THE LIBRARY

OF

THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA

PRESENTED BY

PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND
MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS

/

SIZE)

FAMILIAE

WILD BIRDS

BY

W. SWAYSLAND

Series
WITH COLOURED PLATES

CASSELL AND COMPANY, LIMITED

LONDON, PARIS <L- MELBOURNE

ALL RIGHTS RESERVES

K-

PEE FACE.

THIS third volume, treating of the habits and appearance
of our Familiar Wild Birds, is prepared on the same lines
as its predecessors, which have met with such a wide-spread
welcome from the public. It is, unhappily, necessary
to remark that, as these popular chapters go further
through the list of British birds, they now come from time
to time upon birds which, once "familiar" enough, are
fast becomiDg no longer so. A few in this, and the fourth,
and the remaining volume which will conclude this series, are
now nearly on the verge of extinction ; but as their names
are almost household words amongst the population of one
part or the other of these islands, it has seemed all the
more desirable on that account to place faithful descriptions
and portraits before the reader.

CONTENTS.

»o-»

PAOR

WOODLARK 1

MERLIN ........ 5

BITTERN ............ 9

NIGHT- JAK .. 13

STORM PETREL 17

STONE-CHAT 21

WHEAT-EAR 25

LITTLE GREBE ........... 29

CAPERCAILLIE 33

MEADOW PIPIT, OR TITLARK 37

PIED FLYCATCHER 41

TREE PIPIT . 45

DUNLIN 49

SKYLARK 53

GOLDEN PLOVER .......... 57

LANDRAIL 61

WIGEON 65

RICHARDSON'S SKUA 69

KITE 73

REDSHANK . 77

viii CONTENTS.

PAGE

SAND MARTIN 81

LITTLE STINT ........... 86

LONG-EARED OWL . ......... 89

SHIELDRAKE ........... 93

REDWING 97

COMMON SANDPIPER .......... 101

LESSER WHITETHROAT . 105

RUFF 109

WHITE-TAILED EAGLE . , .113

GREY PHALAROPE . . . . . . . , . .117

SHOVELLER ........ o .. 121

GRASSHOPPER WARBLER . . . . 0 « . . .125

GOLDEN EAGLE 129

EIDER DUCK 133

TAWNY OWL 137

HERRING GULL t 141

BY R. KEARTON.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING ...„.«, 0 145

FAMILIAR

WILD_ B1EDS.

THE WOODLAEK.

Alciuda arlorea.

HIS charming songster, although
neither so well known nor so
highly appreciated as its near
relative the Skylark, is never-
theless a most sweet and ac-
complished vocalist. By some
ardent admirers it is even con-
sidered second only to the
Nightingale, so plaintive, full,
and pleasing are the melodies
it utters.

It is never found so abund-
antly as the Skylark, although
in hard weather the birds con-
gregate in flocks in the neigh-
bourhood of the sea-shore, roam-
ing about in search of food, and,
of course, offering irresistible
temptations to destroyers of
various sorts. They commonly
keep in parties varying from
three to twenty — occasionally
single specimens are met with.
They may be easily recognised

41

2 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

when flying by the shortness of the tail and the rounded
appearance of the wings. Rough grass lands, where woods,
copsos, and plantations are scattered about, are the spots
most resorted to by the Woodlark; and in the winter,
brick-yards and stubble-fields are very favourite haunts.
Amongst other places, it is commonly met with in the
Weald of Sussex, and sometimes, though rarely, on the
Downs.

The food consists of small seeds, grains, insects, cater-
pillars, and worms. In periods of long-continued frost
or snow they frequent the high roads in search of food.
When upon the ground, the Woodlark walks in a some-
what slow and dignified manner, except upon alighting
from some aerial journey, when, as soon as it reaches terra
fir ma, it usually runs for a few paces. The bird generally
roosts on the ground. Its character is by no means shy
or cautious, and on the near approach of danger it will
often squat on the ground.

The song is uttered both when the bird is perched on
the bough of some tree, and when soaring at a great height
in the air. The upward flight is made by executing a
series of circles, increasing in area as the bird ascends,
until the extent of its ascension is reached. During these
soaring movements the altitude attained is greater even than
that of the Skylark, and the song is usually sustained
during the entire process. Its return to mother earth is'
made by a similar series of graduated circular sweeps,
often with the wings extended and motionless. The call-
note, which is continually uttered during flight, somewhat
resembles the words "tweedle, weedle, weedle," repeated
several times.

The song of the Woodlark has been frequently referred

THE WOODLARK 3

to by poets and other writers in terms of pleasure and
admiration. One speaks of the

u Wild unfrequent note of the lone Woodlark."

And Gilbert White, the eminent naturalist of Selborne,
sings of the pleasures of a summer evening in the country,
when

" Blended objects fail the swimming sight,
And all the fading landscape sinks in night,
While high in air and poised upon his wings
Unseen, the soft enamoured Woodlark sings."

The nest is built of grass, thin fibrous roots, thin twigs,
and occasionally moss, with a lining of finer grass or hair.
Usually it is placed under some tuft of grass, or at the side
of a stump of a tree, and at times in the side of a bank.
Four or five eggs are laid, of a pale brownish- white or brown-
ish-yellow, spotted with greyish or reddish-brown, and per-
haps a few marks or lines at the larger end. The eggs have
been found as early as February, but are generally laid in
March ; they are, however, not un frequently found as late
as July.

The plumage of the Woodlark is quiet and unpre-
tending; the beak is dark brown above and pale yellow
underneath ; over the eye and ear-coverts there is a streak
of pale yellowish-brown. The feathers on the top of
the head are light brown, streaked with a darker shade, form-
ing a crest, which the bird frequently elevates. The upper
part of the body is wood-brown, with streaks and patches
of brownish-black on the neck and back. The tail is short,
and is brownish-black, triangularly tipped with white, and
has a light brown feather on each side, and a couple of
pale brown ones in the centre ; the under parts are pale
yellowish-brown, speckled with long marks of dark brown,

4 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

thinly scattered about the throat, and larger and more
numerous on the breast ; there are no marks on the belly ;
the legs, toes, and claws are brown, and the hind claw is
Ion of and curved.

There is not much difference in the appearance of the
sexes ; in the female the breast is said to be not so yellow,
and the dark markings are larger than in the male,
but it is very difficult to distinguish one from the other.

The Woodlark is found in Sussex, Hampshire, Dorset-
shire, Somersetshire, Suffolk, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire,
Lancashire, and Yorkshire. In the extreme west and
north of England it is but seldom seen. It is a constant
resident in many of the southern European countries, and
in the summer is said to visit Denmark, Russia, and
Sweden.

(/* HATU^L SIZE)

THE MEELIN.

Fat co cesaJon.

LTHOUGH the Merlin is the
smallest of the British falcons
proper, it possesses as much
indomitable pluck as any of
the larger members of the
family; indeed, the freedom
and audacity it evinces in
attacking birds of a superior
size to itself, is even a more
noticeable characteristic in
the Merlin than in the other
falcons. In common with
the Peregrine, this bird was
much used in falconry, and
was considered, especially in
connection with partridges,
to show very excellent sport
indeed, striking them down
with unerring accuracy. The
Merlin captures its prey either
on the ground or whilst fly-
ing, and will frequently select
a victim from a flock of small
birds, and follow it in the

C FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

most undeviating way, until the fugitive fairly succumbs
from terror and exhaustion.

The Merlin is a partially migratory bird, though it is
fairly distributed throughout most portions of the globe.
In Great Britain it breeds in the north of England and
Scotland, and is of course more commonly met with in
those localities than in the south; though in the unculti-
vated parts of Sussex it is frequently seen. In the latter
place specimens are frequently seen during migration, in
the spring and autumn. It seems to be in a large
degree indifferent to climate, and is said to be found
sometimes as far north as the arctic circle. This
bird feeds principally upon partridges, plovers, pigeons,
starlings, snipes, sandpipers, blackbirds, thrushes, and any
of the smaller birds ; cockchafers, beetles, and other insects
are also said to be sometimes eaten by it. The nest is
usually placed on the ground on some heath or open
moor, or in a clump of heather, and sometimes in the
sides of a ravine. No great care is bestowed on the con-
struction of its nest, a few sticks, with a little heather,
grass, or moss, being generally deemed sufficient. Some-
times, however, the Merlin is said to select a tree for nest-
ing purposes, and then the nest is made with sticks and
lined with wool and moss.

Three, four, and occasionally five eggs are laid, of a
bluish- white colour, blotched, particularly at the thicker
ends, with deep reddish-brown or greenish-brown marks ;
but many varieties in the appearance of the eggs are met
with.

The parent birds are very devoted to their young, and
unless disturbed the female sits very closely, the male
watching from some neighbouring elevation, and uttering

THE MERLIX. 7

a shrill warning cry at the approach of clanger. The flight
of this handsome little falcon is rapid and graceful; it
usually flies low, and skims over the open ground without
any apparent effort.

The Merlin does not pursue the tactics of the larger
falcons when seeking to secure a meal. It very seldom
rises above its prey to swoop down upon it, but simply
chases it, following every double, twist, and turn of the
flying quarry with a persistency and ardour that almost
invariably meets with success.

There is not the disparity between the relative sizes of the
sexes when young which may be noticed in the FalconidaB
generally, but the female has a trifling advantage.

The length of the Merlin seldom exceeds twelve inches ;
iris dark brown ; forehead and sides of the head greyish-
white, the latter lined with black; over the eye is a light
band, margined beneath with black ; neck dull yellowish-
red, with a ring of reddish-brown, spotted or streaked with
black ; a few black streaks descend from the corners of
the beak; chin and throat white or greyish-white; breast
dull yellowish-red ; back deep greyish-blue, growing lighter
towards the tail, the feathers being streaked in the centre
with black; greater and lesser wing-coverts are bluish -
grey ; under wing-coverts yellowish-white, or white, with
dusky spots and streaks ; the tail is bluish-grey, with
dark bands and tipped with white; it is about five inches
long; legs yellow, and feathered about one-third down;
toes yellow, claws black. The plumage of the female
varies from that of the male, being of a more uniform
appearance ; but assumes more resemblance to the male as
the bird grows older. When first hatched the young are
covered with a soft whitish down; after leaving the nest

8 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

they make a harsh screaming noise, especially if captured,
when the parents join in the chorus with considerable
vigour. When fully fledged, the young birds resemble the
female most, but they are generally much lighter in colour.
In confinement they soon become very tame and familiar,
but seldom attain to any advanced age.

In some parts of Great Britain the Merlin is called the
Stone Falcon — a name probably suggested by the habit the
bird has of perching on large stones and rocks.

It is said to be commonly met with in Denmark,
Sweden, Norway and other European counties.

THE BITTEKN.

Ardea stellaris.

HIS very handsome and stately
bird, once comparatively com-
mon in our country, is now
but seldom seen. No doubt
the ever-increasing efforts
made by the agriculturist in
draining and reclaiming
waste and marsh lands, is to
a great extent the reason of
its scarcity; but, whatever
the cause, it is much to be
feared that the Bittern must
be reckoned amongst the list
of those British birds that
are slowly but surely dis-
appearing from the country.
Even in those localities where
specimens are most frequently
to be met with, its presence
cannot be counted upon with
any degree of certainty, some-
times being seen with some

i amount of frequency, and at
other times disappearing for
several seasons in succession.

42

10 FAMILIAR WILD BIHDS.

The Bittern belongs to a family of the wading birds,
and in shape and size resembles the Heron. It generally
feeds in the evening, concealing itself during the hours of
daylight in the tall reeds or flags that fringe the inland
marshes and fens in which it seeks its food. It is not
easily flushed, and when compelled to take to flight, its
movements, like those of the Heron, are heavy, slow, and
flagging. It seldom flies for any considerable distance, but
drops into the first spot suggestive of safety and conceal-
ment. The cry of the Bittern when roused is a harsh,
discordant note, not dissimilar to that of the Wild Goose;
but in the spring, and during the breeding season, the
bird makes a peculiar bellowing noise known as " boom-
ing." The Bittern is by no means a safe bird to handle
when shot; for, unless totally disabled, it uses its beak,
which is long, powerful, and pointed, with great deter-
mination and effect. Mr. Yarrell mentions an instance of
one being shot, one wing being broken ; but the bird made
such a fierce and determined resistance to the dog, that the
sportsman had to wade through the marsh himself in order
to secure his prize.

The food of this bird consists almost of any small
animal, fish, or reptile that it may happen to come across ;
fresh-water fish, frogs, and lizards being probably its most
usual diet. Like many other birds of a similar kind, how-
ever, it does not appear to exercise any very fastidious*
scruples about its food ; more than one instance is
recorded of a Water Rail being found in its stomach, and
on another occasion the bones of a large pike were dis-
covered.

According to some authorities, the flesh of the Bittern
was at one time held in high estimation for the table,

THE BITTERN. 11

being said to be quite equal to that of the Heron ; a recom-
mendation, it may be added, which would not perhaps
weigh very much in the estimation of the modern public.

The nest is built of sticks, reeds, and rushes, placed on
the ground generally close to the water's edge, and always
amongst thick, coarse vegetation. The eggs number four
or five, of a pale brown colour, and about two inches or a
little more in length. The nests are, however, very rarely
found. The process of hatching is said to occupy about
four weeks, and the young birds remain in the nest until
they are very nearly able to take care of themselves.

The beak of this bird is a greenish-yellow, the upper
mandible being dark horn colour towards the point ; the
lore is green, the irises yellow; the top of the head is
black, tinged with bronze-green ; the feathers at the back
of the head are varied with transverse bars of black and
pale buff ; all the upper parts of the body and wings are
a rich brownish-buff, irregularly marked with black and
reddish-brown ; the tail is reddish-brown, varied with
black. The cheeks and sides of the neck are buff, and the
latter are marked with narrow lines of dark brown. From
the base of the beak and down the front of the neck are
large streaks of dark brown and reddish-brown. The
feathers of the breast are blackish-brown, with broad buff
margins; the feathers of the neck do not extend all the
way round, the back of the neck being covered with a
thick down ; the under-surface of the body is buff, with
narrow streaks of dark brown ; legs and feet are of a
grassy-green colour ; claws pale horn colour, the middle
claw being toothed like a comb. The Bittern measures
about thirty inches, and the plumage of the female and
young resembles that of the male in all the essential features.

12

FAMILIAR WILD BIEDS.

The Bittern visits Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Lap-
land, and some parts of Russia; and in the south of
Europe it is found in Spain, Provence, and Italy. In our
own country it has been shot in almost every county at
various times ; but it is oftenest met with in those districts
where fenny, marshy lands are the predominant geo-
graphical features. It also resorts to thick woods, espe-
cially if reedy pools or boggy hollows are to be found there.

('/> H/MU^AL SIZE)

THE NIGHT-JAK.

Ccprimulgus Eur opens.

HIS interesting bird rejoices in
a variety of titles, and in al-
most every locality in which
it is frequently met with, it is
known by some familiar pame.
Hence, it is variously spoken
of as "Goatsucker/' "Dor-
hawk/' "Night-hawk/'
"Fern-owl/' " Wheel -bird,"
"Jar-owl/' "Churn-owl/'
and other names more or less
suggestive of the bird's habits
and peculiarities.

Although not strictly speak-
ing rare, the Night- jar is a bird
not commonly seen or closely
observed ; a state of things
easily accounted for when we
consider that it is of purely
nocturnal habits, and usually
spends the hours of daylight
silent and motionless. The
writer, some years ago, while
making a journey one morn-

14 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

ing, noticed a Night-jar crouched along the top of a rail
by the side of; and only a few feet from, the railway run-
ning through Glynde in the county of Sussex ; and when
the train returned in the afternoon, some six hours later,
the bird was exactly in the same position. And it may
be mentioned here that the Night-jar does not perch in the
same way as other birds, but crouches or lies along the
branch, or what it may be resting on, in the same
direction as the limb, and not across it. This pecu-
liarity, combined with the sombre brown of the bird^s
plumage, renders it somewhat difficult of detection, and
doubtless on this account the creature is frequently passed
unnoticed and unthought of. But though dull and
quiescent in daylight, the bird is vastly different when
its feeding time has arrived ; then its whole character
changes, it suddenly becomes possessed of marvellous
powers of flight, and exhibits an endurance of motive
power and elegance of movement that place it in the very
first rank of accomplished flyers. Now dashing past
almost within grasping distance, now wheeling round
some old oak or chestnut tree, now rising high into the
air, now gradually descending, now sweeping forwards in
a long straight line, and now returning in a series of
graceful curves, one moment visible and the next lost in
the gloom — it may well be doubted whether any other
bird can possibly excel the Night-jar in grace of movement.
This interesting bird is really, as Morris calls it, " a
gigantic and sombre swallow," and, like the swallow, is
a summer visitor only, and subsists exclusively on insect
food. It is one of the latest of our arrivals, seldom
appearing until the middle of May, and leaving again
after a stay of about four months.

THE yiGHT-JAR. 15

Woods, plantations,, moors,, heaths, and places where
ferns and undergrowth abound, are the favourite resorts of
the Night- jar ; and in country places the belated wayfarer
may now and then catch a glimpse of it, as it glides
across his path or sweeps along the dusky highway in
pursuit of food.

The Night-jar builds no nest, but lays its eggs on the
open ground of some copse or wood, which they generally
resemble so closely as to be distinguished with difficulty.
Only two eggs are laid, about the beginning of June ;
they are perfectly oval, of a whitish ground, with delicate
veins and markings of bluish-grey and pink, and rather
more than an inch in length. At first, the young birds
are covered with fine down.

The beak of the Night-jar is short and flexible, the
gape is wide, and the mouth is furnished with a number
of stiff bristles, which project in a forward direction, and
no doubt materially assist in the capture and retention of
the moths and beetles upon which the creature subsists.

Another peculiarity in this bird is the formation of
the foot, the middle toe being long and provided with a
claw, serrated on its inner edge like a comb. The object
of this formation is to a large extent conjectural, different
naturalists having different opinions concerning it. Some
writers affirm that the bird occasionally secures its food
with the feet, and that the claw is of great assistance in
the process ; but the shortness of the leg and its relative
position with the bill would not seem to corroborate this
idea. Most probably the bird uses this comb-like arrange-
ment for clinging in the manner above alluded to.

The plumage of the Night- jar is almost entirely com-
posed of different shades of brown with black markings,

16 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

and the general appearance is sombre and unpret3nding.
There are markings of white on the throat,, and the three
outside wing-feathers of the male bird have each a white
end; the outside feathers of the tail near the patch are
also tipped with white. The tail is widely expanded in
flight.

The note of this bird is something between a hiss and a
buzz, and may be said to resemble the syllable jar-r-r-r-r-r-r ;
it has also a note that sounds like "dec, dec/' which it
utters when commencing its flight. As with many other
birds, the sounds made by the Night-jar are very mis-
leading as to the locality from whence they proceed.

Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Dorsetshire,
Devonshire, Cornwall, Cumberland, and Westmoreland,
are counties in which the Night-jar is most frequently
met with, although it is seen at times in several other
parts of Great Britain. It is found in several European
countries, and is said to be a visitor both to Asia and
Africa.

SJOF\M

SIZE )

THE STORM PETREL.

Procellaria pclagica.

HE Storm Petrel, or, as it is
more commonly called, the
Stormy Petrel,, is probably the
most diminutive of the web-
footed birds, and from its
fancied connection with rough
weather has been for a long
time regarded, especially by
seafaring men, with feelings of
awe and foreboding. The idea
that these pretty birds are the
infallible heralds of storms has
gained for them the unpleasant
sobriquets of devil's birds,
witches, and Mother Carey's
chickens. As, however, it is
considered extremely unlucky
to kill them, perhaps the im-
munity from interference they
enjoy may be taken as a satis-
factory set-off against the un-
canny attributes with which
they have been credited.
The entire length of the

43

18 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

Stormy Petrel seldom exceeds six inches ; the iris is dark-
brown ; the head, neck, wings, back, chin, throat, breast,
belly, and vent, are a dull sooty-black. The tertiaries, or
rather the outer edges, are white ; the upper tail-coverts
and the sides of the vent are also white ; the legs, toes,
and webs are black. The bill of the Stormy Petrel is
black, and like that of all the Petrel tribe, is very peculiar
in construction ; the end of the upper mandible is strongly
hooked, and has just the appearance of being a separate
piece put on or added to the true bill; there is, lying
over the upper portion of the beak, a distinct lump or
prominence formed by the tubular structure of the
nostrils, which show two distinct orifices in front ; the
lower mandible follows the curved line of the upper one,
but is slightly augulated, and terminates somewhat
abruptly. Until about twelve months old the young birds
are more rusty in colour than the adults ; they are with-
out the white edges to the tertiaries, and the sides of the
vent are not so white.

According to Buffon, the name Petrel is derived
from Peter the Apostle, who walked upon the water ;
the habit of apparently running along on the waves,
so noticeable in this bird, having clearly suggested the
synonym.

The Storm Petrel is said to be found in greater or less
numbers in nearly every part of the open sea, at great'
distances from the land, and most frequently at twilight
or in dull, gloomy weather ; they have, however, been
seen far inland, at times when unusually strong gales
have been prevalent; and many of the Continental
museums have specimens that have been obtained from the
large inland lakes. Mr. Mitchen says they breed in one

THE STOEM PETREL. 19

portion of the Scilly Islands, but their principal nesting
resorts, as far as Great Britain is concerned, are in the rocky
isles of the Hebrides, Orkney, and Shetland ; the islands
on the western coast of Ireland are also frequented by
them. The eggs are laid either amongst the debris of the
cliffs on the sea-coast or in the holes and crevices of the rocks,
and are oval in shape and white in colour, and, according to
Mr. Yarrell, each female lays one only. Breeding com-
mences late in the season, in some cases not until the
middle or end of June. During the day the old birds
remain in their nesting places, and issue forth in search of
food as the evening approaches. At these times they may
be seen spread over the sea in large numbers.

