Abstract
LETTER I. TO DR. MATY. Sir, As it has long been a desideratum among the naturalists to decide, with certainty, whether swallows and martins remain in a torpid state during the winter, or are birds of passage; I shall make no apology for troubling you with this letter, as it determines one part of the question, as I imagine, beyond doubt. In the beginning of November, being fishing on the banks of the river Dart, which runs at the bottom of a very steep hill, from the side of which project several large rocks, overgrown with ivy and thicket; I was at once surprized with the sight of a great number of martins. Now the season of the year being so advanced, I desisted from my amusement, that I might the more carefully observe the birds, which, I concluded, had been brought out of their winter quarters by the fineness of the afternoon, it being remarkably pleasant and warm for the time of the year; the Sun at that time darting its rays directly against the rocks, just opposite to which I had fixed my station.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
