Payne (1973)

Canada

4“ +

Separate nests

T +

Separate broods

average. There was, however, great local variation in the melt and,
on that same day, we saw from the air that 0rsted Dal (71 ° 47' N,
23° I5# W, 56 km SSE of Mestersvig) was nearly free of snow. Later
observations on the ground suggested that the season at 0rsted Dal
and at Karupelv on Traill O (720 31' N, 230 55' W, 33 km N of
Mestersvig) was about three weeks ahead of that at Mestersvig and
in the valleys leading to Antarctics Havn (720 00' N, 230 06' W,
38 km SE of Mestersvig). The situation at Henrick Moller Dal
(710 53" N, 22° 58' W, 54 km SE of Mestersvig) appeared to be
intermediate. Observations on Sanderlings were made at all five
places. The effect of the differing snow conditions on breeding
waders will be discussed by Green and Lloyd (in preparation).

Sanderling breeding biology 167

OBSERVATIONS AT MESTERSVIG

During the last days of June there were more patches of wet ground,
exposed by bulldozers, at Mestersvig than in the surrounding area.
Sanderlings commonly fed on these, eating the dipterous larvae
abundant in melt water pools. Song flights and displays by single
birds and pairs were observed, and sometimes three or four dis-
played together. Six were caught and marked with colour rings and
plumage dye so that individuals could subsequently be identified
in the field. After 2nd July, however, only one marked pair was
seen again and on that day another marked individual, paired with
an unmarked mate, was found about 3 km away. Thus, the Mesters-
vig area was probably a feeding place for newly arrived Sanderlings,
where some paired but few remained to breed. Our observations on
early season feeding, pairing and display conform with those of
Manniche (1910), Pedersen (1930) and Parmelee (1970).

One of the marked pair which remained in the area, thought by
plumage to be the male, had been caught on 28th June. On the
following day it was seen feeding and displaying with a presumed
female, which was then also caught and marked. This pair was seen
feeding, always together, on many occasions from 29th June to

Fig. 1. Region of Kong Oscars Fjord, with inset showing its position on the
coast of north-east Greenland. The five study areas of 1974 are delineated by
the 200-metre contour and are (1) Orsted Dal, (2) Henrick Moller Dal. (3)
Antarctics Havn. (4) Mestersvig and (5) Karupelv

1 68 Sanderling breeding biology

4th July. About that time display flights and, indeed, all sightings of
other Sanderlings in the area virtually ceased. The marked pair
was next seen on gth July, when the female was feeding alone at

19.30 hours and with her mate at 23.30. (Times are given as GMT,
which is used locally, with solar midnight at about 01.30.) At
12.45 on 10th July the female was feeding at the same site; and at

22.30 on the 1 2th the male was found incubating four eggs about
200 metres away. The nest was situated in a dry area of moss and
dwarf willow about 40 metres from a stream, and was thickly lined
with willow leaves. The female was incubating at 11.00 and 13.30
the next day.

A continuous 24-hour watch was begun at 04.00 on 14th July:
during this time, the male incubated for a total of 12 hours 10
minutes (00.40-03.19, 1 1.57-16.25 and 19.37-00.40) and the female
for 11 hours 38 minutes (03.22-11.55 and 16.30-19.35), change-
overs taking up the remaining 12 minutes. Within the incubation
periods, the male was absent from the nest for nine periods totalling
25 minutes (of which four, totalling nine minutes, were due to
human disturbance) and the female for four periods totalling 21
minutes. The mean time off the nest, including change-overs, was
3.4 minutes (range usually 2-5 minutes, but one absence of 12
minutes by the female) and the total proportion of the day when the
eggs were not covered was only 4%. In comparison, at the nest
watched by Parmelee on Bathurst Island for 14 days, the male alone
incubated, the mean number of his absences per day was 26
(range 4-45), lasting a mean 10.2 minutes (range in daily means
4.4-94.8 minutes), and the eggs were not covered for 19% of the
time (daily range 11-33%).

Occasional visits to the nest over the next eleven days showed that
both male and female were still incubating, but they were never
observed together. This situation was confirmed by a series of
frequent visits during the 24 hours from 12.00 on 26th July: the
female was incubating at 12. 11-16.30 and 17.45-20.15; and the
male at 21.20-21.47, 23.15, 01.00-03.30, 10. 15-10.45 and 11.58-

12.30 (the bird concerned was on the nest throughout each observa-
tion period).

The incubating Sanderlings usually sat with head and neck up-
right, flattening out on the nest when a potential predator
approached. They were often motionless for long periods and on
several occasions did not move for about two hours. They appeared
to sleep less than the male watched by Parmelee and also moved
less when awake. For example, on 14th July the bill was tucked
under the scapulars for a total of only one hour out of the 24, the
longest period being about ten minutes; Parmelee noted that his
male ‘was quietest during the coolest hours and at such times

Sanderling breeding biology 169

usually appeared to sleep soundly, its head turned and bill tucked
beneath the scapulars’. The off-duty bird at Mestersvig usually fed
alone 200-600 metres from the nest in wet areas, such as on damp
tundra or by streams, lake edges and sandy sea-shores. Twice in
late July one fed in a flock of about ten migrant Sanderlings. Prey
during the latter half of the incubation period appeared to be small
adult flies (Diptera), which were abundant in the area.

All the four eggs were found to be starred at 17.50 on 27th July
and they hatched between 13.05 and 14.25 on the 30th; both adults
incubated until at least the 28th and probably later. At 06.30 on
31st July the chicks were still in the scrape, but neither they nor the
adults were seen near the nest again, despite careful searches. Heavy
rain fell throughout 30th and 31st July and we have little doubt
that the chicks succumbed to chilling or predation. A marked
Sanderling, probably one of the pair, was seen feeding on the shore
500 metres from the nest on several occasions in early August; it
was last noted at 00.13 on the 10th, in a flock with twelve others,
and we left the area on the 1 6th.

OTHER NESTS

Although no long watches were kept at the seven other nests found,
marking established that two adults were incubating at four of
them (table 2). Two other nests were visited only once during
incubation and, as the preceding section shows that both adults
are rarely present together, there was no opportunity of detecting
the second.

Observations at the remaining nest, found near Antarctics Havn
on 11th July, were inconclusive. It contained three eggs, which
appeared to be the complete clutch. The sitting adult, thought by

Table 2. Records from eight nests of Sanderlings Calidris alba, north-east

Greenland, July 1974

All dates refer to July. For details of the ‘many’ visits by observers to nest 5, see

pages 167-169

Number of Number of

Locality

adults seen
incubating

visits by
observers

Dates of
observations

Estimated date
of hatching

1 Karupelv, Traill 0

2

6

7th- 1 3th

13th

2 Karupelv, Traill 0

I

I

14th

(PPredated 15th)

3 Karupelv, Traill 0

2

8

i4th-22nd

22nd

4 Karupelv, Traill 0

I

I

22nd

22nd

5 Mestersvig

2

Many

gth-3oth

3°th

6 Mestersvig

2

2

2ist-22nd

(Predated 23rd)

7 Antarctics Havn

I

9

1 ith-i8th

(Deserted later)

8 Orsted Dal

2

to

i5th-22nd

2ist-22nd

170 Sanderling breeding biology

plumage to be the female, was caught and marked at 14.00 next
day. The same individual was incubating at 20.40 on 12th July, at
15.40 and 21.40 on the 14th, at 15.05 and 16.25 on the 16th and at
15.30 on the 17th. Ten minutes after the last observation it was
seen feeding on the shore about 1 km away, among a flock of about
25 small waders. The observer returned to the nest at 15.55 an^>
simultaneously, the marked Sanderling flew in and settled on the
eggs. It was also incubating at 19.45 on that day. No second adult
was ever seen, but all the visits were in the same part of the day and
the Mestersvig data suggest some regularity in incubation schedules.
The nest could not be visited again until 7th August, when it was
found to be deserted with no adults in the vicinity; the cold eggs
contained well-developed embryos. Speculative explanations for
the failure of this nest include an attempt by one adult to rear an
incomplete clutch after loss of its mate, and death or desertion of one
of a pair tending the clutch alone. Few waders were able to breed
near Antarctics Havn in 1974, as the snow did not melt until after
the beginning of July (Green and Lloyd in preparation) and it
seems unlikely that Sanderling pairs would attempt to rear two
clutches in those conditions.

FAMILY PARTIES

Because of their mobility and the limited time available, it was not
possible to follow individual family parties. A total of 25 single
observations are, however, summarised in table 3. Of these 25
broods, 13 were either accompanied by two adults when they were
found or joined by a second adult later. In all cases but one, when
the adults were alike they appeared to be male and female on
plumage, and it seems likely that they were parental pairs.

In the twelve instances when only one adult was seen, four were
thought to be females and four males, while the sexes of the remain-
ing four could not be determined. These observations do not
necessarily mean that only one bird tended the chicks. We found
that Sanderlings, Dunlins C. alpina, Knots C. canutus and Turnstones
Arenaria interpres all sometimes fed away from their broods, leaving
the other adult with the young, though they might return in times
of danger.

DEPARTURE FROM BREEDING GROUNDS

Mixed flocks of adult Sanderlings, Dunlins, Ringed Plovers
Charadrius hiaticula and Turnstones were seen as early as 8th July
near Antarctics Havn and in 0rsted Dal. Similar flocks were
recorded by previous observers and we agree with Parmelee’s
belief that they include both sexes, these being non-breeders or
birds whose nests have failed.

Sanderling breeding biology 1 7 1

Table 3. Records of adult Sanderlings Calidris alba with unfledged young,
north-east Greenland, July 1974

All dates refer to July. Note that a total of 12 broods were accompanied by one
adult and 13 by two. The two broods seen on 30th July were in the same area,
with several adults thought to include both pairs of parents

Male

Female

One adult

Two

Locality

only

only

not sexed

adults

Karupelv, Traill G

1 6th 25th
26th 27th

19th 23rd

22nd

1 6th 17 th

Henrick Moller Dal

—

—

23rd

26th

Grsted Dal

1 8th 20th

15th 24th

7th 9th
17 th 1 8th
23rd 23rd
29th 29th
30th 30th

TOTALS

4

4

4

13

Sanderlings stayed with their young until they were fledged: all
non-flying and newly fledged young were accompanied by at least
one adult. Older juveniles gathered into flocks, usually of between
four and 15 but occasionally of up to 40, sometimes with other
juvenile waders. Flocks were seen around pools and on the shore
near Mestcrsvig from early August and each remained several days
before moving on. Salomonsen (1950) noted that adults may migrate
at the end of July, followed by the juveniles in late August, but our
observations suggest that both may start moving slightly earlier
than this. At Mestersvig the adults fed less on the shore than the
juveniles, but both seemed to concentrate on small adult Diptera.

DISCUSSION

Our observations lead us to the conclusion that, in our study areas
of north-east Greenland in 1974, both parent Sanderlings usually
tended the eggs and young, but that only one was present at any-
time. We do not know if this is so every year. In 1974, the snow
melt was two or three weeks later than average and, in some places,
the snow apparently cleared too late for waders to obtain breeding
territories. The date of the melt, however, and therefore the start
and duration of the wader egg-laying period, as well as the breeding
season as a whole, varied greatly from valley to valley. In those
favourable areas which thawed early, laying dates for first Sander-
ling eggs ranged from 8th to 27th June (ten estimates) in Orsted Dal
where 34 possible territories were located, and from 1 1 th to 24th
June (13 estimates) in Karupelv where 17 possible territories were
found. In contrast, only a few Sanderlings bred in those unfavour-
able areas where the thaw was latest. At Mestersvig, onty five possible

172

Sanderling breeding biology

territories and two nests were found, the one first egg date obtained
being 2nd July. At Antarctics Havn, seven possible territories and
the one late nest that failed were located.

By comparison, Parmelee thought that first egg dates on Bathurst
Island ranged from 16th June to early July. If the Greenland
Sanderlings were as ‘opportunistic’ as those on Bathurst Island, we
should have expected to find signs of multiple clutches and broods
in favourable areas and perhaps single clutches tended by one or
both adults in unfavourable ones. We had no evidence of this and
see no reason to suppose that the behaviour observed in 1974 was
atypical. In view of these findings, we now offer some explanation
for the confused results from the past and discuss the differences
between our observations from Greenland and Parmelee’s from
Bathurst Island.

Parmelee and MacDonald (i960) found both a male and a female
with brood patches on Ellesmere Island and concluded that,
contrary to many of the early reports, both sexes incubated but
either the male or the female deserted early in the incubation
period. In 1970, Parmelee still believed this to be true and it was
another three years before he put forward the multiple brood
hypothesis (Parmelee and Payne 1973). Of the Sanderlings caught
incubating or brooding in Greenland in 1974, all four males and all
three females, as well as four of the five not sexed, had brood patches.
Therefore, the assertion by Manniche (1910), that only females
have brood patches, is obviously wrong. Other authors (table 1)
have collected both males and females on eggs and, clearly, both
sexes can be involved in incubation and rearing young. Koltoff
(1903), Bertram et al. (1934), Pedersen (1942) and Rosenberg et al.
(1970) all observed pairs with broods in north-east Greenland. The
last also found two nests attended by both adults, but did not watch
long enough to see whether both incubated. In view of our observa-
tions in 1974, that usually only one adult was near the nest at any
time and that twelve of 25 broods were accompanied by one parent,
it is not surprising that early observers often saw only a single adult
at the nest or with the young; in those days, too, the adult was
frequently shot, and the eggs or chicks often collected as well, so
that there was little opportunity to establish whether the second
adult ever incubated or tended the brood.

Another point of confusion concerns plumage. In breeding
plumage, the cinnamon-washed, brown-spotted feathers of the
sides of the neck and upper breast are usually more brightly coloured
in male Sanderlings than females (see painting and comments in
Parmelee 1970). Six of the eleven incubating birds we caught were,
however, replacing these feathers by white, non-breeding plumage.
Because of this early moult and because not one of the early

i73

Sanderling breeding biology

authors noted the sexual difference in plumage, their records of the
sex of the Sanderlings they studied can be considered reliable only
if they were based on dissection. Few of those sexed by Manniche
were shot during the incubation period which he recorded.

Parmelee and Payne cited two other pieces of evidence in support
of their hypothesis. First, referring to Schonwetter (1966) and Lack
(1968), they stated that Sanderlings are like Temminck’s Stints
C. temminckii in laying unusually small eggs in relation to their body
size, and pointed out that Hilden (1965) had established that
Temminck’s Stints lay successive clutches, each tended by one
adult. Lack’s analysis of Schonwetter’s data shows clearly, however,
that the ratio of egg weight to adult weight is low in the case of the
Temminck’s Stint, but that the Sanderling is not far below its
predicted place on the graph, while the amount of intraspecific
variation is not mentioned. Our own data demonstrate that adult
weight changes over the season and that egg weight decreases
during incubation, so the relation of one to the other varies accord-
ing to when the measurements are taken. Clearly, close study of
both adults and eggs in the same area is required to obtain more
accurate data before final conclusions can be drawn.

Secondly, Parmelee and Payne stated that, because Sanderlings
are the commonest and most successful of Bathurst Island waders,
they are better adapted than the others to the harsh, variable
weather conditions there. The time of spring thaw in north-east
Greenland is variable, both annually and locally, but the subsequent
weather is relatively fine and settled. The Ringed Plover is the
commonest wader, while the Dunlin and the Sanderling are less
common and less widespread, each occupying different types of
nesting habitat. Both sexes of the Ringed Plover and the Dunlin
incubate and these species do not lay multiple clutches. If the
Sanderling did so, it could perhaps take fuller advantage of the
variable local conditions, but the behaviour reported from Bathurst
Island does not appear to occur in north-east Greenland.

There are striking differences between the incubation schedules
in the two areas. The Sanderlings incubated for 96% of 24 hours
at one Greenland nest, but for 81% over 14 days’ continuous watch
at one Bathurst Island nest. Although the Greenland observations
were for only one 24-hour period, attendance was well above
Parmelee’s range of daily values (67-89%). Furthermore, this high
rate occurred early in the incubation period when Bathurst Island
attendance was poor. The later discontinuous 24-hour Greenland
watch also suggested a high rate. In northern Alaska, Norton (1972)
recorded incubation for 96-98% of the time for the Dunlin and the
Baird’s Sandpiper C. bairdii, two species in which both adults
incubate, and for about 85% for the Pectoral Sandpiper C. melanotos,

174

Sanderling breeding biology

which is polygynous and in which only the female incubates, leaving
the nest for long periods to feed. The Greenland Sanderling records
appear similar to the species in which both sexes incubate, but the
Bathurst Island data resemble those of the Pectoral Sandpiper.
Norton suggested that species with relatively smaller and, therefore,
faster-cooling eggs may require greater tolerance to embryonic
chilling. Such species, he suggested, are the Temminck’s Stint,
the Sanderling and the phalaropes Phalaropus spp. Perhaps the
tolerance of Sanderling eggs to cold and the ratio of their weight
to that of the adults differ between Bathurst Island and north-east
Greenland.

Further study is clearly required of the breeding behaviour and
incubation schedules of the two Sanderling populations. Speculation
about the adaptive significance of the behaviour may be useful in
indicating lines of investigation. The more continuous incubation
in Greenland may lead to earlier hatching, and thus be related to a
shorter season, or it might be required if the ambient temperature
were lower or the weather conditions more adverse, giving a greater
risk of chilling. The reduced feeding time of a Sanderling tending a
nest alone may be tolerable only if food supplies are abundant, close
by and reliable, or if it arrives on the breeding grounds in good
condition with food reserves. Alternatively, if both parents rear the
brood, they may feed in a different area from the chicks, and take
turns to do so, thus avoiding competition with their offspring for
food. Conversely, departure of one adult to rear a second brood
elsewhere may be an adaptation to a pool- food supply. The presence
of both birds may be an advantage in distraction display if predators
are common, but less frequent movements near the nest when both
incubate may be an adaptation to numerous predators. Obviously
some of these suggestions are compatible and others contradictory.

Our study of Sanderlings in north-east Greenland showed no
evidence that ‘only a single individual incubates at any one nest and
that one bird alone later attends the brood’ (Parmelee and Payne
r973)- In most instances, both adults were observed to attend the
nest and the brood. Nor were we able to confirm that ‘Sanderlings
appear to be opportunistic, individual birds being able to alter their
reproductive effort to accommodate local field conditions’ (Parmelee
and Payne 1973). It seems, therefore, that nest attendance by one
adult and the occurrence of multiple broods are both more frequent
on Bathurst Island than in north-east Greenland.

The Sanderling is considered to be a monotypic species and the
areas studied on Bathurst Island and in north-east Greenland are
about 2,300 km apart. Ringing recoveries and the results of dye
marking (Parmelee 1970, Green 1975) suggest that the two popu-
lations differ in migration and wintering areas, which are in

i75

Sanderling breeding biology

America and the Old World respectively. Unpublished work in
Britain also shows differences in moult and migration between
passage migrants and wintering birds, which probably originate
from both Greenland and Siberia. DifFerences have been demon-
strated between populations of other wader species in migration
routes, wintering areas, and the timing of moult and breeding (e.g.
Salomonsen 1955, Holmes 1971, Maclean and Holmes 1971,
Pienkowski el al. 1976), and we suggest that intraspecific differences
in breeding strategy may also occur. This may give support to the
suggestion by Pitelka el al. (1974) that multiple nesting systems have
evolved independently on several occasions in various species.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The 1974 Joint Biological Expedition to north-east Greenland (Wader Study
Group and Dundee University) would not have been possible without the financial
support of the Royal Society, the British Ornithologists’ Union, the British Trust
for Ornithology, the Wildfowlers’ Association of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the Royal Geographical Society, the
Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland, the Ford of Britain Trust, the
University of Durham, Sir Herbert Bonar and many other individuals and organi-
sations fully acknowledged in the expedition’s forthcoming report.

We thank the Ministcreit for Gronland for permission to work in Greenland and
Dr F. Salomonsen for advice. B. Mclander, Manager of Statens Luftfartsvaesen,
Mestersvig, and his successor, H. Poulsen, as well as their staff, gave us much help
and kindness. We are also indebted to E. Hintsteiner, ofNordisk Mineselskab AS,
and his pilot for helicopter hire; this and the air drop of food in Orsted Dal by
Air Dispatch Unit 47 from Royal Air Force, Lyneham, made possible wader
studies in widely separated areas. Finally, we are grateful to our expedition
colleagues, who helped collect the observations; to Dr F. Kurrein, for translations;
to C. M. Hemmings, our home agent; and to Dr P. R. Evans, Dr P. N. Ferns.
Dr J. J. D. Greenwood, D. 1. North and P. C. Smith, who read and commented
on drafts of this paper.

SUMMARY

Studies of Sanderlings Calidris alba breeding in north-east Greenland in 1974 are
compared with those of earlier authors, especially of Parmelce and others on
Bathurst Island in arctic Canada. Observations in Greenland of one pair through-
out the season, including a continuous 24-hour watch at the nest, and of seven
other nests and 25 family parties, showed two adults sharing incubation at most
nests and probably attending most broods, although one individual often left the
brood for long periods. This behaviour contrasts sharply with the observations on
Bathurst Island, where only one adult incubated and attended the brood and
where two clutches, each incubated by one adult, may be laid in favourable years.
During the 24-hour watch at the Greenland nest, the eggs were incubated for 96%
of the time. This is similar to schedules observed for other waders in which both
sexes incubate, and contrasts with records from Bathurst Island where, over a
14-day period, the eggs were incubated for 81% of the time, a rate comparable
with that of the Pectoral Sandpiper C. melanotos, in which only the female
incubates.

We conclude that, contrary to some earlier reports, both parent Sanderlings
attend the nest and the brood in some parts of their breeding range and suggest

1 76 Sanderling breeding biology

that intraspecific differences in breeding strategy may occur between different
arctic populations. More detailed observations of marked birds in different parts
of the range are required before Sanderling breeding behaviour can be fully
understood.

REFERENCES

Bertram, G. C. L., Lack, D., and Roberts, B. B. 1934. ‘Notes on East Greenland
birds, with a discussion of the periodic non-breeding among arctic birds’.
Ibis, (13) 14: 816-831.

Bird, C. G., and Bird, E. G. 1941. ‘The birds of north-east Greenland’. Ibis,
(14) 5: 118-161.

Dresser, H. E. 1904. ‘On the late Dr Walter’s Ornithological Researches in the
Taimyr Peninsula’. Ibis, (11) 2: 228-235.

Feilden, H. W. 1877. ‘List of birds observed in Smith Sound and in the polar
basin during the Arctic Expedition of 1875-76’. Ibis (4) 1 : 401-412.

Green, G. H. 1975. ‘Marked Greenland Waders’. BTO News, 73: 2.

Hilden, O. 1965. ‘Zur Brutbiologie des Temminckstrandlaufers Calidris tem-
minckii (Leisl.)’. Ornis Fenn., 42: 1-5.

Holmes, R. T. 1971. ‘Latitudinal differences in the breeding and molt schedule
of Alaskan Red-backed Sandpiper’. Condor, 73 : 93-99.

Kolthoff, G. 1903. ‘Bidrag till kannedom om norra polartrakternas daggdjur
och fuglar’. Kungliga Svenska Vetenskaps-Akademiens handlingar, ny jaljd, 36(9).

Lack, D. 1968. Ecological Adaptations for Breeding in Birds. London.

Loppenthin, B. 1932. ‘Die Vogel Nordostgronlands zwischen 73°oo' und 75 0
30'N. Br., samt Beobachtungsergebnissen von der Danischen Godthaab Expedi-
tion 1930’. Aledd. om Gronland, 91 : 1-128.

Maclean, S. F., and Holmes, R. T. 1971. ‘Bill lengths, wintering areas and
taxonomy of North American Dunlins Calidris alpina’. Auk, 88: 893-901.

Madsen, C. 1925. ‘Ornithologiske iagttagelser fra Oestgroenland’. Dansk Om.
Foren. Tidsskr., 19: 33-41.

Manniche, A. L. V. 1910. ‘The terrestrial mammals and birds of north-east
Greenland’. Medd. om Gronland, 45: 1-200.

Manning, T. H., Hohn, E. O., and Macpherson, A. H. 1956. ‘The birds of Banks
Island’. Natl. AIus. Canada Bull., 143.

Norton, D. W. 1972. ‘Incubation schedules of four species of Calidridine Sand-
pipers at Barrow, Alaska’. Condor, 74: 164-176.

Parmelee, D. F. 1970. ‘Breeding behaviour of the Sanderling in the Canadian
high arctic’. Living Bird, 9: 97-146.

and MacDonald, S. D. i960. ‘The birds of west central Ellesmere Island

and adjacent areas’. Natl. AIus. Canada Bull., 169.

and Payne, R. B. 1973. ‘On multiple broods and the breeding strategy of

arctic Sanderlings’. Ibis, 115: 218-226.

, Stephens, H. A., and Schmidt, R. H. 1967. ‘The birds of south-eastern

Victoria Island and adjacent small islands’. Natl. AIus. Canada Bull., 222.

Pedersen, A. 1930. ‘Fortgesetzte Beitrage zur Kenntnis der Saugetier-und Vogel-
fauna der Ostkiiste Gronlands’. Aledd. om Gronland, 77: 341-508.

1934- ‘Die ornis dies mittleren teiles der Nordostkiiste Gronlands’. Aledd.

om Gronland, 100: 1-35.

1942. ‘Saugetiere und Vogel von Dansk Nordoestgroenlands Expedition

1938-39’. Aledd. om Gronland, 128: 1-119.

Pienkowski, M. W., Knight, P. J., Stanyard, D. J., and Argyle, F. B. 1976.
‘Primary moult of waders on the Atlantic coast of Morocco’. Ibis in press.

Pitelka, F. A., Holmes, R. T., and Maclean, S. F. 1974. ‘Ecology and evolution
of social organisation in arctic sandpipers’. Amer fool., 14: 185-204.

Plate 17. Sanderling Calidris alba standing over usual clutch of four eggs,
Daneborg, NE Greenland, July 1964 {photo: Benny Gensbel) . A study of breeding
behaviour in NE Greenland in July 1974 (pages 165-177) showed that both
adults shared incubation, contrary to previous experience in arctic Canada

Plate 18. View SE near Mestersvig, NE Greenland, and incubating Sanderling
Calidris alba (circled), mid-July 1974; the stream and boggy zone near the
snow were feeding areas. Below, close-up of this study nest (pages 167-169)
amongst dwarf willows Salix arctica and lichens ( photos : M. W. Pienkowski )

Plate 19. Two more nests, both again among dwarf willows with one also set
off by a clump of mountain avens Dryas octopetala, Karupelv, Traill 0, NE
Greenland, July 1974. The lower has three newly hatched chicks, variegated
buff and black with speckles of white, and one egg (photos: A. E. Williams)

Plate 20. Above, Sanderling Calidris alba foraging in the snow melt a few
days after arrival, Daneborg, NE Greenland, late May 1964. Below, the same
nest as plate 17; the bird’s pale chestnut upperparts and breast, mottled
black and white, contrast with the pure white belly ( photos : Benny Gensbel )

Sanderling breeding biology 177

Pi.eske, T. 1928. ‘Birds of the Eurasian tundra’. Mem. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist.,
6: 107-485.

Rosenberg, N. T., Christensen, N. H., and Gensbol, B. 1970. ‘Bird observations
in north-east Greenland’. Medd. om Grerdand, 191 : 1-87.

Salomonsen, F. 1950. The Birds of Greenland. Kobenhavn.

1955. ‘The evolutionary significance of bird migration’. Kel. Danske Vid. Selsk.,

Biol. Medd., 22 (6): 1-62.

Schonwetter, M. 1966. Handbuch der Oologie. Berlin, vol i (ed. by W. Meise).

.\1. W. Pienkowski, Department of £ oology , University of Durham , South
Road, Durham dhi 3LE

G. H. Green, Windy Ridge, Little Comberton, Pershore, Worcestershire

WRIO 3EW

I

Notes

Reactions of Goldeneyes to boating Until 1966 Chasewater
(Cannock Reservoir), Staffordshire, held fewer than ten wintering
Goldeneyes Bucephala clangula. In subsequent winters higher num-
bers have been recorded. Although the reasons for this increase are
unknown, the flocks are subject to a great deal of disturbance
which may be inhibiting further increase; numbers fluctuate
markedly from day to day and, particularly at weekends, Golden-
eyes are sometimes entirely absent (at least in afternoons). Other
waters often have an increase in late winter and early spring but
this is not evident at Chasewater, and in the winter of 1974/75 the
totals from late January were much lower than in December, almost
certainly because of the increased frequency of midweek boating.
Powerboating, water-skiing and sailing take place almost every
winter weekend and the former activities are becoming more and
more common on weekdays; the whole of the reservoir surface is
used, except for a small pool at the northern end which is separated
by a narrow causeway and on which Goldeneyes are rarely seen.

Repeated observations have shown that Goldeneyes often fly
when people on the shore approach closer than 100 or 200 metres,
but invariably settle again elsewhere on the water. A single sailing
dinghy, however, may be sufficient to cause over 60 Goldeneyes to
take flight and most to leave altogether within a few minutes, the
remaining birds flying up each time the boat approaches to within
350-400 metres and generally leaving within an hour. A powerboat
causes virtually instantaneous flight as soon as it appears on the
water, the majority of birds leaving, and, if it traverses the length
of the reservoir, all the rest leaving within a few minutes.

On 4th December 1974, 38 Goldeneyes undisturbed 100 metres
offshore suddenly took flight together and flew right away out of
the area when a powerboat had travelled barely 10 metres out from
the jetty (and was still 550 metres from the birds). In the strong
wind it was inaudible to me and difficult to see against the sun, but
the Goldeneyes had reacted immediately to it, as on many other
occasions. There was no sign of any other possible cause of their
sudden, simultaneous departure. On 28th January 1975, I drove
to the lakeside car park and Goldeneyes 200-250 metres offshore
became alert for a few seconds; other cars moving past or stopping-
caused momentary anxiety. Then two cars, both towing powerboats,
drove past without stopping and the closest birds, and a large
group at about 350 metres, took flight, apparently reacting to the
sight of the boats even without the sound. When one boat emerged
slowly on to the water shortly afterwards, 28 Goldeneyes fully 700
metres away flew off before it had travelled 30 metres, and eventually

178

/

Notes

1 79

all 55 birds present (except for one or two very harassed individuals)
left. This apparent reaction to powerboats on the shore has been
repeated on several occasions.

Early in the winter of 1974/75 there seemed to be a more rapid
return after disturbance than in previous years, when a whole
week was often necessary for all displaced birds to return, but from
late January 1975 the increasing frequency of boating meant
that numbers did not regain their former levels at all; some birds
perhaps return sooner but generally they do not react any less
strongly with increasing experience of the boats.

Clearly the presence of Goldeneyes at Ghasewater depends on the
availability of a second, ‘refuge’ water: flocks have been watched
flying out of sight towards Blithfield Reservoir (15 km to the north),
but numbers there have been inadequate to account for up to 60
displaced birds from Ghasewater in addition to the regular flock.
Chasewater must presumably be more attractive to Goldeneyes
or else the ‘refuge’ water already holds as many as it can support,
whereas it is likely that the potential maximum at Chasewater is
rarely, if ever, reached. R. A. Hume

31 Lime Grove , Durntwood, Walsall WS7 oha

Glaucous and Iceland Gulls in the west midlands The

increasing tendency of the commoner species of gull to winter inland
has been well documented (see, for example, Bird Study , 1 : 129-148;
14: 1 04- 1 13). Most publications, however, still describe the Glaucous
Gull Larus hyperboreus and the Iceland Gull L. glaucoides as excep-
tional inland, except in the London area. Recent experience in the
west midlands, particularly at the larger Staffordshire reservoirs,
indicates that both these species are in fact regular visitors to large
inland gull roosts. Up to and including the winter of 1974/75, 65
Glaucous Gulls and 50 Iceland were recorded in the old counties
of Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Staffordshire (including the
now separate county of West Midlands), 83% of them since 1968/69.
During the course of a single winter as many as eleven Glaucous

Table 1. Records of Glaucous Gulls Larus hyperboreus and Iceland Gulls L. glaucoides in the old
counties of Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Staffordshire

Figures for the winter of 1974/75 are provisional

p re-
1966

66/67

67 68

WINTER
68/69 69/70

70/71

71/72

72/73

73/74

74/75 TOTAL!

Glaucous

adult

1

O

O

O

4

I

4

3

3

3

19

Gull

immature

9

I

2

5

5

6

7

4

4

3

46

TOTALS

10

1

2

5

9

7

1 I

7

7

6

65

Iceland

adult

0

O

O

O

2

3

4

5

4

5

23

Gull

immature

6

O

I

I

5

4

4

3

2

I

27

TOTALS

6

O

I

I

7

7

8

8

6

6

50

1 80 Notes

and eight Iceland Gulls have been identified, and on nth February
1973 no fewer than three Iceland Gulls were recorded together at
Blithfield Reservoir, Staffordshire.

All the known records in the three counties are summarised in
table 1, adult and immature birds being shown separately. The
totals should be regarded as minima, since allowance has been made
for the possibility of a single individual making several appearances
at the same or neighbouring roosts during the course of a winter.
The monthly distribution of records is given in table 2.

Table 2. Monthly distribution of the records summarised in table 1

above

Oct

Nov

Dec

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Glaucous Gull

O

3

14

10

18

15

3

0

Iceland Gull

0

I

7

12

12

15

2

I

It is evident from these figures that since the late 1960’s both
species have been of regular occurrence, Glaucous generally
appearing between December and March and Iceland between late
December and March. The total number of birds is not large but,
nonetheless, compares favourably with many coastal areas of
similar latitude.

An interesting feature of the records is the high percentage
of adults involved, particularly in the case of the Iceland
Gull. Taking all records into account, 29% of Glaucous and 46%
of Iceland were adults; considering only those occurrences since
1 9^9/7° (77% °f all records), these figures become 38% and 52%
respectively. According to the literature, adult birds of both species
are relatively sedentary and rarely move very far south. The
increasing proportion of adults in the west midlands may therefore
presage a change in the wintering habits of these two species and it
will be interesting to see if this trend is maintained.

Alan R. Dean and Brian R. Dean

2 Charingworth Road, Solihull, West Midlands B92 8ht

Further records of foot-paddling by gulls on grassland

During the winter of 1974/75 I spent many hours watching gulls on
the damp, sloping grassland which surrounds Drift Reservoir,
Penzance, Cornwall. Many of the Herring Gulls Lams argentatus,
adults and immatures alike, commonly foot-paddled the ground
with rapid and alternate leg movements, the body maintaining a
very upright stance. It is now well known that such activity causes
earthworms to rise to the surface, where they are quickly eaten by
the gulls (see Brit. Birds, 42: 222-223; 43 : 162-163; 55: 117-119).

Notes

1 8 1

Neither the Common Gulls L. canus nor the Black-headed Gulls
L. ridibundus which were present were seen to foot-paddle the
grassland. Although the activity has been recorded elsewhere for
the former species (Brit. Birds , 43: 162-163; 55: 1 18), Black-headed
Gulls have yet to be seen applying the technique on grassland.
However, I did see three instances of foot-paddling by immature
Great Black-backed Gulls L. marinus which seemed to be copying
the Herring Gulls, their action being rather ponderous and deliber-
ate. Apparently these are the first records for the species, though
A. G. Parsons (in litt .) tells me that on a few occasions he also has
seen marinus foot-paddling grassland for eathworms.

The Herring Gulls’ success rate varied according to the wetness
of the ground from 35 worms/ 15 minutes when the grassland was
really damp down to six worms/ 15 minutes in drier, though still
soft, conditions. Seldom did a gull foot-paddle on a grass patch
for more than nine minutes, after which it moved to another patch
a few centimetres away and resumed the activity. Several times,
when the gulls were disturbed and left the site, I immediately
examined the ground where they had been foot-paddling. Often,
the earthworms were still coming out of the ground but after about
15 minutes they retreated. By then simulating the gulls’ behaviour
by gently tapping the ground I was quickly able to make the earth-
worms reappear. Similar attempts in areas where the gulls had not
worked, however, were much less successful and often wholly
negative.

I sent some of the worms to Dr Nigel Webb of the Institute of
Terrestrial Ecology and although the specimens arrived in poor
condition he identified them as species of Lumbricus, a genus which
hitherto was thought not to respond in this way to ground vibration
(Brit. Birds, 55: 1 1 7) . Bernard King

‘ Gull Cry', 9 Park Road , Newlyn, Cornwall

Carrion Crows feeding offspring in November On investigat-
ing a report of four partially and symmetrically albinistic Carrion
Crows Corvus corone which had been observed near St Ives, Cornwall,
from August 1974, I found that the party consisted of two adults
and two immatures. Although the birds were often scattered they
were never far from one another and occasionally came together
as a family party. Several times, when the adults found bread which
was rather hard and therefore took a long time to break into edible
pieces, they were joined by the young birds, which made squawking
noises accompanied by begging actions. The immatures often took
pieces which had been broken off by the adults but continuously
begged for the food by lowering and extending their heads and
necks, with bills slightly open and wings held out a little from their

182

Notes

bodies. Very infrequently the adults quickly thrust bread into the
mouths of the young birds. I last observed this behaviour on 24th
November 1974. Apparently there are few documented records of
such long post-fledging associations between parents and young.

Bernard King

‘Gull Cry’, g Park Road, Newlyn, Cornwall

Reviews

Flamingos. Edited by Janet Kear and Nicole Duplaix-Hall.
T. & A. D. Poyser, Berkhamsted, 1975. 246 pages; seven
colour plates; 48 black-and-white plates; numerous draw-
ings, maps and diagrams. £8.00.

In July 1973 an international gathering of flamingo specialists met
at Slimbridge, Gloucestershire. The results are now available to a
wide audience through this book of 39 chapters derived from papers
given there by 30 authors representing all continents where
flamingos occur. This clear presentation of data on their status has
been eagerly awaited by conservationists and ornithologists
interested in this unique group of birds, one of the oldest alive today.

The ecological requirements of flamingos are narrow, which
has led to breeding and migratory habits of seemingly erratic
character, not yet fully understood. The Camargue Greater
Flamingos, which are more intensely studied than any other
population, are discussed by A. R. Johnson. The majority of these
move south-west from Camargue to Andalusia and north-western
Africa. The delta of Guadalquivir is probably the main winter
area; over one third of all recoveries of ringed birds occurs there,
perhaps because flamingos are considered game in Spain. Other
Camargue flamingos migrate to Portugal, Sardinia, Morocco,
Algeria and Tunisia, with recoveries also from Turkey, Libya,
Mauritania and Senegal. In Spain breeding is infrequent and
often unsuccessful, which emphasises the importance of preserving
the Camargue colony, the only permanent one in Europe. (The
Russian colony at the north-eastern shore of the Caspian Sea
disappeared after 1946 as a result of the man-made hydrographic
changes in this area.) Data on this species as a breeding bird in
northern Africa are rather scarce, but colonies have been recorded
in Tunisia, Morocco and Mauritania.

Leslie Brown gives an excellent chapter on the status, movements,

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183

breeding success, population dynamics and conservation necessities
of the Greater and Lesser Flamingos in eastern Africa. All his
available figures suggest that both species must be long-lived. A new
phenomenon which greatly affects the productivity of the Greater
Flamingo at Lake Elmenteita in Kenya is the predation by Marabou
Storks during the last years. Both Brown and H. H. Berry (in his
chapter on South West Africa) assume that the East African popu-
lation of flamingos is separated from the Etosha Pan-Makarikari
Pans population in South West Africa and Botswana. However, there
is a regular passage of Greater Flamingos in both Rhodesia and
Malawi, so there might be connections between the two populations.
On the Etosha Pan a remarkable walking migration of Lesser
Flamingos was observed in 1971, released by receding water. Four
colonies of chicks trekked 80 km in small groups, averaging three
km a day. Although a few adults accompanied the walking chicks,
the parents probably found and fed their offspring during the
entire migration, flying return journeys of up to 100 km to obtain
food. This extraordinary evacuation operation was successful.

Similar feeding movements are described by Jan Rooth for the
Caribbean Flamingo on Bonaire. Here the birds severely diminished
the local food supply, but adults flew to Venezuela, a distance of
140 km, returning after about twelve hours to feed their young. They
also turned to another food source near the colony, eating mud,
which is rich in organic material. Recent developments on Bonaire
have changed the food situation considerably, eliminating the
staple food, Brine-flies Ephydra cinerea and Brine-shrimps Artemia
salina, but the flamingos have been able to switch completely
to the molluscs Cerithium and Cerithidea. Rooth also describes how
commercial exploitation on flamingo sites can be managed in a
way acceptable to the birds.

M. P. Kahl summarises the distribution and numbers of all species
and subspecies of flamingos. The estimated total populations are:
Caribbean Flamingo 60,500; Greater Flamingo 790,000; Chilean
Flamingo 500,000; Lesser Flamingo 6,000,000; Andean Flamingo
150,000; and James’s Flamingo 21,700. Other chapters of the book
deal with flamingos in captivity (Sir Peter Scott believes that within
ten years zoos should be breeding all the flamingos they need),
ethology and physiology'.

Flamingos are seriously threatened only by man. Their speciali-
sation makes them vulnerable to human depredations and dis-
turbances, particularly in the Andes and in salt and soda exploita-
tion areas of various parts of the world. This book, with its wealth of
data, is a valuable examination of their status and of what can be
done to maintain their numbers at present levels.

Kai Curry-Lindahl

Reviews

184

Pine Crossbills. By Desmond Nethersole-Thompson. T. &
A. D. Poyser, Berkhamsted, 1975. 256 pages; one colour and
24 black-and-white photographs ; numerous tables and
figures. £5.00.

Desmond Nethersole-Thompson recounts his early days with
Crossbills in East Anglia and his first meetings with Scottish Cross-
bills in Strathspey, where he was struck by the different calls of the
northern birds. Thus started 40 years of careful study, and in this
monograph he describes the life history and behaviour of the Cross-
bills of the Scottish pine forests. These interesting birds live in a fine
environment where remnants of the old Caledonian forests nestle in
the central and eastern glens of the Highlands.

As usual, the author has researched his subject fully; his story
starts with reference to the bird’s place in history and legend, and its
fascinating content is a forerunner to a thoroughly interesting book.
One of the main topics of the book is the difficult taxonomic problem
of whether to regard the Scottish Crossbill as a distinct species, a
subspecies of the Common Crossbill Loxia curvirostra or a subspecies
of the Parrot Crossbill L. pytyopsittacus. There is a discussion of the
relationship between various crossbills and their main food trees, the
larger-billed birds feeding on the harder cones of pine trees. Frequent
comparison is made between Scottish Crossbill activities and those
of Common, Parrot and Two-barred Crossbills. Nethersole-
Thompson decides to re-designate the Scottish Crossbill as L.pinicola
pinicola; in a special appendix, A. G. Knox comes down in favour
of an earlier designation as L. scotica while Dr I. Newton regards it
as a subspecies of A. curvirostra. The reader can make his own choice.
There are chapters on egg-collectors, haunts and neighbours,
flocks, courtship, territory, aspects of breeding biology, voice, food,
competitors and predators. Much of this information is personal
observation backed by correspondence with other crossbill-watchers ;
there are many original data. The final chapters, on distribution,
numbers, movements, and speculations, reveal that the author
estimates the Scottish Crossbill population as low as 100 pairs in the
1960’s and 320 pairs in the 1970’s; he stresses the difficulties of
estimating the population and the erratic nature of the bird but
suggests a stock of about 1,500 adult birds in recent yeai's, its future
looking reasonably secure.

The book is rounded off by much extra information in the form
of five appendices and 17 tables; I found the nest diaries rather
difficult reading and my only criticism of the book is occasional
repetition. The photographs are good while the line drawings are
attractive; I liked the nice bright cover. In my view the book is a
superb addition to the author’s previous three monographs on
Greenshank, Snow Bunting and Dotterel. All four should be taken

Reviews

185

as a whole, and as such reveal a fine story about four special Scottish
birds, the superb Highland area and one of Scotland’s most notable
ornithologists. Roy H. Dennis

To Save a Bird in Peril. By David R. Zimmerman. Coward,
McCann and Geoghan Inc., New York, 1975. 286 pages;
illustrations and maps by Nancy Lou Nahan. 89.95.

This is one of the most thought-provoking books I have read about
tampering with nature, for which a new name has been coined:
‘clinical ornithology’. In a generally readable and racy style,
Zimmerman reports in detail on what has been done to save those
species whose numbers have dwindled so low that they are thought
to be in danger of extinction. These species live mostly in the New
World and include, among others, the Californian Condor, Whoop-
ing Crane, Nene, Osprey, Peregrine, Cahow and Kirtland Warbler.
He outlines the techniques used to resuscitate species which have
been hard hit by some special beastliness of man — poison or pollu-
tion— or which have been unable to adapt to physical changes in
the environment. Indeed, nearly all the schemes discussed by
Zimmerman fall into one or other of these two categories. He reports
on the arguments, the criticisms, the bitterness, perhaps the ‘sour
grapes’ when the schemes progressed slowly or went awry, as well
as on the happiness and the successes.

Inevitably a number of questions spring to mind. For instance,
should we interfere with evolution? If a species cannot adapt to
changes in the physical environment should one endeavour to keep
it alive artificially? Sad as it undoubtedly is, the vultures of southern
Europe are dwindling away because of ‘cleaner’ farming methods;
can we really believe that ‘vulture restaurants’ are going to prevent
their retreat? Is it really possible to maintain a viable population
of vultures for ever? Artificial feeding points, whether in gardens or
on the Spanish plains, are fun and may save a few individuals, but
they rarely save populations. Is spending thousands, if not hundreds
of thousands, of dollars on rescuing some obsolete species really
wise use of conservation resources? At some stage we will have to
switch oil' the ‘life-support system’. Similarly, he also makes a
number of questionable statements about the value of some of these
techniques for conservation. Is sex hormone treatment, which he
apparently applauds, what bird protection is coming to? Is the
doubling of an animal’s reproductive yield a tool of great conserva-
tion value?

Zimmerman greets all these efforts with enthusiasm. But it
seems to me that he has missed the essential difference between
schemes to rescue species that cannot adapt to physical changes in
the environment and those for species which face a temporary

Reviews

1 86

setback because of some sudden large-scale environmental accident,
where, once the effects of the accident have been cleaned up, the
natural resilience of the species will allow it to recover.

The book is good entertainment, gives one plenty to think about
and should give heart to all zookeepers who want a good excuse to
rear birds in captivity; but it should also be read by anyone
interested in bird protection. Peter Conder

ALSO RECEIVED

We apologise for the late publication of the following list of books also received in
1975-

Animal Worlds. By A. T. H. Rowland-Entwistle and Jean Cooke. Sampson Low,
Maidenhead, 1974. £1.50.

Birds. By Neil Ardley. Sampson Low, Maidenhead, 1974. £1.50.

Birds of New York State. By John Bull. Doubleday/Natural History Press, New
York, 1974. £29.95.

Checklist of the Birds of Australia. Part /. Non-Passeriformes. By N. T. Condon. Royal
Australasian Ornithologists Union, Melbourne, 1975. No price given.

Finches and other Seed-eating Birds. By Robin L. Restall. Faber and Faber, London,
!975; £7-oo.

How Birds Live. By Robert Burton. Elsevier-Phaidon, London, 1975. £3.95.
Outlines of Avian Anatomy. By A. S. King and J. M. McLelland. Bailliere Tindale,
London, 1975. No price given.

Studying Birds in the Garden. By T. J. Jennings. Wheaton, Exeter, 1975. No price
given.

The Second Bird-Watchers Book. By John Gooders (editor). David and Charles,
Newton Abbot, 1975. £3.95.

Waterfowl Populations in Denmark. By A. H. Joensen. Game Biology Station, Kalb,
Denmark, 1974. $9.00.

Letters

The continuing slaughter of birds of prey in Britain Your
recent editorial [Brit. Birds, 68: 481-483) on the World Conference
on Birds of Prey, organised by the International Council for Bird
Preservation in Vienna in October 1975, stimulates thought on the
home front. At the conference, an Austrian delegate provided an
estimate of 14,000 birds of prey slaughtered annually in his country.
What would a UK estimate be ? Half this figure ? Or twice as many ?

The overriding importance of habitat loss and pesticide effects
has distracted attention from the persistent attrition of raptors by
shooting interests. Conservationists, acknowledging the many
responsible landowners and enlightened keepers, as well as being
aware of the advantages of maintenance of cover and control of
trespass on keepered shoots, often adopt an ambivalent posture.
Impressions and some evidence, however, suggest destruction of

Letters

187

birds of prey on a grand scale. C. R. Tubbs (1974, The Buzzard.)
calculated that of all young Buzzards Buteo buteo that fly 70-90%
die before reaching maturity, chiefly through shooting. Many
estates in Scotland will tolerate neither Golden Eagles Aquila
chrysaetos nor Hen Harriers Circus cyaneus at any time and, to my
personal knowledge, there are estates in the Midlands where even
Kestrels Falco tinnunculus are killed during the rearing season.

Could not those with wide and current appreciation of the
position be persuaded to stitch together an intelligent annual
estimate? The purpose would be two-fold: to put direct destruction
into a sharper perspective, and to present the shooting camp with
a challenge it could not ignore. Derek Barber

The Manor Farm, Stanley Pontlarge, IVinchcombe, Cheltenham, Gloucester-
shire GL54 5HD

Migration in the doldrums I thought at first that the title of
D. I. M. Wallace’s ‘Viewpoint’ (Brit. Birds, 68: 202-203) would be
a confirmation of my feelings of a decline in visible migration over
the last few years. My first years on this tip of the Lleyn peninsula,
Gwynedd, were rewarding: in 1967 and 1968 good movements
of commoner species took place overland and offshore, and there
were some interesting rarities, too. Since then, however, I have
become more and more disappointed. As an amateur, it is all too
easy to rely on hunches and prejudices, but I do remember the
‘falls’ of Phylloscopi now and again in spring and autumn. Where
have they gone? Where are the Sand Martins Riparia riparia and
the Grasshopper Warblers Locustella naevia? I heard only one of the
latter singing in spring 1975 and saw two.

Monthly reports in British Birds give the impression of as many
birds as ever, but the increasing number of observers renders
this evidence largely negative. With regard to seabirds, it appears
to me here that the Irish Sea is not a particularly populous flyway
and needs storm-force south-westerlies at the right time to drive
birds into it from the Atlantic approaches. Although such situations
occurred in September 1967 and October 1968, they have not,
however, been repeated since in similar conditions.

Of course, one of the dissipators of doubt could be the British
Trust for Ornithology. Whatever the merits of ringing, it is our
main source for estimating the numbers of birds migrating through
Britain in spring and autumn. Presumably the records are filed
at BTO headquarters. Is anyone at work on their analysis? Are
there any notable declines ? When are we to have the information ?
Mr Wallace proposes the setting up of a study group to resume
work on migration. In addition would it be possible to form a
body of people like myself, living at key points in Britain, who

Letters

1 88

could correlate their records and observations and possibly throw
more light on shifts in migration, fluctuations in numbers and
relative weather patterns ? R. S. Thomas

The Vicarage, Aberdaron, Pwllheli, Gwynedd

Plunge-diving and porpoising by aquatic seabirds Seabirds
show two mutually exclusive types of adaptation for the exploitation
of their environment. They may have long wings conferring mobility
in the air with their legs placed forward near the centre of gravity
for perching and seizing prey, like the fish-eating raptors, gulls,
terns, tropicbirds and frigatebirds, which are adept at seizing prey
near the water surface but helpless in the water; or they may have
short wings with legs set far back suited for swimming, which
render them clumsy and helpless on the land and in the air, like
the penguins, divers, grebes, auks and sea-duck. The details of
their behaviour have been analysed by N. P. Ashmole in Avian
Biology (1971, 1 : 223-286). Bernard King has now published three
notes (Brit. Birds, 65: 480-481 ; 67: 77; 68: 383-384) reporting obser-
vations of the plunge-diving behaviour characteristic of the aerial
species by extremely aquatic species, namely the Manx Shearwater
Puffinus puffinus, the Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis, the Guillemot
Uria aalge, the Razorbill Alca torda and the Puffin Fratercula arctica.
Before this behaviour is accepted as a normal phenomenon it
deserves more scrutiny.

Many of our seabirds appear to obtain a large part of their food
where large fish and cetaceans drive shoals of smaller fish to the
surface. The aerial seabirds rapidly gather from all directions to feed
in clouds over such shoals, whereupon the fish soon dive again, so
it behoves the birds to get there as soon as possible. The diving
seabirds often join in, flying up and landing with a spectacular
splash which Mr King appears to have identified as a ‘plunge dive’.
If one is close to them, however, it can usually be seen that they land
on their bellies and dive afterwards. Some of them may also occa-
sionally make spectacular dives straight into the water to avoid
predators, as I have seen a Shag do when it was shot at, but I doubt
whether these birds have sufficient control over their movements in
the air to hit a fish with an aimed plunge any more than an aerial
seabird could pursue it under water. I suggest the aquatic species
merely crash-land over fish-shoals, and dive afterwards.

Mr King also quotes an account published by A. C. Bent (1919,
Life Histories of North American Diving Birds) of diving Puffins
leaping out of the water. I have also seen the larger auks do this,
notably guillemots when I was sailing under the cliffs of Bear
Island in early July 1972. The water was clear and fairly calm and
as we approached rafts of birds they sometimes dived and flew

Letters

189

about under the boat in much the same way that the gulls were
flying about above it. It was in fact very noticeable that they flew
much better under water than they do in the air, and individuals
sometimes leapt right out of the water and then dived again im-
mediately nearby just like a cetacean, in the way also described for
penguins. It was difficult to see quite what they were doing because
they moved so fast, but they must have been able to see each other
under water and may have been chasing each other, or they may
have been coming up to look at us. I have the impression that they
may also sometimes behave like this in the middle of boiling shoals
of fish, though there again it is difficult to see quite what is happen-
ing. Otherwise I do not remember seeing the behaviour away from
the breeding colonies, which suggests that it must be some form of
display.

W. R. P. Bourne

3 Contlaw Place, Milltimber, Aberdeen

The bird collection in the Manchester Museum The impor-
tant Dresser Collection of bird skins has been housed in the
Manchester Museum since 1899 and was actively curated until the
death of T. A. Coward in 1933. Since then the museum skin
collection of many thousands of specimens has been carefully looked
after, but neither greatly used nor added to. Successive keepers have
carried out various re-organisations and E. L. Seyd, the recently
retired Keeper of Zoology, had partially re-catalogued the collection.

I have recently taken over as Keeper of Zoology and, as an
ornithologist, am keen to add to our skin collection and to see it
more widely used. The Dresser Collection is of birds from all over
the world and is effectively representative but is rather low on
numbers of each species, and I would like to build up the numbers
of European and British birds, no matter how common. This is
necessary if the collection is to be of use to taxonomists and ringers
who need to make measurements and comparisons of many speci-
mens of each species.

As it is neither practical nor desirable for the museum to ‘collect’
(to use a euphemistic term) British wild birds, and as many dead
birds are found by birdwatchers, naturalists and other members of
the public, I would like to ask anyone finding recently dead birds
to send them to the Manchester Museum for preparation into
skins. It is also possible that there are still collections of bird skins in
private hands posing storage problems for their owners, who would
like to dispose of them but do not know how to go about it. It would
welcome donations of any such collections as useful additions to the
museum’s bird material. Mounted (i.e. ‘stuffed’) specimens are not
so welcome, as they are difficult to store, but particularly well

Letters

190

mounted or interesting examples with good accompanying data will
be accepted. Freshly dead birds should be frozen or injected with
1 or 2% formalin before being packed in muslin, tissue or cotton
wool. They can then be dispatched in a tin or packed in a polythene
bag within a stout cardboard box. Collecting details should be as
full as possible, but must at least include the date and locality.

At the same time as asking for these specimens I would like to
draw attention to the existence in Manchester of this extensive
collection, which includes many type and figured specimens, and
to encourage ornithologists and ringers with serious enquiries to
use it. It is also hoped that more members of the public with bird
enquiries will use their local museum and its facilities.

M. V. Hounsome

Keeper of £ oology , The Manchester Museum, The University, Manchester

mi 3 qpl

Requests for information

Identification of West Palearctic gulls A series of identification papers for
all West Palearctic gulls is currently being prepared. The species involved are:
Ivory Gull Pagophila eburnea, White-eyed Gull Larus leucophthalmus, Sooty Gull
L. hemprichi, Audouin’s Gull L. audouinii, Ring-billed Gull L. delawarensis , Common
Gull L. canus, Herring Gull L. argentatus, Lesser Black-backed Gull L. fuscus, Great
Black-backed Gull L. marinus, Glaucous Gull L. hyperboreus, Iceland Gull L.
glaucoides, Great Black-headed Gull L. ichthyaetus, Laughing Gull L. atricilla, Grey-
headed Gull L. cirrhocephalus, Franklin’s Gull L. pipixcan, Mediterranean Gull
L. melanocephalus, Black-headed Gull L. ridibundus, Slender-billed Gull L. genei,
Bonaparte’s Gull L. Philadelphia, Little Gull L. minutus, Sabine’s Gull L. sabini,
Ross’s Gull Rhodostethia rosea, Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla. Both specific identification
and the identification of all ages from juvenile to adult will be covered for all
species. It is hoped that a comprehensive selection of black-and-white photographs
of immatures and adults will accompany the papers, and anyone who feels that he
may have suitable material is asked to contact P. J. Grant, 14 Heathfield Road,
Ashford, Kent TN24 8qd (telephone Ashford 24574) for further details.

Colour-ringed Water Rails Water Rails Rallus aquaticus are being colour-
ringed in the Netherlands. Anybody observing any such birds is kindly requested
to send details of locality, date, the colours and on which leg(s) to G. H. J. de

Kroon, Havendijk 56, Gorinchem, Netherlands.

News and comment Peter Conder

Politics and the safety of the environment Just how threatened our natural
environment is, how subject to the huffs and puffs of politicians, has again been

News and comment

I9I

demonstrated forcibly in the last few months. First came the announcement that
the Minister for the Environment had given his consent to the building of a major
refinery on the Cliffe marshes of north Kent and had thus overruled the recommen-
dations of the inspector he had appointed to carry out a public enquiry. A few
weeks later the Secretary of State for Scotland overruled his reporter and gave his
consent to the building of a major refinery at Nigg Bay on the Cromarty Firth.
At both public enquiries into the applications for permission to build the refineries
a whole range of conservation bodies gave evidence as to the great scientific
value of the two areas, in the face of fierce opposition from the companies wishing
to develop the sites; and in both cases the inspector and reporter appointed by the
Ministers upheld the objections of the naturalists and recommended that the
Ministers should turn down the planning applications. There are doubts as to
whether either project will go ahead. The Kent County Council, after hearing
additional evidence that was not tested at the public enquiry, has raised legal
objections to the way that the Minister made the decision. In Scotland the High-
land Regional Authority still has to give its consent.

Ornithologists will no doubt remember that, at the time of the discussions on
the siting of London’s third airport, the Prime Minister of the day overruled, for
political reasons, the recommendations of the Roskill Commission, which had
been arrived at after months of deliberation and millions of words of evidence.
Political reasons, presumably based on unemployment problems, must be behind
the reversal of the present recommendations, for there was no satisfactory evidence
at the enquiries that refineries were needed at either site. Many lessons are to be
learned from these reversals, but to naturalists the message must surely be to obtain
the freehold of land of scientific importance at the earliest possible opportunity
and never to trust in leases or planners.

New reserves Following the exhortation in the previous paragraph, perhaps it
is appropriate to record that the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has just
announced that it has completed negotiations for the purchase of 1,517 acres
(614 ha) of the northern part of the Abcrnethy Forest around Loch Garten.
Whilst this area is the nesting site of the ‘famous’ Ospreys, the property also
contains ancient Scots pine forests of mixed age, heather moor with moraine
hillocks, birch wood, lochs, bogs and a wide variety of plants and birds. The
area was in danger of being felled and used for commercial forestry. The purchase
is part of the RSPB’s £1,000,000 Appeal, which at the end of January 1976
totalled £501,000 in cash and covenants; this means that half the target has been
reached in nine months. The RSPB also announced that it has obtained leases on
Radipole Lake in Weymouth, Dorset, Ynys Venrig off Anglesey in North Wales,
and the Mull of Galloway in south-west Scotland.

North-east Scotland The bird report for this area for 1975 has just been pub-
lished by the embryonic Aberdeen University Bird Club. The club claims to be
in the early stages of formation and hopes ‘to stand in company with the clubs
that are so much in the tradition of English counties’. It has already produced a
checklist of its area which would be of interest to those visiting the Grampians ;
this can be obtained (i8p including postage) from the Secretary, Aberdeen
University Bird Club, Zoology Department, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone
Avenue, Aberdeen AB9 2TN. This report for 1975 is clearly printed, and includes
a survey of the year’s ornithological activities followed by the usual systematic
list; line drawings decorate the text. The list follows the British Trust for Orni-
thology’s ‘species list’ with one exception: the Scottish Crossbill is upgraded to a
full species. I wait to see if the rest of the scientific world follow’s Aberdeen.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

January reports D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

January was a month of varying weather with temperatures generally above
average. The most interesting period was the last week, when severe northerly
gales on the east coast produced some unusual reports.

Off the north-east coast of England, on 3rd, single Arctic Skuas Stercorarius
parasiticus were noted flying south at Hartlepool (Cleveland) and at Seaton Sluice
(Northumberland), where a Great Skua S. skua also flew south. A Sooty Shear-
water Puffinus griseus was seen moving north eight km off Sunderland (Tyne &
Wear) on 9th. The greatest movement, however, was recorded during the gales
in the last week: at Seaton Sluice three Arctic Skuas flew north on 24th and one
on 25th, and nine Great moved north during the two days; and at Hartlepool on
25th northward passage involved five Great, two Pomarine S. pomarinus and three
Arctic; four Great Skuas were also reported at Teesmouth (Cleveland) on 24th.
On the last day of the month a Manx Shearwater P. puffinus and a Great Skua
flew south at Hartlepool. Connected with this unusual sea passage were movements
of Gannets Sula bassana, which will be summarised later, and several Grey
Phalaropes Phalaropus fulicarius: the latter were recorded flying north at Whit-
burn (Tyne & Wear) and Teesmouth on 24th (two different birds), and others
were seen at Goxhill (Humberside) on 29th and at Welton Waters (also Humber-
side) on 31st. In the south, a first-winter Sabine’s Gull Larus sabini appeared at
Minnis Bay (Kent) on 3rd.

An immature Night Heron Nyclicorax nycticorax was reported near Reading
(Berkshire) during January, and in Kent a Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus which
turned up at Graveney on 29th may have been the bird which was at Stodmarsh
in December {Brit. Birds, 69: 158). A first-year drake Green-winged Teal Anas
crecca carolinensis was at Drift Reservoir (Cornwall) on 3rd, and another King
Eider Somateria spectabilis was found in Scotland, this time at Crombie Point in the
Firth of Forth (Fife/Lothian). Rough-legged Buzzards Buteo lagopus were still
few, one at Windmill Creek (Kent) on 1st and two at Walberswick (Suffolk)
throughout the month. Also at Walberswick, there was a Red Kite Milvus milvus
and a Goshawk Accipiter gentilis.

An unexpected sight at Chew Valley Lake (Avon) on 1 7 th was that of a Killdeer
Charadrius vociferus ; and, still in the south-west, Long-billed Dowitchers
Limnodromus scolopaccus were reported at Stithians Reservoir (Cornwall) through the
month and on the Exe estuary (Devon) late in January. A Temminck’s Stint
Calidris temminckii was seen at Thorney Island (West Sussex), though we do not
have details of the date.

One may speculate as to whether a Crested Lark Galerida cristata reported
at Dungeness (Kent) on 24th was the same as those recorded in the same county
in September and October {Brit. Birds, 69: 73-74). A Woodlark Lullula arborea
also appeared at Dungeness on 28th and 29th. We heard of a Black-throated
Thrush Turdus ruficollis near Shildon (Durham) on 28th and 29th but no support-
ing details have yet reached us. A bird trapped at Chew Valley Lake on 4th
proved to be a Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla, and it is interesting to report that
another of the same species was trapped at Nether Stowey, Bridgwater (Somerset),
on 19th February. Finally, there was a Pine Bunting E. leucocephala at Golspie
(Highland) on 6th and 7th, though one is tempted to believe that this was an
escaped bird.

192

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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 5 May 1976

161 Viewpoint: A price for conservation? Colin Tubbs
165 Breeding biology of Sanderlings in north-east Greenland
M. W. Pienkowski and G. H. Green Plates 1 7-20

Notes

178 Reactions of Goldeneyes to boating R. A. Hume

179 Glaucous and Iceland Gulls in the west midlands Alan R.
Dean and Brian R. Dean

1 80 Further records of foot-paddling by gulls on grassland Bernard
King

181 Carrion Crows feeding offspring in November Bernard King
Reviews

182 Flamingos edited by Janet Kear and Nicole Duplaix-Hall
Kai Curry-Lindahl

184 Pine Crossbills by Desmond Nethersole-Thompson Roy H.
Dennis

185 To Save a Bird in Peril by David R. Zimmerman Peter Conder

Letters

186 The continuing slaughter of birds of prey in Britain Derek
Barber

187 Migration in the doldrums R. S. Thomas

188 Plunge-diving and porpoising by aquatic seabirds Dr W. R. P.
Bourne

189 The bird collection in the Manchester Museum Dr M. V.
Hounsome

Requests for information

190 Identification of West Palearctic gulls Peter Grant
190 Colour-ringed Water Rails G. H. J. de Kroon

190 News and comment Peter Conder
192 January reports D. A. Christie

Hilary Burn drew the Sanderling (page 177)

Front cover: Starlings Sturnus vulgaris , Hertfordshire, June 1975
(photo: E. A. Janes)

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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 6 JUNE I 9 7 6

Dispersal and causes of death of Buzzards
J\f. Picozzi and D. Weir

INTRODUCTION

Most of the data presented in this paper were obtained during
1 969-72 on a study area in Speyside (Picozzi and Weir 1974).
Additional data from Speyside for 1964-68 and 1973-75 are in-
cluded, and comparisons are made with an analysis of the recoveries
of Buzzards Buteo buteo ringed elsewhere in Britain.

METHODS

Marking

Ten full-grown Buzzards caught in Speyside during 1969-72 were
marked with coloured plastic jesses (which most birds soon re-
moved) and another 14 were marked with patagial tags (Picozzi
1971). Those with a jess were also individually marked under one
wing with red dye, which showed up well when the bird was
overhead and lasted until the moult. Of 205 nestlings known in
the study area, 90% were marked with coloured rings in 1969 and
1970, and with coloured rings and patagial tags in 1971 and 1972.
In calculation of the age of ringed birds, the date on which they
entered the next age class was taken as 1st June.

Causes of death

From 1964 to 1969, records of dead birds depended as much on
reports by local people as on incidental collection by DW (Weir
1971). When we learned in 1969 that Buzzards were being poisoned,
we used a retriever dog in regular searches for poisoned baits and
for dead birds near them. Other Buzzards were certainly shot but
their carcases were seldom found.

193

'SO#

Buzzard dispersal and causes of death

194

RESULTS

Dispersal of first-year birds
Fig. 1 presents data for 1969-72 on the timing of dispersal of young
from territories that were visited every month until all the young
had left. Although nestlings were not ringed until they were well
developed, in 1972 15% and in 1969-71 29% to 38% were neither

140

Month

Fig. 1. Number of juvenile Buzzards Buteo buteo present each month from June
until all had dispersed on nine, 15, 21 and twelve natal territories in Speyside,

in 1969-72 respectively

Buzzard dispersal and causes of death 195

seen subsequently as fledged young in July nor found dead; they
presumably died soon after ringing. The rate of dispersal of young
from natal territories (i.e. the territory on which they were hatched)
was similar in each month from July to October. By 1st November
84% had left, and all had done so by the start of laying in the
following breeding season. Two or more fledged young were present
in July on 40 of the territories; brood dispersal was gradual on 19
and rapid (all young left within the same month) on the remainder.
There were no significant differences between years in this respect,
but the 1971 year class took longer to disperse than the others (fig. 1)
and the broods of that year tended to disperse more gradually than
those of other years. Twenty-two (15%) of the 148 young in this
sample were reported elsewhere in their first winter, twelve alive
and ten dead. Only five more were identified subsequently: two
alive and two dead on the study area, and one dead elsewhere.

ible 1. Observations of four young Buzzards Buteo buteo seen in more than one
locality after leaving their natal territories in Speyside

Distances are in kilometres from the natal territory

SUBSEQUENT OBSERVATIONS

Last seen on
■d natal territory

Distance

Date & direction

Dale

Distance

& direction Date

Distance
& direction

Fate

2 Nov 1970

3 Nov 1970

3 NW

13-20 Nov
1970

It SW

8 Dec 1970

4NW

Shot

Unknown

10 Sep 1971

13 sw

19 Nov 1971

20 SW

25 Mar 1972

95 SSE

Found

dead

U nknown

•5 Sep 1971

8 SW

27 Oct-
6 Dec 1971

7 WSW

—

Unknown

About 1 Sep 1971

21 Sep 1971

1 SW

22 Oct 1971

5 SW

—

Unknown

We were able to follow in detail the dispersal of four individuals
that were identified in more than one locality in their first winter
(table 1). These observations indicate that not all birds left the
valley immediately and that dispersal sometimes entailed a period
of local wandering. Of 17 birds colour-marked as nestlings which
occupied a nesting territory by 1975, at least two did not leave the
study area as they were seen periodically on ranges adjacent to the
nesting territories which they eventually occupied. The ages at
which the 17 birds first occupied territories were: first-year (one),
second-year (13) and third-year (three).

During 1969-72, nine unringed first-winter birds, presumably
immigrants, defended small winter ranges. We saw eleven, ap-
parently resident, unpaired birds in summer over the three breeding
seasons 1970-72; ten, of which four were ringed, were in their first
year and one was an unringed adult. There was strong circum-
stantial evidence that four first-year males of local origin were also
present in summer.

1 96 Buzzed dispersal and causes of death

Table 2. Sightings of transient Buzzards Buteo buteo in Speyside from
16th August 1971 to 16th April 1972

No. of
transients

No. of No. of days No. of age per

observation transients transients First- Un- observation

Month

days

seen

seen

year

Adult

known

day

Aug

(2nd half)

6

0

0

0

0

0

0.00

Sep

18

8

18

9

3

6

1. 00

Oct

8

3

6

5

0

I

o-75

Nov

8

3

3

I

I

I

0.38

Dec

13

2

2

I

I

0

0.15

Jan

7

I

I

0

I

0

0.14

Feb

15

2

3

3

O

0

0.20

Mar

16

7

10

0

4

6

0.63

Apr

(1st half)

8

2

5

3

2

O

0.63

TOTALS

99

28

48

22

12

14

—

Table 2 summarises sightings between 16th August 1971 and
16th April 1972 of Buzzards which were neither members of resident
pairs nor dependent young on natal territories. We called these
birds transients. Most were seen in September-October and in
March-April. The autumn period coincided with the dispersal of
young from natal territories and is reflected in the ratio of first-
year birds to adults: of the 24 birds seen then, 14 (four ringed)
were in their first year, three (one ringed) were adult and seven
were not aged. In the spring period three (two ringed) were in
their first year, six were unmarked adults and six were not aged.
These figures indicate a decrease in the proportion of first-year
birds between autumn and spring.

Distance and direction of dispersal

Table 3 shows the distance from their natal territories at which
25 Speyside Buzzards and 112 Buzzards ringed elsewhere in

Table 3. Number and proportion of first-year and adult Buzzards Buteo
buteo ringed as nestlings in Speyside and elsewhere in Britain which were
found dead 1-50 km, 51-100 km and more than 100 km from their natal

territories

1-50 km 51-100 km >100 km

FIRST- YEAR ADULT FIRST- YEAR ADULT FIRST- YEAR ADULT

No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

Speyside 1 1 65 6 35 4 80 1 20 3 100 o o

Britain 59 69 26 31 12 63 7 37 8 100 o o

totals 70 69 32 31 16 67 8 33 11 100 o o

i97

Buzzard dispersal and causes of death

Britain were reported dead. Of the total of 137, 102 (74%) were
recovered less than 50 km from their natal territories. More young
birds were recovered than adults but, while the proportions of
first-year and adult birds found between 1 and 50 km and 51 and
100 km were similar, only first-year birds (a total of eleven) were
recorded more than 100 km away.

Adult Buzzards first attempt to displace members of existing
pairs in late summer or autumn (Weir and Picozzi 1975), mainly
from an age of 14 months. Thirty-seven British-ringed birds found
dead (including seven from Speyside) were in this age group; all
were within 90 km of their natal territories and 50% (including
four birds from Speyside) were within 19.5 km.

Most birds recovered more than 20 km from their natal terri-
tories in northern Britain had apparently moved towards lower
ground near the coast or to inland valleys (fig. 2). This is not
necessarily a complete picture of Buzzard dispersal as movements
to more remote areas, particularly to the west of our study area,
were less likely to have been detected.

Causes of death

From 1964 to 1972, 52 Buzzards were found dead within 20 km
of the study area. The cause of death was known for all but five:
28 (54%) were poisoned and eight (15%) were shot or trapped
(table 4). Of the 42 birds aged, 27 (64%) were in their first year.
Fourteen birds ringed as nestlings on the study area were recovered
more than 20 km away; eleven (79%) were reported as ‘found
dead’, none as poisoned. The main reported causes of death else-
where in Britain (table 4) were shooting and trapping (21%),

Table 4. Causes of death of Buzzards Buteo buteo [a] found less than 20 km
from the Speyside study area, [b] ringed in Speyside but found more
than 20 km away, and [c] ringed in the rest of Britain

■"Includes 41 unringed birds

Found dead

FROM RINGING

RECOVERIES

in Speyside

Speyside origin,

< 20 km

> 20 km from

Elsewhere

from study area

study area

in Britain

(total 52*)

(total 14)

(total 1 12)

Cause

Proportion (%)

Proportion (%)

Proportion (%)

Poison
Shooting or

54

0

0

trapping
Accident or

15

7

21

injury

12

13

Other

10

0

0

Unknown

10

79

66

Buzzard, dispersal and causes of death

i98

Fig. 2. Recoveries and sightings more than 20 km from the ringing site of 57
Buzzards Buteo buteo in northern Britain in relation to the 120-metre (400-ft)
contour. The large dot represents Speyside, the small dots other ringing sites

i99

Buzzard, dispersal and causes of death

similar to the 15% in Speyside, but the high proportion of birds
simply ‘found dead’ (66%) makes further comparison with Spey-
side speculative. The general similarity between this figure and the
54% known poisoned and 10% ‘found dead’ in Speyside may
indicate that poisoning has been overlooked as an important
cause of Buzzard mortality elsewhere in Britain. Although many
British ringing recoveries antedate the widespread use of modern
poisons, strychnine and rodine have been used to kill predators
throughout the period covered by the ringing recoveries. It is
therefore the more surprising that ringed Buzzards have not
previously been reported as certainly poisoned.

Olsson’s (1958) analysis of Swedish Buzzard recoveries showed
that 42% of the 473 birds recovered had been shot and that a
further 20% of deaths could also be attributed directly to man.
None was reported poisoned, but 22% died of unknown causes.
The 62% mortality directly due to man is similar to the 69%
(poisoning, shooting and trapping) recorded in Speyside.

DISCUSSION

The timing of the dispersal of Speyside young was similar to that
described by Dare (1961) for Devon and Tubbs (1974) for the New
Forest. Mead’s (1973) analysis of the dispersal of Buzzards ringed
in Britain showed that in the breeding season (April-July) adults
were recovered closer to their natal areas than first-summer birds,
and our analysis of the ringing returns indicates that birds old
enough to occupy a nesting territory may be relatively sedentary.
Observations in Speyside showed that 17 locally reared birds
eventually occupied nesting territories on the study area, and that
two had remained in Speyside since fledging. Marked birds, too
distant to identify individually, were seen occasionally during the
year and may have included birds which later occupied territories.
However, we are uncertain whether these birds had left and sub-
sequently returned to the study area or had remained inconspicu-
ously within or close to it, although the latter possibility seems the
more likely.

The majority of Buzzards found dead in northern Britain more
than 20 km from their natal territories were recovered on generally
lower-lying arable land that was not only likely to offer more food
(Picozzi and Weir 1974) but also included areas more intensively
managed for Pheasant Phasianus colchicus and Partridge Perdix perdix
shooting. Buzzards were more likely to be killed in such areas.

Information on the killing of raptors in Britain at the present
time is rarely published because reports are often anecdotal (see
Bijleveld 1974 for the most recent review of the European litera-
ture). Nevertheless, it is worth quoting information from reliable

200

Buzzard, dispersal and causes of death

sources in north-east Scotland as this suggests the scale of killing
there in recent years. Our detailed information refers only to 1968.
On two estates of 600 ha and 800 ha in north-east Scotland, game-
keepers admitted killing 75 and 84 Buzzards respectively; most
were shot in early autumn during the main period of dispersal.
On the edge of our study area, we were told of 24 and 40 birds
killed on two other estates. Thus, a total of 223 Buzzards was killed in
one year on four estates. Between 1968 and 1971, we found that
alpha-chloralose and mevinphos were used on baits on twelve of
1 5 estates within 30 km of the study area. On four of these estates,
in 1969-72, we found 28 dead Buzzards by baits which, we were
told, had been poisoned with alpha-chloralose. From 1966 to 1969,
before poisoning started, we found six adult pairs each spring on
two of these estates, with 2.3 pairs on average producing fledged
young annually. After poisoning started there were only four pairs,
with 0.5 pairs on average producing fledged young annually.

If the persecution described here is typical of other places, there
can be little doubt that it will be slowing or preventing recolonisation
of suitable range from which the Buzzard was eliminated last
century (cf Moore 1957).

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is a pleasure to acknowledge the help and encouragement of Dr D. Jenkins,
Dr. C. J. Cadbury and Dr I. Newton throughout the project and to thank them
for their comments on this paper in draft. We are also most obliged to the British
Trust for Ornithology for permission to analyse the British ringing recoveries,
and to several people for information on Buzzard mortality in north-east Scotland.
DW was a member of the research staff of the Royal Society for the Protection
of Birds during this study.

SUMMARY

Eighty-four per cent of young Buzzards Buteo buteo left their natal territories in
Speyside by 1st November, and all had left by the following nesting season.
Seventy-four per cent of all British-ringed Buzzards found dead were within
50 km of their natal territories ; and 50% of birds more than 1 4 months old, and
so potentially capable of occupying a nesting territory, were within 19.5 km of
their natal territories. Ringing recoveries from northern Britain suggest that most
dispersal of more than 20 km is towards mainly lower-lying arable land, but birds
in more remote, higher areas may be overlooked. Many Buzzards die from shooting
and poisoning.

REFERENCES

Bijleveld, 1974. Birds of Prey in Europe. London.

Dare, P. J. 1961. ‘Ecological observation in a breeding population of the Common
Buzzard ( Buteo buteo (L.)), with particular reference to the diet and feeding
habits’. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of Exeter.

Mead, C. J. 1973. ‘Movements of British raptors’. Bird Study, 20: 259-286.
Moore, N. W. 1957. ‘The past and present status of the Buzzard in the British
Isles’. Brit. Birds, 50: 173-197.

201

Buzzard dispersal and causes of death

Olsson, V. 1958. ‘Dispersal, migration and death causes of Slrix aluco , Buteo buteo,
Ardea cinerea and Larns argentatus'. Acta Vertebratica, 1 : 95-189.

Picozzi, N. 1971. ‘Wing tags for raptors’. The Ring, 68-69: 169-170.

, and Weir, D. 1974. ‘Breeding biology of the Buzzard in Speyside’. Brit.

Birds, 67: 199-2 10.

Tubbs, C. R. 1974. The Buzzard. London.

Weir, D. N. 1971. ‘Mortality of hawks and owls in Speyside’. Bird Study, 18:

>47- >54-

, and Pioozzi, N. 1975. ‘Aspects of social behaviour in the Buzzard’. Brit.

Birds, 68: 1 25-141.

N. Picozzi, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Banchory, Grampian AB3 3PS
D. Weir, Creagdhu Lodge, Newtonmore, Highland

KB.

Sound recording and the birdwatcher

P. J. Sellar

INTRODUCTION

Since the previous review of bird sound recording in this journal
(Simms and Wade 1953) a vast amount of progress has been
achieved both in the field and in the laboratory. Indeed, so many
discs and cassettes have been published that some would-be re-
cordists on the brink of taking up the pursuit are deterred by the
feeling that most of the work has already been done, with all the
species including the rarities recorded, and that there is nothing
left to do — at least nothing readily accessible. They imagine that
the domain of bird sound study is now the laboratory and the
sound-proofed box.

In reality the majority of recordings available for scientific study
today leave much to be desired in terms of accurate and detailed
documentation. After all, most published recordings have been
made to satisfy an aesthetic desire to achieve a pleasing result for
the listener. The real paucity of well-documented recordings of,
for example, courtship and alarm calls has only recently come to
light during the preparation of the voice section in the forthcoming
The Birds of the Western Palearctic. In some cases the sex (and even
the species) has been wrongly identified, and only rarely is in-
formation available on the bird’s behaviour. Particular difficulty
has been found in matching recordings with descriptions in the
literature of vocal activity in courtship display. Behaviour specialists
seldom turn out to be sound recordists. The aim of this review is to
set this matter right and to indicate the opportunities which lie in
wait for the field ornithologist with only modest equipment and no
recording experience at his command: awaiting his first recording
efforts there is a great deal of stimulating work no farther away
than his own back garden, opportunism being regarded as the
primary requisite, quality of recording as of secondary importance.
A new approach is needed, culminating in the scientifically docu-
mented recording for which the birdwatcher has to assume a dual
role as observer/recordist.

This sounds dull expressed in so many words but those I know
who have taken up sound recording with this approach all confirm
that, far from proving a distraction, it has brought new life to the
art of basic birdwatching. Many aspects of behaviour which have
previously escaped one’s attention quite suddenly assume fresh
interest. In sound recording there is often a need to lie in wait, to
stand still for a while, and this can never be a bad thing in field
ornithology.

202

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OPPORTUNITIES FOR INVESTIGATION
In suggesting possible subjects for investigation let us consider
those most urgently in need of attention. They conveniently divide
between two kinds of activity: the permanent set-up in the garden
and the opportunist work in the field. In terms of worthwhile return
on time and energy expended, the garden wins hands down.
Getting to know the vocal repertoire and associated behaviour of
a few common species can have one totally absorbed to the ex-
clusion of all other activities. The vocabulary of the Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebs has been extensively studied by Marler (1956) and
his recordings have been deposited in the Library of Natural Sounds
at Cornell. The process of song learning in the same species has
been studied by Thorpe (1958), and all the recordings he made
during this intensive study are now available for further research
at the British Library of Wildlife Sounds (BLOWS). The House
Sparrow Passer domesticus has been treated by Summers-Smith
(1955) but a collection of sound recordings to complement his
work would be a really worthwhile assignment. There has been
remarkably little published study, bio-acoustically speaking, of the
Song Thrush Turdus philomelos, the Dunnock Prunella modularis or,
indeed, the Robin Erithacus rubecula.

With the help of colour-ringing there is plenty of scope for study-
ing the inheritance or learning of song phrases. A distinctive
Blackbird T. merula song may be in use one year. To what extent
has the same bird continued it the following year? Or has the
original Blackbird given way to a younger bird making an attempt
at keeping the motif intact? If so, then is the young bird one of
the offspring or from a neighbouring family? On October mornings
the Chaffinch may be heard to indulge in a great deal of ‘pinking’,
and occasionally this will develop into a stuttering, incomplete song.
The recording and study of sub-song is still very much in its infancy
(see Thorpe and Pilcher 1958). Here again sound libraries have
little to offer and it is up to our new breed of recordist to break
new ground and contribute much-needed material.

A great deal remains to be learnt from a study of the variation
in song with season of the year, time of day, and temperature.
Although variation in terms of frequency and length of song period
has been worked out for a few species, there remains the question
whether the composition of the song itself is influenced. It is this
kind of qualitative analysis that presents a fertile field of activity
for the recordist. We know that long, high-pitched notes are used
by many garden species when an aerial predator is around. This
kind of sound is particularly difficult to locate, whilst the harsh
‘chack, chack’ of a Blackbird mobbing a Tawny Owl Strix aluco is
very easily located and all the small birds soon home in and join

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in the fun. But this is only a very broad distinction and many thin
‘seep’ notes are used in circumstances other than alarm. In the
winter of 1974/75 a Great Tit Parus major in my garden at Purley,
Surrey, showed what appears to be a clever piece of deception.
It would arrive at the bird table only to find it crowded with House
Sparrows, Blue Tits Parus caeruleus and Starlings Sturnus vulgaris, and
with barely a foothold available; not dismayed, it called the thin
‘seep’ alarm note and all the birds quickly dived for cover, leaving
it in sole charge. This became almost a ritual, the other birds
always responding in just the way it wanted. The longer one works
a small habitat regularly and thoroughly the more one comes up
against embarrassingly fundamental questions which require an
answer.

Turning to the opportunities awaiting the travelling recordist,
here too the possibilities are many and wide-ranging. Regional
variations in song and calls is a subject which still holds many
unsolved problems. Twenty-six species of passerines have been
proved to demonstrate calls which descend in pitch progressively
the farther south they are found in their range (see Chappuis 1969).
Thus, the Blackbird’s pre-roosting call is noticeably deeper in
Morocco than in northern France, and a cline of progressively
deepening calls can be shown for intermediate areas. Chappuis
attributed a survival advantage to this in that deeper calls carry
farther in the larger territories which have to be maintained in the
less crowded habitats of Spain and North Africa. But do deeper
calls carry farther and is there any evidence of pitch variation
with change in environment elsewhere? The northern, nominate,
race of the Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula presumably occupies large
territories in the vast forest areas of Scandinavia and certainly has
a deeper call than his counterpart in the south.

If we take, for example, the Song Thrush, is there sufficient
evidence to support the contention sometimes held that repetition
in its song is more prevalent where its breeding population is dense?
With so many birds singing in close proximity is repetition of value
in avoiding errors in location? There is a recording in BLOWS of
a Song Thrush singing in a remote part of Lapland which was
apparently the sole representative of its species for many kilometres
around. It sings for a quarter of an hour with few repeats. But what
is the good of only one example? Much more recording effort is
needed to lend credence to this theory. The Redwing T. iliacus is
also interesting because, quite unlike its close relative the Song
Thrush, it displays a very remarkable variation in song pattern
throughout its breeding range. So the traveller in northern latitudes,
particularly if he wanders in an easterly direction through north
Sweden into Finland, will find changes so abrupt that visual con-

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firmation of the species is sometimes called for. What happens at
the boundary of a particular song area? Is there an overlap territory
where two different songs can be heard? Does one song pattern
persist in the same area year after year? Redwing song in Iceland
also varies with locality, but is there a general characteristic to be
found in all the Icelandic songs which distinguishes that population
from Scandinavian stock? If so, how are our Scottish birds singing?

Many field ornithologists undertake expeditions each year to study
species that are difficult of access in their breeding habitats. Whether
these journeys be to the deserts of North Africa or to the mountains
of Teheran there are species to be found for which no sound record-
ing yet exists, or so little as to amount to nothing of scientific value.
In the appendix on page 215 are listed those species for which
recordings of any kind are required within the next two years for
The Birds of the Western Palearctic ; recordings on cassette are quite
acceptable, if not for making sonograms at least for just listening to.
It must be emphasised that, in the absence of any tape recordings
at all, reliance has to be placed on voice descriptions found in earlier
texts (in the days before the portable tape recorder, memories played
some curious tricks). Recording specifically for the sonogram de-
mands rather greater care than usual in that a single example of
a species should be recorded in isolation, without overlap from
other birds nearby. Noise made by wind and water, even by aircraft,
can often be painted out on the diagram but other bird noises arc
too inextricably bound up with the main subject. An obvious ex-
ample of this can be seen in the difficulty in recording at a heronry,
though it is, however, usually possible to record a few brief spells
with only one bird calling.

All recordings for The Birds of the Western Palearctic should be
submitted to the British Library of Wildlife Sounds, 29 Exhibition
Road, London SW7. Anyone contemplating an expedition where
serious recording activity is planned should contact BLOWS
beforehand. Help may be forthcoming in various ways, including
the supply of data sheets and possibly a quantity of tape.

Another organisation which encourages and co-ordinates new
sound recording work in the field is the International Bio-acoustics
Council (IBAC) based at the University of Aarhus, Denmark, under
the direction of Dr Poul Bondesen. Founded in 1968, its main
function is to keep in touch with research workers throughout the
world and to maintain an ability to tell anyone who is doing what,
in bio-acoustic parlance at least. For anyone starting out on a new
line of research there is always the danger, or good fortune depend-
ing on how one views the matter, that someone else is following
exactly the same line. The quarterly journal Biophon is intended
partly as a platform for airing tentative new lines of research and

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partly as a general news medium; and conferences held every other
year in different countries are also mainly for informal exchange
of ideas and reading of short and sometimes avant-garde papers.
The only prerequisite for membership is enthusiasm for the subject,
no subscription being required, at least for the time being. Dr
Bondesen may be contacted at the Natural History Museum,
Universitetsparken, Aarhus 8000 C, Denmark.

Here in Britain the Wildlife Sound Recording Society is helpful
in many practical ways, giving advice on technique and equip-
ment through its informative journal Wildlife Sound. Regular field
meetings are held. It may be contacted through BLOWS (see
above) .

EQUIPMENT AND RECOMMENDATIONS

I feel at this stage that further exhortations should be withheld
until all idea of tape-recording in the field as a burdensome tax of
one’s physique is dismissed. The opportunist equips himself with a
set of comparatively simple and inexpensive tools for the job — a
small battery-operated tape recorder, a reasonable microphone and
a glassfibre parabolic reflector. The recorder should be the smallest
and cheapest available consistent with the following attributes,
which are necessary for use in the field. There must be provision
for monitoring the recording by plugging in a lightweight stetho-
phone or ear-phones. It is an advantage to have a remote control
facility for the tape transport independent of the amplifier; this
should not be in the form of a switch on the microphone, which
proves too noisy in operation, but on a separate lead and switch.
It is useful to have a machine with a good volume on playback as
there are occasions when, for example, the presence or absence of
a species can be readily ascertained by playing its song or call in
the field. The controls should be easy to operate by feel alone.
Rather obviously, the recorder has to be robust and supplied with
a stout case. Finally, the choice should fall on a well-known make
for which there are adequate spares and service backing. Perhaps
less obviously, there are one or two features which are best omitted.
One, which is all too common nowadays, is the automatic volume
control. Its action tends to boost any background noise between
spells of bird song, and though it is only doing its job the result is
thoroughly unpleasant to listen to. There has, therefore, to be pro-
vision for manual control whereby the automatic circuit is elimin-
ated. This implies that there should also be a means of indicating
the level of incoming sound so that the control can be set to avoid
overloading the tape. Normally this is catered for by a small meter
which serves the dual function of checking both sound level and
battery condition. Another sophistication to be avoided is any

Sound recording 207

form of so-called noise-limiting device. These work well for music
but have proved a disadvantage in field recording.

With light weight and compact size both vital ingredients for
the opportunist recorder, one naturally tends to favour the cassette
machine rather than the traditional reel-to-reel design. Despite the
low tape speed (all cassette recorders run at only 4.76 cm/sec), the
quality from a good design properly used is acceptable for most
scientific needs. The trouble is that, with the present enthusiasm on
the part of most manufacturers for automatic volume control, the
choice is somewhat limited. It may be helpful therefore to mention
a few examples that have come to my notice and appear to fulfil
most of the requirements mentioned above. It should be realised,
however, that the current period is one of rapid development in
cassette recorders and models are constantly being withdrawn and
replaced by new designs.

The ITT Studio 60 M, retailing at £58 including carrying case,
weighs 2.4 kg with batteries and may be used with the new’
Chromium Dioxide tape, which has a better performance at high
frequencies. The Sony TC 92 is slightly lighter and more compact
but is sold without a case and costs £11 more. Two other models
which are known to perform well but which are slightly heavier
and larger are the BASF 9202 and the Philips N.2225, retailing at
£75 and £81 respectively. There is a stereo model, the ITT Studio
73, weighing 3.2 kg and costing £80 including carrying case. For
those who, understandably, w'ince at the thought of four recording
tracks being accommodated within the tiny w’idth of a cassette tape
I have a few words in support of stereo later in this review. Finally,
for those who can afford the ultimate in quality and yet also the
smallest in size there is the Nagra model SN, at £1,026 (fig. 1).

Fig. 1. Three tape recorders, compared in size with a matchbox. Left to right,
Nagra SN, Bush TP 60 cassette, and Uher 4200 Report Stereo (drawing by
Annie Michael from photo by P. J. Sellar)

208 Sound recording

Weighing under 0.7 kg and easily slipping into a shirt pocket, this is
a reel-to-reel design using cassette-sized tape full track and running
at 9.5 cm/sec. Curiously, even Nagra are smitten with the craze
for automatic volume control and this tiny masterpiece has to be
used with an accessory which overcomes this problem. All the
prices quoted include 25% value added tax.

Turning to the choice of a microphone, one may be tempted to
assume that the one supplied with the recorder should be adequate.
Unfortunately this is often not the case as they are usually of the
indoor type and very prone to wind noise if used in exposed situa-
tions out in the field. A good quality moving-coil or ‘dynamic’
microphone is the best choice for field work. Another, and generally
more costly, design is dependent on the movement of condenser
plates but trouble has been experienced with some of these models
giving rise to crackle when damp. A third basic design is the ribbon
microphone: although capable of high quality results, it is not
suitable for outdoors, being abnormally susceptible to wind noise.
It matters little whether the directional response is omni- or
cardioid. The latter implies a preference for sound coming from
the front with less sensitivity to sounds coming from the sides or
rear. A microphone of this type does have an advantage when
recording at a known song perch. One important point to check,
whichever model is chosen, is the electrical impedance. This must
match the input to the recorder but should not exceed 600 ohms
as, otherwise, there will be a distinct loss of sensitivity when long
cables are used.

Grampian Reproducers Ltd, of Feltham, London, market a range
of omni-directional dynamic microphones costing between £12 and
£15 which have proved themselves in the field. There are a number
of rugged designs at around £30 yielding high quality results: of
these, the Calrec CM 450, the Sennheiser MD 21 and the Beyer
M 69 I know well and can recommend. The last mentioned has a
fairly directional response.

Microphones should be handled with reasonable care and it is
particularly important that they are not left out for long in wet
weather without at least some protection from direct rain. Finally,
moving-coil microphones should never be allowed to come into
contact with tape as there is a risk that the strong magnet may
cause erasure of recordings.

For the opportunist a parabolic reflector is essential, yielding as
it does something in the order of 15 times magnification of sound.
So many interesting calls associated with courtship or alarm present
themselves in the field with little or no warning and a recording
has to be made on the spot. Most reflectors are now made in glass-
fibre as this makes for quietness in handling and light weight.

Sound recording 209

Grampian Reproducers Ltd still market their 24-inch (0.6-metre)
model in spun aluminium, and this is much improved by the appli-
cation of a layer of polythene foam on the back. Membership of the
Wildlife Sound Recording Society brings one into contact with a
number of enthusiasts who make their own reflectors and can

Fig. 2. The Dan Gibson parabolic reflector with transparent bowl. A compensating
amplifier is built into the handle (drawing by Annie Michael from photo bv

P. J. Sellar)

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Sound, recording

generally be persuaded to make one to order. The cost of reflectors
varies from £8 to £15. In theory a reflector is incapable of con-
centrating any sound of a wavelength exceeding its diameter. The
diameter required for the Bittern Botaurus stellaris would be at least
1.5 metres, however, and hopelessly unwieldy. A minimum of 0.5
metres is commended, slightly larger being ideal.

The reflector’s inability to respond equally to a wide range of
frequencies is a point to be borne in mind with some species,
although in practice this does not seem to have a noticeable effect
on the shape of a sonogram made from such a recording. The
difficulty in observing one’s subject will make a more immediate
impression on the user in the field. It helps, therefore, to have a
peep-hole and fore-sight, both of which are available on the Gram-
pian model. A more novel approach to these problems is seen in
the Dan Gibson transparent reflector (fig. 2). The handle incor-
porates an amplifier specially designed to compensate for lack of
bass response, and a microphone is built into the fore-sight. Un-
fortunately this model costs £125. The ease with which handling
noises are transmitted to the microphone is a point to watch. To
combat this tendency it often helps a great deal to wrap a generous
swathe of chamois leather round the handle.

Use in the field

The complete sound recording kit must be sufficiently compact and
lightweight so that one is never deterred from taking it into the
field even on the most casual outing. Carrying everything slung
over the shoulder is tiring after quite a short spell so it is a better
plan to stow the recorder in a rucksack and have the reflector con-
veniently slung over the top, at the same time keeping off the rain.
The microphone should be permanently fixed in its holder within
the cup of the reflector, but it does make for easier carrying if this
fixing can be either semi-retractable or folding. Only a quick
adjustment should then be needed to reinstate the microphone
in its precise recording position, that is at the focal point of the
parabola. In this state of semi-readiness the wiring from the micro-
phone and the monitoring head-set should be permanently plugged
into the recorder. The head-set can be conveniently stowed in a
jacket pocket. The whole may be put into action very quickly after
removal of the rucksack.

An arrangement conferring the advantage of a greater degree of
readiness is to keep the recorder amplifier switched on while still
in the rucksack but to have the tape transport remote-controlled
by an on/off switch. The reflector should now be shoulder-slung.
In order not to run down the recorder battery too quickly, this
procedure should be confined to periods of anticipated high activity

21 I

Sound recording

on arrival at a promising area. With the recorder still in the sack
there is the problem of setting the gain control, though with ex-
perience one soon learns to adopt a setting which will cope with
most situations. At least one is able to record at a moment’s notice.
With something on the tape it may always prove possible to make
adjustments at a later stage in the recording sessions.

Use in the garden

Foresaking the field for the armchair, let us take a look at what
may be done at home — the permanent set-up in the garden. Having
regard to electrical input impedance limits mentioned earlier, the
recorder may be connected to long microphone cables run out to
selected fixed points out of doors, the control position being retained
in a room frequently occupied and having a commanding view of
the garden. The microphones are strategically placed in promising
situations, such as close to feeding tables, nest boxes, song perches
or food specially laid out as a lure. They should be sheltered from
direct rain and wind but kept well clear of foliage or grass, which
may rustle and spoil a recording. Although not essential, it is an
advantage to have a mixer unit accepting, say, four inputs from
microphones in the garden and one output connected to the
recorder.

In listing the desirable attributes of a simple cassette recorder
no mention was made of the choice between mono and stereo.
Whilst one cannot pretend that the added realism of a stereo
recording greatly enhances its scientific value there is the advantage
of having two input channels available. Thus the second input of
a stereo recorder can be put to great effect in simultaneous note-
taking. Nowhere is this more useful than in the garden layout,
for all the microphones are out in the field and there is therefore
no ready means of documentation. A hand microphone and a
second channel enable one to describe exactly what is happening
simultaneously with the bird’s vocalisation. This procedure adds
very considerable value to the recording from a scientific standpoint.

NOTE-TAKING

The reader will have gathered that in this kind of field, accurate
and spontaneous documentation is of the very essence. One must
at the same time be fully aware of dangerous pitfalls, and these are
precisely those which bedevil ordinary field notes, only the temp-
tation seems stronger. It is all too easy to draw premature conclusions
in interpreting motivation. The very inflexion of a call note may
suggest aggression when in fact quite another mood may prevail.
It is surprising how reluctant people are to commit their own voice
to tape, but it is better to err on the side of saying too much than

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too little. The same goes for recording the bird; too often beginners
record in short snatches, missing the really interesting call with
behavioural significance. The shortcomings in the scientific approach
of many recordists should prove much less of a hurdle to the prac-
tised field ornithologist, and this is just why it is important that he
takes up this activity. It will benefit his own field work as well as
provide much needed fresh material for bio-acoustic research.

THE VALUE OF RECORDINGS

That last sounds a somewhat glib statement but, in fact, one of the
pleasures to be enjoyed in what we should now call scientific sound
recording is the satisfaction of knowing that, even if only an occa-
sional participant, one can contribute usefully. A complete beginner
can make an isolated recording which, if properly documented,
filed and indexed, may at some future time turn out to have quite
unsuspected significance. For example, I placed my microphone
late one night in 1968 at the entrance to the burrow of a Leach’s
Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa and let the recorder run for about ten
minutes before moving on. Many months elapsed before I realised
that here was the first recorded evidence that male and female
churr together at the nest. Many more months passed before I
found that here, too, was an example of antiphonal song, in which
one partner’s churr would always be interrupted each time the
other broke into the ‘flight’ call. Yet more information was wrung
from the recording quite recently when the speed of the first bird’s
reaction to the other’s ‘flight’ call was found to be 50 milliseconds,
which is indicative of the species’ aural response time. This ability
to discern exceedingly short time intervals is the only respect in
which a bird’s hearing equipment differs considerably from our
own. All this, it must be emphasised, could equally well have been
elucidated had the recording been quite mediocre and made on a
simple cassette machine.

SOUND LIBRARIES

The chances of any such recording contributing to bio-acoustic
research are greatly enhanced if a documented copy is lodged with
a sound library. The value to future research of, say, five thousand
recordings in a well-organised sound library is far greater than it
would be if the same number was languishing in individual
collections. They can be filed in an orderly fashion and listed in
regularly up-dated catalogues. Such a pooling of material makes
any study of geographical, individual or temporal variation in song
a much more viable project. Hitherto the lone researcher has had
to rely on recordings cajoled from recordist friends; now he has
access to a wide range of material all carefully stored on species

Sound recording 2 1 3

reels, every recording documented to at least a minimum standard.
The natural history sound library movement has been slow to start
but is now gathering pace. For a long time the only one of any size
was the Library of Natural Sounds at the Laboratory of Ornithology,
Cornell, Ithaca, New York. This was founded by Dr A. A. Allen
and Dr P. P. Kellogg in the 1930’s. The first in Britain was the
BBC Sound Archive, which by 1973 contained 3,199 separate
recordings or ‘cuts’ of 729 species of birds. BLOWS was opened in
1969 as part of the British Institute of Recorded Sound. It houses
not only a complete copy of the BBC Sound Archive but a large
collection of commercial discs of wildlife sound. The BBC naturally
tends to foster recordings which will lend atmosphere to a television
or radio programme, whereas the material on tape from individual
recordists can be more easily suited to the requirements of scientific
study. In this respect the library plays an active role in encouraging
recordists to fill gaps in the collection of complete vocabularies of
certain species. It has recently lent support to a number of expe-
ditions in return for copies of recordings fully documented in line
with a standard procedure.

Depositing recordings

What is involved in preparing a recording for submission to a
library? If, as is quite likely, our newly converted field ornithologist
has but one humble cassette recorder, how does he set about making
copies and editing all the wind and aircraft noise out of his tape?
In this case the library will be found quite willing to accept original
cassettes and do all the editing and copying on the premises. It
would, as a second step in one’s progress, be a great advantage to
acquire, for example, a second-hand mains recorder of the reel-to-
reel type to which one could transfer recordings directly from the
field machine. Editing on the open reels is then a simple matter.
Such a machine can also serve duty as the in-house recorder for
the garden set-up. Perhaps most rewarding is the ability to replay
one’s recordings with the quality they deserve. Oldish but thoroughly
reliable Ferrographs or Vortexions generally prove an excellent buy
for around £50.

The BLOWS library has now standardised a system of docu-
mentation using a specially designed data sheet to be completed
for each separate recording. The least that is asked for is the name
of the species, the locality and date of the recording and the re-
cordist’s name and address. The recording itself should be intro-
duced by a dictated announcement on the tape, again giving the
name of the species, the name of the recordist and the serial number
of the data sheet. Thus, every recording is positively linked to its
data sheet and no confusion can ever arise. The recording has now

2 1 4 Sound recording

become a scientific specimen in the same manner as a bird skin
with its label in a museum; it is there for posterity.

COPYRIGHTS AND REWARDS FOR THE RECORDIST

It is all very well extolling the virtues of depositing copy recordings
and amassing a wealth of material under one roof for the benefit
of research, but what is in it for the individual recordist? He is the
one who seems to have to do all the hard work and gets nothing
in return. Does he even place himself at some disadvantage?
Sound libraries generally operate a scheme to protect the contri-
butor against commercial or unauthorised use of his recordings.
At the same time any copyright remains with the recordist who is
left free to put his material to any future commercial use if he
wishes. Copies of recordings are issued only to bona-fide research
workers, who are obliged to acknowledge the recordist in any
published work featuring his material, whether this is simply re-
ferred to in the text or directly represented by a sonogram. If a
commercial request for a recording arises, the library will put the
enquirer in direct touch with appropriate recordists who may then
negotiate terms. In many ways, then, the library acts as a focal
point between recordists in the field and various kinds of user. It
is a two-way operation for there are cases when the library will
commission recordings of a particular species or promote a com-
plete programme of work in the field. The individual recordist thus
has a ready means of making a direct contribution and therein
lies the satisfaction. There is the consideration, too, that the library
provides a safe repository for copies of all his best recordings.
Ideally the library, or at least the present network of a dozen or
so national wildlife sound libraries throughout the world (see
Boswall 1974), should aim to collect every sound of biological
significance, including geographical, temporal and individual
variations, of all species of wildlife. That ideal will, of course,
never be fully realised, but I hope I have shown that the appetite
for material, far from being satisfied with all that has been achieved
already, is greater than ever before. In fact the whole business of
systematic collection of natural history sounds is only just
beginning.

SUMMARY

Birdwatchers are encouraged to take up sound recording now that the equipment
is so much reduced in size and weight. The need for new recorded material is
stressed and several fertile fields are suggested. Guidance is given on the selection
of equipment, and the methods of documenting and processing recordings so
that they can more readily contribute to research are outlined.

Plate 21. Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos alighting at eyrie with one chick,
Argyll, June 1975; taken from a colour negative ( Donald Platt) (pages 216-218)

Plate 22. Two studies of geese. Gaggle of Barnacle Geese Branta leucopsis
rising, Islay, Strathclyde, March 1975 ( Pamela Harrison ); and seven Brents
B. bernicla amongst rocks, Cornwall, February 1976 (J. B. and S. Bottomley )

1

*

Plate 23. Two herons after prey in Africa. Adult Squacco Ardeola ralloides
walking stealthily on land, The Gambia, November 1975 (A. J. Carlson ; and
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea in water, Kenya, October 1973 (J. F. Remolds)

Plate 24. Long-eared Owl Asio otus on branch over nest, holding mouse and
about to drop down to its chicks, Nottinghamshire, May 1971 ( Derick Scott )

Plate 25. First-autumn Little Gull Larus minutus hovering, Dyfed. September
1974 ( Harold E. Grenfell)-, below. Tawny Owl Strix aluco flying towards nest
with earthworm dangling from bill, Strathclyde, May 1975 ( Donald A. Smith)

Pi. axes 26 ( opposite ) and 27. Left upper, pair of VVhinchats Saxicola rubelra,
Lancashire, June 1974 ( Dennis Green); lower, pair of Garden Warblers Sylvia
borin at nest, Powys, June 1975 (A eri Williams). Above, Waxwing Bombycilla
garrulus among berries, Staffordshire, February 1975 {S. C. Brown); below,
male Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula, Hertfordshire, April 1975 (E. A. Janes)

Plate 28. Blue Tit Parus caeruleus perched on branch, Greater Manchester,
January 1976 ( E . K. Thompson); below, Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus
soaking itself thoroughly in small pool, Derbyshire, July 1975 (J. Russell)

Sound recording 2 1 5

REFERENCES

Boswall, J. 1974. ‘A preliminary world list of wildlife sound libraries’. Recorded
Sound, 54: 276-277.

Chappuis, G. 1969. ‘Un cline vocal chez les oiseaux pal^arctiqucs: variation tonale
des vocalisations, sous diffdrentes latitudes’. Alauda, 37: 59-71.

Marler, P. 1956. ‘The voice of the Chaffinch and its function as language’.
Ibis, 98: 231-261.

Simms, E., and Wade, G. F. 1953. ‘Recent advances in the recording of bird
songs’. Brit. Birds, 46: 200-210.

Summers-Smith, D. 1955. ‘Display of the House Sparrow Passer domesticus'. Ibis,
99: 296-305.

Thorpe, W. H. 1958. ‘The learning of song patterns by birds, with special reference
to the song of the Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs’. Ibis, 100: 535-570.

, and Pilcher, P. M. 1958. ‘The nature and characteristics of sub-song’.

Brit. Birds, 51 : 509-514.

Appendix. List of species for which sound recordings are urgently
required for the second and third volumes of ‘The Birds of the Western
Palearctic’

Lappet-faced Vulture Torgos tracheliotus Greater Sand Plover C. leschenaultii

Sooty Falcon Falco concolor
Caucasian Blackcock Lyrurus

mlokosiewiczi

Caucasian Snowcock Tetrogallus

caucasicus

Caspian Snowcock T. caspius
Sand Partridge Ammoperdix heyi
Double-spurred Francolin Francolinus

bicalcaratus

Arabian Bustard Ardeotis arabs
Houbara Bustard Chlamydotis undulata
Andalusian Hemipode Turnix sylvatica
Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius

Caspian Plover C. asiaticus
Pintail Snipe Gallinago stenura
Senegal Thick-knee Burhinus senegalensis
Egyptian Plover Pluvianus aegyptius
White-eyed Gull Larus leucophthalmus
Great Black-headed Gull L. ichthyaetus
Grey-headed Gull L. cirrhocephalus
Sabine’s Gull L. sabini
Ross’s Gull Rhodostethia rosea
Lesser Crested Tern Sterna bengaleruis
White-cheeked Tern S. repressa
Bridled Tern S. anaethetus

P. J. Sellar, 8g Riddlesdown Road, Parley, Surrey CR2 idh

More examples of the best recent work by
British bird-photographers

Plates 21-28

In the 17 years since we began this annual feature on the best
contemporary bird-photographs in black-and-white, we have now
published a total of 153 species by 77 photographers. There is
only one new photographer this year, but five species are included
for the first time. After last year’s record total, the number of
prints submitted dropped to 116 by 31 photographers, but the
standard was as high as ever and once again the choice was ex-
tremely difficult. Some photographs were left out only because
we had included the species concerned on several previous
occasions. As usual, we received much assistance from the secre-
taries of the Zoological Photographic Club, the Nature Photo-
graphic Society and the Nature Photographers’ Portfolio, and
we wish to thank them and all the others who recommended
particular photographs to us.

We remind photographers that birds on Schedule 1 of the
Protection of Birds Act 1967 (listed in Brit. Birds, 61 : 215; 64: 189)
may not be disturbed at or near the nest unless approval has
first been obtained from the Nature Conservancy Council, at
12 Hope Terrace, Edinburgh EHg 2as Despite this restriction,
it is probably true to say that more photographs than ever before
are now being taken of some of our rarer birds, though not neces-
sarily at the nest, for most photographers are naturally anxious
to get to grips with the more spectacular or unusual species. One
can well imagine the excitement that Donald Platt must have
experienced when he first saw the Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos
alighting at its eyrie (plate 21); he obtained a fine series of colour
photographs, and this monochrome print was made from a colour
negative.

We were delighted to learn that Dr Pamela Harrison was
recently elected to Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society,
as well as awarded the Cherry Kearton Medal of the Royal Geo-
graphical Society, but the standard of her work makes neither of
these honours surprising; we chose her Barnacle Geese Branla
leucopsis (plate 22a), one of a series taken on Islay, because it is
so full of life and movement as the birds take to the air. Each
year Brian and Sheila Bottomley almost embarrass us with the
number of first-class photographs that they submit and very
recently we published some of their waders (Brit. Birds, 69: plates
13-16); on this occasion we have selected a little group of five
Brent Geese B. bernicla (plate 22b) because it is an outstanding

217

Recent work by British bird-photographers

shot which is rather different from their usual superb close-ups
of single birds and also provides an interesting comparison with
the Barnacle Geese.

