It is a very shy bird, but is most interesting to observe, as he runs up

and down with extreme facility, assuming, as he does so, many graceful

and curious positions. Unlike the Woodpeckers, which only run up the

trees, it seems quite immaterial to this species whether he be going up,

down, or sideways, forwards or backwards, for in all positions he seems

equally at home. He will be more often heard than seen as the sharp,

shrill note will betray his whereabouts, though by keeping on the far

side of the tree he avoids being seen. Insects are largely eaten in

summer, but seeds, berries, nuts, and beechmast form his chief food.

Nuts and hard seeds are taken to some convenient crevice in the bark and

hammered with the sharp, hard bill until an entrance having been

effected, the kernel can be pulled out and eaten. Some hole in a tree or

wall, or more rarely in a bank, is chosen as the nesting-site; the

entrance is generally plastered up with mud till only a small circular

hole, just large enough to admit the bird, is left. The inside of the

cavity is lined with a few leaves and scraps of bark on which five to

seven eggs, boldly marked with reddish brown, are laid. These eggs bear

a close resemblance to those of the Great Tit, but are, as a general

rule, rather larger. In the courting season the male has a pretty little

song, and "shows off" to the female as he chases her up and down the

trees. It is a strictly resident species and may be found in the same

spot throughout the year.

The general colour of the upper parts is bluish grey, but all the tail

feathers, except the central pair, are blackish, barred and tipped with

white and grey. A black stripe runs through the eye from the base of the

bill. The under parts are pale rufous shading to chestnut on the flanks

and under-tail coverts. Length 5·7 in.; wing 3·4 in.

The female and young are rather duller in colour.

[Illustration: COMMON WREN

_Troglodytes parvulus_

Lower figure St. Kilda variety]

THE WREN

Troglodytes parvulus, K. L. Koch

There must be few people who have not heard a long and clear song

sounding almost at their side, when walking along some garden path or

along the edge of a wood, and on investigation have found that this

song, so disproportionate in volume to the size of the bird that utters

it, proceeds from one of the smallest of our birds, the Wren. Skulking

as a rule in the thick hedge bottom, among undergrowth in woods, or in a

tangle of brambles on a common, he will suddenly hop on to an

outstanding spray, rattle off his little song, and then with quick

whirring beats of his wings dive into the undergrowth again a few yards

off. Always bright and perky as he hops along, with his short tail held

up at right angles to the body, he searches for any small seeds or

insects which he can find, and as he appears so cheerful, even in the

most severe weather, it is not surprising that he has won a way to our

hearts, and next to the Robin is the most favoured bird in England. The

nest is a beautiful domed structure, very cleverly concealed among the

ivy on a wall or tree, or sometimes in a grassy bank or the side of a

stack. It is composed of leaves, moss, bents, etc., so arranged and

chosen as to harmonise well with its surroundings. The entrance is a

narrow round hole, and the interior is warmly lined with hair and

feathers.

Nest-building seems to be an occupation in which these birds delight,

and several nests are generally built by each pair; one only, however,

is lined, the others being left quite rough inside. These so-called

"cocks' nests" are used, however, as roosting-places, and if the eggs be

destroyed they may be lined and used as their home for a second clutch.

The eggs, six to eight in number, are white, sparsely spotted with red.

In this country the wren is a resident and seldom wanders far from its

home, a habit which has resulted in the birds inhabiting some of our

outer islands, like St. Kilda, becoming recognisable as distinct from

the mainland form. In winter, however, our native stock receives

considerable additions from the Continent, but a return migration in

spring has not been noticed.

The whole bird is of a uniform reddish brown, rather lighter on the chin

and throat, minutely barred with black. There is a dull white streak

over each eye. Length 3·5 in.; wing 1·9 in.

The female is rather smaller and duller, and the young are less

distinctly barred.

[Illustration: TREE-CREEPER

_Certhia familiaris_]

THE TREE-CREEPER

Certhia familiaris, Linnæus

The Tree-Creeper is a common species, but from its quiet ways and dull

colour seldom noticed. It is with us the whole year, spending its time

in an unceasing search for small insects on the bark of trees. In its

habits and food it is not unlike the Woodpeckers, climbing up with a

series of jerks, and, when observed, shifting at once to the far side of

the tree.

It has a short but pleasing little song, which is not often heard, and

the call-note is a low and plaintive "cheep." It is solitary in habits,

and more than one are seldom seen together, except in the breeding

season. The nest is placed behind a piece of loose bark and is merely an

accumulation of roots, grass, and moss, with a lining of wool and

feathers. The eggs are white, minutely spotted with reddish.

The sexes are alike and have the feathers of the upper parts dark brown

with pale centres, becoming lighter on the rump; under parts, silvery

white. Flight feathers dark brown, barred with buffish white. Tail

feathers stiff and pointed and dull reddish brown in colour. Length 4·75

in.; wing 2·5 in.

It is common and abundant throughout our islands.

THE WALL-CREEPER

Tichodroma muraria (Linnæus)

Very few examples of this species, whose home is in the mountainous

regions of Europe, have occurred in these islands. It spends its life

climbing over the bare and precipitous surfaces of rock, searching for

spiders and other insects on which it feeds.

The general colour is slate grey with crimson wing coverts and a black

throat. The tail feathers are not stiff as in the preceding species.

Length 6 in.; wing 3·9 in.

THE PIED WAGTAIL

Motacilla lugubris, Temminck

"Chizzit, chizzit," and looking round we see our little grey friend as

he passes with his peculiar and characteristic dipping flight across the

field towards the ivy-clad wall. Every year he comes with unfailing

regularity to rear his brood near the same spot. It is an old red-brick

wall, thickly covered with ivy, which has concealed the various nooks

and crannies brought about by the winter's frosts and the heat of the

summer sun. In such a place the Pied Wagtail delights to build his nest.

Although not strictly speaking a migrant, for some individuals spend the

whole year with us, he nevertheless appears with unfailing regularity

towards the end of April at his accustomed haunt, and probably brings

his mate with him, for we seldom see more than a pair together at their

breeding quarters, and thus quietly, and without any demonstration, the

nest-building is begun. This is usually done in the very early hours of

the morning, and the day is spent in some neighbouring field among the

cattle, with occasional excursions to the side of the stream for the

frequent bath which has earned for this species the name of "Polly

Dishwasher."

[Illustration: PIED WAGTAIL

_Motacilla lugubris_]

When the nest, which is composed of grass and bents lined with

horsehair, is completed, the six grey and speckled eggs are laid and

incubation, which is solely carried on by the hen, begins.

If we did not know the habits of our friend, the first signs of his

presence in the garden would be when he flies up to feed his mate with

some special titbit, and then as he jumps out from the ivy we see him

winging his way with elegant flight across the meadow to his favourite

feeding-ground. In due course the young are hatched, and as the needs of

the growing family become greater, we can often see the parents coming

and going with unceasing energy till night brings compulsory rest to

their labours. When the young leave the nest they are almost immediately

taken into the grass fields, where the flies, attracted by the feeding

cattle, offer them an easy livelihood.

September comes, and in company with the Meadow Pipits, they wander over

the country and along the salt marshes near the sea previous to seeking

other countries, or settling in the warmer parts of England near some

sheltered farm where they may find food until the returning spring

reminds them of their old haunts, or impels the younger generation to

seek a mate and home.

In winter the sexes are alike, and grey in general colour with dark

wings and tail (except the two outer feathers, which are white), while

the inner secondaries are also broadly edged with white; under parts

white.

In summer the chin and back are black, the forehead and a stripe across

the face being white. Length 7·3 in.; wing 3·5 in.

The young bird resembles the adult in winter, but the white portions,

especially on the throat and breast, are tinged with yellowish and the

breast is slightly spotted.

This bird is generally distributed throughout the British Isles, rarer

in the north and resident in the warmer portions of the south and west.

WHITE WAGTAIL

Motacilla alba, Linnæus

This is the Continental form of the preceding species, which passes

through the country every year on migration and occasionally stays to

breed. In habits it is precisely similar to its congener the Pied

Wagtail. It may be distinguished by its rather lighter colour, and in

summer it retains the light grey back but assumes the black chin.

The females, however, of our own species frequently do not assume a

black back, so that the colour of the back when seen in the field will

not be sufficient to identify this species. When it can be closely

compared it may always be recognised by the clearer grey of the back and

pure grey upper tail coverts. In the Pied Wagtail the mantle has a

greenish tinge, and the proximal tail coverts are nearly black. Length

7·5 in.; wing 3·5 in.

[Illustration: GREY WAGTAIL

_Motacilla melanope_]

GREY WAGTAIL

Motacilla melanope, Pallas

The Grey Wagtail is a close inhabitant of rocky streams, and we have to

go to the more mountainous parts of our islands to find this species "at

home."

Like the Pied Wagtail it is a partial migrant, seeking the warmer

portions in the south and west during the winter and moving back to the

same rushing streams with the return of spring.

The nest is placed in one of the loose stone walls so common near its

haunts, or on the ground in some cleft of the rocks. The eggs resemble

those of the Yellow Wagtail, but are slightly larger.

It is a very handsome bird, the handsomest perhaps of all our Wagtails.

The back and upper parts are of a deep bluish grey: wings and tail

(except the two outer feathers, which are white, a characteristic of all

wagtails), dark brown; under parts clear lemon yellow, paler on the

vent. Length 7 in.; wing 3·3 in.

Female and young resemble the male, but are paler. In summer the male

has a jet black gorget.

This species has a much longer tail than our other species, the Yellow

Wagtail having the shortest tail.

Generally distributed throughout our islands but only found during

summer near rushing torrents, wandering at other times throughout the

country, but always in the vicinity of running water.

The note is very similar to that of the Pied Wagtail.

THE BLUE-HEADED WAGTAIL

Motacilla flava, Linnæus

This species resembles the Yellow Wagtail very closely in all respects,

and is the common Continental "Yellow Wagtail," many different races of

which are found. It occurs yearly in the south-east of England on

migration and sometimes stays to breed.

The adults may be distinguished from our Yellow Wagtail by having the

upper part of the head and neck, including the cheeks, bluish grey and

the stripe over the eye _white_. Young birds are practically

indistinguishable from those of our common species, but the eye stripe

is constantly whiter. Length 6·3 in.; wing 3·2 in.

A closely allied race is _M. beema_, which breeds in Western Siberia and

occurs on migration in India. It is very closely allied to _M. flava_,

but is paler on the head and has the _cheeks_ and chin _white_. This

form has been taken in England on one occasion, viz. in Sussex, in April

1898. Faded and worn specimens of _M. flava_ appear at first sight to

belong to this form, so that excessive caution is necessary before

finally identifying British specimens as belonging to this race.

The Scandinavian form, known as _M. borealis_, with a dark grey crown

and _no_ eye stripe, has been obtained on several occasions, and even

remained to breed in Sussex in 1906.

[Illustration: BLUE-HEADED WAGTAIL

_Motacilla flava_ (left)

Young (centre); var. _melanocejala_ (right)]

_M. cinereocephala_, which has not yet been obtained in England, but

breeds in South Europe from Italy eastwards, may be recognised from _M.

borealis_ by its rather darker head and cheeks and by having the _entire

throat_ white.

Lastly, we have the Black-headed Wagtail, _M. melanocephala_, which

inhabits South-eastern Europe and has a black head with hardly any trace

of an eye stripe, and which was also obtained on the south coast in

1906. In this form the cheeks and under parts, including the chin, are

bright yellow.

THE YELLOW WAGTAIL

Motacilla raii (Bonaparte)

In the flat meadow-lands and pastures intersected by ditches or

bordering some sluggish river, we may see this brilliant little fellow

as he struts about under the feet of the cattle. At one moment he is

running forward to pick some insect off the grass with an audible snap

of his slender bill, and the next jumping up to seize, after the manner

of the Flycatcher, some winged insect that has come within range of his

sharp eyes.

