Birds of Guernsey Part 6

It is included in Professor Ansted's list, and marked as only occurring in Guernsey. As above stated, the specimen formerly in the Museum no longer exists.

82. WRYNECK. _Yunx torquilla_, Linnaeus. French, "Torcol ordinaire."--The Wryneck, or, as it is called in Guernsey-French, "Parle"[14] is generally a numerous summer visitant to the Islands, arriving in considerable numbers, about the same time as the mackerel, wherefore it has also obtained the local name of "Mackerel Bird." It is generally distributed through the Islands, remaining through the summer to breed, and departing again in early autumn, August, or September. Its numbers, however, vary considerably in different years, as in some summers I have seen Wrynecks in almost every garden, hedgerow, or thick bush in the Island; always when perched, sitting across the branches or twigs, on which they were perched, and never longways or climbing, as would be the case with a Woodp.e.c.k.e.r or Creeper; and the noise made by the birds during the breeding-season, was, in some years, incessant; this was particularly the case in the early part of the summer of 1866, when the birds were very numerous, and the noise made was so great that on one occasion I was told that the Mackerel Birds seriously interrupted a scientific game of _Croquet_, which was going on at Fort George, by the noise they made; I can quite believe it, as, though I was not playing in the game, I heard the birds very noisy in other parts of the Island. This last summer, however (1878), I saw very few Wrynecks--only four or five during the whole of the two months I was in the Islands, and hardly heard them at all.

It is included in Professor Ansted's list, but only marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are two specimens in the Museum.

83. HOOPOE. _Upupa Epops_, Linnaeus. French, "La Huppe," "Huppe ordinaire."--The Hoopoe, as may be supposed from its geographical range and from its frequent occurrence in various parts of England, is an occasional visitant to the Channel Islands during the seasons of migration, occurring both in spring and autumn with sufficient frequency to have gained the name of "Tuppe" in Guernsey-French. Though occurring in spring and autumn, I am not aware that it ever remains to breed, though perhaps it might do so if not shot on every possible occasion.

This shooting of every straggler to the Channel Islands is a great pity, especially with the spring arrivals, as some of them might well be expected to remain to breed occasionally if left undisturbed; and the proof of the Hoopoe breeding in the Channel Islands would be much more interesting than the mere possession of a specimen of so common and well-known a bird: if a local specimen should be wanted, it could be obtained equally well in autumn, when there would be no question as to the breeding. The autumn arrivals seem also to be most numerous, at least judging from the specimens recorded during the last four or five years, as Mr. Couch records one, a female, shot near Ronseval, in Guernsey, on the 26th of September; and another also in Guernsey, shot on the 23rd of September; I have one, obtained in Alderney in August, though I have not the exact date; and another picked up in a lane in St.

Martin's parish, in Guernsey, on the 24th of August. During the same time I only know of one spring occurrence; that was on April the 10th of this year (1878), when two were seen, and one shot in Herm, as recorded in the 'Star' newspaper, for April the 13th; this one I saw soon afterwards at Mr. Jago's, the bird-stuffer. These birds were probably paired, and would therefore very likely have bred in Herm, had one of them not been shot, and the other accordingly driven to look for a mate elsewhere. It would pay, as well as be interesting, as I remarked in a note to the 'Star' in reference to this occurrence of the pair of Hoopoe's, to encourage these birds to breed in the Islands whenever they shewed a disposition to do so, as, though rather a foul-feeder and of unsavoury habits in its nest, and having no respect for sanitary arrangements, the Hoopoe is nevertheless one of the most useful birds in the garden.

The Hoopoe is included in Professor Ansted's list, but only marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are now only two specimens in the Museum, and these have no note of date or locality, but a few years ago there were several more, and one or two I remember were marked as having been killed in the spring; the rest were probably autumnal specimens.

84. CUCKOO. _Cuculus canorus_, Linnaeus. French, "Coucou gris."--The Cuckoo is one of the commonest and most numerous summer visitants to the Islands, and is generally spread over all of them; it arrives about the same time that it does in England, that is to say, about the middle of April. I know earlier instances--even as early as February--have been recorded, but these must have been recorded in consequence of some mistake, probably some particularly successful imitation of the note.

