Cuckoo's Note Uttered while FlyingAuthor(s): William W. FlemyngSource: The Irish Naturalist, Vol. 13, No. 2 (Feb., 1904), p. 47Published by: Irish Naturalists' Journal Ltd.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25522515 .

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t904- Nokes.. 47

Grasshopper Warbler at Lough'Swifly.

On .the x6th'June, at about half-past nihne in the evening, 1 heard the Grasshopper Warbler close to my house, in an. Alder scrub by a ditch,

cPlose to a water-lily pond. From that date till the ioth of July I heard

iteach -night that I went to listen, which was -nearly every night. It

,generally began about half-past eight, and from that time never ceased till dawn, as long as I was present. I saw the birds a couplpe of-times,

once about the end of August; but was carefiul not to disturb them, as I have no doubt they were nesting. The note resembled the call-note of a wren to its young, but was quicker in trill and quite continuous, and higher-pitched as well as softer. It seemed to sWing a little from high to low in cadence, and would often apear to be only a few feet fronm me; at other times, twice or three times as many yards within a second or two. I have only heard them once before, twenty years ago in Co.

Wexford. I understand the Rev. A. Delap has heard them at the south end of the county on the Tyrone borders.

I brought several natives to listen to the notes at different nights, to all of whom it was new. One woman compared it to the reeling up of the "rowings " on the spinning wheel. It was a good year here for

Warblers; both ,Willoy Wren and Chiffehaff stayed some time, which is not always the case.

'H. C. HART.

Carrablagh, Co. Donegal.

Cuckoo's Note uttered while Flying. Some years ago (during I894) a 4unlber of notes by different writers

appeared in the Zoologist with reference to the Cuckoo calling while on the wing. At the time it seemed to me to be a rather unusual occur rence, though several observers stated that they had noticed it not uncommonly. This year I had a good opportunity of watching a Cuckoo at Tramore in this county, and listened to it uttering its call while flying. On one day (June 4) 1 heard it repeat " cuckoo" no less than eight times during otle continued flight, and shortly afterwards the birf called five times, also during one flight.

Professor Newton spells the bird's name" Cuckow," in the 4th edition of Yarrell's "British Birds"; and, in an account of the bird to be found in the last edition of the " Encyclopaedia 13ritannica," vol. vi., p. 685, he states that thus ' the word was formerly, and more correctly, spelt, changed without any apparent warrant except that accorded by custom,

while some of the more scholarly E1nglish ornithologists, as Montague and Jenyns, have kept the older form." It seems to me that there was good reason for altering the spelling to "Cuckoo." The bird's name admittedly was given to it on account of the note it utters, as is also the case with regard to other birds-e.g., Chiffchaff, Curlew, Hoopoe. I think that most observers Will say that-; cuckoo" is nearer to the bird's note than "cuckow."

Wi4IAn W. FL4MVNG. Portlaw.

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