The food of the Stormy Petrel consists of small marine
insects, and the small Crustacea always found where large
masses of sea- weed are floating about ; the birds will, how-
ever, follow ships for days in succession, and feed readily
on almost any small fragments that may be thrown over-
board. The writer, one evening in the month of May
some few years ago, accompanied a gentleman a mile or
two out into the channel immediately off Brighton, and
after throwing the oil from some liver on the waves, very
soon succeeded in attracting the attention of some Petrels,
who skimmed along the water, picking up the floating oil
with evident gusto. It is somewhat remarkable that in
rowing out on this excursion, although nothing like a
Petrel was to be seen anywhere, yet in the course of a
few hours more than a score (two of which were shot)
had put in an appearance. They subsequently disappeared
as mysteriously as they came. This incident would almost
seem to imply that these birds are really not so rare as
is frequently supposed ; but that, owing to their small size,

20

FAMILIAR WILD 3IRDS.

and their habit of keeping- close to the waves,, they must
very often escape observation.

The flight of the Stormy Petrel is easy, graceful, and
rapid, and capable of long sustentation. Its usual habit
of progression is a sort of running paddle on the surface
of the water, the wings being freely used to assist in the
process.

These birds usually fly directly in the teeth of the wind,
and it is often a source of great astonishment how so small
and light a creature can progress so easily against a gale,
that compels the spectator to seek some support even to
retain an upright position.

(>/» NAT^M- SIZE)

-4 ?

THE STONE-CHAT.

A

Silvia rulicola.
Motacilla „

HIS handsome little bird, al-
though tolerably well known
in several of the English
counties, cannot really be
said to be common anywhere.
Sussex, Yorkshire, Dorset-
shire, Devonshire, Cornwall,
Suffolk, Norfolk, and Nor-
thumberland, may, however,
be mentioned as counties in
which it is found most
abundantly. The Stone-chat
frequents dry heaths, com-
mons, and open places, in
which patches of brushwood,
furze, heaps of stones, and
similar objects may be met
with. It is known in vari-
ous localities under different
names, amongst which the
most general are Stone-chat-
ter, Furze-chat, Stone-clink,
Stone-smith, and Moor Tit-
ling. The habits of the Stone-

22 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

chat are restless and noisy; it may be most frequently
observed perched on the top of some low stone wall, or the
topmost branch of a furze bush or stunted thorn, where it
continually utters the quick " chat — chat, chat " that has
suggested the name it commonly goes by. In addition to
this not very melodious call, the bird has, however, a very
pretty little song, not particularly varied or loud, but cer-
tainly sweet and harmonious, which it utters sometimes
when perched, but more frequently whilst hovering or
rather fluttering in the air at a slight distance from the
ground.

The food of the Stone-chat principally consists of
insects, grubs, and worms. It seizes its prey alike on the
ground and in the air, and the short, rapid, and sudden
darts which the bird makes after some tempting morsel
are amongst the most noticeable of its characteristics. In
this particular it somewhat resembles the Fly-catcher, for
as soon as the morsel is secured, the bird invariably
returns to its perch of observation as rapidly and ener-
getically as it left it.

The Stone-chat chooses his mate in March, and nest-
ing operations are commenced about the end of the
month. The nest, which is rather large for the size
of the bird, is built on the ground in a somewhat loose
and uncompact style, and is by no means easy to dis-
cover, the centre of a patch of low furze, or some equally
unpromising situation, being frequently selected. Moss,
dry grass, fibres of heath and small roots, are the ma-
terials made use of, and the interior is lined with hair,
fur, feathers, and occasionally wool. The eggs number
five or six, and are of a pale greenish or greyish-blue
colour, with a profusion of small specks of reddish-brown

THE STONE-CHAT. 23

at the larger end. The female sits very closely, and
when compelled to leave the nest generally hops about on
the neighbouring bushes for a little while, and then sud-
denly disappears, returning unperceived to her nest
through the friendly shelter of the surrounding cover.
Should the nest be interfered with, both birds become
clamorous and daring, resorting to many artifices to in-
duce the unwelcome visitor to quit the locality.

The flight of the Stone-chat is somewhat peculiar ; it
seems when leaving its perch to dive as it were to the
ground, and reappears only when it has reached the next
spot on which it means to settle.

Although this little bird remains with us throughout
the year, it would seem to be partially migratory in its
habits, forsaking some localities in the fall of the year
and returning again in the spring. During the winter
months the Stone -chat generally associates in small parties
of three or four; they take up their quarters in small
gardens, &c., on the outskirts of towns or villages, and con-
fine their rambles to very restricted limits, seldom exceeding
a mile in extent. At these times they are very methodica
in their movements, and can usually be seen at a certain
time in a certain place for many days in succession. They
have a peculiar call-note used by both sexes, when they
have young, resembling the syllable " chuck." Any
observant person accustomed to these birds can tell in a
moment whether they have a young family or not, by
listening for this particular note.

The length of the Stone-chat is a little more than five
inches. The head, cheeks, and throat are black, with a
slight shade of brown ; the back is black, deeply edged
with brown ; upper tail-coverts white, speckled with

24 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

brown, and edged with rust colour; the wings are brown,
edged with greyish-brown ; the tertiaries white ; the sides
of the neck are white, the breast chestnut-brown, shaded
off into a pale yellowish tint on the belly and under tail-
coverts ; tail brownish-black ; the legs, toes, and claws
are black. The female has a general resemblance to the
male ; but the white parts of the neck and wings are
smaller, the upper part of the body is more dusky brown,
and the chin and throat is blackish-brown, spotted with
white and red. The young birds, until the succeeding
spring, are very much like the adult hen.

The Stone-chat is said to be met with in several Euro-
pean countries, as also in Asia and the Cape of Good Hope.

(/a KlATbuM- SIZE)

THE WHEAT-EAB

Saxicola ce nan the.
Motacilla

1 1 10 Wheat-car is one of our
early spring- visitors, arriving
on the British shores about
the middle or end of March,
and staying with us until
August, or September. Oc-
casionally the bird has been
met with in this country as
late as December. The Wheat-
ear migrates, as a rule, during
the night, the males arriving
first. This bird is found in
most parts of Great Britain ;
but is most common on the
South Downs of Sussex, Dor-
setshire, Surrey, Middlesex,
Oxfordshire, Derbyshire, Cam-
bridgeshire, Gloucestershire,
and Yorkshire. The flesh is
considered very delicate eat-
ing, and between the months
of July and September large
numbers are snared for the
table. The birds formerly

44

26 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

were caught by means of horsehair nooses placed in small
trenches scooped out of the ground, into which they run
for concealment, the shepherds on the Sussex Downs being*
particularly expert in this occupation.

The timidity and caution of the Wheat-ear are ex-
tremely noticeable traits in its character ; it has a habit
of constantly moving1 the head from side to side, and
looking in all directions, as though in a chronic state of
apprehension. The nest, which is tolerably well concealed,
is generally built about the end of April or beginning of
May, and is either placed in some old wall or in a quarry
or gravel-pit ; in some cases it is built amongst a heap of
stones, and at other times a deserted rabbit-burrow is
made use of. The materials used are fine dry grass and
moss mixed with wool, and lined with hair, wool, fur, or
feathers. The eggs are usually five or six in number,
rather long, and of a light blue colour. White varieties
have been occasionally found.

The food of the Wheat-ear consists of flies, beetles, wire-
worms, caterpillars, small snails, grasshoppers, slugs, worms,
&c. The bird sometimes captures its food on the wing ; but
its most favourite plan is to perch on some stone or small
eminence from which it darts upon some tempting morsel,
and then returns to its watching-place to look out for
more. As an instance of the service rendered to the
farmer by this and similar birds, the author remembers a
field about eight acres in extent which one season was so
infested with wire-worms that cultivation was almost use-
less. The field was ploughed and harrowed about the end
of April or the beginning of May, and at this time large
numbers of Wheat-ears congregated there daily; in fact,
they seemed to have forsaken the surrounding localities for

THE WHEAT-EAR.

this particular spot. Their services in the extirpation of
the above-mentioned wire-worms may be best imagined
from the fact that after the advent of the birds the field
became productive, and a first-rate crop was the result of
their labours and assiduity.

The* flight is easy, low down, and tolerably rapid ; it
may be described as being "a series of short starts/'
the white part of the plumage of the back being very con-
spicuous. When disturbed, the bird very quickly flies over
some low hedge, or gets behind some object large enough to
screen it from view ; it runs nimbly along the ground, and is
fond of perching on low walls, stumps, stones, or rails.
The song is sweet, with a harsh note here and there, and
frequently prolonged; it is often uttered by the bird as
it hovers about the nest " with flickering wings and ex-
panded tail/' In captivity it sings both by day and night,
and sometimes throughout the winter.

Open places like the downs and commons already named
are the favourite resorts of the Wheat-ear ; but it may not
unfrequently be seen in the wake of the plough, especially
where the land under cultivation is close to the downs or
commons afore-mentioned.

Two distinct kinds of Wheat-ear visit this country.
The larger bird, or Greater Wheat-ear, which does not
arrive until the middle of April, resembles the ordinary
species in plumage, but it is larger, the dark ear-coverts
are more edged with brown, so also is the back; the
legs are longer and stouter, and the bird is much wilder
in disposition and habits. It may often be seen perched
on bushes and low trees.

The Common Wheat-ear is about six inches in length ;
the bill is black from the base to the eyes, and forms an

23 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

expanded mark behind; above this mark is a band of
white from the forehead; there are a few bristles at the
base of the bill ; head, crown, and back of neck bluish-
grey, the feathers tipped with pale brown ; chin and throat
dull white ; breast a pale, yellowish cream-colour, becoming
a dull yellowish-white lower down ; back grey, slightly
tinged with palish brown ; rump and upper tail-coverts
white, very conspicuous in flight; wings dark brown; the
tail is white, or nearly so, for two-thirds of its length, the
remainder black ; the feathers are broad and well rounded
at the ends ; under tail-coverts wrhite ; legs rather long,
thin and black ; toes and claws black. The female has a
general resemblance to the male, but the colours are more
of a uniform light tawny-brown.

LITTLE

SIZE)

THE LITTLE GKEBE.

Todiccps minor.

HIS interesting bird, more com-
i monly known as the Dab-
chick, Dip-chick, or Didapper,
is tolerably well distributed
over Great Britain, and is a
comparatively familiar object
on most of onr ponds, lakes,
and inland sheets of water.
The peculiarity of its structure,
the wariness of its disposition,
and, above all, the marvellous
ease with which it dives and
swims, are matters which can-
not fail to excite our interest
and admiration.

The Little Grebe is the
smallest of the British Grebes,
and, like the other members
of the family, is purely an
aquatic bird, taking to flight
with great reluctance, and
moving about on dry land
slowty and with awkwardness.
Indeed, the bird appears so

30 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

thoroughly aware of its deficiencies in these respects, that
it is seldom if ever found in localities where a speedy
retreat to its favourite clement cannot be easily secured.

In the winter, or rather in periods of severe frost, this
little bird is most commonly found in the smaller streams
and springs, in the mouths of rivers, and other pieces of
water unaffected by frost, and sometimes in the pools left
on the sea-coast by the receding tide ; but in the summer
time it affects the more open surfaces of lakes, fish-ponds,,
and the reedy sides of rivers. In these localities the
Little Grebe may constantly be seen busily searching for
its food, swimming nimbly about, always keeping a sharp
look-out for unwelcome visitors, and being ready to dive
at a moment's notice. In sheets of water close to much-
frequented highways or railways the Little Grebe loses a
great deal of its shyness, and will permit a much greater
amount of familiarity on the part of the observer; but
even under these circumstances, the least suspicious move-
ment, or too sudden and close an approach, is quite enough for
our wary little friend, who, with a slight ripple and a tiny
splash is " gone under " in an instant, to reappear only at
a safer and more satisfactory distance. The cuteness and
wary activity of this little bird has long since become pro-
verbial amongst sportsmen, and before the introduction of
modern percussion guns it was a work of considerable
difficulty to shoot them.

The food consists of aquatic insects, shrimps, small fish
and their fry, and some sorts of vegetable substances.

In common with other members of the Grebe family,
the Little Grebe builds its nest amongst the reedy, rushy
herbage that fringes the banks or sides of its favourite
resorts. The nest, which is much larger than the usual

TEE LITTLE GREBE. 31

domiciles of such comparatively small birds, is somewhat
loosely constructed of rushes and leaves of aquatic plants.
The number of eggs vary from four to six : they are about
one inch seven lines in length, and one inch three lines in
breadth ; when first laid they are pure white in colour, but
soon become dirty and stained from the feet of the parent,
from the habit the female has of covering them over with
vegetable matter when she leaves the nest. By the time
the eggs are hatched they have usually become a brown,
dull, clay colour.

The young Grebes take to the water very soon after
they are hatched, accompanying their parents in their
swimming excursions after food, and rapidly become expert
swimmers and divers. They are quaint-looking little
fellows, of a dark brown colour on the head, neck, and
upper surface, with long streaks of yellowish-brown on
the neck and back; the under part of the body is
silvery-white. The peculiarities of the Grebe family are
very noticeable in the little bird now under notice. The
bill is of moderate length, straight, hard, and pointed ;
the legs and toes are not webbed, but are long and consider-
ably Hattened, and attached so far back on the body as to
give the bird when standing almost the appearance of a little
Penguin ; the wings are short, and there is no true tail.
The plumage of the Little Grebe varies according to the
seasons. In summer the iris is reddish-brown ; the head,
back of neck, and nearly all the upper portions of the body
are very dark brown, almost black ; chin black ; cheeks, sides,
and front of neck reddish-brown ; breast and belly greyish-
white ; under the wings and the flanks the colour is a dusky
brown ; the toes and legs are a dark greenish-brown . In
winter the head and upper parts of the body are clove-

32

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

colour ; the cliin is white ; the front of the neck ash-
brown ; and the breast and belly a shiny greyish- white. It
may be mentioned here, that the Black- Chinned Grebe of
our early ornithologists is nothing more than the common
Dab-chick in its summer plumage.

The Little Grebe is found commonly in Ireland, but
is not so plentiful in Scotland as in England. It is found
occasionally in Sweden and some other parts of Northern
Europe, and is said to be common in the lakes of Switzer-
land.

THE CAPEECATLLIE.

Tetrao urogattus.

HIS handsome and striking--
looking bird occupies the fore-
most place amongst British
Grouse, and it may be added
that its size and general
appearance fully warrant the
position assigned to it.

The name Capercaillie is a
derivation from the Gaelic
Capullcoille, which literally
means " horse of the woods."
Yarrell, in his description of
this bird, and the dis-
tinctive title applied to it,
remarks : " This species, in
comparison with the others of
the genus, is pre-eminently
large; the distinction is in-
tended to refer to size, as it
is usual now to say horse-
mackerel, horse - ant, horse-
fly, and horse-radish."

Many years ago these noble-
looking birds were compara-

34 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

tively common in many of the northern parts of Great
Britain, but about the year 1760 they became practically
extinct. They have, however, been re-introduced, and their
complete restoration to the list of British birds may now be
taken as an accomplished fact. The Capereatllie is to be
found in almost every part of the Scandinavian peninsula,
and also in several of the countries of Northern Europe
which abound in extensive forests of fir. The bird is
seldom, if ever, met with in small growths of trees ; it loves
the dense, deeply-shaded tracts of pine, and only when
forced by long protracted cold does it quit these resorts for
the more open districts to be found on lower grounds.

The food of the Capercaillie consists principally of the
young leaves and shoots of the Scotch fir, juniper berries,
cranberries, blueberries, and indeed any other kind found in
the forests in which it lives. The young birds are fed for
some time on ants' eggs, worms, and various insects.

The cry or song of the adult male is somewhat remark-
able ; it is uttered in the spring of the year both in the
early morning and after sunset. The bird stations himself
on a tree in some conspicuous place, and the note (which is
intended to attract the females) is continued in a most
wearisome and persistent manner. It is said to resemble
the words "peller, peller, peller," and during the time
occupied in this somewhat grotesque love-song the per-
former gets into a state of the greatest excitement. The
cry of the female is not dissimilar to the croak of the
Raven, but is not quite so hoarse. During the period
immediately preceding nesting operations, numerous quar-
rels take place between the male birds ; this un amiable
disposition is, however, universal amongst the Tetraonida3.

The nest of the Capercaillie is made upon the ground ;

THE CAPERCAILLIE. 35

it is composed of grasses and leaves, and is usually placed
amongst heather or long grass, and often under the
sheltering cover of a bush or bramble.

The number of eggs varies from six to ten or twelve ; the
colour is a pale reddish-brown, spotted all over with two
shades of orange brown. The male birds do not assist in
incubation, and are said to desert the hens entirely as soon
as the young ones are hatched.

The flight of the Capercaillie is strong, and more rapid
and easily sustained than one would imagine from the size
of the bird ; during flight the wings are flapped very
rapidly. In walking, the body is carried horizontally, the
head stretched forwards, and the tail drooped. The bird
runs very quickly. The Capercaillie is, generally speaking,
shy and unsociable, especially the males. During winter
the birds congregate in flocks, which are said occasionally
to number fifty, and even a hundred birds. It is somewhat
a difficult matter to induce them to take wing, as when
alarmed they usually run off and secrete themselves in the
brushwood or some similar cover.

The adult male measures about three feet four inches;
the beak whitish horn colour; the irides hazel ; over the eye
a half-moon-shaped patch of naked skin, which is bright
scarlet in summer ; the plumage of the head, neck, back,
rump, and upper tail-coverts minutely freckled with
greyish-white on a brownish-black ground ; feathers of the
crown and throat rather elongated ; wing-coverts and wings
freckled with light brown on a darker shade ; quill feathers
dark chesnut-brown ; tail feathers nearly black, with, a few
spots of greyish-white ; the chest a fine shining dark green;
breast black, with a few white spots ; flanks and under tail-
coverts greyish -black, spotted with white ; under wing-

36

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

coverts white, a small patch appearing on the outside near
the shoulder ; thighs grey ; legs feathered with darker
grey ; toes and claws black.

In the female the plumage is different ; the head, neck,
back, wings, upper tail-coverts, and tail are dark brown ;
the front of the neck and the chest are of a fine yellowish-
chestnut ; the legs are greyish-brown ; and the toes and
claws are pale brown.

The young birds at first resemble the females, and the
young males assume their final plumage only by slow
degrees.

,ME/\DOW pip IJ
(3/s fVrbR/d SIZE)

THE MEADOW PIPIT, OE TITLAEK.

Antku* pratemis.
Aland a ,.

HIS little bird is one of the
commonest of our feathered
friends. Its unpretending
plumage and gentle "peep"
are familiar to every one from
John O'Groat's to Land's End,
and from the most westerly
coasts of Ireland to the shores
of our own eastern counties.
It is most commonly called
the Titlark, and, indeed, until
recently was erroneously clas-
sified amongst the Larks; but
although the bird has now
found its proper position in
ornithological science, the
name of Titlark will probably
cling to it for a long time to
come ; popular habits in these
matters, as well as in more
important ones, are extremely
difficult to change.

The Meadow Pipit is widely
distributed over the greater

38 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

part of Europe, Asia, and Africa. There can be no
doubt that it is to a large extent migratory — possibly a
percentage of ninety-five birds in every hundred leaving
us at the end of the season. They return again, however,
as early as the end of February.

The food consists of insects, worms, slugs, and possibly
seeds. Its habits are extremely impartial, and it shows
so little preference for one spot more than another that it
would almost be more difficult to point out where it is not
to be seen, than to indicate any particularly likely locality.
The downs in Sussex, and the pasture and arable lands adja-
cent, are, however, places where we have ourselves seen them
as numerously as anywhere. In extremely cold weather the
Meadow Pipit may be met with on manure-heaps, or on the
sea-shore and the banks of tidal rivers, running nimbly
about over the accumulations of seaweed, and searching for
anything in the shape of food which may present itself.
In ordinary circumstances the bird is fond of water, wading
into it, and bathing with evident delight. The flight is
short and erratic, frequently varied by an undulating move-
ment, not dissimilar to that of the Wagtail ; indeed the bird
resembles the Wagtail in one or two characteristics, more
particularly in a flirting movement of the tail upon first
settling. The song is low and harmonious, and the bird
frequently sings while hovering about in the neighbourhood
of its nest. When singing the bird has a noticeable habit
of rising in the air and slowly descending with extended
wings, much in the same way as the Tree Pipit. If
frightened or disturbed the Meadow Pipit utters a quick
sharp " trit, trit."

The nest is commonly built of dried grass, lined with
fine fibres of grass and moss, and a little hair ; it is found

THE NEADOW PIPIT, OR TITLARK. 39

upon tlie ground, under a tuft of grass, or on the bank of
a field, or on the side of a railway cutting, and not uncom-
monly upon the beach under some dried weeds. Four or
five eggs are laid, which are light brown, much mottled with
a darker shade, especially near the larger end. The
Meadow Pipit has two and sometimes three nests in the
year, some being found as early as the beginning of April,
and others as late as July.