Mr. MacCulloch seems to think that the time of their arrival is very regular, as he writes to me to say, "The Cuckoo generally arrives here about the 15th of April; sometimes as early as the 13th, as was the case this year (1878); the first are generally reported from the cliffs at St. Martin's, near Moulin Huet, the first land they would make on their arrival from Brittany." Very soon after their arrival, however, they spread over the whole Island of Guernsey, as well as all the other neighbouring islands, in all of which they are equally plentiful; they seem to cross from one to the other without much considering four or five miles of sea, or being the least particular as to taking the shortest pa.s.sage across from island to island. As usual, there were a great number of Cuckoos in the Vale whilst I was there this summer (1878); but I was unfortunate in not finding eggs, and in not seeing any of the foster-parents feeding their over-grown _proteges_: this was rather surprising, as there were so many Cuckoos about, and many must have been hatched and out of the nest long before we left at the end of July. I should think, however, Tree and Meadow Pipits, Skylarks and Stonechats, from their numbers and the numbers of their nests, must be the foster-parents most usually selected; other favourites, such as Wagtails, Hedgesparrows, and Robins, being comparatively scarce in that part of the Island, and Wheaters, which were numerous, had their nests too far under large stones to give the Cuckoo an opportunity of depositing her eggs there. I should have been very glad if I could have made a good collection of Cuckoos' eggs in the Channel Islands, and, knowing how common the bird was, I fully expected to do so, but I was disappointed, and consequently unable to throw any light on the subject of the variation in the colour of Cuckoos' eggs, as far as the Channel Islands are concerned, or how far the foster-parents had been selected with a view to their eggs being similar in colour to those of the Cuckoo about to be palmed off upon them. The only Cuckoos' eggs I saw were a few in the Museum, and in one or two other small collections: all these were very much the same, and what appears to me the usual type of Cuckoo's egg, a dull greyish ground much spotted with brown, and a few small black marks much like many eggs of the Tree or Meadow Pipit. It is hardly the place here to discuss the question how far Cuckoos select the nest of the birds whose eggs are similar to their own, to deposit their eggs in, or whether a Cuckoo hatched and reared by one foster-parent would be likely to select the nest of the same species to deposit its own eggs in; the whole matter has been very fully discussed in several publications, both English and German; and Mr. Dresser has given a very full _resume_ of the various arguments in his 'Birds of Europe'; and whilst fully admitting the great variation in the colour of the Cuckoos'

eggs, he does not seem to think that any particular care is taken by the parent Cuckoo to select foster-parents whose eggs are similar in colour to its own; and the instances cited seem to bear out this opinion, with which, as far as my small experience goes, I quite agree.

Whilst on the subject of Cuckoos I may mention, for the information of such of my Guernsey readers who are not ornithologists, and therefore not well acquainted with the fact, the peculiar state of plumage in which the female Cuckoo occasionally returns northward in her second summer; I mean the dull reddish plumage barred with brown, extremely like that of the female Kestrel: in this plumage she occasionally returns in her second year and breeds; but when this is changed for the more general plumage I am unable to state for certain, but probably after the second autumnal moult. The changes of plumage in the Cuckoo, however, appear to be rather irregular, as I have one killed in June nearly in the normal plumage, but with many of the old feathers left, which have a very Kestrel-like appearance, being redder than the ordinary plumage of the young bird; some of the tail-feathers, however, have more the appearance of the ordinary tail-feathers of the young Cuckoo soon after the tail has reached its full growth: the moult in this bird must have been very irregular, as it was not completed in June, when, as a rule, it would have been in full plumage, unless, as may possibly be the case, this bird was the produce of a second laying during the southern migration, and consequently, instead of a year, be only about six months old. This, however, is not a very common state of plumage; but it is by no means uncommon to find a Cuckoo in May or June with a good deal of rusty reddish barred with brown, forming a sort of collar on the breast. I merely mention these rather abnormal changes of plumage, as they may be interesting to any of my Guernsey readers into whose hands a Cuckoo may fall in a state of change and prove a puzzle as to its ident.i.ty. The Cuckoo departs from the Channel Islands much about the same time that it does from England on its southern migration in August or September. Occasionally, however, this southern migration during the winter seems to be doubted, as a clerical friend of mine once told me that a brother clergyman, a well educated and even a learned man, told him, when talking about Cuckoos and what became of them in winter, that "it was a mistake to suppose they migrated, but that they all turned into Sparrow-hawks in the winter." As my friend said, could any one believe this of a well-educated man in the nineteenth century?

