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FOR THE PEOPLE

FOR EDVCATION

FOR SCIENCE

LIBRARY

OF

THE AMERICAN MUSEUM

OF

NATURAL HISTORY

NOTES

BIRDS OF HEREFORDSHIRE,

CONTRIBUTED BY MEMBERS OF THE WOOLHOPE CLUB.

COLLECTED AND ARRANGED BY
THE LATE

HENRY GRAVES BULL, M.D., etc.,

Editor of the "Herefordshire Pomona," "The Apple and Pear as
Vintage Fruits," etc.

(1884-5.)

"Hope on — Hope ever.'

LONDON: Hamilton, Adams & Co.

HEREFORD : Jakeman & Carver.
1888.

TO THE MEMBERS

OF THE

WOOLHOPE naturalists' FIELD CLUB

THIS VOLUME IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED

IN MEMORY OF

MANY HAPPY YEARS OF RESEARCH

SPENT TOGETHER

IN THE VARIED FIELDS OF INTEREST

CONNECTED WITH THE

COUNTY OF HEREFORDSHIRE.

Ye birds
That singing up to Heaven-gate ascend,
Bear on your wings and in your notes His praise.

Milton— Paradise Lost V.

On every bowgh the briddes herde I synge

With voys of aungel in her armont

That besyed hem her briddes forthe to brynge.

Chaucer— 27ie Assembly of Foules.

Hark to Nature's lesson, given
By the blessed birds op heaven ;
Every bush and tufted tree
Warbles sweet philosophy ;
Mortal fly from doubt and sorrow,
God provideth for the morrow.

Hebeb,

PREFACE

'HpHESE " Notes on the Birds of Herefordshire '' were originally
written for the purpose of being read at the Field Meetings
of the Woolhope Club ; the Members of the Club most kindly
helping, by contributing notes of the appearance of any rare or
remarkable birds that had come under their notice. Several
of the earlier sections of the book were read in this w^ay ; but,
by degrees, the scope of the design was much extended, and all
our Herefordshire Birds were included, as far as they could be
ascertained.

Dr. Bull then wished to publish the whole series of " Notes "
in a separate volume, and had, in fact, completed and arranged the
MS. for that purpose. He hoped by this means to increase the
interest felt in our feathered companions, and to lead to greater
care and method in observing, naming, and classifying the very
numerous species that either inhabit or visit the county.

His sudden illness and death prevented his accomplishing his
intention ; but his papers were fortunately left by him complete,
and he expressed an earnest wish that they should be published as
soon as was possible. There have been unavoidable delays in
bringing the work through the press ; but it is hoped that the
many friends who have listened to the papers in the field, or joined
in the discussions to which they gave rise, will like to possess this
volume, as a remembrance of one who so truly loved everything
connected with Nature, Antiquity, and Science.

The "Notes," as the title implies, are not an exhaustive account
of the birds mentioned, still less a formal treatise on their structure
and classification ; but rather, familiar reminiscences of homely

X. PREFACE.

favourites, notices of their every-day habits, and of the superstitions
connected with them, with many amusing anecdotes derived from
personal observation. Dr. Bull dehghted in tracing out the
allusions to birds, which may be found in our literature, especially
in the poets, and very numerous quotations of this kind will be
found in the following pages. Those who best knew the author
will most fully understand how thoroughly he enjoyed the task of
collecting these allusions.

Another subject of interest to Dr. Bull was the preservation
of the various local names of birds in the different parts of the
county, which are often very characteristic, as well as amusing ;
a list, as comprehensive as possible, has therefore been added as
an Appendix.

Grateful thanks are due to the many kind friends, who, even
while these " Notes " have been passing through the press, have so
readily aided in making the work as complete and accurate as
possible, and bringing it up to the present date.

Among these, special mention must be made of the Rev.
Clement Ley, Mr. Blake, of Ross, Mr. Lloyd, of Kington, and
Dr. Bull's old and valued friend, the Rev. Thos. Woodhouse,
of Ropley, in Hampshire, who, though no longer in Herefordshire,
still retains a strong affection for his native county, and who has
devoted much valuable time to the revision of these " Notes."
Mr. H. T. Wharton, General Editor of the "Ibis Catalogue,"
has also rendered valuable aid in the revision of the later sheets
as they passed through the press, and the kind assistance thus
generously given is most gratefully acknowledged.

The Author's own introduction follows.

INTRODUCTION,

TTEREFORDSHIRE still affords a rich field for the study of
Ornithology. The whole county forms a pastoral oasis of
hill and dale, well-wooded and well-watered, filled with meadows
and orchards, in the midst of a wild waste of hills of considerable
height and of great extent.

To the south and south-west are the Forest of Dean, the
Monmouthshire Hills, and the Black Mountains : to the north-west
lie the wide ranges of hills, which beginning in Radnorshire and
Breconshire, stretch onwards to the sea : on the north, where the
hills within the county are wilder and more desolate, they are
contiguous with those of Radnorshire and Shropshire : while the
eastern side is bounded by a bleak open country, and the long
range of the Malvern Hills.

So late as the reign of Queen Elizabeth there were four Royal
Forests in Herefordshire. For the southern district the Forest of
Ewyas stretched over the Hatteral Hills to the Black Mountains :
in the northern part of the county was the Forest of Deerfold (see
Woolhope Transactions, 1869) not far off from the wooded and
romantic heights of the High Vinnall, Bringwood Chase and
Mocktree, Harley's Mountain and a wide tract of neighbouring
hills, mostly clothed with wood. In the centre of the county,
the Royal Forests of Aconbury and of Haywood (see Woolhope
Transactions, for 1870) united with each other in forming one large
tract of woodland, greatly extended across the river Wye by the
bleak Woolhope district, reaching almost to the foot of the Ledbury
and Malvern Hills.

Many woods remain, which were once included in these forests ;

Xll. INTRODUCTION.

indeed the Government Agricultural Returns show that about one
fifteenth of the whole area of the county is still woodland. Besides
this, the county abounds in orchards and parks, small woods and
copses ; fine hedgerows and single trees are plentiful : game-
preserving is carried on very strictly in many places ; birds find
covert and shelter of all kinds, and their numbers are kept up
accordingly. The woods and meadows teem with bird life. Their
cheerful voices and songs are to be heard everywhere ; and the
lover of birds is rejoiced by the great variety of notes he hears,
and finds continual interest and pleasure in distinguishing between
them.

Water-birds have many favourable haunts here. The Wye,
our beautiful river, meanders through the county for many miles,
doubling and winding between wooded hills, and joined on its way
by the Lugg, w^hich itself receives the Arrow, the Pinsley, and
many smaller streams, as well as the Frome. On the north and
east the Teme skirts the county for many miles, and on the
south-west the Monnow, both receiving many tributaries that pass
through solitary valleys and wind among hills. These streams
attract aquatic birds at all times ; and especially in hard winters,
when the smaller streams remain open and unfrozen, many Water-
fowl flock in to these favoured nooks. Very often, even sea-birds,
driven inland in hard weather, or during severe storms, visit our
rivers and ponds ; and thus the number and variety of our
feathered visitors are very largely increased.

Modern improvements, such as the draining of marshes, as at
Shobdon and Berrington, have driven away some of our rarer
kinds : and the gamekeeper is still very destructive to all the
larger and more interesting sorts, such as the Hawk, the Owl, the
Raven, the Heron, and such other rare visitants as are of sufficient
size to attract his attention. It is a happy thing, however, that
large landed proprietors are much more merciful than of old.
They encourage the presence of their interesting bird visitors, and
are training a more intelligent and observant race of gamekeepers.
Surely the loss of a few chickens, or even Partridges and

INTRODUCTION. Xlll.

Pheasants, would be abundantly compensated by the pleasure
of watching the graceful soaring flight of the more noble birds of
prey. The fox has long been spared : why should not these birds
be' allowed equal immunity ? Indeed, there seems to be some
faint hope on the horizon of humanity, that as the test of a good
gamekeeper is said to be the abundance of hares he can produce,
the good keeper of the future will be known by the abundance of
rare and interesting birds he can encourage. Every true lover of
birds must devoutly wish that it may be so.

No birds that haunt my valley free,

To slaughter I condemn ;
Taught by the Power that pities me,

I learn to jjity them.

The preservation of our wild birds has, happily, been very
greatly promoted by some recent Acts of Parliament. The Gun
License Act of 1870 {^:^ and 34 Vic, chap. 57), which imposed a
duty of ten shillings on every one carrying a gun, has acted most
beneficially for the protection of the smaller birds, whose habits
and songs add so much pleasure and interest to country life ; and
the Wild Birds' Protection Acts, passed in 1872 (35 and 36 Vic,
chap. 78), and also in 1880 (43 and 44 Vic, chap. 35), have also
rendered great service.

The long-continued severe weather of the winter of 1880-1
following, as it did, the sharp frost of 1879-80, proved very
destructive to bird life ; and great numbers were picked up dead
in all directions. It was found also in the summer of 1881, that
it had been very fatal to our summer visitors, not only to the
Warblers, and more delicate birds, but also to the Swifts, Swallows
and Martins, whose migratory habits might have been expected to
have enabled them to get beyond its influence. The scarcity of
birds in our woods and fields in 1881 was very marked; but,
happily, the subsequent mild winters, and the beneficial operation
of the Acts of Parliament mentioned above, have already done
much to repair the loss.

The same severe winter froze up the little pools, and brought
great quantities of Water-fowl to the more open waters of the Wye

XIV. INTRODUCTION.

and Lugg, where there was greater freedom from ice. Numbers of
Ducks, Wigeon, Teal, and Geese appeared on the Wye, where
they are now less disturbed than they were in former days, before
the railway traffic had superseded the barges.

It remains to notice the papers, etc., that have already
appeared upon the Birds of Herefordshire. In the year 1851 a
very well-written, and interesting little book, was published by
a Herefordshire Naturalist. It is entitled " The Songs of the
Birds ; or, Analogies of Animal and Spiritual Life," by the Rev.
W. E. Evans, M.A., who afterwards became one of the Canons
Residentiary of Hereford Cathedral. Mr. Evans lived at Burton
Court, in the centre of the county, when the work was published.
He was a close observer of nature, and since his work has been
long out of print, many quotations will be given from it, in prose
and verse, for both are equally good, and founded on local
observations in Herefordshire. Quotations from poetry will be
very freely given in this work, — feathers to float more pleasantly the
dry carcase of scientific names.

Several interesting papers, with local lists of Herefordshire
Birds, have already been published in the Transactions of the
Woolhope Club ; viz., " On the Animals and Birds of Hereford-
shire," by Mr. R. M. Lingwood (Trans., No. 4, 1862, pp. 32-6);
"On the Flight of Birds," by Mr. James Rankin, M.A., M.R
(Trans., 1868, pp. 48-59); "On the Rare Birds of Herefordshire,"
by Mr. Arthur Armitage and the Rev. Clement Ley (Trans., 1869,
PP- 71-7)^ "On the Rare Birds of Herefordshire and Radnor-
shire," by Mr. James W. Lloyd (Trans., 1869, pp. 78-80); "List
of Birds observed at Bredwardine," by the Rev. Robert Blight
(Trans., 1869, pp. 158-9); "List of Birds observed at Lingen,"
by the Rev. C. H. Middleton (Trans., 1873, p. 88); with many
ornithological notices scattered through the volumes. It is pro-
posed now to unite all these observations in one general list for
the whole county.

The classification followed in these pages is that proposed by
Professor Huxley, and adopted, with some shght modification,

INTRODUCTION. XV.

by the British Ornithologists' Union, and pubHshed in 1883, as the
" Ibis Catalogue of British Birds." This classification is based
mainly on the osseous structure of birds, more particularly with
regard to the palate bones, as being the part the least modified by
the diverse conditions of bird life.

Yarrell's " History of British Birds " must always be regarded
an indispensable book for all lovers of Ornithology. The first
edition was published in 1837-43, and the last, the fourth, edited
by Professor Alfred Newton and Mr. Howard Saunders, was
commenced in 187 1 and finished in 1885. This admirable work
has been taken as the basis of the " Notes on the Birds of
Herefordshire," and to it the reader is referred for figures and
descriptions of the Birds, and for the full account of them and of
their habits, to which these " Notes " must be regarded as merely
supplementary.

The arrangement and nomenclature ot the " Ibis Catalogue "
having been adopted in this work, where it is found that the name
of a bird in Yarrell differs, it will be put in italics for convenience
of reference.

The names between brackets are those species recorded in
the " Ibis Catalogue," but not hitherto observed in Herefordshire.
They are inserted in the hope of directing the attention of naturalists
to the blanks which still remain in our long list, and which further
observation may fill up.

Note to page 240.

An interesting notice of the occurrence of the Kittiwake,
Rissa tridactyla^ has at the last moment been received from Mr.
Jenner, of Vennwood, but, unfortunately, too late for insertion in
the proper place. This beautiful bird was observed on the pool in
the front of the house at Vennwood, on December 12th, 1887, and
shot by Mr. Jenner. It proved to be a very good specimen in
beautiful plumage, and he is having it stuffed for preservation at
Vennwood House.

XVI. INTRODUCTION.

The Birds chant melody on every bush.

Shakespeare.

All Nature's difference keeps all Nature's peace.

Pope.

Whan that Aprille with his schowres swoote
The drought of Marche hath perced to the roote

*****

And smale fowles maken melodie
That slepen al the night with open yhe.

Chaucer — Prologue.

You winged Choristers, that dwell

In woods, and there maintain a quire,
Whose music doth all art excel,

Naught can we emulate, but admire ;
You, living galleys of the air.

That through the strongest tempest slide,
And, by your wanton flight, who dare

The fury of the winds divide ;
Praise Him, and in this harmony and love,
Let your soft quire contend with that above.

Thos. Stanley, 1647.

Beautiful birds of lightsome wing.
Bright creatures that come with the voice of spring,
We see you arrayed in the hues of morn,
Yet 5'e dream not of pride, and ye wist not of scorn.
******

Sweet birds, that breathe the spirit of song,
And surround Heaven's gate in melodious throng.
Who rise with the earliest beams of day
Your morning tribute of thanks to pay.

But most of all it wins my admiration.
To view the structure of this little work —
A bird's nest. Mark it well, within, without.
No tool had he that wrought, no knife to cut.
No nail to fix, no bodkin to insert.
No glue to join ; his little beak was all : —
And yet how neatly finish'd ! what nice hand.
With every implement and meane of art.
And twenty years apprenticeship to boot
Could make me such another ?

HuRDis—The Village Curate.

INTRODUCTION.

The heart is hard in nature and unfit
For human fellf)wship, as bein^ void
Of sympathy, that is not pleased
Witli sight of animals enjoying life.
Nor feels that happiness augment his own.

COWPER.

What tongue can tell
The mingled melodies, that mount and swell,
And float upon the flowery-scented gale,
'Wakening sweet echoes through the verdant vale !
Yet not the feeblest note of forest bird
E'en by the brink of woodland waters heard,
Nor loudest clarion that salutes the morn,
But has some note of gladness still upborne ;
A hymn of gratitude for life and light,
To the clear heavens fresh opening on the sight.

Ellis.

I heard a thousand blended notes,
While in a grove I sat reclined.
In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts
Bring sad thoughts to the wind.

To her fair work did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran ;
So much it grieved my heart to think
What man has made of man.

WORDSWOETH.

Birds ! birds ! ye are beautiful things.

With your earth -treading feet and your cloud-cleaving wings !

Where shall man wander, and where shall he dwell,

Beautiful birds, that ye come nut as well ?

Ye have nests on the moiintain all rugged and stark,

Ye have nests in the forest all tangled and dark ;

Ye build and ye brood 'neath the cottagers eaves,

And ye sleep on the sod 'mid the bonnie green leaves ;

Ye hide in the heather, ye lurk in the brake.

Ye dive in the sweet flags that shadow the lake ;

Ye skim where the sti'eam parts the orchard-deck 'd land,

Ye dance where the foam sweeps the desolate strand ;

Beautiful birds ! ye come thickly around.

When the bud's on the branch, and the snow's on the ground

Ye come when the richest of roses flush out.

And ye come when the yellow leaf eddies about.

Eliza Cook.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

The Birds in Italics have not yet been noted in Herefordshire.

PAGE.

PASSERES ... ... ... ... ... ... 1

TURDID^ ... ... ... . . ... ... 1

TURDIN.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 1

Turdiis viscivoru.s. Missel -Thrush ... ... ... 1

,, musicus. Song-Thrvish ... ... ... 3

,, iliacus. Redwing ... ... ... ... 4

,, pilaris. Fieldfare ... ... ... ... 5

,, migratorius. American Robin ... ... ... G

,, atrigularis. Black-throated Thrush ... ... 6

,, varius. White'' s Thrush ... ... ... 6

,, Sibiricus. Siberian Thrush ... ... ... 6

,, meriila. Blackbird ... ... ... ... G

,, torquatus. Eing-Ouzel ... ... ... 8

MoriticoJa saxatHis. Rock- Thrush ... ... ... 9

,, ctianus. Blue Rock-Thrush ... ... ... 9

Saxicola oenanthe. Wheatear ... ... ... 9

,, stapazina. Black-throated JMieatear ... ... 10

,, deserti. Desert Wheatear ... ... ... 10

Pratincola rubetra. Whinchat ... .. ... 10

,, rubicola. Stonechat ... ... ... 10

Ruticilla phoenicurus. Redstart ... ... ... 11

,, titys. Black Redstart ... ... ... 11

Cyanecula ivolfi. White- spotted Bluethr oat ... ... 11

,, suecica. Red-spotted Bluethroat ... ... 12

Erithacus rubecula. Redbreast ... ... ... 12

Daulias luscinia. Nightingale ... ... ... 14

SYLVIIN.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 19

Sylvia cinerea. Whitethroat ... ... ... 19

,, curruca. Lesser Whitethroat ... ... ... 19

,, orphea. Orphean Warbler ... ... ... 20

,, atricapilla. Blackcap ... ... ... ... 20

,, hortensis. Garden Warbler ... ... ... 20

,, 'niaoria. Barred Warbler ... ... ... 21

XX.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

MclizophUus undatus. Dartford Warhlcr
Regulus cristatus. Golden-crested Wren
„ ignicapillus. Fire-crested Wren
„ cahndidii. Ruby -crowned Wren
Phylloscopus snperciliosus. Ydloiv -browed Warbler
rufus. Chiff -Chaff
,, trochilus. Willow- Warbler

,, sibilatrix. Wood -Warbler

Hypolais ictenna. Icterine Warbler
Ai'don fialactodes. Rufous Warbler
Acrocephalus streperus. Reed- Warbler...
palustris. Marsh -Warbler
„ turdo'ides. Great Reed-Warbler

,, aquaticHS. Aquatic Warbler

,, phragmitis. Sedge- Warbler

Locustella nsevia. Grasshopper Warbler
,, luscinio'ides. Savi's Warbler ...
Cettia sericea. Cetti's Warbler
Accentor modularis. Hedge-sparrow ...
,, collaris. Alpine Accentor
Miming ...

Mimus polyglottus. Northern Mocking-bird

CiNCLID.E ...

Cinclus aquaticus. Dipper

,, melanogaster. Black-bellied Dipper
Panurid.e ...

Panurus biarmicus. Bearded Titmouse ...
Parid.e ...
Acredula caudata. White-headed Long-tailed Titmouse

,, rosea. British Long-tailed Titmouse
Parus major. Great Titmouse
,, ater. Continental Coal Titmouse ...
„ britannicus. British Coal Titmouse
„ palustris. Marsh-Titmouse
,, caeruleus. Blue Titmouse
,, cristatus. Crested Titmouse
SiTTID.E ...

Sitta caesia. Nuthatch
Troglodytid/E
Troglodytes parvulus. Wren

MOTACILLID^

Motacilla a?6a. White Wagtail
,, lugubris. Pied Wagtail
, melanope. Grey Wagtail

TABLE OF CONTENTS. Xxi.

PAGE.

Motacilla flava. Blue-headed Yellow Wagtail ... ... 36

,, viridis. Grey-headed Yelloio Wagtail ... ... 36

„ rail. Yellow Wagtail ... ... ... 36

Anthus pratensis. Meadow-Pipit ... ... 37

,, cervinus. Bed-throated Pipit ... ... ... 37

,, trivialis. Tree-Pipit ... ... ... ... 37

„ campestris. Taxony Pipit ... ... ... 37

,, richardi. Richard's Pipit ... ... ... 37

,, ludovicianus. American Pipit ... ... ... 37

,, spipoletta. Water-Pipit ... ... ... 37

„ obscuriis. Rock-Pipit... ... ... ... 37

PYCNONOTID.E ... ... ... 38

Pycnonotus barbatus. Dusky Bulbul ... ... ... 38

,, capensis. Gold-vented Thrush ... .. 38

ORIOLID.E... ... .. 38

Oriolus galbula. G-olden Oriole ... ... ... 33

Laniid^ ... ... 38

Lanius excubitor. Great Grey Shrike ... ... ... 38

,, major. Pallas' s Great Grey Shrike ... ... 39

,, excubitorides. American Grey Shrike ... .. 39

,, minor. Lesser Grey Shrike ... ... ... 39

,, collurio. Red-backed Shrike ... ... ... 39

,, pomeranus. Woodchat ... ... 40

ViREONID.E

Vireo olivaceus. Red-eyed Flycatcher
Ampelid^
Ampelis garrulus. Bohemian Waxwing
,, cedrorum. Cedar-bird

MUSCICAPID^

Muscicapa grisola. Spotted Flycatcher.. ... . 40

,, atricapilla. Pied Flycatcher... ... ... 41

,, collaris. White-collared Flycatcher ... ... 41

„ parva. Red-breasted Flycatcher ... ... 41

HiRUNDINID.E .. .. ^i

Hirnndo savignii. Chestnut-bellied Swalloio ... ... 41

,, rustica. Swallow ... ... ... ._ 42

,, rufula. Red-rumped Sivalloio ... ... ... 44

Progne 2mrpurea. Purple Martin

CERTHIIDyE

Certhia familiaris. Tree-creeper
Tichodrohia lauraria. Wall-creeper

,, bicolor. White-bellied Swalloio ... ... ... 44

Chelidon urbica. Martin ... ... ... 44

Cotile riparia. Sand-Martin... ... ... 45

45
46
46
46

XXll. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGE.

frixgillid.e ... ... ... ... ... 46

Fringillin.e ... ... ... ... ... 46

Ci/anospiza ciria. Nonpareil Finch ... ... ... 46

CarduelLs elegans. Goldfinch ... ... ... 46

Chrysovaitris cit7'in€Ua. Citril Finch ... ... ... 48

,, spinus. Siskin ... ... ... 48

Crithmjra chrifsopiiiia. YeUoiv-vumped Seed-eater ... ... 48

Serinus hortulanus. Serin ... ... ... ... 48

,, camiriiis. Canary ... ... ... ... 48

Ligurinus chloris. Greenfinch ... ... ... 49

Coccothraustes vulgaris. Hawfinch ... ... ... 49

Passer domesticus. House-Sparrow ... ... ... 50

„ montanus. Tree-Sparrow ... ... ... 51

Fringilla caelebs. Chaffinch... ... ... ... 51

,, montifringilla. Brarabling or Mountain-Finch ... 52

Linota cannabina. Linnet ... ... ... ... .53

,, linaria. Mealy Redpoll ... ... ... 53

,, rufescens. Lesser Redpoll ... ... ... 54

,, hornemanni. Greenland Redpoll ... ... ... 54

,, flavirostris. Twite ... ... ... ... 54

L0XIIN.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 54

Carpodacus eri/thrinus. Bos'/ Bullfinch ... ... ... 54

Pyrrhula europaea. Bullfinch ... ... ... 54

Pinicola enucleator. Pine-Grosbeak ... ... .. 55

lioxisi piti/opsittacus. Parrot Crossbill ... ... ... 55

,, curvirostra. Crossbill ... ... ... 55

,, leucoptera. White-winged Crossbill ... ... 57

,, bifasciata. Ttco-barred Crossbill ... ... ... 57

EMBERIZIN.E ... ... ... ... ... 57

Emberiza me?a?iocepAaZa. Black-headed Banting ... ... 57

,, miliaria. Corn-Bunting ... ... ... 57

,, citrinella. Yellow- Hammer ... ... ... 58

„ cirlus, Cirl Buntmg ... ... ... 59

,, hortulana. Ortolan Bunting .. ... ... 59

,, rustica. Rustic Bunting . ... ... 59

„ pusilla. Little Bunting ... ... ... 59

,, schoeniclus. Reed-Bunting ... ... ... 60

Calcarius lapponicus. Lapland Bunting... ... ... 60

Plectrophanes nivalis. Snow-Bunting ... .. ... 60

Zonotrichia albicollis. White-throated Song-Sparrow ... 60

ICTERID.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 60

Agelceus phoeniceus. Red-winged Starling ... .. 60

Sturnella magna. American Meadow Starling ... ... 61

Scolecophagus ferrugincus. Rusty Grackle ... ... 61

TABLE OF CONTENTS. XXUl.

PAGE.

Sturnid^... ... ... ... ... ... 61

Stumus vulgaris. Starling ... ... ... ... 61

Pastor roseus. Rose-coloured Pastor ... ... ... 64

CORVID.E ... ... ... ... . ... 64

Pyrrhocorax graculus. Chough ... ... ... 64

Nucifraga cari/ocatactes. Nutcracker .. ... ... 64

Garrulus glandarius. Jay ... ... ... ... 64

Pica rustica. Magpie ... ... ... 65

Corvus monedula. Jackdaw... ... ... ... 68

,, corone. Carrion-Crow ... ... ... 70

,, cornix. Hooded Crow ... ... ... 73

,, frugilegus. Kook ... .. ... ... 74

,, corax. Eaven ... ... ... ... 80

ALAUDID.E ... ... ... ... ... 83

Alauda arvensis. Skylark ... ... . ... 83

,, arborea. Woodlark ... ... ... ... 87

,, cristata. Crested Lark ... ... ... 88

Calandrella hrachydactyla. Short-toed Lark ... .. 88

Melanocorypha calandra. Calandra Lark ... ... 88

,, sihirica. White-winged Lark ... ... 88

Otocorys alpestris. Shore-Lark ... ... ... 88

PICARI.'E ... ... ... ... .. ... 88

Cypselus apus. Swift ... ... ... ... 88

,, melba. White-bellied Sivift ... ... ... 90

Acanthyllis caudacuta. Needle-tailed Sioift ... ... 90

Caprimulgid.e .. ... ... ... ... 90

Caprimulgus europseus. Nightjar ... ... ... 90

,, ruficollis. Bed-necked Nightjar ... ... 91

P1CID.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 91

Picus martius. Great Black Woodpecker ... ... 91

Dendrocopus villosus. Hairy Woodpecker ... ... 93

„ puhescens. Downy Woodpecker ... ... 93

„ major. Great Spotted Woodpecker ... ... 93

,, minor. Lesser Spotted Woodpecker... ... 94

Picoides tridactylus. European Tliree-toed Woodpecker ... 95

Gecinus viridis. Green Woodpecker ... ... ... 95

Colaptes auratus. Golden-ioingcd Woodptecker ... ... 96

lynx torquilla. Wryneck ... ... ... ... 96

ALCKDINlDJi ... ... ... ... ... 97

Alcedo ispida. Kingfisher ... ... ... ... 97

Ccryle alcyon. Belted Kingfisher ... ... ... 102

C0RACIID.E ... ... ... ... ... 102

Coracias garrula. Roller ... ... ... ... 102

MEROPIU.E ... ... ... ... ... 102

XXIV. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGE.

Merops apiastcr. Bee-cater ... ... ... ... 102

,, philippinus. Blue-tailed Bee-eater ... ... 102

Upupid-E ... ... ... ... ... ... 102

Upupa epop.s. Hoopoe ... ... ... ... 102

CUCULID.E... ... ... ... ... ... 103

Cuculus canorus. Cuckoo ... ... ... ... 103

Coccrjstes ylandarius. Great- Spotted Cuckoo ... ... 108

Coccyzus americanus. Yelloio-hilled Cuckoo ... ... 109

,, criithrophtkalmus. Black-billed Cuckoo ... ... 109

STRIGES ... ... ... ... ... ... 109

STRIGID.E ... ... ... ... ... ... 109

Strix flammea. Barn-Ovvl ... ... ... ... 109

ASIONID.E... ... ... ... ... ... 113

Asio otus. Long-eared Owl ... ... ... ... 113

„ brachyotus. Short-eared Owl ... ... ... 114

Syrnium aluco. Tawny Owl... ... ... ... 115

Nyctea scandiaca. Snowy Owl ... ... ... 116

Surnia tdula. European Hawk-Owl ... ... ... 116

„ funerea. American Haiok-Oxol ... ... ... 116

Nyctala tengmalmi. Tengmalm's Owl ... ... ... 116

,, acadica. Saw-whet Owl ... ... ... 116

Scops giu. Scops Owl ... ... ... ... 117

,, asio. American Screech-Oivl ... ... ... 117

Bubo ignavus. Eag^e Owl ... ... ... ... 117

Athene noctua. Little Owl ... ... ... ... 117

ACCIPITRES .. ... ... ... ... 118

VULTURID^ ... ... ... ... ... 118

Gyps fulvus. Griffon Vulture ... ... ... 118

Neophron percnopterus. Egyptian Vulture ... ... 118

FALCOKIDiE ... ... ... ... ... 119

Civcns, ccruginosus. Marsh-Harrier ... ... ... 119

, cyaneus. Hen-Harrier ... ... ... 119

,, cineraceus. Montagu's Harrier ... ... ... 120

Buteo vulgaris. Buzzard ... ... ... ... 120

,, borealis. Bed-tailed Buzzard ... ... ... 121

,, desertorum. African Buzzard ... ... ... 121

Archibuteo lagopus. Bough-legged Buzzard ... ... 121

Aqnila, clanga. Spotted Eagle ... ... ... 121

„ chi-ysaetus. Golden Eagle ... ... ... 121

Haliaetusalbicilla. White-tailed Eagle ... ... ... 123

Astur palumbarius. Gos-Hawk ... ... ... 123

,, atricapillus. American Gos-Haivk ... ... 123

Accipiter nisus. Sparrow-Hawk .. ... 323

Milvus ictinus. Kite ... ... ... ... 124

TABLE OF CONTENTS. XXV.

PAGE.

Milvus migrans. Black Kite ... ... ... 126

Elanoides furcatus. Swallow-tailed Kite ... ... 126

Elanus cceruleus. Black-winded Kite ... ... ... 127

Pernis apivorus. Honey-Buzzard ... ... ... 127

Hierofalco gyrfalco. Gyr Falcon ... ... ... 128

,, candicans. Greenland Falcon ... ... 128

,, islandus. Iceland Falcon ... ... ... 128

Falco peregrinus. Peregrine Falcon ... ... ... 129

,, subbuteo. Hobby ... ... ... ... 132

,, sesalon. Merlin ... ... ... ... 138

Tinnunculus resperiuiMS. Red-footed Falcon ... ... 134

,, alaudarius. Kestrel ... ... ... 134

,, cenchris. Lesser Kestrel ... ... ... 135

Pandion haliaetus, Osprey or Fishing Hawk ... ... 135

STEGANOPODES ... .. ... ... ... 136

Pelecanid^ ... ... ... ... 136

Phalacrocorax carbo. Cormorant ... ... ... 136

,, graculus. Shag ... ... ... 138

Sula bassana. Gannet ... ... ... ... 139

Pelecanas onocrotalus. White Pelican ... ... ... 140

HERODIOXES ... ... ... ... ... 140

Ardeid^ ... ... ... ... ... ... 140

Ardea cinerea. Heron ... ... ... ... 140

„ purpurea. Purple Heron ... ... ... 145

,, alha. Great White Heron ... ... ... 145

„ garzetta. Little Egret ... ... ... ... 145

,, bubulcus. Buff-hacked Heron ... ... ... 145

,, ralloides. Squacco Heron ... ... ... 145

Ardetta rainuta. Little Bittern ... ... ... 146

Nycticorax griseus. Night-Heron ... ... ... 147

Botaurus stellaris. Bittern .. ... ... ... 147

,, lentiginosus. American Bittern ... ... 149

CiCONIIDJE ... ... ... ... ... 149

Ciconia alba. White Stork ... ... ... ... 149

,, nigra. Black Stork ... ... ... ... 149

Plataleid^ ... ... ... ... ... 149

Platalea leucorodia. Spoonbill ... ... ... 149

Plegadis falcinellus. Glossy Ibis ... ... ... 149

ANSERES ... ... ... ... ... ... 149

Anatid^ ... ... ... .. ... ... 149

Plectropterus gambensis. Spur-winged Goose ... ... 149

Chenalopex eegyptiocus. Egyptian Goose... ... ... 119

An^ev cinereus. Grey Lag Goose ... ... ... 149

,, segetum. Bean -Goose . . ... ... 150

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGE.

Anser brachyrhj'nchus. Pink-footed Goose ... ... 150

,, albifrons. White-fronted Goose ... ... ... 151

,, indie us. Bar-headed Goose ... ... ... 151

,, cyrinoides. Chinese Goose ... ... ... 151

Chen albatus. Cassin's Snow Goose ... ... ... 152

Bernicla brenta. Brent Goose ... ... ... 152

,, leucopsis. Barnacle Goose ... ... ... 152

,, canadensis. Canada Goose ... ... ... 153

,, ruficollis. Red-breasted Goose ... ... ... 154

Cygnus olor. Mute Swan ... ... ... ... 155

,, immutahilis. Polish Swan ... ... ... 158

,, musicus. Whooper Swan ... ... .. 158

,, americaniis. American Swan .. ... ... 159

,, buccinator. Trumpeter Sioan ... .. ... 159

,, bcwicki. Beivick's Swa7i ... ... ... 159

Tadorna cornuta. Common Sheldrake ... ... ... 159

,, casarca. Muddy Sheldrake ... ... ... 160

jEx spo7isa. Summer Duck ... ... ... ... 160

Mareca penelope. Wigeon ... ... ... ... 160

,, americana. American Wigeon ... ... ... 161

Dafila acuta. Pintail ... ... ... ... 161

Anas boscas. Wild Duck ... ... ... ... 162

Chaiddasmus streperus. Gadivall ... ... ... 163

Querquedula circia. Garganey ... ... ... 163

,, discors. Blue-icinried Teal ... ... ... 163

,, crecca. Common Teal ... ... ... 164

,, carolinensis. American Gi'een-icinged Teal ... 164

Spatula clypeata. Shoveller... ... ... ... 164

Ful igula ru^na. Red-crested Pochard ... ... ... 165

„ cristata. Tufted Duck ... ... ... 165

,, marila. Scaup ... ... ... ... 166

,. ferina. Pochard ... ... ... ... 166

Nyroca ferruginea. Wh ite-eyed Duck ... ... ... 167

Clangula glaucion. Golden-eye ... ... ... 167

„ islandica. Barroio's Golden-eye ... ... 168

,, albeola. Buffel-headed Duck ... ... ... 168

Cosmonetta histrionica. Harlequin Duck ... ... 168

Harelda glacialis. Long-tailed Duck ... ... ... 168

Heniconetta stelleri. Steller's Duck ... ... 168

Sonmteria mollissima. Eider Duck .. ... ... 168

,, spectabilis. King Eider ... ... ... 168

CEdemia nigra. Common Scoter ... ... ... 168

„ fusca. Velvet Scoter ... ... ... 169

„ pei'spicillata. Surf- Scoter ... ... ... 169

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

XXVll.

Mergus merganser. Goosander

„ serrator. Red-hreasted Merganser
,, cucullatus. Hooded Merganser ...
,, albellus. Smeio
COLUMB^ ...

PAGE.

... 169
... 170
... 170
... 170
... 170

COLUMBID.E

... 170

Columba palumbus. King-Dove
,, cenas. Stock-Dove...

... 170
... 174

„ livia. Rock-Dove ...

... 175

Turtur communis. Turtle Dove

... 177

Ectopistes migratorius. Passenger Pigeon
PTEROCLETES

... 179
... 179

Pteroclid^

... 179

Syrrhaptes paradoxus. Pallas' s Sand Grouse
GALLINvE ...

... 179
... 179

PHASIANID.E

... 179

Phasianus eolchicus. Pheasant

... 179

Caccabis ruf a. Red-legged Partridge ...
„ petrosa. Barbary Partridge ...
Perdix cinerea. Partridge ...

... 192

... 193

193

Coturnix communis. Quail ...

... 198

Ortyx virginianus. Virginian Colin

TETRAONIDiE

... 201
... 201

Ija.gopns mutus. Ptarmigan...
„ scoticus. Red Grouse

... 201
... 201

,, rupestris. Bock-Ptarmigan
Tetrao tetrix. Black Grouse

... 204
... 204

,, urogaUus. Capercaillie
HEMIPODII...

... 206
... 206

Turnix sylvatica. Andalusian Hemipodc
FULICARI^
Rallid.e ...

... 206

206

... 206

Rallus aquaticus. Water-Rail
Porzana maruetta. Spotted Crake
,, bailloni. Baillon's Crake

... 206
207
207

,, parva. Little Crake...

... 207

Crex pratensis. 'Corn-Crake...
Gallinula chloropus. Moor-Hen
Fulicaatra. Coot...

... 207
... 209
... 210

ALECTORIDES

Gruid^ ...

... 212
... 212

Grus communis. Crane
Otidid^ ...

... 212
... 212

Otis tarda. Great Bustard ...

... 212

XXVlll.

TABLE OF CONTENTS.

Otis tetrax. Little Bustard .. .
Houbara macquecni. Macquecn's Bustard
LIMTCOLiE ...

CEDICNEMID.ii

(Edicnemus scolopax. Stone-Curlew
Glareolid.e

Glareola pratiucola. Collared Pratincole
Charauriid.e

Cursorius ^alliens. Cream-coloured Courser

Charadrius pluvialis. Golden Plover ...

Squatarola helvetica. Grey Plover

^Egialitis cantiana. Kentish Plover

,, curonica. Little Ringed Plover
,, hiaticula. Ringed Plover
,, vocifera. Killdeer Plover

Eudromias morinellus. Dotterel

Vanellus vulgaris. Lapwing...

Strepsilas interpres. Turnstone

Haematopus ostralegu.s. Oyster-Catcher

SCOLOPACIIVE

Recurvirostra avocetta. Avocct
Himantopus Candidas. Black-ioinged Stilt
Phalaropus hyperhoreus. Red-necked Phalaropc

,, fulicarius. Grey Phalarope

Scolopax rusticula. Woodcock
Gallinago major. Great Snipe

,, caelestis. Common Snipe
Lymnocryptes gallinula. Jack Snipe ...
Limicola platfirhyncha. Broad-hilled Sandpiper
Tringsi inaculata. Pectoral Sandpiper ...

„ fuscicollis. Bonaparte's Sandpiper

,, alpina. Dunlin

„ minuta. Little Stint ...

,, temmincki. Temminck's Stint

,, mimitilla. American Stint

,, suharquata. Curlew Sandpiper ...

„ striata. Purple Sandpiper

,, canutus. Knot
Machetes pugnax. Ruff
Calidris arenaria. Sanderling
Tryngites rufescens. Buff'-breasted Sandpiper
Actiturus longicauda. Bartram's Sandpiper
Tringoides hypoleucus. Common Sandpiper
Helodromas ochropus. Green Sandpiper

TABLE OF CONTENTS. XXIX.

PAGE.

Totanus glareola. Wood- Sandpiper ... ... ... 232

,, calidris. Redshank ... ... ... 232

,, fuscus. Spotted Redshank ... ... ... 232

,, canescens. Greenshank ... ... ... 232

Macrorhamphus griseus. Eed-breasted Snipe ... ... 233

Limosa lapponica. Bar-tailed God wit ... ... ... 233

„ segocephala. Black-tailed Godwit ... ... 234

,, borealis. Esquimaux Curlew ... ... 234

Numenius phseopus, Whimbrel ... ... ... 234

,, arquata. Curlew ... ... .. 235

GAVIiE ... ... ... ... ... ... 237

Larid^ ... ... ... ... ... ... 237

Sterna viacrura. Arctic Tern ... ... ... 237

fluviatilis. Common Tern ... ... ... 237

dougalU. Roseate Tern ... ... ... 237

minuta. Little Tern ... ... ... ... 237

caspia. Caspian Tern... ... ... ... 238

anglica. Gull-hilled Tern ... ... ... 238

cantiaca. Sandwich Tern ... ... ... 238

fuliginosa. Sooty Tern ... ... ... 238

ancestketa. Scopoli's Sooty Tern ... ... ... 239

Hydrochelidon hyhrida. Whiskered Tern ... ... 239

,, leucoptera. White-iovnged Black Tern ... 239

nigra. Black Tern ... ... ..239

Anoiis stolid us. Noddy ... ... ... ... 239

Pagophila ehurnea. Ivory Gull ... ... ... 239

Rissa tridactyla. Kittiwake ... ... ... 240

Larus (/towcus. Glaucous Gull ... ... ... 240

„ leucopterus. Iceland Gull ... ... ... 240

,, argentatus. Herring-Gull ... ... ... 240

„ fuscus. Lesser Black-backed Gull ... ... 240

,, canus. Common Gull ... ... ... 241

,, marinus. Greater Black-backed Gull ... ... 242

,, atricilla. Laughing Gull ... ... ... 243

„ ichthya'etus. Great Black-headed Gull ... ... 243

,, melanocephalus. Adriatic Gull ... ... ... 243

,, ridibundus. Black-headed Gull ... ... ... 243

,, minutus. Little Gull ... ... ... ... 243

,, Philadelphia. Bonaparte's Gull ... ... ... 243

Xema sabinii. Sabine's Gull ... ... ... ... 244

Stercorarius cato?T^acies. Common Skua ... ... 244

,, pomatorhinus. Pomatorhine Skua ... ... 244

,, crepidatus. Richardson's Skua ... ... 244

„ parasiticus. Buffon's Skua ... ... 245

XXX. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

PAGE.

TUBINARES ... ... ... ... ... 245

Procellariid^ ... ... ... ... ... 245

Procellaria pelagica. Storm-Petrel .. ... ... 245

,, leucorrhoa. Leach's Petrel ... 246

Occanitcs oceanicus. Wilson's Petrel ... ... ... 246

PuflBnus anglorum. Manx Shearwater ... ... ... 247

,, griseus. Soot u Shearwater ... ... ... 247

„ majryi'. Greater Shearivater ... ... ... 247

,, obscurus. Dusky Shear loater ... ... ... 247

Fulmarus glacialis. Fulmar ... ... ... 247

(Estrelata hcesitata. Capped Petrel ... ... ... 247

Buhoeria columbina. Buhoer^s Petrel ... ... ... 247

PYGOPODES ... ... ... ... ... 248

COLYMBID^ ... ... ... ... ... 248

Colymbus glacialis. Great Northern Diver ... . . 248

,, arcticus. Black-throated Diver ... ... 248

„ septentrionalis. Red-throated Diver ... ... 248

PoDiciPiD^ ... ... ... ... ... ... 249

Podiceps cristatus. Great Crested Grebe ... ... 249

,, griseigena. Bed-necked Grebe ... ... ... 250

„ auritus. Sclavonian Grebe ... ... ... 250

„ nigricollis. Eared Grebe ... ... ... 250

Tachybaptes fluviatilis. Little Grebe ... ... ... 250

ALCIDiE ... .. ... ... ... 251

Alcatorda. Razor-bill ... ... .. ... 251

„ impennis. Great Auk ... ... ... ... 251

Lomvia troile. Common Guillemot ... ... ... 252

,, bruennichi. Briinnich's Guillemot ... ... 252

XIriagrylle. Black Guillemot ... ... ... 252

Mergulus alle. Little Auk ... ... ... .■• 252

Fratercula arctica. Puffin ... ... ... ... 252

ERRATA.

Page 3— line 4— /or " Linnoeus," reoci " Linnaeus."

Page 19— line 1— /or " Sylvinia," read " Sylviinse."

Page 21— line 1— /or " Nisidora," rmci " Nisoria."

Page 25— line 7-(/e?e " Acrocephalus schensboenus— Yarrell."

Page 25— line 10 — for " schoenoboenus " read " schoenobfEnns."

Page 30— line 25— rmcZ " Continental Coal Titmouse."

Page 31— line 21— /or " fomerly," read "formerly."

Page 40— line 22— i

Page 41-lines 20 & 22 H^'' " Musicapa," read " Muscicapa."

Page 46- line 15— /or "Trichodroma," read " Tichodroma."

Page GO— line 15— /or " Plectrophanus," read " Plectrophanes."

Page 61— line 9— /or " Sternus," rmd " Sturnus."

Page 95— line 10— for " Tridactylus, " read " tridactylus. "

Page 123— line 20— /or " Aster," read " Astur."

Page 128— line 24— /or "candidans," read " candicans."

I'age 1.59— line 13— /or " Americanus," read '• americanus."

NOTES ON THE

BIRDS OF HEREFORDSHIRE.

Order— PASSERES.
Sub-order— OSCINES.
Section — Oscines Dentirostres.
Family— TURDID^.
Sub-family — TuRDiNiE.
Genus— TURDUS.

TURDUS VISCIVORUS— Missel Thrush.

MISTLETOE THRUSH— STORM BIRD.
Oh ! herald of the Spring !

'Tis thine, as thro' the copses rude
Some pensive wanderer sighs along,
To soothe him with thy cheerful song,
And tell of hope and fortitude.

C. Smith.

npHIS bold, beautiful bird is very common throughout the
county. It is the " Holme Screech," " Storm Screech," or
" Storm Cock," of the peasants, from the loudness of its song
before rain, or during the intervals of the early spring storms.

For the same reason it is called in Hampshire the "Weather,"
as being the harbinger of change. But the charge of being harsh

2 MISSEL THRUSH.

and unmusical often brought against it, as in the following extract
from Knapp's " Journal of a Naturalist," is surely unmerited.
Loud, bold, and clear its song is, but surely not harsh. Indeed
it may be suspected, that some of his most tuneful strains are
attributed by mistake to his congener the Song Thrush, because no
one gives the Missel Thrush credit for such music.

" The approach of a sleety snow storm, following a deceitful
gleam in spring, is always announced to us by the loud untuneful
voice of the Missel Thrush, as it takes its stand on some tall tree,
like an enchanter calling up the gdXo.'' ^Jourtial of a Naturalist.

In Wales the Missel Thrush has acquired the name of " Pen-
y-llwyn," or master of the coppice." When he takes to a Yew, or
Holly tree laden with berries, he will drive off all other birds with
noisy, angry vociferations, and returns himself again and again,
until he has eaten them all.

He will remain singing for hours together, out-whistling the
wind, and heeding not the pelting storm.

On pinion stout, I fear no harm,
Though stem and branch around me break ;
And I sing in the midst of the wildest storm
That makes the forest shake.

Evans— /%n^s of the Birds.

Mr. Evans well describes the bitter instinctive enmity between
the Mistletoe Thrush and the Jay, " handed down no doubt tradi-
tionally from generation to generation." When the Jay approaches
the Thrush's nest to steal the eggs or young birds, the Missels
attack him at once, "with a fury and courage worthy of the Falcons
themselves," and with so much noise and clamour, that it is well,
perhaps, that bird language is not fully understood. Mr. Evans
gives a curious instance of revenge taken by some Mistletoe
Thrushes near Burton Court, who attacked and killed some half-
fledged young Jays, sitting on the edge of their nest during the
absence of the parent birds.

The food of the Missel Thrush in Spring consists of worms,
snails, grubs, and insects, and, as Summer and Autumn come on.

SONG THRUSH. 3

of the berries of Mountain Ash, Yew, Hawthorn, Ivy, Juniper,
and Holly.

The berries of the Mistletoe are also a favourite food of the
Thrush. Linnoeus calls it viscivorus, i.e. Mistletoe-eating, and
Aristotle mentions a name of the same meaning, as given to the
bird in his day.

TURDUS MUSICUS— Song Thrush.

THROSTLE.

The varying Thrush commands a tuneful maze.

Savage.— 2%e Wanderers.

Sing on sweet Thrush, upon the leafless bough,
Sing on sweet bird, I listen to thy strain.

Burns.

That's the wise Thrush ; he sings each song twice over
Lest you should think he never could recapture
The first fine ceaseless rapture.

Browning.

So far as songs may be imitated by words, certain passages
in the Thrush's song may be expressed thus —

Judy, Judy, Judy : Bo-peep, Bo-peep, Bo-peep, Bo-peep : How d'ye do,
How d'ye do ! !

The mavis wild with many a note,
Sings drowsy day to rest.

Burns.

But it is not in the evening only that the Thrush's cheerful
and varied song is heard. He greets the earliest dawn, and some-
times seems as if he never took food or rest all day long.

The Song Thrush is very common throughout the county.
Great numbers were destroyed by the severe winter of 1 880-1, and
they are still much less numerous than formerly. It is a bird of
quiet, gentle habits, and whose wild and varied song is always
welcome.

4 REDWING.

Scare if ye will his timid wing away,
But, O, let not the leaden viewless shower,
Vollied from flashing tube, arrest his flight,
And fill his tuneful, gasping bill with blood !

Grahame,

The Thrush, a spendthrift of his powers
Enrapturing heaven and earth.

Montgomery.

The Thrush is busy in the wood
And carols loud and strong.

Wordsworth.

The tall ash tree, to whose topmost twig
A Thrush resorts and annually chants.

Wordsworth.

Bid him come, for on his wings

The sunny year he bringeth.
And the heart unlocks its springs

Whereso'er he singeth.

Barry Cornwall.

The food of the Song Thrush consists principally of worms,
snails, slugs, and insects. The number of snails devoured by
thrushes may be judged of from the number of shells to be
found near the neighbouring stones, against which the birds have
broken them. In addition to this food, they take also Hawthorn,
Mountain Ash, and such other berries as they can find.

TURDUS ILIACUS— Redwing.

The Fieldfare grey, and he of ruddy wing.
Hop o'er the field unheeding, easy prey
To him whose heart has adamant enough
To level thunder at their humblest race.

HuRDis — The favorite Village.

A common winter visitant, frequenting the orchards in con-
siderable flocks. Its song, which is seldom to be heard here,
has obtained for it in Norway, the name of the "Norwegian
Nightingale." It has been known to breed in this county. A
cottager near Ross, says Mr. W. C. Blake, took a nest of young birds,

FIELDFARE. 5

supposing them to be Song Thrushes, and reared them up, but
when they gained their full plumage they proved to be Redwings.
The Redwings are very fond of snails, and are very clever in finding
them in the hedge banks, and breaking their shells against the first
stone they meet with. It is in this way they are able to find
food in frost and snow, and bear severe weather better than most
other birds.

" The number of Redwings," says the Rev. Clement Ley, "like
that of several other migratory birds, appears to me, after many
years' investigation, to depend on the general direction of the winds
at the time of the autumn migration, rather than on the temperature
of the winter in these islands. When the north-east winds prevail,
the number of Redwings is relatively great ; when, however, the
predominant westerly winds are very persistent, a comparatively
small number of Redwings visit this county."

TURDUS PILARIS— Fieldfare.

BLUE-TAIL.'

Fieldfare flocks
From distant lands alight, and chirping, fly
From hedge to hedge, avoiding man's approach.

Grahame— jBtrds of Scotland.

The " Blue-tail," as this bird is called in Herefordshire, is a
regular winter visitant. It appears in flocks with its cousins, the
Redwings.

A single pied variety of the Fieldfare was killed at Lyonshall,
and is now in the possession of Mr. J. W. Lloyd, of Kington. The
beak, head, and neck are entirely white, the throat and breast
streaked with white, and the wing coverts, with the secondary and
tertiary feathers, also mottled with white.

6 BLACKBIRD.

The Fieldfare, like the other thrushes, takes worms, slugs,
beetles, and other insects as its general food, but as it does not eat
the shelled snails, it is not so well able to obtain food as the Red-
wings during severe frosts, and hence many of them are killed with
the cold and want of food.

Not yet the hawthorn bore her berries red,
With which the Fieldfare, wintry guest is fed.

CowPER— The neediest alarm.

If 'mid the tassels of the leafless ash

A Fieldfare flock alight, for early frosts prepare.

Grahame — British Georgics.

[TuRDUS MiGRATORius — American Robin.]
Dover, 1876, alien, probably escaped.

[TuRDUS ATRiGULARis — Black Throated Thrush.]
Sussex, 1868.

[TuRDUS VARius — White's Thrush.]
Occasional visitor.

[TuRDUS SiBiRicus — Siberian Thrush.]
Surrey, i860 — i.

TURDUS MERULA— Blackbird.

The Ouzel cock so black of hue,
With orange tawny bill.

Shakespeare.

The Woossell neere at hand, that hath a golden bill.

Drayton — Polyolhion.

The Blackbird and the speckled Thrush,
Good morrow gave from brake and bush.

^COTT— Lady of the lake.

BLACKBIRD. y

Blackbirds join the shepherds lay

At close of day.

Burns.

The Blackbird pipers on the Summer tree.

Wordsworth— Tmjo April mornings.

The Blackbird is as great a favourite as the Thrush, and even
better known. It is associated with the Thrush by the poets, and
their songs accord well together, the Thrush having the more
varied notes, and the Blackbird the richer melody. Scott, most
truly tells us that —

Merry it is in the good green wood
When the Mavis and Merle are singing.

It is common everywhere, but not so common in Herefordshire,
ordinarily, as the Song-Thrush. It is a restless, active bird, with
great vocal power. Heard late in the evening, and in the early
morning, its loud clear notes are yet soft and rich, with a pensive
and somewhat melancholy expression, more remarkable for quality
of tone than for any great variety —

No jealous Thrush, with effort strong,
Rivals as yet my mellow song.

:Eva}sS— Songs of the Birds.

The Merle in his noontide bowers
Makes woodland echoes ring.

Burns — Queen of Scots.

So loud the Blackbird sings,
That far and near the valley rings.

Warton — Summer.

The Merle's note
Mellifluous, rich, deep toned, fills all the vale,
And charms the ravish'd ear.

Gb.ab.aue— Birds of Scotland.

The Blackbirds strove with emulation sweet,
And echo answer'd from her close retreat.

Bloomfield— /Spring.

The Blackbird trolls his rich notes far away.

Mackay — Mountain Top.

That latin was no more difficile
Than to a Blackbird 'tis to whistle.

Butler — Hudihras.

Mr. Evans instances the Blackbird, as an example showing "the
consciousness of doing wrong " in birds. " He will take a worm off

8 RING OUZEL.

the grass with much apparent confidence ; but if you see him
approaching the strawberry bed, you will then perceive a stealthy
timidity about him. He snatches and looks round, devours in haste,
retires, and comes again " (p. 132) ; and, it may be added, if you
catch him in the act of stealing, he flies off, uttering loud objurga-
tions, as if he thinks to lessen the crime by the violence of his cries.
It should be told, however, that apart from these little fruit robberies,
the Blackbird is the gardener's friend, for his principal food through
the year consists of worms, slugs, snails, beetles, and other mis-
chievous insects.

Albino varieties of the Blackbird here, as elsewhere, are occa-
sionally met with, but more frequently they are pied, or only partially
coloured. At this time there is one with white wings, the Rev. W.
Baskerville Mynors reports, which frequents the shrubbery of the
vicarage garden, at Llanwarne. For the last two years, Mr. Cresswell
has observed one at Morney Cross, Fownhope, with white spots on
the wings, which after every time of moulting, he notices spread
further over the plumage.

Another curious variety was shot at Marden, by Mr. Griffiths,
in the winter of 1886, which is now in the possession of Mr. Daniel
Ovens, of Hereford The head is nearly white, with a white spot
on the breast, and a few white feathers in the wing.

The Rev. Clement Ley found a Blackbird's nest on the level
ground in a copse at Sugwas, and he has observed the same
peculiarity with nearly all the Thrushes.

TURDUS TORQUATUS— Ring Ouzel.

A summer visitant, sparsely distributed throughout the higher
uncultivated districts of the county. It breeds in moderate
abundance in the dingles of the Hatterill Hills and the Black

WHEATEAR. 9

Mountains. " At Cwm-yoy, and still more plentifully in the
gullies on the opposite side of the valley," says the Rev. Clement
Ley. "The Ring Ouzel," says the Rev. C. L. Eagles, "lives,
sometimes all the year round, on the slopes of the Black Moun-
tains. I have shot them in winter, and have often seen their
nests in summer. They build under a rock or bank overhanging
the dingle, and once I found a nest, with four eggs in it, under a
large stone."

A Ring Ouzel's nest, with four eggs in it, was brought to a field
meeting of the Club at Tandy, on May 15th, 1884, by Mr. J. W.
Lloyd, of Kington, who had taken it in the Llanthony Valley.
Some pretty plants of oxalis acetosella, in full blossom, grew beside
the nest, and were shown with it.

[Genus — Monticola.]

[MoNTicoLA SAXATiLis — Rock-Thrush.]

A rare accidental visitor.

[Monticola cyanus — Blue Rock-Thrush.]
West Meath, 1866.

Genus— SAXICOLA.
SAXICOLA GENANTHE— Wheatear.

One of the earliest of our summer visitants to arrive. Early
in March it may generally be seen on the open and unenclosed
and uncultivated parts of the county. It is moderately plentiful
on the hills separating the valleys of the Wye and the Dore ; on
the slopes of the Black Mountains ; and is also to be found on
most of the wild hills, in the northern districts of the county.

lO WH INCH AT. STONECHAT.

[Saxicola stapazina — Black Throated Wheatear.]
Bury, Lancashire, 1875.

[Saxicola deserti — Desert Wheatear.]
Clackmannanshire, 1880.

Genus PRATINCOLA.
PRATINCOLA RUBETRA— Whinchat.

\_Saxicola riibetra — Yarrell?\

Why art thou ever flitting to and fro ?

Plunge through these whins, their thorns will let thee know.

Montgomery— jBircfe.

A regular summer migrant. It is to be found scattered
throughout the open meadow districts of the county, but more
plentifully on the southern side. '' This bird," says the Rev.
Clement Ley, " has a remarkable predilection for perching on
telegraph wires."

PRATINCOLA RUBICOLA— Stonechat.

\Saxicola rubicola — Yarrell?^

The restless Stonechat all day long is heard.

This bird is not so common as the Whinchat. He frequents
the same localities, and, though not abundant, is yet widely
distributed throughout the county.

REDSTART. BLACK REDSTART. II

Genus— RUTICILLA.

RUTICILLA PHCENICURUS— Redstart, Firetail,
OR Fire-Brantail.

The " Brantail," or " Fire Brantail," as it is called in Hereford-
shire, is a regular summer visitant, fond of the orchards surrounding
the back buildings of the farmstead, in whose walls its nest is
generally to be found. It is widely distributed throughout the
county. The male bird, perhaps the most beautiful of all the birds
of passage, frequently directs attention to the nest, by his tiresome
note of complaint and alarm, when anyone approaches near it.
Perched upon some post, or dead branch, it perseveres in one
unceasing clamour, until the object of its fear is removed. " How
often," moralises Mr. Evans, " would folly and ignorance pass
unnoticed, were it not for the noise " (p. 236).

The Redstart is an insect feeder, and the number of grubs and
caterpillars they will destroy in a day, when feeding their young, has
been calculated at many hundreds.

RUTICILLA TITYS— Black Redstart.

A rare visitant to this county. A freshly killed specimen was
brought to a bird-stuffer in Hereford in 1879; and the keeper at
Lye Pole, near Aymestrey, killed one in 1878 at Kinsham.

[Genus — Cyanecula.]

[Cyanecula wolfi — White-spotted Bluethroat]

London, 1845 ; Isle of Wight and Scarborough, 1876.

12 REDBREAST.

[Cyanecula suecica — Red-spotted Bluethroat.]
\Ruticilla suecica — Yarrell^
An occasional visitor.

Genus -ERITHACUS.
ERITHACUS RUBECULA— Redbreast.

The brisk, bold Robin.

Mackay.

The Eedbreast whistles from a garden croft.

Keats.

That swells its little breast so full of song,
Singing above me in this mountain ash.

Coleridge.

The Ruddock warbles soft.

Spencer.

And glancing all at once as keenly at her,
As careful Robin's eye the delver's toil.

Tennyson.

The bold friendly " Robin," to the joy of every household, is
abundant throughout the county. It is an universal favourite,
always ready, with the least encouragement, to make itself at home.
In the garden, it will sit on one shoulder of the spade as the gar-
dener digs the ground, with his foot on the other, or it will even
perch on the gardener's boot. He will enter the house or cottage
if invited to do so, or will even invite himself, when the snow
is on the ground, to feast on the crumbs that fall from the table, as
Thomson so happily describes —

Half afraid, he first
Against the window beats ; then brisk alights
On the warm hearth ; then hopping on the floor
Eyes all the family askance.
And pecks and starts, and wonders where he is,
Till, more familiar grown, the table crumbs
Attract his slender feet.

Thomson— 2%6 Seasons.

REDBREAST. I3

Familiar warbler, wherefore art thou come
To sing to thee when all besides are dumb,
Pray let your little children drop a crumb.

Montgomery.

This frank confidence in man has endeared him to children,
and gained for him and for the Wren, the very first place in popular
regard. According to the old ballad, it was the Robin that took
pity on the forlorn, forsaken Babes in the Wood.

No burial this pretty pair,

Of any man receives.
The Robin Redbreast piously

Did cover them with leaves.

His very name of Robin, if not taken from some old Fable,
was probably given to him as a sort of pet name.