The length of the Meadow Pipit is about six and a half
inches ; the bill is dusky, inclining to a pale yellow brown
down the side of the neck ; from the base of the bill there is
a line of dusky spots, and another over it ; iris, dark brown ;
head, crown, neck, on the back and nape are brown, the middle
of the feathers being darker than the edges; chin, throat, and
sides of neck are pale yellowish or brownish ; breast, light
brownish white, spotted with dark brown, forming a small
cluster in the centre ; back, brown ; after the autumn
moult, the brown portions assume a beautiful tinge of rich
olive. The greater and lesser wing coverts are brown, with
broad edges of light brown ; primaries, secondaries, and
tertials are brownish black, edged with light brown. The
tail is about two and a half inches in length, of a dark
brown, with paler markings. Legs and toes are light
brownish yellow; claws, dusky, the hind one being long
and slightly curved. The females are somewhat smaller
than the males, but resemble them in general appearance.
The young birds of the first year have the pretty olive
tinges of the adult plumage in autumn.

It should be clearly understood that there is a second
variety or species of Meadow Pipit which does not remain
with us during the winter. This bird arrives in England
as early as the end of February, and is of a lighter colour,

40

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

more resembling the Tree Pipit. Strangely enough this
bird, although quite common, and so distinct in at least
one important particular, appears to have been overlooked
by naturalists. In other respects its habits do not appear
to present any marked difference from those of the pre-
ceding.

pi ED

THE PIED FLYCATCHER

Uuscicapa atricap i llu .

HIS interesting' little bird is
far less frequently met with
than the Common or Spotted
Flycatcher ; its distribution
is very uneven, and although
at times comparatively com-
mon in some localities, it
may, generally speaking, be
regarded as a somewhat rare
bird.

It is entirely migratory,
arriving in this country
generally about the com-
mencement of April, and re-
maining with us until Sep-
tember or October, according
to the mildness or otherwise
of the season.

The food upon which it
lives, the method in which
it captures its prey, and
many of its habits, bear a
strong resemblance to those
of its better known narne-

46

42 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

sake, but there are a few important points in which the
two birds differ very widely.

Perhaps the most striking distinction is the almost
invariable rule observed by the Pied Flycatcher in building
its nest, the holes in decayed trees (generally oaks or
pollards) being the spots selected for this purpose.

The bird also evinces a noticeable love for one particular
nesting- place, and a well-known ornithologist mentions a
case, coming under his own observation, in which a pair of
Pied Flycatchers had bred in exactly the same place for
four successive years.

The nest is an assemblage of thin roots, dried grass,
leaves, and hair ; the eggs are about eight lines and a half
in length, and six and a half in width ; the colour is a
uniform pale blue ; the eggs vary considerably both as
regards number and appearance ; as many as eight have been
found, but this is above the average.

The nest, as already stated, is very often placed in the
hole of some decayed oak, or pollard tree, and the bird is,
(especially when the young are hatched) exceedingly noisy
and clamorous when any one approaches its domicile too
closely. The young are usually hatched by the beginning
or middle of June. The song of the male bird is varied
and pleasing, and somewhat resembles that of the Red-
start.

The Pied Flycatcher is most plentiful in the neighbour- .
hood of the Cumberland and Westmoreland lakes; specimens
have also been found with more or less frequency in many
other portions of Great Britain, but it is far oftener met
with, during migration, on the east coast than the south.
Indeed, as a matter of fact, it is very seldom met with on
the south coast.

THE PIED FLYCATCHER. 43

This bird is not of a shy disposition, as it approaches
buildings with freedom, and it is by no means an un-
common occurrence to find nests in the trees of gardens
situated within the precincts of towns and villages.

The Pied Flycatcher lives principally upon winged
insects, which it secures in the same way as the Common
Flycatcher ; doubtless this diet may occasionally be varied
by a little indulgence in the smaller kinds of fruit, when
the temptation presents itself, but its depredations cannot
be taken into serious consideration.

This bird is easily kept in confinement, and feeds readily
on the food usually given to Nightingales. As a captive,
it very soon becomes tame, and shows signs of attachment
and familiarity to its owner.

It is found abundantly in the south of Europe, and
appears to be particularly partial to the coasts of the
Mediterranean ; it is a regular visitor to the central parts
of Germany and France, and is said to be met with both in
Norway and Sweden in the summer season.

In some parts of England the Pied Flycatcher is known
as the " Goldfinch," but in our own opinion it very much
resembles the Pied Wagtail, as regards colour, at first sight,
but the tail is much shorter, and the habits are quite
different from those of that bird.

In the breeding season the adult male has the beak
black, with a white patch over the base, on the forehead ;
irides, a dark brown ; upper part of the head and neck, in-
cluding the eyes, dark brownish-black; the back a decided
black ; wing primaries and secondaries, brownish-black ;
edges of the greater wing-coverts and the outer webs of the
tertials, pure white ; the tail partly black, parts of the outer
and second feathers being white; all the under portions

44

FAMILIAR WILD SIItDS.

to the end of the under tail-coverts white; legs, toes,
and claws, black.

The female has no white over the base of the beak ; the
head, neck, back, and wing-coverts dark brown ; wing
primaries brownish-black ; greater coverts and tertials
edged with dull white ; the other portions resemble the
male, but the white markings are not so pure ; the young
birds very much resemble the adult female until after the
second moult. The entire length of the bird is rather
more than five inches.

Tf^EE

THE TE'BE PIPIT.

Anthiis arloreus.
Alauda trivialis.

HIS is a very pretty, graceful
little bird, not very striking
as regards tlie showiness of
its plumage, but uncom-
monly neat, if one may use
such an expression, in its
appearance, the feathers lyr
ing smoothly over one an-
other, and imparting a sleek
slim look to the bird that is
noticeable to the most casual
observer.

The species is entirely
migratory in its habits,
arriving in this country
generally about the middle
of April, later in Scotland,
and staying with us until
September or October. Oc-
casionally specimens have
been known to remain until
November. In their order
of arrival the males precede
the females by a week or

46 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

ten days. Their habits are solitary and retiring, the birds
never appearing in flocks, like many others of the same
order. Even when several are in the same field they keep
quite apart from one another, and generally at a tolerable
distance.

The Tree Pipit, as may be gathered from its name, is
partial to foliage, and may be found in almost any of our
southern counties, where copses, plantations, and wooded
districts are plentiful. A pond or stream is also a great
attraction to this sprightly little bird, as it is partial to a
bath, but does not dust itself so frequently as the Skylark.

Insects and their Iarva3, particularly flies and gnats,
worms, and caterpillars are the principal items in its diet,
and its movements when in search of food are lively and
graceful in the extreme.

The song is not very varied, consisting of what Morris
describes as a " monosyllabic effusion/'' closely resembling
the word " tsee, tsee, tsee," uttered an indefinite number of
times. The note, however, is sweet and pleasing, and the
bird presents a most interesting appearance whilst engaged
in singing. Starting from the bare branch of some tree, it
makes a short ascent into the air, hovers with widely-spread
wing and tail while it pours forth its happy little note, and
then descends again with open wings to its starting-point,
to renew the flight and song after a short pause ; occasion-
ally this action is repeated many times in succession.

In seeking a home the Tree Pipit generally selects a tuft
of grass, or some low herbage, under which it builds its nest,
and most commonly prefers the additional shelter of a planta-
tion or copse. It finds various places for nesting, but the nest
is always on the ground. The nest is made of dried grass,
thin roots, and the stalks of coarse moss, with a few hairs

THE TREE PIPIT. 47

as an inside lining. Four, five and six eggs are laid, which,
as a rule, are of a greyish white colour, faintly tinged with
purple, and spotted and clouded with brownish or reddish
purple. This is a tolerably fair description of an average
example, but the eggs of the Tree Pipit differ very con-
siderably, so much so that it has been remarked that
perhaps the eggs of no other land bird afford such remark-
able variations in their appearance. The hen sits very
closely, and leaves her nest with considerable reluctance,
sometimes even allowing herself to be handled rather than
go away from her occupation.

The length of this bird is about six and a half inches,
the bill is dark brown, all the base of the lower mandible
and the edges of the upper one are yellowish brown. A
streak of brown passes backwards and downwards from the
base of the beak, which is furnished with a few short bristly
feathers. The iris is of a deep brown, and has a whitish
mark immediately over it; the top of the head and the back
of the neck are olive brown ; chin and throat pale brownish
white, or brownish yellow in the autumn; there are numerous
small brown spots on the front of the breast which become
streaks of a darker colour on the sides. The wings reach
to within an inch and a quarter from the tip of the tail, and
are of a darkish brown edged with greyish white — there
are two distinct bars of this colour across the wing. The
tail is rather long and brownish, with the outer feathers
marked with white ; the legs and toes are pale yellowish
brown ; the hind claw is shorter than the toe, and
strongly curved. The female, except that she is somewhat
smaller, generally resembles the male, but there is great
difficulty in distinguishing between the sexes.

These birds are much handsomer in the autumn than in

48 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

the spring. During the earlier part of the year the plumage
is much lighter and the markings less distinct — this is
very noticeable immediately after incubation,, when the
feathers have a very worn and ragged appearance. The
Tree Pipit is a very interesting bird in confinement,
its graceful carriage and thrush-like appearance being an
unfailing source of admiration. It is said to be commonly
found in most of the European countries, also in certain
parts of Asia and Africa,

D u N. L i

THE DUNLIN.

Trinya alplna.
Tringa cinclus.

Dunlin, or Purre, is by
far the most common and
abundant of all the Sand-
pipers known in this country.
Formerly the Dunlin was con-
sidered a species totally dis-
tinct from the Purre, but more
accurate observation has shown
that the difference is only the
variation between the summer
and winter plumage of one
and the same bird, and that
the Dunlin of the first-named
season is the Purre of the
latter, merely clothed in a
somewhat different costume.
In addition to these names,
it is also known as the Ox-
bird, Sea Snipe, Plover's Page,
Sandpiper, and Sea Lark.

The Dunlin is said to be
very abundant in the Arctic
portions of North America,
the northern parts of Europe,

47

50 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

and various parts of Asia, Africa, and the Indian
Ocean. In Great Britain it is more or less common to
every portion of our coasts, especially those which are
of a low flat character, with reaches of sand or mud. In
the spring the Dunlin advances to the more northerly
parts of the country, and journeys southward in the
autumn ; and whilst performing these journeys it is said
that the young birds and the adults nearly always proceed
in separate flocks. The birds, if travelling for any con-
siderable distance, fly in a straight line very close together,
and at some height in the air ; at other times they keep
very close to the ground or water. The Dunlin feeds upon
aquatic insects, worms, and the smaller sized Crustacea,
and it is interesting to watch a flock of these active birds
on some low sandy flat, running to and fro in search of
food. Their movements are rapid and continuous, and they
appear to be perpetually on the move, now running into
the shallow part of a receding wave, now stopping to probe
the sand with their bills, and ever and anon taking a short
flight to a more productive spot. The entire flock rises
simultaneously when disturbed, but does not usually fly to
any considerable distance.

The breeding season of the Dunlin commences about
May, and at this time the birds forsake the coasts and seek
the moors and heaths, where they may be so commonly seen
with the Golden Plover, that the local name of " Plover's '
Page " has no doubt been given to them from this frequent
association.

A very slight hollow or inequality in the ground, with
a few pieces of dried grass or heath, is considered sufficient
for a nest, and the number of eggs deposited is usually four.
These are of a greenish white ground, with spots and

THE DUNLIN. 51

blotches of differently shaded brown, and about one inch
and a quarter in length, which is certainly a very large
size in proportion to the dimensions of the bird. If ap-
proached too closely the old birds adopt various ruse's .to
attract attention from their nest, closely resembling the
Plovers in this particular characteristic.

The note may be likened to the syllable, ee kwee, kwee/'
and this cry is most commonly heard when the birds are
first taking to flight ; they also utter a somewhat similar
note when running along the ground, but it is far weaker
and more feeble in volume.

In its summer plumage the Dunlin has the beak black ;
irides, brown ; top of the head a mixed black and brown ;
neck greyish white, with black streaks ; wings greyish
black, with secondaries edged with white ; rump and tail
coverts black and ash colour; tail, dark brown and ash
grey ; chin, white ; neck in front, greyish white with black
streaks ; breast, mottled black and white ; vent, thighs, and
under tail coverts, white ; legs, toes, and claws, black.
The females somewhat resemble the males, but are lighter
in colour, and the markings are not quite so distinct. In
winter, the head, neck, back, and wings are nearly a
uniform ash grey; there are dusky streaks on the front of
the neck, and the breast and under parts are white ; the
wings do not appear to be subject to any noticeable vari-
ation.

In the autumn the sexes are alike in plumage, and
are very pretty. The young birds have soon after hatch-
ing all the upper surface of the body covered with a
pretty, soft, ash-coloured brown down, with a black stripe
down from the head through the back; the lower parts
are greyish white, and the legs green. Like the rest

52 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

of the Sandpiper family, the females exceed the males
in size.

These birds are only partially migratory, and on their
arrival in the spring they are usually very tame and
unsuspicious, and will permit themselves to be closely
approached and watched. They may often be seen in. the
daytime asleep on the beach, the head being turned round
towards the back. They very frequently associate with
other birds.

THE SKYLAEK.

Alatida arvensis.
Alauda vulgaris.

LTHOUGH of very modest and
unpretending appearance, the
Skylark occupies a prominent
position amongst our British
birds. The peculiar beauty of
its song has long since won for
it a thoroughly deserved popu-
larity, and its cheery voice is
ever welcome, whether uttered
high amongst the morning
clouds, or poured forth from
some humble cage in the street
or alley of the crowded city.
The song of the Skylark seems
completely identified with our
ideas of the country, both in
the early morn and at dewy
eve, and it is not in the least
surprising that poets of every
grade of merit should have
made it the subject of their
compositions, and sung its
praises in their most graceful
lines.

54 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

Dull, indeed, must be the ear, and emotionless the
temperament, that can listen to the " Lark at Heaven's
gate singing," without feeling astonished at the power and
compass of the melody, and delighted at its variety and
richness.

This bird is a native of all the European countries,
with the exception of the extreme north ; it is also met
with in the north of Africa and some portions of Asia.
In this country it is well distributed ; and, indeed, in all
parts of Great Britain it is one of the best known of our
feathered friends. In winter these birds resort in large
numbers to the stubble fields and meadows (especially
where much clover is to be found), and they may frequently
be seen where ploughing operations are going on. Being
only partially migratory, large numbers remain throughout
the winter; they are of strong and hardy constitution,
and generally keep in tolerably good condition, except
when the ground is covered with snow. As an article of
food, the Skylark is much esteemed, and vast numbers are
destroyed during the colder months for the market, where
a ready sale is always procurable. The food consists of
various small seeds, grains, leaves of small plants, worms,
and insects ; a quantity of gravel or sand is also taken by
this bird. When not soaring, the Skylark spends almost all
its time on the ground, seldom perching, but running nimbly
amongst the grass in search of food, or dusting itself in
the soft earth; the last-mentioned habit being one to
which it is much addicted.

The nest is built of dried bents of hay, grass, or fine
fibrous roots, and may be found in a slight indentation in
the ground ; generally, but not always, protected by clods
or thick tufts of grass or clover, and usually in some

THE SKYLARK. 55

meadow where the pasturage is thick and luxuriant ; at
times on the hills amongst heather, or in the centre of a
wheat or oat field. Five eggs are commonly laid, which are
greyish white with a greenish tinge, mottled all over with
a darker grey and greyish brown, but they vary considerably
in appearance. In approaching the nest the bird invariably
alights at some little distance and runs to it. The birds
pair in April, and usually rear two or more broods during
the summer. The Skylark is a most devoted parent, and
exhibits great anxiety for the safety and welfare of its
offspring.

The ordinary flight is undulating, but in soaring the
bird rises against the wind, at first irregularly, but after
a time it curves round, coming back against the wind
again, and so on until its greatest altitude is reached.
The song is continued during the entire ascent. The descent
is just as gradual, and is interspersed with similar curves and
circles until the earth is nearly approached, then the bird
suddenly closes its wings and drops abruptly to the ground.
The time occupied in these vocal ascents varies considerably,
sometimes extending to nearly half an hour, and sometimes
being much more brief in their duration.

The length of the Skylark is about seven inches. The
beak is dark brown, the irides are hazel, the head feathers
are long and form a crest — these are dark brown, paler at
the edges. The nape, back wings, and upper tail coverts are
of three shades of brown, the throat and top of the breast
are pale wood brown, spotted with dark brown, the lower
parts pale yellowish white, tinged with brown on the
thighs and flanks ; the legs, toes, and claws are brown ;
the middle toe is rather long, the claw of the hind toe is
very long, and the outer half slightly curved.

56 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

The female is not quite so large as the male, but differs
in no other respect. The young bird may be known by the
broad edgings to the wing coverts, and a black spot, with a
white tip, at the end of the smaller coverts, and are
of a more golden tinge. This distinction is lost after
the first moult, which takes place about August. They
are of a light yellowish grey colour, the upper feathers
being dusky, tipped and margined with the former. In
the second plumage the dark markings are darker than in
the old birds and the bill and feet paler, the claws and hind
toe shorter. Varieties sometimes occur — some are pure
white, others cream colour, and some mottled with white.

THE GOLDEN PLOVER.

the

HE Golden Plover is undoubtedly
the handsomest of the some-
what large tribe to which it be-
longs, and is subject, at different
periods of its existence, to some
considerable variations in the
appearance of its plumage. Vast
flocks of these birds are met with
during the winter months on the
moors, downs, large flat fields,
and sea-coasts of our southern
counties; whilst in some parts
of Scotland, and in the northern
parts of England, their numbers
would appear to be almost in-
credible. In Europe, the Golden
Plover is distributed over most
of the countries, visiting the
higher latitudes in the summer,
and the southern parts of France
and Italy in the winter. They
breed on the Dartmoor hills, in
Devonshire, in some parts of
Cornwall, and very plentifully in
Orkneys, Shetland, and Hebrides.
48

58 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

For breeding purposes, these birds resort principally to
marshy bogs and the moist parts of undrairied hills ; and
during the period of nesting and incubation they are rarely,
if ever, seen except in pairs. About September the birds
begin to congregate in the large flocks already alluded to,
and they remain so congregated until the approach of the
pairing season in the following spring.

All the Plovers are notorious for the ingenuity which
they display in alluring unwelcome intruders from their
nest; and the Golden Plover is quite an adept in these
cunning devices. When the female leaves the nest, she
glides quietly off, and runs along the ground for some little
distance before attempting to take wing ; then, if watched
or pursued, she will stumble, assume lameness, and pretend
to be quite unable to fly, the astonishing persistency and
cleverness of these deceptive actions being amongst the
most interesting and noticeable of the bird's characteristics.

The ordinary flight of the Golden Plover is rapid and
strong, and when flying about in companies they rise
and fall in the air, twisting and sweeping round in circles
as they approach the ground. The bird runs with ex-
treme nimbleness, getting up on some stone or prominence
every now and again, apparently to take a survey of its
position and bearings.

The food of this bird consists largely of insects, beetles,
worms, slugs, caterpillars, grain, and various seeds. The '
note, or cry, is a wild, plaintive whistle, uttered in flight,
and generally when the bird is at a great height from the
ground. The note itself has been compared to the words
^tluwee — tluwee," and is referred to in Scott's well-known
lines —

" And in the plover's shrilly strain
The signal whistle 1s heard again."

THE GOLDEN PLOVER. 59

At night, and during the evening, these whistling cries
are most commonly noticed, and, like the calls of many
other birds, are, to a certain extent, ventriloquial, and
very deceptive in regard to the direction from which they
emanate.

As already noticed, the nest is generally placed in some
marshy, boggy locality. It is not a very elaborate a flair,
but consists merely of a few dried twigs of grass, or fibrous
roots or branches, scratched or laid together in some hollow
or inequality of the ground. The eggs number four, very
seldom more or less. They are of a yellowish stone colour,
blotched, and largely spotted with brownish-black, and
generally lie in the nest with the small ends to the centre.

The young birds are able to run as soon as they are
hatched, and are at first entirely covered with a pretty
bright down, of brown and yellow.

The Golden Plover is about eleven inches in length.
The bill is black ; iris, dark brown. In summer there is a
band of white on the forehead, which changes in winter
to yellowish-white, streaked and spotted with pale brown
and grey. The sides of the head are greyish-brown ;
crown, nape, and back of neck are greyish or brownish-
black, with angular spots of yellow on the entire edge and
tip of each feather. The chin, neck, throat, and breast are
a deep velvety black, which changes to a light colour
in the winter ; at the sides there is a band of white or
yellowish-white, below the wings, marbled with black
and pale brown. Back deep greyish or blackish-brown,
with yellow markings on the feathers. The tail is short,
of a deep brown colour, paler towards the outside, and
beautifully barred with greyish-white and brownish-black.
The under tail coverts are white, the side ones being barred

60

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

with brown. The legs and toes are black, and in. winter a
deep grey. The female has a general resemblance to the
male ; but the black is not so deep, and is here and there
mixed with white.

The Golden Plover is considered an excellent addition
to the table, while the eggs are universally esteemed as
great delicacies.

The word " Plover " is probably derived from the Latin
pluvialis (rainy), the appearance of this bird being popularly
supposed to indicate the speedy advent of wet weather.