This bird is a true migrant, reaching our shores during the latter half

of April and leaving us again in September. The males arrive, as is the

case with so many species, a few days before the hens, and on their

arrival nest-building is begun without further delay. The site chosen is

on the ground in the middle of an open field and generally near some

upturned sod or in the deep footprints of the cattle. A few grass stems

loosely laid together and lined with horsehair suffices for a nest, and

the eggs, five to six in number, are of a pale clay-brown with no spots

or markings. The birds are very shy when at the nest, leaving it long

before the intruder has approached, and only running on again when he is

well away. The young are fed exclusively on insects, and when they are

fledged remain in their summer home till shorter days and colder nights

warn them that autumn has come. Old and young then collect in enormous

numbers in the salt marshes along the sea-shore, until with favourable

weather they pass on to warmer and more congenial climes.

The male above is of a uniform bright greenish yellow, with a yellow eye

stripe; under parts bright lemon yellow. Females and young are similar

but duller, the latter sometimes showing in autumn some dark spots on

the breast. Length 6·25 in.; wing 3·15 in.

This bird is distributed in suitable localities throughout England, with

the exception of the extreme south-west. In Wales it is chiefly seen on

migration, and in Ireland it is only found nesting in a few places. In

Scotland it does not nest north of Perthshire, and to the north of the

Great Glen it is only a rare straggler. Abroad it is confined to

North-west France and the Iberian peninsula, wandering in winter to West

Africa.

THE TREE PIPIT

Anthus trivialis (Linnæus)

[Illustration: TREE PIPIT

_Anthus trivialis_

(left)

MEADOW PIPIT

_Anthus pratensis_

(right)]

Arriving in April with our other summer visitors, the Tree Pipit may be

found fairly commonly throughout England and Scotland, but becomes

scarcer in the north. It has not yet been known to visit Ireland. It may

be heard singing its pretty little song near the outskirts of woods, or

in fields bordered by trees. This is usually uttered on the wing when,

having sprung some distance into the air, it descends with fluttering

wings and open tail to the same perch on the top of the tree from which

it started. Most of its food is sought on the ground, and consists

almost entirely of insects. The nest is placed in the middle of a field,

or more preferably in some bank or railway cutting, and is composed of

roots and bents with a little moss and lined with finer bents and hair.

The eggs are generally six in number and vary considerably, the

commonest variety being greenish white with bold blurred markings of

dark brown at their larger end, another variety resembles this in

markings but is suffused with reddish, while a third variety is

uniformly and closely mottled with reddish brown.

In appearance, though not in habits, this bird somewhat resembles a

lark. The upper parts are sandy brown with dark brown streaks, the wing

coverts darker with conspicuous pale edging to the median ones. Chin

white, breast and flanks buff with darker markings, rest of under parts

white. Tail feathers dark brown except the two outer pairs, which show a

considerable amount of white. Hind claw short and curved. The sexes are

alike, but the female is slightly smaller. The young are rather more

spotted. Length 6 in.; wing 3·3 in.

Common in England and south of Scotland, rather scarcer in Wales and

rare in North Scotland. Does not visit Ireland.

THE MEADOW PIPIT

Anthus pratensis (Linnæus)

Bleak and dreary moorlands, or wide wind-swept marshes and water meadows

form the haunts of this bird at all seasons of the year. Hatched in a

neat nest, placed on the ground and carefully concealed under a tussock

of grass, the young Meadow Pipit is assiduously fed by both its parents

on insects, and his cradle would be most difficult to discover were it

not that the parents, in their anxiety, hover round the spot calling out

"peet, peet" in a plaintive and pained manner. The nest is made of grass

and bents lined with finer grass and hair, and the clutch usually

consists of six eggs, which are of a uniform brownish grey colour,

frequently mottled or clouded with a darker shade and having sometimes a

narrow black hair streak at their larger end. Several broods are reared

during the season. After quitting the nest, they remain about their

home, feeding on insects or small seeds and joining in flocks with the

Wagtails and others of their own kind. Towards September they become

restless and slowly move southwards, the majority quitting our shores

for warmer climates; their place is, however, soon taken by wanderers

from farther north that stay with us, braving our winter gales. They are

graceful little birds, running about the fields rather like a Wagtail,

picking up an insect from a blade of grass, or jumping up in the air and

catching a fly as it hurries along in the genial warmth of a summer's

day. But on a winter's day, when the south-wester blows up the clouds

and sweeps the rain across the desolate meadows, they seem equally happy

and at home, and rising at one's feet from the shelter of a tussock fly

off to another shelter, their "peet, peet" adding a harmonious touch of

life to the discordant elements. In spring our summer visitors return,

and then we may watch him as, full of energy, he rises some distance

into the air and gradually descends with fluttering wings and outspread

tail, singing his somewhat feeble song.

The adult is olive brown above, each feather having a darker centre,

except on the rump and upper tail coverts; wing coverts margined with

white; there is a narrow white eye stripe. Under parts buffish white

streaked with brown on the throat, breast, and flanks. In autumn both

old and young are much more buff coloured. The sexes are alike Length

5·75 in.; wing 3·1 in.

THE RED-THROATED PIPIT

Anthus cervinus (Pallas)

Less than half-a-dozen individuals of this species, which breed in the

far north of Europe and Asia, and winter in tropical Africa, have

visited us, and with one exception they have all been taken on the

shores of Kent or Sussex.

It closely resembles the Meadow Pipit, but in the breeding season the

sides of the neck and breast in both sexes are vinous chestnut. All our

examples, however, have been immature birds, which are extremely

difficult to distinguish from our common species.

The feathers of the rump form, however, the most distinctive character

in this species; they have dark centres like those of the mantle, but in

the Meadow Pipit, as we pointed out above, these feathers are of a

uniform olive brown. Length 5·8 in.; wing 3·5 in.

THE TAWNY PIPIT

Anthus campestris (Linnæus)

The Tawny Pipit is a regular summer visitor to the sand-dunes and arid

wastes of Europe, breeding in some numbers no farther from our shores

than the north of France and Holland. It winters in Africa. To England

it has only been a scarce straggler, single examples having been

obtained in autumn on our southern and eastern shores from the Scilly

Islands as far north as Yorkshire. During the last year or two there is

evidence that it may have bred in Sussex, adult pairs of birds having

remained about the same spot during part of the summer till they were

shot.

The general colour is pale sandy brown with dull darker centres to the

feathers. Two outer pairs of tail feathers white with brown margins to

their inner webs, rest of the tail brown. Under parts warm buff,

slightly striated with brown on the breast and paler on the belly.

Length 6·5 in.; wing 3·6 in.

RICHARD'S PIPIT

Anthus richardi, Vieillot

This eastern species breeds in Turkestan, Siberia, and Mongolia, but a

large number yearly visit Europe during the autumn migration. In England

a good many examples have been obtained, and closer observation may

prove it to be a regular autumn migrant along our eastern and southern

seaboard, as it is abundant on Heligoland every year. It has occurred

once in Scotland and once in Ireland.

It is a large bird and may be distinguished by its long hind claw; when

seen on the wing it appears very dark. The feathers of the upper parts

are sandy brown with dark centres, but the rump is of a nearly uniform

brown. Wing coverts tipped with reddish buff. Outer pair of tail

feathers white with dusky margins to the inner webs, in the next pair

the dusky margin is much broader, remainder of the tail feathers very

dark brown. Chin white, margined with brown spots; breast buffish and

thickly spotted; belly white. Length 7·25 in.; wing 3·75 in.

THE WATER PIPIT

Anthus spipoletta (Linnæus)

The Water Pipit breeds in the Alps, Pyrenees, and other mountain ranges

of Central Europe, migrating in winter to the shores of the

Mediterranean. A few odd stragglers have been taken in this country both

in the spring and autumn migrations.

The upper parts are of a uniform greyish brown; under parts buff, paler

on the belly and browner on the flanks. There is a short light stripe

immediately above the eye. The tail feathers are brown, except the outer

vane of the exterior pair and the tips of the second pair, which are

white. This forms at all seasons and ages a mark by which this species

may be distinguished from the Rock Pipit.

THE ROCK PIPIT

Anthus obscurus (Latham)

This species, which very closely resembles the Meadow Pipit but is

slightly larger, is found along the rocky coasts of our islands.

It is strictly an inhabitant of the sea-shore and never wanders inland,

but finds its food, which consists of flies, small mollusca, and marine

insects, on the beach and rocks or among the rough tangle of sea-weed

left dry by the retreating tide. The nest is placed on the ground, in

some crevice of the rocks, or in a grassy bank, and the eggs, large for

the size of the bird, are pale greenish grey, uniformly and densely

mottled with olive brown. This species is largely migratory, and after

the breeding season wanders round the whole of our coasts, inhabiting in

winter the salt marshes and estuaries of our eastern and southern

counties, as well as the more rocky portions of our shores.

Its song and call-note are almost indistinguishable from that of the

Meadow Pipit, and if the nest be approached it flies restlessly from

rock to rock, calling out all the time, but does not hover round in the

air like the commoner species.

Birds from Scandinavia, Denmark, and the Baltic are distinguishable from

our form, which is also found on the adjacent coast of France, in being

of a vinous tint on the breast during the breeding season. The

Scandinavian form may be found sparingly on our shores during migration.

The sexes are alike in plumage. The general colour above is olive brown

with dark centres to the feathers; the under parts are greenish buff

streaked with brown on the breast and flanks. The tail is brown, except

the outer webs of the tail feathers, which are smoky grey, and this

forms an easy characteristic by which this species may be distinguished

from the Water Pipit, which it otherwise closely resembles. Length 6·25

in.; wing 3·5 in.

THE GOLDEN ORIOLE

Oriolus galbula, Linnæus

There is little doubt that this beautiful species, if unmolested, would

become a regular summer visitor to this country. Every year during the

spring migration several of these birds are seen and shot, chiefly in

our southern and south-western counties, and there is no doubt that it

has on several occasions successfully reared its young in this country.

Its brilliant colouring unfortunately attracts the eye and the gun of

those whose sole thought on seeing a rare bird is to kill it, and the

large mass of nature lovers are thus deprived of the pleasure of a

glimpse of this brilliant bird.

It breeds commonly over most of Europe, throughout France, Germany, and

Russia, but is scarce along the countries bordering the North Sea.

The nest is suspended from the fork of a branch of some tree, usually in

woods, and is a carefully woven structure of strips of bark and grass

stems. The eggs are white with a few large black spots.

The male is golden yellow all over, except for the quills, wing coverts,

and lores, which are black. The central pair of tail feathers are black,

all the rest being black with yellow tips. Bill red. Legs lead grey. The

female is greenish yellow and has the under parts striated with greyish.

The young is still duller in colour than the female. Length 9·5 in.;

wing 6 in.

THE GREAT GREY SHRIKE

Lanius excubitor, Linnæus

Every autumn towards the end of October a certain number of these birds

regularly visit us, occurring more commonly on our eastern coasts, but

having nevertheless been taken in most of our counties. In habits it

resembles its small congener the Red-backed Shrike, and may be seen

sitting on some point of vantage from which it may dash off to attack

its unsuspecting victims.

This species, or various races of it, breed throughout Northern and

Central Europe and Asia. It migrates on the approach of winter from the

more northerly quarters, but its wanderings rarely extend to the shores

of the Mediterranean.

The male is pearl grey in general colour, lighter on the scapulars;

forehead and a line over each eye white; lores and ear coverts black.

Wings black, with white tips and bases to the secondaries and inner

primaries. Tail feathers black with white tips, except the outermost,

which are pure white. Under parts white. Bill and legs black. Length 9·5

in.; wing 4·3 in. Female duller with faint greyish bars on the under

parts.

THE LESSER GREY SHRIKE

Lanius minor, J. F. Gmelin

The main home of this species, of which only a few examples on migration

have been taken in this country, is South and Central Europe as far west

as the valley of the Rhone.

In habits it does not differ from its congeners, and is excessively

savage and pugnacious, especially during the nesting season.

It roughly resembles the preceding species in plumage, but may be

distinguished by its smaller size, black forehead, and the white bases

to the tail feathers and primaries, which latter form a broad bar. An

unfailing characteristic, however, of this species, distinguishing it

from all other Shrikes, is the wing formula; the first or bastard

primary being very short, while the second nearly equals the third and

longest primary. Length 8·5 in.; wing 4·6 in.

THE RED-BACKED SHRIKE

Lanius collurio, Linnæus

Arriving during the early part of May, this species is fairly common in

our southern and south-eastern counties and in Wales during the summer

months. In the northern counties its appearances are irregular, and on

one occasion only has it been seen in Ireland.

