Page:The Zoologist, 3rd series, vol 1 (1877).djvu/67



the 23rd of October last I went down to Spurn Head to witness the arrival of our autumn immigrants, and an account of what I saw may be of interest to the readers of 'The Zoologist.'

First, as to the place, Spurn Point is the terminal portion of a narrow peninsula about four miles in length, which is washed by the sea on the one side, and the Humber on the other. It was in olden times very much broader than it is now; indeed it is not unlikely that the sea will eventually swallow it up altogether, since, even within the memory of man, it has made such encroachments that there is now in some places only a very narrow strip a few yards in width unwashed by the tide, and as this is composed entirely of sandhills and "bent" grass, it offers but a poor resistance against a rough sea. The spot is well situated for the observation of migratory birds as they pass overhead or rest after their long journeys, and has long been noted for the number that annually alight there, many of them being so fatigued with their passage that they are only too glad to pitch on the first strip of land they fall in with, no matter how unsuited it may be to their natural requirements.

During the two or three days of easterly winds which prevailed previous to my visit, a great portion of the large army of southward-bound birds had already passed Spurn; but I was not too late to see much that was interesting, and to note a few facts that were either new to me, or of which I had previously heard only by