John Cordeaux

“ Numbers of small birds will often hover for hours to and fro in the blaze of light without striking the glass, like moths on a summer evening when the hall-door is open and the lamp lighted. Sometimes, too, on dark and misty nights flocks of Curlew and Whimbrel, like spirits of the lost, wail and scream round the solitary lamp-trimmer in his lonely pharos, or troops of Gray Plover and Dunlin whirl past in the blaze cast forth by highly-polished lenses—shape, size or colour as distinctly apparent in each individual bird as if seen by the light of noonday. ”

“ On days of uncertain light or on clear fine starlight nights, when migration is carried on at a considerable height, immense numbers of birds might pass any station for hours without a chance of observation; and it is quite possible that, if the whole three hundred miles of coast were studded with floating posts of observation at the distance of half a mile, equal average results would have been obtained, our present stations on the light-vessels affording no more especial line of advantage than any other imaginary line drawn across the North Sea. ”

“ During seventeen years that the present principal light-keeper has been there, he does not think that more than a dozen birds have struck the glass. Altogether, few of our Scottish stations are situated in as favourable positions for observation as the lightships of the English coast. Perhaps the Bell Rock and Isle of May are the most favourable in the south, and the Pentland Skerries and some of the Orkney and Shetland stations in the north. ”

“ It is very remarkable how suddenly the stream of migration commences running, and how suddenly it stops again. We watch, at early morning, a flock of Larks or Hooded Crows come to land; others soon follow, and then for some hours—it may be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.—there is a constant arrival of migrants; and then migration, at least for that day, is over, and not a single wanderer will be seen.
As a rule, the young of the year migrate some weeks in advance of the old birds; this holds good with all orders and species. In the spring the males often migrate in advance of the females. ”

“ Robins which we see at low water skulking amidst blackened timbers of ancient wrecks miles from the shore—Robins in scores on the bleak wind-swept fitties sheltering amongst sea-plants, or on the marram-grown dune—Robins again in hundreds preening and sunning on the lee side of storm-clipt hedgerows, so numerous that on dull autumn days the dark strip of fence is bright as a flower-bank with the gleam of so many chestnut-red spots. ”

“ Almost all records of birds caught or killed, or striking at the lanterns, are noted on dark or cloudy nights, with fog, haze or rain, or snow and sleet. The isolated stations, such as the Bell Rock, are most deadly; many are stunned and killed, and blown into the sea, at such localities. Birds on such nights often remain around the lights all night or rest on the window-sills of the tower and the balconies, or endeavour to obtain entrance to the tower. Whenever dawn appears they resume their flight towards the nearest land. ”

“ Magpies are plentiful inland, and very familiar and bold. The Grey Crow everywhere, old and young together; some of the Grey Crows in the north have the grey almost white, and in bright sunlight I I thought had a rosy tinge. Ravens were in great force about all the Arctic whaling stations. At Vadsö during the eclipse, and as the gloom thickened, a pair flew to and fro over the harbour, croaking most dismally. ”

“ I have been told by an old fen farmer that, many years ago, when a great gale swept the Lincolnshire coast, at the time the Hooded Crow crossed, the coast was subsequently strewed with their bodies cast up by the sea.
Birds are noticed at the stations as sometimes flying high, sometimes low; often it will be observed with northerly and easterly winds they will fly high, and with winds in opposite quarters, low. The state of weather at the time of migration has more, we think, to do with the height at which birds travel than the direction of the wind. ”

“ Unfortunately those alighting on the coast are almost invariably potted by the first loafer who at break of day, with rusty fowling-piece and villainous cur at heel, strolls along the sea embankment; for the poor soft-winged slow-flying Owl offers an easy mark, and will sit till nearly trodden upon. This autumn unprecedented numbers came, and I have heard of them in many localities on this coast. ”