The next two photographs are of herons which are no more
than vagrants to Britain but which are familiar sights in parts of
southern Europe, though both these studies were taken in Africa.
Dr K. J. Carlson’s Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides, photographed
in the Gambia, is shown in an unusual pose as it creeps forward,
with body horizontal, presumably stalking its prey (plate 23a) ;
this is behavioural photography at its best. Equally attractive
is the Purple Heron Ardea purpurea taken by J. F. Reynolds in Kenya
as, with water almost up to its belly, it wades through the shallows
in search of food (plate 23b).

Our new photographer this year, Derick Scott, has provided us
with an exceptional shot of a species which we have not included
before: it shows a Long-eared Owl Asio otus about to drop down
to its nest with a mouse in the bill for its young (plate 24). (Inci-
dentally, we note that this was taken five years ago and it makes
us wonder how many other photographers are quietly producing
work of this standard without anyone hearing of it.) Tawny Owls
Strix aluco are much commoner and also more familiar in this
series, but Donald A. Smith’s photograph, taken with high-speed
electronic flash, of one flying towards its nest with a long earth-
worm dangling from its bill (plate 25b) is most spectacular. Certain
photographers produce outstanding work year after year; this
applies particularly to Harold E. Grenfell, whose delightful and
dainty study of a first-autumn Little Gull Larus minutus in flight
(plate 25a) reveals the wing and body markings so clearly.

So many photographers concentrate on the larger birds that it
is a pleasure, as last year, to be able to devote nearly half the
selection to small passerines. We have included photographs of
Whinchats Saxicola rubetra on three previous occasions, but Dennis
Green’s study of a pair perched above the nest with food for
their well-grown young (plate 26a) must rank among the best.
For photographic perfection, too, one would have to look long
and hard for a better picture than Keri Williams’s pair of Garden
Warblers Sylvia borin at the nest (plate 26b): it has faultless defi-
nition, and shows both birds and nest very clearly with sufficient
of the habitat to illustrate the site.

Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus are usually tame enough and seem
to be so busy searching for food that they take little notice of human
beings; even so, we have not seen a more evocative or apposite
shot than S. C. Brown’s beautiful study of a single bird perched
in a bush and framed with berries (plate 27a). E. A. Janes has
taken a number of remarkable photographs at a little drinking

2l8

Recent work by British bird-photographers

and bathing pool for birds in Hertfordshire: in 1975 we published
a male Brambling Fringilla montifringilla of his (Brit. Birds , 68:
plate 25) and this year he submitted several more studies, includ-
ing Woodpigeon Columba palumbus, Stock Dove C. oenas, Jay
Garrulus glandarius and Robin Erithacus rubecula , but we liked best
his Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula (plate 27b).

The Blue Tit Parus caeruleus is such a common species that we
were most surprised to find that it had not previously featured
in this series; E. K. Thompson has made it possible to rectify
this with an outstanding shot of one perched on a lichen-covered
branch (plate 28a). The last in this selection is J. Russell’s bathing
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus (plate 28b): it is an excellent
photograph which illustrates particularly well an aspect of feather
maintenance, and most people may not have seen a warbler
douse itself so thoroughly.

We thank all the photographers who sent prints and apologise
to those whose work we have not been able to include on this
occasion. We hope that they will not be put off and that they will
continue to submit a selection of their best photographs each year.
The aims of this feature are to place on permanent record in one
journal some of the finest bird-photographs, to encourage compe-
tition, to give newcomers an opportunity of seeing their work
published, and to show photographs which normally fall outside
the scope of those in British Birds. The closing date next year will
be 31st January 1977 and we ask all photographers to put on each
print his or her name and address and, in addition to the species,
the county (or country if taken abroad) and the month and year.

Eric Hosking and I. J. Ferguson-Lees

Notes

Grey Heron hunting by swimming On the evening of 20th Sep-
tember 1973, at the RSPB reserve of Leighton Moss, Lancashire, I
saw an adult Grey Heron Ardea cinerea fishing near one of the meres.
After a while the bird took off and flew low over the water, but at
this point my attention was diverted. When I looked again, seconds
later, I was surprised to see that it had settled on the mere in deep
water. It remained still for a few minutes and then began to swim
forward very slowly, with its head and neck stretched out in front
close to the water’s surface. After swimming for approximately four
metres the heron succeeded in catching a large fish resembling a
Roach Rutilus rutilus. Immediately its prey was secured the bird
took off with no apparent difficulty and flew to a nearby island,
where it devoured its meal. J. Driver

Hartrigg Farm , Kentmere , Kendal, Cumbria

Mutual spinning by Red-necked Phalaropes Spinning is a
characteristic feeding movement employed by all three phalaropes
Phalaropus spp, used on the water by Red-necked P. lobatus and Grey
Phalaropes P. fulicarius and on both water and land by Wilson’s
Phalarope P. tricolor. Its precise function is unknown, but Hohn
(1971), who discussed the matter in detail, agreed that it probably
activates immobile prey in cold water, as suggested by Tinbergen
( 1 935) , ancl the widely held view that it stirs up edible matter

from the bottom of shallow water may be equally valid. Any con-
nection between spinning and courtship display is generally dis-
counted by most authors, but Hohn briefly mentioned having seen
a pair of Red-necked Phalaropes spinning together, in the same
direction, and suggested that this might have been a form of
courtship display. Dr O. Hild6n, who read a draft of this note,
stated (in litt .) that he and S. Vuolanto had frequently observed
spinning which seemed to have a connection with courtship display
during the course of a long-term study of Red-necked Phalaropes
in southern Finland (Hilden and Vuolanto 1972).

On 28th May 1971, at Varanger Fjord in arctic Norway, A. R.
McGregor and I watched three Red-necked Phalaropes, a female
and two males, feeding on the well-known pool at Nesseby. One
male, the more brightly plumaged of the two, was constantly
followed by the female (the other male being totally ignored) and
several incomplete displays by her were seen. When this male
started to spin, the female, who was directly alongside him, at once
spun excitedly in the opposite direction, giving us the impression
that her movements had been directly stimulated by his.

From 2nd to 6th June inclusive, we watched (and ARM filmed)

219

220

Notes

Red-necked Phalaropes at Passjarvi, near Karigasniemi in Finnish
Lapland. Here, 60 to 70 birds were usually present in a very small
area of shallow water at the eastern, early-melting end of the lake;
Passjarvi is used as a feeding and display area prior to dispersal to
breeding grounds in the nearby marshes. We thought that most of
the phalaropes present were already paired, but interpreting and
correctly recording much of the regular and vigorous display we
watched was difficult with so many birds milling about in such a
confined area. Equally, distinguishing individuals for any length of
time was almost impossible. However, further evidence of a possible
display function of spinning was obtained. On a number of occa-
sions mutual spinning, as seen at Nesseby, was observed. Frequently
a spinning bird, of either sex, was rapidly joined by another, always
of the opposite sex, which immediately began to spin in the opposite
direction. Often they seemed to spin at a slightly faster rate than
normal and were usually so close to each other that physical contact,
particularly by their ‘sterns’, was frequent. Sometimes the second
bird did not dab at the water with its bill while spinning, yet equally
often it did so ; and on a few occasions neither did so. Although all
these birds appeared just as excited as those involved in other
displays, on no occasion was mutual spinning seen to be followed by
any further displays or by the mating attempts which were otherwise
frequent round about — but in the melees which often developed
nearby, and subsequently involved birds under observation, these
may well have been missed.

While our observations were both incomplete and inconclusive,
they do seem to suggest that mutual spinning by two phalaropes
does play some part in courtship display and that further investiga-
tion into this aspect of phalarope behaviour would be worth while.

Michael J. Everett

RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL

REFERENCES

Hilden, O., and Vuolanto, S. 1972. ‘Breeding biology of the Red-necked
Phalarope Phalaropus lobatus in Finland’. Ornis Fenn., 49: 57-85.

Hohn, E. O. 1971. ‘Observations on the breeding behaviour of Grey and Red-
necked Phalaropes’. Ibis, 113: 335-348.

Tinbergen, N. 1935. ‘Field observations of east Greenland birds I. The behaviour
of the Red-necked Phalarope ( Phalaropus lobatus L) in Spring’. Ardea, 24: 1-42.

Eyesight of Barn Owl There is much literature concerning the
efficiency of the sight of owls generally, and that of the Barn Owl
Tyto alba is regarded as no exception; indeed, Curtis (1952, unpub-
lished Ph.D. thesis, Cornell University) proved that this species was
able to see cardboard barriers placed in its flight path at illumina-
tions of extremely low intensity. However, during a long-term

Notes

22 1

study of the Bam Owl I have found clear evidence that its ability
to recognise, rather than merely see, objects in the dark is very poor.
I first noticed this in 1950, when a Barn Owl, approaching me as it
hunted along a hedgerow, frequently continued past without
deviating, at a distance of two or three metres, provided I remained
perfectly still and close to the hedge. Subsequently I often escaped
the detection of hunting Barn Owls simply by ‘freezing’ whenever
they came close enough to be alarmed.

In 1971 a pair nested in a small annexe to a large barn, from
which I often observed them. The owls frequently entered the barn,
but whenever this happened I remained motionless until they
departed. I was never detected, even though at times they were
no more than three or four metres away on the beams overhead.
In September 1971 I commenced twelve months’ regular observa-
tion of a second pair. This time I installed a comfortable chair on
the upper floor of the large barn which they inhabited. At first the
owls, on my arrival, would fly in to a crevice where they could not
be seen; I then sat quietly until they emerged and flew to the
beams where they were in full view in the light of my torch, which
did not carry a red filter; I could then observe them for an indefinite
period from about ten metres. Not only were they unaware of my
presence but, during their courtship in March and April 1972, they
occasionally passed or stood on the floor by my chair at a distance
of about one metre. Later, they visited the nest regularly without
noticing me, at five or six metres, and the owlets, when they were
fledged, often played under my chair and on my shoes. On one
occasion a 67-day-old owlet perched on my left knee for a minute
or more and then jumped across to my right knee, throwing
grotesque shadows about the barn as it bobbed its head in front of
my torch.

A. B. Warburton has told me that once a recently fledged owlet
alighted on his head, while its single nest-mate peered for some
seconds into his eyes, from a distance of about 20 cm, before taking
fright. I have two similar records: a Cheshire farmer, leaning against
a fence post, had a Barn Owl perch momentarily on his head; and,
in Lancashire, another bird, after catching prey, flew up and
landed on the surprised observer’s head (J. Wilson in litt.).

During my study I also had close encounters with Tawny Owls
Strix aluco. I was always detected by this species unless I was in a
hide, and it is tempting to believe that the relatively small eyes of
the Barn Owl result in reduced visual acuity if not in sensitivity to
light. That the sight of the Barn Owl may be more efficient in day-
light was demonstrated when I attempted to observe the second
pair of owls one late afternoon when the barn was relatively well
lit by the sun shining through the small roof window — both owls

222

Notes

spotted me immediately they emerged from hiding.

My thanks are due to the Forestry Commission, to Miss R.
Edmundson and to Mr and Mrs D. Lord, on whose land my
observations were conducted. I also thank A. B. Warburton and
J. Wilson for providing additional data. D. S. Bunn

ij Walden Road, Blackburn, Lancashire bbi gpq

Sand Martins collecting nest material from ground On 24th
April 1975, Sand Martins Riparia riparia that breed in a small colony
in drainage pipes in the wall alongside the River Avon in the
centre of Salisbury, Wiltshire, were visiting the nest sites carrying
dried grasses, presumably nest material. The Handbook states that
the nest ‘consists of straw . . . picked up in flight’, and Bannerman
(1954, The Birds of the British Isles, vol 3) mentioned ‘bits of straw or
grass which the birds probably pick up in flight’. The martins were
settling on a small patch of grass, picking up the dead loose strands
and carrying them away to the nest sites about 50 metres distant.
Ten birds were engaged in this activity. D. E. M. Peart

13 Shaftesbury Road, Wilton, Salisbury, Wiltshire

The pale rump of juvenile Rose-coloured Starlings An

excellent opportunity for field comparisons between juvenile
Starlings Sturnus vulgaris and juvenile Rose-coloured Starlings S.
roseus arose during an expedition to eastern Turkey in August 1974.
Pale juvenile Starlings without close inspection and in bright sun-
light, might be mistaken for juvenile Rose-coloured and special
attention was therefore paid to the identification of all juvenile
Sturnus. A total of 36 juvenile Rose-coloured was observed at four
localities, at three of which direct comparison with Starlings was
possible. The usual features were noted and an additional, and
constant, mark most useful in distinguishing juveniles of the two
species was the pale rump of Rose-coloured. This was a roughly
rectangular, sandy-brown area contrasting with the darker back,
tail and w'ings and visible at ranges of over 100 metres. It could be
seen on feeding birds but was more noticeable in flight, when it was
a striking field mark of unmixed parties; it also enabled single
juvenile Rose-coloured Starlings to be picked out among flocks of
juvenile Starlings at angles where other field characteristics were
difficult to see. Unfortunately no example of the very pale biscuit-
coloured variety of juvenile Starlings was seen for comparison.

The literature stresses the sandy-brown plumage of juvenile
Rose-coloured Starlings but not the contrastingly pale rump. This
latter feature can be seen in a photograph in Birds of the World
(1970:2753). T. A. Walsh

10 Fordhouse Road, Bromsgrove, Hereford & Worcester

Reviews

Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan. By Salim Ali
and S. Dillon Ripley. Oxford University Press, Bombay.
Vol. 7 (1972): 236 pages, 11 colour plates. Vol. 8 (1973): 277
pages, 8 colour plates. Vol. 9 (1973): 306 pages, 10 colour
plates. Vol. 10 (1974): 334 pages, 12 colour plates. All with
many line drawings and maps. Volumes 7 and 8 £8.00 each,
Vol. 9 £8.50 and Vol. 10 £11.20.

Although the final volume of this monumental series did not appear
in England until 1975, it was published in India in 1974; thus the
two distinguished authors achieved ten volumes, covering some
1,200 species, in six years — a feat which bears favourable comparison
with The Handbook of British Birds , on which (except for the omission
of detailed plumage descriptions) it is closely modelled, and which
those concerned with similar projects can only regard with admiring
envy. The main features of this massive undertaking were described
fully in earlier reviews {Brit. Birds , 62: 544-546; 66: 1 70-1 71), so it
is necessary to say only that the welcome speed in completion has
led to no lessening in the high standards set at the beginning. The
inhabitants of the sub-continent are generally benevolent in their
attitude to wildlife but the pressures of an ever-increasing population
present considerable threats to some of the larger and more restricted
species, so it is hoped that this authoritative work will stimulate both
ornithology and conservation there. Three features of the work
throughout deserve special mention — the pinpointing of gaps where
further research is needed, the inclusion of detailed distribution
maps (more frequent in later volumes) and the wealth of personal
observations, above all from the senior author Dr Salim Ali. He has
recently been awarded the J. Paul Getty Wildlife Conservation
prize for 1975; his countrymen could find no happier way of adding
to this signal international honour than by building on the founda-
tions so securely laid by this distinguished international team.

Stanley Cramp

Birds of Prey. By Michael Everett. Orbis Publishing, London,
1976. 128 pages; 129 colour photographs including front and
back flaps; five figures. £3.95.

Birds of prey have become a very fashionable subject for books and
the advent of another gives causes for reflection on the author’s
and publisher’s reasons. This book has a large format and is very
profusely illustrated in relation to the amount of text, which is
essentially a compilation outlining the variety of birds of prey in the
world and their mode of life.

After a brief note on the fossil record the author devotes his

223

224

Reviews

longest chapter to a summary of the world list of birds of prey and
their distribution by countries and habitats. This is followed by
sections on physical characteristics and hunting and feeding, in
which the wide diversity of prey and adaptations for dealing with it
are well illustrated. Other sections deal with the breeding cycle,
migration and the world status of birds of prey in general. A full
species list and brief bibliography conclude the book.

It is the illustrations that will be of greatest appeal, for they are a
superb collection of subjects from all over the world and should
serve the purpose of interesting a much wider public than just
dedicated ornithologists in this exciting and much persecuted group.
This would seem to be the main target of the book and, judged by
this criterion, it should be a great success, even if the uninitiated
whose attention it must attract to serve the presumed purpose may
be put off initially by the first section summarising the world variety
of species. Those ornithologists on the other hand whose horizon
may be mainly restricted to their own country or continent should
find much of interest in this part and in the comments on feeding
activities.

As a plea for conservation in a readable, accurate but not too
scientific context, the author and publisher are to be congratulated
on producing such a splendidly illustrated volume at a price which
today must be considered very reasonable . R . C . H o m e s

The Dictionary of Birds in Colour. By Bruce Campbell.
Michael Joseph Ltd, London, 1974. 352 pages; 1,008 colour
photographs; 9 line drawings. £6.00.

Alfred Newton in a note to the first part of his Dictionary of Birds
( 1 893-96) wrote a typical piece of Victorian prose ... ‘I trust that
this Dictionary will aid a few who wish to study Ornithology in a
scientific spirit, as well as many who merely regard its pursuit as a
pastime, while I even dare indulge the hope that persons indifferent
to the pleasures of Natural History, except when highly-coloured
pictures are presented to them by popular writers, may find in it
some corrective to the erroneous impressions commonly conveyed
by sciolists posing as instructors’. This is still a reasonable hope,
and one with which I am sure Bruce Campbell, in a less ornate
fashion, would agree for his own dictionary published some 80 years
later. Though called a dictionary and arranged as such, it is not to
be confused with either Newton’s Dictionary or Sir A. Landsborough
Thomson’s A New Dictionary of Birds (1964), and certainly cannot
take their places on the shelf. It is an entirely different concept.

The book begins with a concise description of the origins, zoo-
geographical distribution, anatomy and classification of birds. Then
follows a useful short exposition of the 154 families, a small glossary

Reviews

225

of technical terms, and, the chief part of the book, over 1,000
photographs and the main text. The photographs are arranged in
sequence of orders and families, based essentially on the Check-list
of Birds of the World edited by J. L. Peters and his successors; and
within each family in alphabetical order of genera and specific
names. The text, which is arranged as a dictionary, describes each
illustrated species, plus a number of allied species. Details are given
of distribution, diagnostic plumage characteristics, habitat pre-
ferences, feeding behaviour and foods, and breeding biology.

This is a particularly difficult book to evaluate for, like reference
and recipe books, it needs to be used over a period before any judge-
ment can be made as to its worth. I have therefore deliberately
delayed reviewing it quickly, and instead have used it extensively
during the last few months. For many people it will, however, not
be a book of reference, but a book to browse through or occasionally
dip into. For these people it certainly succeeds, for it is a pleasant
production, well designed with clear typography. It is full of
interesting facts and many delightful photographs. For the un-
initiated, and the not so interested, it has a most confusing arrange-
ment. The mass of photographs at the beginning, identified only by
scientific names, is unnecessarily confusing. For those who know only
the English name of a bird and wish to refer to the text and photo-
graph, it can be irritatingly perplexing. With perseverance the clues
can be found and, once the procedure is worked out, it becomes
easier and, though time-consuming, is worth the trouble. The text is
admirable and an excellent summation of present knowledge. I
have nothing but praise and admiration for this part. Like so much
of Bruce Campbell’s writing, it is clear, concise and easily under-
stood.

The photographs, which are more often chosen for their identi-
fication qualities rather than their aesthetic value, are mainly
portraits, often of single, centred, birds. Relatively few show' any
action, and if they do there is no explanation as to what is happening.
The majority are good, a few bad (e.g. 79, 385), a few outstanding
(362), a few confusing (126), and in a few the colours are wrong
(207, 416). Occasionally the selection is unrepresentative of the
family, e.g. Ramphastidae. Still, it is an amazing collection of
photographs.

I think New ton’s hope will be well served by this book, and Dr
Bruce Campbell is to be congratulated on bringing together such a
wealth of information and pleasure. P. J. S. Olney

Letters

A question of priorities John Gooders’s ‘Viewpoint’ (Brit. Birds,
69: 16-19), having established by assumption that human life is
dependent on birds and that without human life there can be no
appreciation of birds by human beings, arrives at the conclusion
that there must be birds before we can conserve them. This is self-
evident and does not require the philosophical crutch of Professor
R. S. Peters’s dialectic, nor does it add anything to the argument on
bird conservation. The assumption that mankind needs birds for
the survival of the ecosystem which supports him also removes any
ethical considerations from the question ‘Should we conserve birds?’.
The argument becomes materialistic in concept because the philo-
sophically trivial ethical point of whether we agree that the survival
of mankind is a good thing is dealt with by assuming that the answer
is yes. From this materialistic beginning the only conclusion is that
man should spend his resources on discovering what are the key
species in the ecosystem, if there are any, and ensuring their pro-
tection against possible future mismanagement. It seems unlikely
that these birds, if they exist, are the ones found on the list of
endangered species whose population numbers are small and often
localised, and therefore less likely to have any important ecological
impact. This conclusion, of course, assumes limited funds, which the
aforementioned programme would absorb with no surplus for the
materially less important problem of saving endangered species.
Mr Gooders’s conclusion, based on the same assumptions, is that we
must make it our aim to preserve the maximum variety, a more
acceptable conclusion to an argument assuming aesthetics as the
‘raison d’etre’ for conservation. If we are to make judgements on an
aesthetic basis there should be some consideration of judgements
made on a scientific basis (in the less applied sense than that implied
in the initial argument founded on materialism), which in at least
some instances lead to conclusions encouraging the spending of
money on maintaining populations on the edge of their range. For
example, peripheral populations are a focus of scientific interest as
this is where adaptive radiation and speciation are expected to
occur. Perhaps expensive Dartford Warblers and Marsh Harriers
may repay their debt by furnishing science with useful information.

The essence of the conservation problem, which was glossed over
by the confusion of argument in Mr Gooders’s article, should now
be apparent, if it was not already so. There are at least three possible
starting points for the argument, and three different criteria for the
basis of conservation as conclusions: who is to judge which is the
correct view or in what proportion each argument should affect the
direction of conservation? What is certain is that when funds are

226

Letters

227

finite these three arguments are in conflict. The conflict can be
resolved only on the basis of value judgements, an area most
philosophers regard either as outside the scope of logical argument
or at least covered with ice too thin to skate on.

Barrie Pearson

11 Knoll Cottage Caravan Site, Gatemoor Road, Winfrith, Dorchester,
Dorset

The research John Gooders undertook for his ‘Viewpoint’ was
inadequate. The British National Appeal of the World Wildlife
Fund has operated a thirds system ever since it started making
grants for scientifically approved conservation projects. One-third
of the net income received in Britain goes to projects abroad, one-
third to projects in this country, and the allocation of the middle
third is decided towards the end of the year and goes to projects
most urgently requiring it (a high proportion goes to overseas
projects). The ‘little old lady’ he refers to is by no means deceived
into thinking that her pound goes entirely to international con-
servation. In every piece of literature we have ever produced, where
it is appropriate, the thirds system is explained. Indeed, it is very
likely that, unless a donor, at any level, could be assured that some
part of his donation was going to projects in Britain, he would
be reluctant to give us any money at all.

The Wildfowl Trust, the Royal Society for the Protection of
Birds and the Society for the Promotion of Nature Reserves are
among the best managers of wild conservation areas in Britain and
these organisations are, therefore, often the recipients of the BNA’s
British third. The WWF, on occasions, receives earmarked money
for Wildfowl Trust projects from such countries as the United States.
The SPNR and the RSPB manage many kinds of habitats other than
wetlands and the BNA has given large sums of money for the pur-
chase of woodlands and meadows. Many individuals have also been
given grants for projects for endangered mammals, plants and insects.

John Gooders singles out the Siberian Crane and the Bald Ibis
as symbolising birds the WWF does nothing to conserve. On the
contrary, in 1972 and 1973 WWF supported the conservation of the
Bald Ibis with a grant of nearly £5,000, and more than three times
this sum will be spent on another WWF Bald Ibis project in 1976/77.
The Siberian Crane is also the subject of a current project. Apart
from these two species, we have current bird projects in northern
Europe and Scandinavia, Spain, Austria, Italy and New Zealand.
Quite obviously, all national park projects which the WWF supports
assist bird conservation and our current one for the Banc d’Arguin
in Mauritania is primarily for the conservation of wintering
Palearctic migrants.

228

Letters

The Red Data Books of endangered species referred to by John
Gooders, which include a volume on birds, are themselves produced
with the help of a WWF grant. Robert Adams

Managing Director, WWF ( British National Appeal), 2g Greville Street,
London ecin 8ax

The origin of British Aquatic Warblers The letters by Dr C.
Joiris and Dr J. T. R. Sharrock {Brit. Birds, 68: 519) I feel call for
further comment. I support the views of Dr Joiris for the following
reasons. I trap Acrocephalus warblers in a reed bed at Long Rock,
west Cornwall, each morning commencing at dawn, from July to
September, and keep records of wind directions and strengths and
weather conditions. Owing to the prevailing E/NE winds during
the months of July, August and September, which in anticyclonic
weather can be very strong at times, I hold the view that our
Aquatic Warblers A. paludicola originate from central Europe. The
autumn of 1972 stands out in my memory as one of strong anti-
cyclonic winds from an easterly quarter, and the details in table 1
are extracted from my records.

Table 1. Details of wind direction, by days, at Long Rock, Cornwall,

July-September 1971-75

Total numbers of Aquatic Warblers Acrocephalus paludicola are those given in the
annual Rarities Reports in British Birds

Total

JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER Aquatic

Year

S SE E

NE

S

SE

E

NE

S

SE

E

NE

Warblers

1971

I I

13

—

I

I

3

I

12

2

2

27

1972

II

I

—

2

—

8

—

5

4

11

56

1973

I I

I

I

2

3

2

—

5

4

4

49

1974

All SW, W or NW

I

I

2

4

2

I

—

—

22

1975

3 — 1

3

2

I

2

5

—

—

2

5

28

It will be seen that the wind blew from a S/SE quarter on 42
days and from an E/NE quarter on 96 days. The peak year for
Aquatics in Britain was 1972, when from 21st to 26th August the
wind blew from NE, force 3-6, with unbroken sunny weather. In
connection with this, on 23rd August the first three Aquatic
Warblers were trapped at Long Rock and Marazion; also trapped
was an adult Sedge Warbler A. schoenobaenus which had been ringed
on Fair Isle, Shetland, on 9th June 1972. On the same day a juvenile
Sedge Warbler was trapped and ringed, and this was later trapped
in southern Norway, on 25th May 1973, presumably in its breeding
area. I feel that these records support the view that Aquatic Warblers
in Britain do not originate from southern Europe.

Letters

229

Finally, Dr Sharrock stated that ‘the Aquatic Warbler seems to be
unique in having its main concentration on the British south coast*.
This is true, but the totals are being inflated by activities of reed-
bed ringers on the south coast compared with those on the east
coast; most Aquatics are trapped rather than observed. Radipole, 1
(1972: 30) stated that ‘there were no positive sight records of any
Aquatics in the field’, yet Radipole trapped 22 of the species. This
south coast bias may be a reflection of the activities of humans
rather than of the birds themselves. B. Pattenden

iy Wheal Rodney , Gwallon, Marazion, Cornwall

The question of the origin of British Aquatic Warblers is, I
believe, still wide open. Anticyclonic weather is typically a require-
ment for reverse migration. To discover the true situation, however,
it would be necessary to take the 1958-75 August-September ringing
totals in coastal sites in each county from Yorkshire round to Scilly
of Sedge Warblers and Aquatic Warblers and compare the propor-
tions. This might show that Mr Pattenden is correct, and that it is
purely ringing bias that produces the concentration in the central
part of the south coast of Britain; personally, I doubt it.

J. T. R. Sharrock

59 Curlew Crescent , Bedford MK41 7HY

Ravens breeding on city buildings R. A. Hume’s note on the
successful breeding of Ravens Corvus corax on Swansea Guildhall
(Brit. Birds, 68: 515-516) and his final remark that there is no
mention in The Handbook of Ravens nesting on buildings prompt us
to quote from the minutes of a meeting of the Ashmolean Society-
held on 6th December 1847:

‘The minutes of the last meeting were then read, and the following
presents announced: —

A remarkable raven, shot on its return to its eyrie, which it
had long occupied on the top of John, Duke of Marlborough’s
pillar, in Blenheim Park, Dec. 3, 1847, — from the Duke of Marl-
borough. The expanse of its wings is four feet.’ (Abstracts of the
Proceedings of the Ashmolean Society, from 1843 to x852 inclusive.
Vol 2. Oxford: printed by J. Wright, Printer to the University, for
the Ashmolean Society. M.DCCC.LIV : pp 1 74- 1 75-)

This record is not given by O. V. Aplin in Birds of Oxfordshire
(1889); his last breeding record for the county was in 1834. Mrs
M. C. Radford, however, gave a version of it in The Birds of Berkshire
and Oxfordshire (1966: 141).

In A Field Guide to Birds' Nests (1972), BG and James Ferguson-
Lees mentioned ‘a few records from ruined buildings’, e.g. the old
chimney in Yarner Wood National Nature Reserve, Devon, where

230

Letters

BC saw a brood of young on 27 th April 1954 and was told that the
site was ‘traditional’. The Swansea records may, however, well be
the first from an occupied building in Britain.

Bruce Campbell

West End Barn, Wootton, Woodstock, Oxford 0x7 idl

G. E. S. Turner

University Museum, Oxford

News and comment Peter Conder

Another wetland endangered The Alfaques peninsula is not a name that rings
bells, but bells need ringing now. The peninsula is part of the River Ebro’s delta
system on the Catalan coast of Spain, and its dunes, lagoons, marshes and rice
fields are marked for major urbanisation. Plans have been drawn to bed 130,000
tourists with facilities for 6,500 boats, an airport and a heliport. The Alfaques
peninsula is an invaluable breeding site for numbers of Sandwich, Little and
Common Terns as well as Avocets, Black-winged Stilts, Oystercatchers and other
waders. Particularly interesting breeders in 1975 were five pairs of Slender-billed
Gulls and eleven pairs of Flamingos. S. P. Mills of Suntrap, Forest Hill, Oxford,
urges ornithologists to write to the Secretario General, CIMA, Ayala 100, Madrid
6, Spain, protesting that in European Wetlands Year, when governments should
be setting out to preserve wetlands, they are destroying part of a delta system of
great scientific interest and also part of a coastline of great beauty.

Fairburn Ings The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has just announced
that it has leased Fairburn Ings, near Pontefract, from the Yorkshire Metropolitan
County Council, who in their turn lease it from the National Coal Board. Fairburn
Ings has for many years been a bird reserve of the West Riding Council, for whom
it was managed by a group of local ornithologists. The RSPB call Fairburn Ings
Britain’s most improbable bird reserve, bordered as it is by colliery slag heaps and
fly-ash tips. Extensive lakes have formed in areas of mining subsidence. The
reserve covers 600 acres (243 ha) and more than 200 species have been recorded
there. Steve Madge is the full-time warden. He has previously worked at Ynys-Hir
in Wales and the Ouse Washes, and for the last three years has been summer
warden at Bempton Cliffs, Humberside.

Seabird cliff tragedies Mention of Steve Madge and Bempton Cliffs makes
this an appropriate moment to remind all those likely to want a closer look at
seabirds that cliffs are dangerous not only to adult birdwatchers but also to their
children. In recent years a number of people have fallen to their death when
looking at seabirds, and at Bempton in 1975 a teenage boy slipped over the cliffs
to his death, having ignored the warnings and having climbed over the fences.
But even experienced birdwatchers have made a reality of the cartoon which
shows the birdwatcher counting seabirds on their ledges as he flashes downwards
past them, headforemost.

News and comment

231

Changing emblems Two bird clubs have recently changed their emblems.
The Cambridge Bird Club has discarded the Black Redstart in favour of a
displaying Ruff, designed by Miss Isla Don. Black Redstarts have been recorded
comparatively rarely in the county in recent years and according to some members
‘it was a rather dull little bird anyway’. The Ruff is very appropriate to the
county and has an even longer link with Cambridgeshire than the redstart.

The West Midland Bird Club’s non-ornithological emblem became inappro-
priate when the county boundaries, on which the emblem was based, were
reorganised. The club’s new emblem is the Ruddy Duck, a North American
stiff-tail, which has established itself on man-made waters in the area.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

February reports D. A. Christie

Although the predominant winds were from the east during the first half of the
month, resulting in an interesting variety of out-of-season species (which will be
summarised later), February was generally disappointing from the point of view
of rarer birds. The Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla trapped near Bridgwater
(Somerset) on 19th has already been mentioned (Brit. Birds, 69: 192), but other-
wise the only exceptional occurrence was that of a Black-throated Thrush
Tardus ruficollis at Coltishall (Norfolk) from 21st, staying well into March.

An immature Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis was at Church Wilne Reservoir
(Derbyshire) on 1st, with two immatures there on 8th, and another Shag spent
three days at Retford (Nottinghamshire) from 2nd to 4th. On 13th and 14th a
drake Green-winged Teal Anas crecca carolinensis frequented Loch of Bosquoy
(Orkney), an accompanying duck being possibly a female of this North American
race. In Scotland another King Eider Somateria spectabilis was found, at Covesea
Skerries, Lossiemouth (Grampian), on 15th. Again there were few Rough-legged
Buzzards Buteo lagoptis reported, just singles on Western Moors (South York-
shire) on 1 6th and at Hinton (Suffolk) on 19th; no doubt others have not been
brought to our notice.

A Grey Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius appeared at Ncwton-by-the-Sea
(Northumberland) on 1st, a Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis was reported at
Radipole Lake (Dorset) on 4th, and a Sabine’s Gull L. sabini was noted at
Seaton Sluice (Northumberland) on 23rd and 29th. A number of skuas Stercorarius
spp were seen off the north-east coast of England : a Great Skua S. skua flew north
at Seaton Sluice on 1st, and two more were recorded about 14 km off Sunderland
(Tyne & Wear) on 26th; and an Arctic 5. parasiticus flew south off Holy Island
(Northumberland) on 8th, while at the same place two unidentified skuas were
present offshore on 15th.

A Woodlark Lullula arborea remained at Dungeness (Kent) all month; and
inland at Packington gravel pits (Warwickshire) three were found on 21st, one of
which was still present on 6th March.

A belated report concerns a Hoopoe Upupa epops seen on two January dates at
West Parley, near Wimborne (Dorset) ; what was presumably the same bird was
seen also in February, March and April, both at West Parley and about seven km
away near Hum Airport.

Observers are asked to note that the Long- tailed Skua Stercorarius longicaudus
has been added, and Richard’s Pipit Anthus novaeseelandiae reinstated, to the list
of species considered by the Rarities Committee.

List of county and regional recorders
in Britain and Ireland

The main aims of this list of bird recorders and editors are to ensure
that observers on holiday away from their home areas send records
to the right people, to encourage co-operation at the inter-county
and intra-county levels, and to provide a source of reference for
those collating records on a national basis. Several counties are
divided into areas for recording purposes, but to save space, and
because we believe it is less confusing, the list generally includes
one name only against each county or region. For the same reasons
we have largely discontinued our previous practice of mentioning
observatory and other local reports which overlap with the county
or regional ones, though some of these contain much important
information. Titles of publications are added only when they do
not include the name of the county or counties concerned. We shall
be glad to know of any errors, omissions or changes of address.

ENGLAND

All counties or regions are now publishing or intending to publish
annual reports, though recording arrangements have been somewhat
complicated by local government reorganisation. All county names
refer to the new counties (see Brit. Birds, 68 : i -4) except where other-
wise specified. The recording area is described only where it differs
in any way from the new county concerned; an italicised cross-
reference indicates an apparent overlap in recording territory (in
some cases very slight) (see also Brit. Birds, 68: 256, fig. 1). A number
of other reports overlap with adjacent ones to a greater or lesser
extent and cover parts of one or more counties; among the most
important is the North- Western Bird Report, published by the Mersey-
side Naturalists’ Association (Eric Hardy, 47 Woodsorrel Road,
Liverpool L15 6ub), which not only covers Merseyside but ranges
widely over north-west England and north Wales. There is now
generally a good exchange of information between overlapping-
reports and between local and county publications, but in a few
instances co-operation is still only partial or even lacking and we
again urge those concerned to resolve such situations, which greatly
add to the work of any national collator and confuse the casual
visitor. Likewise, we hope that county societies which cover areas
where the boundaries have been altered attempt to reduce unneces-
sary overlaps and (most important) ensure than no areas are left
without a recorder.

Avon P. J. Chadwick, 3 Hill Burn, Henleaze, Bristol BS9 4RH. See also Somerset
Bedfordshire B. D. Harding, 26 Woodlands Avenue, Houghton Regis, Dunstable,
Bedfordshire LU5 5LJ

232

County and regional recorders 233

Berkshire P. E. Standley, Siskins, 7 Llanvair Drive, South Ascot, Berkshire SL5
gits. See also Buckinghamshire

Buckinghamshire R. E. Youngman, 53 Seymour Park Road, Marlow, Buckingham-
shire SL7 3ER. Report (The Middle-Thames Naturalist) covers Buckinghamshire
and Berkshire east of the River Loddon. See also London
Cambridgeshire For the old county of Cambridgeshire: M. J. Allen, Honey End,
Honey Hill, Fenstanton, Huntingdon pei8 gjp. For the old county of Hunting-
donshire, including the Soke of Peterborough: J. D. Limentani, 10 Kingfisher
Green, St Ives, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE17 4HS. Records for the whole
of the new county will be published in the Cambridgeshire report, but Hunting-
donshire records will also be abstracted for separate publication.

Cheshire Dr R. J. Raines, 34 Beryl Road, Noctorum, Birkenhead, Merseyside.
Report covers the old county of Cheshire apart from the Longdendale area, now
in Derbyshire; and a small, newly acquired area from Hale to Moss Side,
formerly in Lancashire

Cleveland G. W. Follows, 9 De Brus Court, Marine Parade, Saltburn, Cleveland
TS12 1 eh. See also Durham

Cornwall L. Williams, 1 1 Springfield Close, Phillack, Hayle, Cornwall and D. Barker,
Fourways, Tolcarne, St Day, Redruth, Cornwall
Cumbria For the old county of Cumberland: R. Stokoe, 4 Fern Bank, Cockermouth,
Cumbria CA13 odf. For the rest of Cumbria: Malcolm Hutcheson, Garden
Cottage, Sizergh Castle, Kendal, Cumbria la8 8ae. See also Lancashire
Derbyshire David Amedro, 212 Derby Road, Ilkeston, Derbyshire DE7 5FB
Devon P. W. Ellicott, Clittcrs, Trusham, Newton Abbot, Devon TQ13 olx
Dorset J. V. Boys, 21 Moor Road, Broadstone, Dorset bhi8 8ba
Durham Brian Unwin, 2 Albyn Gardens, Sunderland, Tyne & Wear. Report also
covers those parts of Cleveland and Tyne & Wear which were included in the old
county of Durham, and the former Startforth Rural District, which used to be in
Yorkshire but is now in Durham. See also North, South and West Yorkshire
East and West Sussex C. M. James, 21 River Mead, Horsham, West Sussex RH12 ISP
Essex P. J. Howard, 18 Woodsidc Close, Colchester, Essex C04 3HD; J. Thorogood,
49 Oaklands Avenue, Colchester, Essex C03 5ET; and A. R. Wood, 2 Buxton
Road, Monkwick Estate, Colchester, Essex. Report also covers Greater London
east of the River Lea and north of the Thames. See also London
Gloucestershire C. M. Swaine, Mill House, Rcndcomb, Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Greater London See London
Greater Manchester See Cheshire and Lancashire

Hampshire J. H. Taverner, 13 Stockers Avenue, Winchester, Hampshire
Hereford & Worcester For the old county of Herefordshire: Allan J. Smith, 4
The Orchard, Moreton-on-Lugg, Hereford HR4 8dg. Report covers the old
counties of Herefordshire and Radnorshire; the old county of Worcestershire
is covered by the West Midland Report (see Staffordshire)

Hertfordshire M. J. Blindell, 6 Townsend Drive, St Albans. Hertfordshire a 1.3 5RD.
See also London

Humberside North Humberside is included in Yorkshire (see North, South and West
Yorkshire) ; South Humberside is included in Lincolnshire
Isle of Wight J. Stafford, Westering, Moor Lane, Brighstone, Newport, Isle of
Wight P030 4DL

Isles of Scilly D. B. Hunt, Pednbrose, St Mary’s, Isles of Scilly

Kent D. Taylor, 14 Boughton Lane, Loose, Maidstone, Kent. See also London

Lancashire K. G. Spencer, 3 Landseer Close, off Carr Road, Burnley. Lancashire.

Report covers the old county of Lancashire. See also Cheshire and Cumbria
I Leicestershire F. C. Pickering, 16 Portsdown Road, Leicester le2 3RB

234 County and regional recorders

Lincolnshire K. Atkin, 5 Hazel Grove, Louth, Lincolnshire lnii 8ru. Report also
covers South Humberside

London K. C. Osborne, 8 Ellice Road, Oxted, Surrey rh8 opy. The London Natural
History Society’s recording area takes in Greater London and those parts of
Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent and Surrey which fall within a 20-mile
(32.2-km) radius of St Paul’s Cathedral
Merseyside See Cheshire and Lancashire

Norfolk M. J. Seago, 33 Acacia Road, Thorpe St Andrew, Norwich, Norfolk

NR7 OPP

Northamptonshire C. J. Coe, 3 The Orchard, Flore, Northampton NN7 4LH
North, South and West Yorkshire John R. Mather, 44 Aspin Lane, Knaresborough,
North Yorkshire. Report covers the old county of Yorkshire, apart from the
former rural district of Sedbergh which is now included in Cumbria and the
part of Cleveland formerly in Yorkshire. See also Durham
Northumberland B. Galloway, 3 Grosvenor Court, Chapel Park, Westerhope, New-
castle upon Tyne. Report also covers Tyne & Wear north of the Tyne.
Nottinghamshire A. Dobbs, Cloverleigh, Old Main Road, Bulcote, Nottingham
NG14 5GU

Oxfordshire J. M. Campbell, OCC Department of Museum Services, Fletchers
House, Woodstock, Oxford 0x7 isn

Salop C. E. Wright, Larne, Park Avenue, Whitchurch, Salop SY13 ish. Report
covers also that part of Clwyd which was formerly the detached part of Flint-
shire

Somerset Miss E. M. Palmer, Highfield, Sandford Hill, Bridgwater, Somerset
TA5 2AY. Report covers the old county of Somerset, thus including south Avon
South Yorkshire See North, South and West Yorkshire

Staffordshire G. R. Harrison, Bryher, Hatton Green, Hatton, Warwickshire. The
West Midland Bird Report covers Staffordshire, Warwickshire, West Midlands
and the old county of Worcestershire
Suffolk W. H. Payn, Hartest Place, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk IP29 4EQ,

Surrey D. Washington, 15 Bond Gardens, Wallington, Surrey. Report covers the
old Vice-County of Surrey, thus excluding the new District of Spelthome
(containing the Staines group of reservoirs) but including Greater London south
of the Thames as far east as Surrey Docks and New Addington. See also London
Tyne & Wear See Durham and Northumberland
Warwickshire See Staffordshire
West Midlands See Staffordshire
West Sussex See East and West Sussex
West Yorkshire See North, South and West Yorkshire

Wiltshire G. L. Webber, 66 Southbrook Extension, Swindon, Wiltshire SN2 ihg

ISLE OF MAN

Records are collected by the Manx Museum and National Trust,
and edited by Dr J. P. Cullen, Troutbeck, Cronkbourne, Braddan,
Isle of Man, for publication in The Peregrine, which is produced
by the Manx Ornithological Society.

WALES

The annual ‘Welsh Bird Report5, compiled by P. E. Davis and P.
Hope Jones, is published in the twice-yearly journal Nature in Wales.
Reprints are obtainable from D. Miles, 4 Victoria Place, Haverford-
west, Dyfed (price 20p post free) . This presents a summary of records

235

County and regional recorders

in Wales as a whole, but county or regional reports are also published
and recording is mainly on an ‘old county’ basis. The names of the
new counties are, however, used in the following list:

Clwyd ( Flintshire ) R. R. Birch, 8 Thornberry Close, Saughall, Chester
Clwyd ( Denbighshire ) as Gwynedd

Dyfed ( Cardiganshire ) P. E. Davis, Fullbrook Mill, Tregaron, Dyfed
Dyfed ( Carmarthenshire ) D. H. V. Roberts, 6 Ger-y-coed, Pontiets, Llanelli, Dyfed
Dyfed ( Pembrokeshire ) J. W. Donovan, The Burren, Dingle Lane, Crundale, Haver-
fordwest, Dyfed

Gwent E. Sarson, io Knoll Road, Abergavenny, Gwent

Gwynedd P. J. Dare, Tan-yr-allt, Trefriw, Gwynedd ( Annual Report of Cambrian
Ornithological Society)

Mid Glamorgan J. D. Wells, 44 St Davids Way, Porthcawl, Mid Glamorgan
Powys ( Breconshire ) M. E. Massey, Windyridge, Pennorth, Brecon, Powys
Powys ( Montgomeryshire ) R. R. Lovegrove, The Walk Mill, Mochdre, Newtown,
Powys

Powys ( Radnorshire ) See England Hereford & Worcester
South Glamorgan S. F. Young, 34 Northumberland Street, Canton, Cardiff
West Glamorgan H. E. Grenfell, The Woods, 14 Bryn Terrace, Mumbles, Swansea,
West Glamorgan

SCOTLAND

The annual ‘Scottish Bird Report’, compiled by R. H. Dennis, is
published in the quarterly journal Scottish Birds, the editor of
which is D. Bates, Scottish Ornithologists’ Club, 21 Regent Terrace,
Edinburgh EH7 5BT. This presents a summary of records in the
whole of Scotland, but for the time being recording continues to be
on a regional basis (not corresponding to the new administrative
regions), partly by old counties and partly by the ‘faunal areas’
shown on the map at the end of volume 2 of E. V. Baxter and L. J.
Rintoul’s The Birds of Scotland (1953). Note that Skye and the
Hebrides are treated separately from the counties in which they lay.
The recording areas are listed from north to south under old county
names :

Shetland (except Fair Isle) R. J. Tulloch, Rcafirth, Mid Yell, Shetland
Fair Isle R. A. Broad, Bird Observatory, Fair Isle, Shetland
Orkney D. Lea, Easter Sower, Orphir, Orkney KW17 2RE

Outer Hebrides (except St Kilda) W. A. J. Cunningham, 1 o Barony Square, Stornoway,
Isle of Lewis, Western Isles

St Kilda Dr I. D. Pennie, Varkasaig, Scourie, Sutherland IV27 4SZ
Caithness Mrs P. M. Collett, Sandyquoy, East Gills, Scrabster, Caithness KW14
7UH

Sutherland, Ross-shire (except Black Isle) D. Macdonald, Elmbank, Dornoch, Suther-
land

Inverness-shire (within 18 miles of Inverness), Ross-shire (Black Isle only) M. I. Harvey,
Clach Bhan, Loaneckheim, Kiltarlity, Inverness
Inverness-shire (mainland more than 18 miles from Inverness) R. H. Dennis, Landberg,
North Kessock, Inverness ivi ixd

Nairnshire, Morayshire, Banffshire J. Edelsten, 14 South High Street, Portsoy,
Banff AB4 2nt

236 County and regional recorders

Aberdeenshire, north Kincardineshire A. G. Knox, Department of Zoology, University
of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen AB9 oaa and W. Murray, Culterty
Field Station, Newburgh, Aberdeen AB4 oaa
South Kincardineshire, Angus N. K. Atkinson, Dundee Museum, Albert Square,
Dundee ddi ida and G. M. Crichton, 23 Church Street, Brechin, Angus
Perthshire R. L. McMillan, 29 Lewis Place, North Muirton, Perth
Kinross-shire Mrs Bridget Gray, Loch Leven Nature Centre, Vane Farm, Kinross
Isle of May J. M. S. Amott, East Redford House, Redford Road, Edinburgh
eh 1 3 OAS

Fife D. W. Oliver, East Cottage, Balass, Cupar, Fife

Clackmannanshire, east Stirlingshire Dr C. J. Henty, 3 The Broich, Alva, Clack-
mannan

West Lothian, Midlothian, Forth islands ( except May) R. W. J. Smith, 33 Hunter
Terrace, Loanhead, Lothian

East Lothian, Berwickshire K. S. Macgregor, 16 Merchiston Avenue, Edinburgh
EH IO 4NY

Peeblesshire, Roxburghshire, Selkirkshire A. J. Smith, Glenview, Selkirk TD7 41.x
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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 6 June 1976

202

216

D|spersal and causes of death of Buzzards N. Picozzi and
D. Weir

Sound recording and the birdwatcher P. J. Sellar
More examples of the best recent work by British bird-
* TeX‘ by Erk H0Sking a"d ‘ J ' FerSmon-Lees

Notes

219

219

220
222

Grey Heron hunting by swimming J. Driver

Mutual spinning by Red-necked Phalaropes Michael J
Everett

Eyesight of Barn Owl D. S. Bunn

Sand Martins collecting nest material from ground DEM
Peart

222 The pale rump of juvenile Rose-coloured Starlings T A
Walsh

Reviews

223 Handbook of the Birds of India ana Pakistan , vols 7, 8, 9 and
... '9 °y s»l,m Ah and S. Dillon Ripley Stanley Cramp

223 Birds of Prey by Michael Everett R. C. Homes

224 The Dictionary of Birds in Colour by Bruce Campbell P J S
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Letters

TuqUesUOn Priorities Barrie Pearson , and Robert Adams

228 The origin of British Aquatic Warblers B. Pattenden, and
Dr J. T. R. Sharrock

229 Ravens breeding on city buildings Dr Bruce Campbell and
( j . E. S. Turner

230 News and comment Peter Conder

231 February reports D. A. Christie

232 List of county and regional recorders in Britain and Ireland

Hilary Burn drew the Buzzard (page 201)

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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 7

Editorial changes

From 1st July 1976 the editorial address of British Birds will be
59 Curlew Crescent, Bedford MK41 7HY. As the thousands of bird-
watchers who took part in the British Trust for Ornithology/Irish
Wildbird Conservancy Atlas Project will instantly deduce, this
familiar address signifies the appointment of Dr J. T. R. Sharrock
as editor of this journal.

Tim Sharrock relinquished a post as head of agricultural surveys
in 1969, and for the past seven years has been on the staff of the
BTO, as national organiser of the scheme which will culminate
later this year in the publication of The Atlas of Breeding Birds in
Britain and Ireland. In addition to his professional duties, Tim is now
serving his second term on the council of the British Ornithologists’
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regular contributor since 1954, Tim is on record as saying that, as a
castaway on the hypothetical desert island, his choice of ornithologi-
cal journal would be British Birds , since it reflects the whole spectrum
of developments in ornithology here.

Ever since his first visit to Ireland in 1959, Tim Sharrock has had
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Cape Clear Bird Observatory, and editor of The Natural History of
Cape Clear Island (1973), he has been a member of the Irish Records
Panel since its formation. He sees British Birds very much as a journal

237

238 Editorial changes

serving Irish as well as British birdwatchers, since Britain and
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find some of those on the biology of species and avian ecology too
scientific for their taste. We also note that editorials were considered
to be the least interesting of all items.

The present status of the Puffin in Britain and
Ireland

M. P. Harris

INTRODUCTION

This paper details recent counts and estimates of numbers of
Puffins Fratercula arctica in an attempt to determine whether or not
the generally accepted overall decline in numbers of Puffins in
Britain (Cramp el al. 1974) still continues. I have not attempted a
complete survey of old records unless they seem relevant to present
trends. As will be the case for all future assessments of British seabird
populations, the base-line is the survey made in 1960-70 during
‘Operation Seafarer’; unfortunately the large areas of coastline
which had to be counted and the limited manpower resulted in most
colonies being visited only once, so that the actual totals must be
used with great caution. However, it is hoped that a general survey
will show up any marked population trends since 1969-70.

Although among the most numerous and attractive of British
seabirds, Puffins are very difficult to count: they breed on the most
isolated and rugged islands and cliffs, the colonies are large and
many burrows are inaccessible. The most accurate method of
determining trends in population size is to count regularly the
numbers of nesting burrows in areas where this is feasible. Such
counts are only just beginning to yield results (see later) and the
bulk of this survey is based on counts of individual birds.

The older literature includes many eloquent accounts of vast
numbers of Puffins in some areas but many of these old and not-
so-old subjective estimates do not stand up to careful scrutiny.
However, there have been many well documented declines in
numbers within the last hundred years (reviewed by Bannerman
1963, Parslow 1973, Cramp et al. 1974).

The numbers of Puffins seen at a colony in a single day can vary
by a factor of a thousand. Thus, the majority of counts of birds made
during single visits must be gross underestimates of the totals of
birds attached to the colony. Further difficulty arises as it is often
not clear whether a quoted figure is a single count or the maximum
of several counts, whether of all birds at colonies and on the sea
below the cliffs or, as most ‘Seafarer’ counts, only of birds ashore.
It is not possible to convert counts of individuals to breeding pairs,
although maximum counts of birds on the sea just offshore from
colonies prior to breeding sometimes approximate to twice the
number of occupied burrow's. Most counts have been made late in
the season and so include many immatures, which, exceptionally,
breed in their third year of life but normally when one or two years

[Bril. Birds, 69: 239-264. July 1976]

239

240

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

older. Many of these spend several years as pre-breeders at the
colonies, the numbers present depending not only on weather and
feeding conditions at the time of the count but on the breeding
success and post-fledging survival two and more years before. Thus,
even when the problems of counting large numbers of birds have
been overcome, it is difficult to interpret figures. However, such
counts are usually the only information which we have on the
status of this species.

Quadrat counts

Permanently staked quadrats have been set up in seven Scottish
colonies and the numbers of occupied (indicated by hatched egg

Table 1. Counts of occupied burrows of Puffins Fratercula arctica in permanently marked

quadrats

Part of the Faraid Head colony was counted in 1976:
there were 52 occupied burrows where there had been 35 in 1972 and 33 in 1973

Area(ms) Observers

COLONY

Habitat monitored 1971

1972

'973

'974

'975

(pages 258-259)

Hermaness, Unst

Heavily

grazed

378

182

'99

UEA

grass

Fair Isle

Heavily

grazed

grass,

1305

86

65

U7

141

RAB, MPH

some

erosion

St Kilda (Dun i)

Ungrazed

sorrel

270 208

188

200

EKD, SM, MPH

(Dun ii)

Ungrazed

sorrel

4595

"79

1260

SM, MPH

(Hirta)

Heavily

grazed

grass

153 36

34

57

EKD, SM, MPH

Garbh Eilean,

Heavily

Shiants Is.

grazed

grass

1440

532

564

655

CU, MPH

Isle of May (i)

Rabbit-

cropped

grass

396

O

34

53

MPH

(ii)

as (i)

6674

(iii)

Very

284

436

MPH

eroded,
much c

bare earth,
nettles

O

O

200

'53

MPH

Faraid Head,

Grazed

Sutherland

grass

1970

84

95

MPH

24 1

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

shells, droppings or excavations) and unoccupied burrows counted
more or less annually. All the quadrats, usually three or six metres
wide, run from one side of a colony to the other and, since they
include central and peripheral parts of the colony where there are
no burrows, are capable of detecting changes in colony size, as well
as overall numbers and burrow density in the already occupied
areas.

The results (table i) show increases on the Isle of May and the
Shiants and no declines. In only one case, a quadrat deliberately
placed to monitor changes in a very badly eroded bank on the Isle
of May, was the 1975 count meaningfully low'er than earlier ones.
The small difference in the 1971 and 1975 counts from Dun could
be due to a slight difference in area covered, as only one top corner
of a 90 X 3-metre strip running down a colony was permanently
marked in 1971. The Shiants results are from Garbh Eilean where
the quadrats span, both horizontally and vertically, a colony which
declined from 6,910 burrows (counted by line transec^) in 1970 to
5,700 in 1971, 4,390 in 1972 and 3,210 in 1973 (Brooke 1972a, CU).
Though the decline now appears to have been reversed, the rate
of recovery may not be as great as the 16% increase between 1974
and 1975 suggests, as some of the new burrows were among boulders
where it is difficult to count nests.

Burrow density

The density of occupied burrows is slightly higher than indicated
in table 1 as the areas monitored include some places not used by
Puffins; if these are omitted then burrow density is highest at
Hermanes (0.59 per sq m) and lowest on the Isle of May (0.20)
(table 2). In a few places on Dun, burrow density was as high as
1.7 per sq m, though even the densest colonies on that island
averaged only 0.4-0. 6 per sq m. These densities are similar to those
found in many Norwegian colonies but far below those in some
parts of Icelandic and Canadian colonies, which reach 3 to 4 per
sq m and 2.8 per sq m respectively.

Surveys of recent counts

All 1969-70 counts were made during ‘Operation Seafarer’ and the
figures are taken from the cards filled in by the observers. Other
counts are from normal published sources (cited), the Scottish Bird
Report (SBR), the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds/
Seabird Group annual census of some colonies (RSPB), or unpub-
lished sources (initials of observer). The survey was bedevilled by
confusion of the counting units — w’ere they individuals, pairs,
occupied burrows? Even when counts were recorded as pairs they
were in fact often of birds either expressed directly as pairs (many

242 The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

Table 2. Densities of occupied burrows of Puffins Fratercula arctica in various

colonies

It should be noted that maximum densities often occur in very small areas

OCCUPIED BURROWS
per ma

colony Maximum Mean Source

Hermaness, Unst

1. 1 1

o-59

This study

Dun, St Kilda

i-7

0.4-0.6

This study

Soay, St Kilda

?

0.18

Brooke (1972b)

Garbh Eilean, Shiants

1.56

0.52

This study

Eilean Mhuire, Shiants

7>

0.41

Brooke (1972a)

Brownsman, Fame Islands

?

0.69-1.35

M. H. Hornung ( inlitt .)

West Wideopens, Fame Islands

?

0.69-0.99

M. H. Hornung (in litt.)

Inner Fame, Fame Islands

?

0.62-0.66

M. H. Hornung (in litt.)

Side Skerry, Orkney

?

0.85

Budworth & Blackburn
(i975)

North Rona, Outer Isles

0.84

0.49

Evans (1975)

Isle of May, Firth of Forth

0.70

0.20

This study

Fair Isle, Shetfend

0.67

0.1 I

This study

Faraid Head, Sutherland

0.19

0.03-0.06

This study

Westmann Islands, Iceland

?

3.0-4.0

Fridriksson (1975)

Ainov Islands, Russia

?

0.5- I -5

Stokova (1962)

Trenyken, Norway

2.72

?

Brun (1966)

Vaeroy, Norway

0.80

0.01-0.48

Brun (1966)

Lovunden, Norway

?

0.2-0. 4

Myrberget (1959)

Great Island, Newfoundland

2.80

i-3

Nettleship (1972)

Lamba, Faeroe Islands

1.74-1.84

Watson (1969), J. Dyck
(in litt.)

‘Seafarer’ counts), on the assumption that only half the population
is likely to be visible at any time, or calculated as pairs by dividing
the figure by two. I have traced as many counts as possible back to
the original counter and discovered what was actually counted;
but in some cases this has proved impossible and I give the units as
expressed in the report. Throughout this paper I have used individual
birds unless pairs or burrows are specifically mentioned. Counts not
presented in the text are given in an appendix (page 262). Following
Cramp et al. (1974), order 1 is 1 to 9 pairs, order 2 10 to 99, order
3 100-999, order 4 1,000 to 9,999 and order 5 10,000 to 99,999 pairs.

SCOTLAND

Shetland. Venables and Venables (1955) mentioned Puffins as
increasing in Shetland, and a partial survey in 1974 (Harris 1976)
and other counts (see appendix) suggest that the increase continues.

The largest colony is in Hermaness NNR. In June 1965 Dott
(1967) estimated about 9,000 pairs, but this figure was arrived at
largely by impression and there were vast numbers of birds on both
land and sea. Single counts in 1969 and in June 1974 gave 15,000

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

243

and 11,500 birds respectively, but, at least in 1974, these grossly
underestimate the population. In 1974 I visited Hermaness and the
north coast of Unst east of Burra Firth and was impressed by both
the extent of the colonies and the numbers of birds present. Time
did not allow a census but the area may have as many Puffins as
St Kilda, and certainly more than the 50,000 pairs given for the
whole of Shetland by Bourne and Dixon (1974). Between 1973 and

244

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

1974 the number of occupied burrows in transects increased
slightly (table 1). Lighthouse keepers also report an increase in
Puffins on the skerries off the north of Hermaness.

The height and extent of the cliffs at Foula make it virtually
impossible to count Puffins : they were thought to have increased in
the igso’s but numbers declined again in 1962-63 (Jackson 1966);
‘Seafarer’ suggested order 5, probably 30,000 to 40,000 pairs, but
J. Holbourn {in litt.) put the figure at 50,000; Brathay Exploration
Group Report (1971) noted a decrease in one area between 1969
and 1 97 1 5 but islanders thought the species was far more numerous
in 1971. The population is still extremely large and increases have
been noted in some of the smaller colonies (ARM) .

No satisfactory count was made at Sumburgh Head in 1969-70,
but there were 1,750 pairs in 1967 (MC) and local people said that
the colony was declining; in 1974 I estimated 4,500 to 5,500 birds,
and I doubt that the cliffs are suitable for more pairs to breed. There
are three recent counts of birds on Noss, 1,100 in 1969, 1,765 in
1974 and an incomplete count of 2,000+ in 1973 (PKK), but R.
J. Tulloch suggests that the population may be as great as 3,000
pairs. The colony on the Clett of Fetlar was estimated at 1,000 to
2,000 pairs in 1969 and 1970, and there were a further 1,000 pairs
scattered around the rest of the island. Several of the Out Skerries
islands support small colonies, which totalled 296 birds in 1970 and
225 pairs in 1 974 (ISR) . The population on Fair Isle has increased this
century (Williamson 1965), and, considering the difficulties in
counting the area, the 1969 estimate of 15,000 pairs is not mean-
ingfully different from Williamson’s (1965) figure of 20,000 pairs;
both local opinion and the transect burrow counts suggest that the
increase continues (RAB). Apart from 1,000 to 2,000 birds on Uyea,
all the other Shetland colonies are fairly small and the few recent
counts tend to be higher than those in 1969-70.

Orkney. Balfour (1968) thought that the Orkney population had
declined but there is no further evidence for such a change.

About 60,000 pairs and 47,000 occupied burrows were counted on
isolated Sule Skerry in 1967 and 1975 respectively (Stark 1967,
Budworth and Blackburn 1975). Sampling errors and the calculation
of colony area from a small-scale map could easily explain this
difference. The five ha suitable for burrowing are already fully
utilised, so the colony cannot become larger. On Orkney proper,
the main concentrations of Puffins are near St John’s Head (esti-
mated as order 4 in 1969 but extremely difficult to count owing to
the height and aspect of the cliffs), and on Swona, where there were
500 birds in 1969 and 439 in 1974 (KH). Most of the remaining
colonies are small and widely dispersed. More birds have been
reported from Papa Westray, Westray and Copinsay since ‘Seafarer’,

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland 245

and breeding on Gairsay in 1975 probably represented a new
colonisation (AA).

Highland Region. There are colonies on many of the cliffs from the
northern Sutherland-Caithness border eastwards to Ord Point,
with the largest (order 4) colonies at Duncansby Head, Geann
Leathad, near The Neback, actually at the border, and Dunnet
Head; all badly need to be counted as the available figures are little
more than guesses yet total about 20,000 pairs. The population at
Duncansby Head was reported as declining in 1972 and 1973,
while there may have been a general slight increase in birds at the
Caithness colonies in 1974 (SBR). It has been said that the largest
British mainland colony, at Clo Mor (order 5 in 1969), has seriously
declined in the last 20 years (Cramp et al. 1974, SBR); this con-
clusion was, however, only a general impression based on a com-
parison of figures from a two-week stay in 1950 with those of a
single afternoon’s visit in 1971 (IP) and must, therefore, be treated
with reserve. I did not notice any great change between visits in
1959 and 1972, nor had the population obviously altered between
1971 and 1975; it is probably in the region of 25,000 to 50,000 pairs
(JLFP). Puffins breed only at low densities at the eastern end of
Clo Mor near the military gunnery range, despite the availability
of apparently suitable habitat. As Puffins here are disturbed more
than other seabird species during the annual summer bombard-
ments it is conceivable that the colony may have contracted because
of these activities (JLFP). The nearby Faraid Head colony was put
at about 600 pairs in 1969, but a careful count in 1971 showed
i,8oo occupied burrows (Evans 1971). On Handa Island numbers
have probably remained at 450 pairs from 1959 (Dickinson and
Harris i960) to 1974, though only 307 birds were counted in 1970
(SBR). The colony on Am Balg was previously larger than the two
‘Seafarer’ estimates of 125 burrows and 750 pairs, but the timing of
the decline is unknown (Parslow and Bourne 1972). Similarly
obscure is the timing of declines at colonies on the Ascrib Islands and
Fladda-chuain off Skye, whose populations totalled only 250 pairs
in 1969-70. A gradual reduction in numbers on Rhum still con-
tinues, despite an increase in one colony between 1969 and 1971 :
in the 1950’s between 300 and 1,500 pairs bred but by i960 there
were only 100 pairs (Evans and Flower 1967); in 1974 there were
60 pairs on the island (PC). There has, however, been a sustained
increase on the neighbouring island of Canna with maximum
counts of 1,200 birds in 1962, 1,350 in 1971, 1,800 (including two
new colonies) in 1974, and 1,400 in 1975 (Evans and Flower 1967,
AU). The recolonisation of Eigg in about 1926 lasted until at least
1934 but no birds were seen in 1953 (Evans and Flower 1967). The
only counts for Muck were 170, and 60 burrow's plus 20 birds, in

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

246

1963 and 1969 respectively.

Strathclyde Region. All the colonies on the Treshnish Islands have
increased; there were at least 1,863 individuals on Lunga in 1974
(BL) compared with two counts of 650 and 1,673 birds in 1969. A
count of Staffa made from the sea in 1 969 produced only 70 birds,
but there were about 200 and about 250 pairs in 1972 and 1974
respectively (CPA). Following a decline in the early 1900’s, the
Ailsa Craig colony was almost deserted by 1934; an increase to
246 pairs in 1950 (Gibson 1951) was shortlived and the population
was 17 to 20 pairs in 1969, 22 pairs in 1971 (SBR), eight pairs plus
twelve other birds in 1974, and a few more in 1975 (SW). The only
other well established colonies in the area are on Sheep Island and
on Glunimore in the Sanda Group (Gibson 1969 and in litt.).
Glunimore was colonised about 1920, the population reaching a
peak of 200 pairs in 1955 before declining to 125 pairs in 1969 and
150 pairs in 1971. The colony on Sheep Island increased from a few
pairs in the 1920’s to 200 pairs in 1964, before declining again to
100 pairs in 1969 and 120 in 1971. There are also a few on the Mull
of Kintyre — ten pairs in 1956, twelve pairs in 1968, none in 1970,
a few birds in 1971 and 1974 (Gibson 1969), Iona, Jura and Islay.

Western Isles. Several visitors to North Rona in the first half of this
century remarked on the vast numbers of Puffins there, but by the
time of the first count, in 1958, the population numbered only

8.000 pairs (Dennis and Waters 1962). An apparent reduction in
colony area had occurred by 1966 (Robson 1968), and a further
one by 1972 when there were 6,200 pairs (Evans 1975). The decline
in numbers on neighbouring Sula Sgeir between 1932 and 1949
was possibly due to soil erosion (Atkinson 1949) ; in 1972 there were
about 460 pairs (Evans in press). On the Flannan Islands 5,000 out
of the 6,000 individual Puffins counted in 1969 were on Eilean Mor;
in 1975 there were about 4,000 active burrows occupying more
or less the same colony area as in 1969, and many more Puffins
were seen standing on nearby Eilean Tighe (PGH, SM, RP).

St Kilda has probably always held the largest British Puffin
colonies but it is difficult to interpret past counts. Flegg (1972)
has given reasons for supposing a very considerable decline in the
period 1969-71, but this has now slowed down if not stopped on
Dun and Hirta, where transect counts have remained more or less
constant since 1971 (table 1). Preliminary results from 1976 confirm
this. The number of occupied burrows on Dun was estimated at
33,800 in 1969 (GWVB), 7,000 to 20,000 in 1971 (Flegg 1972) and

35.000 to 40,000 in 1975 (MPH, SM), but these estimates were
obtained by slightly different methods and so are not directly
comparable. On Hirta the extent of the colonies has altered little
since 1968 (HEMD, MPH). Brooke (1972b) mapped the colonies

247

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

on Soay and Boreray in 1971 and estimated a maximum of 77,000
occupied burrows on each island. I made short visits to both areas
in 1975 and the colonies were still thriving. The population of the
St Kilda group is probably in the region of 100,000 to 150,000 pairs
and the evidence available suggests that the previous decline has
halted, at least temporarily.

The 1975 count of 5,700 pairs of Puffins on Mingulay (SHS) is
far higher than previous estimates of about 1,500 pairs in 1962
(RJD), 3,379 birds in 1964 and 1,080 pairs in 1969 (Diamond et al.
1965). Puffins on the neighbouring Berneray and Pabbay have not
been counted recently but the former had 330 birds and 273 birds
in 1964 and 1969 respectively, the latter 87 birds in 1964 (Diamond
et al. 1965). Haskeir was not visited during ‘Seafarer’ but there were
about 50 pairs in 1953 (Roberts and Atkinson 1955). Elsewhere in
the Outer Isles the species breeds on Coppay, Gasker and Causamul
but the total population is less than 100 pairs.

The recent decline in numbers on the Shiants has been docu-
mented by Brooke (1972a), although it is not known when it started;
in 1970 there were thought to be about 77,000 occupied burrows,
but the numbers declined by 20% in each of the next two years.
The downward trend appears to have been reversed on Garbh
Eilean (earlier). The colony on nearby Eilean Mhuire crashed from
15,000 pairs in 1970 to 7,000 pairs in 1971, followed by a more
gradual decrease to 5,700 pairs in 1973 (Brooke 1972a, GU); no
counts have been made since but large numbers of birds were
present in May 1975 (CKM) at a time when only non-incubating
adults would have been standing around the colony.

Grampian, Tayside, Fife, Lothian and Border Regions. Relatively
small but increasing numbers of Puffins occur on most suitable
coasts and islands from Troup Head south to St Abbs Head. The
principal mainland colonies are Troup Head, near Downies (about
50 pairs in 1965, about 300 pairs in 1974, RR), Foulsheugh (about
100 birds in 1969, 236 in 1975) and Lud Castle. Much larger
increases and new colonisations have occurred on the islands in the
Firth of Forth (see appendix), the most spectacular on the Isle of
May — from five pairs in 1959 to 2,969 occupied burrows in 1975
(figures of 2,500 pairs in 1969 and 3,000 to 4,000 pairs in 1972,
Eggeling 1974, were inflated by the inclusion of rabbit burrows).
Ringing has shown that part of this increase is due to immigration
of young birds from the Fame Islands.

Dumfries and Galloway Regions. Fewer than ten pairs breed at
Burrow Head, Mull of Galloway and Scar Rock.

ENGLAND

Most southern colonies are mere remnants of once large ones

248 The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

and numbers of birds present are still declining. Colonies in the
north-east are expanding in association with similar changes in
eastern Scotland.

Cumbria. There has been a slight increase in the number of birds
at St Bees Head, from seven in 1969 to 20 in 1975 (JS).

Northumberland. The numbers on the Fame Islands have increased
steadily since the early 1 goo’s (Watt 1951), recent counts of pairs
being 6,800 in 1969, 1 1,336 in 1971, 12,926 in 1973, 13,363 in 1974
and 13,600 in 1975 (MH, NNHS) ; redistribution of the Puffins
between the various islands has occurred because of soil erosion,
caused, at least in part, by the birds themselves (GH). A similar
increase has occurred on Coquet Island, where birds were first seen
ashore in 1962 and the first record of a bird entering a burrow was
in 1964; fish were first recorded being brought ashore in 1966 (JCC).
There were 400 birds in 1969, 300 to 350 burrows in 1971, 350
burrows in 1972, 700 to 800 burrows in 1974 and 635 burrows in
1975 (Dunn 1972, RSPB). The apparent decline from 1974 to 1975
is due to a more rigorous definition of ‘an occupied burrow’ (RG).

Humberside. Numbers of Puffins at Bempton and Flamborough
Head declined between 1906 and 1952, though there was a report
of a slight increase in 1945 (Chislett 1952). In 1969 and 1974 these
colonies held a total of 997 and 2,635 birds respectively. An incom-
plete survey in 1975 found 1,791 birds, where there had been 812
in 1969 and 2,059 in 1974 (RSPB).

Isle of Wight. There has been a steady decrease in numbers since
1923. There were 300 to 350 birds in 1937 (Cohen and Taverner
1972) but the largest recent count was of 20 birds in 1968. A very
few pairs may still breed near the Needles (JHT).

Dorset. Between four and ten pairs still nest at Portland Bill
(ISR). Numbers in the eastern part of the county have gone from
35 pairs in 1964 to 19 pairs in 1974 and 17 pairs in 1975 (Hayson
1975)-

Cornwall. Numbers had decreased greatly on the mainland by
1948 (Ryves 1948), and only 226 birds were seen in 1969. Of these
1x2 were on Lye Rock, where there had been 3,500 birds in 1942
and 200 birds in 1967 (Penhallurick 1969); in 1973 only 24 were
counted on this rock (CBWSR). A decline on the Scilly Isles started
soon after 1908, when about 100,000 birds were noted. There were
still thousands of birds present in 1924, but only 60-100 pairs were
found in 1967 and the population has remained small ever since
(Penhallurick 1969). The latest counts, in 1974, are 53 to 57 pairs
on Annet and 34 elsewhere (Allen 1974).

Devon. On Lundy there were 3,500 pairs in 1939 and 400 pairs in
1953 (Davis 1954), 41 pairs in 1969, 164 birds (with just one seen
carrying food) in 1972 and 100 birds in 1973 (LBO).

2 49

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

Isle of Man. In recent years the Calf of Man colony has increased
from 14 pairs in 1967 to 30 pairs in 1974 and 100 birds in 1975
(CMO). Elsewhere on Man there were about 35 pairs in 1969
(Cullen and Slinn 1975).

WALES

All colonies have declined this century but most populations are now
stable.

Gwynedd. The colony on Ynys Gwylan-fawr was estimated at
450 to 500 pairs in 1958 (Bannerman 1963), 400 pairs in 1966
(RST) and about 500 birds in 1969. It has not been counted since
but there appear to be fewer birds when viewed from the mainland
(RST). In 1961 15 to 20 pairs bred on Ynys Gwylan-fach, but no
birds were seen there in 1968 (BBO). The once-large population on
St Tudwals was thought to be extinct by the early 1950*8, but four
birds were seen offshore in 1967. Occasional pairs regularly seen on
the Great Orme probably breed there (Hope Jones and Dare 1976).

The colony on Puffin Island, Anglesey, has varied greatly over
the years: fewer than 50 pairs in 1903 and 191 1 but 2,000 pairs in
1907 (Forrest 1919), 300 to 400 pairs in i960 (MPH), 100 indivi-
duals in 1969, 14 1 pairs in 1971 (GW), and 400 to 500 birds since
then (RW). In recent years increasing numbers of birds have been
seen at small colonies on the Skerries and near Holyhead (RWA).

Dyfed. In 1946 Buxton and Lockley (1946) estimated 50,000
pairs, but there were only 7,000 pairs in 1963 (DRS) and 1971
(PC). The population is now more or less stable at 5,200 to 6,500
pairs (Birkhead and Ashcroft 1975). Skokholm’s population was
estimated at 40,000 birds breeding in 1930 (Lockley 1953), 5,000
to 10,000 pairs in 1953 (Conder 1953), 6,000 pairs in 1955 (Dickin-
son 1958) and 2,500 pairs in 1969 and 1971. Grassholm was once
among the largest Puffin colonies in Britain (Drane 1894) but the
top of the island collapsed through soil erosion before 1928 (Lockley
1953) and only very few birds are seen now, though some probably
breed. Other colonies, such as St Margaret’s Island, Middleholm,
South and Middle Bishop, total only a few hundred pairs. The
colony on Cardigan Island (25 to 30 pairs in 1924) had died out by
about 1930 (Ingram et al. 1966).

West Glamorgan. A few Puffins frequent Worm’s Head but breed-
ing was last proved in 1963 (RJH).

IRELAND

This population was probably increasing at the end of the last
century but a general decrease was noted between 1925 and the
early 1960’s (Kennedy et al. 1954, Ruttledge 1966). In some colonies
the decline continued until 1969 but may now have stopped.

250

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

Co. Wexford. Numbers on Great Saltee decreased between 1912
and 1930 and, apart from a doubling between 1943 and 1949, this
decrease continued into the 1950’s. A slight increase was detected
during 1960-64, and since 1965 estimates have fluctuated between
400 and 1,050 birds, but there is no significant trend. Neighbouring
Little Saltee held about 25 pairs in 1969. (Details from Cabot 1976.)

Co. Cork. Gape Clear Island had 30 pairs in 1963, 13 pairs in 1967,
and ten to twelve pairs in 1969 and 1975 (Sharrock 1973, KP). In
1970 the colonies on Bull and Cow Rocks were estimated at 200
pairs and order 3 respectively (PGHE).

Co. Kerry. The history of Puffins at the Blasket Island colonies has
been documented by Evans and Lovegrove (1973). The biggest
changes have been on Inishtearaght, whose colony declined from

20.000 to 30,000 pairs in 1968 to 7,500 pairs in 1969 but has since
remained at about this size; and on Great Skellig, where there was
a significant reduction between 1973 and 1975. Soil erosion is
occurring at these and some of the other colonies and declines can
be anticipated. The small numbers breeding on Great Blasket
disappeared between 1933 and 1953. The timing of a reduction on
Little Skellig is not known, though the reason may be the increasing
number of Gannets Sula bassana. Against these losses can be put
small increases on Puffin Island (5,000 to 7,000 pairs between 1967
and 1973) and Inishnabro, the nearest colony to Inishtearaght
( 1 1 6 pairs in 1966, 500 in 1969, 600 in 1973).

Co. Clare. In 1969 646 individuals were seen ashore along the five
km length of the Cliffs of Moher area, but at the time this was
thought to be an underestimate. More recent observations have
suggested probably at least ten times this number (CSL).

Co. Mayo. Two thousand pairs bred at Illaunmaistir in 1966 and
1969 (JK) and about 5,000 birds were seen offshore in 1970 (OJM),
but far fewer birds were recorded in 1975 (CSL). The Bills Rock
colony has not been censused since 1967, when there were 1,900
pairs (Cabot 1967). Clare Island, Stags of Broadhaven and Black-
rock totalled 1,700 pairs in 1954 (PSR) but held far fewer in 1969.

Co. Donegal. There are Puffin colonies on Tory Island (71 1 birds
in 1970), Horn Head (250 birds in 1969) and at Tormore (about

1.000 pairs in 1970) ; small numbers also nest at a few other places.
No Puffins were seen in 1969 at the site of a previous colony at
Aranmore.

Co. Antrim. The main colony, on Rathlin Island, had 2,200 pairs
in 1967, 817 pairs in 1969 (including 300 pairs in one stretch of
cliffs where there had been 1,350 pairs in 1968) and 1,364 pairs
(maximum head count 3,000 to 5,000 birds in June) in 1974 (PSW).
A partial count in 1975 resulted in 1,067 birds where there had been
520 pairs estimated in 1974 (SW). Small numbers nest on Muck

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland 251

Island, The Gobbins, Carrick-a-rede, Sheep Island and Larrybane
(JG, PSW).

Co. Dublin. Colonies on Lambay Island and Ireland’s Eye were
counted from the sea and appeared to have declined to 100 pairs
in 1970 and eight birds in 1969 respectively, representing a tenth of
the 1939 estimates (Lockley 1953).

CHANNEL ISLANDS

Most Puffins nest on Burhou where, following a decline from tens of
thousands of birds in the early 1950’s, the population has remained
stable from 1969 to 1974 at about 1,000 individuals (Dobson 1952,
RB). A similar decline this century and a possible levelling off in
recent years are recorded for Jersey (ten pairs in 1969, 30 to 40 birds
present and 14+ young being fed in 1974, Jones 1975); Herm and
adjacent islets (twelve pairs plus 64 birds in 1969 but fewer since):
and Sark (25 pairs in 1969) (RB).

STATUS ELSEWHERE

Brittany. By far the largest French Puffin colony is at Scpt-Iles,
where there were 10,000 to 15,000 pairs at the end of the last century,
7,000 pairs from 1927 to 1950, then a gradual reduction to 2,500
pairs in 1966. Following the Toney Canyon oil spill in 1967, the
population fell to 400 to 500 pairs in 1969 and remained there until
a further small decline to 350 to 400 pairs in 1973. The other
colonies are at Cap Sizun (two to five pairs 1938 to 1973) ; Prcsqu’ile
de Crozon (60+ pairs in 1930, three to six pairs in 1973) ; Archipel
de Molene (130 pairs in 1930, 30 to 60 in 1967, 12 to 13 in 1973);
Ushant (less than 20 1956-71); Baie de Morlaix (13 to 15 pairs in
1970, 25 pairs in 1975) ; with possibly a couple of pairs at Cap Frehel.
Small numbers previously nested on Archipel d’Houat and Archipel
de Glenan. (Information supplied by Y. Bricn.)

Faeroe Islands. Earlier this century there were large declines,
attributed in several cases to Brown Rats Rattus norvegicus on larger
islands. In recent years, however, the populations appear to be
holding their own; only close to villages have declines been noted,
presumably owing to persecution. There have been two estimates
of the colony at Lamba on western Mykines: 29,000 burrows (1.74
burrows per sq m, Watson 1969) in 1967; but 19,000 pairs in 1972,
mainly because the area of the colony was estimated at only 10,262
sq m, the burrow density being 1.84 per sq m. However, J. Dyck,
who took part in the latter count, doubts that this is a true decline,
rather that it may be due to inaccurate measurements of the area of
the colony. The population is estimated at 400,000 to 1,000,000
pairs (J. Dyck in lilt.).

Iceland. The biggest concentration of Puffin colonies in Iceland is

252 The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

on the Westmann Islands, where the population is estimated at
2 to 3 million birds. From about 1850 until 1870 it declined drasti-
cally (Jonsson 1896) owing to the use of nets spread over burrow
entrances to catch breeding birds. About 1870 this practice was
banned and around 1875 the ‘fleygastong’ (a large type of landing
net catching mainly non-breeding birds flying around the colonies)
was introduced from the Faeroes; an increase in numbers soon
resulted (Jonsson 1896) and the population has probably remained
stable since. The second biggest Puffin area is in the Bay of Breidi-
fjordur in the north-west, where the population seems to have
increased in the last decades, but this is probably a return to former
levels because of less persecution of breeding birds in recent years.

The total population is probably now in the order of 8 to 10
million birds. Lockley (1953) gave 5 million birds for Iceland but
this may well have been an underestimate as it was based on only a
single visit to the Westmann Islands. The overall impression is that
no general decline has taken place in recent years; if there has been
any change it is likely to have been an increase. (Information
supplied by A. Petersen.)

Sweden. During the 1950’s and 1960’s a few pairs bred on two small
islands off the coast of Bohuslan. The last breeding record was of a
single pair in 1970. Since then there have been only a few sight
records of Puffins in that area (S. Hedgren in litt.).

Germany. The Puffin is now extinct, though up to 1835 small
numbers bred on Helgoland.

Norway. The species breeds at 29 sites with a total population esti-
mated at 1 1 million pairs. Over half are on the island of Rost in the
Lofotens and a further quarter at eight other colonies; there is no
firm evidence of any change (Brun 1976).

USSR. Dement’ev et al. (1951) gave the distribution as follows:
‘In USSR, large colony of Puffins — -about 20,000 pairs— inhabits
Ainov Is. Largest colony on Sent Ostrovov Is. is located on Bolshoi
Zelenets I., numbering over 500 pairs. Puffin population on Novaya
Zemlya small — about 70 pairs at Bezymyannaya and Gribovaya
bays. This bird doubtless merits protective measures’. A survey of
the eleven colonies on the Murmansk coast in 1950 put the popu-
lation at 16,244 pairs, whereas in i960 it was 36,000 Puffins (though
whether birds or pairs is not clear). The colony on Ainov Major
and Ainov Minor was put at 20,000 pairs in 1928, 11,000 pairs in
i947j 5j5°° pairs in 1950, 1,500 pairs in 1957, 11,000 pairs in 1958
and 11,980 pairs in i960 (Skokova 1962).

Jan Meyen. The population is small, probably a few hundred
pairs (R. Moss in litt.).

Spitsbergen. The Puffin is nowhere very numerous, breeding in
single pairs or in small colonies numbering not more than a few

253

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

hundred individuals. No estimate is available but, as only 27 colonies
are known, the total population must be small (Lovenskiold 1964).

Bear Island. In 1970 the population was estimated at less than a
few hundred birds (Williams 1971). Apparently it has never been a
numerous species (Lovenskiold 1964).

Greenland. The Puffin has always been a rare bird, never occurring
in large colonies like those in the boreal regions (Salomonsen 1950).
On the west coast colonies are scattered and the total population can
only be a few thousand pairs (details of colonies in Brown et al. 1 975 ) .
On the east, Puffins occur only near Scoresby Sound, but there are
only two records totalling four birds in recent years and no evidence
of nesting (de Korte 1973).

Complete protection was afforded to the species in i960 to pre-
vent the destruction of nest burrows by egg collectors. Since then the
populations on two skerries in the Bay of Disko on the west coast
have increased from 200 and 1 00 pairs to 1 ,000 and 500 pairs respec-
tively (F. Salomonsen in litt.). Further north, although the law is
not strictly enforced, the populations at four colonies, Horse Head,
Kingigtuarssuk Middle, Torqussorssuk and Nordo, changed little
between 1965 and 1974 (PGHE).

Eastern Canada and New England. The centre of the Atlantic Puffin’s
breeding range in North America is along the east coasts of New-
foundland and Labrador. The total population is estimated to be
about 317,000 breeding pairs: 71% nest in four colonies in Widcss

Fig. 2. Breeding distribution of the Puffin Fratercula arctica

254

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

Bay, Newfoundland; 20% in south-east Labrador; and almost all
the rest in the Gulf of St Lawrence (Brown et al. 1975). The little
information available from earlier times suggests that populations
in the Gulf of St Lawrence, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Maine
have declined considerably in the last 50 years, whereas there may
have been a slight but noticeable increase in the colonies off
Labrador. (Information supplied by D. N. Nettleship.)

WORLD POPULATION

The best estimates of the sizes of the various Puffin populations are
given in table 3. The nomenclature and geographic divisions
follow Salomonsen (1944), although there may be no sharp division
between the races in Norway (Pethon 1967). No attempt is made to
have a consistency of units as any conversions would compound the
errors. The actual figures are little more than calculated guesses
and are not meant to be treated literally but rather as orders of
magnitude. However, they do put the various populations into
perspective. The high-arctic, very large-billed race F. a. naumanni
is obviously a rare bird compared with the much smaller southern

Table 3. Estimates of the orders of size of various populations of Puffins

Fratercula arctica

F. a. gratae

F. a. arctica

F. a. naumanni

Details of sources are in the text
Place Probable population size

Scotland

Ireland

England

Wales

Isle of Man

Channel Isles

Brittany

Southern Norway
Faeroe Islands
Western Greenland
Iceland
Canada and
United States
North Norway
Bear Island
Jan Meyen
Russia

North-west Greenland
(Thule area)
Eastern Greenland
Spitz bergen
Novaya Zemlya
( ? this race)

c. i million pairs

20.000- 25,000 pairs
c. 15,000 pairs

8.000- 10,000 pairs
c. 200 birds

c. 1200 birds
400-450 pairs
c. 200 pairs

400.000- 1 ,000,000 pairs
few thousand pairs
8-10 million birds

c. i million pairs
1 J million pairs
few hundred birds
few hundred birds
?20,ooo pairs

six small colonies
very few

5.000- 10,000 birds

few

255

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

race F. a. grabae and the intermediate F. a. arctica. The Iceland
population of the last subspecies must be many times larger than all
other populations combined. Lockley (1953) estimated the total
world population as not less than 500,000 breeding adult F. a.
naumanni, 5,600,000 F. a. arctica and 9,125,000 F. a. grabae, which
gives a total similar to mine. However, this overall agreement is
probably a matter of chance, and some data are so subjective that
little can be gained by more detailed comparisons.

Since the Puffin is probably the commonest seabird in the North
Atlantic, it is odd that the main wintering grounds are still unknown.
Presumably the many millions of birds must be very dispersed
throughout the ocean during the non-breeding season.

PRESENT STATUS IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND

While there have been dramatic decreases in the numbers of
Puffins at many colonies during this century, the present survey
suggests that the overall decline may have halted, at least tem-
porarily. As stressed earlier, care must be taken in the use to which
any individual count is put but, even so, the apparent increases well
outnumber the apparent decreases. This could be an artifact
caused either by recent observers reporting only large counts,
dismissing small counts as having been made on ‘off-days’ when the
birds were not congregating at the colonics; or by the recent counts
being maxima of several counts, whereas older counts, especially
those in ‘Seafarer,’ were one-off estimates. However, many of the
increases have been so large and/or in well-studied colonies that I
think that the trend is genuine. The few recent apparent declines
have been mostly in the small colonies at the southern edge of the
species’ range, for example the Channel Islands, Brittany, southern
England (fig. 3). (On the other side of the Atlantic, the most
southerly populations, in New England, increased steadily from
near-extinction in the early 1900’s but it is not clear whether the
increase has continued after the late 1950’s, Drury 1973.) Against
this the more northerly populations, including those in Scotland,
are flourishing.

A survey of the literature does not allow the construction of even
an approximate timetable of past declines. Even in the best docu-
mented colonies it is impossible to guess either when the decline
started or when the greatest drop in numbers occurred. Many
factors have been implicated in specific declines — increases in
numbers of Great Black-backed Gulls Larus marinus on North Rona
and Annet, of Herring Gulls L. argentatus on Puffin Island, Anglesey,
of Great Skuas Stercorarins skua on Foula, of Gannets on Sula Sgeir,
Rats on Lundy, Shiants and Ailsa Craig, and soil erosion caused by
the birds themselves on Grassholm, parts of the Fame Islands and

256

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

Fig. 3. Recent changes in some British and Irish colonies of Puffins Fratercula

arctica

of the Isle of May (table 1). However, in a few cases all such obvious
causes of decline can be ruled out. The most puzzling instance is
St Kilda. The human inhabitants killed large numbers of Puffins
for food and their feathers yet the Puffin population declined after
the St Kildans evacuated the island in 1930 (Flegg 1972). There are
no Rats on these islands, nor has there been a large enough increase

257

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

in numbers of predatory gulls to explain the reduction. For the past
decline in many British populations there has probably been some
primary common factor responsible, whose effect has been accen-
tuated by the various secondary influences mentioned above.

Despite earlier concern, contamination by pollutants appears not
to be an important cause. Most birds have low levels of toxic
chemicals and heavy metals (Parslow et al. 1972), while many de-
clines took place before pollutants became a serious threat to the
environment. Although there are few quantitative data available,
Puffins appear to suffer less from oil contamination than do other
auks. Lockley (1953) suggested that certain climatic changes
might have resulted in a reduction of the species’ food supply, but
Cramp et al. (1974) thought such changes unlikely to be implicated
in the recent declines in northern Britain. My view, based on studies
continuing on St Kilda, agrees with that of Lockley, that changes in
the marine environment are likely to have affected the Puffin’s food
supply, possibly during the breeding season. Southward et al.
( 1 975) have shown that, despite short term fluctuations approxi-
mating to a six-to-eleven-year cycle, the sea off southern England
is getting colder. The peak sea temperature of a long-term cycle
was reached in the 1940’s or 1950’s, and it has been falling since
about i960. They predicted that this gradual cooling-off should
continue until 1990 or later and will result in increases in the
abundance of cold-water marine species. Indeed, such changes are
already apparent with the return of some fish, such as cod and
haddock, to certain areas. Some British populations of Guillemots
Uria acdge are now increasing (Lloyd 1975, Harris 1976) and it may
not be a coincidence that Puffins also seem to be coming upon
better times.

THE FUTURE

Regular monitoring of Puffin colonics on St Kilda, the Shiants,
Hcrmaness, Faraid Head and the Isle of May is to continue as part
of the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology’s research into the species.
Study plots are also in position on North Rona (PHGE) and the
Flannan Islands (PGH, SM), and other workers are following
colonies on the Blasket Islands, Fame Islands and Skomer. Together
these give a good geographic coverage of the bulk of the British
population, though it could be expanded to include smaller ones.

All these quadrats are in grassy areas, but many birds have their
nest sites out of reach among boulders. Such colonies are sometimes
of considerable size — one on Garbh Eilean, Shiants, has been
estimated at 43,000 pairs (Brooke 1972b) — and it is possible that
population trends there are different from those in grassy areas.
Attempts have been made to estimate the size of these boulder

258 The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

colonies by comparing the numbers of birds seen carrying fish into
the area with similar measurements made at the same time in nearby
grassy sites with a known number of occupied burrows. However,
breeding may be several weeks out of phase in different colonies
and even within a single one (Hornung and Harris in preparation),
and the numbers of loads of fish brought depend on the age of the
young (R. Ashcroft in litt.). Comparisons between colonies, even
those close together, may not be valid unless the breeding seasons
and nesting successes are similar. It is rarely possible to check this,
and unrealistic to expect accurate counts of pairs in boulder areas.

The difficulties of interpreting counts of birds have already been
stressed, but these counts are all we can hope to get in many
colonies where burrows are inaccessible. They are made on an
annual basis in several places, such as Handa and Bempton. To
be of greatest use they should be undertaken several times a year
and comparisons made between the annual maxima in spring or
late summer. The most useful are those made early in the season,
when breeders first return to the colonies and congregate on the
sea below. In most of Britain this is in mid- to late April but in
eastern Scotland the season is three to four weeks earlier. Unfor-
tunately few people visit colonies at this time. The late counts
include breeders and immatures and bear only a complicated and
ill-understood relationship to the number of breeding pairs. How-
ever, if they are made several times a year during approximately
the same weeks, annual comparisons of maxima are still possible.
Whenever counts are made it is imperative to record the time
(evening or very early morning always give the highest counts),
weather conditions and, separately, the numbers of birds on land
and on the water. Actual counts should be expressed as individual
birds, and if any attempt is made to convert to pairs the method
used must be explained in detail.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My thanks arc due to all the observers who made counts during ‘Operation
Seafarer’, to the organisers of the survey who allowed me access to the original
data and who clarified many points, and to those who have continued Puffin-
watching since. The following have supplied advice and records, either directly
or indirectly: A. Anderson, C. P. Anderson, R. W. Arnold, G. W. V. Birnie,
M. Beaman, R. A. Broad, R. Burrow, Cambridge University Shiants Expedition
(CU), M. Carins, S. P. W. Corbett, P. Corkhill, J. C. Coulson, N. Deely, H. E. M.
Dott, R. J. Douthwaite, E. K. Dunn, P. G. H. Evans, J. Greer, J. A. Gibson,
R. Gomes, W. T. Hayson, G. Hickling, M. Hill, K. Hobbs, P. G. Hopkins,
M. K. Hornung, R. J. Howells, L. Johnston, J. Keys, P. K. Kinnear, B. Lawson,
D. Lea, C. S. Lloyd, A. R. Mainwood, O. J. Merne, S. Murray, C. K. Mylnc,
J. L. F. Parslow, T. H. Pearson, I. Pennie, R. Powell, K. Preston, R. Rae, A. D. K.
Ramsey, P. S. Redman, I. S. Robertson, F. R. G. Rountree, D. Saunders, Schools
Hebridean Society, J. Sheldon, D. J. Slinn, R. W. J. Smith, S. J. Sutcliffe, J. H.

I latf -9 ^dult Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia standing on edge of nest
as young eg for food, Denmark. July 1965 (pages 265-271) (photo: lb Trap-Lind)

Plate 30. Adult Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia at nest, Schleswig-Holstein
Germany, June 1970 ( photos : N. W. On). Above, with caterpillar for young two-
three days old (not visible in photograph) ; below, note the whitish markings
on the crown, nape and mantle, a character found in most adult individuals

Plate 31. Above, approaching the nest from within cover, the parent Thrush
Nightingale Luscinia luscinia raises and fans its tail as it bends forward towards
its young. Below, still with a caterpillar in its bill, the adult pauses warily
before releasing the food; both parents feed the young {photo: ,V. W. On)

Plate 32. Above, nest of Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia with the normal
clutch of five eggs, Denmark, June 1966 {photo: lb Trap-Lind) . Below, perched on
a branch, this Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia shows the breast markings
which help distinguish it from the Nightingale L. megarhynchos {photo: N. W. On)

The Puffin in Britain and Ireland 259

Taverner, R. S. Thomas, R. Tulloch, University of East Anglia Exploration
Group (UEA), S. Wanless, P. S. Watson, S. Wolsey, G. Wood.

Many counts are from the Scottish Bird Reports (SBR) published annually
in Scottish Birds, and publications of Aberdeen University Canna Expeditions
(AU), Bardsey Bird Observatory (BBO), Calf of Man Bird Observatory (CMO).
Cornwall Bird Watching Society Report (CBW'S), Edinburgh Ringing Group
(ERG), Hampshire Bird Report (HBR), Lundy Bird Observatory (LBO),
Northumberland, Durham and Newcastle Natural History Society (NNHS),
Portland Bird Observatory (PBO).

Many counts were made as part of the seabird census carried out annually
by the RSPB/Scabird Group. I am grateful to C. S. Lloyd for help in checking
records. Many people assisted in elucidating the status of the Puffin abroad but
this could not have been undertaken without the assistance of Y. Brien, E. Brun.
J. Dyck, A. Gardarsson, S. Hedgren, K. de Korte, R. Moss, D. N. Nettleship,
A. Norrevang, A. Petersen, F. Salomonscn, S. Ulfstrand.

Dr J. Dempster, Dr D. Jenkins and C. S. Lloyd improved the manuscript with
their criticisms.

The study of changes in the status of the Puffin in Britain were financed by
Nature Conservancy Council Research Contract No. F3/03/30.

SUMMARY

The recent overall decline in the British population of Puffins Fratercula arctica
appears to have stopped, at least temporarily. This conclusion is based on detailed
burrow counts at seven Scottish colonies and a survey of published and unpub-
lished data for other British colonies. The few recent apparent declines have
been mostly in the small colonies at the southern edge of the range, such as the
Channel Islands, Brittany, southern England. It is tentatively suggested that il
is not a coincidence that the numbers have stopped declining just when the
temperatures of the seas around Britain have started to fall. Information is also
presented on the numbers of Puffins occurring in other parts of the North Atlantic.
Iceland has more than all other areas combined, while the high-arctic small-billed
race naumanni is a rare bird with a population of 15,000 birds. The Puffin is
probably the commonest seabird in the North Atlantic.

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260 The Puffin in Britain and Ireland

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Appendix. Counts of pairs of or individual {in italics ) Puffins Fratercula arctica at colonies not documented
in the text. Sources can be identified, by initials, in acknowledgements. All 1969-70 counts are from

‘Operation Seafarer’

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Dr M. P. Harris , Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Hill of Brathens, Banchory, Kincardineshire AB3 4BY

Studies of less familiar birds
180 Thrush Nightingale
Norman On

Photographs by Norman Orr and lb Trap- Lind

Plates 2g-$2

The Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia and the Nightingale L.
megarhynchos together form a West Palearctic species group which
provides one example of so-called ‘sibling’ species partnership (i.e.
two species, each perfectly distinct in the biological sense and never
hybridising*, but very difficult to separate in the field). It is believed
that the distinction between the two was caused by geographical
isolation during the last glacial period.

The Thrush Nightingale breeds in boreal, temperate and steppe
climatic zones of cast Europe and west Asia, within limits bounded
approximately by the July isotherms of i6°C in the north and 25°C.
in the south. The most north-westerly breeding sites are in Finland,
southern Sweden, Denmark and Baltic Germany, from where the
westerly boundary runs south-east through Poland, cast Czecho-
slovakia, Hungary, north-east Yugoslavia and Romania. The eastern
distribution extends from this boundary to about the 90CE meridian
in the central USSR (Voous i960). The species is a summer visitor
to these regions, wintering in tropical east Africa, mainly south of
the equator, as far as the Transvaal and Natal. It is a rare vagrant
to Britain where, up to the end of 1975, there have been 28 records
(24 in spring, four in autumn). It is remarkable that before 1965
there were only three accepted reports of the species (15th May 1911,
10th May 1957 and 15th to 17th May 1958 — all on Fair Isle).
Since 1965, however, records have increased dramatically and dur-
ing 1970 alone seven birds were identified. Most occurrences have
been on Fair Isle, but individuals have also appeared in two parts
of Shetland (three), in the Western Isles, in Fife (three), Northum-
berland (three), Yorkshire (two) and Kent. The spring records
range from 8th May to 5th June, and there is one interesting one of
an immature trapped on Fair Isle on 15th June; the earliest autumn
record is on 31st July, and the latest on 2nd October. Since almost
all the British records have occurred in the last ten years, one
wonders whether the increase is real or whether it merely reflects
the greater numbers of observers and the improved efficiency of
recording techniques — particularly by trapping. The western

* Although there is no record of hybridisation in the wild, there is one of a
fertile cross in captivity which produced five young ( Orn . Mber., 51 : 1-4).

[Brit. Birds, 69: 265-271. July 1976]

265

266

Thrush Nightingale studies

extension of the Thrush Nightingale’s range in recent times (see
page 269) may account to some extent for the increase in reports,
but perhaps the second factor is also significant. The Rarities
Committee regard the spring occurrences as ‘evidence of the over-
shooting of Scandinavian adults in late May’ (Smith et at. 1975).

In appearance the Thrush Nightingale is very like the Nightin-
gale; it has the same shape, is the same size of i6| cm (6|in.), its
plumage is superficially the same and its behaviour very similar.
However, given a clear view and good light, the spotted breast—
particularly the sides — provides the best identification feature
(plate 32b). In my experience, this spotting is always present to some
degree, although in some individuals the breast might be better
described as mottled, scaly or barred rather than spotted. Because
it is often difficult to obtain more than a succession of fleeting
glimpses of this bird, it might require quite a long period of watching
to establish the identity, beyond doubt, by breast markings alone.
There are other identification features, however. The upperparts
(except uppertail coverts) lack the rufous tinge of the Nightingale’s
plumage, and have been variously described in the literature as
earth-brown, olive-brown or grey-brown. Of the illustrations
in the standard works, that in The Hamlyn Guide is, in my opinion,
the most helpful in terms of colour. Usually the upperparts look
darker than the Nightingale’s, but this is not reliable because degrees
of shade are so dependent upon ambient, light conditions. However,
the breast and belly (but not the throat) of the Thrush Nightingale
invariably look darker than the corresponding underparts of the
Nightingale, and most individuals have whitish flecks on the crown,
nape and mantle. Some authorities maintain that the tail of the
Thrush Nightingale is significantly less chestnut in colour than that
of its sibling partner, but I would never regard this as a usable field
identification feature. I have more than once been able to observe
both birds within my field of view at one and the same time and
have always found it impossible to detect any real difference in tail
coloration. However, the greyer, non-rufous back and wings of the
Thrush Nightingale have usually been quite obvious, as has also
(an important point) the contrast in colour between the back/wings
and the tail. It must be emphasised, though, that field identification
by appearance alone can be very difficult.

When examined in the hand an infallible identification feature is
the difference in wing-formula from that of the Nightingale (well
illustrated in The Handbook but The Hamlyn Guide is in error). The
Thrush Nightingale has a short first primary (the Nightingale’s
first primary is longer than the wing coverts) ; the second primary
is longer than the fourth (it is shorter in the Nightingale) ; only the
third primary is emarginated (the Nightingale’s fourth is also

267

Thrush Nightingale studies
emarginated).

The nestlings and juveniles are virtually indistinguishable from
those of the Nightingale (plate 29), although the greyer, less rufous
upperparts of young Thrush Nightingales would probably become
increasingly obvious with age. I have seen very little of the juveniles
after their first moult, which occurs shortly after they leave the nest,
at about 18 days old (Berger 1967). Adults moult just before depart-
ing on their migration in late August.

Although identification of the Thrush Nightingale by appearance
is difficult, identification by voice is altogether a different matter.
There is a strong similarity between the songs of the two species but
the differences are quite distinct and can be quickly learned by any
observer possessing even a relatively insensitive ‘ear’. There has
been at least one interesting attempt to record the song in musical
notation (Stadler 1958, 1959), but it has been more usual for authors
to give phonetic interpretations or prose descriptions, although a
few of the latter in the standard works of reference are somewhat
contradictory, for example: ‘the song is altogether more solemn and
more beautiful than the Nightingale’s’ ( The Handbook) ; ‘the song[s are]
equally musical ’ (the Field Guide ); ‘song resembles that of the Night-
ingale ... but [if] less musical' ( The Hamlyn Guide) (my italics).
Some rather more objective and helpful characteristics of the song
are that the Thrush Nightingale’s utterances are even louder and
more powerful than the Nightingale’s, which is often enough to
differentiate between them. It has considerable carrying power
and when the bird sings its whole frame vibrates with energy and
the chestnut tail shivers (the Nightingale, of course, performs in
like manner). Secondly, the Nightingale’s familiar, flute-like
‘pew-pew-pew’ crescendo is never part of the Thrush Nightingale’s
song; the latter species can be immediately ruled out on hearing this
phrase. Thirdly, the powerful ‘jug-jug-jug’ occurs regularly in both
songs, but the Thrush Nightingale’s version is invariably much
stronger and has a character of its own; again, it can be diagnostic.
The most important characteristic of all, but one which, as far as I
know, has never been described (surprisingly, as it is a completely
diagnostic feature of the Thrush Nightingale’s song), is a distinctive,
frequently recurring, trisyllabic phrase, which may be written
phonetically as ‘chiddy-ock’ and is usually repeated two or three
times in succession. I first identified this phrase some 19 years ago
and have since pointed it out to several ornithologists who knew the
Thrush Nightingale well. All of them later confirmed how valuable
it had proved because it is never included in the Nightingale’s
repertoire. I strongly recommend, therefore, that anyone wishing
to learn the voice of the Thrush Nightingale listens to a recording of
the song and familiarises himself with this phrase. I have made many

268 Thrush Nightingale studies

magnetic tape recordings of the song and have listed one in the
references (Orr 1969).

I have studied the Thrush Nightingale in regions of West
Germany where both siblings occur together, and frequently been
able to listen to the two songs simultaneously and make comparisons.
The Thrush Nightingale, like the Nightingale, sings during the night
as well as by day and often gives its best performances between 2.0
and 4.0 a.m. It seems less susceptible to inclement weather than its
counterpart and will sometimes continue to sing after a drop in
temperature has caused the Nightingale to give up. The song
period is short, commencing (in north-west Germany) during
the second week of May, and finishing before the end of June, but
song has also been heard in the winter quarters and there are several
accounts of this in the literature. Call notes include an alarm croak,
uttered when disturbed at the nest with young (rarely with eggs) ; a
rather high pitched ‘wheet’ or ‘seep’, somewhat reminiscent of the
call of the Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs ; and a loud ‘tak’. All are very
like the corresponding notes of the Nightingale.

Thrush Nightingales arrive at their northern breeding stations at
the end of April or beginning of May — in Sweden the majority turn
up between 6th and 15th of the latter month (Rendahl 1961) —
and they leave again for Africa in August or September. They are
single-brooded. Nesting commences shortly after the birds settle in
their breeding territories and most have begun laying before the
end of May. Incubation usually starts during the first few days of
June in north-west Germany and is for a period of 13 days, most
eggs hatching during the second half of that month. The young
leave the nest eleven days later, although they are not fully fledged
until about three weeks after hatching (Weber 1955). The hen
seems to do all the incubating and she sits very tightly. When she
does leave, she usually slips off quietly and runs from the nest,
before flying low. Both parents take part in feeding the young and at
the later stages of fledging they often become very bold indeed. The
commonest clutch is five eggs, which for all practical purposes are
identical in colour, shape and size with the Nightingale’s, olive-
green or olive-brown all over (plate 32a).

The typical nesting habitat of the Thrush Nightingale is a damp,
deciduous copse of alder Aims glutinosa or birch Betula, including
gardens if they provide this type of cover. It is frequently believed
that there is a clear-cut distinction in habitat preference between
the Nightingale and Thrush Nightingale in regions where they
occur together, the former supposedly choosing dry situations and
the latter preferring moist sites. This concept may be generally
correct over the entire breeding range but it certainly cannot be
regarded as an infallible guide to nesting sites in north-west Ger-

Thrush Nightingale studies 269

many, where the two species often breed in almost identical situa-
tions. The Thrush Nightingale’s nest, however, is almost always
within about 20 metres of water and, indeed, is sometimes as close
as 5 metres or so to a lake edge. On the other hand, I knew a regular
site which was about 300 metres from the nearest water, in a perfectly
dry situation.

The nest is bulky, like the Nightingale’s, and is almost always on
the ground. Normally it has a thick pad of leaves as a base, the cup
being constructed of dead grass, leaves and bents which sometimes
include aquatic vegetation such as Phragrnites and Iris pseudacorus ;
this is lined with finer grasses. It is perhaps worthy of note that all
the nests I have found have been enclosed between dead branches
or largish sticks lying on the ground (plates 30, 31). Also, all but one
of the sites were screened from the sky by an overhead canopy of
foliage, whereas the Nightingale’s nest is quite frequently placed in
the open. The nest of the Thrush Nightingale is sometimes fairly
difficult to find, at least during the eggs stage, although not all are
well concealed and, if anything, it is easier to locate than the
Nightingale’s and certainly not in the same category of difficulty as
that of the closely related White-spotted Bluethroat L. svecica
cyanecula, for example, which often nests in ostensibly the same type
of situations.

During this century, and particularly since about 1940, the
Thrush Nightingale has extended its breeding range north and
west. Until the 18th century it had been found in the neighbourhood
of Stockholm, but by the middle of the 19th had disappeared from
that region and did not return until about 70 years later. Since then
there has been a continued expansion of its range north and west,
and its numbers appear to have increased steadily (Karvic 1952,
Bjarvall 1965, Elofson 1968). It has been reported singing in Nor-
way during the present decade (Mork 1968).

The accompanying map (fig. 1) shows the distribution of the
Thrush Nightingale and Nightingale in the West German pro-
vince of Schleswig-Holstein, the region in which I have studied the
species. This is a particularly interesting area for such a study as it
is the only part of western Europe where the ranges of the two
overlap. The map also shows the western advance in breeding
range of the Thrush Nightingale during 1964-74, and I am very-
grateful to Dr G. A. J. Schmidt, of Kiel, for providing the infor-
mation on distribution for the last of these years, although he
emphasises that the limit shown is only an approximate one (at
my suggestion he kindly initiated a survey of singing males during
the 1974 breeding season and collated the resulting observations).
The map information for 1964 is after Beckmann (1964). In the
vicinity of Hamburg the western advance appears to have been

270

Thrush Nightingale studies

+ + + Northern limit of range of Nightingale in 1964
000000 Estimated western limit of Thrush Nightingale in 1974

0—0—0—

Approximate further extension of Thrush Nightingale in south
in 1974

Fig. 1 . Breeding distribution of Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia and Nightingale
L. megarhynchos in Schleswig-Holstein

271

Thrush Nightingale studies

particularly marked (Leuschner 1974).