His bold determined spirit will not brook confinement, and
he rebels and struggles, even unto death, against the restraint of a
cage. In the autumn, the Robin becomes fierce and pugnacious to
his own kindred, and every lawn and thicket becomes a battlefield.
The unrelenting fury with which they fight, is well illustrated by an
incident, given by Mr. Evans, as occurring at Burton Court in
1850 : — " Two Robins engaged in a deadly conflict, when at length
one killed the other ; throughout the day, the little cruel victor
returned, time after time, to wreak his unslaked enmity on the body
of his adversary, pecking at it, and apparently glorying in his act of
blood " (p. 221). It is believed that the old birds frequently drive
the young ones to swell the stream of emigrants, then setting steadily
towards warmer climates. It has also been said that their duration
of life is but three years, from the second year birds killing the
older ones.

The evening song of a Redbreast from the top of a small tree,
is thought to indicate fine weather on the morrow. Mr. Evans
says of its sweet plaintive notes —

And though the frost be keen,

And though the night be long,
I know that spring will come again,

And sing my morning song.

Evans — Songs of the Birds.

14 NIGHTINGALE.

Only the solitary Robin sings.

And perch 'd aloft with melancholy note,

Chants out the dirge of autumn.

HURDIS.

The Robin pensive autumn cheers
In all her locks of yellow.

Burns.

Each woodland pipe is mute,
Save when the Redbreast mourns the fading leaf ;
Now plaintively in interrupted trills,
He sings the dirge of the departing year,
Lulling the year with all its cares to rest.

Grahame.

The autumnal song of the Robin has a peculiar character of
plaintive sweetness which has endeared it to the poets. Thus
Keble greets it as —

Sweet messenger of calm decay,

Saluting sorrow as you may,
As one still bent to find or make the best ;

In thee, and in this quiet mead,

The lesson of sweet peace I read,
Rather in all to be resigned, than blest.

Christian Year — 21st Sunday after Trinity.

Genus— DAULIAS.

DAULIAS LUSCINIA— Nightingale.

It was formerly considered a good omen to hear the song of
the Nightingale before the Cuckoo. Thus Chaucer sings —

It was a common tale
That it were gode to hear the Nightingale,
Mocke rather than the lewde Cuckoo singe.

And when he had once heard the Cuckoo first, he imagines
the Nightingale thus addressing him —

Be not thou dismaied.
For thou hast heard the Cuckoo erst than me,
For if I live, it shall amendid be
The next Male, if I be not afraied.

NIGHTINGALE. 15

And Milton also thus addresses the Nightingale —

Thy liquid notes that close the eye of day,
First heard before the shallow Cuckoo's bill,
Portend success in love.

The Nightingale is not at all abundant in Herefordshire, and
is almost confined to the southern half of the county. The
numbers vary much. " I have known them in certain years,"
says the Rev. Clement Ley, " so numerous at Sellack, near Ross,
as to be positively troublesome, by the nocturnal disturbance they
cause. In other seasons, they have been almost entirely absent."
An occasional pair take up their quarters on Broomy-hill and on
Aylstone-hill, near Hereford, also at Breinton, Sugwas, Rotherwas,
and Wormbridge ; they are more regularly found at Eastwood,
Ashperton-park, the woods of the Woolhope hills. How Caple,
Lyndon, &c. — but in ordinary seasons, there seem only to be one
or two pairs of birds in any of these localities.

For the volume, quality, and execution of its voice, the
Nightingale is unrivalled among birds. Mr. Evans compares its
song " to the sweet voice of heavenly comfort, poured forth in the
night of sorrow and distress."

Such as the hour is, such my song,

Half plaintive and half glad ;
At first with cadence low and long,

Mournful awhile, and sad ;
Then like a gentle river flowing,
And gliding on,
With livelier tone :
Then deeper, fuller, growing,
And onward like a torrent borne.
Telling of hope that waits a shining morn.

Evans— Sony's 0/ the Birds.

The Nightingale she pours
Her solitary lays.
Nor asks a witness of her song.
Nor thirsts for human praise,

COWPER.

Ten thousand warblers cheer the day, and one
The live long night.

CowPER— TasA;.

Hark ! the nightingale.
Queen of all music, to her listening breast
Speaks, and the woods are still.

Cornwall.

l6 NIGHTINGALE.

The sober-suited songstress.

Thomson.

Soon as the sun forsakes the evening skies,
And, hid in shade, the ^doomy forest lies,
The Nightingales their tuneful vigil keep,
And lull her with their gentle strains asleep.

Fhilip^— Pastorals.

So sweet, so shrill, so variously she sang
That the grove echoed, and the valleys rang.

Dryden.

Loud trills sweet Philomel his tender strain
Charms his fond bride, and wakes his infant train.

* Darwin.

The Poets, with the one great exception of Coleridge, who
protests against the notion, attribute a melancholy strain to the song
of the Nightingale. But this is probably due more to the old story
of Philomela and Tereus, than to any close observation of the
bird's song.

There is a fashion in such things ; and it may be suspected,
that some poets have known more of what others had said about
the Nightingale, than of the bird itself. One sign of this is, that it
is almost always assumed that the bird sings by night only ;
whereas, in favourable weather, it sings all day as well. Perhaps
it is then less noticed, amongst the general chorus of the minstrelsy
of the woods, than when it is heard alone, when other sounds are
hushed. Then it is hailed as the

Sweet bird that shuns the noise of folly
Most musical, most melancholy.

Milton.

Milton is pre-eminently the poet of the Nightingale, which
doubtless he had often heard among the orchards and hedgerows
of Horton, where those lines were written.

He introduces it again in that exquisite passage in Paradise
Lost.

Now is the pleasant time
The cool, the silent, save where silence yields
To the night-warbling bird, that now awake
Tunes sweetest his love laboured song.

*Darwin was more careful of his Natural History, than of his poetry. It sounds odd to hear
Philomela, the metamorphosed Princess of Athens, turned into a /le.

NIGHTINGALE. 1 7

And again —

Sweet the coming on
Of grateful evening mild, then silent night
With this her solemn bird.

The quaint words of Barnefield, so often attributed to Shakes-
peare, which the madrigal by Lord Mornington, or the duet of
Sir H. R. Bishop, have made so famihar, will serve as an example : —

As it fell upon a day
In the merry month of May,
Sittini( in a pleasant shade,
Which a grove of myrtles made
Beasts did leap and birds did sing,
Trees did grow and plants did spring ;
Everything did banish moan
Save the Nightingale alone.
She, poor bird, as all forlorn,
Lean'd her breast against a thorn.
And there sang the dolefullest ditty.
That to hear it was great pity.
Fie, fie, iie, now would she cry,
Tereu, Tereu, by and by
That to hear her so complain,
Scarce I could from tears refrain ;
For her grief so lively shown
Made me think upon my own.

The love-lorn Nightingale
Nightly to thee her sad song mourneth well.

Milton— Comws.

No Nightingale her love-lorn tune
More sweetly -warbles to the moon.

Scott — Marmion.

As the wakeful bird
Sings darkling, and in shadiest covert hid
Tunes her nocturnal note.

Milton — Paradise Lost.

Isaac Walton says of it — "The Nightingale breathes such

sweet loud musick out of her little instrumental throat that it might

make mankind to think that miracles are not ceased " . . . .

and " Hfted up above earth, to say, Lord, what musick hast Thou

provided for the saints in Heaven, when Thou affordest bad men

such musick on Earth."

All was still ;
And now the Nightingale her song poured forth
In such a torrent of heartfelt delight.
So fast it flowed, her tongue so voluble,
As if she thought her hearers would be gone
Ere half was told. RoGERS-i'WTiea.

l8 NIGHTINGALE.

And sweeter far that melting voice,
Than all which through the day rejoice.

Hemans.

Oh Nightingale, that on yon bloomy spray
Warblest at eve, when all the woods are still,
Thou with fresh hope the lover's heart doth fill,

While the jolly hours lead on propitious May.

MiLToy— Sonnet.

Hear how the Nightingales on every spray.
Hail, in wild notes the sweet return of May.

Sir W. Jones.

The Nightingale unseen
To the moon and stars, full bright,
Lonesome chants the hymn of night.

Phillips.

Whose trembling notes steal out between
The clustered leaves, herself unseen.

Moore.

A strain that might almost arouse the dead,

So loud, so full, so exquisite, so gushing and so long.

Eliza Cook.

Her supple bz'east thrills out
Sharp airs, and staggers in a warbling doubt
Of dallying sweetness, hovers o'er her skill,
And folds in waved notes, with a trembling bill
The pliant series of her slippery song ;
Then starts she suddenly into a throng

Of short thick sobs

that there doth lie

Bathing in streams of liquid melody.

Crashawe.

The Nightingales tender condoling.

Keats.

This is her burden soft and clear.
Love is here ! love is here !

Barry Cornwall— iN^^/A^ Song.

All but the wakeful Nightingale ;
She all night long her amorous descant swng ;
Silence was pleased.

Milton — Paradise Lost.

Mr. Ley has found spotted specimens of the eggs of the
Nightingale in Herefordshire, though here as elsewhere the egg is
usually of an uniform olive brown colour without any markings.

WHITETHROAT. LESSER WHITETHROAT. 1 9

Sub-family— SYLVINIA.

Genus— SYLVIA.

SYLVIA CINEREA— WHITETHROAT.

The sporting Whitethroat on some twig's end borne,
Pour'd hymns to freedom and the rising morn.

Bloomfield— <S)3nni7.

This bird may be seen creeping through the bushes and
brambles, of almost every hedgerow in the county, towards the end
of April. It sings merrily, and often on the wing. Few days pass
in spring, when its well-known rattling song may not be heard.

Away, away,
With spirits gay,
O'er land and sea we come.
Once more our wearied wing to rest
In that one spot that we love best,
Our long sought home.

Evans— bong's of the Birds.

The Whitethroat is no favourite with gardeners, for, though
it is usually an insect feeder, yet in the autumn it brings all its
brood to prey upon any fruit it finds in the gardens.

SYLVIA CURRUCA— Lesser Whitethroat.

For 'midst the yellow bloom the assembled chats,
Wave high the tremulous song, and with shrill notes,
But clear and pleasant, cheer the extensive heath.

Charlotte Smith — The Heath.

This bird is really very common throughout the county, says
xMr. Ley, " as anyone who can distinguish its rattle from the confused
loquacious song of the Whitethroat will testify." It is, however,
far more shy than its congener, concealing itself in the thick hedges,
or low bushes.

20 BLACKCAP. GARDEN WARBLER.

[Sylvia orphea — Orphean Warbler.
An accidental visitor.

SYLVIA ATRICAPILLA— Blackcap.

The Blackcaps in an orchard met,
Praising the berries while they ate.

D"ean Ingelow.

Early in April this regular migrant may be welcomed in all
parts of the county, but is nowhere to be found in great numbers —

For many a mile by day and night,
Our little wings with pinions light.

Their weary task have plied.
And now we come, all peril past,
Back to the hazel copse at last.

The well-known stream beside.

Evans — Songs of the Birds.

The Blackcap was a great favourite of White of Selborne, who
described it as having " a full, sweet, deep, loud, and wild pipe " of
short continuance, but in settled song " he pours forth very sweet
but inward melody, and expresses a great variety of soft and gentle
modulations, superior perhaps to those of any of our warblers, the
Nightingale alone excepted." Its tones, he said, always brought to
his mind Shakespeare's lines —

And tune his merry note
Unto the wild bird's throat.

— As Yoii Like It.

SYLVIA HORTENSIS— Garden Warbler.
[ Sylvia salicaria — Yarrell. ]

When the elm tree is coming into leaf, a nest of the Garden
Warbler may be looked for. It is a not uncommon visitor in the
county, and widely scattered over it. As a songster, it ranks only
after the Blackcap. It pours forth a continued strain of modulations
for the half-hour together.

GOLDEN-CRESTED WREN.

[Sylvia nisidora — Barred Warbler.]
Cambridge, 1879.

[Genus — Melizophilus.]

[Melizophilus undatus— -Dartford Warbler.]

Furze districts of South England.

Genus— REGULUS.

REGULUS CRISTATUS— Golden-crested Wren.

'' The Golden-crested Wren has a loving, gentle song, that
we should suppose no mate could resist. Soft and sibilous, yet
clear and expressive, such as the ear of love delights in."

Evans — Sofigs of the Birds.

This, the smallest of all British birds, is common throughout
the county. Its numbers were very greatly diminished by the severe
winters of 1879-80 and 1880-1, but they are beginning to increase
again since that time, and were happily very abundant in 1884.
" Its numbers throughout England during the winter season," says
the Rev. Clement Ley, " depend on the prevalence of north-east
winds, at the time of its partial autumn migration from Scandinavia,
being less abundant when the south-west winds are persistent at
this time. During the prevalence of a north-east gale, some of the
light-houses in the German Ocean are perfectly battered by these
tiny birds." This little bird is a great favourite with all who
recognise its soft, gentle note, and its elegant motion. It is very fond
of fir plantations, and its voice, "like the sound of a small silver bell,"
may be heard from the top of some tall fir, and the bird, all life and
activity, may soon be seen hanging from spray after spray, searching
the crevices for its insect food. It builds its nest there too : —

Our nest hangs high on yon tall tree,

With tiny cords suspended ;
And few its narrow door can see,

By clustering leaves defended.

Evans— 5'on5's of the Birds.

22 FIRE-CRESTED WREN. CHIFF-CHAFF.

The food of the Golden-crested Wren consists of caterpillars,
insects and their larvae, with a few seeds and small berries.

REGULUS IGNICAPILLUS— FiRE-CRESTED Wren.

The Fire-crested Wren is much more rare than its congener
the Golden-crested Wren. The Rev. Clement Ley has occasionally
observed it in a group of fir trees at Sellack. A pair were in the
Vicarage garden there in 1864, and it was an effort of self-denial
on the part of Mr. Ley not to shoot them. It has been also seen
in several shrubberies in the county.

[Regulus CALENDULA — Ruby-crowncd Wren.]
Loch Lomond, Scotland, 1852.

[Genus — Phylloscopus.]

[Phylloscopus superciliosus — Yellow-browed Warbler.]

Accidental visitor to England.

PHYLLOSCOPUS RUFUS — Chiff-Chaff.

\Phylloscopus colly bita — Yarrdl^

With the first green needles of the larch, this hardy little bird
may be looked for from the shores of the Mediterranean. With the
exception of the Wheatear, the Chiff-Chaff is the earliest warbler to
arrive, but as it is usually silent for some days after its arrival, it is
generally supposed to appear at a later period than it really does
come. It is very abundant throughout the county.

The Chiff-Chaff calls itself by its own name, since its song in
words is represented by the syllables Chiff-chaff, chaff, chiff-chaff.

WILLOW WARBLER. WOOD WARBLER. 23

PHYLLOSCOPUS TROCHILUS— Willow Warbler.

This lively Willow Wren, as it is usually called, is frequent
throughout the county. Its cheerful note, from the recesses of the
low cluster of bushes it delights to occupy, may be heard in the
early spring for the hour together. In the valley of the Wye it is
very common. A cheerful colony always occupied the bushes on
the river bank of the Castle Green, in Hereford, until the bushes
were cut away. Its lively notes are, however, somewhat monotonous
if listened to for some time.

A reference to this bird may well be inferred in the following

lines by Tennyson —

There is a little helpless innocent bird,
Will sing the simi^le passage o'er and o'er
For all one April morning, till the ear
Wearies to hear it.

PHYLLOSCOPUS SIBILATRIX— Wood Warbler.

The Wood Wren, as it is perhaps more often called, is a late
arrival. It seldom appears before the last days of April, and
sometimes not until the second week in May ; its arrival, says
Selby, coinciding with " the time ot the elms and oaks bursting
into leaf." It is a very local bird, and nowhere, perhaps, abundant
in Herefordshire. It is shy and timorous. Mr. Evans says of it
" when any foot approaches the neighbourhood of the nest, it utters
a plaintive note, soft and melancholy beyond description. There
is no scolding in it, no temper or violence, but quiet, pathetic
remonstrance, a note that seems to say that all its hopes and
treasures are at your mercy."

Mr. White, of Selborne, describes the song of the Wood
Warbler as "joyous, easy, and laughing" "tweet, tweet" rapidly
repeated with a soft tremulous accent

24 REED WARBLER.

[Genus — Hypolais.]

[Hypolais icterina — Icterine Warbler.]

Dover and near Dublin.

[Genus — Aedon.J

[Aedon galactodes — Rufous Warbler.]

A rare accidental visitor to England.

Genus— ACROCEPHALUS.

ACROCEPHALUS STREPERUS— Reed Warbler.

This bird is not common in Herefordshire. In the southern
districts of the county it is rarely found, but in the western and
northern districts, in localities where reeds or bulrushes abound, a
nest or two is generally to be met with, as at Tibberton, Moccas,
Shobdon, &c. This bird shows a remarkable instinct in the con-
struction of its nest, according to the locality in which it is built.
If it is built in the branches of shrubs, lilac, privet, &c., as it often
is in the midland counties, it is comparatively shallow ; but when
built on the stems of three or four reeds or bulrushes, as is usually
the case in Herefordshire, it is made much more deep, to provide
against the risk of the eggs being blown out ; and if the reeds are in
places much exposed to wind, as for example on the reedy margins
of Llangorse Lake, the nest is not only made very deep, but its
opening is contracted at the margin, so that if the reeds should be
bent level with the water — even quite horizontally — the eggs would
still be saved from rolling out. It is a cheerful, active bird, and
often sings through the evening into night.

In the calm night, when all is still,
And not a voice is heard around,
•Save the wild stream that from the hill
Falls downwith dashing sound :
When o'er the heath
The colddamp breath
Bends the tall reed with passing wing.
Upon its waving head alone I sing.

Evans — Songs of the Birds.

SEDGE-WARBLER. 25

[AcROCEPHALUS PALUSTRis — Marsh Warbler.]
Rare summer visitor to Southern counties of England.

[AcROCEPHALUS TURDOiDES — Great Reed-warbler.

[Acrocephahis arioidijiaceiis — Yarrell^

An accidental visitor to England.

(AcROCEPHALUS AQUATicus — Aquatic Warbler.J

\Acrocephalns schensbcemis — Yarrell^^

An accidental visitor to England.

ACROCEPHALUS PHRAGMITIS— Sedge-warbler.
\Acrocephalus schanobcenus — Yarrell?\

The sparrows chirp, and fly to fetch
The withered reed-down, rustling nigh,
And by the sunny side the ditch,
Prepare their dwelling warm and dry.

Clake— iasi 0/ March.

This bird is common throughout the county, in the valleys of
the Lugg, and the Arrow, and on the banks of the Wye. " The
song of the Sedge-warbler," says Mr. Evans, " runs on in a strain
of continued variety, though but of little power," and, as w^as observed
by White, it has the faculty of imitating the notes of other species.

A very odd effect is at times produced by the notes being

mixed and crowded up together, and uttered at such a rapid rate,

that one wonders how any bird can articulate so fast, and why it is

in such an overpowering hurry. It generally goes on singing late

in the evening, and it has sometimes even been heard to sing in

the night.

By yon fair willow'd stream,

When June, array'd in flowers,
Shines with her sunny gleam,
I spend my lonely hours,
Wary and shy.
From man's keen eye,
I safely hide, and sing my song unseen,
Close in the willow bush, beneath the tresses green.

Evans— /So^ififs of the Birds.

26 GRASSHOPPER WARBLER. HEDGE-SPARROW.

Genus— LOCUSTELLA.

LOCUSTELLA N^VIA— Grasshopper Warbler.

S^Acrocephalus imvius — Yarrell^

The note of this bird has some resemblance to the rougli,
chirping noise of the grasshopper. White, of Selborne, first described
it in 1768. It is a shy, vigilant bird, secreting itself in the hedge-
bottom, or low vegetation, often creeping along for many yards in
succession, more like a mouse than a bird. It is not uncommon
in the midland districts of the county. " It is scarcely possible,"
says the Rev. Clement T.eyif' to take an evening walk in June,
in the Ross district, without hearing the ventriloquistic trill of this
species, either in the clover, or grass fields, or in the hedges around
them. I have found its nest in hedge-rows and ditches, but more
often in open clover fields, supported by the stems of the clover, as
the Reed Warbler's nest is supported by the stems of the reeds."

Mr. W. C. Blake says that Marcle Wood is a good locality for
this bird, and that five or six have been seen there at one time.
Mr. J. W. Lloyd reports that a nest with four eggs in it, was taken
at Croft, in May, 1884.

[Locustella luscinioides— Savi's Warbler.

[Acrocephahis luschiioides — Yarrell?^

A very rare summer visitor to England.

[Genus — Cettia.]

[Cettl\ sericea— Cetti's Warbler.]

Of very doubtful occurrence.

Genus— ACCENTOR.
ACCENTOR MODULARIS— Hedge-sparrow.
This gentle, unobtrusive bird, the " aizack " of Herefordshire
boys, is happily very common throughout the county ; there is

HEDGE-SPARROW

27

scarcely a hedge-row where it has not found a resting place. It
always seems to live in pairs, and remains with us through the
winter. In the earliest days of spring, its low, plaintive chirp, and
the peculiar shake of the wings, which is always characteristic of
this bird, tells the schoolboy that he may look for its nest and its
pretty blue eggs. As it is nearly the first bird that forms a nest,
and this being placed in a hedge still bare and leafless, with little
art displayed in its concealment, it forms a tempting booty to every
prying boy ; but as the Hedge-sparrow rears two, or even three
broods in succession, the later nests are more securely shielded.

"The Robin and the Wren often get the credit of his sweet
minstrelsy," says Mr. Evans, " as he pours forth his sweet and lively
song, from the seclusion of a low hedge or bush."

Many a sweeter voice than mine
Sounds in the summer bower ;
And birds in gayer plumage shine,

Or sing with deeper power :
But do not turn your eye away

Because I'm brown and plain ;
Nor scorn the simple songster's lay,
Though sung in lowly strain.

Evans — Songs of the Birds.

The Cuckoo is very apt to deposit her egg in the nest of the
Hedge-sparrow, to the destruction of the bird's own offspring.
Shakespeare alludes to this : —

The Hedge-sparrow fed the Cuckoo so long,
That it had it's head bit off by its young.

King Lear.

[Accentor collaris — Alpine Accentor.]
Yorkshire, Cambridgeshire, Suffolk, Essex, Devon, Gloucestershire,

and V/ales.

[Sub-family — Mimin^e.]

[Genus — Mimus.]

[MiMUS POLYGLOTTUS — Northern Mocking Bird.]

Escaped from a cage probably.

28 DIPPER.

Family— CINCLID.E.

Genus— CINCLUS.

CINCLUS AQUATICUS— Dipper.

A cheerful bird, tliat loves the stream,

And the stream's voice, and answers, in like strains,

Murmuring deliciously. Grahame.

The Water Ouzel, as this interesting bird is more commonly
called, is not uncommon on many of the weirs, waterfalls, and
smaller streams of the county. Unlike the Kingfisher, it seems to
prefer their seclusion to the more open spaces of the larger rivers,
the Wye and the Lugg. In the very centre of the county Mr. J. H.
Arkwright encourages its presence in the lawn rivulet of Hampton
Court, but it is to be found on most of the small upland streams of
the county, especially in the upper waters of the Lugg, where it may
often be seen, perched on a large stone, or shooting with a swift and
sudden flight, close to the surface of the water.

The food of the Water Ouzel consists principally of beetles,
the larvae of flies, fresh water shrimps, and other aquatic insects, and
occasionally very small fish. The persecution to which this bird has
been subjected by gamekeepers and water bailiffs, on the charge that
it feeds upon the spawn of the salmon and the trout, has been clearly
proved to be quite unjust. Mr. Saxby proved it in the " Zoologist "
for 1868, and Mr. Frank Buckland in his book on " Fish-hatching,"
showed as the result of upwards of forty dissections of Water Ouzels,
killed on the spawniiig beds, that so far from eating the salmon and
trout eggs, it actually protects them, by destroying vast numbers of
the water insects and larvae which do prey upon the ova. The Water
Ouzel has the very remarkable power of walking on the bed of the
stream under water to search for its food ; and the younger birds,
just fledged from the nest, have this power as well as the older birds.

The birds seem always to associate in pairs, and build year
after year in the same localities, and generally near a waterfall or
quick running water. They are fond of building under bridges, and
on the northern side of the county, in one instance, the stonework

BRITISH LONG-TAILED TITMOUSE. 29

below the iron girders of a railway bridge was selected. The exact
localities are not given for obvious reasons. Its mode of nidification,
the character of its song, and its personal bearing, much resemble the
Wren, but it is a much larger bird. " It sings more often," says Mr.
Evans, " in the days of the declining autumn, or in the dark ones of
winter, than in the bright and stirring season of the opening spring.
The song is peculiarly expressive of wild and lonely enjoyment."

Whei-e the young stream is gushing

From its lone fountain head ;
Where the wild river's rushing

Down o'er its rocky bed ;

There is my lonely home.

Evans— Sonrjs of the Birds.

It has been known to sing in the hardest frost, perched on a
stone at the bottom of a weir.

[CiNCLus MELANOGASTER — Black-bcllied Dipper.]
Norfolk, Yorkshire, and Ireland.

[Family — Panurid^e.]

[Genus — Panurus.]

[Panurus biarmicus — Bearded Titmouse.]

Confined to Norfolk and Cambridgeshire.

Family — Parid^.

Genus — Acredula.

[Acredula caudata — White-headed Long-tailed Titmouse.

Accidentally met with on East Coast of Britain.

ACREDULA ROSEA— British Long-tailed Titmouse.

The Long-tailed Tit, or " Bottle Tit," as Herefordshire
boys call this bird, from the shape of its nest, is a common and
constant resident in the county. Another familar local name is
also " Mummiruffin " or " Mumruffin."

30 GREAT TITMOUSE.

During the winter months it may frequently be seen in flocks,
from ten to twenty in number, flitting along the tall hedgerows,
and in the tops of trees, attracting attention by its weak and
plaintive note, " Tit, Tit, Tit," a password that seems to keep
them all together.

The other kinds of Titmouse are very sociable, and often feed
together and fly about in one flock ; but the Long-tailed Tits are
exclusive, and never mix with other birds. Perhaps their food is
different.

The large oval-shaped nest, beautifully covered with grey
lichens, has usually a small hole on one side near the top, by
which the bird enters, but the Rev. Clement Ley has *' not un-
frequently found the nest in Herefordshire with two openings
instead of one, and both made by the birds."

Genus— PARUS.

PARUS MAJOR— Great Titmouse.

This handsome and amusing bird is not uncommon in the more
sheltered and enclosed districts of the county. Like the Tom Tit, it
often chooses some peculiar situation for its nest ; and instead of
the hole of a wall, or a tree, will build it in the country way-side letter
box, in the inside of a pump, or in an inverted garden flower pot.

The Great Tit when short of food becomes a murderer, for he
will sometimes split open the skulls of other birds, and eat the
brains.

Parus ater — Continental Titmouse.
Has once occurred in Norfolk.

MARSH TITMOUSE. BLUE TITMOUSE. 3 1

PARUS BRITANNICUS— British Coal Titmouse.

[Panis ater — Yarrell?^
Not common, but it is found locally distributed throughout

the county.

PARUS PALUSTRIS— Marsh Titmouse.

This bird occurs occasionally in the valleys of the rivers Wye
and Lugg, notably at Letton and Backney Marsh. It is said to
be more common in the northern districts ot the county. The
Rev. Clement Ley has " generally observed this species to be
nearly as frequently met with at a distance from water as in its
vicinity."

'' The double note of the Marsh Tit," says Air. Johns, " may
be compared to the syllable ' If he, If he,' rapidly uttered and
repeated in imitation of a sob."

PARUS C.ERULEUS— Blue Titmouse.

Least, nimblest, merriest bird of Albion's isle
I cannot look on thee without a smile.

MONTCxOMERY.

The familiar " Tom Tit " is very common throughout the
county. He is a lively amusing little bird, and does not deserve
the bad character he has got, with all the rest of his congeners, in
the garden. A price was fomerly set upon the heads of Tom Tits
by the churchwardens of the parish, and old parish accounts often
include payments made for their destruction. The Tits are all insect
feeders, and if a flock of them strip the buds from a fruit tree, say
their defenders, it is to get at the insects already there; thus they are
useful in their destructive habit, since probably there would not have
been fruit in any case, though it must be confessed that many buds

32 NUTHATCH.

are torn off without the least sign of an insect within. The Tits
are all fond of flesh and fat, and the Tom Tit in particular during
the severe winter months, is a close attendant on the country
butcher's shop, passing through the open lattice work and helping
himself, and he may frequently be seen to visit fearlessly the
humble butcher's shop of the dog-kennel. If a bone with fresh
meat upon it, or a lump of suet, or fat, be hung by a short string
from the end of a rod, or the branch of a tree, near a sitting-room
window, when the snow covers the ground, the Tits will soon find
it out ; and the act of charity will be rewarded by the amusement
and delight afforded in watching the action of these pretty lively
little birds. The various species of Tits, especially the Great Tit
and the Tom Tit, which are very sociable with each other, delight
in visiting the spot, and hang in a most amusing way, head down-
wards, on the bone as it sways to and fro, or on a slender twig.

Lithest, gaudiest harlequin !
Prettiest tumbler ever seen,
Light of heart, and light of limb
What is now become of him ?
Where is he, that giddy sprite !
Blue Cap, with all his feathers bright.
******

Hung with head towards the ground,
Fluttered, perched into a round,
Bound himself, and then unbound.

Wordsworth.

[Parus cristatus — Crested Titmouse.]
Extremely local in British Islands.

Family— SITTID^.

Genus— SITTA.

SITTA C.4iSIA— Nuthatch.

The Nut-hatch piercing with strong bill.

SouTHEY— T7ic Filbert.

This nimble, active little bird is very common throughout the

county, and is gifted with the power of climbing up and down

WREN. 33

branches with equal facility. The Rev, Clement Ley "thinks its
frequency throughout England is in proportion to the abundance
of apple and pear trees, and that the Nuthatch is far more common
here than in most counties." " It is very common at Aymestrey
and its neighbourhood," says the Rev. Thomas Woodhouse, "and
stays all the year. It is most ingenious in getting at the kernels
of the nuts it feeds on. The nut is firmly wedged into a fork of
a tree it takes a fancy to, and the bird hammers at it with all its
might. Empty nuts are detected at once and thrown to the ground.
The tree most frequented may soon be discovered by the litter
beneath it."

The Nuthatch builds usually in a hole in the trunk of a tree,
and if it is too large, the bird plasters the sides with mud to make
it smaller.

Family— TROGLODYTID^E.

Genus— TROGLODYTES.

TROGLODYTES PARVULUS— Wren.

The Wren of softest note.

COLERIDQE.

Oh ! that I were the little Wren
That shrilly chirps from yonder glen.

KiKKE White— JTep^ in School.

The Wrens their pretty gossip spread
To join in a random roundelay.

Jean Ingelow — Scholar.

Cock Robin and Jenny Wren are the familiar favourites of our
childhood. They seem to place confidence in man's kindness.
The Wren, however, does not force itself so much into observation.
It is a lively, restless little bird, and, when closely watched, it
creeps, mouseUke, out of sight in the hedge bottoms, or the
faggot stack.

D

34 WREN.

Busy as a Wren ; the viewless Wren ; self-contented Wren.

Wordsworth.

With head beneath her wing,

A little Wren was sleeping

So near, I had found it an easy thing

To steal her for my keeping.

Jean Ingelow.

It is a hardy bird, and, by clustering together for mutual
warmth during severe weather, generally manages to escape the
cold, but the winter of 1 880-1 was very fatal to the Wren, and its
numbers are still below the average.

The cock bird has a cheerful lively note, and he often, in the
sunshine of winter,

When icicles hang dropping from the rock,
Pipes his perennial lay.

The Wren often builds nests seemingly to desert them. Boys
call them " Cock Wrens' nests."
The Wren seems to say —

We look not to the nest, our care
Is for the brood that nestles there.

Evans— >S'o?2.£fs of the Birds.

When once the family abode is taken up, however, the Wren
is a dihgent, anxious parent. The miracle of its successful care for
Its numerous progeny has often been commented on.

Fed in the dark, and yet not one forgot.

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

The poor Wren,
The most diminutive of birds, will fight
Her young ones in her nest, against the owl.

The Wren in Ireland, and in the North, is sometimes perse-
cuted on St. Stephen's Day, when a rhyme is sung by parties of
men and boys :

The Wren, the Wren, the King of all birds
St. Stephen's day, was caught in the furze.
Sing holly, sing ivy, sing ivy, sing holly,
A drop to drink just to scare " melancholy."

In the West of England, however, a more favourable feeling is
expressed in the distich : —

PIED WAGTAIL.

Whoso kills a Robin, or a Wren,
Never shall prosper, boy or man.

35

While in the North of England they say,

Malisons, malisons, more than ten,

Who harries the Queen of heaven's Wren.

There is an albino variety of the Wren in the Hereford
Museum.

[Family — Motacillid^.]

[Genus — Motacilla.]

[MoTACiLLA ALBA — White Wagtail]

A rare straggler to the South of England and Ireland.

MOTACILLA LUGUBRIS— Pied Wagtail.

What art thou made of ? air, or light, or dew ?
I have no time to tell you, if I knew.
My tail — ask that — perhaps may solve the matter,
I've missed three flies already by this chatter.

Montgomery— Birds.

This bird is extremely common throughout the county, in the
vicinity of ponds, streams, grassy lawns, or moist meadows. Some
few of them remain for the winter. The Cuckoo is very fond of
choosing the Wagtail's nest to deposit her own eggs in.

The Pied Wagtails, like the Swallows, are amongst the first
birds to give notice of the presence of a Hawk. They are con-
sidered a delicacy on the Continent, and the bird-catchers there,
avail themselves of the sympathy of the birds, in trying to help each
other when in distress. They tie a live bird by the leg to the net,
when its cries to escape, bring others round it, and they are thus
easily caught.

36 GREY WAGTAIL. BLUE-HEADED YELLOW WAGTAIL.

YELLOW WAGTAIL.

MOTACILLA MELANOPE— Grey Wagtail.

\Motacilla sidpJmrea — Yarrell^^

This Wagtail occurs locally about the more secluded streams
of the northern district of the county, but is nowhere plentiful.

The Grey Wagtail, Mr. W. C. Blake states, remains all the year
round in the neighbourhood of Ross. They bred in 1884 in the
brook which empties itself into the Wye just above the town, and
he saw the young fledglings with the old birds. Mr. Blake thinks
this species more partial to polluted brooks and foul ponds than to
clear streams.

MOTACILLA FLAVA— Blue-headed Yellow Wagtail.

This rare species occurs regularly every season at Belmont,
near Hereford, and from the length of its stay it is almost sure to
breed there, although the actual fact of its doing so, yet remains to
be proved. Mr. R. M. Lingwood says of this bird (Woolhope
Transactions, i86t) — "Seen at Lyston, November, 1840, but not
handled, and therefore doubtful."

[MoTACiLLA viRiDis — Grey-headed Yellow Wagtail.]
A very doubtful English bird.

MOTACILLA RAII— Yellow Wagtail.

A regular summer visitant throughout the county, but more
shy in its habits than the Pied Wagtail ; it is to be found
about cultivated fields, wheat and fallow lands, where it usually
builds on the ground, beneath herbage.

MEADOW-PIPIT. TREE-PIPIT. 37

Genus— ANTHUS.

ANTHUS PRATENSIS— Meadow-pipit.

The " Titlark," as this bird is commonly called, is frequent
throughout the county. It is fond of building in the low tufts of
heather on open downs. Three nests with eggs were found, on the
visit of the Woolhope Club to the spur of the Black Mountains
above Trewyn, May 15, 1884.

[Anthus cervinus — Red-throated Pipit]
Unst, Shetland, 1854.

ANTHUS TRIVIALIS— Tree-pipit.

A common summer visitant throughout the county. Its rich,
deeply coloured, reddish brown eggs are to be seen in every boy's
collection.

[Anthus campestris — Tawny Pipit.]
An occasional straggler to the South Coast of England.

[Anthus richardi — Richard's Pipit.]
An occasional straggler during Autumnal migration.

[Anthus ludovicianus — American Pipit.]
Occurrence uncertain in England,

[Anthus spipoletta — Water-pipit]
A very rare straggler in Britain.

[Anthus obscurus — Rock-pipit]
A common resident in British Coasts.

38 GOLDEN ORIOLE. GREAT GREY SHRIKE.

[Family — Pycnonotid.^.]

[Genus — Pycnonotus.]

[Pycnonotus barbatus — Dusky Bulbul]

Its occurrence in England very doubtful.

[Pycnonotus capensis — Gold-vented Thrush.]
Waterford, Ireland, 1838, doubtful.

Family— ORIOLID^.

Genus— ORIOLUS.

ORIOLUS GALBULA— Golden Oriole.

This bird has been found in the county several times.
There are two local specimens in our museum : one of these
came from the collection of Mr. Moss, of Ross, and was
taken at Weston-under-Penyard, near that town ; the other was
also killed at the Chase, near Ross, and was formerly in the
collection of the Philosophical Society. The late Rev. Henry
Cooper Key saw the Golden Oriole at Sugwas ; and Mr. Charles
Fortey states that one was seen in 1883 at Hay Park, near
Ludlow. In the middle of May, 1884, a pair of Orioles were
seen and watched at Monnington-on-Wye. The Golden Oriole,
according to M. Prevost's list, is a very destructive visitor to the
gardens, but it is too rare a bird to render it necessary to point out
its misdemeanours, or to disturb the equanimity of our gardeners.

Family— LANIID^.

Genus— LANIUS.

LANIUS EXCUBITOR— Great Grey Shrike.

An occasional visitant to the county, and generally in the
neighbourhood of the Black Mountains. Mr. Lingwood records it

RED-BACKED SHRIKE. 39

as occurring at Garway ; the Rev. Clement Ley met with a flock
in winter time on the Black Mountains (Woolhope Trans. 1869,
p. 72) ; and one was killed at Bredwardine in the autumn of 1877.
The specimens in the Hereford Museum came from the Forest of
Dean. The blue " Tom Tit " seems to be a favourite food of this
bird, but it devours other small birds, frogs, &c.

This bird derives its name " Excubitor," (Sentinel) from its
habit of posting itself on the topmost bough of a poplar, or other
tall tree, to keep a look out for its prey ; and if a Hawk should
appear, it shrieks out a warning that is unmistakable. Its own
note is somewhat similar to that of a Kestrel, but it has a very
remarkable power of imitating the songs of other birds ; as the
Nightingale, Thrush, Robin, Swallow, etc.

[Lanius major — Pallas's Great Grey Shrike.]
An occasional visitant to Great Britain on migration.

[Lanius excubitorides — American Grey Shrike.
Of doubtful occurrence in England.

[Lanius minor — Lesser Grey Shrike.]
A rare accidental visitor to England.

LANIUS COLLURIO— Red-backed Shrike.

The May-fly is torn by the Swallow, the Sparrow spear'd by the Shrike,
And the whole little wood where I sit is a world of plunder and prey.

Tennyson — Maud.

This bird, the " Butcher Bird," as it is sometimes called, is not
uncommon in particular localities throughout the county, and its
beautiful eggs are to be seen in almost every schoolboy's collection.
It usually visits the same locality, year after year. The Rev.
Clement Ley observed it in the same place, near Ross, for 23 years;

40 BOHEMIAN WAXWING. SPOTTED FLYCATCHER.

and in the tall hedges of the tram-way, within half a mile of the
City of Hereford, it built for many years in succession, indeed until
the hedges were cut down low.

[Lanius pomeranus — Woodchat.]
An accidental visitor to England on migration.

[Family — Vireonid^.]

[Genus — Vireo.]

[ViREO OLiVACEUS — Rcd-cycd Flycatcher.]

Said to have been caught near Derby, 1859. Not elsewhere in

Europe.

Family -AMPELID^.

Genus— AMPELIS.

AMPELIS GARRULUS— Bohemian Waxwing.

A Bohemian Waxwing seems to have found its way, upon one
occasion, to this county. Mr. Lingwood says, " seen in the flesh at
Baker's in Hereford, 1856." It is possibly the same specimen
which is now in the Hereford Museum.

Ampelis cedrorum — Cedar-bird.]
Stockton-on-Tees, 1850. A probable escape.

Family— MUSCICAPID^.

Genus— MUSCICAPA.

MUSICAPA GRISOLA— Spotted Flycatcher.

A common summer visitant to the county. It builds and rears
its brood annually in the garden of Harley House, in the centre of

PIED FLYCATCHER. 4I

the city of Hereford. " A Spotted Flycatcher built its nest in the
corner of Mr. Thos. Andrew Knight's stove at Downton for several
successive years ; and he observed that the bird, when sitting, quitted
its eggs when the thermometer in the house was above 72^, and re-
sumed her place upon the nest, when the temperature fell below this."

The food of the Spotted Flycatcher consists exclusively of
insects, and the way in which it darts out from its favourite perch,
a branch of a tree, a," post, or sometimes a croquet hoop, at every
insect that comes near, is very amusing to watch.

MUSCICAPA ATRICAPILLA— Pied Flycatcher.

A rare visitant to this county. The Rev. Clement Ley
has " noticed this bird on different occasions, in different and very
diverse localities in the western part of the county. In June, 1873,
I noticed a pair of these birds at the eastern end of Moccas pool.
From their anxiety they had probably a nest of young ones in the
immediate vicinity, and judging from the position of two nests I
found before, it would be in a small deep hole of some one of the
many old oak trees there." The Rev. W. Baskerville Mynors also
observed a Pied Flycatcher at Llanwarne in 1883.

[MusiCAPA coLLARis — Whitc-collared Flycatcher.]
Of doubtful occurrence.

[MusiCAPA PARVA — Rcd-brcastcd Flycatcher.]
Once in Cornwall. Twice in the Scilly Islands.

[Section — Oscines Latirostres.]

[Family — Hirundinid^e.]

[Genus — Hirundo.]

[Hirundo savignii — Chestnut-bellied Swallow.]

Very doubtful indeed.

4^ SWALLOW.

HIRUNDO RUSTICA— Swallow.

The Swallow, oft, beneath my thatch
Shall twitter from her clay built nest."

Rogers.

The Swallow for a moment seen,
Skims in haste the village green.

Warton.

Swallow ! Swallow ! hither wing,
Dearest playmate of the Spring.

Bennett.

Nigra velut magnas domini cum divitis sedes
Pervolat, et pennis alta atria lustrat hirundo,
Pabula parva legens, n^lisque loquacibus escas ;
Et nunc porticibus vacuis, nunc humida circum
Stagna sonat.

YmG—jEnxii., Jflo.

As the black Swallow near the palace plies ;
O'er empty courts, and under arches flies ;
Now hawks aloft, now skims along the flood,
To furnish her loquacious nests with food.

Dryden.

Swift through the air, her rounds the Swallow takes.
Or sportive skims the level of the lakes.

Browne— Pas^om?.

" The Swallow," says Sir Humphry Davy in Salmoiiia^ is one
of my favourite birds, and a rival of the Nightingale ; for he cheers
my sense of seeing, as much as the other does my sense of hearing.
He is the glad prophet of the year — the harbinger of the best
season ; he lives a life of enjoyment among the lordliest forms of
nature ; winter is unknown to him, and in the autumn he leaves
the green meadows of England, for the myrtle and orange groves
of Italy, and for the palms of Africa."

But he arrives earlier in the South of Europe than he does
here ; which made the old Greek proverb to run, " One Swallow
does not make a sprin^^"" instead of " summer," as we have it.

The Swallow, (privileg'd, above the rest
Of all the birds as man's familiar guest,)
Pursues the sun in Summer brisk and bold.
But wisely shuns the persecuting cold.
***** -x-

Such auguries of winter thence she drew,
Which by instinct or prophecy she knew ;
When prudence warn'd her to remove betimes,
And seek a better heaven and warmer climes.

SWALLOW. 43

Her sons were summon'd on a steeple's height,

And, call'd in common council, vote a flight.
******

Her youthful offspring to their haunts repair,
And glide along in glades, and skim in air,
And dip for insects in the purling springs
And stoop on rivers, to refresh their wings.

Dryden — Hind and Panther.

The Swallow nevertheless seems not always able to avoid the
fatality of atmospheric changes ; for during the Summer of 1881
the number of Swallows, Martins, and Swifts, usually abundant in
this county, was very greatly reduced, presumably from the severe
winter of 1880-81, as is known to have been the case with the great
majority of other birds.

The Swallow builds on rafters, in barns and other buildings, as

was the case in Virgil's day.

Ante
Garrula quam tignis nidum suspendat Hirundo.

Yi-RG.—Geo. iv., p. 307.

Before the noisy Swallow's nest depends

From the strong beam that through the roof extends.

' But hid the sacred Swallow haunt the caves,

To guard his roof from lightning and from thieves.

HooB— Plea for Midsummer Faries.

The Swallow on its arrival, the time of which varies somewhat
according to the locality, at once attaches itself to the habitation of
mankind, as is so well known. Tennyson makes it sympathize with
our feelings too in his love song : —

0, Swallow, Swallow, flying, flying South.

*****

O, tell her, brief is life, but love is long.
And brief the sun of summer in the North,
And brief the moon of beauty in the South.

Hire song, it was so loud and yerne,
As any swallow sitting on a barne.

Chaucer — Miller^s Tale.

The flying of Swallows, is a country sign of the weather.

When Swallows fleet soar high, and sport in air,
He told us that the welkin would be clear.

G( AY— Pastoral.

Above in the wind was the Swallow,
Chasing itself, at its own wild will.

Tennyson— ^^e Dying Swan.

Gathering Swallows twitter in the skies.

Keats — Autumn.

44

MARTIN.

Or like the Swallow skims
The russet plain.

SosiERXiLLE— Field Sport.

The Swallows are unlucky birds to kill.

Dryden— jy^id and Panther.

Loud twittering Swallows.

Eliza Cook,

The chattering Swallows.

Savage.

The little Swallow's wanton wing.

Burns.

The winding Swallows.

QUARLES.

The arrowy Swallow.

Jean Ingelow.

The wheeling Swallow.

Wordsworth.

[HiRUNDO RUFULA — Red-rumped Swallow.]
Once reported to have been seen at Penzance.

[HiRUNDO BicoLOR — White-bellied Swallow.]
Said to have been once seen near Derby in 1850.

Genus— CHELIDON.
CHELIDON URBICA— Martin.

The dingy Martin.

Eliza Cook.

The pretty, friendly Martin, is happily common throughout

Herefordshire. The popular idea that good luck attends the

house that Martins build on, is well put by Shakespeare : —

This guest of summer,
The temple-haunting Martlet does approve
By his lov'd mansionry, that the heaven's breath
Smells wooingly here ; no jutty, frieze,
Buttress, nor coign of vantage but this bird
Hath made his pendent bed, and procreant cradle :
Where they most breed and haunt, I have observ'd
The air is delicate.

—Macbeth, I-, 6.

SAND-MARTIN. 45

The Martin, like the Swallow, the Sand-martin, and the Swift,

comes to us from Africa ; but the Martin usually arrives some days

later than the Swallow, and seems rather to prefer building in towns

than on lone separate houses.

Whence drew the Martin his stiperior skill,
To knead and temper, mason-like, the slime
Of street or stagnant pool, and build aloft
Beneath the cornice brink, or shady porch,
His snug dependent couch, on nothing hung ;
Founded in air, and finished with a neat
Convenient aperture, from whence he bolts
Sudden, and whither brisk returns, with mouth
Fill'd for his offspring.

ilVRiiia— Favorite Village.

Genus— COTILE.

COTILE RIPARIA-Sand-martin.

This bird, the smallest of its tribe, is very local in Hereford-
shire, there being but few places suitable for its nests. In the Wye
valley, and indeed throughout the county, where a vein of sand is
exposed above flood level, a colony establishes itself, as at the
Weir, and at the high river bank close to Clifford Castle ; and they
have recently established themselves in the mound at the back
of the Rifle-butts, Warham. But in Herefordshire such spots
are rare, as gravel is scarce throughout the county, and sand
almost unknown. How such tiny creatures can excavate such holes
at all, is a marvel, but they congregate in large colonies, wherever
they establish themselves. Their nests are said generally to abound
in fleas, especially as the summer advances. Boys, beware !

[Genus — Progne.]

[Progne purpurea — Purple Martin.]

Said to have been shot at Kingston, County Dublin, 1840.

46 TREE-CREEPER. GOLDFINCH.

Section— OSCINES CURVIROSTRES.

Family— CERTHIID^.

Genus— CERTHIA.

CERTHIA FAMILIARIS— Tree-Creeper.

This small unobtrusive bird is probably more common
throughout the county than is generally thought.

It is not uncommon about Aymestrey. The Rev. Thomas
Woodhouse says, " Its movements have a marked resemblance to
those of a mouse ; it has the oddest way of running up the trunk
and round the branches of the trees, in a rapid, stealthy, hurried
manner."

Its small size, brown colour, and quick creeping movements,
enable it easily and dexterously to elude observation by passing
behind the tree in its diligent search for insects.

[Trichodroma muraria — Wall-creeper.]
Norfolk, 1792. No late record.

[Section— Oscines conirostres.]

[Family — Fringillid^.]

[Sub-family — Fringillin^.]

[Genus— Cyanospiza.]

[Cyanospiza ciris— Nonpareil Finch.]

Portland Island, 1802 ; probably an escape trom confinement.

Genus— CARDUELIS.
CARDUELIS ELEGANS— Goldfinch.

The gowd-spink, music's gaj'est child.

Burns.

GOLDFINCH. 4y

Goldfinch, pride of woodland glade,
In thy jet and gold array 'd,
Gentle bird, that lov'st to feed
On the thistle's downy seed,
Freely frolic, lightly sing,
In the sunbeam spread thy wing.

This most beautiful of the Finches, sometimes called " the
Seven Coloured Linnet," is fairly plentiful, and distributed generally
throughout the county. In the autumn it congregates in considerable
flocks to feed on the thistle down in open localities, such as commons
and hills.

The Goldfinch is the farmer's great friend, for its favourite food
is the seed of thistles, and it also freely eats those of dandelions and
other weeds.

But mark the pretty bird, himself, how light

And quick his every motion, every note !

How beautiful his plumes ; his red ringed head ;

His breast of brown ; and see him stretch his wings,

A fairy face of golden spokes it seems.

Oft on a thistle tuft, he, whistling, sits

Light on the down ; then, midst a flight of down,

He wings his way piping his shi'illest call.

Graka^ie— Birds of Scotland.

The song of the Goldfinch is not powerful, but it is very soft
and expressive. We may be sure when we hear it, that Spring has
once more returned ; and even when in captivity, amidst the smoke
and dirt of a crowded city, the heart of the artisan is cheered by
the remembrance of green lanes, and scented hedge-rows, as he
listens to the sweet song poured forth by the contented little
prisoner.

The nest of the Goldfinch is small, and very neatly covered
with white lichens. It is usually situated near the end of a bough,
and to prevent the eggs being blown out by the wind, it is deep
and contracted round the opening. The beauty of the birds and
nests together is very remarkable.

Gaylard he was, as Goldfynch in the schawe.

Chaucer— 7%e Cokes Tale.

The Goldfinch weaves, with yellow down inlaid.
And cannach tufts his wonderful abode.

Grahaue— Birds of Scotland,

48 SISKIN.

Cowper's lament on the Goldfinch starved to death in its cage
should shame the keepers of such pretty pets to greater care : —

Time was when I was free aa air,
The thistle's downy seed my fare,

My drink the morning dew ;
I perch'd at will on every spray,
My form genteel, my plumage gay.

My strains for ever new.

CowPER— (toW/mcA.

[Genus — Chrysomitris.]

[Chrysomitris citrinella — Citril Finch.]

Of most doubtful occurrence.

CHRYSOMITRIS SPINUS— Siskin.
S^Cardiielis spinus — Yarrell?^
This pretty little Finch occurs sparingly throughout the county.
It was present in May, 1883, in the shrubberies of Letton Court,
where it bred in all probability.

The Rev. Clement Ley says it usually frequents the willows
on the banks of the Wye, near Ross, in small flocks during the
winter.

[Genus — Crithagra.]

[Crithagra chrysopyga — Yellow-rumped Seed-eater.

Near Portsmouth, 1853.

[Genus — Serinus.]

[Serinus hortulanus — Serin.]

Somersetshire, Sussex, and near London.

[Serinus canarius — Canary.]
Escaped from captivity.

GREENFINCH. HAWFINCH. 49

Genus— LIGURINUS.
LIGURINUS CHLORIS— Greenfinch.

\Coccothraiistes chloris — Yarrell?\

Like the Linnet green in May,
Flitting to each blooming spray.

A. Phillips— Oc?es.

The Greenfinch is very common in every part of the county,
and remains with us throughout the year. It is a good friend to the
farmer and gardener, as it feeds its young entirely upon soft seeds,
thus destroying countless weeds. It begins to sing rather late in
the Spring, and will in captivity imitate the songs of other birds.

One have I marked, the happiest guest
In all this covert of the blest ;
Hail to thee, far above the rest

In joy of voice and pinion !
Thou Linnet ! in thy green array.
Presiding spirit here to-day,
Dost lead the revels of the May ;

And this is thy dominion.

Wordsworth— G^reen Linnet.

Genus -COCCOTHRAUSTES.

COCCOTHRAUSTES VULGARIS— Hawfinch.

The Hawfinch is not a common bird in Herefordshire, and
yet it is a regular winter visitant in some localities, a few remaining
to breed. A pair of Hawfinches were shot by the late Mr. Pearce
in the shrubberies at Culver Hill, Norton Canon (c 1845.)
Mr. Lingwood's notes say, " Lyston, 1847 ; Aylston Wood, nesting,
1849; Eyston, March, i860." The late Captain Mayne Reid
found a nest with two eggs in it near Ross (c. 1878), and these
eggs are now in the possession of Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross.
Nests have also been found at Colwall. The Hawfinch built in an
apple tree at Lucton, June, 1884; and there was another nest at

50 HOUSE-SPARROW.

Walford, in June, 1884. A Hawfinch was caught in a trap at
Stretton Rectory in 1878 or 1879. It had both its legs broken,
so could not be released. It was a hen bird, and bit fiercely, with
the wonderful strength of beak characteristic of the bird. It was
sent to the Hereford Museum. The Hawfinch has also been shot
in many places in the county. A specimen at this time (March,
1884) has just been brought to the Museum from Dormington,
where it was shot on a heap of apple refuse.

This bird will sometimes suspend itself by the beak like a
parrot.

Genus— PASSER.
PASSER DOMESTICUS— House-sparrow.

In busy mart, and crowded street,
Here the smoke-brown Sparrow sits.

Eliza Cook— Birds.

Where noisy Sparrows perch 'd on pent-house near,
Chirp tuneless joy, and mock the frequent tear.

Crabbe — Baptism.

This highly intelligent bird is as abundant and self-possessed
in Herefordshire as it is throughout England. If it does not quite
understand the human language, it appreciates very cleverly every
intonation of the human voice, and knows in an instant whether it
has to deal with a friend or an enemy.

This pert little impudent bird is well nigh omnivorous.
M. Prevost says " it varies its food according to circumstances.
In a wood, it lives on insects and seeds ; in a village, it eats seeds,
grain, and grubs of butterflies, &c. ; in a city, it lives on all kinds of
{fedris ; but it prefers cockchafers, and some other insects to all
other food." It eats caterpillars in a garden, but it destroys young
peas just coming up, crocus blossoms, and all sorts of garden seeds,
and is far too cunning to be kept away by anything but a net.

TREE-SPARROW. CHAFFINCH. 51

Touch not the little Sparrow, who doth build
His home so near us. He doth follow us
From spot to spot, amidst the turbulent town,
And ne'er deserts us. To all other birds.
The woods suffice, the rivers, the sweet fields,
And nature in her aspect mute and fair ;
But he doth herd with man.

Bakrt Cornwall.

PASSER MONTANUS— Tree-sparrow.

From the summit of the leafless elm,
Excessive chirpings pour, fond parliament
Where all are speakers, and none sits to hear.

HunDis— Favorite Village.

A more shy and solitary bird than the House-sparrow, but
common throughout the county in all suitable localities, as any one
who distinguishes the note will testify. Hard weather may make
them associate with each other, but they are very distinct birds.
The Tree-sparrow has its own peculiar habits and instincts. Its
gentle song may often be heard in the depth of winter.

One gleam of merry sunlight thrown

The opening clouds between.
Wakes up my song the warmth to own,

Cheering the winter scene.

Evans— -SoM^s of the Birds.

Genus— FRINGILLA.
FRINGILLA CALEBS— Chaffinch.

The merry Chaffinch.

Mackay.

I'm the " perpetuum mobile " of birds ;

My days are running, rippling, twittering streams ;

When fast asleep, I'm broad awake in dreams.

Montgomery— -Bird*.

5l2'' BRAMBLING OR MOUNTAIN-FINCH.

The Pyefinch, or Pinkin, as it is locally called, is very common
throughout the county, where some few hen birds certainly remain
through the winter.

Linnaeus gave it the name of Coelehs (or bachelor) from flocks
of males only remaining for the winter.

A strange variety in the eggs of the Chaffinch has been
observed by the Rev. Clement Ley in Herefordshire and elsewhere.
They are nearly round, larger and heavier than usual, with the
colour of the Bullfinch's egg, but with less decided markings.

The Chaffinch is a bold pugnacious bird, who fights furiously
for his lady's love in the spring, to desert her in autumn. His
song is cheerful, and seems to speak of happiness and enjoyment,
but there is little melody, and no softness in it.

On the Continent the male Chaffinch is much esteemed.
'' Gai comme pinion " is a proverb ; and in Germany they are '
taught to sing matches against each other.

While the Chaffinch sings on the orchard bough.

Browning.

She sits conceal'd
Within the nest deep-hollowed, well disguised
With lichens grey and mosses gradual blent,
As if it were a knurle in the bough.

Gkahame— £irc?s of Scotland,

FRINGILLA MONTIFRINGILLA— Brambling or

Mountain-finch.

The fox-glove tall—
. . . . Bends beneath the upspringing Lark
Or Mountain Finch alighting.

Coleridge — The Keepsake.

A frequent winter visitant to this county, but its numbers vary
greatly in different seasons. It is usually to be met with in all the
midland districts of the county, in small flocks, often associating
with Linnets, Chaffinches, and other small birds.

LINNET. MEALY REDPOLL. .53

Genus— LINOTA.
LINOTA CANNABINA— Linnet.

And the gay Linnet, and the airy Thrush,
Responsive whistle from the hawthorn bush.

Mary Howett.

Some humble heart is sore and sick with grief,
And straight thou comest with thy gentle song,
To wile the sufferer from his hate or wrong.
By bringing nature's love to his relief.

Linnet, wild Linnet !

Robert Nicoll.

This active lively bird is abundant in Herefordshire. The
Linnets in the autumn and winter months congregate together very
merrily. " Everyone in the country," says Sir William Jardine,
" towards the close of a fine winter evening, must often have
remarked the Linnets perched on the summit of some bare tree,
pluming themselves in the last rays of the sun, chirruping the
commencement of their evening song, then bursting simultaneously
into one general chorus ; again resuming their single strains, and
again joining, as if happy and rejoicing at the termination of their
day's employment." In spring they resort in pairs by preference
to the blooming furze bushes on the wild common.

Nor are the Linnets, o'er the flowering furze
Pour'd out profusely, silent.

Thomson— Spring.

The Linnet gets its scientific name from the preference it
shows to the seeds of the flax, limim, and hemp, cannabis.

LINOTA LINARIA— Mealy Redpoll.

This bird is not abundant in Herefordshire, but it does often
occur, and probably is still more often overlooked.

54 LESSER REDPOLL. TWITE. BULLFINCH.

LINOTA RUFESCENS— Lesser Redpoll.

The Lesser Redpoll must also be pronounced as not common
in Herefordshire. Small flocks are sometimes seen during the
winter months, and it is believed that a few remain to nest here.
It chooses a very similar situation to that of the Chaffinch for
building its very small nest. " It is far more rare here in summer,"
says Mr. Ley, " than in the more northern counties."

[LiNOTA hornemanni — Greenland Redpoll.]
Accidental in Europe. Whitburn, Durham, 1885.

LINOTA FLAVIROSTRIS— Twite.

The Twite is a winter visitant, whose numbers vary very much.
On the slopes of the Black Mountains, and in the higher districts of
the county, it is sometimes to be seen in tolerable abundance.

[Sub-family — Loxiin^e.]

[Genus — Carpodacus.]

[Carpodacus erythrinus — Rosy Bullfinch.]

Once near Brighton, and once near London.

Genus— PYRRHULA.
PYRRHULA EUROP^A— Bullfinch.

The mellow Bullfinch answers from the grove.

Thomson— S«<Mon».

Whistles soft his flute-like note.

Savage— Wanderer.

CROSSBILL. 55

Bully, what fairy warbles in thy throat ?
— " Oh for the freedom of my own wild note !
Art hath enthralled my voice. I strive in vain
To break the linked sweetness of my chain ;
Love, joy, rage, grief, ring out melodious strain.

IVIONTGOMEKY— Bt?*rfs.

This bird is fairly common throughout the county, and is
sometimes seen in considerable numbers. A spring rarely passes
without an invasion of the city gardens by a flock of Bullfinches.
In their search for insects they are apt to disbud the fruit trees
altogether, and they are thus no favourites with the gardeners.
The buds of many trees have a great attraction for them, not only
of the gooseberry, apple, pear, plum, and cherry, but also of the
white and black thorn, the larch and birch trees, and if allowed
they will destroy them all.

