Began to use endive, which is large & well-blanched. No swifts. We seached the eaves to no purpose. In searching the eaves for the young swifts, we found in a nest two callow dead swifts, on which had been formed a second nest. These nests were full of the black shining cases of the hippoboscae hirundinis.
Between nine & ten at night a thunder-storm whith much vivd lightening began to grow up from the N.W. & W.: but it took a circuit round to the S. & E. & so missed us. We had only the skirts of the tempest, & a little heavy rain for a short time. Ten miles off the the southward there were vast rains.
Tho’ white butterflies abound, & lay many eggs on the cabbages; yet thro’ over-heat, & want of moisture, they do not hatch and turn to palmers; but dry & shrivel to nothing. One swift still frequents the eaves of the church; & moreover has, I discover, two young nearly fledged, which show their white chins at the mouth of the crevice. This incident of so late a brood of swifts is an exception to the whole of my observations ever since I have bestowed any attention on that species of hirundines!
Caught 8 hornets with a twig tipped with bird-lime. No wasps in my garden, nor at the grocer’s, or butcher’s shop. Five or six hornets will carry off a whole nectarine in the space of a day.
No wasps; but several hornets, which devour the nectarines. The wasps are probably kept down by the numbers of breeders that the boys destroyed for me in the spring.
Mr Pink’s turnips are infested with black caterpillars; he turned 80 ducks into the field, hoping they would have destroyed them; but they did not seem much to relish this sort of food. I have known whole broods of ducks destroyed by their eating too freely of hairy caterpillars.
The small pond in Newton great farm field, near the verge of the common, is full nearly of good clear water! while ponds in vales are empty. One swift! The crevice thro’ which the swift goes up under the eaves of the church is so narrow as not to admit a person’s hand.
Sowed a crop of winter-spinage, & pressed the ground close with the garden-roller. The ground turned-up very dry, & harsh.
The bank-martins at the sand-pit on Short-heath are now busy about their second brood, & have thrown out their egg-shells from their holes. The dams & first-broods make a large flight. When we approached their caverns, they seemed anxious, & uttered a little wailing note. My well is low in water; but a constant spring bubbles up from the bottom. Some neighbouring wells are dry. My well is 63 feet deep.
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