One study area of mine is a compact zone of approximately 1 1 ha,
where there have been twelve regular breeding sites of the Thrush
Nightingale and/or the Nightingale since before the mid i95o’s.
Although not all sites are occupied every year, at least ten usually
are. When I first came to know the area, in 1957, there were
rather fewer Thrush Nightingales than Nightingales breeding there,
but, by the late 1960’s, the Thrush Nightingale outnumbered the
Nightingale by approximately three to one. In very recent years,
however, there has been a reversal in this trend: in 1973 the numbers
breeding were seven Thrush Nightingales and four Nightingales;
and, in 1975, four Thrush Nightingales and six Nightingales. The
significance of this change is difficult to appraise at present, but it
may represent only a cyclic fluctuation.

REFERENCES

Beckmann, K.. O. 1964. Die Vogelwell Schleswig- Holsteins. Neumiinster.

Bercer, W. 1967. ‘Die Mauser des Sprossers’. J. Orn, 108: 320-327.

Bjarvall, A. 1965. ‘The Thrush Nightingale in the neighbourhood of Stockholm’.
Vdr Fdgelvarld, 23 : 294-300.

Bruun, B. 1970. The Hamlyn Guide to Birds of Britain and Europe. Feltham.
Elofson, O. 1968. ‘Bird observations from the province of Medelpad’. Vdr
Fdgelvarld, 27: 346-348.

Grote, H. 1936. ‘Die VVinterquarticrc von Nachtigall und Sprosser’. Orn.
A Iber., 44: 97-100.

Karvic, N. G. 1952. ‘The Thrush Nightingale in Dalsland’. Vdr Fdgelvarld, 1 1 : 80.
Leuschner, C. 1974. ‘Der Sprosser irn Hamburger Raum’. Hamburger Avifaun.
Beilrdge, 12: 27-36.

Mork, J. 1968. ‘Nattergal p& Sunnmore’. Sterna, 8: 194, 202.

Niethammkr, J. 1937. Handbuch der Deutschen Vogelkunde. Leipzig.

Orr, N. \V. 1969. ‘Song of Thrush Nightingale’. Tape recording, British Library
of Wildlife Sounds, 29 Exhibition Road, London SW7.

Peterson, R., Mountfort, G., and Hollom, P. A. D. 1954. .-1 Field Guide to the
Birds of Britain and Europe. London.

Rendahl, H. 1961. 'Die Friihingsankunft des Sprossers in Schwcden’. Vogelwarte,
20: 282-287.

Smith, F. R., et al. 1975. ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1974’. Brit.
Birds, 68: 324.

St adler, H. 1958 and 1959. ‘Das Lied von Nachtigall und Sprosser’. Lotus, 9-10:
196-207; 1 1 : 131-139.

Voous, K. H. i960. Atlas of European Birds. London.

Weber, H. 1955. ‘Zur Verbreitung von Nachtigall und Sprosser in Mecklenburg
1954’. J. Orn., 96: 207-209.

Witherby, H. F., et al. 1938. The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol 2.

N. W. Orr, 4 Denham Drive, Christchurch, Dorset

Notes

Behaviour of injured Common Tern At Vatster, Yell,
Shetland, on 21st July 1973, a day of strong northerly winds, I
saw a Common Tern Sterna hirundo sitting in a field of cut hay
below an electricity cable which the tern had presumably hit. The
bird was unable to fly. When other terns passed overhead it called
loudly and occasionally a tern carrying food would alight; this
could have been the same bird each time or different birds. For
about ten minutes the newcomer stood near the injured bird, which
called plaintively and made soliciting gestures. Eventually the
injured tern managed to struggle near enough to the other to snatch
the fish. Having swallowed the fish the tern displayed further
soliciting movements which induced the visitor to mount and
attempt coition before flying away.

The routine was observed three or four times. On the last occasion,
in the evening of 22nd July, the injured bird was obviously very
weak and, after obtaining food, following a long wait, it allowed
the visitor to mount. After about two minutes of treading, the
visitor flew off and did not return. Early the next day, which was
fine and warm, the injured tern was still in the field but it dis-
appeared later and was not seen again. David Merrie

West Faerwood, Dollar, Clackmannanshire

Little Owl flying at Dunlin On 7th January 1975, at Walney
Island, Cumbria, I was watching a group of feeding Dunlins Calidris
alpina when suddenly a Little Owl Athene noctua emerged from
behind a large tide-stranded tree trunk. The owl flew low at the
Dunlins and seemed to strike at them with its talons, but caught
nothing. I saw what I took to be the same bird repeat the process
on gth January, again without success. On the morning of nth
January, however, I found the decapitated body of a Turnstone
Arenaria interpres beneath the tree trunk. On this evidence I surmise
that the Little Owl was including small waders in its diet, although
I failed to locate any pellets. Ron Freethy

75 Lower Manor Lane, Burnley, Lancashire bb i 2 oeb

Piratical Short-eared Owl On 17 th November 1974, at Needs
Oar, Hampshire, on an area of rough grassland, I was watching a
Stoat Mustela erminea which was carrying a small mammal. Suddenly
a Short-eared Owl Asio Jlammeus appeared and dived at the Stoat,
which dropped its prey. The Stoat stood on its hind feet and
retaliated but the owl snatched up the prey in its talons and flew
off. C. R. Wood

6 Laurel Close, St Leonards, near Ringwood, Hampshire

272

Notes

273

Swallows and House Martins singing from the ground

With reference to R. W. Robson’s note on Swallows Hirundo rustica
singing from the ground (Brit. Birds, 68: 77), I have observed this
myself on a nearby cricket pitch. During the summers of 1973 and
1974, in showery weather, I noticed both Swallows and House
Martins Delichon urbica singing between showers on the pitch itself
and on the short grass of the outfield. J. P. Dawson

Altrincham Road, Wilmslow, Cheshire SKg 5NH

Carrion Crows submerging to catch fish In early June 1973
I witnessed a pair of Carrion Crows Corvus corone plunging into the
River Severn at Shrewsbury, Salop, to catch fish. One crow jumped
feet first from a concrete ledge into the water and remained totally
immersed for a few seconds before reappearing with a fish in its
bill. The second crow received the captured fish and dashed it
several times on the ledge. The dead fish was then taken to some
young crows perched on the roof of a nearby building. The whole
operation lasted about 20 minutes and was repeated several times,
each time successfully. The crows took turns in the fishing and
killing operations. John Hughes

6 Park Road, Stalbridge, Sturminster Newton, Dorset

There are many instances of Carrion Crows taking fish and other
food from water, for example Brit. Birds, 40: 158, 245; 41: 278;
44: 323; 49: 91, but this observation is exceptional. The success
rate was high even for terns Sterna or kingfishers (Alccdinidae) while
the fact that two crows should have learned to plunge right under
water is very remarkable. Eds

Aggression between female Chaffinches On 20th March
1973, while walking along a canal bank near Brecon, Powys, ray
attention was drawn to a squabble between two birds in a tree.
The birds fell to the ground, where they continued to hold and
peck each other. They proved to be female Chaffinches Fringilla
coelebs and they were watched and followed by a passive male
which stood within one metre of them with upright stance and
erected crest. One female eventually extricated herself and was
chased out of view. I am unable to find any reference to aggression
between female passerines of the same species in the literature
which is available to me. Duncan Brown

Gilwen, Dorlangoch, Brecon, Powys

The females of many passerines, for example Blackbirds Turdus
merula and Canaries Scrinus canarius, are known to fight in sexual
and/or nest site contexts, although the literature does seem scarce on
this behaviour. Eds

274

Notes

House Sparrows pursuing other species Almost a century ago,
Richard Jefferies (1885, The Open Air) referred to Rooks Corvus
frugilegus being pursued by House Sparrows Passer domesticus.
Additional observations involving other passerines were contributed
by F. Finn (1911, Talks about Birds), D. Goodwin (Brit. Birds, 42:
64) and Dr K. E. L. Simmons (Brit. Birds, 44: 369-372), but all these
left a number of questions unanswered and I felt that the subject
deserved further study. Therefore, from 1st November 1967 to
31st October 1974 I kept a record of all pursuit incidents witnessed
at Burnley, Lancashire, and present the following results:

1. The behaviour follows a seasonal pattern, the number of
observed incidents per month being:

JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC

14 32 30 20 12 8 11 1 2 17 14 12

This pattern closely resembles that for House Sparrow communal
displays (cf graph in D. Summers-Smith, 1963, The House Sparrow :

63).

2. Females seldom participate: I recorded males 40 times but a
female only once (29th February 1972).

3. The typical chase starts suddenly, when the victim takes off
from a point close to where the sparrow is perched; it may be
sustained for some distance, and the pursued bird is genuinely
alarmed, although the sparrow’s hostile behaviour stops when the
victim alights. There is definitely no attempt to dislodge feathers
for nest material.

4. The victimised species are those which live near the sparrows,
and the breakdown of pursuits per species is as follow's: Feral
Pigeon Columba livia 81 ; Starling Sturnus vulgaris 80; Mistle Thrush
Turdus viscivorus 4; Blackbird T. merula 3; Jackdaw Corvus monedula
2 ; Song Thrush T. philomelos 1 ; Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs 1 ; Rook 1 .

5. Chases may occur at any time of day, but possibly more often
in the morning and during mild weather.

The behaviour seems purposeless, but perhaps stems from
aggressive nervousness at those times when the males’ sexual/
territorial instincts are at their most intense. K. G. Spencer
3 Landseer Close, off Carr Road, Burnley, Lancashire

Reviews

The Book of Birds: Five Centuries of Bird Illustration. By
A. M. Lysaght. Phaidon Press, London, 1975. 208 pages; 40
illustrations in colour; 102 in monochrome. £20 (in slip case).

The bird illustrations here presented are largely antiquarian in
character. Introducing her subject the author discusses birdlore,
anciently evolved, with its omens, symbols, myths and magic
extending into historical times. True and fabulous species are
marshalled in roles that range from the sinister to the ecstatic.
The introduction concludes with a brief account of the men who
advanced the study of birds in the centuries between the classifi-
cation of Aristotle and the sunburst of 19th-century ornithological
splendour.

One pleasure of this book lies in its size and format. The plates,
on white art paper, face notes printed on pale grey cartridge, the
interleaving providing a pleasant contrast to hand and eye. The
typography throughout its faultless. Choice of illustrations from so
vast a field was reduced to selecting only from sources available
in Britain. The plates are splendidly printed though half-tone, used
throughout, does not always deal fairly with originals in line;
woodcuts in reduction, for example, lose something of their ‘edge’.
The illustrations begin with manuscript drawings and lead on to
the first crude woodblocks where myth and fable are contrasted
with the abler ornithology of Gesner and his contemporaries. As
printing improved, more fluent and detailed techniques coupled
with the growth of scientific enquiry led to pictures in greater
variety of styles, content and knowledge. Since even these illus-
trations were made from ill-prepared skins, however, there is often
a macabre ‘jizz’ to the birds, though much pictorial charm. This
section concludes with a few stylish examples from the 19th century.

The colour plates cover broadly the 150 years before 1900.
Among the most splendid are works by Wolf, Gould and Audubon ;
many less famous are deservedly represented, though some with
more than one work at no gain aesthetically. With colour printing
of this quality it is regrettable that in five plates some portion of
the bird — tail, wingtip, even crown — is cut off, unnecessarily so
when evidence within the painting is studied. Notes to each plate
give source and something of the history of the work; for some
exotic species even a little basic ornithology is included. There is
a bibliography of close on 140 entries and an index.

For the ornithologist this book contains many delights, portraying
the historical search for truth in nature with considerable scholar-
ship. The curiosities, felicities and aesthetic pleasures in the collec-
tion cannot be comprehensive; some artists are omitted or poorly

275

Reviews

276

treated, others treated too well. While it is more than a book for
the coffee table its price must put it among the luxuries on the
library shelf. Leslie Baker

A Guide to the Birds of Malta. By J. Sultana, C. Gauci and
M. Beaman. Malta Ornithological Society, PO Box 498,
Valletta, Malta, 1976. 191 pages; 4 pages of black-and-white
photographs; numerous line-drawings. £3.00 (paperback

This guide is particularly welcome because it is written and pub-
lished by the Malta Ornithological Society and is based on their
own collected records. It is time that the efforts of the MOS to
combat what Dr W. R. P. Bourne in his foreword calls ‘one of the
worst scandals in Europe’ should receive some acknowledgement.
Malta, like Italy in a way, has been a blot, not only because the
only preoccupation of so many of Malta’s citizens has been the
taking, killing and stuffing of vast numbers of wild birds that visit
or are resident on the island, but because comparatively little help
has been given to it by better developed countries. The authors
have generously acknowledged the help of some, but we have not
done enough yet.

The book describes concisely the climate, geology and geography
of this small archipelago with a limestone dominated landscape.
The main vegetation types are forest, chiefly Aleppo pines ; maquis ;
garigue; valley bottoms which in winter and spring are very fertile
and offer birds shelter; marshes; agricultural areas with walls; and
the sea cliffs, some of which rise to 46 metres ( 1 50 ft) .

Of the 346 species recorded on Malta only 18 breed, and of
these only 13 are resident. The authors comment that small isolated
islands tend to have impoverished resident avifaunas, but here the
paucity of species is decreased further because of the scarcity of
water and of suitable habitats and by relentless persecution. Malta
has only three breeding seabirds, all Procellariiformes, which, of
course, reflects the low numbers of seabirds in the Mediterranean.
There have been some changes in status; almost all the larger
breeding species have declined since the 19th century and the
Stone Curlew and Jackdaw have recently become extinct as a
result of human persecution. On the other hand, some warblers have
established themselves — Sardinian, Cetti’s and Fan-tailed.

Migration dominates the ornithological year and the islands
receive a representative sample of broad-front migration across the
Mediterranean. The main systematic list summarises the status of
each species for which data have been available over the years and
discusses the validity of some of the records, and as a result a number
of species which have been included in previous lists have been

Reviews

277

excluded. This book is essential to a visitor interested in the birds
of Malta, and to anyone interested in the avifauna of the Mediter-
ranean region and migration in this area. The MOS is to be con-
gratulated on the production of this book, which must be the authori-
tative list for some time to come. Peter Conder

Letter

Proof of breeding In his summary of 1973 records of the Black
Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros (Brit. Birds, 69: 9-15), R- S. R. Fitter
wrote (p. 12) : ‘Breeding was proved in 15 counties . . . and Orkney
(Copinsay), for the first time ever in Scotland.’ But on page 15
under Scotland we read: ‘A female sat on a nest containing infertile
eggs on Copinsay . . . No male was ever seen. This constitutes the
first nesting, if not the first breeding record, for Scotland.’ It also
seems to call for some definition of ‘breeding’ in respect of egg-
laying animals. The several meanings given in the Concise Oxford
Dictionary and the Penguin English Dictionary all to me imply the
existence of an embryo, if not its successful rearing, though only
COD actually gives ‘cherish in womb or egg’.

I then looked up two references to another famous record of this
kind, the laying of a clutch of eggs by a Bluethroat Luscinia svecica
in Strathspey in 1968. In The Status of Birds in Britain and Ireland
(1971, BOU) I read (p. 209): ‘One record: a pair bred unsuccess-
fully in Scotland in June 1968; only the female was seen’. This
suggests another interpretation; and how was the existence of a
male even inferred? The eggs were eaten by a predator and I do
not think that their fertility was ever established. The legend to
the map on page 255 of J. L. F. Parslow’s Breeding Birds of Britain
and Ireland (1973) reads: ‘First and only breeding record, Inverness
1968’, which seems to take us back to square one. A ruling needs
to be given, because in the Atlas the presence of an egg also consti-
tuted‘proof of breeding’. Bruce Campbell

West End Barn, Wootton, Woodstock, Oxford 0x7 idl

News and comment Peter Conder

The Swale National Nature Reserve, Kent The Nature Conservancy Council
has purchased about 1 13 ha (278 acres) consisting mainly of coastal grazing marsh
and saltings together with various fleets, dykes and sea walls. The reserve lies on
the north side of the Swale estuary just over one km from the eastern tip of the Isle

News and comment

278

of Sheppey. It forms part of the large complex known as the North Kent Marshes
which is recognised as a wetland of international importance. These habitats are
notable for their marshland birds. Breeding species include Mallard, Shoveler,
Pochard, Shelduck, Redshank, Lapwing, Meadow Pipit and Yellow Wagtail.
During winter many wildfowl and waders feed and roost on the reserve, especially
Teal, Wigeon, Redshank, Curlew and Dunlin, and occasionally Brent Geese and
White-fronted Geese. Short-eared Owls, Hen Harriers and Rough-legged Buzzards
are also usual winter visitors. Many of the marshes in north Kent are now being
subjected to improved drainage, but retention of grazing marsh and of high water
levels is very important for the marshland birds. To maintain ideal and varied
habitats the NCC will also continue to graze the reserve with cattle and sheep.
Public access is restricted to the public footpath which crosses the reserve along the
sea wall. A permit is necessary to visit other parts of the reserve. There is a full-
time warden but all enquiries should be sent to : The Regional Officer (South-East),
Nature Conservancy Council, Zealds, Church Street, Wye, Ashford, Kent TN25

5BW.

Young birdwatchers buy seabird reserve Thanks entirely to the efforts of
young birdwatchers, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has acquired a
new reserve — a seabird cliff in Scotland.

The reserve, at Fowlsheugh, south of Stonehaven in Kincardine, has cost £5,300
and the money has been raised by members of the Young Ornithologists’ Club
(YOC) as part of their contribution to the Society’s ‘Save a Place for Birds’ appeal
to raise money to buy bird reserves. Covering 2^ km of sheer 60-metre cliff, the
reserve is one of mainland Britain’s most impressive seabird colonies. From April
to July the cliff teems with thousands of Guillemots, Kittiwakes, Razorbills,
Fulmars and Puffins. All this birdlife lies within a few minutes’ walk from a busy
main road.

Nine kilometres of danger Great Crested Grebe, Gadwall, Moorhen, Herring
Gull, Tawny Owl, Mistle Thrush, Blackbird, Stonechat, Robin and Reed Bunting
— all were found dead, killed by fishing line. Also, two Moorhens, two Black-
headed Gulls, several Mute Swans and a Gannet were found severely injured by
discarded fishing line or fishing hooks. These are just some of the horrifying facts
that came to light after YOC’s project, reported in Bird Life, to find and destroy
all discarded fishing line during the last coarse fishing season. The total length
destroyed was 9.1 kilometres (5.6 miles). This information is being sent to the
editors of angling papers in the hope that they can make fishermen aware of this
great threat to birdlife.

The fact that nylon fishing line ensnares birds along river banks has been known
for some time, but I think that this YOC study gives the first quantitative infor-
mation that I have seen on the size of the problem. Fishing club officials have
warned their members about it and the RSPCA have produced a poster urging
fishermen to take their unwanted line home with them. It is probably the un-
clubable fisherman who is causing the problem, and it is likely that the only answer
lies in an approach to the individuals actually seen discarding line.

A similar problem of which we know too little is the hazard to Gannets caused
by discarded polypropalene, of which modern fishing nets are made. This synthetic
material, thrown into the sea by trawlers and drifters when nets are damaged, is
picked up and brought as nesting material to the nest by Gannets. Many young
Gannets have been caught up in it and have died on their nests.

12th Bulletin of the ICBP This bulletin records the activities of the International
Council for Bird Preservation between 1970 and 1974, and includes reports on the
European Continental Section ICBP in Mamaia, Romania, 1972; the XVI

News and comment

279

World Conference ICBP held in Canberra, Australia; and also a report on the
symposium on the international trade in live birds, which was also held in
Canberra at the time of the World Congress. Furthermore there are a wide range
of reports and papers on problems of bird protection, whether involving endangered
species or special problems such as pesticides, birds and the environment, oil
pollution at sea and so on. All in all it is a very comprehensive survey of what the
ICBP has been doing in various fields. Like all good reports it throws up the
problems which need to be tackled. It is interesting in this respect to see what
progress has been made in dealing with the problems revealed by the resolutions.
At times I wonder whether, the resolution having been passed and submitted
to the appropriate authority, there is any follow-up. For instance, is the ICBP still
active in trying to prevent the catching of birds for trade at Cap Bon, Tunisia,
which was the subject of a resolution in 1972, and where large numbers of many
species of birds are still taken annually?

This bulletin, which contains many useful papers or summaries of papers and
reports presented to conferences, can be obtained from the ICBP, c/o British
Museum (Natural Flistory), Cromwell Road, London svv'7 (price £4.50 or $10).

Birding in Mallorca Mallorca (or Majorca as the package tour operators will
have it) attracts many birdwatchers. In spite of the horrible tourist development in
some areas, large expanses of the island still attract birds and many birdwatchers
have found the average package deal a most convenient way to get to the island.
Eddie Watkinson, the RSPB’s local rep in Mallorca, who is continually besieged
for information about local birds and where to see them, has now produced a book-
let entitled A Guide to Bird Watching in Mallorca which seems to answer most of the
questions a visiting birdwatcher wishes to ask about local conditions. It is very fully
illustrated with maps and will be most useful for anyone visiting Mallorca. It will
probably take a bit of pressure ofF Eddie Watkinson, although he docs not seem to
complain. The guide can be obtained in this country from T. Tidy, 9 Freewaters
Close, Ickleford, Hitchin, Hertfordshire (price £1.90, including post and packing).

Birds of Guernsey A List of the Birds of Guernsey is the fourth list of the birds of
different channel islands to be published in recent years; Alderney, Jersey and Sark
have all produced lists since 1972. Now A. J. Bisson has updated Guernsey’s list,
rejecting a number of records that had previously been regarded as acceptable.
This little publication begins with a short note on the geography, topography and
climate of the island, and discusses the history of the ornithological records, paying
tribute to Roderick Dobson whose work .-1 list of Birds of the Channel Islands brought
together what was known about the island birds and stimulated local birdwatchers
to further activity. This list of Guernsey’s birds, which is one of the fruits of this
activity, gives all the acceptable records and a two- or three-line note of the status
of each species. It is available from A. J. Bisson, Le Petit Ruisseau, La Mare
Estate, Vazon, Guernsey, C. I. (price 7op, post free).

Field Studies Council courses 1 have just been reading the titles of the courses
run in the nine centres of the Field Studies Council. Whilst die bird courses may
be rather elementary for the expert readers of this journal, I was struck by the wide
range of subjects on which courses are given, which should give even the most
expert ornithologist a look from a different angle at the environment in which he
and his birds live. Most centres, in Pembrokeshire, Snowdonia and East Anglia for
instance, run courses for the general naturalist in their areas. Birdwatchers should
surely want to know something more about life in the estuaries or on the seashore
where waders are feeding, or about the geology which produces seabird cliffs or
feeding niches for Rock Pipits. Other titles are Quantitative methods in field
studies, Woodland ecology, and so on. Some courses are especially designed for

28o

News and comment

the family. The cost for a week is about £39. A leaflet giving the complete list of
courses for the remainder of 1976 can be obtained from the Field Studies Council,
9 Devereux Court, Strand, London WC2R 3JR.

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

March was a month of generally windy weather, anticyclonic and with south-
westerlies, many summer migrants arriving towards the end of the month during
westerly winds. These will be dealt with in the spring summary. For the rarer
species, however, March was by no means outstanding.

On 26th a White-billed Diver Gavia adamsii was found dead at Friskney
(Lincolnshire), the first reported to us in 1976. A Green-winged Teal Anas crecca
carolinensis w'as at Upper Tamar Reservoir (Devon) on 14th, when a female Surf
Scoter Melanitta perspicillata was discovered at Mumbles (West Glamorgan). A
further King Eider Somateria spectabilis was found at Loch Ryan (Dumfries &
Galloway) on 22nd. A Ross’s Gull Rhodostelhia rosea was observed at Scarborough
(Humberside) from 27th until April, and a second-year Ring-billed Gull Larus
delawarensis was at Blackpill (West Glamorgan) from 27th to 30th. A Killdeer
Charadrius vociferus which appeared near East Boldon (Tyne & Wear) on 31st
remained until 9th April.

There were two very early reports of Manx Shearwaters Puffinus puffinus, a
single bird grounded at the light at Lundy (Devon) on 5th and three individuals
off Sumburgh Head (Shetland) on 21st. Great Skuas Stercorarius skua passed
south at Seaton Sluice (Northumberland) on 7th and 21st, and another was noted
at Bluemull (Shetland) on 27th, while one o; two were present all month off
Sunderland (Tyne & Wear). A Red Kite Milvus milvus was identified at Frodsham
marsh (Cheshire) on 28th.

An influx of Hoopoes Upupa epops was reported in Scilly at the end of the
month, and in the same group of islands at the same time there were reports of a
Desert Wheatear Oenanthe deserti and a Black-headed Bunting Emberiza
melanocephala, though details of these have not yet been received.

More substantiated were the continued sightings of overwintering birds at
several localities. The Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa Jlavipes was still on the Teign
estuary (Devon) (see Brit. Birds, 69: 159), and both the Long-billed Dowitcher
Limnodromus scolopaceus at Stithians Reservoir (Cornwall) and the Temminck’s
Stint Calidris temminckii at Thorney Island (West Sussex) remained from January
{Brit. Birds, 69: 192); there was a report of a Crested Lark Galerida cristala at
Dungeness (Kent) early in the month ( cf Brit. Birds, 69: 73-74, 192); and the
Black-throated Thrush Turdus ruficollis found at Coltishall (Norfolk) in February
{Brit. Birds, 69: 231) was trapped and ringed there on 13th March.

Finally, in the woods at Sheringham (Norfolk) an Arctic Redpoll Acanthis
hornemanni was identified on 20th and, although mere sight records of this species
are not normally accepted, two individuals were trapped in the same wood on the
following day.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

March reports D. A. Christie

!

o

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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 7 July 1976

237 Editorial changes

239 The present status of the Puffin in Britain and Ireland Dr
M. P. Harris

265 Studies of less familiar birds 180 Thrush Nightingale N. W.
Orr and lb Trap-Lind Plates 29-32

Notes

272 Behaviour of injured Common Tern David Merrie
272 Little Owl flying at Dunlin Ron Freethy

272 Piratical Short-eared Owl C. R. Wood

273 Swallows and House Martins singing from the ground J. P.
Dawson

273 Carrion Crows submerging to catch fish John Hughes

273 Aggression between female Chaffinches Duncan Brown

274 House Sparrows pursuing other species K. G. Spencer

Reviews

275 The Book of Birds: Five Centuries of Bird Illustration by A. M.
Lysaght Leslie Baker

276 A Guide to the Birds of Malta by J. Sultana, C. Gauci and
M. Beaman Peter Conder

Letter

277 Proof of breeding Dr Bruce Campbell
277 News and comment Peter Conder
280 March reports D. A. Christie

Front cover: Little owl Athene noctua with young, Nottinghamshire,
June 1972 (photo: Derick Scott )

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British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 8 AUGUST 1976

Field identification of Long-eared and
Short-eared Owls

A. H. Davis and Robin Prytherch

INTRODUCTION

The feeding ecology of Long-eared Owls Asio otus and Short-eared
Owls A. flammeus has been studied considerably, but little is available
in the literature to help with the problems of field identification,
particularly in flight. Both species are very similar in character and
confusion can, therefore, arise when attempting to identify birds
in the field. Most quartering Asio owls are logged as Short-eared,
and rarely, if ever, as Long-eared: we believe that this is largely
because the latter are regarded as almost exclusively nocturnal.
We feel that this factor may have been overemphasised to a degree
that has caused some Long-eared to be missed, or even mistakenly
identified as Short-eared.

When distinguishing Long-eared, the standard field guides
(Bruun and Singer 1970, Heinzel, Fitter and Parslow 1972 and
Peterson, Mountfort and Hollom 1974) and The Handbook (Witherby
e t al. 1938-41) tend to stress (a) its nocturnal habits as opposed to
the diurnal habits of Short-eared, (b) long ear-tufts, (c) erect
posture at rest, (d) more wooded habitat, (e) eye colour and (f)
comparison with Tawny Owl Strix aluco. They also mention plum-
age colour, extent of streaking and barring, and the proportions of
the wings. Flight characters are inadequately given, or absent,

[Bril. Birds, 69: 281-287, August 1976]

28l

282

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls

whereas for Short-eared this aspect is usually covered reasonably
well. Most drawings and paintings of these owls in flight are badly
proportioned, with vastly overlong tails on both species. In essence,
then, the naive observer is conditioned into thinking that any Asio
owl seen in flight in Britain during the daytime will be a Short-
eared.

It is obvious, however, that northern breeding Long-eared are
going to be forced into the daylight when darkness is so limited by
the extremely short summer nights. Migrating owls could also
arrive at coastal localities at any time of the day or night. Also,
those flushed by chance can easily disappear from sight, and the
brief flight views obtained give the only opportunity for identifi-
cation. It is well known that the colour of the plumage of both
species is variable and we suspect that the Short-eared has greater
extremes than the Long-eared. It is the dark Short-eared that
are most likely to cause confusion. We therefore suggest that any
Asio owl seen during daylight hours be looked at closely for the
characters outlined below, which, if seen, should confirm identifi-
cation.

PLUMAGE, FLIGHT AND STRUCTURE

In the notes which follow, colours and tones are those which show
when birds are seen in good lighting. It must be stressed that the
intensity of colour varies between individuals and that even the
most richly coloured will fade into insignificant shades of grey in
poor light.

In flight the upperparts of Long-eared tend to be generally more
uniform than those of Short-eared — darkish brown, streaked and
mottled with rich buff and greyish. Long-eared also tend to have
richer buff primary patches on the upperwing, verging on a rusty
colour in very good light conditions, and these, together with the
darker background colour of the upperparts, are good field
characters when the initial sighting is made. The primary patches
of the Short-eared are much paler, being sandy-buff to white ; and
the rest of the wing is also usually much paler, thus making the dark
carpal patch conspicuous. The upperparts of the Short-eared are
generally pale buff and brown, more blotched than streaked, giving
a less uniform and distinctly mottled effect. The dark carpal patch
on the upperwing of the Long-eared is less distinctive since there is
less contrast with the rest of the wing, which is mostly darkish.

The appearance of the underwing is very similar in both species,
being mainly very pale with darkish marks on the ends of the
longest primaries and a small black patch on the underwing
primary coverts (usually referred to as the carpal patch, although it
is not actually on the carpal joint). The Long-eared can, however,

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls

283

w

Fig. 1. Long-eared Owls Asio otus (left four birds) compared with Short-eared
Owls A. flammeus (right four). The larger figures show upper and under surfaces
and general proportions, with (at bottom) head-on views with wings held as in a
typical hunting glide. The small profiles (top) show how squat Long-eared can
look and how Short-eared’s wings are held forward, an effect accentuated by the
narrower outer wing. Note particularly the appearance of the underside of the
body and also the amount of barring on, and shape of, the tail ( drawing by

Robin Prytherch )

284 Long-eared and Short-eared Owls

show a tinge of rich buff colour, with some darker flecks, on the
underwing coverts, giving this area an off-white appearance at a
distance, but some individuals do not. The flight feathers are
similarly pale, with variable faint barring extending from the
darker marks on the longest primaries. The Short-eared has pale buff
to white underwing coverts, giving a very pale appearance; the
flight feathers have markings similar to those of the Long-eared, but
the two innermost secondaries are much more boldly marked than
the rest and can show up as a small dark patch. The Long-eared
has breast and ventral regions streaked dark brown, but the buffish
ground colour helps to produce a more uniform effect, particularly
at a distance; the undertail coverts are well marked. The Short-
eared has heavy streaking on the upper breast and around the neck
extending faintly on to the flanks and belly, but the ground colour
is a much paler buff over the remaining underparts, so that they
are well demarcated from the breast. Even in dark individuals, on
which flank streaks may be bolder on a richer buff ground, the
breast and neck ‘ring’ still show up darker. The undertail coverts
are whitish with perhaps a few fine, dark streaks.

The hunting flight of the Long-eared Owl consists of long glides
interspersed with brief bouts of deepish wing beats. During glides,
often on a straight course, the wings are usually held level and
straight in line, only occasionally with the wing tips above the level
of the body (in a very shallow ‘V’). The hunting flight of the
Short-eared is similar but more wavering, accentuated by the more
frequent and slightly shallower wing beats. During glides the wings
are often held in a shallow ‘V’ with the outer parts forward, but it
also glides on level wings. Both species have been seen to hover and,
when flushed, often rise up high, to over ten metres, before settling
again; the lackadaisical gliding flight adopted can be astonishingly
similar for both owls. On these occasions the underbody usually
shows well and should be looked at carefully.

If the two species are seen together in the field, structural
differences are more easy to assess, but, with experience, single
birds also can be identified on these characters alone. Long-eared
are shorter and broader in the wing than Short-eared, with a
shorter, squarer tail, producing wing proportions reminiscent of a
Buzzard Buteo buteo. The uppertail is closely barred with dark brown
on rich buff (six to eight bars), giving a dark, uniform effect at long
range. The undertail is pale buff with up to nine, fine, blackish-
brown bars, although in the central area some are covered by the
undertail coverts. The wings of Short-eared are broad at the base
but taper slightly to give a narrower, more pointed appearance to
the outer part, and this effect is intensified since the wings are usually
also held forward. The tail is somewhat longer with fewer, more

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls 285

prominent bars (four to live), enhanced by the paler ground colour.
It is also slightly wedge-shaped (although the central, longest feathers
may become worn, producing a rounder shape), and the bars form
a series of shallow arrows rather than smooth curves. The dark
barring is heavier on the central feathers and less prominent on the
outer feathers, making the tail look dark in the centre. The under-
tail is whitish with up to five, narrow, blackish-brown bars, although
only three show well, the others being covered by the undertail
coverts. These bars are also arrow-shaped (in fact, more obviously
so than those on the uppertail) and are wider on the central feathers,
narrowing to a thin line on the outer feathers. These features are
demonstrated clearly in the photograph on page 1363 of Gooders

(I969-70-

The Long-eared has been compared with the Tawny Owl, but
confusion with this species should not arise. The Tawny is very
bulky, with a relatively massive head and dark eyes (even in good
light — see below), but more important is the fact that it shows five,
well-fingered (or emarginated) primaries in flight. Both Asio owls
show only a small amount of fingering on the first primary, and this
is not usually noticeable in the field.

DIFFERENCES ON THE GROUND OR PERCHED

When a Long-eared is observed on the ground, or perched,
identification should be easily clinched. It is more slightly built than
the Short-cared, generally darker and more uniform in appearance.
The face looks very cat-like, this effect being caused by the slightly
elongated and more angular facial pattern. It has prominent black
stripes on the ear tufts which continue down to below the eyes. These
are flanked above by buffish-white feathers forming ‘eye-brows’
which converge above the bill and extend each side below it, stand-
ing out from the rich buff face and black tufts. This pale area could
be described as a broad white line down the centre of the face.
The ear tufts of the Long-eared are usually conspicuous but are
sometimes held flat (almost always when in flight) and, of course,
they are absent for a few weeks during the mid/late-summer
moult. The eyes are deep orange and show up well at close range,
but they can appear yellow at a distance in certain lights. Those
of the Short-eared are pale yellowish and its face is much paler,
being greyish-white, with distinctive circular dark areas around the
eyes. As light lessens at dusk, the pupils slowly dilate until almost
no iris colour shows, so this character is of value only in good
light. The face of the Short-eared looks bulbous, unlike that of
the Long-eared. The differences in the underparts given above
are also visible on some perched birds.

When perched, Long-eared usually sit in an upright posture and

286

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls

can look surprisingly thin, especially if ‘flattened’ against a tree
trunk. This is not the rule, however, as sometimes they adopt
a more horizontal, bulky stance like Short-eared. Long-eared prefer
to settle (and roost) in trees or bushes, often in deep cover, but will
also settle on isolated trees or posts and even on the ground, for
instance while hunting over open country. They will also roost on
the ground (Witherby et al. 1938-41). Short-eared are typically
seen in very open habitats, where they roost on the ground in rough
grass or vegetation which provides some cover, but they also often
perch on walls, posts or isolated trees or bushes while hunting. They
will even enter well-wooded areas to alight on branches under the
dark canopy, where they can watch over or ‘listen to’ an open ride
between the trees. Distinction between the two species by habitat
is far from clear cut.

Table 1. Summary of distinctive features of Long-eared Owl Asio otus
and Short-eared Owl A. Jlammeus

LONG-EARED OWL SHORT-EARED OWL

Upperparts Darkish and uniform, with less
prominent dark carpal patch and
rich buff patch on primaries of
upperwing

Underparts Streaked on buff extending to
ventral area, appearing uniform at
distance. Underwing appears off-
white or whitish

Flight Hunts with a few wing beats

followed by long glide, wings
held straight in line and level with
body, or less often in shallow ‘V’

Tail Short and square with dense darkish

barring straight or smoothly curved

Pale, mottled or blotched with
prominent dark carpal patch and
pale buff to white patch on
primaries of upperwing
Pale buff, with dark streaks con-
fined mainly to upperbreast and
neck — dark at front, paler behind.
Underwing appears whitish
Hunts with a few wing beats
followed by glide but more
wavering, wings held forward and
often in shallow ‘V’, but also
occasionally level
Shortish and slightly wedge-
shaped with dark barring like
shallow arrows

Eyes

Face

Deep orange at close range
Buff with pale area down centre
and black stripes extending to
prominent ear tufts, making face
appear elongated

Pale yellowish

Bulbous, pale whitish with dark
areas around eyes, ear tufts not
usually visible and never promi-
nent

It is our hope that these guidelines will stimulate observers to
scrutinise all Asio owls more closely, as we are confident that many
Long-eared are passed over as Short-eared, particularly at coastal
localities during the spring and autumn migrations. We also hope
that every opportunity will be taken by owl-watchers to refine or
improve on our observations.

Long-eared and Short-eared Owls

287

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are indebted to many friends, especially to Grahame Walbridge who provided
inv aluable information in the early stages of writing this paper. F. R. Clafton,
I. S. Robertson and K. E. Vinicombe offered us details of their observations and
commented on an earlier draft.

REFERENCES

Bruun, B., and Singer, A. 1970. The Hamlyn Guide to Birds of Britain and Europe.
London.

Gooders, J. (ed). 1969-71. Birds of the World. London.

Heinzel, H., Fi tter, R., and Parslow, J. 1972. The Birds of Britain and Europe.
London.

Peterson, R., Mountfort, G., and Hollom, P. A. D. 1974. A Field Guide to the
Birds of Britain and Europe. London.

Witherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W. 1938-
41. The Handbook of British Birds. London.

A. H. Davis, 10 Rowan Walk, Keynsham, Bristol, bsi8 2RE
Robin Prytherch, 21 Victoria Square, Clifton, Bristol, bs8 4ES

Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland
Gordon E. Wilson

In June 1975, I discovered a pair of Spotted Sandpipers Tringa
macularia nesting in Scotland, the first such record of an American
species in Europe.

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS

On 15th June 1975, while on holiday in the Highland region of
Scotland, I visited a sheltered bay and saw a bird which at first
glance I took to be a Common Sandpiper T. hypoleucos. It alighted
on a boulder in the centre of a freshwater stream flowing over the
gently sloping seashore, and observation through binoculars revealed
prominent black spots on its white throat and breast. It was then
immediately identifiable as an adult Spotted Sandpiper.

When I returned on 17th June, the Spotted Sandpiper was
feeding in the intertidal zone, about 200 metres from where I had
first seen it. This time, I obtained excellent views at close quarters
and in good light, including direct comparison with a Common
Sandpiper, when the Spotted Sandpiper encroached on a grassy
area where the latter had chicks and the two adults skirmished.

On 27th June, I saw the bird again, within 200 metres of the
initial location, feeding right at the water’s edge, on the seaweed
uncovered by the receding tide. On being approached, it flew
about 100 metres up the stony beach, calling as it went, and alighted
well above high-water mark in a small sandy area surrounded by
vegetation. Following cautiously, I found that it had disappeared
from view, yet had not flown out of the area. After a few more
paces forward, I flushed it from rank vegetation in front of me.
The behaviour of the bird, which alighted on a log 15 metres away,
calling anxiously, suggested to me that it was nesting. I quickly
and carefully searched the dense vegetation, located a nest contain-
ing four eggs at ground level, and then retired. The bird returned
within three minutes, alighted about five metres from the nest and
walked directly to it. Later the same day, I returned with a local
ornithologist and we saw two adult Spotted Sandpipers on the
shore, confirming that a pair was breeding and ruling out the
possibility of a female Spotted nesting alone or paired with a
Common Sandpiper. The following day, 28th June, another local
birdwatcher verified the identification.

On returning from my holiday, I informed the secretary of the
Rare Breeding Birds Panel, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock, of my discovery
and he put me in touch with another member of the panel, R. H.
Dennis. Mr Dennis visited the nest site on 2nd July, located the

288

[Brit. Birds, 69: 288-292, August 1976]

Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland 289

nest with four eggs and observed both adults, one of which returned
to the nest and remained there.

By 3rd July, the second local observer found that the weeds in
which the nest wras located had grown considerably after two days
of rain. Although cattle were grazing on the shore dangerously
close to the nest, an adult Spotted Sandpiper was seen returning
to it. He could find no sign of an adult on 7th July, however, and
the nest was apparently deserted, probably because of the close
approach of grazing cattle. Mr Dennis paid a second visit on 30th
July. The adults were not seen, the weeds around the nest were
flattened, either by cattle or heavy rain, and it was unquestionably
deserted. He removed the eggs and sent them to the Royal Scottish
Museum, Edinburgh. Two were found to be infertile, but the other
two contained partly developed embryos.

DESCRIPTION OF ADULTS

The following characters of the adults were noted in the field. They
were compared with Common Sandpipers, which they closely
resembled in size, shape, general coloration and behaviour.

The plumage of the sexes was alike. The forehead, crown, nape,
wings and back were olive-brown, slightly greyer than of the Com-
mon Sandpiper, and finely marked with short, dark bars or spots
on the wings and back. A white bar along the wing wras revealed
in flight, like that of the Common Sandpiper, but it had a darker,
almost black border towards the trailing edge, which the other
species lacked. The tail was not noted in detail, but was short in
relation to the size of the bird, like that of the Common Sandpiper,
and appeared brown with whitish edges.

The chin, breast, throat, belly, flanks and undertail coverts
were white, uniformly covered with distinctive, large, circular,
black spots. These were estimated to be about 3 mm in diameter
on the breast and spaced at about the same distance, but were
smaller on the chin and throat. A prominent, crescent-shaped,
white supercilium extended over the eye from near the base of the
bill almost to the nape.

The bill was straight, approximately 4 cm in length, and was
yellow with a dark tip. In some lights, it appeared yellowish-orange
with a dark tip, but never brownish like that of the Common
Sandpiper. In good light, the legs looked light flesh-brown.

The only call note heard was a piping, disyllabic ‘weet-weet’,
uttered while on the wing. It was reminiscent of that of a Common
Sandpiper, but not so strong. This was probably the alarm call,
since it was heard only when the bird was flushed.

Although usually remaining on the ground, walking about the
stony shore and actively feeding, an adult twice alighted on a

290

Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland

stone wall about metres high, where it rested for a while. The
body was normally held still and only on two brief occasions was
the bobbing motion of tail and body, so characteristic of the Com-
mon Sandpiper, observed. The normal flight was strong and direct,
but on several occasions one was seen to fly with rapid wing beats
while holding the wings rather stiffly below body level, alternating
this action with short glides. The adult flushed from the nest flew
some distance, but returned as soon as the intruder retreated; its
mate gave no warning of an intruder, but retired quietly along the
shore.

Feeding was entirely by picking among patches of seaweed and
jetsam left by high tides, and at no time by probing or turning
seaweed over.

NEST AND EGGS

The nest site was close to a gently sloping seashore in a small
sheltered bay, within 400 metres of a small village and 200 metres
of a freshwater stream flowing into the sea. The nest was about 100
metres back from high-tide mark, in an extensive patch of dense
vegetation about 40 cm high and consisting predominantly of
fat-hen Chenopodium album. It was on the ground among the damp
bases of the weeds, and constructed of broad blades of grass and
plant stalks, rather loosely assembled, but forming a well defined cup.

The four eggs, arranged in the nest with their smaller ends
toward the centre, were a light buff-brown, heavily spotted and
blotched all over with dark reddish-brown. Measurements taken
later showed that the dimensions (in mm) were: 317 X 232, 322 X
239> 33 1 X 235 and 332 X 239.

DISCUSSION

The Spotted Sandpiper is widespread and common in North
America, breeding in almost the whole of the United States and
Canada, and winters in Mexico, Central America and the northern
countries of South America (Witherby et al. 1940, Robbins et al.
1966). Up to the time of these Scottish observations, however, the
species had been recorded as a vagrant on only 26 occasions in
Britain and Ireland, mostly from mid-August to mid-November and
during May-June.

Although the proved breeding of Spotted Sandpipers in Scotland
was a very exciting event, the nesting of a species of American
wader on this side of the Atlantic was not entirely unexpected.
The number of American waders recorded in Britain and Ireland
has increased dramatically in recent years. About 340 individuals
were noted up to 1957, but 1,015 were seen in the next 15 years
(207 during 1958-62, 31 1 during 1963-67 and 497 during 1968-72)

Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland 291

(Sharrock and Sharrock 1976). This dramatic increase has been
linked by Williamson (1974, 1975) with a southwards shift by
about io° in the mean path of North Atlantic depressions between
the 1900’s and 1960’s. Most American waders are seen in Ireland
and western Britain, however, which are areas where watching
was relatively far less intense before the 1960’s. Sharrock and
Sharrock (1976) have also shown that the increase during 1958-72
merely matches the increase in the number of all rare birds, both
Palearctic and Nearctic vagrants being recorded far more often by
the growing band of field observers, who have gained in competence
and awareness of the possibility of finding American birds. It
nevertheless remains a fact that the numbers of American waders
recorded in recent years has led to speculation that breeding could
occur.

Spotted Sandpipers, with 15 records during 1958-72, rank rather
low in the list of American species recorded here; figures for the
same 15-year period for the six commonest were 488 Pectoral
Sandpipers Calidris melanotos, 101 Buff-breasted Sandpipers Tryngites
subrujicollis, 82 White-rumped Sandpipers C.fuscicollis, 81 dowitchers
Limnodromus griseus and L. scolopaceus combined, 62 Lesser Yellowlegs
Tringa Jlavipes and 52 Wilson’s Phalaropes Phalaropus tricolor. After
a summer record of a Pectoral Sandpiper in Caithness in 1973,
one was seen displaying in the same county in late May 1974
(Byrne and Mackenzie-Grieve 1974, Dennis 1975); the Pectoral
Sandpiper and the Wilson’s Phalaropc have been the species most
tipped to nest in Europe. Sharrock (1971, 1974) argued, from the
high proportion of British east coast (compared with west coast and
Irish) records, that some Pectoral and Baird’s Sandpipers C. bairdii
reached Britain by moving west from Siberia; the establishment
of a small breeding (or at least summering) population in northern
Europe now seems equally likely, and this has also been proposed
to explain the early autumn records of White-rumped Sandpipers
on the British east coast (Sharrock and Sharrock 1976).

Although observed here far less commonly than some other
American waders, Spotted Sandpipers are not such long-distance
migrants as the commoner ones and this could aid the meeting of
individuals to form pairs, which must be the greatest problem
confronting potential breeders with a tiny population. In retro-
spect, it is probably significant that Spotted Sandpipers have re-
mained at localities for long periods (an average of 17 days for
those seen during 1958-72), and both summering (Lincolnshire/
Norfolk in June-August 1971: Smith et al. 1972) and wintering
(Dorset in December-March 1973/74: Smith et al. 1975) have
occurred in Britain.

One may hope that the record documented in this paper marks

292 Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland

the first instance of a natural enrichment of the breeding avifauna
of Europe by other Nearctic species.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my thanks to Peter Standley and Dr J. T. R. Sharrock for their
helpful advice on recording my observations and to R. H. Dennis for the effort he
made to verify my record. I also wish to thank the other two independent orni-
thologists who confirmed my observations; unfortunately, they must remain
anonymous, since to publish their names would disclose the locality of the nest
site, to which there seems a chance that the birds will return in another year. I am
grateful to Dr Sharrock for expanding the discussion section of this paper.

SUMMARY

A personal account is given of the discovery of a pair of Spotted Sandpipers
Tringa macularia nesting in Scotland. Breeding was unsuccessful, the nest with
four eggs (two of which were fertile) being deserted, perhaps because of trampling
by cattle or after heavy rain.

REFERENCES

Byrne, R. W., and Mackenzie-Grieve, C. J. 1974. ‘Pectoral Sandpipers in
Caithness and Shetland’. Scot. Birds, 8: 72-73.

Dennis, R. H. 1975. ‘Scottish Bird Report 1974’. Scot. Birds, 8: 395-467.

Robbins, C. S., Bruun, B., and Zim, H. S. 1966. Birds of North America. New York.
Sharrock, J. T. R. 1971. ‘Scarce migrants in Britain and Ireland during 1958-67.
Part 5. Pectoral Sandpiper, Sabine’s Gull and American land-birds’. Brit. Birds,
64: 93-113.

1974- Scarce Migrant Birds in Britain and Ireland. Berkhamsted.

and Sharrock, E. M. 1976. Rare Birds in Britain and Ireland. Berkhamsted.

Smith, F. R., and the Rarities Committee. 1972. ‘Report on rare birds in Great
Britain in 1971’. Brit. Birds, 65: 322-254.

1975- ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1974’. Brit. Birds, 68:

306-338.

Williamson, K. 1974. ‘New bird species admitted to the British and Irish lists
since 1800’ pp. 221-227 >n Hawksworth, D. L. (ed), The Changing Flora and
Fauna of Britain. London and New York.

1975- ‘Birds and climatic change’. Bird Study, 22: 143-164.

Witherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W. 1940.
The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 4.

Gordon E. Wilson , 34 Birch Road, Burghfield Common, Reading, Berkshire

RG7 3LX

Distinguishing characteristics in the burrow-
calling of Storm and Leach’s Petrels

Joan Hall-Craggs and P. J. Sellar

Where the breeding grounds of the Storm Petrel Hydrobates pelagicus
and Leach’s Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa overlap in southern Iceland,
the Faeroes, Shetland and some Atlantic islands off the north-west
coast of Scotland, it is useful to be able to identify the species aurally,
since both are of nocturnal habit and nest in similar habitat: in the
seclusion of burrows or in sites such as crevices between and beneath
rocks or in ruined walls.

While in the nest burrow, both species utter long-sustained
churring or purring, interspersed at regular intervals by notes of
relatively long duration which are presumed to result from breath
inspiration (figs ia, b, e; 2a, b, d). Analyses of recordings show that
both members of the pair can produce these sounds, and may do
so simultaneously (figs ib, 2d). Imprecisely timed duetting also
occurs when one bird churrs while the other gives contrasting calls,
though the latter, like the churring, may occur independently.

The contrasting calls of the Storm Petrel comprise three discrete
units forming a figure of from 0.7 to 1.0 seconds duration (figs
ic, d). These calls have been given a number of onomatopoeic
renderings, but to the present authors they sound ‘ke-kaah-kek’
and have a harsh, almost snarling quality. Leach’s Petrel gives two
types of contrasting call — the flight call, which more often occurs
between or at the end of bouts of churring (fig. 20) and which may be
uttered by either sex, and a food-begging call given by the female
(figs 2b, c). The onomatopoeia for the flight call ‘her ki-ti wer
kee pit-er-r-r-al’ is a compromise between various renderings to be
found in the literature, but none of these, including the present
version, gives much idea of the tonal quality of the sounds. Fraser
Darling’s (1940) description — ‘a staccato, musical laugh’ — is
probably the best. Recognition of this call is most easily effected by
memorising its highly distinctive temporal pattern, which can be

represented in a morse-code-type notation: - .. - - It can be

expressed more explicitly in musical notation:

j n j j rm >

> • • > >

where > indicates a stressed sound and the dots indicate staccato
performance. By the same means, individual variation may also be
expressed unequivocally, for example:

[liril. Birds, 69: 293-297, August 1976]

*93

294

Calls of Storm and Leach’s Petrels

la

Sec. 1 2

Fig. i. Vocalisations of the Storm Petrel Hydrobales pelagicus (a,b,c,d) and Leach’s
Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa (e). a. Individual churring: unit rate 36 per second;
‘breath notes’ at 1.58-second intervals, b. Two individuals churring simultaneously:
‘A’ ‘breath notes’ of background bird, ‘B’ of foreground bird. c. Two individuals,
one churring and the other calling ‘ke-kaah-kek’ ; the beginning of the second ‘breath
note’ of the churring bird is overlapped by the long ‘kaah’ of the calling bird. d. The
calls ‘ke-kaah-kek’ occurring alone at the end of a bout of churring. e. The churring of
Leach’s Petrel: analysis made from double-speed playback to show the time
interval between ‘breath notes’ — 3.06 seconds; unit rate of churr 21 per second
(a, c from recording made by E. D. H. Johnson, Jersey, July 1958; b, d from
recording made by P. T. Sellar, Shetland, July 1970; e from recording made by

P. J. Sellar, Iceland, June 1968)

Calls of Storm and Leach’s Petrels

295

2a

ii> .iiHiimmi,..,

ilirillllllilllilHItUmtirmtlUliMilU

lit

i

B

kHz e

Her ki-tiWer Kee pit-er-r-r-al

Fig. 2. V’ocaiisations of Leach’s Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa. a. Part of fig. ie
analysed at normal playback speed, b. Two individuals: the male churring and
breathing while the female in the background gives food-begging calls, c. High
intensity food-begging following a bout of churring. d. Overlapping churring by tw o
individuals from 1 second onwards: ‘A’ ‘breath note’ of background bird, ‘B’ of
foreground bird. e. The flight call following a bout of churring (all from recording
made by P. J. Sellar, Iceland, June 19681

296 Calls of Storm and Leach's Petrels

The food-begging calls of the female Leach’s Petrel closely
resemble those of the young. The individual sounds are of fairly
long duration, 0.15 to 0.4 seconds, and are uttered at a rate of
approximately two to four per second. They almost defy description,
but have a forced, wheezing, rasping character with rather abrupt
starting and stopping.

There are three distinguishing factors between the vocalisations
of the two species in the actual chuning and ‘breath notes’: (1) unit
rate per second in the churr, (2) time interval between the onset of
‘breath notes’ and (3) duration of the ‘breath notes’. As might be
expected, the smaller Storm Petrel has a consistently higher unit
rate and shorter ‘breath notes’ occurring at briefer time intervals.
Table 1 displays these temporal details, which are sufficiently
uniform within the four recordings of each species to be considered
reliable for identification purposes. It can be seen that some varia-

Table 1. Churring and ‘breath notes’ of Storm Petrel Hydrobales pelagicus
and Leach’s Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa, showing units per second in churr,
duration of ‘breath notes* and time interval between the two

Time interval

Units per

between onset

Duration'of

Place and

second in

of ‘breath

‘breath notes’

Source

Recordist

date

churr

notes’ (seconds)

(seconds)

STORM PETREL

Private tape

P. J. Sellar

Shetland,

30 Bird A

1.63 — 1.66

0.2

July 1970

38 Bird B

1.4 — 1. 61

0.21

BLOWS tape

L. Shove

Skokholm,
May 1965

36

1.6 — 1.62

0.25 — 0.28

BBC disc

E. D. H. Johnson

Jersey,

36

1.58

0.25

25059

July 1958

BBC disc

A. Aasgaard

Norway,

38—40

cq

ki>

0.22 — 0.25

25354

August 1970

RANGE

30—40

1.4 — 1.8

0.2 — 0.28

leach’s petrel

Private tape

P. J. Sellar

Iceland,
June 1968

16 — 22

3.06—3.8

0.38 — 0.65

BBC disc

L. J. Kinlen

Iceland,

15

4.8

0-5

15^6

Sep. 1955

BBC disc

D. I. M. Wallace

St Kilda,

22

4.08

0.53 — 0.64

250 u

July 1956

BBC disc

J. Lindsay

St Kilda,

21

3-i4

0.56

2501 1

July 1956

RANGE

15—22

3.06 4.8

O.38 O.65

Calls of Storm and Leach's Petrels 297

lion occurs within the calling of an individual, as well as between the
calling of different individuals of the same species.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are greatly indebted to the British Broadcasting Corporation who generously
give to the Sub-Department of Animal Behaviour copies of all their natural history
recordings. Our thanks are due, too, to the individual recordists: Dr A. Aasgaard,
E. D. H. Johnson, L. J. Kinlen, J. Lindsay and D. I. M. Wallace; more especially
to E. D. H. Johnson, from whose recording some of the illustrations were made.
We are equally grateful to L. Shove for permission to use his recording, and to
R. Kettle of the British Library of Wildlife Sounds who supplied the copy of
Mr Shove’s recording.

REFERENCE

Fraser Darling, F. 1940. Island Tears. London.

Joan Hall-Craggs, Sub-Department of Animal Behaviour, High Street,
Madingley, Cambridge CB3 8aa

P. J. Sellar, 89 Riddlesdown Road, Purley, Surrey CR2 idh

An estimate of the world breeding
population of the Razorbill

Clare S. Lloyd

INTRODUCTION

The Razorbill Alca torda is confined to the northern Atlantic,
breeding on the west coast from about 73 0 N (west Greenland) to
430 N (Maine) and in the east from about 78° N (Spitsbergen) to
49 °N (Brittany) (Voous i960). Razorbills and Guillemots Uria
aalge suffer heavy mortality through oil and other pollution at sea
(e.g. Bourne and Bibby 1975) and declines have been reported in
many breeding populations since the war (Cramp et al. 1974).
Available estimates of various populations are given in table 1.
Owing to extreme difficulties in counting Razorbills accurately, the
figures must be regarded only as approximate, but they do form
a basis for comparison with future counts, which, it is hoped, wall
be considerably more accurate.

Most published counts are expressed as ‘pairs’ although there
is sometimes doubt as to how these figures were obtained. In order
to use comparable figures for all areas, I have converted the few'
counts given as ‘individual birds’ (actually the better counting unit)
to pairs. Observations of birds present at one breeding colony in
south Wales in 1972 and 1973 showed that, on average, a count of
100 birds on the cliffs during the main part of the breeding season
(June) represented 56 breeding pairs; about 35% of the birds on
land at this time were non-breeders and a small number of off-duty
mates wrere also present throughout the day (Lloyd 1973, 1976).
Observations at other colonies in Britain and Ireland since have
given broadly similar results. Thus, where counts of birds are
clearly indicated, I have multiplied these by 0.56 to obtain an
estimate of the number of pairs.

THE COLONIES

West Greenland, Canada and USA

Bedard (1969) gave a total of 47,000 pairs of Razorbills in the
western Atlantic colonies but some of the counts he included were
outdated. A more complete survey of these colonies by Brown
et al. (1975) amounted to only 20,664 pairs, although figures for 33
of the 59 colonies they listed, which account for 39% of the total,
wrere pre-1967. Earlier counts are available for 14 of the colonies
covered by Nettleship et al. in 1967-74 and these suggest extensive
changes in the last 10 to 20 years. Numbers had apparently de-
clined at seven colonies, remained stable at three and increased
at the rest; there had been a general reduction of about 50%.

298

[Brit. Birds. 69: 298-304, Aufiusl 1976]

World Razorbill population 299

Table i. An estimate of the world breeding population of the Razorbill

Alca torda

Figures for Greenland, Canada and Maine include estimated numbers of pairs
(in brackets) from counts of individuals. The figure for north USSR is incomplete;
that for Norway a maximum, assuming a 33% decline in only 12% of the popu-
lation; and for Britain and Ireland a minimum (see text). Year of census is given
only if known to be different from that in reference. Nomenclature after

Salomonsen (1944)

Approximate no. Year of

Area

Subspecies

of breeding pairs

Reference

census

Greenland

.4. t. pica

567(4' 7)

Joensen and Preuss

'965

Canada

A. t. pica

20,636(4,688)

'972

Salomonsen 1950/51
Brown el al. 1975

>936,1949

1928-74

Maine

A. t. pica

28(28)

Brown et al. 1975

'97'-74

North USSR

A. t. pica

2,200

Gerasimova 1961

Norway

A. t. pica

*5-44°

Brun 1969, 1971

1968-70

Sweden

A. t. torda

4,000

V. Olsson in litt.

'975

Finland

A. t. torda

875

Lippens and YVillc

Denmark

A. t. torda

200

'972

Franzmann 1974

Iceland

.4. t. islandica

5,000

see text

Faeroe

Islands

A. t. islandica

5,000

B. Olsen in litt.

'974

Britain and
Ireland

A. t. islandica

I 44,000

Cramp et al. 1974

1969-70

France

A. t. islandica

IOO

Brien 1970

ESTIMATED TOTAL 208,046

The best documented change in the North American Razorbill
population has occurred on the north coast of the Gulf of St Law-
rence, where regular surveys at seven sites have shown a decline
from 16,216 individuals in 1960 (Moisan 1962) to 14,950 indivi-
duals (92%) in 1965 (Moisan and Fyfe 1967) and only 4,320
individuals (27%) in 1972 (Nettleship and Lock 1973). This decline
has been tentatively attributed to the effects of oil pollution and
of toxic chemicals in the birds’ diet.

Spitsbergen

‘Small numbers of Razorbills bred in southern Spitsbergen up to
1968’ (Lovenskiold 1963), though there has been no recent count.
At least eight pairs bred on Bear Island in 1970 (Brun 1970)
where Very small numbers’ had been reported in 1932 (Bertram
and Lack 1933).

USSR

The only available record of the size of the breeding population in
northern USSR (Gerasimova 1961) is outdated and refers just to

300

World Razorbill population

the Murmansk coast; no records have been found for the White
Sea, where the species also breeds (Voous i960).

Iceland

Hachisuka (1927) reported Razorbills to be more common in the
south; however ‘although the Razorbill is a fairly common bird
. . . it is less numerous than both the Common and Brunnich’s
Guillemots [U. lomvia] ’ (F. Gudmunsson in litt. 1973). The popu-
lation is tentatively estimated here as 5,000 pairs.

Faeroe Islands

Little is known of the population on the Faeroe Islands. In 1974
Guillemots outnumbered Razorbills by about 100:1 on the cliffs
and 100-150:1 on the sea, and the total population of Razorbills
was estimated to be 5,000 pairs (B. Olsen in litt.).

Norway

Brun (1969) gave details of all colonies in Norway in about 1968,
but by 1970 numbers had declined by 33% in at least one colony
in southern Norway (Runde) which previously held 12% of the
total population (Brun 1971). Brun suggested that this order of
decline could be expected for other colonies in the area, owing
to pressures from oil pollution and hunting and to birds becoming
caught in fishing nets.

Finland

Merikallio (1958) suggested that the Razorbill breeding population
was half what it had been in the i93o’s, as the cold winters of 1939/40
and 1941 /42 had had a disastrous effect on the birds (von Haartman
1947; see also Lloyd 1976). The total population is now about 875
pairs (Lippens and Wille 1972).

Sweden

Wohler (1919) reported 7,500 pairs of Razorbills breeding in the
largest colonies on the islands of Stora Karlso in 1918, although
it is probable that this figure was greatly exaggerated. About 1,500
pairs were estimated to be nesting there in 1975 (V. Olsson in litt.).
Human disturbance and adverse weather conditions are the main
causes of the low numbers and breeding success at other colonies
(Olsson 1974).

Denmark

The Danish breeding population was also affected by the cold
winters. Paludan (1947) gave the following counts of numbers
breeding at Ghristianso in the south Baltic: 318 pairs in 1939

World Razorbill population 301

(Salomonsen 1943 put it at 2,200 pairs), 161 pairs in 1940, 175 pairs
in 1941, 59 pairs in 1942 and 64 pairs in 1943. Numbers appeared
to recover at this and other Baltic colonies, and Kartashev (i960)
gave a count of 318 pairs, which mav have declined since (see table
I).

Germany

Twelve pairs of Razorbills bred on the island of Heligoland in 1939,
though by 1956 these had declined to a single pair (Vauk 1957);
this colony is now extinct (Dr W. R. P. Bourne in litt.).

Britain and Ireland

‘Operation Seafarer’ in 1969/70 gave a total of 144,000 pairs of
Razorbills. This consisted of 108,736 pairs and 35,147 individual
birds (approximately 19,682 pairs), but excluded two colonies of
order 1 (1 to 9 pairs), six colonies of order 2 (10 to 99 pairs), three
colonies of order 3 and three colonies of upper order 3 (100 to 999
pairs), one colony of low order 4 (1,000 to 9,999 pairs) and one
colony of order 5 (10,000 to 999,999 pairs). Together these ac-
counted for an estimated minimum of 17,310 pairs. Thus the total
population was probably in the region of 145,730 pairs. Results
from an annual monitoring scheme at about 50 sites since suggest
that numbers are currently stable.

France

About 450 pairs of Razorbills bred on Les Sept lies in Brittany
before the Toney Canyon oil spill in 1967, but these were reported
to have declined to only 50 pail's (Monnat 1969) and unfortunately
the colony has shown little sign of recovery.

DISCUSSION

At least 70% of the world population of Razorbills breeds in Britain
and Ireland; the coasts of Canada/New England and Norway also
hold 9% and 12% respectively of the total. By contrast, roughly
about 10% of the world population of the far more numerous
Puffin Fratercula arctica also breeds in Britain and Ireland (Harris
1976), although all these figures must be regarded as approximate
since auks are notoriously difficult to count accurately. Throughout
much of its range, the Razorbill, like the Puffin, is reported to have
declined in breeding numbers in recent years, though the timing
and magnitude of these declines are impossible to assess in the
absence of reliable early counts.

Razorbill populations are especially vulnerable to increased
mortality. Usually only about 10% of the breeding birds die each
year (Lloyd 1974, 1976, Lloyd and Perrins in prep.) ; a slight increase

302 World Razorbill population

in mortality of pre-breeding or breeding birds can drastically affect
breeding population size. Moreover, because relatively few young
are normally recruited into the breeding population each year, this
can take several years to recover from one ‘bad’ year.

Razorbills face threats of increased mortality from several
different sources. Like the other auks which spend much of their
time swimming and diving on the sea, they are regularly affected by
oil pollution. Both this and other forms of marine pollution, such as
that due to toxic chemicals, affect the birds throughout most of
their range, but tend to be especially serious in the more enclosed
sea areas. Ringing recoveries of British and Irish Razorbills and
other similar observations (Royal Society for the Protection of
Birds — -Seabird Group beached bird survey results) have shown
that mortality due to oiling is especially heavy in the North Sea
and English Channel (Lloyd 1974). In addition, many birds in
southern Scandinavian and Mediterranean waters are shot, and
large numbers are caught in fishing nets off south Norway, in the
Bay of Biscay and off west Greenland. These causes of mortality
can affect local breeding birds or those from distant colonies winter-
ing or spending their pre-breeding years in the area.

Of these factors, oiling probably has the most important effect
on Razorbill population size; since the war it appears to have been
one of the main causes of the local declines in both the east and west
Atlantic (Nettleship and Lock 1973, Cramp et al. 1974). There is
some evidence that Razorbill mortality due to oiling is lower now,
at least in north European waters, than it was in the i95o’s and
1960’s (e.g. Bourne and Devlin 1970, Lloyd 1976). Whether this
trend will continue with large-scale extraction of oil from the
continental shelf remains to be seen.

As counting methods improve, the value of regular population
censuses at even a small sample of breeding colonies increases. Such
censuses, aimed at monitoring the effect of changing mortality rates
due to oiling or any other cause, are conducted at present in Canada
by the Canadian Wildlife Service and in Britain and Ireland
through the RSPB and the Seabird Group. In Britain and Ireland
we are responsible for a large proportion of the world’s Razorbills,
and monitoring is essential if local declines and their possible
causes are to be identified before colonies become extinct.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am very grateful to the Seabird Group for permission to use unpublished ‘Opera-
tion Seafarer’ data; to B. Olsen (Faeroe Islands), V. Olsson (Sweden) and A.
Pape Moller (Denmark) for supplying updated estimates of Razorbill colonies;
and to Dr M. P. Harris for his most helpful criticism of an earlier draft of this
paper.

World Razorbill population

303

SUMMARY

Available estimates of numbers of Razorbills Alca tarda in both east and west
Atlantic colonies are presented. Razorbills, like other auks, are notoriously
difficult to count accurately so that counts can only be approximate. About 70%
of the world population of the species breeds in Britain and Ireland and most of
the rest in North America (9%) and Norway (12%). The vulnerability of Razor-
bills to increased mortality, especially due to oiling, and hence the importance of
regular population monitoring are stressed.

REFERENCES

Bedard, J. 1969. ‘Histoirc naturelle du Code Alca torda dans le Golfe St. Laurent,
province de Quebec, Canada’, fitude du Service Canadien de la Faune, no. 7.
Bertram, B. A., and Lack, D. 1933. ‘Notes on the birds of Bear Island’. Ibis, 3:
238-300.

Bourne, W. R. P., and Devlin, T. R. E. 1970. ‘International Beached Bird Survey
1969'. Birds, 3: 12-13.

Bourne, W. R. P., and Bibby, C. J. 1975. ‘Temperature and the seasonal and
geographical occurrence of oiled birds in west European beaches’. Marine
Pollution Bull., 6: 77-80.

Brien, Y. 1970. F.lude de l' Avifaune en Bretagne. Societe pour l’fetude et la Protection
de la Nature en Bretagne, Brest.

Brown, R. G. B., Nettleship, D. N., Germain, P., Tull, C. E., and Davis, T.

1975. Atlas of Eastern Canadian Seabirds. Can. VVildl. Serv., Ottawa.

Brun, E. 1969. ‘Utbredelse og hekkebestand av Alke ( Alca torda) i Norge’. Sterna.
8: 345-359-

— 1970. ‘Hekking av alke Alca torda pa bjornoya. Fauna , Oslo, 23: 196-197.

— 1971. ‘Populasjonsendringer hos noen sjofuglarter i Sor-Norge’. Sterna , 10:
35-56-

Cramp. S., Bourne, W. R. P., and Saunders, D. 1974. The Seabirds of Britain and
Ireland. London.

Franzmann, N. E. 1974. ‘Graesholm — en status pa skacret’. Feltornithologen, 16:
5«-59-

Gerasimova, T. D. 1961. Results of Counts of Colonial Seabirds and Eider on the
Murmansk Coast. Moscow.

Hachisuka, M. U. 1927. .1 Handbook of the Birds of Iceland. London.

Harris, M. P. 1976. ‘The present status of the Puffin in Britain and Ireland*.
Brit. Birds, 69: 239-264.

Joensen, A. H., and Preuss, N. O. 1972. ‘Report on the ornithological expedition
to northwest Greenland 1965’. Medd. Greenl., 191: 1-58.

Kartashev, N. N. i960. Die Alken-vogel des Nordatlantiks. Wittenburg.

Lippens, I,., and Wille, H. 1972. Atlas des Oiseaux de Belgique et d' Europe Occidentale .
Tielt.

Lloyd, C. S. 1973. ‘Attendance at auk colonies during the breeding season’.
Skokholm Bird Observatory Report for 1972: 15-23.

1974- ‘Movement and survival of British Razorbills'. Bird Study, 21 : 102-116.

1976. ‘Birdkill’. Birds, 6: 33-34.

1976. ‘The breeding biology and survival of the Razorbill Alca torda'. DPhil

thesis, University of Oxford.

Lovenskiold, H. L. 1963. Avifauna Svalbardensis. Copenhagen.

Merikallio, E. 1958. Finnish Birds: Their Distribution and Numbers. Helsinki.
Moisan, G. 1962. ‘Eighth census of non-passerine birds in the sanctuaries of the
north shore of the Gulf of St Lawrence’. Can. Field-Nat., 76: 78-82.

and Fyfe, R. W. 1967. ‘Ninth census of non-passerine birds in sanctuaries

of the north shore of the Gulf of St Lawrence’. Can. Field-Nat.. 81 : 67-70.

304 World Razorbill population

Nettleship, D. N., and Lock, A. R. 1973. ‘Tenth census of seabirds in the
sanctuaries of the north shore of the Gulf of St Lawrence’. Can. Field-Nat., 87:
395-402 ’

Nordberg, S. 1950. ‘Research on the bird fauna of the marine zone in the Aland
archipelago’. Acta Zool. Fennica, 63: 1-62.

Olsson, V. 1974. ‘Tordmule och tobisgrissla i Ostergotlands skargard 1954-73’.

Var Fagelv., 33: 3-14.

Paludan, K. 1947. Aiken. Copenhagen.

Salomonsen, F. 1943. ‘Fugletaellinger 1936-1942 paa Hirsholmene og Christiane’.
Dansk Orn.Foren. Tidsskr., 37: 151-181.

1944- The Atlantic Alcidae. Goteborg.

1951* The Birds of Greenland. Copenhagen. Volume III.

Vauk, G. 1957. ‘Die Brutvogel von Helgoland 1956’. Die Vogelwelt, 78: 58-61.
von Haartman, L. 1947. ‘Tordmulekatastrofen och populationes decimering i
Finland’. Dansk Orn. Foren. Tidsskr., 41 : 168-171.

Voous, K. H. i960. Atlas of European Birds. London.

Wohler, W. 1919. ‘Stora Karlso och Karlsoklubben’. Sveriges Natur, 10: 81-86.
Clare S. Lloyd, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL

Obituary

Sir Julian Sorell Huxley, MA, DSc, FRS (1887-1975)

Julian Huxley was born in London on 22nd June 1887 and died
there on 14th February 1975. During the intervening 87 years this
brilliant and remarkable man, driven on by an indefatigable
energy and a self-imposed need to live up to what he thought was
expected of him, became a famous scion of a famous family which
included his grandfather, T. H. Huxley, the colleague and defender
of Charles Darwin, and his younger brother, Aldous, one of the
most imaginative writers between and after the two wars. Julian
Huxley rose to be an international figure as an author, a broad-
caster and, above all, a scientist who combined an insatiable
curiosity and an ability for original research with a remarkable
memory, great courage in stating his views and a flair for synthesi-
sing complicated subjects into a readable and readily assimilable
form. He was a biologist, a zoologist, an evolutionist and, at heart,
especially an ornithologist.

Educated at Eton and Balliol, Oxford, Julian Huxley began an
academic career as lecturer in zoology at Balliol (1910-12) and was
then appointed assistant professor at the Rice Institute at Houston,
Texas (1912-16), but he broke that off to join the Army Intelligence
Corps in the First World War and served on the Italian front. He
returned to Oxford in 1919 as senior demonstrator in zoology and
in 1925 became professor of zoology at King’s College, London.
Two years later, however, he resigned to devote his time to writing
and research. That was to be his last full-time academic post,
although he was Fulldean professor of physiology at the Royal
Institution from 1926 to 1928.

Among many other positions, some full-time, some part-time and
some honorary, he was secretary of the Zoological Society of
London from 1935 to 1942; a regular member of the radio ‘Brains
Trust’ during the Second World War, w'hich made him a household
name; the first director-general of the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) from 1946; and
a founder editor of the well-known and highly praised ‘New Natural-
ist’ series. He was also one of the founders of the British Trust for
Ornithology and served as a Council member of both that body
and the British Ornithologists’ Union.

His many books included The Individual in the Animal Kingdom
(1912); The Science of Life (1929), written jointly with that other
visionary, H. G. Wells, and the latter’s son, Professor G. P. Wells;
African View (1931), based on a visit to East Africa to advise on
native education, which led, in turn, to a lifetime of work for the

[Brit. Birds. 69: 305-307. August 1976]

305

306 Sir Julian Sorell Huxley (1887-1975)

conservation of African wildlife; Problems of Relative Growth (1932),
a milestone in its own field; and Evolution , the Modern Synthesis
(1948), probably his best-known publication which still stands as
the most comprehensive work on evolution, being an astonishing
distillation of a mixture of published data and first-hand knowledge
put together with such clarity and penetration that it welds into a
vivid composite. Near the end of his life he published his auto-
biography under the title Memories : those who seek to know more
of him as a man and to understand his achievements should turn
to that.

Ornithology owes him much more than the present generation
can realise, particularly in the field of bird behaviour. The first
of several highly original papers was on the courtship of the Red-
shank Tringa totanus ( Proc . £ool. Soc. London , 1912: 647-655) and
two years later he followed it with his revolutionary study of the
Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus (Proc. fool. Soc. London , 1914:
491-562). This was an outstanding contribution, years ahead of its
time, although it was based largely on observations made during a
single fortnight. With it he began the simple but fundamental
procedure of inventing names for the displays he saw and in this
he was also influenced by the field work of his great contempor-
aries, Edmund Selous and H. Eliot Howard. Another major paper
dealt with the courtship of the Red-throated Diver Gavia stellata
(J. Linn. Soc. £00/., 1923, 35: 253-292) and he published a series of
others in British Birds and The Ibis on the courtship and breeding
behaviour of the Little Grebe Tachybaptus raficollis (1919), the
Grey Heron Arden cinerea (1924), the Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta
(1925) and, in conjunction with F. A. Montague, the Oystercatcher
Haematopus ostralegus (1925) and the Black-tailed Godwit Limosa
limosa (1926).

From all this it can be seen that his favourite birds were divers,
grebes and waders, but he was also interested in territory (Brit.
Birds, 27: 270-277), threat and warning coloration (Int. Orn.
Congr., 8: 430-455) and, above all, natural selection, geographical
isolation and species formation, on which he wrote a great deal.
In this field, it was he who introduced the term ‘dine’ to cover
gradations in characters within a species from one end of its range
to the other (Nature, 142: 219): although this term has no position
in nomenclature, it is an invaluable taxonomic tool widely used
as a means of expressing geographical variation. He also published
a book on Bird Watching and Bird Behaviour (1930) and later in the
i93o’s, jointly with R. M. Lockley, produced a film on the life of
the Gannet Sula bassana, which was again a pioneer effort; the
commentary was spoken by Julian Huxley himself and the clear
and evocative presentation of the whole was to make it the fore-

Sir Julian Sorell Huxley (1887-1975) 3°7

runner of modern films on natural history. Not surprisingly, it
won an Oscar.

Despite his greatness, and Julian Huxley was one of the few men
I have met to whom this overworked word can be applied, he
remained at heart a plain man with an earthy sense of humour,
a gift for making science simple and a willingness, indeed a desire,
to help lesser mortals in any way he could. In the 25 years before
the Second World War he had done as much as anyone to lift
ornithology from an amateurish pastime to a serious science, yet
he retained his love of just watching birds for their own sake. I
recall his enthusiasm when he found some White-winged Black
Terns Chlidonias leucopterus on passage in the Goto Donana, Spain,
in 1956 and, even more, his delight at the Sinai Rosefinches Car -
podacus synoicus at Petra, Jordan, in 1963. At Petra, too, he showed
the diversity of his interest by proving a fund of information on
Nabataean history, as might be expected from one who had pub-
lished the first pictures in colour of the rose-red city in his From
an Antique Land ( 1 954) .

Many honours came Julian Huxley’s way during his lifetime,
but only a few can be mentioned here. In 1938 he was elected a
Fellow of the Royal Society and after the war was awarded its
Darwin Medal. In 1958 he was knighted, a recognition richly de-
served. In 1971 he received the Godman-Salvin Medal of the BOU,
which is the highest award of our senior ornithological society and
of which he was only the fourteenth recipient in 50 years. It is,
however, the BTO which should be regarded as one of his many
memorials and he retained to the end a great interest in its work.
Even in 1969, when he was in failing health, I remember his kind-
ness in personally signing many letters to charities and businesses
in connection with the Trust’s appeal for money to extend and
equip its headquarters at Tring, Hertfordshire.

It is indeed a privilege to have known this man and he taught
me much in the times I was with him. He is survived by his charming
wife, Juliette, who in his later years often had to restrain him
from continuing to work too hard, and by his two sons. To them
and to us, his loss is incalculable. I.J.F.-L.

Notes

Nibbling and cloaca-pecking by Moorhens In his paper on the
breeding behaviour and biology of the Moorhen Gallinula chloropus ,
N. A. Wood described ‘bowing and nibbling’ displays, and stated
that these actions may occur throughout the year in paired terri-
torial birds (j Brit. Birds, 67: 109-110).

On 25th August 1974, at Ilse Pool, Sandbach, Cheshire, I
observed this performance by two Moorhens standing (see Wood’s
fig. 6) in five to seven cm of water. The nibbling bird was in
immature plumage, and the bowing recipient was an adult.
Nibbling was concentrated about the adult’s loral and rictal
feathering, on both sides, with frequent attention to the bill.
Occasionally the young bird nibbled the adult’s crown, neck and
upper breast feathers; less frequently the adult nibbled the neck
of the immature bird, during which operation the latter would keep
quite still. The young bird then attended to feathers on its own
right wing before resuming its nibbling of the adult’s face. The
performance, which I watched for about three minutes, was
abruptly terminated when the adult lunged at a second immature
Moorhen which swam into close range.

On an earlier occasion, at Attenborough, Nottinghamshire, in
April 1973, I witnessed a pair of Moorhens chasing along the bank
of a disused gravel pit. The leading bird, presumably the female,
halted, and flirted her undertail coverts, allowing the male to peck
at her cloaca. I have observed this behaviour in only one other
species — the Dunnock Prunella modularis — during which the male’s
attention was more persistent than the brief, though definite, peck-
ing of the Moorhen. J. S. A. Hunter

16 Bollin Walk, Reddish Road, South Reddish, Stockport, Cheshire SK5
7JW

Ivory Gull landing on water The Ivory Gull Pagophila eburnea
is known to show a great reluctance to settle on water, presumably
because in the bird’s arctic habitat the wet plumage would quickly
freeze. On 3rd January 1971, however, I observed a first-winter
Ivory Gull, at the North Shields Fish Quay, Tyne & Wear, that
settled briefly on the water. The bird, in company with Black-
headed Gulls Larus ridibundus, was making frequent passes at a
piece of floating fish offal. Twice, with legs dangling, it almost
touched the water but the third time it dropped on to the water
for about two seconds, just long enough to snatch up the offal.
It settled only this once during several hours’ observation.

Dr D. A. Bannerman, in The Birds of the British Isles (1954), stated
that records of this species settling on water are few, so it is interesting

308

Notes

309

to note that G. T. Kay described how an immature bird in first-
winter plumage had a thorough wash in the normal gull manner
at Lerwick Harbour, Shetland, in December 1950. Commenting
on this, P. G. Bateson suggested that the Ivory Gull may not
acquire distaste for water until it has experienced the icing up of
its feathers. J. M. Bayldon

42 High Rifts , Stainton in Cleveland , Teesside

Mating of Great Spotted Cuckoos On 5th May 1972, my wife
and I were driving across the reclaimed marismas towards Sanlucar
de Barrameda in south-west Spain, when I noticed a Great Spotted
Cuckoo Clamalor glandarius beside the road. I stopped the car
approximately ten metres away and, as we watched, the cuckoo
picked a large caterpillar from a shrub at the side of the road.
After ‘dressing’ the caterpillar, the cuckoo hopped across the road
and on to a low bank approximately one metre high. We then
became aware of a second cuckoo almost directly opposite the car,
sitting on a bare patch of earth. As the first one approached, the
other began a regular jerking action of its whole body, keeping
the wings closed. The first bird hopped behind and then mounted
the sitting individual, at the same time offering her the caterpillar
which she instantly gripped in her bill, making no attempt to eat
it. Both birds retained their grip on the caterpillar and apparently-
used it to assist the male to maintain his balance during the coition
which followed. The male settled low on the female, appearing to
grip the sides of her body with his legs and they remained in this
position for just over two minutes. The female appeared to break
off the coupling by starting to eat the caterpillar, which the male
then released. The male dismounted and then proceeded to find,
dress and feed to the female two or three more caterpillars, each
time stepping on to her back from behind as he passed her the
food; she repeated the jerking action each time he approached.
Coition took place again in exactly the same manner, lasting almost
two minutes, and was quickly repeated, without any pre-coitional
feeding, a third time, lasting approximately 30 seconds. A passing
car then disturbed the male, which flew off but remained in view
on the other side of the ditch. We left five minutes later. Throughout
the time we watched, approximately 25 minutes, the female re-
mained motionless, apart from the jerking actions and turning
her head to grasp the caterpillars. A. G. Channer

42 Hilley Field Lane, Fete ham, Leatherhead, Surrey

Swallows hawking insects at 04.00 hours On 1st August 1974,
on the outskirts of Swansea, West Glamorgan, at 04.00 hours, I
heard the calls of a Swallow Hirundo rustica. Peering upwards, I saw

310

Notes

the bird hawking ior insects a metre or so above a street lamp. The
weather was calm but overcast, and natural light was negligible;
sunrise on that day was at 04.32 hours (Bristol). Swallows regularly
nest in a barn 45 metres from the place of observation.

David M. Hanford
404 Birchgrove Road , Swansea, West Glamorgan

Carrion Crows hanging upside down from electricity cables

In the Staplehurst area of Kent, on 26th December 1973, I was
surprised to see a Carrion Crow Cowus corone hanging upside down
from an electricity cable. Two others were also perched on the wires
and several more were feeding on the ground. Three days later,
8 km east of Staplehurst, I saw another Carrion Crow hanging
upside down from an electricity wire. Again there were others both
on the wires and on the ground. In this latter instance the bird
righted itself, thus completing a somersault. I suggest that these
birds were ‘playing’ and derived ‘pleasure’ from their experience
rather in the way that Ravens C. corax appear to enjoy aerobatic
tumbling. The only references I can find relating to such
behaviour among the Corvidae are of a Carrion Crow perching
upside down (Brit. Birds, 46: 378, which also refers to Brit. Birds,
42: 327); a Rook Corvus frugilegus somersaulting on a wire (Brit.
Birds, 54: 121-122); and a Rook and a Hooded Crow C. c. cornix
hanging upside down from wires (Brit. Birds, 57: 182-183).

D. Elphick

28 Coniston Drive, Holmes Chapel, Crew, Cheshire

Treecreepers feeding on fat I refer to an earlier note (Brit.
Birds, 67: 515-516) concerning Treecreepers Certhia familiaris
apparently feeding on fat. For the past five winters (1971/72-
1 975/76) I have daubed dripping-fat and pressed suet fat on to an
old gnarled Scots pine Pinus sylvestris in my garden. The fat has
attracted a wide variety of birds, in particular Treecreepers, Gold-
crests Regulus regulus and occasional Firecrests R. ignicapillus ,
wintering Chiffchaffs Phylloscopus collybita and wintering Blackcaps
Sylvia atricapilla. I was surprised, therefore, to see the note cited,
as I had regarded this method of feeding to be ideal for normally
insectivorous species. Geoffrey H. Gush

Heather Cottage, Higher Metcombe, Ottery St Mary, Devon exi 1 isr

Blackcap singing in February On several occasions during a
mild and sunny spell in February 1975, I heard the beautiful song
of the Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla in my garden. I also saw the bird
on 14th February and again on 18th, when it emerged from cover
still singing. A. P. Brown

160 Whytecliffe Road, Pur ley, Surrey

Notes

3i 1

Great Grey Shrike attacking sick Chaffinch On 1 ith January
1974, a male Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs, unable to fly because of a
damaged wing, was brought to me. After two days J. E. Robson
and I released the bird in some fields at Hollingworth, Cheshire,
where a large mixed flock of finches forage during the winter. A
Great Grey Shrike Lanius excub itor had been seen in the area a
month previously, but we could see no sign of it.

The freed Chaffinch left the cover of a hawthorn hedge and flew
weakly some five metres into the field, making distress calls. As we
went to the bird’s aid, the shrike appeared and alighted beside it.
We were about three metres away and our sudden movements
startled the predator, which flew to the hedge approximately six
metres from us. After 30 seconds the shrike flew off. The Chaffinch’s
head was badly gashed and it died soon afterwards.

W. M. Underwood

ij Broadbotlom Road, Mottram, Hyde, Cheshire ski 4 6jb

This is an interesting example of how quickly some predators
notice sick or injured prey. Eds

Starling feeding in manner of Turnstone On 19th July 1971,
at Ogston Reservoir, Derbyshire, I saw an immature Starling
Slurnus vulgaris working a section of stony shoreline in the manner
of a Turnstone Arenaria interpres. Round stones were rolled aside
by the Starling, but flat ones were turned by the bird inserting its
bill under the stone and lifting sideways. It was not successful with
stones which were about its own size, although it usually moved
them a little, but it easily turned stones of at least half its own
bulk and picked up what appeared to be worms. M. F. Stoyle
38 Goose Green Lane, Shirland, Derbyshire 0E5 6br

Starlings have been observed turning over objects in this way.
They often appear to combine the lifting with opening the bill,
as they do when probing in crevices or among grass roots. Eds

Hawfinch and woodpeckers eating leaves On 23rd April 1973
I observed, from a hide in an East Suffolk wood, a pair of Haw-
finches Coccothraustes coccothraustes feeding on the ground. When
close to the hide, the female stopped feeding, adopted a crouched
position, with wings quivering, and began calling. The male
approached and passed her what appeared to be a seed, which
she ate. Seconds later the female picked up and swallowed a
dead leaf from a hornbeam Carpinus betulus.

On 13th May, at the same locality, I saw a male Great Spotted
Woodpecker Dendrocopos major pick and eat fresh hornbeam leaves.

312

Notes

A little later a female Lesser Spotted Woodpecker D. minor arrived
and began pecking at hornbeam leaves. I can find no reference to
this behaviour in the literature. C. R. Naunton

j6 Pinewood Avenue , Oulton Broad, Suffolk

Crossbills feeding at chimney-stacks During the morning of
7th February 1975, up to six Scottish Crossbills Loxia curvirostra
scotica were seen feeding in the top branches of a beech outside the
front door of Inchbae Lodge in the valley of the Blackwater, about
5 km south-east of Glascarnoch Dam, on the A835 Gorstan —
Ullapool road in mid-Ross. At about 11.00 hours, four Crossbills
flew from the hoar-frosted beech on to the lodge’s television aerial
fastened to a chimney-stack, and from there one female went inside
the only unfrosted chimney-pot (presumably that connected to the
central heating boiler). By the afternoon the sun had removed the
frost from the chimney-stack. A female again flew on to the stack
and this time worked its way around the top and bottom of the old
mortar which held the pots in position. After ten minutes it flew
on to the lead ridge of a dormer window, where it went through
the same looking and pecking actions but with less enthusiasm. It
then moved out over the lichen-covered slates and, pecking more or
less continuously, worked its way up to the main ridge and flew back
to the beech. Later in the afternoon four Crossbills were seen on the
chimney-stack, and two mornings later another six were seen on a
second stack; in both cases they were observed picking at the
mortar.

According to The Handbook, Crossbills are known to include
insects in their diet and it was possibly for insects that they were
searching the defrosted chimney-pots and stacks.

Elspeth Bartlett

1 Craigrory, North Kessock, by Inverness ivi ixh

Perhaps the mortar itself (or mineral matter contained in it) was
the attraction, as it undoubtedly is when pigeons and House
Sparrows Passer domesticus eat crumbling mortar or the soft brick of
old walls. In the USA, Crossbills are known to feed on salt put out
for cattle and to take urine-impregnated snow. Eds

Chaffinches on nut baskets Shortly after we moved to Mull,
Strathclyde, in January 1974, we erected a bird table from which
two wire nut baskets were suspended. Not surprisingly, tits Parus spp
and House Sparrows Passer domesticus were soon feeding on the
sunflower seeds and peanuts which were provided. Four days later,
however, Chaffinches Fringilla coelebs began visiting the baskets.
They were not as agile as the other species but seemed to spend more

Notes 3!3

time at the food. During disputes the Chaffinches always gave way
to tits, but not always to House Sparrows.

Richard F. and Elizabeth M. Coomber

./ Staff’d Cottages , Tobermory , Isle of Mull , Strathclyde

Reviews

A Checklist of the Birds of the World. By Edward S. Gruson.
Collins, London, 1976. xii + 212 pages. £3.95.

In 1966, the late David Lack proposed that an international commit-
tee should prepare an authorised list of the birds of the world which
would be followed by regional publications, so ensuring for non-
taxonomists a period of uniformity and stability. This met with a
cool response from the taxonomists who argued that the time was
not ripe and indeed that it might never be. Only one took up the
challenge in part: when Professor K. H. Voous began publication
of his list of recent Holarctic bird species (Ibis, 115 (1973): 612-
638). The need, so clearly seen by Lack, for a modern compact list,
still exists, and increasingly attempts have been made to meet it.
Four world lists have already appeared in North America (for a
full review of the advantages and disadvantages of these, see Auk,
92: 818-830). This fifth list is the first to be published in Britain.

The author states clearly that his book is for ‘listers and tickers’.
He is not a taxonomist and has used standard regional avi faunas
where available as his main sources, and followed Peters’ Check-list
of Birds of the World very closely for the sections on families and
genera. He has not used the Voous list. Subspecies are not included,
nor fossil and extinct species. He states that he has frequently made
an arbitrary choice of English common names, in some cases
inventing his own. The list includes simple keys to indicate the
main avifaunal regions in which each species occurs and the
sources he has used. There is also a short selection of notes indicat-
ing the decisions he has made in some of the difficult cases, a brief
bibliography, and indexes of genera names and English group
names.

Inevitably, every taxonomist will criticise some aspects of this,
and indeed any, check-list. Many will unit to condemn his decision

Reviews

3i4

to follow R. E. Moreau’s suggestion of listing alphabetically the
species in each genus. Some species, both new and old, have been
missed; some are listed twice and some dubious species included,
while there are a number of typographical errors. Despite all this,
many, not least the birdwatchers who are travelling more and more
widely all over the world, will find it a useful compilation, even
though, increasingly as their knowledge grows, they will want to
start amending it. Stanley Cramp

Der Zug Europaischer Singvogel : Ein Atlas der Wiederfunde
Beringter Vogel. Part 2. By Gerhardt Zink. Vogelwarte
Radolfzell, 7760 Moggingen, West Germany, 1975. 130 pages,
including 61 of maps. DM62.

Part 1 of this atlas of passerine ringing recoveries was reviewed in
Brit. Birds, 67: 217-218, to which readers are referred for a descrip-
tion of the scope of this work. Two further parts are in preparation.
The second instalment, now available, follows the format of the
first, apart from one welcome change : a form of temporary binding
replaces the original loose-leaf arrangement. Part 2 covers 26
species — the larks (six), House Martin Delichon urbica, Golden
Oriole Oriolus oriolus, flycatchers (three), accentors (two), pipits
(six), wagtails (two) and shrikes (five). Naturally, the space allotted
to individual species varies considerably according to the amount of
data available, ranging from half a page for the Short-toed Lark
Calandrella drier ea to 14 pages (including ten of maps) for the
Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis. Where justified by numerous re-
coveries, as in the last-mentioned species, separate maps are given
for different areas of origin and seasons of ringing and recovery.
The accompanying text is brief but informative, and standardised
so that it can be readily understood even by those who have made
limited progress with the German language. This atlas draws
together a good deal of widely scattered and often barely accessible
data from the plethora of European ringing schemes. It is a ‘must’
for serious students of bird migration. Robert Hudson

Bird Observatories in Britain and Ireland. Edited by R.
Durman for the Bird Observatories’ Council. T. & A. D.
Poyser, Berkhamsted, 1976. 292 pages; 16 black-and-white
plates; several maps and diagrams. £5.00.

This book is a description of bird observatories and their work. It
covers those 14 recognised as functioning in 1974: Bardsey, Calf of
Man, Cape Clear, Copeland, Dungeness, Fair Isle, Gibraltar Point,

Reviews

315

Holme, Isle of May, Portland, Sandwich, Skokholm, Spurn and
YValney. There are 230 pages devoted to this, and there is a chapter
for each, written by an author familiar with the particular observa-
tory.

The book starts off with a clear ‘setting the scene’ by Robert
Spencer, which puts into perspective the history of the bird ob-
servatories and their work. He ascribes the current run-down of
observatories to two factors. First, the advent of mist-nets (and
perhaps cannon-nets) has made the ringer more mobile and less
dependent on the huge, expensive Heligoland traps of the observa-
tory. Second, radar studies showed that bird migration as seen at
the observatories was only a small part, often only a very small
part, of the migration that went on overhead; worse, the observa-
tories’ observations and theories did not tally with what was
observed on radar.

While these factors have radically altered the observatory, the
rest of the book makes clear that they have not killed it; the affi-
cionados remain. The chapters, which describe their activities,
each have a similar layout, with area map, the history of the
observatory, seasonal activities and major specialities; there are
often brief tables, totals or analyses of aspects of their work and
usually also a short section on the flora and other fauna.

Though it is not easy to suggest another layout, this format
makes for rather heavy reading, not always helped by frequent
references to obscure local place names. The migration work in
particular is very similar at most observatories, and 14 blow-by-
blow accounts of the annual round do not make for excitement.
For example, at least five chapters and the introduction refer to
the sudden decrease in Whitethroats in the late 1960’s.

In addition to the sections already mentioned, there are a
number of monochrome plates — not of very good quality — and a
long list giving, for each observatory, the status of the 393 species
recorded at the observatories. The book is well produced, with very-
few typographical errors, and there is an adequate index of the
species mentioned, except that those in the introduction do not
seem to have been included.

Each observatory has certain special features and, though these
are discussed, more could, I think, have been made of them.
Nevertheless, the book will provide a valuable guide and a useful
source of information to those for whom the observatories are a way
oflife. C. M. Perrins

Letters

Ravens breeding on city buildings The note by R. A. Hume on

the successful breeding of Ravens Corvus corax on Swansea Guildhall
[Brit. Birds , 68: 515-516), and further records from Oxfordshire
and Devon by Dr Bruce Campbell and G. E. S. Turner {Brit. Birds ,
69: 229-230), prompt me to quote from George Bolan (1912, Birds
of Northumberland and the Eastern Borders). Bolan stated that ‘about
a hundred years ago the Raven was numerous and, as mentioned
by Hancock, bred regularly, towards the end of the eighteenth
century on the spire of St Nicholas’ Church (now the Cathedral)
in Newcastle’. The church could, perhaps, lay as much claim to
being an occupied building as a guildhall.

It is perhaps worthy of note that the Raven is no longer a breeding
species in Northumberland. A steady decline in recent years has
culminated in a total lack of breeding pairs in 1975 and 1976,
despite the careful checking of 30 known former nest sites.

E . R . Meek

7 Shaftoe Way , Dinnington, Newcastle-upon-Tyne , Tyne & Wear

Cap Gris Nez and the Pas de Calais, France From 1965 to
1969 records from Cap Gris Nez were collected and published by
the Cap Gris Nez Bird Observatory. These records were mainly
those of English visitors. During that period, and increasingly so
since, the Cap has become a focal point not only for the birds, but
also for birdwatchers, and in the autumn scores and sometimes
hundreds of observers congregate at the Cap. These include many
visitors from the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as from France
and England.

In view of the large number of observations that, for the most
part, are not collected in any systematic way, it has been agreed by
the undersigned to attempt to collect records from as many visitors
as possible. The arrangements will be as follows:

1. T. Milbled will act as recorder for the area, and all records
should be sent to him either at the address shown below or, if more
convenient, to P. S. Redman, Redwings, Crowhurst, Battle, Sussex,
England.

2. Standard recording forms will be available, free of charge,
from either Milbled or Redman upon request.

3. Records are sought not only for Cap Gris Nez but also for the
surrounding regions of the Department of Pas de Calais. Breeding
records, especially of the following species, will be particularly
welcomed: all raptors, Stone Curlew Burhinus oedicnemus, Hoopoe
Upupa epops, Wryneck Jynx torquilla, Redpoll Acanthis flammea,
Fan-tailed Warbler Cisticola juncidis, and shrikes Lanius spp. If

3j6

Letters

3i7

sufficient support is forthcoming it is hoped to publish periodic
reports in French and English, beginning with the year 1976.

The county societies and bird observatories on the Kent and
Sussex coasts of England have already been advised of the contents
of this letter, and we hope from time to time to be able to co-
operate in combined studies with them or any other research project
relating to the area. We look forward to hearing from any observer
who has visited, or is proposing to visit, Cap Gris Nez and the Pas de
Calais area.

T. Milbled, A. Goulliart, P. J. Oliver, P. S. Redman and

R. Tonnel

705 rue St Gabriel, 5900 Lille, France

Request for information

Old World bunting research As there is reason to believe that the Corn
Bunting Emberiza calandra was evolved in arid grasslands from an ancestor posses-
sing a distinctive male breeding plumage in common with the majority of Emberiza
species, it is thought that any abnormal colour on head, back or underparts
might provide a clue to the ancestral colour of those parts. Therefore anyone
who has a sight or skin record of abnormally coloured male Corn Buntings in the
breeding season is kindly requested to send full details, including date and locality,
together with a sketch if possible, to D. T. Lees-Smith, 27 Duchy Avenue,
Harrogate, North Yorkshire HG2 oNB

News and comment Peter Conder

Threatened birds of prey How often that headline has hit us. It is as true today
as in the worst days of the organo-chlorine pesticides or game-preserving, but
this year the cause is different. I gather from Peter Robinson, the Royal Society
for the Protection of Birds’s Investigations Officer, that at the time of writing at
least 24 nests of Peregrines in England and Scotland have been raided for their
eggs or young, chiefly the latter. It is possible that the final figure may be double.
Furthermore, the eggs of a pair of Goshawks were taken just before hatching
from a nest which had been previously marked by some unknown person. One
of the unprotected Osprey nests was robbed of its eggs. Three young Golden
Eagles, six to eight weeks old, had also been taken from their eyrie but recovered
by Roy Dennis, the RSPB’s Highland Officer, and the police are considering
prosecuting. They are also considering charges against twelve other people
involved in three other incidents. This is all that I know — so far.

1 976 has, therefore, seen a horrifying rise in the number of thefts of eggs or young
of birds of prey — partly by egg-collectors but more probably by those wanting

News and Comment

3i8

young falcons, either for their own purposes or because the price now being
offered by falconers in Germany and the Arabian countries is so much higher
than the ludicrously small fines that can be imposed under the Protection of
Birds Act (said to be around 36500 in contrast to the £25 maximum fine). Another
reason for the theft of these birds may possibly be the enthusiasm to breed Pere-
grines in captivity and the inability of potential breeders to get their birds legiti-
mately. Assuming that each Peregrine eyrie averaged a successful fledging of
2^ birds per nest, then this year we have lost at least 60 eyasses. If this is going to
continue in following years then we stand to see a worse situation than we had
in bad pesticide years.

For security reasons the RSPB is not saying what steps they are taking next
year but if birdwatchers were to report the presence of Peregrines in captivity
to the RSPB they would be able to ascertain which were held legitimately. It
would be prudent and indeed helpful if those who hold Peregrines legitimately
were to keep their licences handy even though this is not mandatory.

Egg-collecting Reading in a bird club bulletin the other day that a club did
not find Red-backed Shrikes in the habitats and localities where they had expected
to reminded me that I had heard a week or two earlier that a certain egg-collector
was specialising in Red-backed Shrikes and that he was paying people to collect
for him in the Brecks and the New Forest. A little later I met a member of the
Jourdain Society who told me that egg-collectors were concentrating on another
area in south-western England in a way that worried him immensely. Both
pieces of information came to me directly or indirectly from members of the
Jourdain Society who were very worried about new trends in egg-collecting. Some
bulletin editors might well start thinking about security for their records of the
commoner rare birds as well as the real rarities. I wonder how all those who have
been surveying the fortunes of the Red-backed Shrike have taken into account the
efforts of egg-collectors, to whom the shrike, like the Hobby, has always been a
producer of desirable eggs. If what I heard had any truth in it, then shrikes have
suffered at least as badly as Peregrines this year.

Protection of Birds Act fines and the Home Office Following the theft
of Osprey’s eggs from an unprotected eyrie in Scotland, the RSPB asked the
Government for a review of fines for stealing eggs, which, it says, are ludicrously
inadequate. An attempt by Lord Chelwood to introduce a very short bill into
the House of Lords was first met with sympathy by the Home Office, but this
was later withdrawn and an official said they were considering their own bill.
If this statement has more substance than piety, then we are in for a very long wait:
to achieve the Protection of Birds Act 1967, the first delegation went to the Home
Office in 1956.

Importation of birds On the same day, June 17th 1976, that Air India were
fined 3610,800 with 36179 costs for 36 summonses issued by the Greater London
Council in relation to the deaths of 2,031 birds on a flight from Calcutta at the
end of last year {Brit. Birds, 69:111), 1,900 birds died in a British Airways plane
flying the same route. Apparently many of these birds, mainly parakeets, tiger
finches and mynahs, were en route for Dusseldorf. British Airways have sent
two vets to Heathrow to carry out an inquiry. It is pleasing to note that Air India
have decided that, as a matter of policy, they will not be carrying birds in future.
Perhaps the Greater London Council can help British Airways to reach a similar
decision, although the same decision reached now would be much more gratifying
and more in line with world thinking on the indiscriminate importation of animals.
Tim Inskipp, working for the RSPB, has completed a survey inquiry into the

News and Comment

319

conditions of birds arriving at London (Heathrow) airport and the effectiveness
of the new International Air Transport Association regulations. His report is due
to be published in the autumn.

Ouse Washes There are strong rumours that the Central Water Planning
Authority has its eyes on the Ouse Washes and proposes to build various dams
and to recirculate the water in the various drains dug by Cornelius Vermuyden
in a way that would effectively dry out the Washes. At this stage it is only a rumour,
but since Britain has just ratified the Ramsar Convention and the Ouse Washes
are a Ramsar Convention site (Brit. Birds, 69:110), and since this is European
Wetlands Year to which all European governments have pledged support, we
can surely expect some Government departments to say no to the CVVPA? In
spite of a big buying programme by the Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely Naturalists’
Trust, the Fenland Wildfowling Club, the RSPB and the Wildfowl Trust, they still
do not own sufficiently large chunks to control the area. Whatever the Nature
Conservancy Council decides to do, the voluntary bodies may have another big
fight on their hands.

Going for a song? An official at the Iranian Embassy recently telephoned
the RSPB asking where she could find 100 English Nightingales for the Empress.
Obviously to be kept in a Persian Garden . . .

Birds of Turkey The 1970-75 Bird Report of the Ornithological Society of
Turkey has just appeared. The editors of it apologise for the delay in publication
and promise better things later, including an atlas of Turkish birds. Perhaps the
reader has scored by the delay, however, because what wc are given is a systematic
list and a check list of the birds of Turkey taking up some 260 pages of the 319-page
report. After an introduction, the check list gives a short summary of the general
status of each species followed by the four-year report on records within various
geographical regions. The list is followed by additions and corrections to earlier
reports, recent recoveries and, finally, a history of ornithology in Turkey by
Hans Kumerloeve. What we have is a pretty up-to-date status report on the
birds of Turkey which those interested in European birds, or those proposing to
visit Turkey, should not fail to obtain from the Ornithological Society of Turkey,
c/o The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire, price £3 post free.

Nightingales for Cadogan Square? Cadogan Square and Cadogan Place,
containing between them some nine acres of gardens in the heart of London's
West End, are to be made more attractive to wild birds. The owners, Cadogan
Estates Ltd, are discussing plans with the RSPB for planting suitable trees and
shrubs which will provide food and cover for many different species. Local
residents who are RSPB members will help with nest-boxes and census work.
The announcement follows two similar developments, one covering 40 acres at
the famous Hurlingham Club on the banks of the Thames at Putney and the
other in the 50-acre Brompton Cemetery. The initiative for all three comes
from Mr Tom Slack, a retired company director, who is a member of the
RSPB Council and who is seeking to include many similar areas in the scheme.

Will Cadogan Square’s Nightingales make this London’s Persian Garden?

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

April reports D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

On 1 8th a White-billed Diver Gavia adamsii was seen at Loch Dinart, Skye and
Lochalsh (Highland). In Kent a Sooty Shearwater Piiffinus griseus was noted
at Dungeness on 8th and a Cory’s Calonectris diomedea flew north at Sandwich
Bay on 30th. Two Purple Herons Ardea purpurea arrived in the west country,
the first in the Radipole Lake-Lodmoor area of Dorset on 12th (staying until
29th) and the other at Slapton Ley (Devon) on 25th. In the same part of Britain
a Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus appeared on Lundy (Devon) on 2nd and
two turned up at Swan Pool, Falmouth (Cornwall), on 28th. White Storks
Ciconia ciconia were found at Leighton Moss (Lancashire) on 10th, at Steeple
(Dorset) on 22nd, and on Tresco (Scilly) on an unspecified date. The only
Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia brought to our notice was one coming in off the
sea at Walberswick (Suffolk), though again the date is not mentioned. A male
Ring-necked Duck Aythya collaris was present at Bosherton Ponds (Dyfed) at
least during the first two days of the month.

A Red Kite Milvus milvus was reported in the Snape-Sutton area of Suffolk
from late March until 7th April, and a Goshawk Accipiter gentilis was seen at
Tobermory on the Isle of Mull (Stratchclyde) on 8th. Ospreys Pandion haliaetus
seemed rather scarce, with singles in Northamptonshire at Sywell and Hollowell
Reservoir on 3rd and at Bywell Reservoir on 21st; at Blithfield Reservoir (Staf-
fordshire) on 19th; at Grafham Water (Huntingdonshire) on 22nd; and in
Kent at Fordwich/Stodmarsh on 24th and at Sevenoaks on 29th. The only rare
raptor reported was a Gyrfalcon Falco rusticolus at Fair Isle (Shetland) on 1st.

Cranes Grus grus were noted at four places: Bentley, Doncaster (South York-
shire), on 14th and 15th, the Insh marshes (Highland) on 15th, Newburgh
(Grampian) on 17th, and Tyninghame (Lothian) on 1 8th. Another Killdeer
Charadrius vociferus was found, this time on Samson (Scilly) early in the month,
and a Stilt Sandpiper Micropalama himantopus was reported at Chew Valley
Lake (Avon) on 20th. The Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa Jlavipes finally left the
Teign estuary (Devon) on 7th, but the same or another was discovered in the
same county on the Exe estuary from 20th to 24th.

Another second-year Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis appeared at Blackpill
(West Glamorgan) on 12 th, staying for three days, and an immature of the
same species was reported at Radipole Lake on 29th. A Sabine’s Gull L. sabini
was seen at Dungeness on 19th, while earlier in the month an adult Ross’s Gull
Rhodostethia rosea in winter plumage was present at South Shields (Tyne & Wear)
from 9th to nth. A Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica was at Lodmoor on 27th.

A Scops Owl Otus scops recorded on St Mary’s (Scilly) during the month
eluded most observers. Hoopoes Upupa epops were reported from Dyfed, Wilt-
shire, Somerset, Dorset (three), Hampshire and Norfolk (two), though it is
likely that there were others which have not been brought to our notice. Wrynecks
Jynx torquilla were recorded in Somerset, Dorset and Kent (three).

From the Trent Valley came an interesting report of a large warbler with
bright yellow underparts and brown upperparts, seen on 13th, which was con-
sidered to be either an Icterine Hippolais icterina or Melodious Warbler H.
polyglotta. A Bonelli’s Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli was trapped on Lundy on
9th, and a Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus was seen there on 20th. On 10th
a Serin Serinus serinus arrived at Dungeness and, to complete a mor
variety, an adult female Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla was
(Cheshire) from 11th April until 1st May.

