so in the autumn as to be a considerable perquisite to the shepherds that take them; and though many are to be seen to my knowledge all the winter through, in many parts of the south of England. The most intelligent shepherds tell me, that some few of these birds appear on the downs in March, and then withdraw to breed, probably, in warrens and stone quarries now and then a nest is ploughed up in a fallow on the downs, under a furrow; but it is thought a rarity. At the time of wheat-harvest, they begin to be taken in great numbers; are sent for sale in vast quantities to Brighthelmstone and Tunbridge; and appear at the tables of all the gentry that entertain with any degree of elegance. About Michaelmas they retire, and are seen no more till March. Though these birds are, when in season, in great plenty on the South Downs round Lewes, yet at East Bourn, which is the eastern extremity of those downs, they abound much more. One thing is very remarkable, that, though in the height of the season so many hundreds of dozens are taken, yet they never are seen to flock; and it is a rare thing to see more than three or four at a time: so that there must be a perpetual flitting and constant progressive succession. It does not appear that any wheatears are taken to the westward of Houghton-bridge, which stands on the river Arun. * I did not fail to look particularly after my new migration of ringousels, and to take notice whether they continued on the downs to this season of the year; as I had formerly remarked them in the month of October all the way from Chichester to Lewes, wherever there were any shrubs and covert but not one bird of this sort came within my observation. I only saw a few larks and whinchats, some rooks, and several kites and buzzards. About midsummer, a flight of crossbills comes to the pinegroves about this house, but never makes any long stay. † The old tortoise, that I have mentioned in a former letter * Mr White is mistaken when he says that the wheatear is not to be found farther west than Houghton-bridge, as they have frequently been taken many miles west of the point mentioned. -ED. + This bird but seldom visits this kingdom: it is a native of the extensive pine forests of the Rhine. Mr Knapp knew one instance of it breeding in England; he says, "That rare bird the crossbill occasionally visits the orchards in our neighbourhood, coming in little parties to feed on the seeds of the apple, and, seldom as it appears, it is always noticed by the mischief it does to fruit, cutting it asunder with its well-constructed mandibles, in order to obtain the kernels."- Ep. still continues in this garden; and retired under ground about the 20th of November, and came out again for one day on the 30th it lies now buried in a wet swampy border under a wall facing to the south, and is enveloped at present in mud and mire! : Here is a large rookery round this house, the inhabitants of which seem to get their livelihood very easily; for they spend the greatest part of the day on their nest-trees when the weather is mild. These rooks retire every evening, all the winter, from this rookery, where they only call by the way, as they are going to roost in deep woods: at the dawn of day, they always revisit their nest-trees,* and are preceded a few minutes by a flight of daws, that act, as it were, as their harbingers. + * Rooks are not easily driven from the trees on which they were bred. Two striking instances of this have recently been witnessed in Edinburgh, on the grounds of the Earl of Moray, which have all been lately converted into magnificent streets and squares. Several rooks continue on the few remaining trees at the end of Ainslie Place; and at St Bernard's Crescent, which is surrounded on both sides with houses, the rooks still incubate. Mr Jesse makes the following curious remarks, illustrative of the attachment of this bird to its old accustomed haunts, and to the established usages of its tribe : :- "The average number of rooks' nests, during the last four years, in the avenue of Hampton-Court Park, has been about seven hundred and fifty. Allowing three young birds and a pair of old ones to each nest, the number would amount to three thousand seven hundred and fifty. They are very particular that none of their society build away from the usual line of trees. A pair of rooks did so this spring, 1832, and when their nest was nearly finished, at least fifty others came and demolished it in a few minutes." Differently from all other birds, rooks exhibit much sympathy when one of their fraternity has been killed, or hurt by a shot. They hover over their wounded companion, uttering cries of distress, and endeavouring all in their power to render him assistance. If he be able to flutter along, they animate him with their voices, and by advancing a little in front, try to induce him by their example to follow.-ED. The jack-daw is a bird of great intelligence; is easily domesticated, and becomes very familiar. We had a pair in Fife, which flew about all our grounds, and even to the villages around, yet never strayed. They slept in a box, at a back window of the house. They entered the house, and even allowed themselves to be handled. They caught in their bill with great adroitness pieces of bread which were thrown to them. They followed the different members of our family through all the walks of the garden and shrubbery, and would perch on a tree, near the seats, and chatter while any person rested. One of them pronounced several words very distinctly; such as wee kaeie, (little kae, the Scottish provincial name,) and come here. They were much addicted to stealing, and carried LETTER LVII. TO THE HON. DAINES BARRINGTON. SELBORNE, January 29, 1774. DEAR SIR,- The house-swallow, or chimney-swallow, is, undoubtedly, the first comer of all the British hirundines; and appears in general on or about the thirteenth of April, as I have remarked from many years' observation.* Not but now and then a straggler is seen much earlier: and, in particular, when I was a boy, I observed a swallow for a whole day together on a sunny warm Shrove Tuesday, which day could not fall out later than the middle of March, and often happened early in February. It is worth remarking, that these birds are seen first about lakes and mill-ponds; and it is also very particular, that, if these early visitors happen to find frost and snow, as was the case of the two dreadful springs of 1770 and 1771, they immediately withdraw for a time; a circumstance this, much more in favour of hiding than migration; since it is much more probable that a bird should retire to its hybernaculum just off to their box every thing they could get hold of. Besides this, they were very mischievous: they would attend the gardener at his work, and as soon as he removed to another part of the garden, they pulled up by the roots every thing he had planted; such as young cabbages, or leeks. They had particular pleasure in turning over the leaves of a book, or pulling the whole thread off a bobbin.-ED. * The following beautiful and vivid reflections on the swallow are from the pen of the late Sir Humphry Davy::-"I delight in this living landscape! the swallow is one of my favourite birds, and a rival of the nightingale; for he glads my sense of hearing. He is the joyous prophet of the year, the harbinger of the best season; he has a life of enjoyment amongst the loveliest forms of nature; winter is unknown to him, and he leaves the green meadows of England in autumn for the myrtle and orange groves of Italy, and for the palms of Africa; he has always objects of pursuit, and his success is secure. Even the beings selected for his prey are poetical, beautiful, and transient. The ephemera are saved by his means from a slow and lingering death in the evening, and killed in a moment when they have known nothing of life but pleasure He is the constant destroyer of insects, the friend of man; and with the stork and the ibis, may be regarded as a sacred bird. This instinct, which gives him his appointed seasons, and which teaches him always when and where to move, may be regarded as flowing from a Divine source, and he belongs to the oracles of nature, which speak the awful and intelligible language of a present Deity."-ED. |