(.'/s HAjUuM SIZE)

THE LANDRAIL.

Crex pratensis.

HE Landrail, or, asit is more com-
monly called, the Corncrake,
is certainly one of the most
timid and shy of our summer
visitors. Indeed, were it not
for the harsh, creaking note
from which one of its names
is derived, and its occasional
appearance in the poulterer's
shop, few persons would be
aware of its existence. The
bird is evidently no believer
in the ancient and respect-
able maxim, that " Little
people should be seen, and not
heard," for its unvarying rule
of life is to be heard as much,
and seen as seldom, as cir-
cumstances will permit. The
note of the Landrail is fa-
miliar to all who love and
frequent the country ; and it
commonly happens that, in
the calm, still twilight of a

62 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

summer's evening the discordant " crake, crake, crake " of
this bird is the only sound to break the silence, or indicate
that any portion of the animal world is still awake. The
note is distinctly ventriloquial ; and although the bird may
be close to the listener, yet it seems quite impossible to
decide from which quarter the sounds proceed, almost
every series of " crakes " appearing to come from a different,
direction. The same peculiarity, though not in so marked
a degree, is noticeable in many other birds.

The noise made by the bird may be very closely imi-
tated by passing the thumbnail rapidly along the teeth of
a comb. Indeed, so good is this imitation, that Mr.
Yarrell affirms birds may be decoyed by it to within a
distance of a very few yards.

The Landrail delights to hide in cornfields, meadows
of mowing grass, clover fields, willow beds, and similar
places which will afford the concealment and shelter it so
much prizes. It moves about in these secure covers with
ease and great rapidity, gliding between the stalks of grass
or corn with the quiet nimbleness of a mouse, and occa-
sionally stopping to cautiously raise its head and peer dis-
trustfully around. It takes to flight with considerable
reluctance ; and even when compelled to use its wings, it
Hies only a short distance, and soon drops into some con-
genial hiding-place. The flight is feeble, and, if the ex-
pression is permissible, shambling in its character — the
legs hang loosely down, and the wings flap somewhat
irregularly. Considering the very indifferent progress it
makes in the air, it is really a matter of astonishment how
the bird can manage to accomplish the journey necessary
to bring it to our shores.

Seeds of various sorts, worms, slugs, beetles, and other

THE LANDRAIL. G3

insects, form the usual food of the Landrail. The nest is
not a very elaborate structure ; it consists for the most
part of grass, or the stalks of the surrounding herbage.
Seven or eight eggs are generally laid, although as many
as ten have been found ; they are of a pale reddish-brown,
or yellowish-white, spotted and speckled with grey and
reddish-brown. They are, however, frequently met with
of various sizes, and considerable variations in the matter
of colour. The female is very assiduous in sitting, and
often pays the penalty of her devotion by being suddenly
demolished by the scythe of the mower. When the young
are hatched, they are completely covered with a brown
down. The author has at the time of writing one of
these interesting birds in his possession ; it very soon
became tame, and feeds readily from the hand.

The Landrail is said to be met with in all the four
continents. It is found, more or less, in all the counties
of Great Britain, being, however, more numerous in the
north than in the south and west.

The migration occurs at night, the birds arriving in
England about the end of April, and generally in a thin,
poor condition. Usually the month of October is the
time chosen for their departure, although isolated instances
are upon record of their being seen as late as mid-winter.
The birds are often captured in towns during the period
of migration ; possibly they may be attracted by the
lights at night. When pursued they run, and try to
hide in the first corner they perceive, and will generally
allow themselves to be captured without making any
attempt to renew their flight.

The length of the Landrail is about ten inches, the
head being flat on the crown, and the body tapered and

64

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

much compressed. The iris is of yellowish-brown, and the
bill pale brown on the top, and a yellowish-red underneath ;
the bill is long, and the tail short. The plumage o£ the
bird is of a brownish-olive, with markings of a darker
brown. The legs are strong, and the toes long and slender.
The females are rather smaller than the males, and the
plumage is less pure and distinct.

'•**l

('A

WlDGEOJvl

THE WIGEON.

Aims Pent' I ope.

HERE is no member of the
Duck family so familiarly
known or so widely distri-
buted throughout Great Bri-
tain as the Wigeon.

Every winter these birds
visit our shores in enormous
numbers, and may be found
not only on the sea-coasts,
but upon almost every large
sheet of water, fen, or river
in the country. The markets
and poulterers' shops are in-
variably well stocked with
them ; and if the total num-
ber of Wigeons exposed in
one season alone could be
ascertained, some very start-
ling figures would certainly
be the result.

Some of these birds are
caught, along with Wild
Ducks, in decoy nets, and a
great many fall victims to

6G FAMILIAR WILD SIltDS.

the gun of the fowler. They afford the latter excellent
sport, and are considered by some excellent eating.

The end of September or the beginning of October is
the time when the Wigeons first make their appearance,
and fresh arrivals are continually coming until the winter
has fairly set in. In March or April the Wigeon again
takes flight to more northerly latitudes,, for the purpose of
breeding. Occasional instances, however, occur of their
breeding in some of the higher districts of Scotland. Mr.
Proctor noticed a few pairs breeding in Iceland ; the nests
were built in low bushes, and very near the edge of the
fresh water.

This bird differs from the Wild Duck, Pochard, and
Teal, in its food and the times at which it feeds, the
latter being nocturnal feeders, while the former satisfies
its hunger by daylight. Mr. Waterton says that the
principal food of the Wigeon is grass, the same kind as
that to which the Goose is partial.

Wigeons choose their mates about the middle of
February. The nest is generally placed amongst the rushes
or coarse herbage found near the margins of large pieces of
water; it is built of dried grasses, reeds, and rushes, and
well lined with down from the biixTs body. The eggs
number about seven or eight ; they are somewhat smaller
than those of the Wild Duck, and are of a creamy-white
colour ; the length is rather more than two inches, and the
breadth one inch and a half. For some time after they
leave the nest the young birds keep paddling about amongst
the rushes and reeds of the lake.

The flight is strong and rapid, and the note is a shrill
whistle. They are very noisy at night, and when congre-
gated in large flocks the whistling1 is almost continuous.

THE WIGEON. 67

The Wigeon is not nearly so shy and timid as other
water- fowl; and where the feeding grounds are contiguous
to dwellings, the birds soon acquire a considerable degree
of familiarity and confidence. It is very easily kept in
confinement, and soon becomes domesticated. Mr. Yarrell
states that it has not been known to breed during captivity.

The male Wigeon is subject to the same strange change
of plumage that is noticeable in the Wild Duck, and as
soon as the female commences laying he loses his handsome
appearance, and assumes a sombre aspect, which continues
until the autumn. During this change of feathering the
bird leaves his mate and family, and seeks the solitude
afforded by willow swamps, marshes, and unapproachable
morasses.

The length of the adult male Wigeon is about eighteen
inches. The bill is brownish-black, tinged with lead colour;
irides, dark brown ; a streak of green passes backwards
from the eye ; the top of the head and forehead is cream
colour ; the cheeks and back part of the neck, rich reddish-
chestnut ; scapulars and all the back, greyish- white,
crossed with irregular zigzag lines of black ; upper tail-
coverts, freckled with grey ; tail feathers are long, pointed,
and nearly black ; wing-coverts, white, tipped with black ;
the primaries, dark brown ; the outer webs of the second-
aries form a rich green reflection, edged with biack ; the
black outer webs of the tertials, edged broadly with
white ; front of neck and chin, almost black ; lower part
of the neck, pale rufous ; the sides, flanks, and underneath
the wings are marked with dark cross zigzag lines, on a
white ground ; breast, belly, and vent, white ; under tail-
coverts, velvet black ; legs and toes, dark brown.

In the female the head and neck are brown, tinged

68

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

with rufous and speckled with dark brown, the back
varied with two shades of brown ; tail feathers similar to
the male ; under parts of the body almost white.

The young birds at first resemble the adult female in
plumage.

The Wigeon is found plentifully in Lapland, Norway,
Sweden, Holland, France, Germany, and Spain. It has
also been found in the Caucasus, and as far east as India
and Japan.

('/5 NAT^HAL SIZE.)

RICHARDSON'S SKUA.

Lest rh Jticliardso-mi.
Lam* j/urdniftc'ts.

HIS bird (with the other mem-
bers of the Skua family) has
been frequently spoken of and
written about as one of the
Gulls ; but the points of dif-
ference are numerous and
well-defined, and the charac-
ter of the bird is of itself quite
sufficient to show that such
an association is out of place.
Most of the true Gulls are
timid, companionable, and
industrious in the pursuit of
food; but the Skuas are fierce
and bold, seldom fishing for
themselves, but perpetually
harassing the Gulls and Terns,
chasing them whenever they
see them, and compelling
them to relinquish any fish
they may have secured. In
addition to the food thus
fraudulently obtained, the
Skua is said to feed upon any

70 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

floating carrion, such as the carcases of whales and large
fish, and to prey indiscriminately upon various young small
water birds. Its character, in fact, may be very fairly
described as rapacious, tyrannical, and predacious; the
generic term Lestris, which signifies a robber, is, therefore,
a very appropriate one.

In Shetland, Richardson's Skua breeds on the islands
of Noss, Unst, and Foula. Here they are said to breed
in colonies of as many as fifty or sixty pairs ; but in some
other places, where they are known to rear their young,
they keep separate from any companionship. The nest is
generally, though not always, placed upon some high point
or eminence ; it is composed of dry grass, heath, or moss.
Two eggs are usually laid; they are of an olive-browai
colour, spotted with dark brown ; the length is two inches
and a quarter, and the breadth about one inch and eight
lines.

Richardson's Skua is found over all the seas of North
America and North Europe ; and those that breed in the
Orkneys, Hebrides, and Shetland roam southward after
their progeny are reared, and are seen with greater or less
frequency down the eastern and western shores of this
country.

Beyond the limits of the British Isles this bird has an
extensive range, being found in Nova Zembla, Spitsbergen,
and Iceland ; and it has been met with in the Straits of
Magellan and the Falklands.

The flight is far more rapid than that of any of the Gulls,
and,, except on rare occasions, the birds are seen only singly, or
in pairs. The Skua appears to be capable of considerable
artfulness in attempting to decoy intruders from her nest.
Mr. Salmon states : — " When the female left her nest, we

RICHARDSON'S SKUA. 71

observed her endeavouring to decoy us away, by pretending
to be lame, and tumbling about as if her wing were broken ;
and it was this circumstance which led us to look more
attentively." The habit of pursuing the Gulls, more par-
ticularly KittiwakeSj and making them disgorge their food,
is, according to many observers, the only means of sub-
sistence possessed by Richardson's Skua ; and it is doubtful
whether the bird is ever seen fishing for itself. The note,
or cry, sounds very much like " skui," a fact which has no
doubt suggested its name.

The plumage undergoes several changes. Yarrell says
that, (( during its first autumn and winter, the young bird
has the base of the beak and the cere brownish-grey, the
anterior portion conspicuously curved and black ; the i rides,
dark brown ; the head and neck, pale brown, streaked with
dark brown ; the back, wing coverts, and tertials, umber
brown, margined with wood brown ; wing primaries,
brownish-black, tipped with pale brown ; tail feathers, pale
brown at the base, then brownish-black to the end, the
central pair half an inch longer than the others ; neck in
front, breast, belly, and under tail coverts, pale yellowish
wood brown, mottled and transversely barred with umber
brown ; legs and base of toes, yellow ; ends of toes and
anterior portion of membranes, black.

" At another stage the plumage is of a uniform greyish
umber brown ; the whole of the light margins have disap-
peared, and the bird has attained its full size, measuring
twenty inches from the end of the beak to the end of the
long tail feathers, the central feathers now being three
inches longer than the next feather on either side.

" In the adult plumage a few yellow hair-like streaks
appear on the sides of the neck ; next, the sides of the neck

72

1'AMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

become lighter in colour; and advancing in age, the neck all
round becomes white, tinged with yellow, the head remain-
ing of the same colour as the back."

There is very little perceptible difference in the plumage
of the different sexes.

These birds are said to begin breeding when one year
old, which accounts for the variety of plumage found at
one and the same time at some of their breeding" stations.

THE KITE.

ever-increasing list, " our rare biros."
50

Falco in U V us.
lilvua vulgar is

ERHAPS uo British bird of
prey has suffered more from
the hostility of the farmer
and the gamekeeper than the
Kite, or Glead. At one time
it was comparatively common
and well distributed through-
out Great Britain ; but its
rapacity and destructiveness
in the matter of young birds,
especially of the gallinaceous
orders, has gained it such an
unenviable notoriety, that
every man's hand has been
against it, and the warfare
so persistently carried on has
almost produced its extinc-
tion. In some of the more
densely-wooded parts of the
country the Kite is still to be
seen ; but its numbers have
sadly diminished, and in a
few more years it will proba-
bly take its place in that

74 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

The Kite, or Glead, derives its latter name, according
to Pennant, from the Saxon glida, a name no doubt sug-
gested by the easy sailing movement with which the
bird's flight is identified. Even at some considerable dis-
tance the bird may be recognised with little or no diffi-
culty, so singularly graceful and buoyant is its mode of
progression.

The length of the Kite is about twenty-six inches.
The beak, horn colour ; the cere and irides, yellow ; the
feathers of the head and neck, greyish-white, with central
streak of brown ; the feathers of the back and wing-coverts
are dark brown in the middle, with broad rufous edges ;
the inner web of some of the tertials is edged with white ;
primaries, nearly black. The tail is long and strongly
forked ; this is very noticeable in flight. The upper tail-
coverts, rufous ; tail feathers, reddish-brown, barred on the
inner webs with dark brown ; chin and throat, greyish-
white, with dusky streaks ; breast, belly, and thighs, rufous
brown, with dark brown centres to the feathers ; under
tail-coverts, rufous white ; under part of the tail, greyish-
white, showing the brown bars through; legs and toes,
yellow ; claws, black.

The females are somewhat larger than the males ; but,
with the exception of the under surface of the female being
a little redder than the male, there is no appreciable dif-
ference in the plumage of the sexes.

The Kite feeds principally on " ground game " — that
is to say, on the young of hens, partridges, pheasants, &c.,
before they have acquired any powers of flight ; leverets,
rabbits, moles, and even snakes and frogs, have also been
found in the nests of these birds. As already intimated, it
is an assiduous visitor to the poultry yard, but does not

THE KITE. 75

exhibit the audacity or courage of the Sparrowhawk. It
pounces unexpectedly upon its prey ; but its character seems
wanting in spirit, as numerous instances are recorded of
the maternal hen attacking the intruder, and by loud voci-
ferations succeeding in frightening it away from her brood.

The nest of the Kite is usually placed in the forked
branch of a tree, and in the majority of cases the thickest
part of a wood is the favoured locality. The structure,
which is more finished than the domiciles of most Hawks,
is composed of sticks, and well lined with wool, hair, and
any soft material that can be obtained.

The eggs are laid early in the season, generally two,
but sometimes three, in number ; they are a little more
than two inches long, and of a dirty or greenish- white
colour, marked at the larger end with a few reddish-brown
spots or blotches. The old birds are more courageous during
the breeding season than at any other time, and sometimes
show considerable vigour and spirit in defending their
home and progeny. The young are at first covered with a
dirty white down. They breed principally in Wales and
Scotland, and in some parts efforts have been made to pre-
serve them.

The Kite is occasionally met with in most of the
English counties, but it is very rare in the south and west,
and more frequent in Cumberland and Westmoreland.
Russia, Siberia, and the forests of Germany, France, and
Italy, are places where it is said to be observed in compara-
tive frequency, and, according to some authorities, Egypt,
and other localities in Northern Africa.

Mr. Yarrell states that formerly the Kite was trained
for purposes of falconry, and that an owl was generally
selected as the game to be pursued ; and it may be

76

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

mentioned, as corroborative of the cowardice of its nature,
that it is, or was, commonly made use of in some parts of
Germany as a quarry for other hawks to be flown at.

The note of the Kite is nothing but a shrill shriek,
called in some localities its " whew/'' As already stated,
the flight is remarkably easy, at times slowly traversing
long distances with extended and motionless pinions, and
at other times dashing along with great rapidity and
vigour. It is fond of soaring to great altitudes and re-
maining poised upon outstretched wings, occasionally de-
scending to the ground with considerable velocity.

AL SIZE.)

THE REDSHANK.

Scofapax caUdris.

Tut a mix calidri*.

HE Redshank is, perhaps, as
well known, and as widely
distributed, as any of the
larger Totani found in great
Britain ; and in many locali-
ties it remains with us all the
year round. In the large
marshes of Romney, Norfolk,
and Suffolk, these birds are
found in great numbers during
the breeding season ; and they
are tolerably common in Dor-
setshire, Devonshire, and Corn-
wall, also in Durham, North-
umberland, and many parts of
Scotland. Beyond the limits
of our own shores they are
met with in Iceland, the Faroe
Islands, Lapland, Norway,
Sweden, the islands of the
Baltic, and certain portions of
Asia and Africa.

In the colder months of
the year the Redshank be-

7S FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

takes itself to the sea-coast, and searches for its food over
the broad flats of mud and shingle, which are alternately
covered or left bare by the tide. At these periods the birds
associate in flocks of various dimensions ; sometimes ten or
a dozen may be seen together, and at other times as many as
a hundred, or even more. The food consists of worms and
marine insects, and these the bird searches for by probing*
the mud or sand with its beak. It has a very noticeable
habit, when thrusting its bill into the mud, of giving a
little upward jump, as though to increase the force of the
thrust. Low water is the time when the Redshank prose-
cutes its search for food ; and the birds may frequently be
seen perched on the tops of the low rocks, patiently waiting
for the receding tide to uncover their favourite hunting
grounds. They are very methodical in the visits they pay
to the different " flats/'' and may generally be seen at a
certain time engaged on a certain locality.

The Redshank is somewhat shy, and objects to every-
thing in the shape of familiarity. At the least sign of
danger the entire party take to flight, uttering a continu-
ous shrill whistle. The alarm felt by these birds appears
to be very contagious, as the signal whistle is invariably
attended to by any other bird within earshot ; and the
sportsman has frequent cause for chagrin and annoyance at
the persistent warnings given by these cautious feeders.

The Redshank is a handsome, graceful-looking bird,
either at rest or when moving about. It runs rapidly, and
has the same dipping peculiarity in its gait that is so
marked in some of the smaller Sandpipers. The flight is
strong and rapid ; the wings are not stretched to their full
extent, but are flapped with considerable quickness. The
birds have a habit of holding the wings up just as they

THE REDSHANK. 79

alight, and showing1 the entire under parts, which are white;
and,, consequently, very conspicuous.

In the breeding season the Redshanks frequent the
most boggy parts of the country, being especially partial
to large tracts of fen and marsh. The nest is either formed
on, or sheltered by, some tuft or bush of coarse herbage or
rank grass, and is composed of the same material. Four
eggs are usually laid, in the beginning of May ; they are
pale reddish-white, slightly tinged with green, spotted and
speckled with dark brownish-red ; the markings are thicker
at the larger end. The young birds leave the nest almost
immediately they are hatched, and are looked after by the
female, the male troubling himself but very little for their
welfare. During incubation the parents are very cla-
morous if any one approaches the nest, wheeling about in
the air, and continually uttering a shrill, discordant cry.

In the summer months these birds may often be found
on the muddy banks of tidal rivers, but only singly or in
pairs.

The plumage is subject to very considerable changes.
In winter, the beak is black at the point, and dark red at
the base ; irides, brown ; from the angle of the mouth a
dusky streak passes to the eye, and over that and the eye
is a white streak; top of the head, back of the neck, and
the whole of the back and wing coverts are ash brown;
the wing primaries almost black ; rump, while ; tail
feathers, white, barred with dusky grey ; the chin, front of
neck, breast, belly, and under tail coverts, white, with a
few dusky streaks ; legs and toes, red ; claws, black.

In spring, the darker markings are gradually assumed ;
the greater coverts and tertials are varied with spots edged
with brownish-black ; the white parts of the front of the

80

FAMILIAR WILD BItiLS.

neck, and all the under surface of the body, sides,, and
flanks, are spotted and streaked with markings of brownish-
black.

In the summer, the brownish-black markings are more
distinct, the dark feathers appear on the back, and the
streaks and spots on the breast and neck are more plainly
marked and conspicuous.

The females are slightly larger than the males ; but in
the general appearance of the plumage there is very little
difference.

The Redshank may easily be kept in confinement ; it
will feed readily upon raw meat, worms, and grain ; it
soon becomes tame and shows signs of attachment to its
feeder.

\

. SIZE.)

THE SAND MAETIN.

Hi r undo riparia.

HE Sand Martin is one of the
Hirundinidae, and, like the
other members of the family,
its habits are extremely in-
teresting, and its appearance
graceful and attractive. One
of the peculiar characteristics
of the Swallow family is the
ingenuity displayed by them
in the construction of their
nests ; and the Sand Martin
is no exception to the rule.
It takes its name from the
locality selected by it for
breeding purposes ; and the
patience, industry, and, one
might almost say, science,
displayed by these birds in
preparing their domiciles are
well worthy of the closest
attention.