320

w W

Model

8 x 30
10 x 50
8 x 40
8 x 20
10 x 40

Exit

Pupil

3.7

5

5

2.5

4

Relative

Brightness

13.6

25

25

6.2

16

Field of
View
7“

5.5°

9°

7°

7.5°

Weight
18 ozs
36 ozs
36 ozs
6 ozs
25 i ozs

Height
4$ ins
7 ins
54 ins
3} ins
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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 8 August 1976

281 Field identification of Long-eared and Short-eared Owls A. H.
Davis and Robin Prytherch

288 Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland Gordon E. Wilson
293 Distinguishing characteristics in the burrow-calling of Storm
and Leach's Petrels Joan Hall-Craggs and P. J. Sellar
298 An estimate of the world breeding population of the Razorbill
Clare S. Lloyd

Obituary

305 Sir Julian Sorell Huxley, MA. DSc, FRS (1887-1975)

Notes

308 Nibbling and cloaca-pecking by Moorhens J. S. A. Hunter

308 Ivory Gull landing on water J. M . Bayldon

309 Mating of Great Spotted Cuckoos A. G. Channer

309 Swallows hawking insects at 04.00 hours David M. Hanford

310 Carrion Crows hanging upside down from electricity cables
D. Elpliick

310 Treecreepers feeding on fat Geoffrey H. Gush

310 Blackcap singing in February Mrs A. P. Brown

31 1 Great Grey Shrike attacking sick Chaffinch W. M. Underwood
31 1 Starling feeding in manner of Turnstone M. F. Stoyle

31 1 Hawfinch and woodpeckers eating leaves C. R. Haunt on

312 Crossbills feeding at chimney-stacks Mrs Elspeth Bartlett

312 Chaffinches on nut baskets Richard F. and Elizabeth M.
Coomber

Reviews

313 A Checklist of the Birds of the World by Edward S. Gruson
Stanley Cramp

314 Der Zug Europaischer Singvdgel: Ein Atlas der Wiederfunde
Beringter Vogel. Part 2 by Gerhardt Zink Robert Hudson

314 Bird Observatories in Britain and Ireland edited by R. Durman
Dr C. M. Perrins

Letters

316 Ravens breeding on city buildings E. R. Meek

316 Cap Gris Nez and the Pas de Calais, France T. Milbled .
A. Gout Hart, P. J. Oliver, P. S. Redman and R. Tonne!

Request for information

317 Old World bunting research D. T. Lees-Smith
317 News and comment Peter Conder
320 April reports D. A. Christie

Front cover: Hen Harrier Circus cvaneus (photo: M. D. England)

Printed by Henry Burt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

British Birds

Volume 69 Number 9 September 1976

Editorial Address 59 Curlew Crescent, Bedford MK41 7HY (telephone: 0234

62171)

Editors Stanley Cramp, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock, I. J. Ferguson-Lees
M. A. Ogilvie and D. I. M. Wallace Photographic Editor M. D. England

News and comment Peter Conder, 12 Swaynes Lane, Comberton, Cambridge CB3 7EF
Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL
© The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd

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Rare Birds in
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and

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been collated by Mrs
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played in maps and dia-
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How many birds were seen

When they occurred]

How regularly they came

Where they were seen

There are line drawings
by five well-known artists
of each of the 221 species
treated.

336 pages, £6.00 net

VISION
IN THE
ANIMAL
WORLD

R. H. Smythe
M.R.C.V.S.

0 A cock robin can see a
female and recognise her
sex at thirty yards. On
the other hand it can be
deceived by a tiny piece
of red rag stuffed between
the branches of a garden
bush and will attack it
furiously.

% Hawks and owls can spot
the infra-red rays which
emanate from the bodies
of their prey at night.

# An elephant’s vision com-
pares unfavourably with
that of a Pekinese.

Just a small selection of the
wide variety of interesting
facts contained in this volume.
This is the only book which
adequately covers the subjects
of vision throughout the ani-
mal kingdom including man,
and as such will prove in-
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11

British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 9 SEPTEMBER I 9 7 6

Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1975
(with additions for nine previous years)

J. JV. Dymond and the Rarities Committee

Plates 33-35

This is the eighteenth annual report of the Rarities Committee.
The composition of the committee for 1975 was D. I. M. Wallace
(chairman), J. N. Dymond (honorary secretary), D. G. Bell,
A. R. M. Blake, R. H. Dennis, P. J. Grant, R. J. Johns, Dr R. J.
Raines, R. A. Richardson, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock and G. A. Williams.
D. I. M. Wallace continued as chairman in a non-voting and
advisory capacity for a second year. As previously announced {Brit.
Birds, 68: 306), the two longest-serving members, D. G. Bell and
A. R. M. Blake, retired in April 1976, and their places have been
filled by B. Little and J. R. Mather. In addition, R. A. Richardson
has retired and, at its annual meeting in London on 28th February
1976, the committee decided to co-opt immediately D. J. Holman,
thus maintaining the important link with East Anglia; he will
stand for formal election early in 1977 .

F. R. Smith retired as honorary secretary at the end of May
1 975 ; he served on the committee for twelve years, almost ten of
them as secretary, and we take this opportunity of expressing our
gratitude to him for his long and most efficient service and to wish
him well in his ‘retirement’. D. G. Bell, who devised the Unusual
Record Form which is supplied free by the committee and is used
extensively by observers, served on the committee for 14 years;
A. R. M. Blake for 13 years; and R. A. Richardson for seven: to
each of them we extend our gratitude for their most substantial
contributions.

[Bril. Birds, 69: 321-368, September 1976]

321

322

Rare birds in Great Britain ig75

The committee has reconsidered its list of subject species, last
published in 1973 {Brit. Birds, 67: 347-348), and, in response to
both internal and widespread external requests, has decided to add
the Long-tailed Skua Stercorarius longicaudus to the list and to reinstate
the Richard’s Pipit Anthus novaeseelandiae. The former remains a dis-
tinctly uncommon seabird and its identification is not as easy as
many observers believe; happily, J. R. Mather is currently pre-
paring a paper on skua identification, which will include treatment
of the closely similar immature plumages. The return of the pipit
is an acknowledgement by the committee that its neglect since
1970 of this Asiatic passerine was an error of judgment; the large
irruptive autumn arrivals of the late 1 960’s have ceased and clearly
it is sensible to resume the monitoring of its status on a national
basis.

Long-tailed Skua Stercorarius longicaudus (see announcement, above) and Arctic

Skua S. parasiticus

The year 1975 was phenomenal for rare birds in Britain and the
number of records submitted (about 840 of 136 species) was very
considerably more than in any year since the inception of the
committee in 1958. The acceptance rate, at about 81%, was con-
sistent with that of recent years. Many observers submit their
rarity records to county recorders for forwarding to the committee,
while others send records directly to the committee. There is no
hard-and-fast procedure, but observers submitting records to the
committee are asked to send a copy to the relevant county recorder.
Furthermore, whenever possible, observers are urged to send in
their records within a reasonable time of the event, rather than
after many months or at the end of the year; this report has been
delayed by late submissions.

The year began well with two Surf Scoters Melanitta perspicillata
and a King Eider Somateria spectabilis (in the same Scottish sea
loch) and a Little Crake Porzana parva, but, apart from a Ross’s
Gull Rhodostethia rosea, a Steppe Buzzard Buteo buteo vulpinus and an
American Robin Turdus migratorius, the later part of the winter

323

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

held few surprises. In spring, as in 1974, non-passerine rarities
were not obvious, and there was no large influx of southern herons,
although several Black Kites Milvus migrans and Cranes Crus grus
appeared simultaneously in mid-May. Once again, Terek Sand-
pipers Xenus cinereus and a Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola falcinellus
came on cue, and another Ross’s Gull appeared. The variety of
rare passerines was much more striking, with Black-eared Wheatears
Oenanthe hispanica and no less than six Subalpine Warblers Sylvia
cantillans overshooting from the south, and three singing Greenish
Warblers Phylloscopus trochiloides (on two June days), a Collared
Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis on Out Skerries (clearly, isles to rival
Fair Isle), a Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi (the first ever in spring),
six Red- throated Pipits A. cervinus and a total of ten Rustic Emberiza
rustica and Little Buntings E. pusilla extending their migration from
the south-east. Other spring vagrants of extreme quality included
two Pallas’s Sandgrouse Syrrhaptes paradoxus, a Pine Grosbeak
Pinicola enucleator, a Pine Bunting Emberiza leucocephala, two Slate-
coloured Juncos Junco hyemalis and Britain’s first Hermit Thrush
Hylocichla guttata. In retrospect, the spring of 1975 foretold the
riches of the autumn to come, but no one guessed so at the time.

The summer of 1975 was full of excitements too. Its chief prize
was Britain’s first White-tailed Plover Vanellus leucurus, but there
was also a striking influx of adult Rose-coloured Starlings Sturnus
roseus.

The early events of the autumn were unremarkable, but from
late August onwards an almost continuous flood of rarities came
from both west and east. Nearctic waders were not in total excep-
tionally common, but, in a clear extension of a large flight across
America, no fewer than 62 Buff-breasted Sandpipers Tryngites
subruficollis were found, scattered all over Britain and Ireland. The
influx of early September broke all records. Two Greater Yellowlegs
Tringa melanoleuca were welcome in view of their usual rarity and
Lesser Golden Plovers Pluvialis dominica (of both American and
Asiatic races) were in record numbers. At least 45 Aquatic Warblers
Acrocephalus paludicola were noted at their regular off-passage
marshes and some new localities, but Scarlet Rosefinches Carpodacus
erythrinus proved to be rather fewer than in 1974. As in August,
Continental drifts were not obvious, but American landbirds
began to cross the Atlantic. Fair Isle produced two Tennessee
Warblers Vermivora peregrina, again new to Britain, and to the south-
west, out of a savage gale in the last week of September, came a
small collection headed by a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sphyrapicus
varius, another first for Britain, and a splendid Black-and- White
Warbler Mniotilta varia, the second ever and the first for 40 years.
After a Scarlet Tanager Piranga olivacea, even a Blackpoll Warbler

324

Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5

Dendroica striata and two Bobolinks Dolichonyx oryzivorus did not
complete the list. As the Americans moved away, the true measure
of the waves of rare Palearctic passerines became recognised. They
seemed to be everywhere, and October 1975 was the most magical
month in the recorded history of rare birds in Britain. Even hallowed
memories of October 1968 paled as an astonishing variety of birds
appeared from Fair Isle round to Scilly, with the beautiful woods
at Holkham in Norfolk providing the best ever mainland rarity
watching. The number of rare Siberian and Asiatic passerines seen
during the autumn was at least 48 (twice the 1974 total) and their
proportion in the populations of other migrants was noticeably
higher than usual. One in two of the Asiatic vagrants was a Pallas’s
Warbler Phylloscopus proregulus and for every one there were at least
four Yellow-browed Warblers P. inornatus. There can have been
hardly a broadleaved wood on the east coast that did not receive
one of these sprites. With them came the second ever Bimaculated
Lark Melanocorypha bimaculata, three Asiatic thrushes, a Red-flanked
Bluetail Tarsiger cyanurus, an Ehrenberg’s Redstart Phoenicians
phoenicurus samamisicus, a Siberian Rubythroat Luscinia calliope
(another first for Britain and Fair Isle’s chief prize), four Lanceo-
lated Warblers Locustella lanceolata (all on Fair Isle, three on one
day), two Desert Warblers Sylvia nana, three Radde’s Warblers
Phylloscopus schwarzi and two Dusky Warblers P.fuscatus (all five in
north Norfolk), both of Britain’s rarest pipits, and Norfolk’s rival
to the Rubythroat, a Yellow-browed Bunting Emberiza chrysophrys
(yet another first British record), which lurked all one day next to
scores of observers but was seen by only three. Chief among the
supporting cast were more Rose-coloured Starlings, Rustic and
Little Buntings and Arctic Redpolls Acanthis hornemanni. Non-
passerines seemed scarcer, but there were late Purple Herons Ardea
purpurea , two Glossy Ibises Plegadis falcinellus, a Red-breasted Goose
Branta ruficollis (with Brent Geese B. bernicla and not, for once,
White-fronted Anser albifrons), another Steppe Buzzard, yet another
Ross’s Gull, a Little Bustard Otis tetrax (the chief prize of St Agnes)
and a Sociable Plover Vanellus gregarius. Other exceptional records
were a Crested Lark Galerida cristata and a Squacco Heron Ardeola
ralloides.

By mid-November, life became quieter, but early winter saw
another Little Crake and a typically late Killdeer Charadrius
vociferus. Not to be outdone, America dealt the last high card, a
Rose-breated Grosbeak Pheucticus ludovicianus on a newly erected
bird-table in Essex just before Christmas. So ended 1975, the best
year for rarities (and ornithological telephone calls) ever!

An analysis of the first autumn dates for the Siberian and Asiatic
passerines indicates that there were either at least four waves of

325

Rare birds in Great Britain / 9 7 7

arrivals or redirected passage. The first broke on about 1 ith October
and was most obvious at Fair Isle, though there were signs as far
south as Sussex. The second was obvious by the 1 8th and touched
the east coast from the Isle of May south to Norfolk, spreading
west to Scilly. The third began on the 25th and was again obvious
along the English Channel, but not north of Norfolk. The fourth,
clearly separate, was obvious from 10th November, but was again
restricted to the east coast between Northumberland and Essex.
Regional differences in the species-spectrum suggests that each wave
was distinct, but some later compounding by redirected passage
from the north seems likely. It is an astonishing fact that not one
of these birds (apart from Yellow-browed Warblers) added the few
score kilometres westward to Ireland to the thousands already
completed by their British landfalls. In this respect, it is noteworthy
that the Channel Islands’ crop of rarities was essentially similar to
that in Britain.

The occurrence patterns of the later Red-throated Pipits, Arctic
Redpolls, Rustic and Little Buntings were not dissimilar to those of
their far-eastern co-vagrants, which suggests that the individuals
involved did not originate from the breeding populations nearest
to Britain. Conversely, those of the Scarlet Rosefinch, Greenish and
Arctic Warblers showed no such resemblance; their patterns had
more of the erratic appearance of Scandinavian and European
migrants, such as Barred Warblers Sylvia nisoria and Bluethroats
Luscinia svecica. The autumn of 1975 was easy to enjoy; it is much
more difficult to explain. One may sense that exceptional breeding
success by Asiatic species caused an unusual degree of reversed
migration and that the expanding polar circulation contributed to
westward dispersal, but we lack proof that these were the major
factors.

The main systematic list of accepted records is given on pages
327-359 and is followed by supplementary records for i960 (one),
1964 (one), 1965 (two), 1967 (one), 1969 (one), 1971 (one), 1972
(five), 1973 (eight) and 1974 (48). Appendix 1 on pages 365-367
lists the no rejected records for 1975, followed by appendices 2-7
which set out additional rejected records for 1959, 1970, 1971, 1972,
1973 and 1974.

Comments on individual species have been prepared by D. I. M.
Wallace, as have the paragraphs in this introduction relating the
events of the year and analysing some of them. The comments
include the accepted Irish records which are adjudicated by the
Irish Records Panel. All Irish records are published annually in
the Irish Bird Report (obtainable from K. Perry, 17 Bridge Street,
Banbridge, Co. Down), and we express our gratitude to K. Preston,
editor of the report and honorary secretary of the Irish Records

326 Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5

Panel, for agreeing to our repeating them and for providing the
information in advance of publication. They are given at the
beginning of each species comment as before, after the summary
(in brackets) of the world breeding range.

It is our normal practice not to publish records of birds new to
Britain and Ireland until they have been accepted both by us and
by the Records Committee of the British Ornithologists’ Union.
There were so many such records in 1975, however, and they form
such an integral part of the whole picture of this remarkable year,
that they have been included in this report. Such instances are
always noted in the comments which appear below the records;
we stress that these records are not yet formally accepted additions
to the British and Irish list.

Photographs of a few of the rarities of 1975 are reproduced on
plates 33-35. Observers are again urged to submit black-and-white
prints for possible inclusion. Copies of the list of species considered
by the committee and Unusual Record Forms are available on
request free of charge from the address on page 327: observers are
encouraged to use these forms as often as possible.

The principles and procedure followed in considering records were
explained in the 1958 report (Brit. Birds, 53: 155-158), and the
systematic list is set out in the same way as in the 1974 report (Brit.
Birds, 68: 306-338). The following points, some of which were
outlined more fully in the 1958 report, should be borne in mind,
as they show the basis on which this information has been put
together. The committee will discuss any items which societies or
observatories suggest are in need of further consideration.

(i) The details included for each record are (i) county; (2) locality; (3) number
of birds if more than one, and age and sex if known (in the case of spring and
summer records, however, the age is normally given only where the bird concerned
was not in adult plumage) ; (4) if trapped or found dead, and where specimen is
stored, if known; (5) date(s); and (6) observer(s) up to three in number, in alpha-
betical order. In accordance with our declared policy (see Brit. Birds, 68: 1-4)
the new county names have been used, and observers are asked to bear this in
mind when submitting records. The old county names are used for the additional
records for earlier years.

(ii) In general, this report is confined to records which are regarded as certain,
and ‘probables’ are not included. In the case of the very similar Long-billed
Limnodromus scolopaceus and Short-billed Dowitchers L. griseus, however, we are
continuing to publish indeterminable records, and this also applies to observations
of the two pratincoles Glareola spp and of such difficult groups as albatrosses
Diomedea spp and frigatebirds Fregata spp.

(iii) The sequence of species, vernacular names and scientific nomenclature
follow the British Trust for Ornithology’s guide A Species List of British and Irish
Birds (1971). Any sight records of subspecies (including those of birds trapped
and released) are normally referred to as ‘showing the characters’ of the race
concerned.

327

Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

Problems concerning escapes and introductions have again been
dealt with by M. D. England, author of a review of this subject
(Brit. Birds, 67: 177- 197), and in some cases advice has also been
sought from T. P. Inskipp. The Wildfowl Trust has continued to
help with advice on wildfowl escape and identification problems,
while Derek Goodwin has once again advised on problems involv-
ing museum research, under the arrangement made with the
British Museum (Natural History).

The committee is most grateful to the many individuals and
organisations whose co-operation has made the publication of this
report possible. All records should be addressed to the honor-
ary secretary, J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy,
Bedfordshire SGig 2dl.

Systematic list of records accepted

Black-browed Albatross Diomedea melanophris
Orkney: Scapa Flow, adult, 21st August (G. G. Bunting).

Shetland: Herinaness, Unst, adult, 16th March to 18th August (D. J. Frost,
H. Mitchell, R. J. Tulloch et at.)

(Southern oceans) None off Ireland and the two records above
are obviously of the same bird. The five-month stay at one place
eclipses even the Bass Rock episode of 1967 (Brit. Birds, 61 : 22-27) '■>
the dates of arrival and departure indicate the close association
with the Hermaness population of Gannets Sula bassana.

Cory’s Shearwater Calonectris diomedea

Dorset: Portland Bill, 25th May (P. Griggs, R. Howard); 7th June (P. D.
Goriup, Z. J. Karpowicz et at.) ; 8th June (A. J. L. Smith) ; 21st June (G. Walbridge
et at.); six, 28th June (F. R. Clafton).

Irish Sea: off Dyfcd, 1 1, 4th September (G. Evans, P. J. Marsh).
IMid-Glamorgan : Sker Point, 27th July (D. P. Maddocks, J. D. Wells).
Strathclyde: Machrihanish, Argyll, 14th August (E. J. Maguire).

(East Atlantic and Mediterranean) Two Irish records, both of
single birds off Gape Clear Island, Go. Cork, on 15th July and 6th
August, are fewer than usual.

Little Shearwater Puffintis assimilis

Cornwall: off Land’s End, nth September (M. I. Harvey).

Lancashire: Cleveleys, Fylde, immature $, found shot dead, 27th March (E. W.
Jackson, M. Jones, D. F. Wadsworth); specimen in Merseyside County Museum,
Liverpool.

(Atlantic south from Madeira and Canaries, and southern

328 Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

oceans) One Irish record, a single bird off Gape Clear Island, Co.
Cork, on 9th September, takes the grand total to 45. The Lanca-
shire record is the earliest ever in spring.

Purple Heron Ardea purpurea

Avon: Chew Valley Lake, 28th September (D. Buffcry, P. Denning).

Cleveland: Moorsholm, Guisborough, immature, found dying, 1st August (M. A.
Blick, J. B. Dunnett, D. Smith).

Cornwall: between Isles of Scilly and Land’s End, immature, 31st October
(D. S. Flumm, Dr C. A. Walker).

Derbyshire: Sawley, adult, 27th August (R A. Frost).

East Sussex: Pett Level, immature, 26th April (P. F. Bonham, R. R. Greenhalf,
N. Pinder). Weir Wood Reservoir, adult, 8th July (C. E. Hope, C. R. Janman).
Essex: Rainham, 31st May (P. Griggs, N. Parr). Hanningfield Reservoir, im-
mature, 15th June (S. H. Hudgell).

Gwynedd: Llyn Bodgylched, Beaumaris, immature, 11th May (N. H. Brown,
P. and R. A. Schofield).

Humberside: Flamborough Head, 10th October (P. A. Lassey).

Kent: Dungeness, 19th April (M. A. Hollingworth, A. Howard, N. Riddiford
et at.).

Lincolnshire: Huttoft, 4th to 6th June (K. Atkin, M. Mellor, R. B. Wilkinson).
Norfolk: Hickling Broad, immature, 26th April (H. Mitchell et at.). Rockland
Broad, 22nd June (R. C. McIntyre). Halvergate, 17th to 30th August (D. 'Falks
et at.).

Northamptonshire: Thrapston gravel pit, immature, found dead, 24th August
(J. W. W. Metcalfe).

Scilly : St Mary’s, 23rd April to 22nd May (J. R. H. Clements, D. B. Hunt,
R. E. Turley et at.).

Suffolk: Walberswick, 10th May (G. J. Jobson).

West Glamorgan: Oxwich, immature, 7th to 8th May, 29th May to 4th June,
26th to 28th June, one individual (H. E. Grenfell, A. Pym, K. E. Vinicombe
et at.); adult, 6th July (H. E. Grenfell, Miss J. I. Peachey).

(South-central Eurasia, north to Netherlands, and Africa) The
total of 20 is above the average and it is also unusual for six to be
in autumn. The total since 1958 is now about 185.

Little Egret Egretta garzetta

Essex: Mundon, Maldon, 16th to 18th May (H. G. Binder, D. Thompson). Old
Hall Marsh, 8th June (I. Pearson).

Gloucestershire: Witcombe Reservoir, nth May (L. Foat, Mrs E. Sutton).
Grampian: River North Esk, Kincardine, 4th June (P. J. Dolton).

South Yorkshire: Potteric Carr, Doncaster, 21st August (M. G. Ibbotson,
N. P. Whitehouse).

(South Eurasia, Africa and Australia) Also one in Cork Harbour,
Go. Cork, from 31st October into December. Six is a poor showing
and the recent series of widespread spring influxes is broken. The
total since 1958 is now 155.

329

Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5

Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides
Oxfordshire: Stanton Harcourt, 16th to 22nd August (Dr B. Campbell, T.
Godfrey, T. Young et at.).

(South Europe, south-west Asia, and Africa) Only the tenth
since 1958.

Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis

Gloucestershire: Slimbridge, 2nd to 7th March (E. E. Jackson, VV. Shakespear.
M. Smart et at.), possibly the same bird as in August 1974 (see page 362).
Norfolk: Hickling Broad, 23rd to 26th April (P. R. Allard, G. E. Dunmore et at.).

(Almost cosmopolitan in tropics, nearest breeding colonies in
south France and Portugal) This remains the rarest Palearctic
heron to visit Britain, but its occurrences inevitably attract the
doubts that attach to every species widely held captive.

Night Heron Nyclicorax nycticorax

Devon: Lundy, 15th April (I. G. Black, A. M. Taylor).

East Sussex: Rye Harbour, adult, 2nd to 4th September (G. H. and Mrs K. A.
Shiner, S. J. Woolner).

Grampian: Newburgh, Gordon, 3rd to 8th May (M. A. Macdonald).

(South Eurasia, Africa and the Americas) Another poor showing,
for the third year running. The grand total now approaches 240.

Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus

Cornwall: Goonhilly Downs, <J, 21st June (VV. R. Hirst, F. J. Roberts .

Dorset: Lodmoor, 18th May (M. YVhitelock el at.).

Kent: Stodmarsh, <J, 25th to 27th May (S. J. Moss, D. R. Cola^o Osorio).

(West Eurasia, Africa and Australia) There was none in 1974,
but these three are not unusual in the long-term context of regular
spring influxes.

White Stork Ciconia ciconia

Berkshire: Walbury Hill, 16th March (Z. J. Karpowicz et at. .

Dyfed: Gwaun Valley, 26th May (R. J. Fuller, R. E. Youngman). Castle Lloyd,
Pendine, found injured, 24th September (M. Cullen); this bird had been ringed
as a nestling on 1 7th July 1975 at Oldeborg, Aurich, Neidersachsen. West Germany.
East Sussex: near Southease. Lewes, 26th May to 1st June (J. M. Daykin,
D. C. Lang et at.).

Essex: Leigh-on-Sea, 12th March (A. R. Mead).

Grampian: Elgin, 7th to 10th May (C. A. Gervaise et at.). Fintray, nth to
20th June (per A. G. Knox).

Highland: Lairg. Sutherland. 21st to 23rd April (A. Lockart el at.). Nigg Bay.
Ross and Cromarty, 24th April (per C. G. Headlam). Auldearn, Naim, 27th
April (J. Ellingham). Ardesier, Inverness. 28th April (Mrs Job). Insh Marshes,
Badenoch and Strathspey, 3rd May (D. N. Weir et al.).

North Yorkshire: Aketon. Castleford, 31st May to 1st June (D. Hirst).

330

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg
Shetland: Fair Isle, 25th May (G. J. Barnes).

Suffolk: Rendham/Yoxford area, the one first recorded on 22nd October 1974
{Brit. Birds, 68: 31 1) stayed until 12th April (H. E. Axell et at.). Bungay, iotli
to 1 6th June (B. J. Brown, D. R. Moore).

West Sussex: Adversane and vicinity, the one first recorded in mid-September
1974 {Brit. Birds, 68: 31 1) was last seen on 16th February (F. W. Dougharty,
S. W. M. Hughes, K. Neale).

(Central and south Europe, south-west Asia and north-west
Africa) The Grampian and Highland records are all thought to
refer to a single individual, and the dates suggest that this bird
may even have reached Fair Isle. In Suffolk, the one at Bungay
was possibly the bird that overwintered near Yoxford. The grand
total is now about 152, of which some 80 have been since 1967,
when the current trend of increased vagrancy began.

Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus

Kent: Stodmarsh, 14th December (I. J. Andrews et at.).

Lincolnshire: Saltfleetby, 5th November (K. Harrison).

(Cosmopolitan, but very local, nearest breeding colonies in
Balkans) Surprisingly, this is now the fourth consecutive year in
which this species has appeared. We await details of a third, late
autumn record.

Teal Anas crecca

Drakes showing the characters of the North American race A. c.
carolinensis, colloquially known as the Green-winged Teal, were
recorded as follows :

East Sussex: Cuckmere Valley, 21st to 22nd March (M. J. Rogers, P. J. Wilson).
Scilly: St Agnes, 1st to 10th May (R. W. Allen, J. R. H. Clements et at.). St
Mary’s, 14th to 22nd May (R. W. Allen, D. B. Hunt).

Shetland: Unifirth, 15th November to 28th February 1976 (P. K. Kinnear).

(North America) The two Scilly records certainly refer to the
same individual. The grand total for Britain and Ireland is now
about 94.

Blue-winged Teal Anas discors

Ross and Cromarty: Tarradale, Beauly Firth, <$, 31st August (R. H. Dennis).

(North America) Also three in Ireland, two shot at Lough
Denararagh, Co. Westmeath, and a duck shot on North Slob, Co.
Wexford, all between 1st and 5th October; bringing the grand total
to 53-

American Wigeon Anas americana

Borders: Bowden Reservoir, J, 25th to 28th February (Mrs M. Little, Mrs.
A. Speirs).

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg 33 1

Dumfries and Galloway: Loch Milton, <J, 16th to 26th March (Miss M.
Mathcson, T. Nisbet et at.).

Greater London: Surrey Docks, pair, 5th September (R. E. Alderton); another
cj, 9th to 15th September (R. E. Alderton).

(North America) The grand total moves on to 81. The Surrey
Docks birds arc considered particularly suspect as escapes from
captivity.

Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata

Fife: St Andrews, <J, 14th to 18th December (A. J. Blackx, 1. G. Gumming et at.).
Grampian: Murcar, <J, 23rd September to 6th October (P. M. and Mrs J. A.
Ellis et at.). Burghead Bay, <J, 26th October (N. Elkins, B. Etheridge).

Ross and Cromarty: Tarbat Ness, pair, 19th January (D. W. and Mrs. H. E.
McAllister).

Scilly: Tresco and area, immature, 5th to 23rd October (D. B. Hunt, K. C.
Osborne, D. I. M. Wallace et at.) (plate 34a).

Shetland: Ronas Voe, <J, 20th to 25th May (C. M. Adamson, D. Colitis, I.
Sandison) . m

Sutherland: Loch Fleet, two <J<J, 1st January to 16th March (R. H. Dennis et al. ) .

(North America) Seven records of nine birds — in winter, spring,
autumn and, again, winter — set a new level of occurrence for this
scoter. The grand total moves on to 1 12.

Steller’s Eider Polyslicta stelleri

Western Isles: South Uist, the drake first recorded in May 1972 (Brit. Birds
66: 338) has stayed through 1973, 1974 and 1975, and was still present in summer
1976.

King Eider Somateria spectabilis

Grampian: Murcar, $, 23rd September to 2nd October (P. M. Ellis et at. :
o, 4th to 1 1 th October (M. A. S. Beaman, C. J. Spray).

Orkney: Long Hope, South Walls, cj, 8th February (D. Lea).

Shetland: Sullom Voe, (J, 8th January to 13th March (D. Coutts. P. K. Kinnrar.
R. J. Tulloch). Toft, immature c?> 29th April (R. J. Tulloch). Hascosay Sound.
<J, 18th December into 1976 (P. K. Kinnear, M. G. Richardson, R. J. Tulloch).
Fair Isle, <J, 3rd April (R. A. Broad, D. J. Frost, P. J. Roberts); <J, 8th September
to 2nd October (R. A. Broad, A. Clements, P. J. Roberts et al.); immature (J.
4th November (R. A. Broad, I. Buckley, P. J. Roberts).

Strathclyde: Great Cumbrae, <J, 22nd April and 19th to 20th June, and Little
Cumbrae, 21st May (J. J. Boyle et at.).

Sutherland: Loch Fleet, o, 1st January to 13th April, three 14th to 19th
April, two (Jo to 4th June (R. H. Dennis, P. M. Ellis et al.) ; o, 31st October into
1976 (R. H. Dennis).

(Circumpolar Arctic) This fine sea-duck continues to be found
in Scotland and is showing a marked loyalty to certain areas there.
It is difficult to judge how many individuals were involved in 1975,
but it can hardly have been less than eleven. There have now been

332

Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5

over 50 records in Britain in the last three years, compared with
the grand total up to 1972 of about 80.

Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea

Derbyshire: Drakclow Reserve, two nth to 18th May (T. Cockburn,

J. R. Collinson).

Humberside: Whitton Sand, River Humber, two, 13th to 14th September
(D. I. M. Wallace).

Norfolk: Cley, two, 9th to 31st August, one on 1st September (D. J. Holman,
et at.).

(North-west Africa, south-east Europe and across Asia) This
species appears to have been seen more frequently in recent years
and the committee requests that all unpublished records since 1958
be submitted, so that its current status can be assessed.

Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna
ferruginea (see request,
above)

Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus

Gloucestershire: Slimbridge, immature, 28th December to 4th March 1976
(P. A. R. Hockey, J. B. O. Rossetti, G. P. Threlfall et at.); two adults, one 28th
December to 4th March 1976 (Miss D. Fowler, K. Lane et at.) and a second on
29th December (R. W. Byrne).

(North-east Europe and Siberia) Although the numbers of
European White-fronted Geese A. albifrons albifrons reaching Slim-
bridge are now even further reduced (in the absence of regular
hard weather in north-west Europe), happily those that come are
still sometimes accompanied by one or two Lesser White-fronts.
The grand total is now 95.

Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis

Essex: Foulness, 12th October (A. St Joseph). Two Tree Island, 24th October
to 7th November (A. R. Mead, C. J. Stratford et at.) (plate 33).

Hampshire: Hayling Island, 8th November to end of February 1976 (per
J. H. Taverner).

(West Siberia) This bird, the first since 1969, arrived with and
moved west with Brent Geese B. bernicla; wild birds usually associate

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975 333

with the European White-fronted Geese Anser albifrons albifrons. The
grand total is now about 26.

Buzzard Buteo buteo

Individuals showing the characters of the distinctive subspecies
B. b. vulpinus, colloquially known as the Steppe Buzzard, were
recorded as follows:

Cornwall: St Ives, 27th October and 2nd November (P. Pearce, V. A. Stratton).
Kent: Reculver, 1st February to 20th April (J. N. Hollyer et at.).

(East Europe and west Asia) The second and third records of
this subspecies, which breeds east from central Fenno-Scandia. The
only previous fully accepted record was in Wiltshire in September
1864.

Black Kite Milvus mi grans

Cornwall: Porthgwarra, 17th May (D. J. Barker, L. P. Williams et at.).

North Yorkshire: near Kcpwick, t2th May (C. Bielby).

Orkney: Eday, 3rd May (R. D. Lowe).

(Most of Eurasia, Africa and Australia) Three apparently
different birds in only 14 days is unprecedented. Out of a grand
total of 20, 15 have been seen in the last ten years. The most obvious
association of this influx is with the four spring Cranes Grits grus.

Gyrfalcon Falco rusticolus

Devon: Exminster Marshes, 6th February (R. Khan).

Grampian: Forties Field, North Sea, 200 km north-east of Aberdeen, found
exhausted, 5th January, taken to Aberdeen Zoo where later died (R. Baxter,
per G. Leslie and Aberdeen Zoo).

(Circumpolar Arctic) Two winter records are typical of the
occurrence pattern of this magnificent raptor from 1958 to 1965,
but the more recent series of spring occurrences is broken. Oil rigs
evidently have some ornithological potential.

Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus

Derbyshire: Church Wilne Reservoir, immature. 6th and oth July (T. Gibson.
R. W. Key, K. J. Lyon).

Devon: Lundy, immature, 27th to 28th August (N.jA. Clark, M. Rogers).
Dorset: Portland Bill, $, 3rd May (P. G. and Mrs C. M. Lansdown, G. L.
Webber).

Dyfed: Skokholm, <J, 27th May (M. de L. Brooke). St Ann’s Head, immature q,
28th to 31st May (D. F. Billet, T. A. W. Davis, K. J. S. Devonald et at.). Skomer,
$, 8th to 1 ith June (J. E. Davis et at.).

Grampian: Crimond, <J, 20th June (J. Dunbar).

Lothian: Belhaven, Dunbar, <J, 4th July (T. C. and Mrs A. Smout).

Suffolk: Minsmere, 28th September (R. V. A. Marshall. J. K. and Mrs D. J.
Weston et at.).

334

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

(East Europe and south from Siberia) An about average show-
ing of this eastern falcon. Three in Wales in one year is unusual.
There have been about 157 in total.

Crane Grus gnis

Cambridgeshire: YVoodwalton Fen, 9U1 and 12th May (G. K. Mason). Wicken
Fen, 1 ith May (N. J. Bucknall, H. J. Harvey, Dr C. J. R. Thorne et at.).
Dorset: Lytchett Bay, Poole Harbour, 16th August (S. Harrop).

Strathclyde: Bunessan, Mull, 9th to 12th May (H. Cook, J. Rusk).

Tyne and Wear: Monkseaton, 16th May (J. A. Ginnever).

(North and central Europe, locally south to Turkey) In Ireland,
there were single birds at Lough Swilly, Co. Donegal, from 24th
May to at least November and at Ballymacoda, Co. Cork, on
30th November. Seven records in one year is well above average.
There was none in 1974. The total since the large autumn influx
of 1963 is about 60.

Little Crake Porzana parva

Dorset: Lodmoor, 8th to 10th November and 8th December (D. C. Gilbert).
Nottinghamshire: Attenborough, 3rd January (N. G. Beynon, B. Wetton).

(Central and east Europe and west Asia) Two more records
suggesting that this crake, both elusive and hard to identify,
winters in England. The grand total moves on to nearly 90.

Little Bustard Otis tetrax

Scilly : St Agnes, 29th October (M. A. Hollingworth, T. P. Inskipp, Miss C.
Robinson et at.), and St Mary’s, 2nd to 3rd November (R. H. and Mrs M. E.
Charlwood, D. B. Hunt).

(North-west Africa, Iberia east across south Europe, also Asia)
This bird, the first since 1969 and the tenth since 1958, is the first
hint in this list of the exceptional flood of rarities that lapped
over Britain in the late autumn of 1975.

Sociable Plover Vanellus gregarius

Dorset: Langton Herring, 28th September to 10th October (M. J. Cowlard,
J. R. Mullins et at.).

(South-east Russia and west-central Asia) The fourteenth ever;
a typical date.

White-tailed Plover Vanellus leucurus

Warwickshire: Packington gravel pits, 12th to 18th July (A. R. Dean, J. E.
Fortey, E. G. Phillips et at.).

(South Russia and Middle East, and west-central Asia) Still
under consideration by the BOU Records Committee. The first

335

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

record here of this graceful and beautiful relation of the Lapwing
V. vanellns. At first sight, it is an astonishing occurrence, but 1975
saw others reach several more European countries, including
Austria, Italy, the Netherlands and Sweden.

Killdeer Charadrius vociferus

Humberside: Thorne Moors, 29th to 30th November (S. James, M. Limbert,
C. Wells et at.).

Leicestershire: Eye Brook Reservoir, 28th September to 19th October, and
Swithland Reservoir, 2nd to 16th November (K. Allsopp, R. E. Davis, J. W.
Walker et at.) (plate 35c).

(North America, West Indies and Peru) These two take the
grand total to 20, although it is conceivable that only one individual
was involved.

Lesser Golden Plover Pluvialis dominica

Cornwall: Stithians Reservoir, 28th August to early October (R. Butts, P. D.
Round); another, 2nd to 20th September (R. Andrew, E. Griffiths, V. R. Tucker
et at.); a third individual, 26th September (J. Hawkey, V. R. Tucker). Culdrose,
Helston, 19th September (E. Grace). Siblyback Reservoir, 26th September to
1 8th October (D. J. Barrett, S. C. Madge).

Humberside: Bempton Cliffs, ist September (S. C. Madge).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 18th to 19th September (D. B. Hunt et at.).

(Arctic North America and north-east Asia) The third Stithians
Reservoir bird and that at Bempton were considered to be probably
of the Asiatic race, P. d. fulva, while all the others were thought
to be of the American race, P. d. dominica. The Culdrose bird was
probably one of the Stithians individuals. Exceptionally rare before
1962, the absence of this species from the autumn roll would now
seem odd indeed. Six in one season sets a new level of occurrence
and the grand total moves on to 38.

Long-billed Dowitcher Limnodromus scolopaceus

Cornwall: Stithians Reservoir, two, 13th October, one to 16th November and
the other to 25th March 1976 (Rev. J. E. Beckerlegge, E. Grace, K. Noble et at.)
(plate 34b).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 5th to 12th October (D. S. Flumm, M. J. Rogers et at.).

(North America) Also one at St Ouen’s Pond, Jersey, from
20th to 24th September. It is noteworthy that three straggled west
to Nova Scotia on 9th and 10th October.

Great Snipe Gallinago media

Humberside: Crabley Creek, 6th September (D. I. M. Wallace).

Inverness: near Drumnadrochit, 29th April (M. I. Harvey, J. Love).

Kent: Sevenoaks. 3rd to 15th September (J. Carter, Dr J. G. Harrison et at.).

33^ Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

(North-east Europe and north-west Asia) Three in one year is
above average and the total since 1958 now reaches 35. A paper
detailing the differences between this species and the Snipe C.
gatlinago will appear shortly in this journal.

Upland Sandpiper Bartramia longicauda

Dyfed: Dale Aerodrome, 1st September (R. Boden, J. W. and Mrs J. E. Donovan).

Shetland: Fair Isle, 25th September (R. A. Broad, G. J. Jobson, P. J. Roberts
et at.).

(North America) The grand total moves on to 30, half of them
since i960. Aerodromes are a favoured habitat of autumn migrants
in North America.

Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria
Scilly: Tresco, 12th September (W. E. Oddie).

(North America) The seventeenth ever.

Spotted Sandpiper Tringa macular ia

Dyfed/Gwynedd: Ynys-hir, Dovey estuary, qth October to 20th November
(S. C. Madge et at.).

Highland region: pair with nest and four eggs, unsuccessful, 15th June to 3rd
July (G. E. Wilson et at.) {Brit. Birds, 69: 288-292).

(North America) Only one autumn bird looks rather lonely in
the recent context (though there was none at all in 1972). Even so,
the breeding attempt may be seen as the product of the increasingly
complex pattern of occurrence for this sandpiper since 1965.

Greater Yellowlegs Tringa melanoleuca

Norfolk: Breydon Water, 8th to 13th September (P. R. Allard, P. J. Grant,
M. J. Seago et at.).

Scilly: Tresco, 24th August to 3rd September (found dead on 6th) (D. B. Hunt
C. McCullough et at.).

(North America) It is surprising that two of the five yellowlegs
in 1975 should be of this species, usually much the rarer of the two.
The grand total moves on to 2 1 .

Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa Jlavipes
Caithness: Wick, 20th September (S. Laybourne).

Devon: Teign estuary, 10th November to 6th April 1976 (R. A. Harding, R.
Khan, D. M. Norman et at.).

Gwynedd: Pwllheli, gth to 10th September (A. H. Morley, D. Thomas, M. C.
W ain wright) .

(North America) In Ireland, there were single birds at Akeragh
Lough, Co. Kerry, on 5th April and 10th and 14th August, and at

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg 337

Ballycotton, Co. Cork, on 2nd September. Another above average
showing; the grand total is now 120.

Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus

Norfolk: Breydon Water, ist June (P. R. Allard, T. E. Boulton, G. E. Dunmore
et at.). Cley, 2nd to 4th July (P. J. Milford et at.).

Shetland: Whalsay, 20th to 21st June (W. Arthur, Dr B. Marshall, J. H. Simpson
et at.).

(North-east Europe and Siberia) There have now been spring
records of this very individual sandpiper in four consecutive years.
Out of a grand total of 14 records, 11 have been since 1969. The
Scottish record is the first for that country.

Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla
Berkshire: Brimpton gravel pits, nth October (N. Cleere).
(North America) The nineteenth ever.

Baird’s Sandpiper Calidris bairdii

Lothian: Abcrlady Bay, 1 ith to 12th August (M. W. Fraser, R. G. Nisbet, G. L.
S^ndeman).

West Glamorgan: Whiteford Point, 31st August (M. Chown. P. G. Lansdown
et at.).

(North America) Also one at Lough Dcrravaragh, Co. West-
meath, on 30th July. A poor showing, with none in England for the
first time since 1969, but the grand total is now at least 54.

White-rumped Sandpiper Calidris fuscicollis

Cleveland: Reclamation Pond, Tecsmouth, 16th August (T. Francis, G. Iccton.
R. Little et at.).

Dyfed: near Kidwelly, 25th to 27th September (H. E. Grenfell, I. K. Morgan.
E. J. Smith).

Humberside: Welton Waters, 13th to 14th July (H. O. Bunce, D. 1. M. Wallace
et at.).

(North America) Also one in Cork Harbour, Co. Cork, on 17th
September. The grand total is now 129.

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper Calidris acuminata

Berkshire: Manor Farm sewage farm, Reading, 17th to 22nd August (Z. and
Z. J. Karpowicz et at.).

(North-east Siberia) The thirteenth ever of a once very rare bird,
now appearing almost annually. Sweden’s first was seen in July
1975-

338 Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites subruficollis

Avon: Chew Valley Lake, two, ist September, one to 12th (T. R. Cleeves,
A. J. Merritt, T. Nichols et at.); another, 20th to 22nd September (D. Buffery,
A. J. Merritt et at.) ; a third individual, 26th September to ist October (D. Buffery,
J. B. O. Rossetti, K. E. Vinicombe).

Cambridgeshire: Grafham Water, 2nd to 30th September, two from 17th to
26th September (J. N. Dymond, R. I. Thorpe, C. E. Wells et at.).

Cheshire: Frodsham, 20th to 22nd August (E. J. and R. J. Abraham, D. Wood-
ward et at.).

Cumbria: Walney Island, 5th October (J. Sheldon).

Devon: Lundy, 8th September (C. C. Baillie, N. A. Clark, M. Rogers et at.);
another, 29th September to 5th October (N. A. Clark, M. Rogers).

Dorset: Ferrybridge, ist September (R. Hudson, C. Powell, I. S. Robertson
et at.).

Dyfed: Towyn Point, Llanelli, 26th to 29th April (H. E. Grenfell, G. Harper,
E. J. Smith et at.).

Essex: Hanningfield Reservoir, ist to nth September (G. T. Corley Smith,
G. Smith, J. T. Smith et at.). Abberton Reservoir, 4th to 5th September (R. V. A.
Marshall, R. M. Wright).

Fife: Tentsmuir, 7th September (A. Brown, R. H. and Mrs M. W. Hogg).
Hampshire: Pennington Marshes, 31st August (R. Dunn, E. J. Wiseman et at.).
Inverness: Longman, 3rd to 4di September (R. H. Dennis, P. M. Ellis et at.).
Lincolnshire: River Witham, Boston, 13th September (Mr and Mrs D. G. Atkin,
K. Atkin).

Lothian: Aberlady Bay, 3rd September (M. W. Fraser, A. Mathieson). Mussel-
burgh, two, 4th to 7th September (A. Brown, G. L. Sandeman, Dr L. L. J. Vick);
another, 16th to 17th September (G. L. Sandeman, Dr L. L. J. Vick).

Norfolk: Cley, 15th to 20th September (F. R. Cannings et at.).
Nottinghamshire: Netherfield, 13th to 18th September (G. Andrews, A. Dobbs,
J. A. Hopper et at.).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 7th to 8th September, six on 9th, seven on 10th to 1 ith, eight
on 12 to 14th, seven on 15th (E. Griffiths, W. E. Oddie et at.); two, 25th to 26th
September, one with injured leg remaining to 3rd October (P. J. Grant, Z.
Karpowicz et at.); another two, 2nd October (D. B. Hunt); 10th to 12th October
(D. B. Hunt et at.). Tresco, 9th to 10th September (B. J. Widden et at.). St Agnes,
the injured individual, 4th to 1 ith October (P. J. Grant et at.).

Buff-breasted Sand-
pipers Tryngites sub-
ruficollis. More were
seen in 1975 than in
any previous year ;
airports are favourite
haunts

Rare Birds in Great Britain igy j 339

Shetland: Sumburgh, 30th September (C. D. R. Heard, Mr and Mrs J. Wood-
land).

Somerset: Cheddar Reservoir, 3rd September (B. Rabbitts).

South Yorkshire: Wath Ings, 28th to 30th August, perhaps another, 20th to
2 ist September (J. Hewitt, M. Turton, R. Wells). Redmires Reservoir, Sheffield,
10th to 26th September (D. Herringshaw, R. T. Hobson, D. Gosney et at.).
Strathclyde: Strathclyde Loch, Hamilton, 13th September (R. Norman).
Suffolk: Walberswick. 28th August to 5th September (G. J. Jobson, W. Urwin,
C. S. Waller et at.).

Tyne and Wear: near St Mary’s Island, Whitley Bay, 20th September (J. S.
Booth, J. A. Bould).

West Yorkshire: Blackmoorfoot and Deerhill Reservoirs, 28th to 29th August
(J. E. Dale, M. L. Denton, G. M. Yates et at.); perhaps another, Blackmoorfoot
Reservoir, 15th to 17th September (F. J. Roberts el at.).

Wiltshire/Gloucestershire: Ashton Keynes, 11th September (J. G. Snowball).

(North America) In Ireland, there were at least eleven in
September, with at least six at North Bull, Co. Dublin (up to four
on 7th, 9th, 1 ith, 2 ist and 25th to ist October), two at Hook Head,
Co. Wexford, on 20th and three at Ballycotton, Co. Cork, on 21st.
After only the sixth ever spring record, there was an autumn flood.
A minimum of 60 birds in Britain and Ireland completely over-
shadowed the notable influxes of 1970, 1971 and 1973. Simul-
taneous first occurrences over wide areas in Britain were most
obvious on 28th August, 3rd, 10th to 15th and 20th September.
Northerly records were not significantly later than southerly ones —
indeed, there were some in Scotland before any in Scilly — and
a broad-front movement across the Atlantic is indicated. The date
of the Cheshire bird looks odd: the main flight to the Maritime
Provinces of north-east America did not begin until 23rd August,
though flocks of up to 18 were obvious there in the last ten days of
that month, and on 3rd September.

Broad-billed Sandpiper Lirnicola falcinellus
Dorset: Herbury Gore, Fleet, 18th May (C. E. Richards).

(North Eurasia) Another spring record, typical of the last four
years, brings the grand total to 50.

Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor

Avon: Chew Valley Lake, 17th to 18th September (J. A. McGeoch, B. Rabbitts
et at.).

Lincolnshire Norfolk: Wisbech sewage farm, J, 7th to 11th June (H. Mayer-
Gross, J. A. W. Moyes, B. Walker et at.).

Powys: Llyn Hilyn Lake, 6th September (Mrs J. M. Bromley, K. A. Mason.
A. Mountford et at.).

Shetland: Strand Loch, $, 9th May (F. Hunter et at.).

(North America) Also one at Akeragh Lough, Co. Kerry, from
26th August to 6th September. A total of 73 has been seen in

340

Rare birds in Great Britain igy$

Britain and Ireland in the 21 years since the first in 1954. Although
unusually common in north-east America (with a major arrival
there on 24th August), this wader did not join the Buff-breasted
Sandpipers in a large transatlantic flight.

Black-winged Pratincole Glareola nordmanni

Leicestershire: Wanlip gravel pits, 10th to 13th August (D. Gamble, C. Towc
et at.).

(South Russia and west Asia) The fourteenth ever and in the
same month as seven others.

Pratincole Glareola pratincola or G. nordmanni
Suffolk: Covehithe, 22nd August (J. Barber).

West Sussex: Selsey Bill, 3rd September (G. J. Barker).

A detailed review of past pratincole records, especially those
pre-ig58, is required.

Ring-billed Gull Lams delawarensis

West Glamorgan: Blackpill, the adult recorded from 28th November 1974
{Brit. Birds, 68: 320) was last seen on 30th March; second adult, 24th January
to 24th April (R. A. Hume, K. E. Vinicombe et at.); third adult, 21st March
(K. E. Vinicombe) ; fourth adult, 22nd to 25th April (D. W. Evans, K. E. Vini-
combe, R. P. S. Wolsey et at.); first-summer, 23rd June to 22nd July (H. E.
Grenfell, K. E. Vinicombe, R. P. S. Wolsey et at.); adult, 17th November to 16th
April 1976 (P. G. Lansdown, K. E. Vinicombe et at.).

(North America) The remarkably acute observers of Blackpill
maintained their monopoly of this gull during 1975. At least five in-
dividuals have been involved since the first in March 1973.

Laughing Gull Larus atricilla

Shetland: Fair Isle, adult, 13th September (R. A. Broad, D. J. Buckler, D. R.
Waugh et at.).

(North America) This individual, the second Scottish record,
which takes the grand total to nine, occurred a day after a Bona-
parte’s Gull Larus Philadelphia on Islay and during the main influx
of Buff-breasted Sandpipers.

Bonaparte’s Gull Larus Philadelphia

Dorset: Christchurch Harbour, adult, 9th to 12th April (M. J. Arnold, C. I.
Husband, Dr R. G. Mayall et at.).

Strathclyde: Loch Indaal, Islay, adult, 26th to 27th June (K. and Mrs A.
Verrall); Claggain Bay, Islay, adult, 12th September (L. Catlin, K. Verrall).

(North America) After an absence in 1974, three is a good
showing. The grand total reaches 31, 17 since 1967. Early spring
records are unusual.

34 1

Rare birds in Great Britain 1979

Ross’s Gull Rhodostethia rosea

Cleveland: Seaton Carew, adult, 6th and gth April (E. C. Gatenby, G. Iceton,
D. Nelson); immature, 8th August (A. Vittery).

Shetland: Scalloway, immature, 19th to 29th January (D. Coutts, R. Johnson
et at.).

(North-east Siberia) These three take the grand total to 15,
all but two since 1958, and add to the scattered monthly occurrence
pattern.

White- winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus

Avon: Chew Valley Lake, two, 14th June (A. R. Ashman); adult, 8th to 12th
August (M. W. A. Martin, A. J. Merritt, K. E. Vinicombe et at.).

Dyfed: Ginst Point, adult, 6th September (Drs R. C. and F. H. Milner).

East Sussex: Pctt Pools, immature, 29th to 20th August (R. Auger, P. Ewins.
N. Riddiford et at.).

Grampian: Meiklc Loch, 25th May (M. A. Macdonald et at.).

Greater London: Queen Mary Reservoir, immature, 8th August (M. J. Rogers).
Kent: Sandwich Bay, immature, 9th August (R. Martin, D. Tutt et at.)-
Dungeness, immature, 16th to 28th August (N. Riddiford, A. T. M. Ruck et at.);
immature, 24th September to 4th October (N. Riddiford, A. J. B. Thompson
et at.).

Norfolk: Wintcrton, immature, 10th August (R. and S. Ludford, R. C. Mc-
Intyre).

North Yorkshire: Fairburn Ings, immature, 25th August (Dr J. D. Pickup.
C. G. Varty, J. Whitehead et at.).

South Yorkshire: Wombwell Ings, 19th June (J. Seeviour, R. Wells et at.).
West Sussex: Oving gravel pits, immature, 24th to 20th August (M. I. \V. Hav,
R. J. Senior, J. G. Threadgold).

(South-east Europe, west and east Asia) Ireland did exceptionally
well, with one at Swords estuary, Co. Dublin, on 19th to 20th
August, another at South Slob, Co. Wexford, on 1 8th September,
and three in September at Ballycotton, Co. Cork, on Gth and 9th to
13th (two, one staying to 21st). A return to form, after a poor show-
ing in 1974; the grand total is now about 300, over 200 since 1963.

Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida

North Yorkshire: Fairburn Ings, adult, 13th September (FI. Shorrock et at.).

(South Eurasia, parts of Africa, and Australia) This single
record brings the grand total to 57.

Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica

East Sussex: Rye Harbour, 24th August (N. Pinder).

Lincolnshire: Boston Point, adult, 7th September (R. C. Broadbent, F. But-
wright).

(Almost cosmopolitan, nearest breeding colony in Denmark) A
poor showing, with no spring record for the first time since 1969.

342

Rare birds in Great Britain 1979

Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia

Essex: Colne Point, 29th June (Dr S. Cox), and Fingringhoe Wick, 1st to 2nd
July (I. Pearson).

Grampian: Ythan estuary, 25th June (A. H. Cuthbert).

Kent: Reculver, 1st June (D. C. Gilbert).

Warwickshire: Bodymoor Heath, 6th to nth July (R. J. Jennett, T. P. Milsom
et at.).

(Almost cosmopolitan, nearest breeding colonies in Baltic) The
Essex records refer to the same individual. The total since 1958 is
now 78.

Pallas’s Sandgrouse Syrrhaptes paradoxus

Fife: Isle of May, two, nth May (J. M. S. Arnott, I. Balfour- Paul, J. H. B.
Munro).

(Central Asia east to Manchuria and China) The recent rarity
of this almost mythical steppe species is well known. There are
only four other records for the last 67 years and the good fortune of
these three observers will be widely acknowledged.

Black-billed Cuckoo Coccyzus erythrophthalmus

Cleveland: Redcar, trapped, 23rd to 24th September (G. W. Follows et at.).

(North America) Only the seventh ever, and associated with a
marked influx of Nearctic passerines to western Britain.

Snowy Owl Nyclea scatidiaca

Shetland: Fetlar, four on 6th February; pair and three $$, 3rd April; as in 1974
(Brit. Birds, 68: 322), c? mated to two $?, with another $ present on 14th May;
one $ laid three eggs, but these were abandoned; second $ laid six eggs, four
hatched, and all young successfully fledged; during August, in addition to the
pair and four young, there were two $$ present; one $ seen on 27th September
(R. J. Tulloch et at.). Unst, Lund, 13th March (per R. J. Tulloch); Stourhoull,
ij, 8th May (J. and C. Whyte); Hermaness, 12th May (per M. Sinclair); Burra-
firth, 6th June (per M. Sinclair); Lund, $, 10th to 12th, 15th and 21st June,
9th July, 14th to 15th August, and at Helliers Water, 26th and 31st October
(I. Spence et at.). North Roe, 2nd February (A. Inkster). Whalsay, 19th to 20th
April (J. H. Simpson). Foula, late May (per J. G. Holbourn). Ronas Hill, 1 6th
July (R. Ashcroft).

Western Isles: St Kilda, (J, 26th May (H. Brown et at.).

(Circumpolar Arctic) Once again, only one certain vagrant
away from Shetland. We hear of others wintering, notably in
Grampian, but alas we see no documentation of them.

Alpine Swift Apus melba

Devon: Dawlish Warren, 4th October (V. B. and Mrs M. A. Hicks).

Greater London: Staines Reservoir, 19th September (V. R. Leclercq, W. Mc-
Cubbin et at.).

Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5 343

Kent: Dover, 7U1 June (T. Wyatt). Kingsgate Bay, Thanet, 19th July (D. B.
Carter).

Lincolnshire: Donna Nook, 20th July (B. and Mrs S. Leflay).

Norfolk: Salthouse Heath, 19th June (J. P. Guest et at.).

Oxfordshire: Cholsey, 14th July (A. W. Williams).

(South Eurasia, north-west and east Africa) The total since
1958 is now about hi. Three in July is unusual.

Roller Coracias garrulus

Dorset: West Milton, 16th to 21st June (Mr and Mrs A. Dale, Mr Harris).
Dumfries and Galloway: Ac Forest, 1 8th June (M. Marquiss, D. Moss).

(South and east Europe, west Asia and north-west Africa) These
two bring the total to 45 since 1958.

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Sphyrapicus varius

Scilly: Tresco, immature <J, 26th September to 6th October (D. B. Hunt et at.).

(North America) Still under consideration by the BOU Records
Committee. Although recorded in Iceland, it is odd that this species
should be the first Nearctic woodpecker safely to reach a tree in
Britain. The more robust Yellow-shafted Flicker Colaptes auratus has
long seemed a better bet: see Brit. Birds , 56: 157-164.

Bimaculated Lark Melanocorypha birnaculata

Scilly: St Mary’s, 24th to 27th October (D. S. Flumm et at.).

(Caucasus and south-west Asia) Only the second record here of
this relative of the Calandra Lark Al. calandra. The first appeared
on Lundy, Devon, in May 1962 {Brit. Birds, 58: 309-312).

Short-toed Lark Calandrella cinerea

Gwynedd: Bardsey, 17th to 19th October (P. E. Davis, D. A. Henshilwood, P.
Hope Jones et at.); probably another, 28th October (D. A. Henshilwood).
Norfolk: Holme, 27th October to 16th November (P. R. Clarke, G. Walbridge
et at.).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 13th to 21st September, two, 22nd to 24th. three, 25th to 29th.
four, 30th to 7th October (W. E. Oddie, G. Summers, G. G. Williams et al.) ;
two, apparently different individuals, 16th to 18th October (P. J. Grant, J. A.
Hazell et at.); 25th October to 4th November, another, 1st to 8th November
(R. H. and Mrs M. E. Charlwood, D. B. Hunt). St Martin’s, 3rd to 17th October
(D. S. Flumm, P. J. Grant, R. V. A. Marshall et at.). Trcsco, 12th October
(B. Bland, J. N. Dymond et at.).

Shetland: Fair Isle, 20th to 26th April (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts et al.) ; probably
another, 4th to 9th May (R. A. Broad, T. Nisbet et al.); 21st to 27th September
(R. A. Broad, P. G. Lansdown, P. J. Roberts et al.) ; two, 8th to 9th October,
one to 14th (R. A. Broad, A. R. Lowe, P. J. Roberts et al.). Whalsay, 4th to 5th
October (Dr B. Marshall, J. H. Simpson); 19th to 20th October (J. H. Simpson).

344

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Suffolk: YValberswick, 7th September (A. M. Cage, C. Cuthbert, C. S. Waller
1 it at.).

(South Eurasia, north and east Africa) The best ever showing of
this engaging small lark. The total of at least 20 individuals (18
in autumn) is twice the average of the last eight years. The grand
total is now about 150.

Crested Lark Galerida cristata

Kent: Dungeness, 28th September to 1st October (P. J. Grant, P. S. Redman,
N. Riddiford et at.).

(Continental Europe south from Baltic, south Asia, north-west
and upland equatorial Africa) This, the first record since 1972,
takes the grand total to 18. This very sedentary lark clearly flinches
from a Channel crossing.

Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica

Dorset: Radipole Lake, 22nd to 25th May (P. Foster, Dr N. R. Rogers, R.
Wolfenden et at.).

Greater London: Wanstead Park, 4th June (N. Borrow, P. Vines).

Kent: Stodmarsh, nth May (G. J. Hinchon, J. N. Hollyer, T. J. Lawrence).
(South and east Eurasia, and Africa) The grand total is now 41.

Dusky Thrush Turdus naumanni

Shetland: Firth, 6th to 13th November (D. Coutts, B. P. Walker et at.).

(Northern and central Siberia) The fifth ever, and the fourth
since 1958.

Black-throated Thrush Turdus ruftcollis

Norfolk: Holkham, immature, 21st to 24th October (Miss W. U. Flower, D. G.
Wright et at.).

(Central Asia) Scores of observers are indebted to the two named
above for a sight of this splendid thrush, only the fifth to reach
Britain. It was remarkably tolerant of the human beings who
surrounded its favourite bramble patch.

Black-throated Thrush Turdus ruficollis

345

Rare birds in Great Britain IQ75
American Robin Turdus migratorius

Western Isles: St Kilda, 14th to 15th February (C. Brown et at.).

(North America) The grand total is now at least 13, ten of them
in the months November to February.

White’s Thrush £ oothera dauma
Shetland: Whalsay, nth October (J. H. Simpson).

(Central, east and south-east Asia and Australia) Although only
the seventh since 1958, it would have been surprising if this classic
Asian vagrant had not reached Britain during the astonishing
autumn of 1975.

Hermit Thrush Hylocichla guttata

Shetland: Fair Isle, 2nd June (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts, S. Rumsey et at.).

(North America) The first for Britain and Ireland. Previous
records of this genus in Europe have been concentrated in late
autumn, but an Olive-backed Thrush H. ustulata reached Co.
Mayo, Ireland, in May 1956.

Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica

Dorset: Portland Bill, <J, 14th June (A. Barber, L. Mulford, I. S. Robertson
et at.).

Norfolk: Cley, <$, 13th May (P. Tate). Holme, J1, 2nd to 21st June (H. Ramsay
et at.).

(South Europe, south-west Asia and north-west Africa) Three
overshooting males (a close repeat of the 1974 occurrences) take
the grand total to 31.

Stonechat Saxicola torquata

Stone chats showing the characters of one or other of the eastern
races S. t. maura or stejnegeri, colloquially known as Siberian Stone-
chats, were recorded as follows:

Dorset: Portland Bill, 24th October (D. J. Fisher, S. J. M. Gantlett, I. S. Robert-
son et at.).

Shetland: Fair Isle, 10th to 17th October (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts et at.).
Northumberland: Holy Island, 18th October (R. G. Lewis, T. R. Palmer).

(Eastwards from north-east Russia) These three take the grand
total to 17. A review of the British status and the field characters
of this group is in preparation.

Red-flanked Bluetail Tarsi ger cyanurus

Fife: Isle of May, immature, trapped, 14th October (I. Balfour-Paul, J. H. B.
Munro, G. L. Sandeman).

346 Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

(North-east Europe, across Asia to Japan) One of the autumn’s
highlights and the sixth ever. We wonder how many others skulked
undetected in the cover of Britain’s east coast.

Redstart Phoenicurus pkoenicurus

Norfolk: Heacham, adult <$, showing the characters of the distinctive sub-
species P. p. samamisicus, colloquially known as Ehrenberg’s Redstart, 26th
October (G. M. S. Easy, C. A. E. Kirtland, R. C. Mansfield).

(South Russia, through Asia Minor to Iran) The first record
here of this beautiful race, which is characterised by a blaze of
white on the wing, recalling the adult male Black Redstart P.
ochruros.

Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia

Fife: Isle of May, trapped, 31st May to 6th June (H. Galbraith, Dr M. P. Harris,
M. Sutherland).

Western Isles: St Kilda, trapped, 29th to 30th May (Dr M. P. Harris).

(Scandinavia, east Europe and west Asia) Two more over-
shooting adults, the latter only just avoiding the North Atlantic;
the grand total is now 28.

Siberian Rubythroat Luscinia calliope

Shetland: Fair Isle, trapped, 9th to 11th October (R. A. Broad, A. R. Lowe,
P. J. Roberts et at.).

(Siberia) Still under consideration by the BOU Records Com-
mittee. Long hoped for, this longer-legged relation of the Blue-
throat L. svecica (surprisingly, relatively uncommon in 1975)
reached Britain at last. There are old records for France and Italy.
It should be noted that its close relative, the Himalayan Ruby-
throat L. pectoralis, is imported as a cage-bird. It may also be noted
here that a Siberian Blue Robin L. cyane was trapped on Sark,
Channel Islands, on 27th October.

Cetti’s Warbler Cettia cetli

Avon: Chew Valley Lake, $, trapped, 25th February to 20th April (R. H.
Creighton et at.).

Berkshire: Wraysbury, pair, 1 8th July (C. F. Tydcman). Thatcham, trapped,
19th October to 26th December (R. Crockford et at.).

Cornwall: Marazion Marsh, 20th September (Dr M. A. Cotton, H. A. Dean,
A. R. Kitson et at.).

Devon: southern locality (not one of following sites), pair bred, successfully
rearing at least two young, 24th May to at least 21st September (R. M. Belringer,
M. R. Edmonds, D. G. VVarman et at.). South Milton Ley, four trapped, 29th
to 30th November, 7th, 8th and 16th December (R. Burridge, R. F. A. Resource).
Slapton Ley, the individual first recorded on 19th November 1974 (Brit, Birds,
68: 325) remained to 13th April, and a second was present during January to

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975 347

April; one during August and two singing during October; eight singing birds
from late December into 1976 (R. M. Belringer, M. R. Edmonds et at.).

Dorset: Lodmoor, <J, 25th April to 20th May (D. J. Fisher, D. C. Gilbert et at.);
1 2th to 29th October (D. C. Gilbert). Hengistbury Head, <J, 18th May (C. I.
Husband).

East Sussex: Beachy Head, trapped, 3rd May (R. H. and Mrs M. E. Charlwood).
Litlington, 16th to 19th September (P. J. Wilson).

Hampshire: Itchcn Navigation, Eastleigh, 19th to 22nd February (S. Buckland,
S. N. Delany).

Hertfordshire: River Colne, $, trapped, 14th December remained until 9th
January 1976 (N. R. Jones et at.).

Kent: Stour Valley and area, about 60 singing males during the breeding season,
with nesting proved at several sites. Sandwich Bay, 20th April (A. T. M. Ruck) ;
1st June (D. M. Batchelor). Dungeness, $, trapped, 14th October (H. A. R. Caw-
kell, N. Riddiford et at.); 4th to 6th November (T. P. Inskipp). Burham, Maid-
stone, 26th October (A. M. Woodcock). A north-western locality, (J, 20th to
25th May (observer’s name withheld).

Norfolk: Yare Valley, 12 singing males during the breeding season, with several
records of proved nesting. Bure Valley, one singing male during the breeding
season (G. E. Dunmore, R. Martins et at.).

Shropshire: locality withheld, 14th to 27th December (R. Stokes).

Suffolk: Minsmere, 8th March (per H. E. Axell).

West Midlands: Edgbaston Park, Birmingham, (J, 2nd May to I2th July,
trapped on 17th May (S. Bingham).

West Sussex: locality withheld, pair bred successfully, April to August (R. S.
Gragg, D. C. Geoghcgan et at.).

(South and west Europe, south-west Asia and north-west Africa)
Also one on Cape Clear Island, Co. Cork, on 8th October. With
yet another mild winter in the series since 1962/63, this colonising
species appears to be rapidly consolidating its position, with breed-
ing proved in four southern English counties.

Lanceolated Warbler Locustella lanceolata

Shetland: Fair Isle, three, two trapped, 11th October, one remaining to :4th.
a fourth on 14th (R. A. Broad, S. G. Cook, A. R. Lowe et at.).

(East Eurasia from central Russia to north Japan) The text
comment on this species following the 1973 records (Brit. Birds ,
67: 332) has been corrected by Dr J. T. R. Sharrock (Brit. Birds,
69: 1 09- 1 10). These four, constituting the first multiple arrival,
take the grand total to 19.

Savi’s Warbler Locustella luscinioides

Cornwall: Marazion Marsh, <£, 14th to 24th May (T. J. S. Pinfield, H. P. K.
Robinson, L. P. Williams et at.).

Dorset: Eyebridge, Wimbome, o, 9th to 18th May (D. J. and K. M. Godfrey
et at.). Wareham, <J, 30th May (C. J. Bibby).

Kent: Stodmarsh, (J, 22nd April, and subsequently one pair which reared four

34-8 Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

young, and one unmated J1 (P. J. Mountfbrd et at.). Westbere, J1, 4th May (D. B.
Rosair).

(Europe, west and central Asia and north-west Africa) It is sad
to see that this species failed to reappear in Suffolk, after breeding
in the five years 1970-74. These records from only three counties
are in striking contrast to those of Cetti’s Warblers Cettia cetti.

Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus

Hampshire: Fleet Pond, 20th May to 1st June (S. J. M. Gantlett et al.).
Merseyside: Red Rocks, d1, trapped, 17th to 19th May (E. J. Abraham, C.
Jones, D. Woodward et al.).

(Europe and west-central Asia) As in 1974, two records of this
robust, loud-singing reed warbler were welcome, but, like the last
species, it is not fulfilling the promise of its comparative abundance
in the 1960’s.

Blyth’s Reed Warbler Acrocephalus dumetorum

North Yorkshire: Filey Brigg, 30th August (R. H. Appleby, C. R. Clark).

(North-east Europe, across Asia to Mongolia) The difficulty of
identification may well be obscuring the true status here. This
individual and one on Gape Clear Island, Co. Cork, in October
1969 {Brit. Birds, 63: 214-216) constitute the only accepted records
since 1928.

Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola

Cheshire: Frodsham, 31st August to 12th September (R. Arrowsmith, Dr J. A.
Eyre, C. R. Linfoot et al.).

Cornwall: Marazion Marsh, six immatures — three, two trapped, on 26th
August, one trapped on 5th September, one on 17th to 18th September, and
one on 21st to 26th September, trapped on 22nd (R. B. Hastings, P. D. Round,
V. R. Tucker et al.). St. Ives, 15th to 20th September (E. Griffiths et al.).

Dorset: Wick Hams, Christchurch, six immatures trapped — 7th August, 10th,
two on 14th, 18th and 19th (R. G. Booth, S. E. Christmas, C. I. Husband et al.).
Radipole Lake, eleven immatures trapped — three on 11th August, 15th, 19th
and 2 1st, two on 2nd September, two on 3rd, and 4th to 6th (G. R. M. Pepler
et al.).

East Sussex: Litlington, 30th August (P. J. Wilson).

Humberside: Spurn Point, trapped, 9th to nth August (J. Cudworth, C. Mas-
singham, B. R. Spence et al.).

Kent: Dungeness, 2nd September (Rev. H. M. Hill); 10th to 14th September
(F. Lockwood, W. Spencer).

Mid-Glamorgan: Kenfig Pool, 17th August (P. G. and Mrs C. M. Lansdown).
Norfolk: Blakeney Point, 5th to 6th September (D. J. Holman et al.).

Powys: Llangorse Lake, immature trapped, 17th August (M. V. Preece, P. D.
Rose et al.).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 26th September (C. R. Ireland).

Plate 33. Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis with Brent Geese B. bernicla,
Essex, October 1975 (page 332) ( photos : Pamela Harrison)

Plate 34. Above, Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata, Isles of Scilly, October 1975
(page 331) {photo: K. C. Osborne). Below, two Long-billed Dowitchers Limnodromus
scolopaceus, Cornwall, October/November 1975 (page 335) {photo: J. B. and S.

Boltomley)

Pi. \ ii- Above lel'i. Red-backed Shrike Lomus collurio of one of the isabelUms
group of red-tailed races. West Sussex. March April I <173 Pa8*’ 1V1 photo:

Maurice W. Wright); right. Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorm, Isle- nt Scilly, October
i c>75 (page 355) ( photo : A. C. Osborne). Below. Killdeer Charadrius voeijerus with a
Lapwing Vanellus vanellus, providing useful size comparison, l.ei< esteishin .

September/November 1975 (page 335) (photo: R. J. Chandler

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Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5 349

Shetland: Fair Isle, two immatures trapped, 9th to 10th August and 1 8th August
(R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts, D. Willis et at.).

Somerset: Steart, eleven immatures, ten of them trapped — two on 9th August,
two on 11th, 15th, 18th, 23rd, two on 28th, one remaining to 29th, and 13th
September (A. W. Evans), and an unringed individual on 29th August (B.
Rabbitts).

(East Europe and west Asia) This total of 46 is three times the
number reported in 1974 and is on a par with those of 1972 and
1973. The grand total is now over 360, almost two-thirds of them
since 1968.

Subalpine Warbler Sylvia cant ill ans

Cleveland: Hartlepool, cJ, 8th May (M. A. Blick, W. E. Fletcher et at.).
Cornwall: Porthgwarra, <$, 18th May (J. Johns, H. P. K. Robinson et at.).
Dorset: Portland Bill, trapped, 15th April to 7th May (G. Gregory, P. K.
Kinnear, I. S. Robertson et at.).

Shetland: Fair Isle, cJ, trapped, 9th May (R. A. Broad, D. J. Frost et at.); o
and $, both trapped, 8th June, <J remaining to 10th (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts
et at.).

(South-west Europe, Middle East and north-west Africa) Six
make up the largest spring influx on record of this classic over-
shooting passerine, and take the grand total to 58.

Desert Warbler Sylvia nana

Essex: Frinton-on-Sea, 20th to 21st November (Miss P. Harris, J. K. and Mrs
D. J. Weston et at.).

Humberside: Spurn Point, trapped, 20th to 24th October (I. Corbett. M. Mills.
B. R. Spence et at.).

(Middle East, central Asia and north-west Sahara) Both of the
nominate Asiatic race, these are the second and third ever. The
Spurn bird frequented a pile of bricks and roosted in an isolated
buckthorn near a sandy beach, a biotope with some resemblance
to its native habitat; similarly, the Frinton bird favoured low
vegetation along a concrete sea-wall. There was one in Finland on
1 7th October.

Greenish Warbler Phylloscopus trochiloides

Dorset: Portland Bill, immature, trapped, 5th September (J. Guest, I. S. Robert-
son et at.); 13th September (R. J. Johns, I. S. Robertson et at.).

Humberside: Bcmpton Cliffs, singing 6th June (R. G. Hawley, S. C. Madgel
Kent: Dungeness, singing <$, 6th June (N. Riddiford, A. T. M. Ruck) ; immature,
trapped, 20th September (P. W. Burness, P. J. Grant, N. Riddiford et at.).
Man: Calf of Man. singing <J, 7th June (W. G. Dye, R. J. Haycock, P. Pratley).

(Eurasia east from north-east Germany) The geographical
spread of the early June influx of singing males was unprecedented;
it recalls the influx that led to breeding in Sweden in the 1950’s.
The total moves on to 103. It should be noted that the identification

350

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

of this species (liable to confusion with the Arctic Warbler P. borealis
and various eastern races of the Chiffchaff P. collybita ) is still worry-
ing the committee.

Bonelli’s Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli

Berkshire: Small Mead Farm gravel pit, Reading, 23rd August (M. Coath,

C. J. Mackenzie-Grieve et at.).

Dorset: Hengistbury Head, singing <$, 31st May (T. J. Christmas, C. I. Husband,
G. R. Sherwood).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 7th May (R. W. Allen, D. B. Hunt). St Agnes, 2nd September
(Dr P. H. Smith).

(Central, west and south Europe, Levant and north-west Africa)
Four in one year is more than usual. The grand total is now 40,
all since 1948.

Arctic Warbler Phylloscopus borealis

Fife: Isle of May, trapped, 6th September (P. N. J. Clark, D. VV. Oliver, H. D.
Smith et at.).

Norfolk: Titchwell, trapped, 5th July (P. R. Clarke, J. Reynolds).

Scilly : St Agnes, 23rd September, another on 24th, both remaining until 27th
(Z. Karpowicz, P. Naylor, G. Summers et at.).

(North-east Europe, north Asia and Alaska) The Norfolk
individual was the earliest ever by a clear month. The grand total
moves on to 84.

Pallas’s Warbler Phylloscopus proregulus

Cornwall: Porthgwarra, 1st November (G. S. Gay, B. K. Mellow et at.).
Dorset: Portland Bill, immature, trapped, 29th to 31st October (S. J. M. Ganllett,
I. S. Robertson et at.). East Weare, Portland, 1st November, perhaps the Portland
Bill individual (C. E. Richards).

East Sussex: Beachy Head, 2nd November (J. F. Cooper, D. A. and T. VV.
Par men ter et at.).

Fife: Isle of May, 21st October (M. W. Fraser, S. R. D. da Prato et at.).
Gwynedd: Bardsey, trapped, 7th November (D. A. Henshilwood, A. VV. and
Mrs E. J. Strick).

Humberside: Flamborough Head, two, 10th November (P. A. Lassey, I. Smith,

D. I. M. Wallace). Spurn Point, three, all trapped, 14th to 17th, 18th, and 19th
to 22nd October (D. Okill, B. R. Spence et at.).

Kent: Dungeness, trapped, 21st October (T. P. Inskipp, N. Riddiford et at.).
Sandwich Bay, trapped, nth October, another trapped, 12th, both to 13th,
one to 15th, another on 15th, a fourth individual, trapped, on 24th (J. N. Hollyer,
M. R. Lawn, M. Sutherland el at.).

Lincolnshire: Saltfleetby, 16th October (R. H. Higgins, C. L. Ottoway).
Gibraltar Point, 19th to 22nd October (K. Atkin, M. Mellor, A. G. Parker et at.).
Norfolk: Holkham, nth to 14th October, two on 15th (F. K. Cobb, J. C. Eaton,
S. C. Joyner et at.). Happisburgh, trapped, 17th October (Mrs B. M. E. Uns-
worth). Scolt Head Island, 17th October (J. D. Brown).

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975 351

Northumberland: Fame Islands, 19th October (P. Hawkey, I. J. Proctor, C.
Watts et at.). Low Hauxley, 13th to 16th November (B. Little, E. R. Meek,
A. M. Taylor et at.).

North Yorkshire: Scarborough, 15th November (R. H. Appleby).

Scilly: St Mary’s, 17th October (P. J. Grant, G. and A. May et at.)] perhaps
the same individual, 20th to 22nd and 24th (D. S. Flumm, G. J. Hinchon et at.).
Shetland: Fair Isle, 10th to 1 ith October (R. A. Broad, A. R. Lowe, Dr B. Mar-
shall et at.).

Tayside: Killichonan, Loch Rannoch, 15th October (W. D. Campbell).

(Central, east and south-east Asia) Although no longer to be
classed as one of the rarest vagrant passerines, this species is still
perhaps one of the most attractive. The influx of about 28 in 1975
was the largest ever and it gained much by being set among a
three-figure flood of Yellow-browed Warblers P. inoviatus. For
seven splendid weeks, the east coast woods were full of these two
delightful, tiny warblers. The Tayside bird had penetrated Britain
deeper than any other; the tendency towards generally earlier
arrival continues. The grand total leaps to 89; yet there were only
four before the 1960’s.

Dusky Warbler Phylloscopus fuscatus

Norfolk: Wells, 14th to 16th October (G. B. Brown, S. C. Joyner, N. Williams
et at.). Blakcney Point, 18th October (G. E. Dunmore et at.).

(Central and north-east to south-east Asia) These two take the
grand total to 18. As befits this cover-seeking, ground-feeding
Phylloscopus , they left behind a long trail of frustrated would-be
observers.

Radde’s Warbler Phylloscopus schwarzi

Norfolk: Brancaster, 17th October (F. K. and Mrs A. E. Cobb). Holkham, 18th
to 20th October (D. M. Norman, R. B. H. Smith et al.) \ another, 25th to 26th
October (P. A. Dukes, G. J. Jobson, E. T. Welland et at.).

(Central and east Asia) This trio takes the grand total to 1 7.
The dates are typical.

Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis

Shetland: Out Skerries, <J, 13th May (A. R. Lowe, W. E. Oddie).

(Central and south-east Europe, west Russia and south to Iran)
All but one of the previous six were also in spring. The Out Skerries
clearly attract goodies.

Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris

Dyfed: Skomer, two, 8th October (J. E. and Mrs H. M. Davis).

East Sussex: Horse Eye Levels, 30th April (D. S. Flumm, M. J. Rogers).
Beachy Head, 27th August, another. 31st August, three, 1 7th September (R. H.
and Mrs M. E. Charlwood).

352

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

Lincolnshire: Tetney Haven, 15th October (A. Parker).

Scilly : St Mary’s, adult, 3rd to 13th October (J. A. Hazell, J. A. Lucas et at.);
immature, 7th October (D. Page et at.); perhaps another adult, 10th October
(D. I. M. Wallace).

Surrey: Cleygate Common, Pirbright, 23rd March (J. R. Mullins).

(Europe, south Asia and north-west Africa) Not every rarity
was commoner than usual in 1975: this is the smallest total of this
species since 1968. The Surrey individual was the earliest ever in
spring.

Olive-backed Pipit Anlhus hodgsoni

Norfolk: Wells, 10th October (S. C. Joyner, N. Williams).

(North-east Russia, central and east Asia) The fifth British
record; note the simultaneous arrival with the next two species.

Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi

Shetland: Fair Isle, 10th October (R. A. Broad, S. G. D. Cook, A. R. Lowe
et at.).

Suffolk: Minsmere, 27th April (H. E. Axell, P. J. Makepeace et at.).

(North-east Russia, central and east Asia) The Suffolk individual
was the first ever in spring. The grand total is now at least 21.

Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus

Scilly: St Agnes, 27th April (J. R. H. Clements, R. E. Turley). St Mary’s, 10th
to nth October (D. J. Holman et at.); another, 16th October (J. N. Dymond,
P. J. Grant, D. J. Holman et at.).

Shetland: Fair Isle, two, 24th to 25th May, three, 26th, one staying to 27th,
one to 28th and one to 31st (R. A. Broad, H. Nash, D. Woodward et at.); 4th
June (H. Nash); 8th to 17th September (R. A. Broad, G. Walbridge, S. White-
house et at.); 20th to 25th September (V. A. Lister et at.); another, 26th to 27th
September (D. Willis et at.). Out Skerries, 14th to 18th September (D. J. Fisher,
C. A. Harbard, T. A. Walsh et at.).

Strathclyde: Tobermory, Mull, 7th May (R. Coomber).

(Arctic Eurasia) Also one on Cape Clear Island, Co. Cork, on
8th October. It should be remembered that this pipit winters as
far west as Morocco. Astonishingly, the Irish individual and one
Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla were the only major rarities of
probable eastern origin west of Scilly. The total of 13 was the
highest ever, and takes the grand total to 100.

Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola

Shetland: Fair Isle, immature, 7th to 18th September (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts
et at.).

(East European Russia and west-central Asia) The grand total
is now 21 in 21 years.

353

Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor

Dyfed: Fcrryside, adult, 13th October (P. Bond).

Norfolk: Holme, adult, 25th October to 4th November (P. R. Clarke et at.).
Northumberland: Ehvick, adult d, found dead, 20th September (D. O’Connor).

(South and east Europe and south-west Asia) Three is about
average and takes the grand total to 96.

Woodchat Shrike Lanius senator

Dorset: Hengistbury Head, 20th April (C. I. Husband, D. N. Smith). Portland
Bill, 19th May (C. E. Richards, I. S. Robertson et at.). Wytch, Corfe Castle,
31st May (D. J., K. M. and Mrs M. Godfrey).

Dyfed: Skomcr, 24th to 25th May (J. E. Davis et at.); 7th June (T. R. Birkhead.
P. Chard).

Scilly: St Mary’s, adult, 9th October (R. V. A. Marshall, Miss S. Vere Benson) ;
immature, 10th October (G. Clark, W. E. Fletcher, D. J. Holman).

Shetland: Fair Isle, immature, 13th to 20th August (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts.
D. Willis et at.).

(West and central Europe, south-west Asia and north-west Africa)
Eight is below par, but, in the general context of the spring of 1975,
a low showing is not surprising.

Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio

Individuals showing the characters of one of the isabellinus group
of red-tailed races were recorded as follows:

Norfolk: Holkham, 12th to 13th October (G. B. Brown, S. C. Joyner, R. Martins
et at.).

West Sussex: Sidlesham, 1st March to 20th April (P. Clement, J. G. Thread-
gold et at.) (plate 35a).

(South Asia, across to China) The sixth and seventh ever of
one of these distinctive races. Earlier records were in September,
October and, once, May. The Sussex individual is considered likely
to have been an escape from captivity.

Rose-coloured Starling Sturnus roseus

Berkshire: Purley, Reading, adult, 14th to 1 6th July (N. J. Bucknall, Mr and
Mrs Jones).

Dyfed: Ystumtuen, Devil’s Bridge, adult, 25th to 26th July (Rev and Mrs R. J.
Blakeway-Phillips) .

Lochaber: Fort William, adult, 28th to 29th August (R. M. Morrison).
Norfolk: Winterton, adult, 31st July (A. Boote).

North Yorkshire: Hutton Rudby, Yarm, adult, 31st August (P. and Mrs T. N.
Gilbert).

Orkney: Finstown, adult, 17th to 26th July (D. Lea, E. J. Williams et at.).
Scilly: St Martin’s, immature, 3rd to 6th October (M. Coath, P. J. Grant,
D. I. M. Wallace et at.). St Mary’s, immature, 13th to 17th October (M. A.
Blick, D. B. Hunt et at.).

354

Rose-coloured Starling Sturms roseas (immature) and Rustic Bunting Emberiza

rustica

Shetland: Fair Isle, adult, 28th July to 16th August (Mrs J. A. Broad, Miss
A. Shearer et al.).

Somerset: Minehead, adult, 2nd November and 9th December (Mrs J. Harding,
F. Porter).

Sutherland: Insheigra, Kinlochbervie, adult, 14th July (C. and J. VValtho
et al.).

Tyne and Wear: East Boldon, adult, 12th July (R. Adams).

(South-east Europe and south-west Asia) The total of 12 is more
than twice the average (and it is likely that there are at least two
others worthy of submission) . Most past records have been in June
to September, but the July influx of seven adults was noticeably
widespread and the most striking of recent years.

Red-eyed Vireo Vireo olivaceus

Gwynedd: Aberdaron, 25th to 26th Septembei (A. H. Morley, Rev R. S.
Thomas).

(North America) The eighth record; all have been in Ireland or
western Britain.

Black-and- White Warbler Mniotilta varia

Scilly: St Mary’s, 27th to 30th September (M. Coath, A. Holliman, R. B. H.
Smith et al.).

(North America) Forty years after the first (in Shedand in
October 1936), this extraordinarily patterned bird gave hours of
delight to many observers for four days, but hours of agony to those
who searched for it in October.

Tennessee Warbler Vermivora peregrina

Shetland: Fair Isle, immature, trapped, 6th to 18th September (R. A. Broad,
C. D. Heard, G. Walbridge et al.) ; immature, trapped, 24th September (R. A.
Broad, P. J. Roberts et al.).

(North America) Still under consideration by the BOU Records
Committee. The first and second records in Britain and Ireland.
This species has spread to north-east Siberia, where it overlaps with
the somewhat similar Arctic Warbler Phylloscopus borealis.

355

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Blackpoll Warbler Dendroica striata

Scilly: St Agnes, 19th to 20th October (P. W. Burness, G. J. Jobson, D. 13. Rosaii
et at.); considered the same individual, 31st October to 1st November (R. J.
Burness, A. P. Goddard, M. A. Hollingworth et at.).

(North America) Only the fourth record of this species, which is
abundant on autumn passage in east America and might be ex-
pected to reach Europe more often. Perhaps associated with this
record was a Catbird Dumetella carolinensis at St Brelade’s Bay,
Jersey, in mid-October.

Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus

Scilly: St Mary’s, 9th October (P. J. Grant, D. J. Holman, K. C. Osborne et at.)
(plate 35b).

Shetland: Out Skerries, 18th September (C. A. Harbard, I. Sandison, T. A.
Walsh et at.).

(North America) Only the fourth and fifth records of this strange
grassland passerine.

Arctic Redpoll Acanthis hornemanni

Orkney: North Ronaldsay, immature, trapped, 15th October (J. M. B. King).
Shetland: Fair Isle, immature, trapped, 14th to 15th November (R. A. Broad).

In addition, sight records of redpolls showing the characters of
A. hornemanni were reported as follows:

Humberside: Flamborough Head, 11th October (P. A. Lassey, I. Smith).
Spurn Point, 21st October (D. 1. M. Wallace).

Shetland: Fair Isle, two on 9th to 10th October, three on 11th to 12th, one
remaining to 18th (R. A. Broad, A. R. Lowe, Dr B. Marshall et at.).

(Circumpolar Arctic) Our publication of records of this species
is open to criticism. It is not our task, however, to define genetic
purity and, as in 1972, these records should be seen in the context
of a heavy autumn passage of Mealy Redpolls A.f. fiammea. Several
flocks of the latter contained the apparent hybrids that so cloud
the issue, but seven or so of those listed here showed the typical
‘ghostly’ appearance of Arctic Redpolls.

Serin Serinus serinus

Cornwall: Porthgwarra, 26th October (P. D. Round).

Devon: Lundy, 3rd November (M. and Mrs W. Rogers).

Dorset: Southwell, Portland, two one $, 19th to 20th April (P. A. Dukes.
N. Marshall, I. S. Robertson et at.). East Weare, Portland, two $$, 10th May
(C. E. Richards). Portland Bill, 4th December (F. R. Clafton. I. S. Robertson).
Dyfed: Ynys-hir, Dovey estuary, 28th October (S. C. Madge).

East Sussex: Cuckmere Haven, 26th April (D. S. Flumm). Beachy Head, $,
19th April (R. H. Charlwood); 11th May (M. J. Rogers).

Kent: Dungeness, $, nth May (D. L. Davenport, M. A. Hollingworth, R. E.
Turley et at.).

356 Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Scilly: St Agnes, 2nd November (R. J. Burness). St Mary’s, 31st October (T. P.
Inskipp); two, 19th December (D. B. Hunt). Tresco, 30th September (R. J.
Johns).

(Continental Europe, Mediterranean, Asia Minor and north-
west Africa) Also one on Cape Clear Island, Co. Cork, on 1 1 th
and 1 2th November. The usual rather confusing scatter of ap-
parently vagrant birds in spring and autumn into winter, with still
no real indication of the eagerly awaited colonisation of Britain.

Scarlet Rosefinch Carpodacus erythrinus

Devon: Lundy, 19th to 20th May and, presumably the same individual, singing
3 in ‘brown’ plumage, trapped, 1st June (C. C Baillie, I. G. Black, A. M. Taylor
et at.); immature, trapped, 17th September to 10th October (C. C. Baillie, N. A.
Clark, M. Rogers et at.).

Humberside: Kilnsea, 18th to 19th October (C. D. R. Heard).

Norfolk: Holkham, 29th August (D. M. Williams)

Orkney: Copinsay, 4th August (M. A. S. Beaman, G. G. Bunting).

Scilly: St Agnes, 29th September (M. Brazil, P. A. Dukes, P. Nichols).
Shetland: Fair Isle, at least 13 individuals (of which two trapped) during autumn,
all immature or $ — 13th August, 31st August to 6th September, four on 7th,
three to 10th, one to 1 ith, 17th to 18th, two on 20th, one to 24th, two on 25th to
27th, one to 30th, 10th October, 20th to 24th October (R. A. Broad et at.). Fetlar,
28th August (H. Prendergast, M. C. Robinson). Out Skerries, eight individuals
during autumn, all immature or $— four on 24th August, two on 7th September,
8th to 9th, 1 2th to 14th September (D. J. Fisher, C. A. Harbard, T. A. Walsh
et at.). Whalsay, 3rd September (J. H. Simpson). Grutness, 29th September to
1st October (P. Rock, Mr and Mrs J. Woodland). Uyeasound, Unst, 26th to
28th August (I. K. Saunders, I. Spence).

(East Europe and across Asia, and east Turkey to Himalayas)
About 30 is a lower score than in 1973 (40) or 1974 (35), but the
trend away from its former extreme rarity and localisation atjFair
Isle remains pronounced. Even so, it is puzzling that the autumn
of 1975 did not produce a bumper crop. The total since 1958 has
now passed 310.

Pine Grosbeak Pmicola enucleator

Northumberland: Holy Island, nth to 12th May (R. Crabb, E. R. Meek
et at.).

(Scandinavia, across Asia, and North America) This fine,
northern finch was one of the surprises of the year. All but one
of the eight previous records were in autumn.

Two-barred Crossbill Loxia leucoptera

Norfolk: Sandringham, d, 16th February (J. Campton, G. Parker).

(Northern Eurasia and North America) Another winter male
brings the grand total to over 60, but the species remains a true
rarity.

357

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Scarlet Tanager Piranga olivacea

Scilly : Tresco, immature <J, 28th September to 3rd October (R. E. Alderton,
G. C. Hearl et at.).

(North America) Only the second record; the first was also on

the Isles of Scillv.

/

Pine Bunting Emberiza leucocephala

Dorset: Southwell, Portland, 15th April (G. Walbridge).

(Eastern Russia, across Asia to Sakhalin) Only the fourth ever;
an isolated occurrence that is difficult to relate to those of other
species. Immatures closely resemble young Yellowhammers E.
citrinella — sometimes regarded as conspecific — and are, therefore,
perhaps overlooked.

Black-headed Bunting Emberiza melanocepbala
Dorset: Portland Bill, 26th May (I. S. Robertson, G. Walbridge et at.).
Shetland: Out Skerries, <J, 22nd to 29th August (G. Armstrong, D. J. Fisher,
Dr B. Marshall et at.).

(South-east Europe and south-west Asia) These two take the
grand total to about 40.

Yellow-breasted Bunting Emberiza aureola

Humberside: Spurn Point, (J, 14th to 15th June (J. Cudworth, Mr and Mrs C.
Massingham et at.).

Shetland: Fair Isle, 7th to 18th September, another 17th to 18th September
(R. A. Broad, P. Kenncrley, G. Walbridge et at.).

(North-east Europe and north Asia) Three is fewer than in the
last few years, but the Spurn individual was the first ever in spring:
apart from an old July record, all others have been in August to
October. The grand total is now 56.

Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica

Cleveland: Redcar, 9th to 10th May (M. A. Blick. C. D. R. Heard. H. Mitchell
et at.).

Dyfed: Skokholm, <J, trapped, 6th to 7th June (M. de L. Brooke. A. B. Heath
et at.).

Fife: Isle of May, immature $, trapped, 30th September to 6th October (N. K.
Atkinson, D. L. Bell, M. Nichol et at.).

Lincolnshire: Gibraltar Point, c?. 1 1 th May (A. O. Aitken, K. Knowles).
Norfolk: Cley, 18th October (A. J. L. Smith et at.); another, <J, 19th to 22nd
October (R. J. Johns, A. J. L. Smith, D. I. M. Wallace et at.).
Northumberland: Blyth, 15th to 16th October (B. Galloway, B. Little, E. R.
Meek et at.).

Scilly: St Martin’s, 5th October (J. East. P. J. Grant et at.). St Mary’s, immature
c?, 31st October (D. B. Hunt).

35& Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

Shetland: Fair Isle, J1, 26th to 29th May (G. J. Barnes, S. Rurnsey, D. Woodward
et at.) ; cJ, 3rd to 6th June (R. A. Broad, H. Nash, P. J. Roberts et at.) ; immature,
trapped, 10th to 25th October (R. A. Broad, Dr B. Marshall, P. J. Roberts et at.);
<?, 9th November (S. Thomson, J. and Mrs E. Watt). Fetlar, 27th to 29th May
(P. Clement, B. de Kruyff, M. C. Robinson et at.). Out Skerries, <J, 27th May
(R. W. Allen).

(North-east Europe and north Asia) Unlike the Yellow-breasted
Bunting E. aureola , with similar origins, this species occurred in
record numbers. With seven in spring and eight in autumn, the
grand total moves on to 103. This species is being increasingly
noted as an autumn migrant in Sweden.

Yellow-browed Bunting Ernberiza chrysophrys

Norfolk: Holkham, 19th October (D. J. Holman, J. Kemp, M. Parker).

(North-east Asia and east China) Still under consideration by
the BOU Records Committee. This remarkable occurrence is the
first for Britain and Ireland, although there are old records for
both Belgium and France. The date is coincident with many of
the other extreme rarities from the east.

Little Bunting Ernberiza pusilla

Devon: Lundy, 12th to 13th October (N. A. Clark, M. Rogers).
Northumberland: Holy Island, three, 23rd to 26th September (S. Anderson,
T. Cadwallender, Prof. J. D. Craggs) ; two, 26th October (P. G. Williams, B.
and L. Tollit).

Ross and Cromarty: Dingwall, trapped, 16th to 17th November (A. R. Main-
wood et at.).

Scilly: St Martin’s, 6th October (G. J. Hinchon, K. C. Osborne, D. Willis et al.).
Shetland: Fair Isle, 4th to 5th May (R. A. Broad, S. Holmes, P. J. Roberts
et at.)', 17th May (R. A. Broad, P. J. Roberts); 29th September to 1st October
(R. A. Broad, C. D. Heard, C. J. Mackenzie-Grieve et at.); two, 10th to 16th
October, one to 25th, trapped on 24th (R. A. Broad, A. R. Lowe, Dr B. Marshall
et at.); nth to 19th November (R. A. Broad).

(North-east Europe and north Asia) Also one on Cape Clear
Island, Co. Cork, on 7th- nth October. Two in spring and 13 in
autumn match the pattern of the previous species and, together,
give the highest total in any one year. Mainland records are always
indicative of an unusual passage. The grand total is now about 193.

Slate-coloured Junco Junco hyemalis

Gloucestershire: Haresfield, 1st to 12th April (A. Richardson, R. S. Warren,
G. L. Webber et at.).

Gwynedd: Bardsey, trapped, 25th April to 3rd May (D. Hardaker, D. A. Hen-
shilwood, Mrs E. J. Strick et al.).

(North America) These two bring the total to seven, all of which
have been in spring.

359

Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Rose-breasted Grosbeak P/ieucticus ludovicianus

Essex: Leigh-on-Sea, immature cj, 20th to 21st December, and 4th January
1976 (Mr and Mrs A. M. Feather).

(North America) Only the fifth record, but the first from an
eastern locality. This bird brings the total number of American
passerines to reach Britain in 1975 to eleven (a Rufous-sided Towhee
Pipilo erythroplhalmus at Spurn Point, Humberside, has not yet been
fully considered by the committee). With the addition of the
Catbird (already mentioned under Blackpoll Warbler) and another
Rose-breasted Grosbeak on Sark, Channel Islands, on 26th Sep-
tember, the full figure is 13.

Amendment to the 1968 report

Myrtle Warbler Dendroica coronata
Scilly: the first date was 22nd October, not 23rd.

Amendments to the 1974 report

Purple Heron Ardea purpurea

Norfolk: the last date was 17th September, not 2nd.

American Wigeon Anas americana
Lincolnshire: the last date was 24th February, not 14th.

Surf Scoter Melanitla perspicillata

Northumberland: the individual last seen at Bamburgh on 10th February was
observed at Budle Point on 15th and Ross Links on 16th.

White-winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus
Kent: the last date was 8th September, not 7th.

Royal Tern Sterna maxima

Cheshire: Hilbre Island, 8th September (R. Anderson, K. A. Dummigan, J. C.
Gittins et at.).

Flintshire: Point of Air, 22nd September (B. Boothby).

(West Africa, North America and the Caribbean) These two
sightings, clearly relating to one individual, were originally accepted
as Royal or Caspian Tern (Brit. Birds, 68: 322), but, after recon-
sideration, the committee decided that the descriptions could refer
only to a Royal Tern. Together, they constitute the fourth British
and Irish record.

Rare birds in Great Britain igj$

360

Alpine Swift Apus melba

Outer Hebrides: this entry should be deleted; it refers to Snowy Owl Nyclea
scandiaca.

Supplementary i960 record accepted

Stonechat Saxicola torquata

Durham: Hartlepool, showing the characters of one of the eastern races S. t.
maura or stejnegeri, 26th October (A. Vittery) .

Supplementary 1964 record accepted

Stonechat Saxicola torquata

Shetland: Fair Isle, showing the characters of one of the eastern races S. 1. maura
or stejnegeri, ist November (R. H. Dennis, C. S. Waller, E. J. Wiseman et at.).

Supplementary 1965 records accepted

Alpine Swift Apus melba

Yorkshire: Spurn Point, 16th May (P. F. Bonham).

Stonechat Saxicola torquata

Shetland: Fair Isle, showing the characters of one of the eastern races S. t. maura
or stejnegeri, 5th to 6th October (R. H. Dennis, A. Heath et at.).

Supplementary 1967 record accepted

King Eider Somateria spectabilis

Aberdeenshire: Ythan estuary, $, 5th October (Dr C. H. Fry).

Supplementary 1969 record accepted

Short-toed Treecreeper Certhia brachydactyla

Kent: Dungeness, trapped, 27th to 30th September (R. E. Scott).

(Central and south Continental Europe and north-west Africa)
Now accepted by both the Rarities Committee and the BOU
Records Committee as the first record of this species in Britain and
Ireland. A further 13 records are still under consideration.

Supplementary 1971 record accepted

Serin Serinus serinus

Suffolk: Dunwich, $, 15th June (R. J. Johns).

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg 361

Supplementary 1972 records accepted

Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica

Norfolk: YVeybourne, adult, 12th August (R. J. Johns, P. J. McCann).

Short-toed Lark Calandrella cinerea

Scilly: St Agnes, 31st October (R. J. Johns).

Stonechat Saxicola torquata

Norfolk: Cley, <J, showing the characters of one of the eastern races S', t. maura
or stejnegeri, 6th May (R. A. Richardson).

Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola

Sussex: Chichester gravel pits, immature, trapped, 3rd September (Dr A. B.
Watson el at.).

Pallas’s Warbler Phylloscopus proregulus

Scilly: Tresco, 2nd November (R. J. Johns).

Supplementary 1973 records accepted

Little Egret Egretta gargelta

Dumfries: Waterfoot, Annan, 12th April to 2nd June (T. Johnson-Ferguson
el at.).

White- winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus

Lancashire: Longton Marsh, adult, nth to 12th August (M. E. Grecnhalgh,
Dr P. H. Smith el at.).

Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica

Middlesex: Staines Reservoir, 17th May (R. J. Johns).

Cetti’s Warbler Cettia cetti

Berkshire: Thatcham, trapped, 1st April (I. Hawthorn el at.).

Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola

Hampshire: Wick Hams, Christchurch, adult, trapped, 13th August; immature,
trapped, 20th August (S. E. and T. J. Christmas el at.).

Arctic Warbler Phylloscopus borealis

Shetland: Gulberwick, 22nd September (J. and Mrs Y. Spriggs, N. Storie).

Serin Serinus serinus

Scilly: St Agnes, 14th October (R. J. Johns).

Supplementary 1974 records accepted

Cory’s Shearwater Calonectris diomedea

Cornwall: between Isles of Scilly and Land’s End, 27th July (J. B. and Mrs
S. Bottomley).

Rare birds in Great Britain igyg

362

Purple Heron Ardea purpurea

Lancashire: Leighton Moss, immature, 15th May (P. J. Marsh, J. Wilson, J.
Wood et at.).

Norfolk: Strumpshaw, 19th May (R. Martins).

Suffolk: Minsmere, immature, 19th to 29th June (H. E. Axell, J. F. Denny
et at.); another, immature, 19th to 20th and 26th to 27th August (H. E. Axell,
P. J. Makepeace et at.).

(South-central Eurasia, north to Netherlands, and Africa) These
four additional records bring the total for 1974 to at least 14.

Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis

Gloucestershire: Slimbridge, 20th August (S. E. M. Goodsall, E. E. Jackson,
Lady Scott et at.) ; see page 329.

Kent/Sussex: Wittersham/Maytham, 8th to 15th August (K. and P. T. Dann,
P. J. Grant et at.) ; almost certainly an escape from captivity.

Black Stork Ciconia nigra

Outer Hebrides: Valley Strand, North Uist, 26th to 30th August (J. B. O.
Rossetti et at.).

(Spain, east Europe to east Asia, and southern Africa) The
second Scottish record, taking the grand total to 34.

Teal Anas crecca

Ross-shire: Balblair, near Culrain, (J, showing the characters of the North
American race, A. c. carolinensis, 7th June (T. H. Wall).

American Wigeon Anas americana

Kinross: Loch Levcn, q, 20th October to 6th November (T. O. James, Miss
B. H. Moore et at.).

Surf Scoter Melanitta perspicillata

Kirkcudbrightshire: Carrick Point, c?> *3th November (W. and Mrs K.
Jackson).

Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus

Lancashire: Leighton Moss, <$, 17th to 18th May (P. J. Marsh, J. Wilson, J.
Wood et al.).

Norfolk: Holme, ?, 17th May (P. R. Clarke, K. K. Harrison).

Suffolk: Minsmere, 2nd and 19th May (H. E. Axell, P. J. Makepeace et at.).

(East Europe and south from Siberia) These three bring the
total for 1974 to 13.

Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa fiavipes

Cheshire: Sandbach, 27th August to 18th September (W. D. Forshaw, G. Sum-
mers et al.).

Lancashire: Altcar, Formby, 28th September (D. R. Williams et al.).

Rare birds in Great Britain 7975 363

(North America) The Lancashire bird was clearly the individual
seen at Martin Mere over the next two days and subsequently at
Freckleton {Brit. Birds , 63: 317).

Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis

Lancashire: Martin Merc, 13th to 16th September (F. Gladstones at.).

(South-east Europe and west and east Asia) This makes two in
1974 and 20 in all.

White-rumped Sandpiper Calidris fuscicoltis

Hampshire: Pennington Marshes, 10th August (R. Dunn, E. J. Wiseman).

Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites subrtificollis
Shetland: Fair Isle, 8th September (R. A. Broad, D. Willis el at.).

Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus

Somerset: Steart, 19th December (G. B. Hall, P. A. R. Hockey, W. Stephens).

(Southern Eurasia, Africa, Australasia and the Americas) The
second for 1974 and on an interesting date.

Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola

Hampshire: Fleet Pond, 28th May (T. Henderson, R. G. Millington. G.[Stcphcn-

son).

Lancashire: Scotsman’s Flash, Wigan, 23rd to 26th May (W. D. Forshaw, M. L.
Passant et at.). Freckleton, 24th to 29th May (M. J. Ainscough, T. Henderson,
Dr P. H. Smith et at.).

(South Europe, south-west Asia and Africa) These three records
within six days constitute the most marked spring influx ever;
with one in Shetland in July {Brit. Birds, 68: 319), the 1974 total
was four.

White-winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus
Kent: Dungcness, immature, 4th September (R. E. Scott).

Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia

Dorset: Chesil Beach, Abbotsbury, 15th June (R. J. Johns).

Great Spotted Cuckoo Clamator glandarius
Lincolnshire: Donna Nook, 1st July (S. Lorand).

(South Europe, south-west Asia and Africa) Only the seventeenth
record.

Scops Owl Otns scops

Cornwall: Saltash, found injured, died later, 18th May (P. F. Goodfcllow,
L. Hurrell. W. Sharpe).

364 Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

(South Europe, Russia, west Asia and north-west Africa) There
have now been 72 records, but this is only the seventh since 1958.

Snowy Owl Nyclea scandiaca

Orkney: Loch of St Treadwell, Papa Westray, two, 5th November (W. Irvine).
Outer Hebrides: pair, January to April, all year, $ in different area 17th
September (localities withheld) (W. A. J. Cunningham, P. G. Hopkins, R.
MacIntyre).

Cetti’s Warbler Cettia cetti

Hampshire: north-west Solent area, 24th March to 21st April (G. P. Green,
E. J. Wiseman).

Savi’s Warbler Locustella luscinioides

Dorset: Portland Bill, 29th April (F. R. Clafton, A. Wigzcll).

Kent: Stodmarsh, singing d, 6th April, another on 10th, and a third on 7th May;
all three dc? held territory through the breeding season, one pair definitely bred
and a second pair very probably bred (P. J. Mountford).

Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus

Kent: Stodmarsh, 26th May (T. E. Bowley, J. F. and S. L. Woolard).

(Europe and west-central Asia) This takes the total since 1958
to 62.

Paddyfield Warbler Acrocephalus agricola

Scilly: St Mary’s, 30th September to 15th October (D. S. Flumm, N. A. G. Lord,
M. J. Rogers et at.).

(South Russia and Asia) A second record for 1974, featuring a
bleached adult in moult, which led its observers through a terrible
maze of reeds (and identification criteria). The fifth ever and the
first in the south-west.

Bonelli’s Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli

Dorset: Brownsea Island, Poole, 19th August (A. J. Wise).

Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris

Dorset: Portland Bill, 21st to 25th August (F. R. Clafton, G. L. Webber et at.);
15th September (F. R. Clafton, G. Walbridgc et at.).

Durham: Saltholme Pool, Teesmouth, two, 10th July (T. Francis).

Sussex: Beachy Head, 29th September (P. Clement).

(Europe, south Asia and north-west Africa) Four records (of
five birds) take the 1974 total to about 27. The two in Durham in
July are particularly noteworthy; a Short-toed Lark Calandrella
cinerea was also summering nearby (Brit. Birds, 68: 323).

3^5

Rare birds in Great Britain igy§

Woodchat Shrike /, anius senator

Dorset: Portland Bill, immature, trapped, 23rd August (F. R. Clafton, G.
Walbridge et at.).

Orkney: Cairnton, Oiphir, 9th to 16th June (D. Lea, A. MacNair et at.).

Serin Serinus serinus

Dorset: Durlston Head, 16th March (R. J. Johns;.

Sussex: Selsey Bill, 25th May (B. A. E. Marr).

Scarlet Rosefinch Carpodacus erythrinus

Orkney: Eday, 1st to 7th September (R. D. Lowe et at.).

Black-headed Bunting Emberiza melanocephala

Dorset: Portland, 4th to 6th August (F. R. Clafton, G. Walbridge et at.).
Shetland: Fair Isle, $ or immature, 6th to 7th October (R. A. Broad. R. D.
Moore, D. R. Waugh el at.).

Appendix 1 : List of 1975 records not accepted

This list contains all the 1975 records not accepted after circulation
to the committee. It does not include (a) those withdrawn by the
observer(s), without circulation, after discussion with the honorary-
secretary; (b) those which, even if circulated, were not attributed
by the observer(s) to any definite species; or (c) those mentioned
in the monthly summaries in this journal, if full details were un-
obtainable. Birds considered to be escapes are also omitted.

In the vast majority of cases the record was not accepted because
we were not convinced, on the evidence before us, that the identifi-
cation was fully established; in only a very few cases were we
satisfied that a mistake had been made.

