BIRDS about 1877, and another about 1888 at Oak- ham, and a third at Ketton in 1898. 70. Jay. Garrulus glandarius (Linn.). Surprisingly common for so conspicuous and persecuted a bird. I have seen as many as thirteen together in Wardley Wood (1901). An inveterate nest-robber. 71. Magpie. Pica rustica (Scopoli). Still quite common in the southern parts of the county. Flocks of ten or twelve are often seen near Uppingham. About 1880 Mr. Theodore Bell once saw a ' crowd ' of thirty- two near Stoke Wood. Even more destruc- tive to eggs and young birds than the jay. Its numbers are much reduced near Normanton and Burley, where gamekeepers are more in evidence. 72. Jackdaw. Corvm monedula, Linn. Too numerous. I have seen forty at once in company with rooks. It destroys numbers of eggs and broods of wild birds. A white variety and one of a cream colour have been recorded. 73. Raven. Corvus corax, Linn. Now extinct except as a wanderer, but used to breed in more than one locality. The last nests recorded were about 1 840 at Normanton and Exton. The last of the Rutland ravens was taken from a nest in Exton Park. Lord Gainsborough has an egg laid by this bird in captivity. One was shot in Wardley Wood about 1855. Since then one was seen at Ridlington on 12 October 1898, and another by Mr. A. E. G. Dixon at Empingham on 20 April 1905. 74. Carrion-Crow. Corvus corone, Linn. Very plentiful for a bird with a price on its head. In 1 90 1 a single observer, Dr. Kenneth de R. Bell, found twelve nests in the neighbourhood of Uppingham. There would doubtless be a hundred nests in a radius of 4 miles, and this means a very large 'congre- gation ' of autumn crows. To the east of Uppingham this bird is much less common, its place being taken by the next species. 75. Hooded Crow. Corvus comix, Linn. Locally, Grey Crow. Arrives punctually about 20 October and leaves about 20 March. Its numbers seem to be slightly on the increase. No record of it appears before 1855. It may always be seen in winter along the Welland by Seaton and Barrowden, and near Morcott and Bis- brooke, but it is seldom found to the west of Uppingham, This species has not been
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reported from any other locality in Rutland except Normanton and Empingham. 76. Rook. Corvus frugilegus, Linn. Undoubtedly too numerous in this district. Flocks of four hundred may be seen round Uppingham. Besides their corn-eating pro- pensities, rooks have now developed a taste for the eggs of birds, and are hardly less mischievous than carrion-crows. Variations in plumage are not uncommon, and I saw a beautiful cream-coloured one with black head near Uppingham on 14 March 1893. 77. Skylark. Alauda arvensis, Linn. Abundant, but in severe weather not one is to be seen. The largest flocks in the neigh- bourhood of Uppingham rarely exceed one hundred. A white specimen was shot at Ayston about 1875. 78. Woodlark. Alauda arborea, Linn. Very scarce. Thomas Barker of Lyndon mentions it twice between 1736 and i8oi,as singing in January 1762 and February 1768. Mr. J. M. Mitchell notes a specimen shot near Uppingham about 1870, and seen in the flesh. The late Mr. Cordeaux saw one near Exton in 1888 and Mr. J. Whitaker one on 3 October 1 89 1 at the same place. A nest was found at Barnsdale about 1876, and on 19 April 1890 a nest with four eggs (undoubtedly woodlark's), was found near Stoke Wood, where the birds have since been seen by the finder. During 15 years' observation I never saw or heard one, or of one, near Uppingham. Why this bird, which has two broods, is so rare, remains a mystery. 79. Swift. Cypselus apus (Linn.). Locally, Deviling. Arrives generally during the first week in May, but seems to have been a little earlier during the 1 8th century, for in 1749 it arrived 16 April, and in 1739, 1740, and 1747 it was seen 17 April. They generally depart early in August, but 3 September 1782, 12 September 1790, and 4 September 1 891 have been noted as dates of last appear- ance. In 1844 there were very few to be seen. At present their numbers are pretty constant, and at least a dozen pairs breed in Uppingham, and I have seen thirty at a time in July. The Rev. W. Turner, writing to the Zoologist in 1850, described a variety, which was shot at Uppingham, as weighing less than an ounce ; throat, belly, vent and rump smoke-coloured, the rest bLick ; back and wing-coverts glossy, head somewhat glossy, tail forked but not acutely ; wings nearly inches in length.