The Sand Martin usually
builds in high sandy banks,
by the sides of rivers, cut-

51

82 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

tings, sand-pits, or, indeed, anywhere that the soil and
situation are suitable for the purpose. They are sociable
little birds, and are commonly found to have their nests
close together, and in large numbers, as already stated.
They build in holes excavated in the sandy sides of some
bank or cliff, and these holes are dug by the birds them-
selves ; they are about two and a half inches in dia-
meter, horizontal in direction, and more or less tortuous
in their course. Generally they are placed between six
and seven feet from the ground, so as to be out of reach.
The Sand Martin is a skilled workman, and the gallery
in which its nest is built is said to be usually excavated in
thirteen or fourteen days ; in most cases the aperture is
very nearly circular. The end of the gallery is somewhat
larger than the opening, and contains the nest, about nine
or ten inches from the entrance.

The nest is commonly made of a little hay and a few of
the soft breast-feathers of ducks or geese, loosely put to-
gether. Four to six eggs are laid. They are white, some-
what smaller than those of the House Martin, and the
shell is thin and easily fractured.

These birds are extremely partial to certain localities ;
they return season after season to their old haunts, and
make use of their old excavations over and over again.
When the young birds are able to provide for themselves
they roost upon osiers, or similar resting places, to be found
on the sides or in the middle of rivers. Twelve or thirteen
days is about the time occupied in hatching.

The flight of the Sand Martin is rapid, but it lacks the
bold, sweeping curves of the Swift and the Swallow, and
may be described as somewhat wavering and unsteady.
Unlike the birds above mentioned, it seldom rises to any

THE SAND MARTIN. 83

great height in the air. It feeds entirely upon flying
insects, and these are usually taken near the ground.

The Sand Martin is to be found throughout the entire
continent of Europe, even as far north as Norway, Russia,
and Sweden. It visits Siberia ; in Malta it is found all
the year round; and is met with in America and India.

The arrival of this pretty little visitor takes place in
the spring, about the middle of April, and it may be
most frequently seen skimming over the surface of ponds,
streams, meadows, or commons, in pursuit of food, or occa-
sionally dipping into the water to lave its plumage. It
takes its departure from our shores about September,
occasionally a few will remain as late as October. The
migration is more universal than in the case of the House
Martin and Swallow, some few of which generally remain
behind and perish in the inclemency of winter.

The length of the Sand Martin is about four and three-
quarter inches. Bill, dark brown, nearly black ; iris, dark
brown ; head, crown, nape, and neck, light brown ; chin,
throat, and breast, white. The breast has a band of light
brown across it, and a few spots of the same colour just
below ; the back is light brown. The greater and lesser
wing-coverts are brown, the longer feathers being blackish-
brown, and reaching beyond the tail. The under wing-
coverts are light brown. The tail is forked, though not so
noticeably as in some of the other members of the family,
and is blackish-brown ; underneath, the tail is a lighter
colour, and the under tail-coverts are white. The legs and
toes are scaled ; they are of a dark reddish- brown ; claws,
dark brown ; just above the hind claw there are a few
downy feathers of a buffy-white colour. The plumage of
the female is very similar to that of the male ; and in the

84

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

summer the plumage of both birds loses its gloss, and be-
comes much duller. Young birds of the year, before
leaving this country, have the brown feathers of the back
and upper tail coverts, also those of the wing coverts and
tertials, tipped with buffy white; the chin is also buffy
white.

(3/s H/^U^AL SIZE.)

THE LITTLE STINT.

Trhtga pnsiUct.
Tr'tmja mimita.

HIS pretty and active little
bird, sometimes known as the
Little Sandpiper, is probably
one of the most uncommon of
the Sandpiper family. In its
general habits and modes of
life it closely resembles the
other individuals of the class
to which it belongs, being
usually met with on the
sandy banks of the sea-shore,
and the flooded margins of
tidal rivers and lakes. The
food consists of aquatic in-
sects, worms, small Crustacea,
and mollusca. Whilst en-
gaged in feeding, these birds
associate freely with Sander-
lings, Dunlins, and other
birds of similar tastes and
habits. Sometimes, however,
they keep to themselves, and
travel about in flocks of vary-
ing numbers, from five or six

86 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

to as many as forty or fifty. When their usual feeding
places are covered with water, they frequently resort to
the shingle, and may be observed busily running- along
close to the edge of the tide. They are by no means diffi-
cult of approach, and have a habit of remaining motionless
on the ground until the intruder is within a few yards of
them. This characteristic, however, does not hold good
when they are associated with other birds ; in these cases
they seem to be more suspicious, and, when disturbed, at
once join in the speedy flight of their warier companions.
They evince considerable partiality to certain particular
feeding places, and if any are known to be in the neigh-
bourhood, they may be found in one spot with almost un-
varying regularity. When alarmed, or even when some
of their number are shot, the remainder will soon return
to the same vicinity, apparently quite oblivious to the fate
of their comrades.

The Little Stint is generally met with in the autumn,
and has been observed, at various times, upon most of our
English coasts. Suffolk, Norfolk, Yorkshire, Durham,
Sussex, and Devonshire may be quoted as localities which
have furnished numerous specimens, and in which they are
to be seen most frequently. They are said to be regular
visitors to at least some parts of Ireland ; and, according to
some authorities, Sweden is a favourite resort from spring-
time to the autumn. The greater number of these birds
undoubtedly breed in the higher northern latitudes, and,
consequently, not very much is known oB their habits at
this particular time. The eggs exactly resemble (with the
exception of their being much smaller) those of the common
Sandpiper.

The plumage of the Little Stint undergoes considerable

THE LITTLE STINT. 87

changes in the course of the year, similar to those observed
in the Dunlin and one or two other birds of the same class.
In the summer the beak is black ; the irides, dark brown ;
the top of the head and the neck, ferruginous, with specks
of black ; the feathers of the back, scapulars, wing-coverts,
tertials, and upper tail-coverts, black in the centre, with
broad ferruginous margins ; the point of the wing, nearly
black ; the primaries, black, with white shafts ; the second-
aries, nearly black, tipped with white. The tail, when
perfect, is doubly forked, and ash-brown in colour. The
sides of the neck, down to the front of the wing, and a
band round the front of the neck, ferruginous, speckled
with black ; axillary plume, pure white ; legs, toes, and
claws, dull black. In winter, the adult bird has the head
and neck ash-grey, with dark centres to the feathers ; back,
wing-coverts, rump, and upper tail-coverts, ash colour, the
feather shafts being much darker ; tail feathers, ash-grey,
with white edges. The under surface of the body is pure
white.

The autumn plumage differs in many respects from that
of the above-mentioned seasons. There is a brown streak
on the ear-coverts, which also extends from the eye to the
base of the beak ; above and below the eye there is a mark
of greyish- white, and the sides and back of the neck are
ash-grey, with streaks of a darker shade ; the feathers of
the back, scapulars, wing-coverts, and tertials are nearly
black, with broad edges of reddish-brown and buffy- white ;
quill feathers, dusky, with white shafts ; secondaries,
edged and tipped with white ; rump and upper tail-coverts,
darkish-brown, lighter at the edges ; tail feathers, ash-
grey, with edges of buffy-white. Across the bottom of the
neck in front there is a dusky band ; the rest of the under

88

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

surface pure white. The plumage, on the whole, is very
similar to that of the Dunlin at all seasons,, except that it
lacks the black breast in summer. The bird is, of course,
much smaller.

In addition to the places already mentioned as visited
by the Little Stint, Tern mi nek speaks of it as having been
observed, in its spring and autumn passages, in Germany,
Holland, and France, whilst other authorities mention
South Africa, India, the Caucasus, and Trebizond. The
Little Stint was first described as a British bird by
Pennant, from a specimen killed in Cambridgeshire.

THE LONG-EABED OWL.

Strlx otus.
Otus vulgaris.

HIS is a very handsome bird;
its plumage is rich and varied,
and its general appearance
bold and striking. It is a
permanent resident in Great
Britain and Ireland, and al-
though not plentiful in any
particular locality, it hardly
merits the distinction of being
called a rare bird. It is found
in the south of England as
abundantly as anywhere, and
is said to be very well known
in the most thickly- wooded
portions of the counties of
Down and Antrim. Accord-
ing to some authorities, it is
very common in France, and
inhabits Denmark, Sweden,
Norway, Russia, Spain, Italy,
Turkey, and parts of Africa
and North America. Dr.
Richardson states that it is

found in very high latitudes, and probably goes as far

north as the forests extend.
52

90 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

The Long-eared Owl is about fifteen inches in length.
The bill is dull black ; the base and cere are hidden by the
feathers of the facial wreath. The irides are orange yellow ;
the radiating feathers of the facial disc are pale brown on
the outer side, with a half-circular boundary line of darker
brown; the inner side is varied with dusky brown, and
tipped with white. The tufts on the head are about one
inch and a half in length ; they are composed of seven or
eight feathers, narrow in proportion to their length, dark
brownish-black in the centre, and edged with pale brown ;
top of the head, brownish-black and pale brown; nape,
neck, and upper part of the back, light brown, streaked
with brownish-black; back, wing-coverts, secondaries, and
tertials, a speckled mixture of pale brown, with darker
shades. The wings, when closed, reach a little beyond the
tail ; the upper portion of the tail is the same colour as
the wings. The breast and belly are a mixture of greyish-
white and pale brown streaked with umber brown ; thighs
and under tail-coverts, pale brown ; under part of the tail,
greyish-white, with narrow bars of dusky brown. The
legs and toes are covered with pale brown feathers, the
claws are long, much curved, very sharp, and black.

The females do not differ much from the males in
plumage, but on the whole are perhaps a little more grey,
and are larger.

The Long-eared Owl generally appropriates the nest of
some other bird ; some naturalists are of opinion that it
never entirely constructs a nest for itself ; it has been
known to take possession of a squirrel's drey. The eggs
vary in number from three to five ; the surface is rather
rough, the shape oval, and the colour white ; they are about
one inch and three-quarters in length, and one inch and a

THE LONG -EARED OWL. 91

quarter in breadth. About the beginning1 of April the
young ones are hatched ; they are quaint-looking characters
at first, being thickly covered with soft white down, which
becomes browner as they get older, they make no attempt
to quit the nest for the first three or four weeks. Their
capacity for receiving continuous supplies of food is, how-
ever, developed at a very early stage of their existence.

For some time after quitting the nest the young Owls
perch about on some adjacent boughs, and indicate the
cravings of their appetites by making (generally towards
the evening) a most melancholy and plaintive cry. The
old birds feed them with great assiduity and diligence.

The food of this bird consists of rats, mice, moles,
young rabbits, and birds, the latter probably being seized
whilst roosting. The Long-eared Owl is an indefatigable
hunter, and evinces no squeamish partiality as to the
nature of his prey. It may truthfully be said that " all
are fish that come to the net." A well-known ornitho-
logist examined the stomach of one that had been shot,
and found therein part of a rat, the skull of a mouse, and
the heads of two sparrows.

The food, when it happens to be a mouse, is swallowed
whole ; and in the case of a bird, the wing feathers are
usually pulled out first. The fur and feathers are rejected
after about twelve hours ; and the whereabouts of the birds
may frequently be discovered by the number of these re-
jected castings.

The note, which is not so frequently heard as that of
the other Owls, may be said to resemble the syllable
" hoo-ok."

The Long-eared Owl is very partial to thickly-grown
trees, such as Scotch firs, holly, ivy, and evergreens, and

92 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

is generally to be found in plantations and large woods, or
ivy-covered rocks. Although, as a rule, a bird of nocturnal
habits, it may often be seen in daylight, sometimes long
before sunset, busily hunting for material to satisfy itself
or enrich the family larder.

The flight is not very rapid, but well sustained, even,
and noiseless. When attacked, the bird will throw itself
on its back, and defend itself vigorously with claws and
beak, at the same time snapping the mandibles together,
and hissing in a defiant manner.

The ears are raised whenever the bird is excited or
pleased ; at other times they are depressed. According to
Morris, the bird is fond of having these feathery appen-
dages rubbed ; but the experiment (unless upon terms of
great intimacy) is scarcely one to be recommended. The
Long-eared Owl is frequently kept in confinement, and has
been known to live many years.

X

THE SHIELDRAKE.

Anas t adorn a.
Tadorna vulpanser.

GLANCE at the illustration
accompanying the description
of this bird will be sufficient
to show that the Shieldrake
is a strikingly handsome and
richly-plumaged water-fowl.
Perhaps it is not going too
far to say that no other mem-
ber of the large family to
which it belongs surpasses it
in the purity, brilliance, and
contrast of its feathering.

The Shieldrake is by no
means an uncommon bird ; it
is easy to domesticate, and
may be seen on almost any
piece of ornamental water
where water-fowl are kept.
In its wild state it may be
found all the year round on
those parts of the coast which
furnish large flat banks,
reaches, and banks of sand,
and, indeed, anywhere where

94 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

the soil is soft and food plentiful. In addition to the
name of Shieldrake, it is also known as the Burrow Duck
and Shelldrake. In Scotland it is called the Skeeling
Goose.

The food is somewhat miscellaneous in character, con-
sisting of marine insects of different sorts, small bivalves
and shelled mollusca, sea worms, sand-hoppers, and the
remains of shell-fish. In captivity it feeds upon grain of
any sort, soaked bread, and vegetables. Its partiality for
shelled food has probably originated the name of Shell-
drake; but the title of Shieldrake is no doubt to be
traced to the fact that the bird was frequently made use
of as a sign in heraldry, many families of this country
having a shield with one of these birds on it as a portion
of their crests or coat s-of- arms. The name of Burrow
Duck is a very natural allusion to its habit of breeding
in rabbit burrows, or holes of a similar description.

The sand-hills on the Norfolk and Northumbrian coasts
are well-known resorts of these waterfowl, and they breed
there regularly, making their nests in the old rabbit-holes
that abound in those localities. They also breed in many
parts of Scotland. The nest is made of dried bents of
grass, hay, and other suitable materials, and lined with
the soft down from the breast of the adult birds. Ten or
twelve eggs are laid ; they are about two inches and three-
quarters in length, and nearly two inches in breadth. The
colour is white, and the surface very smooth and shiny in
appearance.

The young birds, soon after being hatched, follow their
parents to the water, and very quickly learn to provide for
themselves. According to Mr. Yarrell, the old birds are
often caught during the breeding season by placing a snare

THE SHIELLRAKE. 95

at the mouth of the burrow, to which they are traced by
the impression of their feet upon the sand. The flesh of
the Shieldrake is not considered very good eating, being
coarse in flavour, and not particularly prepossessing in ap-
pearance. The note is a harsh, unpleasant whistle.

This handsome bird is found on the sea-coasts of all the
northern and western countries of Europe, and is said to
be plentiful in Holland and France. The former country
supplies the greatest number by far of those exhibited
every winter in our markets and shops. It is also said to
be known in Trebizond and Japan.

In the isles of- Orkney the inhabitants call the Shield-
rake " Sly Goose," from the exceedingly artful tricks it
resorts to when endeavouring to decoy intruders from the
vicinity of its nesting-place. Dr. Neill, in alluding to
this peculiarity, says, "it frequently feigns lameness,
and waddles away with one wing trailing on the ground,
thus inducing a pursuit of itself, till, judging its young to
be safe from discovery, it suddenly takes flight, and leaves
the outwitted Orcadian gaping with surprise/'

The length of the Shieldrake varies from twenty-four
to twenty-six inches ; the female is somewhat smaller than
her mate, and her plumage is duller.

In the male, the beak is vermilion ; the irides, brown ;
the whole of the head and upper part of the neck, green,
bounded by a collar of white, and below that a collar of
rich chestnut, which covers the upper part of the breast,
the space before the point of the wings, and the upper part
of the back ; the rest of the back, the rump, and upper
tail-coverts, black ; scapulars and part of the tertials,
nearly black ; the longer tertials have the outer webs of a
rich chestnut; the wing-coverts and point of the wing,

96

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

white ; primaries, dark brown ; tail feathers, white, tipped
with black ; lower central line of the breast and belly, rich
dark brown; sides, flanks, vent, and under tail-coverts,
white ; legs, toes, and webs, flesh colour.

The young birds are not so brightly coloured as the
adults, and are said not to breed until two years old.

Hybrids between the Shieldrake and common Duck
have been produced on several occasions.

R E D W I

THE REDWING.

Tiirdus iliaats.

HE Redwing- is the smallest
member of the Thrush family
that is met with in Great
Britain,, and is a winter visi-
tor only. It is also known
as the Wind Thrush and
Swinepipe. Like the Field-
fare, its native haunts are to
be sought in the northern
parts of Europe, where it is
said to be much admired for
the richness and varied cha-
racter of its song*. So great,
indeed, is the admiration in
which the Redwing- is held,
that the flattering title of
" Norway Nightingale " has
been bestowed on it by the
inhabitants of the countries
in which it breeds. As re-
gards its singing capabilities,
however, we have no means
of judging from the vocal
efforts of the bird while in

53

98 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

this country, as a plaintive twittering or piping- note is
about the extent of its utterances.

The Redwing is smaller than the common Thrush, but
in all other respects it bears a strong resemblance to this
favourite songster. The principal distinctions between
this bird and the Thrush are these : the Redwing is small
in the body, and of a longer and more slender shape ;
the back is darker, the feathers beneath the wings are of a
bright rust colour, and the light line over the eye is very
distinct and noticeable. Unlike the Thrush, the Redwing
is seldom or never found to visit small gardens or cabbage
plots, but invariably frequents the open fields in flocks of
various dimensions. The Redwing, although not averse to
snails as an article of food, exhibits none of the amusing
expert ness in extricating them from their shells which
is shown by the Thrush. The Redwing is about eight
inches long, the tail measuring rather more than
three and a quarter inches. The beak is blackish,
and yellowish at the base of the lower mandible ; toes,
light yellow; legs, pale grey; the claws are long and
curved. The head, neck, back, rump, and lesser wing-
coverts are olive-brown, and a distinct mark of yellow-
ish-white runs from the nostrils to some little distance
behind the eye. A similar stripe surrounds the cheek,
which is beautifully streaked with yellow; the throat
and breast are whitish-yellow, with a profusion of
dark-brown triangular-shaped spots, the sides and vent
being also spotted with olive-brown. The sides, the lower
wing-coverts, and the pen-feathers are mottled with dark
reddish-brown, the feathers of the wing-coverts being
tipped with orange ; the tail is greyish-brown, and lighter
at the extremity. The female is lighter in plumage than

THE REDWING. 99

the male, and the spots are not so numerous nor so strongly
marked; but the sexes are very difficult to distinguish.

In this country the Redwings make their appearance
in flocks about October, and are to be frequently seen in
the company of Fieldfares, but they arrive on our shores
usually earlier than these last-named birds. At night,
they roost in hedges and copses, and during the day
frequent the open pastures and fields, feeding upon
worms, beetles, and grubs ; they also, in hard weather,
feed readily on the berries of the hawthorn, privet, and
ivy. When these supplies fail the birds are reduced
to great extremities, and readily succumb to the severity
of winter. In Cornwall, the chasing of Redwings
(locally known as Winnards) by the youthful rustics is
a recognised pastime in snowy weather, when their
feebleness is so extreme that they are easily run down
and secured. At these times the condition of their bodies
is pitiable, consisting literally of feathers and bones.
When in good order, however, they are excellent eating.

The Red wing generally builds her nest in a tree — a
thorn, alder, birch, or occasionally a low bush, being
selected. The nest is made of dried grass, moss, and thin
roots, cemented with clay, and lined with bents of fine
grass; about five eggs are laid, of a pale bluish-green,
spotted with reddish-brown. Isolated instances are upon
record of the Redwing having nested in Great Britain ;
but these are quite exceptional cases, and it may be safely
affirmed that the bird as a rule neither breeds nor sings
during its visits- to our shores.

CT

The flight is tolerably rapid, and consists of a series of
quick flappings of the wings, followed by somewhat sudden
undulations or descents towards the ground. The bird is

100

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

naturally shy and cautious, seldom coming very close to
human habitations except when driven by cold and scarcity
of food. On such occasions as these they will come into
parks and enclosures in considerable numbers, and are very
tame. In confinement it soon becomes quite tame and
familiar, and is rather an acquisition than otherwise in an
aviary. According to Mr. Yarrell, the Redwing advances
during the summer months as far north as Iceland and
the Faroe Islands, and as the winter approaches, its migra-
tion is extended southward to Spain, Provence, Italy, and
Asia Minor.

\

\

SIZE.)

THE COMMON SANDPIPER.

Tr'mga Jiypoleucos.
Totanus „

ERY few of our summer visitors
are more widely known and
generally distributed than the
Common Sandpiper. It is
known as the " Summer Snipe"
(Spotted Sandpiper), Sand
Lark, and Sand Lavrock, and
is a very familiar object to
every one in the least degree
acquainted with our tidal rivers,
ditches, lakes, and large sheets
of water. It is a bird fre-
quently met with in many parts
of Europe, and is said to be well
known in Asia and the northern
and southern parts of Africa.
It appears in this country
about the middle of April, and
generally takes its departure in
September, or the beginning of
the following month. In some
seasons the birds leave us in
August. Their method of mi-
gration is nocturnal, and they

102 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

commonly travel either singly or in pairs. Before starting
on their migratory journeys, these birds become very rest-
less in their movements, and may be observed flying about
in an apparently unsettled state of mind, and continuously
uttering their whistling note.

The flight of the Sandpiper is rapid and easy, and the
cry is a repetition of the sound " wheet, wheet, wheet/'
uttered whilst the bird is flying, and sometimes repeated
a score or two of times in succession. When 3ourneying
for any considerable distance, the flight is at a much greater
altitude. Although not, strictly speaking, a web-footed
bird, it is an expert swimmer, and dives with ease and
confidence. The motion of the wings when flying consists
of several rapid strokes, followed, as the bird nears its
resting place, by a long steady skim, not dissimilar to
the flight of the Starling.