The Cuckoo is mentioned in Professor Ansted's list, but only marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are three specimens, one adult and two young, in the Museum, as well as some very ordinary eggs.

85. KINGFISHER. _Alcedo ispida_, Linnaeus. French, "Martin Pecheur."--The Kingfisher is by no means uncommon, is generally spread over the Islands, and is resident and breeds at all events in Guernsey, if not in the other Islands also. It is generally to be seen amongst the wild rocks which surround L'Ancresse Common, where it feeds on the small fish left in the clear pools formed amongst the rocks by the receding tide; it is also by no means uncommon amongst the more sheltered bays in the high rocky part of the Island; it is also to be found about the small ponds in various gardens. About those in Candie Garden I have frequently seen Kingfishers, and they breed about the large ponds in the Vale in Mr. De Putron's grounds; they also occasionally visit the wild rocky islets to the northward of Herm, even as far as the Amfrocques, the farthest out of the lot. As well as about the Vale ponds, the Kingfisher breeds in holes in the rocks all round the Island. I have not myself seen it in Alderney, but Captain Hubbach writes me word he saw one there about Christmas, 1862. I think its numbers are slightly increased in the autumn by migrants, as I have certainly seen more specimens in Mr. Couch's shop at that time of year than at any other; this may perhaps, however, be accounted for, at all events partially, by its being protected by the Sea Bird Act during the summer and in early autumn, where the 'Martin pecheur' appears as one of the "Oiseaux de Mer."

It is included in Professor Ansted's list, and only marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are three specimens now in the Museum.

86. NIGHTJAR. _Caprimulgus enropaeus_, Linnaeus. French, "Engoulevent ordinaire."--The Nightjar is a regular autumnal visitant, a few perhaps arriving in the spring and remaining to breed, but by far the greater number only making their appearance on their southward migration in the autumn. The Nightjar occasionally remains very late in the Islands, as Miss Carey records one in the 'Zoologist' for 1872 as occurring on the 16th of October; and I have one killed as late as the 12th of November: this bird had its stomach crammed with black beetles, not our common domestic nuisances, but small winged black beetles: these dates are later than the Nightjar usually remains in England, though Yarrell notices one in Devon as late as the 6th of November, and one in Cornwall on the 27th of November. Colonel Irby, on the faith of Fabier, says the Nightjars cross the Straits of Gibraltar on their southward journey from September to November; so these late stayers in Cornwall and Guernsey have not much time to complete their journey if they intend going as far south as the coast of Africa; perhaps, however the Guernsey ones have no such intention, as Mr. Gallienne, in his remarks published with Professor Ansted's list, says "The Nightjar breeds here, and I have obtained it summer and winter." Mr. MacCulloch tells me the Goatsucker is looked upon by the Guernsey people as a bird of ill-omen and a companion of witches in their aerial rambles. The bird-stuffer in Alderney had some wings of Nightjars nailed up behind his door which had been shot in that Island by himself.

Professor Ansted includes the Nightjar in his list, but only marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are two specimens, a male and female, in the Museum, but no date as to time of their occurrence.

87. SWIFT. _Cypselus apus_, Linnaeus. French, "Martinet de Muraille."--The Swift is a tolerably numerous summer visitant to all the Islands, but I think most numerous in Sark, where hundreds of these birds may be seen flying about the Coupee, amongst the rocks of which place and Little Sark they breed in considerable numbers. Mr. MacCulloch and Mr. Gallienne appear to think the Swift rare in Guernsey, as Mr Gallienne says in his remarks on Professor Ansted's list, "The swift appears here (Guernsey) in very small numbers, but is abundant in Sark;"

and Mr. MacCulloch writes me word, "I consider the Swift very rare in Guernsey." I certainly cannot quite agree with this, as I have found them by no means uncommon, though certainly rather locally distributed in Guernsey. One afternoon this summer (1878) Mr. Howard Saunders and I counted forty within sight at one time about the Gull Cliff, near the old deserted house now known as Victor Hugo's house, as he has immortalised it by describing it in his 'Travailleurs de la Mer.' The Swifts use this and two similar houses not very far off for breeding purposes, a good many nesting in them, and others, as in Sark, amongst the cliffs. Young Le Cheminant had a few Swifts' eggs in his small collection, probably taken from this very house, as the Swift is certainly, as Mr. MacCulloch says, rare in other parts of Guernsey. In Alderney the Swift is tolerably common, and a good many pairs were breeding about Scott's Hotel when I was there this year (1878). Probably a good many Swifts visit the Islands, especially Alderney, for a short time on migration, princ.i.p.ally in the autumn, as once when I was crossing from Weymouth to Guernsey, on the 18th of August, I saw a large flock of Swifts just starting on their migratory flight; they were plodding steadily on against a stormy southerly breeze, spread out like a line of skirmishers, not very high, but at a good distance apart; there was none of the wild das.h.i.+ng about and screeching which one usually connects with the flight of the Swift, but a steady business-like flight; they went a little to the eastward of our course in the steamer, and this would have brought them to land in Alderney or Cape la Hague.

