The GARDEN REDSTART (_Ruticilla phœnicura_ or _Phœnicura ruticilla_), a
common English species, is a very beautiful bird. The sides of its beak,
forehead, and throat, are black; the rest of the upper part of the body
dark grey. The breast, sides, and tail, are bright rust-red; the part of
the head immediately above the brow and the centre of the under side are
white. The plumage of the female is dark grey above, and of a lighter
shade beneath; her throat is occasionally of a deeper hue. The young are
grey, spotted with reddish yellow, on the back; and the feathers on the
under side have rust-red borders; the eyes of all are brown, and the
beak and feet black. This bird is five inches and a half long, and three
broad; the wing measures three, and the tail two inches and a quarter.
The Garden Redstart is an inhabitant of Europe and Asia, from whence it
migrates to pass the winter months in the eastern provinces of India or
the interior of Africa. In its habits and mode of life it very closely
resembles the species last described, with this exception, that it
usually perches upon trees. Its sweet song is composed of two or three
gentle flute-like cadences. The nest is roughly constructed of dry fibres
and grass, and thickly lined with feathers; it is usually situated in a
hollow tree, or hole in a wall or rock, such cavities being preferred as
have a very narrow entrance. The eggs, from five to eight in number, have
a smooth blueish green shell (see Fig. 16, Coloured Plate XVI.), and are
laid at the latter end of April. A second brood is produced in June, and,
strangely enough, is deposited, not in the nest employed for the first
family, but in another, specially prepared for its reception. The pair,
however, often return to their first breeding-place the following summer.
* * * * *
The MEADOW WARBLERS (_Pratincola_) are a group of small, stoutly-built
birds, with variegated plumage; short, thick, rounded beaks; wings of
moderate size; in which the third and fourth quills exceed the rest in
length; short tails, composed of slender feathers; and long, thin legs.
The members of this group inhabit the eastern hemisphere, and frequent
localities overgrown with shrubs or underwood.