The food of the Sandpiper is composed of worms, flies,
gnats, and the small insects that abound in the moist soil
which the bird frequents. It loves the low muddy and
sandy banks of rivers, especially of those in which large
surfaces of alluvial deposit are exposed by the receding
tides, the edges of canals, the sides of lakes, ditches, and
mill-ponds. Its ordinary movements consist of a series
of short rapid runs, varied by an occasional pause, during
which it may be observed diligently seeking its food. It
is extremely restless in its habits, constantly running to
and fro, flirting the tail up and down with a quick, jerky
motion, which is particularly noticeable, and nodding the
head backwards and forwards as it proceeds. When dis-
turbed, it flies at a short distance from the ground, and in
the majority of instances crosses over to the opposite side
of the stream or water-course ; if again followed or dis-

THE COMMON SANDPIPER. 103

turbed, it would in all probability recross to the side it
originally left.

The disposition of the Sandpiper is shy and cautious.
It is fond of running1 along on the edge of the water, or
even underneath a projecting bank. It never ventures
much on to the open flats, like the Dunlin, neither does it
associate with other birds.

About the end of April nesting commences. Some
hollow place in a bank, or a tuft of rushes or grass, is
commonly selected. Usually the nest is tolerably well
concealed ; but at times the eggs are laid on the ground,
with very little indeed to protect them save the few dried
leaves and grasses which do duty as a nest. It is said
that, if undisturbed, the same pair will make use of their
old nesting-place many seasons in succession.

Four eggs are laid, of a pretty yellowish-white, or
reddish- white, spotted with brown of various shades ; but
the eggs differ very much in the colour of the grounding,
and the size of the spots and blotches with which they are
marked. The female sandpiper leaves her nest very quietly,
if disturbed during incubation ; but when the young are
hatched, she becomes clamorous and extremely agitated at
the least approach of danger or prospect of intrusion. On
these occasions both birds evince great anxiety for the
welfare of their progeny ; and will even assume lameness
and similar divices to decoy away intruders.

The young birds leave the nest in a very short time
after hatching, and soon learn to conceal themselves
adroitly amongst the herbage or surrounding cover. They
are, in the first instance, covered with soft greyish or
brownish down, with black streaks over the head, and a
similar mark down the back. Underneath they are white.

104 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

The plumage of the Common Sandpiper is very fine
and soft. The bird is rather more than seven inches in
length. The top of the head and back of the neck is a
greenish-brown, with tints of bluish-grey and dull yellow ;
and there is across the centre a stripe of greenish-black.
The back is a greenish-brown, and the plumage is beauti-
fully marked with thin irregular markings of dark brown ;
the chin, throat, and lower part of the belly is white, and
the upper part of the breast is marked with blackish
streaks. The wings are long, having a stretch o£ about
fourteen inches ; and in summer the feathers of the lesser
wing-coverts have a black edging near the tip. The tail
is short, and dusky-brown in colour, and is barred with
greenish-black ; the toes and legs are pale bluish-green,
brown at the joints; claws, a dark brown.

LESSER

THE LESSEE WHITE-THROAT.

Hy fri (i sylviella.
tiylvia ciirruca.

LTHOUGH somewhat diminu-
tive in size and unpretend-
ing in plumage, the Lesser
White-throat is nevertheless
a pretty, graceful, and in-
teresting bird. It is not a
permanent resident in this
country, but visits us about
the middle or towards the
end of April, and takes its de-
parture in September. Occa-
sionally a straggler may be
seen in the following month.
It is somewhat unequally dis-
tributed, being rare in some
counties, and comparatively
common in others. The
southern and eastern parts
of England are regularly
frequented by this bird,
whilst it is rare in the
westward and northward. In
Scotland specimens have been
obtained, but not with any

106 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

degree of frequency. In Ireland it is probably un-
known.

The Lesser White-throat feeds upon various kinds of
insects and their larvae, and shows a strong attachment to
the smaller kinds of fruits, such as elderberries, currants,
and green figs. Owing to the two last-named weaknesses,
the bird does not enjoy so good a reputation amongst fruit-
growers as it deserves, for although it is an unscrupulous
feeder on the above-mentioned delicacies, yet the quantity
of hurtful insects it destroys is almost incredible, and
more than sufficient to condone any shortcomings in other
respects.

Shrubberies, hedgerows, copses, gardens, and thickets
are the most favoured resorts of the Lesser White-throat,
but at times it may be seen on the topmost branch of oak
or other large trees. In these places it may be seen busily
hunting for food. It is wonderfully active in its habits, and
apparently untiring in its movements, passing in and out of
the thickest bushes with ease and rapidity. It is shy in
its nature, and great caution is necessary to enable one
to obtain a close observation. Usually the bird is busily
engaged in scrutinising the leaves and branches of its
retreat for anything in the shape of insect food ; but now
and then it perches upon some tolerably prominent bough,
and then its pretty silvery-white breast renders it quite
conspicuous. The bird is by no means a silent worker ; on
the contrary, it delights in an incessant chattering, the
notes being sometimes loud and harsh, and at other times
low, and not unmelodious. If suddenly surprised in an
exposed position it instantly disappears in the thicket.

This active and restless little warbler is possessed of
a very pugnacious temper, and quarrels with birds of its

THE LESSER WHITE-THROAT. 107

own species upon little or no provocation. It will also
readily attack and drive off birds of much greater size than
itself. The flight is seldom undertaken for any long dis-
tance, and is unsteady and jerky, the note being often con-
tinuously uttered whilst on the wing. The call note some-
what resembles the word <( check/' and is repeated several
times.

The Lesser White-throat begins building its nest about
a week or two after its arrival. It composes its home of
thin fibrous twigs, dry grass, and thin roots, and lines it
with hair, wool, and soft moss ; it is not very compactly
built, and is usually surrounded with bits of spiders' webs
or lichen, and is so very thin that it can be seen through.
Very often the nest is placed on a low sloping hedge, or
amongst low bushes and brambles, and seldom at any
great height from the ground. Four or five eggs are laid,
of a whitish ground colour, spotted and blotched, principally
at the larger end, with pale brown and brownish-grey ; not
unfrequently the markings are in the shape of a ring.

In the male Lesser White-throat the beak is nearly
black; the base of the upper mandible yellowish-brown ;
the irides yellowish-white, and in some old birds pearl-
white ; the head, neck, and back smoke-grey ; the ear-
coverts dark greyish brown ; quill feathers blackish-
brown ; the tertials edged with lighter brown; tail feathers
dark greyish-brown, except the outer feather on each side,
which is nearly white ; the chin, throat, breast, and belly
nearly pure white, the latter tinged with red' as far as the
vent; sides and flanks tinged with grey; under surface of
the wings and tail grey ; legs, toes, and claws lead colour.
The entire length is about five inches and a quarter.

The female differs very slightly from the male, but

108 FAMILIAR WILD XIRVR.

the grey colour of the head and neck is usually tinged
with brown ; the ear-coverts are not so dark in colour, and
the under portion of the body is clouded with grey ; but
the sexes are very difficult to distinguish. The young
birds in plumage resemble the adult female. Like other
members of the family, they complete their moult before
leaving Britain in the autumn.

The Lesser White-throat is a great favourite as a cage
bird, soon becoming very tame and attached, and folio wing-
its owner about for a mealworm or such like. It is not
very difficult to keep, and should be fed and treated as a
Blackcap.

^ U F F,

('/3 NM^L SIZE)

THE KUFF.

Trlnga

SggfiT may be safely affirmed that
the Ruff is the most peculiar-
looking1 bird known in this
country. A glance at the
illustration preceding these
rein; irks will be quite suffi-
cient to establish this asser-
tion ; and it may be added
thai its habits and charac-
teristics are fully as eccentric
and out of the common as its
general appearance. The
female is known as the Reeve.
Amongst the numerous names
bestowed on this bird in dif-
ferent localities may be men-
tioned the following : Fight-
ing Ruff, Shore Sandpiper,
Yellow-legged Sandpiper,
and Greenwich Sandpiper.

In years gone by the Ruff
was far more plentiful than
it is at the present time.
The fens of Lincolnshire,

110 FAMILIAR WILT) BIRDS.

Norfolk, and Somersetshire, and many other districts of
low-lying, marshy ground, used to be famous for the
numbers that resorted to them ; but the gradual reclama-
tion of these places for agricultural purposes has had
the effect of thinning their flocks very considerably.

These birds have been found at various times in almost
all the counties of Great Britain, especially at certain
periods of the year, and on the sea-coast, mosses, moors,
and salt-marshes. The Ruff also is found in Iceland,
Russia, Sweden, Lapland, Denmark, Norway, Holland,
France, Switzerland, and Italy. In some of these latter
countries it is only a temporary visitor. In addition
to these countries, it is said to be met with in Asia and
the Cape of Good Hope.

As a rule, the birds arrive on our coasts in April, and
take their departure about September. There are, how-
ever, many instances recorded of their being shot during
winter.

Like the other members of the Sandpiper family, the
Ruff feeds upon worms and various aquatic insects.

One of the most remarkable traits in the character of
this odd-looking bird is its extreme pugnacity. In the
breeding season this combative disposition has full scope,
and the Ruffs quarrel and fight with each other continually.
Selby says that ".their actions in fighting are very similar
to those of a game cock ; the head is lowered, and the
beak held in a horizontal direction ; the ruff, and, indeed,
every feather, more or less distended, the former sweeping
the ground as a shield, and the tail partly spread, upon the
whole assuming a most ferocious aspect/'' He adds that
in these attitudes the birds stand facing each other, and
trying to lay hold of their antagonists' feathers with the

THE RUFF. Ill

bill, at the same time leaping and using the wings as
weapons of assault. It may be fairly concluded, judging
from the general formation of the bird, that these quarrels
are seldom of a sanguinary character.

Ruffs are polygamous, and the feminine members of
the community are, as may be imagined, the originating
causes of these perpetual disturbances.

Early in May the Reeve commences laying ; the eggs
usually number four, and vary considerably in appearance,
some being of a beautiful green ground colour, and others
olive brown, spotted with darker brown. The nest is made
of coarse grass, and is usually placed on some hillock^
amongst reeds, sedge, or rushes.

No bird that visits Great Britain varies so much in
plumage as the Ruff. Very seldom are two specimens
exactly alike ; and it is stated that in a couple of hundred
examined by Klein, only two specimens were similar. In
the breeding plumage of the one before us the Ruff has the
beak brown, and one inch and a half in length ; the hides
dusky brown ; the head, the whole of the ruff, or tippet,
and the shoulders, of a shining purple-black, transversely
barred with chestnut ; scapulars, back, lesser wing-coverts,
and some of the tertials pale chestnut, speckled and tipped
with black ; greater wing-coverts nearly uniform ash-
brown j quill feathers brownish-black, with white shafts ;
rump and upper tail-coverts white ; tail feathers ash-
brown, varied with chestnut and black; the feathers of
the breast below the ruff, and on the sides, chestnut, tipped
with black ; belly, vent, arid under tail-coverts white, with
occasional spots of dark brown ; legs and toes pale yellowish-
brown ; claws black ; the entire length of the bird is rather
more than twelve inches. According to Montagu, the long

112 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

feathers on the neck and sides of the head, in the male,
that constitute the ruff and auricles, are of short dura-
tion, for they are scarcely completed in the month of
May, and begin to fall the latter end of June. The
change of these singular parts is accompanied by a com-
plete change of plumage ; the stronger colours, such as
purple, chestnut, &c., vanish at the same time, and they
gradually assume the winter plumage, which is largely
made up of white and chestnut.

The female is about ten and a half inches in length, is
devoid of the ruff, and the entire plumage is more uniform
in colour than the male. They do not otherwise differ
much in plumage.

These birds are still considered excellent for the table,
and were, in the times of our ancestors, regarded as very
great delicacies indeed. Most of those seen in British
markets come from Holland, where they are very plentiful.

IZE.)

THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE.

Hallaetus A Ibic din .
Aquila

THER names belong to this
bird. In fact, the White-
tailed Eagle, or, as it is more
frequently called, The Erne,
or Sea Eagle, is a far com-
moner variety than the Golden,
but is inferior to that bird in
its general characteristics.

Speaking of the Erne,
Morris says that its character
seems to be a compound of
the nature of " the Vulture,
the Eagles, the Hawks, the
predatory Gulls, and the
Raven/' It certainly pos-
sesses one habit common to
the Vulture family, as it
detects .-carrion at eonsidera-bl e
distances, and gorges- ifeelf
greedily on -this sort of -food
•whenever pressed by hunger.
In this respect it differs more
or less from most other mem-
bers of the true Eagle family.

114 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

Although occasionally found very far inland, yet the
sea-coast is undoubtedly its most highly favoured resort ;
or else the larger sheets of fresh water which are situated
in wild mountainous districts, and surrounded by lofty,
inaccessible crags. Specimens of the Sea Eagle have
been observed in almost every part of Great Britain
but the most northerly portions of Scotland and Ireland
and the Shetland and Orkney Islands, are localities where
.it is most common, its visits to the south and west being
very exceptional, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland^
Siberia, and Russia are mentioned as countries in which
the bird is seen with mrr3 or less frequency.

In the matter of food the Sea Eagle is not very par-
ticular ; it attacks and destroys fish, flesh, and fowl with
great impartiality ; young fawns, lambs, hares, rabbitsj
game, seals, and fish are amongst the ordinary items of its
diet, and, as already stated, when the least pressed by hunger
it will feed readily upon carrion. Many instances are re-
corded of the bird chasing the Osprey, and robbing it of
the fish it had secured. The flight is very easy, but not, as
a rule, rapid ; a gentle gliding or sailing motion being
perhaps the best definition of its usual mode of progression.
During flight the legs are drawn closely up to the body,
and the head is drawn back to the shoulders. Sometimes,
when the bird is flying to a considerable distance, the wings
are moved slowly and regularly, after the manner of the
Heron. If disturbed when upon the ground it usually flies
for some time close to the earth, and seems to experience a
little difficulty in attaining at once to any great elevation.

The nest of the Sea Eagle is large and unsightly ; it is
composed of sticks, heather, or dried seaweed, and lined
with wool, soft grasses, or feathers. It is generally placed

THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE. 115

in some tall overhanging crag or rock, and invariably where
access is impossible or extremely hazardous. Two eggs are
commonly the number laid, and when incubation com*
mences the parent bird sits with great perseverance. The
eggs are about three inches in length, of a yellowish-white
colour, spotted with light red; the markings, however^
vary considerably. The young birds are not fully fledged
until about the middle of August ; they are most assidu-
ously fed by the old birds, but it is generally affirmed
that at this period the parents do not exhibit the ferocity
and courage towards intruders that is so noticeable in some
of the other eagles.

Like most birds of this large and interesting family,
the Sea Eagle is subject to great variations in plumage and
size. In the ordinary adult male the entire length is from
thirty-three to thirty-six inches (the females are larger) ;
the beak and cere are yellow, the i rides straw-coloured ;
the head and neck brownish-ash, made up by a mixture of
yellowish-white and brown, the shaft of each feather being
the darkest part ; the body and wings are dark brown, inter-
mixed with a few feathers of a lighter colour ; primaries
nearly black ; the tail is entirely white, and slightly rounded
in form, the feathers in the centre being the longest ; the
legs and toes yellow, and the claws black ; the feathering
of the legs reaches a little below the knee ; the toes are
furnished with large scales, and the claws are strong, sharp,
hooked, and grooved underneath.

Mr. Yarrell mentions a peculiar point of difference
between this bird and the Golden Eagle. He says that the
latter have been known to breed in the same place for eight
seasons in succession, driving their young away to get their
living elsewhere ; while the Sea Eagle quits the breeding

116

FAMILIAL WILD BIRDS.

station when the season is over, and leaves its young to
forage over the district in which they have been raised.

In confinement the Erne will live for a great many
years, and is said to exhibit some signs of tameness and
docility, but always becoming more restless about sunset.

('/a NATbF^L SIZE.]

THE GKEY PH ALA HOPE.

Phalaropns hiatus.

HE Grey Phalarope is one of

the prettiest and most in-
teresting of our autumn visi-
tors, the peculiar purity and
delicacy of its grey winter
plumage being very notice-
able and attractive.

Like many other birds of
aquatic habits, it annually
undergoes a considerable
change in its appearance, and
perhaps affords as striking
an example of this sort of
metamorphosis as any of the
feathered wanderers to our
shores.

The Grey Phalarope is
about eight inches in length,
the females being a trifle
larger. In winter the beak
is black; top of the head
white ; irides dark brown ;
the eye is surrounded by
dusky black; the ear-coverts

118 FAMILIAR WILD BIELS.

and back of the head are also a dusky black. The back of
the neck, scapulars, upper wing-coverts, and the back are
a beautiful pearl-grey ; tail short, feathers ash-grey, with
white edges. There is a small patch of pearl-grey just
before the point of the wings, and with this exception the
entire under surface of the body is pure white ; the legs
and toes are yellowish-brown, and the claws black. The
feet are not webbed, but furnished with lobe-shaped
membranes on each side of the toes, resembling those of
the Coot.

In summer the change is great. The beak is yellow;
around the base of the beak, and on the top of the head, a
dark brownish-black ; irides dark brown ; there is a white
patch around the eye, and a narrow stripe down the back
of the neck ; the front and sides of the neck, the breast,
and all the under surface of the body a reddish-chestnut ;
quill and tail feathers nearly black; and the remaining
portions leaden-grey, margined with white or orange-yellow.

The Grey Phalarope feeds upon small, thin-skinned
Crustacea and marine insects, and searches for them both
on the shore and on the water. These birds are inde-
fatigable swimmers, and are occasionally met with far out
at sea in diligent pursuit of food. In the act of swimming
the head is held back, and their general appearance then is
not dissimilar to that of the Teal.

The breeding stations, as far as can be ascertained, are
confined entirely to the high northern latitudes. The
number of eggs laid is usually four. They are rather
more than an inch in length, and about ten and a half
lines in breadth. The grounding is a stone colour tinged
with olive, and spotted and speckled with dark brown.

In Great Britain the Grey Phalarope hardly merits the

THE GREY PH ALA ROPE. 119

name of a rare bird, as specimens are met with nearly every
year in many parts of our coast; but in former times it
was considered quite a rara avis, and Pennant could only
enumerate two instances in which it had appeared on the
British shores.

The general habits of these birds on terra firma some-
what resemble those of the Sandpipers, but they are not
nearly so nimble in their movements. In the mouths of
large rivers, and upon those parts of the coast where
broad reaches of sand or muddy deposits are numerous,
and interspersed with pools of water, the Grey Phalarope
may be met with. Sometimes, about September or October,
the birds appear in considerable numbers ; they do not
congregate, and seldom more than one or two are seen
together. As many as a dozen have been shot in one day
in the vicinity of Brighton, but always when the weather
is very rough ; and, as a rule, when they arrive their bodily
condition is poor and thin. At this time they are very
tame, and are often killed with stones ; but as soon as the
gale is over they leave the shore for the open sea.

The true home and proper range of this pretty bird is
undoubtedly near the Arctic Circle, and on the shores of
Iceland, Greenland, and similar localities. There the
insect food upon which it feeds is found in the greatest
abundance; and there, especially during summer, large
numbers are invariably met with. It is also said to
be a visitor to the United States, Siberia, Norway,
Sweden, and the shores of the large Asian lakes and the
Caspian Sea.

Audubon states that during winter he found them in
large flocks on the Ohio, swimming along the margin., and
picking up seeds of grass, &c. He also observed them at

: 120

'FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

sea on the banks of seaweeds in hundreds, and adds, —they
proved excellent eating/'

Mr. Kumlien mentions seeing several flocks of Grey
Phalaropes about two hundred miles off the coast of
Labrador, at which place they were known as the Whale
Bird, from the habit they have of following the whales,
and approaching closely when they blow, in order to catch
the small insects that are disturbed.

s H O\/E HE F^ .

('A HA-

THE SHOVELLER.

Anas clypeata*

HIS bird, which is also known
as the Broad-bill or Blue-
winged Shoveller, is, generally
speaking, only a winter visi-
tor to our shores. Probably,
every season some Shovellers
remain and breed in Great
Britain, but the vast majority
are migratory. In Europe, it
is said to be very plentiful in
Holland, and is also met with
in the south of Sweden, Goth-
land, Russia, Germany, and
France ; in the marshes of
the last-named country it is
said to breed regularly. Ex-
amples have been met with
in Japan, Smyrna, and South
Africa, whilst in Hudson's
Bay and various parts of
North America it is well
known. In France, one of
the commonest of its names
is Canard gobe-mouche.

56

122 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

In Great Britain, the Shoveller is most abundant along
the eastern coasts from Essex and Lincolnshire (Yarrell
imagines that this fact may be owing to the coasts of Hol-
land being immediately opposite, these birds, as already
stated, being very plentiful in that country) ; but it is
found with more or less frequency in most localities much
resorted to by wild fowl.

Lakes, rivers, marshes, fens, and the sea-shores, when
consisting of large banks of mud, are places most resorted
to for feeding, the diet consisting of worms, aquatic and
other insects, grasses, and various vegetable substances.