Albatross sp
Cory’s Shearwater
Little Shearwater

Purple Heron

Little Egret
Night Heron
American Bittern
White Stork
Black Stork

Cemaes Head, Dyfed, 20th August and 3rd September
off Isles of Scilly, 1st October

Frenchman’s Rocks, Islay, Strathclyde. 3rd August
off Isles of Scilly, 1st October
St Ives, Cornwall, 26th May

Sand Point, Weston-super-Mare, Avon, two, 27th
May

Hauxton gravel pit. Cambridgeshire. 3rd and 22nd
August

Langley Mill, Derbyshire, 21st August
Cliffe, Kent, 13th May
Laxford Bridge, Sutherland, 21st May
Fulbourn Fen, Cambridgeshire, 5th October
Southerfield, Carlisle, Cumbria, 24th April
Wood wal ton Fen. Cambridgeshire, 20th August

366

Rare birds in Great Britain igy 5

S teller’s Eider

King Eider
Lesser White-fronted
Goose
Black Kite

Red-footed Falcon
Lesser Kestrel

Crane

Baillon’s Crake
Killdeer

Lesser Golden Plover
Dowitcher sp

Stilt Sandpiper
Great Snipe

Lesser Yellowlegs

Marsh Sandpiper
Baird’s Sandpiper

White-rumped Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper

Buff-breasted Sandpiper

Broad-billed Sandpiper
Pratincole sp

White-winged Black Tern

Whiskered Tern
Gull-billed Tern
Caspian Tern
Alpine Swift
Calandra Lark
Dusky Thrush
Black-throated Thrush
American Robin

St Mawes Bay, Cornwall, $, 28th November
North Ronaldsay, Orkney, ?, nth December
Long Hope, South Walls, Orkney, $, 8th February

Buckenham, Norfolk, 5th February
near Weymouth, Dorset, 20th April
Marksbury, Bristol, Avon, 24th September
Errol, Tayside, $, nth September
Stithians Reservoir, Cornwall, 24th to 25th August
Walberswick, Suffolk, 26th November
Cottenham, Cambridgeshire, two, 16th May
Sticklepath, Okehampton, Devon, 17th June
Meikle Loch/Ythan, Grampian, 26th to 27th July
Shelford, Cambridgeshire, 10th September
Fingringhoe Wick, Essex, 27th January
Marloes, Dyfed, 22nd June

Ashton Keynes, Wiltshire, 28th to 29th September
Powderham, Exe estuary, Devon, 21st July
Sidlesham, West Sussex, 16th September
Mundon, Essex, 2nd November
Bowness, Cumbria, 7th December
Minsmere, Suffolk, 7th September
Cowpen Marsh, Teesmouth, Cleveland, 1st June
Ham sewage farm, Berkshire, 12 th August
Pitsford Reservoir, Northamptonshire, 9th
September

Upthorpe, Stanton, Suffolk, 31st October
Washington Ponds, Tyne and Wear, 4th to 8th
September

St Mary’s, Scilly, 24th October

Cley, Norfolk, 9th November

Hamford Water, Essex, 16th August

Cley, Norfolk, 22nd August

Cley, Norfolk, 6th August

Barassie, Strathclyde, 27th August

Shipley Lake, Heanor, Derbyshire, 1st September

Bridgend, Islay, Strathclyde, 20th November

Howmore estuary, South Uist, Western Isles,

4th September

Benacre, Suffolk, 5th September
Pitsford Reservoir, Northamptonshire, 12th
September

Loch of Strathbeg, Grampian, 5th October

Tillicoultry, Fife, 30th June

Staines Reservoir, Greater London, nth June

Covenham Reservoir, Lincolnshire, 2nd September

Heysham, Lancashire, 12th September

Staines Reservoir, Greater London, 12th June

Cley, Norfolk, 9th August

St David’s Head, Dyfed, nth September

Kingsgate Bay, Thanet, Kent, 19th July

Pennard Cliffs, West Glamorgan, 28th June

Purton, Wiltshire, 26th December

St Agnes, Scilly, 7th October

Netley, Hampshire, 2nd December

367

Rare birds in Great Britain igyj

White’s Thrush
Black-eared Wheatear
Isabelline Wheatear
Black Wheatear
Siberian Stonechat
Savi’s Warbler

Moustached Warbler

Aquatic Warbler

Greenish Warbler

Bonelli’s Warbler
Arctic Warbler

Dusky Warbler
Alpine Accentor
Tawny Pipit

Red-throated Pipit
Lesser Grey Shrike

Serin

Scarlet Rosefinch

Two-barred Crossbill
Black-headed Bunting
Rustic Bunting
Little Bunting

Marchwiel, Wrexham, Clwyd, 2nd November

South Uist, Western Isles, $, 28th July

Isle of May, Fife, 31st August

Exe Head, Exmoor, Somerset, 1 1 th September

Spurn Point, Humberside, 19th October

Walberswick, Suffolk, 6th July

Daventry Reservoir. Northamptonshire, 17th August
Wick Hams, Christchurch, Dorset, 30th to 31st
August

Sand Bay, Weston-super-Mare, Avon, 10th August
Newton Poppleford, Devon, 17th August
Stodmarsh, Kent, 5th September
Portbury Wharf, Avon, two, 7th September
Perry Oaks sewage farm, Greater London, 7th
September

Kenfig Pool, Mid-Glamorgan, 21st September
Brighton, East Sussex, 29th August
Hengistbury Head, Dorset, 21st September
Tresco, Scilly, 14th October
St Mary’s, Scilly, 14th October
St Mary’s, Scilly, another, 15th October
Scarborough, North Yorkshire, 18th October
St Just, Cornwall, 28th October
Marazion Marsh, Cornwall, 16th March
Hengistbury Head, Dorset, 23rd to 24th August
Llanishen Reservoir, South Glamorgan, 21st
September

Ythan, Grampian, >2th October

Scarborough, North Yorkshire, 9th October

Ramsgate, Kent, 7th May

Clyne Common, West Glamorgan, 16th March

Porth Henllys, St David’s Head, Dyfcd, 30th May

Rye Harbour, East Sussex, 4th October

Porthgwarra, Cornwall, 5th to 7th October

Trcsco, Scilly, 15th October

Walls, Shetland, 19th April

Saltfleetby, Lincolnshire, 19th October

Hughcnden, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire,

20th November

Sand Point, Weston-super-Mare, Avon, 7th
September

Tetney Haven, Lincolnshire, 9th October
near Barnstaple, Devon, seven, 4th December
Sidlesham Ferry, West Sussex, 25th December
Holkham, Norfolk, 22nd September
Barns Ness, Lothian, 27th September
Glen Cova, Tayside. <J, 19th December
Beachy Head, East Sussex, o, 5th October
Hutton, Brentwood, Essex, 22nd October
Tetney Lock, Lincolnshire. 4th June
Fingringhoe Wick, Essex, 1st October
Tresco. Scilly, 15th to 16th October

368 Rare birds in Great Britain 1975

Appendix 2. Supplementary 1959 record not accepted

Red-throated Pipit Stirling Hill, Aberdeenshire, and October

Appendix 3. Supplementary 1970 record not accepted

Great Snipe Ham sewage farm, Berkshire, 23rd October

Appendix 4. Supplementary 1971 records not accepted

American Wigeon Ythan estuary, Aberdeenshire, 28th August

Arctic Warbler St Agnes, Scilly, 9th October

Appendix 5. Supplementary 1972 record not accepted

Little Crake Eythrope Lake, Stone, Buckinghamshire, 15th

October

Appendix 6. Supplementary 1973 records not accepted

Lesser Golden Plover Stithians Reservoir, Cornwall, 10th September
Sharp-tailed Sandpiper Hayle, Cornwall, 6th October
White-winged Black Tern Whitsand Bay, Cornwall, 28th April

Appendix 7. Supplementary 1974 records not accepted

White Stork
Red-footed Falcon
Solitary Sandpiper

White-winged Black Tern
Gull-billed Tern
Roller

Siberian Stonechat
Savi’s Warbler
Booted Warbler
Arctic Warbler
Rose-coloured Starling
Scarlet Rosefinch
Little Bunting

Kingston Seymour, Somerset, 10th April
Sumburgh, Shetland, $, 16th May
Wisbech sewage farm, Lincolnshire/Norfolk, 28th
August

Hickling Broad, Norfolk, two, 27th May
Frampton Marsh, Lincolnshire, 15th September
Tarbert, Harris, Outer Hebrides, 12 th September
Titchwell, Norfolk, 1st November and 9th December
Alfriston, Sussex, 14th June
St Mary’s, Scilly, 8th October
Wester Quarff, Shetland, 14th September
Marazion Marsh, Cornwall, 26th October
Sheringham, Norfolk, 27th May
Washington, Durham, 18th and 25th September

J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge , Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL

Notes

Grey Herons eating Water Rails On 29th December 1974,
Dr R. J. Raines and I were birdwatching at the Dee Marshes, Park-
gate, Cheshire, when we noticed a Grey Heron Ardea cinerea eating a
Water Rail Rallus aquaticus. On closer observation of the marshes,
we could see Water Rails seeking shelter from the incoming tide on
rafts of floating vegetation. Small groups of herons landed nearby,
seized rails in their bills and then flew to shallow water, where they
drowned their prey. At one stage, we saw four herons each devouring
a rail. Though large concentrations of Water Rails (sometimes
hundreds) are a feature of high tides at Parkgate, I know of only one
previous instance of this behaviour by Grey Herons. If it continues,
however, there may be a sharp decline in the wintering population
of Water Rails on these marshes. Christopher W. Murphy
49 Hunts Cross Avenue, Gateacre, Liverpool L25 5NU

Identification of Chough and Alpine Chough in flight In

‘Studies of less familiar birds’ (Brit. Birds, 63: 28-32), P. F. Bonham
implied that the Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax and Alpine Chough
P. graculus are difficult to distinguish in flight. After watching both
species daily for two weeks, in the Salang Kotal area of Afghanistan,
during the summer and autumn of 1970, I was able to separate
them readily at a distance of over a kilometre.

Apart from the distinctive call notes (that of the Alpine Chough
always being the higher pitched), differences in the wing pattern

Fig. 1 . Wing shapes of Chough Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax and Alpine Chough P. graculus
when (a) gliding overhead, and (b) seen as distant silhouette. Note Chough's
broader wings, with primaries held straighter, and the distinct notch (arrowed)

in the Alpine Chough’s wing

369

370

Notes

became apparent, which I have been unable to find referred to in
any field guide. The Chough holds its primaries, or ‘fingers’,
separately and straight out, giving a linear impression, whereas the
Alpine Chough holds its separated primaries dropped back at an
angle, giving an impression, at a distance, vaguely like the wing-
shape of the Lapwing Vanellus vanellus (see fig. i). Further, the
Chough’s wing is broader, although not noticeably longer, than
that of the Alpine Chough. The tail of the Alpine Chough also
appears longer and slimmer, and, when gliding, not so fanned as
that of the Chough, though this distinction is obvious only in an
overhead or plan view.

My companion, S. C. Madge, confirmed that these characteristics
made the two species easily separable. V. R. Tucker

5 Westfield Avenue, Hooe Plymstock, Plymouth, Devon

Attempted breeding by Pied Flycatcher in Northamptonshire

On 26th May 1972, during a routine check of nestboxes at Borough
Fen Decoy, near Peterborough, I found the nest of a Pied Flycatcher
Ficedula hypoleuca containing four eggs. The box was attached to the
east side of a mature wych elm Ulmus glabra at 4.5 metres above
the ground; the entrance hole was about 4.5 cm in diameter. On
27th May there were five eggs, and on 28th a female Pied Fly-
catcher was found sitting. She was seen again on three other occa-
sions. On 14th June, well beyond the normal incubation period,
the nest appeared deserted and permission was obtained to examine
the eggs. Two of them were broken, but no embryo was evident;
the other three were examined under a strong light and they also
appeared clear. Together with three other observers, I watched the
area during the incubation period, but no male bird was seen or
heard.

This seems to be a new county record, although the species was
recorded breeding in Lincolnshire on five occasions up to 1901
{Bird Study, 1:81-101). W. A. Cook

The Wildfowl Trust, Peakirk, Peterborough, Northamptonshire

The only nesting record for Argyll, in June 1951, similarly con-
cerned an infertile clutch laid in a nestbox, and incubated for over
a fortnight, but in that case the male was also seen. It is usual, of
course, for the male to stake the territory and he may even build
a partial nest while awaiting a female. Bruce Campbell

West End Barn, Wootton, Woodstock, Oxford 0x7 idl

Bullfinches feeding from nut bag In Whitwell Wood, Derby-
shire, Bullfinches Pyrrhula pyrrhula are regular visitors to a feeding-

Notes

371

station which has nut-filled mesh bags for the various tits Pams spp.
On 23rd February 1975, a male Bullfinch made repeated attempts
to extract a nut from a bag by hovering, before finally clinging to
it and feeding much like a Greenfinch Carduelis chloris. The bag
was suspended 1 metre from the ground. On 2nd March 1975,
another observer witnessed the same method of feeding by a male
Bullfinch, possibly the same bird. In this instance the height of the
bag above the ground was 1.5 metres. D. Hill

203 Cresswell Road, Clowne, Chesterfield, Derbyshire

Observers taking part in the British Trust for Ornithology’s
Garden Bird Feeding Survey have reported Bullfinches coming to
feeding-stations: 25 out of 152 stations (16%) in 1970/71 and 33 out
of 175 (19%) in 1975/76. In most cases, however, they took water
rather than food. VVe know of no published instance of Bullfinches
taking food from hanging nut baskets, but Song Thrush Turdus
philomelos, Blackbird T. merula, Robin Erithacus rubecula, Dunnock
Prunella modularis and Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs have been observed
feeding in this way at Walberswick, Suffolk, by Dr C. Ramsdale
(in lilt.). P. and E. Willson

Fieldfares, Ferry Lane, Medmenham, Marlow, Buckinghamshire

Letter

Function of the tail pattern in game-birds I was interested
to read Collingwood Ingram’s views (Brit. Birds, 67: 475-476) on
the possible functions of the white tail spots in the Woodcock
Scolopax rusticola.

White tips to the tail feathers are found in several species of
gallinaceous birds, while many other species have lateral rectrices
that are strikingly different in colour or pattern from the central
tail feathers. The latter feature ensures that such patterns are visible
only when the tail is spread. Duller central tail feathers are found
also in several species of Charadriidae and Scolopacidae, for
example the Killdeer Charadrius vociferus, which has white-tipped
chestnut outer tail feathers and dull brown central feathers. The
parallel between game-birds and certain waders appears to be
carried further by the possession of pale tips on the undertail-
coverts, seen in the Woodcock and in some 20 species in the families
Tctraonidae and Phasianidae.

372

Letter

I have shown (Ibis, 1 1 8 : 123-126) that, among game-birds,
striking tail patterns are revealed when birds take flight, when a
worried bird holds the tail in a spread position (behaviour which is
particularly marked in the Bar- tailed Pheasant Syrmaticus humiae ),
and when females of certain species gather their broods. The under-
tail-coverts are revealed when a bird runs for cover and, to others
in the rear, when an individual indulges in forward threat display.
In all these circumstances, the patterns seem to repi'esent intra-
specific contact signals or following signals. Among dimorphic
species, it is the females rather than the males that possess these
plumage features, partly, no doubt, because they are often used
between a female and her brood and partly because of the strong
interrelationship between plumage and courtship behaviour in male
game-birds.

Of the 36 gallinaceous species that show strong tail or undertail-
covert patterns of the type described, about two-fifths live in forest
areas and the rest in more open habitats. Four of the eight forest-
dwelling species with brightly marked undertail-coverts are grouse,
usually males, and, as in the Woodcock, the patterns seem mainly
to be used in courtship. Nine of the ten open-country species with
strong tail patterns belong to two genera, and they include the
Red-legged Partridge Alectoris rufa and the Partridge Perdix perdix.
In these two species, the bright rufous outer rectrices may act as a
visual signal between flying birds or to others remaining on the
ground. For the rest, there seems to be a tendency for species
of open habitats to have clear undertail-covert patterns, which
would be visible at a distance, and for species of thickly vegetated
habitats to have striking tail patterns, which would be visible when
flying up from the forest floor. Females of three, or possibly four,
pheasant species have both tail and undertail-covert patterns well
developed, while, in a number of male grouse, the pale tips to the
rectrices are used primarily in courtship. G. W. H. Davison
School of Biological Sciences, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia

News and comment Peter Conder

Endangered species The expected failure of the Endangered Species (Import
and Export) Bill to become law in this Parliamentary session (Brit. Birds, 69: 156-
157) will allow conservationists and Government alike time to consider the reason-
ing behind passing laws of this nature. The object must be to try to save species

News and comment 373

from extinction due to exploitation through trade, and all rare species, whether or
not they are on the Convention, should be strictly licensed to achieve this.

In the Bill, as it now stands, a licence is needed for import or export of all
birds except common species. These licences are theoretically issued only on the
authoritative advice of the Scientific Advisory Committee to the Department of the
Environment, but, amongst many conservationists, there is a suspicion that this
opinion is often pressurised or watered down. Decisions must not be limited by what
the Convention says is necessary or what Britain has a remit to do, what the trade
might say or what is readily recognisable to a Customs official. If a species is
endangered, that must be the sole arbiter.

Pheasants In release pens The British Field Sports Society, the Game Con-
servancy, the RSPB and WAGBI have recently published jointly the report in
popular form on the results of the research carried out by David Lloyd over a
two-year period. The aim of the project, organised by the four bodies, was to
investigate avian predation of Pheasants. Tawny Owls take some poults, but the
rate of predation can be reduced if the rearers take some simple precautions,
and David Lloyd, in the report which is backed by the sporting organisations,
says that there is a lot of unjustified killing. The booklet entitled ‘The protection
of Pheasants in release pens from birds of prey’ can be obtained from the RSPB.
The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire, price 20p post free. A useful document to
present to any diehard game preserver or, indeed, any bird protector who believes
that birds of prey do no wrong.

European environment According to the Bulletin of the British Ecological
Society, the Council of Ministers has agreed to the European Community’s
Environment Research Programme and allocated about $19,000,000 to finance
research in the years 1976-80 in four priority areas: pollutants and potentially
toxic chemicals; information management with particular reference to chemicals;
reduction and prevention of pollution and nuisances; and protection and im-
provement of the natural environment.

Peterson Nature Centre Roger Tory Peterson will have a nature centre named
in his honour at his home town of Jamestown, New York. The $80,000 centre,
made possible by a foundation grant, will be on the Jamestown Audubon Society’s
185-acre Burgeson Sanctuary and will enable the Jamestown Chapter to intensify
its work in schools and at the sanctuary.

More RSPB reserves The RSPB announced in June that they had purchased
two new reserves, rented a third and made additions to two existing ones. The
new reserves are Strumpshaw Fen (Norfolk) and Noup Head, Westray (Orkney).
Both are of considerable interest. Strumpshaw will require much of the RSPB’s
energetic management. The Noup is renowned as one of the best of Britain’s
seabird cliffs, but is surprisingly little known. The RSPB's holdings on the moor-
lands of mainland Orkney have now risen to 2,329 hectares, thanks to the generosity
of one of its members whose gift enabled the Society to purchase an additional
675 hectares. The Society has added a further 26 hectares to its Loch Insh reserve,
and also rented Sutton Fen, which is close to the RSPB headquarters and will
be used for educational purposes.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

May reports D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

The weather during May was generally warm with several hot spells, particularly
in the second week, and was dominated by winds from a southerly quarter, which
encouraged the overshooting of southern migrants.

ALBATROSSES TO DUCKS

A Black-browed Albatross Diomedea melanophris was noted off Bardsey
(Gwynedd) on ist and the Hermaness (Shetland) individual returned during
the month. The only Cory’s Shearwater Calonectris diomedea reported was a
single off St Agnes (Scilly) on 3rd.

Purple Herons Ardea purpurea were found at five places: Hampton Ridge in
the New Forest (Hampshire) on ist; Sevonoaks (Kent) on 2nd; Eday (Orkney) on
10th; Oxwich (West Glamorgan) from 21st to 27th; and Stodmarsh (Kent) and
Chapel St Leonards (Lincolnshire), both on 30th. Several Little Egrets Egret la
garzetta turned up, singletons at Thurlestone (Devon) on 17th, Cambridge on
1 8th and Thorney Island (West Sussex) on the last day of the month, while others
were reported on unspecified dates from Scilly, Dorset and Norfolk. A Night
Heron Nycticorax nycticorax stayed on Lundy (Devon) from 28th until ist June.
Little Bitterns Ixobrychus minutus were seen at Stodmarsh on 15th, Witton-le-
Wear (Durham) from 23rd to 26th, and Leighton Moss (Lancashire) on 26th.
Three White Storks Ciconia ciconia found their way to England: St Nicholas-at
Wade (Kent) on ist, Dungeness (also Kent) on nth (flying north) and in
Merseyside, at Red Rocks, Meols and Seaforth, on 15th. There was an interest-
ing arrival of Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia in the north-east of England: six
came in to Washington (Tyne & Wear) on 24th, five of which remained for
a few days; one was found nearby at Wallsend Swallow on 27th, staying until
ist June, when it moved on to Gosforth Park; interestingly, six were seen at
Minsmere (Suffolk) on 30th and one appeared at Cley (Norfolk) during the
month. A Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus was present at Stodmarsh from 22nd to
30th, and one was reported from Wisbech sewage farm (Lincolnshire/Norfolk)
during the month. The only rare duck of interest was a Surf Scoter Melanitta
perspicillata flying past Hurst (Hampshire) on 15th.

RAPTORS TO CRANE

A Goshawk Accipiter gentilis appeared at Fair Isle (Shetland) on 6th. Over-
shooting Black Kites Milvus migrans reached Luddesdown (Kent) on 8th, Little
Nelton (Norfolk) on 15th and Hardres (Kent) on 23rd. There were sightings of
Honey Buzzards Pernis apivorus from eight places away from the New Forest:
four were noted in north Scotland and three in Norfolk, while an interesting
observation concerned three together over Gravesend (Kent) on 18th; we also
received a late report of one flying south-west at Upper Enham (Hampshire) on
the early date of 1 8th April. Only three Montagu’s Harriers Circus pygargus were
noted, at Lundy from 6th to 24th, Stodmarsh on 13th and Sheringham (Norfolk)
on 1 6th. About 16 Ospreys Pandion haliaetus were seen in England, the most
together being at Ogston Reservoir (Derbyshire), where one was found on
4th, two the next day and possibly three on 6th, one staying to 7th. No fewer
than nine sites recorded Red-footed Falcons Falco vespertinus, the east coast of
England producing eight birds, while at Lodmoor (Dorset) four different indivi-
duals arrived between 8th and 24th. The most unexpected raptor was, however,
an American Kestrel F. sparverius on Fair Isle from 25th to 27th. The only
Crane Grus grus was one at Mid Yell (Shetland) on 8th.

374

375

May reports

WADERS TO TERNS

A dowitcher Limnodrumus sp. was identified at Staveley Lagoon, Knaresborough
(North Yorkshire), on 23rd, and two days later a Great Snipe Gallinago media
was found at Loddon (Norfolk). On 30th a Spotted Sandpiper Tringa macularia
appeared at North Berwick (Lothian). A Grey Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius,
unusual in spring, was seen at Whalsay (Shetland) on 7th, and the first Red-
necked Phalaropes P. lobatus to return to Fetlar (also Shetland) were seen on
19th (six birds). Two pratincoles Glareola sp. were noted at Sandwich Bay (Kent)
on 15 th.

There were more Long-tailed Skuas Stercorarius longicaudus than one would
expect in spring: at Dungeness, singles passed east on 2nd, 10th and 15th; and
three were seen on the crossing from Harris to Skye (Highland) on 22nd while
there was an unusual record of one found dead at Rhosneigr (Gwynedd) on 16th.
Surprisingly, we heard of only one White- winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus,
inland at Stanford Reservoir (Northamptonshire) on 24th. The more uncommon
Whiskered Tern C. hybrida was, however, sighted at Hundred End (Lancashire)
on 18th, at Bodymoor Heath (Warwickshire) on 25th, at Hull (Humberside) on
28th and at Lydd (Kent) from 28th until 7th June. A Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon
nilotica passed Portland (Dorset) on 12th and Caspian Terns Hydroprogne caspia
were seen in Kent at Dover on 6th and Dungeness on 1 8th.

SWIFTS TO ACCENTORS

Three Alpine Swifts Apus melba reached Britain, at Exeter (Devon) on 28th, at
Fetlar on the following day and at Bodmin Moor (Cornwall), though the date of
the last was unfortunately not notified to us. A Bee-eater Merops apiasler was
seen perched on a wire at Portland on 1 1 th, the only one reported to us. More
Hoopoes Upupa epops were reported, 16 from the south coast north to Scotland.
Twelve Wrynecks Jynx torquilla were recorded, with a slight indication of an
arrival about 8th; three were seen together in Kent at Hythe on 8th. A Short-
toed Lark Galandrella cinerea arrived on Out Skerries (Shetland) on 15th and
remained until 19th, being joined by another on 20th, both of which remained
to 2 1st, and one until 22nd; one stayed on Fair Isle from 25th to 28th, and another
was reported at Cley on 28th. A Crested Lark Galerida cristata was watched at
Dungeness on 8th. A Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo daurica flew north at
Dungeness on 9th and one was on St Mary’s (Scilly) on 30th and 31st. Golden
Orioles Oriolus oriolus occurred, with reports from twelve places: individuals
reached as far north as Shetland, and on Lundy a pair was present at the end of
the month and was seen in courtship display. The bird of the month, however,
was an Alpine Accentor Prunella collaris watched at Dungeness on 8th.

THRUSHES TO BUNTINGS

A Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia put in an appearance on Out Skerries
on 19th. A good passage of Bluethroats L. svecica took place: on Fair Isle the
first was on 15th and the species was recorded daily until the end of the month,
with a maximum of seven on 25th; Out Skerries recorded 15 between 18th and
25th; and one was found bathing in a garden bird-bath near Newent (Gloucester-
shire) during the month.

A Cetti’s Warbler Cettia cetti was found at Welwyn Garden City (Hertford-
shire) on 6th. Great Reed Warblers Acrocephalus arundinaceus, largely absent
from these islands in recent years, turned up at Trentfield, South Muskham
(Nottinghamshire), on 8th, at Chapel St Leonards from 23rd to 6th June, on
Bardsey on 28th and 29th (trapped), and one was found freshly dead on Out
Skerries on 21st. A Marsh Warbler A. palustris was found on Fair Isle on 26th.
Melodious Warblers Hippolais polyglotta were identified at Portland on 22nd,

376

May reports

on Whalsay on 28th and on the Calf of Man on 31st (trapped); an unidentified
Hippolais was seen at Sumburgh (Shetland) on 26th; and Icterine Warblers
H. icterina at Northward Hill (Kent) on 21st (singing male), on Whalsay on 26th
and 28th, on Foula (Shetland) on 27th, on Out Skerries on the same date, on
Fair Isle on 29th and 30th, with another on 31st, and at Spurn (Humberside)
on 30th.

From southern Europe, Subalpine Warblers Sylvia cantillans came to Hauxley
(Northumberland) from 1st to 6th, Orpington (Kent) on 9th, and Tetney Haven
(Lincolnshire) on 14th (trapped). A Sardinian Warbler S. rnelanocephala occurred
at the Casquets Lighthouse (Channel Islands) on 22nd, and a Bonelli’s Warbler
Phylloscopus bonelli arrived at Spurn on 30th; another Bonelli’s was earlier seen
at Fairlight, Hastings (East Sussex), on 23rd. An unusual report concerned
a Dusky Warbler P. fuscatus observed at close range on Lundy during 20th-
22nd. A female Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis was reported on Out
Skerries on 25th, while Red-breasted Flycatchers F. parva were discovered on
Fetlar on 28th and 31st.

A Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus appeared at Sandbach (Cheshire) on
1st and Tawny Pipits A. campestris on Fair Isle on 5th-6th, 17th and 23rd. Four
Woodchat Shrikes Lanius senator were found, at Portland on 10th, at Little
Marlow (Buckinghamshire) on 16th, at Dungeness on 28th and in Scilly on 30th.
Serins Serinus serinus turned up at Dungeness on 8th and 10th, and at Portland
on 27th, and Scarlet Rosefinches Carpodacus erythrinus on Fair Isle from 19th to
2 1st (two) and on 22nd. All the Rustic Buntings Emberiza rustica this spring
were in Shetland: at Bressay on 18th, at Noss Sound on the same date, at Burravoe
on 20th, on Fair Isle from 24th to 26th and at Sumburgh on the same dates, and
at Sellifirth on 31st May and 1st June. Similarly, Ortolans E. hortulana were
confined to Shetland: on Out Skerries from 16th to 25th; and on Fair Isle where
there was one on 12 th and 13th, two on 14th and 15th, one on 16th and 17th,
and one on 21st.

Threatened
Birds of Europe

Edited by Robert Hudson
Introduction by Stanley Cramp

This beautiful book features 59 bird species currently in danger of extinction In
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The introduction by Stanley Cramp, chief editor of Birds of the Western Palearctic,
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Volume 69 Number 9 September 1976

321 Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1975 (with additions
for nine previous years) J. N. Dymond and the Rarities
Committee Plates 33-35

Notes

369

369

Grey Herons eating Water Rails C. W. Murphy
Identification of Chough and Alpine Chough in flight V. R.
Tucker

370 Attempted breeding by Pied Flycatcher in Northamptonshire
W. A. Cook , and Dr Bruce Campbell
370 Bullfinches feeding from nut bag D. Hill , and P. and E. Willson

Letter

371 Function of the tail pattern in game-birds G. W. H. Davison

372 News and comment Peter Conder

374 May reports D. A. Christie

D. I. M. Wallace drew the vignettes on pages 322, 338, 344 and 354;
Robert Gillmor drew the Ruddy Shelduck (page 332)

Front cover: Greenfinch (male) Carduelis chloris , Cumbria, March
1964. J. B. and S. Bottomley

Printed by Henry Burt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

ritish Birds

Volume 69 Number 10 October 1976

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Editors Stanley Cramp, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock, I. J. Ferguson-Lees
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News and comment Peter Conder, 1 2 Swaynes Lane, Comberton, Cambridge CB3 7EF
Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire sc 19 2dl
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ii

British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 10 OCTOBER 1 976

Distinguishing Great Snipe from Snipe
D. I. M. Wallace

Records of the Great Snipe Gallinago media arc among the hardest to
prove. The Rarities Committee has harped upon this theme and
observers unfamiliar with the species and lacking The Handbook in
their libraries are not given more than a few pointers to the possi-
bilities of its identification. This paper is therefore concerned with
restating and clarifying the differences between it and the Snipe
G. gallinago.

GROUND CHARACTERS

The Great Snipe is the largest of the three species in western Europe,
but it does not exceed the Snipe in all standard measurements. It is
5% to 10% longer- and broader-winged and about 10% longer-
legged, but 10% shorter-billed and marginally shorter-tailed. It is
bulkier, primarily because of its stouter bill, larger head, greater
girth and broader wings. The second last difference gives it more of
a ball shape on the ground. In the ideal circumstances of Snipe
being present for comparison, these differences are obvious.

Subtle but constant plumage differences are not restricted to the
usually invisible tail markings and merit full discussion.

General plumage pattern

The Great Snipe is more barred than the Snipe, both above, where
the individual feather patterns are very intricate, and below, where
the markings are strong and numerous, extending in all plumages

[Brit. Birds, 69: 377-383, October 1976]

377

37^ Great Snipe and Snipe

over a wider area. This increased complexity reduces the clarity of
the back stripes and the prominence of the white belly, which is
virtually invisible in immatures. In addition, its head and neck are
heavily spotted with pale marks, giving a mealy appearance. Thus,
it often shows a more uniform, less rufous and, because the back
stripes are less evident, darker appearance.

Head and bill

The head pattern of the Great Snipe is subtly different from that of
the Snipe, with less pronounced striping. This is most evident on the
face, where typically the loral stripe is much thinner and the stripes
or patches behind the eye and along the lower cheeks more diffuse.
The effect is to give it a more open-faced appearance than the Snipe.
The proportionately shorter, stouter bill combines with this feature
to heighten the larger- and rounder-headed appearance.

Under parts

Swanberg (1965) rightly chose the strength of the markings on the
underparts of the Great Snipe as one of two most important field
characters. The presence of many dark spots and small chevrons on
the chest, expanding into thick bars on the flanks and tibiae, is
diagnostic of the species. These are set off by a buff to white ground
colour in adults and by a pale brown to buff ground in immatures.
The latter often appear dark underneath in the field and, on a good
view, are thus instantly separable from the most heavily marked
Snipe. In that species, the belly, lower flanks and tibiae almost
always appear strikingly white.

Wings

Swanberg did not stress the importance of the pattern of the folded
wing in the identification of the Great Snipe, though his photographs
show it well. It has, however, become accepted as a much more
useful character than the white tail corners, which are difficult to
see. At all ages, this species shows strong barring or chequering on
the coverts, made up of rather regular, transverse lines of white,
black and brown (with the first colour most obvious), which form a
clear panel on the mid wing. Also present is a marked ‘speculum’,
almost completely black in adults and little-marked dark brown in
immatures, bordered above by the white tips to the greater coverts
and below by a wide, white trailing edge to the secondaries (fading
on the inner primaries) . The Snipe can show irregular white bars on
the coverts, but usually the marks are in the form of scallops and
spots. Importantly, it never shows any obvious speculum, because
the secondaries are less densely coloured and more irregularly
marked, and because both covert tips and trailing edges are duller.
The latter are nevertheless still striking, particularly in flight.

Great Snipe and Snipe

379

Fig. i. Immature snipes on ground. Left, Great Snipe Gallinago media : stouter bill,
rounder head and build, and dusky underparts with complete barring. Right, Snipe
G. gallinago : stronger stripes and white belly

Bare parts

The bill of the Great Snipe can look paler and more uniform in tone
than that of the Snipe, often showing a yellowish or greenish tinge
at the base. The legs may also appear paler.

Given the short odds that any snipe may fly at any moment, it is
vital to concentrate on underparts, wing and face pattern first.
Fig. i illustrates these aspects.

FLIGHT CHARACTERS

Not every large, silent snipe that flies off slowly and silently is a
Great Snipe. Large, tired Snipe of the nominate race and the
vagrant American race G. g. delicata, which is shorter-billed and
more barred below than our bird and may well cross the Atlantic
more than its few records suggest, are a constant source of confusion.
While many of the subtle marks discussed above will not be apparent,
however, the Great Snipe can be identified in flight.

Ground characters also visible in flight

The greater bulk of the Great Snipe and its stronger barring on the
underparts, restricted pale belly and, above all, the pale chequered
mid-wing panel and speculum can all be evident. The last two fea-
tures, together with a dark carpal patch, are particularly striking on
adults. In this respect, it is puzzling to find that King et al. (1975)
effectively disputed the prominence of the speculum by giving the

380 Great Snipe and Snipe

lack of a white trailing edge to the secondaries as a clear distinguish-
ing feature from the Snipe. I can find no justification for this state-
ment in other literature or skins, though it is a fact that the wing
characters of the Great Snipe have not attracted the attention they
deserve. Although they were acutely portrayed over 35 years ago
by J. C. Harrison in The Handbook (plate 1 14), only a few incomplete
references to them have appeared in the files of the Rarities Commit-
tee. This may simply be another example of the screening that has
obscured other quite obvious field characters, such as the dark
saddle of the immature White-winged Black Tern Chlidonias
leucopterus ‘discovered’ as recently as 1959 (Williamson i960), but
the chance remains that some Great Snipe have less patterned wings.
I have seen one colour photograph of an adult with much duller
wings than any of Swanberg’s birds and, in a recent skin examina-
tion, I found a June adult with a folded wing appearance that I
judged would have been identical with a well marked Snipe in the
field, while several other specimens were noticeably duller than
usual.

Axillaries and underwings

In the Great Snipe, these are as strongly barred as the underparts.
Only in G. g. delicata and a few G. g. gallinago are such pronounced
markings present. This is an important mark in the case of dark-
tailed, immature Great Snipe, but it is difficult to observe with
certainty.

Tail

Adult Great Snipe display brilliant white corners (almost the outer
thirds) to their tails. Immatures that have not completed the first
moult do not, and the restricted white tips to their outer tail feathers
are similar to those of Snipe at any age. Swanberg (1965) chose the
white tail corners as one of two most important field characters of
adult Great Snipe, but the fact is that, except when braking just
before landing, snipes rarely oblige by fanning their tails. It is not
easy to observe this character in either species, but failure to see it
does not necessarily prevent identification. As may now be apparent,
there are other marks worth looking for.

Flight action and silhouette

There is complete unanimity about the heavier appearance and the
slower, straighter, level flight of the Great Snipe. Its resemblance to
that of a small Woodcock Scolopax rusticola bears repeating. Of nearly
a hundred Great Snipe that I have flushed in Europe and West
and East Africa, not one has ever given the impression of the frantic,
terrified escape flight that so characterises the departure of a fit
Snipe. I have, however, seen a few, probably tired, Snipe go off
in a manner that suggested Great Snipe, and such birds must

Great Snipe and Snipe 38 1

constantly be borne in mind. If faced with one, observers should
concentrate on structure and plumage pattern. The broader wings
of the Great Snipe and the shorter bill length are evident in a good
view; bill carriage may also differ. Some Great Snipe appear to
carry their bills much nearer to the horizontal than do Snipe:
Swanberg (1965) estimated the angle of depression in the Great
Snipe to be 15% to 20%.

Seeing a large snipe slowly flying away, it is vital to concentrate
on the wing pattern. If the bird comes round or lands, the pattern
of the underparts and tail are the most important features to look
for. Fig. 2 shows the flight appearance of both snipes and of the
Woodcock.

Fig. 2. Woodcock Scolopax rusticola, and snipes in flight. Left, Woodcock with
characteristic vcrmiculated plumage and lack of wing pattern. Centre, Great
Snipe G. media with definite wing pattern (see text) and Woodcock-like set;
note tail of immature resembles that of Snipe G. gallinago at all ages, but that
of adult (inset below) has outer thirds virtually white. Right, Snipe, with obvious
back stripes, indistinct wing pattern and (inset above) characteristic escape flight

HABITAT AND BEHAVIOUR

In its breeding and wintering areas, the Great Snipe inhabits much
drier ground than does the Snipe. Only in East Africa in a dry
season have I seen it regularly enter open water. It does not shun
marshes, however, and, since the Snipe frequently occurs in dry
habitats, such as bracken and long grass, there is a wide overlap in
habitat. The Great Snipe, however, has a marked liking for tussock
grass and heather, in which it commonly roosts, sitting tight all day.
It is essentially a nocturnal species in a normal sun cycle: in West
Africa, Great Snipe flush only on direct disturbance.

382 Great Snipe and Snipe

As just implied, many Great Snipe must escape notice by hidden
immobility, and it is rare to see migrants moving about. When they
do, their gait appears less free than that of Snipe: they tend to
shuffle about, hunched on bent legs and taking food from the
surface as well as probing for it below ground. H. Seebohm, quoted
in The Handbook , saw them as ‘very comical’ ; to my eyes they look
‘a little stupid’, in a way that the Snipe never does. Great Snipe
have a reputation for solitariness, but they are in fact gregarious in
the breeding season, with males attending communal display
grounds, and they occur in scattered flocks in Africa in winter.

CALLS

For a bird that makes all sorts of extraordinary noises in breeding
display, the Great Snipe is exceptionally silent on migration and in
winter. Of 27 records in the files of the Rarities Committee, 19
individuals always rose without calling. The other eight called at
least once, the noise being described as a quiet, gruff or guttural
croak, grunt or cough; the only transcription described this as a
deep ‘heert’. One individual additionally gave a low, deep, faint
‘tswick’, reminiscent of a quiet ‘titipp’ which I heard once from one
flushed at dusk. Thus, 70% of the Great Snipe recorded in Britain
during 1958-75 were silent when flushed (often repeatedly) and 30%
uttered a croaking call quite unlike that of the Snipe (but some
called only once, even though they were flushed on more than one
occasion). It may be significant, however, that, on four occasions,
special note was made of wing-noise as the bird rose : a feature not
known to be a character of the species and, therefore, perhaps
unrecorded in other instances. The voice of the Snipe is too well
known to warrant a review here.

GREAT SNIPE IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND

The British Ornithologists’ Union (1971) described the Great Snipe
as a scarce and decreasing visitor, with older records mainly in
autumn, but more recent ones in that season and in winter. During
1958-75, there were at least 35 records in Britain and Ireland.
Most were in autumn on northern Scottish isles and down the
eastern half of England, with a mean arrival date of 8th September
clearly reflecting the late August to mid-September withdrawal
from Scandinavian breeding grounds (Swanberg 1965). There is a
hint of onward passage through Britain in four October records
(mean date nth) in Scilly, but ten later occurrences from mid-
November to February, with seven on or below the axis of the
Severn and the Wash, suggest a small wintering population. As
Sharrock and Sharrock (1976) have pointed out, however, at least
81 % have been seen on only a single date and there has been but one

Great Snipe and Snipe 383

record of a long stay in the past 18 years (December-February
1962/63 in Buckinghamshire). Nevertheless, five widely scattered
spring records hint at the withdrawal of these birds, rather than
passage, since the lack of any recent late May or early June records
is significant when the increasingly regular occurrences at that time
of sympatric species, such as the Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola
falcinellus , are considered. It is by no means certain that there has
been any real change in the status of Great Snipe in Britain and
Ireland, however, since the pattern indicated above is present in the
older records, even in such a landlocked county as Hertfordshire
(Sage 1959). It is likely that changes in the shooting behaviour of
collectors and wildfowlers have played as big a part in the Great
Snipe’s apparent decline as has the reduction of the European
population (Voous i960) or the difficulty of field identification.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am grateful to the members of the Rarities Committee, particularly P. J. Grant,
for comments on snipe identification and on an early draft of this paper, and to
I. C. J. Galbraith for access to specimens in the British Museum (Natural History).

SUMMARY

Previous criteria on the differentiation of the Great Snipe Gallinago media and
Snipe G. gallinago are restated, along with the product of recent researches in
field identification. The best indicators of the former species arc its more striking
wing pattern, which usually includes a marked speculum, its heavily barred
underparts and its Woodcock-like flight. It usually rises silently, but sometimes
utters a guttural croak when flushed. Essential references are The Handbook and
Swanberg (1965); the latter contains a series of most informative photographs.

The Great Snipe appears to have become scarcer in recent years, but there is
no evidence of a real change in its occurrence pattern in Britain and Ireland.

REFERENCES

British Ornithologists’ Union. 1971. The Status of Birds in Britain and Ireland.
Oxford.

King, B. F., Dickinson, E. C., and Woodcock, M. W. 1975. A Field Guide to the
Birds of South-East Asia. London.

Sage, B. L. 1959. A History of the Birds of Hertfordshire. London.

Sharrock, J. T. R., and Sharrock, E. M. 1976. Rare Birds in Britain and Ireland.
Berkhamsted.

Swanberg, P. O. 1965. ‘Studies of less familiar birds. 138. Great Snipe’. Brit.
Birds, 58: 504-508.

Williamson, K. i960. ‘Juvenile and winter plumages of the marsh terns’. Brit.
Birds, 53: 243-252.

Witherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W.

1940. The Handbook of British Birds. Vol. IV. London.

Voous, K. H. i960. Atlas of European Birds. London.

D. I. M. Wallace, g Woodhill Rise, Heads Lane, Hessle, Hull, North
Humberside hu 1 3 ohz

Sedge Warbler migration and reed aphids

C. J. Bibby , R. E. Green , G. R. M. Pepler and
P. A. Pepler

INTRODUCTION

Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus breed in western Eurasia
and winter in Africa south of the Sahara (Vaurie 1959, Moreau
1972). They occur in marshland especially on migration and in
winter, when they are less catholic in their habitats than in summer
(Lack 1971). Recent ringing recoveries reported to the British Trust
for Ornithology, from Senegal (three), Liberia (one), Sierra Leone
(one) and Ghana (one), suggest that British breeders winter in West
Africa, though they have not been widely reported there (Banner-
man 1953, Mackworth-Praed and Grant 1955). Both the spring and
the autumn migrations require long flights over the Sahara (Moreau
1961); like other long-distance migrants, Sedge Warblers prepare
for these flights by accumulating large deposits of body fat (Gladwin
1963, Fry et al. 1970, Sitters 1972). The extent of fat accumulated by
them in southern England in autumn led Gladwin to suggest the
possibility of a single direct flight to the winter quarters, a feat
comparable to that of the Blackpoll Warbler Dendroica striata crossing
from New England to the West Indies or Venezuela (Nisbet et al.
1963). Until now, however, there have been no critical studies of the
scale of weight gains or the feeding conditions that make them
possible.

This paper reports the results of studies extending over three
autumns (1973-75) at Radipole Lake, Dorset. Few Sedge Warblers
breed there, but many from north-west Britain pause on migration;
intensive ringing has been carried out since 1972 (Pepler and Pepler
1 973, Pepler 1976) and observations have been made simultaneously
on feeding ecology and the availability of food. Aphids have received
special study, as they appear to form an important part of the diet
(Green and Bibby 1973).

THE STUDY AREA AND METHODS

Radipole Lake is situated in Weymouth, Dorset, and is about
74 ha in total area. It is protected from the sea by sluices and
comprises about 20 ha of fresh water, surrounded by dense fringes
of reeds Phragmites australis (about 38 ha) . Especially away from the
water and to the northern end of the lake, the reeds are thinner and
interspersed with various herbs and bushes (about 16 ha). This
study was carried out in an area of about 1 5 ha towards the southern
end of the lake.

384

[Bril. Birds, 69: 384-399, October 1976]

Sedge Warblers and aphids 385

In each of the three autumns, trapping continued from late July
to the third week of September. Standard netting sites were used
throughout, with a small number of others used occasionally. The
sites were chosen in a representative range of habitats, but the
majority of Sedge Warblers were caught in the pure reed stands.
Nets were always open from dawn to the middle of the day and again
during some evenings, unless weather conditions were unsuitable.
Detailed records were kept of these variations of effort. All Sedge
Warblers were ringed (or recorded as retraps), aged as adult or
first-year, examined for fat and weighed. Weights were taken to the
nearest 0.1 g on a Pesola spring balance, which was regularly tested
with standard weights.

Observations on feeding Sedge Warblers were conducted by
CJB and REG in the autumn of 1973 and briefly in the other two
years. Standard methods of counting aphids were devised and these
were continued by members of the ringing team in the later two
years.

RESULTS FROM RINGING

First-year Sedge Warblers alone were included in the analysis,
because they considerably outnumbered the adults caught on
passage. The ringing and retrap data were assembled into ‘capture
calendars’ to show the dates of handling and the weights of all
individuals caught on more than one day (instances of two or more
captures in one day were not included). It was apparent from these
tables that some individuals gained substantially in weight during
their stay, while others changed within the normal range of diurnal
variation. Those that did not gain weight appeared to be more
readily caught than those that did; thus, some individuals were
caught frequently at normal weights, while others were caught once
or twice at such weights and then evaded capture for many days
before reappearing at substantially heavier weights. It was clearly
important to test whether the increasing weight of a Sedge Warbler
might reduce its chance of being caught and, if so, to compensate
accordingly.

The retrap histories of all Sedge Warblers caught more than once
were separated; for each day, other than the first or last, it was
noted whether or not the individual was recaught. Individuals
were assigned to a one-gram weight category for each day, either
by taking the recorded weight or by linear interpolation between the
previous and subsequent captures if the bird had not been caught
in the interim. Thus, the chance of a Sedge Warbler at a given
weight being caught on a particular day was calculated for a range
of weights for each of the three separate years. No differences were
found between the years, so the combined results are presented

386

Sedge Warblers and aphids

Fig. i. Capture probabilities (% per day) plotted in relation to weight (in grams)
of Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus at Radipole Lake, Dorset. 1973-75
data are combined. Dotted lines show one standard error. The regression line was
fitted by eye. Heavy individuals are less likely to be caught than those of normal

weight

in fig. 1. The higher weights, which were rarer, are grouped to
produce samples of an adequate size.

Clearly, the weight of an individual markedly influenced its
chances of capture on any one day, falling from about 20% at
9-10 g to 10% by 13 g, and less than 5% if it weighed more than
16 g. Thus, any direct analysis would underestimate the number of
birds which gained appreciable amounts of weight, because they
would be less likely to be caught than those that did not. Subsequent
analysis makes allowance for the weight-related capture probabilities
taken from the regression line fitted to fig. 1.

WEIGHT GAINS

Mean weights, corrected for the weight-related capture probabilities,
were calculated for each day after initial ringing, and then grouped
where necessary to produce adequate sample sizes. The results for
the three years are shown separately in fig. 2. The year 1974
differed markedly from the other two, with a rate of weight gain of
only 0.05 g per day, compared with 0.40 g per day for 1973 and
0.55 g per day for 1975. The statistical inferences from these findings
are presented in the caption to fig. 2.

Sedge Warblers and aphids

387

Fig. 2. Mean weight (in grams) of Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobeunus at
Radipole Lake, Dorset, plotted in relation to interval in days since ringing. Data
corrected by weight-related capture probabilities (sec text). Weight gains: 1973,
0.40 ± 0.04 g per day; 1974, 0.05 ± 0.03 g per day; 1975, 0.55 ± 0.07 g per day.
Rate in 1 974 not significantly greater than o. 1973 and 1 975 significantly (p < 0.00 1 )
greater than 1974 and o. Difference between 1973 and 1975 not significant

(0.1 > p > 0.05)

The derivation of these data depends on the validity of the weight-
related capture probability corrections, so an alternative method
was used for comparison. Rates of change of weight of individuals
between consecutive captures were calculated. Only those caught
at least three days apart were included, to reduce the effect of
diurnal weight changes, which would probably be an overriding
influence if smaller intervals were used. Birds weighing less than
13 g were also excluded to eliminate individuals which had not
started to gain weight (13 g was taken arbitrarily as the minimum
weight above ‘normal’). This latter condition made it impossible
to consider 1974, when so few birds gained weight that there was an
inadequate sample of only five. There was little suggestion of rates
of weight gain varying seasonally, so the data for the complete 1973

388

Sedge Warblers and aphids

Fig. 3. Numbers of Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus caught at Radipole
Lake, Dorset, in 1973 and in 1975, showing various weight gains (grams per
day). Individuals have been included only if they were caught at least three days
apart and with at least one weighing above 13 g. 1974 data are excluded because
oflack of eligible records. Weight gains: 1973, 0.49 ± 0.02 g per day; 1975, 0.58
± 0.02 g per day (negative values excluded). 1975 significantly greater than 1973
(p < 0.01). Differences from regression coefficients (fig. 2) not significant for either

year

and 1975 seasons are both presented in fig. 3. In 1975, the mean
rate of weight gain was 0.58 g per day — significantly more than the
0.49 g per day found in 1973 (p < 0.01). In both years, a few actually
lost weight, while the fastest gained over 1.0 g per day; these ex-
tremes were most frequent over short periods of time, when diurnal
changes could have had a marked effect. The mean rates of weight
gain agree closely with those found by the previous method, thus
substantiating the validity of applying the correction for weight-
related capture probability.

DURATION OF STAY

The number of ringed Sedge Warblers present on each day after
first capture was estimated, using the weight-related capture
probabilities on the recorded retraps (i.e. the same initial calculation
as used to derive fig. 2). All except those ringed on the last day of
the season could have been caught one day later, but decreasing
numbers were available to be caught over longer intervals of time;
appropriate corrections were, therefore, made to each day’s data.
From these figures, the numbers leaving each night after ringing

Sedge Warblers and aphids 3^9

were calculated by subtraction (fig. 4). It should be noted that not
all of those ringed will have arrived in the previous night; some will
have evaded capture for one or more days, but, on the other hand,
some of those that stayed for only a short time will have avoided
capture altogether. In any year, the proportion of those present
which left each night appeared to be roughly constant for the first
few nights; fig. 4 should, therefore, give a good estimation of the
distribution of durations of stay of individual birds.

Days 12345678 9 +

Fig. 4. Estimated durations of stay of Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoerwbaenus
at Radipole Lake, Dorset: percentages plotted in relation to length of stay in days

Again, a clear difference between years emerged. In 1974, 84%
stayed two days or less, compared with 46% in both 1973 and 1975.
Thus, not only was there no significant gain of weight in 1974, but
individuals did not stay so long as in the other two years, which
were broadly similar to each other in these respects. Using the rates
of weight gain derived in the previous section, the durations of stay
required to gain 1.0 g and 5.0 g were calculated for each year and,
thus, the proportions of birds reaching these weight gain levels were
estimated. These figures are presented in table 1, which shows that,

390

Sedge Warblers and aphids

even in the better years, the majority did not gain much weight:
only 2.0% in 1973 and 8.0% in 1975 gained more than 5.0 g.

Table 1. Percentages of Sedge Warblers

Acrocephalus schoenobaenus estimated to have
made various weight gains at Radipole

Lake,

s? 1.0 g

Dorset

Weight gain
i-i-5-og 5-

1-10.0 g

1973

54

44

2

1974

100

0

0

1975

40

52

8

SEASONAL VARIATIONS OF PASSAGE AND WEIGHTS

There were not enough data to investigate thoroughly the seasonal
variations of weight changes and duration of stay, though, as
reported earlier, rates of weight gain were sufficiently variable to
mask any seasonal changes that might have occurred. As an alterna-
tive method of assessment, the weight distribution of all Sedge
Warblers caught in standard ten-day periods were extracted,
corrected with the weight-related capture probabilities and adjusted
for the number of netting days in each period (some days were lost
because of bad weather or at the start and end of the season) . These
distributions represent the number of bird-days at each weight for
each period (fig. 5) ; they were arbitrarily divided into three weight
categories (see caption).

The three years were rather similar in the timing of passage,
with peak numbers present in August (67%, 63% and 67% between
4th August and 2nd September in 1973, 1974 and 1975 respectively).
Individuals at or below 11.0 g were probably largely new arrivals.
With the exception of notable arrivals during I4th-23rd August
1975, their numbers were remarkably uniform throughout the first

Table 2. Percentages of total bird-days of Sedge
Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus in three weight
categories, durations of stay and total numbers
involved each year at Radipole Lake, Dorset

1973 1974 1975

Heavy (> 13.0 g)

14.8

I 1.0

16.3

Average (n.1-13.0 g)

50-3

49.6

41. 1

Light («S 11.0 g)

34-9

39-4

42.6

Total bird-days (a)

26,340

19,370

27,050

Mean stay in days (b)

3-33

1.96

4-i3

Total birds (a/b)

7,9io

9,880

6,550

39 1

Sedge Warblers and aphids

40 days of the season in each year. The numbers of heavy birds
(those over 13.0 g) tended to be largest in the later periods of peak
presence, but their proportion in the population was higher at the
end of the passage.

In table 2, the proportions of bird-days in each weight category
are summarised for the three years. This table also shows the total

Fig. 5. Estimated numbers of Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus present at
Radipole Lake, Dorset, in each of three weight groups in standard 10-day periods
in 1973, 1974 and 1975. Black = ‘light’ (< u.og); hatched = ‘average’ (11.1-
13.0 g); white = ‘heavy’ (> 13.1 g)

392

Sedge Warblers and aphids

numbers of bird-days and individuals estimated to have been
involved in each year. The year 1974 again differed from the other
two, with a higher proportion of low weights and a lower proportion
of high ones than in 1973 or 1975. The total number of bird-days
was also much lower than in the other two years. On the other hand,
by allowing for the average duration of stay, it appears that more
individuals passed through the area in 1974 than in 1973 or 1975.
Without knowing about changes in numbers of Sedge Warblers in
the country as a whole, it is not possible to tell to what extent these
variations were caused by local factors at Radipole. Clues were,
however, collected to account for some of the differences between
the years.

OBSERVATIONS ON FOOD

Direct observations by CJB and REG in August 1973 on the places
and rates of feeding showed that Sedge Warblers were largely
confined to reeds and appeared to show a preference for areas
where these were dense and uniform, usually in standing water or on
very muddy ground. Although the drier zones supported thinner
growths of reeds interspersed with a variety of herbaceous plants,
Sedge Warblers were not commonly seen in these areas; neither
were they seen to feed in small willows Salix spp , buddleia Buddleja
davidii and hawthorn Crataegus monogyna, which were locally
abundant and much favoured by Reed Warblers A. scirpaceus. These
observed differences of feeding habitat were supported by the
catching results, with Sedge Warblers being most abundant in the
nets set in the wettest areas of the reed bed, but Reed Warblers
commonly being caught in the scrubby areas.

Table 3 records the results of direct observations of feeding made
in the preferred stands of reeds growing in water. The Sedge
Warblers fed from all parts of the plant, with roughly the same
amount of presumed prey captures (pecks) from the flowers, leaves
and base areas, the last of which included the lower, dead leaves.
Pecking rates were often very high: sometimes as many as ten pecks
would be made at a rate of 2 per second from a single stance. General
feeding rates shown in the table were lower, partly because of the
time spent moving, but also because of the precarious reaching

Table 3. Feeding places and feeding success of
juvenile Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus in
reeds, based on 1,092 seconds of observation at
Radipole Lake, Dorset, in August 1973

Flowers Leaves Bases

36.0

0.36

32-4

% time in area
Peck rates per sec.
% of prey captures

16.8

0.52

29-9

47.2

0.23

37-7

Sedge Warblers and aphids 393

required to peck at leaves and flowers while clinging to a nearby
stem.

Inspection revealed that the potential food in appropriate places
consisted almost entirely of the plum-reed aphid Hyalopterus pruni,
which frequently occurred in hundreds per leaf or flower. Syrphid
larvae were occasionally found, but the aphids were the only insects
numerous enough to account for the observed feeding rates. Aphids
were detected in Sedge Warbler faeces by their soluble coloration,
though the birds were also found to have eaten small flies and
beetles. Quantification of the number of aphids in the faecal remains
was not possible, but direct observations had already confirmed their
apparent importance. Further observations were, therefore, made
on the distribution and abundance of aphids, by selecting five stems
at random within a sampling site and recording the numbers in the
flower and then on each leaf descending the stem. Numbers were
estimated on a logarithmic scale of abundance: i-io = i, ii-ioo
= 2, 101-1,000 = 3, and so on. Mean numbers per stem or leaf
could then be estimated by assigning to each abundance category
its arithmetic mean value (e.g. 5, 55, 550). Order 4 (1,001-10,000)
was assigned a value of 2,000, since the maximum number occupying
a leaf appeared never to exceed 4,000.

An extensive survey was made in August 1973 to investigate the
abundance of aphids on reeds growing in different conditions and at
varying stages of development (table 4). The highest numbers were
found on plants growing in standing water, with progressively
fewer in drier areas. The state of development was also found to
be important, with heaviest infestations before the stem had matured
and flowered. This relationship between the wetness of the site and
the abundance of the aphids was also found elsewhere in southern
England, though it was reversed at Christchurch Harbour (Dorset),
where the reeds were in brackish water.

Subsequent counts of aphids were made mostly on the favoured
areas in standing water, but, even there, large variations in
abundance were found over small distances. Counts were made at
5-mctre intervals along a transect of 100 metres in an area with
standing water, taking five stems at each point. This showed up to

Table 4. Mean numbers of aphids per plant on various sub-
strates at Radipole Lake, Dorset, in August 1973. Figures are
totals on leaves and (in parentheses) on flowers, respectively

Water

Mud

Damp

ground

Dry

ground

No flower

1689 (-)

2 74 H

1 (-)

o(-)

Emerging flower

760 (216)

47 (88)

3 (9)

0 (3)

Open flower

212 (133)

54 (34)

2 (5)

0 (1)

394

Sedge Warblers and aphids

20-fold variation, much of which was due to the stage of develop-
ment of the stems. Thus, in the course of the passage of Sedge
Warblers, different areas reached their peak suitability for aphids at
slightly different times. This was found to influence the numbers of
birds caught in individual nets, which tended to reach a peak at the
same time as the aphids in the adjacent reeds. Local variation makes
the time of peak aphid abundance difficult to determine, but it was
estimated to occur at about i5th-25th August in 1973 and 1975,
much the same time as the peak utilisation of the site by Sedge
Warblers (fig. 5). Numbers built up steadily over a period of two
to three weeks from late July, but the decline from the peak seemed
to be more rapid, with numbers much reduced after the first week
of September.

Table 5. Differences in aphid abundance by year at Radipole
Lake, Dorset. Percentage of leaves with different orders of

abundance (see text)

Sample Order of aphid abundance Mean no.

size

0

I

2

3

4

per leaf

1973

1385

38.1

30-7

24-3

6.9

0

53

1974

“74

99-o

0.8

0.2

0

0

0.1

1975

422

45-o

14.2

17.6

15-4

7.8

252

Differences between the three years were compared with counts
made at a selection of random points in the preferred wet areas
over the period 15th August to 5th September (table 5). The year

1974 was evidently exceptionally bad for the aphids, which were
very difficult to find at all and did not occur in any large concentra-
tions. This coincided with the lack of weight gains among Sedge
Warblers and the very short periods of stay already noted. The year

1975 produced the most spectacular aphid plagues seen during the
study, and 1973 had fewer. Sedge Warblers clearly reacted to these
conditions: they gained weight faster and stayed longer in the best
year, 1975.

DISCUSSION

The evidence suggests a strong association between the proportion
of Sedge Warblers which break their autumn migration at Radipole
to accumulate appreciable amounts of fat and the abundance of
aphids on the reeds. Other factors are also likely to be involved.
Sitters (1972) reported year-to-year variations in the proportions of
Sedge Warblers attaining high weights at Slapton Ley (Devon)
and suggested that the occurrence of suitable weather conditions
for long range migration might be important. No supporting
evidence was presented, but this idea obviously merits investigation.
Even when feeding conditions appear to be good, most Sedge

395

Sedge Warblers and aphids

Warblers leave within a few days and only small numbers gain
much weight. Gladwin (1963) assumed that, because some birds
were known to have put on a substantial quantity of fat at Rye
Meads, Hertfordshire, most did so. No other authors have estimated
the proportions of birds that get heavy at different sites. In recent
years, considerable attention has been focused on Sedge Warblers
by ringers taking part in the BTO’s Acrocephalus enquiry. We have
studied informal reports produced by ringing groups and talked
to most of the major ringers of Sedge Warblers in Britain; it appears
that heavy Sedge Warblers can be found at most sites in autumn,
but the proportions reported in this paper seem to be confined to
areas close to the south coast between Cornwall and Kent. The
situation is confused by the fact that ringed individuals have been
found to move both east and west along the south coast over short
periods of time. These birds are possibly looking for suitable feeding
areas before leaving the country. Ringers have searched in recent
years for suitable places to catch large numbers of Sedge Warblers,
but it is evident that the number of such sites is very small.

The inevitable conclusion is that some Sedge Warblers leave
Britain in autumn at considerable weights, but that a large pro-
portion, if not the majority, must cross into France at weights within
the normal range. There are many autumn recoveries of British-
ringed Sedge Warblers in north-west France, but few south of about
450 N in southern France or Iberia (Spencer 1971). This suggests
that north-west France may contain important areas for pre-
migratory fattening. Analysis of ringing recoveries suggests that the
apparent season of passage is progressively later at more northern
latitudes across France and southern England. This paradox may be
explained by the earlier senescence of reeds in hotter southern
climes, which CJB and REG observed during a tour of western
France in autumn 1975. If these suggestions are valid, then the
later the season gets, the longer is the single flight required to take a
British Sedge Warbler out of Europe. The observation that heavy
individuals are proportionately more numerous towards the end of
the passage may reflect this, though of course it also reflects the
smaller number of new arrivals at the end of the season. The fact
that adult Sedge Warblers pass through Radipole about two weeks
earlier than juveniles (Pepler 1976) also suggests that early migration
may be optimal.

Comparison between the Sedge Warbler and the closely related
Reed Warbler is revealing. It appears that Reed Warblers do not
gain weight in autumn to the same extent (unpublished Radipole
data and discussions with other ringers) and autumn ringing
recoveries are few in northern France, but are numerous in Iberia
(Spencer 1971), though many of the latter result from birds killed

39^ Sedge Warblers and aphids

by man. Reed Warblers feed largely by catching active insects,
especially flies (Diptera) in bushes (Green and Davies 1972, Davies
and Green 1976). Further, they are less attached to marshy areas
than Sedge Warblers, especially on migration and in winter
quarters. Thus, Reed Warblers appear to have good prospects of
finding places to feed as far south as the Mediterranean, and there
is less indication of individuals overflying southern Europe, as
Sedge Warblers appear to do.

If Sedge Warblers were to travel non-stop from southern England
to sub-Saharan West Africa, this would entail a flight of about
3,800 km. Pennycuik (1969) suggested 35 km per hour as an approxi-
mate flight speed, but Moreau (1961) described a tailwind of some
16 km per hour blowing for 60% of the time across the Sahara at this
season. Thus, a ground speed of 40-50 km per hour seems reasonable,
which suggests a flight time of 76-95 hours. Using Nisbet’s (1967)
results, the departure weights to achieve such flights would be be-
tween 17.5 g and 15.7 g, equivalent to between about 7.2 g and
5.4 g of fat respectively, assuming the fat-free weight of a Sedge
Warbler to be 10.3 g (Fry et al. 1970). Hence, even in the best
year, only a small proportion of Sedge Warblers achieved sufficient
weights to take them non-stop from Radipole Lake to sub-Saharan
winter quarters, even allowing for the most favourable weather
conditions on the way.

The association of the numbers of Sedge Warblers staying for more
than a few days at Radipole Lake and their rates of weight gain with
aphid abundance indicates that plentiful and concentrated food
supplies are important for birds depositing pre-migratory fat. Sedge
Warblers storing fat at the rates found in this study were increasing
their energy reserves by about 4.7 kilocalories per day. Their daily
energy expenditure for free existence can be estimated, from the
results of Lasiewski and Dawson (1967) and Holmes and Sturges
(x973)> at about 12 kilocalories. Thus, pre-migratory fattening may
require an increase in daily energy intake of about 40%. Achieving
such an increase would be particularly difficult if food items were
dispersed, and increased food intake required the expenditure of
much additional energy in foraging. Hence, it is not surprising that
birds use concentrated food sources when preparing for a long
migration. Some primarily insectivorous species feed on berries
when depositing fat (Fry et al. 1970, Ferns 1975). Both Reed and
Sedge Warblers, as well as other birds, are known to exploit dense
swarms of midges when preparing for spring migration in Africa
(Fry et al. 1970, Fogden 1972). The rates of weight gain found in the
good aphid years at Radipole (about 0.5 g per day) were high
compared with Lake Chad in spring, where Sedge Warblers largely
ate midges, and average weight gains were 0.2 g per day. White-

397

Sedge Warblers and aphids

throats Sylvia communis at Lake Chad ate the berries of the saltbush
Salvadora persica and average weight gains were 0.6 g per day. Thus,
reed aphids appear to be a desirable source of food, presumably in
part because of their high concentration and immobility. They may
also have a high calorific value, as their diet of phloem sap is rich in
sugars, most of which are stored in the extended rectum before
excretion (Dixon 1973). Llewellyn (1972) gave maximum calorific
values for lime aphids Eucallipterus tiliae of 6.5 kilocalories per gram
dry weight (stage 4 nymphs). This figure is towards the upper
limit of calorific values of insects given by Southwood (1972), though
Rathcke (1968) reported 5.2 kilocalories per gram dry weight for
pea aphids Acyrthosiphon pisum. The richness of this food supply is
further illustrated by the fact that, for a period, the study area of
about 15 ha at Radipole Lake supported up to 600 Sedge Warblers
in 1973 and 800 in 1975.

This paper has located gaps in our knowledge of Sedge Warbler
migration, some of which could be filled if the existing data from
ringing studies were analysed and published. It would be valuable
to assemble similar results to those presented here, so that intensity
and timing of passage, durations of stay and rates of weight gain
could be compared between sites as well as between years. It is
suggested that the methods used here (with appropriate modifica-
tions for sites covered intermittently) would be appropriate for the
analysis of many existing data. Further investigations in France and
farther south are clearly required and will continue. The distribution
and biology of the plum-reed aphid and the importance of other
sources of food are also fit subjects for further research: we have
given them shamefully inadequate attention so far. The present
study utilised some 12,000 man-hours of ringing effort, and only
about too man-hours of ecological investigation. We believe that
such an investment of even 1 % of the man-power of a ringing group
provides disproportionately handsome dividends.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The ringing data on which half of this paper is based would have cost at least
£10,000 to buy as contract research. We are enormously grateful to the single-
minded dedication of some 70 people who helped provide it free. The British
Trust for Ornithology made a grant towards the cost of rings in 1973, and Wey-
mouth Corporation allowed the ringing and the erection of a hut as a base on
their land.

SUMMARY

Results of three autumns’ study (1973-75) of migrating Sedge Warblers Acro-
cephalus schoenobaentts in Dorset showed that some individuals gained appreciably
in weight and this was found to reduce their chances of capture, so a weight-
related correction was made to the capture probabilities used in this analysis.

398 Sedge Warblers and aphids

Individuals gained weight at about half a gram per day in 1973 and 1975, but
not at all in 1974. Most birds stayed for very short periods: 46%, 84% and 46%
had left after two days in the three successive years. The plum-reed aphid Hyalop-
terus pruni was found to be an important source of food, and observations on the
birds’ feeding rates are presented. The aphids were most abundant on reeds in
wet areas and at a stage before flowering, which led to local patchiness of out-
breaks during the autumn. The passage of Sedge Warblers and peak abundance
of aphids were broadly correlated. Aphids were abundant in 1973, very scarce in
1974 and extremely abundant in 1975. Sedge Warblers stayed longer and gained
weight faster in the better aphid years. Suitable fattening places in England are
few and are mainly on the south coast. Even in the best year (1975), less than
10% of the Sedge Warblers accumulated sufficient fat to take them to sub-
Saharan Africa in a single non-stop flight. Some comparisons are made with the
migration of Reed Warblers A. scirpaceus and with other species feeding on different
foods. It is suggested that many ringers could make a valuable contribution by
analysing and publishing their existing data on the Sedge Warbler.

REFERENCES

Bannerman, D. A. 1953. The Birds of West and Equatorial Africa. Edinburgh and
London.

Davies, N. B. and Green, R. E. 1976. ‘The development and ecological signifi-
cance of feeding techniques in the Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus'. Anim.
Behav., 24: 213-229.

Dixon, A. F. G. 1973. Biology of Aphids. Institute of Biology’s Studies in Biology
No. 44. London.

Ferns, P. N. 1975. ‘Feeding behaviour of autumn passage migrants in north-east
Portugal’. Ringing and Migration, 1 : 3-1 1.

Fogden, M. P. L. 1972. ‘Premigratory dehydration in the Reed Warbler Acro-
cephalus scirpaceus and water as a factor limiting migratory range’. Ibis, 114:
548-552-

Fry, C. H., Ash, J. S. and Ferguson- Lees, I. J. 1970. ‘Spring weights of some
Palaearctic migrants at Lake Chad’. Ibis, 1 1 2 : 58-82.

Gladwin, T. W. 1963. ‘Increases in weights of Acrocephali.’ Bird Migration, 2:
319-324-

Green, R. E. and Davies, N. B. 1972. ‘Feeding ecology of Reed and Sedge
Warblers’. Wicken Fen Group Report, 4: 8-14.

and Bibby, C. J. 1973. ‘Sedge Warblers and aphids’. Wicken Fen Group Report,

5= 7-h-

Holmes, R. T. and Sturges, F. W. 1973. ‘Annual energy expenditure by the
avifauna of a northern hardwoods ecosystem’. Oikos, 24: 24-29.

Lack, D. 1971. Ecological Isolation in Birds. Oxford and Edinburgh.

Lasiewski, R. C. and Dawson, W. R. 1967. ‘A re-examination of the relation
between the standard metabolic rate and body weight in birds’. Condor, 69:
13-23-

Llewellyn, M. 1972. ‘The effects of the lime aphid Eucallipterus tiliae L. (Aphidi-
dae) on the growth of the lime TiliaX vulgaris Hayne. 1. Energy requirements
of the aphid population’. J. Appl. Ecology, 9: 261-282.

Mackworth-Praed, C. W. and Grant, C. H. B. 1955. The Birds of North Eastern
Africa. London, New York and Toronto.

Moreau, R. E. 1961. ‘Problems of Mediterranean-Saharan migration’. Ibis, 103a:
373-427-

1972. The Palaearctic- African Bird Migration Systems. London and New York.

Plate 37. Red-lcggcd Partridge Alectoris rufa uttering display note as it walks
across a flat, sandy hollow between coastal dunes. Norfolk, June 1968 {photo:

Richard Vaughan)

Plates 38-39. Left top, Gadwall Anas sire per a taking food from Coot I-ulica atra.
Humberside, October 1975; centre, Steller’s Eiders Polysticta slelleri feeding in
dense group at midnight, Norway, July 1972; bottom, Turnstone Arenaria mterpres
reacting to cockle shell, Humberside, January 1972. Above, Snipe Gallinago
gallinago settling on dead branch, Norfolk, September 1975; below. Red-necked
Phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus in group display, one ‘whirring’ its wings, Norway,
July 1972 ( photos : Richard Vaughan)

wm

Plate 40. Left, Gold-
crest Regulus regulus on
window-sill, displaying at
its own reflection (note
spread wings and tail),
Buckinghamshire, April
1972; below, Starlings
Sturms vulgaris apparently
locked in deadly combat,
but probably playing,
Humberside, April 1970
( photos : Richard Vaughan)

Sedge Warblers and aphids 399

Nisbet, I. C. T. 1967. ‘Aerodynamic theories of flight versus physiological theories’.
Bird-Banding , 38: 306-308.

, Drury, W. H. and Baird, J. 1963. ‘Weight-loss during migration. 1:

Deposition and consumption of fat by the Blackpoll Warbler Dendroica striata’.
Bird Banding, 34: 107-138.

Pennycuik, C. J. 1969. ‘The mechanics of bird migration’. Ibis, hi: 525-556.
Pepler, G. R. M. 1976. ‘Autumn passage of Sedge Warblers at Radipole’.
Radipole, 2: 25-33.

and Pepler, P. A. 1973. ‘Sedge Warblers and Reed Warblers at Radipole

in 1972’. Radipole, 1: n-29.

Rathcke, B. 1968. ‘Energy utilisation of Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) (Hemiptera:
Aphididae)’. MSc thesis, University of London.

Sitters, H. P. 1972. ‘An analysis of the ringing data for the Sedge Warbler at
Slapton Bird Observatory’. Devon Birds, 25: 2-20.

Southwood, T. R. E. 1972. ‘The insect/plant relationship — an evolutionary
perspective’. In H. F. van Emden (ed.), Insect f Plant Relationships. Symposium of
the Royal Entomological Society of London No. 6. Oxford and London.
Spencer, R. 1971. ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1969’. Brit. Birds, 64: 137-186.
Vaurie, C. 1959. The Birds of the Palearctic Fauna. Vol. 1. London.

C. J. Bibby, 11 Courtenay Close , Wareham, Dorset BH20 4ED.

R. E. Green, 2 The Arch, Bottisham, Cambridge

G. R. M. and P. A. Pepler, 106 Clarence Road, Stony Stratford, Milton
Keynes mkw ijg

More birds in action

Richard Vaughan

Plates 37-40

The publication in a recent issue of this journal of a selection of
photographs of birds in action (Brit. Birds, 68: 420 and plates 52-55),
which included an appeal for further such photographs, prompted
the selection which is reproduced here.

The more photographically inclined reader may like to have
some details of how these eight photographs were taken. Four of
them were obtained from hides: the Red-legged Partridge Alectoris
rufa (plate 37) and Turnstone Arenaria interpres (plate 38c) from one
of my own hides, the Gadwall Anas strepera and Coot Fulica atra
(plate 38a) and Snipe Gallinago gallinago (plate 39a) from a fixed
wooden hide in a nature reserve. The Starlings Sturnus vulgaris
(plate 40b) were photographed from a window and the Steller’s
Eiders Polysticta stelleri (plate 38b) and Red-necked Phalaropes

[Brit. Birds, 69: 399-402, October 1976]

400

More birds in action

Phalaropus lobatus (plate 39b) were stalked in the open: all three
with a 300 mm lens. The Goldcrest Regulus regulus (plate 40a) was
so engrossed in its aggressive display that it could be approached
to within two metres and photographed with a 85-200 mm zoom
lens, but an extreme-length telephoto lens (1,000 mm) was needed
for the Red-legged Partridge, Gadwall with Coot, and Turnstone,
even though they were photographed from hides.

For the non-photographically inclined reader, it must be said that
the bird photographer is seldom in a position to watch intensively
the bird that is the object of his attentions. Speaking at any rate for
myself, I am usually far too involved in taking photographs to
make adequate notes on the bird’s behaviour, even with the aid of a
tape recorder. I, therefore, neither crave forgiveness nor offer an
explanation for the fact that I really do not know what the Steller’s
Eiders figured here were feeding on; I cannot say what the
phalaropes or Starlings were actually doing; nor have I an adequate
explanation for the Turnstone’s curious stance. One could go further
than this and point out that, on occasion, the bird photographer
may not even be in a position to identify his bird, so intent is he on
obtaining his photograph.

Birds of a single species often indulge in communal feeding, which
may simply be the result of a concentration of food; or it may be
due, as is the case with Greenshanks Tringa nebularia and Spotted
Redshanks T. erythropus feeding in company, to a genuine co-
operative effort: the birds’ activities being concerted in such a way
as to stir up food. Exactly why Steller’s Eiders feed on occasion in
such dense masses as that illustrated in plate 38b remains a mystery.
Jostein Grastveit (1971, Sterna 10: 31-33 and plates) described how
a friend of his once saw, on the northern coast of the Varanger
Peninsula, what looked like a heap of feathers floating in the water.
He got out of his car to investigate and the feathers resolved them-
selves into 28 Steller’s Eiders. An ebbing tide brought the Steller’s
Eiders figured here close in to feed at midnight; they were stalked
round a corner of the churchyard wall at Nesseby and photographed
on HP4 with a hand-held 300 mm lens at f4-5 and 1/125 sec. The
drakes were all in eclipse plumage. Summer flocks of Steller’s
Eider are by no means rare on the Varanger Peninsula shore
between Krampenes and Vads, but the species is mainly a winter
visitor to the Varanger Fjord, with numbers reaching a peak of

1.000 or so in March on the north shore, together with about

10.000 of the other two regular European eider species (Grastveit

1 97 1 ) •

Interspecific commensalism in birds seems to be rare, but probably
is not. On an October day that I spent in the Royal Society for the
Protection of Birds’ hide at Hornsea Mere, Humberside, three

More birds in action

401

species of duck — Mallard Anas platyrhynchos, Wigeon A. penelope
and Gadwall — were apparently sharing the weed that the Coots
were diving for, without the Coots so much as noticing their activities
(plate 38a). The Gadwall was repeatedly seen to swim up to the spot
where a diving Coot had disappeared under water, its head and
neck alert, evidently waiting for the Coot to surface with green weed
in its bill, which the duck then shared.

Do birds play? The Starlings that I saw one morning on the
lawn, apparently fighting, stayed there for over two minutes,
allowing me time to get my camera, assemble it and stealthily open
the window to photograph them (plate 40b). Surely they were only
at play? They lay side by side, motionless, for a time; the posture
seen in the photograph was maintained for at least fifteen seconds,
one bird occasionally lunging at the other with bill or feet. The
phalaropes, too, seemed to be playing, though perhaps their
communal display had sexual significance. There were fifteen of
them on the pool at Nesseby when I spent the morning of gth June
1972 crawling round photographing them. Every now and then,
the feeding birds, many of them clearly paired, would gather in
rapid flight over the water, uttering their curious chittering note,
drop on to the surface with a splash and, on taking off, make a loud
whirring noise with their wings, which lasted for one or two seconds
(plate 39b, second bird from left). The two Snipe that I watched
and photographed in Norfolk in early September (plate 39a) may
also have been playing. One appeared to chase the other, which
then crouched down on the mud with lowered breast, and tail
spread and upturned; then suddenly one decided to settle on a dead
branch and the other followed, before flying off.

It was while l was photographing an early morning gathering of
non-breeding Shelducks Tadorna tadorna near Holme-next-the-Sea,
on the north Norfolk coast, in early June, that a Red-legged
Partridge unexpectedly walked towards my hide calling or sing-
ing ‘quick querk querk’. His mate accompanied him, not far
off. This was a case of pure chance. On the other hand, the Turn-
stone picture resulted from hours of waiting in a hide on the shore,
at Spurn Point, Humberside, specifically with the intention of
photographing the waders that fed there. I noticed that the Turn-
stones, which ran forwards with their rather waddling gait on short
legs, their heads incessantly moving rapidly to and fro, stopped
running when they came to a stone or lump of seaweed, and
searched. On these occasions, they at times adopted a head-down
posture with the bill held horizontally (plate 38c), as if the object
triggered off a reaction in the Turnstone, which automatically
placed it in the right position to turn the object over in its search
for food.

402

More birds in action

The Goldcrest featured here (plate 40a) was already paired, and
there can be little doubt that it was a male, which thought that it
detected a rival or intruder in its own reflection in the window. The
house in question is in a dell and these particular windows are
overshadowed by shrubs growing on the bank above them; other
species, including a Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs, have, from time to
time, attacked their reflections in them. This particular Goldcrest
remained stationary for a time on the window-sill, with wings and
tail both partially outspread, apparently gazing in the direction
of the reflection; then it darted forward with a flutter of wings and
pecked at the reflection, so that a loud tap was audible from inside;
sometimes it fluttered up and down the window, pecking repeatedly.
It was also seen to flick its wings, showing the very conspicuous white
underwings, with a movement that was quite unlike an ordinary
wing beat and much slower. Occasionally, it emitted a shrill,
repeated ‘seep’ call. This behaviour continued, almost non-stop,
sometimes for up to three hours at a stretch, for several days in the
first week of April.

Richard Vaughan, 102 Westbourne Avenue, Hull HU5 3HX

Soil water-levels and delayed egg-laying
of Puffins

M. Hornung and M. P. Harris

INTRODUCTION

In 1975, the breeding season of Puffins Fratercula arctica on the Fame
Islands, Northumberland, was unusually long, due to many females
laying later than normal. The spread of laying was from the first
week of April to the last days of June. Digging and cleaning of
burrows occurred later in 1975 than in 1974: for example, on West
Wideopen (see fig. 1), few burrows were cleaned before 16th April
in 1975, whereas such activities were virtually complete a week
earlier in 1974. There was also a wide difference in times of laying
between islands, and even between areas on individual islands,
although within any one such area there was fair synchrony,
indicated by young being of similar weight and plumage develop-
ment. Such synchronisation is widespread in seabirds and it is often
assumed, though rarely proved, that it is caused by the social
interactions of the birds themselves (Nelson 1970).

[Bril. Birds, 69: 402-408, October 1976]

Delayed egg-laying of Puffins

403

100

200

Metres

a o'
"*3

4V

Fame Islands

c\ Cat}4

1 2

N

i

\. Seahouses

1

W Long-^ S 0

2

140' { Km

3. Brownsman

4. Staple Island

Fig. 1. The main islands of the Fame
Islands, Northumberland. Solid lines
denote the limits of the soil-covered
parts of the islands; dotted lines de-
limit the sub-divisions used in this
study. Sample area codes (e.g. Wi,
B2) correspond to those used in the
text

4°4

Delayed egg-laying of Puffins

INVESTIGATIONS

On gth and iith June 1975, groups of burrows were examined on
each of the four main Puffin islands — Inner Fame, West Wideopen,
Staple and Brownsman. On Inner Fame, the burrows are grouped
into two distinct areas, but only the western colony was sampled.
On the other three islands, burrows occurred wherever there was
sufficient soil cover. Samples were examined in areas which showed
obvious differences in soil depth, soil type, slope and vegetation
cover. The proportion of the total burrows examined in each area
varied from 1% to 10%. All the occupied burrows in a small
sector were examined and counts made of those containing an egg
or a chick. Burrows where the contents could not be determined
were disregarded. The results showed marked differences in the
proportion of eggs and young between the islands (table 1). The
two-day difference in the sampling dates presumably influenced
the results, but we cannot quantify this. There were, however,
significant differences within islands (see table 1 and appendix).
Whereas the four areas on Brownsman showed a uniform proportion
of hatched eggs (corresponding to a mean laying date of about
1st May), there were great variations within West Wideopen and
Staple.

Table 1. Numbers of eggs and chicks of Puffins Fratercula arctica in the
sampled areas on the Fame Islands, Northumberland, in June 1975

Note that West Wideopen and Inner Fame were sampled on gth June and those
on Staple and Brownsman on 1 ith June

WEST

WIDEOPEN

Wi W2

STAPLE ISLAND

Si S2 S3 S4

BROWNSMAN

Bl B2 B3 B4

INNER

FARNE

I.F.

Eggs

13

32

3

7

10

23

15

l6

9

10

12

Chicks

I I

I

28

21

h

4

18

20

12

l6

21

% eggs

54

97

10

25

42

85

45

44

43

38

36

These nesting patterns paralleled what was known of the soil
conditions on the various islands, with burrows in dry sites tending
to have young at times when those in wet ground still had eggs.
Soil water-levels, which have been monitored in dip-wells on these
islands for the past two years, allowed these general impressions to
be tested. March to May 1975 was an unusually wet period, with
rainfall in the three months being 111%, 185% and 122% of the
1941-70 averages. On some islands, or parts of islands, the soil was
waterlogged to within the zone used for burrowing (the top 20-
25 cm). The effect of this was visually most marked on West

. )
A

- J

A

i

)

A

Delayed egg-laying of Puffins
u West Wideopen

405

a-.— a 1974 records, dip-well 14.
dry on other dates

1975 records, dip-well 14
■ « 1975 records, dip- well 1 1

Level of burrow

floors in W2

Date

— — 1975
a. a 1974

Level of burrow

floors in S4

10

20

30

40

50

60

Brownsman

,* / V

> / '

' / / \ >
\ A / \ \

/ \

,\ / •

/ V *A

25/ 31/ 5/ 13/ 19 27/ 3/ 11/ 19/ 27

/ 3 / 3 / 4 74* /4 74 75 /5 75 7 5

Date

— 1975
A~ A 1974

Level of burrow

floors in B3

Fig. 2. Soil water-levels during the 1974 and 1975 egg-laying periods of Puffins
Fratercula arctica, as indicated by dip-well records. In 1974, dip-well 1 1 on West
Wideopen was always dry’; and no measurements were taken before 18th April
on Staple Island or 19th April on Brownsman

4°6 Delayed egg-laying of Puffins

Wideopen, where re-excavated or cleared burrows in the central,
flatter part of the island rapidly filled with water. The two dip-wells
on West Wideopen were in the central part of area W2, and up to
the end of May in 1975 the water-levels were consistently much
higher than in 1974 (fig. 2a). Sample Wi was amongst boulders, on
steeply sloping ground or over fissured rocks, where water does not
accumulate. The high proportion of eggs in W2 (table 1) could have
been due to birds laying late or to eggs becoming waterlogged and
the embryos being killed. A further, larger sample, taken from the
same area on 15th July, contained five eggs, 22 chicks younger than
about ten days and three older young. A sample from W 1 contained
15 large young, but no small chicks or eggs. By nth August, all
eggs had hatched. It is clear that laying had been delayed, rather
than embryos killed by flooding. The main laying period in W2 was
calculated as the last week of May, which corresponds to the time
when the soil dried out to a level below the burrowed zone.

The colony on Staple Island is in a mass of glacial drift which has
a wedge-shaped cross-section, sloping down steeply (40° or more)
to the east, but gently (2°-3°) to the north-west as the drift thins.
The burrows in sample Si were dug into the steep slope and, there-
fore, were not affected by waterlogging. Samples S2, S3 and S4
formed a series on the gentle slope, with S2 on the highest part of the
slope and S4 on the lowest. The initial sampling showed a much
higher proportion of eggs in sample S4, and on 8th July the only
eggs found (three, compared to 16 young) were there. By early
August, all the eggs had hatched. Thus, laying in S4 was delayed
until the latter half of May. A dip-well located in area S3 indicated
that the soil water-level was within the burrowed zone on several
occasions in late April and early May (fig. 2b). Due to the orienta-
tion of the water table within the drift mass, this period of water-
logging of the burrowed zone was longest in S4. This area is fre-
quented by Grey Seals Halichoerus grypus, and it contains wallows
(with bottoms at a similar level to those of the burrows) ; these con-
tained standing water until mid-May 1975. In contrast, they were
completely dry by 18th April in 1974. The burrowed layer in S4 can,
therefore, be assumed not to have dried out until mid-May 1975,
which corresponds with the main laying period.

On Brownsman, the soil water-level in area B3 was near the
burrowed zone on only one occasion in 1975 (fig. 2c). Other areas
on that island have even freer-draining, shallow soils. Waterlogging
therefore, was not a problem on Brownsman, and this was probably
an important factor in determining the homogeneous nature of the
hatching patterns (table 1). On Inner Fame, the sampled burrows
were in a slope near the cliff edge, where waterlogging never
occurs.

Delayed egg-laying of Puffins 4°7

DISCUSSION

Laying dates maybe influenced by the condition of the burrows when
the birds first return to the colonies in March and April. The highest
proportion of chicks, on Staple Si and S2 and Inner Fame, were
from areas where the burrows normally required little or no
cleaning prior to occupation. The latest layings, on West Wide-
open W2 and Staple S4, were in areas where most burrows have to
be re-excavated, because they are partially infilled with eroding
soil and are flattened by seals during the autumn. As nesting was
not however, delayed on Brownsman B3, where the burrows always
required much renovation, the state of the burrows is not always
the proximate limiting factor.

A genetic basis for these differences in laying time is unlikely,
since ringing has shown interchanges of Puffins both between the
islands in the Fames and from the Fames to the Isle of May, Fife
Region, the nearest large colony, lying about 100 km to the north.
It could, however, be an age effect in an expanding colony, such as
the Fames. Adults retain their burrow from one year to the next,
so that areas which were colonised long ago will tend to contain
older birds than elsewhere. Although there is no such evidence for
the Puffin, the old females of some other seabirds lay much earlier
than those that are breeding for the first time (Coulson and White
i960). Against this, the highest proportion of chicks during the
first checks on West Wideopen was in the peripheral parts of the
colony, which have been colonised only in recent years. As the
various areas are so close together, it is unlikely that females in one
area manage to get enough food to come into breeding condition
early while those in other areas do not.

We concluded, from this circumstantial evidence, that the
factor directly controlling the timing and synchrony of breeding on
the Fame Islands in 1975 was the time when the burrows dried out.
This may be a widespread phenomenon, for flooding of burrows
just before and during the breeding season has also been recorded in
Puffin colonies on the Isle of May, the Shiants and St Kilda. Indeed,
in 1974 and 1975, accumulations of water were thought to have
delayed the nesting of some groups of Puffins on the Isle of May:
in 1975, one sample of 23 nests in a well-drained area had a mean
hatching date of 26th May (standard error of ± 1.8 days), whereas
two other groups in wetter areas, 16 nests near a pond and 19 on a
wet slope, both hatched on 2nd June (both ± 1.7 days) (S. Simpson
in lift.). Rainfall and drainage may often influence the laying
synchrony of Puffins.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We are indebted to the National Trust for permission to work on the Fame

4-08 Delayed egg-laying of Puffins

Islands and for accommodation during our visits. Our thanks are also extended to
Peter Hawkey and to the summer wardens for their invaluable help on the islands.

SUMMARY

In June 1975, groups of burrows of Puffins Fratercula arctica on the main breeding
islands of the Fame group in Northumberland were examined for the presence
of eggs and young. Variations in the proportions of these were found both between
and within islands. The distribution pattern of eggs and young reflected soil
conditions: burrows in dry sites generally contained young, while those in wet
sites contained eggs. High rainfall in spring had resulted in soil waterlogging
up to the level of the burrowed zone in parts of two islands, Staple and West
Wideopen. The start of laying in these areas apparently coincided with the
drying out of the burrowed zone. Laying was much earlier in those parts of the
colony unaffected by waterlogging. Variations in the amount of burrow excavation,
food supply influences, genetic and age effects did not satisfactorily explain the
delayed laying. Circumstantial evidence suggests that the time of drying out of
burrows was the proximate factor controlling timing of breeding on the Fame
Islands in 1975.

REFERENCES

Coulson, J. C. and White, E. i960. ‘The effect of age and density of breeding
birds on the time of breeding of the Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla' . Ibis, 102: 71-86.
Nelson, J. B. 1970. ‘The relationship between behaviour and ecology in the
Sulidae with reference to other seabirds’. Oceanogr. Mar. Biol. Ann. Rev., 8: 501-
574-

Appendix, x2 analysis and significance of within-island variations in
proportions of chicks and eggs of Puffins Fratercula arctica, Fame Islands,

Northumberland, 1975

Difference significant at P = 5%*, 1%**, 0.1%***

WEST WIDEOPEN

STAPLE

ISLAND

BROWNSMAN

W2

S2

S3

s4

B2

B3

b4

23.43***

Si

1-49

6.0*

3 1 .5* * *

Bi

0.02

0.0 1

0.08

S2

—

0.97

20.13***

B2

—

0.01

0.04

S3

—

—

8.72**

b3

—

—

0.0 1

Dr M. Hornung, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Bangor Research Station ,
Penrhos Road, Bangor, Gwynedd LL57 2LQ

Dr M. P. Harris, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Hill of Brathens, Glassel,
Banchory, Kincardineshire AB3 4BY.

Notes

Breeding success of Red-throated Divers on Hascosay The

note by D. P. Cyrus on the breeding success of Red-throated Divers
Gavia stellata on Fetlar, Shetland, in 1971 {Brit. Birds , 68: 75-76)
prompts me to record the following. B. Hawkes and I were on
Hascosay, Shetland, from 3rd to 10th June 1975 and we located a
total of nine pairs. This represents the maximum breeding popu-
lation that the island is likely to support, since there are only nine
pools suitable for nesting, most of them quite small. These are
nearly all situated on what can be termed the central plateau, a
boggy area dominated by cottongrasses Eriophorum, sedges Carex
and mosses.

Only two of the nests contained the normal two eggs and the other
seven each held one. We attributed this high incidence of single-egg
clutches to the cold spring weather, with snow and rain, rather than
to activities of predators. The fate of one of the two-egg clutches is
not known, as hatching had not taken place before we left the
island. At three of the single-egg nests, the egg vanished without
trace, probably through predation by skuas Stercorarius spp. or gulls
Larus spp., and at another the egg was found eaten in the nest. The
remaining clutches, one of two eggs and three of one, hatched
successfully, but all five young disappeared within the space of a
few days, in one instance within 48 hours. Since nearly all the pools
are situated on the plateau, which is also a breeding area of the
Great Skua S. skua, it is probable that predation by this species was
the major and perhaps the sole factor responsible for the lack of
breeding success by the divers. Bryan L. Sage

13 Dugdale Hill Lane, Potters Bar, Hertfordshire en6 2DP

Greenshank eating large frog On 2nd September 1975, at
Neusiedlersee, Austria, I saw a Greenshank Tringa nebularia swallow
whole a sizeable frog Rana sp. The episode took at least ten minutes.
For three or four of these, the wader persistently picked up its
victim and then dropped it as it wriggled, whereupon the frog
endeavoured to jump away. After the frog was apparently dead,
the bird continued to pick it up, squeeze it through its bill and then
drop it again. Eventually, the Greenshank made several attempts
to swallow the prey head first. At one stage, all but a leg had dis-
appeared, but the frog was again coughed up. Finally, the Green-
shank did manage to swallow it, though the frog appeared to stick
in its throat for a while, as it stood still with its bill forced open.
Though difficult to assess the actual size of the frog, its body must
have been nearly as long as the bird’s bill. D. W. Taylor

14 Boughton Lane, Maidstone, Kent

409

410

Notes

Simultaneous hunting by a pair of Bonelli’s Eagles On 22nd
May and 14th June 1973, I watched a pair of Bonelli’s Eagles
Hieraetus fasciatus for several hours over rocky hillsides above the
Douro river gorge at Miranda do Douro, Portugal. Frequently,
both soared in the strong wind with few or no wing-beats, remaining
almost motionless except for head movements while searching the
grassy slopes below. Often one would soar vertically far above the
other and every now and then, at exactly the same moment, both
would begin their stoop down towards the same spot, probably
to attack Rabbits Oryctolagus cuniculus grazing on the hillside. This
maneouvre was repeated many times, the birds stationing them-
selves as before, one vertically above the other, searching the ground.
Although a successful stoop was not seen, such simultaneous attack
no doubt increases the chances of a kill. Geoffrey Beven

16 Parkwood Avenue , Esher, Surrey

Terns feeding on flying ants During August 1974, there were
many mass flights of ants in the Chew Stoke area, Avon. On the
5th, parties of ten to 20 gulls, mainly Black-headed Larus ridibundus ,
hunting at a height of about 50 metres, were joined by three terns,
either Common Sterna hirundo or Arctic S. paradisaea, calling excitedly
and catching the flying ants with great agility. From the literature,
it appears that both tern species occasionally take flies near or on
the surface of water, but feeding on flying ants and at this height
has apparently not been described previously. D. E. Ladhams
Willow Lodge, Chew Stoke, Bristol bsi8 8ya
Despite the paucity of published records, this kind of behaviour is
by no means uncommon. Eds

Unusual death of Great Spotted Woodpecker On 6th June

1975, at Saarbriicken, West Germany, I noticed a Great Spotted
Woodpecker Dendrocopos major, apparently motionless, on the trunk
of a beech Fagus sylvatica. As I approached, I realised that the bird
was dead and hanging by its bill from a crevice about five metres
from the ground. I reached it with a ladder and found that its head
was stuck at the base of a vertical crevice about 30 cm long. I was
able to move the head freely in and out of the crevice at a point
only about 10 cm above where it had become wedged. The wood-
pecker, a female, had been dead for one or two days and its plumage
was not in very good condition. Andre Cyr

Abt Biogeographie, Universitdt des Saarlandes, 66 Saarbriicken, West
Germany

Yellow Wagtail apparently drying itself on dead weed On

11th August 1975, I watched a male Yellow Wagtail Motacilla

Notes

41 1

Jlava bathing in shallow water at the edge of Chew Valley Lake,
Avon. After a while, it flew on to a small pile of dead waterweed
that was lying on the bank and proceeded to rub its head, neck and,
later, its breast on the weed, in what appeared to be a deliberate
attempt to dry itself. Having done this about four times, it preened
for a while before starting to feed. K. E. Vinicombe

/ Exton Close , Whitchurch, Bristol BS14 9QG

Reviews

British Birds of Prey. By Leslie Brown. Collins ‘New
Naturalist’, London, 1976. 400 pages; 34 maps; 11 figures;
23 tables; eight pages of appendix tables; 40 black-and-white
photographs. £6.00.

Aficionado and professional alike have waited a long time for this
book. It is now 20 years since Volume V of D. A. Bannerman’s
The Birds of the British Isles appeared and, since then, no compre-
hensive work on the British diurnal birds of prey has been attempted.
How strange that it should have been left to a Scot resident in
Africa for most of his life to have filled the gap; yet how fitting, for
Leslie Brown is not only a world authority, but a tremendous
enthusiast, with a gift for lively writing, in which solid scientific
fact and comment are interlaced with vividly descriptive anecdote.

His labours have been herculean. He has flown back and forth,
sought all the obvious and not so obvious fountains of knowledge,
researched the published literature, extracted much unpublished
material from a host of sources and drawn on his own deep under-
standing and experience. The result is a massive assemblage which
is almost wholly satisfying.

Convention is generally followed: the first three chapters cover,
respectively, the characteristics of the Falconiformes, the British
species, and classification and field identification; they are followed
by 15 chapters, each of which is devoted to a so-called resident
species, with the White-tailed Eagle — as represented by the imports
on the island of Rhum — included optimistically. The succeeding

412

Reviews

two chapters deal with boreal migrants (Rough-legged Buzzard
and Gyrfalcon) and the seven British vagrants, of which, alas, the
Egyptian Vulture and Spotted Eagle are unlikely to be seen here
again. The final seven chapters, which constitute almost half of the
book, discuss very fully the complex of biological and ecological
factors and the author’s forthright attitudes to conservation. The
whole is rounded off by two tabular appendices of the food of
selected British raptors and summarised breeding data, a good bib-
liography and an adequate index.

In a review of a book so packed with information, it seems
invidious to refer to the lacunae; but by no means are these of the
author’s making and not the least service which his labours provide
is to identify the areas of our ignorance. He can find no good account
of the breeding behaviour of the Hobby, the best to hand being
D. Nethersole-Thompson’s in 1931 ; none for the Merlin, the Kestrel
or the Sparrowhawk, although for the last there is certainly much
information waiting in the wings; for the Peregrine he has had to go
back to Francis Heatherley in 1910 to find an adequate summary of
the breeding biology at a single nest. He can find no accurate data
on egg laying for the Honey Buzzard, nor age data for the Sparrow-
hawk; for our own Golden Eagle, no good moult studies.

On status, he is surprised by the inability of the Minsmere-bred
Marsh Harriers (well over 100) to colonise other sites and by the
failure of the Goshawk to become firmly established, but he judges
there will shortly be more potential Goshawk habitat than there
was 200 years ago. He shares the general perplexity about the
reasons for the decline of the Merlin, although the results of the
1976 breeding survey in Wales may imply significant under-
recording elsewhere. He has hopes for that successful raptor, the
Black Kite, to become a British breeder eventually.

From status to persecution is but a short step. In correspondence
with the author after his return to Kenya, he told me that the
pungency of his views on this issue might be too strong for the
tastes of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds and the Nature
Conservancy Council. I cherish the belief that what he has to say
will be acceptable to both organisations. For myself, I regard his
unabashed naming of one Highland estate, on which open gin traps
were set for Golden Eagles in 1966, as a welcome fingerpost to a
more purposive exposure of arrogant and ignorant selfishness.

We are told that the manuscript was delivered in December 1972
and, thus, it has taken 3! years to process, an inordinate length of
time even by publishing standards. In the case of such an important
and good book as this one, it is to be regretted that the opportunity
was missed to carry out some gentle editing on the repetitions and to
furnish an addendum of the most recent work. Derek Barber

Reviews

413

Parent Birds and their Young. By Alexander F. Skutch.
University of Texas Press, Austin and London, 1976. 503
pages; 116 black-and-white photographs; several figures.
£i79°.

The author of this book has been studying the birds of Central
America for more than 40 years and has an impressive list of papers
on them to his credit. He has written this book as a complete survey
of the reproduction of birds, drawing on examples from all over the
world, but it is perhaps not surprising, nor does it necessarily detract
from the work, that he quotes very frequently from his own and
other people’s studies on the birds with which he is most familiar.
What this means is that, as well as being informed about the subject
of the title, one is gaining proportionately more knowledge about
the birds of Central America.

The book takes one through the entire breeding cycle, from the
formation of the pair, though with rather little detail on actual
behaviour, via territory, nesting seasons, the nest, eggs, incubation,
and nestlings, to the independence of the young from their parents.
Chapters entitled ‘Crafts and materials used in nest building’,
‘Neglectful fathers’, ‘Patterns of incubation’, ‘The male parent’s
discovery of the nestlings’ and ‘The nest as a dormitory’ give some
idea of the depth of the coverage, as well as of the style in which the
author does not hesitate to use commonplace words of description
where a pedant might demand biological terms. There are 34
chapters in all, plus about 800 references, in this large and weighty
book. Although the quality of the photographs, and especially
of their reproduction, is not good, they are mostly selected to
illustrate a particular point. They are reinforced by a small number
of line-drawings and tables.

In assessing the value of this book to the general reader, one has
to repeat the proviso that it is quite heavily biased to America, and
to Central America in particular. Many groups of birds, especially
those confined to the Old World, and some regions, for example the
Arctic, get comparatively scant treatment. References to North
Atlantic seabirds, to waders, and to waterfowl, are all comparatively
few. Only one page is devoted to the Arctic, the problems it poses
to birds breeding there and the adaptations they have had to make
in order to do so. To balance these shortcomings, there are 75
citations concerning New World flycatchers, nearly as many each on
tanagers and hummingbirds, and no less than 20 pages covering
the tropics, going into great detail on relative nesting seasons,
nesting success and reproductive potential of tropical birds. More
than usual, I [feel, in a book purporting to cover the world’s birds,
this one reflects the author’s special interest.

This criticism apart, the book is a veritable mine of information,

4i4

Reviews

is well produced and is a positive delight to read. Personal observa-
tions abound, always acute, often witty. What could so easily have
been a stodgy compendium of facts culled from the literature is,
instead, a work which conveys its information in a way that makes
reading it or consulting it a pleasure. It may not be as fully compre-
hensive in its scope as the blurb claims, but it certainly succeeds
both as a review of the reproduction of all birds and, even more, as a
source of information on the breeding habits of Central American
birds, for which the literature is not always readily accessible to the
European reader. What is strange about the sex life of the Bellicose
Elaenia? Why does the Fasciated Antshrike sometimes present food
items to her unhatched eggs ? The answers can be found in this book,
and much, much more besides. M. A. Ogilvie

Rarities Committee announcements

NEW CHAIRMAN

Having served on the Rarities Committee for a total of nearly
twelve years since 1962, and as chairman since 1972, D. I. M.
Wallace has now expressed a wish to retire from that position. His
enormous contribution to the workings of the Rarities Committee
will be well known to most readers. He summarised in detail the
committee’s achievements in its first ten years {Brit. Birds , 63:
1 13-129) and, while he has been chairman, has consolidated its
reputation, both in this country and abroad; he also has an exem-
plary record of making available to others his personal expertise,
through identification papers and notes. In the past thirteen years,
he has contributed ‘Field identification of Hippolais warblers’
{Brit. Birds, 57: 282-301), ‘Dowitcher identification: a brief review’
(61 : 366-372), ‘Identification of Spotted Sandpipers out of breeding
plumage’ (63: 168-173), ‘Field identification of Dusky and Radde’s
Warblers’ (with R. J. Johns, 65: 497-501), ‘Field identification of
small species in the genus Calidris’ (67: 1 - 1 7) , ‘Field identification
of Short-toed and Lesser Short-toed Larks’ (with R. H. Dennis,
68: 238-241), ‘Field identification of grey geese’ (with M. A. Ogilvie,
68: 57-67), ‘A review of waterthrush identification’ (69: 27-33),
‘Identification of European treecreepers’ (with C. J. Mead, 69:
1 1 7- 1 3 1 ) and ‘Distinguishing Great Snipe from Snipe’ (pages 377-
383 in this issue). He has not hesitated to tackle some of the most
difficult problems confronting field observers and it is encouraging
to note that his output is increasing rather than diminishing; other

Rarities Committee announcements

415

papers are in preparation and we hope that his retirement from
official duties on the Rarities Committee will give him more time
to devote to this invaluable work. He is, of course, remaining a
member of the editorial board.

After seeking advice from the ten members of the Rarities Com-
mittee, the editorial board has now appointed P. J. Grant as the
new chairman. Like his predecessor, he is well known for his artistic
as well as ornithological ability, and similarly has tackled some
difficult identification problems in print: for example, in conjunction
with R. E. Scott, ‘Identification of immature Mediterranean Gulls’
(60: 365-368), ‘Uncompleted moult in Sterna terns and the prob-
lem of identification’ (62 : 93-97) and ‘Field identification of juvenile
Common, Arctic and Roseate Terns’ (62: 297-299), as well as, on
his own, ‘Field identification of Richard’s and Tawny Pipits’ (65:
287-290). Moreover, we shall shortly be starting to publish a major
series of five papers by him on the massive problem of identification
of west Palearctic gulls in all plumages. We welcome Peter Grant
and are sure that his reign will be as distinguished as those of his
predecessors, P. A. D. Hollom (1959-72) and D. I. M. Wallace
(1972-76). Eds

ELECTION OF NEW MEMBER

As previously announced {Brit. Birds , 69: 321), D. J. Holman was
co-opted to the Rarities Committee at the beginning of April 1976,
following the voluntary retirement of R. A. Richardson. His co-
option has not only maintained the important link with East
Anglia, but his acquaintance with the rarity scene nationally has
already been of great value in our assessment of records. He is the
committee’s unanimous nomination for formal election to serve
from the beginning of April 1977.

We hope that his appointment will be widely endorsed, but, if any
ornithological body or individual wishes to put forward other names,
they should write to me by 31st December 1976, with the address and
an outline of the qualifications of their candidate, as well as con-
firmation of his or her willingness to stand for election. Then, the
county and regional recorders {Brit. Birds , 69: 232-236) and bird
observatories will be asked to vote on the names, as has been the
practice in the past.

Recruitment to the committee is on a regular basis of at least one
new member each year, the vacancy arising either from any
voluntary retirement which may occur, or from the automatic
retirement of the longest serving member. The next vacancy will
thus arise from 1st April 1978, and nominations will be sought by an
announcement in this journal in autumn 1977. P. J. Grant
14 Heathfield Road , Ashford, Kent TN24 8qd

News and comment Peter Conder

British ornithologists held by guerrillas Since about gth May, Stephanie
Tyler, well known for her studies of Grey Wagtails (e.g. Bird Study, 19: 69-80),
together with her husband Lindsay and their two children, Robert (8) and
Sarah (5), have been in the hands of Eritrean and Tigrean separatist guerrillas on
the Ethiopian/Sudanese border. We hope that the Tylers will soon be released
safely, as was the journalist Jon Swain, who was held for several months by the
same rebel forces.

Trade in endangered species The United Kingdom has ratified the Washing-
ton Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and
Fauna. It was completed on 3rd August 1976 by Her Majesty’s Ambassador in
Berne, when he deposited with the Swiss Government the United Kingdom
Instrument of Ratification.

Ratification means that the United Kingdom, as a party state to the convention,
will be able to play a full part and to vote at the conference of the parties due to
be held in Berne in November, when the implementation of the convention,
including the list of species controlled, will be reviewed.

The Endangered Species (Import and Export) Bill is due to receive its second
reading in the House of Commons on 15th October 1976. The bill fell out of the
parliamentary programme in the summer, as a casualty of party political bickering.

New fines for the Protection of Birds Acts An act increasing fines for offences
under the Protection of Birds Act 1954-67 came into force on 29th July 1976;
the maximum penalties for ordinary offences are increased from £5 to £20, and
for special offences from £25 to £100. The bill was introduced into the House of
Commons by Mr Peter Hardy and to the House of Lords by Lord Chelwood, and
took only three weeks to pass through all its stages and receive Royal Assent.

This is a first step in the right direction, but, so far as offences involving Peregrines
are concerned, the fines are only one fifth, or one tenth even, of the price that can
be obtained for these falcons in Europe or the Arab states. Penalties for offences
involving the sale of birds should be two or three times the value of the original
transaction. Or perhaps a month’s birdwatching on Dartmoor?

Turkish children count their storks Above the mosques and minarets of
Istanbul, over 300,000 White Storks have been counted in a single autumn,
migrating from their breeding grounds in eastern Europe. Turkey clearly has an
international responsibility, not only for the storks that breed in its warm climes
(and Turkey probably has the largest concentration of White Storks in the world),
but also for those that pass through in spring and autumn.

The newly formed Dogal Hayati Koruma Dernegi (Turkish Wildlife Protection
Society) has quickly realised this responsibility, and has just launched a project
to count storks nesting in that country. But this is a project with a difference,
for it will be carried out by organised groups of schoolchildren, each of which is
being sent specially prepared leaflets on the White Stork with census forms, and
is being asked to count the nesting storks in its village.

Incidentally, all those concerned with the plight of the world’s avifauna ought
to be members of the International Council for Bird Preservation. Membership
of the British Section is £3 a year and for this you receive four copies of the colour
magazine Birds International, three copies of the highly informative ‘President’s
letter’ and the annual report. The address of the ICBP is c/o British Museum
(Nat. Hist.), Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD.

416

News and comment

417

Fishermen netting auks off the Irish coast Ornithologists have regularly
expressed concern at the number of auks, particularly Brunnich’s Guillemots,
drowned in fishing nets off Greenland. According to Dr Clare Lloyd of the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds’ Research Department, an alarming number of
auks are being killed in nets in Galway Bay, Ireland. Local ornithologists have
reported catches of up to 150 birds per day. An estimate of the total seasonal
mortality puts the figure at 20,000 birds, or 20% of the total number of auks re-
corded in the Irish Wildbird Conservancy’s booklet The Birds of Clare and Limerick.
Two or three Great Northern Divers a week are also reported killed. The chairman
of the Irish Wildbird Conservancy is taking the matter up with the fishing
authorities with urgency, but says that the most he can hope for is restriction on
the use of certain fishing areas. Sport fishermen are not at all happy with the use
of drift nets for Salmon, but, on the other hand, it is likely that the local fishermen
will fight any move to restrict fishing areas.