The Bullfinch, for some reason or other, is called a "Whoop"
in Herefordshire, and would not be known amongst common people
by any other name. He sometimes also is called a "Tope".

[Genus — Pinicola.]

[PiNicoLA ENUCLEATOR — Pine-grosbeak.]

\_Pyrrhiila enucleator — Yarreil^

Said to have occurred near Newcastle, and also near Exeter.

[Genus — Loxia.]

[LoxL\ pityopsittacus — Parrot Crossbill.]

Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Middlesex, and Hampshire.

LOXIA CURVIROSTRA— Crossbill.

This very interesting bird is a frequent visitant to Hereford-
shire, and sometimes stays to breed here. It is much more
numerous in some seasons than others. In years favourable to its
appearance here, numerous small flocks may be observed all

56 CROSSBILL.

through the county wherever the larch, spruce, or Scotch firs
abound. "In 1868," says the Rev. Clement Ley, "June was
the only month out of twelve successive months in which the
Crossbills failed to appear in the Vicarage garden at Sellack, near
Ross. They came in small companies, usually with one or two
young birds in each flock, and seldom remained above a few
hours; curiously enough, they generally came in the odd numbers
of three, five, or seven. They are tame, bold birds, and are not
afraid of being looked at. Very curious and interesting it was to
watch their parrot-like movements, as they chmbed from bough to
bough of the spruce fir trees, frequently breaking off a spray with
a cone attached to it. This they grasped in their claws whilst they
extracted the seeds, producing a loud snapping noise with their
powerful bills. Amongst them were several young males of the
year, whose brilliant rosy plumage formed a striking contrast to the
almost sooty hues of their companions." A small flock visited the
Scotch fir plantation near the gardens at Holme Lacy for many
years in succession, and this, too, generally presented the mysterious
odd numbers of five or seven. They have also been observed at
Breinton, Colwall, Dinmore, and other places where fir plantations
abound.

Mr. James W. Lloyd exhibited young birds shot in the
neighbourhood of Kington in the year 1868.

Mr. Edwin Lees, writes — " In an old History of Birds,
published in the last century, it is said that Crossbills visit the
orchards of Herefordshire and Worcestershire in great numbers,
destroying the apples for the sake of their enclosed kernels, and
hence the bird received the name of ' Shell-apple.'"

The bill of the young bird in the nest is not crossed, but it
becomes so when it begins to seek its food for itself. This crossing of
the mandibles is quite unique, and has given rise to the legend that
this bird acquired its peculiar conformation of bill and coloration
of plumage, from its efforts to withdraw the nails and release the
suffering Saviour at the crucifixion. This legend is best known by
Longfellow's version of Mosen's jDoem, which concludes thus :

CORN BUNTING. 57

And that bird is called the cross-bill :

Covered all with blood so clear.
In the yroves of piiie it singeth

Songs, like legends, strange to hear.

[LoxiA LEUCOPTERA — White-wingcd Crossbill.]
Worcester, 1838; Great Yarmouth, 1870.

[LoxiA BiFASCiATA — Two-barred Crossbill.]
Cumberland, Suffolk, Essex, and Cornwall.

[Sub-family — EMBERiziNiE.]

[Genus — Emberiza.]

[Emberiza melanocephala — Black-headed Bunting.]

\Euspiza mela7wcephala — ^arrell?^

Brighton, 1868.

EMBERIZA MILIARIA— Corn Bunting.

The Bunting, or Bunting Lark, is not unfrequent ; being fairly
distributed over the arable parts of the county. It can scarcely be
said to be abundant in Herefordshire. It lives in pairs during the
spring and summer, but becomes gregarious through the autumn
and winter, when it associates with Chaffinches, Yellow Hammers,
Linnets, Sparrows, and other farm-yard visitors. It feeds on corn
and seeds of plants principally, and is so determined a corn hunter,
that it will pull out the straws from the stack to get at the ears of
corn, and in this way a flock of them sometimes does much
mischief.

This Bunting is thought to be a favourite quarry of the Sparrow
Hawk, from its being often found in the Hawk's stomach by the
bird-stuffer.

58 YELLOW-HAMMER.

EMBERIZA CITRINELLA— Yellow-hammer.
[ Yellcnv-bunting — Yarrell?\

I even love the Yellow-hammer's song.
When earliest birds begin to budge, his note,
Simple, reiterated, oft is heard
In leafless briar, or half-grown hedgerow tree ;
Nor is he silent until autumn's leaves
Fall fluttering round his head of golden hue.

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

The Yellow-hammer, or Writing Lark, as schoolboys call it,
from the lines and blots of reddish purple which cover its eggs, is
a very common bird to be seen on every sunny hedgerow. The
cock bird is very handsome, and would be highly esteemed if it
were more rare. The Yellow-hammer is given to frequent the
same localities year after year, and may always be found about the
same hedges and fields.

" In the deep silence of noon," says Mr. Evans, " when
scarcely a bird's voice is to be heard, and the songsters seem all
to be taking their rest, as the Yellow-hammer sits on the topmost
bough of the hedge, his peculiar note with its long plaintive
cadence still rings in our ears."

Each bird, now day is at its height,

Flies off on careless wing.
And in the depth of their delight

They all forget to sing !
My lowly note is left alone,
To break the stillness of the golden noon.

Evans— Song's of the Birds.

Its song consists simply of a single note eight or ten times
rapidly repeated, finishing with one long drawn out note, in a lower
key. Country people translate it thus :

A little bit of bread and butter and no c-h-e-e-s-e.

In Scotland the interpretation, according to Macgillivray, is
different, he giving it thus :

Deil, deil, deil, deil, tak ye-e-e-e.
(i.e.., ye who would rob his nest.)

It is a grain and seed eating bird, partially useful and partially

CIRL BUNTING. 59

mischievous. The description of the situation its nest is usually
found in, is well given by Grahame :

Up from that ford a little bank there was,
With alder-copse and willow overgrown,
Now worn away by mining winter floods ;
There at a bramble root, sunk in the grass.
The hidden prize of withered field straws formed,
Well lined with many a coil of hair and moss.
And in it laid five red-veined spheres, I found.

— Birds of Scotland.

EMBERIZA CIRLUS— CiRL Bunting.

This bird is a native of the county, and not an occasional
visitant. It is more shy than the Yellow-hammer, and thus
perhaps not so often observed. "Anyone," says Mr. Ley, "who
can distinguish its note," will come to the conclusion that it is not
an uncommon bird in Herefordshire. It takes up its residence in
certain localities, where it is always to be seen year after year.
The male bird selects a favourite tree, from which to sing its
monotonous song. This song is somewhat like that of the Yellow
Hammer, without the long final note, and is given doubtless for
the delectation of its mate seated on her eggs. There is one such
selected spot on the Callow Pitch ; another at Birch ; another at
King's Caple; another at the Chase, Ross, and probably many
others. The nest is very difficult to find ; one was found with eggs
in it close to Mitcheldean-road station in 1880.

[Emberiza hortulana — Ortolan Bunting.
South and East of England.

[Emberiza rustica — Rustic Bunting.]
Brighton and Yorkshire.

[Emberiza pusilla — Little Bunting.]
Brighton, 1864.

6o REED-BUNTING. SNOW-BUNTING.

EMBERIZA SCHCEXICLUS— Reed-bunting.

The Reed Sparrow, or Black-headed Bunting, is widely
distributed in Herefordshire, but is nowhere very plentiful. Where
reeds, rushes, osiers, and alders are plentiful, there the Reed
Bunting takes up its spring and summer quarters ; and the male
bird, with its black head and white collar, will generally attract
notice. Its food consists of all sorts of aquatic insects and small
Crustacea, as well as corn and seeds of various weeds ; nor does it
disdain to leave its secluded retreats, to join the public crowd in
visiting the farm yards during autumn and winter.

[Genus — Calcarius.]

[Calcarius lapponicus — Lapland Bunting.]

yPlectrophanes lapponicus — Yarrell?^

Brighton, London, Norfolk, Shropshire, Lancashire, Westmoreland.

Genus— PLECTROPHANUS.

PLECTR0PHANE5 NIVALIS— Snow-bunting.

A very rare visitor to the county. Mr. Lingwood says in his
notes — "Seen in the flesh at Baker's (the bird-stuffer's), in Hereford,
December, 1854; shot on the Malvern Hills by Mr. Archer in
February, 1856; and also at Pool Cottage, Much Dewchurch,
1856." The last specimen is now in the Hereford Museum.

[Genus — Zonotrichia.]

[ZoNOTRiCHiA albicollis — Whitc-throatcd Song-sparrow.]

Aberdeen, 1867 ; Brighton, 1872, probably escapes.

[Section — Oscines cultrirostres.]

[Family — Icterid^.]

[Genus— AGEL.EUS.]

[Agel/eus phceniceus — Red-winged Starling.]

STARLING. 6 1

[Genus — Sturnella.]

[Sturnella magna — American Meadow Starling.]

Norfolk, 1854.

[Genus — Scolecophagus.]

[ScoLECOPHAGUS FERRUGiNEus— Rusty Grackle.]

Cardiff, 1881.

Family— STURNID.^.

Genus— STURNUS.

STERNUS VULGARIS— Starling.

I can't get out ! I can't get out !

— Sterne's Starlhig.

The byrcles gay,
Starling, Cuckoo, or Popynjay.

Of all the birds whose tuneful throats,
Do welcome in the verdant spring,
I prefer the Steerling's notes,
And think she does most sweetly sing.

Allan Ramsay.

The " Stare," as it is commonly called in Herefordshire, is
very abundant throughout the county. Great numbers of them
must have been destroyed by the severe weather of 1 880-1, since
they were very much less numerous during the following summer, but
they are increasing again very rapidly. The imposition of the gun
license favours the Starlings greatly, and it is well that it does so, for
their general usefulness to farmers in particular, and to mankind
in general, can no longer be questioned. In a paper on "The
Food of Small Birds," pubHshed in the Zoologist for 1863, M.
Prevost gives the results drawn from anatomical examinations of
the crops of many birds at different months of the year, in order to
estimate the benefit, or the injury, rendered by them to mankind.
The monthly food of the Starling M. Prevost gives as follows : —
"January, worms, grubs of cockchafers, and grubs in dung; February,
grubs, snails, and slugs ; March, grubs of cockchafers and snails ;

62 STARLING.

April, the same ; May, the same, with grasshoppers ; June, flies,
and grubs of various flies ; July, grubs and fresh water shell fish ;
August, flies, glowworms, and various beetles ; September, green
locusts, grubs of carrion beetles and worms ; October, worms and
beetles ; November and December, snails, slugs, and grubs. In
summer it adds a little fruit, and in winter hips, haws, and buds
of trees." The gardeners, however, bring no complaints against
Starlings here, and these details prove their great usefulness in
destroying an abundance of insects.

In the Zoologist (p. 9280) an instance is mentioned by M.
Cordeaux, of Starlings collecting in a field of vetches which were
going off very much in appearance one dry summer. Two of them
were shot, and their stomachs were found to be crammed with
insects — earwigs, some small bronze beetles, with a large mass of
green aphis, which it was afterwards found were destroying the
vetches. Starlings may often be seen, too, on sheep's backs,
feeding on the ticks they find in the wool.

Starlings are eminently gregarious, and the enormous flocks
which may be observed in spring and autumn, leave no room to
wonder that our extensive orchards and buildings should be so well
tenanted. They differ remarkably in their habits. Some inhabit
roofs and out-buildings, and frequent the haunts of men ; staying
quietly in the same place all the year round ; showing no wish to
stray ; and seeming to take no notice of their wilder congeners.
Others form very large flocks, which inhabit wild and solitary
places, nesting in hollow trees, and roosting in reeds, thickets, and
remote woods, from which they issue in great numbers in pursuit
of food, often flying long distances.

High on the topmost branches of the elm,
In subtle conversation sits the flock
Of social Starlings, the withdrawing beam
Enjoying, supperless, of hasty day.

Humns— Favorite Village.

Large flocks of Starlings often perform the most curious
manoeuvres ; they soar high in the air, fly very swiftly, and
wheel suddenly about, as if in obedience to command. In the

STARLING. 63

meadows, when feeding on the ground, they advance in bodies,
sometimes in a square, or at an angle ; or again in a compact
mass ; some fifty or sixty of those in the rear will rise, fly over the
rest, and alight just in front of the main body. These again will
be followed by others in a similar manner ; then they will all rise
suddenly together, with loud clamour into the air. These well
drilled obedient birds, it may be observed, evidently have sentinels
of their own, for they are very difficult of approach. The House
Starlings, so to speak, do not seem to associate with these military
birds. They are gregarious too, but they consort with the Rooks, in
whose watchfulness against danger they possess perfect confidence.
In the severe winter of 1 880-1 the Starlings remaining here,
suffered severely. They were so tame, when grubbing beneath the
snow on the roadsides, that they allowed passers-by to come close
to them, and could easily have been caught by hand.

Starlings from time immemorial have been favourite pets. In
a wild state they will often imitate the cries and notes of other
birds, and they may be taught to whistle particular tunes, to imitate
noises, and to say many words with great distinctness. The
barbarous custom of splitting their tongues, does not in any way
render it more easy for them to talk as is vulgarly supposed, since
the vocal vibration is formed solely in the throat, but this
cruelty, does very much interfere with the comfort of the bird
in taking its food.

The faculty of imitation in the Starhng is very great. Shakes-
peare incidentally pays a tribute to their cleverness in talking :

I'll have a Starling taught to speak
Nothing but " Mortimer," and give it him,
To keep his anger still in motion.

—1st Part Henry IV., I., 3.

Starlings vary in their plumage, and in their glossy metallic tints
of purple and green ; the tips of the feathers may be white, as is
usual, or yellow ; some are almost black ; others have white feathers
in their wings ; and occasionally birds are observed with large
patches of white about them.

64 ROSE-COLOURED PASTOR. JAY.

Genus— PASTOR.

PASTOR ROSEUS— Rose-coloured Pastor.

[^Rose-coloured Starling — YarrellP^

There is only one known instance of this bird having visited
Herefordshire. The specimen is in the Hereford Museum, labelled
" Garway, 1858." It was formerly in the collection of the Hereford
Philosophical and Literary Institution.

[Family — Corvid/E.]

[Genus — Pyrrhocorax.]

[Pyrrhocorax graculus — Chough.]

On high cliffs in the Southern counties.

[Genus — Nucifraga.]

[NuciFRAGA caryocatactes — Nut-cracker.]

Yorkshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Kent, Sussex, Hampshire, Devonshire,

and Flintshire.

Genus— GARRULUS.
GARRULUS GLANDARIUS— Jay.

What ! is the Jay more preciotis than the Lark,
Because his feathers are more beautiful ?

Shakespeare — Taming of the Shrew IV. 3.

The painted Jay.

GxY— Shepherd's Walk,

As eny Jay sche light was and jolyf.

Chaucer — Reeve's Tale.

This handsome bird is still very common in all the wooded
districts of the county, where it is resident all the year. It has
many persevering enemies : gamekeepers, gardeners, milliners,
fishing-fly makers, and boyhood in general ; but it is a shy, wary

MAGPIE. 65

bird, that keeps closely to the woods, and is thus equal to them all.
Its chief food consists for the greater part of the year of worms,
insects, slugs, mice, frogs, eggs, and young callow birds ; and when
in season, acorns, nuts, and beech mast, all of which it hides here
and there, as fancy dictates. In the autumn it attacks the orchards
and gardens, tempted by strawberries, cherries, plums, or peas, and
there is no safety until one or two of them are shot and hung up.
Silent in spring and summer, it is noisy enough at other seasons.
Chaucer calls it " The Scorning Jay."

Thou janglest as a Jay.

Chaucer— iJ/an of Lawes Talc.

But Cowper, with his kind and gentle nature, says —

The Jay, the Pie, and e'en the boding Owl,
That hails the rising moon, have charms for me.

No longer scolds the saucy Jay.

HuRDis— FiZ^a^'e Curate.

From Bruno's forest screams the affrighted Jay.

Words WORTH— Sketches .

The prating Jay.

QUARLES.

Thou hast a crested poll, and scutcheoned wing,
Fit for a herald of the eagle king ;
But such a voice, I would that thou could'st sing.
" My bill has rougher work — to scream with fright,
And then when screaming will not do, to fight."

Montgomery— £trti5.

Genus— PICA.
PICA RUSTICA— Magpie.

Augurs, and understood relations, have

By magot-pies, and choughs, and rooks brought forth

The secret'st man of blood.

Shakespeare- ilfac6c<A ///. 4-

66 MAGPIE.

Magpies have ever been prophetic birds.

Among the Romans, not a bird
Without a prophecy was heard ;
Fortune of empires often hung
On the magician Magpie's tongue ;
And every Crow was to the State
A sure interpreter of fate.

Churchill— TAc Ghost.

They are, however, so plentiful in Herefordshire as almost to
put auguries at defiance ; yet still they say here —

One for sorrow,

Two for mirth.
Three for a wedding,

Four f,or a birth.

which is sometimes continued thus :

Five for a fiddle.

Six for a dance,
Seven for England,

Eight for France.

and many other Magpie portents could be named. The augury by

number seems, however, to differ according to the age. In 1775,

Tim Bobbin says —

I saigh two rott'n Pynots (hong'em) that wur a sign o' bad fashin : for I
heard my Gronny say, hood as lief o' seen two owd harries, as two Pynots.

And Magpies that chattered, no omen so black,
Odd Crows that are constantly fix'd in my track,
Plain prov'd that bad luck would betide.

Clare — Disappointment.

Magpies have many enemies, and numbers are always to be
seen on the keepers' gibbets. They are apt to suck wild ducks'
^ggs and other eggs when they find them, and kill young chickens,
ducklings, rabbits or leverets ; so a bitter war is declared against
them — ungrateful man being quite forgetful that their principal
food consists of worms, snails, slugs, insects, mice, rats, tS^c. — which
probably renders them, on the whole, much more useful than
injurious to agriculturists. They will eat grain, and carry off nuts
and walnuts, but these thefts are slight.

The Magpie is a shy, restless, noisy bird, chattering away on
the smallest occasion. The very name Mag-i^ie testifies to the bold
impudent familiarity of the bird ; Mag, being apparently the short

MAGPIE.

67

for Margaret, and Ma^-pie being thus a sort of sister to/ack-dsiw,
and Tom-tit. In Somersetshire, the bird is called the Chatter-mag.
It is always vigilant, and when anything excites its curiosity or
suspicion, as a dog, a fox, or a cat, it becomes extremely vociferous,
following up the intruder very perseveringly. Waterton gives a
curious instance of a notorious poacher having been captured by
this tell-tale peculiarity of the Magpie.

An impudent presuming Pye,
Malicious, ignorant, and sly.

CvNmNGKAU— Thrush and Pye.

The Magpie chatters with delight.

Wordsworth— 2%g Shepherd Boy.

From bough to bough the restless Magpie roves
And chatters as she flies.

GisBORNE— TTa^Zrs in the Forest.

The restless Pye,
So pert and garrulous from morn to night,
The scandal-monger prates.

^xsKDis,— Village Curate.

Three centuries ago there seem to have been but few Magpies
in Ireland. In 1578, Derricke, who wrote " The Image of Ireland,"
published in London in 1581, says —

No Pies to plucke the thatche from house,

are brede in Irishe grounde ;
But worse than Pies, the same to burne

a thousande maie be found e.

Magpies have since become very plentiful in Ireland, without
lessening the worse alternative, it is to be feared.

Pope is severe on the Magpie, but with a human one in his
mind's eye —

So have I seen in black and white,
A prating thing, a Magpie hight.

Majestically stalk ;
A stately worthless animal
That plies the tongue and wags the tail,

All flutter, pride and talk.

Magpies are easily tamed, and become lively and amusing pets.
They can be taught to speak very distinctly ; but they are notorious
thieves of small bright objects, which they carry off and hide, more
out of pure mischief, as it seems, than from any other motive.

68 JACKDAW.

Genus— CORVUS.
CORVUS MONEDULA— Jackdaw.

There is a bird, who, by his coat,
And by the hoarseness of his note,

Might be supposed a Crow ;
A great frequenter of the church,
Where bishop-like he finds a perch

And dormitory too.

CowPER — Jackdaw.

The Daw is a most familiar bird. He seems to consider
himself a part of the human community amongst which he is so
fond of dwelling. He is more bold and more domestic than the
Rook. There is scarcely a church tower in the county which
is not tenanted by a colony of Jackdaws.

The steeple loving Daw.

Yl.WB.T)i?>— Favorite Village.

The Daws throng on the steeple perch.
Ambitious of its loftiest vane.

HuRDis — Favorite Village.

On old castle walls, in chimneys of houses, on cliffs and in
hollow trees, the Jackdaw is sure to take up his residence. The
young birds are thus easily procured, and they are easily reared.
They become most amusing pets in the family, from the pert
impudence they so quickly assume. " Jack " takes his place in
the household, as if it naturally belonged to him ; and is ready to
enter into conversation from time to time with his short mter-
jectional note. Indeed, if you teach him, he will imitate the
human and other voices about the house. It may soon be said

of him : —

In and out
Through the motley rout
That little Jackdaw kept hopping about,
Here and there,
Like a dog in a fair.

He generally contrives, moreover, to do some mischief or other, in
the most secret and unexpected way. He is a great thief; will run
off with, and hide, anything that attracts his fancy— and

When nobody's dreaming of any such thing,
That little Jackdaw hops off with the ring.

Ingoldsby— TAe Jackdaw of Rheims.

JACKDAW. 69

The Rev. F. T. Havergal mentions a tame Jackdaw at Upton
Bishop, that accompanies the children of one of his parishioners to
school every day, a distance of nearly a mile. The bird remains
near the school-house, and at twelve o'clock may be seen on the
window-sill outside the room, strutting up and down, pecking at
the window, and uttering a sharp note to remind those within that
work should finish. It shows great pleasure when its little friends
appear, and hops on in front of them all the way home ; returning
in the same manner for the afternoon school. Having on one
occasion accompanied the children to the Vicarage to fetch some
milk, it now constantly extends its daily walk to the house to enjoy
the bread and milk placed ready for it.

Daws are omnivorous birds : they usually live on worms,
insects, snails, grubs, and beetles, but they are ready for anything,
from carrion to fruit and vegetables. They attack eggs of all sorts
whenever they can get them, and young birds too ; like the Starling,
they often take a ride on the back of a sheep, or cow, for the
insects they can find there. They will rob the garden of nuts,
walnuts, cherries, or plums ; and in winter are ready to share with
the Sparrows the bread-crumbs of the charitable. The Cathedral
Daws will even take bread from the window sills of the Free
Library, and carry it off to the nearest pinnacle to enjoy at leisure.

Jackdaws are so numerous m the old oaks of some of our
parks, that the eggs are sent in by the keepers as a breakfast
delicacy. If a tree is decayed the Daws will quickly find it out
and nest there.

The Rev. W. Baskerville Mynors states that there is at this
time (1884) a pied Jackdaw, marked very much like a Magpie,
amongst the colony which inhabits the church tower at Llanwarne.

The Jackdaw, like the rest of his tribe, has been celebrated
from the earliest times for longevity :

Nine generations doth the chattering Daw,
Of men at prime of life, surpass in years ;
This space the stag quadruples, and three stags,
Ere he grows old, the raven doth outlive.

HESion— i^ra£ir. 106, trans, by Rev. H. W. Phillott.

yo CARRION CROW.

CORVUS CORONE— Carrion Crow.

Heigho ! the Carrion Crow.

Old Ballad.

The Carrion Crow is a sexton bold,
He raketh the dead from out of the mould.
Caw ! Caw ! the Carrion Crow.

AiNSWORTH.

The preditious Crow !

QUARLES.

The toil more grateful as the task more low ;
So carrion is the quarry of the Crow.

Mallet— F€?'6a^ Criticism.

The Black, or Carrion Crow, is one of the most heinous of
feathered offenders. Nothing comes amiss to him. He Hves almost
exclusively on animal matter, from the grubs of insects, to the
carcass of a quadruped. He thrives on the refuse of the land and
the water ; dead, or drowned animals, fish, and offal of every kind.
He will even attack living animals when young, or weak ; young
lambs, leverets, rabbits, moles, rats, mice, ducklings, chickens, or
game of any kind. He is remarkably fond of eggs, and will
deliberately beat the moors and fields for the eggs of grouse,
partridges, or pheasants. The Crow thus makes for himself enemies
on all sides, and yet so great is his sagacity, that in wild and
wooded districts he is able to defy them all. Traps are nearly
useless, but poisoned eggs and poisoned meat are very fatal to him.

The Crow is very common throughout Herefordshire, and

very abundant in the wilder portions of the county. They

frequently nest within a mile of the city, escaping often no doubt

from their resemblance to Rooks. One noticeable point about

the habits of the Crow is, that he is seldom seen alone. He seems

to be so, as he sits on the bare bough of an oak peering round on

all sides ; but his faithful partner is not far off ; and erelong she

appears. Buffon says the Carrion Crows divide the country into

districts of about a quarter of a league, and that each pair maintains

its own rights and does not allow another pair to build within its

territory.

The Crows perched on the murrain'd cattle.

Shelley.

CARRION CROW. 7 I

And Crows on eager wings,
To tear the flesh of captains,
And peck the eyes of kings.

Macaxjlay— Lake RegiUus.

From the earliest times auguries have been drawn from Crows.
Virgil notices a Crow on the left hand as a sign of good luck.

Ante sinistra eavS, monuisset ab ilice cornix.

Ec. ix., 15.

And when two or more are seen by a newly married couple it is
stated by Fosbrook as a sign of good luck (and Crows include
Rooks here, ladies 1 ) ; but its croaking at all times was of evil
omen. — (Antiquities^ p. T024).

Is it not ominous in all countries
When Crows and Ravens croak in trees ?

Butler— ^uc?t6ras.

If the old shower-foretelling Crow

Croak not her boding note in vain,
To-morrow's eastern storm shall strow

The woods with leaves, with weeds the main.

Francis Horace— Oc?e XYII.

The Crow has had a bad character from a remote period. The
old border ballad, "The Twa Corbies," said to date from the
sixteenth century, supposes two Crows in conversation.

The t'ane unto t'other did say,
Where sail we gang and dine to-day.

In behint yon old fell dyke

I wot there lies a new-slain knight.

Ye'll sit on his white hause-bain,
And I'll pick out his bonny blue een ;
Wi ae lock o' his gowden hair
We'll theek our nest when it grows bare.

The imaginary conversation between the Crows in this ballad,
and also in a similar old one, that of " The three Ravens," may
possibly have given rise to the nursery imitation of crow language,
often given by old nurses to amuse Herefordshire children. The
first Crow comes flying home in a hurry, crying out " Dead horse,"
" Dead horse." His mate at home says, " Whar ? " " Whar ? " and
when the first Crow has answered " Down at Monkmoor," " Down

72 CARRION CROW.

at Monkmoor," away they both fly together. At Leominster the
answer is " Portley-moor Lane," " Portley-moor Lane," being a place
about two miles from the town.

The Crow, however, is not so black in character as he is
painted. When they are not so numerous as to make food scarce,
they do little injury to man. For nine or ten months in the year,
as Waterton observes, they are very active for his benefit by the
consumption of large quantities of noxious larvae. They destroy
also numbers of mice and rats, and act generally as scavengers of
the district in devouring the flesh of dead animals that would other-
wise pollute the air.

The fold stands empty in the drowned field,
And Crows are fatted with the murrain flock.

Shakespeare— Jiici. Sum. Night's Dream, II., 1.

In hieroglyphics a Crow symbolises contention, discord, or
strife, though here it may mean equally a Raven, or a Rook. In
Howell's Proverbs (1659) it is said that children of distinction
among the Greeks and Romans had birds for their amusements,
and in their quarrels used to pluck or pull the feathers from each
other's pets ; and that hence has arisen the terms of " plucking
a Crow " for disputes about trifles. A " Crow to pick " is an
explanation to demand, or a disagreeable matter to settle : —

If you dispute, we must even pluck a Crow about it.

V Estrange.

If not, resolve before you go
That you and I must pluck a Crow.

Butler— fi^wdiftros.

We'll pull that old Crow, my father.

Dekker— " ^onesi Woman " (1630).

With country folk the Crow is sometimes used as a symbol of
independence. A Herefordshire servant girl who had a good
place and was doing well, sent a message to her companion not
to be in too great a hurry to get out, for " service was not all
golden Crows." "A regular Crow," in the slang dictionary, is
equivalent to "a fluke," and means a stroke of good luck ; and "a
Crow" means, also, the man who watches whilst his companion

HOODED CROW. 73

commits a theft. The " Crow stone " is the top stone of the gable,
and a " Crow-bar " is a thing of weight and influence. Things that
closely resemble each other are, says Butler,

as like as Crow to Crow

Butler— Hudibras.

Crows have a history, too. In Henry VIII's day special Acts of
Parliament were passed for their destruction. In Queen Elizabeth's
time, every parish had to provide a Crow net to catch them ; and a
price has often been set upon their heads. These, and divers other
matters of interesting Crow-lore, will reward the search of the
persevering investigator, but he must ever bear in mind that
Crows, Rooks, and Ravens, are apt all to be confused together
by old writers under the much abused name of " Crow ; " just as
under the name of " Sparrow," whole tribes of little birds were
included, and involved in one indiscriminate massacre, as the
churchwarden's accounts of some country parishes bear witness.

CORVUS CORNIX— Hooded Crow.

The Grey, Hooded, or Royston Crow, is an occasional visitor
to Herefordshire. Mr. Lingwood says in his Notes, " Llanwarne,
January, 1850. Perrystone, February, i860." One was observed
at Letton in 1879 feeding on a dead salmon on the river bank;
and another was shot at Clehonger in 1881 ; Mr. Elwes, the bird
stuffer, at Ross, had a specimen sent him from the Marcle district ;
and Mr. W. Edwards, of Great Malvern, has another specimen
which was shot at Eastnor.

Yarrell thinks the Hooded Crow is but a variety of the
Carrion Crow, since they freely interbreed with each other ;
though they differ in colour, in the range of their appearance,
and to some slight extent also in their habits.

74 ROOK.

CORVUS FRUGILEGUS— Rook.

The Rooks with busy claw
Foraging for sticks and straw.

Keats— Fancy.

Lofty elms and venerable oaks
Invite the Rook, who, high amid the boughs,
In early spring his airy city builds,
And ceaseless, caws amusive.

Thomson— ^/jrtng'.

The Rook is a thoroughly gregarious bird. At all seasons of
the year Rooks flock together ; and their sociability may be said to
be also indicated, by the constant preference they show for the close
neighbourhood of mankind. Rookeries abound in Herefordshire ;
not only in the towns and villages ; by detached farm houses, and
farm buildings ; but also very frequently in the middle of large
woods, or occupying a small cluster of trees, away from human
vicinity. In the Cathedral Close in the centre of Hereford, the
elms are occupied at this time (1884) by a colony of thirty-six
nests ; and on those in the Castle Green there are now fifty-four
nests ; on Aylstone Hill there are but three nests this year ; but
within a short distance of the city are numerous other rookeries
more or less large.

In many cases Rooks each year desert the trees in which they
build, and roost for the autumn and winter months in other chosen
haunts, generally more sheltered spots in deep woods, returning to
the rookery in the spring. They have been noticed, however, to
visit the rookery occasionally, as if to see that the nests were safe
and unmolested.

The cawing Rooks alone
Maintain the song of life,
And prate amid the elms,
With harsh, rough, colloquy.
A music in itself,
Or, if not music, joy.

Mackay — Lullingsworth,

The Rook sits high when the blast sweeps by.

Right pleased with his wild see-saw ;
And though hollow and bleak, be the fierce wind's shriek,

It is mocked by his loud caw-caw.

Oh ! the merriest bird, the woods e'er saw,
Is the sable Rook with his loud caw-caw.

Eliza Cook— The Rook.

ROOK. 75

A volume might be written on the instinct and habits of
Rooks, their inteUigence, their prejudices, and their mode of
government, as shown by a close study of their proceedings. It
must suffice, however, now, simply to arraign their character, and
endeavour to show, whether they are beneficial or injurious to
mankind. The interest and pleasure afforded by a rookery far
outweighs any injury they may be supposed to do to the trees, or to
persons walking beneath them ; and the inquiry, therefore, confines
itself to the food they eat, and their dealings with agriculture.

M. Prevost from the examination of the crops of many birds
killed at all seasons of the year, gives the following result of
his observations as to the food of the Rook : " January, field
mice and grubs of cockchafers ; February, the same, with red
worms; March, larvae of insects and chrysalides; April, slugs, worms,
and chrysalides; May, beetles, larvae, prawns, and wire-worms; June,
cockchafers, eggs of birds and wood-boring beetles ; July, young
birds, beetles, &c.; August, birds, field mice, weevils, grasshoppers,
crickets, &c.; September, grubs and worms ; October, grasshoppers,,
ground beetles and young animals ; November, young rabbits,
different insects and grubs ; December, different animals and
decaying substances." M. Prevost clearly respected the Rooks
during the breeding season, or he would certainly have detected
the corn with which they are so fond of feeding their young ones ;
and the rabbit named in the catalogue too was probably an
exceptional article of diet.

The food of the Rook will vary according to the season.
In dry weather when slugs, snails, and worms are scarce, they
will take any eggs they can meet with, whether of ducks, poultry,
game, or even those of small birds. It is equally ready for
its shate of carrion, from a dead mouse or rat, to the body
of a sheep or horse. In the spring it takes the seed corn
freely ; it will also take the ripe corn from the sheaves, and
sometimes potatoes when newly planted or when the young
potatoes are formed. The Rook will also eat acorns, walnuts,
beechmast, and wild berries ; and in dry weather, too, it will take

76 ROOK.

cherries, plums, apples, and pears. It is very fond of walnuts,
and when its mind is set that way will soon clear the trees if not
prevented. Nothing, however, will save the walnuts, or potatoes
if once set upon — for the Rook is most determined in his
perseverance — but the sacrifice of a victim or two at the very
early dawn of day, and this will require much cunning for

Their dangers well the wary plunderers know,
And place a Avatch on some conspicuous bough.

In hard, frosty weather, which is often felt very severely by
Rooks, they will eat turnips, but never when they can get the
animal food, which is so much more to their taste.

Rooks have been accused of injuring pastures, but if they
pluck up the grass, it is only to get at the worms, slugs, and
cockchafer-caterpillars concealed by it. These they seem to detect
intuitively, and thus instead of doing injury to grass land, they do
real service there by destroying millions of these grubs.

Considering therefore that the attacks of Rooks upon potatoes,
fruit and vegetables, are only exceptional, the main charge against
them is that of eating the spring-sown corn and the ripe corn, and
the verdict on these counts must unhesitatingly be " guilty ! " Yet
how light and trifling is this injury, as compared with the very great
benefit derived from them by their wholesale destruction of grubs,
caterpillars and wireworms, all through the year.

Jesse, the naturalist, has well observed, that if ploughing and
sowing are going on together in the same field, the rooks will
follow the ploughman and not the sower ; and the truth of the
observation may be confirmed every spring.

The Rooks, however, will take very freely the new sown and
the ripe corn, so the fields at these times must be watched, and if
one or two are shot, for two or three days in succession, and duly
gibbeted, the rest will soon take themselves off to safer hunting
grounds. We may well, as the old poet says, pardon the Rooks if
we should censure the Pigeons.

Dat veniam corvis, vexat censura columbas.

ROOK. * 77

Once upon a time, as related by Mr. Stuart Menteath, of
Closeburn, the Devonshire farmers and proprietors made war
upon the Rooks, set a price upon their heads, and destroyed large
numbers. In three successive years the crops failed, and they
were thankful to encourage the Rooks and other insect eating
birds again. A similar experiment, he also says, was tried in one
of the northern counties with the same result. The well-known
botanist and naturalist, Lambert, on his death bed, gave with
difficulty as his last words to a relative, " Don't neglect the Rooks."

In most Rookeries the Rooks are shot annually (and very good
pies the young ones make, if a beefsteak is put at the bottom of the
dish). These shootings considerably check their increase m number ;
many perish in winter, if frost and snow should be long continued ;
and a very dry spring and summer are very fatal to Rooks. The grubs,
worms, and slugs, on which they usually feed, do not come to the
surface of the ground. The parent birds perambulate the fields,
and wander by the sides of the highways in search of food. They
can scarcely maintain themselves, and many nests of young birds
perish from starvation. The poor birds are at such times
dangerous to young birds of all kinds, and to young rabbits,
which they seize to save themselves from starvation. In such
Reasons, when moles cannot burrow in the hard ground, they
also are killed in great numbers by Rooks, as well as Crows.
There is one mode in which numbers of Rooks are often destroyed
in the most cruel way. The spring corn is sometimes dressed
with a solution of strychnine to preserve it from disease, and when
the birds take it, the result is most painful to witness. The ground
is strewn with the dead and dying. As many as 150 or even 200
have been seen lying in a single small field, and in addition to
these, many only reach the rookery to drop down dead beneath the
trees. The agony of death from the terrible spasms of strychnine
is fearful to contemplate, and when, too, the numerous young
birds left to die in the nests from starvation are thought of, the
man who can look on unmoved at such a result — it may be of
thoughtlessness — is not to be envied —

78 ROOK.

For evil is wrought by want of thought,
As well as want of heart.

Hood.

There are much better and much cheaper remedies than
strychnine, for the protection of seed corn from fungus disease ; for
example, a solution of copperas, or of carbolic acid, which can be
got from any druggist ; and these, too — especially the latter — will
protect the corn from the Rooks themselves, as well as from blight
and smut. In the name, then, of self-interest, as well as of
humanity, let the safer dressing be used.

Rooks sometimes amuse themselves by soaring high in the
air, and dropping suddenly down on each other, playing at " break-
neck," boys call it.

Behold the Rooks, how odd their flight,
They imitate the gliding Kite,
And seem precipitate to fall,
As if they felt the piercing ball.

In common country belief, this game of theirs indicates the
approach of wet and stormy weather.

Rooks are sometimes observed to be perfectly white, albinos,
though generally they have only some white feathers about them.
The Rev. Thomas Woodhouse observed two so white that he at
first sight took them for Pigeons, though feeding and consorting
with their sable fellows.

Rooks, like all their kind, are long-lived birds, and the
experience of age may give them command.

Never tho' my mortal summer to such length of years should come,
As the many winter'd Crow that leads the clanging rookery home.

Tennysox — Locksley Hall.

The straight flight of the Rooks to the woods they roost in,
has given rise to the proverb, " As the Crow flies," to indicate the
shortest distance between two places by an imaginary straight
line. The same evening flight forms one of the closing objects of
notice on an English summer evening. Many of our poets, besides
Shakespeare, make allusion to the flight of Rooks to their roosting
trees.

ROOK. yg

I love to hear
The silent Rook to the high wood make way
With rustling wing.

HvRDis— Tears of affection.

And out of town and valley came a noise
As of a broad brook o'er a shingly bed
Brawling, or like the clamour of the Eooks
At distance, ere they settle for the night.

Tennyson— jE'md.

A blackening train
Of clamorous Rooks thick urge their weary flight,
And seek the closing shelter of the grove.

Thomson— Wintey.

Light thickens ; and the Crow
Makes Aving to the rooky wood :
Good things of day begin to droop and drowse.
Whiles night's black agents to their preys do rouse.

Shakespeare— il/acie^A ///., 2.

What time the Rook
With whisp'ring wing brushes the midway air,
To the high wood impatient to return.

HuRDis— Tears of affection.

Devenere locos laetos, et amoena vireta
Fortunatorum nemorum, sedesque beatos ?

YiRGiL—OSneid VI., 638.

And down they came upon the happy haunts,
The pleasant greenery of the favour'd groves,
Their blissful resting place.

Rev. Thos. Woodhouse— Trans.

E pastu decedens agmine magno
Corvorum increpuit densis exercitus alis.

Virgil— G^eo. /., 382.

Huge flocks of rising Rooks forsake their food.
And crying seek the shelter of the wood.

Dryden.

^Yhen the last Rook
Beats its straight path along the dusky air
Homewards, I bless it.

Coleridge— itme Tree Bower.

This pretty anonymous description of the close of a summer's
day, must be the last illustration : —

Hark to the booming evening gun.

Whose roar proclaims the day is done.

The hay-wain there, with its tinkling team.

In the twilight fades like a fading dream ;

One after one, the stars shine out.

Owl answers owl, with hooting shout,

And darkness comes with the moaning breeze,

As the last of the Rooks settle down in their trees.

8o RAVEN.

CORVUS CORAX— Raven.

There were three Ravens sat on a tree,
Down a down, hey down, hey down.

—Old Song.

Denmark's grim Raven.

Scott — Marmion.

The Raven is a fine powerful bird, bold and sagacious, with
a quick eye, and probably a keen scent. It is not uncommon
in the more wild and hilly districts of Herefordshire. In the
neighbourhood of the Black Mountains, and in the wilder districts
of the northern side of the county, it is almost always to be seen
and heard, though its numbers are gradually becoming less from
the poisoned baits of the shepherd and the gamekeeper. The
Raven builds still in the Cwmyoy Rocks, and in the Darrens of
the Black Mountains. " When I first knew the Tarren Esgob in
the Llanthony Valley," says Mr. Ley, " two pairs of Ravens built
there, but of late years only one pair, and I never knew more than
a single pair to breed at Cwmyoy." A pair built there this year
(1884) and reared their young ones. Two Ravens flew by the
Vicarage at Longtown in 1883, which were seen and heard by the
Rev. C. L. Eagles. This gentleman, some years since on turning
a corner of the mountain, shot one which measured 3 feet 3 inches
from tip to tip of the extended wings. He states that they are
still common in that neighbourhood. A pair of Ravens built at
Stanner Rocks, near Kington, for many years. The old birds used
to go away year after year with their young ones, and return alone,
and if one got shot, or destroyed, the other would fly away and
return with another mate, but for the last few years they have not
built there. Ravens are said to have built on tall trees at Whitfield,
at Croft Ambrey, at Brampton Bryan, at Wigmore Rolls, and at
many other places. About fifty years since, still within the memory
of the old men of the parish, a pair of Ravens built in a tall elm
tree in the parish of Sellack. The tree was cut down one spring
when the hen bird was sitting on her eggs. She was killed in the
fall, and Ravens have never nested in the parish since.

RAVEN. 8l

On ancient oak, or elm, whose topmost bousrhs
Begin to fail, the Raven's twig-formed bower
Is built ; and many a year the selfsame tree
The aged solitary pair frequent.

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

A pair of Ravens used to build in the tall beech trees on
Dinmore Hill, on the ridge opposite Hampton Court, up to within
the last ten or twelve years, and every spring to the present time,
Mr. J. H. Arkwright has observed the Ravens to come and soar
round the district though they no longer build there.

" When I was a boy," says Mr. Ley, " Raven trees were often
pointed out by old men, in my constant and vehement birds'
nesting rambles, but I never once met with a nest in a tree. Is it
true that they do still breed upon trees in Herefordshire " ?

Ravens when not numerous do a very insignificant amount of
harm, feeding themselves on rabbits, moles, or other small animals,
and such carrion as they fall in with ; but if at all plentiful, or
other food is scarce, or when feeding their young, they become
very mischievous. All weak animals, as cast or yeaning ewes,
even horses or cattle, if old, or ill, or helpless in a bog, are soon
attacked. The Raven strikes an eye with his powerful beak, and
when the poor animal rolls in agony to rub it on the ground, the
other eye is pierced, and the cruel bird flies off to return again
when its victim is dead, with companions who quickly disembowel
the animal ; and who, if not disturbed, will never leave it till the
bones are bare.

As when a greedy Raven sees

A sheep entangled by the fleece.

With hasty cruelty he flies

To attack him, and pick out his eyes.

Butler — Miscellaneous Thoughts.

Ravens have a keen sight, as well as sense of smell. A writer
in the Zoologist (Vol. i) says — "When they search in waste places
for provision, they hover over them at a great height ; and yet a
sheep will not be dead many minutes before they find it. Nay, if
a morbid smell transpires from any one of the flock, they will watch
the animal for days till it dies."

82 RAVEN.

The Raven is the emblem of Denmark, and the standard of
the Danes. Ovvain is said to have had an army of 300 Ravens.

Like the Ravens of Owain, eager for prey.

The Raven is often tamed and imitates the human voice with
as much exactness as the Parrot. It Hves to a very great age.
The old Highland proverb, slightly varying Hesiod, says : —

Thrice the life of a dog is the life of a horse ;
Thrice the life of a horse is the life of a man ;
Thrice the life of a man is the life of a stag ;
Thrice the life of a stag is the life of a Raven.

Thin is thy plumage, death is in thy croak ;
Raven, come down from that majestic oak.
— When I was hatched, my father set this tree,
An acorn then ; its fall I hope to see,
A century after thou hast ceased to be.

Montgomery— 5ird«.

Its association with the cherished beliefs of many northern
nations, has caused it to be regarded with awe and reverence. It
is ever a bird of ill omen.

The hoarse night Raven, trumpe of doleful drere.

Spenseb.

The sad presaging Raven tolls
The sick man's passport in her hollow beak,
And in the shadow of the silent night
Doth shake contagion from the sable wing.

Marlowe.

Ravens sung the funeral dirge.

Thomson— Casing 0/ Indolence.

A cursed bird, too crafty to be shot ;

That always cometh with his soot-black coat,

To make hearts dreary.

Hood.

The boding Raven on her cottage sat,

And with hoarse croakings warned us of our fate.

Gat.

The Raven croaked as she sat at her meal.
And the old woman knew what he said,

And she grew pale at the Raven's tale.
And sickened and went to her bed.

SOUTHEY.

Is it not ominous in all countries

When Crows and Ravens croak upon trees ?

Butler — Hudibras.

SKYLARK. S$

The Raven himself is hoarse,
That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements.

SB.AKESPEAB,K—Macbethy 1. 5.

Came he right now to sing a Raven's note,
Whose dismal tune bereft my vital powers ;
And thinks he, that the chirping of a Wren,
By crying comfort from a hollow breast,
Can chase away the first-conceived sound ?

Shakespeare— Pari //., King Henry F/., III., 2.

Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door !
Quoth the Raven, " Never more."

Edgar Vo-r— Ravens.

Besides a Raven from a wither'd oak,

Left of their lodging, was observed to croak,

That omen lik'd him not.

Dryden — Hind and Panther.

Where lethal Ravens bark, and owlets wake the nyghte;

Chatterton— ^cfc^fUtf*.

Section— OSCINES SCUTELLIPLANTARES.

Family— ALAUDID^.

Genus— ALAU DA.

ALAUDA ARVENSIS— Skylark.

Hark ! Hark ! the Lark at Heaven's gate sings.

Shakespeare— Cym&cKn€ //., 3.

0 thou sweet Lark, who in the heaven so higii
Twinkling thy wings dost sing so joyfully,

1 watch thee soaring with a deep delight.
And when at last I turn my aching eye
That lags below thee in the Infinite,
Still in my heart receive thy melody.

Southey— (S'onnef.

Type of the wise, who soar but never roam,
True to the kindred points of Heaven and Home.

Wordsworth.

84 SKYLARK.

Lo ! how the Lark soars upward and is gone ;

Turning a spirit as he nears the sky,
His voice is heard, though body there is none,

And rain-like music scatters from on high.

Hood— ^ero.

Pois'd in air.
And warbling his wild notes about the clouds,
Almost beyond the ken of human sight,
Clapp'd to his side his plumy steerage, down
Drops ; instantaneous drops, the silent Lark.

DoDD— Prison Thoughts.

But only Lark and Nightingale forlorn,
Fill up the silences of night and morn.

KooD— False Poets and True.

The Skylark is very common on the arable land throughout
Herefordshire. Its numbers were much lessened by the severe
winter of 1880-1, and they are still, in 1884, not restored to the
usual average. The food of the Skylark consists, according to
M. Prevost, chiefly of insects of various kinds, flies, beetles,
grasshoppers, worms, seeds of many wild plants, and grain. In
the severe frosts of winter or early spring, Skylarks sometimes
do much mischief by attacking green crops, such as rape,
or young cabbages in allotment gardens. Upon the whole,
however, they must be considered more useful than injurious to
the farmer.

The Skylark is a great favourite in captivity, and often cheers
the heart of the bed-ridden by the sprightliness of its song. It
keeps its health well, and seems happy and contented in its cage.
To those who complain of the bird's imprisonment, Thomson has
well answered, " We should not think only of the Skylark " ; and
Sir Francis B. Head's touching tale of "The Emigrant's Lark"
well illustrates the same feeling.

The Skylark has been more noticed in prose and poetry than

even the Nightingale. Grahame, in his " Birds of Scotland," has

well contrasted the lowly situation of the nest with the lofty flight

of its constructors : —

Thou simple bird
Of all the vocal quire, dwellest in a home
The humblest ; yet thy morning song ascends
Nearest to Heaven.

SKYLARK. 85

And of the nest he says —

The daisied lea he loves where tufts of grass
Luxuriant crown the ridge ; there with his mate,
He forms their lowly house of withered bents,
And coarsest spear^rass : next, the inner work
With finer, and still finer fibres lays,
Rounding it curious with his speckled breast.

The following Stanza in P>ench is successful in imitating the
song of the Skylark, and describing its evolutions : —

La gentille alouette avec son tirelire,
Tirelire, relire et tirelire, tire
Vers la votite du ciel ; puis son vol en ce lieu
Vire, et semble nous dire, Adieu ! Adieu !

Shakespeare describes the song of the Skylark in similar
words —

The Lark, that tirra-lirra chants.

Winter's Tale, Song, Act IV., 2.

Shelley has written some excellent verses on the Skylark,
commencing : —

Hail to thee, blithe spirit !

Bird thou never wert,
That from the heaven, or near it,

Pourest thy full heart
In profuse strains of unpremeditated art.

Higher still and higher.

From the cloud thou springest,
Like a cloud of fire

The blue deep thou wingest.
And singing still dost soar, and soaring ever singest.

With so wide and favourite a subject some further poetical
illustrations must be given : —

The busy Larke, the messenger of day,
Saleweth in hire song the morne grey.

Chauc^-r— Knight's Tale.

The Lark that shuns on lofty bough to build
Her humble nest lies silent in the field.

Waller— 0/ the Queen.

It was the Lark, the herald of the morn.

Shakespeare— ^meo and Juliet, III., 5.

The merry Larks are ploughman's clocks.

Shakespeare— i. L. Lost, V., 2.

86 SKYLARK.

Lo ! here the gentle Lark, weary of rest,
From his moist cabinet mounts up on high.
And wakes the morning, from whose silver breast
The sun ariseth in his majesty,

Who doth the world so gloriously behold,
That cedar-tops and hills seem burnish'd gold.

Shakespeare — Venus and Adonis.

And now the herald Lark
Left his ground nest, high tow'ring to descry
The morn's approach, and greet her with his song.

Milton — Paradise Lost.

A somer's Larke, that with her song doth greete
The dawning day, forth coming from the east.

SFEr<fBEii—Astrophel.

The Lav'rocks wake the merry morn
Aloft on dewy wing.

Burns.

The Lark is gay
That dries his feathers, saturate with dew,
Beneath the rosy cloud ; while yet the beams
Of day-spring over-shoot his humble nest.

COWPER.

When the merry Lark doth gild
With his song the summer hours.

Barry Cornwall— ^ow^' /or <Ac /Season*.

Invisible in flecked sky

The Lark sent down her revelry.

Scott— iody of the Lake.

Up with me ! up with me ! into the clouds !

For thy song. Lark, is strong ;
Up with me ! up with me ! into the clouds !

Singing, singing,
With clouds and sky about thee ringing.

Lift me, guide me, till I find

That spot which seems so to thy mind.

Wordsworth.

Up-springs the Lark,
Shrill-voiced and loud, the messenger of morn ;
Ere yet the shadows fly, he mounted sings
Amid the dawning clouds, and from their haunts
Calls up the tuneful nations.

Thomson — Spring.

Teach us, sprite or bird.

What sweet thoughts are thine ;
I have never heard

Praise of love or wine
That poured forth a flood of rapture so divine.

Shelley.

In 1883 Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross, had a white Skylark
brought to him. It was a complete Albino variety.

WOODLARK. 87

ALAUDA ARBOREA— WooDLARK.

While high in air, and poised upon his wings
Unseen, the soft, enamoured, Woodlark runs
Through all his maze of melody.

Gilbert White.

The Thrush
And Woodlark, o'er the kind contending throng
Superior heard, run thro' the sweetest length
Of notes ; when listening Philomela deigns
To let them joy, and purposes, in thought
Elate, to make her night excel their day.

Thomson— 5p?'m5'.

The Woodlark is not a frequent bird in Herefordshire, but is
rather less rare in the northern and more wooded districts of the
county than on its southern side. Mr. Evans knew it well in the
midland district. He says of it: — "There is scarcely a day
through the long dreary winter that the Woodlark may not be
heard. His voice is not so loud or so varied as that of his
kinsman; it does not come forth in such a flood of joy and ecstacy
as that of the Skylark, but it is far dearer and sweeter, and seems
to tell a tale of deeper and more tender feeling " (p. 33).

The plaintive Woodlark's strain,

Heard in the midnight sky,
As if a spirit sang unseen

To the bright stars marching by.

Evans— /So^^s of the Birds.

The Woodlark's song, says Mr. Johns, is superior in liquidness
of tone to the Skylark. As it flies from place to place, it may be
represented by the syllables " Lulu, lulu," and then it alights on
the summit of a lofty tree to " unthread its chaplet of musical
pearls."

The Woodlark breathes in softest strain, the vow.
And love's soft burthen floats from bough to bough.

liEYBaN— Scenes of Infancy.

Oh stay, sweet warbling Woodlark, stay !
Nor quit for me the trembling spray.

BvRHB—The Woodlark.

So calls the Woodlark in the grove
His little faithful mate to cheer ;
At once, 'tis music, and 'tis love.

Burns— -Ban^s of Cree.

88 SWIFT.

The Woodlark suffered very severely from the cruel winter of
1 880-1, and is as yet more infrequent than it usually is.

[Alauda cristata — Crested Lark.]
A rare straggler to the south coast of England.

[Genus — Calan drella.]

[Calandrella brachydactyla — Short-toed Lark.]

Rare on South Coast. Once near Shrewsbury.

[Genus — Melanocorypha.]

[Melanocorypha calandra — Calandra Lark,]

Once near Devonport ; once near Exeter.

[Melanocorypha sibirica — White-winged Lark.]
Once near Brighton in 1862.

[Genus — Otocorys.]

[Otocorys alpestris — Shore Lark.]

Irregular winter visitor to the coasts of Great Britain.

Order— PICARIv^.

Genus— CYPSELUS.

CYPSELUS APUS— Swift.

Swift birds that skim o'er the stormy deep,
Who steadily onward your journey keep,
Who neither for rest nor slumber stay,
But still press forward by night or day.

Anon.

This singular bird, so sombre in colour and so peculiar in
shape, is very common throughout Herefordshire. It frequents

SWIFT. 89

church towers, old buildings, especially if lofty, and sometimes
builds in cliffs. In these places it lays its eggs on such dust and
refuse as it finds there. In the city of Hereford they are usually
very abundant, and fly their summer evening races in the precincts
of the Cathedral with noisy rapidity, uttering their peculiar squealing
note, " Swee-ree, swee-ree," with much energy. The power of flight
the Swift possesses is very astonishing. Gilbert White likened it to
the swiftness of a meteor. Its body is very heavy as compared with
its size, and it therefore seems to bear out the assertion of the Duke
of Argyle, " that the heavier in proportion a bird is, the greater is
its power and velocity of flight."

Swifts are not easily able to rise from the ground, unless they

meet with some inequality on its surface, in consequence of the

small size of their legs, which are stout and strong, though short.

They serve them not only to cling to walls, but also as a means

of defence after the manner of Hawks and Owls. The beak is too

soft to be used to peck, but their sharp claws will penetrate tender

skin.

Why ever on the wing, or perched elate ?
— Because I fell not from my first estate ;
This is mj' charter to the boundless skies, —
"Stoop not to earth, on pain no more to rise."

Montgomery— 5tVc?s.

The Swifts come to us from Africa. They are the last of our

summer visitants to arrive, and are the earliest to depart. For some

cause or other, the winter of 1880-1 was very fatal to them, and the

number of them is still below the ordinary average.

The screaming cry of the Swift is one of the pleasantest ot
summer sounds, never heard in the heat of mid-day ; but in fine
weather, accompanying the fading twilight of evening, and the fresh
hours of morning. Cool long days are the Swift's delight, and at
such times he seems to know neither rest nor weariness; but
continues his headlong race for many hours together.

To mark the Swift in rapid giddy ring
Rush round the steeple, unsubdued of wing :
Amusive birds ! say where your hid retreat
When the frost rages and the tempests beat;
Whence your return, by such nice instinct led,
When Spring, soft season, lifts her bloomy head ?

Gilbert Whitk— Summer's Evening Walk.

90 NIGHTJAR.

In heraldry, the Swift is known as the Martlet.

[Cypselus melba — White-bellied Swift.]

[Alpine Swift— Yane//.]

A rare straggler to England, and has occurred in Ireland.

[Genus — Acanthyllis.]

[AcANTHYLLis CAUDACUTA — Needle-tailed Swift]

Near Colchester, Essex, 1846 ; and Ringwood, Hants, 1879.

Family— CAPRIMULGID^.

Genus— CAPRIMULGUS.

CAPRIMULGUS EUROPyEUS— Nightjar.

The Nightjar, or Fern Owl as it is more commonly called in
Herefordshire, so sober in colour, so exquisite in the markings of its
plumage, so singular in its habits and its note, is not infrequent in
the northern and western districts of the county, but is comparatively
rare elsewhere. It delights in high, stony hills in the neighbourhood
of large patches of the common brake, as well as in woods and
plantations ; particularly in woods of oak. The constant repetition
of the jarring note of the cock bird, heard in the dusk of the
evening, will more often make its presence known than the sight
of the bird itself.

By the lingering light I scarce discern,
The shrieking Nightjar sail on heavy wing.

Charlotte Smith— Sonnet.

The rich, but quiet colour of finely mottled grey and brown,
resembling very closely the moths it is so fond of, and its nocturnal
habits, tend to conceal it from observation. On the excursion of the
Woolhope Club to Brampton Bryan Park, June 29th, 1882, a Night-
jar was found just caught in one of the keeper's destructive pole
traps. In the neighbourhood of Ledbury, of Ludlow, of Aymestrey,
and of Kington, at Foxley, Garnstone, and at Moccas its jarring

GREAT BLACK WOODPECKER. 9 1

cry may often be heard. On the Woolhope Hills, and in Haywood
Forest, it is also to be heard in some seasons. Its numbers vary
in different years, but it seems to have become less frequent than it
was formerly. The true explanation has yet to be given of the use
of the serrated claw of the middle toe of the Nightjar.

Wordsworth, who knew the Nightjar well, and had every
opportunity of observing its habits, notices that the Dor-hawk, as
it is in the North locally called, utters its cry on the wing, and says,

The busy Dor-hawk chases the white moth
With burring note.

And again.

The burring Dor-hawk round and round is wheeling,

That solitary bird

Is all that can be heard
In silence deeper far, than deepest noon.

Gilbert White says of it —

While o'er the cliff th' awaken'd Churn Owl hung,
Through the still gloom protracts his chattering song.

[Caprimulgus ruficollis — Red-necked Nightjar.]
Once in Great Britain in 1862,

Family— PICTD^.

Genus— PICUS.

PICUS MARTIUS— Great Black Woodpecker.

The admission of the Great Black Woodpecker into the
avifauna of Britain is considered doubtful in the " Ibis Catalogue
of British Birds" (1883).

Yarrell declines it altogether, and it is adversely bracketed.

There can be no doubt, however, of its having been observed
on several occasions in Herefordshire. Captain Mayne Reid saw
two specimens in the woods near his residence at Frogmore, Ross,
and noted the occurrence in the Live Stock Journal. The Rev.

92 GREAT BLACK WOODPECKER.

Clement Ley saw the Great Black Woodpecker at Ruckhall Wood,
Eaton Bishop, about the year 1874, and pointed it out to his cousin,
Mr. Edward Du Buisson, who also saw it there. On writing to
Mr. Ley on the subject, he replies that " he has not the least doubt
about it," and he says " that besides this instance he has on two or
three occasions heard the note of this bird in the neighbourhood
of Ross, without being able to get a sight of it." " The secret of
meeting with rare birds in England," Mr. Ley adds, " is to be found
in familiarising oneself with their notes in countries where they are
more common. Thus, by learning the note of the Great Black
Woodpecker on the continent, I have met with this bird on several
occasions in England. The note resembles the ' chuck, chuck ' of
the Great Spotted Woodpecker, but it is much louder and more
harsh, and is generally uttered at intervals of from ten to sixty
seconds. The last occasion on which I heard it was in 1876, at
Mount Edgecombe, in Devonshire, when standing with my daughter
close to a thick oak coppice, and waiting for a few minutes, we
got a fine view of the bird."

The note is said by some observers to remind the hearer of a
loud hoarse unearthly laugh.

Mr. D. R. Chapman also saw' the Great Black Woodpecker at
Belmont (about a mile from where Mr. Ley and Mr. Du Buisson
had seen it, as already noticed) — in the spring of 1879. His
attention was called to it by his son, as it flew from a copse to a
tree standing in open ground. To make sure of the species, he
crawled along the meadow for some sixty or seventy yards, and
was rewarded by a clear view of the bird.