The bill of this bird is peculiar in its structure : it is as
long as the rest of the head, and from the centre to the tip it
is flattened out, and rounded into a shape not dissimilar to
the end of a shovel. A remarkable circumstance connected
with this part of the body is, that the peculiarity of shape
here alluded to is not prominent in the young birds when
first hatched, but is gradually acquired as the birds grow up.
A communication to the Linnean Society states that about
thirty Shovellers' eggs were hatched under some domestic
fowls, and the bills of the ducklings presented no difference
in appearance from the bills of an ordinary duck. This fact
has been amply confirmed by many subsequent observations.

This peculiar shape of the beak, from which the bird
derives its name, is of the greatest assistance to its owner
in collecting its food, and rejecting any unsuitable matter
that may have been picked up. The Shoveller generally
feeds either in shallow water or on the margins of the
pools, ditches, lakes, and rivers to which it resorts. Indeed,
it spends a great deal of time on terra fir ma, seeming to
prefer to search for its food along the edge of the water
than to swim about in the deeper parts. It seldom dives,

THE SHOVELLER. 123

but its powers of flight are considerable, its progression
being strong and rapid.

The nest is made of fine grasses, and is usually placed
in a tuft of grass or rushes, and beyond the reach of
the water. Eight or nine eggs are laid ; they are of a
buffy-white colour, tinged with green, a little more than
two inches in length, and about one inch and a half
in breadth. During the time of hatching the female
Shoveller covers the eggs over with down, plucked from
her breast.

As an article of food, the Shoveller is said to be
excellent, one authority describing it as, u tender, juicy,
and of good flavour."

The plumage is handsome, and the markings well de-
fined. The length of the male is about twenty inches ; the
beak is lead colour ; the irides yellow ; the whole of the
head and upper part of the neck green ; lower part of the
neck, scapulars, and some of the tertials white ; middle of
the back brown, the feathers having lighter coloured mar-
gins ; point of the wing, lesser wing-coverts, and outer web
of some of the tertials pale blue ; greater wing-coverts
white ; primaries and secondaries dark brown, almost black,
but the speculum is green ; rump, upper tail-coverts, and
tail feathers almost black ; the breast and the whole of the
belly a rich chestnut brown ; thighs freckled with dark
brown, on a grounding of lighter pale brown ; vent white ;
under tail-coverts black; legs, toes, and membranes a
reddish-orange ; nails black.

In summer the male changes the green colour of the
head and neck to brown, spotted with very dark brown;
the breast and belly are ferruginous, spotted with black;
the legs are orange.

124

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

In the female the head and neck are mottled with two
shades of brown ; the feathers on the upper surface of the
body darker brown in the centre, with light brown edges
and tips ; the under surface of the body is pale brown.

The young males at first resemble females, the dis-
tinctive markings of their sex being gradually and slowly
assumed.

THE GRASSHOPPER WARBLER.

Sylvia locustella.

HIS pretty little warbler de-
rives its name from the strik-
ing resemblance of its note
to the peculiar chirruping
sound made by the large
green grasshopper. The bird
is of migratory habits; it
usually arrives in this country
about the middle of April,
and leaves in September,
but the lateness or earliness
of the season occasionally
accelerates or delays its ar-
rival. Like other members
of the same family, it is far
more plentiful during some
seasons than others. In the
years 1879 and 1880 these
birds were comparatively
common, and in 1881 and
1882 there were very few
seen or heard. It has been
observed in most of the
English counties, and is a

126 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

regular visitor to the north and south of Ireland, but in
Scotland it would appear to be uncommon.

The Grasshopper Warbler, although tolerably well dis-
tributed in the localities above mentioned, is by no means
familiarly known, as its habits are shy and cautious, and,
as a rule, it carefully conceals itself among the grass and
bushes of its haunts.

Th<3 food consists of flies, gnats, beetles, and any small
insects, grass slugs and hoppers, and small snails. In
searching for food, the bird creeps quietly along the bottom
of hedges, patches of furze, clumps of sedge, and tall grass.
So quiet and unobtrusive are its movements, that the
casual passer-by would either fail to notice it at all, or
would imagine that it was a field-mouse popping in and
out of the herbage. It runs with great nimbleness, and
climbs slender reeds with ease and dexterity. It has a
very noticeable habit of jerking up the tail when on the
ground. Occasionally the Grasshopper Warbler may be
seen perched upon the lower branches of a tree or shrub ;
but it must be approached with considerable caution, as it
resents anything like familiarity, and immediately secretes
itself from view. Mr. Yarrell says : " During the breeding
season, when bushes and shrubs are clothed with leaves, it
is difficult to obtain a sight of this bird ; yet when near
its haunt its note rings on the ear constantly, about sunset
particularly, and sometimes even during the night/''

The call note, according to Naumann, is a tic, tic,
somewhat resembling the sound produced by knocking two
stones together, but it must be very soft or not often
uttered. The note is very perplexing as to the exact spot
whence it proceeds ; indeed, the ventriloquial quality of
the voice is one of its most remarkable characteristics.

THE GRASSHOPPER WARBLER. 127

The nest is not very easily found ; it is placed on or
near the ground, but is always carefully hidden by grass or
herbage, and the bird approaches and leaves it by cautiously
creeping along the ground. The materials consist of grass
and fine moss; it is firmly built, and cup-shaped. The
eggs are of a pale reddish- white, thickly speckled all over
with dark reddish-brown, interpersed with paler and greyer-
underlying spots of the same character ; they vary but
little; from five to seven is the number laid. .Should the
nest be taken or destroyed, the parents appear to grieve
but little, and in a few hours commence building another
nest within a few yards of the same spot. During the
breeding season the adult female is even more cautious and
retiring than at other times.

The nest of this bird is often appropriated by the
Cuckoo as a depository for its eggs.

The length of the Grasshopper Warbler is about five
inches and three-quarters ; the bill dusky brown ; the
lower mandible slightly yellowish, the upper a little
notched ; corners of the mouth reddish-yellow ; iris brown ;
crown of head, nape, and back of neck olive-brown, the
centres of the feathers being darker, giving a spotted
appearance ; chin yellowish- white ; throat and breast pale
yellowish-brown, tinted on the sides with olive, and spotted
with darkish brown; back olive-brown, mottled by the
feathers being lighter in the centres. The wings are very
short, reaching only a little way below the beginning of
the tail; primaries, secondaries, and tertiaries dark dusky
brown, with edges of reddish-brown ; greater and lesser
under wing-coverts light yellowish-grey ; the tail is rather
long and much rounded, brown in colour, and obscurely
banded ; under tail-coverts pale brown ; legs strong, and

128

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

of a pale brownish-yellow ; toes and claws the same. The
plumage wears as the summer advances, and becomes a
greyish-brown on the upper parts, and paler underneath.

The female has scarcely any dusky lines on the front of
the neck, and the breast is lighter in colour j but in other
respects there is not much difference in the appearance of
the sexes ; in fact, they are very difficult to distinguish.

The Grasshopper Warbler is found in France, Germany,
Switzerland, and Holland, also in Sweden, Denmark,
and the southern parts of Russia.

In some localities it is familiarly known as the Cricket
Bird.

THE GOLDEN EAGLE.

Aqidla clirysaetos.

HIS splendid creature may
fairly be considered to hold
the premier position amongst
British birds ; its majestic
appearance, boldness, and
muscular development are
un approached by any other
member of the feathered
tribes, whilst the solitary
habits of its life, and the
wild romantic scenery in
which it is most commonly
found, add additional interest
and charm to its character.

The Golden Eagle is not
nearly so frequently seen in
Great Britain as in former
times; and, although rapa-
cious in its appetite, and
terribly destructive in its
habits, it is, nevertheless,
much to be regretted that so
magnificent a creature should
— in our country, at any

57

130 FAMILIAR WILD BIEDS.

rate — be growing1 so surely and rapidly extinct. Speci-
mens of the Golden Eagle have occasionally been met
with in nearly every part of the United Kingdom, but it
is most frequently seen in the northern parts of Scotland
and the islands lying to the north and west. As already
intimated, it is common nowhere, and is rapidly becoming
scarcer. Of late years, however, in some parts of Scotland
it has been strictly preserved.

It is found in North America, more especially towards
the Arctic regions, and also in Iceland, Scandinavia, Russia,
Germany, France, Northern Africa, and Asia Minor.

The adult male is about three feet in length, the female,
like most birds of the same class, being larger than her mate.
The beak is of a bluish horn colour, darkening towards the
tip ; the cere yellow ; the skin of the lore has a bluish
tinge ; the irides are hazel, pupils black ; on the top of the
head the feathers are pointed, and rufous-brown ; the general
colour of the body is a dark brown ; the wing-coverts
are reddish and blackish-brown, the wings being black and
blackish -brown ; the tail feathers are a varied mixture of
brown, the ends being much darker ; the under parts and
the feathers on the legs, which reach to the foot, are bay ;
the toes are yellow, with three broad scales on the ex-
tremities; claws black. In young specimens the plumage
is darker, and the half of the tail nearest the body is quite
white; in this condition it is known by some naturalists
as the Ring-tailed Eagle.

The nest of this bird is usually placed on some high.
precipitous ruck or crag, and nnlv accessible with difficulty.

The nest is large and flat, and is composed of stn>M^
sticks, the structure extending over an area of several feet.
Two or three eggs are laid : they are about three inches in

THE GOLDEN EAGLE. 131

length, and nearly two and a half in breadth, of a greyish
or dirty white colour, mottled nearly all over with markings
of pale brownish-red.

Incubation lasts about a month, and when the young
birds make their appearance they are covered with a soft
greyish down. At this period the parents are even fiercer
and more destructive than at other times, feeding their
offspring in a most liberal and unsparing manner, and
levying contributions on the live stock generally that may
happen to be within the vicinity.

The food consists of grouse, hares, rabbits, poultry,
young lambs, and indeed, anything and everything living
that can be carried off. The courage and audacity of the
Golden Eagle have long since become proverbial, and num-
berless instances are recorded in which this bird has at-
tacked sheep, goats, deer, and animals of similar size. It
seldom feeds upon fish, and probably not at all upon any-
thing it may find dead.

The flight is at once easy and powerful, and the motion
of the bird as it sweeps along through the air is truly
majestic and dignified. Its note consists of two syllables,
which may be described as a couple of short sharp shrieks
rapidly repeated. When perched, the Golden Eagle has a
bold, defiant attitude, the eyes being fierce and penetrating.
It never loses the fierce, intractable character of its dis-
position, and persons who have kept these birds through
lengthened periods of captivity state that they lose but
little of their native ferocity, and exhibit in only a very
slight degree any preference for or familiarity with their at-
tendants. The ago attained by the Golden Eagle is a matter
of some little doubt, some writers affirming that they live
occasionally to be a hundred years old ; there can, however,

132

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

be no doubt that their longevity is far more remarkable
than that of any other family of the feathered tribes.

These birds, even when kept for some years in confine-
ment, evince great restlessness both in the morning- and
evening, the times at which in their wild state they leave
and return to their nest. This peculiarity is likewise
noticeable in Golden Eagles which have never tasted the
sweets of liberty at all, but have been taken from the nest.

'^v-

EIDEF^

THE EIDER DUCK.

Somateria mollissima.
— *o«

a

ROM a commercial point of
view, the Eider Duck is pro-
bably the most valuable
member of the Duck family.
The fine down so much prized
and admired, known as eider-
down, is obtained from these
birds, and always commands
a very high price. In Nor-
way, Iceland, and Greenland,
they are consequently strictly
protected when breeding, and
by judiciously removing the
eggs and down from the nest,
the birds lay again and fur-
nish a fresh supply, and each
duck is said to yield about
four ounces of down.

In Denmark, Norway,
and Sweden this bird is vari-
ously known as the Eider,
Eder, or Edder. Its range
extends to Iceland, Spitzber-
gen, Nova Zembla, the Faroe
Island s, Baffin's Bay, and

134 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

many northern localities of North America. Specimens
are occasionally met with in the southern counties of
England, but these cases are far from numerous,, as the
bird is more attached to the colder climates of the north ;
the Fern Islands, on the coast of Northumberland, and the
isles of the Hebrides and Orkney being the principal
localities resorted to in Great Britain.

The name of St. Cuthbert's Duck is also given to this
bird, owing to the fact of its breeding on St. Cuthbert's
Isle in considerable numbers and with great regularity.

The Eider Duck, from the peculiar position of the legs,
walks with difficulty and awkwardness ; consequently it
seldom in the day-time remains long upon dry land. It
is, however, a splendid swimmer, dives constantly, and is
capable of remaining beneath the surface of the water for
some considerable time. Its food consists of fish, shelled
mollusca, Crustacea, and marine insects, which are procured
by the bird either on the surface or at various depths be-
neath. Very little, if any, vegetable matter is taken into
the stomach.

The Eider Duck is more or less gregarious at all times,
and it is often seen in considerable numbers on the open
sea. It is a day feeder, and is said often to spend its
nights on land, being one of the earliest birds astir in the
morning, going to the sea to feed at the first streak of
dawn.

Nesting is commenced in May, the birds leaving the
mainland and assembling on islands for this purpose. The
nest is made of fine seaweed, and as the eggs are laid they
are covered by the parent bird with down plucked from its
breast. By the time the last egg is laid the covering of
down thus deposited is considerable, and doubtless by its

THE EIDER DUCK. 135

warmth materially assists in the process of incubation.
The usual number of eggs is from five to eight ; they are
pale green in colour, about three inches in length and two
inches in breadth. The male bird takes no part in in-
cubation, and seldom approaches very close to the nest.

The young take to the water very soon after being
hatched, and are covered with down, dark on the upper
part and lighter underneath. Yarrell states that in some
instances they are carried there by the female in her bill,
as the nest is sometimes placed in such a situation as to
preclude the possibility of its being done in any other way.

The powers of flight of the Eider Duck are only
moderate, but it rises from the water with less effort than
many other ducks.

It is easily domesticated, but the young are trouble-
some to rear, and are subject to frequent mishaps in the
poultry-yard, being, as already stated, clumsy and uncertain
walkers.

In the adult male the beak is dusky green ; the nail
white; top of the head velvet-black; lore and cheeks
white ; ear-coverts and occiput pale green ; back, scapulars,
tertials, point of wing, and smaller wing-coverts white ;
greater wing- coverts black ; wing primaries and secondaries
dull black, the tertials elongated, and falling partly over
them ; rump black ; tail feathers dull black ; chin and
upper part of neck in front white ; lower part of the neck
pale buff; breast, belly, sides, and all the under surface
black, except a patch of white on the flank ; legs, toes, and
their membranes <luskv ^ivm. The mtiiv length is about
1 \\ fill \--ti \v inches.

The female differs in appearance considerably from her
mate, the plumage being a pale brown tinged with red,

136

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

and varied with markings of darker brown. The young
males at first resemble the female, the pure white being
slowly assumed, and the complete adult plumage is
not acquired until after the first year.

In the winter these ducks are remarkably shy and
wary, and it is only by carefully stalking that they can be
approached within gun-shot. In the breeding season,
however, when the eggs approach hatching, the females
will often allow themselves to be touched by the hand as
they sit on their eggs.

OWL

THE TAWNY OWL.

Strix stridula.

[HE Tawny or Brown Owl, al-
though one of the commonest
members of the Owl family,
is nevertheless an individual
which, from its love of seclu-
sion and nocturnal habits,
affords the general public
but f ew opportunities of culti-
vating its acquaintance.

Thickly-grown woods, dense
plantations, and large shrub-
beries are the localities in
which the bird hides during
daylight, and it ventures
forth into the open wood only
when the shades of twilight
are deepening into night. At
this time of the day the
Tawny Owl, impelled by
hunger or the necessities of
a young family, quits its re-
treat, and commences a slow
but exhaustive search for
food.

58

138 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

Young rabbits, rats, mice, moles, small birds, and the
larger sorts of night insects, and even fish, are indiscrim-
inately captured, and either devoured on the spot or taken
home to the family larder. On these expeditions, which
are usually tolerably methodical in their order, fields, farm-
steads, low hedges, the outskirts of woods, plantations, and
similar places, are carefully scrutinised, and the bird or
quadruped must indeed be motionless and diminutive that
escapes the searching gaze of this wanderer of the night.

The Tawny Owl does not chase its prey after the
manner of the hawk or falcon, but seizes it suddenly
and unawares. The flight is somewhat slow and heavy,
and, owing to the soft, downy character of the plumage,
is perfectly silent ; the bird is thus enabled to approach
and secure its victim with ease and certainty.

A hole in a tree is the spot most commonly selected as
a nesting place. No great care or attention is devoted to
the nest itself, which consists of a few pieces of moss, straw,
hay, and soft feathers. Nesting usually commences in
March, and the young owls are hatched in the following
month. Two, three, four, and sometimes five eggs are
laid; they are nearly two inches in length, and about
one inch and three-quarters in breadth, and nearly
round ; the surface is rather rough, and the colour a dull
white.

The young birds are very odd-looking customers at first,
being entirely covered with a soft white down, which be-
comes grey, and their powers of vision are extremely defec-
tive ; indeed, for the first few days it is probable that they
are quite blind. They remain a considerable time in the
nest, and, after leaving it, perch about among the adjacent
branches, where they are assiduously attended to by their

THE TAWNY OWL. 139

parents. When taken into confinement at this time of
their lives they may easily be reared, and soon become
tame and familiar. The young birds vary considerably in
size, owing to the fact that the eggs are laid at intervals of
three or four days between each.

The note of the Tawny Owl is aptly described as a
" loud and melancholy hoot." It is heard most frequently
in the evening and the earlier hours of the night.

In plumage these birds show considerable variation,
the ground colour in some specimens being a very dark
tawny or brown, and in others approaching almost to grey.
The length of the male bird is about fifteen inches ; the bill
is pale horn colour, much hidden by bristles ; cere flesh
colour; iris very dark brown; two irregular whitish stripes
extend backwards over the eye, and the facial disk is well
marked. Head large ; crown dark brown and grey, tinged
with rufous ; the bristly feathers of the face are greyish-
white, interspersed with black near the bill, and the small
rounded feathers of the wreath are black in the centre,
edged, spotted, and barred with white and rufous; neck
dingy white, with rufous brown streaks and spots ; nape
and back dark brown, with markings of brownish-grey and
brown ; chin brownish-grey ; throat and breast same as
the neck. The wings have an expansion of nearly three
feet, are a mixture of ash grey, mottled with shaded brown ;
there is a descending line of white spots at the edge of the
scapulars, and another on the edge of the wing-coverts.
The upper portion of the tail is barred with brown, and the
under part greyish -white, with bars of reddish-brown.
Lower portions of the body greyish-white, with streaks and
spots of pale and dark brown ; under tail-coverts white.
Legs and toes covered with short greyish-white feathers;

140

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

claws long, curved, and very sharp, horn-white at the base,
and darker towards the tip.

The females are larger than the males, and, like them,
differ very much in their general appearance.

The Tawny Owl is found in almost all the English
counties, but is rarer in Scotland ; it is said to be found in
Scandinavia, Lapland, Russia, and the wooded countries of
Europe.

cUtL

THE HEBKING GULL.

Larns fuscus.
Larus argentatus.

HERE are few, if any, British
sea-going birds more familiar
to the dwellers on our southern
shores than the Herring Gull.
It remains with us through-
out the entire year, builds its
nests and rears its young upon
our coasts, and may, in short,
be fairly considered as part
and parcel of our marine sur-
roundings.

The Herring Gull is a bird
of distinctly sociable habits,
and may commonly be noticed
in the company of Lesser
Black-backed Gulls, with
whom it feeds constantly, and
chooses the same localities in
which to breed.

In addition to the southern
coasts of Great Britain, this
bird is very numerous on the
most rocky portions of the
Irish shores, and in the Isles

142 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

of Orkney and Shetland. Travellers have met with it in
the colder climates of Iceland, Greenland, Scandinavia,
and Melville Island • and it is said to be well known in
many European countries, especially in some of those
bounded by the Mediterranean Sea. Yarrell says : " These
birds are very numerous in the Golden Horn at Constanti-
nople, and so tame that they will approach close enough to
be struck with an oar. " It is plentiful in North America.

The Herring1 Gull derives its name from its partiality to
fish as an article of diet ; it prefers this sort of food to any
other, and preys indiscriminately upon all and sundry that
may approach the surface. During the fishing seasons
these birds approach the nets with great confidence, and
may be seen swimming and flying over the finny captives
in great numbers. At such times they betray no more
fear of the fishermen than so many ducks or chickens.
They possess ravenous appetites, and their stomachic capa-
cities seem quite as well developed as their appetites. The
numbers of fish destroyed by these birds at such times must
be well-nigh incredible. They often follow pleasure boats
round the coast, feeding on any scrap of offal, or anything
else that is thrown overboard.

Naturally these Gulls are of shy habits, like others of
their tribe. But in protected places they soon become
very familiar.

The nest is made of grass, and generally placed on the
flat ledges of cliffs, or any suitable spot of a similar charac-
ter near the summit. Three eggs are laid ; they measure
about two and a half inches in length, and are nearly one
inch and three-quarters in diameter. The grounding is a
pale olive brown, spotted and blotched with different sizes
of dark brown.

THE HERRIXG GULL. 143

During incubation the birds are bold and daring, and
when approached closely make a loud and continuous
clamouring, and rise to a great height in the air, wheeling
round and round.

Herring Gulls are easily tamed, and have been known to
breed in captivity. They are also very useful in a garden,
as they will support themselves almost entirely on slugs
and worms ; they have been known to live thus many
years in confinement.