Birdwatching guides and bird lists Two more guides to the birds of geo-
graphical areas have reached my desk and are worth mentioning. The first, A
Checklist of the Birds of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, by Roger Penhallurick, is
obtainable from Headland Publications, Bread Street, Penzance, price 40p, plus
postage and packing. The author says that this is the first list since 1906. It is just
a list with symbols denoting the status of each species. Apparently it heralds
something more. The second is Wildlife in Wessex, by Ralph Whitlock and pub-
lished by Moonraker Press, Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire, price £3.50. The author
endeavours to give the reader a picture of the geological regions of Wessex and
then there is a gazeteer of the places to visit to see the wildlife that has been
described; he also lists the natural history and conservation organisations of the
region. It is an introductory guide; indeed, within its 148 pages, it would be
difficult to be more.

Einar Brun Ornithology has suffered the irreplaceable loss of Einar Brun,
professor of zoology and director of the Marine Biological Station at Tromso
University, Norway. He was born in Sandefjord in 1936 and obtained his first
degree in 1963. He then came to Britain, as warden of the Calf of Man Bird
Observatory and completed a PhD on the biology of echinodcrms at the University
of Liverpool’s Marine Biological Station at Port Erin, Isle of Man in 1969. He
was appointed head of the Zoology Department at Tromso University the following
year, and professor of marine biology in 1972, and was currently working on the
life and artificial production of Salmon. He eventually turned his university
department, at a key location in northern Scandinavia, into an important centre
for ornithological studies, helping to develop the journal Ornis Scandinavica.
Recently, he had been concerned with the assessment of the hazard presented by
oil exploration to seabirds, and bought his own Piper Cub to carry out aerial
surveys for this purpose. He was killed when his aircraft crashed into the sea
after he encountered bad weather approaching Bardufoss airport in Troms on
the evening of 13th July 1976. He was a pleasant, stocky, determined character with
a neat beard, of vast energy, knowledge, ability and daring, concealed behind a
quiet, modest demeanour, with whom it was a pleasure and privilege to deal. I
regard a trip made to watch him count the birds on the great cliffs around Bear
Island from a little rubber boat in the summer of 1972 as one of my most rewarding
ornithological experiences. Whilst he did not take foolish risks, he fearlessly explored
the boundaries of human achievement, and it is a tragedy that his luck has failed.
(Contributed by Dr W. R. P. Bourne.)

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Winter summary D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

This summary covers some of the more interesting events of the winter of 1975/76,
dealing mainly with the commoner species.

DIVERS TO SWANS

There were few reports of gatherings of divers. The only ones of any real interest
were as follows: 15 Great Northern Gavia immer at Golspie (Highland) in mid-
January; 24 Black-throated G. arctica near Dodman Point (Cornwall) on 20th
March; and 35 Red-throated Divers G. stellata at Formby Point (Merseyside)
on 8th November, 40 at Dungeness (Kent) on 24th January and 232 flying north
in 15 minutes at Forvie (Grampian) on 13th February. Early in March, 47 Red-
necked Grebes Podiceps grisegena were counted in the Firth of Forth (Grampian),
while the highest numbers of Slavonian Grebes P. auritus reported were 25 in
the Blackwater (Essex) in mid-February and 18 or more at Ross (Northumber-
land) on 15th February.

We received very little information on wildfowl numbers in 1975/76, but the
following may be of some interest. In Lancashire, a maximum of 4,800 Teal
Anas crecca was noted at Martin Mere in December, while on the Mersey the
winter peak was 8,000 on 15th February. Low water levels on the Ouse Washes
(Cambridgeshire/Norfolk) meant a maximum of only 21,000 Wigeon A. penelope.
There were also 1,050 Pintail A. acuta on the washes, but this total was eclipsed
by 7,000 on the Mersey marshes on 18th January, the same date as 4,000 were
counted on the Ribble marshes (Lancashire). A record 139 Goldeneye Bucephala
clangula were at Belvide Reservoir (Staffordshire) on 18th January, though
exceptional numbers were not reported elsewhere. Long-tailed Ducks Clangula
hyemalis appeared at several inland localities, in Durham, West Yorkshire, Derby-
shire, Staffordshire, Nottinghamshire, Essex and Avon: four were at Abberton
Reservoir (Essex) from January and up to three at Chew Valley Lake (Avon)
from November until 24th April. Smew Mergus albellus were far more widespread
than usual, both on the coast and inland. No fewer than 46 inland sites held
Smew at some time during the winter and, as expected, highest numbers were in
the south-east, particularly the London area, with the maximum being eleven
at Wraysbury gravel pits (Berkshire) on 29th February. There was also an inter-
esting series of reports from the West Midlands area, the species appearing at
ten waters, with three at Draycote (Warwickshire) from 31st January to the end
of February. Also in the Midlands, after a high count of 97 Goosanders M.
merganser at Blithfield Reservoir (Staffordshire) on 18th January, a record 148
were present there on 24th February.

White-fronted Geese Anser albifrons were in lower numbers than usual,
2,500 at Slimbridge (Gloucestershire) at the end of January being the highest
count there during the whole winter. Peak numbers of Pink-footed Geese A.
brachyrhynchus on the south-west Lancashire mosses occurred in the first week
of December, when a record 19,000 were counted. Bean Geese A. fabalis were
far more widely reported than usual, from Shetland to the south coast of England ;
away from traditional sites, small groups were found at 15 localities, the most
being eleven flying in off the sea at Balmedie (Grampian) on nth January,
15 at Titchfield Haven (Hampshire) from the end of January (a county record),
and, most unusually, 32 at Redmires Reservoir (South Yorkshire) on 2nd Janu-
ary. The largest herds of Whooper Swans Cygnus cygnus reported in Britain
were 440 at Loch of Strathbeg (Grampian) on 14th November and 200 or more
at Lindisfarne (Northumberland) at the end of that month. At Ibsley, on the

418

Winter summary 419

River Avon (Hampshire), numbers of Bewick’s Swans C. bewickii reached an
all-time high of 104 in February; on the Ouse Washes, 1,257 were counted in
the same month, the most there since 1972.

RAPTORS TO AUKS

Several Marsh Harriers Circus aeruginosus wintered in East Anglia and Kent.
Spotted Crakes Porzana porzana were found in West Yorkshire, Merseyside,
Nottinghamshire, Warwickshire, Berkshire (two), Kent and Hampshire (two),
though this species was probably under-reported, as usual.

On 15 th February a total of 1,350 Grey Plovers Pluvialis squatarola was esti-
mated on the Ribble estuary, a record number for the locality in winter. The
largest gathering of Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus was 23 at Lower Stoke
(Kent) on 15th November, while 20 at Draycote in early February was the most
seen inland. The only notable report of Black-tailed Godwits Limosa limosa
was a count of 1,200 on the River Dee (Cheshire) on 18th February. Overwintering
Little Stints Calidris minutus were few, with reports from just six sites, including
an interesting one of a singleton well inland at Wath Ings (South Yorkshire)
on 28th December. Over 200 Ruffs Philomachus pugnax were at Martin Mere in
January, and small flocks appeared at many localities where the species is not
regular in winter, especially in the south, after hard weather at the end of January
and beginning of February.

Glaucous Gulls Larus hyperbonus were commoner than in previous winters:
15 were at Fraserburgh (Grampian) on 24th March and up to seven in the North
Shields/Scaton Sluice area of Northumberland in the early months of 1976; 28
or more individuals appeared at 18 inland lakes and reservoirs, mostly in the
Midlands. There were also more than the usual number of Iceland Gulls L.
glaucoides : again in the Seaton Sluice area, up to four were present with the
Glaucous Gulls; about 13 were found at six inland waters during the period,
with three at Blithfield Reservoir in January and three at Chasewater (also
Staffordshire) in January and February, at least five different individuals being
recorded at the latter site from the end of November. Mediterranean Gulls
L. melanocephalus were scattered in ones and twos around the coast, though at
North Shields there were possibly seven, including five seen together, in February
and up to five in March; while up to seven were present in the Weymouth/
Radipole Lake area (Dorset) at the end of January and up to eight in February;
inland, single birds were at Blithfield Reservoir in 22nd November, at Chew
Valley Lake on 14th and 28th February, and at Sevenoaks (Kent) on 27th
February and 2nd March. Very few Little Gulls L. minutus were reported,
maxima being 20 at Formby Point from 9th to 12th November and 17 flying
north at Hauxley (Northumberland) on 9th November; one was seen inland at
Pitsford Reservoir (Northamptonshire) on nth January. There was a large
assembly of 20,000 to 25,000 Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla in St Ives Bay (Cornwall)
on 1 2th January. Little Auks Plautus alle continued to be seen in small numbers,
with 19 flying north off Seaton Sluice on 14th December. A large southerly
movement of unidentified auks took place off Hartlepool (Cleveland) on 31st
January, when 13,400 passed in just six and a half hours.

OWLS TO BUNTINGS

One of the most remarkable events of the winter was the number of Long-eared
Owls Asio otus, reported from all over Britain. Roosts of up to 40 and more
were discovered in Kent, and, even as far inland as Ufton Fields (Worcestershire),
15 were present in January and February. A full review of the records will not
be given here, since we hope to publish a paper on the invasion in the near future.

Shore Larks Eremophila alpestris seem to have been fewer than usual. Fourteen
were at Walberswick (Suffolk) in November and slightly smaller numbers at

420 Winter summary

Druridge Bay (Northumberland), where from one to eight were present through-
out the winter. In the west, five were at Freshfield (Merseyside) on ist February
and five at nearby Waterloo on 6th.

The expected Blackcaps Sylvia atricapilla were recorded, but fewer than in the
exceptionally mild winter of 1974/75, though six wintered in the Tyneside area
and two as far north as Aberdeen (Grampian). The picture for Chiffchaffs
Phylloscopus collybita was similar, with many reports, but smaller numbers than
in the previous winter. Five were found in the Bristol area in December, at
Wraysbury/Horton on 31st December, and in Kent in January, while a total of
about four overwintered in Shetland. A singing Willow Warbler P. trochilus was
found at Maple Cross sewage farm (Hertfordshire) on 30th December. There
were many sightings of Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus, particularly in the north,
where flocks of up to 25 were not uncommon; the largest gathering was of 100
or more at Hamsterley Mill (Durham) on 4th December.

As usual, the largest flocks of Twites Acanthis Jlavirostris were in Kent: present
all winter, the maxima were 440 at Kingsnorth on 23rd February, 400 at Cliffe
on 17th January, 350 on the Medway estuary in December and 350 at Sandwich
Bay on 22nd November. Elsewhere, 200 at Crossens marsh (Merseyside) on
15th February, 100 inland at Hythe sewage farm (Essex) on the same date and
67 at The Lodge, Sandy (Bedfordshire), on 18th February were all unusual.
As many as 800 Redpolls A. flammea wintered at Tuddenham (Suffolk). The
winter was notable for Bramblings Fringilla montifringilla. Flocks of 1,000 were
reported from Ranby and Clumber (both Nottinghamshire) in December,
Hinstock (Salop) at the end of February and Crossness sewage farm (Essex) in
late February and early March; 1,250 were in the Winchfield area of Hampshire,
again at the end of February; while in Gloucestershire, 2,500 were counted in
the Chittening/Severn Beach area at the end of January and on 22nd February,
2,000 being present also at Aust on the latter date.

Lapland Buntings Calcarius lapponicus were rather scarce, with most in
Northumberland, where the species was recorded at five localities with a
maximum of at least twelve at Druridge from 15th to 22nd February; elsewhere
there were up to two at Teesside (Cleveland) in December and January, two
at Goxhill (Humberside) from 2nd to 10th February, two at Capel Fleet (Kent)
on 17th January, and singles at Chittening on 24th January and at Farlington
marshes (Hampshire) on 15th February, while one remained at Keyhaven
(Hampshire) from November until at least 25th February. Numbers of Snow
Buntings Plect. ■'b henax nivalis were about normal, the maximum in England

being 330 at Te> nouth in December; in the west, there were several small

flocks of up to 35 in Lancashire and Merseyside and up to six at four places in
Avon and Somerset ; and in the south two were at Pennington marshes (Hampshire)
until at least mid-February. Inland, higher numbers than usual were reported,
from Northumberland, South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, North-
amptonshire and Warwickshire: 18 were at Cheviot (Northumberland) on
28th February and the remarkable number of 40-50 at Redmires Reservoir on
7th February; while at Filton, Bristol, two were seen regularly in a garden from
20th January.

£450

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In this book, the author. Dr. Leslie Brown,
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concentrating mainly on the relationships of
birds of prey with their habitats and the prey
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Volume 69 Number 10 October 1976

377 Distinguishing Great Snipe from Snipe D. I. M. Wallace

384 Sedge Warbler migration and reed aphids C. J. Bibby, R. E.
Green , G. R. M. Pepler and P. A. Pepler

399 More birds in action Richard Vaughan Plates 37-40

402 Soil water-levels and delayed egg-laying of Puffins Dr M.
Hornung and Dr M. P. Harris

Notes

409 Breeding success of Red-throated Divers on Hascosay Bryan
L. Sage

409

410

Greenshank eating large frog D. W. Taylor

Simultaneous hunting by a pair of Bonelli's Eagles
Be \en

Dr

Geoffrey

410 Terns feeding on flying ants D. E. Ladhams
410 Unusual death of Great Spotted Woodpecker Andre Cyr

410 Yellow Wagtail apparently drying itself on dead weed K. E.
Vinicombe

Reviews

41 1 British Birds of Prey by Leslie Brown Derek Barber

413 Parent Birds and their Young by Alexander F. Skutch M. A.
Ogilvie

Announcement

414 Rarities Committee announcements Editors, and P. J. Grant
416 News and comment Peter Conder
418 Winter summary D. A. Christie

Front cover:

Snipe Gallinago gallinago {photo: Pamela Harrison )

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Rarities Committee J . N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL
© The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd

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11

British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER II NOVEMBER

1976

Bird X

Photograph
of theYear^

Entries are invited now for the first in a new series of annual awards
for the best bird photograph of the year. The winner will receive
a cheque for £100. Both colour transparencies and black-and-white
prints are eligible and up to three separate photographs may be
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bird behaviour might, for instance, gain the award in preference to
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ceeding 200 words) of the circumstances in which it was obtained,
drawing attention to any facts that might be relevant in the judging
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The closing date for entries is 5th January 1977. All photographs
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British Birds, and entries are accepted on this understanding.

All entries should be clearly labelled ‘Bird Photograph of the
Year’ and should be sent to the editorial office at 59 Curlew
Crescent, Bedford MK41 7HY. Eds

421

Dark-bellied Brent Geese in Britain
and Europe, 1955-76

M. A. Ogilvie and A. K. M. St Joseph

INTRO DUCTION

During 1971-76 the world population of the Dark-bellied Brent
Goose Branta bernicla bernicla has more than trebled, while in the
period since the first attempt at assessing the size of the population
( 1 955_57) it has increased nearly sixfold. It has managed this at a
time when biologists were predicting that food supplies were holding
its numbers at the earlier low level, when conservationists were
increasingly worried for its future well-being, and when massive
reclamation schemes were threatening its estuarine winter habitats.
The change from comparative scarcity to relative abundance has
been partly due to man’s giving the population increased protection,
but mainly through the operation of natural forces and through an
ability to adapt with which no-one was prepared to credit it. This
paper is concerned with charting the course of this success story.

PAST HISTORY

The very low numbers of Dark-bellied Brent Geese wintering in
north-west Europe had been a matter of great concern to conser-
vationists. Salomonsen (1958) showed convincingly that the geese
had been much more numerous in the latter half of the 19th century,
had begun to decline thereafter, and were then at a very low ebb.
Atkinson-Willes and Matthews (i960), with a detailed review of
British literature, corrected some of Salomonsen’s figures, but agreed
that there had been a massive decrease, probably, they thought, of
the order of 75%. The parasitic organism which drastically reduced
the Brent Goose’s main food plant, eelgrass Zosterar in the 1930’s
probably had a serious effect on an already depleted population,
while wartime disturbance of many of the favoured estuaries must
also have played a part.

Whatever the causes, by the early 1950’s the population was at
a very low level. Sufficient concern was expressed for the species to
be given fully protected status in the British Protection of Birds Act,
1954. Largely through the promptings of the International Water-
fowl Research Bureau, the Brent Goose is now protected in all
countries of its range, except West Germany.

CENSUS METHODS

Counts of Dark-bellied Brent Geese have generally been made on
their wintering grounds, but sometimes of flocks passing a point on

422

[Brit. Birds, 69: 422-439, November 1976]

423

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

migration. The breeding grounds are in northern Siberia, and no
estimates of numbers are available from there. Salomonsen (1958)
arrived at an average figure for the period 1955-57, using the
counts and estimates then available. Burton and Boyd (1964) pro-
duced totals for 1960/61 and 1962/63, based on the winter wildfowl
counts made regularly at the majority of British haunts, plus counts
and estimates obtained from the rest of the range. By exertion and
example, they put together a team of counters which has since
contributed to an annual census. In normal winters, rather more
than half the population is to be found in England, and a further
substantial proportion in western France. Provided these two
countries can be covered adequately in mid-winter, when large-
scale movements are at a minimum, counts from the Netherlands,
Denmark and West Germany, which comprise the rest of the winter
range, are less important.

The annual censuses received a boost in 1966/67, with the start
of the mid-winter wildfowl counts organised by the International
Waterfowl Research Bureau. This count, in mid-January each
year, since supplemented by another in November, has produced
fuller coverage. Aerial surveys in several countries gave a better
idea of the numbers of Brent Geese roosting and feeding offshore,
where accurate counts present some problems that do not exist for
geese inland.

In 1972, a further impetus was given by the ecological survey,
commissioned by the Department of the Environment, of the coasts
of Suffolk, Essex and Kent likely to be affected by the building of
the Third London Airport on Maplin Sands, Foulness, Essex. This
project ran for three years and included detailed work on the num-
bers, movements and feeding behaviour of the Brent Geese in that
area and farther afield (Anon. 1975).

Since the last general survey of Brent Geese numbers (Ogilvie
and Matthews 1969), a few more counts have become available,
while knowledge gained more recently permits what we feel are
better estimates for the less well covered areas. For this reason,
there are also some changes from the totals in Prater (1976).

TOTAL NUMBERS DURING I 955*76

The peak counts of Dark-bellied Brent Geese made each winter
since 1955 are set out in table 1, together with the month in each
case and the division by countries. The figures for 1955/56 to
1957/58 are based on the average for the three years given by
Salomonsen (1958). Counts for the Netherlands and Denmark are
much less complete than those for Britain and France, particularly
in the mid-i96o’s , while those from West Germany are fragmentary.
Counts from the Channel Islands are included in the French total.

Table i. Total population of Dark-bellied Brent Goose Branta bernicla bernicla, 1955/56 to 1975/76, with breakdown by countries

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975/76 Jan 49,000 41,000 10,000 (10,000) 600 110,600

425

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

Brackets in the table indicate that some estimating was necessary
The peak is arrived at by summing available counts for each
winter month and taking the highest total, either for December or
January. In the few years when two good totals are available, there
has been quite reasonable agreement between them.

The national counts shown in the table are not necessarily the
maxima recorded in each year, though this is usually the case for
Britain. The peak in France is often in a different month from that
in Britain, reflecting movement between the two countries (see
below). Peak counts in the other three countries invariably occur
at migration periods, in October and again in April and May.

The pattern revealed by the total counts is of a slow but steady
increase from 16,500 in 1955-57 to 33,000 in the late ig6o’s. In the
last seven years, the total has leapt to its present 1 10,000 in 1975/70-
This increase has been characterised by a series of sharp rises and
temporary setbacks related to differences in annual breeding success.

The large increases in the mid-winter counts in the Netherlands
and West Germany in recent years are due partly to the recent
very mild winters, allowing more geese to stay farther east.

COUNTS IN BRITAIN AND FRANCE

The two most important wintering countries for the Brent Geese
are Britain and France; from the peak counts in table 1, they rarely
hold less than 75% and often more than 90% of the total. Ogilvie
and Matthews (1969) stated that there was some interrelation
between the counts in Britain and those in France, a peak in Britain
in December being followed by one in France in January. Further-
more, although the peak count in Britain was increasing, that in
France was dropping. Table 2 shows that this situation did not last,
and that the peak counts in France have recently been rising in line

fable 2. Peak counts, months of peaks, and percentages of totals of Dark-bellied
Brent Geese Branta bernicla bernicla in Britain and France, 1966/67 to 1975

Figures are rounded to the nearest 100

BRITAIN FRANClE

Month Month

Peak

of peak % of total

Peak

of peak % of total

106/67
17/68
1 58/69
rig/ 70
-70/71
-71/72
'72/73
'73/74
74/75
75/76

16,300

Dec

5i-7

18,900

Jan

61.0

18,200

Jan

65-9

18,800

Jan

51-8

24,700

Feb

60.5

22,500

Dec

66.2

29,600

Dec

57-i

41,200

Dec

48.8

31,400

Jan

44.0

49,000

Jan

44-3

11,500

Jan

36-5

8,600

Jan

27.7

8,900

Dec

32.2

13,30°

Jan

36.6

13,300

Jan

32.6

13,100

Jan

38.5

18,400

Jan

35-5

32,900

Dec

38-9

21,500

Jan

30.2

45,000

Dec

40.7

Table 3. Peak counts and percentages of total population of Dark-bellied Brent Geese Branta bernicla bernicla in grouped haunts

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427

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

with the total population. In contrast, the peak in Britain has, in
the last few years, declined slightly as a percentage of the total
count. This state of affairs may, of course, change yet again, but it
appears that in France, for which the situation was reviewed by
Maheo (1976), increased numbers have been more easily absorbed.

DISTRIBUTION WITHIN BRITAIN

A detailed analysis is in preparation, covering the movements of
Brent Geese within north-west Europe, both between and within
winters, based on sightings of individually ring-marked birds and
on counts. For the present, we may examine the British counts to
see whether numbers at the various sites have increased in line with
the general trend. The only satisfactory measure available is the
peak count recorded each winter at a particular site, or group of
sites; for some, particularly in earlier winters, only one count is
available, while, for a few others, some interpolation has been
necessary. Sites have been grouped on a fairly subjective basis,
aimed at identifying the more important haunts (table 3). Foulness,
coupled with nearby Leigh Marsh, has been treated separately
from the rest of Essex, partly because it is known to be the most
important early winter site in the country, and partly because the
recent threats to build the Third London Airport made it of especial
conservation interest; the Port of London Authority has not yet
abandoned its plans for a seaport there. The final category of
‘Other south coast’ includes a scattering of sites from Portsmouth
harbour, Hampshire, to the Exe estuary, Devon.

The peak counts for each group since 1963/64 are set out, together
with the percentages of the world population that they represent.
As the peaks occurred in different months at different sites, they
cannot be added together to produce a peak for the whole of Britain.

The traditionally most important areas of Foulness and the rest
of Essex have declined slightly in relative importance, while the
south coast harbours of Chichester and Langstone have shown the
greatest increase. The Wash and north Norfolk have held remark-
ably consistent proportions of the total each winter. Kent and the
minor south coast sites have been increasingly frequented, though
they are still unimportant.

Despite the great increase in the numbers of Brent Geese visiting
Britain, their range has not changed. The Wash still forms the
effective northern limit on the east coast, although up to 300 have
occurred in the Humber and as far north as Lindisfarne, Northum-
berland. Westwards, the Exe estuary has remained the limit,
although a few always winter in the Burry estuary, West Glamorgan.

Virtually all suitable sites in the Wash, north Norfolk, Suffolk,
Essex and Kent have been regularly used, but on the south coast

428 Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

some were generally bypassed before about 1969. These are now
also in regular use, by some hundreds of Brent Geese. They are
Portsmouth harbour, Needs Oar Point and Keyhaven, Hampshire;
Newtown estuary, Isle of Wight; and Poole harbour and the Fleet,
Dorset.

RECRUITMENT AND MORTALITY

The Dark-bellied Brent Goose is subject to greater variation in
annual breeding success than any other goose population so far
studied, approached only by the populations of the Light-bellied
Brent Goose B. b. hrota breeding in arctic Canada and northern
Greenland (Lynch and Voelzer 1974, Irish Bird Reports ). The usual
method of expressing the annual production is in terms of the per-
centage of first-year birds in the population. These are readily
distinguished by the pale edgings to their wing coverts and, in the
first part of the winter, by the absence of a white neck patch. Sample
counts showing the proportions of young have been made between
November and January every year since 1954/55, both in Britain
and in France. Good agreement has been found between samples
taken in different places, and they have therefore been amalgamated.
Table 4 sets out the sample examined, and the number and per-
centage of young, for each year.

Table 4. First-winter percentages, and sample sizes, for Dark-bellied
Brent Geese Branta bernicla bernicla, 1954/55 to 1975/76

Total examined

No. first-winter

% first-winter

1954/55

776

3H

4°-5

1955/56

2,020

522

25.8

1956/57

1,484

97

6-5

1957/58

1,810

955

52.8

1958/59

1,800

7

0.4

1959/60

2,285

494

21.6

1960/61

3.742

1,683

45-o

1961/62

3,128

159

5-i

1962/63

5,000

I I

0.2

1963/64

2,486

870

35-o

1964/65

3>i7i

1,101

34-7

1965/66

1,51°

104

6-9

1966/67

3.751

i,49i

39-7

1967/68

4.158

233

5-6

1968/69

7,253

301

0.4

1969/70

9,io3

4,526

49-7

1970/71

8,753

3,289

37-7

1971/72

3,206

22

0.7

1972/73

4,106

i,458

35-5

1973/74

3,469

1, 68 1

48.5

1974/75

8,000

3

0.04

1975/76

9,866

4,569

46.2

MEAN 24.5

429

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

It will be seen from the table that the annual breeding success
has fluctuated between less than i% and over 50%, the mean of
the 22 years being 24.5%. Up to 1968/69, two seasons were close to
that mean, six were above, and seven were so far below as to be
classed as breeding failures. Thus, there was just under one good
breeding year in two. Of the seven most recent seasons, no less than
five have been good.

The precise factors that are the most critical in affecting breeding
in this high arctic population have not been examined, but evidence
from studies of geese breeding elsewhere in the arctic, including
Barnacle Geese B. leucopsis in east Greenland and in Svalbard,
and Light-bellied Brent Geese on Southampton Island, Canada, in
areas where the summer is a little longer and the vagaries of the
weather less extreme, suggest that delayed springs with prolonged
snow cover and low temperatures, and heavy precipitation at
certain periods, can prevent laying altogether, or kill large numbers
of eggs and young (Barry 1962, Cabot and West 1973, H. Boyd
in litt., Dr M. Owen in litt.). The weather data currently available
from Siberia are much less complete than from these other regions
and, for this reason, no attempt has yet been made to correlate
them with breeding success. Another important consideration must
be the recent run of mild winters in north-west Europe, which is
likely to have had a beneficial effect on the food supply and, there-
fore, on winter mortality. Studies of Lesser Snow Geese Anser c.
caerulescens in Canada have shown that good feeding in winter and
spring improves the condition of the females, enabling them to lay
more eggs and incubate them more successfully (Harvey 1971).

Whatever the factors, in the last seven years the Dark-bellied
Brent Geese have bred successfully five times, compared with only
six successes in the previous 15 years. But this is not the sole cause
of the recent spectacular increase in total numbers. This is demon-
strated in table 5, constructed from the population counts and
percentages of first-winter birds, showing the annual recruitment
and losses (see also fig. 1).

The mortality figure is based on the losses from mid-winter to
mid-winter, and is of adults and sub-adults alive at the beginning
of the mortality period. Thus, it does not include losses of young
produced in the middle of the twelve-month mortality period. The
breeding performance figure is a mean of age-ratio counts taken at
different times through the winter, mainly in the months of Novem-
ber and December, when they are likely to be most representative
of the whole population. Mortality of the young of the year taking
place until then will, therefore, affect the calculation of the number
of the adults and sub-adults. Such a bias will not occur in years of
nil or very low production, and is unlikely to alter the pattern.

Table 5. Recruitment and losses of Dark-bellied Brent Geese Branta bernicla bernicla, 1955/5® 1° 1975/7®

ie population totals for 1955/56 to 1957/58 are based on the average count of 16,500 for the three winters. The totals for 1958/59, 1959/60
and 1961/62 are interpolations. Allowance has been made in each case for breeding success

Calculated losses

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MEAN 1 7.4

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

43 1

Fig. i . Annual mortality of Dark-bellied Brent Geese Branta bemicla bernicla plotted

against annual breeding success

The extremely close correlation between the breeding success in
the summer and the annual mortality up to 1971 is most striking.
Since then, they have diverged almost as consistently: the breeding
success has continued to vary' widely, but the mortality has shown
little variation and has declined in general. A correlation between
breeding success and annual mortality seems at first sight to be a
straightforward density-dependent relationship. In a good breeding
year, the adults will be liable to a higher mortality on a number of
counts. A strain is thrown on the female in producing the eggs and
maintaining herself through incubation, and on both parents while
they accompany the vulnerable young. The presence of large
numbers of young could be more than the food resources of the
breeding grounds could stand, resulting in starvation. An early
onset of wintry conditions at the end of the summer could overwhelm
those families that were even a few days late in getting their young

432

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

on the wing, a stage which is also likely to be delayed if food is
short. Young tend to be more vulnerable to autumn and winter
shooting, and this vulnerability must also extend to the accompany-
ing parents.

Further density-dependent mortality would occur if the increased
numbers following a good breeding season were to result in a food
shortage in autumn and winter. One would, however, expect it to
do so to an increasing extent as the winter progressed. The table
shows that this does not happen, it being clear that there is no
carry-over of increased mortality from a good breeding year into
the next. Further, from the start of each mortality year, in mid-
winter, the young of the previous breeding season will be included
in the calculation. These would be the birds most likely to suffer
heavy losses from a food shortage in late winter.

Although some or all of the above factors may result in increased
mortality in good breeding years, there is still the problem that in
non-breeding years the mortality is consistently low. If conditions
were sufficiently bad for laying to be completely prevented, one
would not expect high adult mortality, but, if laying took place
and then the great majority of eggs and young were killed by the
weather, then significant numbers of adults might also be expected
to succumb. This was certainly the case with a number of goose
species breeding in the Canadian arctic in 1972, including the
Light-bellied Brent Goose. The latter had a mortality in that
calendar year of 42.8%, although no shooting was permitted, and
produced only 0.08% young (Lynch and Voelzer 1974).

We have not even begun to understand why recruitment and
mortality of this population should have been so closely correlated
and our bafflement is enhanced by the fact that the correlation
which broke down about five years ago has not reformed. In 1972
a very good breeding season was accompanied by negligible mor-
tality. The latter rose in 1973, another excellent breeding season,
but to no more than the level of the poor production years of 1971
and 1974, and stayed at this level in the good season of 1975.
The mortality in 1971 and 1974 was above average for non-breeding
years, as it was to a lesser extent in 1968.

In 1972, Denmark placed the Brent Goose on the protected list
for a trial five-year period, leaving only West Germany and the
USSR with an open season in the species’ range. Fog (1972)
claimed that in 1961, 1965 and 1966 the numbers of Dark-bellied
Brent Geese shot in Denmark were respectively 1,300, 1,112 and
2,641. The last figure was then about 8% of the total population.
Clearly, cessation of shooting on this scale will have had an effect
on the mortality, though the drop in losses is considerably more
than could be accounted for by this alone.

433

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

Protection was given to the Dark-bellied Brent Goose in the
Netherlands in 1950, in Britain in 1954 and in France in 1966.
Pokrovsky (1963) reported that the Brent Goose received complete
protection in the USSR in 1962, but Lampio (1974) stated that this
was so only in Lithuania, Moldavia and the Ukraine, and that
there was an autumn open season elsewhere in the country. In none
of these cases was there a dramatic change comparable to that which
coincided with protection in Denmark. Available counts from Britain
alone suggest that the slow but steady increase after 1954 may in
fact have begun earlier. Numbers in France actually dropped
sharply in the two winters following protection, before a sizeable
increase in 1969 (table 2). The only difference between the granting
of protection in Britain, France and Denmark is that in the last
case it happened to coincide with a run of good breeding years.
Two good breeding seasons in succession have occurred before, in
1963 and 1964. Although this was one year after at least parts of
the USSR gave protection, the population total hardly responded
at all. When two happened again in 1969 and 1970, the total of
geese did rise sharply from 27,600 in 1968/69 to 40,800 in 1970/71,
only to drop back again to 34,000 in 1971/72 following a breeding
failure. It was the two further good breeding seasons in 1972 and
1973, producing a unique four good years in five, coupled with the
disappearance of an important mortality factor in the shape of
Danish shooting, that enabled the population to increase dramatic-
ally.

PREDICTION OF FUTURE POPULATION SIZE
At various times in the past, it was stated that the numbers of
Dark-bellied Brent Geese in a particular locality or country had
reached their probable maximum, and that further increases were
being prevented by an inadequate food supply (e.g. Burton 1961,
Ogilvie and Matthews 1969, F. Roux in litt.). Certainly, in the
period up to 1968/69 or even to 1971/72, the population seemed
incapable of sustained fast growth despite good breeding seasons
and increased protection. It now appears that the population may
have increased past the point below which years of low production
by themselves are likely to cause drastic decreases, whereas good
seasons will probably produce further large increases.

The mean annual mortality rate over the last five years has been
r3-5%- The average proportion of young produced in all the suc-
cessful seasons so far experienced is 42.3%. By applying these two
factors to the present population total of 110,000 in different com-
binations of breeding success and failure in future years, one can
produce estimates of the resulting population size. If the next three
breeding seasons were failures, a sequence that has not yet occurred

434

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

within our experience, the population would drop to about 70,000
by the end of 1978. If, on the other hand, the next two summers
were both successful, which would also be, with 1975, a unique
three-in-a-row, the total would go up to about 250,000. The more
likely combinations over the next three years of two successes and
one failure, or one success and two failures, would produce totals of
about 215,000 and 120,000 respectively.

These predictions are, of course, supposing no drastic change in
the status quo. If widespread shooting were reintroduced, or there
were a series of hard winters, then the mortality rate might well
increase from the present relatively low level. In order to test this
we have used an arbitrary 27.0% annual mortality, double the
present rate, and recalculated. Three successive breeding failures
in these circumstances would reduce the population to around
40,000, while two more good years would increase it to 175,000.
Two successes and one failure in the next three years would produce
about 130,000, while one success and two failures would result in
a total of about 75,000.

All these figures are speculative, but there seems no reason to
suppose that the population total will move outside the admittedly
rather wide limits that we have set. We can therefore look forward
either to oscillations around the present level, or to further large
increases. A steady decline to the former levels of 20,000-30,000
seems unlikely.

It is, of course, possible that the breeding grounds may not
accommodate greatly increased numbers. As table 5 shows, there
were almost 30,000 available breeding pairs in 1975 compared
with no more than 15,000 in 1967, the highest total before the recent
increase. A lack of breeding sites might reduce the potential pro-
duction. Data on brood sizes are lacking, but it seems likely that,
in a good breeding season, brood size will average around three,
so that only rarely will all mature pairs have brought young to the
wintering grounds, even at the lower population levels of earlier
years.

BRENT GEESE AND AGRICULTURE

It had been firmly ingrained into the beliefs of wildfowl specialists
that the Dark-bellied Brent Goose would feed only on the intertidal
zone, where they first preferred eelgrass ^ostera, would later turn to
algae, including Enteromorpha and Ulva, and finally, in the spring,
would feed to a limited extent on high saltings where they ate
saltmarsh-grass Puccinellia and sea aster Aster tripolium. These
successive preferences coincide with the periods of maximum growth
of the different foods and, therefore, of their nutrient value to the
geese (Ranwell and Downing 1959). As evidence of the inability

435

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

of the geese to adapt, there was an apparent sharp decline in their
numbers in the 1930’s following a catastrophic decline in the amount
of £ostera, due to a disease; the alternative food supply, the algae,
was clearly insufficient. We have no information, however, on the
breeding success in those years, and a run of poor seasons may have
coincided with the £ ostera shortage (though birds in poor condition,
due to winter food shortage, may breed less well). Nevertheless, it
is certain that the geese did not exploit any other source of food.

Sporadic reports of Brent Geese feeding on fields over the sea-
wall in winter were received in the 1960’s, but it was in 1969/70
that large numbers were first found doing so, with over 3,000 in
various parts of Essex in January 1970. Data for 1970/71 and 1971/72
are lacking, but in 1972/73 about 3,000 were again recorded doing
so. In 1973/74, the total jumped to about 10,000 and, though drop-
ping slightly to 7,000 in 1974/75, it was up to around 15,000 in
1 975/76. Field feeding became widespread in the Netherlands over
the same period.

There seems more correlation between field feeding and the
presence of a high proportion of young than with a certain total
population. Of course, the amount of intertidal food available may
vary. The only recent measurements made of the latter were in
1972/73 and 1973/74 when, based on detailed calculations of both
the food available and the rates of depletion by the geese, it was
estimated that Essex was carrying the maximum number of Brent
Geese possible (Charman 1975). Geese remaining in parts of Essex
for the full winter in those years resorted to field feeding. A severe
early winter would have further reduced the carrying capacity of
the intertidal zone.

The principal inland foods are grass and winter wheat. A pre-
liminary report on the phenomenon has been circulated (Bennett
and St Joseph 1974). This adaptation by the geese opens up poten-
tially unlimited food resources for them at a time when the inter-
tidal zone may be fully exploited. Against this, however, some of the
new foods may not be as nutritious for the geese as ^ostera or algae,
in which case one might expect a reduction in breeding potential
due to the adults being in poorer condition; such nutritional aspects
require investigation with captive birds. It also brings the geese
into direct conflict with farmers, who may take steps to prevent the
use of their fields: there is no doubt that one or two have already
suffered financial loss. Although scaring of the geese is feasible, it
is both time-consuming and costs money, though less than probable
losses to crops.

In view of the likely range of the future population sizes, dis-
cussion of what steps need to be taken is urgently required at an
international level. The major threat to the most important site at

436 Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

Foulness has receded, though, as already stated, plans for a seaport
are not dead. Each site now carries many more Brent Geese than
in the recent past and is therefore potentially far more important.
Conversely, it could be argued that the loss of any one site will
have much less effect than it would have done a few years ago.
A large population is probably better able to withstand a sharp
decrease than a small one. It can be argued, however, that any loss
of habitat now would probably lead to an increase in inland feeding.
The Brent Goose is only one species of the many that depend upon
estuarine and coastal mudflats and the fact that it is now doing
better is no reason for abandoning the fight to preserve this diminish-
ing and sorely threatened habitat.

The Brent Geese did not turn to inland feeding in the iggo’s
when the /postera disappeared, probably because they were then
legitimate quarry and this made them too wary to exploit the
possibilities. After 15 years or more of protection, this consideration
has ceased to apply. The geese are now feeding on fields over the
sea-wall, and ranging up to 3 km from the water, in considerable
numbers. A minority of farmers have reacted to this by shooting
them, in hundreds in at least one case. This is permissible under
the present law, provided that the farmer, who is required to do so,
can satisfy a court of law that such action was necessary to prevent
serious damage to his crops.

A limited open season might, in these circumstances, be preferable
to indiscriminate slaughter by or on behalf of the farmers, or to
the Brent Goose being declared a ‘pest’ by transfer to the Second
Schedule of the Protection of Birds Acts, 1954-67, which would give
it no close season at all. Shooting would add to the natural morta-
lity and slow down, if not arrest, the present increase in numbers. It
would also make the geese less tame and so more reluctant to feed
over the sea-wall. This might lead to further mortality, through
starvation.

It would clearly be wrong to go straight back to the full open
season of 1st September to 20th February, which exists for other
quarry species on the British coast. As the main aim would be to
prevent agricultural damage, shooting should at first be restricted
to the places and times where inland feeding occurs : inland of the
sea-wall, in a few counties, and in January and February. But this
is not a national matter only. Both the French and the Danes will
probably renew protection of the species for a further period of
years and the Dutch show no signs of wanting to reverse their
long-standing protection. Any measures taken in Britain must be
with the full knowledge and approval of the other countries that
are used by this population of geese. The Dutch, incidentally, pro-
vide financial compensation for agricultural damage.

437

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

Ideally, any open season should be on a year-to-year basis,
dependent on the results of the routine monitoring of the popu-
lation size and its annual breeding success. This is not, however,
achievable under the present British legislation because, although
there are powers to permit shooting of the Brent Goose for a limited
period and in specified areas, the legal procedure is too slow to
allow for annual variation. It would not be possible, for example,
to declare an open season in December as a result of high produc-
tion figures and population counts obtained in October.

A better approach, in years of high production, would be for
licences to be issued to farmers who could show that they were
likely to suffer serious damage to their crops, and that they had
rigorously employed the full range of conventional scaring methods
without success. Under this system, it would be easier to monitor
the effect on the population, by making the submission of returns
of the numbers of Brent Geese shot a condition of the licence. Unfor-
tunately, the issue of licences for birds other than those on the First
Schedule, which would have a much wider application in dealing
with localised damage, would require a modification of the existing
law, which would be an excessively lengthy operation. Regardless
of whether an open season or a licence system were adopted, it
would be essential to create a number of refuges, covering both the
normal estuarine habitats and some inland areas where the geese
could be encouraged to feed, and so reduce damage elsewhere.

In North America, such a flexible response to annual produc-
tion figures is practised, with summer and early autumn surveys
being used to fix shooting seasons and bag limits for the following
autumn and winter. This has, however, been by no means an un-
qualified success in a closely parallel situation with the Light-bellied
Brent Goose (Penkala et at. 1975).

The Atlantic seaboard wintering population of Light-bellied
Brent Geese also declined sharply in the 1930’s, the £ ostera there
being hit by the same disease. From 1933 to 1951 no shooting of
this population was allowed. Then, from 1952, an open season was
permitted, beginning at between ten and 30 days, with a daily bag
limit of three to six birds, increasing to 60 to 70 days and a bag
limit of six per day. The population fluctuated for 20 years around
180,000, with a mean annual kill of 21,000. The January 1971
census revealed 151,000, but just one year later there were only
73,300, following a poor breeding year (5.7% young) and a shooting
harvest of no less than 70,000. The 1972 summer was a complete
breeding failure and the numbers had crashed to below 50,000
by January 1973. No shooting was permitted in 1972/73, or in the
following two winters, and by January 1975 the population had
recovered somewhat, to about 85,000.

438 Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

It is not certain why the American shooters suddenly doubled
their harvest, particularly in a year with few young, but it has been
suggested that they transferred their attention to Brent Geese
following a sharp drop in the number of Black Duck Anas rubripes,
another favourite quarry species (R. Andrews in litt.). A shortage
of food may also have brought the geese closer to the guns. The
high mortality suffered in the following non-shooting year may have
been due to many nesting adults being wiped out by the adverse
weather conditions on the breeding grounds (Lynch and Voelzer
1974)-

So, the North Americans, with their years of carefully controlled
monitoring and harvesting behind them, can still find their pre-
dictions confounded by a combination of extremes of weather and
kill. If we are not to fall into the same trap, any harvesting of the
Dark-bellied Brent Goose must be very well thought out and care-
fully managed and monitored, with allowance for the unexpected.
Only in this way can we ensure a reasonable prospect for the popu-
lation, coupled with a minimum of conflict with other interests.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This paper is based on counts by birdwatchers in five countries, who, we hope,
will now be able to see the importance of their efforts and continue counting.
In particular, we thank those who also collected age counts, including R. M.
Blindell, Dr P. J. K. Burton, Miss M. F. Drake, B. Renyard, Dr P. Rudge and
D. Wood. We are indebted also to the International Waterfowl Research Bureau
for co-ordinating the counts from other countries, and to Professor G. V. T.
Matthews for valuable comments on an early draft.

The study was carried out while MAO held a post financed by a contract with
the Nature Conservancy Council, and AKM StJ held one financed by the Natural
Environment Research Council Maplin Contract with further funds from the
Conder Trust.

SUMMARY

The world population of Dark-bellied Brent Geese Branta bernicla bernicla has
increased from 16,500 in the mid-ig5o’s to 1 10,000 in 1975/76. Britain and France
are the most important wintering countries, with France increasing its share in
recent years. Smaller numbers winter in the Netherlands, Denmark and West
Germany. Within Britain, the most important haunts remain Foulness and other
areas of the Essex coast, but the south coast harbours of Chichester and Langstone
have greatly increased their significance in recent winters.

There is an unexplained correlation between annual breeding success, which is
highly variable in this arctic nesting species, and annual mortality rate. Since
1971, the mortality rate has become steadier while breeding success has continued
to fluctuate, though with a higher proportion of good years. The rapid increase
in numbers in the last six years can be attributed partly to the latter and partly to
the protection granted to the population in its winter range, in particular in
Denmark in 1972. Predictions of likely future population size suggest either
fluctuations around the present level or a continued increase.

Brent Geese are increasingly feeding inland of the sea-wall, on grass and winter
wheat, particularly in Essex. Conflict with farmers has already arisen. Because

439

Brent Geese in Britain and Europe

of this, it may be necessary to allow restricted shooting, in order to limit possible

damage to crops. A system of licences is outlined and recommended, in preference

to any kind of open season.

REFERENCES

Anon. 1975. ‘Aspects of the ecology of the coastal area in the outer Thames estuary
and the impact of the proposed Maplin Airport’. Report submitted to the De-
partment of the Environment by Natural Environment Research Council.

Atkinson-Willes, G. L. and Matthews, G. V. T. i960. ‘The past status of the
Brent Goose’. Brit. Birds, 53: 352-357.

Bennett, T. and St Joseph, A. K. M. 1974. ‘Brent Geese feeding inland in
south-east England’. Mimeo report. 10 pp.

Burton, P. K. J. 1961. ‘The Brent Goose and its food supply in Essex’. Wildfowl
Trust Ann. Rep., 12: 104-112.

and Boyd, H. 1964. ‘The present status of the Brent Goose in Europe’.

Proc. First European Meeting on Wildfowl Conservation, St Andrews, Scotland, 1963:

73*75-

Cabot, D. and West, B. 1973. ‘Population dynamics of Barnacle Geese, Branta
leucopsis, in Ireland. Proc. Roy. Irish Acad., 73, sec. B: 415-443.

Charman, K. 1975. ‘The feeding ecology of the Brent Goose’, pp. 258-289 in
Aspects of the Ecology of the Coastal Area in the Outer Thames Area and the Impact of
the Proposed Maplin Airport. Report submitted to the Department of the Environ-
ment by the Natural Environment Research Council.

Fog, M. 1972. ‘Status for Knortcgascn ( Branta bernicla)' . Circulated report of
Vildtbiologisk Station, Kala, Ronde. 105 pp.

Glover, F. A. and Smith, J. D. 1963. ‘Waterfowl status report, 1963’. U.S.
Fish & Wildl. Serv. Sp. Sci. Rep. Wildl. No. 75. Washington. 178 pp.

Harvey, J. M. 1971. ‘Factors affecting Blue Goose nesting success’. Canad. J.
Zool., 49: 223-234.

Lampio, T. 1974. ‘Protection of waterfowl in Europe’. Finnish Game Research, 34:

15-34-

Lynch, J. J. and Voelzer, J. F. 1974. ‘1973 productivity and mortality among
geese, swans and brant wintering in North America’. 1973 Progress Report of
Office of Migratory Bird Management Section of Waterfowl Population Surveys, U.S.
Fish <s? Wildlife Service. Lafayette, Louisiana. 43 pp.

Maheo, R. 1976. ‘The Brent Geese in France, with special reference to the Golfe
du Morbihan’. Wildfowl, 27: 55-62.

Ogilvie, M. A. and Matthews, G. V. T. 1969. ‘Brent Geese, mudflats and Man’.
Wildfowl, 20: 1 19-125.

Penkala, J. M., Applegate, J. E. and Wolfast, L. J. 1975. ‘Management of
Atlantic Brant: implications of existing data’. Trans. 40th N.A. Wildl. & Nat.
Res. Conf, 1975: 325-333.

Pokrovsky, V. S. 1963. ‘Basic data on the protection and utilisation of wild
animals in the U.S.S.R.’. Wildfowl Trust Ann. Rep., 14: 47-49.

Prater, A. J. 1976. Birds of Estuaries Enquiry Report for 1973-74. British Trust for
Ornithology, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Wildfowl Trust. Sandy.

Ranwell, D. S. and Downing, B. M. 1959. ‘Brent Goose winter feeding pattern
and Zostera resources at Scolt Head Island, Norfolk’. Anim. Behaviour, 7: 42-56.

Salomonsen, F. 1958. ‘The present status of the Brent Goose in western Europe’.
Vidensk. Medd. Dansk Naturh. Foren., 120: 43-80.

-V/. .4. Ogilvie and A. K. M. St Joseph, Wildfowl Trust, Slimb ridge,

Gloucester GL2 7BT

British bird-photographers
ig Eric Hosking

Plates 41-46

Being by nature friendly and gregarious, Eric Hosking is probably
as widely known, both nationally and internationally, as any
British ornithologist. As a bird photographer he is pre-eminent and
his pictures and books can be found in almost every country. It
surprised nobody, therefore, that his autobiography An Eye for a
Bird (1970) was an instant best-seller.

To earn international acclaim and to make a substantial living
as a bird-photographer required not only the highest professional
skills but an unflagging enthusiasm for his chosen metier. Moreover,
bearing in mind that his career began in the depths of the depression
of the early 1930’s, it required an unusual degree of courage and self-
confidence to embark on an enterprise which, at that time, offered
the bleakest of prospects. Today, having won every worthwhile
award and distinction in his chosen field, Eric remains what he
has always been, modest, cheerfully unpretentious and proud of
his Cockney background. Never completely satisfied with his own
work, he goes on adding every year to his superbly indexed collec-
tion of pictures, which now approaches the quarter of a million
mark. Servicing the demand for his photographs by the world’s press
and publishing houses is almost a full-time task, but his first interest
is with the living bird and he is happiest when trudging, camera in
hand, across wild country. His interest in conservation is well
known and he has given generous assistance to the World Wildlife
Fund and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

For many years Eric was greatly in demand as a lecturer and
broadcaster, finding no difficulty in filling London’s Festival Hall.
His lectures were not intended to be profound in content, but
audiences responded warmly to his enthusiastic delivery and obvious
enjoyment of his subject. However, when the constant travel and
arduous preparation involved in lecture tours began to inhibit his
field work, he wisely gave them up.

He has pioneered many of the technical developments from which
bird-photographers benefit today. If a gadget to improve the per-
formance of a camera does not exist, he invents it, experimenting
patiently until it is perfected. From the photography of nocturnal
birds with the aid of flash bulbs in the 1930’s, he graduated to
electronic flash, adapting a photo-electric shutter release so that the
bird itself fired it when in the exact plane of focus. Thanks largely
to his insistence with manufacturers, the originally heavy flash
equipment was progressively reduced to today’s miniaturised models.

440

[Brit. Birds, 69: 440-442, November 1976]

Bird-photographers : Eric Hosking 441

An unforeseen bonus for ornithology emerged from electronic
flash — the detail obtainable on the negative was so minute that
food carried to nestlings could be accurately identified.

Eric Hosking’s knowledge of cameras is encyclopaedic. Having
progressed from an early box Brownie and a 1909 mahogany
quarter-plate Sanderson field camera, he experimented with all the
British, German and Japanese 35 mm cameras. Manufacturers
competed for his endorsement. In 1966, when he and I were
passing through Moscow, he spotted the new Russian 1000 mm
mirror lens and immediately acquired one. Though critical of some
of its technical aspects, he later demonstrated its capacity by
successfully photographing an Ibex Capra hircus at a distance of a
quarter of a mile in the rugged Kirthar mountains of Pakistan. He
is, incidentally, a capable mountaineer and tree climber, in spite
of the loss of an eye and the handicap of a permanently damaged
foot.

Between 1955 and 1967 , I was fortunate enough to be able to
recruit Eric as principal photographer on nine major expeditions
of ornithological exploration in various countries. There is no better
opportunity, when the going is really arduous, forjudging a man’s
character. Even when our vehicle was wrecked in the Jordan
Desert, or when the U-2 ‘spy plane’ incident resulted in our being
temporarily sequestered behind the Iron Curtain in Bulgaria,
Eric’s cheerful disposition remained unruffled. Although never
able to master any foreign language, he established an immediate
rapport with the natives of every country we visited, whether they
were frontier sentries, local princes, or bare-footed peasants. After
a strenuous 16-hour day in tropical heat he would stay up half the
night to repair someone else’s camera by torchlight. He was gener-
ous, too, in many small ways, such as letting other members ride
in the coveted front seats of our jeeps, or in lending his own precious
equipment.

Although now widely travelled, Eric never permits foreign
customs to interfere with his staunchly conservative personal habits.
Official occasions, exalted titles, or opulence make no impression
on him. For example, when members of our Pakistan expedition
were invited by the Amir of Bahawalpur to dine at the magnificent
Sadiq-gahr Palace, he simply ignored the formalities. Some choice
French wines accompanied the elaborate meal. Eric, as a strict
teetotaller, did not hesitate to demand his invariable beverage —
tea, which the Amir obligingly ordered a liveried servant to pro-
duce. On another occasion in England, when Eric was chatting
with a royal duke, he casually called him ‘old boy’. Such is his
personal charm that in neither of these incidents was the VIP in
the least offended.

442

Bird-photographers : Eric Hosking

In the thirty years I have known him, I have seen him really
angry only once. This was when he found a nest which had been
heavily ‘gardened’ by a bird-photographer. His own code of
conduct is strict and he refuses to attempt even a much needed
picture if he judges that desertion might result. He will tie back
an obscuring branch, but scrupulously restores both the nest vege-
tation and his own track to the nest-site.

The selection of Eric’s photographs shown here typifies his work
and range of interests. Four of them were obtained in Spain, in
three different years, and two others also resulted from trips abroad,
to the Netherlands and Norway. The Black Vultures Aegypius
monachus (plate 42a) and Eagle Owls Bubo bubo (plate 45b) are two
examples of species very rarely photographed at the nest. The
other six were obtained in Britain, at some of his favourite spots:
Minsmere, Suffolk, and Hilbre Island, Cheshire, where he has so
often taken full advantage of the opportunities to photograph
waders, and in the wilds of northern Scotland. Indeed, the Green-
shank Tringa nebidaria settling on to its eggs (plate 46b) was photo-
graphed in Sutherland as recently as June 1976.

There are many other ways in which Eric has contributed in his
chosen field. For more than 16 years, from i960 until June of this
year, he was photographic editor of British Birds. He initiated the
annual feature ‘More examples of the best recent work by British
bird-photographers’, which has provided a showcase for his amateur
and professional colleagues, and also the series ‘British bird-
photographers’, in which he himself now appears here.

Eric’s life is a full one. Photographer, ornithologist, technician,
inventor, lecturer, broadcaster, author, foreign traveller, holder of
high office in half a dozen societies, winner of a drawerful of medals
and a happily married family man with a wide circle of friends.
What more can life offer? In concluding this tribute I cannot do
better than quote from HRH Prince Philip’s foreword to Eric’s
autobiography: ‘Anyone can see what marvellous pictures he takes
and he has amassed a wealth of experience and knowledge, but no
one could be kinder or more encouraging to beginners and to the
amateur.’ Guy Mountfort

Plate 41. Above, Lam-
mergeier Gypaetus barbatus in
nesting cave, Spain. May 1959.
Below, female Snowy Owl
Nyctea scandiaca with young,
Shetland. June 1967 photos:
Eric Hoskins )

y

Plate 42. Above, Black Vultures Aegypius monachus at nest, Spain, May 1972.
Below, female Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus at nest with young, Spain, May 1972

( photos : Eric Hosking)

Plate 43. Above, massed waders, mainly Knots Calidris canutus, but also Curlews
Nurnenius arquata, Oystcrcatchers Haemalopus ostralegus, Redshanks 7 ringa totanus
and Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica, Hilbre Island, Cheshire, October 1968.
Below, Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus, Minsmere, Suffolk, early August 1966

(photos: Eric Hosking)

Plate 44. Above, Grasshopper Warbler Locuslella naevia at nest with young,
Suffolk, June 1953. Below, male and female Little Bitterns Ixobrychus minutus at
nest, Netherlands, June 1952 ( photos : Eric Hosking)

Plate 45. Top. Little Egret Egretla garzetla at nest. Spain, May 1956. Bottom
Eagle Owl Bubo bubo at nest with young, Norway, May 1964 f photos : Eric Hashing

Plate 46. Great Skua Stercorarius skua, Shetland, June 1968 {photo: Eric Hosking )

Greenshank Tringa nebularia settling on to eggs, Sutherland, June 1976 [photo:

Eric Hosking)

Plate 47. More 1975 rarities
pages 321-368). Top. Desert
Warbler Sylvia nana. Humber-
side. October {photo: K. Atkin).
Bottom left, Lesser Yellowlegs
Tringa favipes, Devon, Nov-
ember; right, Black-and-
White Warbler Mniotilta varia,
Scilly. September (photos: . Vi gel
Tucker)

Plate 48. Three American waders. Top, Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites
subrnficollis, Cambridgeshire, September 1975, one of an unprecedented 60 or
more reported in that autumn (pages 338-339) (photo: Howard B. Ginn). Centre,
Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris rnelanotos, Scilly, October 1970, the most frequent
Nearctic species in Britain and Ireland (photo: K. Atkin). Bottom, Wilson’s
Phalarope Phalaropus tricolor, Ballycotton, Co. Cork, September 1974 (photo:

Richard T. Mills )

Sora Rail in Scilly and the identification
of immature small crakes

D. I. M. Wallace

The immature Sora Rail Porzana Carolina present on St Agnes,
Isles of Scilly, from 26th September to gth October 1973 (Brit.
Birds, 67: 320; Scilly Bird Report for 1973'. 19-21) was the first to
be recorded in Europe since 1920. The record was accepted by
both the Rarities Committee and the Records Committee of the
British Ornithologists’ Union, and the species was once again listed
in category A of the British and Irish list (Ibis, 116: 578). This
short paper, which stems from the decision to publish in this journal
the details of records that result in category promotion, also includes
some comparative notes on immature small crake identification.

DETAILS OF THE SORA RAIL IN SCILLY

The bird was first seen in the rushes of the Big Pool by D. Smallshire,
but early opinions on its identity were hopelessly divided. DS,
A. R. Dean and B. R. Dean persisted in seeing slight but distinct
differences from the closely related Spotted Crake P. porzana, the
species to which others ascribed the bird on the basis of its noticeably
buff undertail. The literature available at the time implied that
this was a character only of the Spotted Crake and the controversy
might have remained unresolved but for the arrival of fresh, open-
minded observers, some already familiar with Sora Rails. A phone
call from DS to DIMVV on 7th produced redoubled efforts at
identification. Close attention had already been paid to the bird
by B. D. Harding on that date, and many other observers, notably
D. S. Flumm, H. P. K. Robinson and M. J. Rogers, watched for
it on 8th and 9th. By concentrating binoculars and mounted tele-
scopes on several patches of open mud over which the crake regularly
strayed, uninterrupted views at ranges down to 15 metres and
totalling 45 minutes were achieved. The following description
summarises four separate sets of field notes:

Size between Water Rail Rallus aquaticus and Little Crake Porzana parva (both
alongside the Sora on 9th) ; close to Spotted Crake, but with longer tail, per-
haps more bulk or rotundity head-on, with longer and deeper bill. Bill
greenish or brownish ochre, with distinct yellow surround to base; eyes dull
brown; legs and feet dull ochraceous-green. Head strongly marked: crown
rufous with noticeable black central stripe, forming striking pattern head-on ;
superciliary area buffy-grey, short streak over and behind eye bright white
(very conspicuous at close range); ear-coverts greyish with faint, blackish
stripe to rear of eye (drooping at the end) and obvious patches between eye
and base of bill, fully black on right, but speckled grey on left. Throat whitish

[Brit. Birds, 69: 443-447, November 1976]

443

444

Sora Rail and small crakes

with narrow black ‘furrow’ in centre, ending in tiny black bib (above neck
crease). Nape greyish-brown; back strikingly patterned with at least four
lines of distinctly marked feathers, each brown with blackish centre and white
fringes, forming obvious lines head-on, and the rear four or five speckled
white; rump blackish-grey; uppertail-coverts brownish-grey. Wing-coverts
dull, ‘oily’ tawny, forming uniform patch in mid-body, with only inner
greater coverts speckled white and fringed black; flight-feathers dark brown.
Chest sides greyish, with lines of grey and buff" mottling; front flanks greyish-
buff with white spots, rear flanks deeply barred with dull black, grey and
white with top edge white and some general buff mottling. Vent brown,
flecked whitish ; undertail-coverts warm buff, fading on longest to plain buffy
white. Almost white under tail end (visible when flicked in alarm). At
distance, in dull light, looked very similar to Spotted Crake, but, in good light,
appeared noticeably paler on foreparts. Character also different, showing more
neck and often standing up like Water Rail; movements on ground easy (with
noticeable ‘dread runs’ to cover) ; flight apparently stronger than most small
crakes. Quite tame and not shy, feeding on open mud for up to four minutes.
Silent.

Comparing these details with the description in Witherby et al.
(1941), all the observers involved in a particularly concentrated
watch on 8th October concluded that the bird was an immature
Sora Rail in moult to first-winter plumage and that the apparent
discrepancy of the undertail colour was unimportant. Opponents
of the earlier claims became converted on the following day, and
both review committees accepted the record without query.

IMMATURE SMALL CRAKE IDENTIFICATION

Given hindsight, it is clear that the controversy over the St Agnes
Sora Rail owed most to the dangerous compression of field guide
texts, in which the few lines simply lacked the detail necessary for
correct identification; one plate (Robbins et al. 1966) contained a
totally misleading illustration of a young Sora Rail. The rest
of this paper is, therefore, devoted to specifying the crucial charac-
ters in the field identification of immature small crakes. It is written
in the hope that fewer seconds (and most glimpses of small crakes
are so timed) will be wasted in future.

It is usual to group the four small crakes into two pairs, the Spotted

Table 1. Measurements in mm of Spotted Crake Porzana porzana, Sora Rail
P. Carolina, Little Crake P. parva and Baillon’s Crake P. pusilla (after Witherby
et al. 1941 and American/Canadian literature)

Total

Wing (d?)

Tail (d)

Tarsus (d)

Bin (d?)

length

Spotted

1 09- 1 25

43-49

30-37

16-21

230

Sora

98-117

46-53

30-38

18-22

215

Little

95-i 10

50-57

28-32

16-19

190

Baillon’s

83-95

38-46

27-29

15-18

180

Sora Rail and small crakes

445

Fig. i. Important characters of small crakes in immature plumage. Top right,
Spotted Porzana porzana with red base to upper mandible, fully spotted chest,
complete flank barring and white flecks on wing-coverts. Top left, Sora Rail P.
Carolina with heavy yellow bill, strong crown pattern, white throat (with black
division in first winter), mainly buff chest, rear flank barring and virtually uniform
wing-coverts. Centre, Little P. parva with lightly barred flanks, virtually uniform
wing-coverts and long wing point. Bottom, Baillon’s P. pusilla with completely and
heavily barred flanks, white flecks on wing-coverts and short wing point. All

plumages as in early October

Crake with the Sora Rail and the Little Crake with the Baillon’s
Crake P. pusilla , and to stress that the latter pair are much smaller.
The true size order is demonstrated in table i . The marked overlap
of wing and tail lengths in the first three species should be noted;
it is only Baillon’s that is really a ‘tiny runner’ (though all four
and also the ubiquitous Water Rail can appear to be so). Other struc-
tural differences are the long wing point and tail of the Little com-
pared with the Baillon’s Crake’s short wing point and tail, and the
heavy bill of the Sora.

44-6 Sora Rail and small crakes

Table 2. The diagnostic plumage characters of immature Spotted Crake Porzana
porzana, Sora Rail P . Carolina, Little Crake P. parva and Baillon’s Crake P. pusilla

SPOTTED

SORA

LITTLE

baillon’j

Crown

Lores

Rear

eye-brow

Greyish-brown
with darker
mottling

Chestnut, with
black centre

First winter -.
increasingly mottled
black

Bright white

Face

Throat

Pale grey
Pale grey, with
darker streaks

Buffy-grey
Immature: white un-
marked; first winter:
white with black
dividing line (diffi-
cult to see)

Buffy-white

Rich bull'

Wing-

Greenish-brown ,

Uniform tawny-brown,

Uniform olive-brown,

Warm brown, with

coverts

with many white

with one line of

with one line of

several lines of

Back

flecks

white flecks

white flecks
Olive brown

obvious white
flecks

Rufous-brown

Underparts

Brown, grey and white,

Pale buff and white,

Pale buff and

Buff and white,

with many white spots

with few white spots

cream with faint

with distinct

over whole chest and

on greyer chest

mottled lines and

brown lines down

strong barring over

sides and obvious

dusky bars on rear

foreflanks and

Undertail

Outer edge
of wing

all flanks
Buff

barring only on rear
flanks

Warm to pale buff,
with longest
feathers white (most
obvious from behind)

flanks

many blackish
bars on rear
flanks

White (edge of
bastard wing and
outer web of first
primary)

Bill

Yellowish-green.

Wholly greenish-

Wholly greyish-

Wholly greyish-

with orange or red
base to upper
mandible

yellow

green, or with
orange base to
upper mandible

green

Legs

Olive-green

Green

Green

Dull flesh,

tinged grey or
yellow

Overlaps also occur in the plumage characters of the four species,
but table 2 isolates the diagnostic marks, which are also shown in
fig. i. The successful identification of an immature small crake
rests mainly on the precise observation of size, structure, bill colour,
wing-covert markings and underpart patterns.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am grateful to A. R. Dean and the members of the Rarities Committee for
their comments on an early draft of this paper.

SUMMARY

The identification of the first Sora Rail Porzana Carolina to be recorded in Europe
for 53 years was initially made difficult by reference to inadequate literature, which
implied that its undertail should have appeared white when, in fact, its colour is
very similar to that of the Spotted Crake P. porzana. To prevent future confusion,
a detailed description is given of the bird in question. This is followed by brief
comparisons of the sizes and diagnostic characters of these and the other two small

Sora Rail and small crakes

447

crakes, Little P. parva and Baillon’s P. pusilla, in immature plumages. Witherby
et at. (1941) remains a fully adequate reference for observers troubled with small
crakes; its detailed plumage descriptions are unsurpassed.

REFERENCES

Robbins, C. S., Bruun, B., and Zim, H. S. 1966. Birds of North America. New York.
Witherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W.
1941. The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 5.

D. I. M. Wallace, g Woodhill Rise, Heads Lane, Hessle, Hull, North
Humberside HU13 ohz

Apparent hybridisation of Firecrest and

Goldcrest

F. K. Cobb

From 20th to 29th June 1974, a male Firecrest Regulus ignicapillus
was seen regularly, singing strongly but evidently without a mate,
in a wood in east Suffolk. The area had not been visited for some
time before 20th June, so that it is not known how long he had been
present. The wood covers some 10 ha and is mainly deciduous, com-
prised of oaks Quercus robur, sycamores Acer pseudoplatanus, and
silver birches Betula pendula\ there is also, however, a scatter of
European larches Larix decidua and Scots pines Pinus sylvestris, with
an occasional Norway spruce Picea abies. Apart from the silver
birches, most are mature trees.

The Firecrest sang usually from any one of about a dozen Scots
pines scattered over half to three-quarters of a hectare. There was
also a single Norway spruce some 18-20 metres high in this area,
which was sometimes used as a song post, but the bird showed no
preference for it over the Scots pines. He fed mainly in the surround-
ing deciduous trees, but was never heard to sing from them. The
possibility of an incubating female was considered, but, as the male
showed no preference for any particular tree, this was thought
unlikely.

Then, on 30th June, G. J. Jobson saw the Firecrest with another
Regulus in the Norway spruce and, later that day, D. J. Pearson and
J. G. Rolfe watched this second bird carrying a feather in the same
tree. No one obtained good views of it, but, not unnaturally, all
assumed that it was a female Firecrest. On 1st and 2nd July, I

[Brit. Birds, 69: 447-451, November 1976]

448 Firecrest x Goldcrest hybridisation

watched numerous visits by the female carrying material, and
located the nest site in a hanging spray 12 metres or more up in the
spruce. On every visit, she was accompanied by the male Firecrest,
who sang while she built. Clear views were obtained of both birds
on many occasions, but I could only conclude that the female had
the poorest markings of any Firecrest I had ever seen, with no sign
of an eye stripe. Viewing from below, however, with the birds high
above my head, was very difficult and I still assumed that she was
also a Firecrest.

On 3rd July, the male was singing strongly in the spruce, but the
female was not observed ; presumably the nest had been completed.
From then until 23rd July, she was seen only occasionally, as was
to be expected during incubation. The male at first continued
singing strongly, and always from the nest tree, but his output
began to weaken noticeably in both frequency and duration from
6th July, until on the 9th he was singing very little. No song was
heard after that date — only the occasional call. On 23rd July,
both were seen taking food into the nest and, then and subsequently,
it was possible to obtain more satisfactory views of the female. All
the observers concerned (who are listed in the acknowledgments on
page 450) were satisfied that she was a Goldcrest R. regulus.

The behaviour of the adults when feeding the nestlings calls for
comment on only one point. The female was much the more timid
in her approach to the nest, moving cautiously from bough to bough
until she disappeared into the spray where the nest was situated.
In contrast, the male almost invariably flew straight in boldly.
Likewise, if both coincided in their arrival, she always held back to
allow him through, even if she had arrived first and was on the
approach to the nest. The clear impression received was that the
Firecrest was dominant, although whether this difference in be-
haviour was sexual or specific is not known.

On 9th August, two or three young were seen out of the nest;
they wing-flapped for a few minutes before returning to it. On
10th August, D. R. Moore and I saw at least five young huddled
together under the canopy beneath the nest. Both the male Fire-
crest and the female Goldcrest were watched feeding them. Although
a telescope was used on the young, it was not possible to discern
their head markings, but it is doubtful whether eye stripes, if present,
would have been visible under the dark canopy. By that evening,
there was no sign of any of the birds in the tree and they were not
seen again.

DISCUSSION

The evidence indicates hybridisation between a Firecrest and a
Goldcrest, but there appears to be no previous record of this

449

Firecrest x Goldcrest hybridisation

(L. A. Batten in litt.). Voous (i960) stated that in Europe these
two Regulus behave as siblings (closely related species that are
rcproductively isolated, thus able to inhabit the same area without
interbreeding). The standard work on bird hybrids (Gray 1958)
contains no reference to them, though it does cite Ackermann (1898)
and Cockrum (1952) for evidence of hybridisation between two
North American members of the same genus, the Ruby-crowned
Kinglet R. calendula and the Golden-crowned Kinglet R. satrapa. It is
necessary, therefore, to consider whether any other hypothesis
would fit the facts.

Kenneth Williamson (in litt.) has suggested that the Goldcrest
could conceivably have laid eggs already fertilised by a male
Goldcrest which then died, leaving her in a physiologically repro-
ductive state in which she was taken over by the unmated male
Firecrest. This, however, seems rather unlikely. Many passerines,
perhaps most, do not copulate until nest building has at least begun
and often been completed. This is true of, for example, Marsh Tits
Parus palustris (Morley 1949), Robins Erilhacus rubecula (Lack 1943),
Reed Warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus (Brown and Davies 1949),
Graceful Warblers Prinia gracilis (Simmons 1954), Hawfinches
Coccothraustes coccothraustes (Mountfort 1956), Canaries Serinus
canarius (Hinde 1955) and Chaffinches Fringilla coelebs (Newton
1972). If it applies also to Goldcrests, then this particular female,
assuming that she had previously been fertilised by a male Gold-
crest who subsequently died, must have already started or even
completed a nest in some other part of the wood and then been
attracted into the territory of the male Firecrest, where she built a
second nest.

At the time when the male Firecrest was in full song, Gold-
crests were singing strongly in other parts of the wood: this was
presumably between first and second broods, for their singing ceased
at approximately the same time as did that of the Firecrest, and so
there is also the possibility of the female switching to a new mate
between broods, but otherwise the same objections apply. It should
be added that no Goldcrest was ever heard singing in the Firecrest’s
territory and the only occasion on which the species was seen there
was when several, thought to be juveniles, spent a few minutes
feeding in the nest tree.

It is well known that unmated males and other non-breeding birds
will sometimes help with the feeding of nestlings of their own or
another species, but in this case the Firecrest behaved as the true
male parent, from nest building right through incubation to the
fledging of the young. Thus, it seems clear that a pair was formed,
though, even if copulation had been seen, it would not have proved
successful hybridisation. I have suggested above that mating, if it

45°

Firecrest x Goldcrest hybridisation

occurred, had probably taken place between the Firecrest and the
Goldcrest during or immediately after nest building; but, since
there is no way of telling which copulation actually achieves fertili-
sation of the female, it would not have disproved the possibility of
the female having already been fertilised by a male of her own
species, as discussed above. The only absolute proof of hybridisation
would therefore have been by the offspring showing some character-
istics of the Firecrest; unfortunately, it was impossible to ascertain
whether or not this was so. Nevertheless, hybridisation seems much
the most likely interpretation of the facts.

Firecrests were first proved to have bred in England in 1962,
when a nest was found in the New Forest, Hampshire, after a
number of singing males had been seen there in that year and the
previous one (Adams 1966). The New Forest population reached a
peak of 27 singing males in 1969, and from 1968 there were obser-
vations of a few in other counties (Batten 1971). By 1972, as many
as 43 males were found singing or holding territories in six English
counties north and west to Lancashire (Batten 1973). This coloni-
sation of England corresponds with a considerable spread on adjacent
parts of the Continent, affecting France, Belgium, the Netherlands,
Denmark and north Germany, while in Czechoslovakia the species
has become more numerous than the Goldcrest (Batten 1973).

In such conditions of spread, it is likely that male Firecrests will
find themselves in new areas without mates and then hybridisation
may well occur occasionally. Unfortunately, while the singing male
Firecrest may be relatively easy to locate and identify, the females
of both species are often hard to watch in the dense cover of conifers.
Difficult as the pair in Suffolk were to see, they were at least in a
single, slightly isolated spruce. Careful observation would clearly
be necessary to eliminate the possibility of hybridisation in the more
typical habitats of a solid row of conifers or a continuous plantation.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I should like to thank the following for allowing me to use their observations:
G. L. Clarke, G. J. Jobson, D. R. Moore, D. J. Pearson, J. G. Rolfe, C. J. Shackles
and C. S. Waller. CSW watched the birds throughout and it was particularly
stimulating to be able to discuss hybridisation and other possibilities with him.

I am also most grateful to L. A. Batten for his comments on a draft of this paper.

SUMMARY

In 1974, in an east Suffolk wood, a male Firecrest Regulus ignicapillus and a female
Goldcrest R. regulus reared at least five young to fledging. Although absolute
proof of hybridisation was not obtained, the evidence for this was very strong;
other possibilities are discussed. Apparently there is no previous record of hybrid-
isation between these sibling species, but, with the spread of the Firecrest into areas
previously occupied only by Goldcrests, it is suggested that the possibility of further
such cases should be borne in mind.

Firecrest x Goldcrest hybridisation

45*

REFERENCES

Ackermann, K. 1898. Thierbastarde. Zusammenstellung der bisherigen Beobachtungen
iiber Bastardirung irn Thierreiche nebst Litteraturnachweisen. II Theil : Die Wirbelthiere.
Kassel.

Adams, M. C. 1966. ‘Firecrests breeding in Hampshire’. Brit. Birds, 59: 240-246.

Batten, L. A. 1971. ‘Firecrests breeding in Buckinghamshire’. Brit. Birds, 64:
473-475-

1973- ‘The colonisation of England by the Firecrest’. Brit. Birds, 66: 159-166.

Brown, P. E., and Davies, M. G. 1949. Reed Warblers. East Molesey.

Cockrum, E. L. 1952. ‘A check-list and bibliography of hybrid birds in North
America north of Mexico’. Wilson Bull., 64: 140-159.

Gray, A. P. 1958. Bird Hybrids. Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux, Farnham
Royal.

Hinde, R. A. 1955. ‘A comparative study of the courtship of certain finches
(Fringillidae)’. Ibis, 97: 706-745 (718).

Lack, D. 1943. The Life of the Robin. London.

Morley, A. 1949. ‘Observations on courtship-feeding and coition of the Marsh
Tit’. Brit. Birds, 42: 233-239 (234).

Mountfort, G. 1956. ‘The territorial behaviour of the Hawfinch Coccothraustes
coccothraustes’ . Ibis, 98: 490-495 (492).

Newton, I. 1972. Finches. London.

Simmons, K. E. L. 1954. ‘The behaviour and general biology of the Graceful
Warbler Prinia gracilis’. Ibis, 96: 262-292 (275).

Voous, K. H. i960. Atlas of European Birds. London.

F. K. Cobb , Martins , Eastbridge, Leiston, Suffolk

Notes

Trembling movements of House Martin when nest-building

On 6th June 1975, near South Gorley, Hampshire, I watched at
close range with binoculars a House Martin Delichon urbica building
its nest, which was in the early stages of construction. The nest was
situated below the eaves of an old thatched cottage at a height of
three metres from the ground. I noticed that, when the martin
placed and held in position with its beak a mud-pellet, its head and
body trembled violently for about three seonds. These movements
ceased when the bill was carefully withdrawn. On 10th June, I
visited the site again and noted the same movements each time
mud-pellets were added to the nest. Hubert E. Pounds

27 Orchard Close , Ringwood, Hampshire b H24 1 lp

This behaviour, although not widely recorded, is quite normal.
It is apparently similar to the quivering or trembling movements
used by most species of birds when attempting to fix material in
place, at least during some stage of nest building. Eds

452

Notes

Blackbirds nesting in disused Magpie nest On I ith May 1975,
on a moor at Mochrum, Galloway, I found that Blackbirds Turdus
merula had built a nest in a disused nest on a pair of Magpies Pica
pica in an isolated clump of sallows Salix sp. The Blackbirds had
built a normal nest on top of the lining of the inner fabric of the
Magpies’ nest, the dome of which was still intact. The Blackbird
laid a clutch of four eggs and on 27th May the nest contained four
nearly fledged young. Apart from a few isolated hawthorns Crataegus
monogyna, the sallows were the only trees there. R. C. Dickson
3 Galloway Place, West Freugh, Stranraer DGg qdt

Blackbirds evidently seldom adapt the old nests of other species-
Bruce Campbell and James Ferguson-Lees (1972, A Field Guide to
Birds ’ Nests) were able to cite only one similar record involving a
Magpie’s nest and that came from John Walpole-Bond’s A History
of Sussex Birds (1938: vol. 2: 78), where the details were given as
between Berwick and Polegate, Sussex, on nth May 1929. Eds

Robins nesting in disused Blackbird nest In 1 975, in my garden
in a built-up part of Ipswich, Suffolk, a pair of Blackbirds Turdus
merula nested about two metres up in the centre of a yew Taxus
baccata in the midst of shrubbery. Three young left the nest at the
end of April. In May, a pair of Robins Erithacus rubecula built a
nest among a large pile of shrub and rose cuttings, but this was
unsuccessful owing to disturbance by a cat. In the last week of June,
I noticed that the Blackbirds’ nest looked very fresh and, on examin-
ation, found that the Robins had built a nest inside it. This was
successful and three young fledged. Neither The Handbook nor
Bruce Campbell and James Ferguson-Lees (1972, A Field Guide to
Birds' Nests) made any reference to Robins nesting in the disused
nest of another species. L. T. Bloomfield

3J Fircroft Road, Ipswich, Suffolk ip i 6aq,

Slate-coloured Junco in Kent During the early morning of
26th May i960, I was mist-netting Linnets Acanthis cannabina along
the bank of the Dengemarsh sewer at Dungeness, Kent, when my
attention was attracted by an unfamiliar song, which I described
at the time as ‘a short twittering trill — rather sweet’. In the field,
the bird (although obviously a finch) showed characteristics of
three species: it had the gait and feeding behaviour of a Robin
Erithacus rubecula, the tail and flight of a wagtail Motacilla sp and
the general colour of a male Black Redstart Phoenicurus ochruros.

Its flight was strong and undulating, while, on the ground, it
hopped and fed like a Robin or Dunnock Prunella modularis under-

Notes

453

neath clumps of gorse Ulex europaeus and thistles Cirsium/Carduus spp,
regularly flicking its comparatively long tail, which it carried
rather high. It regularly perched on small clumps of vegetation
and a wire fence, frequently uttering a short, quiet, single call-note,
‘tic’.

The most striking character was the generally dark grey plumage,
looking almost black around the head, but paler and browner on
the wings. In great contrast, the surprisingly pale bill showed up
clearly and looked white against the head. The pale off-white belly
and vent region was more noticeable in flight than when the bird
was feeding on the ground. Extensive white in the outer tail-feathers
was particularly noticeable when it flicked its tail, as it did regularly
when feeding on the ground, where a long-legged appearance was
also apparent.

With the assistance of C. J. Booth, the bird was driven into a
mist-net and was subsequently identified as a Slate-coloured Junco
Junco hyemalis, the second record for Britain and Ireland (the first
was in Co. Clare in May 1905). It was also seen in the hand by
D. L. Court. It was then examined at the observatory and sexed
as male. The following details were noted. Weight 18.0 g (06.00
hours), wing 78 mm, bill 12 mm, tarsus 24 mm, tail 67 mm. Wing
formula: 1st primary minute, 3rd and 4th equal and longest, 2nd
shorter by 6 mm, 5th by 1 mm, 6th by 2.5 mm, 7th by 6 mm, 8th
by 9 mm, 9th by 1 1 mm and 10th by 13 mm. Plumage: upperparts
darkish slate-grey, slightly darker over head, nape and lesser coverts,
but rump and back with lighter edgings; wings and tail dark brown-
black, flight-feathers with browner outer webs; white outer webs to
outermost four tail feathers; underparts mostly white, but breast
and flanks dark slate-grey, undertail dark grey, underwing silver-
grey. After ringing, the bird was released and was not seen
again. R. E. Scott

Swigshole Cottage , High Halstow, Kent ME3 8sr

As well as establishing the evidence for the particular record, short
notes on occurrences of extreme rarities provide a useful source of
information on identification criteria, expanding that available in
the field guides. We, therefore, hope to publish details of all such
records in future, and also those that have accumulated in recent
years. This i960 Slate-coloured Junco, at first generally regarded
as an escaped cage-bird, was accepted as the second British and
Irish record in 1971 (Brit. Birds, 64: 367-368), when it became clear
that a pattern of vagrancy in May was being established. Eds

Review

The Birds of Dublin and Wicklow. Edited by Clive Hutchin-
son. Irish Wildbird Conservancy, Dublin, 1975. 132 pages;
12 black-and-white photographs; 13 maps and diagrams.
£i*75*

A book dealing with the birds of a county or region must satisfy
the needs of residents in the area, and potential visitors, as well as
those who wish to use it mainly for reference. On every count, this
book is a success.

Over half of the book is taken up by a systematic list of the 276
species of birds recorded in the two counties up to 31st December
1973. Compiled by the editor, this is well balanced, with, for
instance, an average of 16 lines devoted to each of the six commoner
thrushes, but only one line to American Robin. Unlike many such
lists, this one makes interesting reading. Twentieth century records
of species recorded on five or fewer occasions are listed in full, but
earlier records are summarised ‘because they are readily available
in the literature’: this is the only way in which the list fails to be
comprehensive. Half-monthly totals of records and breeding dis-
tributions within 10-km squares are shown by histograms and
maps for 23 of the most interesting species.

Preceding the systematic list, there are chapters by four authors,
as well as the editor: these deal with the physical features and
habitats of the area (R. N. Goodwilhe) ; the birds of the three
most interesting habitats, the uplands and mountains (G. C.
Noonan), the seabird colonies (J. M. Rochford) and the estuaries
and tidal marshes; the passage of seabirds (R. F. Ruttledge) ; and a
historical review of the ornithologists who published accounts of
the area in the past, from John Rutty in 1 772 to the present day.
These chapters vary in style from the lyrical to the strictly factual,
but each fulfils its purpose admirably. As a reader who loves
Ireland but who knows only a few of the localities mentioned, I
found myself wanting to explore this diverse region more fully.
Not only are the habitats and their birds well — and often evoca-
tively— described, but details of access are clearly given in most
cases.

Though some are larger, I know of no better account of the
birds and habitats of a region. This book is attractively presented
and the photographs are well reproduced, as well as being relevant
and informative; the editor, the authors and the IWC are to be
congratulated on producing a book that I recommend to anyone
who has the slightest interest in Irish ornithology.

J. T. R. Sharrock

454

Letters

The Coto Donana In ‘News and comment’ in April 1966 (Brit.
Birds , 59: 163-164), it was announced that H. E. Axell, then warden
of Minsmere, Suffolk, had been seconded for two months by the
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds to the reserve on the Coto
Donana, Spain, ‘to advise and instruct the guards there in the prob-
lems of management, including the building of hides, the placing
of paths and trails, and the guidance of visitors’.

Miss Helen Fisher and I visited the Coto Donana in the first
week of June 1976. Although we did manage to see a number of
the species we had hoped to, and it is still a very exciting place,
we were intensely disappointed and concerned by what we found.
Briefly, and principally, that was:

(1) No ordinary visitors are allowed to walk anywhere except
within the immediate vicinity of the Palacio. There are no
paths or trails for the use of visitors.

(2) The only authorised way of moving about the reserve is in a
noisy and bumpy Land Rover, driven by one of the guards,
which leaves in its wake clouds of dust. The guards are un-
communicative and disinterested. The charge is ten pesetas per
kilometre per person. The incentive is, therefore, not sur-
prisingly, to cover distance rather than to observe birds and
other animals.

(3) There are hides, but we were unable to use any: they are built
on stilts with access by ladders, but none had a floor.

(4) Through the kind intervention of a member of the sparse pro-
fessional ornithological staff, we were allowed to use a superb
observatory above the laboratory, though its existence had not
previously been known to us and, indeed, the path to it was
barred by a gate with a notice declaring access to be prohibited.

(5) The young lady who was supposed to look after visitors was
away when we arrived. When she returned, although apparently
sympathetic to our requests, she had no real appreciation of
the requirements of serious birdwatchers.

(6) Outside the Palacio, there were a number of cages containing
Pardine Lynxes Fells pardina, Wolves Cams lupus. Mongooses
Herpestes ichneumon, an Eagle Owl Bubo bubo and a Buzzard
Buteo buteo. The last of these may have been injured, and the
Eagle Owl may possibly be used sometime in the future in an
endeavour to establish the species within the reserve, but we
could see little point in caging the mammals, other than to
provide a small zoo for day-trippers.

(7) We saw no information on display to help Spanish visitors to
understand the purpose of the reserve. A party we talked to,

455

456

Letters

who were not naturalists, obviously expected some sort of zoo
and were consequently disappointed. In our view, it is highly
desirable that ordinary visitors should be made fully aware
of the reserve’s purpose and be given some help in the identifi-
cation of its wildlife, along the lines of reserves in other countries.
(8) There was a visitors’ book in the Palacio. Although there were,
of course, appreciative comments relating to the exciting wild-
life, I have never seen such a collection of virulent complaints,
written by naturalists from all over the world. It made very
sad reading.

We fully understand that there are many endangered species in
the reserve, which would suffer from disturbance and which must
be zealously safeguarded. We are of the view, however, that con-
siderable improvements could be made to afford better facilities
for serious observers, without disturbing the wildlife at all, and taking
into account the particular needs and problems of the Coto Donana,
as no doubt originally suggested by Mr Axell.

In addition, and more importantly, we were dismayed to hear of
threats to the reserve’s continued existence. A motorway or major
road may be built along the coast, the marismas that surround the
reserve, and which are its life blood, are being drained in places,
birds such as the Crested Coot Fulica cristata are still being shot in
some numbers, and the Imperial Eagles Aquila heliaca may have
decreased from four breeding pairs in 1975 to two pairs in 1976.
Support, advice and money are clearly urgently required. The
problem is primarily one for the Spanish government and people.
We consider it vital, however, to bring the problem to the attention
of British naturalists, in the hope that, together with the Spanish
government and the World Wildlife Fund, we can ensure a flourish-
ing future for this unique wilderness. Richard Price

g Hauteville Court Gardens, Stamford Brook Avenue, London w6

E. M. Nicholson, who was closely involved in the recommenda-
tions and negotiations which led to the purchase and establishment
of the Coto Donana reserve, has commented as follows: ‘It is sadly
indisputable that visitors to the Coto Donana have lately been
suffering in such ways as Mr Price describes. The whole matter is
under urgent review, and a communication from a number of
leading British ornithologists, relating to the all-important points
raised in the last paragraph, was sent in spring 1976 to the Spanish
ministers responsible. The reserve’s director, Dr Javier Castroviejo,
has been invited, under the auspices of the British Council, to visit
Britain this autumn to study methods of managing reserves and
handling visitors, and to discuss the kinds of help which he urgently
needs to relieve a situation as intolerable to him as it is to his

Letters

457

visitors. Meanwhile, it should be noted that one successful result
of Mr Axell’s visit has been the creation of two large ponds in
front of the Palacio, which have attracted Marbled Ducks Marmaro-
netta angustirostris, Purple Gallinules Porphyrio porphyrio and other
rare species, where they can be freely seen by all visitors. Despite
its distressing teething troubles, the reserve is largely succeeding in
maintaining the Coto Donana’s wealth of wildlife in the face of
formidable pressures, and this, after all, is the vital point.’ Eds

Proof of breeding Dr Bruce Campbell very properly drew
attention [Brit. Birds, 69: 277) to the need ‘for some definition of
“breeding” in respect of egg-laying animals’, but he cited only the
Concise Oxford Dictionary and the Penguin English Dictionary. May I
suggest that the ultimate authority, the Oxford English Dictionary,
from which COD derives, should be consulted. There the primary
definition is:

‘Said of a female parent: To cherish (brood) in the womb or egg; to bring
(offspring) forward from the germ to the birth; to hatch (young birds) from
the egg; to produce (offspring, children).’

There can surely be no doubt that the presence of infertile eggs,
whether laid by a bird which has or has not a mate, does not pro-
vide evidence of breeding? ‘Nesting’ is not synonymous with ‘breed-
ing’: many birds make nests in which eggs are never laid. ‘Unsuc-
cessful breeding’ is nonsense: young birds cannot be hatched
unsuccessfully from eggs — they either hatch or they do not. There
could be evidence of the laying of fertile eggs that did not hatch,
for example because the chick died in the egg, but this would
constitute ‘attempted breeding’. E. J. M. Buxton

Cole Park, Malmesbury, Wiltshire

Swallows nesting in old nest of Robins Although you were not
able to find a past record of Swallows Hirundo rustica nesting in an
old nest of Robins Erithacus rubecula [Brit. Birds, 68: 247), there is a
1961 record (54: 327) over my name. Andrew T. Macmillan
20 Garscube Terrace, Edinburgh eh 12 6bq

Request for information

Wing-tagged Goosanders About 270 young Goosanders Mergus merganser have
been trapped and ringed in Northumberland in recent years. In 1976, in addition
to ringing, wing-tagging was started. Details of any sightings of wing-tagged
Goosanders will be gratefully received, and details of marking sent by return.
Please inform E. R. Meek, 7 Shaftoe Way, Dinnington, Northumberland.

Announcements
Line drawings

The covers of the twelve issues of volume 70 of British Birds will
feature line drawings instead of photographs. We shall welcome
submission of sketches by amateur and professional artists alike.
We also intend to use more drawings in the main body of the journal,
including at least one with most papers, and shall be pleased to have
offers from artists to draw these as required, at relatively short
notice. We regret that no payment can be made, but full acknow-
ledgement will be given for those that are used. Eds

Black-and-white prints from colour transparencies

Many more colour than monochrome photographs of birds are now
being taken, with the result that authors of papers and other con-
tributors are finding it increasingly difficult to provide suitable
black-and-white illustrations. Arrangements have, therefore, been
made for monochrome negatives to be made professionally from
35 mm colour transparencies in special cases where no suitable
black-and-white photograph is available. After reproduction in
British Birds, the negative will be given to the photographer.

Contributors should realise that loss of quality may occur in all
stages of reproduction and that the risk is greatest when reducing
colour to monochrome, however expert the processer. It is impera-
tive, therefore, that colour transparencies submitted be sharp and
that the image of the bird be of a reasonable size. The accuracy of
the colour is not of vital importance, and some degree of under-
exposure is tolerable, although over-exposure almost invariably
causes loss of important plumage details. The grain of the original
colour film greatly influences the final result, and fast films are
usually worse in this respect.

We hope that the provision of this service, at the publishers’
expense, will lead to a wider range of photographs in our journal,
although, at the same time, it must not be forgotten that it is a
costly process and so such reproductions will have to be kept to a
minimum. Eds

News and comment Peter Conder

Anniversaries 6th November 1976 is the 30th anniversary of the Wildfowl Trust,
which has been notably successful in its specialised field. It has been in the fore-
front of many campaigns to safeguard wetlands, designed to bring awareness to
birdwatchers and the general public of the importance of wet places and the oddly-
shaped and even odder-voiced birds that live on them. Its wildfowl collections,

458

News and comment

459

now in seven localities, give great enjoyment to huge numbers of people on week-
end excursions. Genuine aviculturists must also be impressed by the trust’s breeding
record. Serious ornithologists rate it highly for its research programmes, which have
produced invaluable evidence at a number of public enquiries, most notably
perhaps at the various stages of the one into the siting of London’s third airport.

The Norfolk Naturalists’ Trust is 50 years old this year. Norfolk was the fore-
runner of the county trust movement and owns a number of important bird
reserves including the Cley marshes, Scolt Head Island, Holme dunes, broads such
as Hickling and Barton, and several properties in Breckland. All in all, this mag-
nificent series of reserves is a tribute to those pioneer conservationists who saw that
land will always get more expensive and who seized their opportunities.

European Wetland Year At the time of writing, the year is nine months gone.
Some of the committed naturalists have laboured; others have paid lip service;
a number of smallish offspring have seen the light of day; some wetlands have
been safeguarded in new ways, either by purchase or lease. But I wonder whether
all this activity was a special effort or something that was going to happen anyway ?
At the end of the year, what will the balance sheet show? Has European Wetland
Year had any worthwhile effect on any government department, local authority or
intransigent landowner? Will EWY have any effect on the Anglian Water
Authority, which wants to reverse the flow of the River Ouse and thereby possibly
dry up the Ouse Washes, a wetland of first class scientific importance and listed
as such in the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, especially as
waterfowl habitat. It will be interesting to see if EWY has had sufficient impact
upon the Council of Europe’s national agency in this country — the Nature Con-
servancy Council — to make them use their influence as a government organ-
isation to prevent this site being wrecked. On 10th July 1976, the director of
the NCC is quoted as saying, at the ninth conference of the Association of County
Trusts for Nature Conservation, ‘The wetlands campaign is for all time. The
immediate goal is recognition by everyone that wetlands, which are vital for our
survival and quality of life, provide a critical test of our concern for this “one
earth”.’ The fine words continued. Now let us see the NCC put these words into
practice. This is a wonderful test case to see whether the Council for Europe and
its campaigns mean anything at all.

The Birdwatchers’ SECOND Quiz & Puzzle Book What a tortuous mind the
new managing editor of British Birds has — and he is possibly somewhat sadistic in
the way that he teases us. He is so superior about it too — the first puzzle says:

‘Six birds can be identified . . . ’; I
managed five. I then went on to puzzle
number 60 (because it looked easy) and
managed to find eight out of the twelve
birds required. But it is good fun, just
the thing to tease you and the family
at holiday times, and a good idea for
Christmas stockings. Robert Gillmor’s
cartoons are a delightful addition. It is
obtainable from the RSPB, all good
bookshops or direct from the author,
Dr J. T. R. Sharrock, 59 Curlew Crescent, Bedford MK41 7hy; price £1.00.

Honours to ornithologists Congratulations to Robert Spencer, deputy director
of the British Trust for Ornithology, who has been awarded an Honorary' MSc

News and comment

460

by Durham University, his alma mater. For over 20 years, Bob has not only led the
British ringing scheme, but has been a major influence on ringing methods and
organisation throughout Europe and beyond.

Congratulations also to Kenneth Williamson, on being awarded the Union
Medal of the British Ornithologists’ Union. His work on migration and, latterly, on
population studies has been recognised throughout the world.

A new German series Dr Einhard Bezzel, distinguished both for his ornitho-
logical studies and his important work for conservation in Bavaria, is the editor of
a valuable new series of monographs entitled Vogelkundliche Bibliothek, published by
Kilda-Verlag, Greven, West Germany. The first two, both by Dr G. Thielcke,
dealt with the threats to birds of prey and waterbirds respectively, while the third,
by B. Conrad and W. Poltz, discussed bird protection in the European Economic
Community. The fourth, aptly marking the ratification by the German Federal
Republic earlier this year of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, has just
appeared. In it, K. Haarmann and P. Pretscher cover fully the 17 wetlands of
international importance in West Germany, which are found mainly in the north
and south of the country. For each, they outline the habitat, significance of the
area, protection measures in force, possible threats (including hunting, fishing and
water sports) and further action needed, and give lists of numbers of the most
important breeding and wintering birds, together with full references. Like its
predecessors, it is attractively designed and fully illustrated with black-and-white
photographs and line-drawings. Each volume is of large pocket size, bound in semi-
stiff covers, and contains 60-100 pages. The current rate of exchange makes them
expensive by our standards (over £3.50 for this fourth volume), but both the idea
and execution of this series deserve praise and wide emulation. (Contributed by
Stanley Cramp.)

Threats to Thames wildlife Conservationists, increasingly alarmed by the
number of developments on the Thames estuary, have formed themselves into the
Thames Estuary Wildlife Conservation Group to study the problems. The group,
made up of representatives of twelve bodies interested in wildlife conservation on
the estuary, including wildfowlers, plans to present its findings and recommenda-
tions to developers and statutory bodies, among them the Port of London Authority
and the Greater London Council. The chairman is Stanley Cramp and the
secretary is John O’Sullivan of the RSPB’s conservation planning staff.

This method of bringing together a variety of opinion and experience was well
tried out at the time of the enquiry into the siting of London’s third airport and
has been followed by bodies concerned with oil developments in Scotland and
reclamation of the Dee estuary.

June and July reports D. A. Christie

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

SHEARWATERS TO DUCKS

A few Cory’s Shearwaters Calonectris diomedea were noted off Portland (Dorset)
during June, while at Seaton Sluice (Northumberland) 23 Sooty Shearwaters
Puffinus griseus passed north between 18th and 31st July, with a maximum of 13 on

June and July reports 46 1

the last date. A Fulmar Fulmarus glacialis flew north over Attenborough (Notting-
hamshire) on 3rd June.

There were two Purple Herons Ardea purpurea in June, at Stodmarsh (Kent)
on 6th and at Sandwich Bay (also Kent) on 22nd. A Little Egret Egretta garzetta
remained at Farlington marshes (Hampshire) from 4th June to mid-July and
another was seen in the Cuckmere Valley (East Sussex) on 5th July. A Little
Bittern Ixobrychus minutus arrived at Oxwich (West Glamorgan) on 24th June.
White Storks Ciconia ciconia were reported from five places in Kent after 4th
June, when one flew north at Lydd, though perhaps only two individuals were
involved; one was at Horsham (W^st Sussex) on nth June. On the latter date, a
Black Stork C. nigra was found at Easby-in-Cleveland (North Yorkshire), staying
until 1 6th. Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia were seen at six places in June and two in
July, a total of about 14 individuals being involved, including four at High Hal-
stow (Kent) and six inland. On 28th June a Surf Scoter Alelanitta perspicillata was
identified off Sands of Forvie (Grampian).

RAPTORS

A Black Kite A lilvus migrans appeared at the Calf of Man on 3rd June and another
was reported at Quarndon (Derbyshire) on 5th July. A Honey Buzzard Pernis
apivorus at a mid-Bedfordshire wood on 19th May should have appeared in the
May summary; others were subsequently reported at Redmires Reservoir (South
Yorkshire) on 20th June, Dungeness (Kent) on 3rd July and Fair Isle (Shetland)
on 16th. Away from Scotland, Ospreys Pandion haliaetus turned up at three
places in June, Gunthorpe (Nottinghamshire) on 4th, Fair Isle on 5th and Holywell
(Northumberland) the following day; and in July at Weston Turville (Bucking-
hamshire) and Wokingham (Berkshire) in the first week, and at Ogston Reservoir
(Derbyshire) on 17th. We received a late report of a Red-footed Falcon Falco
vespertinus at Foxhole Heath (Suffolk) from 16th to 21st May, and in June singles
appeared at Haroldswick, Unst (Shetland) on 1st and at Old Hall marshes (Essex)
on 2nd and 5th. Following the arrival of an American Kestrel F. sparverius on
Fair Isle in May (Brit. Birds, 69: 374), another was reported at Bcarah Tor,
Bodmin Moor (Cornwall), from 13th to at least 26th June.

WADERS

A Long-billed Plover Charadrius placidus reported at Chasewater (Staffordshire)
on 16th July will, if accepted, be the first of this Asiatic species to be seen in Britain
and Ireland. A less unexpected visitor was a Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes
which reached Huttoft (Lincolnshire) on 29th July. A Marsh Sandpiper T.
stagnatilis stayed at Farlington marshes from 27th to 29th June. A White-rumped
Sandpiper Calidris fuscicollis at Draycote (Warwickshire) on 17th May and a
Pectoral Sandpiper C. melanotos at Barmston Pond (Durham) on 29th were
both omitted from the May summary; a further White-rumped was at Killings-
holme (Humberside) on 26th and 27th July, and two Pectoral Sandpipers in
the Gunthorpe/Netherfield area of Nottinghamshire from 22nd to 25th July.
Broad-billed Sandpipers Limicola falcinellus were reported at Frampton (Avon)
in mid-June and at Crossens marsh (Lancashire) from 1st to 4th July. There were
two Buff-breasted Sandpipers Tryngites subruficollis in June, at Farlington
marshes on nth and at Row Head (Orkney) on 25th and 26th. Four Avocets
Recurvirostra avosetta at Dungeness on 8th June and one in the Yeo estuary- (Avon)
on 6th were unusual, as was one well inland at Eye Brook Reservoir (Leicester-
shire) on 8th and 9th of that month. At Blithficld Reservoir (Staffordshire) there
was a female Grey Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius in full summer plumage on 15th
June, while on 27th a Red-necked Phalarope P. lobatus turned up at Fairburn
Ings (West Yorkshire). At the latter locality’, a Collared Pratincole Glareola
pratincola was recorded on 28th June, and in the south-west another pratincole
Glareola sp was observed at Stithians Reservoir (Cornwall) on 4th July.

462

June and July reports

SKUAS TO AUKS

A Long-tailed Skua Stercorarius longicaudus was at Hoy (Orkney) on 20th June,
but one reported at Chew Valley Lake (Avon) the previous day was much more
surprising; in July the species was seen at Fair Isle on 9th, 14th and I5th-i8th.
A Mediterranean Gull Larus melanocephalus appeared at Aber Ogwen (Gwynedd)
on 5th June. News of a Ross’s Gull Rhodostethia rosea in full summer plumage at
Hartlepool (Cleveland) on 7th May reached us too late to be included in the
summary for that month. Several of the rarer terns were seen in Britain. White-
winged Black Terns Chlidonias leucopterus were recorded at Cley (Norfolk) on
1 4th June and Minsmere (Suffolk) on 19th, and in July in Kent at Dungeness on
1 st and in Botany Bay on 18th. Whiskered Terns C. hybrida were identified at
Shotton (Clwyd) on 5th July and at Holywell Pond (Northumberland) on 31st.
As many as three Gull-billed Terns Gelochelidon nilotica were seen at Spurn
(Humberside) on 15th June. A Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia was at Lydd on
9th June, and in July further ones were recorded at Besthorpe (Nottinghamshire)
on 2nd and at Eye Brook Reservoir on 30th. There was also a very interesting report
of two Briinnich’s Guillemots Uria lomvia near Lerwick (Shetland) early in July.

NEAR-PASSERINES

An unusual bird found at Pluckley (Kent) on 15th June was thought to be a
Pallas’s Sandgrouse Syrrhaptes paradoxus. The only Alpine Swift Apus melba
reported during the period was one at Huntingdon on 22nd June. Similarly, there
was just one Bee-eater Merops apiaster, at Walberswick (Suffolk) on 20th June, and
one Roller Coracias garrulus, at Largs (Strathclyde) from 13th to 16th June, though
there was a vague report of a Roller in Cornwall on the first two days of July.
Hoopoes Upupa epops were seen in June in Kent (two) and Nottinghamshire,
and in July in Avon.

PASSERINES

A Short-toed Lark Calandrella cinerea appeared at Casquets lighthouse (Channel
Islands) on 6th June, remaining until 8th. A Red-rumped Swallow Hirundo
daurica arrived on Fair Isle on 3rd June, the second of the spring there, and one was
seen on the Isle of Eigg (Lochaber) on 10th. Away from known breeding sites,
Golden Orioles Oriolus oriolus were seen in four places in Shetland in the first
eight days of June and in a south Derbyshire wood on 30th June. Two Fieldfares
Turdus pilaris arrived at Sandwich Bay on 27th July, three being present the next
day and five on 31st. At the same place an immature Redwing T. iliacus was
trapped on 22nd July. Still in Kent, a bird at Graveney on 1 ith July was thought
to be a Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia. The only Bluethroat L. svecica
was a late migrant on Fair Isle on 2nd and 3rd June.

Well inland, a Savi’s Warbler Locustella luscinioides was present at Bodymoor
Heath (Warwickshire) from 14th to 19th July. Further Marsh Warblers Acro-
cephalus palustris appeared on Fair Isle on nth and 12th June and 6th July, and a
singing male was discovered at Dungeness on 3rd June. Also on Fair Isle, there
with three Icterine Warblers Hippolais icterina on 1st June and one on 2nd, and
a Subalpine Warbler Sylvia cantillans on 1st. Single Red-breasted Flycatchers
Ficedula parva were recorded on Unst on 1st June and at Dungeness on 18th.

A late report of a Richard’s Pipit Anthus novaeseelandiae at Portland Bill on 19th
April is worth mentioning here. Two Red-throated Pipits A. cervinus appeared
on Fair Isle in June, the first on 7th and the second from 10th to 14th. There was
also an intriguing report of a possible Pechora Pipit A. gustavi at Northward Hill
(Kent) on 17th July. A Woodchat Shrike Lanius senator was at Walberswick on
20th June, the same day as the Bee-eater mentioned above. Finally, Scarlet
Rosefinches Carpodacus erythrinus appeared on Lundy (Devon) on 1st and nth
June and on Fair Isle on 7th and 18th of that month.

Recent reports K. Allsopp

[A number of changes in this feature will take effect from this issue onwards. The
editorial board has long been aware that the monthly reports of bird news have
been sadly late in appearing; indeed, the title ‘Recent reports’ was dropped almost
three years ago, reflecting the fact that, for instance, ‘May reports’ in the September
issue could not truthfully be described as ‘recent’. With a regular publishing date
now established, there is the opportunity for this section to live up to its restored
title. To relieve the burden on the editorial staff and to give this feature the
benefit of a new outlook, KA has taken over from D. A. Christie as regular author.
Reports will be appearing a month earlier than hitherto. They will inevitably,
therefore, be less complete, but will concentrate on the main events each month,
rather than attempting to list every unusual record submitted. Interpretations of
developing patterns will be speculative, but this treatment will, hopefully, act as a
catalyst to fuller enquiries and detailed papers by other authors. In order to pick
out the interesting patterns, however, individual records are still required. The
coastal counties usually get the majority of spectacular movements and occur-
rences, but reports of unusual events inland, even of common species, can form a
fascinating picture when linked together. Please write and tell us about those
records that are newsworthy in your area: they may form part of a national
picture warranting a section in this feature.

Not only will the main body of the monthly accounts be appearing earlier, but
there will be a regular section devoted to the outstanding latest news, which will
be incorporated as each issue goes to press. Four seasonal summaries will continue
to appear annually, taking a wider and more comprehensive view than the up-to-
date monthly reports.

Records should be sent to the editorial address, 59 Curlew Crescent, Bedford
MK4i 7HY. Letters will always be acknowledged (unless you add a note saying
‘acknowledgement not expected’: an action which would be appreciated, as it
would save both postage costs and editorial time). Eds]

These arc largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

This report covers August and the first part of September. Except when other-
wise stated, all dates refer to August.

SEABIRDS, GULLS AND TERNS

The relentless mass movements of seabirds hold a special fascination to most
birdwatchers, and off the North Sea coast these have been exceptional this autumn.
On 29th, about 1,100 Sooty Shearwaters Puffinus griseus were seen off Tarbat
Ness (Ross and Cromarty), and then, farther south, 548 offFlamborough (Humber-
side) on 2nd September, 285 the following day, and about 200 off both Hartlepool
(Cleveland) and Seaton Sluice (Northumberland) on nth September. Other
movements were reported from the Dutch coast and small numbers off north
Norfolk. Great P. gravis and Cory’s Shearwaters Calonectris diomedea, the former
predominating, added to the excitement, with 45 off Tarbat Ness and 70 off

463

464 Recent reports

Teesmouth during 28th to 30th. There was also a Little Shearwater P. assimilis
off Flamborough on 21st. These birds may have been displaced from their normal
Atlantic feeding grounds by foggy and wet weather there during the preceding
weeks or, as Dr W. R. P. Bourne (in litt.) has suggested, they may have moved far
north during the warm, fine summer and then come south into the North Sea. No
large movements of shearwaters were reported in the west, but two Black-browed
Albatrosses Diomedea melanophris were seen off the Old Head of Kinsale (Co.
Cork) on 12 th September. Skua passage in the North Sea has also been exceptional,
including 50 reports of Long-tailed Skuas Stercorarius longicaudus, compared with
the average of only 17 per year during 1958-67 (Brit. Birds, 63: 17-23). One hopes
that the members of the Rarities Committee are not regretting their recent decision
(69: 322) to add this species to the list of those considered by them!

These shearwater and skua movements clearly warrant full analysis when all the
data are available. Another pelagic species, Sabine’s Gull Larus sabini also
occurred in unusual numbers off the east coast (six records) and there was one at
Blithfield Reservoir (Staffordshire) on 12th, after a north-easterly gale. A Lesser
Crested Tern Sterna bengalensis seen briefly as it flew past with some Sandwich
Terns S. sandvicensis at Dungeness (Kent) on 1st September will, if accepted, be an
addition to the British list.

NEAR-PASSERINES AND PASSERINES

From 8th, the winds over the North Sea tended to be light north-easterly and small
numbers of Greenish Phylloscopus trochiloides, Wood P. sibilatrix, Icterine Hip-
polais icterina and Aquatic Warblers Acrocephalus paludicola, with a few Ortolan
Buntings Emberiza hortulana, arrived from the Continent. On 22nd, the centre of
the anticyclone moved east to southern Sweden and a strong easterly flow was
established. Pied Flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca became numerous on the east
coast, and the first Wrynecks Jynx torquilla were reported from Blakeney Point
(Norfolk), Fair Isle (Shetland) and Cape Clear Island (Co. Cork). On 24th, this
last locality had an unprecedented four Red-backed Shrikes Lanius collurio, after
reporting a Red-tailed Shrike L. c. phoenicuroidesjisabellinus on 20th. A Booted
Warbler Hippolais caligata was found on Fair Isle on 25th.

Two southern European species commonly considered to be mainly sedentary
were also found during this period. The first was a Sardinian Warbler Sylvia
melanocephala at Beachy Head (Sussex) on 15th. The second was a species new to
Britain and those who know the observer-saturated East Bank at Cley (Norfolk)
will be astonished to learn that it was seen at that locality by a single observer.
This was a Fan-tailed Warbler Cisticola juncidis on 24th. Another may have
occurred at Horsey (Norfolk) on 25th, but a direct report has not been received.
The subsequent discovery of one at Holme (Norfolk) on 28th probably related to
one of these same individuals.