The Great Black Woodpecker is familiarly called by the
Norwegians, Gertrude's Bird. Thorpe gives the legend as follows : —
"Our Lord in His wanderings on earth, accompanied by Saint
Peter, came to a woman who wore a red hood on her head, who
was engaged in baking. The wanderers were weary and hungry ;
and our Lord begged the woman, whose name was Gertrude, to
give Him a cake. She took a little dough, and set it on to bake,

HAIRY WOODPECKER. GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER. 93

but little as it was when it was set on, it soon filled the whole pan.
Thinking this too much for alms, she took a smaller quantity, and
again began to bake ; but this also grew as large as the first.
Gertrude then took still less dough, but this cake, too, swelled
until it was as large as the others. Then said the woman, ' you
must go without alms, for all my bakings are too large for you ! '
Then was our Lord wroth, and said unto Gertrude, ' because thou
gavest me nothing, thou shalt, for punishment, become a bird.
Thou shalt seek thy dry food between the wood and the bark, and
drink only when it rains.' The words were no sooner spoken than
the woman was transformed into the ' Gertrude Bird,' and flew
away through the kitchen chimney. And to this day she is seen
with a red hood and a black body, coloured by the chimney soot."

Frazer's Magazine, 1858.

Genus— DENDROCOPUS.

DENDROCOPUS VILLOSUS— Hairy Woodpecker.

This bird, also, is put in a parenthesis by the Committee of
the British Ornithologists Union, and there it must be left. There
is a specimen in the Hereford Musuem, labelled " Garway 1845,"
but unfortunately it has no history connected with it.

[DENDROCOPUS pubescens — Downy Woodpecker.]
In Dorsetshire in December, 1836.

DENDROCOPUS MAJOR— Great Spotted Woodpecker.

The busy Woodpecker
Made stiller by her sound
The inviolable quietness.

Shelley — Recollection.

This Woodpecker, though nowhere numerous, is yet not rare
in the oak woods and orchards of Herefordshire. It keeps very
much out of sight in the higher branches of trees, and is probably

94

LESSER SPOTTED WOODPECKER.

therefore more numerous than is generally supposed. To those
who are familiar with bird notes, the " gick, gick, gick," of the Pied
Woodpecker, as it is sometimes called, will not infrequently be
heard. Selby's view in 1883 is greatly confirmed. He believed
that they are migratory from some of the more northern parts of
Europe— perhaps Norway and Sweden. They arrive about the
same time as the Woodcock and other equatorial migrants, and
generally after stormy weather from the north or north-east.

DENDROCOPUS MINOR— Lesser Spotted Woodpecker.

The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, though not abundant in
Herefordshire, is yet not a rare bird, and it is one widely dis-
tributed throughout the county. It is probably more abundant than
is generally supposed, for it is a quiet, shy little bird, fond of tall
trees, and instantly conceals itself on the side most distant from
the intruder. Its cry is often mistaken for that of the Wryneck,
which it resembles, except that it is all on one note, whereas that
of the Wryneck rises in the musical scale. Many of these pretty
little birds were killed by the severe winter of i88o-r, but in several
instances on the outskirts of the city, and in other places in the
county, they joined the motley group, which at that time owed their
lives to the charity of those who did not forget to feed them in
their distress.

A lady at Shobdon, who had a number of little pensioners for
her bounty during a hard frost, was rewarded by the presence of
one of these pretty lively little birds, which came to her window-sill
for several months, to feed on the crumbs and scraps so thoughtfully
provided.

The Lesser Spotted Woodpecker generally chooses a broken
off branch to perforate for its nest ; from one to two feet from the
end it bores the hole on the under side, which extends about a

GREEN WOODPECKER.

95

foot down the branch, and is enlarged for the nest. Its locality
may be readily found by the chips beneath the tree, and they are
thus distinguished from similar holes bored by the Marsh Tit, who
cunningly has the prudence to carry its chips away. A pair of these
pretty little birds used to visit the garden of Harley House, in the
centre of the city of Hereford, every spring, until the special apple
tree (an Irish Peach Apple) to which it took a fancy, and in which
it bored a nest hole, unfortunately died.

[Genus — Picoides.]

[PicoiDES Tridactylus — European Three-toed Woodpecker.]

Once shot in Scotland, 1820, Donovan.

Genus— GECINUS.
GECINUS VIRIDIS— Green Woodpecker.

Every leaf was at rest, and I heard not a sound
But the Woodpecker tapping the hollow beech trees.

Moore — Stanzas,

An echo, like a ghostly Woodpecker.

Tennyson — Princess.

This fine, handsome bird is commonly called the " Hickle " in
Herefordshire, from the quick repetition of this word in its wild
laughing cry. It is also called by some the " Storm Fowl " or
"Rain Bird," and unquestionably it does utter its cry more
frequently between thunder showers than at other times. Gilbert
White and many others have compared its note to the sound of
laughter, and hence, too, it has got the name of " Yaffil."

The Skylark in ecstasy sang from a cloud,

And Chanticleer crow'd, and the YaflBl laughed loud.

— The Peacock at Home.

Now we hear
The Golden Woodpecker, who like a fool,
Laughs loud at nothing.

HuRDis — Village Curate.

The Woodweele sang, and wold not cease,
Sitting upon the spraye,
Soe lowde he wakened Robin Hood
In the greenwood where he lay.

Percy's Reliques— i2o6m Bood and Guy of Gisborne.

96 WRYNECK.

The Green Woodpecker is very common in Herefordshire,
and he usually forms an object of interest and admiration, in every
walk through the wooded districts of the county. He builds more
frequently in the ash, or api)le tree, than in the beech, and his
nest is often shown by the chips lying beneath, and at the foot of
the tree. His food consists of spiders, ants and their eggs, timber
haunting beetles, chrysalides, slugs, worms, and grubs of all kinds.
It will also sometimes take corn, oats, barley, or acorns. Bechstein
states that it eats nuts and meat in confinement.

And Woodpeckers explore the sides
Of rugged oaks for worms.

CowPER — On a Mischievous Bull.

Eap, rap, rap, rap, I hear thy knocking bill,
Then thy strange outcry when the woods are still,
" Thus am I ever labouring for my bread,
And thus give thanks to find my table spread. "

Montgomery— ^M'cZs.

[Genus — Colaptes.]

[CoLAPTES AURATUS — Goldcn-winged Woodpecker.]

Amesbury, Wiltshire, in 1836.

Genus^-IYNX.
lYNX TORQUILLA— Wryneck.

A regular summer visitant to Herefordshire, and pretty generally
distributed throughout the county, but varying in numbers. It arrives
usually a little before or with the Cuckoo, and hence gets the name
of "Cuckoo's Mate." It is a solitary bird in its habits, rarely
associating even with its own mate, and is no great climber, though
it has the Woodpecker's foot, with two toes before and two
behind. During the spring months its monotonous cry of " Que,
que, que," many times rapidly repeated, rather like that of the
Kestrel, draws attention to it, and if carefully approached the bird
may be seen perched on the branch of a tree. The Wryneck
builds in the hole of a tree, and may easily be caught there, if the

KINGFISHER. 97

boy is not afraid of the loud hissing noise it sets up, and the
wonderful way it has of roUing its head as if to imitate a snake.
It has been called the " Snake Bird " for this reason.

Mr. Ley has known as many as forty eggs taken one by one
from a single nest of the Wryneck.

Sub-order— ANISODACTYL^.

Family— ALCEDINID^.

Genus— ALCEDO.

ALCEDO ISPIDA— Kingfisher.

And the Halcyon was there in her borldice of blue.

— The Peacock at Home.

Why dost thou hide thy beauty from the sun ?
"The eye of man, but not of heaven I shun."

Montgomery— 5i>c?s.

This beautiful bird is by no means uncommon in Herefordshire.
It is to be found on all the large streams of the county, and in many
of the small tributary brooks. Its brilliant plumage is a dangerous
attraction, and creates for it many enemies. It is shot to be stuffed
and put in a glass case; to make ornaments for ladies' hats or
muffs (as the ridiculous fashion now goes) ; to afford feathers for
artificial fly makers ; to be used as a charm for good luck ; as a
safeguard against thunder ; or even to show which way the wind
blows. The gamekeeper and water bailiff must also be regarded as
great enemies to the Kingfisher, in the belief that it lives on young
trout and lastspring.

The shy, sohtary habits of the Kingfisher, and its quick, rapid
flight often save it from destruction ; and the license now necessary
for carrying a gun also affords it an additional protection.

H

98 KINGFISHER.

Then came
Swift as a meteor's shining flame,
A Kingtisher from ont the brake,
And almost seemed to leave a wake
Of brilliant hues behind.

Faber— TVie Ckerioell.

The food of the Kingfisher consists chiefly, no doubt, of little
fishes, but they are principally minnows. It eats sticklebacks,
young gudgeons, dace, miller's thumbs, or battle heads, and some-
times trout and lastspring ; it takes also small crustaceans, water
shrimps, and beetles, with other aquatic insects; and it has
been seen to take leeches. An instance is given in the Woolhope
Transactions for 1869 (p. 76) of a Kingfisher being choked in the
attempt to swallow a small perch, which set up its back spring
fin, and killed its own destroyer by sticking in his throat.

The nest of the Kingfisher is always placed in a bank in a
hole made by the bird. It is usually in some river bank, but it is
occasionally found in banks of earth at some distance from the
water. The description of a nest is given in the Woolhope Trans-
actions for 1S69 (p. 38). The hole here was in a perpendicular
bank, six feet above the ordinary water level. The entrance was
oval in shape, two inches and three-quarters perpendicularly, and
two inches and a half in its horizontal diameter. It was placed
about a foot below the surface, was two feet in length, and inclined
upwards to within two inches of the surface. Here a wider space,
some six inches in diameter, was hollowed out for the nest of fish
bones. The Rev. Clement Ley, than whom few people have found
more nests of the Kingfisher, says the holes are invariably bored by
the bird. They are always nearly, if not quite, straight, always
greater in height than width at the entrance, always with an upward
incline, and are utterly unmistakable. Mr. Ley has examined a
great number of nests, in order to setde the old question, whether
the Kingfisher actually constructs a nest of fish bones, or whether
the bones with which the eggs are found surrounded, are merely an
accidental accumulation of the indigestible portions of food, which,
like the Owl and some other birds, the Kingfisher disgorges. The

KINGFISHER. 99

fish bones were arranged in a similar manner in all the holes
examined, and in a particularly neat and careful manner in those
cases where the parent birds had only commenced laying ; and in
some holes examined, in which only two or three eggs had been
deposited, the circle of fish bones was found complete, though in
nests examined later, there was certainly a greater accumulation.
(Woolhope Trans. 1869, p. 76.)

The nest of the Kingfisher is often discovered by a dog
scenting its "ancient fish-hke smell," through the soil; and the
nest hunters may be equally assured of its presence from the same
smell at the entrance of the hole. It becomes very offensive before
the young birds leave it, and the same offensive smell indeed attaches
itself to the brilliant feathers of the bird.

Many ancient fables are told with reference to the Halcyon,
which cannot well be the Kingfisher, although called by that name.
The classical story is, that Alcyone, or Halcyone, the daughter of
CEolus, the god of winds and storms, married Ceyx, who was
drowned when going to Claros to consult the oracle. Halcyone,
finding his body on the sea shore, threw herself into the sea. Both
were changed into birds of the same name, and under the influence
of CEolus, the waters are kept calm and serene while they build
and sit on their nests.

Perque dies placidos hiberno tempore septem
Incubat Halcyone, pendentibus sequore nidis
Turn via tuta maris : ventos custodit et arcet
CEolus egressu.

Oyib— Met. XL, 745.

Seven tranquil days upon her floating nest
She sits ; while winds and waters are at rest,
The gales are kept in durance by their king
Unwilling captives.

Trans. — Rev. Thos. Woodhouse.
Plautus makes one of his characters in Poenulus, so upset by
the rough reception he meets with, that he says, speaking of it ;
" Well, you are done for ; at any rate, unless you make her as calm,
as the sea is, when the Halcyon hatches her brood there."

PCENULUS, I., 2.

lOO KINGFISHER.

So Uryden, in his elegy on Cromwell ;

Wars that have respect for his repose,
As winds for Halcyons when they breed at sea.

Hence has arisen the proverbial expression of " Halcyon
days," when the winds are quiet and mariners may safely put to
sea.

Blow, but gently blow, faire winde,

From the forsaken shore,
And be as to the Halcyon kinde,

Till we have ferry'd o'er.

Browne.

The Halcyon of the ancients was evidently a sea-bird ; the
Kingfisher is as certainly a bird of inland streams and secluded
waters. Virgil mentions among the signs of the weather, how

tepidum ad solem pennas in littore pandunt
Dilectoe Thetidi alcyones.

Geokg, 1, 393.

Halcyons bask on the short sunny shore.

Dryden.

Pliny's account of the Halcyon is altogether so extraordinary
that it may be well to quote it in full, especially because it seems to
be the source from which many subsequent stories about the bird
are derived. He says : " The most remarkable on this account (as
birds of omen) are the Halcyons. The seas, and he that sails on
them, know the days when they hatch. The bird itself is a little
larger than a Sparrow, of a blue colour for the most part, but with
an intermixture of white and purple feathers, with a long slender
neck. One kind of them is distinguished by its size and by its
song. The smaller ones sing in the reed beds. It is very unusual
to see a Halcyon, and never except about the setting of the
Vergilise (the beginning of November) or at the winter Solstice :'
they sometimes fly round a ship and then make off at once for their
hiding places. They hatch in the winter ; at which time the days
are called halcyon, the sea being calm and navigable all the time
they last, off Sicily especially ; in other parts the sea is calmer, but
off Sicily quite manageable. They lay their eggs seven days before
the Solstice, and hatch them seven days after. Their nests are

KINGFISHER. lOI

wonderful structures, in the shape of a ball, with the entrance a
little projecting but very narrow, as in large sponges. It is impossi-
ble to cut them with a knife, but they can be broken with a sharp
blow, like the dry foam of the sea. It is not known what they are
made of; some think of sharp spines, for they live on fish. They
also enter rivers. They lay five eggs."

In the midst of all this strange medley of fact and legend, we
can see that he has confounded together two birds, the smaller one
which lives in rivers, and the larger which is the legendary bird that
calms the sea. It is to this last that allusions are most frequent.

Sometimes the Kingfisher is supposed to have the power of

quelling storms :

Maj' Halcyons smooth the waves and calm the seas.

Theocritus— /c^^^s VI I. y 57.

Shakespeare notices the belief —

Expect St. Martin's summer, Halcj'on davs.

king Henry VI., L, S.

It is asserted that when the dead bird, or its skin, is hung up

by a thread, the beak will always turn to the point of the compass

whence the wind blows :

Or as Halcyon, with her turning breast
Demonstrates wind from wind and east from west.

Stoker.

Marlow, in his play " The Jew of Malta," I., i, says —

But how now stands the wind,

Into what corner peers my Halcyon's bill ?

He breath'd his last exposed to open air.

And here, his corpse, unbless'd, is hanging still

To shew the change of winds with his prophetic bill.

DBnDEy— Hind and Panther.

In Glamorganshire the Kingfisher is still said to be hung up
by a thread for this purpose. (See Woolhope Transactions for
1869). Shakespeare also alludes to the custom when he makes
Kent speak of rogues and sycophants, who

Renege, affirm, and turn their Halcyon beaks
With every gale and vary of their masters.

King Lear II., 2.

102 ROLLER. HOOPOE.

[Genus — Ceryle.]

[Ceryle alcyon — Belted Kingfisher.]

In Ireland, Meath, 1845, and Wicklow, 1846.

Family— CORACIID^.

Genus— CORACIAS, Lin.

CORACIAS GARRULA— Roller.

There is a specimen of this rare straggler into Britain in the
Hereford Museum, labelled "Goodrich, 1857;" but this is all
that is known about it.

[Family — Meropid.^.]

[Genus — Merops.]

[Merops apiaster — Bee-eater.] I

A rare straggler to England and Scotland.

[Merops philippinus — Blue-tailed Bee-eater.]
Northumberland, August, 1862.

Family— UPUPID^.

UPUPA EPOPS— Hoopoe.

The Hoopoe has so striking an appearance that it can never be
mistaken. Its stately dignified walk, and its mode of erecting and
depressing its crest attract attention at once. Its beauty generally
ensures its death, which is to be strongly lamented, for it w^ould
certainly breed here if left unmolested. It is a summer visitant
from North Africa, and has appeared in many parts of the county.
There is a specimen in the Hereford Museum from the neighbour-
hood of Ross. Mr. Lingwood says of it in his notes, " The Callow

CUCKOO. 103

Hill, 1847," and again "seen in the flesh at Baker's, the bird-
stuffer's, Hereford, 1856." The late Rev. H. Cooper Key stated
that for three or four years the Hoopoe was a constant visitor to
his lawn at Stretton Rectory, Sugwas. One was seen at Fownhope
in September, i88t, and another the same year was brought dead
into Hereford. The Rev. C. L. Eagles also saw one at Longtown.
In the autumn of 1883 a pair of Hoopoes were seen in the
immediate neighbourhood of Hereford, and one of them was shot
on Aylstone-hill by Mr. John Bulmer, who has it now in his
possession.

It is a curious coincidence that this beautiful bird, like the
Kingfisher, is very dirty in its nesting habits, and has given rise to
the French proverb, " Sale comme une huppe."

Sub-order— COCCYGES.

Family— CUCULIDtF:.

Genus— CUCULUS, Lin.

CUCULUS CANORUS— Cuckoo.

Hail, beauteous stranger of the grove !

Thou messenger of Spring !
Now Heaven repairs thy rural seat,

And woods thy welcome sing.

What time the daisy decks the green,

Thy certain voice we hear ;
Hast thou a star to guide thy path,

Or mark the rolling year ?

Delightful visitant ! with thee

I hail the time of flowers,
And hear the sound of music sweet

From birds among the bowers.

Sweet bird ! thy bower is ever green,

Thy sky is ever clear ;
Thou hast no sorrow in thy song

No winter in thy year !

John Logan.

0 blithe new comer ! I have heard,

I hear thee and rejoice.
O Cuckoo ! shall I call thee bird.

Or but a wandering voice ?

Wordsworth.

ID4 CUCKOO.

How gladly is the Cuckoo welcomed by every English family !
How eagerly is the news of his first arrival announced ! How
pleased is the child who has first heard its note ! It is the harbinger
of spring, and tells of the pleasant days to come, of sunshine,
leaves and flowers.

Why art thou always welcome, lonely bird ?
" The heart grows young again when I am heard ;
Not in my double note the magic lies,
But in the fields and woods, the streams and skies. "

Montgomery— £irrfs.

Summer is yeomen in :
Loud sing, Cuckoo !

The merry Cuckow, messenger of Spring,

His trompet shrile hath thrise already sounded.

Spenser— S'on72ei, XIX.

So does the Cuckow, when the Mavis sings
Begin his witlesse note apace to clatter.

Spenser— ;S:o?2??rf, LXXXIV.

The general habits of the Cuckoo in this country are fairly
well told in ihe old doggrel lines, thus so fully given in Yarrell :

In March, he leaves his perch ;

In April, come he will ;

In May, he sings all day ;

In June he alters his tune ;

In July, he's ready to fly ;

Come August, go he must ;

In September, you'll him remember ;

But October, he'll never get over.

The Cuckoo sometimes arrives many days before he makes
himself known by his note. He will not sing in cold weather,
and this year (1884) the bitter winds of April prevented his singing
for nearly a fortnight after his arrival.

The Cuckoo is very common in Herefordshire, and the noise
they sometimes make singing against each other, in the early
morning on the outskirts of Hereford, is most disturbing to nervous
people. His size, his barred under feathers, and something in the
mode of flight, often seem to induce the small birds to mistake
him for a Hawk, and they mob him accordingly.

There is good reason to believe, that the male and female
Cuckoos arrive in separate bands. It is the male bird chiefly that
utters the well-known musical note " Cuckoo '' ; the female sings

CUCKOO. 105

but seldom. The birds do not pair. The females are much less
numerous than the males. The male keeps stationary in the
district he has selected, and often holds fierce battles in the air
with his rivals ; whilst the female roams from place to place to find
a lover everywhere.

The Cuckoo indeed is a contrast to all others of the feathered
tribe. As an active sensitive animal — a bird amongst birds — he is
the very personification of selfishness ; seeking his own pleasures
the live-long day, he leaves to others the common work and duties
of life :

Without a home, without a nest,

No mate to call his own.
^Yith no parental love possess'd,

A creature all alone.

Evans — Song of the Birds.

The Cuckoo builds no nest. It places its egg in that of some
insect-feeding birds, and leaves to them the trouble of incubation,
and of feeding the young bird. The young Cuckoo, moreover,
within a few hours of its birth, wilfully pushes the natural progeny
over the edge of the nest to perish, that it may take to itself all
the food its little foster parents can supply. For some weeks after
the Cuckoo leaves the nest, when it has grown far bigger than
themselves, these little birds still feed it, until, led by an irresistible
instinct, it flies away to join companions it has never seen before,
and to take a journey it knows not where! never again to recognise,
so far as is known, its foster parents. Its general character certainly
is not amiable :

He tells of selfish pleasure

That loves abroad to roam,
Where the heart can have no treasure

Because it knows no home.

Evans— ^Son^fs of the Birds.

The Cuckoo does not seem very particular as to the little bird
it makes a victim of its attentions ; the eggs have been found in the
nests of Hedge-Sparrows, Robins, Warblers, Larks, Wagtails, Red-
starts,Whitethroats, Wrens, Yellow-Hammers, Chaffinches, Thrushes,
and Blackbirds. Though it usually selects the insect-eating birds,
it is very remarkable that the Chaffinch, Greenfinch or Linnet will,

Io6 CUCKOO.

if a young Cuckoo has been forced on their care, feed it partially
with insects, though their own young would have been fed entirely
with the seeds and grain which is their own natural food.

The egg of the Cuckoo is extremely small for so large a bird.
It is scarcely larger than that of the Lark or the Wagtail, and is not
therefore so much out of place in those small birds' nests. It is
now generally believed, after much discussion amongst Ornitholo-
gists, that the Cuckoo conveys her egg in her throat to the nest
into which she selects to place it. The Rev. Clement Ley has
" on four or five different occasions found the egg of the Cuckoo
in nests placed in the cavities of trees or banks, of which the
apertures were indisputably too small to allow the Cuckoo to do
more than insert her head and neck." Mr. Ley also inclines to the
belief that the colour of the egg will vary according to the nest in
which it is found, being more grey in the Wagtail's nest, more
green in the Hedge-sparrow's nest, and more brown in that of the
Titlark ; an approximation to the colour of the eggs of those
several birds, which may possibly be due to the instinctive
selection of the particular Cuckoo of the nest in which she
places it. The Rev. W. Baskerville Mynors has three Cuckoo's
eggs taken at Llanwarne, from a Greenfinch's, Hedge Sparrow's,
and Lark's nests, varying a little in size, but all somewhat resem-
bling House Sparrow's eggs.

The nests of the Hedge-Sparrow, the Reed-Warbler, the Pied-
Wagtail, and the Meadow-Pipit are perhaps those most usually
selected.

The food of the Cuckoo is made up of insects and caterpillars
generally, but, as soon as they appear, it consists almost entirely of
hairy caterpillars, such as few other birds will touch. These hairs
often accumulate in the stomach of the Cuckoo, in a spiral fashion,
leading superficial observers to think the stomach is lined with hair.
Cuckoos do not prey upon other birds, as has been stated, nor do
they suck eggs, a fable which may possibly have arisen from its
own broken egg being found in the throat of a Cuckoo just killed.

CUCKOO. 107

The Rev. W. Baskerville Mynors was so fortunate a few years
ago, as to witness an arrival of Cuckoos. He writes ; " about 5-45
a.m. on April 14th, I was waiting to see the masons and men come
to work ; all was hushed, scarce an insect buzzing about ; while
admiring the beauties of nature, my attention was arrested by a
curious, unknown, apparently distant sound ; a dull chattering, with
a few sharp accents ; listening with great attention and gazing
steadily around, after some seconds, I descried a line of something,
high as the eye could reach, about the size of Wagtails, moving
from S.E. towards N.W., equidistant, probably from 20 to 40 yards
apart. This was an arrival of Cuckoos. I believe I saw the end
of the straight line of birds, probably by no means the beginning of
it. While carefully watching them, I saw about four or five leave the
line, and descend with a clumsy zigzag movement till near the
earth ; two or three certainly remained, apparently well satisfied, as if
exclaiming ' yes, these are my dear old quarters ' ; one or two re-
ascended, and I could imagine them grumbling out, ' I've made a
geographical mistake, or trees and hedgerows are gone,' as they
rejoined the almost straight line aloft."

This interesting observation of Mr. Mynors tends to support the
statement that migratory birds return to their old resting places.
This may be so, since Fly Catchers, Shrikes, Chiff-Chaffs, and a
horde of other migratory birds, do return year after year to nidificate
in the same spot. The note heard by Mr. Mynors, however,
suggests that the flock may have consisted of ladies only, since it
is now believed that male and female Cuckoos come to us in
separate flocks, as is the case with some other migrants.

Hark ! — The Cuckoo's sprightly note

That tells the coming of the vernal prime,

And cheers the heart of youth and agetl man.

Say, sweet stranger, whence hast thou ta'en thy flight,

From Asia's spicy groves, or Afric's clime,

And who directs thy wandering journey far?

Kev. W. Munsey.

Pliny and the older naturalists supposed the Cuckoo of
summer to become a Hawk in winter; and it is still firmly
believed in some parts of the country, that the same individual

io8

CUCKOO.

bird is a Cuckoo at one part of the year, and a Hawk at another;
in fact, the migration of Cuckoos is changed into a mere transmi-
gration. This may in part be accounted for, by the strange
resemblance there is in the plumage of a young Cuckoo to that of
the Sparrow-hawk, as well as in the particular mode of its flight.
So late even as the seventeenth century it was thought that the
Cuckoos lay torpid for the winter in hollow trees; facts which
show that nothing was known then of their migration to the South
of Africa.

The Cuckoo has been traced as far South as Natal and
Damara-Land in Africa, and also nearer the Equator, but in North
Africa it is as common a favourite as with ourselves. It is widely
spread over Europe and Asia. Its long journeys may be one of the
reasons for the strange instinct with. which it is endowed to build
no nest. It does not remain long enough in one locality to rear
its own young.

There is much yet to be learnt of the Cuckoo's history-, its
remarkable peculiarities, and the strange part the bird plays in the
economy of nature. Legends and poetical references to the Cuckoo
abound in all authorities. His first note is ever regarded as the
harbinger of bright genial weather, of warmth, comfort, and plenty.

It is he that according to nursery saying " picks up the dirt "
and ushers in the delights of May.

No wonder the poet hails him as

Thrice welcome ! darling of the spring !

Even yet thou art to me
No bird ; but an invisible thing,

A voice, a mystery.

Wordsworth.

[Genus — Coccystes.]

[CoccYSTEs GLANDARius — Great Spotted Cuckoo.]
Has occurred once in Ireland.

BARN OWL. 109

[Genus — Coccyzus.]

[CoccYzus AMERiCANus — Yellow-billed Cuckoo.]

Has occurred five times in the British Islands.

[Coccyzus erythrophthalimus — Black-billed Cuckoo.]
One single example occurred in Ireland.

Order— STRIGES.

Family— STRIGID.E.

Genus— STRIX.

STRIX FLAMMEA— BARN-o^vL.

\^Ah{Co flanufieiis — Yarfell?^

Solaque culminibus ferali carmine bubo
Ssepe queri et longas in fletum ducere voces.

Virgil— ^nei'd IV., 462-3.

With a boding note
The solitary Screech Owl strains her throat ;
And on a chimney's top, or turret's height,
Disturbs the silence of the [lonely] night.

Dryden — Trans.

Owls have much in common. They are as distinct from all

other birds in appearance as they are in habits and in character.

The upright position in which they hold themselves, their large

heads, and staring eyes, with the feathers of the face radiating from

each eye, give them a quaint air of meditation. Of all birds, they

alone have their eyes immediately in front, like man ; and this,

joined with a peculiarly solemn and grave expression, and frequent

winks, makes them wear a humorous and half-human look, such as

no other animal has in an equal degree. Their nocturnal habits,

and the easy buoyant flight, which causes them so often to be

seen, without being heard, strike the imagination ; and above and

beyond all, when their peculiar, hollow, weird tone of voice, is

suddenly heard in the gloom and stillness of the night, it never fails

to startle those who recognise it, and often greatly terrifies those

who do not. No wonder it has generally been represented by the

poets as a bird of ill omen, the messenger of doom, the dreaded

foreteller of woe, misfortune, or death. Innumerable allusions of

this kind occur.

no BARN OWL.

Foedaque fit volucris, venturi nuncia lucttis,
Ignavus bubo, dirum mortalibus omen.

Ovid— Metamorphf V., 550,

The loathsome bird that heralds coming woe,
The moping Owl, dread sign to men below.

Rev. Thos. Woodhouse— IVans.

Tectoque profanus
Incubuit bubo, thalamique in culmine sedet.

Ovid — Metamorph, VI., 43^.

The Owl unclean alighted on the roof
And high above the chamber sat aloof.

Rev. Thos. Woodhouse— Tran*.

The Oule eke, that of death the bode bringeth.

Chaucer.

And now the crowing Cocke and now the Owle
Lowd shriking ; him afflicted to the very soule.

Spenser.

The ill-faced Owl death's dreadful messenger.

Ibid.

The rueful strich still wayting on the beere.

Ibid.

Out on ye Owls ! nothing but songs of death ?

Shakespeare — Richard III., IV., 4-

The Owl shriek'd at thy birth— an evil sign.

Shakespeare— Parf J/J., Henry VI., V., 6.

It was the Owl that shriek'd ; the fatal bellman
Which gives the stern'st good night.

Shakespeare — Macbeth, II., 2.

The night (I sing by night, sometimes an Owl,

And now and then a Nightingale) is dim ;
And the loud shriek of sage Minerva's fowl

Rattles around me her discordant hymn.

Byron.

Again the Screech-owl shrieks, ungracious sound.

Blair— (^rot-e.

Birds of omen, dark and foul.
Night-crow, Raven, Bat and Owl.

Scott — Gcelic Legend.

Each bird of evil omen woke.

The Screech-owl from her thicket broke.

And fluttered down the dell.

Scott— ^aroW the Dauntless.

Blue-eyed, strange-voiced, sharp-beaked, ill-omened fowl,
What ar't thou ?

— What I ought to be — an Owl ;
But if I'm such a scare-crow in your eye.
You're a much greater fright in mine,— good bye !

Montgomery— 5n-c?«.

BARN OWL. Ill

and still numerous other illustrations of a similar character might
be given.

The nocturnal habits of Owls may afford some illustrations of
society, as for example : —

The lady Cynthia, mistress of the shade,
Goes with the fashionable Owls to bed.

YovsG— Fame.

And the Owl is also the subject of many bacchanalian songs : —

Of all the brave birds that ever I see.
The Owl is the fairest in her degree ;
For all day long she sits in a tree.
And when the night comes, away flies she,

Tu whit ! Tu whoo !
To whom drink'st thou, Sir Knave ?

To you ! To you !

Deuterometia, 1689.

introduced by Beaumont and Fletcher in the play T/ie Knight of
the Burning Pestle ; or as Sir Walter Scott's song says : —

Of all the birds in bush, or tree.

Commend me to the Owl ;
For he may best ensample be

To those the cup that trowl,

with the refrain —

Then though hours be late, and weather foul.
We'll drink to the health of the bonny, bonny Owl.

Somewhat similar are the words of the well-known glee —

The Chough and Crow to roost are gone.

The Owl hoots on the tree ;

Uprouse ye then

My merry, merry men

It is our opening day.

Owls are not only regarded with prejudice by mankind, but they
seem equally unpopular with birds. " There is some sad secret in
the Owl's history," says Mr. Evans, " which we do not know, which
no bird has yet divulged to us, and which seems to have made him
an outcast from the society of the birds of the day. He is branded

with perpetual infamy The Hawk may be more dreaded,

but he cannot be more hated than the Owl," p. 82, So?igs of the
Birds.

Not a bird of the forest e'er mates with him,

All mock him outright by day ;
But at night when the woods grow still and dim.

The boldest will shrink away.

Barry Cornwall— Oi«;?.

112 BARN OWL.

Owls suffer great persecution, and they rarely deserve it. They
render the greatest service to mankind, by a wholesale destruction
of rats, mice, and bats, whilst their nocturnal habits prevent them
from being able to do much injury, either in the game preserves, or in
the henroost. Their numbers, nevertheless, are rapidly diminishing
before the fatal pole traps of the keeper ; though these may not,
perhaps, be always set for them. Their usefulness admits of ready
proof, since Owls return the bones and indigestible portions of
their food in elongated pellets, and great numbers of these pellets
have been very carefully examined, amongst others by the German
Naturalists. Dr. Altum communicated to the German Ornitho-
logical Society in 1862 the following results of his examination
with regard to the three commonest species of Owls (as given by
Yarrell) :—

REMAINS FOUND IN THE PELLETS.

3 237 693 1590 — 22 —
- 6 35 — — 2. —
6 42 296 33 48 18 48

In no single instance was any trace of food found showing
injury to mankind, whilst every portion, in every pellet, proved the
great benefit they rendered to him.

The Owl that, watchinof in the barn
Sees the mouse creeping in the corn,
Sits still, and shuts his round blue eyes
As if he slept, — until he spies
The little beast within his stretch —
Then starts, — and seizes on the wretch !

Butler.

The White or Barn-Owl resides all the year with us, and is
perhaps the best known of all British Owls, from its frequenting
church towers, barns, old malt kilns, deserted ruins, and trees, and
keeping year by year to the same haunts.

Alone and warming his five wits
The White Owl in the belfry sits.

Texnyson.

Barn Owl ...

H

.. 706

16

Long-eared Owl

•• 25

—

Tawny Owl

.. 210

—

LONG-EARED OWL. II3

The White Owl seeks the antique ruin'd wall,
Fearless of rapine ; or in hollow trees,
Which age has cavern'd, safely courts repose.

BiDLAKE.

The plumage of the Barn-Owl is soft and deUcately penciled.

Its face is heart-shaped during hfe, becoming circular when dead.

It screeches, and does not hoot usually, though at times it certainly

has a peculiar hoot. Its principal diet consists of field mice, shrews,

rats, and small birds says M. Prevost, agreeing with Dr. Altum's list.

The twenty-two birds, found by the last gentleman, consisted of

nineteen Sparrows, one Greenfinch, and two Swifts. It is, therefore,

wholly beneficial and should be protected carefully. White, of

Selborne, says " We can stand on an eminence, and see the Barn

Owls beat the fields over like a setting-dog, and often drop down in

the grass or corn." Waterton states, from observation, that "when

the Barn-Owl has young ones, it will bring a mouse to the nest

every twelve or fifteen minutes," and he adds, " if their night work

could be seen by day, all farmers would acknowledge the great

service they render." The nests, however, are so easily found, and

the birds themselves are so handsome, that great destruction goes

on, in spite, it may be, of the farmers' wish to preserve them. It is

to be feared that they will be gradually exterminated, unless a

determined effort is made in their favour.

Let the screeching Owl
A sacred, bird be held ; protect her nest
Whether in neighbouring crag, within the reach
Of venturous boy, it hang, or in the rent
Of some old echoing tower, where her sad plaint
The livelon'JT night she moans, save when she skims
Prowling along the ground, or through your barn
Her nightly round performs.

Grahame — Georgics.

Family— ASIONID^.

Genus— ASIO.

ASIO OTUS— Long-eared Owl.

Oh ! when the moon shines and the dogs do howl,
Then, then, is the reign of the horned Owl.

Barry Cornwall.

114 SHORT-EARED OWL.

This handsome Owl remains all the year, and is probably,
more common in the wooded districts of the county than is
generally supposed, for, owing to its shy, retired, and nocturnal
habits, it is seldom seen. It builds in the old drey of the squirrel,
or in a deserted Magpie's nest, and its food, M. Prevost says,
consists of mice, shrews, rats, squirrels, cockchafers, and beetles.
The two birds mentioned by Dr. Altum were two species of
Titmouse.

A specimen of Long-eared Owl was killed at Widemarsh, close
to Hereford, in 1878, and another was shot at Lyde, two miles off,
in 1 88 1. The specimen in the Hereford Museum was killed at
Wilton, near Ross.

A nest of this Owl, with five young ones, was found near
Aymestry, in March, 1884; and in the same place there was a
second brood at the end of June.

ASIO BRACHYOTUS— Short-eared Owl.
[Asw accipitrinus — Yarrell?\

What time the preying Owl with sleepy wing
Sweeps o'er the cornfield studious.

HuRDis— T/te Favorite Village.

This migrating Owl arrives for the winter from the north in
October, frequenting fields, moors, and heather. It seldom perches,
but rests on the ground in long grass, or in the turnip fields ; and in
Herefordshire, it is more frequently met with in some years, than
others, but it is always rare. M. Prevost found its food to consist
of mice, cockchafers, crickets, beetles, and other insects, with small
birds occasionally. Partridge shooters not unfrequently meet with
the Short-eared Owl.

TAWNY OWL. 115

Genus— SYRNIUM.

SYRNIUM ALUCO— Tawny Owl.

[Sfn'x ahico — Yarrell?\^

'Tis the middle of the night by the castle clock
And the Owls have awakened the crowing cock !

Tu-whit ! Tu-whoo !
And hark again ! the crowing cock,

How lazily he crew.

CoLKRiDGE— CAristoftcZ.

The loud clear hoot of the Brown or Tawny Owl, the ulula of

the ancients, most people consider melancholy, but Shakespeare's

song says : —

Then nightly sings the stai-ing Owl

To-who,
Tu-whit, tu-who, a merry note.

— Love's Labour Lost, V., S.

The Brown Owl, as it is called in Herefordshire, is more
abundant than any other species. It resides throughout the year,
and is to be found in all the wooded districts of the county, but
its numbers are certainly diminishmg, from persecutions of keepers
with their guns, and deadly pole traps. It rarely leaves its place
of concealment during the day, and is therefore seldom seen. .

. . . . From yon ivy-mantled tower
The moping Owl does to the moon complain.

Gray— Elegy.

It is fond of thick woods, and the hollow trees of parks, in
which it builds. The young are singularly ugly lumps of grey
down, hissing and snorting when a strange hand approaches them,
and fiercely using their claws and beaks. Their mother, however,
speaking of them, in Lafontaine, to her friend the Eagle, calls them.

. . . . Mes petits sont mignons,

Beaux bien faits et jolis sur tous leurs compagnons.

The Rev. Clement Ley once found a Starling's nest, and on two
occasions the nest of the Blue Tit, in the same hollow tree, with,
and in close proximity to, the young fiimily of the Tawny Owl, an
awful situation one would imagine for the little Tit in particular to
have selected. He would daily look down upon the headless
carcasses of small birds, including very probably some of his own

Il6 TAWNY OWL.

species, stored in the Owl's larder, but Tommy is not given to
moonlight expeditions, and the big Owl could make nothing of the
small chink in which its pert little neighbour resided (Woolhope
Trans., 1869, p. 72).

Dr. Altum's table shows the dietary of the Tawny Owl, but it
is able to catch fish, according to Yarrell, and does not object to a
young rabbit or leveret when it meets with one. On the whole it
is, however, very much more beneficial, than injurious, to the district
it inhabits.

Not a whit of thy tuwhoo,
Thee to woo to thy tuwhit,
Thee to woo to thy tuwhit,

With a lengthened loud halloo
Tuwhoo, tuwhit, tuwhit, tuwhoo-o-o.

Tennyson.

[Genus — Nyctea.]

[Nyctea scandiaca — Snowy Owl.]

An occasional visitor to the North of Scotland.

[Genus — Surnia.]

[SuRNiA ULULA — European Hawk-owl.]

One was shot at Amesbury, Wilts, 1876.

[Surnia funerea — American Hawk-owl.

\Haivk-oivl — Yarrell?\

An occasional straggler to Great Britain and Ireland.

[Genus — Nyctala.]
[Nyctala tengmalmi — Tengmalm's Owl.]
An occasional visitor to the Eastern Counties of Scotland and
England. A stuffed one, without history, is in the Hereford Museum.

[Nyctala acadica — Saw-whet Owl.]
Said to have occurred at Beverley in Yorkshire.

SCOPS OWL. LITTLE OWL. II7

Genus— SCOPS.
SCOPS GIU— Scops Owl.

Headed like Owles, with beekes uncomely bent.

Spenser — Faerie Queen.

This small tufted Owl has only once been met with in
Herefordshire so far as is known. A pair of these birds, says
Rev. Clement Ley, were liberated at Fawley about the year 1862,
by Mr. J. Skyrme, of Ross, but nothing more was heard of them.

The cry of the Scops Owl is melancholy and monotonous
— " Kew, kew, kew," repeated at intervals as regular as the ticking
of a clock, and as Httle melodious as the croak of a frog.

[Scops asio — American Screech Owl]
One was shot at Kirkstall Abbey, in Yorkshire, in 1852.

[Genus — Bubo.]
[Bubo ignavus — Eagle Owl]
An occasional visitant to Great Britain.

Genus— ATHENE.

ATHENE NOCTUA— Little Owl.

[Carine noctna — Yarrell?\^

What care though Owl did fly
About the great Athenian Admiral's mast.

Keats — Endymion.

Shy as the Athenian-bird, she shuns the day.

ARMSTRONft— TAe Day.

Our worth the Grecian sages knew ;
They gave our sires the honour due,
They weigh'd the dignity of fowls,
And pry'd into the depth of Owls :
Athens, the seat of learned fame.
With general voice rever'd our name:
On merit, title was conferr'd.
And all ador'd the Athenian bird.

Il8 LITTLE OWL.

The Little Owl was the emblematic bird of ancient Athens,
the favourite of Minerva, as the characteristic figures on sculptures
and coins abundantly prove. Indeed some have supposed that the
great goddess herself was represented, in the early days of Greece,
with an Owl's head. The Rev. F. O. Morris, in his " British
Birds," records a specimen as having been obtained in Hereford-
shire, in 1838, which is now in the possession of Mr. Chaffey; and
the Rev. R. Blight, in his list of birds (VVoolhope Transactions for
1879) mentions having once seen it at Bredwardine.

The Little Owl is a grotesque looking bird, whose physiognomy
is characterized by " fear with spectacles and a sharp nose." It
takes up its position in the deep holes of trees or ruins, and as
evening comes on, utters a plaintive dolorous cry of " K'week,
K'week," very continuously, which thus reveals its presence.
The cry of the Little Owl in the night," says Richardson, "is a
single melancholy note, repeated at intervals of a minute or tw^o ;
and it is one of the superstitious practices of the Indians to whistle
when they hear it. If the bird is silent when thus challenged, the
speedy death of the inquirer is augured ; hence its name with them
is that of the 'Death Bird.'"

Now homewards, as she hopeless went

The churchyard path along,
The blast blew cold, the dark Owl scream'd

Her lover's funeral song.

Mallet — Edwin and Emma.

Order— ACCIPITRES.

[Family — Vulturid^.]

[Genus — Gyps.]

[Gyps fulvus — Griffon Vulture.]

Once obtained in Ireland.

[Genus — Neophron.]

[Neophron percnopterus — Egyptian Vulture.]

Twice recorded in Great Britain.

HEN HARRIER. 119

Family— FALCONID^.

Genus— CIRCUS.

[Circus /eruginosus — Marsh Harrier.]

Very scarce in Great Britain and Ireland.

CIRCUS CYANEUS— Hen Harrier.

The Hen Harrier, and its female, called Ringtail, seem like
different birds, from their varied plumage. They frequent flat
marshy situations, low moors and commons, and are consequently
lessening everywhere in numbers, from the increased cultivation of
waste lands. They fly low and hunt the ground regularly, and
build on the ground. Their food consists chiefly of small birds, of
which they destroy many, small animals and reptiles. One killed
near London is stated by Yarrell to have had as many as twenty
lizards in its stomach.

The Hen Harrier is now becoming very scarce in Hereford-
shire. Twelve or fifteen years ago, says Mr. Ley, it was not
unfrequently met with in the Ross district, at Breinton, Monnington,
and Bredwardine. Mr. T. F. Phelps shot a slate-coloured Hawk
at the Weir End, near Ross (1873), which proved to be a Hen
Harrier. In the Autumn of 1878, one was taken near Whitney ;
and in 1881, a fine male specimen was shot by the keeper of
Sir Thomas H. Crawley-Boevy, Bart., of Flaxley Abbey, so near
to the borders of Herefordshire, that it may fairly be noticed
among our local birds.

Thirty or forty years ago, the Hen Harrier was occasionally
to be met with between Ross and Monmouth, but the keepers
connected with the large estates on the banks of the Wye, have
succeeded but too well in exterminating the larger birds of prey
that formerly visited those localities, and making their appearance
in the county, now, very rare.

I20 BUZZARD.

[Circus cineraceus — Montagu's Harrier.]
An irregular autumn migrant in the Eastern Counties.

Genus— BUTEO.
BUTEO VULGARIS— Buzzard.

This have I herd ofte in seiyng
That man ne may for no dauntyng,
Make a Sperhauke of a Bosarde.

Chauceii — The Romaunt of the Rose.

Above the rest
The noble Buzzard ever pleased me best :
Of small renown, 'tis true, for, not to lie,
We call him but a Hawk by courtesy.

Dkyden — Hind and Panther.

God save Kins: Buzzard was the general cry,
A portly prince and goodly to the sight ;
He seemed a son of Anak from his height,
Like those whom stature did to crowns prefer;
Black-brow'd and bluff, like Homer's Jupiter.

DuYDEN— fi"t;icZ and Panther.

He'd prove a Buzzard is no fowl,
And that a lord may be an owl.

Butler— ^ucZitras.

The monarch bird, with blythness hiird.
The chanting litil silvan byrd,
Calit up a Buzart, quha was then
His favorite and chamberlane.

The Buzzard is the least rare of the large Hawks. It was
formerly to be met with in all the large woods of the county.
" About fifteen years ago," says the Rev. Clement Ley, *' I have
seen six Buzzards soaring together over the Doward wood, and
have seldom visited the Doward without seeing some of them."
It bred in that wood, Mr. W. C. Blake says, in 1881. It has
been noticed almost annually at Bishopswood, and more rarely
at Penyard Wood, near Ross; a fine specimen was trapped on
the Leys estate, in March, 1883, and its partner was seen in the
neighbourhood; another was shot this summer (1884) at
Peterchurch.

A Buzzard was shot on a farm at Grove Common, Sellack, in

GOLDEN EAGLE. 121

1885, but not preserved; and Mr. W. C. Blake was shown, by the
keeper of Goodrich Castle, a spot where the Buzzard had nested in
the ivied ruins in 1886.

The Buzzard never takes its prey on the wing, but, like the
Kite, always on the ground. It is very destructive, and takes young
hares, rabbits, and feathered game of all kinds. It eats also
carrion, mice, worms, beetles, and snakes. It is useful in driving
off Wood Pigeons, and in destroying weak and feeble birds. It
builds on rocks, or in the fork of a large tree ; and often appropriates
old nests of the Crow and Magpie, instead of constructing a fresh
nest for itself

[BuTEo BOREALis — Red-tailed Buzzard.]
Said to have been killed in Nottinghamshire, i860.

[BuTEO DESERTORUM — x\frican Buzzard.]
Once killed in Wiltshire, 1878.

[Genus — Archibuteo.]

[Archibuteo lagopus — Rough-legged Buzzard.]

An irregular Autumn or Winter visitant to Great Britain.

Genus— AQUI LA.
[Aquila clanga — Spotted Eagle.]

[^A qui la ncEvia — Yarreli?^
A very scarce visitor to Great Britain.

AQUILA CHRYSAETUS— Golden Eagle.

The royal bird his lonely kingdom forms
Amidst the gathering clouds and sullen storms ;
Through the wide waste of air he darts his sight,
And holds his sounding pinions pois'd for flight.
With cruel eye premeditates the war,
And marks his destin'd victim from afar.

Mrs. Barbauld— TAe Eagle.

122 GOLDEN EAGLE.

Eagles, golden feather'cl, who do tower
Above us in their beauty, and must reign
In right thereof.

Keats — Endymion.

Whose joy was in the wilderness to breathe
The difficult air of the iced mountain top.

The Golden Eagle is very rarely to be seen in the southern
portion of Great Britain. It has become rare of late years in
Scotland. In November, 1876, a very fine specimen was caught
in the park at Berrington, near Leominster. The bird had been
observed about the woods for some two or three weeks before it
was caught. Its flight was majestic, and attention was directed
to it, by its being frequently mobbed by Crows and other birds.

Bring in the Crows
To peck the Eagles.

Shakespeare— Corio?anMS.

It is said on one occasion to have hovered for some time over
a little child at Stockton, and mothers with children became very
timid about it. It was caught by the talon in a trap baited with
half a rabbit. " It measured," says Lord Rodney, "eight feet from
point to point of the wings, and stood nearly three feet high. It
was in good plumage, and fair condition when taken. The bird is
now stuffed, and in a glass case at Berrington Hall.

The captive Thrush may brook the cage
The prison'd Eagle dies for rage.

Scott— Lady of the Lake.

The Eagle is the symbol of majesty and power, and as such
was the imperial emblem of Rome ; and since those days the
Empires of France, Russia, Austria, and Germany, have adopted
it on their standards, in their claim to represent the Roman Empire.

Art thou the king of birds, proud Eagle, say ?
— I am ; my talons and my beak bear sway.
A greater king than I, if thou would'st be.
Govern thy tongue, but let thy thoughts be free.

Montgomery— 7?irc?«.

In ecclesiastical art, it is the symbol of the Evangelist, St. John^
and many beautiful allusions to it may be found in mediaeval
writers.

SPARROW-HAWK. 1 23

The reference here is chiefly to the lofty soaring flight of the
Eagle, and to the old notion that it was the only created thing that
could gaze without shrinking, at the unclouded radiance of the sun.

The lecterns of churches are often made in the form of an
Eagle, to represent the rapid and victorious flight of the Word of
Truth over all lands.

In ancient art, the Eagle appears as bearing the thunderbolts
of Jove, and as such is described by Horace as

]Ministrum fulminis alitem
Cui Rex deortim regnum in aves vagas
Permisit.

Tennyson pictures him in his lonely height —

He clasps the crag with crooked hands ;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
King'd Avith the azure world he stands.

[Genus — Haliaetus.]

[Haliaetus albicilla — White-tailed Eagle.]

A rare resident on the Sea Coast of Scotland and Ireland.

[Genus — Astur.]

[Aster palumbarius — Gos-Hawk.]

A rare straggler to Great Britain.

[Astur atricapillus — American Goshawk.]
One killed in Perthshire, 1869 ; one in Tipperary, 1870; and
another in King's County, in 1870.

Genus— ACCIPITER.
ACCIPITER NISUS— Sparrow-hawk.

I have a fine Hawk for the bush.

Shakespeare— J/erry Wives III., S.

124 KITE.

The eye of the Hawk and the fire therein.

Coleridge— TelVs Birthplace.

This bold, active, little short-winged Hawk, is nearly as common
as the Kestrel. It is much less abundant than formerly, but it is still
to be found throughout the county. It chiefly lives upon birds,
but will also take mice, insects, beetles and cockchafers. It
usually builds in the deserted nest of a Crow or Magpie, but will
occasionally build its own nest. The female, as usual with birds
of prey, is stronger and bolder than the male, and both are very
destructive in the poultry yard and the game preserve. In the
Zoologist for 1865, it is mentioned that a brood of young Sparrow-
Hawks were taken, and put in a cage near the nest. In two days
the old Hawk brought them ten birds, viz. : two young Peewits,
two young Thrushes, two young Chaffinches, a Skylark, a Meadow
Pipit, a Willow Wren, and another newly-hatched Squab (p. 9440).

Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross, gives two illustrations of the
audacity of the Sparrow-Hawk. In 1875, one dashed through the
glass of the vinery at the Gas Works, at Ross, after a small bird ;
and in 1879, another plunged through the glass roof of the con-
servatory at Gayton Hall, tempted by the sight of some Canaries ;
numerous other similar examples might be given.

The Sparrow-Hawk is a wild bird and difficult to tame, but

there are falconers who can do so, and use it for hawking

Partridges, Landrails, Blackbirds, and Thrushes. In Lombardy,

it is not thought extraordinary, for a Sparrow-Hawk to take from

seventy to eighty quails for its master in a single day.

Enough for me
To boast the gentle Spar-hawk on my fist,
Or fly the Partridge from the bristly field.

SOMERVILLE— i^ieW SpoH.

Genus— MILVUS.
MILVUS ICTINUS— Kite.

Kites that swim sublime
In still-repeated circles, screaming loud.

CowPEK— iZ%e Soja.

KITE. 125

The sudden scythe-like sweep of wings that dare
The headlong plunge through eddying gulfs of air.

Longfellow — Wayside Inn.

The graceful smooth flight of the Kite with its long, forked
tail, is an object of admiration rarely to be enjoyed in Hereford-
shire. Its movement through the air resembles sailing rather than
flying, and the Kite is thought, by the movement of its tail, to have
taught mankind the art of steering.

It has also given its name to the paper toy, so favourite an
amusement, in many parts of England, of the juvenile population ;
kite-flying requiring sufficient skill to make it an interesting
pastime.

Some years ago the Kite nested in Brampton Bryan Park.
The park-keeper found the nest, and by patient watching managed
to shoot the male bird ; the female found a new mate, and returned
to share the same fate. These birds are now in the Ludlow

Museum.

The last specimen known to have been captured, was taken

near Symonds Yat, many years since, and it is now in the Hereford

Museum. A Kite was reported to have been seen in the woods

near Symonds Yat in 1884. It is still occasionally seen on the

northern side of the county, and Mr. Newman mentions that two

nests were found in Radnorshire in 1870 (Zoologist^ in 1871, p. 2519).

The food of the Kite is offal of any kind when it offers — leverets,

rabbits, snakes, frogs, or unfledged birds. It builds in the forked

branch of a large tree, or on the ledge of a rock. It has a large nest

built of sticks, straw, and all sorts of materials, with a soft lining, in

which cloth rags not unfrequently have a place ; hence Shakespeare

says

When the Kite builds, look to lesser linen.

— Winter' & Tale, IV., 2.

The Kite takes its food on the ground. It has been taught to

hawk, but it is a craven bird, and quickly gives up the hunt for its

quarry.

The coMard Kite.

Chaucek.

126 SWALLOW-TAILED KITE.

The brood devouring Kite.

QUARLES.

It is apt to visit the poultry yard, but is actually known to
have been driven off by a spirited old hen.

And other losses do the dames recite,
Of Chick, and Duck, and Gosling gone astray,
All falling preys to the fell swooping Kite ;
And on the story runs, morning, noon and night.

Clare— Village Minstrel.

Kites are ever on the look out for carrion.

The Kite will to her carrion fly.

King — Ai^t of Love.

Shakespeare says —

Ravens, Crows, and Kites
Fly o'er our heads, and downward look on us
As we were sickly prey.

—Julius Ccesar, V. 2.

To show the force of circumstantial evidence he says —

Who finds the Partridge in the Pattock's nest.
But may imagine how the bird was dead.
Although the Kite soar with unbloodied beak.

—2nd Henry VL, III. t

Bacon gives us a rural proverb, that

Kites flying aloft show fair and dry weather.

[MiLYUS MIGRANS — Black Kite.]
Once recorded in Great Britain, 1867.

Genus— ELANOIDES.

ELANOIDES FURCATUS— Swallow-tailed Kite.

\Nauclerus furcatns — Yarrell?\

The Rev. Clement Ley says with reference to this bird : —
"There is no satisfactory evidence of its having been met with in
Herefordshire. Once, in i860 or 1S61, I saw a Kite deep black

HONEY BUZZARD. I 27

above and white beneath, soaring at a great height over the garden
at Sellack Vicarage, Ross. It circled higher and higher, until it
was altogether lost to sight. On an earlier occasion, about 1854,
the Rev.W. Baskerville Mynors informed me that a bird, answering to
the description of the Swallow-tailed Kite, had been seen on several
days at Treago, and had settled on the roof of Treago House, and
he also shewed me a wing feather that had been picked up there at
the time, which certainly resembled the wing feathers of this species.

[Genus— Elanus.]

[Elanus cceruleus — Black-winged Kite.]

Said to have been shot in Harrison Bay, Ireland, 1862.

Genus— PERNIS.

PERNIS APIVORUS— Honey Buzzard.

Some few years since the Honey Buzzard was not uncommon
in Herefordshire, but it has now become very scarce, from the
relentless persecutions of the gamekeepers with their destructive
traps. Mr. Lechmere, of Fownhope Court, has a very good speci-
men of the Honey Buzzard, which was trapped by Mr. Eckley's
keeper on Credenhill Camp, about the year 1861. It is a male
bird, in good plumage. The Rev. Clement Ley says (Woolhope
Transactions, 1869, p. 72) "a few years since, a male Honey
Buzzard was killed in the neighbourhood of Ross, and within a few
days a female was shot from her nest in Newent Wood, which was
not improbably the mate of the former bird ; the nest contained
three eggs," About ten years since, the Hereford bird-stuffers
had two or three freshly killed Honey Buzzards brought to
them every year. Three were brought, in 1880, from Whitfield, to
be stuffed. They consisted of an old male bird, and two young ones

128 PEREGRINE FALCON.

that had been bred in the Whitfield V/oods. The old bird was
sold at a bazaar in aid of St. Devereux Church, and for the young
birds the keeper asked the prohibitory price of ^£5. Mr. W. C.
Blake, of Ross, states that a Honey Buzzard was trapped on the
Goodrich estate in the summer of 1879 ; and another specimen in
July, 1 88 1, at the Queen's Wood, Marcle. A second bird was seen
in company with this one, and the presumption was strong that it
was the mate, and that they had bred in the locality.

The food of the Honey Buzzard consists chiefly of the larvae
of bees and wasps, moles, earthworms, slugs, coleopterous and
lepidopterous insects, and occasionally dead flesh. It does, there-
fore, but little injury, and but for the hatred of gamekeepers to
Hawks of all kinds, might safely be allowed to give interest and
pleasure in our woods and fields.

Mr. W. C. Blake points out that the cere, which in all other
birds of prey is naked, in the Honey Buzzard is thickly set with
feathers, and is thus protected against the stings of wasps and
bees, affording an admirable instance of the wisdom of its great
Creator.

[Genus — Hierofalco.]

[HiEROFALCO GYRFALCO — Gyr Falcon.]

One specimen shot near Orford in Suffolk in 1867.

[Hierofalco candicans — Greenland Falcon.]

[J^a/co candidans — Yarrell.\

An occasional visitant from the North to the British Islands.

[Hierofalco islandus — Iceland Falcon.]
A scarce and occasional visitant to Great Britain.

PEREGRINE FALCON. I29

Genus— FALCO.
FALCO PEREGRINUS— Peregrine Falcon.

Quara facile accipiter saxo, sacer ales, ab alto
Consequitur pennis sublimem in nube colnmbam,
Comprensamque tenet, pedibusque evisceiat uncis ;
Turn cruor et vulsae labuntur ab aethere plumae.

YiiLGiL—jEneid XL, 7iS.

So dashes from some rock above,
The hawk on some defenceless dove ;
Fiercely he follows her on high,
Pursues the combat in the sky,
O'ertakes and holds her fast.
His cruel talons tear the prey.
The bloodstained feathers float away,
And to the winds are cast.

Rev. Thomas Woodhouse— TVans.

I soar, I am a Hawk.

Shakespeare— ^enr^ V., III., 7.

My falcon flies not at ignoble game.

Byron— fl'omce.

The Peregrine Falcon is very highly esteemed and sought
after for the sport of Falconry. It is bold, very docile, and com-
paratively easy to procure. It is second only in estimation to the
Gyr Falcon, which has greater power, but at the same time is more
rare and costly. The male Peregrine Falcon, as is usual with
hawks, is smaller in size, and in the language of Falconry, is called
a " Tiercel," or commonly " Tassel " ; and the female, which is
larger and more powerful, is called the '' Falcon." The young
bird is called an " Eyas," and when the Eyasses have lost their
nest feathers, they are termed, from the reddish tinge of their
plumage, "Red Falcon," or "Red Tiercel," according to their sex.
A young bird caught during the season of migration is called a
" Peregrine," or " Passage Hawk " ; and when caught after the
first moult is completed, a " Haggard."

If I do prove her Haggard,
Though at her jesses were my dear heart-strings,
I'd whistle her oflf and let her down the wind,
To prey at fortune.

Shakespeare— O^Ae^Zo, ///, 3.

Such are the ordinary terms used in Falconry, and without
krK)wing them, half the interest in the beautiful bird Would be lost.

J

130 PEREGRINE FALCON.

" In the air my noble generous Falcon ascends to such a
height, as the dull eyes of beasts and fish are not able to reach to :
their bodies are too gross for such high elevation ; but from which
height I can make her descend by a word from my mouth, which
she both knows and obeys, to accept of meat from my hand, to own
me for her master, to go home with me, and be willing the next
day to afford me the like recreation." — Isaac Walton.

My princess of the cloud, my plumed purveyor,

My far-eyed queen of the winds— thou that canst soar

Beyond the morning Lark, and howsoe'er

Thy quarry wind and wheel, swoop down upon him

Eagle-like, lightning-like — strike, make his feathers

Glance in the mid-heaven.

TENNYSON~I%e Falcon.

I mark the Falcons wing their airy way.

And soar to seize, and stooping, strike their prey.

Parnel— jFc^ue.

The Falcon is usually flown at Herons or Rooks ; and the
Tiercel at Partridges, Magpies, or such smaller birds as may be
conveniently met with in default of better, to give sport when
required.