One can somehow feel but little affection for this fine but cruel bird;

it is not his fault to be in that stage of evolution in which as an

insect-feeder he aims at higher prey than that with which he is

successfully able to deal. Bold and pugnacious, he sits on the top of

some thick hawthorn hedge, dashing down from his point of observation on

some mouse, bird, or lizard nearly as large as himself.

After a tussle the hapless victim is carried off and impaled on a thorn

near its captor's nest, to be eaten at a future time; it is these

larders of impaled victims that have earned for him the name of Butcher

Bird. Beetles, bees, and insects of all kinds are also included in his

menu, and young half-fledged birds are considered a great delicacy.

[Illustration: RED-BACKED SHRIKE

_Lanius collurio_

Adult male, female, and young]

The nest is a large and loose structure of twigs, roots, and moss; it is

lined with hair and wool, and placed about eight or ten feet from the

ground in a thick hawthorn hedge. The eggs are usually of a pale green

colour, with a zone or band of olive brown mottlings round the larger

end. In some districts a variety is found in which the ground colour is

pinkish and the markings reddish brown. The Shrike has no song, but

makes a great variety of harsh noises and chucklings as it sits on its

post of vantage, bending down and flirting his tail at the same time.

The call-note is a harsh "chack." Like the Swift, Cuckoo, and several

other species, he does not stay with us long, but having reared his

brood, the whole family wander south, and soon leave our shores.

The adult male has the crown, nape, and upper tail coverts grey; frontal

band, lores, and ear coverts black; back chestnut; tail feathers black,

all except the central pair with white bases; under parts rose buff.

The female has the upper parts brown, mantle rufous, with small narrow

black crescentic bars on the feathers; under parts greyish white barred

like the mantle. The young bird resembles the female, but is more

barred. Length 7 in.; wing 3·7 in.

THE WOODCHAT

Lanius pomeranus, Sparrman

Single examples of this species have from time to time visited the

southern and eastern counties of England during migration, and possibly

they may have nested on one or two occasions. It is a common and

abundant breeding species in Southern and Central Europe, from whence it

migrates in winter to tropical Africa.

The forehead, lores, ear coverts, and sides of the neck and back are

black; crown of the head chestnut; scapulars white; wings blackish,

primaries with white bases, secondaries and coverts tipped with white;

and upper tail coverts grey turning to whitish; tail feathers black

tipped with white; under parts whitish. The female is duller and tinged

with rufous on the upper parts. Length 7·1 in.; wing 3·8 in.

THE MASKED SHRIKE

Lanius nubicus, Licht.

This is a south-eastern species, one example of which was shot in Kent

in July 1905.

It is a rather smaller bird than any of our other Shrikes. The upper

parts are chiefly black; scapulars, speculum, and a band across the

forehead white. Chin, throat, and under tail coverts white; flanks and

breast ferruginous. Length 6·8 in.; wing 3·5 in.

THE WAXWING

Ampelis garrulus, Linnæus

[Illustration: WAXWING

_Ampelis garrulus_

Adult (left). Young (right)]

Breeding as far north as the limit of tree growth will allow, the

Waxwing is only known in these islands as an irregular winter visitor.

It migrates yearly to South-east France, Italy, and Turkey, and only

under stress of weather do its migrations extend westwards, so as to

include our islands. Its food consists chiefly of berries, though

insects also form no insignificant part of its diet. When in these

islands it will usually be found in plantations. It is a short thick-set

bird, having a steady and rapid flight when on the wing. The general

colour is greyish brown, and it has a flat and backwardly-directed crest

that can be erected at will. The accompanying plate gives so good an

idea of this bird, which has no affinities with any other species, that

further description is unnecessary. The sexes are alike, but in the

males the vermilion waxtips of the quill and tail feathers, to which it

owes its popular name, are larger and more numerous.

In fully adult birds the yellow line of the outer vein of the primaries

is continued on the inner vein, forming an arrow-shaped marking. Length

7·5 in.; wing 4·5 in.

THE SPOTTED FLYCATCHER

Muscicapa grisola, Linnæus

Dull in colour and lacking in vocal ability, this bird makes up for

these deficiencies by his tameness and fascinating ways. It does not

reach this country till early in May, while in backward seasons it is

the end of that month before the main bulk of them have arrived at their

summer quarters. It is common throughout these islands, nesting in

gardens and woods, and feeds entirely on small insects, which are

invariably captured on the wing. The nest, which is placed against a

tree, in ivy near a wall, or frequently on the beam in a verandah or

outhouse, is composed entirely of moss loosely felted together with

cobwebs and lichens, and is lined with horsehair and a few feathers. The

eggs are bluish, mottled and spotted with rusty red spots. From its

quiet ways and unobtrusive plumage they often escape observation, even

in the vicinity of the nest, on which the female sits very closely. The

cock, however, may often be seen on his favourite perch, generally a

dead bough, or some wire railings, from which he darts down constantly

to seize some unfortunate insect that has attracted his attention, after

which he immediately returns to his perch to wait for more. When the

young are hatched his time is fully occupied in catering for their

wants, and we may miss him, or only see him for shorter periods, as it

becomes increasingly necessary for him to keep on the move and find his

food instead of waiting until the unsuspecting prey comes to him.

In July and August, however, when family cares are over, we shall see a

good deal of this species; both old and young chasing insects from

various exposed perches, and announcing the successful capture by a

telling snap of the bill. Towards the end of August, long before lack of

food or storms toll the knell of departing summer, they start on their

long journey to the south; we may not have taken much notice of them

while they were with us, but their departure leaves a gap, and we then

realise the part they played in the picture of a summer's garden.

[Illustration: SPOTTED FLYCATCHER

_Muscicapa grisola_

Adult (right). Young (left)]

The upper parts are tan brown, with dark streaks on the crown, and pale

margins to the wing coverts. Under parts whitish, streaked on the

throat, breast, and flanks with brown. The sexes are alike in plumage.

The young are similar in colour to the parents, but spotted with buff.

Length 5·8 in.; wing 3·3 in.

THE PIED FLYCATCHER

Muscicapa atricapilla, Linnæus

Similar in habits but different in appearance, the Pied Flycatcher is

much rarer and more local than the preceding species. Its breeding

haunts are chiefly in the west, in Wales, Lancashire, Westmoreland, and

Cumberland, though it has occasionally bred in other counties. As a

migrant, however, it occurs regularly in the south and east, and, though

not very numerous, a goodly number pass through the country, entering by

the south coast and leaving again in the east from Norfolk northwards. A

return migration takes place in August and September.

During these migrations it may, of course, be found in various kinds of

country, but its breeding haunts are restricted to well-wooded spots,

gardens, orchards, and the outskirts of woods.

The song is more elaborate than that of the Spotted Flycatcher, but it

is by no means a great effort, and may be syllabled "tzit tzit tze trui

trui trui!" several times repeated. The nest is always placed in some

hole, usually in a tree, though exceptionally in the crevice of a wall;

it is composed of bents and moss, and lined with feathers and hair. The

eggs, sometimes numbering as many as nine, are of a uniform pale blue.

Insects form its chief diet, but it is not so exclusive an insect-feeder

as the preceding species, nor does it seize so much of its food on the

wing, but frequently drops from its perch to pick a spider or other

creeping thing from the ground.

In spring the male is black, with a white forehead and white outer

margins to the secondaries. The under parts are white. The female has

the upper parts olive brown, and those parts which are white in the

male, rather buffish in tint. The young bird is spotted, but after the

first moult it resembles the female, except that the wing patches in the

male are more distinct. The young male assumes his full plumage at his

first spring moult. Length 5 in.; wing 3·1 in.

THE RED-BREASTED FLYCATCHER

Muscicapa parva, Bechstein

This species is of irregular and local distribution in Eastern Europe as

far west as certain portions of Germany and South-east France, and it is

only a few stragglers, driven out of their course by adverse weather or

carried along by a rush of other migrants, that reach our coast.

In size it resembles our common species of Flycatcher, but differs in

coloration. The adult males are of a uniform greyish brown above, with

ashy grey cheeks and with the chin and throat reddish orange. The

females and young lack the ash grey on the head, and the reddish orange

of the chin and breast is very much paler. Young males do not acquire

the red breast for two or three years. The four outer pairs of tail

feathers have conspicuous white bases. Length 5·1 in.; wing 2·8 in.

THE SWALLOW

Hirundo rustica, Linnæus

Perhaps one of the greatest mysteries surrounding bird life, and

awaking, even in the most unthinking, some sense of wonder, is the way

in which some of the smallest and most delicate of birds cross enormous

stretches of land and water twice a year. This mystery of migration has

been especially typified in many countries and from olden times in the

Swallow. Essentially a bird of the air, choosing the houses of man for

nesting-places, and extremely abundant throughout our islands, he cannot

fail to force himself on our attention and to become so associated in

our minds with summer days that his first appearance in spring is

eagerly looked for. As soon as the March winds have died down the first

few stragglers make their appearance, and the early October gales are

well over before the last has left.

During the whole of April they continue to arrive and disperse through

the country, and by the beginning of May we shall find them revisiting

the same chimney or eave where their brood was hatched in the previous

year. They have but a feeble love-song, merely a rapid twittering, which

is especially indulged in during the early hours of dawn, while waiting

for the sun to call to life the flies and gnats on which they breakfast.

Choosing a beam in a barn or outhouse, or a projecting brick in some old

chimney as support, they build a neat cup-shaped nest of mud

strengthened with straw to bind it together, and line it with bents, dry

grass, and feathers. The eggs, generally six in number, are of a white

ground colour dotted or blotched with reddish brown. The duties of

incubation devolve on the hen, who is frequently fed by her mate, but

soon after the young are hatched and she is free once more to seek her

own food, both parents take their share in the duties of housekeeping.

This bird, eminently adapted for flight, with long pointed wings and

short feeble legs, is hardly ever still. Round and round he circles,

sometimes high, sometimes low, wherever food is most abundant, only

perching for a few moments on some bare twig or telegraph wire to warble

his twittering little song, and then once again to glide with graceful

ease through the pathless air. Two families are generally brought to

maturity, but he is in no hurry to leave his home and so he stays on

well into the autumn.

Previous to his departure, however, we will see them collecting in large

flocks at certain places, and for once they seem eager to economise

their strength, spending much of the day sitting and resting. This goes

on for a few days and then suddenly they all disappear, and we shall see

them no more till next spring. Where have they gone, and how? By what

instinct will they find their way over hundreds of miles of sea,

perhaps, for the first time, and yet again in due season return to their

birthplace? By what power will they be able to undertake so long a

journey and not fall exhausted on the way? Such are some of the

questions that force themselves upon us, and our inability to answer

them helps to keep alive that spirit of wonder and reverence for the

powers of nature that is too apt to be overlooked in this matter-of-fact

twentieth century.

Its colour above is of a deep metallic blue; forehead and throat dark

chestnut; pectoral band blue, rest of under parts buffish pink, somewhat

variable in tint. Tail forked, the outermost pair much longer than the

rest, and all except the central pair with white patches on the inner

webs. In the female the outer tail feathers are shorter and the chestnut

less intense. The young are duller, and the chestnut on the throat is

very pale. Length 7·5 in.; wing 4·9 in.

RED-RUMPED SWALLOW

Hirundo rufula, Temminck.

This species is found in Southern Europe west of Italy through Asia

Minor to Persia and Afghanistan. An adult male was picked up dead on

Fair Isle near the Shetlands early in June 1906.

It may easily be recognised from our own Swallow in having the tail

black; rump, nape and sides of neck, rusty red; and the under parts

rufous finely streaked with black. Length 7 in.; wing 4·8 in.

THE HOUSE-MARTIN

Chelidon urbica (Linnæus)

More local and less abundant than the preceding species, from which it

may always be distinguished by its white rump and shorter tail, the

House-Martin is nevertheless sufficiently common to be familiar to every

one.

In habits, except for its method of nest-building, it closely resembles

the Swallow. It arrives about a week later, and stragglers may sometimes

be seen even as late as November, long after the bulk of their comrades

have departed. These stragglers are either family parties that have

delayed their departure till the young were ready to fly, or more often

inhabitants of the far north passing through on their long journey to

the tropics.