Professor Ansted included the Swift in his list, but oddly enough, considering the remark of Mr. Gallienne above quoted, marks it as only occurring in Guernsey. There is no specimen at present in the Museum.

88. SWALLOW, _Hirundo rustica_, Linnaeus. French, "Hirondelle de Cheminee."--According to Metivier's 'Dictionary,' "Aronde" is the local Guernsey-French name of the Swallow, which is a common summer visitant to all the Islands, and very generally distributed over the whole of them, and not having particular favourite habitations as the Martin has.

It arrives and departs much about the same time that it does in England, except that I do not remember ever to have seen any laggers quite so late as some of those in England. A few migratory flocks probably rest for a short time in the Islands before continuing their journey north or south, as the case may be; the earliest arrivals and the latest laggers belong to such migratory flocks, the regular summer residents probably not arriving quite so soon, and departing a little before those that pay a pa.s.sing visit; consequently the number of residents does not appear at any time to be materially increased by such wandering flocks.

Professor Ansted includes the Swallow in his list, but only marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There is no specimen of any of the Hirundines in the Museum.

89. MARTIN. _Chelidon urbica_, Linnaeus. French, "Hirondelle de fenetre."--The House Martin is much more local than the Swallow, but still a numerous summer visitant, like the Swallow, arriving and departing about the same time that it does in England. It is spread over all the Islands, but confined to certain spots in each; in Guernsey the outskirts of the town about Candie Road, and the rocks in Fermain and Pet.i.t Bo Bay, seem very favourite nesting-places. In Alderney there were a great many nests about Scott's Hotel and a few more in the town, but I did not see any about the cliffs as at Fermain and Pet.i.t Bo in Guernsey.

Professor Ansted includes it in his list, but only marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark.

90. SAND MARTIN. _Cotyle riparia_, Linnaeus. French, "Hirondelle de rivage."--When I first made out my list of Guernsey birds I had omitted the Sand Martin altogether, as I had never seen it in the Islands, but Mr. MacCulloch wrote to me to say, "Amongst the swallows you have not noticed the Sand Martin, which is our earliest visitant in this family and by no means uncommon." In consequence of this note, as soon as I got to the Island this year (1878), in June, I went everywhere I could think likely to look for Sand Martins, but nowhere could I find that the Sand Martins had taken possession of a breeding-station. Knowing from my own experience here that Sand Martins are fond of digging their nest-holes in the heads of quarries, (I had quite forty nest-holes in my quarry this year, and forty pairs of Sand Martins inhabiting them), I kept a bright look-out in all the stone-quarries in the Vale, and they are very numerous, but I did not see a single Sand Martin's hole or a single pair of birds anywhere; and it appeared to me that the sandy earth forming the head was not deep enough before reaching the granite to admit of the Sand Martins making their holes; and they do not appear to me to have fixed upon any other sort of breeding place in the Island; neither could Mr. MacCulloch point one out to me; so I suppose we must consider the Sand Martin as only a spring visitant to this Island, not remaining to breed. The same seems to me to be the case in Alderney, as Captain Hubbach writes to tell me he "saw some Sand Martins about the quarry here (in Alderney), for two or three days at the beginning of April, but cannot say whether they remained here to breed or not." I suppose they continued their journey, as I did not see any when there in June; I have not seen any in Sark or either of the other small Islands.

Professor Ansted includes the Sand Martin in his list, and marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark.

