showers. To November 17, heavy rain, with violent gales of wind. To December 18, mild dry weather, with a few showers. To the end of the year, rain and wind.

1790. To January 16, mild foggy weather, with occasional rains. To January 21, frost. To January 28, dark, with driving rains. To February 14, mild, dry weather. To February 22, hard frost. To April 5, bright cold weather, with a few showers. To April 15, dark and harsh, with a deep snow. To April 21, cold cloudy weather, with ice. To June 6, mild spring weather, with much rain. From July 3, to July 14, cool, with heavy rain. To the end of July, warm, dry weather. To August 6, cold, with wind and rain. To August 24, fine harvest weather. To September 5, strong gales, with driving showers. To November 26, mild autumnal weather, with frequent showers. To December 1, hard frost and snow. To the end of the year, rain and snow, and a few days of frost.

1791. To the end of January, mild, with heavy rains. To the end of February windy, with much rain and snow. From March to the end of June, mostly dry, especially June. March and April rather cold and frosty. May and June, hot. July, rainy. Fine harvest weather, and pretty dry, to the end of September. Wet October, and cold towards the end. Very wet and stormy in November. Much frost in December.

1792. Some hard frost in January, but mostly wet and mild. February, some hard frost and a little snow. March, wet and cold. April, great storms on the 13th, then some very warm weather. May and June, cold and dry. July, wet and cool; indifferent harvest, rather late and wet. September, windy and wet. October, showery and mild. November, dry and fine. December, mild.

A

COMPARATIVE VIEW

OF THE

NATURALIST'S CALENDAR,

AS KEPT AT

SELBORNE, IN HAMPSHIRE,

BY THE LATE

REV. GILBERT WHITE, M.A.;

AND AT

CATSFIELD, NEAR BATTLE,

IN SUSSEX,

BY WILLIAM MARKWICK, ESQ., F.L.S.,

From the year 1768 to the year 1793.

N.B. The dates in the following Calendars, when more than one, express the earliest and latest times in which the circumstance noted was observed.

INTRODUCTION TO NATURALIST'S CALENDAR.

WILLIAM MARKWICK, who afterwards took the name of Eversfield, was an observant Naturalist, and communicated several papers relating to British zoology to the Linnæan Society, several of which appeared in its transactions. He died in 1813.

In preparing an ornithological calendar in 1849, we prefaced it with the following remarks, which may, with propriety, be reprinted here, as although written for ornithology they will generally apply to any department of zoology; they also allude to the author's favorite subject, migration.

The importance of the registration of 'periodic phænomena,” appertaining to animals and plants, has been long acknowledged and advocated in different periodicals and works, writing of and devoted to natural history; and sundry calendars have been published, which although they contain many points worthy of observation, and were sometimes very amply made out, were not within the reach of all observers, and did not serve as a guide for the uniform registration of the phænomena. In our numerous works relating to the Ornithology of the British Islands, we have many observations and partial lists of the appearance and disappearance of our winter, summer, and occasional visitants. The migrations; flocking and congregating of species after incubation; disappearance of certain species, and their occurrence again after a period of years have been all noted down. Many of our friends have kept private notes of these occurrences, and we have ourselves made observations over a period of nearly thirty years; but all these are neither kept to any plan, nor accompanied with notes of the temperature, weather, and other circumstances which would have added greatly to their value. They are made in various localities, and in various years and circumstances; and however interesting the task, it would entail much time and labour to reduce them to any available order. If, then, the more important points in the economy of our native species could be registered on some simultaneous and regular plan, interesting information and details might be elicited, and an insight into the laws which regulate their motions and changes, be in a short time obtained.

For the above purpose, a set of Tables have been prepared for the present, the concluding number of the "Contributions for 1848," in such time as will enable the month of January, with the whole year,

to be observed and registered; and accompanying the number, there is a duplicate copy, printed on thin paper and with printed address, which it is requested may be filled up and posted in the first week of January, 1850, when, if health and circumstances permit, a summary of the registers and observations returned will be drawn up and printed with an early succeeding number.

For the better filling up of these tables, the following observations may not be inappropriate :—

The tables and lists of species have been drawn up, as far as possible, to suit any locality; at the same time, many omissions may have been made, which experience in a future year may remedy, and there may be many things inserted which are not applicable, and may appear useless in certain districts. Thus, the return filled up in Orkney, will produce a very different appearance from one made in the middle or southern districts of England.

In these returns, it will be very desirable to know the elevation above the sea as nearly as possible; to have a general register of the temperature and weather, with a short description of the character of the country and its vegetation around the localities where the observations are made. In the curious and interesting subject of migration, particular attention is desired. The average temperature at the times of appearance and departure; the direction of the wind; the general character of the weather; the condition and progress of vegetation, should all 'be observed. It might be supposed, that the arrival of the migratory species in other countries would be influenced more by the climate of that from which they departed than of that to which they came; that an earlier frost, or mild weather, would have the effect of driving them away or inducing them to prolong their departure; in this country, however, though a cold autumn has an evident effect on the time of the departure of the swallows, and many of our summer birds, a mild spring does not always hasten the departure of the winter visitants. The arrival of some summer birds, as the wheatear, does not seem at all influenced by the mildness or continued severity of the spring here; but we have observed, that mildness and advance of vegetation in this country does make a difference in the time of appearance of several species, particularly the Sylviadœ; and it may be asked, whether the progression of these and others from Southern Europe and Africa is gradual, advancing with the seasons? The laws which regulate the migratory zone of some species are not, probably, applicable to such as appear to start at once and fly to their destination. The great mass of swallows depart from this country at once, but the appearance of their numbers is somewhat more gradual. The Sylviada appear gradually. The migratory thrushes, again, come and depart at once. So also do the snipes, woodcocks, and others of the Scolopacida. If resident on or near the sea-coast, attention should be paid to the ornithology after remarkable storms, particularly during March and April, October and November, and both on the coast and inland, during these months, when migration takes place, and the young are leaving their breeding places and congregating, many rare species have been met with, driven out of their ordinary tract; and vast flocks of species generally few in number, sometimes in the same way appear,