Nest-building is not commenced till the middle of May, and by this time

many of last year's nests, which they would fain repair, are tenanted by

that abominable pest--the Sparrow. The nest is built entirely of mud,

plastered bit by bit against the side of some house which has

overhanging eaves. No straw is used to bind it together, but it is

gradually built up to join the eaves till only a small hole is left as a

doorway. The lining is composed of fine grass and many feathers, and the

eggs, which rarely exceed four in number, are pure white. At least two

broods are reared in the season, and then as the weather gets colder

they gradually collect near rivers, where their food, in the shape of

flies and gnats, is more abundant, till finally, after assembling like

the Swallows in large flocks, they suddenly take their departure.

The whole of the upper parts, except the rump, which is white, are

glossy blue-black; the under parts, including the feathers on the feet,

white. The tail is very slightly forked. The sexes are alike in plumage.

The young resemble their parents, but lack the gloss and are

consequently brownish. They may also be recognised by having white tips

to the inner secondaries. Length 5·3 in.; wing 4·25 in.

[Illustration: SAND-MARTIN

_Cotile riparia_

Adult (right). Young (left)]

THE SAND-MARTIN

Cotile riparia (Linnæus)

This hardy little wanderer, the smallest and dullest of the Swallow

tribe, braves our climate ere the March winds have ceased. At first he

is generally found in the neighbourhood of water, but he gradually

spreads over the country and eventually assembles in the sand-pits or

gravel banks, where he makes his home. Though not attaching himself to

the dwellings of man, he is a sociable little bird and breeds in

colonies, which are in some places very large. They nest in tunnels

which they excavate for themselves in the perpendicular face of a

sand-pit. These tunnels are straight and narrow with a slightly enlarged

chamber at the end. Their length varies from eighteen inches to three

feet, and the different passages occasionally meet and may be used in

common by two pairs. A slight lining of bents and feathers are added,

and the eggs, five in number, are pure white and somewhat pear-shaped.

When the breeding season is over they scatter through the country,

keeping largely to the courses of large rivers, and by the end of

September have almost all departed to other climes.

The sexes are alike and have the upper parts brown. The under parts are

white, with the exception of a brown pectoral band. There is a small

tuft of buff-coloured feathers above the hind toe. In the young the

feathers of the back have pale margins. Length 4·8 in.; wing 4 in.

THE GREENFINCH

Ligurinus chloris (Linnæus)

Were it not so common, occurring abundantly throughout these islands,

this bird would be appreciated as one of our prettiest songsters and by

no means unattractive in plumage.

The winter is spent in company with other Finches and Buntings in the

fields or stackyards, where it feeds on the grain and other seeds, and

we must confess that it performs its share in despoiling the farmer of

his hard-earned produce, paying at the same time a sort of compensation

in the destruction of numerous weeds. It is resident, and towards the

middle of April constructs a somewhat untidy nest of twigs, rootlets,

and moss, lined with grass, hair, and feathers, usually placed at a

moderate height in a hedge, against the bole of a tree, or more rarely

among ivy against a wall. The eggs, six in number, are large for the

size of the bird and very pale blue, spotted, especially towards the

larger end, with pale rust-red spots. During the summer large numbers of

grubs and caterpillars are consumed in addition to the usual seeds; the

young are fed by regurgitation. The call-note is a long drawn-out

"tsweer," and is uttered with monotonous frequency during the spring and

summer months, but it has also a very pretty warbling song full of

little trills and modulations which it utters when sitting on a branch

or when courting its mate with drooping wings and outspread tail, and

every feather on its body quivering with excitement and passion.

[Illustration: GREENFINCH

_Ligurinus chloris_

Male (below). Female (above)]

The male has the upper parts olive green, rather yellower on the rump

and forehead. There is a golden-yellow eye-stripe. The wing feathers are

dark brown with bright yellow outer margins. Tail feathers, except the

central pair, which are black, yellow at their base with black tips.

Under parts greenish yellow, rather darker on the flanks. The females

are much duller than the males and very brown on the upper parts in

winter. The young are brownish yellow, streaked on the breast with

darker brown. The males do not acquire their full plumage till their

second year. Length 6 in.; wing 3·5 in.; but some examples are much

smaller.

THE HAWFINCH

Coccothraustes vulgaris, Pallas

This fine and handsome species, whose appearance is only marred by the

excessive size of its beak, is by no means so rare as it is usually

considered. It is found locally in most wooded districts of England, but

becomes scarcer in the north and is decidedly rare in Wales. To Scotland

and Ireland it is, however, only a rare and occasional wanderer.

Extremely shy, avoiding the haunts of man, and keeping to the tops of

high trees, its presence is very difficult to detect, and the call-note,

which is a weak and high-pitched "sit," would not attract attention

unless specially listened for.

The nest, which is built fairly high up near the top of a tall hedge or

in a tree, a tall hawthorn being an especial favourite, is composed of

fine twigs lined with rootlets, and much resembles that of a Bullfinch,

except that the cup is considerably deeper. The eggs are extremely

handsome, being of a bluish green, boldly blotched and streaked with

black or olive grey. This bird has one weakness which leads to his

destruction, namely, a great fondness for green peas, in search of

which, forgetting his usual caution, he will leave his haunts to forage

in the nearest garden, where as often as not he pays for his rashness

with his life.

His food consists almost entirely of seeds and berries, insects forming

a very small portion of his diet. In winter he collects in small family

parties and wanders about from wood to wood but seldom strays very far

from home.

The male has the back brown, becoming lighter on the rump; the upper

wing coverts blackish; median coverts whitish. Wing feathers black with

white patches on the inner webs and steel-blue tips, the inner primaries

being curiously expanded at their tips. Tail feathers with black bases

and white tips. The head is yellowish brown, paler on the forehead; nape

grey; lores, chin, and a narrow stripe at the base of the bill black.

Under parts brown. Bill deep lead colour in summer, horn coloured with

black tips in winter. The female is much duller. The young have the head

yellowish; mantle mottled brown; under parts white spotted and barred

with dull brown. Length 7 in; wing 4 in.

THE GOLDFINCH

Carduelis elegans, Stephens

A cold autumn day, the clouds hang lowering in the sky; on one side

flows the river, sullen, dark, and swollen by the recent rains, on the

other stretch wild and bare meadows whose flat level is broken by clumps

of nettles, thistles, and other coarse plants distasteful to cattle. One

thing alone breaks the general dreariness--it is a flock of Goldfinches,

who, as they hang in strange attitudes on the thistle heads, show the

bright yellow of their wings, making it appear as though some plant,

forgetful of the season, was about to burst into flower. As we approach

to get a closer view, first one and then another will rise and in

undulating flight move on to another clump and call his companions to a

fresh hunting-ground with his little "ti-whit!" His bright colours and

the ease with which he adapts himself to cage life have led to a great

diminution in his numbers, in addition to which the higher and more

scientific methods of farming have sadly restricted his feeding-grounds.

Legislation, however, has stepped in, so that, although still a

comparatively local bird, he is steadily increasing in numbers, and we

have reason to hope that he may long remain a welcome inhabitant of our

fields. The whole winter is spent roaming about on waste lands feeding

on seeds or berries, and destroying countless weeds which would

otherwise overrun the land. In spring the flocks break up, and our

friend returns to the orchard or garden where he nested the previous

year. He constructs an open cup-shaped nest of moss, bents, and small

twigs fairly high up in some tree, often covering the outside with

lichen to assimilate better with its surroundings. The lining consists

chiefly of hair and thistle-down, and the eggs are blue, spotted and

streaked, especially at their larger ends, with reddish brown. The young

are fed at first by the regurgitation of half-digested food from the

crops of their parents, and at this time of year a large number of

insects are consumed. Two broods are often raised during the season, and

then the family party wanders out into the open fields to seek their

food, returning at night to the gardens, till they get gradually farther

and farther from home and no longer visit their summer haunt till the

following spring.

This bird is so well and generally known that no detailed description is

necessary. The female may be distinguished by her more slender bill and

brownish shoulders, (lesser wing coverts). In the adult male the

shoulders are jet black, but young males sometimes show traces of brown.

The young, known as "grey pates," are greyish brown on the upper parts

and lack the characteristic markings on the head. The true Russian

Goldfinches are rather larger in size and have a nearly white rump. The

true "Siberian Goldfinch," which is seldom or never imported, lacks the

black on the head. Length 5 in.; wing 3 in. Many of the Goldfinches sold

by dealers as Russian and Siberian are merely large fine birds of our

native species, probably imported from abroad.

[Illustration: GOLDFINCH

_Carduelis elegans_

Male (left). Female (centre). Young (right)]

There are various varieties known to dealers as cheverels, bastard

cheverels, pea-throat, etc., which differ from the usual form in having

the throat white or partially so. They sometimes command a higher price,

as they are said to have a finer song, but this is by no means

necessarily the case.

THE SISKIN

Carduelis spinus (Linnæus)

Though nearly allied to the Goldfinch, this bird is very different in

appearance, being much smaller and of a yellowish green with black

markings. Scotland is its chief home, where it lives among the

fir-trees, making excursions daily into the open country to seek its

food. In winter it wanders through our islands, but is never very

abundant and always irregular in its visits. It has occasionally nested

in fir plantations in the South of England, but it is only in the

north-east corner of Scotland that it may be considered a common

breeding species. The nest is placed near the top of a fir-tree or at

the end of a lateral branch at some distance from the ground. The

materials are similar to those used by the Goldfinch, and the eggs also

bear a close resemblance to those of that species, but are slightly

smaller. It has a pretty little song, rather more melodious and varied

than that of the Goldfinch, and when courting will frequently rise in

the air and slowly descend with fluttering wings and outspread tail.

Aphides, when in season, form a large portion of their diet, and from

this point of view they prove themselves of great service to man; for

the rest, any seed or berry is eaten, but from their habit of seeking

their food in the open the seeds of weeds and grasses are chiefly

consumed.

The general colour above is greenish yellow streaked with black, except

for the rump, which is brighter and unstreaked. The head is darker and

there is a yellow superciliary stripe. The quills and wing coverts are

black with yellowish margins. Tail feathers yellow with broad black

tips. Chin black, upper breast bright greenish yellow; rest of under

parts yellowish streaked with black, especially on the flanks. The

female is much duller, the prevailing tint being greyish green streaked

with dull brown. The black chin of the male is a variable feature.

Length 4·6 in.; wing 2·8 in.

THE CITRIL FINCH

Chrysomitris citrinella (Linnæus)

The Citril Finch inhabits the mountainous regions of Central and

Southern Europe, migrating southwards in winter. A specimen was taken

alive in January 1904 near Yarmouth.

The nape and sides of the neck are greyish; back dull green with dusky

streaks; wings and tail black; the whole of the rest of the plumage

yellowish green. The female is rather duller. Length 4·8 in.; wing 3 in.

THE SERIN

Serinus hortulanus, K. L. Koch

Breeding throughout the greater part of Central and Eastern Europe,

there is no great improbability that some, at all events, of the few

examples of this species that have been obtained in England are genuine

stragglers and not birds that have escaped from captivity. They have

mostly occurred on our southern or eastern coasts, with the single

exception of one taken near Dublin.

The forehead, rump, throat, and breast are yellow; upper parts and

flanks olive streaked with brown; belly white. The female and young only

differ from the male in being duller, and in winter both sexes exhibit

far less yellow. Length 4·5 in.; wing 2·7 in.

THE HOUSE-SPARROW

Passer domesticus (Linnæus)

Noisy, quarrelsome, and vicious, will perhaps sum up the character of

this species. Cunning, crafty, hardy, and omnivorous, he is always

literally in clover, and under such circumstances is it to be wondered

at that his numbers have increased so as to be beyond all limits?

