The flock-dove, or wood-pigeon, otnasS.au, is the laft winter bird
of paflage which appears with us; and is not feen till towards the end
of November: about twenty years ago they abounded in the diftridt of
Selborne; and firings of them were feen morning and evening that
reached a mile or more : but fince the beechen woods have been
greatly thinned they are much decreafed in number. The ring-
Y d°vej palumbus Sail, flays with us the whole year, and breeds
feveral times through the fummer.
Before I received your letter of OBober laft I had juft remarked
in my journal that the trees were unufually green. This uncommon
verdure lafted on late into November; and may be accounted
_for from a late fpring, a cool and moift fummer; but more particularly
from vaft armies of chafers, or tree-beetles, which, in many
places, reduced whole woods to a leaflefs naked ftate. Thefe
trees (hot again at Midfummer, and then retained their foliage till
very late in the year.
My mufical friend, at whofe houfe I am now vifiting, has tried
all the owls that are his near neighbours with a pitch-pipe fet
at concert-pitch, and finds they all hoot in B flat. He will examine
the nightingales next fpring. I am, &c. &c.
l e t t e r
L E T T E R
TO TH E S AM E .
D E A R SIR, S e l b o r n e , Aug. 1 , 1 7 7 1 .
F r o m what follows, it will appear that neither o\yls nor cuckoos
keep to one note. A friend remarks that many (moll) of his owls
hoot in B flat; but that one went almoft half a note below A. The
pipe he tried their notes by was a common half-crown pitch-pipe,
fuch as mafters ufe for tuning of harpfichords; it was the common
London pitch.
A neighbour of mine, who is faid to have a nice ear, remarks
that the owls about this village hoot in three different keys, in G
flat, or F fharp, in B flat and A flat. He heard two hooting to
each other, the one in A flat, and the other in B flat. Query: Do
thefe different notes proceed from different fpecies, or only from
various individuals ? The fame perfon finds upon trial that the
note of the cuckoo (of which we have but one fpecies) varies in
different individuals; for, about Selborne 'wood, he found they were
moftly in D : he heard two fing together, the one in D, the other
in D fharp, who made a difagreeable concert; he afterwards heard
one in D fharp, and about IVcalmer -forejl fome in C. As to nightingales,
he fays that their notes are fo fhort, and their tranfitions fo
rapid, that he cannot well afeertain their key. Perhaps in a cage,
and in a room, their notes may be more diftinguifhable. This perfon
has tried to fettle the notes of a fwift, and of feveral other fmall
birds, but cannot bring them to any criterion.
As