91. WOOD PIGEON. _Columba palumbus_, Linnaeus. French, "Colombe ramier."--The Wood Pigeon is resident and breeds in several places in Guernsey; but fortunately for the Guernsey Farmers, who may congratulate themselves on the fact, the Wood Pigeons do not breed in very great numbers. I may mention the trees in the New Ground, Candie Garden, the Vallon and Woodlands, as places where Wood Pigeons occasionally breed. No doubt the number of Wood Pigeons is occasionally increased by migratory, or rather perhaps wandering, flocks, as Mr.

Couch, in a note to the 'Zoologist,' dated October the 21st, 1871, says, "On Tuesday a great number of Wood Pigeons rested and several were shot." Mr. MacCulloch also writes me, "The Wood Pigeon occasionally arrives in large numbers. A few years ago I heard great complaints of the damage they were doing to the peas;"[15] but luckily for the farmers these wandering flocks do not stay long, or there would be but little peas, beans, or grain left in the Islands; and the Wood Pigeons would be more destructive to the crops in Guernsey than in England, as there are not many acorns or Beech masts on which they could feed; consequently they would live almost entirely on the farmer; and to show the damage they would be capable of doing in this case, I may say that in the crops of two that I examined some time ago--not killed in Guernsey however--I found, in the first, thirty seven beech-masts in the crop, and eight others in the gizzard, sufficiently whole to be counted; and in the crop of the other the astonis.h.i.+ng number of seventy-seven beech-masts and one large acorn; the gizzard of this one I did not examine. I only mention this to show the damage a few Wood Pigeons would do supposing they were restricted almost entirely to agricultural produce for their food, as they would be in Guernsey if they lived there in any great numbers.

The Wood Pigeon is mentioned by Professor Ansted and marked as only occurring in Guernsey, and probably as far as breeding is concerned this is right (of course with the exception of Jersey); but wandering flocks probably occasionally visit Alderney as well. There is no specimen in the Museum.

92. ROCK DOVE. _Columba livia_, Linnaeus. French, "Colombe biset."--I have never seen the Rock Dove in any of the Islands, though there are many places in all of them that would suit its habits well; and Mr.

MacCulloch writes to me to say, "I have heard that in times past the Rock Pigeon used to breed in large numbers in the caves around Sark"; but this certainly is not the case at present. Captain Hubbach also writes to me from Alderney, "There were some Rock Doves here in the winters of 1862 and 1863; I shot two or three of them then." Probably a few yet remain in both Alderney and Sark, though they certainly are not at all numerous in either island.

Professor Ansted includes the Rock Dove in his list, and marks it as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There is no specimen in the Museum.

Professor Ansted also includes the Stock Dove, _Columba aenas_, Linnaeus, in his list as occurring in Guernsey and Sark; but I think he must have done so on insufficient evidence, as I have never seen it and not been able to gain any information about it; neither does Mr.

Gallienne say anything about it in his notes appended to the list; so on the whole I think it better to omit it in my list; but as it may occur at any time, especially as it is certainly increasing considerably in numbers in the West of England, I may mention that it may be immediately distinguished from the Rock Dove by the absence of the white rump, that part being nearly the same colour as the back in the Stock Dove, and from the Wood Pigeon, _Columba palumbus_, by its smaller size and the entire absence of white on the wing. It is perhaps more necessary to point out this difference, as the Stock Dove frequently goes by the name of the Wood Pigeon; indeed Dresser has adopted this name for it, the Wood Pigeon being called the Ring Dove, as is very frequently the case.

93. TURTLE DOVE. _Turtur vulgaris_, Eyton. French, "Colombe tourterelle."--The Turtle Dove is a regular, but probably never very numerous summer visitant, arriving and departing about the same time as in England. Neither Miss Carey nor Mr. Couch ever mention it in their notes on Guernsey birds in the 'Zoologist': and Mr. MacCulloch, writing to me about the bird, does not go farther than to say "The Turtle Dove has, I believe, been known to breed here." In June, 1866, however, I shot one in very wild weather, flying across the bay at Vazon Bay; so wild was the weather with drifting fog and rain that I did not know what I had till I picked it up; in fact, when I shot it I thought it was some wader, flying through the fog towards me. This summer (1878) I saw two at Mr. Jago's which had been shot at Herm in May, just before I came; and in June I saw one or two more about in Guernsey. The pair shot in Herm would probably have bred in that island if they had been left unmolested.

Professor Ansted mentions it in his list, but only as occurring in Guernsey, and there is one specimen in the Museum.