Wherever man settles, there, sooner or later, will he make his

appearance, sitting on the roof or in the shrubbery, and uttering,

especially in the mornings, his monotonous and impertinent chirp. In

spring he pulls up the crocuses, later he turns his attention to young

and succulent plants just forcing their way above the ground, or if a

new-sown lawn be the object of one's solicitude he will make it his

business to see that the hoped-for grass-plot remains a barren

tableland. As summer comes on, the drain-pipes are blocked by his untidy

nest--a mere heap of straw and hay warmly lined with feathers. If a tree

or the ivy against the house be chosen for a site, the nest is better

made, and is in fact a substantial dome-built structure with the

entrance at the side, but its position is readily betrayed by long

untidy bits of straw left trailing outside. The eggs are five or six in

number and bluish white spotted and blotched with ash brown. By the end

of summer he will have reared two broods of five or six youngsters each,

and for a time our gardens are allowed a brief respite, while old and

young gather in immense flocks in the harvest-fields, and then following

the grain they spend some weeks round the freshly-made stacks in the

farm-yard. As winter comes on they return once more to towns and

gardens, where, by assuming a cold and starved appearance, they beg and

frequently receive our charity, till the blooming of the spring flowers

once more enables them to start their round of theft and damage. So much

for their relations towards man, and it is to be feared that their

relations towards other birds have also no redeeming point, for they are

so quarrelsome that none of the more delicate and beautiful of our birds

will live near them, and the House-Martin clinging to his home with

pathetic persistence is driven away again and again by this impudent

marauder.

Is there, however, not one good word to be said for him? He is at least

by no means bad-looking--the chestnut of his back, his slate-blue head,

black and white cheeks, and black throat all tend to add a touch of life

and beauty to our gardens which they would otherwise lack; and then in

summer he destroys countless noxious insects while feeding his brood,

and in towns how companionable he is, hopping about our window-sills or

on the roadway, evading the passing traffic with a knowledge born of

long practice--surely these at least are compensations that entitle him

to some regard.

These arguments, however, all fail. Remove the Sparrow and his place

will soon be taken by other birds more beautiful, who will destroy

insects, not merely when they have their broods, but throughout the

year, and they will soon populate our towns and gardens to as great an

extent as the present pest. Remove him? Yes! but how? There's the rub.

Man in the face of the Sparrow is, at present, powerless. True, the

bitter war he deserves is not waged on him in this country, but abroad,

in Australia and America, relentless persecution is carried on, and

though his numbers may be kept in check he is still able to yearly

inflict a loss and damage that can only be measured in millions of

pounds.

At the same time man is largely to blame for this increase. By careful

farming, woods and thickets which should shelter many other species of

birds are cut down or reduced, and thereby a similar reduction of their

inhabitants is created; grain, the Sparrow's favourite food, is

cultivated in enormous quantities, and birds of prey who might tend to

keep the Sparrow within reasonable limits are ruthlessly destroyed.

Under these circumstances, then, is it to be wondered at that the

Sparrow, having a large number of his competitors for food reduced, his

enemies swept away, and unlimited food supplied, should increase beyond

all reasonable bounds, especially if added to this we remember that he

is exceedingly crafty and cunning, soon recognising and avoiding traps

and becoming very difficult to approach in places where he is frequently

shot at. He is at the same time adaptable and able to attach himself to

the dwellings of man, who supplies him (albeit involuntarily) with a

plethora of food; under such conditions his increase is only the result

of one of Nature's first laws, the "survival of the fittest."

This species is too well known to need a description. The female lacks

the black on the throat and the grey and chestnut on the crown, and her

colours generally are much duller. The young approach the female in

general coloration, but young males often show traces of black on the

throat. Length 6 in.; wing 3 in.

TREE-SPARROW

Passer montanus (Linnæus)

[Illustration: TREE-SPARROW

_Passer montanus_]

Although so closely allied to the preceding pest, the Tree-Sparrow is a

bird of very different temperament and habits, and worthy to be numbered

among our bird friends. Many spend the winter with us, but it is

partially migratory, and their numbers are increased each spring by

arrivals from abroad. It is a rather local and scarce bird, but even in

places where they are common they are so shy that they are hardly ever

seen, and are considered in consequence much rarer than really is the

case. It shuns the habitations of man, whether because of the

overpowering insolence of its larger relative or not is a debatable

point, but the fact remains that if we want to see it we must find some

secluded and undisturbed spot. Holes in pollard willows or in some

hedgerow tree are generally chosen for a nesting-site, inside which a

substantial nest of grass abundantly lined with feathers is formed. Five

eggs form the clutch. These are greyish in ground colour, delicately but

thickly mottled with brown, and it is an almost invariable rule that one

egg of a clutch should be conspicuously lighter than the others. Little

is known of the habits of this bird; its food consists chiefly of seeds

and berries, but in summer insects form a large part of its diet and the

young are almost entirely reared on them. Its notes and song very

closely resemble those of its commoner relative but are slightly more

musical and less harsh.

The adult has the crown and nape dark chestnut, rest of upper parts

chestnut with darker centres to the feathers; upper and lower wing

coverts tipped with white and forming two distinct bands. Cheeks white

with a triangular black patch in the centre. Chin and throat black; rest

of under parts greyish white passing to brown on the flanks. Length 5·6

in.; wing 2·75 in. The sexes are alike in plumage. The young are similar

to their parents but duller.

It is a scarce and local species but widely distributed, and doubtless

from its retiring habits and resemblance to the House-Sparrow it is

often overlooked.

THE CHAFFINCH

Fringilla coelebs, Linnæus

"Pink, pink!" Who among us does not know the Chaffinch with his bright

"pink, pink," and perky walk, as he goes down the garden path in front

of us, or flies into the nearest shelter showing off the white bars on

his wings as he does so. No matter how severe the winter or how hot the

summer, he is always with us, a constant visitor to our gardens, and

when we go into the woods and fields we shall still find him equally at

home. Early in February he begins his song, which consists merely of a

short run down the scale ending up in the syllables "de-wi." Pairing

takes place early in the season, but some weeks elapse before he thinks

of nesting, well knowing that the insects so necessary for his young are

not yet born. At the end of April his mate will begin to build the nest,

while her lord and master sits quietly by, encouraging her with his song

but not deigning to soil his beak or feet with honest toil. The site

chosen is very variable; the fork of some giant tree or against the

trunk of a hedgerow elm supported by a lateral shoot are the places most

frequently used, but it is often situated in a hedge, and sometimes in

the ivy against a wall. The nest itself is a beautiful mass of moss,

grass, and wool carefully felted together with cobwebs and thickly lined

with hair, lichens being often added on the outside to make it

assimilate better with the surroundings. The eggs, generally four in

number, are greenish blue, spotted and clouded with deep reddish brown,

but occasionally the markings are entirely absent.

[Illustration: CHAFFINCH

_Fringilla coelebs_]

During incubation the male waits on his hen with great care, bringing

her all the titbits and delicacies in the way of insects which he can

find, and both sexes are assiduous in their attentions to their young.

After the duties of housekeeping are over, the rest of the year is spent

in the woods, hedgerows, and gardens, feeding promiscuously on insects,

seeds, and berries. Towards the middle of October large flocks, in which

sometimes one sex largely predominates, reach our shores from more

northerly breeding haunts; most of these, moving southwards, feed

largely on beech-mast in company with Bramblings and then pass on, but

many remain to keep us company during the winter, till early in spring

they return again to their breeding quarters.

The male has the crown and nape bluish grey; back reddish brown; rump

greenish; upper wing coverts white; greater wing coverts black tipped

with white and forming two conspicuous bars. Wing and tail feathers

black, the former edged with yellowish white, and the two outermost

pairs of the latter spotted with white; cheeks and under parts reddish

brown. Bill horn coloured in winter, deep lead grey in summer. Legs dark

brown. The female is of various shades of yellowish brown, but the white

wing bars are conspicuous. The young at first resemble the female.

Length 6 in.; wing 3·4 in.

THE BRAMBLING

Fringilla montifringilla, Linnæus

This bird, closely allied to the Chaffinch, is only a winter visitor to

this country, visiting us in large numbers every autumn, when it will

usually be found feeding on the beech-mast. In years when the "mast" is

plentiful these birds seem to be much more numerous than in other

seasons, but this is probably due to the fact that, tempted by the

abundance of food, they elect to pass the winter with us instead of

moving on southwards. Frequenting the open field in company with other

Finches, it feeds also largely on seeds and berries, though in summer it

becomes, like the Chaffinch, chiefly insectivorous. Its breeding range

extends across Europe and Asia, in the sub-Arctic birch forests, whence

it migrates southwards through Central Europe, but seldom reaching the

Mediterranean basin. In our islands it is commonest in the north and

east, becoming scarce in the west and south-west. In Ireland it has only

occurred at very irregular intervals. It commences the return journey in

March or earlier, the actual time being largely dependent on the state

of the weather, and by the first week in April the last stragglers have

usually left us.

The male in summer has the head, nape, and upper parts blue black, with

the exception of the rump, which is white. Upper wing coverts orange

buff; greater wing coverts black tipped with white. Throat and breast

orange; belly white; flanks spotted with black. Bill deep lead grey. In

winter the black of the upper parts is largely concealed by broad buff

margins to the feathers and the under parts are much duller. Bill yellow

with a black tip. The female is dull brown on the back and a brownish

white below. The young resemble the female. Length 6·1 in.; wing 3·6 in.

THE SNOW-FINCH

Montifringilla nivalis, Linnæus

A single example of this bird, which inhabits the high mountains of

Central and Southern Europe, was observed consorting with Larks near Rye

in Sussex in February 1905.

The head and neck are grey; upper parts brown with darker centres; wing

coverts, secondaries, and the whole of the under parts white; tail

feathers, except the central pair, which are brown, white tipped with

black; chin black. Length 6·4 in.; wing 4·53 in.

THE LINNET

Linota cannabina (Linnæus)

A delightful little bird of sombre plumage is the Linnet, and as a

cage-bird he has long been a prime favourite. In this country he is

generally distributed and fairly common. Almost any kind of country

suits him--hedges near open and cultivated land, furze-clad commons, or

the wild hillside all afford him shelter and food. In habits he is

gregarious and may be seen during the winter in small parties of from

eight to ten flying from place to place, with cheery twittering, and if

the weather be severe, especially when snow is on the ground, he

collects in enormous flocks of several hundreds. Their food consists of

seeds and berries, though insects are largely eaten during the summer

months. The nest is placed in a furze bush or hedge at no great distance

from the ground, and is a neat and compact structure of grass and bents

bound together with a little moss and wool, and lined with hair, wool,

and feathers. The six eggs are of a delicate pale blue blotched with

moderately large reddish-brown spots. Two broods, at least, are reared

in the season, and when the cares of housekeeping are completed they

wander about at random until the following spring brings a return of

more serious occupation. The song, although very pleasing, cannot be

called great, and is a kind of continuous chuckling which is often

delivered whilst on the wing. The flight is as a rule strong, rapid, and

undulating, the flocks often travelling considerable distances to reach

a favourite feeding-ground or when returning to roost in a

well-sheltered plantation. During the courting season the male indulges

also in a very pretty love flight; he rises some distance in the air and

then slowly descends with rapid flutterings of his wings and out-spread

tail, singing at the same time with all his might.

In autumn large numbers reach us from the Continent, and there is also a

certain amount of emigration among our home-bred birds.

[Illustration: LINNET

_Linota cannabina_

Male (above). Female (below)]

The upper parts in the male are brownish, greyer on the nape and more

rufous on the mantle. Wing and tail feathers black with white outer

margins. Crown of the head and breast deep crimson; flanks brown; belly

white. Length 5·5 in.; wing 3·15 in. In winter the red on the crown and

breast is deep brown and the feathers of those parts have broad

yellowish margins. The female resembles the male on the upper parts, but

the mantle is duller and the white of the primaries is much less in

extent. The under parts are yellowish brown streaked with dark brown,

and the head is also streaked with brown.

The young resemble the female, but are paler.

THE MEALY REDPOLL

Linota linaria (Linnæus)

This species breeds in circumpolar regions far north above the limit of

tree growth, wherever a few dwarf birch or willow afford it enough cover

for nesting, and is only an irregular winter resident in our islands. It

has been subdivided into various races by systematic writers, on

differences which need not concern us here, but although the commonest

form met with in these islands belongs, as we would naturally suppose,

to the North European race, the Greenland form has also been noticed on

several occasions. Wandering through the country in small parties and

associating with our native Redpolls, this species frequents gardens,

stack-yards, or still more frequently, the low scrub that may be found

in many places along the coast. With us its food consists almost

entirely of small seeds, but during the breeding season in the north it

feeds largely on insects. Its stays with us are of short duration, for

it rarely arrives before the first cold weather in November and leaves

our shores again early in February to revisit as soon as possible its

northern home.