LATEST NEWS

The following have been reported in October: Sooty Albatross Phoebetria fusca,
Sandwich Bay (Kent) ; Sociable Plover Vanellus gregarius, Fen Ditton (Cam-
bridgeshire) ; Ross’s Gull Rhodostethia rosea, Spurn (Humberside) ; dead Night-
hawk Chordeiles minor, American Robin Turdas migratorius and four Grey-
cheeked Thrushes Hylocichla minima, all Scilly; Pied Wheatear Oenanthe
pleshanka, Aberdeen; Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia, Whalsay (Shetland);
four Radde’s Warblers Phylloscopus schwarzi, Portland Bill (Dorset), Waxliam
(Norfolk), Marsden (Tyne and Wear) and Whalsay; Olive-backed Pipits
Anthas hodgsoni, Fair Isle (Shetland) and Scilly; Myrtle Warbler Dendroica
coronata, Cape Clear Island (Co. Cork) ; eight Blackpoll Warblers D. striata,
western Britain and Ireland; Pallas’s Reed Bunting Emberiza pallasi , Fair
Isle; two Rose-breasted Grosbeaks Pheucticus ludovicianus, Scilly.

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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 11 November 1976

421 Bird Photograph of the Year

422 Dark-bellied Brent Geese in Britain and Europe, 1955-76
M. A. Ogilvie and A. K. M. St Joseph

440 British bird-photographers 19 Eric Hosking Guy MountJ'ort

443 Sora Rail in Scilly and the identification of immature small
crakes D. /. M. Wallace

447 Apparent hybridisation of Firecrest and Goldcrest F. K. Cobb
Notes

451 Trembling movements of House Martin when nest-building
Hubert E. Pounds

452 Blackbirds nesting in disused Magpie nest R. C. Dickson
452 Robins nesting in disused Blackbird nest L. T. Bloomfield
452 Slate-coloured Junco in Kent R. E. Scott

Review

454 The Birds of Dublin and Wicklow edited by Clive Hutchinson
J. T. R. Sharrock

Letters

455 The Coto Donana Richard Price
457 Proof of breeding E. J. M. Buxton
457 Swallows nesting in old nest of Robins Andrew T. Macmillan
Request for information

457 Wing-tagged Goosanders E. R. Meek
Announcements

458 Line drawings

458 Black-and-white prints from colour transparencies
458 News and comment Peter Conder
460 June and July reports D. A. Christie
463 Recent reports K. Allsopp

D. I. M. Wallace drew the seabirds (page 463)

Front cover: Snow Finch Montifringilla nivalis, Switzerland, January
1971 (photo: Eric Hosking)

Printed by Henry Burt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

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Editorial Address 59 Curlew Crescent, Bedford MK41 7HY (telephone: 0234
62171)

Editors Stanley Cramp, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock, I. J. Ferguson-Lees,
M. A. Ogilvie and D. I. M. Wallace Photographic Editor M. D. England

News and comment Peter Conder, 12 Swaynes Lane, Comberton, Cambridge CB3 7ef
Rarities Committee J. N. Dymond, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2dl
(§) The authors and Macmillan Journals Ltd 1976

British Birds is published monthly by Macmillan Journals Limited, 4 Little Essex
Street, London WC2R 3LF ( telephone : 01-836 6633). ISSN 0007-0335

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Plates 29-32

The quality of the reproduction of plates 29-32 in
the July issue, featuring Thrush Nightingales
Luscinia luscinia, was so poor that no photographs
were included in August, to give a breathing space
while the reason for the fault and a remedy were
found. We hope that a permanent solution has
been achieved; readers will have noticed the
marked improvement in photographic reproduc-
tion in the September to November issues.

Plates 29-32 have now been reprinted and are
inserted in the centre of this issue. These will be
substituted for the substandard original plates by
the binders and should be left in position if you
intend to have volume 69 of British Birds bound by
P. G. Chapman & Co. Ltd, Kent House Lane,
Beckenham, Kent BR.3 ild; subscribers not intend-
ing to have volume 69 bound may care to make the
substitution themselves. Eds

“ADVENTURE LIT THEIR STAR”

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If you are sickened by the slaughter of migrant song-birds which takes place
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11

British Birds

VOLUME 69 NUMBER 12 DECEMBER 1976

Distinguishing Little and Reed Buntings
D. I. M. Wallace

Plates 50-5/

Peterson et al. (1974) stated that Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla are
‘distinguished from female Rustic and Reed Buntings [ E . rustica
and E. schoeniclus ] by smaller size and dull chestnut cheeks’. Other
field guides make similarly facile statements. All but one are content
to feature illustrations only of adult males. Thus, none stresses the
very real danger of confusion between Little and Reed, to which the
files of the Rarities Committee bear frequent witness and which is
perhaps best exemplified by the unfortunate publication, in Vdr
Fagelvarld (1965, 24(1): opposite page 17), Birds of the World (page
2468) and Collins Colour Guide (page 217), of a photograph of a
young female Reed labelled as a Little. This paper, which stems
from correspondence between observers in Britain and Sweden in
1974 and 1975, follows the publication of a useful, well illustrated
comparison of the two species by Svensson (1975b), and attempts
to reduce some of the evident risks in small bunting identification.
It deals with size and structure; plumage; briefly, habitat and
behaviour; and calls.

SIZE AND STRUCTURE

Typical Little Buntings are indeed little buntings, being shorter
than, for example, Meadow Pipits Anthus pratensis and Tree Sparrows
Passer montanus. The size comparison with Reed Buntings is less easy,
for, while female Littles are always smaller than female Reeds, some
large male Littles overlap, at least in wing length, with them. In
addition, a few male Littles have wings as long as the smallest male
Reeds. In the cases of these larger individuals, the size differences

465

[Bri/. Birds, 69: 465-473, December 1976]

466 Little and Reed Buntings

may be less than 2 mm, and practically invisible in the field. Thus,
while normal Littles are (and appear) distinctly Smaller than Reeds,
it must be noted that many observers have seen peculiarly small,
presumably runt Reeds (both adults and immatures) and caution is
essential over the character of size as a single basis for identification.
For a fuller treatment of measurements, reference to Witherby
et al. (1938) is recommended.

Happily, there are more differences in character than those re-
lating to size. These stem from structure and, though rather subtle,
they form important clues.

Bill shape

The bill of the Little Bunting is not short and its shape is charac-
teristic, with a rather long, triangular outline and a sharp point; the
culmen is usually straight or even slightly concave (Svensson 1975,
R. H. Dennis in litt.). The bill of the Reed, though in fact longer, is
quite large and looks rather short. Its shape is essentially triangular,
but the base is deep and rather bulbous; the outlines of both
mandibles are slightly convex. (The degree of convexity, together
with bill depth and general size, increases in the populations of
Reed Buntings inhabiting Austria, parts of the Mediterranean
area and all of eastern Europe.)

Head shape

The Little Bunting has a rather small head, a flat sloping forehead
and an evenly rounded crown, the last feature contributing to a
rather neckless appearance. Its round appearance is enhanced by
the contrast between the rich chestnut of the head and the greyish
cast of the mantle. The Reed has a larger and more angular head,
often with an obvious fore-crown angle, pronounced rear-crown
and, usually, more elongated neck. Again, the head shape is often
exaggerated by the paleness of the nape collar in males, also shown
by some females and immatures.

Body shape

In photographs, migrant Little Buntings look dumpy, with a con-
figuration recalling Linnets Acanthis cannabina or Tree Sparrows.
Such comparisons, a stress on compactness and even allusions to a
‘hunch-backed’ appearance are frequent in recent British records
and, in this respect, their resemblance to Dunnocks Prunella
modularis can be striking (R. J. Johns in litt.) ; this extends to feeding
manner and hopping gait. Older references mention slimness (with
compactness) for Little, recalling pipits Anthus spp. This is indicated
in the photographs of breeding birds published by Svensson (1975b),
but it is not recorded for migrants.

Little and Reed Buntings 467

By contrast, the Reed Bunting has a rather long body, made more
attenuated, as in most buntings, by the pronounced extension of the
tail. Only very exceptionally does it recall a small finch (Fringillidae)
or a dainty sparrow Passer sp. Even small Reeds retain the rather
high-headed, evenly-contoured, long outline of larger individuals.

Folded wing shape

Wing shape may be difficult to observe, but, as pointed out by
Svensson (1975a and b), there are important differences in this
character. The primary emarginations of Little Buntings fall almost
directly below the tips of the secondaries, whereas those of Reed
Buntings fall well inside that position. The spacing of the primary
tips is also dissimilar. Only four tips are easily visible on Littles, and
two (5th and 6th) cover most of the wing point. Reed Buntings,
however, show five tips; their spacing is rather even, but the longest
(5th) is almost masked by the next (6th). The determination of
these differences in spacing requires exceptional skill in observation.

Tail length and shape

Owing to wide variations between individual Reed Buntings, the
difference in tail length between the two species is not constant. It
can be as little as 2 mm. Thus, short-tailed Reeds are a particular
danger. There is, however, a pronounced difference in tail shape.
The tail ends of Reeds are usually full and rather loose, this character
being obvious in flight and on the ground, where it is often exag-
gerated, not only by flicking, but also by an obvious and charac-
teristic ‘nervous’ spreading of the outer feathers. The tails of Littles,
even when spread, are essentially rectangular and, when folded,
look noticeably thin, particularly from behind. In the opinion of
R. H. Dennis, R. J. Johns and myself, they are flicked, but not spread
in alarm ( contra Harris 1957).

Leg length

The Little Bunting has short legs, and these clearly account for the
Dunnock-like shuffle already referred to above. It hugs the earth.
The Reed, on the other hand, has legs as long as those of the
Yellowhammer E. citrinella. They can exceed those of the Little by
up to 25%, and the stance of Reeds on the ground is usually quite
upright.

Flight silhouette and action

A Little Bunting looks compact, neat and rather ‘busy’ in flight,
being difficult to follow in a flock of Linnets, for example, in a way
that a Reed is not. Its configuration is not outstanding except for the
noticeably rectangular tail. The Reed Bunting looks long and rather

468 Little and Reed Buntings

free, yet jerky, in flight, being easy to follow. Its configuration is very
individual, with wings apparently set well forward, and tail length
and flexibility very obvious. Its flight action is also distinct, being
rather pipit-like, with noticeable bursts of wing-beats (sometimes
seemingly uneven), most obvious from behind.

Many of the characters discussed above will be seen only with
practice and, since the Little Bunting remains a rather scarce
vagrant in western Europe, this is best obtained with the Reed,
which can be studied the whole year round.

PLUMAGE

There has been considerable confusion over plumage differences
between Little and Reed. There is not much published information
on the appearance of the former in the field (and notes on it in this
journal have contained comments that now seem odd). Rather than
add to the confusion with a plethora of age and sex comparisons, I
have concentrated in table 1 on isolating plumage features that
are either diagnostic or strongly indicative of the species in most
plumages. There is, of course, no possible error with an adult male
Reed in breeding plumage, which is not included in table 1.

There remains the matter of bare part colours. Little usually
shows a paler bill than Reed, recalling that of a Redpoll Acanthis

Table 1. Plumage differences between Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla and
Reed Buntings E. schoeniclus, other than adult males in breeding plumage

Plumage area little reed

head

Centre of
crown

Lateral crown
stripes

Supercilium

Eye ring

Typically pale chestnut in adults,
but variable in immatures: some
as adults, but others paler or
yellower, even streaked grey or
brown ; colour palest at front
Distinct, typically black in adults,
but dark blackish-brown or even
chestnut in some females and
most immatures, on which black
feather bases obscured by paler
fringes and tips
Wide, obvious behind eye
(forming upper part of pale
surround to cheek), always buff,
tinged chestnut before eye and
distinctly paler behind it
Very distinct, cream or pale buff
on most, off-white on some, paler
than supercilium and contrasting
with dark cheek

Typically dull brown, but
very variable in immatures :
often paler and even
yellowish-buff

Very variable, dark brown
on most, but often paler,
even bright chestnut in
some immatures, also
blackish in young males
in spring

Not obvious in most (with
less contrast with check),
dull brownish-white,
rarely yellowish

Indistinct, colour as
supercilium

469

Little and Reed Buntings

Table i (continued)

Plumage area

LITTLE

REED

HEAD

Cheek

Bold patch, typically almost
uniform chestnut in adults, duller,
yellower in immatures, often with
paler spot at rear and with black
edges or patch usually obvious
behind eye, round or on rear half
but never with lower outline
extending forward of point
below eye

Obvious, typically mottled
dull brown, but chestnut in
some, with dark surround
(blackish in some males)
most obvious behind eye
and along lower half, with
dark outline reaching base
of lower mandible

Malar stripe

Cream or buff in most adults, but
usually white in immatures,
when obvious

Obvious, white to pale
greyish-buff

Moustache

Obvious, black, usually
broadening at base

Pronounced, usually heavy-
dark brown or black line,
generally broadening into
large smudge at base

UNDERPARTS

Chin and

Variable, bufT, even chestnut in

Typically white, washed

throat

adults (distinctly warmer than
rest of underparts), white or pale
cream in immatures

yellow or buff, but greyish-
buff in some, never
contrasting with rest of
underparts

Streaks

Typically short, fine and
discontinuous black (looking
‘clean’ against white ground
colour)

Typically rather long, often
diffuse and usually
continuous; dark brown,
looking ‘messy’ against
dull ground colour

UPPERPARTS

General

Typically rather dull, even

Typically bright, pale

colour

greyish- brown, less warm than
head, but bright and rather
‘coppery’ in some

brown and even chestnut,
but duller and colder
in some

Lesser wing-

Indistinct, dull brown and not

Very distinct, bright

coverts

contrasting widt rest of
upperparts

chestnut or bay, forming
most colourful mark on
many females and immatures

Wing bars

Obvious, particularly on median

Very' indistinct, pale

(tips of

coverts, pale buff, even off-white.

chestnut and only very

median and
greater coverts)

distinctly paler than covert fringes

slightly paler than
covert fringe

Tertial

fringes

Distinctly pale, but not broad

Very distinct, pale and
noticeably broad on
outer webs

Rump

Chestnut or brown, indistinedy
streaked

Typically grey-brown, but
brown in some females, even
buff in some immatures, with
virtually no visible streaks

470

Little and Reed Buntings

flammea in having pale brown or ochre on the lower mandible at
least and also on the cutting edge and base of the upper (per RHD).
It never has a blackish bill like some male Reeds. The legs of Little
are usually paler and cleaner than those of Reed and can show a
pronounced pinkish tone.

Although the head pattern of typical Littles can be very obvious,
it is likely that, of the characters analysed in table i, only the
following are foolproof: eye ring, fore-cheek pattern and lesser wing-
coverts. I must stress the very real chance that some immature male
Reeds in spring can exhibit head patterns very close to that of Little
and that, in autumn, some birds are extremely confusing. Young
Reeds with apparently chestnut crowns and cheeks look very unlike
their usually drabber selves and clearly cause confusion to many
observers. In such cases, and in those of poorly marked Littles lacking
strong black on the crown edges, it is important to try for the
other certain characters. Begin with the eye ring seems to be the new
golden rule. Finally, I must note my complete failure to support the
suggestion that a pair of pale back stripes is diagnostic of Little
(Harris 1957, disputed by Svensson 1975b). This character is com-
mon to several species of buntings and is irrelevant to the distinction
of the two under discussion here.

HABITAT AND BEHAVIOUR

Differences in breeding ecology are swamped in the exigencies of
migration, but it is apparent that migrant Little Buntings rarely
enter woody cover, even where their preferred scrub willow Salix
exists. They are found most frequently in crops, on disturbed
soil or on paths and roads, appear to feed almost exclusively on
seeds or ground insects and tend to go to ground rather than to
cover when flushed. They have a reputation for being tame, but
also have the remarkable ability to vanish in minimal vegetation.
Migrant and wintering Reeds are virtually ubiquitous in vegetation,
now being independent of their original waterside niche, and
may be seen feeding in trees with Chaffinches Fringilla coelebs and
on shingle with Snow Buntings Plectrophenax nivalis. They may go to
ground when flushed, but usually first perch on a tall weed or the
edge of dense cover in order to observe their disturbers. Migrant
Reeds are often wild and secretive and the flocks of Scandinavian
migrants that visit Britain may bring Little Buntings with them as
well as Rustic Buntings.

CALLS

The voice of the Little Bunting has been incompletely studied, but
migrants certainly utter two short monosyllables (or two distinct
variants of one) and perhaps a third. According to Svensson (1975b),

47 1

Little and Reed Buntings

the most common call is a hard, sharp, clicking ‘zik’, recalling a
Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothrausles. This note is also rendered ‘tic’,
‘tick’, ‘tzik’, ‘pick’ or ‘pwick’, and also recalls a Rustic Bunting or a
Robin Erithacus rubecula. The description of the last transcription as
‘slightly rising’ (L. S. V. Venables, in Witherby et al. 1938) is dis-
liked by Swedish observers, who opine that the monosyllable is
invariably flat in tone. British observers, however, have distinguished
two types of clipped monosyllables, that above and a quieter, lower,
dry ‘tip’, ‘stip’, ‘tsip’ or ‘tsitt’, also written ‘tick’, ‘twit’ or ‘pwit’,
again recalling a Robin or a Song Thrush Turdus philomelos. Several
recent records feature monosyllables ending in both hard and soft
consonants, and there can be no doubt that Little Buntings give
more than one variety of call on passage through Britain. Further-
more, both types noted above may be quickly repeated in series
(usually twice or thrice) from the ground and in flight.

Svensson (1975b) doubted Venables’s (1949) ascription to the
Little Bunting of a higher, more musical ‘tsew’ call than that of Reed,
and several British observers familiar with Little are also wary of this
call, now again enshrined by Heinzel et al. (1972) ; two recent records
of problematic Littles giving it were rejected by the Rarities
Committee. Having personally learnt from Venables the need for
care in voice notation, I am reluctant to exclude the ‘tsew’ call from
the list of those uttered by Little, and it should be noted that
two other not dissimilar monosyllables are given by breeding birds.
These are a short, slightly hoarse ‘tse’, recalling a Spotted Flycatcher
Muscicapa striata, and a quiet ‘tseee’, again recalling a Robin and, in
fact, common to several buntings when inactive on territory (L.
Svensson in lilt, and 1975b). Only one other note is on record for
Little: a thin ‘kit’, given by adults to fledglings (Svensson 1975b).

The voice of the Reed is much better known, but the transcription
of its rather variable notes is not easy. Migrant calls include a very
typical, quite loud, plaintive ‘tsew’, often given in alarm or during
escape flights; a quieter ‘tsip’ or ‘chit’, also associated with alarm; a
penetrating, metallic, ringing ‘chink’ or ‘tzing’, apparently a contact
call; and a loud, clear ‘tzeek’, ‘tscheek’ or ‘tseep’. Breeding Reeds
also utter a quiet, reflective ‘tsee’. There is the obvious danger that
several of the above transcriptions of calls could relate to either
species, but I have no evidence that the Reed ever utters any note
like the ‘tzik’ or ‘tick’ of Little, or repeats any' of its notes in rapid
series. RHD (in litt.) has stressed the absence of any ‘tick’ note from
the vocabulary of the Reed Bunting.

OTHER CONFUSION SPECIES

Several Asiatic buntings that normally migrate within the east
Palearctic have straggled west to Europe, and three small species

472

Little and Reed Buntings

merit brief discussion in the context of this paper. The Chestnut
Bunting E. rutila (France, the Netherlands and a candidate for
category D in Britain) is larger and more thickset than the Little
Bunting, and even the less chestnut females and immatures are
quickly separated by their rufous rumps, strongly yellowish under-
parts and lack of obvious white in the tail. The Pallas’s Reed Bunting
E. pallasi (Denmark and, under review, Britain) is essentially a
miniature Reed, but at all ages it differs from both that species and
Little by its paler appearance, notably on the rump, which can ap-
pear pale grey or even white. Female Pallas’s Reeds have chestnut
cheeks, but no striking crown pattern.

Potentially much more troublesome is the Yellow-browed
Bunting E. chrysophrys (France, Belgium and, under review, Britain).
Like the Chestnut, however, it is a plumper bird than Little, and
males present no problem, since their basically black heads are
obviously marked by a white crown stripe widening on the nape,
a sulphur yellow supercilium and a whitish cheek patch. Females and
immatures somewhat resemble dull Littles, but are easily separable
by their less uniform plumage colour, the lack of any striking head
pattern and their relatively much larger, finch-like bills.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This paper has taken two years to write. I am particularly indebted to Lars
Svensson for a most informative series of letters and advance drafts of his texts.
R. H. Dennis, P. J. Grant and R. J. Johns made typically expert comments on
an early draft and RHD also supplied the slides from which plates 50-51 were
prepared: I thank them very much. I am also indebted to R. E. Emmett, who
chased several small buntings with me, I. C. J. Galbraith, who provided access to
the bunting skins at the British Museum (Natural History), and the members of
the Rarities Committee, who commented in detail on the files of both accepted
and rejected Little Buntings.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

Observers who find a small, nondescript bunting, and who not unnaturally think
of Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla, will find insufficient text or illustrations in field
guides to support the identification of any but the most obvious male. The danger
of mistaking small or oddly plumaged Reed Buntings E. schoeniclus for Littles is
considerable. Except in adult male plumage, Little and Reed Buntings present
very real identification problems. The main points distinguishing Little are:
more pointed bill; neckless, hunch-backed appearance; thin, rectangular tail;
short legs and shuffling gait; pale eye ring; uniform, chestnut cheeks (yellowish
in immature) ; dull brown lesser wing-coverts ; and ticking call note.

REFERENCES

Harris, G. L. 1957. ‘Little Buntings in Surrey’. Brit. Birds, 50: 206-208.
Heinzel, H., Fitter, R., and Parslow, J. The Birds of Britain and Europe with
North Africa and the Middle East. London.

Peterson, R. Mountfort, G., and Hollom, P. A. D. 1974. A Field Guide to the
Bird of Britain and Europe. London. 3rd edition.

Little and Reed Buntings 473

Svensson, L. 1975a. Identification Guide to European Passerines. Stockholm. 2nd
edition.

1975b. ‘Little Bunting and female Reed Bunting — the problem of field

identification’. Vdr Fagelv., 34: 31 1 -3 1 5.

Venables, L. S. V. 1949. ‘Call of L.ittle Bunting and song of Bluethroat’. Brit.
Birds, 42: 182.

and Venables, U. M. 1955. Birds and Mammals 0/ Shetland. Edinburgh and

London.

YVitherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker, B. W. 1938.
The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 1.

D. I. At. Wallace, g Woodhill Rise, Heads Lane, Hessle, Hull, North
Humberside HU13 ohz

Bearded Tits in Britain and Ireland, 1966-74

John M. O'Sullivan

WORLD STATUS

On the Continent, the Bearded Tit Panurus biarmicus breeds in
the Netherlands, north-western Germany and, patchily, in most
European countries south to southern France, south-eastern Spain
and southern Italy, and east to Greece and southern Russia. Outside
Europe, it breeds in Asia Minor east to south-western Siberia, and
in eastern Mongolia and north-eastern China (Vaurie 1959, Voous
1960).

STATUS IN BRITAIN

The history of the species in Britain up to 1965 has been documented
by Axell (1966). A general decrease in range was apparent in the
19th century, with contraction from much of southern and eastern
England into Norfolk alone. This was probably due mainly to a
combination of the destruction of its nesting habitat and severe
winter weather. In the early years of the present century, numbers
began to increase, and the recolonisation of Suffolk followed,
despite near-extermination several times in hard winters. After the
last but one of these (1946/47), Bearded Tits increased steadily in
numbers from just two to four pairs in Suffolk, and probably less in
Norfolk, to 108 pairs in East Anglia in 1957 and 285 in 1962.
Despite a marked decrease during the harsh winter of 1962/63, good
numbers survived, and by 1965 East Anglia held an estimated 257
pairs. Eruptions of the species were first observed in 1959; from

[Bril. Birds, 69: 473-489. December 1976]

474

Bearded Tits

i960 onwards, small numbers bred in Kent and, from 1962, a few
pairs also in Essex. In the early 1960’s, these colonies persisted and
breeding also took place in at least three other counties (Axell 1966,
Parslow 1967). Since 1965, the increase in numbers and geographical
spread has continued and this paper documents these changes up
to 1974.

The situation in the years 1966-74 is examined below. The first
section deals with breeding distribution on a county-by-county
basis; the second discusses dispersal; and the third considers winter-
ing during the period. Unless otherwise stated, records are taken
from the county bird reports for the relevant years. Old county
names are employed throughout, since these were in use for most of
the period (until 1st April 1974).

BREEDING

The nesting habitat is beds of the common reed Phragmites australis.
The presence of Bearded Tits is not difficult to detect during the
breeding season (except during periods of strong winds, when they
stay low in the reeds), since they are not shy and advertise them-
selves by calling. Not all of the likely sites are examined, however,
and it is possible that breeding occurs undetected in some places.
Estimation of the numbers involved is often difficult. Attempted
counting of nests is undesirable, since it damages the reed-beds and
disturbs the birds (including, perhaps, other scarce reed-nesting
species, such as the Bittern Botaurus stellaris and the Marsh Harrier
Circus aeruginosus) . Counting flocks of fledged young and erupting
parties in autumn may give an indication of breeding numbers and
success, but proper coverage requires frequent and regular watching
at a site, and this is the exception rather than the rule. For these
reasons, recorded breeding numbers are often estimates, particularly
at the larger sites (e.g. the Norfolk Broads). The counties in which
Bearded Tits have bred during the period are arranged here in the
order in which the geographical spread appears to have occurred.

Norfolk

In the years 1966-74, Broadland probably continued to be the main
stronghold of the Bearded Tit in Britain. Estimates of breeding
pairs were made only up to 1969, when 140-160 pairs may have
bred in the area as a whole. Thereafter, the birds were not counted,
but an increase in line with other sites in East Anglia seems likely.
Outside the Broads, in the north of the county, Cley held about
20 pairs in each year during 1966-71, twelve pairs in 1972, and
probably slightly more thereafter. Titchwell held one or two pairs
in 1968, increasing to ten pairs by 1971 and 30-35 pairs in 1974- On
the Wash, two pairs bred in the Snettisham area from 1970 to 1974

Bearded Tits

475

(R. Berry in lilt.). Elsewhere in Norfolk, occasional pairs have bred
in the Yare valley and at other sites, but the fact that many may be
overlooked was shown by the discovery of 20 pairs in the Waveney
valley in 1971.

Suffolk

The two main breeding stations in the county are Minsmere and
VValberswick. Estimates of breeding numbers at the former site
are available for the years 1966-74 (H. E. Axell in litt.). In 1966,
about 30 pairs bred there, rising to 35-40 pairs in 1967 and 1968.
After severe weather in southern England in the following winter,
only 20 pairs bred in 1969, but 1970 proved to be the best year ever,
with a record 60 or more pairs breeding — some raising up to four
broods in the long, warm summer — so that by the autumn the area
held about 1,000 Bearded Tits, the highest number ever recorded
at Minsmere. In 1971, there was a further increase to about 80
pairs, and this was maintained in 1972 and 1973, with a slight drop
to about 70 pairs in 1974. It is likely that the trends in breeding
numbers followed a similar pattern at VValberswick, but accurate
counts were generally not attempted. In 1972, however, Walbers-
wick held about 100 pairs. Outside these two main areas, breeding
by small numbers occurred occasionally in other coastal reed-beds
and, in 1972, one pair nested right away from the coast, in the west
of the county.

Kent

Breeding occurred in the county for the first time since the 19th
century in i960, and numbers increased from 12-20 pairs in the
north of the county in 1966 to 30 or more pairs at five localities in
1970, with 15 or more pairs in the Stour valley — the county strong-
hold. In 1971, there was a further increase to more than 50 pairs,
with 30 in the Stour valley, and in 1972 six and 1973 seven sites were
used, with an increase in total numbers. In 1974, five or six sites
were occupied and over 100 pairs (and perhaps as many as 150)
were thought to have bred (C. E. Wheeler verbally).

Essex

After an absence of many years, the Bearded Tit bred again in the
county in 1962. The same coastal site was used in each year until
1967, when it held six or seven pairs. In subsequent years, up to
four (usually two) other coastal sites each held two to four pairs.

Yorkshire

In 1964, breeding was first recorded at Blacktoft Sands, on the south
side of the Humber, and the species probably bred each year there-

Bearded Tits

476

after in gradually increasing numbers. The first careful count, in
1 973» revealed about 40-50 nesting pairs, and by 1974 the total had
risen to over 70 pairs (A. Grieve in litt.), some of which raised three
broods. In recent years, breeding has been suspected at other sites
in the county (including Hornsea Mere in 1971) and three or more
sites may have held small breeding numbers by 1974.

Hertfordshire

The first ever breeding record came in 1966, when two pairs raised
seven or more young at Stanborough Reedmarsh. Two pairs were
again successful in 1968, but, although a breeding attempt was
made, no young were fledged in 1971. In 1972 and 1973, Bearded
Fits were again present, but the reed-bed was destroyed by fire
in both years. None is known to have nested in 1974. (T. W. Gladwin
1976.)

Hampshire

Breeding may have occurred in the county in most years in the early
i96o’s. One pair possibly bred at Titchfield Haven in 1966; single
pairs certainly did so in 1967, 1969 and 1970, and two pairs in

Table 1. Breeding population of Bearded Tits Pamtrus biarmicus in Britain

during 1966-74

Figures given represent the approximate number of pairs breeding in each county.
In Norfolk, estimates of numbers breeding in Broadland have not been attempted
since 1969; the figures for subsequent years are thought to be minima. In Suffolk,
numbers given for 1966-71 are from Minsmere only; at Walberswick there were
no counts until 1972, although breeding doubtless took place in each year. The
totals are therefore approximate and represent minima. P indicates probable

breeding and S summering

1966

1967

1968

•969

• 97»

1 97 1

•972

•973

•974

Cambs.

P

Dorset

< 10

< 10

< 10

< 10

< 10

< 10

< 10

10-12

Essex

4

6-7

7-8

6-8

6+

6-8

6-8

4

8 +

Hants.

P

I

I

I

2

S

S

Herts.

2

2

2

Kent

12-20

27

20

30

30

50

50 +

+

O

100 +

Lancs.

S

1

3

Lines.

3

3-4

I

I

4 +

io-f

20 +

Norfolk

140

180

170

170

200 +

200+

200 +

200 +

200 +

Suffolk

30

40

40

20

60

80

180

1804-

180 +

Sussex

S

I

2 +

I

Warwicks.

S

Yorks.

P

P

p

p

P

P

P

f><>

70 +

Anglesey

I

S

Glams. P

TOTALS

200+ 260+ 240+ 240+ 300+ 350+ 440+ 500-P 59°+

Bearded Tits

477

1971. Subsequently, the species may have bred at Titchfield or
elsewhere, since there is much suitable habitat, but there are no
definite records. A pair summered **t Farlington in 1974.

Dorset

Breeding was proved at Radipole Lake lor the first time in 1967 and
a few pairs continued to nest at that site in every year thereafter
until 1974, when about 10-12 pairs were thought to have bred
(M. J. Everett verbally). This is the stronghold of the species in the
county, but it also bred at Abbotsbury and Burton Bradstock in
1971, at Poole harbour in 1974 (C. J. Bibby verbally) and at one
or more other sites.

Anglesey

The first Welsh breeding record of the species came from this county
in 1967, when one pair bred (Brit. Birds , 63: 83-84). It is possible
that Bearded Tits nested in other years — they were present through-
out the breeding season in 1973 — but no proof was obtained.

Lincolnshire

In 1968, Bearded Tits bred in Lincolnshire for the first time in
over 100 years, with three pairs at two sites. The same two sites were
regularly used between then and 1974, although occasionally bleed-
ing occurred at only one of them. Small numbers (one to three pairs)
were involved at first, but, by 1974, twelve pairs were thought to
be breeding at one site and 10-15 pairs at the other.

Warwickshire

Bearded Tits were recorded at a site in the county in summer 1971,
and possibly bred (Sharrock 1976).

Sussex

During 1971, Bearded Tits were resident throughout the year at one
site in Sussex, but did not breed. The next year, however, a male
was seen feeding a juvenile on 20th May, providing the first county-
breeding record for over 100 years. The following year at least two
sites were used by a few pairs, but in 1974 only one pair was thought
to have bred.

Lancashire

In 1972, two females summered at Leighton Moss and in the follow-
ing year the species bred for the first time ever in the county, at
least one pair raising three broods. In 1974, there was an increase to
three pairs, and these had a successful season, rearing 35-40 y'oung
(J. Wilson in lift.).

Bearded Tits

478

Glamorgan

In 1974, Bearded Tits probably bred in small numbers at Oxwich,
the first suggestion of breeding in Glamorgan.

Cambridgeshire

Bearded Tits were present at Ely beet factory throughout the

Bearded Tils 479

summer of 1974 and four juveniles were seen at Wicken Fen on
27th July, strongly indicating breeding in the vicinity.

Fig. 4. Breeding distribution of Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus in Britain and
Ireland during 1968-72 (reproduced, by permission, from The Atlas of Breeding
Birds in Britain and Ireland). The smallest dots indicate possible breeding, the next
probable, and the largest confirmed breeding, within each 10-km square

Bearded Tits

480
Totals

Table 1 shows the approximate number of breeding pairs in each
county, 1966-74, and figs. 1-3 illustrate the spread by reference
to the years 1966, 1970 and 1974. Fig. 4 shows the breeding status
of the species as recorded by the British Trust for Ornithology/Irish
Wildbird Conservancy Atlas survey in the years 1968-72.

DISPERSAL

Bearded Tits begin to leave the breeding grounds in early to
mid-September and small parties may be seen, from then on,
flying steeply up to considerable heights and then away. This may
continue until early November, and from Blacktoft Sands there are
records of their behaving in this way in good weather as late as
early January (A. Grieve in litt.), but the bulk are on the move in
October. The return migration begins in late March and lasts until
early May. The last to arrive at Minsmere may do so when there
are already young in the nests of those that have overwintered or
arrived earlier (H. E. Axell in litt.). Overwintering occurs at all
the main breeding sites. Of those that leave, ringing has shown
that the ones that survive the winter are capable of returning to
their breeding places. For example, one ringed at Walberswick on
6th July 1964 was controlled at Northfleet, Kent, on 3rd November
1965 and, again, at Minsmere on 7th October 1966 (Spencer 1967).
Another ringed at Walberswick on 17th September 1966 was re-
trapped at Dartford, Kent, on 18th October 1970 and, again, at
Minsmere on 19th May 1971. A third record concerns one ringed at
Murston, Kent, on 5th June 1972, which was controlled at Salt-
house, Norfolk, on 31st October 1972 and, again, at Murston in the
following breeding-season, on 29th May 1973. The best example of
an established pattern of breeding and wintering at two separate
sites concerns a pair trapped at Farlington, Hampshire, on 1 8th
December 1966, which were caught together at Minsmere on 5th
July 1967 and again at Farlington on 25th November 1967. One of
this pair was caught once more at Minsmere on 5th July 1968 and,
yet again, at Farlington on 17th December 1968.

Ringing has also shown that a wintering site may be used by
Bearded Tits that breed in different colonies. For example, Farling-
ton is used by Minsmere and Walberswick birds, and an individual
that bred at Stodmarsh has wintered at Farlington twice. Thatcham
Moor, Berkshire, has had wintering individuals from Minsmere,
Walberswick and Radipole; and Maple Cross sewage farm, Hert-
fordshire, from both Minsmere and Stodmarsh.

The apparently inseparable Farlington/Minsmere pair referred
to above illustrates the propensity of the species for travelling in

Bearded Tits

481

pairs, first noted by Axell (1966). Subsequent records show that
two birds together away from the breeding grounds are often a pair
and that flocks frequently contain even numbers of males and
females. Ball and Smith (1976) noted a similar tendency in their
study of the colony at Murston, Kent.

The first records of Bearded Tits ringed abroad being recaught
in England and Wales were in 1965/66, as mentioned under
wintering, below. Since then, there have been many more records,
all as a result of ringing in the Netherlands, and these are shown in
table 2.

Table 2. Recoveries of Dutch-ringed Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus in

Britain during 1966-73

Data from Hudson (1967, 1968), Spencer and Hudson (1973-75)

Place ringed

Date

Place controlled

Date

Knardijk

21.9.65

Bidston Moss, Cheshire

13.2.66

Knardijk

21.9.66

F rampton-on-Severn ,
Gloucester

6. 1 1.66

Lelystad, Oost-Flevoland
Zuid Flevoland,

24.9.66

Droitwich, Worcester

3.12.66

Ijsselmeer

16.10.70

Weymouth, Dorset

28.1 1.71

Zuid Flevoland

16.10.70

Weymouth

1 1. 12. 71

Zuid Flevoland

1 2.9.7 1

Weymouth

23.10.71

Zuid Flevoland

18.9.71

Farlington, Hampshire

7.12.71

Zuid Flevoland

9.10.71

Farlington

7.12. 71

Kroonspolder, E. Vlieland
Zwarte Mcer West,

1.9.72

King’s Lynn, Norfolk

23.12.72

Ijsselmeer
Zuid Flevoland,

1 3-9- 7 1

Radipole Lake, Dorset

I9-1I-72

Ijsselmeer

20.9.72

Portsmouth, Hampshire

16.12.72

Wasscnaar, Zuid-Holland
Zuid Flevoland,

8.10.72

Arne, Dorset
Grafham Water,

1 1.12.72

Ijsselmeer

23-9-72

Huntingdon

20.1.73

Zuid Flevoland

24.9.72

Grafham Water

20.1.73

Table 3. Foreign recoveries of British-ringed Bearded Tits

biarmicus during 1966-73

Panurus

Data from Spence

r (1967, n

368), Spencer and Hudson (1975)

Place ringed

Date

Place controlled

Date

Stanpit, Hampshire

21.10.65

near Alkmaar, Noord-
Holland, Netherlands

20.8.66

Snodland, Kent

2 1. 1 1.64

Helgoland, West Germany

22.3.67

Point of Air, Flint

24.10.71

Ostufer Niedersachsen,
West Germany

7-1-73

Shotton, Flint

28.10.72

Bergsche Hoofd, Gelderland
Netherlands

20.8.73

Bearded Tits

482

One recovered on 20th August 1966 in Noord-Holland, where
it had presumably bred, had been ringed the previous October
at Stanpit in Hampshire. Since then, there have been several
examples of Bearded Tits ringed in Britain in winter being caught
in a subsequent breeding season on the Continent. This seems to
indicate that, as well as regularly crossing the North Sea or English
Channel after erupting from their Low Countries breeding grounds,
some are able to find their way back in spring. Published records
for the period 1966-73 are shown in Table 3.

WINTERING

Occurrences outside the breeding season are far too numerous to be
listed in full and only a few of the more interesting and illustrative
records are given here.

The year 1965, with its notable eruptions from the breeding
grounds, had seen the occurrence of the species for the first time in
many counties and some of these birds remained into the early
months of 1966. The first ever Irish record involved a male and a
female in Co. Louth on 3rd January. In Cheshire, the last indi-
viduals from the 1965 influx remained at Bidston Moss until 8th
April. One caught there had been ringed at Knardijk, Ijsselmeer,
Netherlands, on 21st September 1965 (Hudson 1967); this, and six
other records of Dutch birds caught in the 1965/66 winter, were the
first confirmation that Bearded Tits cross the North Sea. Again in
the north-west, in Lancashire, several of the previous autumn’s
birds remained at Leighton Moss and Martin Mere into the early
months of 1966 (one of those at Martin Mere had also been ringed
in the Netherlands). In the south-west, the Cornish birds soon left
the county and the same was true in Devon, where, on the River
Otter, 15 (which spent the day in a kale field, roosting in a nearby
reed-bed) dwindled in numbers until the last four were seen on 4th
March. The only Welsh record was from Monmouth, where the
three 1965 birds remained at Newport Docks into 1966.

The winter of 1966/67 saw a less widespread dispersal than the
previous year, although the species occurred for the first time in
Durham in December, when up to four were recorded at Dorman’s
Pool, and there were reports from Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and
Somerset. In the West Midlands, one of an original wintering party
of five remained at Westwood Park, Worcestershire, until 9th July.

In the winter of 1967/68 there was no marked change. Two were
seen at Dawlish Warren, Devon, on 25th November, and most other
records were from southern and central England. In Berkshire,
two caught at Thatcham Moor in December had been ringed at
Minsmere in September. In Hampshire, the usual sites at Tichfield
Haven and Farlington held most of the county’s total.

Bearded Tits

483

In the winter of 1968/69, the bulk of records came from Cam-
bridgeshire, Dorset, Essex, Hampshire, Kent, Suffolk and Sussex;
only a few were recorded in other counties.

The autumn of 1969 was notable for the scarcity of records in
those counties where most normally occur, this being particularly
marked in Kent, Norfolk and Sussex, and the ensuing winter saw
no unusual records.

In the following winter, 1970/71, there were three reports from
Devon (maximum five), one from Surrey (one at Frensham Little
Pond on 18th October) and others at the normal wintering sites
elsewhere. A party of eight was seen at Kenfig Pool, Glamorgan,
from mid-October into 1971.

After a highly successful breeding season, the autumn of 1971
saw irruptions into counties outside the normal wintering range.
Yorkshire had a number of records at several sites, including up to
30 at Spurn on 9th October. In Lancashire, there were up to five
from 13th November at Leighton Moss and two were seen flying
north near Blackpool on 29th October. In the west, there was an
unusual record from Shropshire, four at Boyne Water on 22nd
October, and a second county record for Wiltshire. Somerset had
more than ever before, at the usual sites, Chew Valley Lake and
Berrow Marsh. In Hampshire, one was noted in a kale field near
Langstone on 26th November (cf. the 1965 Devon record of birds
in the same crop). Other counties which noted more than normal
numbers included Surrey, Sussex and Norfolk. In Wales, there
were records from Flint (maximum six), Glamorgan (four) and
Monmouth (14).

The breeding season of 1972 proved to be even more successful
than 1971. High numbers once again bred in East Anglia and there
was a noticeable eruption in autumn. There were records in the
ensuing autumn and winter from more counties in England than
ever before (31), from four in Wales and, outstandingly, from five in
Scotland. A party of eight on Cape Clear Island, Co. Cork, on 13th
October was only the second Irish record and there were occur-
rences in the Scillies and the Channel Islands, making this eruption
the most spectacular since 1965. Cambridgeshire and Huntingdon-
shire had larger numbers than ever before. There were records in
the north-west, from Cheshire and Lancashire, in the north-east,
from Northumberland, from Cornwall and Devon (up to 23 at
South Milton Ley during October) and in central counties that
usually have very few. For instance, in Berkshire, at least six sites
were occupied and as many as 55-60 birds may have been involved,
and, in Surrey, records between mid-October and mid-December
exceeded the previous county total in the present century. There
were two unusual records from Kent, of five in Joyden’s Wood on

Bearded Tits

484

29th October and of three or more in a young spruce plantation
near Hemsted, both of which areas are some distance from water.
In this connection, it is noteworthy that Axell (1966) mentioned
instances of Bearded Tits moving through thick woodland and
equated it with pre-migratory excitement. The 1972 records in Scilly
involved a maximum of 25 birds from 18th October until 15th
November, on several of the islands. In the Channel Islands, Jersey
had up to ten and Guernsey 20 or more at two sites. In Wales, there
were six in Anglesey, five in Flint, four in Carmarthen, two in
Cardigan and a maximum of ten at both Kenfig and Oxwich in
Glamorgan. All those in Wales were from mid-October onwards
and the last was seen on 3rd December. The first ever Scottish
records, involving one to five birds at each site, were from Aber-
deen (Strathbeg), Fife (three sites), Angus (two sites), East Lothian
(Aberlady) and Kirkcudbright (Auchenreoch Loch). The earliest
was noted rather later than those in England and Wales, on 5th
November, and some remained into March.

The winter of 1973/74 also proved interesting, after another
successful breeding season. In October, both Devon and Cornwall
held higher numbers than usual and Jersey once again recorded
some (at least 25). Large numbers were noted in Yorkshire, including
80 at Hornsea Mere on 12th October, up to 150 on Broomfleet
Island in late November and early December, and 200 wintering at
Blacktoft Sands (A. Grieve in litt). Suffolk and Norfolk had more
records than usual outside the breeding season, with at least 70 at
Titchwell, Norfolk, in November. After the bumper breeding

Table 4. Wintering Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus in Britain by counties

during 1966-74

The number of counties recording the species in each winter is indicated. E =
English counties, W = Welsh, S = Scottish. The third and fourth columns give
details of the previous breeding season at Minsmere, Suffolk (H. E. Axell in litt.),
as a possible indicator of breeding success in East Anglia. The whole of the 1965/66
winter is included, but only the first half of the 1974/75 winter, up to 31st December

PREVIOUS BREEDING SEASON AT MINSMERE

Winter Number of counties Number of pairs Fledging success

1965/66

25E

30

‘excellent’

1 966/67

18E

33

‘moderate’

1967/68

18E

35-40

‘high’

1 968/69

17E

40

‘good’

1969/70

10E

20

‘good’

1970/71

16E iW

60

‘high’

1971/72

28E 3W

80

‘very good’

1972/73

31E5W 5S

80

‘very good’

1973/74

27E 3W

80

‘high’

late 1974

25E 2W

70

‘less successful’

Bearded Tits

4«5

season at Minsmere, however, only 50-150 wintered there (H. E.
Axell in litt.). In Wales, there were records from Flint, Anglesey,
Cardigan and Glamorgan.

In the autumn of 1974, several counties noted below average
numbers of Bearded Tits, particularly Cambridgeshire, Devon,
Essex and Suffolk, but records came from as far apart as Cornwall
(two sites, up to six birds in all), Co. Wicklow and Northumberland.
In Yorkshire, a large eruption was noted at Blacktoft Sands and
about 250 remained through the winter (A. Grieve in litt.). At
Leighton Moss, breeding Bearded Tits also overwintered, although
some high flying was noticed in late September to mid-October
(J. Wilson in litt). There were Welsh occurrences in Glamorgan,
where some remained the whole year round at Oxwich, and in
Monmouth, Flint and Cardigan/Pembroke.

The winter distribution of the Bearded Tit is summarised by
counties in table 4.

DISCUSSION

In 1949 and 1950, correspondence appeared in this journal on the
possible migratory behaviour of the Bearded Tit (Brit. Birds, 42:
289-292; 43: 200). To summarise this briefly, in autumn 1948
Bearded Tits were noted apparently arriving in the north Norfolk
reed-beds; the evidence suggested that they might have been of
Dutch origin as, in the Netherlands that autumn, some had been
noted far from their normal breeding grounds; even if they were
English-nesting birds, however, they were a long way from the
nearest colonies in Broadland. Short movements, generally thought
to have been caused by hard weather, had been observed in both
countries before this, but the possibility of long-distance movement,
perhaps even over the sea, came as a surprise; the literature des-
cribed the species as ‘sedentary’. Opinion was that a new pheno-
menon had been observed, and, in later years, eruptions from
colonies, wintering flocks far from breeding sites and, eventually,
new colonies led some people to believe that a new ‘strain’ of
Bearded Tit had evolved.

It now appears more likely that some have always left and
travelled long distances from the breeding sites. In the days when
there were few competent ornithologists and no ringers in the rced-
beds, most of these birds would have gone unnoticed and the few
that were seen would have been regarded as the ‘vagrants’ described
by Witherby et al. (1940). The severe winter of 1946/47 reduced the
population so drastically that records away from the colonies in the
following years were naturally few. The subsequent build-up in
numbers coincided with increased interest in bird-watching and
ringing, and it is not surprising that Bearded Tits began to be

Bearded Tits

486

noticed in localities where they had been recorded before, reinforc-
ing the idea of a new ‘dynamic type’ of Bearded Tit. It is more likely
that the species has never been sedentary.

The immigration of Dutch birds that was thought to have taken
place in 1948 probably helped the British population to recover from
its catastrophic decline in 1946/47. Influxes from the Netherlands
certainly now boost our population in autumn and winter (though
perhaps not every year), some staying to breed and some returning
to the Dutch colonies, as shown by ringing results.

The question whether the Bearded Tit’s movements can be
described as true migration has been discussed by Pearson (1976)
and it is not proposed to deal with it here. The definition is a difficult
one, since there is no set pattern of behaviour. In the autumn, after
a period of excitement and numerous false starts, many Bearded
Tits leave their nesting areas. They move overland in all directions;
some travel hundreds of miles, others much less. While some go in
different directions in different years, others remain faithful to one
wintering site. Similarly, the following spring, some return to the
site where they spent the previous summer, while others go else-
where. Some remain at the colony throughout the winter, moving
only in the hardest weather.

At the wintering sites, there is often a mixture from two or more
different breeding colonies. It seems likely that interchanges take
place, perhaps due in part to pairing, so that, for instance, Bearded
Tits bred in Kent travel to Minsmere with those returning there.
Where a wintering site is used exclusively by birds from a particular
breeding colony, it may be that they all find their way back to that
colony in the spring. Young that travel without adults may behave
differently from those that accompany older birds: the behaviour
at different ages has been little studied. Bearing in mind the species’
apparent propensity for travelling in pairs, uneven sex-ratios may
encourage interchanges, when flocks from a different colony are
encountered. Further ringing will doubtless shed more light on these
and other aspects of the complex movements of the Bearded Tit
outside the breeding season.

The dispersal of Bearded Tits has certainly had two advantages
for the species. First, it has provided a better chance of their
surviving a severe winter, since wintering sites are so widely separated
geographically. Secondly, it has resulted in their discovering sites
(or rediscovering historic ones) that are suitable for breeding. Their
adoption of these sites for nesting has resulted in the expansion of the
breeding range documented above.

Many areas used regularly by Bearded Tits in winter are
abandoned in spring and it is open to speculation why the birds do
not remain to breed as they do in other former purely wintering

Bearded Tits

487

sites. The major factors presumably include freedom from distur-
bance (perhaps rather more necessary in the breeding season than
in winter) and availability of suitable nest sites, nest material
and food for both the adults and young during the spring and
summer. The species does nest in small reed-beds (although all the
large colonies are in extensive reed marshes), but the shape of the
smaller beds may be important, in so far as it affects the proximity
of the nest site to the edge of the bed. This will also be linked,
presumably, to whether the bed is surrounded by water or land.
Bannerman (1953) noted that the species likes to nest in a mixture of
reeds and sedges Carex spp, using some of the latter for nest-building,
so this may also be an important factor in nest site selection. In
winter, Bearded Tits feed largely on the seeds of reeds and other
plants, such as fat-hen Chenopodium album , great willowherb Epilobium
hirsutum and common nettle Urtica dioica (Bibby 1974), but in the
breeding season the young are fed on invertebrate food. Availability
of sufficient food for the young must influence the choice of site. The
number of breeding pairs present at a site must depend on the same
factors, together with the territorial needs of each pair, which are
presumably different in the breeding season and in the winter.

Bearded Tits will feed outside reed-beds in winter (e.g. in weeds
and even in kale fields: see above). Reed-beds may be used only for
roosting and shelter from disturbance at this time of year, and it is
possible, perhaps, that some Bearded Tits live independently of
them, although there appears to be no evidence of this as yet.
Breeding outside reed-beds is much less likely; there are plenty of
beds of Phragmites not yet used by the species for nesting. Much more
work needs to be done, however, on all aspects of the Bearded Tit’s
breeding biology, to determine its precise requirements. The
information obtained would be useful both for assessing the potential
value of a site and for improving existing sites.

The main threats to the survival of the Bearded Tit in Britain are
disappearance of its habitat (whether for nesting or wintering) and
severe weather. The conservation organisations protect several
major breeding sites and some used purely for wintering. Some are
owned outright and are therefore safe from development, while
others are more or less safe according to the nature of the lease
agreements. Natural disasters, such as fire, are fortunately rare in
these reed-beds. Additionally, the good geographical spread of the
protected sites should mean that, even in a severe winter, some
Bearded Tits will survive somewhere.

Since the species feeds on seeds in winter, there is usually plenty
of food at these sites for them, but it may be unavailable, beneath
ice, frost or snow. Experiments with the provision of weed seeds at
two Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves, Blacktoft

Bearded Tits

488

Sands and Minsmere, have indicated that action of this sort could
make a contribution to the survival of the species in a really hard
winter (M. J. Everett and A. Grieve verbally).

Leaving aside the possibility of epidemic disease (which could be
easily transmitted by winter/summer interchanges), the future of
the Bearded Tit as a British breeding bird seems assured. The
question of whether the present expansion can continue depends on
the availability of further suitable reed-beds and their protection,
but perhaps most of all on the severity of future winters and the
occurrence of sudden cold spells in spring and summer. It seems
inevitable that the next hard winter will deplete numbers con-
siderably, but the recovery may be faster than after 1946/47, or
even 1962/63, owing to the greater number of individuals likely to
survive.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am most grateful to M. J. Everett and C. J. Bibby for comments on the drafts of
this paper and for much helpful advice. I should also like to thank A. Grieve,
R. Berry, C. E. Wheeler, Miss M. Norris, Dr J. T. R. Sharrock and Miss J. J.
Robertson. The following county bird recorders were kind enough to reply to my
requests for information: M. J. Allen, K. Atkin, R. M. Blindell, J. V. Boys, J. M.
Campbell, C. J. Coe, B. R. Dean, A. Dobbs, B. Galloway, T. W. Gladwin, B. D.
Harding, P. J. Howard, D. B. Hunt, J. Limentani, K. C. Osborne, Miss E. M.
Palmer, W. H. Payn, F. C. Pickering, Dr R. J. Raines, K. G. Spencer, R. Stokoe,
B. Unwin, D. Washington, G. L. Webber, G. Wilson, C. E. Wright and R. E.
Youngman. Lastly, I should like to thank the Royal Society for the Protection of
Birds for allowing me to use various reports concerning their reserves.

SUMMARY

The status of the Bearded Tit Panurus biarmicus in Britain and Ireland during
1966-74 is examined. The spread of the species into new breeding areas and its
increase in numbers is documented on a county-by-county basis. Some aspects of
movements within Britain and to and from the Continent are discussed and
the numbers wintering at sites away from the breeding colonies examined and
related to eruptions. The advantages that dispersal in winter has had are discussed
and the future of the species in Britain is assessed.

REFERENCES

Axell, H. E. 1966. ‘Eruptions of Bearded Tits during 1959-65’ Brit. Birds, 59:
513-543.

Ball, T. G., and Smith, R. 1976. ‘The Murston Bearded Tit colony’. Kent Bird
Report, 23: 80-84.

Bannerman, D. A. 1953. The Birds of the British Isles. London.

Bibby, C. J. 1974. ‘Bearded Tits in Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire 1972-74’
Cambridge Bird Club Report for 1973 : 56-58.

Gladwin, T. W. 1976. ‘The origins, movements, wintering and breeding of
Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus in Hertfordshire since 1959’. Trans. Herts. Nat.
Hist. Soc., 28: in press.

Hudson, R. 1967. ‘Recoveries in Great Britain and Ireland of birds ringed abroad'.
Brit. Birds, 60: 65-80.

Bearded Tits

Hudson, R. 1968. ‘Recoveries in Great Britain and Ireland of birds ringed abroad’.
Brit. Birds, 61 : 65-76.

Parslow, J. L. F. 1973. Breeding Birds of Britain and Ireland. Berkhamsted.
Pearson, D. J. 1975. ‘Moult and its relation to eruptive activity in the Bearded
Reedling'. Bird Study, 22: 205-227.

Sharrock, J. T. R. 1976. The Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland. Tring.
Spencer R. 1967. ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1966’. Brit. Birds, 60: 429-475.

1968. ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1967’. Brit. Birds, 61 : 477-523.

and Hudson, R. 1973. ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1971’. Bird Study, 20:

supplement.

1974- ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1972’. Bird Study, 21 : supplement.

1975- ‘Report on bird-ringing for 1973’. Bird Study, 22: supplement.

Vaurie, C. 1959. The Birds of the Palearctic Fauna. London, vol. 1.

Voous, K. H. i960. Atlas of European Birds. Amsterdam and London.

YVitherby, H. F., Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F., and Tucker. B. VV. 1940.
The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 1.

John M. O’Sullivan, RSPB, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL

Effects of sea conditions on rates at
which Guillemots feed chicks

T. R. Birkhead.

Studies of the effects of sea and weather conditions on the ability of
seabirds to capture prey have almost all concerned those species
that Ashmole (1971) classed as ‘surface-plunging’, for example terns
(Sterninae). There is little information for the species, such as auks
(Alcidae), that engage in ‘pursuit diving’. During the course of a
study of Guillemots Uria aalge on Skomer Island, Dyfed, however,
I was able to record the rates at which adults fed chicks in a variety
of weather conditions.

During June and July 1974 and 1975, I made observations con-
tinuously between 13.00 and 17.00 hours GMT, on 22 separate
occasions, from a hide situated about 20 m from a cliff ledge sup-
porting 38-45 breeding pairs of Guillemots. I recorded feeding rates
and the species and sizes, judged against the length of the adults’
bills (45-50 mm), of the fish fed to checks of known age. During each
observation period, I also recorded wind speed (Beaufort scale
1 to 8: from still air to gale), sea conditions (ranked from 1 to 3:
calm, medium and rough) and cloud cover (ranked from 1 to 8:
clear to overcast).

Over 99% of all 1,140 prey items were fish of the herring family
(Clupeidae), and 46 picked up from ledges were identified as Sprats
Sprattus sprattus, one of the commonest of the six European species.
All fish were approximately 10 cm in length and there was no
apparent change in size with weather conditions, age of chick or
date.

The rates at which the adult Guillemots brought food to their
chicks were compared for different environmental conditions,
using a step-up multiple linear regression. The analysis was confined
to chicks between three and 16 days old, because chicks younger or
older than this were fed at lower rates; the mean age at fledging was
2i days. Although wind speed was usually correlated with sea

Table 1. Effect of weather and sea conditions on rates at which Guillemots
Uria aalge fed chicks aged three to 16 days, Skomer Island, Dyfed

Percentage variation accounted for by each independent variable, as shown by-
step-up multiple regression analysis. Sea conditions: p < 0.0 1

Wind speed

Sea conditions

Cloud cover

Alone

14%

32%

4%

With sea conditions

33%

—

33%

49O

[Brit. Birds, 69: 490-492, December 1976]

Sea conditions and Guillemot feeding rates 491

conditions, I made a point of conducting observations on days
following strong winds, when the sea was still medium or rough,
though the wind had dropped, to try to distinguish between sea and
wind effects. The analysis showed that cloud cover and wind speed
were not important variables, but there was a significant negative
relationship between the feeding rates and sea conditions, which
alone accounted for 32% of the variation in feeding rates (table 1
and fig. 1).

Thus, the provisioning rate was lowest during rough seas, suggest-
ing that the ability of adults to locate and capture prey is poorest
in these conditions. Tuck and Squires (1955) stated that Briin-
nich’s Guillemots U. lomvia on Atpatok Island, Canada, did not
even leave the colony to seek food for their chicks in stormy weather.
Pettingill (1939) and Boeker (1967) both noted that gale force
conditions reduced feeding success in terns, and Dunn (1973)
was able to demonstrate a relationship between sea-surface con-

Sea conditions

492

Sea conditions and Guillemot feeding rates

ditions and fishing success by Common Sterna hirundo and Sandwich
Terns S. sandvicensis. Reduced fishing success in surface-plunging
species, such as terns, may be due (a) to fish moving into deeper
water during heavy seas, and (b) to birds experiencing difficulty in
hovering and aiming before diving when there are strong winds
(Dunn 1973). Clearly, (b) is not applicable to auks, but (a) might
be. Data from commercial Sprat fisheries show that catch rates
decline after prolonged bad weather, and echo-survey records show
that this is because the Sprat shoals disperse. Dispersal probably
occurs during the night, when the fish are close to the surface and
are thus within the zone of wind-induced surface currents (P. O.
Johnson in litt.).

Wrecks and eruptions of seabirds are frequently associated with
stormy conditions (Potts 1969, Holdgate 1971), and Guillemots
appear to be particularly prone to such events. My data suggest
that Guillemots have difficulty in finding prey in heavy seas, and
this is supported by information on the condition of wrecked
Guillemots, which are often emaciated and lack fat deposits (Hold-
gate 1971, Bailey and Davenport 1972), indicating that starvation
has occurred.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am grateful to members of the Edward Grey Institute for stimulating discussion,
and to P. O. Johnson for allowing me to use his unpublished results. The work was
supported by a Natural Environment Research Council studentship.

REFERENCES

Ashmole, N. P. 1971. ‘Seabird ecology and the marine environment’. In Earner,
D. S. and King, J. R. (eds.). Avian Biology. London, vol. 1.

Bailey, E. P., and Davenport, G. H. 1972. ‘Die-off of Common Murres on the
Alaska Peninsula and Unimak Island.’ Condor, 74: 2 13-2 19.

Boeker, M. 1967. ‘Vergleichende Untersuchungen zur nahrungsund nistokologie
der Flusseeschwalbe ( Sterna hirundo L.) und der Kustenseeschwalbe ( Sterna
paradisaea Pont.)’. Bonn. gool. Beitr., 18: 15-26.

Dunn, E. K. 1973. ‘Changes in fishing ability of terns associated with windspeed
and sea surface conditions’. Nature, 244: 520-521.

Holdgate, M. W. (ed.). 1971. ‘The seabird wreck in the Irish Sea autumn 1969’.
NERC, London.

Pettingill, O. S. 1939. ‘History of one hundred nests of Arctic Tern’. Auk, 56:
420-428.

Potts, G. R. 1969. ‘The influence of eruptive movements, age, population size
and other factors on the survival of the Shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis (L.)\ J.
Anim. Ecol., 38: 53-102.

Tuck, L. M., and Squires, H. J. 1955. ‘Food and feeding habits of Briinnich’s
Murre (Uria lomvia lomvia) on Atpatok Island’. J. Fish. Res. Bd. Canada, 12:
781-792.

Dr T. R. Birkhead, Edward Grey Institute, Department of % oology , South
Parks Road, Oxford oxi 3PS

Viewpoint Louis J. Halle

l.ouis Halle, a professor at the Graduate Institute of International Studies in
Geneva, was formerly a government official in Washington. Among his many
books, those published in Britain include The Sea and the Ice: a
Naturalist in Antarctica (1973). He is a honorary vice-president of the
Audubon Naturalist Society in Washington, and winner of the John Burroughs
Award for his book Birds against Men (1938).

The appreciation of birds

the appreciation of nature precedes its conservation, for no-one
is concerned to conserve what means nothing to him. How, then,
does one gain this appreciation? For the sake of simplicity, let me
here confine my answers to birds.

When I was brought up, in the United States some 40 or 50 years
ago, the appreciation of birds depended in large part on a literary
tradition that has since lapsed. John Muir, in his essay on ‘The
Water-Ouzel’, taught us how to see the American Dipper Cinclus
tnexicanus. H. D. Thoreau, in Walden, taught us how to see the Com-
mon Loon (Great Northern Diver) Gavia immer. W. H. Hudson,
writing about life on the Argentine pampas, taught us how to see
the Upland Sandpiper Bartramia longicauda.

Before Roger Tory Peterson came along with his field guides, the
information that the books provided for identification was relatively
inadequate; but the emphasis, in those days, was less on identifica-
tion than on appreciation. The standard handbook that we carried,
where we now carry only field guides to identification, was Frank M.
Chapman’s Handbook of Birds of Eastern North America, which had a
little literary essay on each species (just like Hudson’s British Birds,
or A. Thorburn’s four volumes under the same title, or a dozen other
works I could mention). The essays, in Chapman and the other
works, taught us appreciation. Then, in 1934, along came Peterson
with the first of his series of guides, which had no other purpose than
that of facilitating identification. It is not his fault that these (and
the competing guides of the same sort that then began to appear)
tended to displace everything else. Since the revolution he
inaugurated, anyone who wants to know the birds of America or
Britain is apt to think it enough to have one of these pocket books on
identification. But it is not enough, because identification is not
enough.

Even the seeing of the bird, in order to identify it, is not enough
in itself, although those who confine themselves to the game of
bird-listing may have the impression that it is. What significance
can a Swallow Hirundo rustica have for one who knows nothing about

[Bril. Birds, 6 <): 403*494. December 1976]

493

494 Viewpoint

it? My appreciation of the Swallow depends on my knowledge of
many facts, such as that it winters in Africa and is one of a genus of
hirundine birds including the Red-rumped Swallow H. daurica,
and the Striated Swallow H. striolata of India. And if I know what
writers going back to the ancient Greeks have written about the
Swallow, it will mean still more to me when I observe it as Aristotle,
Pliny, and Shakespeare did before me. ‘A finer music is in the song
(of the Nightingale)’, wrote W. F. Bade, ‘since Keats listened to
the notes from the thicket on the hill’:

The voice I hear this passing night was heard
In ancient days by emperor and clown :

Perhaps the self-same song that found a path

Through the sad heart of Ruth, when, sick for home,

She stood in tears amid the alien corn . . .

But what shall it profit me to identify the Nightingale by the plate
in Peterson and, having put it down on my list, pass on without
knowing anything about it? (To the lister, every bird equals every
other bird, because quantity is what matters to him.)

Of course, there are the five volumes of The Handbook of British
Birds, which, amid much detailed technical information, also tell
us something about each species, under such headings as ‘Field-
characters and General Habits’ and ‘Display and Posturing’, but
in a way as little likely as possible to arouse the kind of appreciation
to which I refer. (In the long evenings of my youth, after supper, I
virtually memorised Chapman’s Handbook, but the British Hand-
book would hardly arouse a like interest.)

And now I come so close to home that the reader had better note
the editorial disclaimer that follows these paragraphs. One has the
impression that the study of birds has, in large part, been reduced
to the quantification of whatever can be quantified, a process that,
although it has its uses, provides no insight. I do not object to the
compilation of quantitative data in itself, but I do object to the
tendency for such compilation to replace everything else in the study
of birds. If a bird were nothing more than an automaton that fed so
many spiders, so many insects, and so many centimetres of earth-
worm to so many nestlings per hour between certain hours of
the day at certain stages of the nesting cycle, then I would have no
basis for caring about its conservation.

So I return to the principle that appreciation precedes conserva-
tion. And appreciation has always meant the aesthetic and philosophi-
cal appreciation sustained by a long tradition of English literature
that has now lapsed.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Plate 49. Above, Long-eared Owl Asio otus, West Germany {photo: Gunter
Qesler) ; inset. Short-eared Owl A. flammeus, Lincolnshire, March 1976 1 photo :
Keith Atkin). Below left. Long-eared Owl in flight, showing deep beat of broad,
rounded wings, relatively uniform upperparts and fine undertail barring. West
Germany {photo: Giinter £iesler); right, two views of Short-eared Owl in flight,
showing more pointed wings (though allowance must be made for the difference
in angle of view), generally pale face with dark areas around eyes and. most
distinctive, the pale underparts, with dark streaks confined to upperbreast and
neck, Lincolnshire, June 1973 {photos: Keith Atkin) (see pages 281-287)

Plate 50. Left (1-4), Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla; right (5-8), Reed Buntings
E. schoeniclus. Little Bunting: 1 breeding adult, 2 immature (October), 3 as 2
but with black crown stripes obscured by pale tips (frequent), 4 as 3 but crown
stripes appearing almost uniform chestnut (very rare), top left flight silhouette.
Note fine triangular bill, eye ring, buff face of adult (1) but white throat of most
immatures (2,3), wing-bars, sharp streaks on clean underparts and pale central
crown reaching bill. Compare with Reed Bunting: 5 male in first spring moult,

6 immature (September) with pale head striped chestnut on crown (infrequent),

7 immature with dark head and heavy markings (frequent), 8 female or immature
(October) of typical appearance. Note stubby bill, lack of obvious eye ring, pro-
nounced moustache (not 6) spreading into long, diffuse streaks on usually dull
underparts and variable head pattern lacking pale central stripe reaching bill
(even on 6). Note also nervous spreading of tail (8). ( Pencil drawings from photographs

and field sketches : D. /. M. Wallace )

Plate 29. Adult Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia standing on edge of nest
as young beg for food. Denmark, July 1965 (pages 265-271) (photo: lb Trap-Lind )

Plate 30. Adult 1 hrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia at nest, Schleswig-Holstein,
Germany, June 1970: above, with caterpillar for young two-three days old (not
visible in photograph) ; below, note the whitish markings on the crown, nape and
mantle, a character found in most adult individuals ( photos : JV. W. On)

Plate 31. Above, approaching the nest from within cover, the parent Thrush
Nightingale Luscinia luscinia raises and fans its tail as it bends forward towards
its young. Below, still with a caterpillar in its bill, the adult pauses warily
before releasing the food: both parents feed the young (photo: N. IV. Orr\

Plate 32. Above, nest of Thrush Nightingale Ltiscinia luscinia with the normal
clutch of five eggs, Denmark, June 1966 {photo: lb Trap-Lind). Below, perched on
a branch, this adult shows the spotted breast markings, particularly at the sides,
which help distinguish it from the Nightingale L. megarhynchos {photo: N. W. On)

v

B ■

1 ft

■Hr iL . §

' 1

JS J

Plate 51. Little Bunting Emberiza
pusilla. caught for the purpose of
ringing, Fair Isle, Shetland. October
1967 (photos: R. H. Dennis). Note:
distinct pale eye ring: uniform cheek
patch, except for pale spot at rear,
with black lower outline hardly
reaching to eye, and not to bill
(which it does in Reed Bunting E.
schoeniclns) ; rather long, triangular,
pointed bill; short legs; crouching
attitude: flat, sloping forehead; and
neckless, hunch-backed appearance

New feature
Mystery photographs

As one of several new features planned for this journal, we shall be
publishing each month a mystery bird photograph. The following
issue will reveal the answer, together with a text drawing attention
to the main identification features. We hope, in this way, not only
to provide readers with an interesting problem each month, but
also to produce a series of useful and informative photographs and
texts relating to identification problems. The first of these mystery
photographs appears as plate 52b; the bird’s identity will be dis-
closed in the January issue.

We invite the submission of good quality photographs suitable
for inclusion in this series. Eds

Notes

Diving rates of Great Northern Diver An adult Great Northern
Diver Gavia immer was present at Chew Valley Lake, Avon, in
November 1974, when the following observations, mainly con-
cerning the bird’s diving behaviour, were made. Preliminary ob-
servations had shown that it sometimes surfaced between dives for
less than a second. Since precise timing of such frequent events
with stopwatch and notebook did not seem feasible, the diver was
carefully watched and its activities recorded on tape. Events were
timed sequentially on playback. The machine used (Uher 4000L)
has excellent speed stability.

Observations were made in four periods, totalling over two hours,
during which no interval on the surface between dives exceeded
33 seconds. These fell within longer intervals, during which the
bird was continually hunting. Breaks between hunting periods were
well marked by longer intervals on the surface, the shortest of which
was 1 h minutes, and often by preening. The separate results for
the four periods are presented in table 1. They show reasonable
constancy in the rate of diving, the percentage of time spent under
water, and the medians of duration of dive and of periods between
dives. Fig. 1 shows the distribution of the total observations on the
duration of dives; this is non-normal, with a plateau towards the

495

496 Notes

Table 1. Diving rates of a Great Northern Diver Gavia immer at Chew Valley

Lake, Avon, November 1974

Period

Length of
period
(mins.)

Number
of dives

Diving rate
(no./hr)

% time
submerged

Median

dive

(secs.)

Median
between
dives (secs.)

I

32-5

63

I l6

72.4

22

8

O

32-5

68

126

73-tf

21

7

3

'9-5

37

u4

74.2

23

8

4

45-o

90

120

70.4

21

8

middle of the range. The median for 258 dives is 21 seconds (95%
confidence limits i i-4 seconds, SD 11 seconds). This result is
markedly different from previous published figures: H. W. Robin-
son ‘found about 40 secs, usual’ (Witherby et al. 1940); Banner-
man (1959) quoted the observations of Prof. Dr F. Salomonsen,
‘usually for nearly half a minute’, and of Major R. F. Ruttledge,
‘normally of about 45 sec’; Olson and Marshall (1952) recorded
an average of 43 seconds; and Palmer (1949) timed 40 dives be-
tween 8.5 and 60 seconds.

Ladhams (1968) found the diving times of grebes Podiceps spp at
Chew Valley Lake to be shorter than those previously reported
and suggested that this reflected, among other factors, the relatively
shallow water of the lake. This is likely to be an acceptable hypo-
thesis only if the prey density was high and if the majority of
dives resulted in a catch. At no time during the four periods, or
during other observations, was the diver seen to bring any prey to
the surface, and no other pattern of behaviour indicating a suc-
cessful dive was apparent.

Of 258 dives, only three (of 78, 89 and 97 seconds) were over
one minute in duration. It is impossible to state with certainty,
however, that these were maximum dive times, because a short

40]

Fig. 1 . Durations of dives of a Great
Northern Diver Gavia immer at Chew
Valley Lake, Avon, November 1974.
There were three observations of
dives of more than 60 seconds

Fig. 2. Durations of periods between
dives of a Great Northern Diver Gavia
immer at Chew Valley Lake, Avon,
November 1974. There were three
observations of pauses of less than
1 second

Notes

497

period on the surface may have been missed (sometimes the diver’s
reappearance and its next dive were almost simultaneous). It is
also possible that breaths were taken with only the bill above
water (see Palmer 1962) and that these instances were overlooked,
even though the diver was for much of the time within 200 metres.
The non-normal distribution of the dive times, with greatest fre-
quency in the region of the median, might be explained by such
dives being of a reconnaisance nature, with longer ones representing
a chase or catch.

Fig. 2 shows the distribution of all the observations on the duration
of the period between dives; this is also non-normal. The median is
8 seconds (95% confidence limits ± 0.6 seconds, SD 5 seconds).

The habit of immersing the head beyond the eyes when searching
for prey has been reported for the Great Northern Diver (e.g.
Bannerman 1959) and was recorded at Chew. It might be expected
that a diving bird would be adapted to compensate for distance
distortion caused by refraction, and that, therefore, immersion of the
eyes to search would be unnecessary in normal conditions. Three
factors could interfere with vision through the water surface: dis-
turbance of the surface due to rain or to wind, and glare caused by
reflection. During period 1, which included intervals of rain and
sun, the diver immersed its head from one to five times during 32
of the periods between dives; these tended to occur in consecutive
runs, corresponding to times when rain or sun was recorded. In
contrast, during period 4, which, although windy and overcast,
included no rain or sun, the diver immersed its head only sporadic-
ally (eight times). P. Carter

27 Royal York Crescent, Bristol ns8 4JX

REFERENCES

Bannerman, D. A. 1 959. The Birds of the British Isles. Edinburgh and London,
vol. 8.

Ladhams, D. E. 1968. ‘Diving times of grebes’. Brit. Birds, Gi : 27-30.

Oi.son, S. T., and Marshall, W. H. 1952. ‘The Common Loon in Minnesota’.
Occ. Pap. Minn. Mus. A’ at. Hist., 5: 1-77.

Palmer, R. S. 1949. ‘Maine birds’. Bull. Mas. Comp. £ool. Harvard, 102: 1-656.

1962. Handbook of North American Birds. New Haven and London, vol. 1.

Simmons, K. E. L. 1974. ‘Breeding adaptations in the Great Crested Grebe’.
Brit. Birds, 67: 413-437.

W’itherby, H. F.. Jourdain, F. C. R., Ticehurst, N. F.. and Tucker, B. W.
1940. The Handbook of British Birds. London, vol. 4.

Winter feeding behaviour of Great Northern Divers During
the winter months, from 1971 to 1974, I observed the feeding be-
haviour of at least 30 Great Northern Divers Gavia imrner in and
around the Penzance and Newlyn harbours, Cornwall. I found

Notes

498

their staple diet in these places was rather small, drab or dirty
yellow to dark green crabs. Dr G. W. Potts of the Marine Biological
Laboratory, Plymouth, suggested {in litt.) that they were either
Shore Crabs Carcinus maenas or small Edible Crabs Cancer pagurus.
Five specimens, obtained by Alan Griffiths by diving in the area,
proved to be the former species, which is mentioned in The Handbook
(1940: 1 1 5) in the list of the food of Great Northern Divers. The
three smallest specimens had soft carapaces, which could easily
be dented by gentle finger pressure, but the others were larger and
harder-shelled.

The divers dealt with the crabs in a variety of ways. Judging by
their throat gulping and quick head-shaking movements on re-
surfacing, it was obvious that they sometimes swallowed their food
while still under water. When a diver appeared with a crab in
its bill, it often raised its head and bill and then manipulated
the crab or partially crushed it to facilitate easier swallowing.
Occasional crabs, perhaps because of their size or hard carapaces,
were discarded by quick, flicking movements of the bill. Commonly,
a diver brought a crab to the surface and then, having held it in
its bill for a short while, dived again with it. The diver either
reappeared without its prey, which may indicate that it had swal-
lowed it, or brought it to the surface once more. Sometimes, the
diver then washed its prey with side-to-side movements of bill and
head just below the surface, and then swallowed it while still
immersed. More often, however, the bird would dive with the crab
for a second or even a third time before swallowing it. In these
instances, the diving times were of such short duration as to rule
out the possibility of the original crab being discarded and another
captured. Bernard King

Gull Cry, g Park Road, Newlyn, Cornwall

Resting of Cormorants on inland passage With reference to
the note by S. W. M. Hughes on Cormorants Phalacrocorax carbo
roosting on a spire {Brit. Birds, 68: 429), the following observations
may be of interest. During most months from February 1975 to
August 1976, I have on 23 occasions noted Cormorants perched on
a particular stretch of electricity transmission lines near the River
Axe, not far from Loxton, Somerset. Usually there was only one at a
time, but as many as four were sometimes present and some remained
for several hours. The locality is 8 km from the coast and almost on a
direct flight path to Cheddar Reservoir, Somerset, which lies a
further 6 km inland. Numbers on the transmission lines showed some
correlation with counts there, including two to four on many dates

Notes

499

from October to early April, when there were usually six to twelve
at the reservoir. Brian Rabbitts

ij Hippisley Drive, Axbridge, Somerset BS26 2DE

Montagu’s Harrier retrieving displaced nestling Most birds
make little attempt to retrieve young that have fallen from the nest.
Although they sometimes show awareness of the situation, and may
even try to feed the displaced nestling (especially if near fledging),
they usually completely ignore it.

In June 1947, I photographed Montagu’s Harriers Circus pygargus
at their nest in Norfolk. This nest, in a wet marsh, was more sub-
stantial than usual — for, in dry sites, this species may make no nest
at all. On one occasion, the arrival of the female was greeted with
such excitement by the chicks that, in the scramble for food, the
youngest of the brood was pushed over the edge of the nest and lay
below, cheeping pitifully. Meanwhile, the female fed the older chicks
and settled down to brood them, but she was obviously uneasy and
kept looking down at the displaced youngster. Eventually, she
stepped out of the nest (see plate 52a), grasped the chick in her bill
‘by the scruff of its neck’, replaced it among the others and proceeded
to brood her now complete family. M. D. England

Mashobra, Neatishead, Norwich nr 12 8bj

Unusual plumage of Greenshank Within a mixed group of
waders feeding on the mud round Chew Valley Lake, Avon, at
midday on 11th August 1975, there was a bird with the general
structure, size and behaviour of a Greenshank Tringa nebularia, but
with a different plumage. The whole of the upperparts, including
the wings, were rather darker than normal; the breast and belly
were rusty beige, the rump and tail were completely beige, with
no barring or spotting, and the outer tail features were light cinna-
mon. The legs were light green.

R. Harkness and I observed this bird closely and considered
that it was melanistic. D. E. Ladhams

Willow Lodge, Breach Hill Lane, Chew Stoke, Bristol bsi8 8ya

Bryan L. Sage, the author of ‘The incidence of albinism and
melanism in British birds’ (Brit. Birds, 56: 409-416), has commented
that he can think of no explanation other than melanism for the
curious colour of this individual and that it appears to be the first
record of melanism for the Greenshank. Apart from a partial albino
in Norfolk in 1937, there are no other records of plumage variations
in this species in Britain, but an almost pure white one was reported
in the Netherlands in 1952. Eds

500

jVotes

Diet of Greenshank on migration In the autumn of 1973,
R. Berry and I carried out routine pellet collections at roosts of
Redshanks Tringa totanus and Curlews Numenius arquata at Snetti-
sham, Norfolk, as part of a feeding study. During this period, we
discovered pellets similar to those of Redshanks, which we suspected
were formed by Greenshanks T. nebularia. Later, RB observed
several Greenshanks producing pellets, which were subsequently
collected. These tended to be slightly longer and thinner than those
of Redshanks (up to 3.0 cm X 1.0 cm) and were of a greyish-white,
granular appearance. (For a description of Redshank pellets see
J. D. Goss-Custard and R. E. Jones, Bird Study, 23: 233-243.)

Analysis of 1 6 pellets under a binocular microscope revealed that
the granular texture was due to the pellets being composed almost
entirely of fish bones, especially the auditory bones (otoliths). The
species concerned was the Common Goby Potamoschistus microps.
An attempt was made to assess the number of fish ingested per pellet,
by counting the largest of the otoliths, as has been done by C.
Swennen ( Limosa , 44: 71-83), but this proved unsatisfactory owing
to the fragmentation of these bones. It was established, however,
that all the pellets contained fish fragments and that the number of
fish present per pellet ranged from 26 to over 150. The second most
important prey species was the shrimp Crangon crangon , which
occurred in five pellets, with up to ten individuals per pellet. For
this species, mandibles were counted Other minor prey were
ragworms Nereis spp., found in eight pellets (maximum of three per
pellet), spireshells Hydrobia spp., found in four pellets (maximum of
three per pellet), and Shore Crab Carcinus maenas , found as traces in
two pellets. In addition, eight pellets contained traces of up to two
insects, all beetles (Goleoptera) except for a single fly larva (Diptera) .

These results, though based on a very small sample, agree with
those of Swennen for the Dutch Waddenzee area, in that the major
prey of Greenshanks during the autumn migration is small fish, but
they differ in that both shrimps and crabs are of considerably less
importance. R. E. Jones

40 Oak Road, Fareham, Hampshire

Terek Sandpiper overwintering in Devon From 1 7th November
1973 to 5th May 1974, a Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus was present
on the estuary of the River Plym, Devon. This was the first occasion
on which the species had overwintered in Britain, and also western
Europe, and some notes on its habits, plumage and favoured habitat
during its stay may, therefore, be of interest.

The estuary is small and lies totally within the city of Plymouth.
The portion liked by waders runs roughly north-east to south-west
and is three kilometres long by about half a kilometre at its widest,

Notes

5CH

bordered on the north by a railway line and main road and on the
south by woods, water meadows and a rubbish tip. At low water,
it has soft mud banks sloping gently to the main channel, with small
areas of shingle and firmer mud near the channel and at the highest
limit of the tide. It holds quite a high number of the commoner
waders in autumn and winter, though Spotted Redshanks Tringa
erythropus and Greenshanks T. nebularia do not overwinter, as they
do on other estuaries nearby.

The Terek Sandpiper was first discovered in loose company with
Redshanks T. totanus, which remained its usual companions
throughout its stay. It was also seen at times with other waders,
particularly Dunlins Calidris alpina and Golden Plovers Pluvialis
apricaria; this gregariousness with other species was noted in winter-
ing Terek Sandpipers at Aden by Browne (1949). It was, however,
quite solitary on occasions. About two hours after high water, it
usually appeared with Redshanks on the first mud uncovered at the
top of the estuary, then followed the falling tide. Feeding was at
random during the low-water period, but, after the first flood tide,
it would make its way back up the main channel. At times, it stayed
near the head of the estuary through most of a low-water period. It
roosted with Redshanks on the timbers of an old wreck or on the
railway embankment.

In good conditions, the sandpiper was relatively easy to locate, as
its gait was so much faster than those of the other waders and, with
legs set well back and chest thrust forward, the appearance of
toppling over, noted as a good field mark by Wallace (1973), vvas
very evident. When feeding at the tide’s edge, it usually just pricked
the mud, but soft mud farther from the water was probed deeply.
Food was generally washed in a surface pool, but sometimes in the
main channel, which was at times more than six metres away. Its
bill was held at a more vertical angle than those of Redshanks, and
it sometimes probed at any angle, in towards its legs.

When first found, the bird was in complete winter plumage. The
head, neck, mantle and wing-coverts were pale grey; and on the
closed wing the primaries were dark, giving the effect of a black
band. The underparts were pure white, with grey smudges on each
side of the breast, similar to those of the Common Sandpiper
T. hypoleucos. There was also a faint dark line through the eye.
Breeding plumage was assumed before its departure, certainly by
mid-April and possibly a little earlier: the upperparts became
darker grey, streaked with brown, and two dark lines on the mantle
were clearly visible when the bird was moving away from the
observer. The grey breast smudges developed into a darker grev
pectoral band, and the neck above this became grey : the rest of the
underparts remained white.

502 Notes

Ferguson-Lees (1959) remarked that the leg colour of four
breeding Terek Sandpipers, which he observed near Oulo, Finland,
varied from deep and almost dirty orange to bright orange-yellow.
On its arrival, the Plym bird had bright yellow legs, tending to
look slightly green in some lights, but the legs darkened when
breeding plumage was assumed and, in good light about a week
before its departure, were a dull red. Most of the literature states
that the legs are yellow or orange, with general emphasis on
brightness. Ferguson-Lees’s statement, together with the observa-
tions on the Plym bird, tend to indicate that at least not all Terek
Sandpipers develop bright orange legs with breeding plumage;
and I have also been unable to find any reference to a seasonal
colour change.

When the Plym Terek Sandpiper arrived, the base of its lower
mandible was yellow, though this became dull red later. The bill,
although distinctly uptilting, did not have the curve shown in
several illustrations.

This was the fifth British record of a Terek Sandpiper within five
years and the tenth in all. The increased frequency of occurrence
might indicate a thriving and possibly expanding population in the
western part of its breeding range in Finland, but this is not borne
out by the facts. The Finnish population is still small and numbered
fewer than 15 pairs in 1975, and there is no proof that they have be-
come more abundant, at least around Oulo, since the first observa-
tions there in 1955. It is possible, as suggested by Smith et al. (1974),
that there has been some change in the migration pattern over recent
years, which has accounted for the relatively frequent occurrences
in Britain. According to Drenckhahn and Zwergel (1973), the species
is still extremely rare as a migrant in north-western Europe, even as
near to its breeding sites as Sweden, although it appears to be occur-
ring more frequently, especially in western Germany in the last few
years. It is interesting that, with the exception of the British records,
the majority of occurrences in north-west Europe have been in
autumn. R. Smaldon

46 Briar Road, Hartley, Plymouth PL3 5JH

REFERENCES

Browne, P. W. P. 1949. ‘Notes on Broad-billed and Terek Sandpipers at Aden’.

Brit. Birds, 42 : 333-334.

Drenckhahn, D., and Zwergel, U. 1973. ‘Die Nachweise des Tcrekwasserlaufers,

Tringa terek, in Schleswig-Holstein mit Bemerkungen zum jahreszeitlichen

Auftreten der Art in Nordwesteuropa’. Corax, 4 (4): 184-193.

Ferguson-Lees, I. J. 1959. ‘Photographic studies of some less familiar birds. 95.

Terek Sandpiper’. Brit. Birds, 52: 85-90.

Smith, F. R., et al. 1974. ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1973’. Brit. Birds,

67: 3IO-348.

Notes 503

Wallace, D. I. M. 1973. ‘Identification of some scarce or difficult west Palearctic
species in Iran’. Brit. Birds, 66: 376-390.

We are grateful to D. W. Evans and K. E. Vinicombe for bringing
to our attention another record of an overwintering Terek Sand-
piper in the western Palearctic. These observers noted a single
individual at Mahares, Gulf of Gabes, Tunisia, on 7th January
1975, and added that its legs were very noticeably orange. Eds

The pattern of Mediterranean Gull records at Blackpill,
West Glamorgan Dr W. R. P. Bourne {Brit. Birds , 63: 91-93)
analysed the records of Mediterranean Gulls Lams melanocephalus
in Britain during 1958-62 and suggested that the species often, but
not always, undertakes three migrations annually — a post-breeding
dispersal, a late-autumn movement to winter quarters and a return
to breeding grounds in spring. At that time, it was thought that
first-year Mediterranean Gulls were more often overlooked than
older birds, though in recent years this bias is likely to have been
reduced. Dr J. T. R. Sharrock {Brit. Birds, 65: 187-192) showed
that the proportion of first-year birds recorded increased during
the 1960’s.

I have collected the records of Mediterranean Gulls at Blackpill,
West Glamorgan (see Brit. Birds , 67: 17-24) for the period 1970-75
(with the help of H. E. Grenfell for the last year), when probably few
individuals were entirely overlooked and most age determinations
were correct. Records became confused in August and September,
however, due to change-over to observers and alteration in the
appearance of individual birds due to moult, so some new birds may
have been overlooked or dismissed as earlier ones in transition.

The arrival dates are illustrated in fig. 1. Adults and second-year
birds (remembering that some of the latter can look identical to
older birds) arrived mostly in late March or April (just one on 1st
May) and from the very end of June through July (see fig. 2, which
shows more clearly the May-June gap). First-years arrived from
mid-April to late May, with a few in mid-June and July and one in
October.

Adults made only brief stays in spring, but, often, longer ones in
summer, when they were in moult (I first noted moult on a breed-
ing-plumage adult on 30th June). The late autumn arrivals often
remained throughout the winter, though evidently moved around
locally, as lengthy gaps were sometimes evident in the records of
their presence at the Blackpill roosts. First-year birds more often
made prolonged stays in spring (having no need to visit a breeding
site), even remaining to moult (which was well advanced by mid-
July), though many moved on before that. Some, perhaps, stayed

Notes

5<=>4

Fig. 1. Mediterranean Gulls Larus melanocephalus at Blackpill, West Glamorgan,
during 1970-75. Arrival dates of first-year and older birds are shown by months

on through the autumn, though the August and September records
are inadequate.

It is worth relating this pattern to those of the commoner gulls at
Blackpill. Both adult and immature Herring Gulls L. argentatus are
at a high level through the winter; then, in the spring, the adults
leave, but a sizeable remnant of immatures and non-breeders stays
all summer. There are generally no very marked influxes or pass-
ages. Black-headed Gulls L. ridibundus are different, with large
numbers in winter, declining suddenly in early spring (e.g. in 1974,
1,000 in early March, 100 on 20th March and five on 25th March).
There are few from late March until mid-June (often none at all)
and no non-breeding flock remains. In mid and late June, there is an
influx, consisting largely of adults in breeding plumage, with a few
immatures and just one or two juveniles. For instance, in 1973,
there were ten in April and May (except for a one-day influx of 60),
20 on 15th June, 390 (90% adults in breeding plumage) on 24th,
500-600 on 2nd July and 1,600 by 19th July; and in 1974, 65 on
14th June increased to 350 (virtually all adults) on 26th, 665 on 1st
July and 1,050 by 1 8th July. Numbers usually reach about 5,000 in
November.

Common Gulls have another, quite different pattern, as my counts
for 1973/74 (apparently a typical winter) illustrate. From November
to February, there were 2,200 or more (90% adults) ; in early March,
1,500 included few first- or second-year birds; by 25th March,
adults numbered 1,400 and first-years 70; on 2nd April, adults had
dropped to 800, but the number of first-years remained unchanged;

Notes

505

Fig. 2. Distribution of arrival dates of Mediterranean Gulls Lotus melanocephalus at
Blackpill, West Glamorgan, during March-July 1970-75, shown in relation to
1974 counts of Black-headed Gulls L. ribidundus and first-year Common Gulls
L. canus. Note that first-year Mediterranean Gulls mostly coincided with the peak
passage of first-year Common Gulls, whereas the majority of older Mediterranean
Gulls appeared when Black-headed Gulls were departing in early spring or

arriving in early autumn

on 22nd April, there were 145 adults and 145 first-years, but on
1st May only twelve adults remained, though first-years had
increased to 430. Adults disappeared during May, but first-years
totalled 550 on 7th, 645 on 16th and 65 on 21st, with a few there-
after. From 24th June, when 56 of mixed ages were present, the
total slowly increased, without the sudden influx characteristic of
Black-headed Gulls.

It seems, therefore, that adult Mediterranean Gulls appear
briefly in spring, presumably on their way to breed (though we do
not know where), at a time when Black-headed Gulls are rapidly
moving away. Wintering Mediterranean Gulls also leave by early
April. Then, in April and May, when Black-headed Gulls are
almost entirely absent, there is an influx of first-year Mediter-
raneans, coinciding with the very marked spring peak of first-year
Commons, while adult Common Gulls are all leaving. These
Mediterraneans may move through, or remain among a scattering
of other gulls (mostly Herrings), until the late June influx of Black-
headeds, at which time the fresh arrival of adult and second-year
Mediterraneans begins (see fig. 2).

Both second-summer and adult Mediterranean Gulls therefore
behave very much as do adult Black-headed Gulls, whereas first-
year Mediterranean Gulls are more akin to first-year Common
Gulls in their movements, as also they are in their appearance when
in flight. R. A. Hume

31 Lime Grove, Btmitwood, Walsall \wsy oh a

Notes

5°6

Feeding association between gulls and Great Crested Grebes

Every summer, large numbers of Great Crested Grebes Podiceps
cristatus gather to moult at Chew Valley Lake, Avon (see also Brit.
Birds, 61 : 556-558; 67: 419-420). Numbers build up from early July,
until about 400 to 500 are present in August and September. After
moulting, slightly reduced numbers remain generally until early in
the new year, when most disperse. During July and August, a dense
fishing flock develops, usually numbering 150 to 250 individuals.
Initially, these are mostly from outside the area, with variable
numbers of failed local breeders, but later the flock is augmented
by successful local breeders and juveniles.

The giebes gather to feed on shoals of small fish, probably fry
of Roach Rutilus rutilus. The flock wanders across the whole expanse
of the lake and packs densely when a shoal is discovered. The feeding
is then very intense, with up to half of the flock submerged at any
one time. This activity often attracts up to 70 Black-headed Gulls
Larus ridibundus, which are quick to spot a newly formed pack of
grebes. They then settle among the pack and lunge at the small
fish that are driven near the surface by the submerged grebes. As
the grebes usually swallow their prey before resurfacing, there is
little opportunity for any parasitism, and even the grebes that have
to surface with larger fish are often ignored by the gulls, which
seem intent on their own fishing. Small numbers of Herring Gulls
L. argentatus and, especially, Lesser Black-backed Gulls L. fuscus
sometimes join the Black-headed. The feeding association dies out
by early autumn, when the grebes disperse to fish individually.

Although flocks of Black-headed Gulls sometimes prey on fish in
the shallow water at the edge of the lake, they seem unable, without
the grebes, to exploit successfully the shoals which occur in the
deeper water. K. E. Vinicombe

j Exton Close, Whitchurch, Bristol BS14 9QG

Dr K. E. L. Simmons comments: ‘It is well known that seabirds
often rely on predatory fish and cetaceans to “flush” their prey to
the surface and above (e.g. Brit. Birds, 65: 475), but this is a most
interesting variant.’ Eds

Display of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker On 19th January 1975?
at Esher, Surrey, a female Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos
minor alighted on a nearly vertical branch of an ash Fraxinus excelsior
and perched almost upright along it. She immediately spread her
wings sideways and forwards until the still narrow points were level

Notes

507

with her head. For a few moments, she remained motionless in this
position, while calling a soft ‘keer-keer-keer’. No other wood-
peckers were seen. On 23rd February, a Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
called and then drummed from the same tree. A second individual
arrived and, perched almost vertically on a branch, immediately
assumed the same rigid stance with spread wings, calling as before.
The first woodpecker then left and the second began hacking at the
rotten branch. Misty visibility prevented me from determining the
sexes of the birds.

This display seems to be a striking variation of the rigid posturings
previously reported. The Handbook mentions the male’s floating,
moth-like display flight from tree to tree and adds that, between such
flights, both sexes assume a peculiar, rigid, motionless posture close
together on a branch. In such attitudes, which I have seen, although
the woodpeckers perched along a branch with beaks straight out in
line, their wings were folded closely along their sides, this position
being held for a minute or more. They then flew to another spot
and repeated the posturing. E. V. Southam {Brit. Birds, 38: 55)
described how both sexes took up a sustained position with quiver-
ing, half-open wings and spread tail, and head pushed forward,
showing the barred back and outer tail feathers, while calling a loud,
hissing churr. R. A. Richardson {Brit. Birds 41: 31 1) observed a
male Lesser Spotted Woodpecker that, after a sailing, butterfly-like
flight on motionless wings, alighted but kept his wings fully spread
and slightly raised. Geoffrey Beven

16 Parkwood Avenue, Esher, Surrey

Rooks taking food from dustbins Further to the note by N. L.
Richards on a Rook Corvus frugilegus taking food from a dustbin at
St Mawgan, Cornwall, in November 1969 {Brit. Birds, 62: 497-
498), I found small groups of up to five Rooks at Saltford, Avon,
taking food from wire mesh bins during the winter of 1969/70.
Saltford is on the A4 road and the dustbins were in small shopping
precincts nearby. The Rooks visited the bins during weekends, or
whenever the bins were full, especially very early on Sunday
mornings. They were seen pulling at exposed matter and, while
some individuals obtained edible items in this way, others worked
over what had fallen to the ground. Sometimes, the Rooks pene-
trated deep into the wells of the bins and I noted that they obtained
scraps of bread and discarded potato chips, but, as I could not
approach closely without disturbing the birds, it was not possible to
identify many food items. Bernard King

Gull Cry, g Park Road, Newlyn, Penzance, Cornwall

Notes

5°8

Short-toed Treecreeper in Kent: a species new to Britain and
Ireland The question of identification of treecreepers Certhia spp has
recently been reviewed by C. J. Mead and D. I. M. Wallace {Brit.
Birds , 69: 117-131). In their introduction, they mentioned the first
accepted British record of Short-toed Treecreeper C. brachydactyla ,
trapped at Dungeness, Kent, on 27th September 1969 and re-
trapped there on 30th September. The purpose of this note is to
place the details of this occurrence on record.

Between 1952 (the year that the bird observatory began its
operations there) and 1970, only four treecreepers were recorded
(all of them trapped) at Dungeness. The first, on 10th October 1957,
was examined in the hand by H. E. Axell, who recorded on the
description card that the bird was ‘Too grey for British. Possibly
C. f. familiaris (or macrodactyla) .’ It is possible that this individual
may have been brachydactyla. Two others, both examined by me, on
8th October 1969 and 17th October 1970, were identified as Tree-
creepers C. familiaris.

The bird subsequently identified as the first British Short-toed
Treecreeper was trapped in a mist-net at dusk on 27th September
1969. After examination, it was roosted overnight and released on
the morning of 28th September, weighing 7.6 g (08.00 hours). Two
days later, on 30th September, it was retrapped, weighing 8.1 g
(09.00 hours). The following details were recorded. Wing 59 mm,
bill 17 mm, tarsus 17 mm, hindclaw 6.5 mm. Wing formula: 1st
primary 9 mm longer than primary coverts, 4th and 5th primaries
equal and longest, 3rd shorter by 2 mm, 2nd by 9 mm, 6th by 1.5
mm, 7th by 5 mm, 8th by 8 mm, 9th by 9.5 mm and 10th by
10.5 mm.

Separation of the two treecreepers in the hand is dependent
upon hindclaw and bill measurements; although Dr J. M. Harrison
{Ibis, 77: 437-438) recorded that the largest alula feather has a
complete pale margin in brachydactyla, Mead and Wallace showed
that 17% of familiaris could be wrongly assigned on this character
alone. The description card of the trapped bird does not mention
this feather, but an examination of a colour transparency taken at
the time shows a thin, but complete, pale margin.

L. Svensson (1965, Identification Guide to European Passerines )
separated the two species with the formula: bill X 0.456, greater
than hindclaw = brachydactyla, less than hindclaw = familiaris', but
Mead and Wallace showed this not to be completely sound and
produced an improved formula that was 95% efficient: 0.14 X
bill -f- 5.6, greater than hindclaw = brachydactyla, less than hind-
claw — familiaris.

On all of these criteria, the treecreeper first trapped at Dungeness
on 27th September 1969 was clearly brachydactyla, while the other

Notes

509

three Dungencss examples were either familiaris or fell in the area
of overlap between the two species, so that their identities will
probably never be conclusively established. R. E. Scott

Swigshole Cottage , High Halstow, Kent ME3 8sr

Song of female Blackbird This note is prompted by Margaret
K. Jones’s note on the song of a female Blackbird Turdus merula
and Dr D. W. Snow’s comments (Brit. Birds , 62: 80), and Elspeth
Bartlett’s note on the song of a female Dunnock Prunella modularis
(Brit. Birds, 63: 179-180). On 13th July 1970, in my garden at
Barnwell, Northamptonshire, a male Blackbird flew on to the roof
of some stables and started to sing. His mate, feeding nearby, then
joined him and also started to sing, but in a very subdued— though
typical — manner, continuing after the male had stopped and flown
away.

Later that afternoon, the female flew in from a nearby orchard,
landed on a wall, and started to disgorge cherry stones and undi-
gested cherries. Twice while doing this, she uttered a few notes of
typical song before returning to feed.

The birds were accustomed to my presence, especially near their
nest, and there were no apparent signs of agitation and no conflict
with the other resident pair of Blackbirds, which were feeding in a
nearby field (both pairs had reared young, which had since left
the garden). James W. W. Metcalfe

Four Corners, Church Lane, Barnwell, Peterborough pe8 5PG

Reviews

A Guide to Birds of the Coast. By C. A. Gibson-Hill, revised
by Bruce and Robert Campbell and Robin Prytherch.
Constable, London, 1976. 288 pages; 25 black-and-white
photographs; numerous line drawings and distribution
maps. £3-5°-

The original book, Birds of the Coast, published in 1949, was described
by the author as ‘a short introduction to the coastal birds of the
British Isles in an easily portable form’. It was just that and, with its
distribution maps and plentiful line drawings, which included birds
in flight and compared similar or easily confused species, it was a
forerunner of many of the field guides with which we are now so
familiar. Although many modern birdwatchers may never have
seen a copy, or even heard of the book, it stands as a minor classic
of its kind, published in an era when practical bird books were few
and far between.

510

Reviews

A revised version has now appeared, converting the sequence to
the Wetmore order, updating and adding to the original text and
bringing in new distribution maps. The photographs differ somewhat
from those of the 1949 edition, but are still all from the series taken
by Carl Gibson-Hill 30 years ago and are mostly extremely good.
Unfortunately, the author’s original line drawings, with their
lively and individual style, were lost after his death in 1963, so that
the revised edition contains only a few of these, but a great many
new ones by Robin Prytherch.

Most of the old text remains, and the revisions have been fitted
in very successfully. The new drawings capture the spirit of the
originals, so that the end result is an attractive and readable little
book. I am, however, not personally convinced of the wisdom of
revising bird books long out of print, especially when the original
seems to stand on its own and to represent a certain stage in the
evolution of ornithological literature. I am forced to wonder, too,
who will buy this book at a time when there are so many full-
coloured field guides about? I doubt if many active birdwatchers
will feel the need to have a copy, and it is not quite what I would
recommend to holidaymakers or casual observers.

Michael J. Everett

A Guide to Bird-watching in Denmark. By J. Sanders and
K. Berg. A B Grafisk Formgivning, 1976. 63 pages; 39 line-
drawings. £1.70.

This short book gives useful information for the English-speaking
birdwatcher visiting Denmark, including how to travel, where to
stay, the best available maps and costs. It covers, however, only
western Jutland and north Zealand, and there are many places
well worth visiting elsewhere in the country. Unfortunately, its
value is reduced further because some of the information on the
birds is inaccurate and incomplete; it appears to be based on
enquiries made by the authors in the 1960s, without any attempt
having been made to consult competent Danish ornithologists for
the more recent developments. As the book seems designed largely
for British ornithologists, it is strange that Romo and Fano are
not mentioned as the two most important Danish breeding localities
for Kentish Plover; and a list of the villages where White Storks
are still nesting would surely have been of interest? Data on the
Black Woodpecker in north Zealand are inadequate and not entirely
correct. Yet, although some of the information must be treated with
reserve, it is, perhaps, the best modern work available to English-
speaking birdwatchers, since others, though they cover larger
areas in Denmark, deal with fewer localities. Tommy Dybbro

Letters

Migration in the doldrums D. I. M. Wallace expressed an
atavistic ‘Viewpoint’ (Brit. Birds, 68: 202-203) that it was time for
‘a resumption of migration studies related to conservation’, and
suggested setting up a working party to promote it. This has, of
course, been an interest of the International Council for Bird
Preservation since its foundation, while we already also have the
British Trust for Ornithology’s Ringing and Migration Committee
and the Bird Observatories Council covering other aspects of the
study of migration, so might it not be better to concentrate all these
divided responsibilities under one committee instead of setting up a
fourth ?

But, surely, first we need to find some clear objectives for further
development? All the great enquiries were mounted with well-
defined aims, yet now most possible approaches have already been
investigated. In the distant past, we had phenology, recording the
annual return of the patron of all migration-watchers, the Cuckoo
Cuculus canorus. In the 1880’s, the British Association for the Advance-
ment of Science mounted a major enquiry into migration at the
coastal lights, and in the 1 goo’s the British Ornithologists’ Club
set up another, into migration inland, during which the Alexanders
revealed that the birds take up territories. Between the wars, most
people were happily engaged in developing bird-ringing, though a
few pioneers paved the way for the great outburst of activity at bird
observatories, at sewage farms and on weather ships, first watching
visible migration, then birds seen with radar, ringing Sand Martins
Riparia riparia and, finally, looking for inland migration once again.
Eventually, all these enquiries achieved their more practical aims
and were buried under a progressive accumulation of results, yielding
diminishing returns, so that people took up other things, such
as counting seabirds and making maps. If we wish to persuade
them to study migration again, and raise grants to help in these
hard times, we need to think of something new and useful for them
to do.

Personally, I cannot think of any very convincing new objectives.
The most promising — further ringing analyses — has already been
receiving attention for some time, even if you are not satisfied with
the progress made (Brit. Birds, 68: 53-56), which can be regarded
as an indication of the increasing difficulty of more complicated
analyses. Other people have already carried out expeditions to
areas, such as Iberia and West Africa, where the ringing results
suggest that there are conservation problems. These, also, are often
more easily said than done in the present economic situation. I
cannot think of much more that we might do now, except attempt

5J2

Letters

to follow the movements of marked birds and populations more
closely. There are limits to the amount of conspicuous marking that
the public will tolerate, but, if this sensitive subject is approached
cautiously, there is a growing fund of experience, with selective
trapping, dyeing, tagging, use of large rings readable at a distance,
and radio direction-finding, on which we might build. It should
also be possible to carry out further developments of census tech-
niques in order to follow the movements of bird populations
outside the breeding season, in the way already possible with wild-
fowl and waders.

Whatever is done, surely the need is for a better organisation of
existing institutions, rather than the establishment of additional
ones? W. R. P. Bourne

Z oology Department, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen

ABg 2TN

Feeding habits of certain seabirds We feel that the letter by
Dr W. R. P. Bourne (Brit. Birds, 69: 188-189) attempting to clarify
information on plunge-diving, deserves comment.

(1) We agree with him that the species — Shag Phalacrocorax
aristotelis, Manx Shearwater Puffinus puffinus and Razorbill A lea
torda — observed by BK mass-feeding over dense shoals of fish were
often not plunge-diving, but, in their attempts to reach more
favourable positions close to their prey, ‘crash-landing’ from flight
and then surface-diving immediately in their normal way. Indeed,
in many instances, they surface-fed after alighting without diving
at all.

(2) Not infrequently, however, and especially in the case of the
Shags, the birds did not pause on the surface, but submerged im-
mediately from flight. This behaviour was not of the accomplished
type of aerial diving practised, for example, by Gannets Sula
bassana (which enter the water head first), but of a clumsy kind that
one would expect from otherwise habitually surface-diving species;
nevertheless, the term ‘plunge-diving’ (used broadly for all types
of aerial diving) seems to us acceptable for such behaviour. Further,
in the case of the Manx Shearwater, we know from the observations
of W. E. Jones (Brit. Birds, 68: 1 19-120), to which Dr Bourne did
not refer, that typical plunge-diving may at times be performed by
many birds of the same feeding congregation, while others are
surface-diving and surface-feeding. Versatility is evidently a key
factor in the feeding biology of many successful seabird species.

(3) We also agree with Dr Bourne that the behaviour of the Puffin
Fratercula arctica, described in A. C. Bent’s Life Histories of North
American Diving Birds (1919), is better classified as ‘porpoising’,
rather than plunge-diving. The frequency and significance of por-

Letters

513

poising among auks (Aicidae) still seems uncertain, but it is generally
agreed that in the convergent penguins (Spheniscidae) such be-
haviour enables birds moving rapidly under water to breathe with
minimum time on the surface, this being of particular importance
when they are feeding among shoals of fish near the surface. Porpois-
ing may also help to replenish the air supply trapped between the
feathers, thus maintaining the insulating efficiency of the plumage.

(4) In the same volume of his Life Histories , however, Bent
recorded that the Tufted Puffin Landa cirrhata, presumably while
feeding, ‘often dives directly out of the air into the water’ as well as
surface-diving ‘as soon as it alights’.

(5) We believe that one reason for misunderstandings of seabird
feeding methods is the lack, even now, of a really satisfactory and
comprehensive classification. The terminology of Dr N. P. and Mrs
M. J. Ashmole {Bull. Peabody Mus. Nat. Hist., 24: 1-131), and the
adaptation of it used by KELS {Brit. Birds, 65: 475-479), proved
unsatisfactory, while even the later attempt by Dr Ashmole {Avian
Biology, 1 : 223-286) had its shortcomings and has not yet been
widely used. KELS has, therefore, been devising an improved
classification based on this earlier work. A version of the new termi-
nology is used in the forthcoming The Birds of the Western Palearctic,
and will eventually be published in some form elsewhere.

(6) Finally, we feel constrained to point out that plunge-diving
seabirds by no means always aim their attacks on a pre-selected
prey-fish, nor are some incapable of pursuing their prey under
water, at least to some extent, in the manner of surface-diving
species. We do not believe, either, that Dr Bourne meant to imply
that any true seabird — flight-feeder, plunge-diver, surface-feeder,
or surface-diver — ever uses its feet to secure food.

Bernard King and K. E. L. Simmons
Gull Cry, g Park Road, Newlyn, Cornwall
/ 8 Sibton Lane, Oadby, Leicester LE2 5UA

Manx Shearwaters plunge-diving While acknowledging Dr
W. R. P. Bourne’s experience in the realm of seabird activity, I
suggest that his letter {Brit. Birds, 69: 188-189) indicates that he
has not yet seen Manx Shearwaters Puffinus puffinus feeding in exactly
the same conditions as those described by Bernard King {Brit.
Birds, 67: 77) and myself {Brit. Birds, 68: 1 19-120).

When Manx Shearwaters are in loose rafts over a fairly open
fish-shoal, or when they are widespread and feeding on more
scattered prey, they usually obtain their food either near the
surface while swimming or, more usually, during a series of shallow
dives. If the prey species is moving horizontally at any speed, a
shearwater will, however, usually emerge from a dive with its wings

5*4

Letters

beating and then either take to the air at once or flap and glide
with its feet pattering along the surface until further food is sighted ;
it will then splash-land breast-first and dive again almost without
pause. Such a manoeuvre requires adequate sea-room, and it is
precisely this condition that is lacking during incidents such as
those described earlier. The rafts that I watched were so densely
crowded that there was no room for a bird to land anywhere near
the centres of them before diving, and the shearwaters circling and
wheeling overhead eventually descended at such an angle that it
seemed physically impossible for them to break the surface other
than head-first.