And pastime both of Hawk and hound, and all
That appertains to noble maintenance,

Tennyson— £'ni(^.

The Falcon poised on soaring wing,
Watching the Wild-duck by the spring.

Scott — Lady of the Lake.

And again-

Like Wild-ducks couching in the fen,
When stoops the Hawk upon the glen.

The quarry, whatever it may be, will always take down wind,
the more easily to escape from the Hawk, and this habit gives the
explanation no less ingenious than simple of the often quoted
passage of Shakespeare : —

" I am but mad north-north-west ; when the wind is southerly,
I know a Hawk from a Handsaw " (Ernsaw, or Heronshaw).

Hamlet II., 2.

Hawking was a morning sport, and with the wind north-north-
west, the sun would be in the eyes of anyone watching the birds,

PEREGRINE FALCON. 13I

and he could not tell the Hawk from the Heron ; but with the
wind southerly, when the birds fly away from the sun, they could
easily be distinguished. Hamlet would thus show that his madness
was much akin to other men's sanity.

Note in Yarrell (V. I., p. 57. j

Hawking is still carried on in the New Forest, Hampshire.

The Peregrine Falcon usually builds on the ledge of some
precipitous rock near the sea, or a lake, but it also builds
occasionally in trees. The bold headland called Culver Cliff, on
the east of the Isle of Wight, is a noted resort of the Peregrine
Falcon ; it has been known to breed there repeatedly within the
last few years. Its natural food consists of Grouse, Ptarmigan,
Pigeons, Partridges, Ducks, Gulls, and various species of sea
fowl ; and like all birds that feed on animals covered with fur
or feather, it throws up castings formed of the indigestible portion
of its food.

A life at every meal, rapacious Hawk ?
Spare helpless innocence.

. . . . Troth, pleasant talk !
Yon Sparrow snaps more lives up in a day
Than in a twelvemonth I could take away ;
But hark ! most gentle censor, in your ear,
A word, a whisper : — you, — are you quite clear ?
Creation's groans, through ocean, earth and sky,
Ascend from all that walk, or swim, or fly.

Montgomery— jBtV(Z«.

The Peregrine Falcon is now a very rare visitor to Herefordshire.

0 for a falconer's lure.
To lure this tassel-gentle back again.

Shakespeare — Romeo and Juliet, 11. , 2.

Still a winter seldom passes without one or two being seen in
some part of the county. In 1865, a fine specimen was taken in the
neighbourhood of Ross. In 1866, a young Peregrine Falcon was
shot in a wood near Leominster. Two others were in company
with it, and the woodman believed they had been bred there,
which is extremely doubtful, to say the least of it. There are four
specimens in the Hereford Museum ; two from the Ross district,
one from Woolhope, and one from Garnons. There are also
many others preserved in private houses, scattered throughout

132 HOBBY.

the county. A pair of Peregrine Falcons were seen in the Letton
meadows, in December, 1883, and one of them, at any rate, was
seen many times in the same neighbourhood, for some weeks
afterwards. In 1884, ^ Peregrine Falcon, of immature plumage,
was shot by Mr. Walter Power, of the Hill Court, near Ross. It
was killed nearly opposite Goodrich Court, and is now in the
possession of Miss Shand, Old Hill House.

As when a cast of Faulcons make their flight

At an Herneshaw, that lyes aloft on wing,

The whyles they strike at him with heedlesse might,

The warie fcmle his bill doth backward wring,

On which the first, whose force her first doth bring,

Herselfe quite through the bodie doth engore.

And falleth downe to ground like senselesse thing ;

But th' other not so swift as she before,

Fayles of her souse, and passing by doth hurt no more.

Spenser— i^aeWe Queen.

As confident as is the Falcon's flight against a bird.

Shakespeare— iJicAarc? //., J., S.

The Falcon as the Tercel for all the Ducks i' the river.

Shakespeare— TroiYus and Cressida, III., 2.

FALCO SUBBUTEO— Hobby.

Larks lie dared to shun the Hobby's flight.

Dryden.

Or with my soaring Hobby dare the Lark.

Somerville— jPi'eM Sports.

This pretty little Falcon is a migratory species, coming in
April, and leaving in October. It is more numerous in some
seasons than others ; it is not unfrequent in occurrence throughout
the wooded districts of the county. A summer never passes,
without the opportunity being afforded of occasionally seeing a
pair of these beautiful little Falcons soaring aloft, with their narrow
bow-like wings and rapid flight, over the great woods of Hereford-
shire. It has lived in several places in the centre of the county,
notably at Aconbury, Caplar, the Haugh Wood, and Breinton.
The specimen in the Hereford Museum was shot at Aconbury.

MERLIN. 133

A Hobby was killed at Stoke Edith in 1867 ; and another
was shot at Bullingham in September, 1886, and seen by Mr. W.
C. Blake at a bird-stuffer's in Hereford.

The Hobby will sometimes dash through a window at a small
bird in a cage. The Skylark has a special dread of it, and
bird-catchers sometimes use it, or an imitation of it, to catch the
Larks, which is called " daring " them.

The people will chop, like tronts at an artificial fly,
And dare like Larks under the awe of a painted Hobby.

— Ij Estrange.

The Hobby might well be spared by the gamekeeper, for its
chief food consists of small birds — Skylarks, Swallows, Martins,
Swifts, Sandpipers, young Plovers, and occasionally a young
Partridge. It often hawks Cockchafers and beetles. It builds
in high trees, and often in the old nests of the Crow or the
Magpie. By experienced falconers it is sometimes trained to jfly
at Skylarks, Quails, and Snipes.

FALCO ^SALON— Merlin.

"Not yielding over to old age his country delights, he was at that time
following a Merlin."— Stdnkt.

Saving there came a litle ** gray " Hawke
A Merlin him they call,

Which untill the grounde did strike the grype,
That dead he downe did fall.

Percy — Sir Aldingar.

The Merlin is one of the smallest of the Hawks, )ut it is rapid
in flight and of great courage. It is usually a winter visitor, but
sometimes stays to breed in Herefordshire. The Rev. Clement
Ley has taken its eggs in May, from beneath the heather on the
Fwddog mountain. Mr. W. C. Blake says that a pair of Merlins
were trapped on the Bishopswood estate in 1883, even to the
regret of the keeper himself. It is however a rare bird, and is

134 KESTREL.

not noted as occurring in other districts of the county, except
occasionally in the winter. Indeed it may almost be said —

Now no more our bursting woods
Hear the swooping Merlins scream.

Bennett.

The Merlin feeds chiefly on small birds — Snipes, Larks,
Thrushes, and Blackbirds. It will hover over the Snipe Shooter,
and give chase to the wounded birds, or to those that escape the
guns. It will boldly attack the House Pigeon, and has indeed
been trained to hawk Pigeons.

[Genus — Tinnunculus.]

[TiNNUNCULUs VESPERTiNus — Red-footed Falcon.]

\Falco vespertinus — Yar7'elL'\

An occasional visitor to England.

TINNUNCULUS ALAUDARIUS— Kestrel.

\Falco tinnunculus — Yarrell?\

As the Wyndhover hangs in the balance.

Tennyson— ^y^TJicr's Field.

One they might trust their common wrongs to wreak,
The Musquel and the Coystrel were too weak.

Drtden — Hind and Panther.

The Kestrel, or Windhover, is a constant resident in the
county. It is the most common of the Hawks and adds great
pleasure to country walks. Its graceful flight, and the way it sustains
itself stationary in the air by the rapid movement of its wings, as it
hovers over the ground to scan its surface for the mice it delights
to feed on, is very interesting to watch. Its chief food is mice,
rats, small birds, frogs, and cockchafers. It may now and then
take a young Partridge, but it does not deserve the hatred the
gamekeepers bestow upon it, for the fault is abundantly condoned

OSPREY OR FISHING HAWK. I35

by the great number of mice it destroys. It builds here usually in
trees, in the deserted nest of a Crow or a Magpie, but it will also
build in rocks, towers, or ruins.

[TiNNUNcuLus CENCHRis — Lcsser Kestrel.]
One obtained near York, and another taken alive near Dover, 1877.

Genus— PANDION.
PANDION HALIAETUS— OsPREY or Fishing Hawk.

True to the season, o'er our sea-beat shore,
The sailing Osprey high is seen to soar,
With broad unmoving wing ; and circling slow,
Marks each loose straggler in the deep below ;
Sweeps down like lightning ! plunges with a roar !
And bears his struggling victim to the shore.

A. Wilson— 2^-^e Osprey.

The Sea Eagle, or Fishing Hawk, is rarely to be met with
so far inland as Herefordshire. In October, 1879, a beautiful
specimen was shot near Fownhope by Mr. V. Collins, of Cubberley,
near Ross, and this is the only instance on record of the Osprey
having been seen or taken in the county. It is now in the
possession of Mr. W. C. Blake, Ross.

The handsome Osprey in the Hereford Museum, was shot at
Penybont, in Radnorshire, in May, 1885, by Mr.. E. W. Colt-Williams,
who kindly presented the bird to the Museum.

In April, 1867, a very fine Osprey was caught in a pole-trap
set for Hawks, in a wood on the Clyro estate called Cwm Sir Hugh ;
it measured about six feet across the wings, and had a trout, of
nearly 3lbs. weight, in its claws when captured. It was set up by
Shaw, of Shrewsbury, and is preserved at Clyro Court, the seat of
Mr. Baskerville.

136 CORMORANT,

These rare birds having been obtained so near to our borders,
it is of great interest to mention them.

I think he'll be to Rome,
As is the Osprey to the fish, who takes it,
By sovereignty of nature.

Shakespeare— Co?-io/anu«, /F., 7.

Hawk and Osprey screamed for joy.

Scott— ^aroW.

She brings us fish— she brings us Spring,
Good times, fair weather, warmth, and plenty,

Fine store of shad, trout, herring, ling,

Sheepshead, and drum, and old wives dainty.
« « * *

" God bless the Fish -hawk, and the Fisher."

A. WiLBOJf— The Osprey.

Order— STEGANOPODES.

Family— PELECANID^.

Genus— PHALACROCORAX.

PHALACROCORAX CARBO— Cormorant.

The hote Cormorant full of gluttonie.

Chaucer.

And Cormoyrants with birds of ravenous race,
Which still sat way ting on the wastful cliflf
For spoil of wrackes.

Spenser— i^'aerie Queene.

On distant waves the Raven of the sea,
The Cormorant devours her carrion food,

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

The greedy Cormorant.

Quarles — History of Summer.

Notwithstanding the hard things said of him by poets, the
Great, or Black Cormorant, in its summer plumage, is a very
handsome bird. Its crested head, so hoary looking, from the long
thin white feathers which project from the dark ones beneath ; its
hooked beak, the upper mandible being turned sharply down over
the lower one ; its glossy bronze back, with green or purple
metallic tinted edging to the feathers ; its white thighs, and its
general appearance and size, render it a very remarkable bird. In

CORMORANT. I37

autumn and winter, the crest and the white feathers disappear,
leaving the bird sufficiently sombre looking to deserve its common
name of Black.

The Cormorant has a rank and most disagreeable smell, his
voice is hoarse and croaking, his form inelegant, and his qualities
base; so that it is no wonder Milton should make Satan assume the
form of this bird, to " survey undelighted " the beauties of Paradise ;
and " sit devising death " on the Tree of Life.

The Great Cormorant, is a very common bird on the sea-
coast. Considerable numbers of them collect together at their
favourite breeding stations. They seldom come so far inland as
Herefordshire, but there are several instances on record of their
having done so. A Cormorant was shot on the river Wye, near
Ross, in the winter of 1856 ; on the river Lugg, near Kingsland, in
1859 ; on the Wye, near Hampton Bishop, in 1876 ; on a brook at
Tarrington, in 1878 ; and again on the Lugg, near Mordiford, in
1 88 1. The two last birds are in the Hereford Museum.

The Cormorant is a bold intelligent bird, and very easily
tamed. It swims rapidly, and catches its prey with the greatest
ease, holding the fish with certainty, by means of the sharp
hook on the upper mandible. They were formerly trained to
catch fish, and bring them to their masters. Charles I. had a
" master of Cormorants " ; and it is well known that the Chinese
have long employed them for this purpose, putting a strap or ring
round their necks to prevent them from swallowing any fish
themselves, until they have caught sufficient for their master. A
gentleman in England, Captain Salvin, has now some trained
Cormorants, which he uses for this purpose. They are trouble-
some creatures, and require careful management.

Captain Salvin gives names to his birds. In Gloucestershire
he was fishing with " The Artful Dodger," " Sub-inspector " and
" Kao-wang." The latter bird bred in 1881, and this year (1885),
he is breeding again, though in his twenty-third year. They are
very irregular in changing to the spring or nuptial dress, which

138 SHAG.

both sexes have alike. " I got a medal at the Fisheries
Exhibition " he adds, " for the performances of Kao-wang's
son." Captain Salvin's birds are the first that have bred in
confinement.

The food of the Cormorant, when wild and at liberty, consists
almost entirely of fish ; but in confinement they will eat raw meat,
mice, birds, and almost any flesh offered them. They eat their
food so ravenously, that the very name of " cormorant " has
become symbolical of gluttony.

With eager feeding food doth choke the feeder ;
Light vanity, insatiate Cormorant
Consuming means, soon preys upon itself.

Shakespeare— King Eichard II., II. 1.

And again —

Spite of cormorant devouring time.

Shakespeare— Zove's Labour Lost, I., 1.

PHALACROCORAX GRACULUS— Shag.

The Cormorant on high
Wheels from the deep and screams along the land.

Thomson— Winter.

The Shag is very like the Black Cormorant ; but its smaller
size, and the prevailing green colour of its plumage, serve to
distinguish it, and have, indeed, given it the name of the Small or
Green Cormorant. It is a very rare visitor to Herefordshire.
There is but one well-authenticated instance of its coming here.
On October nth, 1876, an uncommon bird was seen to alight, on
the louvres of one of the windows in the steeple of All Saints'
Church, in the centre of Hereford. It was fired at from the
Bowling Green garden, but neither hit nor frightened away. The
key of the tower was obtained, and the exhausted bird was knocked
down with a pole, while attemptmg to start on a fresh flight. It
was a male bird of the first year, and it is now preserved in

GANNET. 139

Hereford. Its slaughter was an inhospitable deed ; done, too, on
a church spire !

For if a hope of safety rest
'Tis on the sacred name of guest,
Who seeks for shelter, storm distress'd,
Within a chieftain's hall.

Scott— The Lord of the Isles.

Genus— SULA.
SULA BASSANA— Gannet.

Wild round their rifted brows, with frequent cry
As of lament, the Gulls and Gannets fly.

Scott — To the Duke of Bucdeugh.

The Gannet is a noble bird. His white body, with only the
primary feathers of the wing, black ; his buff-coloured head and back
of the neck ; his yellowish eyes, and his sharp-pointed bluish beak ;
together with his size, make the adult bird very handsome. The
Gannet takes four years to attain maturity. He is born covered
with a bluish black skin, from which a white down quickly grows,
so thick and full, as to make the bird look like a powder-puff, or a
ball of cotton ; from this down, black feathers protrude, which
become motded with white, until eventually, the white plumage of
the adult bird appears.

The Gannet is a constant resident on our coasts, and is widely
distributed until the breeding season, when they congregate in
many well-known localities, which they always frequent year after
year. It is a long-lived bird; and "a resident at the Bass Rock"
says Mr. Selby (as quoted by Yarrell) "has recognised certain
individuals, from particular and well-known marks, as invariably
returning to the same spot to breed, for upwards of forty years.

Gannets fly long distances, and frequent a wide range of sea-
coast, being invariably attendant on the herring tribe. Their
appearance off the Cornish coast is welcomed by the fishermen,

140 HERON.

for they announce the approach of the pilchards, and their
movements show the course the shoal is taking. The Gannet
feeds entirely on fish. The birds seize their prey by dropping
down upon them suddenly from the air, and seldom miss their aim.
So closely indeed do the birds follow the fish, that they frequently
get entangled and caught in the long sea nets of the fishermen.

The Gannet is very rarely seen in Herefordshire. There is
only one recorded instance of its occurrence. A young Gannet, in
its first year's grey plumage, was found by a cottager near Peter-
church, in 1 88 1. It was in a very exhausted state, and was caught
alive, and kept on meat and herrings for some six weeks, when it
died. The bird was stuffed, and is now in the possession of the
Rev. T. Prosser Powell, of Peterchurch.

[Genus — Pelecanus.]
[Pelecanus onocrotalus — White Pelican.]

One shot in Horsey Fen, May, 1863, probably an escape, but
bones have been exhumed more than once from the Norfolk fens.

Order— HERODIONES.
Family— ARDEID^.
Genus— ARDEA.
ARDEA CINEREA— Heron.

Unhappy bird ! our fathers' prime delight,
Who fenced thine eyry round with sacred laws ;
No mighty princes now disdain to wear
Thy waving crest, the mark of high command.

S0UEB.YILLK— Field Sports,

Long-necked Heron, dread of nimble eels.

Leyden — A Ibania.

Grey swamps and pools, waste places of the Hern.

Tennyson— J^nic?.

HERON. 141

The Heron is not infrequent in the more secluded parts of
our Herefordshire brooks and rivers ; a companion, and rival to the
solitary angler. The Heron is a stately, graceful bird, and as he
stands motionless in shallow water, with his attention riveted on
the stream, and his beak pointed towards it, ready to seize his prey
the instant it appears, he forms a most beautiful and picturesque
object in the landscape, and one the artist delights to introduce on
his canvas.

Stock-still upon that stone, from day to day,

I see thee watch the river for thy prey.

— Yes, I'm the tyrant there ; but when T rise.

The well-trained Falcon braves me in the skies ;

Then comes the tug of war, of strength and skill ;

He dies, impaled on my up-darted bill ;

Or, powerless in his grasp, my doom I meet ;

Dropt, as a trophy, at his master's feet.

M.o'STGOMEnY— Birds.

The Heron was formerly considered royal game. It was
encouraged for the ancient sport of falconry, and was protected by
severe penal statutes.

So lords, with sport of stag and and Heron full.
Sometimes we see.

Sidney.

Anyone who presumed to take or destroy its eggs, incurred a
penalty of twenty shillings, a very heavy penalty in those days.
By a statute of Henry VHI. the taking of Herons, except by
hawking or the long bow, was prohibited under the penalty of half
a mark, and the theft of a young bird from the nest was ten
shillings. It was then a favourite dish for the table, not less
esteemed than the Bustard or the Peacock.

The Heron has now been left, for many years past, to depend
for safety on its own sagacity. In winter, when it is more solitary,
it is wary, shy, and watchful against danger ; but at the breeding
season, the birds can be much more readily approached, and their
rapidly diminishing numbers are doubtless due to their slaughter
at this time. Cheap guns and gunpowder have been very fatal to
Herons. A wounded Heron is a dangerous bird to approach.
With his long neck and sharp beak, he can quickly strike a
dangerous blow, and as he aims at the eyes, if the stroke is not

142 HERON.

avoided, it is certain blindness, and may actually cause death to
the unfortunate receiver.

The food of the Heron consists principally of any kind of
fish, eels, frogs, water-rats, and the young of waterfowl, if it gets
the opportunity of seizing them. It frequents shallow water to
seek its food, for though it can swim if it pleases, it very seldom
does so. The Heron is especially fond of the eel,

The eles for the Heroune.

Chaucer.

and is very successful in catching them. When the eel is large,
the Heron deliberately walks to the shore to beat it against the
ground before attempting to swallow it.

Herons are gregarious at the breeding season, and in Hereford-
shire build on oaks, firs, beech, and elm trees. Like the Rooks,
they occupy the trees for the spring and summer ; then, only visit
them occasionally, and leave them altogether for the two or three
months of severe weather in winter.

Within comparatively recent times there were several Heronries
in Herefordshire. At the beginning of this century, there was one
on the fine elms at the Moor, within a mile of the centre of the
city of Hereford. It dwindled down to a single pair of birds,
which built for the last time about the year 1810. There was also
a large Heronry on the elm trees at Newcourt, Lugwardine, within
three miles of the city; and some few remained there until 1853.
There was also another small Heronry, at the beginning of the
century, in the centre of the county, at the Marsh Farm, Eaton
Bishop.

In early days, there was a considerable colony of Herons
occupying some tall oak trees on the north-west side of Brampton
Bryan Park, but this was broken up in the troublous times

When civil dudgeon first grew high,

in the reign of Charles I. The trees were felled, and the Herons
sought another home.

HERON. 143

At Willey Lodge, near Lingen, at the beginning of the present
century, a large number of Herons, considerably over a hundred
families, occupied a grove of lofty oaks, and they remained there
up to the year 1836, when the trees were felled. These birds were
believed to have gone to Plowden, near Bishop's Castle, from the
great increase in the number of Herons that took place there just
at that time.

A large Heronry existed in the Hawkswood, at the Moor,
near Hay, where a considerable number of Herons built on some
tall oak trees. This Heronry was in the immediate vicinity of a
Rookery, and here might be seen in spring, a curious border
warfare between these very different birds, for the possession of
some particular tree. This Heronry was numerously occupied, up
to the year 1852, when a large fall of timber disturbed the birds.
In the year 1856, there were still about a dozen nests, but the
number of Herons gradually diminished, until they were reduced
to a single pair, which built there in 1863 for the last time.

Single pairs of Herons have nested in many parts of the
county of late years, but have been too much disturbed to remain.
A pair of Herons built at Free Town, Stoke Edith, in 1876, but
the nest was robbed, in spite of the farmer, who wished to protect
them. Another pair built on the side of the canal, between
Ashperton and Bosbury, on the Canon Frome estate in 1881, but
again the nest was robbed of its eggs, and the birds left. In the
years 1880, and 1881, a pair of Herons built and reared their young,
in a copse on the Church House Farm, near Moreton Court ; they
returned on the following year, but some neighbouring trees had
been cut down, and they did not remain. A few years since, a
single pair of Herons built on a tree near the river Wye in the parish
of Fownhope. In 1883, Mr. Pitt, of Free Town, saw in the parish
of Stoke Edith, four young Herons, which had recently left the
nest somewhere in that neighbourhood.

The Heronries existing at the present time in Herefordshire,
are reduced to two ; one at Berrington, near Eeominster, and the

144 HERON.

*

Other at Letton Court. The Woolhope Club visited the Heronry

situated on the island on the large pool in Berrington Park, on

June 9, 1884, and found, that there were from fifteen to twenty

nests on some tall larch, fir, and beech trees. The foliage on

the trees prevented the possibility of counting the nests, but the

keeper stated, that he counted forty Herons on their return in the

spring, after their usual winter absence to their wood-surrounded

pool —

Old woods whose reverend echoes wake,
When the Heron screams along the distant lake.

UoQ^m— Captivity.

The other small Heronry is situated on the horse-shoe
bend of the river Wye at Letton, where there have been two
or three nests, for some years, built on some spruce fir trees.
Last year (1884), and this year (1885), the keeper states that five
families have nested there. It is a most interesting sight to watch
the birds on their nests, with the aid of a telescope, from the
drawing-room at Letton Court. Here, too, the Rooks have invaded
the trees, and the usual squabbles between the birds occur every
spring. It is to be feared, as has often happened elsewhere, that
in the end the Herons will be driven away. At Letton, however,
last year (1884), the keeper states that no less than sixteen young
birds were reared there. It is pleasant to know that both Lord
Rodney, and the Rev. Henry Blisset, are anxious to protect their
Heronries ; and it is hoped, that the required licence to carry a
gun, will also tend to save them from destruction.

The Partridge loves the fruitful fells ;

The Plover loves the mountains ;
The Woodcock haunts the lonely dells ;

The soaring Hern the fountains.

BvRNB—Song.

In the wide, rush-grown pool, upon the lands,
Like a dark soul that some forgotten crime
Has struck to hopeless gloom, a Heron stands,
A silent shadow, grey and gaunt as Time.

D. W. R.

Waterfowl are always restless before rain and wind, as
Virgil has noted ; (Georg. i., 368), and he specially mentions
the Heron.

SQUACCO HERON. I45

Notasque paludes
Deserit atque altam supra volat ardea nubem.

The Heron leaves his swampy shores
And high above the clouds he soars.

Bacon echoes this opinion and says : " the Heron when she
soareth high, showeth wind."

[Ardea purpurea — Purple Heron.]
A rare straggler to the South of England.

[Ardea alba — Great White Heron.]
Of accidental occurrence in Britain.

[Ardea garzetta — Little Egret.]
Has occurred several times in the British Islands.

[Ardea bubulcus — Buff-backed Heron.]
Three times in the south of England.

ARDEA RALLOIDES— Squacco Heron.

This beautiful little Heron, a native of the South Western parts
of Asia, and of Egypt and Nubia, is but a very occasional summer
migrant to the British Islands. There is no doubt that it has
visited Herefordshire. One specimen, is said to have been shot on
"the Lugg, at Sutton," but neither date nor authority is given for it.

The following instance, however, is beyond dispute. In the
summer of 1873, ^^ the Old Weir, on the river Wye, five miles
above Hereford, Mr. Thomas Jowett saw a small flock of five birds
with snow-white plumage, flying over the river. He got his gun,
and by a very long shot succeeded in winging one of them, which

K

146 LITTLE BITTERN.

dropped in the river. It floated down the stream, and a chase

after it began with great energy and enthusiasm ;

Not dead, not yet quite dead ?
I that am cruel, am yet merciful ;
I would not have thee linger in thy pain.

Shakespeare— 0<^e??o F., S.

By wading boldly, the bird was at length caught, killed, and
sent to Mr. Ward, of Wigmore Street, London. He recognised its
rarity, and wrote to have another specimen shot. The four birds
remained in the neighbourhood for eight or nine days longer, and
although Mr. Jowett tried his utmost to get another shot at them,
he was unable to do so. They usually passed their time in the
neighbouring trees, and fed very early and late, on the gravel and
mud banks of the river. One bird was always on the watch, from
a tree top, whilst the others fed; and on the approach of any
intruder, a " scrawk " from the sentinel started them off immediately.
The stuffed specimen is now in the possession of Mr. Jowett.

A very fine specimen of the Squacco Heron was shot on the
river Wye, on May 3rd, 1867, by Mr. Hotchkis, who was staying
at Clyro Court. It was carefully preserved, and is in the possession
of Mr. Baskerville.

Genus— ARDETTA.
ARDETTA MI NUT A— Little Bittern.

Even as the savage sits ....

and hears

The Bittern booming in the reed, he shrinks
From the dismaying solitude.

KiRKE White— Time.

This rare summer visitor is reported to have been shot in
Herefordshire. The Rev. F. O. Morris, in his " British Birds,"
states that a specimen was shot at Shobdon Court, the seat of
Lord Bateman, in the spring of 1838. The late Mr. Walcot, of
Worcester, had in his collection of birds, a fine specimen of a male
bird shot in Herefordshire. These are, however, the only instances
recorded of its occurrence in this county.

NIGHT-HERON. BITTERN. I47

Genus— NYCTICORAX.

NYCTICORAX GRISEUS— Night-Heron.

The Night-Heron has a wide range of habitat. It is known in
all the four quarters of the globe, but it is an extremely rare visitor
to the British Isles. Its nocturnal habits may possibly sometimes
screen it from observation, but so far as is known, it has not occurred
here much more than a dozen times. The specimen in the
Hereford Museum, was formerly in the collection of the late Mr.
Moss, of Ross, and is labelled " Backney Marsh," a marsh situated
about two miles from Ross, but nothing further is known about it.

Genus— BOTAURUS.
BOTAURUS STELLARIS— Bittern.

The busying Bittern sits, which through his hollow bill
A sudden bellowing sounds, which many times doth fill
The neighbouring marsh with noyse, as though a bull did roare.

Drayton— Folyolbion.

The Bittern booming in the reeds.

KiRKE Write— Thne.

" The poor fish have enemies enough, besides such unnatural fishermen as
Otters, the Cormorant, and the Bittern."— Isaac Walton.

The Bittern sounds his drum
Booming from the sedgy shallows.

Scott— Lady of the Lake.

The Bittern lone that shakes the hollow ground,
While through still midnight groans the hollow sound.

A. Wilson — Loch Winnock,

The loud Bittern from his bulrush home
Gave from the salt ditch side the bellowing boom.

Crabbe— Peter Grimes.

The startling boom ot the Bittern is rarely to be heard in
England at the present time. It was moderately plentiful at the
beginning of the present century in Herefordshire, in the waste
land, and marshy districts of the county ; but of late years, it has
rarely been met with. It is a shy bird, concealing itself by day

148 BITTERN.

amongst the beds of reeds, rushes, flags, or other rank, aquatic
vegetation, to come out with the shades of evening to seek its
food. The strange, booming, bellowing cry of the Bittern, when
heard across the marsh as night approaches, is not easily mistaken.
It is a love note of peculiar harshness, and seems to make the
ground itself vibrate ; but when the bird is suddenly flushed by day,
it makes a sharp cry on rising, not unlike that of the Wild Goose.

From the green marshes of the stagnant brook
The Bittern's sullen shout the sedges shook.

Scott.

The Bittern was formerly much esteemed on the table. Its
flesh resembles that of the leveret in colour, with a wild-fowl
flavour. When struck down either by a Hawk, or with the gun, it
is very fierce, throwing itself on its back, so as to make it very
dangerous to the dog or man who approaches it.

Many specimens of the Bittern exist in houses throughout
Herefordshire, killed since the beginning of the century. The
latest well authenticated instances are : one killed from the moat of
Bronshill Castle, beyond Eastnor, in 1854, which is now in the Here-
ford Museum; one killed at Backney Marsh, near Ross, in 1854;
one killed by the late Mr. Griffiths, of Newcourt, at Staunton-on-
Wye, in 1861, and now in the possession of Sir Henry Cotterell ;
one shot on Staunton Common a few weeks after (1861) by Mr.
Pearce, of Calver Hill, Norton Canon. It was the male bird, and
notwithstanding that it had a broken wing, it fought so desperately,
that it was only secured with difficulty. A Bittern was shot at
Sellack, near Ross, in 1880, and brought to the Free Library for
identification; and the Rev. Morgan Watkins mentions another
that was killed at Dulas, on April loth, 1887. Some other single
birds are reported as having been killed within the last few years
on the river Lugg, at Shobdon, Backney Marsh, and elsewhere.

Mr. Done, of the Moor, near Hay, says that a Bittern was
seen there alive by his keeper, in the spring of 1885.

No more the screaming Bittern, bellowing harsh,
To the dark bottom shakes the shuddering marsh.

Leyden. — Scenes of Infancy.

149

[BoTAURUS LENTiGiNOSUS — American Bittern.]
Has occurred several times in British Isles.

[Family— CicoNiiD^.]

[Genus— CicoNiA.J

[CicoNiA ALBA — White Stork.]

An occasional visitant.

[CicoNiA NIGRA — Black Stork.]
An occasional straggler.

[Famfty— Plataleid^.]

[Genus — Platalea.]

[Platalea leucorodia — Spoonbill]

A rare straggler now, but formerly bred in the British Isles.

[Genus — Plegadis.]
[Plegadis falcinellus — Glossy Ibis.]
A rare straggler.

Order— ANSERES.

Family— ANATID^.

[Genus — Plectropterus.]

[Plectropterus gambensis — Spur-Winged Goose.]

One in Scotland, three in England, probably escapes.

[Genus— Chenalopex.]

[Chenalopex ^gyptiacus — Egyptian Goose.]

Said to have occurred in Herefordshire, but probably an escape.

Genus— ANSER.
[Anser cinereus — Grey Lag Goose.]
Breeds in Scotland, visiting England in the winter.

150 BEAN-GOOSE. PINK-FOOTED GOOSE.

ANSER SEGETUM— Bean-Goose.

Ranged in figure (Wild Geese) wedge their way

and set forth

Their airy caravan on high over seas
Flying, and over lands with mutual wing
Easing their flight.

Milton.

The Bean-Goose is one of the most common and numerous
of the Wild Grey Geese which visit the British Isles during the
winter months. It sometimes remains to breed in the north of
Scotland. It is very common on the Norwegian coast, and in
Sweden. Flocks of the Bean-Goose not unfrequently pass over
Herefordshire, but they seldom stay to rest here. Mr. Lingwood
records it in his List of Herefordshire Birds ; and there is a
specimen in the Hereford Museum, which was shot by Mr. F.
R. James on the Wye, at Mordiford, in 1881.

In India, the Goose is the symbol of sleepless vigilance, and

Wild Geese are so difficult to approach, that the expression " A

Wild Goose chase " has become proverbial for an unsuccessful

enterprise.

Nor watch dogs, nor the yet more wakeful Geese,
Disturb with nightly noise the sacred peace.

Dryden.

The consecrated Geese in orders,
That to the Capitol were warders,
For being then upon patrol.
With noise alone beat off the Gaul.

Butler— Hudibras.

ANSER BRACHYRHYNCHUS— Pink-footed Goose.

If he be free
Why then, my taxing like the Wild Goose flies
Unclaim'd of any man.

Shakespeare— yls you like it, II., 7.

If thy wits run the wild goose chase
I've done.

Shakespeare — Romeo and Juliet, II., 4.

This Goose is smaller than the Bean-Goose. It frequents
the same locahties, and is known by the rosy, pink colour of its

WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE. 151

legs and feet, and by the shortness of its neck. In severe winters
the flocks are sometimes very numerous, and they become plentiful
in the London poulterers' shops.

Sir, your pennyworth is good, an your Goose be fat.

Shakespeare— iore's Labour Lost, III., 1.

It is not often met with in Herefordshire. One was killed on
the Wye, near Moccas, in the winter of 1879-80, and brought to
j\Ir. Newman, the bird stuffer, in Hereford, to set up.

Another specimen was shot near the Lugg Mills, about two
miles from Hereford, in December, 1880. It is now in the Hereford
Museum.

ANSER ALBIFRONS— White-fronted Goose.

Nay, I am for all waters,

Shakespeare— rife?/'^^ Night, IV., 2.

The Laughing, or White-fronted Goose, is the common Goose
of Lapland. It is so named from its note, which resembles a man's
laugh. The Indians imitate the call of this Goose by patting the
mouth quickly with the hands, whilst uttering the word " wah."
It is a regular winter visitant to the British Isles, but seldom stops
to break its journey in Herefordshire. There is only one instance
of its having been killed here ; that was at the Weir Cliff, on
January 23rd, 1885, by Mr. W. Deakin, who presented the bird to
the Hereford Museum.

Thou cream-faced loon !
Where got'st thou that goose look ?

HuAKESPEMiE— Macbeth, V., 3.

[Anser indicus — Bar-headed Goose.]
Once on the river Dee, but probably an escape.

[Anser cygnoides — Chmese Goose.]
Frequently kept on ornamental waters, whence they escape.

152 BRENT GOOSE. BARNACLE GOOSE.

I Genus — Chen].

[Chen albatus — Cassin's Snow Goose.]

Four have been killed at different times in Ireland.

Genus— BERNICLA.
BERNICLA BRENTA— Brent Goose.

There swims no Goose so grey, but soon or late
She finds some honest Gander for her mate.

VOPE— Wife of Bath.

This is the smallest and most numerous of the Wild Geese,
which visit this county every winter. It is a marine species, and is
seldom seen on fresh water in the interior. They spend the greater
part of their time on the sea, feeding on laver and other drift weed,
but frequent the muddy flats and sand bars on the sea-shore at
ebb-tide. They are excellent eating, and in severe winters the
London shops are well supphed with them.

A large flock of Brent Geese was seen on the river Wye, near
Brobury, in the winter of 1879 ; and one was shot on the river at
Ross, in 1882, which is now in the possession of Mr. W. C. Blake,
of that town.

BERNICLA LEUCOPSIS— Barnacle Goose.

The noisy Geese that gabbled o'er the pool.

Goldsmith — Deserted Village.

This handsome Goose is a regular winter visitor to the British
Isles, but it has very seldom been met with in Herefordshire.
The only clear record is of one, a female, in full plumage, which
was shot from a pool at Llangannock, St. Weonards, by Mr. T. L.
Mayos, of that village, and it is now in his possession.

Geese are singularly sensitive of changes of weather, and are
natural rural barometers to those who can interpret their ways, as
Akenside has noticed : —

CANADA GOOSE. I53

Grave, unwieldy inmates of the pool,
The chauf^'ing seasons of the sky proclaim.
Sun, cloud, or shower.

Pleasures of Imagination.

Our forefathers were much perplexed to decide, whether these
Geese were fowl or fish. They rather inclined to class them with
fish, because they were believed to emerge from the barnacles
which encrust old timber, and hulls of ships. One old herbal
contains a marvellous picture of a dead tree with many branches,
thickly studded with barnacles, from which small Geese are coming
out full fledged ; and the writer tells us that " the fish which is
hatched therefrom is in shape and habit like a bird."

As barnacles turn Solan Geese
In th' islands of the Orcades.

'Bi:TLER—Hudibras.

BERNICLA CANADENSIS— Canada Goose.

The Canada Goose is not often met with in its wild state
in England.

Its home is in North America, Greenland, and Spitzbergen,
but it is drawn south in very severe winters. Various instances are
recorded of flocks having been seen in different counties of England,
but until the winter of 1885-6, there is no record of the birds
having been noticed in Herefordshire. On the 24th January, 1886,
two flocks of large Geese were observed in the Wye meadows,
about a mile below Wilton Bridge. They attracted much attention,
and took flight in the direction of Goodrich. The number of birds
in one flock was estimated by several observers to be twenty-three,
the smaller flock was only five ; but they were feeding at no great
distance apart, and appeared to be all of one species.

The following day, Mr. H. Preece, of Ash Farm, Pencraig,
was informed that a large flock of Geese was in the Wye meadows,
near Goodrich, so he immediately went in search of the birds. He
was not fortunate enough to meet with the larger flock, which was
judged to be over twenty, but the smaller flock of five was quietly

154 CANADA GOOSE.

swimming down the river. Being alarmed, the Geese took wing,
when Mr. Preece fired, and brought one to the ground. It
proved to be a fine male, weighing lolbs. lo ounces ; 4 ounces
heavier than the heaviest male recorded by the Rev. F. O. Morris.
The birds of the larger flock were noticed as having black necks,
with a patch of white across the face. This band of white extending
round the upper part of the neck, and terminating over the eye,
has earned for the Canada Goose the name of the " Cravat Goosey

The specimen secured by Mr. H. Preece is in the possession
of Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross, who has kindly furnished the
interesting notice of the occurrence of this rare species in
Herefordshire. The very severe weather in the north of Europe
and America probably drove the birds to our shores. The flock
left the neighbourhood, without being further thinned.

Mr. Morris cites the appearance of the Canada Goose in but
few English counties (chiefly coast ones), and at rather long
intervals. They are more regular visitants to some of the more
secluded lochs of Scotland.

The following interesting quotation is from " Wihon^s
Ornithology " .• —

" This is the common Goose of the United States, universally
" known over the whole country, whose regular periodical mi-
"grations are the sure signals of returning spring, or approaching
" winter. It is highly probable that they extend their migrations
" under the very pole itself, amid the silent desolation of unknown
" countries, shut out since the creation from the prying eyes of
" man, by everlasting, and insuperable barriers of ice.

" That such places abound with their food, we cannot for
" a moment doubt, while the absence of their great destroyer, man,
" and the splendours of a perpetual day, may render such regions,
"most suitable for their purpose."

[Berxicla ruficollis — Red-breasted Goose.]
A rare straggler to Britain.

MUTE SWAN. 155

Genus— CYGNUS.
CYGNUS OLOR— Mute Swan.

The swan with arched neck
Between her white wings mantling, proudly rows
Her state with oary feet.

Milton.

See how yon Swans with snowy pride elate,
Arch their high necks, and sail along in state.

Broo^i— Pastoral.

Graceful and smooth and still.
As the male Swan, that floats adown the stream,
Or on the waters of the unruffled lake
Anchors her placid beauty.

Wo RDs WORTH — Excursiou.

The Swan is a native of the eastern parts of Europe and Asia,
and the southern parts of Russia and Siberia, It is said to have
been introduced into England by Richard I., who brought it from
Cyprus. It is now a thoroughly naturalised British bird, and every
piece of ornamental water demands its graceful presence. It is
the largest of our birds, and the most elegant and pleasing to the
eye. " Wliat in nature," exclaims Bewick, " can be more beautiful
than the grassy-margined lake, hung round with the varied foliage
of the grove, when contrasted with the pure resplendent whiteness
of the majestic Swan, wafted along with erected plumes by the
gentle breeze, or floating, reflected on the glassy surface of the
water, while he throws himself into numberless graceful attitudes,
as if desirous of attracting the admiration of the spectator."

The Swan on still Saint Mary's Lake
Floats double, Swan and shadow !

The Mute Swan is known by its reddish orange beak, with a
black base, and a knob called the berry, immediately below the
forehead ; its pure white plumage, and its black legs and feet form
a noticeable contrast.

All the water in the ocean
Can never turn a Swan's black legs to white.

Shakespeare. Tit. And., IV., 2.

The male bird in swan language is called " a cob," and the female
'' a pen." The cygnets when young are of a dark bluish grey colour,
lighter beneath, and the feathers are greyish brown. After the

156 MUTE SWAN.

second moult very little grey plumage remains. At two years old
they are quite white, and they breed the third year.

Swans live to a great age. Marked Swans on the Thames have
been known to live for 50 years.

After many a summer dies the Swan.

Tennyson— r/<AonM«.

They are very careful of their young, and, though generally
good-tempered and docile, when they are breeding —

The peaceful monarch of the lake,

as the poets delight to call him, becomes very pugnacious and
savage, the terror of all who approach him. The female will often
give the cygnets a ride on her back, but if danger arises, like the
domestic fowl she takes them under her wings.

So doth the Swan her downy cygnets save,
Keeping them prisoners underneath her wings.

Shakespeare— 7. Kmg Henry VI., V. 3.

The Mute Swan has a soft, low voice, with but little variety
in it. It is not disagreeable, but

The Swan's wild music by the Iceland lake.

Mrs. Hemans.

is not often heard.

Homer delights in the Swan, and tells us how

They o'er the windings of Cayster's springs

Stretch their long necks, and clap their rustling wings;

Now tower aloft and course in airy rounds,

Now light with noise ; with noise the field resounds.

Pope— JZiad 2.

Classical history connects the Swan with the God of Music,
and hence poems of song have often been attributed to it. The
Swan was consecrated to Apollo and the Muses, and was believed
to derive the power of foretelling his death from Apollo, the God of
Prophecy and Divination. " They become prophetic," says Plato
(Fhaedo), " and foreseeing the happiness which they shall enjoy
in another state, are in greater ecstacy than they have before
experienced," and he attributes it to the same sort of ecstacy,
that good men sometimes enjoy at that awful hour.

MUTE SWAN. 157

That Swans sang sweetly at the approach of death was,

however, a popular idea from very early times. Callimachus, in

his hymn upon the Island of Delos, says : —

When from Pactolus' golden banks
Apollo's tuneful songsters, snowy Swans,
Steering their flight, seven times their circling course
Wheel round the island, carolling mean time
Soft melodj', the favourites of the Nine,
Thus ushering to birth with dulcet sounds
The God of Harmony and Sense, sev'n strings
Hereafter to his golden lyre he gave,
For ere the eighth soft concert was begun
He sprung to birth.

Don's Callimachus, p. 115.

^schylus alludes to the death-song of the Swan in his " Agamem-
non," where Clytemnestra, speaking of Cassandra, says : —

She, like the Swan
Expiring, dies in melody.

Shakespeare repeats the idea —

I will play the Swan
And die in music.

—Othello, v., 2.

Tennyson tells us how the dying Swan " loudly did lament " —

With an inner voice the river ran,

Adown it floated a dying Swan,

And loudly did lament
* * ^ * * * *

The Wild Swan's death-hymn took the soul
Of that waste place with joy
Hidden in sorrow : at first to the ear
The warble was low, and full and clear ;
And floating about the under sky,
Prevailing in weakness, the coronach stole
Sometimes afar, and sometimes near ;
But anon her awful jubilant voice
With a music strange and manifold,
riow'd forth on a carol free and bold.

and numerous other similar allusions might be given.

By the Pythagorean doctrine of the Transmigration of Souls,
the bodies of Swans were allotted to departed poets. Thus Plato
makes Orpheus prefer the life of the Swan. Poets were said to
animate Swans, also, from the notion that they fly higher than any
other birds ; thus Hesiod distinguishes them by the epithet of
The lofty-flying Swans.

In course of time the Swan became the common trope for a
bard : Horace calls Pindar " Dircaeum cygnum ; " and in one of

158 WHOOPER SWAN.

his odes even supposes himself to be changed into a Swan. Virgil
speaks of his poetical brethren in the same way,

Vare tuum nomen
Cantantes sublime ferent ad sidera cygni.

—Ed., IX,

But hke a true naturalist, when speaking of the birds he lays aside

fiction, and gives them their real note,

Dant sonitum rauci per stagna loquacia cygni.

— uEneid., Lib. X, 1.

Swans in severe winters, have been many times observed flying
over this county, and sometimes stop for a time on the rivers Wye
and Lugg, and on some of the larger ponds of the county. They
are at all times very difficult to approach, but instances are known
of their having been killed here.

There is much of history, as well as of poetry, attached to the
Swan, for which reference must be made to the pages of Yarrell.
An interesting summary is given there of the rights of Swan
keeping ; the Acts of Parliament relating to them ; and the mode
of marking the birds, which dates back for a very long period.

A fat Swan loved he, best of eny roost.

Chaucer— ProZo(/we.

[CvGNUS iMMUTABiLis — Polish Swan.]
An occasional migrant.

CYGNUS MUSICUS— Whooper Swan.

Behold the mantling spirit of reserve,
Fashions his neck into a goodly curve.

Manx.

The Wild Whooper, Elk, or Whistling Swan, as it is variously

called, owes its name to the peculiar note the birds make, as they

arrive in flocks, flying wedge-shaped, like Geese, and which sound

when heard in the air, at a distance, is thought to be melodious. It

is a winter visitor, and the flocks are generally larger as the weather

becomes more severe. The Whooper Swan has the end of its beak

black, whilst the base is quadrangular and yellow. It is not so large

COMMON SHELDRAKE. 1 59

as the Mute Swan; it varies very niuch in weight, but an average bird
would weigh not less than eighteen or twenty pounds. Its food^
says Meyer, consists of green vegetable matter, grain and fruit,
insects and their larvae, frogs, worms, and the fry of small fishes.
It seeks its food by preference in shallow water, turning up the
ground to obtain roots and worms.

Herefordshire is out of the usual flight of Whooper Swans, but
occasionally a straggling visitor comes to us.

Mr. Lingwood, in his Notes, says of this bird : " Shot on the
Wye, near Ross, by Mr. Arthur Armitage, in 1854." This bird was
sent to the late Dr. Jebb's gardener, at Peterstow, to be stuffed.

The Whooper Swan has also been noticed on the river Teme.

[Cygnus Americanus — American Swan.]
Once seen in Scotland.

[Cygnus buccinator — Trumpeter Swan.]
Very doubtful.

[Cygnus bewicki — Bewick's Swan.]
Of frequent occurrence in severe winters.

Genus— TADORNA.
TADORNA CORNUTA— Common Sheldrake.

The sleeping Shell-ducks at the sound arise,
And utter loud their inharmonious cries ;
"Fluttering, they move their weedy beds among,
Or, instant diving, hide their plumeless young.

Ck ABBE — A in u&ements.

This very beautiful Duck is common on most of our coasts,

and is resident throughout the year. It is very well known, since it is

always to be seen on the ornamental pieces of water in Zoological

gardens, and other public places. It frequents flat shores, sandy

l6o WIGEON.

bars, and links, and in the breeding season the flocks collect together,
and breed in the rabbit holes amongst the sand hills of the coast.
They are hence called " Burrow Ducks," and their nests are often
eight or ten feet from the entrance. By noting the footmarks of
the birds at the entrance of the hole, their nests are found, and the
eggs taken and set under hens, and thus the young ducklings are
procured, and reared for taming on ornamental ponds. The Shel-
drake is very active. He walks and runs almost as well as the Gulls,
and flies more easily and lightly than any other Ducks. His food
consists chiefly of shell-fish, small fishes, spawn, sandhoppers, sea
worms, marine insects, and sea-weed. The note is a shrill whistle.
The Duck is very wary, and not easily approached until half starved
by the freezing of the shell-fish. They are not much sought after,
however, for their flesh is dark in colour, and unpleasant in smell
and flavour.

The Sheldrake is rarely seen inland, but after stormy, severe
weather, they are sometimes met with in Herefordshire. The two
specimens in the Museum were shot in the Wye ; one at Moccas in
1879, and the other at Whitney in 18 82.

[Tadorna casarca — Ruddy Sheldrake.
A rare visitor.

[Genus — .Ex.]

[^x SPONSA — Summer Duck.]

An escape.

Genus— MARECA.
MARECA PENELOPE— WiGEON.

Fled the Wigeon from the stream.

Bennett.

The Wigeon is an excellent bird on the table, and since
mimense numbers visit this country every winter, it is a valuable

PINTAIL. l6l

species. They are amongst the earhest to appear in Autumn. By
the end of September they begin to come, and large flocks continue
to arrive until the weather becomes very severe. They are widely
distributed, and not only frequent the shores all round the coast,
but are to be met with on the lakes and rivers in the interior of the
country, Great numbers are caught in the decoys, and find a ready
sale, at the moderate prices at which they are often offered. They
feed almost entirely on grass, which accounts for the delicacy of
their flavour.

The Wigeon is best known in Herefordshire on the carts of
the wild-fowl sellers, but the birds are to be seen most winters, on
the upper reaches of the river Wye, and have often been shot on
this, and the other rivers and ponds in the county.

[Mareca AMERICANA — American Wigeon.]
Five or six specimens have been killed.

Genus— DAFILA.
DAFILA ACUTA— Pintail.

Why, ye tenants of the lake,

For me your wat'ry haunt forsake ?
*****

Swiftly seek, on clanging wings,
Other lakes and other springs.

Burns— 0?i Scaring Waterfowl.

This elegant Duck, when in its summer plumage, is very pretty
and ornamental. It is a regular winter visitor, arriving early in
October, and remaining until spring. It is one of the best ducks
for the table, and is therefore gladly welcomed in the decoy. It
frequents the coasts, and large lakes of the interior of the country.
It is not often met with on the Wye, but has been shot there on
several occasions. Three were hanging at a fishmonger's shop in
Hereford in 1878, having been killed on the Wye at Whitney ; and
two were also killed above Whitney in 1880.

I 62 WILD DUCK.

Genus— ANAS.

ANAS BOSCAS— Wild Duck.

iMallard—Yarrell?^

High o'er the restless deep, above the reach

Of gunner's hope, vast flights of Wild Ducks stretch

Far as the eye can glance on either side.

In a broad space and level line they glide.

All in their wedge-like figures from the north

Day after day, flight after flight, go forth.

Crabbe — The Borough.

Ye Duck and Drake, wi' airy wheels, circling the lake.

BvRNS—Elegp.

Large flocks of Wild Ducks visit the British Isles every winter ;
and although they are said with good reason to have been much
more abundant formerly, immense numbers are still captured in the
decoys specially made for them ; and are also shot by sportsmen all
over the country. The greater number depart in spring for more
northern latitudes, but many remain to breed in such suitable places
as still exist in the country.

O'er the fen the Wild Duck brood
Their early way are winging,

J. Baillie— ^Soni/.

The Wild Duck is an early breeder. It makes its nest
in hedgerows, or bushes, sometimes at a considerable distance
from the water. Occasionally it builds on pollard trees, or ivied
walls many feet above the ground level. The Duck covers her
eggs on leaving the nest. The food of the Wild Duck consists of
worms, slugs, insects, grain, seed, starwort, grass, water-crowfoot,
tadpoles, and small fish.

The change of plumage of the Wild Duck has been minutely
described by Waterton. He notices the assumption of the sober
colours of the Ducks, by the Mallard during the breeding season ;
and the gradual restoration of its own. "By the loth of October,
the Drake will appear again in all his rich magnificence of dress,
than which, scarcely anything throughout the whole wide field of
nature can be seen more lovely, or better arranged to charm the
eye of man."

GARGANEY. 1 63

Proud of his shining breast and emerald crown,
The Wild Drake leaves his bed of eider-down,
Stretches his helming neck before the gales.
And sails on winnowing wings for other vales.

Leyden— 5cme« of Infancy.

Wild Ducks breed in several places in Herefordshire, when
they are encouraged and protected ; but places suitable for them
are becoming more and more scarce.

The welcome margin of some rush-grown pool,
The Wild Duck's lovely haunt, whose jealous eye
Guards every point, and sits prepared to fly.

Bloomfield — Autumn.

There was formerly, so late as the beginning of the present
century, a decoy close to the great pool in Shobdon Park, on the
left-hand side of the road to Presteign.

[Genus — Chaulelasmus.]

[Chaulelasmus streperus — Gadwall.]

[Anas strepera — Yarrell?^

Occurs sparingly on the coasts.

Genus— QUERQUEDULA.

QUERQUEDULA CIRCIA— Garganey.

The Summer Teal, as the Garganey is also called, is a rare
visitor to Herefordshire. A specimen was killed on the Wye in
the summer of 1882, between Moccas and Canonbridge, and was
brought to Mr. Newman, the bird-stuffer in Hereford, to be set up.
The Duck is intermediate in size between the Teal, and the
Wigeon. The Drake is beautifully marked, but is not so bright in
colour as the Mallard, or Common Teal.

[QUERQUEDULA DiscoRS — Blue-wingcd Teal.]
Once in Scotland.

164 COMMON TEAL. SHOVELLER.

QUERQUEDULA CRECCA— Common Teal.

The noisy Goose, the Teal in blackening trains,
The long-bill'd Snipe, that knows approaching rains.

A. Wilson— iocA Winnoch.

From the lake has gone the Teal.

Bennett.

Immense flocks of Teal visit this country every autumn and
winter, returning again, for the most part, in the spring, to breed
in more northerly regions. They begin to arrive about the end of
September, and continue to come in successive flocks throughout
the winter. They frequent the coasts, and almost all inland lakes,
pools, rivers, and streams. Great numbers are caught in the
decoys all through the winter, and they meet with a ready sale, for
they are considered one of the best Wild-Fowl for the table.

The Teal is the smallest of all the Wild Ducks. It is very
prettily marked, and is easily kept in confinement, and it is therefore
always in request for ornamental pieces of water. It is common as
a winter visitor, on the rivers of Herefordshire, and specimens are
killed here annually by the early winter sportsmen.

[QuERQUEDULA CAROLiNENSis — American Green-winged Teal.]
Once in Devon, and once in Hampshire.

Genus— SPATULA.
SPATULA CLYPEATA— Shoveller.

The Sho'ler, who so shakes the air with sailing wings,
That even as he flies, you still would think he sings.

Drayton— Polyolbion .

The Broad-billed Duck is rather an inland than a sea-bird,

frequenting stagnant pools, ditches and small lakes. Its food

consists of small fishes, worms, leeches, aquatic insects, fish

and frog spawn, tadpoles, ground-worms, fresh-water snails, the

tender shoots of aquatic plants, grasses, buds and seeds of rushes,

and sometimes grain. Fresh-water shrimps, too, are sometimes

found in its stomach.

TUFTED DUCK. 1 65

Where the Duck dabbles 'mid rustlinor sedge.

— A 71 Evening with Wordsivorth.

The Shoveller takes its name from the broad expansion of its
beak, which is abundantly supplied with nerves, and highly sensitive,
enabling it the more readily to detect nutritive food. It is excellent
eating ; " its flesh being tender and superior in flavour," says
Audubon himself, "to the celebrated Canvas-back Duck of America."

The Shoveller is very rarely met with in Herefordshire. Mr.
Lingwood says in his notes, " killed at the Mynde, 1858 ; " and a
specimen was also shot in the neighbourhood of Leominster a few
years since.

Genus— FULTGULA.

[FuLiGULA RUFiNA — Red-crestcd Pochard.]

A rare winter visitor.

FULIGULA CRISTATA— Tufted Duck.

This Duck is a regular winter visitor to our coasts, estuaries,
and fresh-water rivers, lakes, and ponds. It is rarely kept in
confinement, but is very ornamental. It is a round, plump bird,
swims low in the water and dives so well, that it is difficult to
catch it in the decoys. It obtains its food chiefly by diving, and this
consists of aquatic insects, roots, buds and seeds of plants, shell-
fish, small frogs and their spawn. The flesh is very good eating,
and this Duck is sometimes called Black Wigeon for this reason.

The Tufted Duck is not an infrequent visitor to Herefordshire
in the winter months. The specimen in the Museum was formerly
in the collection of Mr. Moss, of Ross, and is the one noted by
Mr. Lingwood as a Herefordshire example. Two were obtained
in the county during the winter 1879-80 — one from the river Lugg,
near Moreton, and the other from the Wye, at Whitney. Mr. T.
L. Mayos, of Llangattock, has also shot one on a pond near his
house.

l66 SCAUP. POCHARD.

FULIGULA MARILA— Scaup.

The Wild Duck there,
Gluts on the fat'nine^ ooze, or steals the spawn
Of teeming shoals, her more delicious feast.

SouERYiLLJi— Field Sports.

The Scaup Duck is a regular visitor to the estuaries, and low,
flat, muddy shores of the sea-coast, and is very abundant in the
north. It comes late in October, and rarely visits inland waters.
It is a fat, showy Duck, very wary, and difficult to approach, and
except as a specimen of Natural History is of very little use when
it is obtained. Its flesh is not good, being coarse, dark-coloured,
and fishy. The only recorded occurrence of the Scaup, in Hereford-
shire, is in Mr. Lingwood's notes, where it is said, " seen in the
flesh at Baker's, the bird-stuffer, Hereford, in 185 1."

FULIGULA FERINA— Pochard.

This Duck is also called Dun-bird, Red-headed Poker, or
Red-eyed Poker, from the reddish-chestnut colour of its head and
neck. It is a regular winter visitor from the beginning of October,
and leaves in spring for higher northern regions. It does not
confine itself to the shores and bays of the coast, but visits also the
fresh-water rivers and lakes of the interior, and is often caught in
considerable numbers in the decoys. It is much more at home on
the water — where it swims and dives most easily — than it is on
land, where its gait is difficult and clumsy. Its food, according to
Meyer, is obtained chiefly by diving ; and consists of the roots,
seeds, blossoms, stalks, and young shoots of water-plants, such as
Zostera marina^ glasswrack, or Ruppia ?narttima, sea-grass ; with
small frogs, aquatic insects, and spawn of sea-fish, with Crustacea
and mollusca. When feeding on vegetables its flesh is excellent,
and ranks equally high for the table with the Shoveller, and the
celebrated Canvas-back Duck.

GOLDEN-EYE. 167

The Pochard is not common in Herefordshire ; it only
appears on the rivers and large ponds during the severe weather of
winter, and does not stay long. It has been killed occasionally in
severe weather.

[Genus — Nyroca.]

[Nyroca ferruginea — White-eyed Duck.]

A spring straggler to the East of England.

Genus— CLANGULA.
CLANGULA GLAUCION— Golden-eye.

The clanging Golden-eye.

Crabbe — Peter Grimes.

This Drake, Golden-eye, is one of the most handsome and
conspicuous birds on ornamental waters, where it is easily kept and
becomes very tame. Small flocks arrive every winter at the
estuaries and mouths of rivers on the coast. It is a shy, wary
bird, and where five or six are feeding together, they never all dive
at the same time, so that one is always on guard. It is an expert
swimmer and diver. It lives chiefly on small fish, eels, snails, and
aquatic insects ; its flesh is not good in flavour. In Norway and
Lapland, where the Golden-eye breeds, it always chooses a hole in
a tree as its resting-place, and often at a considerable height above
the ground.

The Golden-eye is a very rare visitor to the rivers in Hereford-
shire. The specimen in the Hereford Museum was shot on the
Wye, near Fawley, in T837 ; and another was shot at Weobley, in
1882, and brought to Mr. Newman, the bird-stuffer, in Hereford.

Mr. W. C. Blake of Ross has a specimen of the Golden-eye
which was killed on the Wye in the winter of 1879. It
is a female bird. Another specimen has since been offered to
Mr. Blake, which was picked up dead near Ross, but it was too
much decomposed to preserve.

1 68 COMMON SCOTER.

[Clangula islandica — Barrow's Golden-eye.]
Once in the winter of 1863-4.

[Clangula albeola — Buffel-headed Duck.]
Very rare, only seen four or five times.

[Genus —COSMONETTA.]

[CoSMONETTA HisTRioNiCA— Harlequin Duck.
Twice in Scotland. A very rare straggler.

[Genus — Harelda. ]

[Harelda glacialis — Long-tailed Duck.]

Breeds in the Shetland Isles.

[Genus — Heniconetta.]

[Heniconetta stelleri— Steller's Duck.]

Seen twice on the East Coast of England.

[Genus — Som ateri a. ]

[SoMATERiA MOLLissiMA — Eider Duck.]

Occurs sparingly. Breeds in Fern Islands.

[SoMATERiA sPECTABiLis — King Eider.]
A rare straggler to Britain.

Genus— CEDEMIA.

CEDEAIIA NIGRA— Common Scoter.

This handsome black Duck — for the male Scoter is all over
of an uniform, velvety, black colour — is an ordinary winter visitor
to our sea-coasts. It is often to be seen there in large flocks, and

GOOSANDER. 1 69

some few remain during the summer months. It is very rarely met
with inland, although in hard weather it sometimes pays a passing
visit to the upper reaches of the Wye, in Herefordshire.

