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IX.

ON THE ORNITHOLOGY OF THE SOUTH OF DEVON; BY EDWARD MOORE, M. D. F. L S. AND MEMBER OF THE PLYMOUTH INSTITUTION; IN A LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT.

Sir,

THE Transactions of this Institution will doubtless be expected to contain some observations on subjects of science, which admit of illustration in our own immediate neighbourhood; and, as in a work of this nature, we should not be negligent of any means which may afford information to the inquirer, I have been induced to offer a list or catalogue of the different species of birds, which are to be met with in the south of Devonshire. I am not aware that any thing of the kind has hitherto been published-the various writers on the history of the county, (except perhaps Polwhele,) have not made Ornithology an object of much regard-and it is chiefly from one or two scientific men who have particularly devoted themselves to it, that we are to derive most of our information on the subject: I know of no one, who in pursuit of British Ornithology, has conferred greater benefits on the Natural

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History of our own county, than the late Col. Montagu, of Kingsbridge, author of the "Ornithological Dictionary."Another work, “Ornithologia Danmoniensis,” was commenced in 1809, by Dr. A. G. Tucker, of Ashburton, but not continued. A catalogue of the birds of Dartmoor was furnished by this gentleman towards the illustration of Carrington's poem, published in 1826.

A taste for Ornithology, however, has not been wanting in many parts of the county, and many gentlemen have made considerable collections, but their observations have seldom been made known, and valuable specimens have often been lost for want of attention; many of these, however, still exist; the most perfect museums are those of Mr. Comyns, of Mount Pleasant, near Dawlish; of Rev. Mr. Vaughan, of Aveton Giffard; and of Dr. Magrath, of Plymouth; other gentlemen have recently turned their attention to the subject, whose names I shall have to refer to, as I proceed.

The whole of the county of Devon, and its southern division in particular, affords peculiar facilities for the pursuit of this investigation; in no district perhaps, of equal space, is there such a variety of country calculated to be selected, as places of resort, by the feathered tribes; whatever is to be expected from mountain or valley, river or sea, is here to be met with. Nearly in the centre of the county are the wild and barren heights of Dartmoor, and throughout the whole of the district termed the South Hams, we may observe a continued succession of bill and vale; the latter of which is particularly abundant in wood, and the country is intersected by numerous rivers, most of which take their rise from the higher regions of the moor. Twelve of the principal-the Axe, the Sid, the Otter, the Dawl, the Teign, the Dart, the Avon, the Erme, the Yealm, the Plym, and the Tamar, besides the inlet of Salcombe, discharge their waters into the British Channel, while the whole line of coast, extending upwards of sixty miles, is diversified

with bays, marshes, sands, and insulated rocks, calculated to afford protection to the different tribes of sea fowl.

Independently of the species which may be considered indigenous to the country, there are many which visit us in their peregrinations from one climate to another; and any unusual variation in the winds, or their long continuance in one direction, will give us an opportunity of occasionally discovering some rare kinds of birds. Our extensive line of coast is favourable in this view, and we accordingly find that many of the rarest species have been found in Devonshire after a storm. In October, 1829, after a long and continued southwesterly wind two or three black-toed Gulls, Phalaropes, and young Terns, were procured; the Stormy Petrel, Little Auk, &c. have been some times obtained far inland, doubtless owing to similar causes, and as they are generally found in a weak or starving condition on those occasions, we may infer that the turbulent state of the sea, when of several days' duration, renders them incapable of procuring food, and thus drives them to the shore.

It is a subject of remark that many birds, which formerly existed in great numbers here, are now seldom to be met with, or have entirely disappeared; the Egret and Crane are become almost unknown, only one specimen of the latter has been obtained for many years; the Kite forty years ago was very common, but now I cannot find a specimen in any collection in this district, and Montagu remarks that he only saw one during twelve years' residence in the south of Devon. Our rivers formerly abounded in Wild Duck and Teal; but these are considerably diminished in number;-the causes may doubtless be ascribed to the increased population, drainage of marshes, or the systematic pursuit of wild fowl for the table, and probably most of all to the usual mildness of our winters; since in the present year (1830,) the severe weather of the month of January bas furnished us with great abundance of Wild Swans,

Geese, and many rare species of the Duck tribe. In the arrangement of the species in the following catalogue I shall follow the system of Cuvier, ("Regne Animal,” 2nd edition, 1829,) and in describing the synonyma of the species, I shall chiefly adopt those of Temminck, (“Manuel d'Ornithologie," 2nd edition.) When first attention was paid to Ornithology, every difference of plumage was thought sufficient to constitute a difference of species, until it was discovered that the same bird frequently assumed a new livery at the moulting season in autumn; and even this information was not capable of exposing the secrets of nature, until the universal thirst for investigation over the greater part of the globe, led to a desire to examine the species at the situations of their habitual haunts, which has furnished us with the knowledge that not only do the greater number of birds undergo a change of plumage in autumn, but also in the spring, and that frequently the difference is so great, that it effects a complete metamorphosis of the individual, rendering it extremely difficult to detect; this is exemplified in the Tringa pugnax, or Fighting Ruff, the male of which is furnished with a large ruff about the neck, during the three months of the breeding season only, and afterwards losing it, has been repeatedly mistaken for three or four other species. In the same way the Knot has been multiplied into six species; and the greater number of the Sand-piper tribe have been equally mistaken. Moreover, young birds have a plumage often differing from their parents, more especially from the male; and in many cases do not acquire their adult appearance for three or four years, as is observed, particularly in the Gulls. From these causes the labours of later naturalists have been directed, not only to obtain an acquaintance with new species, but also to rectify the errors which a want of this information had occasioned in the Linnean system-errors which the edition pnblished by Gmelin tended to augment. "Le seul catalogue general des animaux, (says Cuvier, p. 6.) que l'on possédât alors,

et que l'on ait encore aujourd'hui, le système de Linnæus, venait d'être disfiguré par un editeur malheureux,qui ne s'etait pas même donné le soin d'approfondir les principes de cet ingenieux Methodiste, et qui, partout ou il avait rencontre quelque désordre, avait semble faire des efforts pour le rendre plus inextricable." The identification of species has been very successfully pursued, especially by Temminck and Montagu; so that many which were uncertain are now properly arranged beyond the possibility of doubt. It is not however my intention to give an enlarged view of the subject of Ornithology, as that would be incompatible with the object of this work, and is indeed fully detailed in the different standard publications. And while I forbear to enter into a detailed account of the habits or even description (except in particular instances,) of the birds I have to mention, I shall consider it sufficient for me to speak of the species itself, and give the authority by which it is to be considered a production of this neighbourhood, which will be done by a reference to approved works, or to individual specimens at present existing in the collections of gentlemen, whose names I shall assume the liberty of stating; while those which I possess myself, will be distinguished by my initials being attached to them.

My opportunities have not enabled me to extend my inquiries much into the north of Devon, but I am not aware that any species have been found there, beyond what belong to the south, except the Nucifraga Caryocatactes (Corvus Caryocatactes, of Gmelin) Nutcracker Crow, of which one specimen is mentioned by Montagu as having been obtained in that part of the county: the Alca impennis, or Great Auk, a specimen of which, (Mr. Gosling informs me,) was picked up dead near Lundy Island; and the Ardea Minuta, Little Bittern, obtained near Crediton, in May, 1808. (Montagu's Ornithological Dictionary.)

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