I am somewhat puzzled by Dr Bourne’s comment expressing
doubt concerning the birds’ ability ‘to hit a fish with an aimed
plunge’. Surely, their only need is to get below the surface near the
shoal by whatever means they can, so that fish can be pursued and
caught in the usual manner? W. E. Jones

3 Castle Hill Villas , Ilfracombe, Devon

Wader photographs I was delighted to see the superb series of
wader photographs by J. B. and S. Bottomley {Brit. Birds, 69: 155,
plates 13-16), but was somewhat disappointed that, in the accom-
panying captions and text, the opportunity was missed to point out
the juvenile plumage characteristics so clearly shown by most of the
birds. Since many of these diagnostic features are visible in the field,
at least in autumn and early winter, it is worth mentioning the more
obvious ones. For instance, the scaly pattern on the back of the Knot
Calidris canutus (plate 15a), formed by the dark brown subterminal
bands and huffish-white fringes to the back feathers and wing
coverts, is not present in adult Knots at any time of the year. In
September, when this photograph was taken, adults would still
show some traces of the dark brown summer plumage on the back
(heavily abraded), but would also have already obtained many of
their pale grey winter feathers, which, though paling slightly towards
the tip, lack the contrasting markings of the juvenile feathers. Whilst
the juveniles change most of their back feathers by November, to
the adult-type winter plumage, the juvenile wing coverts are
retained throughout the first year, enabling identification of first-
year birds at close range (or in the hand).

Immature Grey Plovers Pluvialis squatarola (plate 13b) can also
be identified in the field in their first year, retaining much of their
characteristic spotted appearance throughout their first winter. In
winter plumage, the back feathers and wing coverts of the adult
are grey, paling uniformly towards the tip, but not showing any
semblance of this spotted appearance. It is worth mentioning that

Letters

5*5

some of the spots on the immature plumage are of a yellowish-
golden hue — particularly on the scapulars and lower back — and
this has been the cause of some confusion (with Golden Plovers
P. apricaria ) to inexperienced observers (particularly in the hand,
where size and other field characteristics, ‘jizz’ and habitat cannot
be judged). The juvenile Sanderling Calidris alba (plate 14a) also
has a characteristic spotted appearance on the back, scapulars and
wing coverts — the spots being white or slightly buffish-yellow, with
narrow black terminal bands (not visible in the field and soon
abraded off). Whilst the back feathers are changed by October, to
the uniform silvery-grey of the adult winter plumage, the juvenile
wing coverts are retained. When the plumage becomes abraded in
late winter, the closed wing of the juvenile looks brownish in the
field, in contrast to the greyer appearance of the adult.

I hope that these comments may encourage observers to look
more closely at waders in the field, particularly in autumn, when
age characteristics are most apparent. This would be particularly
interesting on inland waders and on rarities — my own observations
suggest that the majority of these are juveniles. Field guides also
might perhaps pay greater attention to the more significant dif-
ferences in plumage of the different age classes (for some time, the
juvenile plumage of the Ruff Philomachus pugnax was featured in
illustrations and labelled as ‘Ruff, autumn’ — presumably because
almost all of the Ruffs seen in Britain and Ireland on autumn
passage are juveniles). C. D. T. Minton

Elm Croft, 65 St John's Hill, Shenstone, Lichfield, Staffordshire

A question of priorities I find it significant that the two critiques
that you published of my ‘Viewpoint’ (Brit. Birds, 69: 16-19) were
concerned with its philosophic starting point (Barrie Pearson) and
matters of fact (Robert Adams) (Brit. Birds, 69: 226-228). Neither
took issue with the main point of the article, that money spent on
conservation at home would be better spent abroad where species
(not populations or subspecies) are faced with imminent extinction.

1 am sorry that my philosophical ramblings were not clear to
Mr Pearson, for certainly he has misunderstood or missed the point
of the argument. To ask ‘should we conserve birds?’ is to ask an
ethical question. It is my point that without the healthy ecosystem,
of which birds form an integral part, it would be impossible to
ask such a question. Thus, the existence of birds is presupposed in
asking the question. That is neither self-evident, nor materialistic
or aesthetic. It is the only acceptable answer (that I know of) that
is not based on simple value judgements, which, as Mr Pearson so
rightly states, are outside the province of philosophers. He goes on

Letters

5l6

to raise the problems of peripheral populations and their scientific
interest while totally ignoring the plight of the Cheetah Acinonyx
jubata, the Tiger Panthera tigris and the Indian Rhinoceros Rhino-
ceros unicornis , not to mention the plethora of endangered bird
species that cling to toe-holds on this planet. With the present rate
of wildlife decline, we may, on Mr Pearson’s premise, know an
awful lot about how species originate by the time they disappear.

My research, says Mr Adams, was inadequate. Yet my article
explicitly stated that WWF money is divided into three components
— the national, the international and a third rather grey area that
may be spent on either. It is my point that the WWF — World
Wildlife Fund — was created to channel money into the less fortunate
countries. His point, about donors needing to be assured that some
part (in practice half or more) of their donations is spent in Britain,
simply highlights my case. In my opinion, the WWF is not doing
what it set out to do. With its vast turnover, the WWF gives the
impression that the wildlife of the world is being well cared for.
Instead, it is the wildfowl of Britain that seem to benefit most.

May I suggest that, if readers have money to give to wildlife
conservation, they consider the ‘100% Fund’ of the Fauna Preser-
vation Society? At least they would then be sure that all of their
money was being spent on a global scale. John Gooders

jj Brodrick Road, London WS17

This correspondence is now closed. Eds

Bird V\
Photograph
of theYear^/

Readers are reminded that the closing date for receipt of entries for
this competition (black-and-white prints or colour transparencies)
is 5th January 1977 . Interest and originality, as well as technical
excellence, will be taken into account in deciding the winning entry.
The prize will be a cheque for £100. For full details of the rules,
see page 421 in the November issue. The judging panel will be
M. D. England, I. J. Ferguson- Lees, Eric Hosking and Dr J. T. R.
Sharrock. Eds

Request for information

Birds of St Kilda Dr M. P. Harris is updating the bird list of St Hilda published
by Kenneth Williamson and J. Morton Boyd in their book St Kilda Summer (i960).
He would like to receive any recent bird records that have not already been
submitted to Dr I. D. Pennie (bird recorder for St Kilda); these should be sent to

Dr M. P. Harris, Institute of Terrestrial Ecology, Banchory, Kincardine-
shire AB3 4BY.

Request for assistance

Atlas fieldwork in Finland, Italy and Spain Observers willing to help in
completing breeding bird atlas coverage in Finland, Italy or Spain, during visits
in April-July 1977, are invited to contact the national organisers of the atlas pro-
jects in those countries. Advice on maps, letters of introduction and, where neces-
sary, permission to visit some private areas can be provided for serious fieldworkers
willing to help in remote squares. Please contact: Finland Dr Kalevi Hyytia,
Joupinmaki 3 A 19, 02760 ESPOO 76; ITALY Dr Sergio Frugis, Director,
Centro Italiano Studi Ornithologica, c o Instituto di Zoologia, Universita
di Parma; SPAIN Dr Francisco Purroy, Estacion Central de Ecologia
(ICOWA), KM 7 Carretera La Coruna, Madrid 35.

5T7

News and comment Peter Conder

Skokholm Bird Observatory to close The sad news has reached me that
Skokholm Bird Observatory, Dyfed, is to close. The observatory was the first to be
established in Britain, in 1937, by R. M. Lockley, whose work on the Manx
Shearwater was one of the earliest seabird life history studies to be made. It was on
Skokholm that Ronald Lockley built the first Heligoland bird trap in this country.
From that moment, until the war closed the observatory, many thousands of birds
were ringed annually. Up to the war, the observatory was managed privately by
Mr Lockley, but in 1948 the West Wales Field Society took over the lease and
granted a licence to the Field Studies Council to manage it. When the lease came
to be renewed in 1969, the owner would allow the West Wales Naturalists’ Trust, to
which the Field Society had changed its name, to renew it only on the condition
that they did not in any way sublet the island.

Now, in 1976, when the lease has once more come up for renewal, the owner,
who was for several years a member of the British Ornithologists’ Union, has
granted the WVVNT only a further three-year lease, and then only on the condition
that all trapping and ringing ceases. The WWNT was told that, as ringing had
been carried out on the island for nearly 50 years, it should now have learnt
all there is to know! Yet the latest annual report shows that Manx Shearwaters
ringed in 1946 and in succeeding years are still alive and returning to the island,
so we still do not know the age to which the island’s commonest birds can live.

Although Skokholm’s long history of research, based on individually recognisable
birds, is to come to an end, the WWNT will still manage the island and welcome
visitors who wish to stay for a minimum of a week at the house. The WWNT
will be arranging a number of courses for beginners and those interested in sea-
birds. Further details may be obtained from David Saunders, hon. general secretary
of the West Wales Naturalists’ Trust, 20a High Street, Haverfordwest, Dyfed. The
latest report, covering both Skokholm and Skomer in 1975, may be obtained from
him, at a price of 35P (including postage).

Ringing migrants on Great Saltee John Rochford of the Irish Wildbird
Conservancy and two companions have made two visits to the island of Great
Saltee, situated off the extreme south-east corner of Ireland, and are proposing to
return there in future migration seasons. The ringing totals resulting from these
trips have been impressive reminders of the value of Great Saltee in the chain of
migrant passerine ringing stations. The bird observatory, established there in
1950, ceased regular operations in spring 1963.

Endangered species of wild fauna and flora Trade in animal furs and skins
continues to be substantial, according to statistics contained in the ‘Report in the
Implementation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and Flora in the United Kingdom 1 January-31 July 1976’. Indeed,
ornithologists who look at the figures of birds of prey imported during the first
seven months of the year might well be shocked, since the totals are already as
high as those for the whole of 1975. We have to be grateful that the United
Kingdom’s controls on birds of prey and owls extend beyond those of the conven-
tion, in requiring a licence before the importation of any bird of prey. In spite of
these additional controls, however, the licensing authority apparently has no power
to limit the number of licences it issues or to impose quotas. This appears to be a
weakness of the present system. The controls are not intended to interfere with
legitimate trade. One advantage of such a system is that the United Kingdom is
in a position to monitor closely all relevant trade. This in turn should serve to
highlight significant fluctuations in the trade of any particular species and give an
early warning if it appears that stocks are being depleted through over-exploita-

News and comment

5*9

tion. The report is available from Wildlife Conservation Section, Department of
the Environment, 17/19 Rochester Row, London swi.

NCC to buy Cader Idris The Nature Conservancy Council has reached a
satisfactory arrangement to purchase 387 hectares of land at Cader Idris, Gwynedd.
I he interest of the mountain lies mainly in its outstanding geological and botanical
features, including many arctic-alpine plants. The area to be purchased includes
the glacial lake of Llyn Cau, the summit of the mountain ridge known as Pen-y-
Gadair (893 m), 8 hectares of mixed oak and ash woodland, and some adjacent
areas necessary for managing the reserve effectively.

More bird reserves The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has recently-
announced the acquisition of the freehold of Fore Wood, Sussex, with some of the
£6 1 0,000 so far raised in its ‘Save a Bird’ appeal. Fore Wood, near Battle, is a
55-hectare wood, with oak standards and chestnut and hornbeam coppice. The
coppicing has been much neglected in recent years and provides opportunities for
management.

The Scottish Wildlife Trust has purchased a large part of the Montrose Basin in
Angus, an estuary of importance for its wading birds. The new reserve consists of
over 700 hectares of foreshore and saltmarsh, and its acquisition will be some
compensation for the loss of part of the Cromarty Firth to oil developments. Both
purchases were helped by grants from the World Wildlife Fund.

Gibraltar I have just been sent the first bulletin of the Gibraltar Ornithological
Group. Ernest Garcia tells me that he expects that duplicated bulletins will be
appearing at six-monthly intervals and will be summarising ornithological obser-
vations at Gibraltar, which boasts a growing number of birdwatchers. The present
bulletin includes group news, then, most usefully, a list of recent ornithological
publications recording observations at or near Gibraltar, and finally a systematic
list of birds seen in the first six months of 1976, which makes fascinating reading.
This issue of the bulletin can be obtained from E. F. J. Garcia, 50 Governors
Street, Gibraltar; price 40P, postage paid.

Requests for information In BTO News, birdwatchers arc asked to pay-
particular attention to owl pellets and check their contents for rings. Chris Mead
says that owl pellets will contain rings often still on the leg bones of any ringed
bird that may' have been eaten. Such records not only provide a useful ringing
recovery, but help us to learn more about predators’ diets. Pellet searches tend to
be most productive between November and April, when the summer's growth of
vegetation has died away.

Andrew St Joseph of the Wildlife Trust at Slimbridge, Gloucester, tells me that
few of the birdwatchers who look at Brent Geese flocks between the Wash and the
Channel Islands notice rings or make any attempt to read the numbers, which can
be read at a distance of 100 m with a 40 X telescope. His work is a remnant of the
research packet given to naturalists — dare I say as a sop — by the Heath govern-
ment when they chose Foulness as the site for London’s third airport. Andrew St
Joseph’s research still has validity (but not much funding, apparently). The main
point of this note, however, is to ask birdwatchers to pay' particular attention to
the legs of the Brent Geese they see this winter.

Whales, dolphins and porpoises Ornithologists often see cetaceans when
engaged in seawatching. The Mammal Society' has just published an excellent
booklet, entitled Guide to Identification of Cetaceans in British Waters, by P. G. H. Evans,
with drawings by' C. M. Crawford. Birdwatchers are in a position to make signifi-
cant contributions to the knowledge of cetacean distribution round our coasts.

520

News and comment

Queries and records are welcomed by P. G. H. Evans, Cetacean Group, c/o
Zoology Department, University of Aberdeen, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen,
abq 2tn, from whom copies of the booklet and recording forms may be obtained.

Seventy-fifth Anniversary of Netherlands Ornithologists’ Union At a

conference to mark their 75th anniversary, the Netherlands Ornithologists’ Union
elected Professor Niko Tinbergen and Professor Karel Voous as Honorary Members
and Professor Urs Glutz von Blotzheim and Stanley Cramp as Corresponding
Members.

Honours to ornithologists In addition to the awards recently mentioned under
this heading by Peter Conder (pages 459-460), we should note that he himself has
also deservedly been honoured. At the annual general meeting of the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds, held on 29th September 1976, Peter Conder was
awarded the society’s Gold Medal for services to bird protection. (Contributed by
J. T. R. Sharrock.)

Birds new to science ‘News and comment’ for October 1974 (Brit. Birds , 67:
444-447) included an item on bird species new to science discovered in recent
years. Only three of these were from the Palearctic region: a gull Larus relictus
from Kazakhstan, a nightjar Caprimulgus centralasicus from north-west China and a
grasshopper warbler Locustella amnicola from east Siberia. Now a fourth can be
added, and from an area much nearer home. In the current issue of Alauda (44:
35 1 -352), Jacques Vielliard has named and described a new nuthatch, Sitta
ledanti, discovered last July on the Djebel Babor, northern Algeria; this lies in the
Petite Kabylie Mountains of Constantine province, which are between the Gulf
of Bougie and the town of S£tif. The Kabylie Nuthatch, as it has been dubbed,
rather resembles Kriiper’s Nuthatch S. krueperi of Turkey and the Caucasus, but
has the underparts uniformly washed with beige, and also has a distinctive song.
Further, juveniles have the black crown of adult plumage, a feature lacking in
juveniles of S. krueperi and its other upland relative, the Corsican Nuthatch S.
whiteheadi. This newly discovered nuthatch must be very rare and local to have
evaded detection for so long in a comparatively well-worked country. Monsieur
Vielliard considers it a relict population that may not exceed a dozen pairs, and,
if he is right, this must be one of the rarest passerines in the world. Fortunately,
access to the Djebel Babor is difficult and strictly regulated, so that appropriate
conservation measures can be imposed. (Contributed by Robert Hudson.)

Tailpiece Extract from Habitat Digest no. 7: ‘There has been some concern
expressed at the overuse of nature reserves for school field studies . . .’

Extracts from the Bedfordshire Natural History Society Newsletter, students’ page :
‘Visit to Maulden Wood, August 1976. It was a really baking afternoon, but we
eventually persuaded ourselves to take off our bikinis and spend an afternoon at
Maulden. We first decided to look for butterflies . . ‘Open day at Maulden Wood,
September 5th 1976. Thousands flocked to see the spectacle on this joyous occasion,
the atmosphere comparable to a rolling stones concert (or nearly). The Police
were in evidence to control the marauding naturalists doing their thing here and
there and everywhere . . .’.

Opinions expressed in this feature are not necessarily those of the editors of British Birds

Spring summary D. A. Christie

We received little information on sea-passage from coastal stations, but the follow-
ing movements may be of interest. At Portland a total of 3,194 Manx Shear-
waters Puffinus puffmus passed between 2nd and 12 th May. Figures for Common
Scoters Melanitta nigra came only from Dungeness, where eastward passage reached
a peak of 4,029 on 3rd May. An impressive movement of skuas was recorded. At
Dungeness, 161 Pomarine Skuas Stercorarius pomarinus flew east between 19th
April and 1 8th May, with peaks of 48 on 6th May, 63 on 8th and 21 on 15th; and
at Beachy Head 157 were noted between 19th April and 15th May, peaks being
28 on 6th May, 75 on 7th and 25 on 15th; at Balranald, North Uist (Western
Isles), 138 moved north between 10th and 15th May, with maxima of 56 on 10th
and 36 on 12th. Between mid-April and mid-May 1 12 Arctic Skuas S. parasiticus
moved east at Dungeness, including 35 on 2nd May. A noteworthy inland record
of Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla came from the Elan Valley reservoirs (Powys), 14
individuals on 14th May.

WADERS

A total of about 19 Kentish Plovers Charadrius alexandrinus was recorded from
17th April, most from the east coast, but including as many as seven inland. Few
reports were received of Dotterels Eudromias morinellus, the maximum being 16 at
Simonsbath, Exmoor (Devon), in May. Early Wood Sandpipers Tringa glareola
at Chew Valley Lake on 1st April and Cranmere (Salop) on 2nd were followed by
six more in April, 19 in May and just one in early June; no more than two were
seen together. About 34 Little Stints Calidris minuta were noted, of which eleven
were at inland sites, including up to three at Draycote in early June, and the
maximum was five at Tetney Haven (Lincolnshire) on 10th June. Only eleven or
so Temminck’s Stints C. temminckii were noted, a poor showing after recent
years; an early one was at Par marsh (Cornwall) on 24th April. A Curlew Sand-
piper C. ferruginea appeared at Sandwich Bay on 22nd March, followed by one at
Bough Beech Reservoir (Kent) on 19th April, but there were only three more in
May, two of them inland. Avocets Recurvirostra avoselta have been more con-
spicuous on passage in recent years and 1976 was no exception; they turned up at
ten places and were noted on sea-watches; the most interesting records concerned
inland sightings, no fewer than 35 at seven sites including the amazing number of
2 1 at Eye Brook Reservoir on 23rd May.

DEPARTING WINTER VISITORS

A Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus remained at Holy Island (Northumberland) until
1 6th May, while the last Bewick’s C. bewickii was at Grindon Lough (also North-
umberland) on 13 th.

There was a large flock of 200 Fieldfares Turdus pilaris at Middleton-in-Teesdale
(Cleveland) on 3rd May and five others were still present in several places in the
second half of the month; in June singles were seen in the Trent V7 alley and,
surprisingly, in the Greater London area (two). A fall of 1,000 Redwings T. iliacus
at Dungeness on 25th March indicated the beginning of return passage on the east
coast, while three days earlier 1 ,600 arrived on Lundy in the west ; 1 8 were reported
in England in May, many from inland localities. A total of twelve Bramblings
Fringilla montifringilla was reported in May, up to 9th.

ARRIVALS OF SOME MIGRANTS AND SUMMER VISITORS

For the sake of brevity, the following details do not include first dates unless they
were particularly noteworthy and are limited to those species for which there is
significant information. Hobby Falco subbuteo No early records, but a sizeable

521

522

Spring summary

influx in May and J une, with numerous reports from the Midlands and north-
east England. Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubins Present in Kent from 20th
March. A very early bird at Sandbach (Cheshire) on 13th March, and one at
Thrapston gravel pits (Northamptonshire) on 21st was also earlier than usual.
Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus Extremely early report of 24 flying north-east at
Cliffe (Kent) on 24th February. Few in March but a distinct arrival in last ten
days of April. Maximum at Steart (Avon) roost, 930 on 30th April. Greenshank
Tringa nebidaria Fleavy arrival during second half of April. Stone Curlew
Burhinus oedicnemus One found dead near Wadenhoe (Northamptonshire) on 9th
April was the first in the county since 1963. A pair was found in Leicestershire
(outside the normal breeding range) early in April. Black Tern Chlidonias niger
Very few. Maximum at Dungeness only 68 on 6th May. Inland 50 or more at
Foxcote (Berkshire) on 23rd May. Common or Arctic Tern Sterna hirundo /
paradisaea 1,000 east at Dungeness on both 24th and 28th April. Little Tern S.
albifrons Maximum at Dungeness 209 east on 6th May. Sandwich Tern S.
sandvicensis Fewer than usual in March. Maxima at Dungeness 330 east on 10th
April and 510 on 1st May. Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur Very early bird reported
at Chelsfield (Kent) on 27th February. At Sheringham (Norfolk) 253 moved west
on 22nd May. Cuckoo Cuculus canorus Distinct influx from second week of April.
Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus An exceptionally early bird reported at Bough
Beech Reservoir on 4th April. Swift Apus apus Three at Fetlar (Shetland) on
23rd April were probably the earliest ever recorded in Shetland; otherwise a
late arrival. Swallow Hirundo rustica Late, but a definite influx in the last few days
of April. House Martin Delichon urbica Again very late and numbers apparently-
reduced. Influxes mid and late April. Sand Martin Riparia riparia Very late.
Influxes early April, igth/20th and late April. Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe At
Breck Farm (Derbyshire), two to three from the early date of 20th February, and
three reported at nearby Staveley on 24th. Marked arrivals 2ist/22nd March and
from 26th. On Fair Isle, influxes of 20 on 10th April, 55 or more on 20th and 80 on
2 1st; large fall on east coast during 7th-gth May, with 170 in Holywell area and
120 on Holy Island and many other counts of up to 100. Whinchat Saxicola rubetra
Remarkable series of early records in South Yorkshire: one in Sheffield on 23rd
February, one at Agden on 24th (two on 26th) and one at Ulley on 7th March.
Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus Early single at Bishops Dyke, New Forest (Hamp-
shire), on 2 1st March. Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos Small but notable influx
in south and south-east England on 1961/2061 April. Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus
schoenobaenus Good numbers in last six days of April. Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla
Notable influx from 16th April. Whitethroat .S’, communis Distinct arrival in second
half of April, but most in May. Encouraging numbers in May with, for instance,
1 16 trapped at Portland. Lesser Whitethroat S. curruca Good arrivals from 23rd
April. Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus Common from second week of April.
Falls of 150 on Calf of Man on 19th and 29th April and 120 on 30th, of 100 at
Dungeness on 30th April, and of 100 on Lundy on 6th May. Chiffchaff P. collybita
A late arrival and in small numbers. Most did not reach Britain until the end of
March and early April. Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata Almost absent in
April. Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca Early individual at Sevenoaks (Kent) on
9th April. Yellow Wagtail Motacilla jlava A male at Staveley sewage farm on
22nd February may have overwintered (cf. Brit. Birds, 68: 480). Very few in
March, but sizeable influxes in April and May. Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio
Records from 25th April. Falls in last week of May included seven on the Isle ol
May (Fife) on 30th, and in Shetland six on Whalsay, up to eight on Fetlar, and
twelve on Fair Isle on 26th and eleven there on 31st.

Recent reports A'. Allsopp

These are largely unchecked reports, not authenticated records

This report covers September and the first part of October. Except when otherwise
stated, all dates refer to September.

SEABIRDS

The large numbers of shearwaters present off the north-east coast, reported in
the November issue, were not subsequently observed in the English Channel.
Sooty Shearwaters Puffinus griseus were seen in small numbers off Portland Bill
(Dorset), Dungeness (Kent) and the Casquets (Channel Islands), with n at the
last locality on i ith. On the same date, Dungeness had its largest ever autumnal
passage of Sandwich Terns Sterna sandvicensis (360), accompanied by 59 free-
booting Arctic Stercorarius parasiticus and Great Skuas S. skua. At the same
locality, an adult female Magnificent Frigatebird Fregata magnificens was
observed flying eastwards on the 15th, much to the consternation of the non-
seawatching birdwatchers nearby, including the new chairman of the Rarities
Committee. A further large seabird movement there, on 2nd October, featured
2,000 Kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla, 250 Gannets Sul a bassana and an immature
Sabine’s Gull Larus sabini. On the same date, farther east, at Sandwich Bay
(Kent), another good seawatch, surprisingly not reporting Kittiwakes, pro-
duced a Sooty Albatross Phoebelria fusca, which will, if accepted, be a new
species for Europe. Large numbers of Gannets and over 200 Little Gulls Larus
minutus were reported feeding off Cap Gris Nez (France) on 2nd and 3rd October.
Black Terns Chlidonias niger have been scarce this autumn, so that a total of 87
along the Irish south coast was unusual, as were single immature White-winged
Black Terns C. leucopterus at Eye Brook Reservoir (Leicestershire), Empingham
Water (Leicestershire) on 25th and Cannock Reservoir (Staffordshire) on 27th.

MONEY BUZZARDS AND OSPREYS

On the 1 6th, an anticyclone developed over southern Finland, establishing a
warm easterly airstream from eastern Europe towards Scotland, which persisted
for several days. The subsequent widespread occurrences of Honey Buzzards
Pernis apivnrus and Ospreys Pandion haliaetus suggests a large influx from the
Continent. The former were reported from Portland Bill (Dorset), with one on
23rd, two on 26th and 2nd October and four on 3rd October, Gibraltar Point
(Lincolnshire), with singles on 28th and 5th October, and the Isles of Scilly, with
three during the same period. Singles of the latter species were seen at Eye Brook
Reservoir on 19th, Portland Bill on 24th, 26th and 28th, Sunderland (Tyne and
Wear) on 26th, the Casquets on 26th, Fair Isle (Shetland) on 27th, and Sandwich
Bay on 5th October.

PASSERINES AND NEAR-PASSERINES

During the period of easterly winds mentioned above. Fair Isle recorded its usual
impressive list of vagrants among a good fall of passerines. Rarities included
Lanceolated Warblers Locustella lanceolata on 14th and 17th, the first Pallas’s
Grasshopper Warbler L. certhiola for 20 years from 20th, single Yellow-browed
Warblers Phylloscopus inomatus on 18th and 25th, a Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi
and a Red-throated Pipit A. cervinus on 1 7th, a Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola
on 22nd and as many as five Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla from the 17th.
Farther south in the same movement, a Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris and two
Red-breasted Flycatchers Ficedula parva came aboard a fishing boat off Marsden
(Tyne and Wear) on 1 7th. A Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica was seen at Hartle-
pool (Cleveland) on the same day, an Alpine Swift Apus melba at Scarborough

523

524

Recent reports

(Yorkshire) on 18th and an Arctic Warbler Phylloscopus borealis at Gibraltar
Point on 19th. Sandwich Bay and Dungeness also experienced a good fall of
Blackcaps Sylvia atricapilla and Lesser Whitethroats S. curruca from 17 th to
19th. • n

On 1 6th', the development of low pressure in mid-Atlantic finally ended the
long period of anticyclone-dominated conditions experienced since June. The
establishment of a strong westerly flow right across the Atlantic, with upper
winds reaching 50 knots at 10,000 ft on occasions, not only brought the much-
needed rain, but also no less than seven Blackpoll Warblers Dendroica striata.

The first was at Prawle Point (Devon) on i8th, followed by five on the Isles of
Scilly during 4th-ioth October, and another — the first ever in Ireland — on Cape
Clear Island (Cork) on 8th October. A Myrtle Warbler D. coronata, similarly a
new Irish species, was also reported from Cape Clear Island on 9th October and
a Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus from Tresco (Isles of Scilly) on 28th.

LATEST NEWS

The most exciting recent events have been in Sweden, where, at the island of
Toro (60 km south of Stockholm), 16,400 Pine Grosbeaks Pinicola enucleator flew
west between dawn and early afternoon on 1 3th November, with a further 1 ,000
on the following day. An irruption in such numbers is unprecedented in
Scandinavia. Will some reach Britain’s east coast. ?

The following rarities were reported in the last week of October and early
November: Glossy Ibis Plegadia falcinellus, Ham Marshes, Faversham (Kent);
two Black Ducks Anas rubripes, Tresco (Isles of Scilly); Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Coccyzus americanus, Pennington Marshes (Hampshire) ; Booted Warbler Hippolais
caligata, Beachy Head (Sussex) ; Pallas’s Warblers Phylloscopus proregulus, Donna
Nook (Lincolnshire) and Spurn (Humberside) ; Olive-backed Pipit Anthus
hodgsoni. Wells (Norfolk).

Spotted Sandpipers nesting in Scotland: correction

The dimensions of the four eggs (page 290, lines 26 and 27) were given incorrectly;
all measurements should be reduced by a factor of ten.

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British Birds

Volume 69 Number 12 December 1976

465 Distinguishing Little and Reed Buntings D. I. M. Wallace
Plates 50-51

473

490

493

495

Notes

Bearded Tits in Britain and Ireland, 1966-74 John M. O'Sullivan
Effects of sea conditions on rates at which Guillemots feed
chicks Dr T. R. Birkhead

Viewpoint: The appreciation of birds Louis J. Halle
New feature: Mystery photographs Plate 52b

495 Diving rates of Great Northern Diver P. Carter

497 Winter feeding behaviour of Great Northern Divers Bernard King

498 Resting of Cormorants on inland passage Brian Rabbitts

499 Montagu's Harrier retrieving displaced nestling M. D. England Plate 52a

499 Unusual plumage of Greenshank D. E. Ladhams

500 Diet of Greenshank on migration R. E. Jones

500 Terek Sandpiper overwintering in Devon R. Smaldon
503 The pattern of Mediterranean Gull records at Blackpill, West Glamorgan
R. A. Hume

506 Feeding association between gulls and Great Crested Grebes K. E.
Vinicombe

506 Display of Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dr Geoffrey Beven

507 Rooks taking food from dustbins Bernard King

508 Short-toed Treecreeper in Kent: a species new to Britain and Ireland
R. E. Scott

509 Song of female Blackbird James W. W. Metcalfe

Reviews

509 A Guide to Birds of the Coast by C. A. Gibson-Hill, revised by
Bruce and Robert Campbell and Robin Prytherch Michael J.
Everett

510 A Guide to Bird-watching in Denmark by J. Sanders and K.
Berg Tommy Dybbro

Letters

51 1 Migration in the doldrums Dr W. R. P. Bourne

512 Feeding habits of certain seabirds Bernard King and Dr K. E. L. Simmons

513 Manx Shearwaters plunge-diving W. E. Jones

514 Wader photographs Dr C. D. T. Minton

515 A question of priorities John Gooders

Announcement

517 Bird Photograph of the Year
Request for information
517 Birds of St Kilda Dr M. P. Harris
Request for assistance

517 Atlas fieldwork in Finland, Italy and Spain Dr Kalevi Hyytia,
Dr. Sergio Frugis and Dr Francisco Purroy

518 News and comment Peter Conder
521 Spring summary D. A. Christie
523 Recent reports K. Al/sopp

Robert Gillmor drew the Bearded Tits (page 489) and P. J. Grant
drew the Blackpoll Warbler (page 524)

Front cover: Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus at nest (photo: M. D.
England )

Printed by Henry Surt & Son Ltd, College Street, Kempston, Bedford MK42 8NA
Published by Macmillan Journals Ltd, 4 Little Essex Street, London WC2R 3LF

British Birds

INDEX TO VOLUME 69

1 976

LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS
IN VOLUME 69

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Index to volume 69
Compiled by Mrs N. D. Blamire

Entries are in a single list with references to:

(1) every significant mention of each species, not only in titles, but also within
the text of papers, notes and letters, including all those appearing in such lists as
the ‘Report on rare birds in Great Britain in 1975’, but excluding those in the
reports summaries, ‘News and comment’, requests for information, and reviews;

(2) scientific nomenclature under generic names only and following A Species
List of British and Irish Birds (BTO Guide 13, 1971);

(3) authors of all papers, notes, reviews and letters, and photographers; papers
are referred to by their titles, other contributions as ‘note on’, ‘review of’, etc.;

(4) a few subject headings, i.e. ‘Breeding’, ‘Display’, ‘Editorial’, ‘Field
characters’, ‘Food’, ‘Migration’, ‘News and comment’, ‘Obituaries’, ‘Rarities
Committee’, ‘Recorders’, ‘Reports’, ‘Requests for information’ and ‘Voice’;

(5) ‘Reviews’, which are listed together under this heading in alphabetical
order of authors reviewed.

Abraham, Kevin D., note on fierce
attack by Starling on House Sparrow,

65

Acanthis Jlavirostris, see Twite

hornemanni, see Redpoll, Arctic

Accipiter gentilis, sec Goshawk

nisus, see Sparrowhawk

Acrocephalus agricola, see Warbler,
Paddyfield

arundinacens, see Warbler, Great

Reed

dumetorum, see Warbler, Blyth’s

Reed

paludicola, see Warbler, Aquatic

schoenobaenus, see Warbler, Sedge

scirpaceus, see Warbler, Reed

Adams, Robert, letter on ‘A question
of priorities’ 227-8

Aegithalos caudatus, see Tit, Long-tailed
Aegolius funereus, see Owl, Tengmalm’s
Aegypius monachus, see Vulture, Black
Albatross, Black-browed, accepted
records 1975, 327

, Waved, little danger of extinction,

17

Alca torda, see Razorbill
Alectoris rufa, see Partridge, Red-legged
AEsopp, K., recent reports, see Recent
reports

Ammoperdix heyi, see Partridge, Sand
Anas acuta, see Pintail

americana, sec Wigeon, American

clypeata, see Shoveler

crecca, sec Teal

carolinensis, see Teal, Green-
winged

discors, see Teal, Blue-winged

penelope, see Wigeon

platyrhynchos, see Mallard

querquedula, see Garganey

rubripes, sec Duck, Black

strepera, sec Gadwall

Announcements: line drawings; black-
and-white prints from colour trans-
parencies, 458

Anser albifrons, see Goose, White-
fronted

anser, see Goose, Greylag

brachyrhynchus, see Goose, Pink-
footed

caerulescens, see Goose, Snow

erythropus, see Goose, Lesser White-

fronted

Anthus campestris, see Pipit, Tawny

cervirms, see Pipit, Red-throated

gustavi, see Pipit, Pechora

hodgsoni, see Pipit, Olive-backed

trivialis, see Pipit, Tree

525

526

Apus apus, see Swift

melba, see Swift, Alpine

Aquila chrysaetos, see Eagle, Golden
Ardea cinerea, see Heron, Grey

purpurea, see Heron, Purple

Ardeola ralloides, see Heron, Squacco
Ardeotis arabs, see Bustard, Arabian
Arenaria inter pres, see Turnstone
Asio jlammeus, see Owl, Short-eared

otus, see Owl, Long-eared

Athene noctua, see Owl, Little
Atkin, K., photographs of Desert
Warbler, plate 47a; of Pectoral
Sandpiper, plate 48b; of Short-
eared Owls, plate 49b, d
Avocet, on edge of range in Britain,
18; wintering in Ireland, 99
Aythya collaris, see Duck, Ring-necked

ferina, see Pochard

— — fuligula, see Duck, Tufted
marila, see Scaup

Baker, Leslie, review of Lysaght: The
Book of Birds, 275-6

Barber, Derek, letter on the continuing
slaughter of birds of prey in Britain,
186-7; review of Brown: British
Birds of Prey, 41 1-2

Bartlett, Elspeth, note on Crossbills
feeding at chimney-stacks, 312
Bartramia longicauda, see Sandpiper,
Upland

Bayldon, J. M., note on Ivory Gull
landing on water, 308-9
Beven, Geoffrey, note on simultaneous
hunting by a pair of Bonelli’s
Eagles, 410; on display of Lesser
Spotted Woodpecker, 506-7
Bibby, C. J., et al., Sedge Warbler
migration and reed aphids, 384-99
Bird Photograph of the Year, 421, 517
Birkhead, T. R., the effect of sea con-
ditions on the rate at which Guille-
mots feed chicks, 490-2
Bittern, Little, accepted records 1975,
329; photograph, plate 44b
Blackbird, moss dispersal during feed-
ing, 65-6; more sound recordings
needed, 203-4; chased by House
Sparrow, 274; feeding from nut bag,
371 ; nesting in disused Magpie nest,
452 ; song of female, 509
Blackcap, breeding status in Ireland,
95-6; feeding on fat, 310; singing in
February, 310

Index to volume 6g

Blackcock, Caucasian, sound record-
ings needed, 215

Bloomfield, L. T., note on Robins
nesting in disused Blackbird nest, 452
Bluetail, Red-flanked, accepted record
i975> 345

Bluethroat, definition of nesting record,
277

Bobolink, in Ireland 1971, 102;

accepted record 1975, 355, plate 35b
Bomby cilia garrulus, see Waxwing
Booth, C. J., note on Peregrine and
Raven possibly contaminated by
Fulmar oil, 61

Bottomley, J. B. and S., waders, water
and mud, plates 13-16; photographs
of Pied Flycatcher, plate ib; Brent
Geese, plate 22b; Long-billed Do-
witchers, plate 34b

Bourne, W. R. P., letters on plunge-
diving and porpoising by aquatic
seabirds, 188-9; on ‘Migration in the
doldrums’, 51 1-2

, , see Finlayson, J. C., et al.

Branta bernicla, see Goose, Brent

canadensis, see Goose, Canada

leucopsis, see Goose, Barnacle

ruficollis, see Goose, Red-breasted

Breeding: Sanderling, 165-77, plates
1 7-20. Nests : Swallow, 457 ; Blackbird,
452; Robin, 452. Eggs: Great Tit,
45-50; Blue Tit, 45-50; Coal Tit,
45-50; Marsh Tit, 45-50; Long-
tailed Tit, 48. Incubation: Baird’s
Sandpiper, 173; Pectoral Sandpiper,
173; Dunlin, 173

Brodie, James, the flight behaviour of
Starlings at a winter roost, 51-60,
plates 5-8

Brown, A. P., note on Blackcap singing
in February, 310

Brown, Duncan, note on aggression
between female Chaffinches, 273
Brown, S. C., photograph of Waxwing,
plate 27a

Brun, Einar, obituary, 417
Bubo bubo, see Owl, Eagle

virginianus, see Owl, Great Horned

Bubulcus ibis, see Egret, Cattle
Bucephala albeola, see Bufflehead

clangula, see Goldeneye

Bufflehead, feeding behaviour, 105

Index to volume 6g

Bullfinch, pitch variation of call, 204;
feeding from nut bag, 370-1; photo-
graph, plate 27b

Bunn, D. S., note on eyesight of Barn
Owl, 220-2

Bunting, Black - headed, accepted
record 1975, 357; accepted records
>974. 365

, Chestnut, field-characters, 472

, Corn, breeding status in Ireland,

95

, Lapland, in Ireland in winter, 99

, Little, accepted records 1975,

358; field-characters, 465-73, plates
5°-i

, Pallas’s Reed, field-characters,

472

, Pine, accepted record 1975, 357

, Reed, field characters, 465-73,

plates 50-51

, Rustic, accepted records 1975,

357-8

, Yellow-breasted, accepted record

>975, 357

, Yellow-browed, accepted record

1975, 358; field-characters, 472
Burhinus senegalensis, see Thick-knee,
Senegal

Bustard, Arabian, sound recordings
needed, 215

, Houbara, sound recordings

needed, 215

, Little, accepted record 1975, 334

Buteo buteo, see Buzzard

vulpinus, see Buzzard, Steppe

lagopus, see Buzzard, Rough-
legged

Buxton, E. J. M., letter on proof of
breeding, 457

Buzzard, killing owls, 145; killed by
Eagle Owls, 146; numbers killed by
shooting, 187; dispersal and causes
of death, 193-201

, Honey, passage across Strait of

Gibraltar, 78-9, 82, 85

, Rough-legged, killing owls, 145;

killed by owls, 146

, Steppe, accepted records 1975,

333

Cahow, in danger of extinction, 1 7
Calandrella cinerea, see Lark, Short- toed
Calcarius lapponicus, see Bunting, Lap-
land

527

Calidris acuminata, see Sandpiper, Sharp-
tailed

alba, see Sanderling

alpina, see Dunlin

bairdii, see Sandpiper, Baird’s

canutus, see Knot

ferruginea, see Sandpiper, Curlew

fuscicollis, see Sandpiper, White-

rumped

melanotos, see Sandpiper, Pectoral

minuta, see Stint, Little

minutilla, see Sandpiper, Least

pusilla, see Sandpiper, Semipal-

mated

temminckii, see Stint, Temminck’s

Calonectris diomedea, see Shearwater,
Cory’s

Campbell, Bruce, letter on proof of
breeding, 277; note on attempted
breeding by Pied Flycatcher in
Argyll, 370

> , and Turner, G. E. S., letter

on Ravens breeding on city build-
ings, 229-30

Canary, no copulation before nest-
building, 449

Caprimulgus europaeus , see Nightjar
Carduelis spinus, see Siskin
Carlson, K. J., photograph of Squacco
Heron, plate 23a

Carlson, R. G., photographs of Collared
Flycatcher, plates ia, 4c
Carpodacus erythrinus, see Rosefinch,
Scarlet

Carter, P., note on diving rates of
Great Northern Diver, 495-7
Certhia brachydactyla, sec Treecrcepcr,
Short-toed

familiaris, see Treecreeper

Cettia cetti, sec Warbler, Cetti’s
Chaffinch, extensive sound recordings,
203; females fighting, 273; chased
by House Sparrow, 274; feeding
on nut baskets, 312-3, 371 ; no copu-
lation before nest-building, 449
Chandler, R. J., photograph of Kill-
deer and Lapwing, plate 35c
Channer, A. G., note on mating of
Great Spotted Cuckoos, 309
Charadrius asiaticus, see Plover, Caspian

hiaticula, see Plover, Ringed

Uschenaultii, see Plover, Greater

Sand

pecuarius, see Plover, Kittlitz’s

vociferus, see Killdeer

528

Chater, A. O., photographs of pre-
roost Starling flocks, plate 6
Chiflchaff, presumed female singing,
64-5; feeding on fat, 310
Chlamydotis undulata, see Bustard,
Houbara

Chlidonias hybrida, see Tern, Whiskered
leucopterus, see Tern, White-
winged Black

Chough, field-characters, 369-70

, Alpine, field-characters, 369-70

Christie, D. A., obituary of Charles
Vaurie, DDS (1906-1975), 104-5;
recent reports, see Reports
Ciconia ciconia, see Stork, White

nigra, see Stork, Black

Cinclus mexicanus, see Dipper, American
Circaetus gallicus, see Eagle, Short-toed
Circus aeruginosus, see Harrier, Marsh

cyaneus, see Harrier, Hen

pygargus, see Harrier, Montagu’s

Clamator glandarius, see Cuckoo, Great
Spotted

Clangula hyemalis, see Duck, Long-tailed
Cobb, F. K., apparent hybridisation of
Firecrest and Goldcrest, 447-51
Coccothraustes coccothraustes, see Haw-
finch

Coccyzus erythrophthalmus, see Cuckoo,
Black-billed

Columba livia, see Pigeon, Feral

oenas, see Dove, Stock

Conder, Peter, review of Zimmerman :
To Save a Bird in Peril, 185-6; review
of Sultana, Gauci and Beaman: A
Guide to the Birds of Malta, 276-7;
news and comment, see News and
comment

Cook, S. G. D., mystery photograph 1,
plate 52b

Cook, W. A., note on attempted breed-
ing by Pied Flycatcher in Northamp-
tonshire, 370

Coomber, Richard F. and Elizabeth
M., note on Chaffinches on nut
baskets, 312-3
Coracias garrulus, see Roller
Cormorant, resting on inland passage,

498-9

Corncrake, breeding status in Ireland,
93-4

Corvus corax, see Raven

corone, see Crow, Carrion/Hooded

frugilegus, see Rook

monedula, see Jackdaw

Index to volume 69

Coturnix coturnix, see Quail
Crake, Baillon’s, field-characters of
immature, 444-6

, Little, accepted records 1975,

334; field-characters of immature,

444-8

, Spotted, field-characters of im-
mature, 444-6

Cramb, Andrew, note on Great Tit
eating bumblebee, 64
Cramp, Stanley, review of Simms:
Birds of Town and Suburb, 107-8;
review of S&lim Ali and Ripley:
Handbook of the Birds of India and
Pakistan, vols. 7-10, 223; review of
Gruson: A Checklist of the Birds of the
World, 313-4

Crane, accepted records 1975, 334

, Siberian, in danger of extinction,

17-18; WWF conservation project,
227

, Whooping, in danger of extinc-
tion, 17

Crex crex, see Corncrake
Crossbill, in Ireland 1972, 101; feeding
at chimney-stacks, 3 1 2

, Two-barred, accepted record

1975, 356

Crow, Carrion, feeding offspring in
November, 181-2; submerging to
catch fish, 273; hanging upside down
from wires, 310

, Hooded, hanging upside down

on wire, 310

Cuckoo, Black-billed, accepted record,

i975> 342

, Great Spotted, mating behaviour-,

309; accepted record 1974, 363
Cullen, M. S., and Pratt, R., a census
of the Gannet nests on Grassholm in
i975» 88-90, plate 9
Curlew, photographs, plates 16b, 43a
Curry-Lindahl, Kai, review of Rear
and Duplaix-Hall : Flamingos, 182-3
Cygnus bewickii, see Swan, Bewick’s

cygnus, see Swan, Whooper

olor, see Swan, Mute

Cyr, Andr£, note on unusual death of
Great Spotted Woodpecker, 410

Date, Graham F., photograph of
female Pied Flycatcher, plate 2b
Davis, A. H. and Prytherch, Robin,
field identification of Long-eared and

Index to volume 6g

Short-eared Owls, 281-7
Davison, G. W. H., note on role of
birds in moss dispersal, 65-6; letter
on function of the tail pattern in
game-birds, 371-2

Dawson, J. P., note on Swallows and
House Martins singing from the
ground, 273

Dean, Alan R., and Brian R., note on
Glaucous and Iceland Gulls in the
West Midlands, 179-80
Delichon urbica, see Martin, House
Dendrocopos major, see Woodpecker,
Great Spotted

minor, see Woodpecker, Lesser

Spotted

Dendroica coronata, see Warbler, Myrtle

striata, see Warbler, Blackpoll

Dennis, R. H., photographs of Little
Bunting, plate 51

Dennis, Roy H., review of Nethersole-
Thompson: Pine Crossbills, 184-5
Dickson, R. C., note on Blackbirds
nesting in disused Magpie nest, 452
Diomedea irrorata, see Albatross, Waved

melanophris, see Albatross, Black-

browed

Dipper, American, literary apprecia-
tion of, 493

Display: Red-necked Phalarope, 219-
20; Mediterranean Gull, 4-7; Lesser
Spotted Woodpecker, 506-7
Diver, Great Northern, wintering in
Ireland, 96; literary appreciation
of, 493; diving rates, 495-7; feeding
behaviour, 497-8

, Red-throated, breeding status in

Ireland, 92; breeding success on
Hascosay, 409

, White-billed, in Ireland J974,

101

Dolichonyx oryzivorus, see Bobolink
Dove, Stock, breeding status in Ireland,
95

, Turtle, breeding status in Ireland,

95

Dowitcher, in Ireland 1 970-1, 101
, Long-billed, accepted records

1 975, 335, Plate 34b
Driver, J., note on Grey Heron hunting
by swimming, 219

Duck, Black, sharp drop in numbers,

438

, Long-tailed, numbers wintering

in Ireland, 97

529

Duck, Ring-necked, in Ireland 1974,
101

, Ruddy, drakes associating with

stray ducklings, 34; history and
status in Britain, 132-43
, Tufted, breeding status in Ire-
land, 93; numbers wintering in
Ireland, 97

Dunlin, breeding status in Ireland, 94;
numbers wintering in Ireland, 98-9;
breeding biology in arctic, 1 70, 1 73 ;
attacked by Little Owl, 272; bath-
ing, plate 14b

Dunn, E. K., laying dates of four
species of tits in Wytham Wood,
Oxfordshire, 45-50

Dunnock, more sound recordings
needed, 203

Dybbro, Tommy, review of Sanders
and Berg: A Guide to Bird-watching in
Denmark, 510

Dymond, J. N., report on rare birds in
Great Britain in 1975 (with additions
for nine previous years), 321-68,
plates 33-5

Eagle, Bonclli’s, simultaneous hunting
by pair, 410

, Booted, passage across Strait of

Gibraltar, 79-81

, Golden, killing owls, 145; des-
truction by shooting interests, 187;
photograph, plate 21

, Short-toed, passage across Strait

of Gibraltar, 79, 83

, White-tailed, killing owls, 145;

possibly killed by Eagle Owl, 146
Editorial : the conservation of wetlands,
1-3 ; editorial changes, 237-8; Bird
Photograph of the Year, 421
Egret, Cattle, accepted records 1975,
329; accepted records 1974, 362

, Little, large numbers in Ireland

I97°> 99> accepted records 1975,
328; accepted record 1973, 361;
photograph, plate 45a
Egretta garzetta, see Egret, Little
Eider, breeding status in Ireland, 93

, King, accepted records 1975,

331-2; accepted record 1967, 360

, Steller’s, accepted record 1975,

33 1 ; feeding in dense group, 400,
plate 38b

Elliott, Hugh, review of Ferguson-Lees,

530

et al.: A Guide to Bird-watching in
Europe, 108-9

Elphick, D., note on Carrion Crows
hanging upside down from electricity
cables, 310

Emberiza aureola, see Bunting, Yellow-
breasted

calandra, see Bunting, Corn

chrysophrys, see Bunting, Yellow-

browed

leucocephala, see Bunting, Pine

melanocephala, see Bunting, Black-
headed

pallasi, see Bunting, Pallas’s Reed

pusilla, see Bunting, Little

rustica, see Bunting, Rustic

rutila, see Bunting, Chestnut

schoeniclus, see Bunting, Reed

England, M. D., note on Montagu’s
Harrier retrieving displaced nestling,
499, plate 52a

Eremophila alpestris, see Lark, Shore
Erithacus rubecula, see Robin
Everett, Michael J., note on mutual
spinning by Red-necked Phalaropes,
219-20; review of Gibson-Hill: Birds
of the Coast, 509-10

Falco columbarius, see Merlin

concolor, see Falcon, Sooty

eleonorae, see Falcon, Eleonora’s

peregrinus, see Peregrine

rusticolus, see Gyrfalcon

tinnunculus, see Kestrel

vespertinus, see Falcon, Red-footed

Falcon, Eleonora’s, killing owls, 145

, Red-footed, in Ireland 1973, 101 ;

accepted records 1975, 333-4; ac-
cepted records 1974, 362
, Sooty, sound recordings needed,

215

Ferguson-Lees, I. J., waders, water and
mud: photographs by J. B. and S.
Bottomley, 155, plates 13-16; obitu-
ary of Sir Julian Sorell Huxley, 305-7

, , see Hosking, Eric

Ficedula albicollis, see Flycatcher, Col-
lared

hypoleuca, see Flycatcher, Pied

Field-characters: Spotted Crake, 444-6;
Sora Rail, 444-6; Baillon’s Crake,
444-6; Little Crake, 444-6; Grey
Plover, 514-5, plate 13b; Snipe,
377-83; Great Snipe, 377-83; Wood-

Index to volume 6g

cock, 381; Knot, 514, plate 15a;
Sanderling, 515, plate 14a; Tawny
Owl, 285; Long-eared Owl, 281-7,
plate 49a, c; Short-eared Owl, 281-
7, plate 49 b, d; Chough, 369-70;
Alpine Chough, 369-70; Treecreeper,
118-9; Short- toed Treecreeper, 118-
9; Thrush Nightingale, 266-7; Rose-
coloured Starling, 222; Little Bunt-
ing. 465-73. plates 50-1; Reed
Bunting, 465-73, plates 50-1; Chest-
nut Bunting, 472; Yellow-browed
Bunting, 472 ; Pallas’s Reed Bunting,
472; Slate-coloured Junco, 452-3

Finlayson, J. C., et al., raptor migration
across the Strait of Gibraltar, 77-87

Firecrest, feeding on fat, 310; apparent
hybridisation with Goldcrest, 447-51

Fitter, R. S. R., Black Redstarts breed-
ing in Britain in 1969-73, 9-15

Flycatcher, Collared, photographic
study, 20-6, plates 1-4; accepted
record 1975, 351

, Half-collared, range and status,

20

, Pied, compared with Collared

Flycatcher, 20-6, plates rb, 2b, 3a;
attempted breeding in Northamp-
tonshire, 370

, Spotted, building multiple nests,

36

Food: Great Northern Diver, 497-8;
Grey Heron, 369; Golden Eagle,
145; Rough-legged Buzzard, 145;
Sparrowhawk, 145; Red Kite, 145;
White-tailed Eagle, 145; Peregrine,
145; Gyrfalcon, 145; Eleonora’s
Falcon, 145; Greenshank, 409, 500;
Common Tern, 410; Arctic Tern,
410; Barn Owl, 145, 150; Eagle
Owl, 145-7; Great Grey Owl, 145,
147; Snowy Owl, 145-8; Ural Owl,
145-6, 148; Hawk Owl, 145, 148;
Tawny Owl, 145-6, 148-9; Long-
eared Owl, 145, 149; Tengmalm’s
Owl, 145, 150; Great Spotted Wood-
pecker, 311-2; Lesser Spotted Wood-
pecker, 312; Carrion Crow, 273;
Rook, 507; Jay, 105-6; Great Tit,
64; Long-tailed Tit, 35; Treecreeper,
310; Song Thrush, 371; Blackbird,
371; Robin, 371; Hawfinch, '3 1 1 ;
Bullfinch, 370-1; Chaffinch, 312-3,
37i

Franchimont, Jacques, note on House

Index to volume 6g

Martins roosting in reed beds, 156
Francolin, Double-spurred, sound re-
cordings needed, 215
Francolinus bicalcaratus, see Francolin,
Double-spurred

Frankum, Roger, note on injury
feigning by Red-legged Partridge in
water, 61

Fratercula arctica, see Puffin
Freethy, Ron, note on Little Owl
flying at Dunlin, 272
Fringilla coelebs, see Chaffinch
Fulmar, Peregrine and Raven possibly
contaminated by oil from, 61
Fulmarus glacialis, see Fulmar

Gadwall, breeding in Co. Wexford,
93; numbers wintering in Ireland,
97; taking food from Coot, 401, plate
38

Galerida cristata, see Lark, Crested
Gallinago gallinago, see Snipe

media, see Snipe, Great

stenura, see Snipe, Pintail

Gallinula chloropus, see Moorhen
Gannet, census of Grassholm colony
>975. 88-90, plate 9

Garcia, E. F. J., see Finlayson, J. C.,
et at.

Garganey, in Ireland on passage, 99

Garrulus glandarius, see Jay

Gavia adamsii, see Diver, White-billed

immer, see Diver, Great Northern

stellata, see Diver, Red-throated

Gelochelidon nilotica, see Tern, Gull-
billed

Gensbol, Benny, photographs of
Sanderlings, plates 17, 20
Geronticus eremita, see Ibis, Bald
Ginn, Howard B., photograph of Buff-
breasted Sandpiper, plate 48a
Glareola pratincola, see Pratincole, Col-
lared

nordmanni, see Pratincole, Black-
winged

Glaucidium passerinum, see Owl, Pygmy
Godwit, Bar-tailed, photograph, plate

43a

, Black-tailed, on edge of range in

Britain, 18; numbers wintering in
Ireland, 99; photograph, plate 16a
Goldcrest, feeding on fat, 310; display-
ing at owm reflection, 402, plate 40a;
apparent hybridisation with Fire-
crest, 447-51

531

Goldeneye, reactions to boating, 178-9
Gooders, John, viewpoint: a question
of priorities, 16-19; letters on, 226-8,
515-6

Goose, Barnacle, numbers wintering in
Ireland, 97-8; influence of weather
on breeding success, 429; photo-
graph of gaggle rising, plate 22a

, Canada, wintering in Ireland, 98

, Dark-bellied Brent, numbers in

Britain and Europe 1955-76, 422-39;
photograph, plate 22b
, European White-fronted, winter-
ing in Ireland, 98

, Greenland White-fronted, num-
bers wintering in Ireland, 97

, Greylag, numbers wintering in

Ireland, 97

, Lesser Snow, effect of good feed-
ing on condition of females, 429

, Lesser White-fronted, accepted

record, 332

, Light-bellied Brent, numbers

wintering in Ireland, 97-8; influence
of weather on breeding success, 429,
432; results of restricted shooting,
437

, Pink-footed, wintering in Ireland,

98

, Red-breasted, accepted record

>975. 332-3. P^tc 33
, Snow, wintering in Ireland, 98

Goshawk, killing owls, 145; killed by
Eagle Owls, 146

Goulliart, A., see Milbled, T., et al.
Grebe, Black-necked, wintering in
Ireland, 96

, Great Crested, breeding status in

Ireland, 92-3; gulls feeding in asso-
ciation with, 506

, Red-necked, w intering in Ireland,

96

, Slavonian, wintering in Ireland,

96

Green, Dennis, photograph of Whin-
chats, plate 26a

Green, G. H., see Pienkowski, M. W.
Green, R. E.. sec Bibby, C. J., et al.
Greenshank, eating large frog, 409;
unusual plumage, 499; diet on
migration, 500; photographs, plates
13a, 46b

Greenwood, P. R., note on Jays taking
food from peanut feeder, 105-6

532

Grenfell, Harold E., photograph of
first-autumn Little Gull, plate 25a
Grosbeak, Pine, accepted record 1975,
356

, Rose-breasted, accepted record

1975. 359

Grus americana, see Crane, Whooping

grus, see Crane

leucogeranus, see Crane, Siberian

Guillemot, plunge-diving, 188; increas-
ing numbers, 257; effect of sea con-
ditions on chick feeding, 490-2

, Brtinnich’s, chicks not fed during

storms, 491

Gull, Black-headed, behaviour of Medi-
terranean Gulls in breeding colony
of, 4-8; feeding on flying ants, 410;
pattern of records at Blackpill, 504;
feeding association with Great
Crested Grebes, 506

, Bonaparte’s, accepted records

1975, 34°

, Common, breeding status in

Ireland, 95; pattern of records at
Blackpill, 504-5

, Glaucous, wintering in Ireland,

99, plate 12b; wintering inland in
West Midlands, 179-80

, Great Black - backed, foot -

paddling on grassland, 180-1

, Great Black - headed, sound

recordings needed, 215

, Grey-headed, sound recordings

needed, 215

, Herring, nesting on roofs in

Ireland, 94; foot-paddling on grass-
land, 1 80-1; pattern of records at
Blackpill, 504; feeding association
with Great Crested Grebes, 506

, Iceland, wintering in Ireland,

99; wintering inland in West Mid-
lands, 179-80

, Ivory, landing on water, 308-9

, Laughing, accepted record 1975,

340

, Lesser Black-backed, feeding

association with Great Crested
Grebes, 506

, Little, numbers wintering in

Ireland, 100; photograph of first-
autumn bird, plate 25a
, Mediterranean, voice and be-
haviour in Black-headed Gull colony,
4-8; in Ireland on passage, 100;
pattern of records at Blackpill, 503-5

Index to volume 6g

Gull, Ring-billed, accepted records
1975. 340

, Ross’s, sound recordings needed,

215; accepted records 1975, 341

, Sabine’s, in Ireland on passage,

100; sound recordings needed, 215

, White-eyed, sound recordings

needed, 215

Gush, Geoffrey H., note on Tree-
creepers feeding on fat, 310
Gypaetus barbatus, see Lammergeier
Gyrfalcon, killing owls, 145; killed by
Eagle Owls, 146; accepted records
I975> 333

Haematopus ostralegus, see Oystercatcher
Haliaeetus albicilla, see Eagle, White-
tailed

Hall-Craggs, Joan, and Sellar, P. J.,
distinguishing characteristics in the
burrow-calling of Storm and Leach’s
Petrels, 293-7

Halle, Louis J., viewpoint, 493-4
Hanford, David M., note on Swallows
hawking insects at 04.00 hours, 309-
10

Harding, B. D., note on large numbers-
of Swifts killed by traffic, 63-4
Harrier, Hen, breeding status in Ire-
land, 93, plate 10b; destruction by
shooting interests, 187

, Marsh, on edge of range in

Britain, 18; passage across Strait of
Gibraltar, 83 ; photograph, plate 42b

, Montagu’s, breeding in Ireland

i97l, 93; retrieving displaced nest-
ling, 499, Plate 52a

Harris, M. P., the present status of the
Puffin in Britain and Ireland, 239-64

, see Hornung, M.

Harrison, Pamela, photographs of
Barnacle Geese, plate 22a; of Red-
breasted Goose, plate 33
Hawfinch, eating leaves, 3 1 1 ; no copu-
lation before nest-building, 449
Heip, C., a further note on the wing-
spreading of Black Storks, 156
Hemipode, Andalusian, sound record-
ings needed, 215

Heron, Grey, hunting by swimming,
219; eating Water Rail, 369

, Night, accepted records 1975,

329

Index to volume 6g

Heron, Purple, accepted records 1975,
328; accepted record 1974: amend-
ment, 359; accepted records 1974,
362; photograph, plate 23b

, Squacco, accepted record 1975,

329; photograph, plate 23a
Hieraaetus fasciatus, see Eagle, Bonelli’s
Hieraaetus pennatus, see Eagle, Booted
Hill, D., note on Bullfinches feeding
from nut bag, 370-1
Himantopus himantopus, see Stilt, Black-
winged

Hippolais icterma, see Warbler, Icterine

■ polyglotta, see Warbler, Melodious

Hirundo daurica, see Swallow, Red-
rumped

rustica, see Swallow

Homes, R. C., review of Everett: Birds
of Prey, 223-4
Hoopoe, in Ireland, 100
Hornung, M., and Harris, M. P., soil
water levels and delayed egg-laying
of Puffins, 402-8

Hosking, Eric, study of photographic
work, 440-2, plates 41-6; photo-
graphs of roosting Starlings, plates
7b, 8; of Sir J. S. Huxley, plate 36

, , and Ferguson-Lees, I. J.,

more examples of the best recent
work by British bird-photographers,
216-8, plates 21-8

Hounsome, M. V., letter on the bird
collection in the Manchester
Museum, 189-90

Hudson, Robert, retirement from News
and comment, 40, 42 ; Ruddy Ducks
in Britain, 132-43; review of Zink:
Der ZUS Europaischer Singvogel, part
2, 3*4

Hughes, John, note on Carrion Crows
submerging to catch fish, 273
Hume, R. A., note on inland records
of Kittiwakes, 62-3; on reactions of
Goldeneyes to boating, 178-9; on
the pattern of Mediterranean Gull
records at Blackpill, West Glamor-
gan, 503-5

Hunter, J. S. A., note on nibbling and
cloaca-pecking by Moorhen, 308
Huxley, Sir Julian Sorell, obituary ,
305-7, plate 36

Hydrobates pelagicus, see Petrel, Storm
Hydroprogne caspia, see Tern, Caspian
Hylocichla guttata, see Thrush, Hermit

533

Ibis, Bald, need for protection, 18;
WWF grant for conservation, 227

, Glossy, accepted records 1975,

33o;

, Japanese Crested, in danger of

extinction, 17

Ixobrychus minutus, see Bittern, Little

Jackdaw, chased by House Sparrow,
274

Janes, E. A., photograph of Bullfinch,
plate 27b

Jay, taking food from peanut feeder,
105-6

Junco hyemalis, see Junco, Slate-coloured

Junco, Slate-coloured, accepted record
I975. 358; in Kent, 452-3

Jynx torquilla, see Wryneck

Kestrel, destruction by shooting inter-
ests, 187

Killdeer, in Ireland 1971, 101; ac-
cepted records 1975, 335, plate 35c

King, Bernard, note on association
between male North American
Ruddy Ducks and stray ducklings,
34; on feeding behaviour of Buflle-
heads, 105; on further records of
foot-paddling by gulls on grassland,
1 80- 1 ; on Carrion Crows feeding
offspring in November, 181-2; on
winter feeding behaviour of Great
Northern Diver, 497-8; on Rooks
taking food from dustbins, 507; letter
on feeding habits of certain seabirds,
5*2-3

Kite, Black, passage across Strait of
Gibraltar, 78-9, 83, 85; killing owls,
145; killed by Eagle Owl, 146;
accepted records 1975, 333

, Red, killing owls, 145; killed by

Eagle Owl, 145

Kittiwake, inland records in Midlands
*964-73» g2-3

Knot, numbers wintering in Ireland,
98; breeding biology in arctic, 170;
field-characters of jm-cnile, 514,
plate 15a; photographs, plates 15a,
43a

Ladhams, D. E., note on terns feeding
on flying ants, 410; on unusual plum-
age of Greenshank, 499

534

Lammergeier, photograph, plate 41a
Lanius collurio isabellinus, see Shrike,
Red-tailed

excubitor, see Shrike, Great Grey

minor, see Shrike, Lesser Grey

senator, see Shrike, Woodchat

Lapwing, numbers wintering in Ire-
land, 99

Lark, Bimaculated, accepted record

1975, 343

, Crested, accepted record 1975,

344

, Shore, in Co. Louth 1970, 99

, Short-toed, accepted records

!975> 343-45 accepted record 1972,
361

Larus argentatus, see Gull, Herring

atricilla, see Gull, Laughing

canus, see Gull, Common

cirrhocephalus, see Gull, Grey-
headed

delawarensis, see Gull, Ring-billed

fuscus, see Gull, Lesser Black-

backed

hyperboreus, see Gull, Glaucous

ichthyaetus, see Gull, Great Black-
headed

leucophthalmus, see Gull, White-
eyed

marinus, see Gull, Great Black-

backed

melanocephalus, see Gull, Mediter-
ranean

minutus, see Gull, Little

Philadelphia, see Gull, Bonaparte’s

ridibundus, see Gull, Black-
headed

sabini, see Gull, Sabine’s

Limicola falcinellus, see Sandpiper,
Broad-billed

Limnodromus scolopaceus, see Dowitcher,
Long-billed

Limosa lapponica, see Godwit, Bar-tailed

limosa, see Godwit, Black-tailed

Lloyd, Clare, review of Perry: Watching
Sea Birds, 66-7; an estimate of the
world breeding population of the
Razorbill, 298-304

Locus tella lanceolata, see Warbler, Lan-
ceolated

luscinioides, see Warbler, Savi’s

naevia, see Warbler, Grasshopper

Lohrl, H., studies of less familiar birds,

1 79 — Collared Flycatcher, 20-6 ;

Index to volume 6g

photograph of Pied Flycatcher,
plate 3a; of Collared Flycatcher,
plates 3b, 4a

Loon, Common, see Diver, Great
Northern

Loxia curvirostra, see Crossbill

leucoptera, see Crossbill, Two-

barred

Lunda cirrhata, see Puffin, Tufted
Luscinia calliope, see Rubythroat, Siber-
ian

luscinia, see Nightingale, Thrush

megarhynchos, see Nightingale

svecica, see Bluethroat

Lyrurus mlokosiewiczi, see Blackcock,
Caucasian

Macmillan, Andrew T., letter on
Swallows nesting in old nest of
Robin, 457

Mallard, numbers wintering in Ireland,

97

Martin, Christine A., note on multiple
nests of Spotted Flycatcher, 36
Martin, House, roosting in reed beds,
156; singing from ground, 273; nest-
building movements, 451

, Sand, collecting nest material

from ground, 222

Mather, John R., review of Dobbs: The
Birds of Nottinghamshire, 67-8
Mead, C. J., and Wallace, D. I. M.,
identification of European tree-
creepers, 1 1 7-3 1

Meek, E. R., letter on Ravens breeding
on city buildings, 316
Melanitta fusca, see Scoter, Velvet *

nigra, see Scoter, Common

perspicillata, see Scoter, Surf

Melanocorypha bimaculata, see Lark,
Bimaculated

Mergus albellus, see Smew
Merlin, breeding status in Ireland, 93
Merrie, David, note on behaviour of
injured Common Tern, 272
Metcalfe, James W. W., note on song
of female Blackbird, 509
Migration: raptor migration across the
Strait of Gibraltar, 77-87; Kittiwake,
62-3; Sedge Warbler migration and
reed aphids, 384-99 ; Aquatic Warb-
ler, 228-9

Mikkola, Heimo, owls killing and killed
by other owls and raptors in Europe,
144-54

Index to volume 6g

Milbled, T., et al., letter on Cap Gris
Nez and the Pas de Calais, France,
3i6-7

Mills, Richard T., photograph of
Wilson’s Phalarope, plate 48c
Milvus migrans, see Kite, Black

milvus, see Kite, Red

Minton, C. D. T., letter on wader
photographs, 514-5

Mniotilta varia, see Warbler, Black-and-
White

Monticola saxatilis, see Thrush, Rock
Moorhen, nibbling and cloaca-pecking,
308

Mosquera, M. A., see Finlayson, J. C.,
et al.

Motacilla citreola, see Wagtail, Citrine

Jlava, see Wagtail, Yellow

Mountfort, Guy, note on Long-tailed
Tits feeding on lawns, 35; British
bird-photographers, 19 — Eric Hos-
king, 440-2, plates 41-6
Murphy, Christopher W., note on Grey
Flerons eating Water Rails, 369
Muscicapa striata, see Flycatcher,
Spotted

Naunton, C. R., note on Hawfinch and
woodpeckers eating leaves, 31 1-2
Neophron percnopterus, see Vulture, Egyp-
tian

News and comment, new author, 40;
BTO Nightingale census, annual
session of European Committee for
the Conservation of Nature and
Natural Resources, oil spills in
English Channel and Cromarty
Firth, effects of Dutch Elm Disease,
new BTO journal, studio photo-
graphy of trapped birds, New Year
Honours for Peter Conder and Dr
Bruce Campbell, Over and out, 40-
42; appointments to the Scientific
Authority for Animals, status of
Mauritius Kestrel, marked Canada
Geese in West Midlands, dyed waders
from Africa, 3M’s Wildlife Sound
Recording Contest, further New
Year Honours, final comment, 68-70;
UK ratifies International Wetland
Convention, XVII International
Ornithological Congress West Berlin
1978, further investigations into im-
portation of birds, 110-1; En-

535

dangered Species (Import and Ex-
port) Bill, Hong Kong trade in
wildlife, UK co-ordinating commit-
tee for European Wetlands Year
1976, J- Paul Getty prize for con-
servation awarded to Dr S£lim Ali,
survey of Californian Condors, per-
mission refused for Lyndhurst bypass,
156-8; politics and the safety
of the environment, new reserves
announced by RSPB, bird report
for north-east Scotland, 190-1; Al-
faques peninsula endangered by
development, Fairburn Ings ac-
quired by RSPB, reminder of seabird
cliff tragedies, new emblems for
Cambridge Bird Club and West
Midland Bird Club, 230-1; the
Swale National Nature Reserve,
Kent, YOC buys Fowlshcugh cliff,
nine kilometres of discarded fishing
line destroyed by YOC, 12th Bulle-
tin of I CBP, A Guide to Bird Watching
in Mallorca, A List of the Birds of
Guernsey, Field Studies Council
courses, 277-80; steep rises in thefts
of eggs and young of birds of prey,
new trends in egg-collecting, Protec-
tion of Birds Act fines and the Home
Office, importation of birds, threat
to Ouse Washes, Going for a song?
birds of Turkey, Nightingales for
Cadogan Square? 317-9; En-
dangered Species Bill, report on
protection of Pheasants in release
pens, finance for European Com-
munity’s Environmental Research
Programme, Peterson Nature Centre,
more RSPB reserves, 372-3; British
ornithologists held by guerrillas,
UK ratifies Convention on Inter-
national Trade in Endangered
Species, new fines for Protection of
Birds Acts, Turkish children count
their storks, fishermen netting auks
off the Irish coast, Checklist of the
Birds of Cornwall, etc., Wildlife in
Wessex, obituary of Einar Brun,
416-7; anniversaries of Wildfowl
Trust and Norfolk Naturalists’ Trust,
effects of European Wetland Year.
The Birdwatchers' Second Quiz and
Puzzle Book , honours to ornitholo-
gists, new series of German mono-
graphs, Thames Estuary Wildlife

536

Conservation Group formed, 458-60 ;
Skokholm Bird Observatory to close,
ringing migrants on Great Saltee,
report on imports of endangered
species of wild fauna and flora, NCC
to buy Cader Idris, more bird re-
serves, Gibraltar Ornithological
Group bulletin, requests for informa-
tion on owl pellets and ringed Brent
Geese, Guide to Identification of Cetaceans
in British Waters, 75th anniversary of
Netherlands Ornithological Union,
honours to ornithologists, birds new
to science, tailpiece, 518-20
Nightingale, comparison with Thrush
Nightingale, 269-71; literary appre-
ciation of, 494

, Thrush, photographic study, 265-

71, plates 29-32; accepted records
1975, 346

Nightjar, breeding status in Ireland, 95
Nipponia nippon, see Ibis, Japanese
Crested

Numenius arquata, see Curlew
Nyctea scandiaca, see Owl, Snowy
Nycticorax nycticorax, see Heron, Night

Obituaries: Charles Vaurie, DDS

(1906-1975), 104-5; Sir Julian Sorell
Huxley, MA, DSc, FRS (1887-1975),
305-7; Einar Brun, 417
Oceanodroma leucorhoa, see Petrel, Leach’s
Oenanthe hispanica, see Wheatear, Black-
eared

Ogilvie, M. A., review of Harrison:
A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and
Nestlings of British and European Birds,
Hoeher: The Pocket Encyclopedia of
Birds' Eggs and Nesting Habitats, and
Makatsch : Die Eier der Vogel Europas,
vol. 1, 38-9; birds in Ireland during
i97°-74, 91-103, plates 10-12; review
of Skutch: Parent Birds and their
Young, 413-4

, , and St Joseph, A. K. M.,

Dark-bellied Brent Geese in Britain
and Europe, 1955-76, 422-39
Oliver, P. J., see Milbled, T., et al.
Olney, P. J. S., review of Campbell:
The Dictionary of Birds in Colour, 244-5
Oriole, Golden, in Ireland, 100
Oriolus oriolus, see Oriole, Golden
Orr, Norman, studies of less familiar

Index to volume 6g

birds, 180 — Thrush Nightingale, 265-
71, plates 30, 31, 32b
Osborne, K. C., photograph of Surf
Scoter, plate 34a ; of Bobolink, plate
35b

Osprey, on edge of range in Britain, 18
O’Sullivan, John M., Bearded Tits in
Britain and Ireland, 1966-74, 473-89
Otis tetrax, see Bustard, Little
Otus scops, see Owl, Scops
Ouzel, Ring, breeding status in Ireland,
95

Owl, Barn, breeding status in Ireland,
95, plate 10a; killing and killed by
other owls, 145, 150; efficiency of
eyesight, 220-2

, Eagle, killing owls and diurnal

raptors, 145, 151-2; photograph,

plate 45b

, Great Grey, killing Tengmalm’s

Owl, 145, 147, 1 51; killed by Eagle
Owl, 145

, Great Horned, possibly killing

Great Grey Owl, 147

, Hawk, killing other owls, 145;

killed by other raptors, 145, 148, 151

, Little, killed by other owls and

raptors, 145, 150; flying at Dunlin,
272

, Long-eared, killing and killed by

other owls, 145, 149; field-charac-
ters, 281-7, plate 49a, c; with
mouse at nest, plate 24

, Pygmy, killed by other owls and

raptors, 145, 150-1

, Scops, killed by other owls and

raptors, 145, 150; accepted record
1974. 363

, Short-eared, killed by other owls,

and raptors, 145, 149; taking prey
from Stoat, 272; field-characters,
281-7, plate 49b, d

, Snowy, on edge of range in

Britain, 18; killing Short-eared Owl
and diurnal predators, 145-6, 147-8;
accepted records 1975, 342; ac-
cepted records 1974, 364; photo-
graph of female with young, plate
41b

, Tawny, killing and killed by other

owls and raptors, 145-6, 148-9, 15 1-2;
field-characters, 285; flying to nest
with earthworm, plate 25b

, Tengmalm’s, killing and killed by

other owls, 145, 150

Index to volume 6g

Owl, Ural, killing owls and possible
Honey Buzzard, 145-6, 151
Oxyura jamaicensis, see Duck, Ruddy
Oystercatcher, breeding inland in Co.
Roscommon, 94; numbers wintering
in Ireland, 99; photograph, plate 43a

Pagophila eburnea, see Gull, Ivory
Pandion haliaetus, see Osprey
Panurus biarmicus, see Tit, Bearded
Parrinder, E. R., review of Ogilvie:
Ducks of Britain and Europe, 106-7
Partridge, breeding status in Ireland,
94; function of tail pattern, 372

, Red-legged, injury-feigning in

water, 61 ; function of tail pattern,
372; uttering display note, 401,
plate 37

, Sand, sound recordings needed,

215

Pams ater, see Tit, Coal

caeruleus, see Tit, Blue

major, see Tit, Great

palustris, see Tit, Marsh

Passer domesticus, see Sparrow, House

montanus, see Sparrow, Tree

Pattenden, B., letter on the origin of
British Aquatic Warblers, 228-9
Peach, A. N. H., photographs of
Collared Flycatcher, plate 2a, c
Pearson, Barrie, letter on lA question
of priorities’, 226-7

Peart, D. E. M., note on Sand Martins
collecting nest material from ground,
222

Peplcr, G. R. M., see Bibby, C. J., et at.
Pcpler, P. A., see Bibby, C. J., et al.
Perdix perdix, see Partridge
Peregrine, possibly contaminated by
Fulmar oil, 61; breeding status in
Ireland, 93; killing owls, 145; killed
by Eagle Owls, 146
Pernis apivorus, see Buzzard, Honey
Perrins, C. M., review of Durman:
Bird Observatories in Britain and Ireland,
314-5

Petrel, Leach’s, voice, 293-7

, Storm, voice, 293-7

Phalacrocorax aristotelis, see Shag
Phalacrocorax car bo, see Cormorant
Phalarope, Red-necked, on edge of
range in Britain, 18; no longer
breeding in Ireland, 94; mutual
spinning, 219-20; group display, 401,
plate 39b

537

Phalarope, Wilson’s, in Ireland 1970,
1971, 101, plate 11a; British records
1958- 72, 291; accepted records
•975. 339-40. P^te 48c
Phalaropus lobatus, see Phalarope, Red-
necked

tricolor, see Phalarope, Wilson’s

Pheasant, Bar-tailed, function of tail
pattern, 372

Pheucticus ludovicianus, see Grosbeak,
Rose-breasted

Philomachus pugnax, see Ruff
Phoenicurus ochruros, see Redstart, Black
phoenicurus samamisicus, see Red-
start, Ehrenberg’s

Phylloscopus bonelli, see Warbler,
Bonelli’s

borealis, see Warbler, Arctic

collybita, see Chiffchaff

fuscatus, see Warbler, Dusky

inornatus, see Warbler, Yellow-

browed

proregulus, see Warbler, Pallas’s

schwarzi, see Warbler, Radde’s

trochiloides, see Warbler, Greenish

trochilus, see Warbler, Willow

Picozzi, N., and Weir, D., dispersal and
causes of death of Buzzards, 1 93-201
Picnkowski, M. W., photographs of
Sanderling nest, plate 18

, , and Green, H. G., breeding

biology of Sanderlings in north-east
Greenland, 1 65-77, plates 17-20
Pigeon, Feral, chased by House
Sparrow, 274

Pinicola enucleator, see Grosbeak, Pine
Pintail, numbers wintering in Ireland,
97

Pipit, Olive-backed, pattern of British
records, no; accepted record 1975,
352

, Pechora, accepted records 1975,

352

, Red-throated, accepted records

1975. 352

, Tawny% accepted records 1975,

351-2; accepted records 1974, 364

, Tree, Irish records 1970-4, 101

Piranga olivacea , see Tanager, Scarlet
Platalea leucorodia, see Spoonbill
Platt, Donald, photograph of Golden
Eagle, plate 21

Plegadis falcinellus, see Ibis, Glossy
Plover, Caspian, sound recordings
needed, 215

538

Plover, Egyptian, sound recordings
needed, 215

, Golden, breeding status in

Ireland, 94

, Greater Sand, sound recordings

needed, 215

, Grey, field-characters of juvenile,

514-5, plate 13b; photograph, plate
13b

, Kittlitz’s, sound recordings

needed, 215

, Lesser Golden, in Ireland 1 970-1,

101; accepted records 1975, 335

, Ringed, breeding biology in

arctic, 170, 173

, Sociable, accepted record 1975,

334

, White-tailed, accepted record

1975. 334-5

Pluvialis apricaria, see Plover, Golden

dominica, see Plover, Lesser Golden

squatarola, see Plover, Grey

Pluvianus aegyptius, see Plover, Egyptian
Pochard, breeding status in Ireland,
93; numbers wintering in Ireland, 97
Podiceps auritus, see Grebe, Slavonian

cristatus, see Grebe, Great Crested

grisegena, see Grebe, Red-necked

nigricollis, see Grebe, Black-necked

Polysticta stelleri, see Eider, Steller’s
Porzana Carolina, see Rail, Sora

parva , see Crake, Little

porzana, see Crake, Spotted

pusilla, see Crake, Baillon’s

Pounds, Hubert E., note on trembling
movements of House Martin when
nest-building, 451

Pratincole, accepted records 1975, 340

, Black-winged, accepted record

1975, 340

, Collared, in Ireland 1970, 102;

accepted records 1974, 363
Pratt, R., see Cullen, M. S.

Price, Richard, letter on the Coto
Donana, 455-7

Prinia gracilis, see Warbler, Graceful
Prunella modularis, see Dunnock
Prytherch, Robin, see Davis, A. H.
Pterodroma cahow, see Cahow
Puffin, plunge-diving and porpoising,
188-9; status in Britain and Ireland,
239-64; soil conditions and egg-
laying, 402-8; feeding habits, 512-3
, Tufted, feeding habits, 513

Index to volume 6g

Puffinus assimilis, see Shearwater, Little

gravis, see Shearwater, Great

griseus, see Shearwater, Sooty

puffinus, see Shearwater, Manx

mauretanicus, see Shearwater,

Balearic

Pyrrhocorax graculus, see Chough, Alpine

pyrrhocorax, see Chough

Pyrrhula pyrrhula, see Bullfinch

Qjuail, breeding status in Ireland, 93

Rabbitts, Brian, note on resting of
Cormorants on inland passage, 498-9
Rail, Sora, in Scilly, 443-4; field-
characters of immature, 444-6

, Water, eaten by Grey Heron, 369

Rallus aquaticus, see Rail, Water
Rarities Committee, report on rare
birds in Great Britain in 1975 (with
additions for nine previous years),
321-68, plates 33-5; announcements,
4'4-5

Raven, possibly contaminated by Ful-
mar oil, 6 1 ; breeding status in
Ireland, 95; breeding on buildings,
229-30, 316

Razorbill, plunge-diving, 188; estimate
of world breeding population, 298-
304; feeding habits, 512
Recent reports, 463-4; 523-4
Recorders, list of county and regional,
232-6

Recurvirostra avosetta, see Avocet
Redman, P. S., see Milbled, T., et al.
Redpoll, Arctic, accepted records 1975,
355

Redshank, breeding status in Ireland,
94; photograph, plate 43a

, Spotted, wintering in Ireland,

99 ; photograph, plate 43b
Redstart, Black, breeding numbers in
Britain 1969-73, 9-15; definition
of nesting record, 277
, Ehrenberg’s, accepted record

i975» 346

Redwing, variation of song pattern,
3°4-5

Regulus ignicapillus, see Firecrest

regulus, see Goldcrest

Reports: Breeding season summary,
43-4; September and October, 70-6;
Autumn summary, 112-6; November

Index to volume 6g

and December, 158-60; January,
192; February, 231; March, 280;
April, 320; May, 374-6; Winter
summary, 418-20; June and July,
460-2; Spring summary, 521-2
Request for assistance: Atlas fieldwork
in Finland, Italy and Spain, 517
Requests for information: BTO Garden
Bird Feeding Survey, 40; identifi-
cation of West Palearctic gulls,
colour-ringed Water Rails, 190; Old
World bunting research, 317; wing-
tagged Goosanders, 457 ; birds of
St Kilda, 517
Reviews :

Brown: British Birds of Prey, 41 1-2
Campbell: The Dictionary of Birds in
Colour, 224-5

Dobbs: The Birds of Nottinghamshire,
67-8

Durman: Bird Observatories in Britain
and Ireland, 314-5
Everett : Birds of Prey, 223-4
Ferguson-Lees, et al.: A Guide to
Birdwatching in Europe, 108-9
Fisher: Watching Birds (revised edi-
tion), 37

Gibson-Hill: A Guide to Birds of the
Coast, 509-10

Gruson: A Checklist of the Birds of the
World, 313-4

Harrison: A Field Guide to the Nests,
Eggs and Nestlings of British and
European Birds, 38-9
Hoeher: The Pocket Encyclopedia of
Birds' Eggs and Nesting Habitats, 39
Hutchinson: The Birds of Dublin and
Wicklow, 454

Kear and Duplaix-Hall: Flamingos,
182-3

Lysaght: The Book of Birds, 275-6
Makatsch: Die Eier der Vogel Europas,
vol. 1, 39

Nethersole-Thompson: Pine Cross-

bills, 184-5

Ogilvie: Ducks of Britain and Europe,

106- 7

Perry: Watching Sea Birds, 66-7
Sdlim Ali and Ripley: Handbook of
the Birds of India and Pakistan, vols.
7-10, 223

Sanders and Berg: A Guide to Bird-
watching in Denmark, 510
Simms: Birds of Town and Suburb,

107- 8

539

Skutch: Parent Birds and their Young,

4«3-4

Sultana, Gauci and Beaman : A Guide
to the Birds of Malta, 276-7
Zimmerman: To save a Bird in Peril,
185-6

Zink: Der £ug Europdischer Singvogel,
part 2, 314

Reynolds, J. F., photograph of Purple
Heron, plate 23b
Rhodostethia rosea, see Gull, Ross’s
Riparia riparia, see Martin, Sand
Rissa tridactyla, see Kittiwake
Robin, moss dispersal during feeding,
65-6 ; more sound recordings needed,
203; feeding from nut bag, 371; no
copulation before nest-building, 449 ;
nesting in disused Blackbird nest, 452

, American, pattern of British

records, no; accepted record 1975,

345

Roller, accepted records 1975, 343
Rook, chased by House Sparrow, 274;
somersaulting on wire, 310; taking
food from dustbins, 507
Roscfinch, Scarlet, in Ireland 1971,
102; accepted records 1975, 356;
accepted record 1974, 365
Rubythroat, Siberian, accepted record
>975. 346

Ruff, wintering in Ireland, 99
Russell, J., photograph of Willow
Warbler bathing, plate 28b

Sage, Bryan L., note on breeding suc-
cess of Red-throated Divers on
Hascosay, 409

St Joseph, A. K. M., see Ogilvie, M. A.
Sanderling, breeding biology in north-
east Greenland, 165-77, plates 17-20;
field-characters of juvenile, 515,
plate 14a; photograph, plate 14a
Sandgrouse, Pallas’s, accepted record
>975. 342

Sandpiper, Baird’s, in Ireland 1970,
10 1 ; incubation rate, 173; accepted
records 1975, 337

, Broad-billed, accepted record

>975. 339

, Buff-breasted, in Ireland 1970,

1971, 101 ; British records 1958-72,
291; accepted records 1975, 338-9,
plate 48a; accepted record 1974,

363

540

Sandpiper, Common, breeding status in
Ireland, 94; wintering in Ireland, 99

, Curlew, in Ireland on passage,

99

, Least, in Ireland 1970, 101;

accepted record 1975, 337

, Marsh, pattern of British records,

no; accepted record 1974, 363

, Pectoral, incubation rate, 173-4;

British records 1958-72, 291, plate
48b

, Sharp-tailed, in Ireland 1973,

10 1 ; accepted record 1975, 337

, Semipalmated, in Ireland 1970,

1971, 101

, Solitary, in Ireland 1971, 1974,

101, plate 1 ib; accepted record 1975,
336

, Spotted, nesting in Scotland, 288-

g2; correction, 524; accepted
records 1975, 336

, Terek, accepted records 1975,

336-7; wintering in Devon, 500-3

, Upland, accepted records 1975,

336; literary appreciation of, 493

, White-rumped, British records

1 958-72, 291 ; accepted records 1975,
337; accepted record 1974, 363
Sapsucker, Yellow-bellied, accepted
record 1975, 343
Saxicola rubetra, see Whinchat

torquata, see Stonechat

Scaup, numbers wintering in Ireland,
96-7

Scolopax rusticola, see Woodcock
Scoter, Common, numbers wintering
in Ireland, 96-7

, Surf, accepted records 1975, 331,

plate 34a; accepted record 1974:
amendment, 359; accepted record
1974, 362

, Velvet, wintering in Ireland, 97

Scott, Cyril, note on Long-tailed Tit
feeding young Great Tits, 34-5
Scott, Derick, photograph of Long-
eared Owl, plate 24a
Scott, R. E., note on Slate-coloured
Junco in Kent, 452-3; Short- toed
Treecreeper in Kent: a species new
to Britain and Ireland, 508-9
Seiurus motacilla, see Waterthrush,
Louisiana

— — noveboracensis, see Waterthrush,
Northern

Index to volume 6g

Sellar, P. J., sound recording and the
birdwatcher, 202-15

, , see Hall-Craggs, Joan

Serin, in Ireland 1974, 102; accepted
records 1975, 355-6; accepted record
1971, 360; accepted record 1973,
361 ; accepted record 1974, 365
Serinus canarius, see Canary

serinus, see Serin

Shag, plunge-diving, 188; feeding
habits, 512

Sharrock, J. T. R., letters on Lanceo-
lated Warblers and vagrancy pat-
terns, 109- 1 10; on the origin of
British Aquatic Warblers, 228-9; re-
view of Hutchinson: The Birds of
Dublin and Wicklow, 454
Shearwater, Balearic, off Ireland, 99

, Cory’s, off Ireland, 99; accepted

records 1975, 327; accepted record
1974. 361

, Great, passage off Ireland, 99

— — , Little, off Ireland, 99; accepted
records 1975, 327-8
, Manx, plunge-diving, 188; feed-
ing habits, 512-4

, Sooty, passage off Ireland, 99

Shelduck, breeding inland in Co.
Wicklow, 93; numbers wintering in
Ireland, 97

, Ruddy, accepted records 1975,

332

Shoveler, breeding status in Ireland,
93 ; numbers wintering in Ireland, 97
Shrike, Great Grey, wintering in
Ireland, 99 ; attacking sick Chaffinch,
3ii

, Lesser Grey, accepted records

*975. 353

, Red-tailed, accepted records

*975. 353. Plate 35a
, Woodchat, accepted records

*975. 353 i accepted records 1974, 365
Siskin, breeding status in Ireland, 95
Skua, Arctic, passage off Ireland, 100

, Great, passage off Ireland, 100;

photograph, plate 46a

, Pomarine, passage off Cape

Clear, 100

Smaldon, R., note on Terek Sandpiper
overwintering in Devon, 500-3
Smew, wintering in Ireland, 97
Smith, Donald A., photograph of
Tawny Owl with earthworm, plate
25b

Index to volume 6g

Snipe, field-characters, 377-83; alight-
ing on dead branch, 401, plate 39a

, Great, accepted records 1975,

335-6; field-characters, 377-83

, Pintail, sound recordings needed,

215

Snowcock, Caspian, sound recordings
needed, 215

, Caucasian, sound recordings

needed, 215

Somataria mollissima, see Eider

spectabilis, see Eider, King

Sparrow, House, attacked by Starling,
65; more sound recordings needed,
203; pursuing other species, 274

, Tree, breeding status in Ireland,

95

Sparrowhawk, breeding status in Ire-
land, 93; killing owls, 145; killed by
owls, 146

Spencer, K. G., note on House
Sparrows pursuing other species,
274

Sphyrapicus varius, see Sapsucker, Yellow-
bellied

Spoonbill, wintering in Ireland, 96
Starling, attacking House Sparrow, 65;
flight behaviour at winter roost,
51-60, plates 5-8; chased by House
Sparrow, 274; feeding likeTurnstone,
31 1 ; probably playing, 401, plate
40b

, Rose-coloured, field-characters

of juvenile, 222; accepted records

1975. 353-4

Stercorarius parasiticus, see Skua, Arctic

pomarinus, see Skua, Pomarine

skua, see Skua, Great

Sterna anaethetus, sec Tern, Bridled

bengalensis, see Tern, Lesser

Crested

dougallii, see Tern, Roseate

hirundo, see Tern, Common

maxima, see Tern, Royal

paradisaea, see Tern, Arctic

repressa, see Tern, White-cheeked

sandvicensis, see Tern, Sandwich

Stilt, Black-winged, accepted record
I974-363

Stint, Little, in Ireland on passage, 99;
photograph, plate 15b

, Temminck’s, successive clutches

each attended by one adult, 1 73
Stonechat, breeding status in Ireland,
95; accepted records of eastern race

541

*975> 3455 accepted records of
eastern race i960, 1964, 1965, 1972,
360-1

Stork, Black, wing-spreading during
feeding, 156; accepted record 1974,
362

, White, in Ireland 1974, 101;

accepted records 1975, 329-30
Stoyle, M. F., note on Starling feeding
in manner of Turnstone, 31 1
Streptopelia turtur, see Dove, Turtle
Strix aluco, see Owl, Tawny

nebulosa, see Owl, Great Grey

uralensis, see Owl, Ural

Sturnus roseus, see Starling, Rose-
coloured

vulgaris, see Starling

Sula bassana, see Gannet
Surnia ulula, see Owl, Hawk
Swallow, singing from ground, 273;
feeding by street lamp at night, 309-
10; nesting in old Robin’s nest, 457;
literary appreciation of, 494

, Red-rumped, accepted records

•975. 344; accepted record 1973,
361

Swan, Bewick’s, numbers wintering in
Ireland, 97

, Mute, numbers wintering in

Ireland, 97

, Whoopcr, numbers wintering in

Ireland, 97

Swift, large numbers killed by traffic,
63-4

, Alpine, accepted records 1975,

342-3; accepted record 1974: amend-
ment, 360; accepted record 1965, 360
Sykes, H. R., photograph of pre-roost
Starling flock, plate 5b
Sylvia atricapilla, see Blackcap

borin, see Warbler, Garden

cantillans, see Warbler, Subalpine

curruca, see W'hitethroat, Lesser

nana, see Warbler, Desert

nisoria, see Warbler, Barred

undata, see Warbler, Dartford

Syrmaticus humiae, see Pheasant, Bar-
tailed

Syrrhaptes paradoxus, see Sandgrouse,
Pallas’s

Tadorna ferruginea, see Shelduck, Ruddy

tadorna, see Shelduck

Tanager, Scarlet, accepted record

*975> 357

542

Tarsiger cyanurus, see Blue tail, Red-
flanked

Taverner, J. H., voice, behaviour and
display of Mediterranean Gulls, 4-8
Taylor, D. W., note on presumed
female Chiffchaff singing, 64-5; on
Greenshank eating large frog, 409
Teal, numbers wintering in Ireland, 97

, Blue-winged, accepted record

x975> 330

, Green-winged, accepted records

1975, 33°j accepted record 1974, 362
Tern, Arctic, feeding on flying ants, 410
, Bridled, sound recordings needed,

215

, Caspian, accepted records 1975,

342; accepted record 1974, 363

, Common, numbers breeding in

Co. Wexford, 95, plate 12a; be-
haviour of injured bird, 272; feeding
on flying ants, 410; reduced fishing
success during storms, 492

, Gull-billed, accepted records

I975, 341 ; accepted record 1972, 361

, Lesser Crested, sound recordings

needed, 215

, Roseate, breeding status in

Ireland, 95

, Royal, accepted record 1974:

amendment, 359

, Sandwich, reduced fishing success

during storms, 492

, Whiskered, accepted record 1975,

341

, White-cheeked, sound recordings

needed, 215

, White-winged Black, accepted

records 1975, 341; accepted record
1974: amendment, 359; accepted
record 1973, 361; accepted record
1974- 363

Tetrogallus caspius, see Snowcock, Casp-
ian

caucasicus, see Snowcock, Cau-
casian

Thick-knee, Senegal, sound recordings
needed, 215

Thomas, R. S., letter on ‘Migration in
the doldrums’, 187-8
Thompson, E. K., photograph of Blue
Tit, plate 28a

Thrush, Black - throated, accepted
record 1975, 344

, Dusky, accepted record 1975, 344

Index to volume 6g

Thrush, Hermit, accepted record 1 975,

345

-, Mistle, chased by House Sparrow,

274

, Rock, in Ireland 1974, 102

Thrush, Song, moss spores on feet of
dead bird, 66; more sound record-
ings needed, 203-4; chased by House
Sparrow, 274; feeding from nut bag,
37i

, White’s, accepted record 1975,

345

Tit, Bearded, in Ireland 1972 and 1974,
100, 102; status in Britain and
Ireland 1966-74, 473-89

, Blue, laying dates in Oxfordshire,

45-50; photograph, plate 28a
, Coal, laying dates in Oxford-
shire and Norfolk, 45-50
, Great, killing Collared Fly-
catchers, 22; young fed by Long-
tailed Tit, 34-5; laying dates in
Oxfordshire and Norfolk, 45-60;
eating bumblebee, 64; moss dis-
persal during feeding, 65-6; use of
alarm note, 204

, Long-tailed, feeding young Great

Tits, 34-5; feeding on lawns, 35;
feeding on white bread crumbs, 35;
laying dates in Oxfordshire, 48
, Marsh, laying dates in Oxford-
shire, 45-50; no copulation before
nest-building, 449
Tonnel, R., see Milbled, T., et al.
Torgos tracheliotus, see Vulture, Lappet-
faced

Tragopan melanocephalus, see Tragopan,
Western

Tragopan, Western, in danger of ex-
tinction, 17

Trap-Lind, lb, photographs of Thrush
Nightingale, plates 29, 32a
Treecreeper, problems of separation
from Short- toed, 117-131
, Short-toed, problems of identi-
fication, 1 1 7- 1 3 1 ; accepted record
1969, 360; in Kent, 508-9
Tringa erythropus, see Redshank, Spotted

flavipes, see Yellowlegs, Lesser

hypoleucos, see Sandpiper, Common

macularia, see Sandpiper, Spotted

melanoleuca, see Yellowlegs, Greater

nebularia, see Greenshank

solitaria, see Sandpiper, Solitary

stagnatilis, see Sandpiper, Marsh

Index to volume 6g

I ringa totanus, see Redshank
I 'ryngites subruficollis, see Sandpiper,
Buff-breasted

I ubbs, Colin, viewpoint: a price for
conservation? 161-4
I 'ucker, Nigel, photograph of Lesser
Yellowlegs, plate 47b; of Black-and-
White Warbler, plate 47c
I ’ucker, V. R., note on identification of
Chough and Alpine Chough in
flight, 369-70

t urdus merula, see Blackbird

I- migratorius, see Robin, American

| musicus, see Redwing

[ naumanni, see Thrush, Dusky

I philomelos, see Thrush, Song

I ruficollis, see Thrush, Black-

throated

l torquatus, see Ouzel, Ring

I viscivorus, see Thrush, Mistle

H ’urner, G. E. S., see Campbell, Bruce
prurnix sylvatica, see Hemipode, Anda-
lusian

(1 Turnstone, breeding biology in arctic,
170, *73 > found dead by Little Owl
perch, 272; reacting to cockle shell,
401, plate 38c

II Twite, breeding status in Ireland, 95
tty to alba, see Owl, Barn

[Underwood, W. M., note on Great
Grey Shrike attacking sick Chaffinch,
31 1

k Jpupa epops, see Hoopoe
k Jria aalge, see Guillemot
h lomvia, see Guillemot, Brtinnich’s

i Vanellus gregarius, see Plover, Sociable

leucurus, see Plover, White-tailed

vanellus, see Lapwing

\ Vaughan, Richard, more birds in
action, 399-402, plates 37-40

Waurie, Charles, obituary, 104-5

• Vermivora peregrina, see Warbler, Ten-
nessee
' Viewpoint:

J. Gooders: a question of priorities,
16-19; letters, 226-8
Louis J. Halle, 493-4
C. Tubbs: a price for conservation ?
161-4

Vinicombe, K. E., note on Yellow
Wagtail apparently drying itself

543

on dead weed, 410-1; on feeding
association between gulls and
Great Crested Grebes, 506
Vireo olivaceus, see Vireo, Red-eyed
Vireo, Red-eyed, accepted record 1975,

354

Voice: Storm Petrel, 293-7; Leach’s
Petrel, 293-7; Mediterranean Gull,
4-6; Treecreeper, 119-22; Short-toed
Treecreeper, 1 19-22; Blackbird, 509;
Thrush Nightingale, 267-8; Chiff-
chaff, 64-5

Vulture, Black, photograph, plate 42a

, Egyptian, passage across Strait of

Gibraltar, 79

, Lappet-faced, sound recordings

needed, 215

Wagtail, Citrine, accepted record 1975,
352

, Yellow, apparently drying itself

on dead weed, 410-1
Wallace, D. I. M., a review of water-
thrush identification with particular
reference to the 1968 British record,
27-33i distinguishing Great Snipe
from Snipe, 377-83; Sora Rail in
Scilly and the identification of im-
mature small crakes, 443-7; dis-
tinguishing Little and Reed Bunt-
ings, 465-73, plates 50-1

, , see Mead, C. J.

W’alsh, T. A., note on the pale rump of
juvenile Rose-coloured Starlings, 222
W’arbler, Aquatic, origin of British
records, 228-9; accepted records
1975. 34i * * * * * * 8-9; accepted record 1972,
361 ; accepted record 1973; 361

, Arctic, accepted records 1975,

350; accepted record 1973, 361

, Barred, Irish records 1970-4, 100

, Black - and - W’hitc, accepted

record 1975, 354, plate 47c
, Blackpoll, accepted record 1975,

355

, Blyth’s Reed, accepted record

1975. 348

, Bonelli's, accepted records 1975,

350; accepted record 1974, 364

, Cetti’s, accepted records 1975,

364-7; accepted record 1973, 361;
accepted record 1974, 364

, Dartford. on edge of range in

Britain, 18; in Ireland 1972, 102

544

Warbler, Desert, accepted records 1975,
349, plate 47a

, Dusky, accepted records 1975,

35i

, Garden, breeding status in Ire-
land, 95-6; photograph, plate 26b

, Graceful, no copulation before

nest-building, 449

, Grasshopper, breeding status in

Ireland, 95; scarcity of records, 187;
photograph, plate 44a

, Great Reed, accepted record

1974, 364; accepted records 1975,

348

, Greenish, accepted records 1975,

349- 50

, Icterine, Irish records 1970-4,

100

, Lanceolated, pattern of British

records, 109-10; accepted record
>975. 347

, Melodious, Irish records 1970-4,

100

, Myrtle, accepted record 1968:

amendment, 359

, Paddyfield, accepted record 1974,

364

, Pallas’s, accepted records 1975,

350- 1; accepted record 1972, 361
, Radde’s, accepted records 1975,

35i

, Reed, weight-gain of migrants

from reed aphids, 395-6; no copu-
lation before nest-building, 449

, Savi’s, accepted records 1975,

347-8; accepted records 1974, 364

, Sedge, ringing records, 228;

weight-gain of migrants, 384-99
, Subalpine, accepted records 1975,

349

, Tennessee, accepted records 1975,

354

, Willow, bathing, plate 28b

, Yellow-browed, Irish records

1970-4, 1 00

Waterthrush, Louisiana, problems of
identification, 27-32
, Northern, problems of identi-
fication, 27-32; 1968 British record
accepted, 32-3

Wattel, Jan, review of Fisher: Watching
Birds, revised edition by Jim Flegg, 37

Index to volume 6g

Waxwing, wintering in Ireland, 99;

photograph, plate 27a
Weir, D., see Picozzi, N.

Wheatear, Black-eared, in Ireland
1973, 1 02 ; accepted records 1975,
345

Whinchat, breeding status in Ireland,
95; photograph, plate 26a
Whitethroat, Lesser, Irish records 1970-
4, 101

Wigeon, numbers wintering in Ireland,
97

, American, accepted records 1 975,

330-1 ; accepted record 1974: amend-
ment, 359; accepted record 1974, 362
Williams, A. E., photographs of Sander-
ling nests, plate 19

Williams, Keri, photograph of Garden
Warblers, plate 26b
Willson, P. and E., note on Bullfinches
feeding from nut bag, 370-1
Wilson, Gordon E., Spotted Sand-
pipers nesting in Scotland, 288-92
Wood, C. R., note on piratical Short-
eared Owl, 272

Woodcock, field-characters, 381
Woodpecker, Great Spotted, numbers
in Ireland 1972, 100; eating leaves,
31 1-2; unusual death, 410

, Lesser Spotted, eating leaves,

312; display, 506-7

Wright, Christopher, note on Long-
tailed Tits feeding on white bread
crumbs, 35

Wright, Maurice W., photograph of
Red-tailed Shrike, plate 35a
Wryneck, in Ireland, 100

Xenus cinereus, see Sandpiper, Terek

Yellowlegs, Greater, in Ireland 1971,
101 ; accepted records 1975, 336

, Lesser, British records 1958-72,

291; accepted records 1975, 336-7,
plate 47b; accepted records 1974,
362-3

Ziesler, Gunter, photographs of Long-
eared Owl, plate 49a, c
Zoothera dauma, see Thrush, White’s

PLATES

PAGE

13-16 Waders: Greenshank Tringa nebularia; Grey Plover Pluvialis
squatarola ; Sanderling Calidris alba; Dunlin C. alpina bathing; Knot
C. canutus ; Little Stint C. minuta immature plumage; Black-tailed
Godwit Limosa limosa; Curlew Numenius arquata with bill buried in
mud, all Cornwall (J. B. and S. Bottomley) facing 138

1 7-20 Biology of Sanderlings Calidris alba ; adult at nest with eggs, breeding
habitat; nests with eggs and young, foraging in snow melt, all
Greenland (Benny Gensbol, M. W. Pienkowski, and A. E. Williams)

facing 176

21-28 More examples of the best recent work by British bird-photo-
graphers: Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos alighting at eyrie, Argyll
(Donald Platt) ; Barnacle Geese Branta leucopsis, Strathclyde
(Pamela Harrison); Brent Geese B. bernicla, Cornwall (J. B. and
S. Bottomley) ; Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides, the Gambia, (K. H.
Carlson); Purple Heron Ardea purpurea, Kenya (J. F. Reynolds);

Long eared Owl Asio otus bringing mouse to chicks, Nottingham-
shire (Derick Scott); Little Gull Larus minutus in flight, Dyfed
(Harold E. Grenfell) ; Tawny Owl Strix aluco flying to nest with
earthworm, Strathclyde (Donald A. Smith); pair of Whinchats
Saxicola rubetra, Lancashire (Dennis Green); Garden Warblers
Sylvia borin at nest, Powys (Keri Williams) ; Waxwing Bombycilla
garrulus, Staffordshire (S. C. Brown) ; Bullfinch Pyrrhula pyrrhula,
Hertfordshire (E. A. Janes); Blue Tits Pams caeruleus, Greater
Manchester (E. K. Thompson) ; Willow Warbler Phylloscopus
trochilus bathing, Derbyshire (J. Russell) facing 214

29-32 Studies of Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia : adults at nest with
young, nest with five eggs, Denmark and Germany (lb Trap-
Lind, and N. W. Orr) facing 258

33-35 Rare birds in 1975: Red-breasted Goose Branta rufcollis with
Brent Geese B. bernicla, Essex (Pamela Harrison); Surf Scoter
Melanitla perspicillata, Isles of Scilly (K. G. Osborne) ; Long-billed
Dowitchers Limnodromus scolopaceus, Cornwall (J. B. and S.
Bottomley) ; Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio of one of the
isabellinus group of red-tailed races, West Sussex (Maurice W.
Wright) ; Bobolink Dolichonyx oryzivorus, Isles of Scilly (K. C.
Osborne); Killdeer Charadrius vociferus with a Lapwing Vanellus
vanellus, Leicestershire (R. J. Chandler) facing 348

36 Sir Julian Sorell Huxley, ma, dsc, frs (1887-1975) in Jordan

(Eric Hosking) facing 349

37-40 Birds in action: Red-legged Partridge Alectoris rufa uttering display
note, Norfolk; Gadwall Anas strepera taking food from Coot Fulica
atra, Humberside; dense group of Steller’s Eiders Polysticta stelleri,
Norway; Turnstone Arenaria interpres reacting to cockle shell,
Humberside; two Snipe Gallinago gallinago settling on dead
branch, Norfolk; Red-necked Phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus in group
display, Norway; Goldcrest Regulus regulus displaying to reflection
in window, Buckinghamshire; two Starlings Sturnus vulgaris
apparently locked in combat but probably playing, Humberside;
(Richard Vaughan) facing 398

PLATES

PAGE

41-46 British bird-photographers 19 Eric Hosking: Lammergeier Gypaetus
barbatus in nesting cave, Spain; Snowy Owl Nyctea scandiaca with
young, Shetland; Black Vultures Aegypius monachus at nest, Spain;

Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus at nest with young, Spain ; massed
waders, mainly Knots Calidris canutus, but also Curlews Numenius
arquata, Oystercatchers Haematopus ostralegus, Redshanks Tringa
totanus and Bar- tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica, Cheshire; Spotted
Redshank Tringa erythropus, Suffolk; Grasshopper Warbler Locustella
naevia at nest with young, Suffolk; pair of Little Bitterns Ixobrychus
minutus at nest, Netherlands; Little Egret Egretta garzetta at nest,

Spain; Eagle Owl Bubo bubo at nest with young, Norway; Great
Skua Stercorarius skua ; Shetland; Greenshank Tringa nebularia,
settling on eggs, Sutherland facing 442

47

48

49

Rare birds in 1975: Desert Warbler Sylvia nana, Humberside (K.
Atkin); Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes, Devon; Black-and-White
Warbler Mniotilta varia, Isles ofScilly (Nigel Tucker)

American waders: Buff-breasted Sandpiper Tryngites subruficollis,
Cambridgeshire (Howard B. Ginn); Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris
melanotos, Isles of Scilly (K. Atkin) ; Wilson’s Phalarope Phalaropus
tricolor, Co. Cork (Richard T. Mills) facing 443

Long-eared Owls Asio otus and Short-eared Owls A. flammeus :
identification features at rest and in flight, West Germany and
Lincolnshire (Gunter Ziesler, and Keith Atkin) facing

494

50-51 Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla and Reed Buntings E. schoeniclus:
pencil drawings to show main identification features (D. I. M.
Wallace) ; Little Bunting trapped on Fair Isle (R. H. Dennis)

52 Montagu’s Harrier Circus py gar gus, retrieving displaced nestling, Nor-

folk (M. D. England) ; Mystery photograph 1 (see page 495) (S.

G. D. Cook) facing 495

List of line drawings

PAGE

6a Starlings Sturnus vulgaris (D. I. M. Wallace)

177 Sanderling Calidris alba (Hilary Burn)

201 Buzzard Buteo buteo (Hilary Burn)

322 Long-tailed Skua Stercorarius longicaudus and Arctic Skua S. parasiticus
(D. I. M. Wallace)

332 Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea (Robert Gillmor)

338 Buff-breasted Sandpipers Tryngites subruficollis (D. I. M. Wallace)

344 Black-throated Thrush Turdus ruficollis (D. I. M. Wallace)

354 Rose-coloured Starling Sturnus roseus and Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica
(D. I. M. Wallace)

463 Shearwaters and gulls (D. I. M. Wallace)

489 Bearded Tits Panurus biarmicus (Robert Gillmor)

524 Blackpoll Warbler Dendroica striata (P. J. Grant)

*

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