It is very similar in general appearance to the following species, but

is larger and paler, especially on the rump. Length 5·1 in.; wing 2·9

in. The Greenland race is larger still, almost equalling the Linnet in

size. There is still another form which has occurred in these islands

and which may be recognised by its nearly white rump.

THE LESSER REDPOLL

Linota rufescens (Vieillot)

This species is a regular resident with us and may be found in most of

our counties. As a breeding bird, however, it becomes scarcer in the

south of England and local in Scotland, its chief haunts at that time of

year being the north of England, Wales, and Ireland.

During the winter months it wanders about in large parties and its

chuckling call-note may often be heard as they pass from one field to

another. It nests chiefly in woods, the nest being placed against the

trunk of some tree at a moderate height from the ground. The nest is an

extremely neat structure of twigs and moss, beautifully formed and lined

with vegetable down, wool, and feathers. The eggs, except in size, are

much like those of the Linnet, but the ground colour is darker and the

spots are smaller. In summer the Lesser Redpoll feeds chiefly on

insects, but seeds and berries are eaten at all seasons and especially

in winter.

[Illustration: MEALY REDPOLL

_Linota linaria_

Female (above). Male (below)]

They may be found in all kinds of country, generally associating with

other Finches and Buntings, but they are rather more partial to woods,

gardens, and orchards. Their song bears a family resemblance to that of

the Linnet, but is not so melodious or sweet. This bird is very tame and

confiding, and may often be watched as it moves about in the trees of

some orchard, examining them carefully for insects and reminding one in

its actions of the Tits.

The male has the upper parts of a warm brown with darker streaks. Lores

and throat black; the crown, rump, and breast are carmine; rest of the

under parts whitish, becoming browner with dark streaks on the flanks.

In autumn the red tints on the rump and breast are much obscured by the

broader pale edgings to the feathers. The female is rather smaller than

the male and lacks the red on the breast and rump. The breast is buff

with dark stripes, and the rump similar in colour to the mantle but

paler. The young resemble the hen but lack the red on the crown. Length

4·75 in.; wing 2·75 in.

In winter this species shows far more red on the breast than does the

Mealy Redpoll at the same time of year.

THE TWITE

Linota flavirostris (Linnæus)

Inhabiting moorlands and breeding among the heather, this gregarious

species may be found from the Midlands northwards. In England, however,

it cannot be called common, but in parts of North Wales, Scotland, and

Ireland it is abundant. It nests in colonies, the nests being placed on

the ground or in a low bush; they are neatly made of rootlets, pieces of

heather, and moss, lined with hair and wool.

The eggs, like those of the other Redpolls, are blue spotted with red.

Two broods are reared in the season, and as soon as the first brood is

fledged the whole colony will sometimes move off to an adjacent spot for

the second brood, so that they may be found with young in the nest one

week, and a few days later no sign of them or their young will be found

at that spot. During the summer their food consists largely of insects,

while seeds form their chief diet in winter. After the breeding season

they leave the upper moorlands and wander south, a fair number reaching

the south of England, especially in severe winters. It chiefly frequents

the wild open country and marshes by the sea-shore, but in the more

wooded localities it is rarely found and it seldom perches on trees. It

has a pleasing little song and the call-note is a loud "twah-it," whence

its English name of Twite.

General colour above dark brown with slightly paler edgings to each

feather. Wing feathers blackish with white outer margins, as in the

Linnet. Tail somewhat forked, the feathers being black with whitish

inner margins to the three outer pairs. Under parts buffish white

streaked with brown. In the male the lores, cheeks, throat, and rump are

suffused with rose red, but the female shows no red whatever. The bill

in both sexes is deep horn-coloured in summer and yellowish in winter.

The young resemble the female. Length 5 in.; wing 3 in.

THE BULLFINCH

Pyrrhula europæa, Vieillot

Better known probably as a cage-bird than as a wild inhabitant of our

woods and gardens, the Bullfinch is nevertheless by no means rare. It

inhabits woods, coppices, and thick hedgerows, and is rather a skulking

species, but may be recognised when on the wing by its white rump. The

call-note is a rather plaintive "whee-ou," and it is easily attracted by

imitating its call. Possibly it pairs for life, at least it is generally

found in pairs, and even during the winter the male shows considerable

affection for his mate, generally keeping close to her and frequently

feeding her. The song is a feeble medley of soft flute-like notes, and

is generally accompanied by a side to side motion of the tail and body.

The nest is commenced in May and consists of a shallow platform of twigs

placed three or four feet from the ground in a thick bush or hedge, and

is lined with fine rootlets. The eggs, usually four or five in number,

are greenish blue spotted and streaked round the larger end with black

or pale purplish lilac. The young are fed by regurgitation, insects

forming a large proportion of the parents' food during the summer.

When fledged young and old wander about for a time together, but the old

birds soon forage on their own account and leave the young to look after

themselves. Berries, especially those of the privet, are largely

consumed in autumn, but all kinds of seeds form their diet during the

winter months, and in spring they turn their attention to young buds,

more especially those of fruit-trees. For this they may well be forgiven

as they make ample compensation by destroying caterpillars innumerable

during the summer months.

The male has the whole of the head a glossy blue-black, mantle brownish

grey. Larger wing coverts black tipped with whitish to form a

conspicuous bar. Primaries brown; secondaries and tail glossy black;

rump white. The whole of the under parts bright brick-red turning to

white on the vent. The female is duller and the under parts are of a

uniform brown. The young resemble the hen but lack the black crown.

Length 6 in.; wing 3·25 in.

This species is generally distributed throughout the wooded districts of

England, Wales, and Ireland, but is rather more local in Scotland.

THE SCARLET GROSBEAK

Pyrrhula erythina (Pallas)

The Scarlet Grosbeak breeds from Northern Russia across Siberia to

Kamchatka, and in winter it is chiefly found in the Oriental region. As

a straggler on migration, however, it has visited many places in Europe

to the west of Russia, and one or two examples have been obtained in

this country.

The adult male has the greater part of its plumage rose red, browner on

the mantle and flanks. Quills and tail dark brown with paler buffish

margins. The female is olive brown with darker striations, the under

parts dull white, buffish on the throat and breast, and striped with

brown on the flanks. Length 5·5 in.; wing 3·25 in.

[Illustration: BULLFINCH

_Pyrrhula europæa_

Male (right). Female (left)]

THE PINE GROSBEAK

Pyrrhula enucleator (Linnæus)

This species, as its name indicates, is an inhabitant of pine woods and

makes its home in the vast conifer forests of Northern Europe and

Siberia. Over the rest of Europe it is very scarce and is only known

from occasional stragglers. In this country about forty different

occurrences have been recorded, but it is probable that a large number

of them had escaped from captivity.

The general colour of the male is a rich rose red all over, rather

greyer on the flanks and belly. Wing coverts brown, each feather having

a pinkish white tip. Quills and tail brown, secondaries margined with

white. In the female the rose tint is replaced by a dull golden yellow.

The young are greyish green and do not assume their full plumage before

their second year. Length 8·25 in.; wing 4·25 in.

THE CROSSBILL

Loxia curvirostra, Linnæus

The Crossbill is by no means a common bird and very uncertain in its

appearances. A fair number breed as early as March in the pine woods of

Scotland, and during the rest of the year it wanders about in small

parties. Feeding chiefly though not exclusively on the seeds of the

pine, which the peculiar formation of its beak enables it to reach with

ease, it will generally be found in plantations of evergreens.

Essentially of a wandering nature, it never stays long in one locality,

but leads a regular roving gipsy existence, frequently making its home

wherever it happens to find itself in the breeding season, and from this

cause it has nested at irregular intervals in many of the southern

counties of England and in Ireland. The nest is always built on the fork

or lateral branch of a fir-tree, and is composed of twigs, grass, and

moss, lined with finer materials of the same kind.

The eggs are usually four in number and are pale blue with a few reddish

spots and streaks towards the larger end. It is a very silent bird and

has no song worthy of a name. The call-note is "gip-gip."

Insects and caterpillars are largely consumed during the summer, but

seeds and berries form their chief food in winter.

When first hatched the bill in young birds is straight, but it assumes

its characteristic shape very soon after they are fledged.

The adult male is crimson all over except the wings and tail, which are

brown. The female is dark greenish yellow with striations of a darker

tint. The young resemble the female but are greyer and greener. Young

cocks probably do not assume their full plumage until the second or

third year but they breed in their immature dress. Old cocks lose the

red and become golden yellow. Length 6·5 in.; wing 3·8 in.

[Illustration: CROSSBILL

_Loxia curvirostra_

Male (below). Young (left). Female (above)]

The bill varies considerably in this species, and many individuals,

which have a very stout bill, have been considered and named as a

separate species, known as the Parrot Crossbill. These stout-billed

individuals are most numerous in Scandinavia and Northern Russia, though

they have been also obtained in this country, and their claim to

specific rank is still a debatable point.

THE TWO-BARRED CROSSBILL

Loxia bifasciata (C. L. Brehm)

This species, whose true home is in Northern Russia and Siberia, has

visited this country in small flocks on several occasions.

It may easily be distinguished from the Common Crossbill by the two

white wing-bars; it is also rather smaller in size. Length 6·25 in.;

wing 3·7 in.

THE BLACK-HEADED BUNTING

Emberiza melanocephala, Scopoli

The Black-headed Bunting must not be confused with the Reed Bunting,

which is known in many parts of the country under the former name.

The true Black-headed Bunting is an inhabitant of South-eastern Europe,

but it occasionally wanders westwards and has been taken about four

times in this country. The male has the head black, back brownish

orange, and under parts bright lemon yellow. The female and young are

yellowish brown, and the male in autumn has the bright colours obscured

by rufous edgings to the feathers. Length 6·75 in.; wing 3·7 in.

THE CORN BUNTING

Emberiza miliaria, Linnæus

One cannot well mistake this species, as he sits on the telegraph wires

bordering the road, uttering times without number the long drawn-out

"dzree-e-e" that serves him for a song.

In appearance he much resembles the Skylark, but, unlike that species,

which is always so alert and ever on the move, the Corn Bunting spends

most of his day sitting in an exposed situation on a hedge or on some

tall plant in the open field. The nest is a fairly neat structure of

grass, roots, and moss, with a lining of horsehair, and is usually

placed on the ground in the middle of a field, and often at no great

distance from a bush or some other post of vantage on which, as noted

above, he spends the greater part of the day. The eggs are extremely

handsome, being of a creamy white boldly blotched and scrolled with very

dark brown. Insects and seeds are equally consumed, and both being

abundant on the cultivated land, in which he delights, he earns an easy

living with the minimum of exertion.

During the winter months he loves company and consorts with the Larks

and Finches, generally roosting on the ground with the former.

The sexes are alike and have the upper parts pale brown streaked with a

darker shade of the same colour. Throat whitish margined with brown

spots; rest of the under parts buffish white spotted on the breast and

flanks with brown. Length 7 in.; wing 3·6 in.

The young are rather darker and have the wing coverts broadly margined

with fulvous.

It is by no means so abundant as the next species but is widely

distributed in open, wild, or cultivated country.

THE YELLOW BUNTING

Emberiza citrinella, Linnæus

Day after day throughout the spring and early summer months the Yellow

Bunting may be found, sitting on the topmost spray of a hedge and

repeating with monotonous frequency his little song, which has often

been rendered by the words, "A little bit of bread and no cheese." It is

neither long nor pretty, there is no music in it, and it is delivered

without soul or fervour, yet in open and cultivated country, where the

songs of the woodland birds are absent, it forms on a warm summer's day,

a fitting accompaniment to the more ambitious performance of the Lark.

Decked out in bright yellow livery toned down and shaded with other dark

markings, the Yellow Bunting receives too little recognition at our

hands and is not appreciated at his true worth. Harmless, bright, and

sociable in habits, he may be found throughout the year in the open

fields and hedgerows, and except during the summer months, when insects

form a large portion of his diet, he is essentially a seed-eater,

destroying in countless numbers the seeds of the various weeds that have

a hard struggle for life amongst the cultivated crops.