“ If we divide the east coast into three divisions, one north-easterly from the Farne Islands to the Humber, mid-east from the Humber to Yarmouth, and south-eastern forward to the South Foreland, we find that in 1879 the main body of migrants passed in the south-eastern division; in 1880 they have been tolerably equally distributed over the mid and south-eastern. During the principal month of migration, October, the wind blew persistently day by day and week by week from northerly and easterly quarters, and to this cause we may fairly attribute the deflection of migrants to the south. ”

“ Short-eared Owls arrived in some numbers at Spurn in the last week in January. A very large flock of Snow Buntings was seen on the 8th February. On the Lincolnshire side I noticed an immense flock of the same species, fresh arrivals, on the 5th; and on the 11th thousands, also hundreds of Larks. This final and third "rush" of immigrants so late in the winter is curious, and may perthaps be explained by the comparatively milder winter over Northern Europe, compared with what we have experienced in the central and southern zones of Europe. ”

“ Often have I wished that it were possible for a thoroughly practical ornithologist to be placed, for three months in the autumn, in each lighthouse and lightship; his work to consist of filling up, in a tabulated form, a record of birds striking the glass at night; the number of each species, sex and age, direction of flight, hour, state of weather and wind. These tables, taken collectively, would be deeply interesting, and perhaps throw light on some of the yet little-understood problems of migration.
It is rarely, if ever, that sea birds strike the glasses ”

“ On clear light nights they travel high, as a rule, but in fog, and thick murky weather, rain or snow, not far above the waves. On thick nights, indeed, lost birds will wheel for hours round a lightship, but with the first break in the clouds or streak of early dawn are on their course again. ”

“ There is one remarkable exception to the general rule of an east to west route in the case of the lightvessel on the Galloper Bank, forty miles S.S.E. of Orfordness. All entries in this return show birds passing to the E. or S.S.E. or S.E. during October. We can only account for this anomalous line by supposing the birds which cross the Galloper have previously struck the English coast at some higher latitude, and after skirting the coast line -187- shot off again somewhere near Orfordness and crossed the North Sea to the Belgian and French coasts between Nieuport and Dunkerque. ”

“ It has long been a well-known fact that, during the period of the autumn migrations, large numbers of birds of various species immolate themselves by dashing, during the night time, when in full migratory swing, against the thick glasses which surround the lanterns of the various lighthouses on our shores, more particularly those situated on the eastern and southern coasts. I have known flocks of migrating Starlings settle in the night time on the top of a lighthouse, where they continued for a long time to keep up a continual chattering, astonished perhaps at the novelty of the situation. ”

“ These all, then, must pass southward along the European coast, as do doubtless an immense majority of those countless Sparrowhawks, Siskins, and more familiar birds which cross the island in the autumn migration; and just as occasionally some species, whose line of migration lies farther to the eastward still, turn up as wanderers to the old rock from the regular track, so do occasionally now one and now another of the regular Heligoland immigrants get blown across to one side. ”

“ A great northward rush appears to have taken place at Bell Rock lighthouse between the 2nd and 11th of March, 1880, as noted in the duplicate schedule by Mr. James Jack, lately received by me. On the 2nd March great numbers of birds were seen flying about the lantern, apparently of various species, of which Blackbirds, Thrushes, and Mavises were recognised; wind S., light breeze, heavy sleet; sexes unidentified; a great number continued to strike hard on lantern all night from 10 p.m., and rebounding off, fell into the sea. ”

“ Incredible although it may appear, we believe that the vast majority of the immigrants coming to us in the autumn in one broad front from east to west are such as cross with the intention of remaining the winter in some part or other of the British Islands, and naturally take the place of our own resident summer species which have left, or are about leaving us, for the south. ”

“ The spring movements, or the passing out, of birds such as winter in these islands, as all observers on the east coast are aware, is far less in evidence than are those great and continuous inrushes in the autumn, extending over days, weeks, and months, and arresting attention by their very magnitude and persistence. In the vernal movement, or emigration, there is rarely anything to attract notice, for it seldom happens that flights of birds are seen actually leaving the shore ”