The Scoter is a very expert diver, and is able to remain a long
time under water. In this way it gets its food, which consists
almost exclusively of shell fish, such as mussels and other marine
animals and insects. It visits the banks where shell-fish, even at
low tide, are still two or three feet under water. There the birds are
sometimes caught in considerable numbers, by nets simply spread
on the water horizontally, in which they are entangled as they come
up. The nature of their food causes their flesh to have such a very
strong, oily, fishy taste, that in Roman Catholic countries it is said
to be considered identical with fish, and to be thus allowed to be
eaten during Lent, and on fast days. This privilege causes much
destruction of the birds ; and many devices are resorted to for their
capture at those times.

[CEdemia fusca — Velvet Scoter.]
Not very uncommon. Breeds in Scotland.

[CEdemia perspicillata — Surf-Scoter.]
A very rare winter visitor.

Genus— MERGUS.
MERGUS MERGANSER— Goosander.

The Goosander is a winter visitor, coming in November and
leaving in March. The flocks, which are not large, generally consist
of families, or young birds of the year ; the male bird, which is very
handsome and striking in appearance, being extremely rare. The
Goosander frequents fresh-water rivers and lakes, as well as the sea-
shore and its estuaries. It is, however, rarely seen in Hereford-
shire, except in hard winters. The Rev. Clement Ley saw both

lyo RING-DOVE.

the male and female on the Wye, near Sellack, in the winter
1854-5. Mr. Lingwood also mentions a Goosander in his notes,
as having been seen by Mr. Baker, the bird-stuffer, in Hereford,
in 1855, possibly a member of the same flock.

Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross, had a female specimen of the
Goosander brought to him, which was found floating down the
Wye, with large blocks of ice, during the hard frost of January, 1880.
It had not long been dead, for it was quite fresh ; but whether
it died from want of proper food, or from mishap, cannot be traced ;
there was no shot-mark on it. He had it preserved, and it is now
in his possession. Mr. Blake also had a male specimen of the
Goosander brought to him, picked up dead near the Wye ; but that
was too far gone to preserve.

[Mergus serrator — Red-breasted Merganser.]
Breeds in Scodand and North Ireland, and occurs from autumn
to spring in all parts of the United Kingdom.

[Mergus cucullatus — Hooded Merganser.]
A very rare straggler.

[Mergus albellus — Smew,
An irregular winter visitor.

Order— COLUMB^.

Family— COLUMBID^.

Genus— COLUMBA.

COLUMBA PALUMBUS— RiNG-DovE.

Dear is my little native vale,

The King-Dove builds and murmurs there.
Close to my cot she tells her tale,

To every passing villager.

Rogers.

RING-DOVE. 171

Thro' lofty groves the Cushat roves,
The path of man to shun it.

Burns.

The Ring-Dove, Cushat- Dove, or Wood-Pigeon, is very frequent
in Herefordshire, where it is universally called a " Quist." The name
Ring-Dove is a little misleading and ambiguous. It only appears
in books ; and in them, its use is by no means clear or consistent.

The Ring-Dove of every-day life, means the gentle pet of so
many households, the Barbary Dove, a light fawn-coloured bird
with a black ring round its neck ; whereas the Ring-Dove of
ornithology, is the Quist, or Wood-Pigeon, with a band of white
feathers on the side of the neck. Its numbers in this county have
considerably increased of late years, partly from the destruction of
its natural enemies, the Hawks, by the gamekeepers ; but chiefly,
perhaps, from the greater abundance of food produced for it, by the
growth of turnips and the other green crops it greatly affects.

There is the same difference of habits among Quists, as there
is among Starlings. Many are resident throughout the year, and
become comparatively tame. They build in gardens, and often in
the same trees year after year. They feed without fear or shyness,
and drink out of ponds, or even bowls, close to houses. Others,
on the contrary, are wild and migratory ; they come over in large
flocks in autumn and winter, either from foreign countries, or from
the northern parts of our own island. They cross the North Sea
from the Continent by an east and west flight, until in some
districts they become so numerous, and do so much damage to
the crops, that it becomes a great object to destroy them. This,,
however, is not a very easy matter, for the Wood-Pigeon is a very
wary, watchful bird, and when feeding in flocks in the turnip-fields,
is extremely difficult to approach. On the very first appearance of
danger, their watchman gives the signal, and they are off instan-
taneously in a body. The only way to succeed well, is to lie in wait
for them in the dusk of the evening, beneath the trees on which
they come to roost in large flocks, during the autumn and winter. On
a rough, windy evening many may be shot in this way; and they are

172 RING-DOVE.

worth the trouble, for at this time they are very good eating, and
the farmer may thus slightly repay himself for the damage they do.

The sudden flight of a single Wood-Pigeon from a tree is very
startling, and the noise of a whole flock is really very great.

Their risincf all at once was like the sound
Of thunder heard remote.

There is a marked distinction in the nesting habits of the
three British species of true Pigeons : the Wood-Pigeon builds on
the horizontal branches of trees, often at some distance from the
trunk ; the Stock-Dove builds in the hollow trunks of trees ; and
the Rock-Dove in rocks. The nest of the Wood-Pigeon is a mere
platform of twigs and sticks, and the pure white eggs may often
be seen through it. Shy as the bird generally is, it frequently
builds in the pleasure-grounds attached to houses, where the nest
can scarcely fail to be discovered.

Parta meae Veneri sunt mnnera : namque notavi
Ipse locum aeriae quo congressere palumbes.

Virgil— i^cZ., 3, 68-9.

which is thus imitated by Shenstone, who adds an odd little
sentimental touch very characteristic of him —

I have sought out a gift for my fair ;

I have found where the Wood-Pigeons breed;
But— let me the plunder forbear ;

She'll say 'tis a barbarous deed.

The food of the Wood-Pigeon consists of farm produce, green
crops, such as clover, rape, cabbage, and turnip-tops. They will also
take the turnips and hollow them out, whenever a rabbit, a hare,
a Partridge, or a Rook, has made a hole in the tough outer skin.
They eat wheat and barley in great quantities, and peas, beans, and
tares. They feed three times a day, and have capacious crops, so
that when they are very numerous, they do a considerable amount
of damage. On the other hand, they are very fond of the ends
of such weeds as charlock, dock, corn-spurrey, &c., which they
consume in great quantities ; and they are also very fond of beech-
mast, and when pressed for food will eat acorns, hips, haws, and
the berries of ivy or holly. The quantity of corn sometimes

RING-DOVE. 173

found in the crop of a single Pigeon is surprising ; upwards of a
thousand grains of corn have been counted in one instance; in
another, one hundred and forty-four field-peas, with seven large
beans, \vere found, and the books notice other contents of
extraordinary size.

The note of the Ring-Dove, or Wood-Pigeon, may be closely
imitated by the words " Coo-roo-co-o — co-o," spoken through the
hands closed and hollow. Others interpret it as " hoo-hoo-coo-
coo-hoo," It is said, however, to have been more clearly understood
by the Welshman, who on a cattle-stealing expedition was about to
take one beast, when he heard the bird tell him distinctly, " Take-
two-cows-taf-fy," and tradition says he did so forthwith. The note
is somewhat monotonous, but always soft and pleasing. It has
not failed to be noticed by many of our poets —

In answer coo'd the Cushat-Dove
Her notes of peace, and rest, and love.

Scott.

The Eing-Dove's deep melodious moan.

Hemans.

The deep mellow crush of the Wood-Pigeon's note
Made music that sweetened the calm.

Campbell.

It has been more generally considered to be plaintive, or even

melancholy :

Deep-toned
The Cushat plains ; nor is his changeless plaint
Unmusical, when, with the general quire
Of woodland harmony, it softly blends.

Grahame.

It is said, indeed, to get its common name of " Quist," or
" Queest," from the Latin word questus, a complaint, or lamentation.

Over his own sweet voice the Stock-Dove broods,

says Wordsworth, giving the wrong name to the Ring-Dove, or
Wood-Pigeon, as he does also again in these lines : —

I heard the Stock-dove sing or say
His homely tale, this very day,
His voice was buried among trees,
Yet to be come at by the breeze ;
It did not cease, but coo'd — and coo'd ;

174 STOCK-DOVE.

And somewhat pensively he woo'd :
He sang of love with quiet blending,
Slow to begin, and never ending ;
Of serious faith and inward glee ;
That was the song — the song for me !

— Poems of Imagination.

The song of the Wood Pigeon is heard throughout the spring
and summer months, and in early autumn if the weather remains
warm and bright, the pleasant sound may still be enjoyed.*

A common rhythmical satire in Herefordshire is rather severe.

Coo ! Coo ! Coo ! Coo !

Too much a-do

To maintain two.
Coo ! Coo ! Coo ! Coo !

The little Wren

Can feed her ten,

And bring them up

Like gentlemen.

When they form into flocks during autumn and winter, their
voices are never heard. The Wood-Pigeons then become the most
wary of birds, ever on the alert for danger, wild and unapproachable ;
and so they remain, until again, as spring sets in, they separate in
pairs to breed, find their love notes, and in their unselfish devotion
to each other, become more tame, and more confident in the
protection of mankind.

The wild Wood-Pigeon, rock'd on high

Has coo'd his last soft note of love,

And fondly nestles by his Dove,
To guard their downj^ _young from an inclement sky.

COLUMBA (ENAS— Stock-Dove.

Thou Stock-Dove, whose echo resounds thro' the glen.
Ye wild whistling Blackbirds in yon thorny den ;
Thou green-crested Lapwing, thy screaming forbear —
I charge you disturb not my slumbering fair.

Burns.

The Stock-Dove, takes its name from the fact of its nesting in
the boles or stocks of trees, such as pollard elms, oaks, willows, or

*It may be that in the autumn we only hear the songs of the birds that reside
here, while the migrants are silent.

ROCK-DOVE. 175

beech trees. In open districts, however, they will sometimes build
in deserted rabbit-burrows, about a yard from the entrance, or on
the ground beneath thick furze-bushes, entering by a rabbit-run
beneath them.

The Stock-Dove is not driven to these last resources in
Herefordshire, where hollow stocks in the trees are vastly more
numerous than these Doves to build in them. It is not a common
bird in this county, but is found occasionally in secluded districts,
frequenting the same tree year after year. Their morning and
evening note is a prolonged "coo-00-00." The Stock-Dove
resembles the Wood-Pigeon in its habits, and in the food it takes,
and is occasionally brought to the poulterer's for sale with it.

COLUMBA LIVIA— Rock-Dove.

0 my Dove, that art in the clefts of the rock.

—Cant. II., 14.

And yet more splendid, numerous flocks
Of Pigeons, settling on the rocks.
With their rich restless wings, that gleam
Variously in the crimson beam
Of the warm west.

Moore— Lalla Rookh.

The Rock-Dove is supposed to be the origin of all the many
domestic varieties of the Pigeon. It agrees with them in habits,
attitudes, mode of flight, manner of feeding, and especially in the
characteristic habit of perching or nesting in rocks, or in masonry,
to the avoidance of trees.

His Pigeons, who in session on their roofs
Approved him, bowing at their own deserts.

Tennyson— TAe Brook.

All Other species of Wild Pigeons in the old world, on the contrary,
frequent trees by preference. The white feathers on the croup, or
rump, of the Rock-Dove with its black-barred wings, constitute its
distinctive coloration ; and these feathers are often to be seen
among the flocks from the dovecot, showing a return to their origin.

176 ROCK-DOVE.

Darwin, in his work on " The Variation of Plants and
Animals under Domestication," has so fully treated of Pigeons
and their varieties, that it is the text-book on the subject to
which all must resort who are specially interested in this subject.
He makes one curious observation with reference to the coloration
of Pigeons, which must be noticed. He says, " there seems to be
some relation between the croup being blue or white, and the
temperature of the country inhabited by both wald and dovecot
Pigeons ; for nearly all the dovecot Pigeons in the northern
parts of Europe have a white croup like that of the wild
European Rock-Pigeon; and nearly all the dovecot Pigeons of
India have a blue croup like that of the wild Columba intermedia
of India."

The Rock-Dove is a resident British species, and its favourite
haunts are in the deep caverns and dark recesses of the rocks on
the sea-coast. It is comparatively rare inland, a fact due, most
probably, to the scarcity of the localities suited to it. In
Herefordshire, it breeds at the Stanner Rocks, near Kington
("Transactions of the Woolhope Club," 1869), and also at the
Cw^m^y-oy Rocks, at the Black Mountains, on the borders of the
county. The Stock-Dove, or the dovecot Pigeons which will
sometimes take up their residence in rocks, are liable to be
mistaken for this species.

The Rock-Dove, with its tame descendants, and indeed all
the Pigeon tribe, pair for life, lay two eggs, and sit for three weeks,
the male and female birds relieving each other on the nest. Hence
has arisen the old Scottish saying, " A doo's cleckin " for a family of
only two children, a boy and a girl ;— or " a pigeon pair," as they
are called in some districts of England.

The principal food of the Rock-Dove is grain, seeds of weeds,
wild mustard, or charlock seeds, roots of coarse grass, and green
leaves. It also takes the small snails within the shells, Helix
ericetorum, and Bulimus acutus, which abound in the sandy
pastures near the sea.

TURTLE DOVE. 177

Qualis speluncci, subito commota Columba,
Cui domus, et dulces latebroso in pumice nidi,
Fertur in arva volans, plausumque exterrita pennis,
Dat tecto ingentem mox aere lapsa quieto,
Radit iter liquidum, celeres neque cumin' )vet alas.

YiRdiL— JEaeid 5, 213—217.

As when the Dove her rocky hold forsakes,
Rous'd in a fright, her sounding wings she shakes,
The cavern rings with clatt'ring ; out she flies,
And leaves her callow care, and cleaves the skies ;
At first she flutters ; but at length she springs
To smoother flight, and shoots upon her wings.

Drtden.

Genus— TURTUR.
TURTUR COMMUNIS— Turtle Dove.

We'll teach him to know Turtles from Jays.

Shakespeare— iJfcrr^ Wives of Windsor III., 3.

The green hill-side

The haunt of cooing Turtle.

Mack AY.

The Turtle Dove has ever held a foremost place among the
pleasant sounds and sights of spring. It is migratory in Palestine,
as well as here, and is thus introduced in the bright picture of
spring, in the Song of Songs.

" Lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone ; the flowers appear on
the earth ; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the Turtle
is heard in our land." — Cant. II., 11 & 12.

This pretty little Dove, the smallest of its tribe, is supposed

to get its Latin name from its note, which is fairly represented by

the word "tur-r-r, tu-r-r." It is a soft, simple, monotonous murmur,

rather than a " coo." Poets, ancient and modern, call it "a moan,"

but it is a plaintive, trembling note, soft and soothing, rather than

sadj or melancholy.

Nee gemere aeria cessabit Turtur ab ulmo.

Virgil— Eclog I., 58.

Nor shall, from lofty elm, the Turtle cease to moan.

— Tram.

The Turtle's moan is heard in every grove.

Philips.

The moan of Doves in immemorial elms.

Tennyson— TAe Princess.

M

178 TURTLE DOVE.

Deep mourns the Turtle in sequestered bower.

B^xTTm— Minstrel.

The Turtle Dove is common throughout the villages, hedge-
rows, and small coppices of Herefordshire, but is more frequently
heard than seen, being shy in its habits, and inconspicuous in its
plumage. Consequently it is much less known than most birds
that are equally common ; and even when seen, it is frequently not
recognised. It is a spring visitant from Africa, as welcome as the
Cuckoo, though far less demonstrative ; and it is one of the birds
whose numbers seem to be increasing year by year. It is the least
mischievous of all the Pigeon tribe. Its food consists chiefly of
seeds of various weeds, green leaves, such as of clover and vetches,
and grain when it becomes ripe. It has been accused of eating the
soft, milky grain from the ears of green wheat, but this has never
been proved. Mr. Johns mentions an instance, indeed, in which
two Turtle Doves were shot when rising from a green w^heat-field,
but their crops were found to be distended with the green seed-
vessels of the corn-spurrey ( SpergiUa arvensis), so common in
corn-fields, and " the heart of the slaughterer was smitten." In
point of fact, the Turtle Dove may be considered rather more of
a friend than an enemy to agriculture.

The Turtle Dove has ever been regarded as the emblem of
peace, of love, and of constancy. Among Christians it has received
a far higher meaning, as an emblem of the Holy Spirit : and the
Dove bearing an olive-branch in its mouth, which brought to Noah
the welcome intelligence that the Flood was abating, has been
accepted as the symbol of peace and reconciliation.

Art thou the bird that saw the waters cease?
— Yes, and brought home the olive-branch of peace,
Thenceforth I haunt the woods of thickest green,
Pleased to be often heard and seldom seen.

Montgomery — Birds.

In heathen times, the Dove was regarded as sacred to Venus ;

and as such it was engraved on gems, or rings, and on seals, for

gifts of affection. Poetical references to the Dove abound in all

tongues and languages. Shakespeare constantly alludes to it.

By the simplicity of Venus' Doves.

Shakespeare — Mid. JY. Dream /., 1.

PHEASANT. 179

So Turtles pair,
That never mean to part.

— Wintei-'s Tale IV., 3.

Like to a pair of loving Turtle Doves,
That could not live asunder day or night.

1st King Henry VI,, 2, 2.

As true as steel, as plantage to the moon,
As sun to day, as Turtle to her mate.

— Troilus and Cressida III,, Z.

By nature soft I knovsr a Dove,
Can never live without her love.

Prior — Turtle and Sparroio.

Loved at first like Dove and Dove.

Tennyson.

And numerous other poetical illustrations to the same effect might
be given.

[Genus — Ectopistes.]

[EcTOPiSTEs MiGRATORius — Passenger Pigeon.]

A very rare straggler.

[Order— PTEROCLETES.]

[Family— PTEROCLID^.]

[Genus— SYRRHAPTES.]

[ Syrrhaptes paradoxus — Pallas's Sand-Grouse.]

Has occasionally occurred in large numbers, particularly in 1863.

Order— GALLING.

Family— PHASIANID^.

Genus— PHx\SIANUS.

PHASIANUS COLCHICUS— Pheasant.

Advocate's the court-word for a Pheasant.

Shakespeare— [Fi?ito''s Tale IV., 3.

The gaudy Pheasant, rich with varying dyes,
That fade alternate, and alternate glow,
Receiving now his colours from the skies,
And now reflecting back the watery bow.

Anon.

l8o PHEASANT.

Pheasant, forsake the country, come to town ;
I'll warrant thee a place beneath the crown,
— No, not to roost upon the throne, would I
Renounce the woods, the mountains, and the sky.

Montgomery— 5i?-c?s.

The Pheasant was introduced into England many centuries
ago, and by the care of the landowners, and the protection of the
Game Laws, has become thoroughly naturalized in the British
Isles. The history and the early notices of the Pheasant, as
given by Tegetmeier, Yarrell, and other writers, may be thus briefly
stated.

The common Pheasant is a native of the wet, marshy forests
on the shores of the Caspian Sea, the river valleys of the Caucasus,
the neighbourhood of Astrachan, and the northern portions of
Asia Minor, and it is still to be found there in abundance. Mytho-
logical tradition attributes its first discovery to Jason and the
Argonauts (b.c. 1200). He found it on the banks of the river
Phasis, in Colchis, and hence it has got its generic and specific
names. This classic stream is the modern Rion which flows into
the Black Sea, near the town of Poti, whence the railway now
runs to Tiflis. From hence the Pheasant has been introduced, at
this or at some other unknown period, to nearly every country in
Europe. It is believed to have been known to the Athenians at a
very early period. The Romans received it from the Greeks, and
they are thought to have introduced it into Britain, as it is known
that they did the Fallow Deer.

The most ancient record of its occurrence in Great Britain is
contained in one of the early manuscripts at the British Museum,
published by Bishop Stubbs in 1861. The date of the manuscript
is circa 1177, and it contains the bill of fare drawn up by Harold
for each monk in the Canon's household at Waltham, from the
feast of St. Michael to Ash Wednesday, a.d. 1059. Besides
Geese and Fowls, it mentions twelve Blackbirds, two Magpies,
two Partridges, and " unus Phasianus " : thus showing that the
Pheasant had become naturalized in England before the Norman
invasion.

PHEASANT. l8l

It appears from Dugdale's " Monasticon Anglicanum " that at
the commencement of the reign of Henry I., a.d. iioo, license
was given to the Abbot of Amesbury to kill hares and Pheasants.
It is also stated by the critic on Mr. Tegetmeier's work on
" Pheasants " in the Saturday Review^ that Thomas-a-Becket, on
the day of his martyrdom (Dec. 29th, 11 79). dined on a Pheasant,
and from the remark of one of his monks, " he dined more heartily
and cheerfully that day than usual."

The Pheasant, however, was but httle known in Germany,
France, and England until the time of the Crusades, when the
striking custom was introduced of serving up the Pheasant at table,
with its head unplucked and the tail feathers attached, as a dish fit
for kings and emperors, an honour that previously had been
confined to the Peacock.

Daniell in his " Rural Sports " mentions that in the reign of
Edward I., a.d. 1299, according to Echard's History of England,
the price of a Pheasant was fourpence, a couple of Woodcocks
three halfpence, a Mallard three halfpence, and a Plover one
penny, which shows that by that time the Pheasant was well-known
and tolerably plentiful."^

Richard II.'s cook wrote a sort of cookery book (circa 1381),
which contains a receipt " for to boile Fesant, Ptruch, Capons, and
Curlew." The Pheasant is also mentioned in an old Ballad of "The
Battle of Otterbourne " (c. 1388).

The Fawkon and the Fesaunt both,
Amonge the holtes on ' hee.*

At the enthronization of George Nevill, Archbishop of York,
in the reign of Edward IV., amongst other goodly provision
made for the occasion, according to Leland, were — "Fessauntes
200 ; Partridges 500 ; Heronshaws 400 ; Woodcocks 400 ; Quailes
100 dozen; Plovers 400; of the fowles called Rees 200 dozen,
Peacockes 104, Mallards and Teals 4,000, Cranes 204, Swannes

*The prices, however, can hardly be estimated, as the value of money has
decreased enormously.

1 82 PHEASANT.

400, Geese 2,000, Bitters 204, Curlews 100, Egrittes 1,000, Pigeons
4,000, Capons 1,000, with large quantity of other meats."

In the Household Book of L'Estranges of Hunstanton (15 19
to 1578) there are such entries in the reign of Henry VHI. as
" VJ fesands and IJ Ptrychys kyllyed ^^t the Hauks." " Item, to
Mr. Ashley's servant for brynging a Fesant Cocke and four
Woodcocks on the i8th day of October, in reward, four-pence."
" Item, a Fesant kylled with a Goshawke,"

Similar allusions are made in the Household Book of Henry
Percy, the fifth Earl of Northumberland (15 12), and the list of
the prices of the following birds, amongst others, are given :
"Chickeyns at }^d a pece, Hennys at iid a pece, Geysse iiid or
iiiid at the moste, Plovers id or i^d at moste, Crayns xvid a pece,
Hearonshays xiid a pece, Mallardes iid a pece, Teylles id a pece,
Woodcokes id or i)^d at the moste, Wypes (i.e.^ Lapwings) id a
pece, Quaylles iid a pece at moste, Pertryges at iid a pece, Bytters
(Bitterns) xiid, Fesauntes xiid, Kyrlewes xiid a pece, Pacokes xiid
a pece, Dottrells id a pece, &c."

From the time of the Tudor monarchs, Pheasants and Partridges
are specified in many statutes for the protection of game, and have,
therefore, been well-known.

The Pheasant is very readily tamed, but can never be domesti-
cated.H e has an innate shyness and timidity that makes every
attempt to do so a failure. He will feed regularly with the common
poultry, and eat from the hand, but on any sudden alarm, off he
flies at a moment's notice to the nearest covert. The common
Cock struts and crows, proud of himself, and vainly conscious of
the admiration he excites, but

Not so the Pheasant on his charms presumes,
Though he too has a glory in his plumes.
He, christianlike, retreats with modest mien
To the close copse, or far-sequester'd green,
And shines without desiring to be seen.

CowPER— I'rM^A, 66.

The Rev. Thos. Woodhouse mentions the following curious
anecdote of a Pheasant. A friend of his was walking through the

PHEASANT. 183

fields, at Alresford, when he saw a fine cock Pheasant run hurriedly
across the path. In an instant the bird dropped, and lay perfectly
still, and on looking more closely, he saw that the bird was lying
quite flat, pretending to be dead ; in order, no doubt, to escape
observation. He had heard of such a thing before, but had never
witnessed it.

The Pheasant is polygamous. He leaves the whole duty of
incubation and of rearing the young birds to the hen. The nest
is little more than a few leaves, in a hole scratched in the ground,
beneath tall grass. It is very often placed close by a public
path, or highway road, where the bird and her eggs would be in
constant danger, but for the curious fact that during incubation the
bird does not give off any appreciable scent. Dogs accustomed to
hunt game will pass close by a Pheasant on her nest, without
detecting her presence. Mr. Tegetmeier considers this to be due
to vicarious secretion. The scent is not given off from the body as
usual, but is passed with the secretions, when the bird has left her
nest, and thus her safety is ensured.

The Pheasant, Hke the domestic fowl, is terrestrial in habit.
He is very omnivorous, and at certain seasons of the year must be
considered as somewhat injurious to agriculture. In this respect,
however, when they are not too numerous, the great beauty of the
bird, the excellent sport he affords, and his high appreciation on
the table are sufficient to condone his faults.

Preach as I please, I doubt our curious men
Will choose a Pheasant still before a hen.

Pope.

'Tis not the meat, but 'tis the appetite

Makes eating a delight,

And if I like one dish
More than another, that a Pheasant is.

Suckling— 5onne^

In a wild state the food of the Pheasant consists of every
seed the farmer sows ; beans, peas, wheat, barley, or oats ; the
fresh green leaves of young corn, sprouting beans and peas,
clover, rape and turnips. In the severe weather of winter he
picks holes through the tough skin of the turnip bulbs, and

184 PHEASANT.

leaves the Wood-Pigeons to hollow them out. On the other
hand, he is very fond of grubs, wire-worms, and insects of all
kinds, particularly ants and their eggs, and the spangles and galls
upon oak-leaves. Mr. Waterton found that his Pheasants destroyed
all the grasshoppers in his park ; and Mr. Tegetmeier states that
upwards of 1,200 wire-worms have been taken out of the crop of a
single hen Pheasant. They eat an immense number of ripe
seeds of weeds, such as corn-spurrey, cow-wheat, polygonum grasses,
sedges, hemp-nettles, &c. They are fond of beech-nuts, sweet
chestnuts, acorns, and berries of all kinds ; blackberries, mistletoe-
berries, elder-berries, and gooseberries, and currants when they
have a chance of getting them. They will pick hips, haws, and
sloes from the hedges, and attack apples and pears in the orchards.
In the spring they will eat the bulbous roots of the buttercup,
Ranu?icuhis bulbosus, the celandine Ficaria ve7'?m, and the roots of
silverweed, Potentiila anserina. Like fowls, also, they are sometimes
carnivorous, and will eat frogs, slow-worms and field-mice ; and
with all their food, at all seasons, they take numerous small
fragments of stones and gravel.

To keep Pheasants from straying in autumn, few methods are
more effective, it is said, than to sow some neighbouring patch of
ground with a mixture of beans, peas, and buckwheat, and leave
the crop on the ground — a plan that gives them food and shelter at
the same time. An adjoining patch of fern makes them still more
at home, awaiting the sportsman.

And from the brake
Rush forth the whirring Pheasant high in air ;
He waves his varied plumes, stretching away
With hasty wing.

SoMERVlLLE— i^VeW Sports.

The hen Pheasant in old age is apt to assume more or less ot
the plumage of the cock bird, and some curious specimens have
been killed in this county, and may be seen in private collections.

Herefordshire is admirably suited to the habits of the Pheasant.
Its wooded hills and dales, and its numerous springs and streams,
amply supply the essential requisites for the bird. Numerous

PHEASANT. 185

plantations exist throughout the county, and there is an abundant
supply of the good ground-shelter he delights in : such as long grass
kept up by brambles and bushes, or moist ground, overgrown with
rushes, reeds, and osiers. Large quantities of Pheasants are
annually produced, and sent up to the London markets from
Herefordshire, and the amount might still be greater.

With all these advantages, however, it is found here, as
elsewhere, that the Pheasant requires the continued care of the
landed proprietors, and the protection of the Game Laws, to save
it from extinction. In our severe winters the natural supply of food
becomes so limited, that without artificial feeding, the birds would get
so weak, as to become an easy prey to the small rapacious creatures,
from which they are otherwise able to protect themselves. Pheasants
command a high price in the market, and thus offer a great temp-
tation to poachers. They are very easily shot, and taken in many
ways ; without careful preservation, and the protection of penal
statutes, they would quickly dwindle away with us, as they have
done, so remarkably of late years, in France. Already in the
extensive woods in Herefordshire, which are no longer preserved,
such as Haugh Wood, Badnage, and the w^oods belonging to
Guy's Hospital, for example, wild Pheasants are extremely scarce,
and when found, they are but temporary wanderers from some
neighbouring estate, w^here their presence is protected.

The propensity of the Pheasant to roost in larch trees, or in the
apple trees of an orchard, instead of in the Scotch or spruce firs
provided for them, sadly exposes these birds to destruction from
the gun of the poacher, who is thus enabled to see them with the
faintest glimmer of light.

The preservation of game in a country district, is an object of
much higher importance to the public than it would seem to be at
first sight. It is the amusement afforded by game, that brings
the Squire's friends around him ; it is the game, which keeps
mansions occupied in remote districts of the country during the
dreary months of winter ; it is the game, which brings rich strangers

1 86 PHEASANT.

into the country, and gives to the district the advantages of resident
wealth. The game is never forgotten, in advertisements to let or
sell country property; indeed, no residential estate would be complete
without game. Now, the game chiefly meant in all these instances
is the Pheasant. No other game bird is so readily procured, so
easily retained, or so safely to be relied upon. The Pheasant,
moreover, is the most ornamental of all game birds. A fine old
cock Pheasant jumping on the bar to open by his own weight the
patent feeding-box, and help himself to the maize within, is a very
beautiful object in the pleasure-grounds, especially when the glancing
rays of a summer evening's sun show off his brilliant plumage. He
is so completely at home, that he seems " to the vianor born," and
he doubtless regards the feeding-box as the natural production of
the soil for his especial delectation —

The bold cock Pheasant stalk'd along the road,
Whose gold and purple tints alternate glow'd.

Bloom FIELD — Spring.

The great advantages, as well as the great necessity in these
days for game on estates, have thus given rise to the artificial
breeding and rearing of Pheasants, which of late years have been
carried out to so great an extent. Pheasant's eggs are now readily
attainable, and are imported in great numbers, either to stock an
estate, or to increase the number of birds, so as to provide the
fashionable modern amusement of battue shooting. Pheasant
shooting is a costly pleasure for the rich, but is not unproductive
of general advantage. The wholesale slaughter of reared Pheasants
which annually takes place, may be ridiculed, or decried as a sport ;
but it produces, nevertheless, a large supply of a delicious article of
food, which could not otherwise be procured, by the public in
general, at so reasonable a rate. It is therefore but false senti-
mentalism to say with Pope :

See ! from the brake the whirring Pheasant springs,
And mounts exulting on triumphant wings :
Short is his joy ; he feels the fiery wound,
Flutters in blood, and panting beats the ground.
Ah ! what avail his glossy, varying dyes,
His purple crest, and scarlet-circled eyes.
The vivid green his shining plumes unfold,
His painted wings, and breast that flames with gold ?

PHEASANT. 187

They avail him much in procuring for him an ample supply of food
and protection ; and since die he must for food, death by gunshot
wound is perhaps less painful than by any other mode.

The Pheasant introduced into Britain so many centuries
since, Phasianus co/chicus, remained pure in breed until the end of
the last century, when other hardy varieties of Pheasant began to
be introduced, and the crossing of different breeds set in. The
first to be introduced was the Collared or Ring-necked
Pheasant, of Southern China, Phasianus torquatus. It is
smaller than the common Pheasant. It has bright plumage, great
metalHc lustre, with a band or ring of clear white feathers round
its neck (it is from this it gets its specific name), buff flanks, and
a rich tint of lavender and green on its wing and tail-coverts.
Except in these particulars, says Cuvier, it scarcely differs from the
Colchican Pheasant. It differs, also, however, in having a more
restless, wandering disposition. It is a bold bird, quick in flight,
and in spring will fly for miles, Don Juan-like, to visit the Pheasants
of all the neighbouring, or even of the distant woods.

The Ring-necked Pheasant was first introduced into English
coverts by the Duke of Northumberland, says Montague, in 1802.
It proved so hardy and prolific that it soon spread rapidly. Its
courage and vigour render it easily tameable. The hens lay much
earlier in the season than any other variety of Pheasant, and produce
a more abundant supply of eggs ; and thus, when egg-selling began
to be the trade it has since become, it was much more profitable
to the breeders to use this variety. In this way too it has come to
pass, from the general distribution of eggs, that the " prime old
English breed," as it is sometimes called, with its great size, its
dark black and red breast, the large patch of crimson round the
eyes, and its deep red rump-feathers, is seldom to be met with
untainted by the cross.

Some few years since, Mr. Frank Buckland regularly visited
the game-shops in London for two seasons, and examined the large
supply of Pheasants they received, without finding a single true
specimen of Phasiajius colchicus. At Mr. Buckland's request,

l88 PHEASANT.

Mr. J. F. Symonds, of Okeleigh, Hereford, tried, but also in vain, to
procure a cock Pheasant of the original Colchican breed from the
gamekeepers of Herefordshire. Many of them believed they had
the " old birds " in their respective manors, but nevertheless failed
to produce one. It is now some years since Mr. Gould expressed
the opinion, that in twenty years there would not be a true
specimen in the country. There are some few left, however, in
remote districts. Mr. H. C. Beddoe shot one at Wormesley Grange,
in 1878. There is a specimen in the billiard-room at Garnstone;
another fine bird in the hall at Vennwood House ; and others here
and there throughout the county.

The interesting specimen presented to the Hereford Museum
by Mr. E. W. Colt-Williams, was shot by him at Kinnersley, in
November, 1886.

Mr. Home, of Hereford, has now imported from the Phasis,
or Rion River, some of the true colchicus, such as the bird was,
when originally brought to this country, and he hopes to be able
to breed the old pure birds. This, he believes, is the first attempt
to re-introduce the original Pheasant.

The improvement in the breed of Pheasants has now become
a matter of considerable importance to country estates. The
beautiful birds that ornament our parks and woods are but
naturalized foreigners, and there are several other varieties,
of varied and still greater beauty, which might be introduced profit-
ably. They are equally hardy and prohfic, and some of them of
larger size than those we now possess.

The Japanese Pheasant, Phasiaiius versicolor^ is smaller than
the colchicus, and a beautiful bird, with a bright crimson face, a
glossy, changeable bluish-green on the neck, and a brilliant dark-
green breast. This bird was introduced into England by Lord
Derby, the great zoologist, in 1840, who obtained the variety from
the King of Italy. It is an excellent " gun-bird," rising readily
from the covert, and is of undeniable excellence on the table. It
does not show, moreover, the disposition to wander, which is so

PHEASANT. 189

objectionable in the Ring-necked, and some other varieties of
Pheasant. It is a late breeder, the hens lay freely, and in confine-
ment each hen will produce forty eggs on the average. The cock
will cross readily with the common Pheasant, if hens of his own
variety are not present, and the cross is a bird of brilliant plumage,
of greater size, and of more tender and well-flavoured flesh on the
table than the ordinary Pheasant. The versicolor Pheasant is
well established in several English coverts, and shot with the more
common ones. It has been introduced in the Rotherwas woods
by Joseph Harrison, Esq.

Reeves' Pheasant, Phasianus reevesi, is another most desirable
variety. It was introduced by Mr. Reeves into Europe in 1831,
from China, but it is only within the last few years that it has been
re-introduced successfully. It is a magnificent bird, much larger
than the common Pheasant, and with a tail four or five feet in
length and sometimes longer. It is bright in colour. The top of
its head is white, surrounded by a black band, and it has a broad
band of white round its neck. The feathers of the back and
upper part of the breast are golden-yellow, margined by black ;
the lower breast-feathers are white, with the same margin; the
under parts of the body black. It comes from a cold country,
and will stand the hardest winter. It breeds freely, and is wild
and shy enough to take care of itself. It rises readily with great
strength of flight, and makes an excellent " rocketer."

Reeves' Pheasant breeds freely in Lord Tweedmouth's coverts
at Guisachan, Inverness, and crosses readily with the ordinary
Pheasant when his own hens are absent. The young birds arrive
quickly at maturity, and when bred with other Pheasants, their
more rapid growth and greater size are quickly apparent.

Fine specimens of the cock and hen Reeves' Pheasant are
now in the Hereford Museum.

The call-note of Reeves' Pheasant is of a most unexpected
character, more like the simple song of a small bird, delivered in
as high a key as the song of the Hedge-Sparrow, Accentor vwdularis

190 PHEASANT.

— a musical note of no great power, and not at all such as would
be expected from a Pheasant.

Elliot's Pheasant, Phasianiis ellioti, is another hardy Pheasant
from the mountains of Ningpo. It was first introduced into Europe
in 1874, but it has only recently reached England. It is a very
handsome variety, of moderate size and great beauty. The cock
has a red back and breast, with a crescent of black across its
centre. Its rump feathers are steel-black, with a central bar of
white, and the under parts of its body are white. Its metallic tints
are fine, and Mr. Swinhoe thinks it one of the most magnificent of
the Pheasants for colour and size. It is a Pheasant that promises
exceedingly well, but its character in our coverts has yet to be
proved. It lays early in the season, beginning as early as March 1 5.

The Copper Pheasant of Japan, Soemmerring's Pheasant
(Phasianus scemmeri7igii)^ is another exquisitely beautiful variety.
"The most beautiful of all true Pheasants," says Commodore Perry,
"and for richness and brilliancy of colour, will vie with almost any
other species of bird." " The whole body presents a golden
brilliancy not exceeded by any object of nature, for the metallic
lustre of its feathers is equal to the most brilliant markings of the
Humming Bird," is the report of it given by Dr. Wilson, of the
United States' navy. This Pheasant was introduced into England
in 1864, and bred in the Zoological Gardens in Regent's Park, in
1865. The cock Soemmerring's Pheasant is, however, of a most
fierce pugnacious disposition, and Bluebeard-like, frequently kills
his wives. He is a most difficult bird therefore, to manage in
confinement, and has not yet been tried at large, when this ferocity
would probably be toned down to practical limits.

There are upwards of twenty other varieties of the true
Pheasant, which may be reared and kept in aviaries, or at
large, by those who choose to do so ; but those already given in
addition to our own, viz., the versicolor^ Reeves', Elliot's, and
Soemmerring's Pheasants, are the finest and most beautiful birds ;
the best adapted to ornament our parks and woods, and to give

PHEASANT. 191

amusement to their owners, and they would, therefore, be the most
valuable birds to introduce to our coverts. They are all true
Pheasants, and as Mr, Tegetmeier says, " are mere geographical
variations of one type, capable of breeding together, and of per-
petuating any cross between them that it may please experimenters
to produce." So that with such varied beauty as the foundation,
it would be quite possible, by judicious selection, for every large
estate in the country to obtain its own distinctive cross of birds.

Hereford is fortunate, at this time, in having as a resident, one
of the most experienced and successful importers and breeders of
this very beautiful tribe of birds. Mr. George Home has made it his
hobby for the last twenty years, to obtain and rear these stranger
Pheasants. He has spared neither time nor expense in the work,
and the experience he has gained in their management, with all
the generosity of a scientific naturalist, he places at the service of
any one interested in the subject ; and is at all times pleased
to show his beautiful birds.

Mr. Home began by rearing the Golden Pheasant (Thmcmalia
picta) and the Lady Amherst Pheasant ( Thaumalia amhersii). He
then crossed these varieties, and obtained the very beautiful
specimens now exhibited in the Hereford Museum. He has also
kept the Impeyan Pheasant, the Siamese Fireback, Swinhoe's
Peacock-Pheasant, from the Island of Formosa, which has eyes like
the Peacock on each feather, Reeves', versicolor^ Elliot's and several
other varieties.

It is impossible to visit Mr. Home's aviaries, without hoping
that before many years have elapsed, these beautiful varieties may
adorn the parks and woods of Shobdon, Stoke Edith, Hampton
Court, Holme Lacy, Whitfield, and many others which might be
named in Herefordshire, and which are all so well adapted for
rearing and protecting Pheasants. It would be a great ornament
to see beautiful birds, such as the reevesi, with their glorious
plumage of golden-bronze, and fully six feet in length, feeding up
to the very windows of the mansions. The birds are not difficult

192 RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE.

to rear ; the best way to obtain them is to pen a few birds, and
then substitute their eggs for those of the common hen, under
whose care they would grow up, and become famiUar with their
future home, more certainly than hand-reared birds.

Genus— CACCABIS.
CACCABIS RUFA— Red-legged Partridge.

When milder autumn summer's heat succeeds,
And in the new-shorn field the Partridge feeds.

Pope — Windsor Forest.

The Guernsey, or French Partridge, as this handsome bird is
often called, is a native of the South of Europe, and generally
plentiful on the Continent. It is said to have been first intro-
duced into England by Charles II., who turned out some birds in
the neighbourhood of Windsor ; and, afterwards, by the Duke of
Northumberland, the Marquis of Hertford, Lord Rendlesham
(c. 1770), and other noblemen. But the most successful intro-
duction was by Lord de Ros and Alvanly at Culford, near Bury
St. Edmunds, in 1823. Since that time, the Red-legged Partridge
has been plentiful in Suffolk, Cambridgeshire, Herts, Essex, Bucks,
and Middlesex ; and wanders occasionally into other counties.
About fifty years ago, the Red-legged Partridge was introduced on
the Homend, and Canon-ffrome estates, but they have long since
been destroyed, and not a single bird has been seen there for many
years.

The Red-legged Partridge prefers open uncultivated districts
with bushy heath, or commons, in preference to arable land ; but
they will frequent cultivated ground, where bushes are plentiful.
The birds will run before the dogs like an old cock Pheasant, and
will not rise if they can help it. They are not therefore in much
favour with sportsmen. They will, too, occasionally perch on trees,
or even on a gate, or a rail.

PARTRIDGE. 193

The Red-legged Partridge is as yet a rare bird in Hereford-
shire, and the instances which have occurred here seem to have
been wanderers from Gloucestershire, where they are reported to
be on the increase. In 1864, a single bird was shot at Fawley,
which is now in the Hereford Museum. In 1874, Mr. Walter
Dew, of Netherstone, Brampton Abbots, met with a covey of five,
in the Abbots meadow, skirting the river, and killed a brace of
them. Some years since, Mr. Frank Wigmore shot a single bird at
Bollitree. A single bird was also killed at Eaton Bishop, in 1869,
which is now in the Hereford Museum. Mr. Morris, of Aston
Ingham, on the borders of Gloucestershire, has met with a few
around Longhope, within the last two or three years. On October
13th, 1886, a Red-legged Partridge was brought to Mr. W. C. Blake,
of Ross, from the Marcle district.

[Caccabis petrosa — Barbary Partridge.]
A rare straggler to England.

Genus— PERDIX.
PERDIX CINEREA— Partridge.

Ah ! nut-brown Partridges !
Ah ! brilliant Pheasants !

Bybon — Don Juan.

The Paitrick whirrin o'er the ley.

Burns— 5ess.

The Partridge burst away on whirring wings.

B-RATiiiE— Minstrel.

To sweet repasts the unwary Partridge flies,
With joy amid the scattered harvest lies.

Gax— Rural Sports.

The covey in the morning dew
Which sudden rises, and with whirring wing
And chuckling outcry hurries down the vale.

HuRDis— TAe Favorite Village.

These Partridge-breeders of a thousand years.

Tennyson — Aulmer^s Field.

194 PARTRIDGE.

The Partridge is a thoroughly English bird, and is nowliere to
be found so plentifully as in England. A country walk is always
enlivened, when " Birds " are seen, as is so frequently the case. If
a Partridge is suddenly surprised, it rises close at hand, with a
whirr, like a spinning-wheel ; but if, as is more usually the case, the
intruder is observed in time, the covey will run and rise, with at
first, a rapid movement of their wings, until they skim in a sailing
fashion over the nearest hedge-row, with the twist, to avoid any
object they may see there, which is sometimes so fatal to them.

The round of Partridge life seems to be much as follows. The
birds seldom take wing unless disturbed. In the early morning
they repair, from the grass-fields where they have passed the night,
to the arable-land, clover, corn, or stubble-fields, as the case
may be, picking up grubs, insects, and green leaves, as they meet
with them. They pass the mid-day in the shelter of the growing
crops of corn, clover, or potatoes, and here they get their second
supply of food ; resorting afterwards to some convenient road, or
dry ground, where they can shuffle their feathers and dust them-
selves. As evening approaches, they leave the corn-fields, and
pass along the hedge-rows into the open grass-fields, where they
separate themselves insect-hunting, rejoicing particularly in any
ants and their eggs that they can find, until as the " droning
flight " of the beetle is heard in the air, the call '' chicurrr,"
" chicurrr " is given by the master-bird, to summon the wanderers
together. They all meet in the plain open field to "jug" for the
night, as it is called, that is, to squat and nestle together. They
form a close circle, with their tails in the centre and their heads
outwards, so as to perceive and escape from any danger that may
arise, as quickly as may be.

The cry of the Partridge is one of the pleasantest of country
sounds, beginning early in the year and lasting late ; and has thus
attracted the notice of Hurdis, who says —

I love to hear the cry
Of the ni^ht-loving Partridge.

and of Clare, though his imitation of the sound is only another

PARTRIDGE. I95

instance of the difficulty of all attempts to represent such notes

by written words.

With *' kirchup " ] " kirchup " ! 'mong the wheats
Partridge distant Partridge greets ;
Beckoning hints to those that roam
That guide the squander'd covey home.

Partridges pair early in February, and make a slender nest on
the ground, under the shelter of some growing crops or herbage.
They lay from ten to eighteen eggs, upon which only the hen bird
sits. As soon, however, as the young birds are hatched, the cock bird
joins the family, and few things are more interesting in country-life,
than to notice the affectionate anxiety exhibited by both parents in the
care of the young birds, and the clever stratagems they will display
to protect them from danger. When suddenly surprised, a peculiar
cry of distress is given ; immediately each little bird hides itself and
becomes invisible, whilst the old birds will flutter along the ground, as
if lame and unable to fly, or will even drop down as if dead, in order
to attract the attention, and entice the intruder away ; and which-
ever bird the intruder follows, the other gives another gentle signal,
and leads the little ones off to the nearest shelter, in an opposite
direction. The old birds will fight with great boldness, any Crow
or Hawk that endeavours to seize their young.

Many Partridges' nests are destroyed in cutting the early crops of
rye-grass, clover, or vetches, in which the birds are so fond of hiding,
but when possible the eggs are saved and hatched under hens. The
young birds so reared are very tame at first, but when once they get
their full strength of wing, away they fly ; and the terror of the first
report of a gun, makes them thoroughly wild. Partridges are restless
birds, shy in habit, and when once frightened they take a long
rapid flight into a new district, where, if undisturbed, they will very
likely remain. For these reasons the artificial rearing of Partridges
is only resorted to, when the eggs would otherwise be spoilt.

The Partridge does far more good than harm on the farm ; for
though they are fond of grain, and will eat the sprouting corn, and
in severe weather will injure the turnips, they eat much more
continuously the seeds of many troublesome weeds, and devour

196 PARTRIDGE.

immense numbers of grubs, wire-worms, and other noxious insects.
Indeed they are seldom numerous enough to do much mischief,
and the farmer never complains of a bird which gives so much
interesting sport, and is so delicious upon the table.

The Partridge requires but very little help or protection. It

will find its own food at all seasons, and is wary enough when the

first few days of September are gone by, to avoid ordinary dangers.

Its natural enemies are Hawks, cats, polecats, stoats, and weasels ;

but more to be feared than all these, is the poacher with his net,

when the covey is "jugged" for the night, for in one fell swoop

they may all be destroyed.

Secure they trust th' unfaithful field beset,
'Till hov'ring o'er them sweeps the swelling net.

Pope— Windsor Forest.

On the close covey, vexed with various woes,
While sad they sit their anxious mother round,
With dismal shade the closing net descends.

Lkyden — Albania.

Mr. J. F. Symonds, of Okeleigh, Hereford, was once shewn
an unoccupied cottage, in the empty rooms of which, an old
poaching sinner had nearly one hundred birds alive, waiting for
the dawn of September the first, to kill them, send them to market,
and to pocket his ill-gotten gains, whilst he leered at the thoughts
of giving " the Gents " much walking after the broods known
to have been hatched on the adjacent fields. This gentle-
man, however, may be easily guarded against, by the simple
measure of sticking up thorns over the fields the birds frequent ;
these fields can always be known with a little observation, for
Partridges often "jug" in the same field, and on the same spot, for
many nights in succession. This habit is well-known to the poacher,
who carefully watches at twilight before he works his deadly net.

The number of Partridges on the whole is becoming less, not
only from the loss of shelter caused by closely-trimmed hedges,
and the closely-cut crops, but also from the increased number of
sportsmen. The bird, however, is very prolific, and with ordinary
winters and fine dry springs, there is no probability of its becoming
extinct ; favoured as it is, moreover, by most land-owners and land-

PARTRIDGE. I97

occupiers. The mode of Partridge shooting is certainly altered

for the worse. The old sport with well-trained pointers, in which

the intelligent assistance of the dogs added so much to the day's

enjoyment, has had to give place to driving by large parties ; or

else, when the birds are in the turnips, the Hawk-Kite is flown to

make the timid birds await their more certain destruction. The

change is partly due to the loss of cover, rendering the Partridges

more wild after the first few days in September ; but the sport

is less for man and dog, and the birds are more killed down.

The thundering guns are heard on ev'ry side,
The wounded coveys, reeling, scatter wide ;
The feather'd field-mates, bound by Nature's tie,
Sires, mother, children, in one carnage lie.

Burns — The Brigs of Ayr.

When the Partridge has got its full winter plumage, and has
been well scared by the gun, it becomes especially wild and un-
approachable, and now if the birds are disturbed, they take long and
rapid flights out of reach and out of sight. It is owing to this
wariness, and to the fact that in fine and bright spring weather
(like that of the present year, 1884) the birds are very prolific, that
the Partridge still exists in such numbers.

There is a pretty theory in France, that the weight of Partridges
killed, bears a direct reference to the productiveness of the soil, and
the agricultural skill displayed upon it. In England their number
depends more upon the care of the occupier. They are certainly
fond of particular fields of light corn soils, and the experienced
sportsman who knows the country, will always know where to find
the birds on an estate.

Partridges abound in Herefordshire as they do in most of the
counties of the British Isles, where the cats and the vermin are kept
down, and where the guns are under some sort of control. In many
parts of the county, however, where there is no preserving, and where
the gun has full play, the scarcity of the Partridge, and indeed of
all other kinds of game, is very marked ; and but for the large
estates where the game is protected, this admirable bird, the great
favourite, alike, of the sportsman, the housekeeper, and the cook,
would soon become extinct.

198 QUAIL.

Genus— COTURNIX.
COTURNIX COMMUNIS— Quail.

An honest fellow enough, and one that loves Quails.

Shakespeare— Tj-oiYus ajid Cressida V., 1.

The corn-land loving Quayle, the loveliest of our bits.

Dray ton — Polyolhion.

Quails abound on all the shores of the Mediterranean Sea.
They are the most productive of all winged creatures, says a French
naturalist. They migrate north and south, in spring and autumn,
in enormous quantities. The migration of Quails to certain Islands
in the Archipelago, is what the migration of herrings is to Holland
and Scotland. It gives occupation to the inhabitants for some two
months of the year, and a profit that lasts much longer. The
Bishop of the Island of Capri, in the Bay of Naples, is said to
derive a revenue of ;£" 1,000 a year from his Quails ; as many as
160,000 having been taken on that island alone, in a single year.

Canon Tristram in his " Natural History of the Bible " thinks
that the Quails brought to the camp of the Israelites (Exodus xvi.,
13, and Numbers xi., 31, 32) were on their northern spring
migration from Africa. He himself, in Algeria, found, at daybreak,
the ground covered with Quails for an extent of many acres,
where on the preceding afternoon there had not been one. They
would scarcely move, even when almost trodden upon ; and on
another occasion, in Palestine, he caught several with his hand.

Quails arrive in England in May, and leave in October. They
soon make their presence known in spring, by their shrill triple note
uttered almost all day long, " Whit-whit-whit," " Wet-my-lips," or
" Click-clic-lick," as it may be variously interpreted. They are like
diminutive Partridges in their habits, and also in their food, except
that they live more on green plants, and on the seeds of weeds,
grass, plantain, dock, persicaria, wild-vetch, and chickweed.*
They are also fond of slugs, and insects, beetles, flies, etc. They

*Three thousand five hundred seeds of chickweed have been found in the crop
of a single bird.

QUAIL. 199

eat the corn too, as it ripens, but are very much more useful than
injurious to agriculture.

Quails are exceedingly pugnacious birds. In spring, they
have the most desperate encounters with each other. The
Romans availed themselves of their quarrelsome nature for
gambling purposes, and also in order to amuse themselves. Shakes-
peare alludes to this —

And his Quails ever
Beat mine inhoop'd at odds.

— Anthony and Gleojiatra II. , 3.

Thus jealous Quails, or village cocks inspect
Each other's necks, with stiffen'd plumes erect ;
Smit with the wordless eloquence, they show
The vivid passion of the threat'ning foe.

Quails are generally said to have been much more numerous
in England fifty years ago, than they are now, and this certainly
seems to have been the case in Herefordshire. On the southern
side of the county, they were formerly frequently to be met with.
On the Pengethley estate, in the vicinity of Ross, there is a field
called " Quail Field," in the ancient terrier of the property. The
soil is very light, and the crops of carrots which were formerly
grown, instead of the turnips and swedes of the present day, were a
favourite resort of the Quails. Mr. J. F. Symonds heard this from
his relative, the owner of the estate, some thirty years ago, and he
witnessed the following curious confirmation of the old character of
the field. The squire was always the butt of the party on account
of his bad shooting. On this particular occasion he had let off his
gun many times with the usual harmless effect, until at last, in
this very " Quail Field," he accidentally killed a Quail. It was a
beautiful bird, in good condition, and the squire was so gratified
at his success, that he constantly told this Quail chapter of his
boyhood's reminiscences, to his friends in Herefordshire.

Mr. Lingwood in his notes, records Quails as occurring
at "Belmont, 1847, and Llanwarne, 1852." In 1862, Mr. J.
F. Symonds bought some live Quails in London, which had been
intended for the tables in Belgravia, and after keeping them for
some time at Okeleigh, on Broomy Hill, he turned them loose
in pairs, hoping they would find their way to the corn-fields of

200 QUAIL.

Breinton, and return again the following year. P'or some weeks
after they were set free, their " calls " were heard, and then possibly
they left to find their way to the Riviera, and the tables of Monte
Carlo instead of Belgravia, for nothing more was seen or heard
of them. In 1865, a Quail was killed at Weston Beggard ; and on
September 20th, 1867, Mr. H. C. Beddoe met with a bevy of five
Quails on Adams' Hill, Breinton, and killed two of them, so
that Mr. Symonds' birds may possibly have returned to breed
there after all. In the same year, Mr. C. W. Radcliffe Cooke, M.P.,
met with a bevy of five Quails at Cobrey Park, near Ross, but
none of them were killed.

In 1870, Mr. H. H. Wood's setter caught a young Quail at
Great Brampton ; in 1873, a Quail was shot at Highnam, in
the parish of Tarrington. In 1879, ^^r. C. W. Radcliffe Cooke,
M.P., shot a Quail at Nuttall's Farm, Much Marcle ; and on
September i8th, 1881, he also shot another at Puredines, in the
same parish. In 1880, Mr. W. Hill shot a single Quail at Braintrees,
in Bishopstone parish. In 1881, a Quail was also shot at Lower
Eaton by Mr. Pulley's keeper, and the bird is now in the Hereford
Museum. The same year, September 9th, 188 1, a Quail killed itself
by flying against the telegraph wire on the railway between Ross
and Backney, which bird is now in the possession of Mr. W. C. Blake,
of Ross. On the 15th of September, Mr. H. C. Beddoe killed a
young Quail, which got up from a stubble-field on the Swanston
Court Farm, Dilwyn. This same year also, two w^re killed at
Sutton at different times ; one at Peterstow by Mr. Daw ; and one
at Withington by Mr. R. Prosser, so late as December 3rd.

The flesh of the Quail is much esteemed, but if eaten con-
tinuously it is a very heating food, says Yarrell, as indeed the
children of Israel seem to have found it. It takes its place,
however, on the sumptuous tables of the rich.

A pasty coatly-made
Where Quail and Piffeon, Lark and Leveret lay,
Like fossils in the roik, with golden yolks
Imbedded and injellied.

TKi^nY&otf—Audlei/ Cowt.

RED GROUSE. . 20I

[Genus — Ortyx.]

[Ortyx virgin'ianus — Virginian Colin.]

Introduced from North America, but not established.

Family— TETRAONID^.

Genus— LAGOPUS.

[Lagopus mutus — Ptarmigan.]

Common on the highest mountains of Scotland.

LAGOPUS SCOTICUS— Red Grouse.

The squire, in scorn, ^vill fly the house
For better game, and look for Grouse.

Swift.

The Moorcock springs, on whirring winga,
Amang the blooming heather.

BoBNa.

Until the Heath-cock shrilly crew,
And morning dawn'd on Benvenue.

Scott— Lady of the Lake.

This handsome bird is a true British species. It has existed
here from time immemorial, and is not to be found elsewhere.
Ornithologists call the Red Grouse the British representative of the
Willow Grouse, Lagopus albus^ which has so wide a range in the
old and new world continents ; and regard it as, probably, nothing
more than an isolated descendant from this bird, varied by the food,
and climatic peculiarities of the British Isles. The Red Grouse
differs from the Willow Grouse, in its summer and winter plumage,
in its call note, and in some of its habits. It is the only one of its
tribe, for example, which does not turn white in winter, which
science would explain, by saying, that it lost the power of doing so,
when the necessity for the change passed away. Be this as it may,
the result is admitted to be a distinct species, peculiar to Britain.

The Red Grouse is to be found on all the large tracts of waste
land, the wild open moors of the British Isles, where the ling

202 RED GROUSE.

(Calluna vulgaris) and the heaths (Erica cinerea and Erica Tetralix)
flourish, and where the whortle-berries ( Vaccimtwi Myrtillus and
Vttis-idcea) grow freely. These uncultivated lands abound in
Scotland, and there the Red Grouse is so plentiful as to get its
specific name. (It would abound in Ireland too, if that unhappy
country knew its own interests !) Such districts suit it so well that
it requires but little protection from its natural enemies, the
Buzzards, Hawks, Ravens, Crows, foxes, martins, and polecats.
Sportsmen kill thousands upon thousands annually, without
lessening the stock ; they not only keep their natural enemies in
check, but a more dangerous one still, the winter poacher ; they
also provide food for the birds during the severe weather of winter,
and thus may be said to produce the great numbers they kill. The
most dangerous enemies of the Grouse are the Crow, and the
Hooded Crow. These cunning birds not only beat the moors for
the eggs of the Grouse, which they are very clever in finding, but
they are ever on the watch for the small shrill chirp the young
chick gives, on escaping from the shell. It is the signal for a
delicate feast to the Crow, and down he pounces, drives off the old
birds, and devours all the brood he can catch, and also any eggs
that remain unhatched.

Red Grouse vary very much in size and plumage, and it is said
that game dealers can give a good guess, from their appearance, at
the localities from which they come. Grouse are plentiful on all the
ranges of the Black Mountains, and the late Hon. Humphrey
B. Devereux, of The Highwood, Leominster, said that a season
seldom passed, without his finding some wandering birds on
Bircher Common, near the middle of the county. The Red
Grouse on the Black Mountains, are larger in size and lighter in
colour, than those from the Scotch Moors.

The Red Grouse, unlike its congener the Willow Grouse, does
not perch on trees. Grouse are easily approached before the
shooting season begins ;

The Moor-cock startled with a sudden cry
Springs from beneath my feet.

Prinoe.

RED GROUSE. 203

but then they become very restless and shy, and are off at the distant
sight of the sportsman. In winter, they pack together, and are
very wary and unapproachable. On a fine clear frosty morning the
cock bird will sit on a " knowe " or hillock, and crow at sunrise,
and the peasants regard it as a sign of fine weather; and this
morning crowing is more boisterous in early spring when they pair.
The cock takes no share in the duties of incubation. He is not
far off, however, and on the approach of danger, he utters his
warning cry "kok, kok, kok." Directly the young birds are hatched
both parents show great diligence and anxiety in attending to them.

The food of the Red Grouse consists chiefly of the extreme
ends of ling and heather, whortle-berry leaves and berries,
cranberries, and haws; they are especially fond of oats when
they can meet with them. In severe weather they are driven to the
low lands, and require their food to be supplied for them.

With earliest spring

the Gawcock's call

Is heard from out the mist, high, on the hill ;
But not till when the tiny heatlipr bud
Appears, are struck the spring- tinje leagues of love.
Kemote from shepherd's hut, or trampled fold,
The new-joined pair their lowly mansion pitch,
Perhaps beneath the juniper's rough shoots,
Or castled on some plant of tufted heath.
Surrounded by a narrow sable moat
Of swampy moss —

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

Grouse shooting is a very fascinating sport. It is the first of
the year. It follows immediately on the Parliamentary session,
and occurs at the commencement of the professional holidays. It
carries its followers into pure mountain air, and beautiful scenery ;
and it requires great perseverance and continued exertion to pursue
it successfully.