The nest is a neat structure of grass, roots, and moss woven together

and is lined with horsehair. Five eggs form the usual clutch; they are

whitish streaked and veined, after the manner characteristic of this

family, with purplish red.

In autumn the young and old visit the standing crops in family parties,

and they pass the winter seeking their food on the ground in stubbles

and fallows or visiting the stack-yards for the fallen grain.

The male has the head, throat, and under parts bright yellow, spotted or

streaked, except on the throat, with dark brown. Mantle yellowish brown

with darker streaks. Rump reddish brown. Wings brown with broad deep

rufous edgings to the secondaries and wing coverts. Tail feathers dark

brown with white spots near the tip of the inner web of the two outer

pairs. The female resembles the male, but it is very much duller and

darker in colour. The young are pale brown all over, lighter on the

under parts and more rufous on the back, each feather having a dark

central stripe. Length 6·5 in.; wing 3·25 in.

[Illustration: YELLOW BUNTING (YELLOW HAMMER)

_Emberiza citrinella_

Male (below). Young (above)]

This species is widely distributed throughout Great Britain, and is

often known as the Yellow Hammer, the latter word being a corruption of

"Ammer," the German word for a Bunting.

THE CIRL BUNTING

Emberiza cirlus, Linnæus

This species is very similar to the Yellow Bunting in habits and

plumage, from which it may be most easily distinguished by the black

throat and a black line through the eye. In our islands, however, it is

very local and chiefly confined to the southern counties, but stragglers

have been met with as far north as Yorkshire.

Although frequenting the hedgerows and open country it delights in

trees, uttering its song from the higher branches of some hedgerow elm.

The nest is placed near the ground and constructed of similar materials

to that of the Yellow Bunting, but the eggs differ in having the

markings bolder and chiefly restricted to the larger end, and the hair

lines, so numerous on those of the former species, are much fewer in

number. Two broods are reared in the season, the young birds being fed

on grasshoppers and insects, and the rest of the year is spent in the

fields in company with other flocks of Finches.

The male has the top of the head and nape and rump greyish green,

streaked with darker. Wing coverts and feathers of the mantle deep

reddish brown with dark median spot or streak and broad light margins.

Wing and tail dark brown. Cheeks yellow with black line through the eye.

Chin and throat black, succeeded by a narrow yellow collar. Upper breast

grey; lower breast chestnut. Rest of under parts pale yellow, becoming

brownish streaked with darker on the flanks.

The female is much duller in colour and has the throat yellow. She

closely resembles the hen Yellow Hammer, but may be distinguished by the

absence of yellow on the head and by the lesser wing coverts being

reddish brown and not black. The young roughly resemble the female.

Length 6·5 in.; wing 3·25 in.

THE ORTOLAN BUNTING

Emberiza hortulana, Linnæus

Up to within the last few years this bird was so freely imported alive

to supply the wants of epicures that a large number of its supposed

occurrences in these islands are open to suspicion. There seems,

however, little doubt, that genuine wild examples have reached these

islands from time to time.

This species breeds sparingly in Scandinavia and thence southwards

through Denmark, Germany, and France, but it is only in the south of

Europe that it becomes common, migrating eastwards and southwards to

Abyssinia and North India in winter.

The male has the head greyish; rest of upper parts pale brown streaked

with black. Throat yellow, becoming greyish on the upper breast; rest of

under parts pale chestnut. The hen is duller with darker streaks on the

head. Length 6 in.; wing 3·25 in.

[Illustration: CIRL BUNTING

_Emberiza cirlus_

Male (left). Young (right)]

THE MEADOW BUNTING

Emberiza cia, Linnæus

This Bunting is found throughout Central and Southern Europe; it has

only been recorded in this country during the last four years.

The head is blue grey, with three dark stripes across it; wings and tail

dark brown, the secondaries edged with rufous; the whole of the rest of

the plumage pale cinnamon brown with darker stripes on the back. Length

6·2 in.; wings 3·1 in.

THE SIBERIAN MEADOW BUNTING

Emberiza cloides, Brandt

This Asiatic species has only once been taken in Europe, namely at

Flamborough Head in 1886. The colour of the upper parts is chiefly

chestnut. There is a white superciliary stripe, and a white patch on the

cheeks. The under parts are white with a chestnut band across the upper

breast Length 6·5 in.; wing 3·4 in.

THE RUSTIC BUNTING

Emberiza rustica, Pallas

This is an eastern species, nesting from Archangel eastwards across

Siberia, migrating southwards in winter. Of late years it seems to have

had a tendency to spread westwards, and stragglers have occurred

throughout Europe, including Great Britain.

The adult male is a very handsome bird; the head is black with the

exception of a white stripe behind the eye; the upper parts and a band

across the breast, chestnut. Under parts white striped with chestnut.

The female has the head brown mottled with black, and is otherwise much

duller than the male. The young is brown above streaked with darker, the

under parts whitish streaked with brown. Length 5·4 in.; wing 3·2 in.

THE LITTLE BUNTING

Emberiza pusilla, Pallas

The Little Bunting has a breeding range similar to the last species and

occurs almost yearly on migration in Southern Europe, the south-east of

France forming its western limit.

The male has the head chestnut with the exception of a black

superciliary stripe; rest of the upper parts reddish brown streaked with

darker. Chin and throat pale chestnut, under parts white streaked with

black on the breast and flanks. The female is duller, and the young bird

has the chestnut of the crown replaced by buff. Length 5 in.; wing 2·75

in.

THE YELLOW-BREASTED BUNTING

Emberiza aureola, Pallas

This is an Arctic species, ranging in summer across Siberia eastwards

from Archangel; in winter it migrates to Palestine and Southern Asia.

An immature female was shot in Norfolk in September 1905.

The adult has the forehead, cheeks, and chin black; rest of upper parts

deep reddish brown, brightest on the rump; under parts bright yellow

with a narrow chestnut collar across the upper breast. Length 5 in.;

wing 3·1 in. The female is much duller, and in winter the colours in

both sexes are obscured by long greyish margins.

REED BUNTING

Emberiza schoeniclus, Linnæus

The Reed Bunting is an inhabitant of marshy places where osiers, alders,

and long rough sedgy grass and reeds abound, and in such localities it

is by no means uncommon. In summer the male may often be seen clinging

to some reed stem, as he sings his very short and feeble song. Owing to

his black head and white collar, which enable him to be very easily

distinguished, he is known in some parts of the country as the

Black-headed Bunting. The true Black-headed Bunting is, however, a very

different bird, but it so rarely occurs in this country that the

confusion likely to arise is not very serious. The nest is placed on the

ground in the rough grass at the base of some shrub, or in the side of a

tussock, and always near water. It is a fairly neat structure, built,

like the nests of all Buntings, of grass, bents, and moss, with a lining

of hair. The eggs, four to six in number, are very characteristic of

this species, the ground colour is usually purplish grey, boldly

blotched, marked and streaked with dark brown. Very handsome clutches

are sometimes found, in which the ground colour is pale green, showing

off the dark scrolls and blotches to great advantage. If the nest be

discovered and frequently visited after the young are hatched, they will

leave it at a very early age, long before they can fly. In such cases,

however, the anxiety of the parent birds as they fly round and round the

spot soon leads to the discovery of their children.

Except under stress of weather, it is a very resident species, seldom

leaving its favourite haunts, but sometimes in winter, when these are

frozen over, it will be found in the fields consorting with large flocks

of Buntings and Finches. As a rule, however, it is by no means

gregarious, rarely more than ten or twelve being found together.

In summer the male has the whole of the head and chin deep black,

surrounded by a white collar and having a white stripe along the line of

the lower mandible. Mantle and wings black with broad rufous and grey

edgings. Rump grey streaked with black. Under parts white striped with

brown on the flanks. In winter the black and white of the head and neck

are largely obscured by pale brownish margins to each feather.

The female has the upper parts tawny brown with darker centres to the

feathers. Under parts pale buff streaked with brown. The young resemble

the female. Length 6 in; wing 3 in.

THE LAPLAND BUNTING

Calcarius lapponicus (Linnæus)

This species is only known to us by the appearance of a few stragglers

that have wandered here from time to time in autumn and winter, though

during the last few years its occurrences have been more numerous and

regular, especially along our eastern and south-eastern shores. In its

winter dress it bears at a distance a superficial resemblance to the

Lark, and from being found in situations, viz. salt marshes near the

coast, where the latter is also abundant it has probably frequently been

overlooked.

It is another of those species whose home is circumpolar, and rears its

young on the lonely tundras of Lapland, Novaya Zembla, and Franz Josef

Land. In winter it moves southward, but becomes scarce south of the

Baltic and is unknown in Italy, the south of France, and Spain. As

mentioned above, the adult in winter is not unlike a Lark at a distance,

but in summer the male is a very handsome bird. The crown, cheeks,

throat, and breast are black, the hind neck is banded with deep

chestnut, which is separated from the black of the head by a white

stripe, which, starting behind the eye, runs backwards for a short

distance and then turns downwards, to lose itself in the white of the

abdomen. The rest of the upper parts are brownish with darker centres to

the feathers, while the under parts are white with dark streaks on the

flanks. In winter the brighter colours are hidden by long brown margins

to the feathers which wear off in spring. The female retains her dull

dress throughout the year.

The hind claw in this species is straight and longer than the toe.

Length 6·25 in.; wing 3·6 in.

THE SNOW BUNTING

Plectrophenax nivalis (Linnæus)

Like the preceding species, the true home of this bird is also in the

Far North; it has, however, a much wider breeding range, and a few pairs

nest annually on the mountains of Scotland and in the Shetlands.

The nest is placed on the ground, hidden in a cleft of the rock or among

loose boulders, and, as is characteristic of nests in holes, is very

loose in construction. It is made of moss and dry grass, and is warmly

lined with feathers. About six eggs, of a very pale blue spotted and

zoned round the larger end with purplish red, form the clutch.

Unlike the Lapland Bunting, which is found in the salt marshes or on the

tundras of the North, this species shows a predilection for the rocky

coasts or hills covered with loose boulders and is seldom found in the

localities frequented by the former bird. In winter it is a regular

migrant to our east coast, and also visits the west, but more sparingly.

[Illustration: SNOW BUNTING

_Plectrophanes nivalis_

(right)

LAPLAND BUNTING

_Calcarius lapponiacus_

(left)

Both in winter plumage]

In cold winters it becomes much more abundant, returning northwards,

however, on the first approach of milder weather.

In summer the adult male has the back, inner secondaries, two-thirds of

each of the primaries, and the six central tail feathers black, the rest

of the plumage being white; the female resembles her mate but is rather

smaller, the head and neck are streaked with greyish white, and there is

less white on the wing.

In winter both sexes have broad tawny margins to the feathers of the

back, while the head, breast, and flanks are largely suffused with the

same colour. The young bird is greyish brown, spotted both above and

below with a darker tint of the same colour. Length 6·55 in.; wing 4·4

in.

THE STARLING

Sturnus vulgaris, Linnæus

Except that it commits depredations in the cherry orchards as the fruit

ripens, nothing but good can be said of the Starling. Tame, confiding,

no mean songster, and an excellent mimic, he is very welcome wherever

found. In autumn he congregates in vast flocks, whose numbers reach many

thousands, and there must be few people who have not noticed these

flocks go through their aerial evolutions, now drawing close together in

a compact mass, or spreading out in wedge-shaped formation, rising and

falling as though imbued with one mind. These flocks are to a large

extent migratory, and in the evening will often collect to roost on

reed-beds, which are laid flat with their weight. To enter such a spot

quietly just after dusk and then make a noise, will afford one a

sensation never to be forgotten, as they rise with a sound like rolling

thunder, caused by the clattering of thousands of wings against the

reeds, while others farther off, disturbed in turn, will also rise,

until the whole flock is on the wing, circling round our head with a

subdued roar which increases and diminishes as they approach or retreat.