94. QUAIL. _Coturnix communis_, Bonnaterre. French, "Caille."--I have never seen the Quail in the Islands myself, and it cannot be considered more than an occasional straggler; there can be no doubt, however, that it sometimes remains to breed, as there are some eggs in the Museum which I have reason to believe are Guernsey taken, and Mr. MacCulloch writes me word that "Quails certainly visit us occasionally, and I remember having seen their eggs in my youth"; and Mrs. Jago (late Miss c.u.mber), who was herself a bird-stuffer in Guernsey a good many years ago, told me she had had two Quails through her hands during the time she had been stuffing; but evidently she had not had very many, nor did she think them very common, as she did not know what they were when they were brought to her, and she was some time before she found anyone to tell her. The Quail breeds occasionally, too, in Alderney, as the bird-stuffer and carpenter had some Quail's and Landrail's eggs; these he told me he had taken out of the same nest which he supposed belonged originally to the Landrail, as there were rather more Landrail's than Quail's eggs in it.

Professor Ansted includes the Quail in his list, but marks it as occurring only in Guernsey. There is a specimen in the Museum, and, as I said before, several eggs.

95. WATER RAIL. _Rallus aquations_, Linnaeus. French, "Rale d'eau."--The Water Rail is not very common in Guernsey, but a few occur about the Braye Pond, and in other places suited to them; and, I believe, occasionally remain to breed, as Mr. Jago, the bird-stuffer, told me he had seen a pair of Water Rails and four young, his dog having started them from a hedge near the Rousailleries farm; the young could scarcely fly. I saw one at the bird-stuffer's at Alderney, which had been shot in that Island; and the bird-stuffer told me they were common, and he believed they bred there, but he had no eggs. Their number, however, is, I think, rather increased in the autumn by migrants; at all events, more specimens are brought to the bird-stuffers at that time of year. I have before mentioned the incident of the Water Rail being killed by the Merlin, recorded by Mr. Couch in the 'Zoologist' for 1875.

The Water Rail is included in Professor Ansted's list, and marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are two specimens in the Museum.

96. SPOTTED CRAKE. _Porzana maruetta_, Leach. French, "Poule d'eau marouette."--I have some doubt as to the propriety of including the Spotted Crake in my list, but, on the whole, such evidence as I have been able to collect seems in favour of its being at all events occasionally seen and shot, though its small size and shy skulking habits keep it very much from general notice. Mr. MacCulloch, however, writes to me to say the Spotted Rail has been found here; and one of Mr.

De Putron's labourers described a Rail to me which he had shot in the Vale Pond in May, 1877, which, from his description, could have been nothing but a Spotted Rail.

This is all the information I have been able to glean, but Professor Ansted includes it in his list, and marks it as occurring in Guernsey.

There are also two pretty good specimens in the Museum, which I have no doubt were killed in Guernsey.

97. LANDRAIL. _Crex pratensis_, Bechstein. French, "Rale des pres,"

"Rale de terre" ou "de Genet," "Poule d'eau de genet."--The Landrail is a common summer visitant, breeding certainly in Guernsey, Sark, and Alderney,[16] and probably in Herm, though I cannot be quite so sure about the latter Island. It seems to be rather more numerous in some years than others, as occasionally I have heard them craking in almost every field. But the last summer I was in the Islands (1878) I heard very few. The Corn Crake arrives and departs much about the same time as in England, and I have never been able to find that any stay on into the winter, or even as late as November.

It is included in Professor Ansted's list, but only marked as occurring in Guernsey and Sark. There are two specimens in the Museum.

98. MOORHEN. _Gallinula chloropus_, Linnaeus. French, "Poule d'eau ordinaire."--I have not seen the Moorhen myself in Guernsey, but Mr.

Couch, writing to me in December, 1876, told me that Mr. De Putron informed him that Coots, Waterhens, and Little Grebes bred that year in the Braye Pond; and Mr. De Putron, to whom I wrote on the subject, said the information I had received was perfectly correct. I see no reason to doubt the fact of the Moorhen occasionally breeding in Mr. De Putron's pond, and perhaps in other places in the Island, especially the Grand Mare. But I do not believe they breed regularly in either place; they certainly did not in this last summer (1878), or I must have seen or heard them. As far as Mr. De Putron's pond is concerned, I could not have helped hearing their loud call or alarm note had only one pair been breeding there; I have, however, a young bird of the year, killed in Guernsey in November, 1878.