And many a weary cast I made.
To cuittle the Muir-f owl's tail.

Scott— Wavej'ley.

For most people too, it comes but once a year, for a short

period, and it is therefore as pleasant in anticipation, as it is bright

to look back upon.

Trout, salmon, Grouse, and deer,
Ply the sportsman all the year.

204 BLACK GROUSE.

[Lagopus rupestris — Rock-Ptarmigan.]
Once in Sutheiiandshire, and in Perthshire.

Genus— TETRAO.
TETRAO TETRIX— Black Grouse

On wing of jet, from his repose

In the deep heath, the Black-cock rose.

Scott — Marmion.

The Black-cock in appearance and in habit seems intermediate
between the Red Grouse and the Pheasant. He is partial to the
heather and the moor, but he prefers the upland valleys and
swamps, interspersed with birch and alder trees ; wide open lands
with patches of bracken, and here and there a cover of Spruce or
Scotch Fir, and plenty of water. He is ready, so to speak, to
breakfast with the Red Grouse on heather shoots, or the leaves and
berries of the whortle-berry or bog myrtle ; and to dine with the
Pheasant in the corn-fields of the lowlands ; but will resort in either
case for his leisure, to his favourite localities.

The Black-cock is a meet companion for the Moor-fowl and
the Woodcock, and like them he must retire before the increasing
cultivation of the land. He is polygamous like the Pheasant. He
is a shy and very wary bird, and though he may attend but little to the
duties of the family, he seems ever on the alert for any danger that
may threaten the community at large. In an open country he is
therefore exceedingly difficult to approach.

Good morrow to thy sable beak,
And glossy plumage, dark and sleek,
Thy crimson moon and azure eye,
Cock of the heath, so wildly shy.

J. Baillte— TAe Black-cock.

Black-Grouse still breed in Herefordshire. In the wild
picturesque open country between Cusop Hill and the Black
Mountains, in the parish of Craswell they are annually to be found,
and usually breed there. Walter Savage Landor, when living at
Llanthony about 60 years ago, is said to have introduced Black-

BLACK GROUSE. 205

game there from Scotland, but this introduction is scarcely necessary
to explain their presence at Craswell, since they are to be found on
the Begwn Hill, (not ten miles distant as the Crow flies), and
other places in Radnorshire. Mr. Beavan of the Craswell Abbey
Farm, states, that in 1879, there was a cross-bred family on the
farm between a cock Pheasant and Grey-hen. In 1881, there was
a nest of Black-game in a field close to the foot of the Black
Mountains, and five young ones were reared. A Black-cock and
Grey-hen were shot that year, and the Black-cock was stuffed, and
is preserved at the Abbey Farm. In 1883, there was again a cross-
bred family on the farm, but this time between a Black-cock and
a hen Pheasant, and the young birds were reared. In 1884 there was
a nest of true Black-game in the parish of Craswell, though beyond
the Abbey Farm, and fourteen young birds were observed ; and in
October, a fine old Black-cock was shot there by Mr. Beavan.

Wandering specimens of Black-game have been seen and
killed in many of the wooded districts of the county. About the
year 1840, a Black-cock was flushed from the undergrowth of
heather and bilberry in Mainswood on the Stoke Edith estate ; and
he, or another bird, was shortly afterwards killed at Much Cowarne.
In Morris's " British Birds," it is stated that a Grey-hen was killed on
Mr. J. H. Arkwright's estate, at Hampton Court, in March, 1850.
About 1874, a Grey-hen was disturbed from the woods at Stoke
Edith.

The late Hon. Humphrey Devereux had seen and killed
Black-game on Bircher Common for several years in succession ;
and in the extensive wild districts on the northern side of the
county, as Shobdon, High Vinnalls, &c. — wandering birds are still
not unfrequently seen, as might be expected, since Black-game
exist both in Radnorshire and Shropshire.

Black-game fly heavily, but they fly high and very fast, and
sometimes for considerable distances. With a little care and
protection. Black-game might become much more plentiful in
Herefordshire than they are now, for without either they maintain
their existence in the wild wastes of Cornwall.

206 WATER-RAIL.

No more the Black-cock struts along the heath,
Spreads the jet wing, or flaunts the dark-green hair
In laboured flight, the tufted moors to gain.
But far remote, on flagging plume he flies,
Or shuts in death his ruddy, sparkling eyes.

Leyden — Scenes of Infancy.

[Tetrao urogallus — Capercaillie.]
Formerly in Northern England — now in Scotland.

[Order — Hemipodii.]

[Genus — Turnix.]

[TuRNix SYLVATicA — Andalusian Hemipode,]

Only three examples in England.

Order— FULICARI^.

Family— RALLI D^.

Genus— RALLUS.

RALLUS AQUATICUS— Water-Rail.

The Water-Rail is a summer visitant, and breeds here. It is
sparsely distributed throughout the county, but it is so shy a bird that
it is probably less rare than it is supposed lo be. Of late years it is
not unfrequently seen by railway passengers, as the train passes by
the reedy, shallow pools, or marshy spots the bird frequents. Like
other wild and shy animals, it has become accustomed to the noise
of the trains, and does not hide itself as they pass.

The narrow compressed shape of the Water-Rail enables it to
pass easily through the thickest herbage, and it will only rise in
flight to escape the dog. It flies slowly and heavily, with its legs
hanging down, and in its long journeys of migration must be greatly
aided by the wind. Its food is worms, snails, slugs, frogs' spawn
and young frogs, aquatic insects and green herbage. Water-Rail
have been killed in many places in the county, and one this year
(1884), was found behind some boxes in the Goods Department, at
the Ross railway station.

SPOTTED CRAKE. CORN-CRAKE. 207

Genus— PORZANA.

PORZANA MARUETTA— Spotted Crake.

The Spotted, or Water Crake is a very local bird in Hereford-
shire. It is aquatic in its habits, and frequents the sides of streams
and lakes in the neighbourhood of bogs, or marshy places, and
lives on the worms, slugs, and aquatic insects it finds there. A
few pairs visit the county most summers, and there is every
probability that it breeds here. Four specimens have been brought
to the Museum at varying intervals from April to June, during the
last four years (1880— 1884), which all came from small streams or
marshy places in the valley of the Lugg.

[PoRZANA BAiLLONi — Baillou's Crake.]
A rare visitant, but known to have once bred in Norfolk.

[PoRZANA PARVA — Little Crake.]
Somewhat rare in England. Found in Norfolk.

Genus— CREX.

CREX PRATENSIS— Corn-Crake.

\Land-Rail— YarrelL]

Art thou a sound, and nothing but a sound ?
— Go round the field, and round the field, and round,
You find my voice for ever changing ground ;
And, while your ear pursues my creaking cry,
You look as if you heard me with your eye.

Montgomery — Birds.

Oft does thy call at midnight silence break,
Now here, now there, thy desultory call.

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

The Corn-Crake, or Land-Rail, is another of the sportman's
favourites in the field or on the table. It is a summer visitor, and
varies considerably in numbers in different years. The rough harsh

2o8 CORN-CRAKE.

" crake " that sometimes seems to shake the ground when heard
from the meadows, or corn-fields, towards the end of April, is yet
one of the pleasant sounds of spring. The note is believed to be
uttered by the male bird alone, in search of his mate. He seems
restless, and ever on the alert through the long night, until he has
found her, being thus the earliest bird ;

The Corn-Crake's call
In mist-veiled meeds awakes the nestling Lark.

Grahame — British Georgics.

The rivalry of the birds is often excited to their destruction,
by imitating the " crake " by rubbing together the notched edges
of dry rib-bones, or even by drawing the thumb-nail, or a stick,
sharply along the teeth of a comb. The gun is held ready, and as
the angry bird crosses a track mown in the grass, it is easily shot.

The Corn-Crake is very generally spread throughout Hereford-
shire, and nests are annually mown out in cutting the grass. In
September they are generally found on the barley-stubbles, or seed-
clover ; but during the last few cold seasons, seldom more than a
single bird, or at most a brace, is added to the bag after a long
day's shooting.

The food of the Corn-Crake consists of slugs, snails, seeds or
corn, and green herbage. The bird is highly valued for the table.
"Railes of the land deserve to be placed next the Partridge, for their
flesh is as good as their feeding is good, and they are not without
cause preferred to Noblemen's Tables," says Dr. Thos. Muffett, in
the reign of Queen Elizabeth. And Drayton also speaks of

The Rayle, that seldom comes but upon rich men's spits !

— Polyolhion — Cant XXV.

The Land-Rail is difficult to flush, and flies so heavily that
it is not easy to understand how it can accomplish its long migratory
flight. Grahame, in his truthful description says : —

Behold the Corn-Craik ; she too wings her way

To other lands

Though weak her wing contrasted with her bulk.
Seldom she rises from the grassy field
And never till compelled ; and when upraised,
With feet suspended awkw^ardly she flies.

—Birds of Scotland.

MOOR-HEN. 209

Notwithstanding all this, the Corn-Crake manages 10 reach the

coasts of Africa, and even penetrate to its centre. As was noticed in

speaking of the Water-Rail, a strong wind seems essential to its

flight.

His torpid wing the Rail exulting tries,
Mounts the soft gale, and wantons iu the skies.

DxRVf IS— Loves of Plants.

Like many other birds the Corn-Crake will very cunningly put
on the semblance of death, when exposed to danger from which it
is unable to escape ; several instances are recorded by Yarrell,
and other writers.

Burns could not fail to notice the loud evening " crake " of
the Land-Rail :

Mourn clam'ring Craiks, at close of day
'Mang fields of flowering clover gay

—JSlegy.

Genus— GALLTNULA.
GALLINULA CHLOROPUS— Moor-hen.

To lurk the lake beside
Where Coots in rushy dingles hide
And Moor-cocks shun the day.

Shenstone.

This well-known bird is very abundant throughout the county.
It is to be found on all ponds, pools, or watercourses, where there
are plenty of reeds, rushes, flags, or other plants to give it shelter.
It is a very lively, active bird, very amusing to watch, and is thus
very ornamental. On moats or ponds close to the house or farm-
yard, it soon becomes tame and sociable, feeds with the poultry and
seems half domesticated. It swims very well, with a nodding
motion of the head, as it turns quickly from side to side to
catch an insect, or feed on a water-plant. It likes to graze on the
adjoining grass, and flirts its tail oddly as it walks along.

The Moor-hen is very prolific, and when undisturbed will
bring off three broods in the course of the summer. In the winter
when the ponds are frozen over, it takes refuge in plantations, thick

N

210 COOT.

bushes or hedge-rows, and resorts to rivers and running streams,
where many are killed. A few years since, a Moor-hen built its
nest in the bough of a willow tree overhanging the pond at
Vennwood, at a height of twelve or fourteen feet from the surface
of the water.

Genus— FULICA.
FULICA ATRA— Coot.

The Coot, bald, else clean black, that whitenesse it doth beare,
Upon the forehead starr'd, the Water-hen doth wear
Upon her little tayle, in one small feather set.

Drayton— Po?yoZ6ioM, 25th Song.

The Bald-Coot visits all the larger ponds and ornamental
pieces of water throughout the county, but it is not very
abundant. In some ponds, as at the Mynde, Berrington, and
Shobdon, they are allowed to breed ; and in a few others they do so
in spite of the keepers, where the aquatic vegetation is sufficiently
dense to afford them protection.

Coots feed on aquatic insects, worms, slugs, and water-plants ;
if other food is scarce, they feed readily on grass ; grain they
devour with eagerness, picking it up even quicker than our domestic
poultry. They move as easily on the land as on the water, and
though they prefer to roost among the tall rushes in the midst of a
piece of water, they will ascend a tree if other covert fails them.

The nests of the Coot are very large, and amazingly strong and
compact. — Hewitson says, " they are sometimes built on a tuft of
rushes, but more commonly among reeds ; they are supported by
those that lie prostrate on the water, whilst others have their
foundations at its bottom, and are raised till they become from six
to twelve inches above the surface, sometimes in a depth of one
and a half or two feet. They are composed of flags and broken
reeds, finer towards the inside, and contain from seven to ten eggs."
Bishop Stanley says that the Coot sometimes seems to prefer a

COOT. 211

floating nest, in which case she guards against the risk of wind or
flood, by fastening her nest to the reeds or rushes, so that it can
rise and fall with the water. If the Coot is disturbed and compelled
to leave her nest, she rapidly covers her eggs by picking right and
left at the rushes near, and a careless observer might easily pass the
nest as deserted and empty.

The " Sooty Coot," as Burns calls it, is a lively active bird.

The wanton Coot the water skims.

Burns— ^onflT.

The Coot dives merry in the lake.

SooTT—Marmion.

It swims well, and will dive long distances, as much, it is said,
as a hundred yards. It walks well on the broad leaves of the
water-lilies.

There have I watched the downy Coot

Pacing? with safe and steady foot

The surface of the floating field ;

And though the elastic floor might yield

In chinks, and let the waters flow,

Yet was the tremulous region true

To that rough traveller passing through.

Faber— T^e Cherwell.

" If a gentleman wishes to have plenty of wild-fowl on his
pond," says Colonel Hawker, " let him preserve the Coots, and keep
no tame Swans. The reason that all wild-fowl seek the company
of the Coots is because these birds are such good sentries^ to give
the alarm by day, when the fowl generally sleep."

Coots are resident with us throughout the year, but make
partial migrations in severe weather, from pond to pond, or even
to salt water when the ponds are frozen. They are very abundant
on Llangorse Lake, a few miles outside the margin of the county.

I come from haunts of Coot and Hern.

Tennyson— T^ Brook.

Where Coots are very numerous they will defend themselves
against birds of prey, such as the Kite, or even the White-tailed
Eagle, by collecting in a dense body, and suddenly flashing up with
their wings such a sheet of water, that it will completely baflie
their enemy.

212 LITTLE BUSTARD. STONE-CURLEW.

Order— ALECTORIDES.

[Family — G ruid^.]

[Genus — Grus.]

[Grus communis — Crane.]

A rare straggler to Britain.

Family— OTIDID^.

Genus— OTIS.

[Otis tarda — Great Bustard.]

Formerly a resident in England, but now exterminated, and only

a rare straggler.

OTIS TETRAX— Little Bustard.

This very rare bird seems to have visited Herefordshire on one
occasion. There is a specimen in the Hereford Museum from the
collection of the late Mr. Moss, of Ross, who stated that it was shot
in the neighbourhood of Dorstone. Nothing further is known of it.

[Genus — Houbara.]

[HoUBARA macqueeni — Macquecn's Bustard.]

[Oris 7?iacqueeni — Yarrell^

Once occurred in Lincolnshire.

Order— LIMICOL^.

Family— CEDICNEMID^.

Genus— CEDICNEMUS.

CEDICNEMUS SCOLOPAX— Stone-Curlew.

Thicknee or Norfolk Plover, Great Plover, Thick-kneed Bustard,
Whistling Plover, are all synonyms of this bird. A wanderer has
once visited Herefordshire. Mr. R. M. Lingwood in his notes
says, "Seen in the flesh at Baker's (a bird-stuffer in Hereford),
1854, the bird killed at Lyde," near Hereford.

COLLARED PRATINCOLE. CREAM-COLOURED COURSER. 213
GOLDEN PLOVER.

Family— GLAREOLID^

Genus— GLAREOLA.

GLAREOLA PRATINCOLA— Collared Pratincole.

This very rare straggler from Southern Europe sometimes
appears in Herefordshire. A specimen was shot at Fownhope, in
1854, which is now in the Hereford Museum. One was also
seen at Clyro, in 1880, by the Messrs. Baskerville, who knew the
beautiful bird at once, from having frequently seen it abroad, where
it is plentiful.

Family— CHARADRIID^.

Genus— CURSORIUS.

CURSORIUS GALLICUS— Cream-coloured Courser.

A specimen of this rare visitor from x\frica was shot at Backney
Marsh, near Ross, in 1852. It passed into the possession of the
late Mr. Moss, and is now with his collection at the Hereford
Museum.

Genus— CHARADRIUS.
CHARADRIUS PLUVIALIS— Golden Plover.

From the shore
The Plovers scatter o'er the heath
And sing their wild notes to the listening waste.

Shenstone.

The Golden Plover, Yellow Plover, or Whistling Plover, is not
common in Herefordshire. A small flock is occasionally seen in
late autumn or winter on the western side of the county, and a few
pairs breed on the Black Mountains. The specimens in the
Hereford Museum come from that neighbourhood.

The Golden Plover is a very interesting bird in many respects.
It changes its plumage in an extraordinary way. The under

214 GREY PLOVER.

portions of the body which are greyish-white in winter become
black in spring, partly from new feathers, and partly from a change
of colour in those that remain.

This bird from the earliest times has been considered very
delicate in flavour, and was formerly more esteemed than the
Woodcock. It is still sold for the table in considerable numbers.
In the L'Estrange " Household Book" (1520) the price is noticed
as two-pence each.

As a shepherd's barometer too, the Golden Plover is highly
esteemed. When the birds are restless, wheeling about rapidly,
now high, now low, uttering their wild whistUng notes so sweet and
plaintive, approaching bad weather is indicated, and the warning is
never unheeded. Lastly, they share with the Lapwing the persistent
notice of the presence of a strange object, whether from curiosity
or from fear, which, in the days of religious persecution, often
betrayed the fugitive to his pursuers. In Scotland they are
abundant, and a Scotch poet says : —

Thou, hovering o'er the panting fugitive
Through dreary moss and moor hast screaming led
The keen pursuer's eye ; oft hast tliou hung
Like a death flag above the assembled throng,
Whose lips hymned praise.

Grahame— ^irc?« of Scotland.

Genus— SQUATAROLA.

SQUATAROLA HELVETICA— Grey Plover.

The small additional toe, places the Grey Plover in a different
class to the Golden Plover. It is nevertheless closely aUied to it,
in its curious change of plumage, its general appearance, and its
excellence on the table ; it is, however, a larger bird, and more rare.
Its winter migrations into Herefordshire seem to have occurred
more frequently of late years. Two Grey Plovers were killed on
the Lugg meadows, in 1878, and brought to the Free Library;
three — one from Bacton, and two from Old Castle were also brought

DOTTEREL. 215

there in 1880; and two were shot at Sugwas, in 1882, which are
now in the Hereford Museum.

The Grey Plover is excellent eating. Dr. Muffett, in Queen
Elizabeth's time, wrote both of it, and of the other Plovers, with a
delicate appreciation worthy of an epicure. " The gray Plover is so
highly esteemed, that this Proverb is raised of a curious male-
contented stomack, '■a gray Plover cannot please hifn.'' Yet to
some, the green (Golden) Plover seemeth more nourishing ; and to
others, the Lapwing, which indeed is savory and light of digestion,
but nothing comparable to Plovers."

[Genus — ^gi alitis. ]

[^GIALITIS CANTIANA — Kcutish PloVCr.]

A somewhat rare visitor — but remains to breed in Kent and Sussex.

[y^GiALiTis CURONICA — Little Ringed Plover.]
A rare straggler to England.

[^GiALiTis HiATicuLA — Ringed Plover.]
Common on almost all our coasts.

[tEgialitis vocifera — Killdeer Plover.]
Once near Christchurch, Hants.

Genus— EUDROMIAS.
EUDROMIAS MORINELLUS— Dotterel.

This neat, pretty little bird, is very rarely seen in Herefordshire.
The specimen in the Hereford Museum was killed some years since
at Backney Marsh, near Ross. A small flock, or " trip," was seen
by Mr. D. R. Chapman, at Letton, in 1878, but there is no further
record of its occurrence.

2l6 DOTTEREL.

The Dotterel has the character of being a fooHsh bird, and
is said to get thus both its English and Latin names (morinellus
being by some associated with morio, a Fool or Jester). But the
fact is probably the other way ; Dotterels are not so called because
they resemble men that dote^ and are foolish ; but silly men are
compared to Dotterels, because they are considered as silly birds.
Oddly enough, some other water-birds are regarded as foolish, and
the words Goose and Giill^ Booby and Noddy are not complimentary
when applied to human beings.

Gesner, in his " Historia Animalium," (1585) cites a des-
cription sent him by Dr. Key, which Willughby renders as
follows : — " It (the Dotterel) is taken in the night time by the
light of a candle by imitating the gesture of the Fowler : For if he
stretches out an Arm, that also stretches out a Wing ; if he a Foot
that likewise a Foot ; In brief, whatever the Fowler doth, the same
doth the Bird; and so being intent upon men's gestures it is
deceived, and covered with the Net spread for it. I call it morinellus
for two reasons, first because it is frequent amongst the Morini
(Flemmings); and next because it is a foolish bird even to a Proverb,
we calling a foolish dull person a Dotterel."

Most worthy man, with thee 'tis even thus,
As men take Dotterels so hast thou ta'en us ;
Which as a man his arm or leg doth set,
So this fond bird will likewise counterfeit.

Drayton— To Coryat.

Drayton again alludes to the same fancy ;

The DottereU, which we thinke a very daintie dish,
Whose taking makes such sport, as man no more can wish,
For as you creepe, or cowere, or lye, or stoupe, or goe,
So marking you (with care) the Apish bird doth doe ;
And acting everything, doth never marke the net,
'Till he be in the Snare, which men for him have set.

— Polyolbion, 25th Song.

The Dotterel is very good eating, and has long held this repute.
In the Northumberland "Household Book" (c 1512) this entry
occurs : " Item Dottrells to be bought for my Lorde when thay ar
in season and to be had at jd. a pece." They have certainly not lost
their esteem, for " they sell now," says Yarrell, " in the London
game-shops for as much as seven or eight shillings the couple."

LAPWING. 217

Genus— VANELLUS.
VANELLUS VULGARIS— Lapwing.

The building Eook 'ill caw from the windy tall elm-tree,
And the tufted Plover pipe along the fallow lea.

Tennyson— T^e May Queen.

The Lapwing, Peewit, or Crested Plover, is so common a bird,
that its well-known cries have a pleasant association with spring.
In all the low^-lying or marshy districts of the county this beautiful
and interesting bird is to be found ; and in the autumn and winter
months, flocks of many hundreds join together. In the broad
valley of the Wye, which takes Eardisley for its centre, they are
more numerous than elsewhere, and here in April and May the
women and children seek their eggs for sale.

From the grey moor on feeble wing,
The screaming Plovers idly spring.

Warton.

Lapwings are restless and watchful birds. They have sentinels
when together in flocks, and are very difficult of approach ; and
they are still more shy when they take their fresh plumage and
separate for nestmg purposes.

In the Spring the wanton Lapwing gets himself another crest.

Tennyson— i/oc^•s?e^/ Hall.

The Lapwing nests in the most unprotected places, but seems
endowed with a proportionate caution. So watchful is the bird
that she can never be seen on her nest, or even be seen to leave it ;
and hence it has been supposed by some observers, that she does
not incubate.

Hence, around the head
Of wandering swain, the white-wing'd Plover wheels
Her sounding flight, and then directly on
In long excursion skims the level lawn,
To tempt him from her nest.

Thomson— *52?rwfir.

The great anxiety shown to protect their eggs and young,
often defeats its object with those who know their habits, and
serves to point out the locality of the nests. Sometimes, they will
fly and scream over the head of a visitor, and at other times they
wall pretend to be unable to fly, and flutter along the ground.

2l8 TURNSTONE.

The Plover fondly tries
To lure the sportsman from her nest,
And fluttering <m with anxious cries
Too plainly shows h3r tortured breast.
Oh let him conscious of her care
Pity her paius, and learn to spare.

Shenstone.

In the South of Scotland, since the days of Charles II., when

the Covenanters were so relentlessly persecuted, the Plover has

always been considered an unlucky bird. Its jealous anxiety at the

presence of a strange visitor to its haunts, and its screaming cries

about him, have often exposed the poor fugitive to his enemies even

after nightfall.

But though the pitying sun withdraws his light,
The Lapwings' clamorous hoop attends their flight.
Pursues their steps where'er the wanderers go,
Till the shrill scream betrays them to their foe.

Ley DEN — Scenes of Infancy.

The same noisy jealousy, however, calls assistance, now and
again, to some poor wounded man. The Tyrwhitts, an old
Lincolnshire family, bear three Peewits for their arms, in conse-
quence, it is said, of the founder of the family Sir Hercules
Tyrwhitt, when wounded on the moor, being thus saved by the birds.

The food of the Lapwing consists of the worms, slugs, cater-
pillars, and insects that frequent wet marshy places. In the autumn
and winter, the bird is considered good on the table. It is not,
however, equal to the Golden Plover notwithstanding the French

proverb,

" Qui n'a mang^ grive ni vanneau
N'a jamais mange bon morceau."

The Lapwing is resident throughout the year, except in very
severe weather. It is however partially migrant, for large flocks
sometimes come over from the continent.

Genus— STREPSILAS.
STREPSILAS INTERPRES— Turnstone.

There is a specimen of the Turnstone in the Hereford Museum
labeled " Backney Marsh, 1859 " by the late Mr. Moss. There is
no other record of its occurrence in the county.

OYSTER-CATCHER. GREY PHALAROPE. 219

Genus— H^MATOPUS.

H^MATOPUS OSTRALEGUS— Oyster-Catcher.

The Pied Oyster-catcher, or Sea-Pie, as the sailors call it, from
its distinct black and white colour, not unfrequently visits Hereford-
shire. Nearly every winter one or two specimens are shot in the
county, on the banks of the Rivers Wye and Lugg. The three
specimens in the Hereford Museum were obtained — one from Ross ;
one from Moccas, where it was shot on the banks of the Wye by
Mr. S. George ; and the third from the Lugg meadows, which was
secured by Mr. D. R. Chapman the same year, 1879. Another
specimen was also shot near the river Lugg in 1881.

Family— SCOLOPACID.^.

Genus— RECURVIROSTRA.

[Recurvirostra avocetta — Avocet.]

Formerly resident on the east coast of England, now very rare.

Genus— HIMANTO PUS.

[Himantopus candidus — Black-winged Stilt.]

A rare straggler to England.

Genus— PHALAROPUS.

[Phalaropus hyperboreus — Red-necked Phalarope.]

A regular summer visitor to the islands on the coasts of Scotland ;

occasionally met with during passage in England.

PHALAROPUS FULICARIUS— Grey Phalarope.

There are three recorded instances of the occurrence of the
Grey Phalarope in Herefordshire. Mr. R. M. Lingwood mentions
one as having been shot at Allensmore in 1847. Mr. W. C. Blake,

2 20 WOODCOCK.

of Ross, States that a Grey Phalarope was brought to him, early in
October i88i, by a lad who had killed it by a sling, while it was
swimming on the River Wye, near Backney Bridge. The bird
appeared by no means shy, and was swimming near the bank when
killed. This specimen has been carefully preserved, and is in the
possession of Mr. Blake. The Rev. D. Arthur F. Saunders of Sutton
St. Nicholas, near Hereford, was so fortunate as to meet with the
Grey Phalarope, in his own parish. The bird had been noticed
on two occasions, swimming in some deep pools in the River Lugg —
and on the 9th October, 1885, Mr. Saunders shot the bird from
the bank of one of the Lugg meadows, as it was swimming on the
river. He had the bird, which was a female in good plumage,
carefully preserved, and it is now in his possession.

Genus— SCOLOPAX.
SCOLOPAX RUSTICULA— Woodcock.

As Woodcocks when their plumes are grown,
Borne on the winds' wing, and their own,
Forsake the countries where they're hatched,
And seek out others to be calched.

BuTLEB.— Imitation of the French.

The arrival of the first flight of Woodcocks is always an era in
the sportsman's year. There is an old Herefordshire saying that, " if
the full moon in October falls between the loth and 25th days of
the month, then if the wind and weather are favourable, Cocks will
be plentiful, but if otherwise as to the moon, the Cocks go else-
where." Their abundance or scarcity really depends very much
on the severity of the weather in the north of Europe, for if the
weather should be stormy, and the wind unfavourable, very many
will perish in the sea.

The first flights to arrive are the females, and it is often many
days before the males appear. They generally come in hazy weather,
with a wind blowing from the North East. Their numbers vary

WOODCOCK.

221

very much according to the season, but there is no rule that appHes
to all places equally. The coverts in Herefordshire are not
generally shot early enough for the Woodcocks, or more would be
killed. The best days on record are these ; on December 9th, 1873,
twenty-one Woodcocks were killed in the woods at New-Lodge, in the
parish of Peterchurch ; and in the following year, at about the same
time, the result of four successive days' shooting, was forty Wood-
cocks. As a general rule, from four to ten are killed in the early
quarter of the December moon, and they are found chiefly on the
high ground on the south side of the Golden Valley.

At Stoke Edith, Mr. Cook, the park-keeper, whose father was
the head game-keeper, and who has himself always lived on the
estate, thinks that upon the whole. Woodcocks are more plentiful
than formerly. He remembers one or two extraordinary seasons
when from twenty-five to thirty couples were killed, but nothing
approaching this has happened in recent years. The exact
numbers killed on the estate of late years, the head-keeper
gives as follows : —

I87I

16

1878

9

1872

20

1879

8

1873

27

1880

10

1874

17

1881

6

1875

18

1882

15

1876

14

1883

II

1877

19

1884

21

le Woodcock score on the Hampton Court estate is as f(

allows :-

1869

23

1877

32

1870

6

1878

29

1871

19

1879

15

1872

6

1880

8

1873

21

1881

5

1874

18

1882

19

1875

23

1883

32

1876

20

1884

30

2 22 WOODCOCK.

The last season (1884) was a remarkable one generally through-
out the county, and it is very many years since the game-shops in
Hereford have been so well supplied.

Woodcocks lie quiet by day, and at nightfall visit their feeding

grounds.

In doubtful day the Woodcock flies.

Gat.

A narrow dip in the hills, or the tracts and glades in the woods
through which the birds pass, are often called " cockshoots." There
are several in the county, where from time immemorial. Woodcocks
have been waylaid while flying through, by sportsmen with their guns
or nets. In the dip of the hill above Stoke Edith, two permanent
poles were erected, and at the proper season a fine net was hung
across from one to the other. When struck by the bird flying,
it was drawn together by the concealed fowler. Mr. Cook thinks
these poles were first put up about sixty years ago. They were not
long in use, since they were removed about forty years since. They
probably did not pay. Mr. Cook remembers three Woodcocks being
taken one night, and thinks this was the greatest catch ever made.

Certain localities in woods have a peculiar charm for the
Woodcock, as is well-known to sportsmen ;

Oft at this season, near an oozy spring
O'erhung by alder boughs, the Woodcock haunts.

Grahame — British Georgics.

If one bird is shot, another will be found on the same spot at the next
visit, if there are any in the neighbourhood. By day they are fond of
reposing in the dry bottoms of brake or rushes, often preferring, as
Sir Humphrey Davy pointed out, the shade of a laurel or holly bush.

There are two sounds uttered by the Woodcock; one, a kind
of muffled clack, which they give sometimes when they are flushed ;
and the other, a sort of low whistle uttered at flight-time on spring
evenings.

The number of Woodcocks that now remain to breed in this
country is believed to exceed very largely that of former years.
Yarrell attributes this fact to "the increase of plantations, especially

WOODCOCK. 223

of fir covers in the vicinity of cultivated ground." This is certainly
the case in Herefordshire, for now a year scarcely passes without
some two or three well-authenticated instances of their breeding
being recorded. The following letter, dated August 4th, 1852, sent by
Mr.T. W. Bird, to BeWs Life in London, is the first on record. — " On
the 3rd of May, 1848, as the keeper of Thomas Clarke, Esq., of
Derndale, near Hereford, was going his rounds, he came to a spot
in the Wellington cover, where a Hawk had plucked some small
bird. Shortly afterwards, a bird which he took to be the Hawk, rose
and darted into the wood. The keeper fired and killed it, and then
discovered that he had shot a Woodcock. Retracing his steps, he
found four young Woodcocks, apparently about a week old, and much
resembling young Lapwings, running through the brushwood. The
dead bird proved to be a female ; and as her consort could not be
discovered anywhere in the neighbourhood, the keeper took the
young ones home and tried to rear them, but without success; they
died on the third day. The parent bird and her young ones were
preserved and are still in Mr. Clarke's possession."

On May 23rd, 1873, Dr. J. H. Wood put up two old birds
from a soak in Mainswood. Mr. Cook has only known two
instances of their breeding on the Stoke Edith estate. Many
years ago a nest was found at Camwood with three eggs in it.
Under the promise of a reward to the labourers who found it, the
nest was not disturbed, and the young birds were hatched off. In
1 88 1, a pair nested in the park coppice, and the young birds in
the down were seen on several occasions in the park, together with
the old birds ; and these latter were observed to make much the
same fuss as the Partridge, in order to draw the attention from their
young.

Mr. H. H. Wood, of Whitehouse, Vowchurch, says that " in
1881, on or about July 14th, five or six young Woodcocks got up
before him, and dropped again within twenty or thirty yards. The
reddish feathers of their tails looked bright and pretty in the
sunshine." These birds had been seen by his men several times
before. Mr. Wood thinks more Woodcocks stay than was formerly

2 24 WOODCOCK.

the case. He saw one fly over his garden in June, 1884, and heard
of others during the same summer at Poston Lodge. Mr. Wood once
shot a Woodcock on August T4th, in mistake for a Hawk. It only
weighed 9 oz., whereas the usual weight he has found to be from
II oz. to 13 oz., though two birds that were killed on his estate
weighed as much as 16 oz. From a notice sent to " Land and
Water," Mr. S. Martin, of the Hermitage, Burghill, killed a Woodcock
on December 5th, 1884, weighing 17 oz.

Mr. J. W. Lloyd, of Kington, says that the Woodcock breeds
regularly in the northern parts of the county. It has been observed
at Aymestrey, and The Haughwood, in 1882, 1883, 1884; at
Berrington, in 1883, 1884; and at Dinmore Hill, in 1883, where
many years ago. Woodcocks were occasionally seen in summer.
Mr. W. C. Blake says they breed almost every year in the Perrystone
woods, and this observation is confirmed by Mr. Davies, the head-
keeper, w^ho says he has met with the eggs, and also the young birds.
Woodcocks have also been met with in the Whitfield woods ; and
twice within the last few years at Penyard Wood, near Ross.

The nest of the Woodcock is little more than a hollow
amongst dry leaves in some well-sheltered situation, as under a
holly, thorn, or bramble-bush. It is often formed at a considerable
distance from the wet, boggy feeding-ground they delight in. It
is a well-established fact that the old bird will carry its young by
its claws, supported against the body by the beak, from place to
place, either for its natural food, or to avoid danger.

And lonely Woodcocks haunt the wat'ry glade.

Pope.

The food of the Woodcock consists chiefly of earth-w^orms,
which it hunts by scent, or perhaps, rather by the delicate sensation
of the long bill. Hence has arisen the notion that Woodcocks do
not eat solid food, but are sustained by the moisture they extract
from boggy ground. Thus Byron says —

" But man is a carnivorous production,
He cannot live like Woodcocks upon suction."

In frosty weather they get to the springs, or if the frost is

WOODCOCK.

225

very severe, to the sea-side, where they feed on the small shell-fish.
Where the birds are plentiful, the holes they thus bore in the soft
ground, guide the sportsman to set nooses of horsehair to catch
them. Shakespeare makes many allusions to these snares.

Ay, springes to catch Woodcocks.

—Hamlet, I. 3.

Now is the Woodcock near the gin.

—Twelfth Night II., 5.

Ay, Ay ; so strives the Woodcock with the gin.

— 3rd King Henry VI., J., 4.

There is no record of their having been caught by this means in
Herefordshire.

The Woodcock is not highly esteemed as an article of food in
northern countries ; and in the early part of the sixteenth century,
it was valued in England at less than a Golden Plover. In the fifth
Earl of Northumberland's "Household Book" (15 12), the price of a
Woodcock is stated to be one penny or three half-pence ; and in
the L'Estrange "Household Book," the reward for four Woodcocks
on October i8th was fourpence ; also in another instance, for three
Woodcocks, sixpence. In Shakespeare's time it began to be better
appreciated.

" He hath bid me to a calf s head, and a capon ; shall I not

find a Woodcock too ? " — (Much Ado K, 1.)

It was in Wilkighby's Ornithology that the well-known couplet first

appeared —

If the Partridge had the Woodcock's thigh,
'Twould be the best bird that ever did fly.

to which some modern writer has added :

If the Woodcock had the Partridge's breast,
'Twould be the best bird that ever was dress'd.

To kill the first Cock of the day, is a feather in the cap of the
lucky sportsman of the party.

The Woodcock flatters ; now he wav'ring flies ;
The wood resounds ; he wheels, he drops, he dies.

Gay — Rural Sports.

Another historical notice of the Woodcock may not be passed
by. Atone of the battues at Holkham, on November 20th, 1829,

226 COMMON SNIPE.

the celebrated sculptor Chantrey, killed two Woodcocks at one shot,
and was so pleased with his success, that he carved them in marble.
Mr. Hudson Gurney suggested to him this simple inscription :

Driven from the north where winter starved them,
Chantrey first shot, and then he carved them.

The marble tablet still adorns the Library at Holkham.

Genus— GALLINAGO.

[Gallinago major — Great Snipe.]
A straggler to the British Islands.

GALLINAGO C^LESTIS— Common Snipe.

Hither the long and soft-billed Snipe resorts

By suction nourish'd : here her house she forms ;

Here warms her fourfold offspring into life.

Grahame — Birds of Scotland.

The abundance of the Common Snipe has given way very
much in Herefordshire, as elsewhere, to the reclamation by increased
drainage of the wet marshy lands they delight in. They still come
to us from the north, in numbers varying with the season, and are
widely distributed throughout the county. They can scarcely be said
to be plentiful anywhere in Herefordshire, but there are few sports-
men whose skill is not annually tried by the twisting, turning flight
of the Snipe, as it rises before them. It is always welcomed, though
never to be depended upon, since

" The pallat-pleasing Snite.'"

DRATTO'S—Polyolbion.

is much esteemed on the table. In Scotland, and Ireland, where

they abound, their restlessness often indicates wet weather ; thus

Wilson calls it

" The long-billed Snipe that knows the approaching rain."

Some few pairs remain to breed in the more secluded parts of

the county. Mr. James W. Lloyd, of Kington, says "my son found

two nests, in this parish, on April i8th, 1883, within the distance

of a hundred yards from each other, each containing four eggs."

JACK SNIPE. 227

There are also other instances of the Snipe breeding in the northern
and western sides of the county.

" Snipe are numerous in the Golden Valley," says the Rev. T.
Powell, Rector of Dorstone, "and they breed there regularly." In his
very interesting pamphlet on the Golden Valley he gives the following
amusing account of a Dorstone mystery. " In the spring of 1875,
1879, and 1881, the inhabitants of the village were greatly agitated
by sounds of an unearthly nature always heard at a given spot, and
at a given time, between nine and ten o'clock at night. The spot
where it occurred was about a quarter of a mile from the church,
on the main road to Hay, close to a swampy plantation. Standing
near the gate into this plantation, people could hear, high above,
the movement of rapid wings cleaving the air in ascending and
descending circles, There was also heard a sound as of the bleating
of a kid mingled with the cry of an infant ; now here, now there,
now rising, now descending, often receding, then approaching, but
never seen. At this spot, women and children assembled nightly
for a fortnight, to hear and wonder : and then the mystery ceased.
Natural history explains it as the action of the male Snipe, during
the process of preparing by the female for incubation."

The swamp, where hums the dropping Snipe.

Tennyson— On a Mourner.

Genus— LIMNOCRYPTES.

LIMNOCRYPTES GALLINULA— Jack Snipe.

\Gallinago gallt?iula — Yar7'elL^

If I would time expend with such a Snipe
But for my sport and profit.

Shakespeare— 0^^e?^o /., 3.

The Jack Snipe, Half Snipe, or Judcock, is not a common

bird in Herefordshire. It occurs in isolated spots every winter,

and is generally solitary. A Jack Snipe will sometimes afford a

whole morning's shooting to a boy home for the Christmas holidays,

for he is very diflficult to hit, never flies far, and does not seem to

mind being shot at.

228 DUNLIN.

[ Genus — Limicola.]

[LiMicoLA PLATYRHYNCHA — Broad-billcd Sandpiper.]

A rare straggler to the British Islands.

Genus— TRINGA.

[Tringa maculata — Pectoral Sandpiper.]
A rare straggler to Britain,

[Tringa fuscicollis — Bonaparte's Sandpiper.
A rare straggler to the British Islands.

TRINGA ALPINA— Dunlin.

This Sandpiper is not abundant in Herefordshire, but it
frequently visits the larger rivers in the county. Mr. W. C. Blake
says, " it is a frequent visitor to the Wye, near Ross, in winter, and
several have been brought to me dead." In 1880, two were killed
in the Lugg meadows, and exposed for sale in a game-shop in
Hereford. There is no record of its having remained here to breed.

[Tringa minuta — Little Stint.]
Only met with in Britain during migration.

[Tringa temmincki — Temminck's Stint.]
Of regular, but rare occurrence during migration.

[Tringa minutilla — American Stint.]
A rare straggler to Britain.

[Tringa subarquata — Curlew Sandpiper.]
Not uncommon in Britain during spring and autumn.

[Tringa striata — Purple Sandpiper.]
Of occasional occurrence in Britain in winter.

KNOT. 229

TRINGA CANUTUS— Knot.

The Knot, that called was Canntus Bird of old,

Of that great King of Danes, liis name that still doth hold,

His apetite to please, that farre and neere was sought,

For him (as some have sayd) from Denmarke hither brought.

J^RXXTOS—Poliiolbion, 25th Song.

This bird has been very rarely met with in Herefordshire.
A Knot is recorded as having been killed at Dewsall, in 1879 ; and
the Rev. W. Baskerville Mynors met with one at Llanwarne, in
March, 1883.

In the early part of the sixteenth century the Knot was very
highly esteemed as an article of diet. They were caught in nets,
and regularly fattened for the table. Willughby says that, " being
fed with white bread and milk, they grow very fat, and are accounted
excellent meat." Camden (1607). first gives the origin of the name
from Canute, which Willughby (1687) and later writers have adopted.

[Genus — Machetes.]
[Machetes pugnax — Ruff.]
Only seen now on migration.

[Genus — Calidris.]

[Calidris arenaria — Sanderling.]

Common in winter on the coasts of Britain.

[Genus — Tryngites.]

[Tryngites rufescens — Buff-breasted Sandpiper.

A rare straggler to Britain.

[Genus— AcTiTURUS.]

[Actiturus longicauda — Bartram's Sandpiper.]

\Bartramia longicauda — Yarrell^

A rare straggler to the British Islands.

230 COMMON SANDPIPER.

Genus— TRINGOIDES.
TRINGOIDES HYPOLEUCUS— Common Sandpiper.

[ Tota?iiiS hypoleucus — Yarrell^

Where the mossy riv'let strays
Far from human haunts and ways.

Burns.

The Summer Snipe, or Sand Lark as this bird is also called,
is common on all the principal streams of the county. The
whistling cry, " wheet ! wheet ! wheet ! " is a very familiar sound to
the fisherman, or to the wanderer on the river's bank, as the birds
rise on his approach, to fly forwards to the next sand-bank on the
opposite side of the river. They arrive early in April, remain a few
weeks, then disappear, to come back for a longer stay in the autumn.

" The nidification of the Sandpiper," says Mr. W. C. Blake,
•' was formerly a mystery to me. Though the birds were common
in the spring, I could obtain no instance of their nests or eggs
being met with. Attention to the subject during the last few years
has cleared the matter up. I noted the first appearance of the birds
was during the first or second week of April ; they remained until
the end of May. — without nesting — and then disappeared until the
middle of July, when they returned, bringing their fledged young
ones with them. After careering about the shallow margins of the
Wye, in small companies, until the end of September or beginning
of October, they finally di?appeared until the succeeding spring. I
once heard the note of the Sandpiper on the 4th of June, and on
the 27th of June, 1886, three Sandpipers were observed near Ross,
but these latter may have been returned birds.

" The question arose — where did the Sandpiper go to breed,
and why ? I suspected they retired to the upper reaches of the
river Wye and its tributary streams to secure greater retirement,
and my impressions have been borne out by facts. Instances have
come to my knowledge of Sandpipers breeding on the Lugg ; and
during the present season (June, 1887), a friend gave me an egg
taken from the Wye bank, near Hay.

GREEN SANDPIPER. 23I

" No writer has, to my knowledge, mentioned this ' breeding
migration.' Has the fact been overlooked, or may the district of
Hereford, Ross, and Gloucester, be an exception to the rule ? In
this respect (speaking locally) the Sandpiper stands unique among
all our visitants."

Another confirmation of this fact is supplied by Mr. James W.
Lloyd, of Kington : — "Two years ago (1883), I was taken by a
young man to see a nest he had found on the ground, on a hill
near this town, by a small stream. On arriving at the spot he
threw himself suddenly down, and caught the bird on her nest.
It was a Sandpiper, and after admiring her slender form and
elegant marking, she was set at liberty. Her beautiful eggs, which
would have been deserted after such a disturbance, were taken,
and now adorn my cabinet."

Genus— HELODROMAS.

HELODROMAS OCHROPUS— Green Sandpiper.

\Totanus ochropiLS — Yarrell?^

This bird, though a frequent spring and autumn visitant to the
British Islands, has not been recorded as occurring in Hereford-
shire until quite recently. Mr. James W. Lloyd, of Kington
writes, " that Green Sandpipers with their young have been seen
both this year (1887) and last, during the late summer." He
thinks it probable that they breed in the secluded parts of the
county, though the eggs have not yet been discovered.

Professor Newton was the first to discover the curious fact,
which has since been attested by other observers, that the Green
Sandpiper lays its eggs in old deserted nests on trees, but always
in the vicinity ot water. The young birds will jump down from the
nests without difficulty, and immediately hide themselves in the
grass.

232 REDSHANK. SPOTTED REDSHANK. GREENSHANK.

The Green Sandpiper is a shy watchful bird, and is generally
found either alone, or in pairs. It bores a good deal for its food,
which consists chiefly of small beetles, spiders, very small red
worms, wood-lice, and small fresh-water snails, with a little
vegetable matter. Its flight is rapid and glancing, and its note
a remarkably shrill whistle.

Genus— TOTANUS.

[ToTANUS GLAREOLA — Wood-Saudpipcr. ]

A rare straggler, during migration, to Britain.

TOTANUS CALIDRIS— Redshank.

The Red-leg, or Redshank Sandpiper is a very rare visitor to
Herefordshire. The only specimen recorded is one solitary
wanderer, which during the spring migration northwards was shot
on the banks of the Wye at Ruckhall, in 1830, and is now in the
Hereford Museum.

TOTANUS FUSCUS— Spotted Redshank.

The Spotted Redshank, or Dusky Sandpiper is also a very
rare visitor to the county. One stray migrant is reported by Mr.
E. Pilley, to have been shot at Monkland, near Leominster, in 1881.

TOTANUS CANESCENS— Greenshank.

This bird has been occasionally met with in Herefordshire
during the last few years : at Castleton, in 1879 ; at Aymestry
in March, 1880; at Caplar in March, 1880; and at Letton in

BAR-TAILED GODWIT. 233

October, 1883. Mr. VV. C. Blake, of Ross, had a young male
Greenshank brought to him on August 20th, 1886, which had
been shot on the Wye, near the Weir End; no others were in
company with it.

It is a shy, vigilant bird, and prefers open districts, where it
can keep a better look-out against danger. There is a specimen in
the Hereford Museum, in the collection of the late Mr. Moss, of
Ross, but there is no history attached to it.

[Genus — Macrorhamphus.]

[Macrorhamphus griseus — Red-breasted Snipe.]

A rare straggler to the British Islands.

Genus— LIMOSA.
LIMOSA LAPPONICA— Bar-tailed Godwit.

The Godwit running by the water's edge
The little Curlews creeping from the sedge.

Jean Ingelow — Four Bridges.

The Common or Red Godwit, or Red-breasted Snipe as the
bird is also called, is very handsome. In winter it frequents
the muddy banks of rivers, or oozy banks of estuaries by the
sea-side. Its food consists of insects, worms, small crustaceans
and mollusks.

The Bar-tailed Godwit is but rarely met with in Herefordshire.
There are only two recorded instances of its occurrence in the
county ; the first, mentioned by Mr. Lingwood, was shot on the
river Lugg at Mordiford, in 1839 ; and the other on Carey Island,
Fawley, in 1879, which bird is now in the Hereford Museum.

234 BLACK-TAILED GODWIT. WHIMBREL.

LIMOSA ^GOCEPHALA— Black-tailed Godwit.

Nor Ortolans, nor Godwits, nor the rest
Of earthly )iames that glorify a feast.

Cowley— Trans.

The Black-tailed Godwit is unfortunately quite as rare as the

Common Godwit, in Herefordshire.

It is as large as a Woodcock, and equally valuable on the table.

In the sixteenth century it was considered an article of great luxury,

for w^hich the following authorities are quoted by Yarrell Sir

Thomas Browne says " they are accounted the daintiest dish in

England." Ben Jonson says of them

Your eating
Pheasant, and Godwit here in London, haunting
The " Globes " and " Mermaids " ; wedging in with lords
Still at the table.

and Thomas Muffett that " ever famous doctor in physick," as he
is styled in the title page to "Health's Improvement,"says, (page 99,)
"a fat Godivit is so fine and light meat, that noblemen, yea, and
merchants too, by your leave, stick not to buy them at four nobles
a dozen." In Lincolnshire the fen-men formerly fattened them on
bread and milk for the London market.

A specimen was shot on the river Lugg, in March, 1876,
and is now in the Hereford Museum, and this is the only recorded
instance of its occurrence here.

Genus— NUMENIUS.

[NuMENius BOREALis — Esquimaux Curlew.]

A rare straggler to Britain.

NUMENIUS PH^OPUS— Whimbrel.

To the locks the Curlew flocks
Wi' gleesome speed.

Burns— £'?e(7y.

The Whimbrel Curlew, or Little Whaap is closely allied to the

Common Curlew, but it is much more uncommon. It is a bird of

CURLEW. 235

some size, nearly a pound in average weight, and very good eating.
Would that it were common here, but Herefordshire cannot offer
the wild desolate moorland districts, and barren tracts of ground, it
delights to visit. One specimen only is recorded as having been
killed in the county. This was shot at the mouth of the river
Lugg, in April, 1881, and is now in the Hereford Museum.

NUMENIUS ARQUATA— Curlew.

Now wild and harsh the moorlanl music floats,

And clam'rous Curlev\'s scream with long-drawn notes.

Leyden — Scenes of Infancy.

The wild cries of the Curlew are so associated with the retired

moorland districts the bird frequents, that they seem peculiarly

appropriate to each other. The sounds uttered in their ordinary

flight are well represented by the words, " corlieu " or " courlie,"

and from hence the bird derives its English and French names ;

but should an intruder approach their eggs, or young, the old

birds dash towards him and about him, with loud noisy screams

that proclaim their anxiety, repeated again and again until they

are left in peace.

Round his grey head the wild Curlew,
In many a fearless circle flew.

Scott — The Lord of the Isles.

Scream'd o'er the moss the scared Curlew.

Scott — Harold the Dauntless.

Throughout Scotland the Curlew is called a "Whaap" or
"Whaup," which means a goblin with a long beak. Sir Walter Scott
refers to this in the Black Dwarf (chap, ii.), where he makes Hobbie
Elliot say : " What needs I care for the ^Mucklestane-Moor ony mair
than ye do yoursell, Earnscliff? To be sure, they do say there's a
sort o' worricows and lang-nebbit things about the land, but what
need I care for them ? " The same feeling of superstition is to be
found at the fag end of a Highlander's prayer to be saved "from
witches, warlocks, and aw lang-nebbed things." Sax by says that

236 CURLEW.

the Shetlanders regard with horror the very idea of using so uncanny
a bird as food ; in fact, a visitor who did so was afterwards alluded
to, almost in a whisper, as "the man who ate the Whaup."

The Curlew is very good eating, when young, and before it has
had time to feed on the sea-shore, but it soon becomes unpalatable.
It was formerly esteemed highly ; in the L'Estrange " Household
Book," it appears that a Curlew was worth from five to six pence
(and even twelve pence in the Lord North Accounts), the price of
three Woodcocks.

The Curlew is a very shy bird and difficult to approach ; but
his presence on the wild moors, and his cries are nevertheless very
pleasant to the traveller.

Thus Hurdis speaks of

A gentle Curlew bidding kind good-night
To the spent villager.

— Favorite Village.

The Curlew frequents the coasts through the winter, finding
on the sea-shore the small Crustacea, marine insects, worms, etc.,
which form its food, but in the spring it retires inland, to breed
in the retired spots of hilly, marshy districts.

The clamorous Curlew calls his mate.

Gilbert White.

The nest of the Curlew is slight ; a few leaves or other dry
materials, carelessly laid among long grass or heath, or in a tuft
of rushes, is all that appears. They breed on the wilder moors
of the county. Mr. James W. Lloyd exhibited two eggs at the
Kimbolton meeting of the Woolhope Club, which had been taken
with two others, on May 15th, 1880, from a hill within two miles
of the town of Kington. In 1882, a pair of Curlews nested on
the adjoming hill, and hatched out the young birds, some of which,
however, were killed by shepherd dogs.

The Curlews breed regularly also on the Black Mountains,
and sometimes on the Herefordshire portion of them. They rarely
visit the centre of the county, but are still occasionally met with.
Mr. Lingwood in his notes says : " very rare, seen in the flesh at

COMMON TERN. LITTLE TERN. 237

Baker's in Hereford, but whether killed in the county or not was
doubtful." Mr. D. R. Chapman saw one not half-a-mile from the city,
in April, 1883; and two days later, saw the same or another bird,
in a swampy piece of meadow-land at Letton, near " Turner's boat."

Order— GAVI.E.
Family— LARID^.
Genus— STERNA.

[Sterna macrura — Arctic Tern.]
A regular summer visitant to the North of EngLmd.

STERNA FLUVIATILIS— Common Tern.

Like flocks of Sea-fowl driven,
"When storms are on the wing.

MosTGO-siEEY—Greenland.

The Terns, or Sea-Swallows, are rare visitors to Herefordshire.

They only visit us when driven inland by violent stormy weather

at sea. They have, however, been seen on several occasions.

Mr. Lingwood and Mr. Blight have recorded their occurrence in

the valley of the river Wye (see Woolhope Transactions). In

March, 1883, a couple of Terns were observed by myself and many

other people, flying over the river from the Castle Green, up the

valley until they passed out of sight.

[Sterna dougalli — Roseate Tern.]
A summer visitant.

STERNA T^HNUTA— Little Tern.

Not clown the breeze more blithely flew,
Skimming the wave, the light Sea-mew.

Scott— The Lord of the Isles.

This pretty elegant bird, the Little or Lesser Tern, is also a

very rare visitor to Herefordshire. A specimen was shot at Marden

238 SANDWICH TERN. SOOTY TERN.

in September, 1869, by T^lr. Hugh Jenner, of Vennwood, when
Partridge-shooting in a turnip-field. The weather had been very
stormy for a few days previously, and it had probably been driven
inland. It was carefully preserved, and is now in the hall of
Vennwood House.

[Sterna caspia — Caspian Tern.]
A rare summer visitor.

[Sterna anglica — Gull-billed Tern.]
An irregular summer visitant to this country.

STERNA CANTIACA— Sandwich Tern.

. . . . Ilook'd
And saw a bird slow sailing over head,
His long white pinions by the sunbeam edged
As though with bui nish'd silver ; never yet
Heard 1 so sweet a music as his cry !

SOUTHEY— ^/acfoc.

Mr. W. C. Blake, of Ross, had a beautiful specimen of the
Sandwich Tern brought to him alive on October 22nd, 1886. It
was picked up in Alton Street, Ross, having come into collision
with a street-lamp. Its companion settled on the ground beside it,
uttering cries of distress, which drew attention to the injured bird.
Mr. Blake endeavoured to revive it, but without success; it died in
an hour or two. It was preserved, and is now in his excellent
collection of birds.

This bird was probably driven inland by the recent severe
gales, as it is very unusual for the Sandwich Tern to remain in
England later than September. The return migration commences
in August.

STERNA FULIGINOSA— Sooty Tern.

The Sooty Tern is a very rare visitor to the British Isles,
mhabiting as it does the intertropical seas and coasts from the West

BLACK TERN. 239

Indies to Australia. Only two or three occurrences are recorded in
England ; but a specimen was picked up dead at Marston, near
Pembridge, after stormy weather, in May, 1885. It was unfortunately
placed in the hands of a local bird-stuffer who, to make it fit a small
case, carefully cropped the longest primary feathers of each wing.

[Sterna an^stheta — Scopoli's Sooty Tern.]
Once obtained at the mouth of the Thames.

Genus— HYDROCHELIDON.

[Hydrochelidon hybrida — Whiskered Tern.]
A rare straggler to Britain.

[Hydrochelidon leucoptera — White-winged Black Tern.
A rare straggler to England.

HYDROCHELIDON NIGRA— Black Tern.

Wild sea-birds that follow through the air.

Mackay— Song.

This bird, storm-driven, occasionally visits the valley of the
Wye. Mr. Lingwood records a specimen having been shot from
the large pool at Mynde Park, Dewchurch, in 1859.

[Genus — Angus.]

[Anous stolidus — Noddy.]

Two or three specimens recorded in Ireland,

[Genus — Pagophila. ]

[Pagophila eburnea — Ivory Gull.]

An occasional straggler to the British Coasts.

240 KITTIWAKE. LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL.

Genus— RISSA.
RISSA TRIDACTYLA— KiTTiwAKE.

Now a dark speck, but brii?htening as it flies.
A vagrant sea-fowl glads their eager eyes.

Montgomery — Greenland.

This bird has been seen on several occasions sailing about the
broad valley of the Wye, when driven inland by stress of weather on
the coast, though its slaughter has not been recorded for the county.

Genus— LARUS.

[Larus glaucus — Glaucous Gull]
A winter visitant to the northern parts of Britain.

[Larus leucopterus — Iceland Gull.]
A rare winter visitor.

[Larus argentatus — Herring-Gull.]
Resident on our Coasts, and breeding in suitable localities.

LARUS FUSCUS — Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Through rising gale and breakers' foam
The shrieking sea-birds warned him home.

Byron— ^ric?c of Ahydos.

A pair of these birds have regularly visited the river Wye in
April and May for the last three years. They have generally been
seen in the valley between Rotherwas and Holme Lacy. They
remain two or three weeks, and since they are not driven inland by
bad weather, the inference is that they come to feed on the last-
spring, or young salmon-fry which are so plentiful at that time.

COMMON GULL. 24I

LARUS CANUS— Common Gull.

White bird of the tempest ! O beautiful thing,
With thy bosom of snow and thy motionless wing,
Now sweeping the billows, now floating' on high.
Now bathing thy plumes in the light of the sky ;
Now poising o'er ocean thy delicate form,
Now breasting the surge, with thy bosom so warm.

Like a pure spirit, true to its virtue and faith,
'Mid the tempest of nature, of passion, and death.

Gerald Griffin.

The whole tribe of Gulls give a life and interest to the sea-
coasts that is ever fresh and charming, and their graceful white
forms reflected against a dark cloud, or the deep green back-ground
of the water, add much grace and beauty to the scene. They are
very expert on the wing, and fly with lightness and ease ; they are
equally at home on the land or on the water, and rise and fall on
the waves with pleasurable freedom ; whilst their cries, now loud
and near, and now afar off, as the wind or distance affects them,
give an additional interest to their presence. The poetical allusions
to them are therefore numerous, although the poets may not always
be naturalists.

Graceful Sea-gulls, plumed in snowy white,
Follow'd the creaming furrow of the prow
With easy pinion, pleasurably slow.

Mackay — Legends of the Isle.

And clouds of Sea-fowl high in ether sweep.
Or fall like stars through sunshine on the deep.

Montgomery— (rreen?anc?.

The grey host
Of wide-winged Sea-mews in their gyrous flight.
Oft intermingling, and repeating oft
Sounds, which the distant inexperienc'd ear,
Might deem the cry of eager hounds remote.

HuRDis— T/ie Favorite Village.

The Sea-gulls hovering, milky-white,
Display their pinions to the light,
And dart and wheel with sudden cry,
Or drop like snowflakes from the sky.

'M.ACKAX— Shoal of Whales.

But beautiful and interesting as they are, they are yet but
"scavengers of nature." They are the most voracious creatures, and
practically omnivorous. They will eat anything they fall in with,
from corn to carrion ; fish alive or dead, or any animal cast up by
the tide.

p

242 GREATER BLACK-BACKED GULL.

On nimble wing, the Gull
Sweeps booming by, intent to cull
Voracious from the billow's breast,
Mark'd far away, his destined feast.

Mant.

They also take eggs, insects, worms, slugs, snails, grain of all kinds,
and any vegetable matter. They prefer decaying animal matter,
and thus aid the poet's bitter satire ;

The Eagle soars above ! the Gull and Crow
Flock o'er the carrion, just as mortals do.

Byron.

They are very interesting birds, too, when they associate for
nesting purposes, in what have been termed " gulleries " ; but none
of them have ever built, so far as it is known, in Herefordshire,
and, indeed, they only visit the county during severe and stormy
weather on the coasts.