In a few minutes, however, if we remain quiet, they will soon begin to

return, making no sound except the rattling together of the reeds as

they settle, and in a few minutes all is quiet once more. At daybreak

the flock divides into smaller parties which set out to forage in the

neighbouring country. In the afternoon, as their hunger is appeased, the

scattered flocks begin to collect again, and it is then that we may

observe the evolutions referred to above, till finally at dusk they are

all roosting once more in the reed-bed. After staying in the locality

for some time, their numbers being increased by fresh arrivals daily,

they will one night fail to return to their accustomed quarters, but

will instead start on a long journey on which we are unable to follow

them. Apart, however, from these large flocks, smaller bodies will be

found throughout the winter, wandering over the country and even

penetrating the parks and gardens of our large cities. In March and

April a migration of small flocks returning to their accustomed breeding

haunts takes place, but the immense flocks of the autumn are never seen,

and we can but suspect that Nature has in some way or other taken heavy

toll of them.

[Illustration: STARLING

_Sturnus vulgaris_

Adult (right). Young (left)]

Any hole in a tree or wall, the roof of a house, drain-pipes, church

towers, or cliffs suit this species for a nesting-site. An untidy mass

of straw, grass, and rubbish is collected to form a nest, and a few

feathers, or wool, are added as lining. Five eggs of a uniform pale blue

form the clutch, and two broods are reared in the season. The young when

fledged begin at once to join with those from other nests and thus form

the nucleus of the immense flocks which are, perhaps, one of the main

characteristics of this species.

It feeds chiefly on insects, worms, and slugs, which are sought for in

damp meadows and pasture-lands. It walks in a curious deliberate way,

and on seeing a likely worm casting, it pushes in its closed beak, and

after drawing it back with open mandibles, the hole, thus enlarged, is

examined for the grub it may contain. It is also very partial to sheep

runs, settling on the sheep's backs and relieving them of many and

various ticks and parasites.

The sexes are practically alike and in winter the whole of the plumage

is glossy black, with metallic reflections, the feathers of the upper

parts being tipped with buff and those of the under parts with white. In

summer it loses almost all the spots on the under parts and a large

proportion of those on the back. The bill is lemon yellow in summer and

blackish in winter. The young are greyish brown all over, rather lighter

on the chin and under parts. In very old birds the feathers round the

base of the bill wear off, leaving a bare patch as in the Rook. Length

8·5 in.; wing 5·2 in.

THE ROSE-COLOURED PASTOR

Pastor roseus (Linnæus)

Eastern Europe and Asia is the true breeding home of this species, which

wanders about in immense numbers, breeding gregariously wherever it

happens to find itself at that season. Stragglers from these flocks

often join with other migrating hosts of birds, and thus this species

occurs as an irregular wanderer over the rest of Europe. The farther

west, however, the rarer it becomes, and its occurrences in our islands,

though noted from most districts, are not very frequent. It is about the

size of the common Starling but has a longish black crest. Except for

the back, shoulders, breast, and belly, which are rose pink, it is of a

uniform metallic black. Length 8·5 in.; wing 5 in.

THE CHOUGH

Pyrrhocorax graculus (Linnæus)

This bird is one of the handsomest and at the same time our rarest

member of the Crow family. With its glossy black plumage and brilliant

red legs and beak it forms a beautiful sight to the ornithologist as he

watches it flying over the wild and wind-swept headland that juts out

into the Atlantic.

Its flight is extremely graceful and peculiar; a few beats of its wings,

then it glides onward with outstretched pinions, the ends of the outer

primaries being well separated from each other; its wings close, it

drops towards the ground, and then with a few more beats it recovers its

former level and continues its flight. This species, which is only found

on rocky coasts, is yearly becoming scarcer, but its chief enemy, if we

except the ubiquitous egg-collector, is one of its own family, the

Jackdaw. As this latter species extends its breeding quarters, so the

Chough has to give way before it, being turned out of its nesting-holes

till, weary of ineffectual attempts, it leaves the locality. In other

places that king of Falcons, the Peregrine, will attack it, resulting in

its very rapid extermination. This, however, is apparently an acquired

taste on the part of certain Peregrines only, as we have known both

species to nest on the same cliff without apparently interfering with

each other in the least.

Any hole or fissure in the rock, or the ledge of some cliff, will

provide this bird with a nesting-site, and a substantial cup-shaped

structure of roots and twigs is built, and lined with wool, rabbit

fleck, and hair. Three to five eggs are laid; they are pale greyish

white in colour, spotted and streaked with grey or pale brown. Both

parents attend to the wants of their young, feeding them on larvæ grubs

and beetles. This species is almost entirely an insect-feeder and far

less omnivorous than most of his kind, the long curved beak being

especially useful for poking the soft earth or overturning the stones in

its search for food. The note, which is very frequently uttered, is not

unlike that of the Jackdaw but rather more metallic.

The adult is of a deep, glossy blue black all over. Bill and legs cherry

red. The sexes are alike and the young only differ in having the bill

and legs dull orange. Length 16 in.; wing 10·7 in.

This species is now only to be found in the wilder and more remote parts

of the west of Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. A few solitary pairs may

still be found in some parts of England, but they are rapidly

disappearing.

THE NUTCRACKER

Nucifraga caryocatactes (Linnæus)

A few stragglers of this species have occasionally visited our east and

south-east coasts in autumn, and at least two examples have been

recorded from Scotland, but it has not so far visited Ireland. Fir

forests in Scandinavia and Central Europe form the home of this bird,

where it is resident and breeds early in the year while the snow is

still on the ground. In appearance it is quite unlike any of our other

species of Crow, being pale umber brown profusely spotted, except on the

crown, with triangular white markings. Length 12 in.; wing 7·5 in.

THE JAY

Garrulus glandarius (Linnæus)

Considering the ruthless war waged on this unfortunate species by every

gamekeeper throughout the country, it is little short of marvellous that

we can still hear his harsh scream in most of our woods.

[Illustration: JAY

_Garrulus glandarius_]

He is very wary and cautious, and spends most of his time, except when

actually feeding, on the tops of the trees, flying off with many

protestations to another part of the wood on the least sign of danger.

His great supposed sin is the destruction of the Pheasants' eggs, though

we doubt whether his depredations are sufficiently great to warrant his

wholesale slaughter. The fox has been saved from extermination in the

interests of hunting, and it is now conceded that, after all, his

presence does not so greatly affect the interests of those whose sport

lies with the gun rather than with the horse, and if only keepers could

be taught to leave the Jay alone the loss of a few head of game, that

would hardly be missed, would surely be more than compensated for by the

sight of this beautiful species as he dodges through the wood in front

of the beaters. No better watch-dog could be found, and many a

trespasser will quit a wood owing to the tell-tale warning given by the

Jay. Noisy and active as he is during the winter, he becomes in spring

exceptionally quiet, and only when the nest is approached does he give

any indication of his presence in the neighbourhood. The nest is

generally placed some ten feet from the ground in the fork of a tender

sapling and is made entirely of twigs and lined with fine roots. It is

open and cup-shaped, and the eggs, small for the size of the bird, are

pale green in ground colour very thickly mottled with olive brown with,

generally a narrow black irregular line at the larger end. The young are

chiefly fed on insects, spiders, and grubs, but this species is

practically omnivorous and nothing comes amiss, large numbers of berries

being eaten in winter. In this country he is strictly resident, rarely

wandering far from the woods which formed his summer home, but in the

northern parts of his range on the Continent he migrates, sometimes in

considerable flocks, some of which visit our shores in autumn, and

although these Continental birds are said to be distinguishable from our

own native race, we suspect that it is largely owing to these

immigrations that we can still number the Jay as one of our common

indigenous birds.

The general colour of the nape, mantle, and under parts is vinous brown.

Crown of the head whitish streaked with black; malar stripe black. Chin,

rump, and under tail coverts white; tail and primaries black, the latter

with white outer margins. Secondaries black, the outermost five with

white bases. Wing coverts barred white, black, and blue. Length 14·25

in.; wing 7·2 in. The sexes and young are all alike in plumage.

This species is generally distributed, except in the north of Scotland

and Ireland, where it becomes scarce.

It is perhaps worthy of note that in the Jays and Crows which build open

nests, the nestlings have dark-coloured mouths with no marked light

edging, whereas in the Jackdaw, that breeds in holes, the sides of the

mouth are enlarged and whitish in colour and show up conspicuously in

the semi-darkness of their home.

[Illustration: MAGPIE

_Pica rustica_]

THE MAGPIE

Pica rustica (Scopoli)

This is another species against whom every man's hand in this country is

raised. Being much less a bird of the woods and preferring to make its

home in high trees growing in hedgerows, or even in tall hedges, it has

unfortunately suffered much more than the Jay and is now very local in

its distribution. Bold and omnivorous, it finds little difficulty in

procuring a livelihood, and if it settles in the neighbourhood of a

poultry or game farm it must be conceded that it will do considerable

damage. On the other hand, it will also destroy countless worms, slugs,

mice, and even young rats, so that it is by no means wholly mischievous,

and in other countries where it is unmolested it becomes very tame and

confiding, nesting in farm-yards or even in the towns, and those

countries seem but little the worse for its presence. A fine showy bird,

it is a pleasure to see him as he flies with rapid beats of his short

wings across some field, rattling out his cheery chatter as he goes.

What a perky chap he looks as he struts about on the fallow, or, having

had his attention drawn by a strange object some yards off, approaches

it with a few long hops and then with characteristic caution stops to

examine it from a distance. Satisfied that it is harmless, he stalks to

it with slow majestic walk, his head held high in the air and slightly

inclined to one side; then suddenly he sees us--a harsh chatter and off

he goes to the nearest cover. The nest is a huge domed structure

substantially built of twigs, those with sharp spikes or thorns being

used for preference. Inside, a deep cup is made of mud, and inside this

again is placed a thick lining of grass. The eggs are six in number and

of a bluish colour irregularly dotted, mottled, or splashed with olive

brown. It is a strictly resident bird, rarely wandering far from its

accustomed haunts and frequently going about in pairs.

The whole bird is glossy black with bluish and green reflections, except

for the scapulars and belly, which are white. The rump is greyish.

Length, including tail, 18 in.; tail 10 in.; wing 7·75 in. The sexes and

young are all much alike in plumage.

THE JACKDAW

Corvus monedula, Linnæus

Abundant and gregarious in most parts of the country, this species may

in winter be found associating with flocks of Rooks in the open pastures

and arable land. It is a noisy bird and the call-note "che-ak" will

generally warn us of its presence. It is found in all kinds of

situations and localities, being equally at home in the wild open

country, along the coast, rocky or alluvial, or on arable land, in

well-timbered districts, and even in the middle of our busy cities; but

from certain apparently suitable districts it is absent, and although

abundant in some towns, in others it is hardly ever found. Along the

coast where it does not occur, the Chough still holds its own, but as we

noticed under that species the presence of the Jackdaw soon drives away

the more delicate bird.

[Illustration: JACKDAW

_Corvus monedula_]

Practically omnivorous, he experiences no difficulty in procuring a

living wherever he may be, but will usually be found associated with

Rooks or Starlings on the pastures, often perching on the backs of sheep

to rid them of the parasites with which they are infested. Holes in

trees, walls, or ruins, church towers, chimneys, or cavities in rocks,

provide suitable nesting-sites. A rough nest is built of sticks, lined

with an abundance of fur, rabbit fleck, wool and any other soft

material.

The six eggs are pale blue in colour, with large distinct spots of olive

brown.

Although this species is to be found among us at all times of the year,

considerable migration both to and from these islands goes on in winter,

large flocks sometimes arriving on our eastern coasts.

The sexes are practically indistinguishable, and are of a glossy

purplish black on the head and back, and of a somewhat duller greyish

black below. The occipital region, nape, and sides of the neck are clear

grey, forming a sort of collar. The young birds are duller and lack the

grey collar, which is only partially assumed in the first year. Length

13 in.; wing 9·25 in.

THE RAVEN

Corvus corax, Linnæus

There are few birds that can compare with the Raven in the majestic

curves and sweeps of its flight as it skirts the wild and rugged

headland which forms its home, so that in spite of its occasional

depredations on young and sickly lambs, it is unworthy of the

persecution to which it is subjected. Scattered pairs are still to be

met with round the rocky shores of England, while in the wilder parts of

Scotland and Ireland it is still comparatively common. It chooses for

its home some wild precipitous crag exposed to the fury of the

south-westerly gales, and there it may be found at all times of year,

ruling with uncontested sway some couple of miles of coast, where it

feeds on any carrion or prey that can be found.