The Common Gull may be seen most years in the valley of
the Wye, and it has not unfrequently been shot. A good specimen
was obtained at Staunton Park at Christmas, 1874. The bird
was observed swimming on the ornamental water, and was shot
by Mr. Dawson. Mr. King-King had it carefully preserved, and
it is still in his possession. Another beautiful specimen was shot
by Mr. Landon, at Lower Bullingham in 1883, which is now in
the Hereford Museum. A pair of Gulls was also observed at
Bredwardine on Easter Monday, 1884.

LARUS MARINUS— Greater Black-backed Gull.

The broad-winged Sea-gull's never at rest ;
For when no more he spreads his feathers free.
His crest is dancing on the restless sea.

Keates— Epistle.

This is a very magnificent bird ; it weighs about five lbs. ; is

two feet six inches in length, and has a stretch of wing of not

less than two feet nine inches. It has a slow powerful flight, now

remaining almost motionless in the air, and again wheehng round

in curves equally graceful and dignified.

BLACK-HEADED GULL. 243

The greater Black-backed Gull very rarely visits Herefordshire,
but has been seen here on many occasions. A fine specimen was
shot at Marcle, 1879, in the valley of the Lugg, near Sutton, and is
now in the possession of Mr. Cheiake, of Hereford.

[Larus atricilla — Laughing Gull.]
A single specimen in the British Museum.

[Larus iCHTHVAiiTus — Great Black-headed Gull.]
A single specimen in the Exeter Museum.

[Larus melanocephalus — Adriatic Gull. J
A single specimen in the British Museum.

LARUS RIDIBUNDUS— Black-headed Gull.

The night-winds sigh, the breakers roar
And shrieks the wild Sea-mew.

Byron— Childe Harold.

The Laughing Gull, Peewit Gull, or Black-headed Gull is one
of the most interesting of its tribe. It is a very graceful lively bird ;
and is particularly remarkable for breeding in large colonies in the
north of England, where the " gulleries " are protected with much
care. It is but very rarely seen in Herefordshire — only one specimen
is recorded as having been killed here, and that was brought to
Mr. Newman, the bird-stuffer, in 1876.

[Larus minutus — Little Gull.]
An irregular visitor.

[Larus philadelphl\ — Bonaparte's Gull.]
Said to have occurred in Ireland and Cornwall.

244 POMATORHINE SKUA. RICHARDSON's SKUA.

[Genus — Xema.]

[Xema sabinii — Sabine's Gull.]

A scarce autumnal straggler to the British coasts.

Genus— STERCORARIUS.

[Stercorarius catarrh actes — Common Skua.]
Breeds in the Shetland Isles, and in autumn and spring occurs

along the British coasts.

STERCORARIUS POMATORHINUS— Pomatorhine Skua.

And with wild wing
The circling Sea-fowl cleave the flaky clouds.

Thomson— Winter.

There is only one record of this bird having been seen in
Herefordshire. A specimen was obtained by Mr. Preece, August
8th, 1882, on the Foxley estate, in the valley of the Wye. It had
seized a young Pheasant, which it was devouring when disturbed.
A trap was set, and baited with the remainder of the Pheasant, and
the Skua returned to finish its meal, and was caught. It is now in
the Hereford Museum.

STERCORARIUS CREPIDATUS— Richardson's Skua.

Mr. King-King gives an interesting notice of the occurrence
of this rare bird at Staunton Park, in September, 1869. A party
of gentlemen were out shooting, when, on crossing a field, they
observed a strange bird following the plough, and apparently
searching for food as the ground was turned up. Mr. King-King
fired, and killed the bird, which proved to be a Richardson's Skua.
It had probably been brought so far inland by the severe gales
which had recently taken place. The bird was very carefully set
up, and is still in the possession of Mr. William King-King.

STORM-PETREL. 245

[Stercorarius parasiticus — Buffon's Skua.]
An occasional visitant on migration.

Order— TUBINARES.

Family— PROCELLARIID^.

Genus— PROCELLARIA.

PROCELLARIA PELAGICA— Storm-Petrel.

Up and down ! — up and down !
From the base of the wave to the billow's crown,
And amidst the ilashing and feathery foam,
The Stormy-Petrel finds a home.

Barry Cornwall.

Here ran the Stormy-Petrels on the waves,

As though they were the shadows of themselves

Reflected from a loftier flight through space.

Montgomery — The Pelican Island,

This smallest of all the web-footed birds has a weird
character, and a peculiar interest. From its power of half flying,
half paddling along the surface of the rough sea-waves, it gets its
name of " Petrel " from the Apostle Peter, who walked upon the
water.

The blackening wave is edged with white ;

To inch and rock the Sea-mews fly ;
The fishers have heard the Water-Sprite

Whose screams forbode that wreck is nigh.

Scott— TAe Lay of the Last Minstrel.

It is supposed to be only seen before stormy weather, when its
small size, its quick movements, and its sombre colouring, strike
the mariners with awe, and they even call them " Devil's Birds,"
" Witches," or " Mother Carey's Chickens."

Modern sailors pay as much respect to auguries as Aristo-
phanes tells us those of Greece did two thousand years ago :

" From birds in sailing men instruction take,
Now lie in port, now sail and profit make."

They have not, however, always the opportunity to heed the

246 leach's petrel.

warning given by the Petrels, and so abuse and dread the birds
who give it.

O'er the deep ! — o'er the deep !
Where the whale, and the shark, and the sword-fish sleep,
Out-flying the blast and the driving rain,
The Petrel telleth her tale in vain ;
For the mariner curseth the warning bird
Who bringeth the news of the storm unheard.

Barry Cornwall.

The only recorded instances of the occurrence of the Storm-
Petrel in Herefordshire, are — at Shobdon, where one was shot after
some very severe weather in the Channel, in December, 1867 ; and
at Carthage, in the parish of Foy, near Ross, a Storm-Petrel flew
against a window and was killed, in the year 1877. Local tradition
also states that another was taken many years since at Hurstley
Common, in the parish of Kinnersley.

PROCELLARIA LEUCORRHOA— Leach's Petrel.

Vel mare per medium fluctu suspensa tumenti
Ferret iter, celeres nee tingeret sequore plantas

ViKGIL.

She swept the seas, and as she skim'd along,
Her flying feet, imbath'd on billows hung.

Brydets— Trans.

The Fork-tailed Petrel is a very shy and rare bird. A
specimen was picked up dead, at Dewsall, by the Rev. A. W.
Horton, after the very severe snow-storm in the winter of 1879-80.
It was presented by Mr. Horton to the Hereford Museum, where
it can now be seen.

[Genus — Oceanites.]
[Oceanites oceanicus — Wilson's Petrel.]
[Oceam'fes oceanica — Yarrell?[
A rare visitor to the coasts of England.

MANX SHEARWATER. 247

Genus— PUFFINUS.
PUFFINUS ANGLORUM— Manx Shearwater.

The Manx Puffin, or Shearwater, has occasionally been met

with in Herefordshire during the prevalence of severe weather on

the coast,

" When floods are raging, and the gales blow high."

A specimen was taken at Peterstow, in September, 1867, from
a turnip-field ; and another was also killed at Woolhope, in 1883.
On the 7th September, 1887, a Manx Shearwater was picked up
alive, in a field near Gayton Hall, in the parish of Upton Bishop.
It was very weak, but quite uninjured, and had probably been driven
inland by the stormy weather prevalent at that time. It was taken
to Mr. Elmes, who tried to save its life, but without success j he
set it up carefully, and it is now in his possession.

[PuFFiNUS GRiSEUS — Sooty Shearwater.]
Met with occasionally on the coasts of Great Britain.

[PuFFiNUS MAJOR — Greater Shearwater.]
Occurs irregularly in autumn.

[PuFFiNUS OBSCURUS — Dusky Shearwater.]
Once in Ireland, once in Norfolk.

[Genus — Fulmarus.]

[FuLMARUS glacialis — Fulmar.]

Breeds on some of the western islands of Scotland, but is a rare

winter visitor to the British coasts.

[Genus — CESTRELATA.]

[CEstrelata HiEsiTATA — Capped Petrel.]
Once obtained in Norfolk.

[Genus — Bulweria.]

[BuLWERiA COLUMBINA — BuUver's Petrel.]

Two stragglers obtained on the coasts of Yorkshire,

248 GREAT NORTHERN DIVER. RED-THROATED DIVER.

Order— PYGOPODES.

Family— COLYMBID^.

Genus— COLYMBUS.

COLYMBUS GLACIALIS— Great Northern Diver.

This magnificent bird rarely visits the county, but there are
some recorded instances of its coming, storm-driven. Mr. W. C.
Blake, of Ross, says, " About the year, 1867, a female specimen
was shot on the Wye, immediately opposite Ross, by Mr. John
Poole. I had the pleasure of seeing it in 1883." The two
specimens in the Hereford Museum were obtained — one from the
river Wye, at Clifford, near Hay ; the other, from Llangorse Lake,
in the adjoining county of Brecon, but only five or six miles over
the Herefordshire border.

[CoLYMBUs arcticus — Black-throatcd Diver.]
A somewhat rare straggler to the British coasts.

COLYMBUS SEPTENTRIONALIS— Red-throated Diver.

The Red-throated Diver breeds in the Faroe Islands, Iceland,
and Spitzbergen, and even north of the latter, Parry met with it as
far as he went on his boat-voyage. It visits the coasts of the British
Islands from autumn to sj^ring, but it is not common in the inland
counties. Its presence in Herefordshire has several times been
recorded ; a specimen was caught on the ice, in the river Wye,
near Ross, in the winter of 1854 — 5; and two others were shot
on the Weir Cliff stream, in the severe winter of 1879 — 80; all
three birds are in the Hereford Museum. Mr. W. C. Blake, of
Ross, states that " a Red-throated Diver was seen on March 5 th,
1884, floating down the Wye on a mass of drift," and he also gives
the following recent occurrence — "on November 17th, 1887, a
Red-throated Diver was killed on the Wye, in the parish of Sellack.

GREAT CRESTED GREBE. 249

It is a very fine bird, in the immature state of plumage which has
obtained for it the name of the " Speckled Diver." Its length is
twenty-six inches ; expanse of wing, three feet six inches ; and it
weighs three pounds and three quarters." The bird is now in
Mr. Blake's possession.

The Red-throated Diver is sometimes called the " Rain-
goose," because its wailing cries are thought to foretell wet and
stormy weather.

Family— PODICIPID^.

Genus— PODICEPS.

PODICEPS CRISTATUS— Great Crested Grebe.

The Great Crested Grebe, or Loon, is a visitant all the year
round, on Llangorse Lake, in Breconshire, some five or six miles
beyond the boundary of Herefordshire. In 1852, one was shot on
the Wye, near Ross, and is now in the Hereford Museum. Two fine
specimens, male and female, were shot on the pond at Shobdon, in
the spring of 1880, and are in the possession of Lord Bateman.
A young immature specimen was also killed on the Wye at Wilton,
in December, 1881, and is now in the possession of Mr. W. C.
Blake, of Ross.

The nest of the Great Crested Grebe is composed of half-
rotten decaying water-plants, and built among the reeds and rushes,
nearly level with the surface of the water, and is generally very wet.
The eggs, which are quite white when laid, become very much
stained and discoloured in consequence. The parent birds are
very careful of their young, and at the least alarm will dive down
with them, placing them safely under their wings. They feed them
with young eels, small Crustacea, and a little vegetable food ; they
are also very fond of tadpoles and small frogs.

The Great Crested Grebe is a veiy handsome bird, and the
beautiful silvery whiteness of the under surface of its body, has
caused it to be sometimes called the " Satin Grebe."

250 SCLAVONIAN GREBE. EARED GREBE. LITTLE GREBE.

[PoDiCEPS GRiSEiGENA— Red-necked Grebe.]
A somewhat rare visitor to Britain.

PODICEPS AURITUS— ScLAvoNiAN Grebe.

A specimen of this very rare bird is to be seen in the Hereford
Museum, labeled, "Hereford, 1849," but no further particulars
can be obtained about it.

PODICEPS NIGRICOLLIS— Eared Grebe.

The Black-necked, or Eared Grebe is the rarest of all the
Grebes, but it has been met with once in Herefordshire. A
specimen was shot on the Wye, near Stretton-Sugwas, in 1879, and
is now to be seen in the Hereford Museum.

Genus—TACHYBAPTES.

TACHYBAPTES FLUVIATILIS— Little Grebe.

\_Podiceps fliiviatilis — YarreU?[

Upon this promise did he raise his chin,
Like a Dive-dapper peering through a wave,
Who being look'd on, ducks as quickly in.

Shakespeare— Fgnws and Adonis.

The Little Grebe, Dabchick, or Didapper, is not unfrequent
on the ponds and streams throughout the county, though it is
rarely seen except by those who look for it ; it abounds on the
ponds round Aymestry, It is the smallest of the Grebes,
and naturally a very shy bird, but admits of being easily
tamed. A pair of Litde Grebes was kept alive for some years

LITTLE GREBE. 25 I

in the window of one of the leading restaurants in Paris, and did not
seem in the least to mind the admiration of the visitors, though the
pond and fountain in which they sported was of glass, and the
few ornamental plants did not hide them.

The food of the Dabchick consists of small fishes, and
aquatic insects, with some vegetable substances ; it will dive in
the most rapid manner, and bring up minnows with surprising
quickness to feed its young.

The Little Grebe builds a floating nest, hidden among the
weeds and rushes, and keeps a most careful watch over it. The
young when hatched, take quickly to the water, and dive naturally
with the parent birds. They have the power of sinking their
bodies beneath the water, only leaving their heads and tails
exposed, so as to be nearly invisible ; at any alarm, they instantly
dive, and can swim for a considerable distance under water, giving
their heads an amusing little shake when they regain the surface.

Their numbers seem to vary in different seasons, which is
partly due to migration. They seldom fly, but they must be able
to do so, for they are found on detached and isolated ponds, and
in hard winters they have to leave their favourite ponds for
the rapid rivers, and their mode of progression on land is proverbially
difficult. Thus Pope uses it in illustration —

As when the Dabchick waddles through the copse
On feet and wings, and flies, and wades, and hops.

— Diinciad.

Family— ALCID^.

[Genus — Alca.]

[Alca torda — Razor-bill.]

Breeds in suitable localities throughout the British Islands.

[Alca impennis — Great Auk.]

Formerly occurred in British waters, but believed now to be extinct.

The last recorded example in 1844.

252 PUFFIN.

[Genus — Lomvia.]

[LoMviA TROiLE — Common Guillemot]

[ Uria iroile — Yarrell?\

Breeds in suitable localities throughout the British Islands.

Lomvia bruennichi — Briinnich's Guillemot.
A rare straggler to the coasts of Scotland.

[Genus — Uria.]

[Uria grylle — Black Guillemot.]

Visits England on its partial migration.

[Genus — Mergulus.]

[Mergulus alle — Little Auk.]

An irregular visitant to the British coasts.

Genus— FRATERCULA.

FRATERCULA ARCTICA— Puffin.

The Puffin, or Sea-Parrot has once been met with in Hereford-
shire. The specimen now in the Hereford Museum was knocked
down by a carter, with his whip, in June 1876, on the road leading
from VVoolhope to Hereford. There is no other record of its
appearance here.

The Puffin builds in many localities around the coasts of
Great Britain, migrating southwards in winter. " The Scilly Islands
have been famous for these birds from very early times," says
Yarrell. William Botoner, or Buttoner, commonly called William of
Worcester, in his "Itinerary" (c. 1468-78) speaks of the Island of
Trescoe as inhabited, " cuniculis et avibus vocatis pophyns"

PUFFIN. 253

(Harting, Introd. p. xii. to Rood's — Birds of Cornwall). Mr.
Frederick Holme, also says — "The Scilly Isles were held in the
fourteenth century, under the King as Earl of Cornwall, by
Ranulph de Blancminster, for an annual payment of six shillings
and eight-pence, or three hundred Puffins at Michaelmas ; probably
salted or dried birds, as fresh ones could not be procured at that
time." Lundy Island, Priestholm, and Puffin Island off the
coast of Anglesea, are also noted haunts of the Puffin.

Birds, small and great, of endless shapes and colours,

Here flew and perched, there swam and dived at pleasure ;
*****

Some sought their food among the finny shoals,
Swift darting from the clouds, emerging soon
With slender captives glittering in their beaks ;
These in recesses of steep crags constructed
Their eyries inaccessible, and trained
Their hardy broods to forage in all weathers.
*****

Millions of creatures such as these possessed those busy isles

Montgomery— TAe Pelican Island.

APPENDIX,

Local natnes of Birds in Herefordshire.

Blackbird
Black-headed Bunting

Bullfinch

Chaffinch ...

Coot
Crossbill ...

Dipper

Fieldfare ...

Spotted Flycatcher . . .
Goldfinch

,..i

Merle
Ouzel

Reed Sparrow
( Water Sparrow

Bud, Budding Bird
Cock Hoop
Hoop, Hoof
Hope, Tope

Pink, Pinkin

Pyefinch

Pyerinch

Shelly

Twink

Wet-bird

Bald Coot

Shell-apple

Water Blackbird
Water Ouzel
White-throated Blackbird
Wizzel

'Blue Rump
Blue Tail
Felt

Feltyfare
^Veldebird

Beam Bird

Gold Linnet
Seven-coloured Linnet
Thistle-finch

256

APPENDIX.

Young Goose

... Gull, plur. Gullets

Gosling ...

. . . Goosmachick

Little Grebe

( Dabchick
... < Didapper
( Divvy Duck

Greenfinch

... Green Linnet

Heron

/ Crane
•••IHern

Lapwing ...

Green Plover
Peewit

Magpie ...

[ Madge
...< Magot
(Pie

Martin

. . . Swallow

Night-jar ...

f Churn-owl
J Fern-owl
'•' j Goat Sucker
V Night Churr

Owl

f Jelly Hooter
••'1 Oolat

Barn Owl...

/ Screech Owl
•"t White Owl

Tawny Owl

J Brown Owl
•••] Wood Owl

Tree and Meadow Pipit

... Titlark

Redbreast...

... Robin

Redstart ...

( Brantail, Kitty Brantail
... < Branter

( Fire-brand Tail

Ring-Dove

( Cushat
... 1 Quist, Queest
( Wood-pigeon

Rook

. . . Crow

Sandpiper

... Summer Snipe

APPENDIX.

257

Sea-birds ...

Red-backed Shrike

Sky Lark . . .
Sparrow Hawk

Hedge Sparrow
House Sparrow
Starling . . .
Stonechat...

Swift

Missel Thrush

Song Thrush
Blue Titmouse

British Long-tailed Titmouse.

Great Titmouse
Wagtail . . .
Whinchat...

Gulls

Butcher-bird
Flusher

Ground Lark

Blue Hawk

Aizack
Blue Isaac
Dunnock

Spadger

Black Steer
Sheep-Stare
Stare

Gorse Bird

Devilin

Skeer

Skir-devil

Squeaker

Holly Thrush
Holme Screech
Mistletoe Thrush
Storm Cock
Storm Screech

( Mavis
\ Throstle

{ Bluecap
I Tom Tit
( Willow Biter

Bottle Tit

Canbottle

Munimiruffin

Mumruffin

Ragamuffin

f Blackcap
( Qxeye

Water Wagtail

r Furze-chat
( Haytick

258
AVhitethroat

^Villo^v Warbler

Green Woodpecker.

Wren
Gold-crested Wren .

Wryneck ...
Yellow Hammer

APPENDIX.

( Haybird

■I Nettle Creeper

( Titty Whilethroat

( Nettle-bird
' Willow Wren
( Yellow Wren

Hickle

Rain-bird

Stock-heckle

(^ Storm-bird
Yaffil
Yuckle

Kitty Wren

Fire Crest
Gold Crest

] Cuckoo's Mate
I Snake Bird

{Ammer
Writing Lark
Yellow Bunting
Yellowhomber

INDEX OF LATIN NAMES.

The Birds in Italics have not yet been noted in Herefordshire.

PAGE.

PAGE.

Acnnthyllis caudacuta ...

90

Anser brachyrhynchus

... 150

Accentor coUaris

27

... 149

26

cygno'ides

indicus

151

Accipiter nisus

... 123

... 151

ACCIPITKES

... 118

,

... 150

segetuni

Acredula ca udata

29

ANSERES

... 149

rosea

29

Anthus campestris

37

Acrocephalus aquaticus

25

■

37

ccviinus

palustris

25

ludovicianus ...

... 37

phragmitis

25

ohscurus

37

streperus

24

pratensis

37

25
... 229

™.',.J, „™,7,"

37
37

Aciiturus longicauda ...

spipoletta

Aedon gdlactudes

24

trivialis

37

^Egi ditis cantiana

... 215

Aquila chrysaetus

... 121

•

... 215

danga

... 121

hiaticida

... 215

Archibuteo lagopus

... 121

tocifcra

... 215

Ardea alba ..

... 145

^Ex !<ponsa

... 160

hubulcus

... 145

AfielcEns phosniceus

60

cinerea

... 140

-Xl n.i 1 H a. fl.rVior pa.

87
83

... 145
... 145
... 145

arvensis

cri&tata

88

ralloides

Alaudid.e

83

Ardeid^

... 140

Alcaiinpennis...

... 251

Ardetta minuta

... 146

torda

... 251

Asio brachyotus

... 114

Alcedinid^ ...

97

otus

... 113

Alcedo ispida

97

AsiONIDiG

... 113

Alcid^

... 251

Astur atricapillus

... 123

ALECTORIDES

... 212

paluraharius

... 123

Ampelid^ ...

40

Athene noctua

... 117

Ampelis cedrorum

40

Bernicla brenta

... 152

1

40

canadensis ...

... 153

garruius

Anas boscas ...

... 162

leucopsis

... 152

Anatit) f

... 149
... 239

/J J, ■

. . 154
... 149

Annus stolidus

O'llJlCUUlS

'Bota^uYUii lentigiiiosus ...

Anser albifrons

... 151

stellaris

... 147

26o

INDEX OF LATIN NAMES.

Bubo ignavus
Jiulicria columbina
Buteo borenlis

dcsertorum

vulgaris

Caccabis pe<j*osa

rufa

Calandrella brachy dactyl a
Calcarius lapponicus ...
Calidris arenaria

CAPRIMULGID.E

Caprimulgus europseus

ruficollis ...

Carduelis elegans
Carpodacus erythrinus .
Certhia familiaris
Certhiid.e. ...
Cerylc alcyon ...
Cettia sericca ...

CHARADRIID.E

Charadrius pluvialis ...
CkanJelasmus streperus
Chelidon urbica
Chen albatus
Chena'opex czgyptiacus ...
Chrysomitris citrinella

spinus ...

Ciconia alba

nigra

ClCONIID.E
ClXCLIDJE

Cinclus aquaticus

melanogaster ...

Circus (^ruginosus

cineraceus

cyaneus

Clangula albeola

glaucion

ialandica

Coccothraustes vulgaris
Coccystes glandarius ...
CoccyzviS americamis ...

erythrophthalmus

Colaptes auratus
Columba livia

cenas

palumbus

COLUMBA

COLUMBID.E ...
COLYMBID.E ...

Colymbus arcticus

PAGE.
117

247

121

121

120

193

192

88

60

229

90

90

91

46

54

46

46

102

26

213

213

163

44

152

149

48

48

149

149

149

28

28

29

119

120

119

168

167

168

49

108

109

109

96

175

174

170

170

170

248

248

Colymbus glacialis

septentrionalis

Coracias garrula

CORACIID.E
CORVID.E

Corvus corax ...

comix...

corone

frugilegus

monedula

Cosmonctta histrionica
Cotile riparia
Coturnix communis
Crex pratensis
Crithagra chrysopyga ...

CUCULID.E

Cuculus canorus
Cursorius gallicus
Cyanecula suecica

wolfi

Cyanospiza ciris
Cygnus americanus

bewicki

buccinator

immutabilis

musicus

olor ...

Cyp.selus apus

melba

Dafila acuta ...
Daulias luscinia
Dendrocopus major

minor

jmbescens

villosus ...

Ectopistes migratorius ...
Elanoides furcatus
Elanus ca:ruleus
Emberiza cirlus

citrinella

hortulana ...

vielanocephala

miliaria

jmsilla

rustica

schoeniclus ...

Erithacus rubecula
Eudromias morinellus...
Falco sesalon ...

peregrmus
subbuteo

INDEX OF LATIN NAMES.

261

FALCONIDiE ...

Fratercula arctica
Fringilla caelebs

montifi-ingilla

FRINGILLIDiE ...

Fulica atra
FULICARI^ '

Fuligula cristata

ferina

marila

rufina

FuJmarus glacialis
GALLING
Gallinago caelestis

mdjor

Gallinula chloropus
Garrulus glandarius ..

GAVI^

Gecinus viridis
Glareola pratincola

GLAREOLIDiE
GRUID.E

Grus communis
Gypsfulvus ...
Haematopus ostralegus
Haliaetus alhicilla
Harelda (ilacialis
Helodromas ochropus ...
HEMIPODII
Heniconetta stelleri
HERODIONES
Hierofalco candicans ...

gyrfalco

islandus

Himantopus candidus ...

HlRUNDINID^

Hirundo bi color
rufula

rustica

savvmii

Houhara macqueeni
Ilydrochelidon hyhrida
leucoptera

nigra

Hypola'is icterina

ICTERID.E

lynx torquilla

Lagopus albus, sec scoticus

mutus

rupestris

scoticus

PAGE.

119
252

51

52

46
210
206
165
166
166
165
247
179
226
226
209

64
237

95
213
213
212
212
118
219
123
168
231
206
168
140
128
128
128
219

41

44

44

42

41
212
239
239
239

24

60

96
201
201
204
201

Laxiid.e
Lanius collurio

excubitor

excubitor'ides

major

minor

poineranus

LARID.E

Larus argentatus

atricilla

canus . . .

fuscus ...

glaucus

ichthi/aetus

Icucopterus

marinus

melatwcephalus

minutus

Philadelphia

ridibundus

Ligurinus chloris
Limicola platyrhyncha...

LIMTCOL^

Limnocryptes gallinula
Limosa segocephala

lapponica

Linota cannabina

flavirostris

hornemanni

linaria

rufescens

Locustella luscinio'ides...

naevia

Lonivia bruennichi

troile

Loxia bi/asciata

curvirostra

leucoptera

pity ops ittacus . . .

Machetes pugnax
Macrorhamphus griseus
Mareca americana

penelope

Melanocorypha calandra

sibirica ...

Melizophilusundatus ...
Mergulusalle
Mergus albellus
cucullatus

merganser
ierrator

PAGE.

38

39

38

39

39

39

40

237

240

243

241

240

240

243

240

242

243

243

243

243

49

228

212

227

234

233

53

54

54

53

54

26

26

252

252

57

55

57

55

229

233

161

160

88

88

21

252

170

170

169

170

262

INDEX OF LATIN NAMES.

MKROriD.E
Merops apiaster

philippinus

Milvus ictinus
Mimas pol ii(jlottus
Monticola ci/anus

saxatilis

Motacilla alba

flava

lugiibris

melanope

rail
viridis

M0TACILLID.E
Muscicapa atricapilla . .

collar is

grisola

parva

MUSCICAPID^
Neophron percnopterus ...
Nucifraga caryocatactes
Numenius arquata

borealis

phaeopus ..

Nyctala acadica

tengmalmi

Nyctea scandiaca
Nycticorax griseus
NyrocM ferruginea
Oceanites oceanicus
CEdemia fusca

nigra

perspicillata ...

(Edicxemid^
CEdicnemus scolopax . .
(Estrelata hcesitata
Oriolidje
Oriolus galbula
Ortiix virginianus
Otidid^
Otis tarda

tetrax

Otocorys alpestris
Pagnphila ebnrnea
Pandion haliaetus

PANURID.E

Panurus biarmicus

Paeid.e

Parus ater

britannicus

caeruleus

PAGE.

102

102

102

124

27

9

9

35

36

35

36

36

36

35

41

41

40

41

40

118

64

235

234

2U

116

116

116

147

167

246

169

168

169

212

212

247

38

38

201

212

212

212

88

239

135

29

29

29

30

31

31

Parus cristatus

major

palustris

Passer domesticus

montanus

PASSERES
Pastor roseus

PeLECANID;'E

Peltcanus onocrotalus ...
Perdix cinerea
Pernis apivorus
Phalacrocorax carbo ...

graculus

Phalaropus fulicarius ...

hyperboreus

Phasianid^
Phasianus colchiciis ...

ellioti

reevesi

soemmeringii

torquatus ...

versicolor ...

Phylloscopus rufus . .

sibilatrix

superciliosus

trochilus

Pica rustica ...
PICARI^

PiCID.E

Picoides tridactylus
Picus martius
Pinicola enudeator
Platalea leucorodia
Plataleid.e
Plectrophanes nivalis ...
Plectropterus gambemis
Plegadis falcinellus
Podiceps auritus
cristatus

grisogena
nig-ricollis

PODICIPID.E ...
Porzana baiUoni
maruetta

parva

Pratincola rubetra

rubicola

Procellaria leucorrhoa

pelagica

Procellariid^
Progne purpurea

PAGE.

32

30

31

50

5L

1

64

136

140

193

127

136

138

219

219

179

179

190

189

190

187

188

22

23

22

23

65

88

91

95

91

55

149

149

60

149

149

250

249

250

250

249

207

207

207

10

10

246

245

245

45

INDEX TO LATIN NAMES.

263

PTEROCLETES ...

Pteroclid.e ...
Puffinus anglorum

griseus

major

obscurus

Pycnonotus harhatus ...

capensis

PYGOPODES
Pyrrhocorax (jraculus ...
Pyrrhula europaea
Querquedula caroUnensis
circia

crecca

discors . . .

Rallid.e
Rallus aquaticus
Bee urvi rostra avocetta ...
'Re^\\\\x% calendula

cristatu.s

ignicapillus . . .

Rissa tridactyla
Ruticilla phoenicurus ...

titys

Saxicola rfeserf i

cenanthe

stapazina

Scolecophagus ferrugineus

SC0L0PACID.E

Scolopax rusticula
Scops asio

gm

Serinvs ca narius

hortulamis

Sitta caesia

Somateria mollissima . . .

spcctabilis

Spatula clypeata
Squatarola helvetica ...
STEGANOPODES ...
Stercorarms catarrhactes

crepidatus

parasiticus

pomatorhinus

Sterna ana:stheta

anglica

cantiaca

caspia

dougalli

fluviatilis

fuliginosa

PAGE.

179

179

247

247

247

247

38

38

248

64

54

164

163

164

163

206

206

219

22

21

22

240

11

11

10

9

10

61

219

220

117

117

48

48

32

168

168

164

214

136

244

244

245

244

239

238

238
237
237
238

Sterna macrura

niinuta

Strep.sila& interpres
Strigid.e
Strix flammea
Sturnella magna
Sturnu.s vulgaris
Sula bassana
Sarnia funerea

xdula ...

Sylvia atricapilla

cinerea

curruca

hortensis

nisoria

orphea

Sj'rnium aluco
Syrrhaptes pa radoxus . . .
Tachybaptes fluviatilis
Tudorna, casai'ca

cornuta

Tetrao tetrix ...

urogallus

TETRAONID.E ..
Thaumalia amhersti ...

picta

Tiehodrovia muraria ...
Tinnunculus alaudarius

cenchris ...

vespertinus

Totanus calidris

canescens

fuscus

glareola

Tringa alpina

canutus

fuscicollis

maculata

minuta

minutilla

striata

subarquata

temmincki

Troglodytes parvulus ...
Troglodytid.e
Tryngites nifescens
Tryngoides hypoleucus
TUBINARES
TuRniD.E

Turdus atrigularis
iliacus

PAGE.

237
237
218
109
109
61
61
139

n6

116

20

19

19

20

21

20

115

179

250

160

159

204

206

201

191

191

46

134

135

134

232

232

228
229
228
228
228
228
228
228
228

33

229

230

245

1

6

4

264

INDEX TO LATIN NAMES.

Turdus merula

migratorius

musicus

pilaris

sibiricus

torquatus

varius

viscivorus

Turnix sylvatica
Turtur communis

'AGE.

PAGE.

6

Upupa epops

... 102

G

Upupid^

... 102

3

Uriagrylle ...

252

0

Vanellus vulgaris

217

6

Vireo olivaceus

40

8

VlREONID^ ...

40

G

Vdlturid.^ ...

... 118

1

Xema sabinii ...

... 244

20G

Zonotrichia alhicollis ...

60

177

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

The Birds in Italics have not yet been noted in Herefordshire.

Accentoi', Alpine

Adriatic Gull ...

African Buzzard

" Aizack " see Hedge-Sparrow

Alpine Accentor

American Bittern

Goshawk

Green-toinged Teal

Grey Shrike . . .

Haick-Owl

Meadow- Starling

Pipit...

Robin

Screech Owl ...

Stint

Sican

Wigeon

Andaf usian Hemipode ...
Aquatic Warbler
Arctic Tern

Auk, Great

, Little

Avocet

Baillon's Crake...

"Bald Coot "see Coot ...

Barharif Partridge

Bar-headed Goose

Barnicle Goose

Barn-Owl

Barred Warbler

Barrow s Golden-eye

Bar-tailed God wit

Bartrani's Sandpiper

Bean-Goose

Bearded Titmouse

Bee-eater

, Blue-tailed

Belted Kingfisher

PAGE.

27
243
121

26

27
149
123
1G4

39
116

61

37
6
117
228
159
161
206

25
237
251
252
219
207
210
193
151
152
109

21
168
233
229
150

29
102
102
102

PAGE

Bewick's Swan ... ... ... 159

Bird, Cedar ... ... ... 40

Bittern ... ... ... 147

, American ... ... 149

, Little ... ... ... 146

" Black Cormorant " see Cormorant 136

" Black Crow " see Carrion-Crow 70

Black Grouse ... ... ... 204

Guillemot 252

Kite 126

Redstart ... ... 11

Stork ... 149

Tern 239

" Black Wigeon " see Tufted Duck 165

Black-bellied Dipper ... ... 29

Black-billed Cuckoo 109

Blackbird 6

Blackcap 20

" Blackcock " see Black Grouse ... 204

Black-headed ^Mnim^' ... ... 57

Gull 243

" Black-headed Bunting " see Reed-
Bunting ... 60
" Black-necked Grebe " see Eared

Grebe 250

Black-tailed Godwit ... .. 234

Black-throated Diver ... ... 248

Thrush ... ... 6

Wheatcar ... 10

Black-xoinged Kite ... ... 127

Stilt 219

Blue Rock- Thrush ... ... 9

Blue Titmouse... ... ... 31

Blue-headed Yellow Wagtail ... 36

" Blue-tail " see Fieldfare ... 5

Blue-tailed Bee-eater ... ... 102

Blue-throat, Red-spotted ... 12
, White-spotted ... 11

266

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

Blue-winged Teal
Bohemian Wax wing
Bonaparte's Gull

Sandpiper ...

"Bottle Tit" see British

Lorn

tailed Titmouse
Bramhling

" Brantail " see Redstart
Brent Goose
British Coal Titmouse ...

Long- Tailed Titmouse ...

"Broad-billed Duck" see Shoveller

Broad-billed Sandpiper ...

" Brown Owl " see Tawny Owl ...

Briinnich's iTuillemot

Buff-backed Heron

Buff-breasted Sandpiper ...

Buff el-headed Duck

Buff'on^s Skua ...

Bulbul, Dusky ...

Bullfinch

, Rosy ..

Bulwer's Petrel...
Bunting, Black-headed...

, Girl

, Corn

, Lapland

, Little

, Orto an

, Keed

, Rustic

, Snow

"Bunting Lark "see Corn Bunting
"Burrow Duck" see Common

Sheldrake
Bustard, Great

, Little

, Marqueenh ...

" Butcher Bird " see Red-backed

Shrike
Buzzard

, African

, Honey

, Red-tailed

, Rouijh-leyged ...

Calandra Lark
Canada Goose ...
Canary
Caper caillie
Caf>2)td Petrel ...
Carrion-Crow ...

PAGE.

16;i

40

243

228

29

52

11

152

31

29

164

228

115

252

115

229

168

215

38

54

54

247

57

59

57

60

59

59

60

59

60

57

160
212
212
212

39
120
121
127
121
121

88
153

48
206
247

70

Caspi'in Tern ...

Cassin's Snow Goose

Cedar-bird

CettVs Warbler...

Chaffinch

" Chattermag " see Magpie

Chestnut-bellied Swallow

Chiff-Chaflf

Chinese Goose ...

Choiujh

Cirl Bunting ...

Citvil Finch ...

Colin, Virginian

Collared Pheasant

Pratincole

" Common God wit " see Bar-tailed

Godwit
Common Guillemot

Gull

Sandpiper

— Scoter

Sheldrake

Skua ...

Snipe

Teal

Tern ...

Continental Coal Titmouse

Coot ...

Copper Pheasant

Cormorant

Corn-Bunting ...

Corn-Crake

Courser, Cream-coloured

Crake, Baillon^s

, Corn

, Little ...

, Spotted

Crane...

"Cravat Goose" see Canada Goose
Cream-coloured Courser
Creeper, Tree ...

, Wall ...

Crested Lark ...

Titmouse

"Crested Plover" see Lapwing ...
Crossbill

, Parrot

, Two-barred ...

, White-winged...

Crow, Carrion...
.Hooded

PAGE.

238

152

40

26

51

67

41

22

151

64

59

48

201

187

213

233

252

241

230

168

159

244

226

164

237

30

210

190

136

57

207

213

207

207

207

207

212

154

213

46

46

88

32

217

55

55

57

57

70

73

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

267

Cuckoo

, Black-billed

, Great Spotted ...

, Yelloio-hUled ...

"Cuckoo's Mate " see Wryneck ...
Curlew

, Esquimaux

, Stone ...

Curlew Sandpiper

" Cushat " see Ring-Do ve

" Dabchick " see Little Grebe ...

Dartford Warbler

"Death Bird" sec Little Owl ...

Desert-Wheatear

"Devil's Birds " see Storm-Petrel

' ' Didapper " see Little Grebe

Dipper

, Black-bellied

Diver, Black-throated

, Great Northern

, Red-throated ...

' ' Dor-hawk " see Nightjar

Dotterel

Dove, Ring

, Rock ...

, Stock ...

, Turtle

Downy Woodpecker
Duck, Bufef -headed

, Eider ...

, Harlequin

, Long-tailed

, Stcllcr^s

, Smmner

, Tufted...

, White-eyed

, Wild

" Dun-bird " see Pochard

Dunlin

Dusky Bulbul ...

Shearwater

"Dusky Sandpiper

Redshank ...
Eagle, Golden...

, Spotted...

, White-tailed

Eagle Old
p]ared Grebe ...
Egret, Little
Egyptian Goose
Vulture

see Spotted

PAGE.
103

109
108
109

90
235
231
212
228
171
250

21
117

10
245
250

28

29
248
248
248

91
215
170
175
174
177

93
168
168
168
168
168
160
165
167
162
166
228

38
247

232
121
121
123
117
250
145
149
118

PAGE.

Eider Duck ... ... ... 168

Eider, King ... ... ... 168

"Elk " see Whooper Swan ... 158

Esquimaux Curlew ... ... 234

European Hawk-Owl ... ... 116

Three-toed Woodpecker... 95

Eye, Golden ... ... ... 167

Falcon, Greenland ... ... 128

, Gyr ... ... ... 128

, Iceland 128

, Peregrine ... ... 129

, Red-footed ... ... 134

" Fern Owl " see Nightjar ... 90

Fieldfare ... ... ... 5

Finch, Citril ... ' 48

, Nonpareil ... ... 46

" Fire Brantail " see Redstart ... 11

Fire-crested Wren .. ... 22

" Fire-tail " see Redstart ... 11

" Fishing- Hawk " see Osprey ... 135

Flycatcher, Pied ... ... 41

, Red-breasted ... 41

, Red-eyed ... ... 40

, Spotted ... .. 40

, White-collared ... 41

" Fork-tailed Petrel" see Leach's

Petrel 246

" French Partridge " see Red-
legged Partridge 192

Fulmar ... ... ... 247

Gadwall ... ... ... 163

Gannet ... ... ... 139

Garden .Warbler 20

Garganey ... ... ... 163

" Gertrude's Bird " see Great

Black Woodpecker 92

Glaucous Gull ... ... ... 240

Glossy Ibis ... ... ... 149

Godwit, Bar-tailed ... ... 233

, Black-tailed ... ... 234

Golden Eagle 121

Oriole ... ... ... 38

Plover 213

Golden -crested Wren ... ... 21

Golden-eye ... ... ... 1()7

, Barrow^ s ... ... 168

Golden-winged Woodpecker ... 96

Goldfinch ... ... ... 46

Gold-vented Thrush ... ... 38

Goosander ... ... ... 369

Goose, Bar-headed ... ... 151

268

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

PAGE.

152

150

152

153

152

151

149

149

150

154

149

151

123

123

61

26

251

91

243

212

249

38

248

25

226

108

93

30

145

" Great Cormorant" see Cormorant 136
" Great Plover " see Stone-Curlew 212
Greater Black-backed Gull ... 242

Shearwater ... ... 247

Grebe, Eared ... ... ... 250

, Great Crested ... ... 249

, Little ... ... ... 250

, Red-necked ... ... 250

, Sclavonian ... ... 250

" Green Cormorant " see Shag ... 138
Green Sandpiper ... ... 231

Woodpecker ... ... 95

Greenfinch ... ... ... 49

Greenland Falcon ... ... 128

Redpoll 54

Greenshank ... ... ... 232

" Grey ( 'row " see Hooded Crow 73
Grey Lag Goose ... ... 149

Phalarope ... ... 219

Plover ... ... ... 214

Wa-tail 36

Grey-headed Yellow Wagtail ... 36

Goose, Barnacle

, Bean ...

, Brent ...

, Canada

, Cassin's Snoio ...

, Chinese

, Egyptian

, Grey Lag

, Pink-footed

, Red-breasted

, Spur-tcinged

, White-fronted ...

Gos-Haiok
Goshawk, American
Grackle, Rusty ...
Grasshopper Warbler ...
Great Auk

Black Woodpecker

Black-headed Gull

Bustard

Crested Grebe ...

Grey Shrike

Northern Diver ...

Reed- Warbler

Snipe ...

Spotted Cuckoo ...

Spotted Woodpecker

Titmouse

White Heron

Griffon Vulture
Grosbeak, Pine
Grouse, Black ...

, Pallas' s Sand...

, Red

' ' Guernsey Partridge " see Red-
legged Partridge ...
Guillemot, Black

, Briinnich's ...

, Common

Gull, Adriatic ...

, Black-headed

, Bonaparte's

, Common...

, Glaucous

, Great Black-headed

, Greater Black-backed

, Herring ...

, Iceland ...

, Ivory

, Laughing

, Lesser Black-backed

, Little

, Sabine^s ...

Gull-billed Tern

Gyr Falcon

Hairy Woodpecker

" Half Snipe " see Jack Snipe ...

Hammer, Yellow

Harlequin Duck

Harrier, Hen...

, Marsh

, MontagiCs

Hawfinch
Hawk, Gos

, Sparrow

Hau'k-Oicl, American ...

, European ...

Hedge-Sparrow
Hemipode, Andalusian ...
Hen-Harrier ...
Hen, Moor
Heron

, Buff-backed

, Great White ...

, Night ...

, Purple...

, Squacco

Herring-Gull ...

" Hickle " see Green Woodpecker

Hobby

PAGE.

118
55
204
179
201

192
252
252
252
243
243
243
241
240
243
242
240
240
239
243
240
243
244
238
128

93
227

58
168
119
119
120

49
123
123
116
116

26
206
119
209
140
145
145
147
145
145
240

95
132

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

269

PAGE.

" Holme Screech " see Missel

Thrush ... ... ... 1

Honey-P.uzzard ... ... 127

Hooded Crow ... ... ... 73

Merganser ... ... 170

Hoopoe ... ... ... 102

House-Sparrow ... ... 50

Ibis, Glossp ... ... ... 149

Iceland Falcon... ... ... 128

Gull 240

Icterine Warbler ... ... 24

Ivory Gull ... ... ... 239

Jack Snipe .. ... ... 227

Jackdaw .. ... ... 68

Jay ... ... C4

" Judcock " see Jack Snipe ... 227

Kentish Plover... ... ... 215

Kestrel ... ... ... 134

, Lesser ... ... ... 135

Killdeer Plover... ... ... 215

Kin; I Eider ... ... ... 1G8

Kingfisher ... ... ... 97

, Belted ... ... 102

Kite ... ... ... ... 124

, Black ... ... ... 126

, Black-winged ... ... 127

, Swallow-tailed ... ... 126

Kittiwake ... ... ... 240

Knot 229

" Land-Rail " sec Corn-Crake ... 207

Lapland Bunting ... ... 60

Lapwing ... ... ... 217

Lark, Calandra ... ... 88

, Crested... ... ... 88

, Sliore ... ... ... 88

, Short-toed ... .. 88

— , Sky 83

, White- winged ... ... 88

, Wood 87

"Laughing Goose" sec White-
fronted Goose ... ... 151

Laughing Gull .. ... ... 243

" Laughing Gull " sec Black-

lieaded Gull 243

Leach's Petrel 246

Lesser Black-backed Gull ... 240

Grey Shrike ... ... 39

Kestrel ... ... ... 135

Redpoll 54

Spotted Woodpecker ... 94

Whitethroat .. ... 19

" Lesser Tern " see Little Tern ...

I^innet

Little J. u^'

Bittern...

Buyiting

Bustard

Crake ...

Egret ...

Grebe ...

Gull ...

Owl

Stint ...

Tern

" Little Whaaj) " see Whimbrel...

Long-eared Owl

Long-tailed Duck

" Long-tailed Tit " sec British

Long-tailed Titmouse
" Loon " see Great Crested Grebe
Macqutens Bustard
Magpie

' ' Mallard " see Wild Duck
" Manx Puffin " see Manx Shear-
water
Manx Shearwater
Marsh Warbler
Marsh- Harrier
Marsh-Titmouse
Martin

, Purple...

, Sand ...

" Martlet " sec Swift ...
Meadow-Pipit...
Meadoio- Starling, American
Mealy Redpoll
Merganser, Hooded
, Red-breasted

PAGE.

237
53
252
146
59
212
207
145
250
243
117
228
237
234
113
168

29
249
212

65
162

247

247

25

119

31

44

45

45

90

37

61

53

170

170

133

1

Merlin .

Missel Thrush ..

" Mistletoe Thrush " see Missel

Thrush ... ... ... 1

Mocking-bird, Northern ... 27

Montagu's Harrier ... ... 120

Moor-hen ... ... ... 209

" Mother Carey's Chickens " sec

Storm-Petrel ... ... 245

"Mouiitain-l<"'inch" see Brambling 52
" Munmiiruffin " sec British Long-
tailed Titmouse ... ... 29

"Mumruffin" sec British Long-
tailed Titmouse ... ... 29

270

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES,

PAGE.

Mute Swan ... ... ... 155

NenUe-taUed Swift ... ... DO

NiKht-Heron ... ... ... 147

Ni.i,'htingale ... ... ... 14

Nightjar ... ... ... 90

, Red-necked ... ... 91

Noddy 239

Nonpareil Finch ... ... 46

" Norfolk Plover " see Stone-
Curlew ... ... ... 212

Northern Mockiiifi-hird ... ... 27

" Norwegian Nightingale " see

Redwing .. ... ... 4

Nutcracker ... ... ... G4

Nuthatch ... ... ... 32

Oriole, Golden .. ... ... 38

Orphean Warbler ... . 20

Ortolan Bunting ... ... 59

Osprey ... ... .. 135

Ouzel, Ring ... ... ... 8

Owl, American Hawk ... ... IIG

, American Screech... ... 117

, Barn ... ... ... 109

, Eagle 117

, European Haiok ... ... 116

, Little ... ... ... 117

, Long-eared ... ... 113

, Saw-whet ... ... 116

, Scops 117

, Short-eared ... ... 114

, Snowy ... ... .. 116

, Tawny ... ... .. 115

, Tcngmalm's ... ... 116

Oy.ster-Catcher ... . . 219

Pallas' s Great Grey Shrike ... 39

Sand-Grouse ... ... 179

Parrot Crossbill ... ... 55

Partridge ... ... ... 193

, Barbary ... ... 193

, Red-legged ... ... 192

Passenger Pigeon ... ... 179

Pastor, Rose-coloured ... ... 64

Pectoral Sandpiper ... ... 228

" Peewit " see Lapwing ... 217
" Peewit Gull " see Black-headed

Gull 243

Pelican, White... ... ... 140

Peregrine Falcon ... ... 129

Petrel, Bulwer's ... ... 247

, Capped ... ... 247

, Leach's ... ... 246

PAGE.

Petrel, Storm ... ... ... 245

, Wilson's ... ... 246

Phalarope, Grey ... ... 219

, Red-necked... ... 210

Pheasant ... ... ... 179

, Collared 187

, Copper ... ... 190

, Elliot's 190

, Golden 191

— , Japanese ... ... 188

, Lady Amherst ... 191

, Reeves' ... ... 189

, Ring-necked... ... 187

, Soemniering's ... 190

Pied Flycatcher ... ... 41

Wagtail ... ... ... 35

"Pied Oy.ster-Catcher " see Oyster-
Catcher ... ... .. 219

Pigeon, Passenger ... ... 179

Pine-Grosbeak ... ... ... 55

Pink-footed Goose ... ... 150

" Pinkin " see Chaffinch ... 52

Pintail ... ... ... 161

Pipit, American ... ... 37

, Meadow ... ... 37

, Red-throated ... ... 37

, Richard's

, Rock ...

, Taiony...

, Tree "^ ...

, Water ...

Plover, Golden

, Grey ...

, Kentish

, Kilhleer

, Little Ringed

, Ringed...

Pochard

, Red-crested

Polish Swan
Pomatorhine Skua
Pratincole, Collared
Ptarmigan

, Rock

Puffin...
Purple Heron ...

Martin ...

Sandpiper

*' Pyefinch " see ChaflBnch

Quail

" Quist " see Ring-Dove

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

271

sec Red-throated

Rail, Water ...

"Rain Bird" see Green Wood-
pecker

" Rain-goose
Diver

Raven

liazor-hUl

" Red God wit " see Bar-tailed
Godwit

Red Grouse

Red-hacked Shrike

Redbreast

Red-hreasted Flycatcher...

Goose

Merganser

Snipe

"Red-breasted Snipe" see Bar-
tailed Godwit

Red-crested Pochard

Red-eyed Flycatcher

" Red -eyed Poker " see Pochard...

Red-footed Falcon

"Red-headed Poker " see Pochard

PAGE.

20G

95

249

80

251

233

201

39

12

41

154

170

233

233

165
40
166
134
166

"Red-leg Sandpiper" see Redshank 232

Red-legged Partridge ... ... 192

Red-necked Grebe ... ... 250

Niiihtjar ... ... 91

Phalarope ... ... 219

Redpoll, Greenland ... ... 54

, Lesser ... ... 54

, Mealj^ ... ... 53

Red-rumped Sivalloio .. ... 44

Redshank 232

, Spotted ... ... 232

" Redshank Sandpiper " see Red-
shank ... ... ... 232

Red-spotted Bluethroat ... ... 12

Redstart ... ... ... 11

, Black ... ... 11

Red-tailed Buzzard ... 121

Red-throated Diver ... ... 248

Pipit ... .. 37

Redwing ... ... ... 4

Red-winyed Starling ... .. 60

"Reerl Sparrow" see Reed-Bunting 60

Reed-Bunting .. ... ... 60

Reed- Warbler 24

, Great ... ... 25

Richard's Pipit ... ... 37

Ivichardson's Skua ... ... 244

Ring-Do ve ... ... ... 170

PAGE.

Ringed Plover ... ... ... 215

Ring-necked Pheasant .. ... 187

Ring-Ouzel ... ... ... 8

" Ringtail " sec Hen-Harrier ... 119

" Robin " see Redbreast ... 12

Robin, American ... ... G

Rock-Dove ... ... ... 175

Rock- Pipit ... ... ... 37

Rock Ptarmigan ... ... 204

Rock- Thrush ... ... ... 9

Roller .. ... ... 102

Rook ... ... ... ... 74

Roseate Tern ... ... ... 237

Rose-coloured Pastor ... ... 64

Rosy Bullfinch .. ... ... 54

Rough-legged Buzzard ... ... 121

" Royston Crow"see Hooded Crow 73

Ruby-croioned Wren ... ... 22

Ruddy Sheldrake ... ... 160

Ruff ... .. ... ... 229

Rufous Warbler ... ... 24

Rustic Bunting ... ... 59

Rusty Grackle ... ... ... 61

Sabine s Gull ... ... ... 244

" Sand Lark" sec Common Sand-
piper ... ... ... 230

Sanderling ... ... ... 229

Sand-Grouse, Pallas' s ... ... 179

Sand-Martin ... ... ... 45

Sandpiper, Bao'tram's ... ... 229

, Bonaparte's ... 228

, Broad-billed ... 227

, Buff breasted ... 229

, Common ... ... 230

, Curlew ... ... 228

, Green ... ... 231

, Pectoral ... ... 228

, Purple ... ... 228

, Wood ... ... 232

Sand wich Ter n ... ... 238

" Satin Grebe " see Great Crested

Grebe ... ... ... 249

SavVs Warbler... ... ... 26

Saw-tvhet Oivl ... ... ... 116

Scaup ... ... ... 166

Sclavonian Grebe ... ... 2.'i0

ScopolVs Sooty Tern .. ... 239

Scops Owl 117

Scoter, Common ... ... 168

, Surf 169

, Velvet ... ... ... 169

272

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

" Sea-Eagle " see Osprey
' ' Sea-Parrot " see Puffin
" Sea-Pie " see Oyster-Catcher ...
" Sea-Swallow" sec Common Tern
Sed},'e- Warbler
Seed-cater, Yelloio-ruviped
Serin ...

" Seven Coloured Linnet " see
Goldfinch ...

Shag

Shearwater, Z)«sAv/

, Greater

, Manx

. ■ , Sootf/

Sheldrake, Common ...

, Ruddy

" Shell-apple" see Crossbill

Shore-Lark

Short-eared Owl

Short-toed Lark

Shoveller

Shrike, American Grey ...

, Great Grey

, Lesser Grey

, Pallas' s Great Grey

, Red-backed

Siberian Thrush

Siskin

Skua, Buff on' s

, Common

, Pomatorhine

, Richardson's

Skylark

" Small Cormorant " see Shag ..

Smexo

" Snake Bird " see Wryneck

Snipe, Common

, Great ...

, Jack ...

, Red-breasted

Snow-Bunting...

Snoioy Owl

Soruj-Sparroio, White-throated .

Snng-Thi-ush ...

Sooty Shearwater

Tern

Tern, ScopolVs

Sparrow, Hedge

, House

, Tree

, White-throated. Song .

PAGE.

135
252

219

237

25

48
48

47
138
247
247
247
247
159
160
56
88
114
88
164
39
38
39
39
, 39
6
. 48
245
. 244
. 244
. 244
. 83
. 138
. 170
. 97
. 226
. 226
. 227
. 233
. 60
116
. 60
3
.. 247
,. 238
,. 239
.. 26
.. 50
.. 51
.. 60

Sparrow-Hawk
" Speckled Diver " see Red-
throated Diver
Spoonbill
Spotted Crake...

Eaf/le ...

Plycatcher

Redshank

Spnr-ivin(/ed Goose

Squacco Heron

" Stare " see Starling ...

Starling

, American Meadoio

, Red-tvinged ...

SteVer's Duck ...
Stilt, Black-ioinged
Stint, American

, Little

, Temminck's

Stock-Dove
Stonechat
Stone-Curlew ...
Stork, Black

, White ...

"Storm Bird " see Missel Thrush

"Storm Cock " see Missel Thrush

" Storm Fowl " see Green Wood-
pecker

Storm-Petrel ...

"Storm Screech" see Missel
Thrush

Summer Duck ...

"Summer Snipe" see Common
Sandpiper...

"Summer Teal " see Garganey ...

Surf -Scoter

Swallow

, Chestnut-bellied

, Red-ruviped ...

, White-bellied ...

Swallow-tailed Kite

Swan, American

, Bewick's

, Mute ...

, Polish ...

, Trumpeter

, Whooper

Swift

, Needle-tailed

, White-bellied

Tawny Owl

PAGE.

123

249

149

207

121

40

232

149

145

61

61

61

60

168

219

228

228

228

174

10

212

149

149

1

1

95
245

1

160

230

163

1()9

42

41

44

44

126

159

1.59

155

158

159

158

88

90

90

115

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

273

TAGE.

Tawny Pipit ... ... ... 37

Teal, American Green-winged ... 164

, Bbie-icinged ... ... 163

, Common ... ... 164

Temminck's Stint ... ... 228

Tengmalm's Owl ... ... 116

Tern, Arctic ... ... ... 237

, Black 239

, Caspian.. ... ... 238

, Common ... ... 237

, Gull-billed 238

, Little 237

, Roseate ... ... ... 237

, Sanchvich 238

, Scopoli's Sooty ... ... 239

, Sooty 238

, Whiskered 239

, White-winged Black ... 239

" Thick-kneed Bustard " see Stone-
Curlew 212

"Thicknee Plover" see Stone-
Curlew 212

" Throstle " see Song-Thrush ... 3

Thvnsh, Black-th7'oated ... ... G

, Blue Rock ... ... 9

, Gold-vented ... ... 38

, Missel ... ... 1

, Rock ... ... ... 9

, Siberian ... ... 6

, Song ... ... ... 3

, White's ... ... 6

" Titlark " see Meadow-Pipit ... 37

Titmouse, Bearded ... ... 29

, Blue 31

, British Coal ... 31

, British Long-tailed ... 29

, Continental Coal ... 30

, Crested 32

, Great ... ... 30

, Marsh ... ... 31

, White-headed Long-
tailed ... ... 29

" Tom Tit " see Blue Titmouse ... 31

" Tope " see Bullfinch ... .. 55

Tree-Creeper ... ... • ... 46

Tree-Pipit ... 37

Tree-Sparrow ... ... ... 51

Ti'u mpeter Swan ... ... 1 59

Tufted Duck 165

Turnstone ... ... ... 218

Turtle Dove 177

Twite

Txvo-barred Crossbill
Velvet Scoter ...
Virginian Colin
Vulture, Egyptian

, Griffon

Wagtail, Blue-headed Yellow

, Grey

, Grey-headed Yelloiv

, Pied...

, White

, Yellow

Wall-creeper ...
Warbler, Aqua tic

, Barred

, CettVs

, Dartford

, Garden

, Grasshopper ...

, Great Reed ...

, Icterine

, Marsh

, Orphean

, Pveed

, Rufous

. SavVs

, Willow

, Wood

, Yellovj-brovjed

"Water Crake" see Spotted Crake

" Water Ouzel " see Dipper

Water-Pipit ...

Water-Rail

Waxwing, Bohemian ...

"Weather " see Missel Thrush ...

' ' Whaap " see Curlew ...

' ' Whaup " see Curlew ...

Wheatear

, Black-throated

, Desert

Whimbrel

' ' Whimbrel Curlew "■see Whimbrel

Whinchat

Whiskered Tern

"Whistling Plover' see Stone-
Curlew

" Whistling Plover " see Golden
Plover

"Whistling Swan" see W hooper
Swan

PAGE.

54
57
169
201
118
118
36
36
36
35
35
36
46
25
21
26
21
20
26
25
24
25
20
24
24
26
25
23
23
22
207
28
37
206
40
1
235
235
9
10
10
234
234
10
239

212
213
158

274

INDEX OF ENGLISH NAMES.

" White Owl " see Barn-Owl
White Pelican ...

Stork ...

Wagtail

Whites Thrush...

White -bellied Sivalloio ...

Sioift

PAGE.
112

140

149

35

6

44
90

White-collared Flycatcher ... 41

White-eyed Duck ... ..167

White-fronted Goose ... ... 151

White-headed Long-tailed Titmouse 29
White-spotted Blucthroat ... 11

White-tailed Eagle ... ... 123

Whitethroat 19

, Lesser ... ... 19

White-throated Song- Sparrovj ... 60
White-winged Black Tern ... 239

Crossbill 57

Lark ... ... S8

" Whoop " ^ce Bullfinch ... 55

Whooper Swan ... ... 158

Wigeon 160

, American ... ... 161

Wild Duck 162

"Wild Whooper" see Whooper

Swan ... ... ... 158

' ' Willow Grouse " see Red Grouse 201
•' Willow Wren " see Willow-War-
bler 23

Willow-Warbler 23

Wilson's Petrel... ... ... 246

" Windhover " sec Kestrel ... 134

" Witches " see Storm-Petrel

Woodchat

Woodcock

Woodlark

Woodpecker, Doiony ...

, European Three-toed

, Golden-winged

, Great Black

, Great Spotted

, Green

, Hairy

, Lesser Spotted

"Wood-Pigeon" see Ring-Dove

Wood-Sandpiper

Wood- Warbler

"Wood- Wren" see Wood-
Warbler

Wren...

, Fire-crested

, Golden -crested ...

, Ruby-croicned ...

" Writing Lark " see Yellow
Hammer ...

Wryneck

' ' Yaffil " see Green Woodpecker

Yellow Hammer

Wagtail

"Yellow Plover" see Golden
Plover

Yelloio-billed Cuckoo

YeUoic-broioed Warbler ...

Yelloiv-rumped Seed-eater

PAGE.

245
40

220
87
93
95
96
91
93
95
93
94

171

232
23

23
33
22
21
22

58
96
95
58
36

213

109

22

48

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