Like the other members of the family, they are inde-
fatigable swimmers, and the flight is buoyant and easy,
though somewhat slow, the long wings beating to
and fro somewhat in the same mariner as those of the
Heron.

They frequently leave the coast and wander inland.
They may be seen on damp marshy land, grass fields, and
arable lands freshly ploughed; here they search for worms,
grubs, insects, and, in fact, anything that may turn up. At
these times they do a great deal of good.

In summer, the adult bird has the bill yellow, the
corner of the under mandible being red ; the i rides straw
coloured ; head and neck pure white ; the back and all the
wing-coverts are a delicate French grey ; tertials tipped
with white ; primaries mostly black, but grey towards the
centre ; the first primary has a triangular patch of white at
the end, and the second and third are also marked with
smaller patches of white ; the upper tail-coverts and all the
tail feathers are pure white ; the chin, throat, breast, and
all the under portion of the plumage is likewise white \ the
legs and feet are flesh colour. In winter, the adult birds
have the head marked with streaks of dusky grey. The
entire length of the bird is about twenty-four inches, and

144

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

the wing extends from sixteen to seventeen inches. The
adult plumage is not attained until the bird is at least two
years old. The young until after the first moult are of a
mottled dirty greyish- brown colour, lighter underneath.
There is a strong resemblance between the young of this
species and the young of the Lesser Black-backed Gull,
but the latter is of a darker shade — when first hatched the
young birds are covered with soft down, and have a very
pretty appearance.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING.

BY R. KEARTON.

"IO a casual observer there may be
nothing remarkable or interest-
ing, perhaps, in the shape, size,
or colour of birds' eggs ; yet to
the warm admirer of Nature
and her works what wonders of
design are manifested in the
construction of a common egg!
These traces of design afford the
best possible evidence that there
is a supreme agency at work,
even if they have been brought
to their present state of perfec-
tion by the process of evolution.
How long would it have taken
some of the world's great philo-
sophers to discover the best shape
of a bird's egg, in order to pre-
vent it rolling off a flat surface,
such as a ledge of rock, when
moved by the terrible gusts of
wind that sweep over high lati-
tudes, or perhaps roughly moved
by the parent-bird suddenly flut-
tering off to save her life in the presence of danger?
59

146 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

Take, for example, the egg of the Guillemot. This is so
wonderfully constructed, that if moved it will not roll
away, like a marble or billiard-ball, but simply spin round
on its axis, the same as a screw or top, showing admirable
adaptability to the exposed situation chosen by this bird for
incubation.

Birds that build their nests in holes, such as the Owl,
for instance, lay round eggs, which run no risk of being
rolled about and smashed. Were the Owl and Guillemot
to change positions for a while, the latter would stand a
fair chance of speedy extermination, affording a beauti-
ful illustration of the profound wisdom which has been
brought to bear in the working out of the grand problem
of preservation.

As a further illustration, let us take the eggs of the
Golden or Green Plover, and consider for a minute their
shape, number, and colour. In the first place, like that of
the Guillemot, they are laid on an almost flat surface in
bleak moorland districts, often on the summit of a little
knoll, to preserve them from being swamped by heavy
rains. In the second place, they are very large eggs for
the size of the bird. How wisely this difficulty is met
and surmounted ; for all their sharp points meet in the
centre, and practically form a square, so that the bird may
be enabled to cover them all at the same time ; whereas, if
she laid five eggs it would be a matter almost impossible
for her to hatch them all successfully. He who is curious
enough to turn the round end of a Plover's egg into the
centre of the nest, and walk away a respectful distance,
will find on his return the parent bird has discovered the
chaos in her little household, and speedily set matters right
again. In the third place, the beautiful harmony of

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 147

colouring of the eggs with their surroundings renders them
difficult to find ; and still further, the eggs are laid at a
season when they are least likely to be addled by snow-
storms.

On the other hand, we will take the nest of the com-
mon Thrush, which, in the first place, is so constructed that
the eggs are in no danger of being destroyed by falling-
out ; in the second place, they are of such a convenient
size and shape, added to the cup-like construction of the
nest, that half-a-dozen eggs are hatched by the bird as
easily as the normal number four ; in the third place,
the depth of the nest and its elevated position generally
hide the eggs from observation, so that their blue un-
harmonious colour does not really expose them, for it is
the close resemblance of the nest to the surrounding objects
upon which safety really depends ; lastly, the bird does
not breed at a great altitude, and is in consequence enabled
to nest much earlier in the spring.

Pisciculture affords the same inexhaustible evidences of
the powers granted to every kind of animal life for the
propagation and preservation of its particular kind. Take,
for instance, trout : how their colour changes in obedience
to that of the bed of the stream or pond in which they are
found ; and again, each separate brook produces fish (of the
same species) with features of a distinctly different charac-
ter, so that they can hardly be mistaken by even the most
casual observer. Still further, the trout in a stream of
even temperature all the year round, or nearly so, I have
noticed spawn much later than the trout of a neighbouring
stream liable to be reduced to a very low temperature in
winter, and a correspondingly high one in summer ; yet I
have discovered no appreciable difference in the size of the

148 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

fry in each stream the same summer, showing clearly that
the trout begins to spawn earlier in the stream of variable
temperature, because it takes longer to hatch their ova
than it does in the stream of even temperature, where,
though their neighbours give them so much start, yet
they finish the race on equal terms.

Open the book of Nature where we will, it teems with
wonderful instances of creative wisdom, if we will but take
the trouble to read it, and consider for a moment the
marvellous accuracy with which even the smallest details
of the vast plan have been worked out. Yet how many
thousands, yea, hundreds of thousands of people live and
die without even a rudimentary knowledge of the most
commonplace things they see and hear, though these have
doubtless been called forth partly for the benefit, comfort,
and enjoyment of man, whose lack of understanding alone
renders him incapable of duly appreciating them. It was
Shakespeare's knowledge and love of nature that made him
say, as no other man could have said —

". . . . Our life, exempt from public haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in running brooks,
Sermons in stones, and good in everything."

THE WOODLARK.

THE nest of this bird is situated on the ground, usually
well concealed beneath a tuft of grass or low plant, and
is composed of grass, bents, moss, and hairs, the coarser
material used on the outside and the finer to line the
interior. The eggs are four or five in number, of a lighter
ground colour than the Skylark's eggs, thickly speckled
with reddish-brown, the spots sometimes, but rarely,
forming a zone at the larger end.

EGGS.

i. Woodlark. 2. Nightjar. 3. Stormy Petrel. 4. Stone-chat. 5- Capercailzie.
6. Bittern. 7. Merlin. 8. Little Grebe. 9. Wheat-ear.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 149

THE MERLIN.

LIKE some other of the Hawks, the Merlin does not take
much trouble in the construction of her nest, simply
selecting a little hollow, usually well hidden by heather,
in moorland districts, lining it with dead ling and a little
grass. The eggs number from three to six> according to
some authorities; but I have usually found four on the
North Riding moors, brown in colour, thickly covered with
spots, blotches, and marblings of a reddish hue, especially
at the larger end.

THE BITTERN.

THE ground is chosen as the situation of this bird's nest,
well hidden amongst the dense growth of reeds and flags,
in close proximity to the water it haunts. It is composed
of a plenteous supply of sticks, reeds, flag-leaves, &c.
The eggs are found in numbers of from three to five, and
have been described as of a pale clay-brown, stone colour,
and olive brown, all of which are as near the mark as a
verbal description can corne.

THE NIGHT-JAR.

THIS bird cannot really be said to make a nest of any kind,
simply selecting some natural depression in the earth,
beneath the shelter of a furze- bush or common bracken.
She lays two eggs, which are grey, beautifully spotted, and
marbled or veined with dark brown and tints of a bluish-
lead colour, glossy. The female sits so closely, and har_
monises so well with her surroundings, that, unless one
happens to detect her beautiful large eye, the chances are
very much against finding her nest.

160 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

THE STOKM PETREL.

THE Scilly Islands, St. Kilda, the Orkneys,, Shetland, arid
the Irish coast, are the breeding haunts of the Storm
Petrel. The nest is placed on the ground, amongst cliffs
and under large-sized stones, being composed of pieces of
dry earth and stalks of plants. One single white egg,
about the size of a Blackbird's, is laid.

THE STONE-CHAT.

THIS pert little bird is very dexterous in the art of nest-
building, selecting for materials moss and dry grasses
to form the outer structure, and feathers, hair, &c., for
lining the interior. The position selected is generally on
the ground, at the bottom of a furze-bush, though some-
times quite away from any bush. The eggs number five
or six, and are of a pale blue-green, with minute reddish-
brown spots, chiefly at the larger end.

THE WHEAT-EAK.

A SHELTERED and darkened situation is generally chosen by
the Wheat-ear wherein to build her nest — chinks of stone
walls, the ruins of cairns, in old rabbit-burrows, under
stones on moors, mountain wilds, &c. The nest, not very
artistic in construction, is composed of a variety of materials,
such as bents, grass roots pulled up by the sheep when
grazing, and dried in the sun, hair and wool gathered from
brambles, corners of rocks, and walls against which the
sheep have rubbed themselves. The eggs number five or
six, and are of a pale greenish-blue colour unspotted.

EGO 8 AND EGG-COLLECTING. 151

THE LITTLE GREBE.

AN immense mass of aquatic weeds floating1 on the surface
of a quiet pond, and thoroughly saturated with water, forms
the nest of this bird. She lays from five to six egg's, at
first white, but gradually becoming dyed a dirty mud
colour by the decaying weeds with which the parent bird
covers them on leaving her nest to seek food, &c.

THE CAPERCAILZIE.

THIS bird's nest is situated on the ground, and is composed
of a few sticks and ling stalks. The eggs number from
six to twelve, and are of a pale reddish-yellow brown,
spotted all over with two shades of darker orange-brown,
somewhat like those of the Black Grouse.

THE MEADOW PIPIT.

THE nest of this common little bird is built of bents, with
an inner lining of grass and hairs. It is situated on the
ground, and generally in such a position that protection
froni the rain, sheep's feet, &c., is afforded by a stout tuft
of bents, a projecting piece of earth or stone. Its where •
abouts is, however, generally betrayed by the parent bird's
peculiar flight when disturbed, even in the earliest stages
of incubation. In the course of a day's travel on the
moors I have met with several nests, some of them remark-
ably close to each other. The eggs number from four to
six ; and in spite of the fact that some eminent authorities
have said that they are of a reddish-brown, mottled over
with darker brown, varying but little, I should describe
them as varying from light to very dark dusky brown. I

152 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

should conclude, from long observation, that more Cuckoos
are bred and reared by this bird than all the other foster-
parents put together; and it is remarkable what affection
it shows for the adopted nursling. Not long ago I had the
misfortune to shoot a young Cuckoo during the dusk of
evening in mistake for a Hawk, and was struck with pity
on seeing the poor Meadow Pipit light on the dead body of
the unfortunate victim, and try to drag it away as I ap-
proached.

THE PIED FLY- CATCHER.

THIS bird seems to resort annually to the same locality,
and use the same nest year after year, which is com-
posed of moss, grass, bents, feathers, hair, &c., and is
situated in holes in pollard-trees and walls. She lays four
or five eggs, of a pale blue, which might not erroneously
be described as greenish-blue, unspotted.

THE TEEE PIPIT.

THE Tree Pipit's nest is always on the ground, beneath the
shelter of a tuft of grass or low bush, and is made of
fibrous roots, moss, and wool, lined with fine grass and
hair. The eggs number from four to six, and are so
variable in colour that verbal description is almost baffled
in attempting to convey an impression of what they are
like. Some are purple-red, thickly sprinkled with spots of
a deeper shade ; others of a yellowish- white, spotted and
sprinkled all over with greyish-brown, like a Sparrow's

THE DUNLIN.

THE nesting-place of the Dunlin is on the sea-beach,
among the shingle, heather, or long grass at the mouth of

EGGS.

r. Pied Flycatcher. 2. Meadow Pipit. 3. Tree Pipit., 4. Dunlin. 5. Landrail.
6. Skua. 7. Wigeon. 8. Golden Plover. 9. Skylark.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 163

rivers in the Orkney Islands, Hebrides, and the North of
Scotland. The nest is composed of a meagre supply of
bents and straws, and the eggs number four, elegantly
shaped and beautifully coloured, though very variable in
ground colour, sometimes of a bluish-white, blotched all
over with umber brown, whilst others are of a clear light-
green, richly spotted with light brown. The hen sits
remarkably close, suffering herself to be removed from the
nest sooner than leave it.

THE SKY-LARK.

THIS familiar songster's nest is placed on the ground,
amongst corn or rough tufty grass, and its whereabouts is
generally betrayed by the peculiar scudding flight of the
hen when disturbed. The nest is built of bents and dry
grass, those of the most slender texture being placed inside.
The eggs number four or five (I have never found more),
the colouring of which is subject to variation, and not of
the easiest kind to convey in a written description. How-
ever, the following may be taken as representative : — A
dirty white ground colour slightly tinged with green,
spotted and mottled with umber brown, generally more
thickly towards the larger end.

THE GOLDEN PLOVER.

THE favourite nesting-place of the Golden Plover is on the
dreary mountain wilds of the North of England, Scotland,
and Ireland. She selects a slight natural depression in the
earth, and scrapes together bits of dead grass, rushes, and
heather for a nest, in which four eggs are deposited, with
the sharp points all meeting in the centre. The ground
60

154

FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

colour of the eggs is stone or cream, spotted and blotched
with umber or blackish-brown, of various sizes and shapes.

THE LANDRAIL.

THE position selected by the Landrail for her nest is on the
ground, amongst grass, underwood, clover, or corn. It is
loosely constructed of dry herbage. Her eggs vary greatly
in number, from seven, eight, or nine to as many as fifteen,
and are of a dingy white, suffused with a reddish tinge,
freckled and spotted with red, brown, and purplish-grey.

THE WIGEON.

THIS bird has been known to breed in Scotland and Ire-
land, but its favourite places are Scandinavia, Finland, and
Northern Russia. The nest is placed in a clump of rushes
or a tuft of heather, its materials being reeds and decayed
rushes, with a beautiful inner lining of down off the parent
bird, which lays from seven to ten creamy-white eggs, of
a very oval shape. Broods have been hatched at different
times in the Zoological Gardens.

THE SKUA.

NIDIFICATION is carried on by the Skua in companies, in
the Shetland Islands only. The nest is placed on the
ground, and. is made of dead ling, moss, and dry grass, in
which are deposited two eggs only, of varying colour. Some
are of a dark olive brown, whilst others are of a greener
tint, with black-brown spots, intermixed with small speckles
of a whitish or rusty colour.

EGGS.

i Sand Martin. 2. Little Stint. 3- Long-eared Owl. 4. Kite. 5- Lesser White-throat-
6. Redwing. 7. Shieldrake. 8. Sandpiper. 9. Redshank.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 155

THE KITE.

THIS bird locates its nest in a strong fork of some tall tree,
building it with sticks and whatever softer material she
can come at without much trouble, such as wool, &c. The
eggs number three, and are of a grey or dirty white,
spotted and blotched with dull red or orange-brown, the
spots predominating at the larger end.

THE RED-SHANK.

THE nest of the Red-shank is situated amidst a tuft of grass,
or in a small hole sheltered by the surrounding herbage, and
is constructed of a few blades of fine dry grass lightly put
together. She lays four eggs of a cream or straw colour,
blotched and speckled with dark brown, the spots being
very variable, but generally forming a belt or zone at the

larger end.

THE SAND-MARTIN.

As denoted by the name, the nesting-place of the Sand-
martin is at the extremity of a deep hole, which the bird
excavates for herself in some sandbank, generally near a
river. The nest is constructed of straw, hay, or dead
rushes, whichever may be found in the locality where the
bird is breeding, and lined with feathers. The eggs are
from four to six in number, of an elongated shape, the
extreme thinness of the shell giving them a pinky appear-
ance, but when blown they are a beautiful white.

THE LITTLE STINT.

THIS bird does not breed in the British Isles, but in
Northern Europe and Asia. The nest is situated on the
ground, and is very similar in construction to that of most

156 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

of the Sandpiper species, being a natural depression in the
ground, with a lining of dead leaves, or other such material
as may be procured within easy reach of the place chosen.
The eggs are four in number, of varying ground colour,
from pale brown to pale greenish-grey, spotted and blotched
with rich brown, the spots generally confluent at the
larger end ; but the colour is probably subject to as many
variations as the Dunlin's eggs, already described.

THE LONG-EARED OWL.

LIKE the Hawk tribe generally, this bird manifests an un-
mistakable dislike for maternal labour, as she contents
herself with the old nest of a Crow, Magpie, or the
abandoned home of a Squirrel. Some collectors give the
number of eggs as from three to seven ; but four or five
is the general rule, and numbers above the last figure
quoted the exception. The eggs are white, and almost as
blunt at one end as the other.

THE SHIELDRAKE.

THE labours of the Rabbit are utilised by the Shieldrake,
and almost indispensable to her for incubation purposes,
as she deposits dried flags, bents, reeds, and a liberal
quantity of down, plucked from her own body, at the bottom
of a deep burrow, after having enlarged and improved it to
suit her purpose. She lays from eight even to twice that-
number of eggs, of a very smooth, roundish, oblong shape.
They are cream colour, or nearly white in colour.

THE REDWING.

THIS bird very rarely builds in the British Isles, but
abundantly in Norway, Sweden, and other high latitudes

EGGS.

x. Tawny Owl. 2. Grey Phalarope. 3. Golden Eagle. 4. White-tailed Eagle.
5. Eider Duck. 6. Herring Gull. 7. Shoveller. 8. Ruff. 9. Grasshopper Warbler.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 157

visited by it during the summer. Its nest is very similar
to that of the ordinary Ring Ouzel or Blackbird, and is
located in the middle of a dense bush. The eggs number
from four to six, and are somewhat like those of the Field-
fare, only not so large. It would take a very clever con-
noisseur to pick out the egg of the Blackbird, Ring Ouzel,
Fieldfare, and Redwing from some specimens without
making a mistake, so much alike are they in colour, size,
and shape.

THE SANDPIPER.

ON the banks of a river, lake, or tarn, this familiar little
bird locates its nest, generally choosing some natural de-
pression, where it will be protected by a projecting grass
tuft, though I have found its nest on the bare ground, and
once on a tiny piece of grass amongst a lot of rocks. The
nest is lined with dead rushes, leaves, and fine grass. The
eggs number four, of a creamy yellow or stone colour, with
light brown spots and blotches, as it were, in the shell,
and dark brown on the surface.

THE LESSER WHITE-THROAT.

THE situation chosen by the Lesser Whitethroat for its
nest is amongst brambles, low bushes, and nettles, build-
ing it of grass, bents, and an inner lining of horsehairs.
The eggs number four or five,, and are white, with a greenish
tendency, spotted, chiefly at the larger end, with ash and
light umber brown.

THE RUFF.

THIS bird, like the Snipe and Red- shank, makes her nest in
wet, swampy places, using only the coarse grass found on

158 FAMILIAR WILD BIRDS.

the spot. Like its congeners, it only lays four eggs, very
similar in ground colour and marking to the two birds
quoted above, varying from stone-colour to olive-green,
blotched and speckled with rich brown and liver-coloured
spots.

THE WHITE-TAILED EAGLE.

THE high, inaccessible cliffs of Scotland and Ireland are
the places where this noble bird propagates its race. Sticks,
heather, grass, and wool are the nesting materials used.
The eggs are two in number, usually of an unspotted
white as representative, but sometimes slightly marked
with pale red — this, however, being the exception.

THE GKEY PHALAROPE.

THE breeding haunts of this bird seem to be as far north
as it can possibly carry out incubation successfully ; Green-
land, Northern Siberia, and Melville Island being chosen.
A natural depression in the peat earth serves as a nest, in
which four eggs are usually laid, of a stony colour, tinged
with olive-green, speckled and spotted (especially at the
larger end) with dark brown.

THE SHOVELLER,

THIS duck breeds in Norfolk, the Fen districts, and Scot-'
land, once numerously, but now rarely. The nest is made
in marshes as far removed from human intrusion as possible,
and is constructed of sedges, reeds, &c. ; and as the time of
hatching approaches the eggs are covered with down from
the bird's own body. They number from eight to twelve,
and are white, tinged with green.

EGGS AND EGG-COLLECTING. 159

THE GRASSHOPPER WARBLER.

THE nest of this shy little summer visitor is usually well
concealed near the ground, in the middle of a thick bush.
It is constructed of strong dry grass and moss outside,
with an inner lining of slender grass. The eggs number
from four to seven, and are of a pale rosy-coloured white,
with spots and speckles all over of a darker-shaded red.

THE GOLDEN EAGLE.

THE mate of this king of birds builds her nest in the most
desolate and unapproachable parts of Scotland, Ireland, and
Wales, where even the skilful and daring cragsman cannot
come. The eyrie is made of sticks, a supply being added
each year until an enormous pile is collected, almost flat at
the top. The eggs number from two to three, and are of a
grey or dingy-white colour, clouded and blotched nearly
all over with rusty or reddish-brown spots.

THE EIDER DUCK.

THIS useful member of the Duck family breeds sometimes
on the coast of Northumberland, the Fame Islands, and on
the shores of Norway and Sweden, in great numbers. The
nest is made of dried grasses, weeds, &c. ; and as the pro-
cess of incubation advances, like the Shoveller, the mother
lines the nest profusely with the beautiful down from its
body. The eggs usually number five, and are of a light
green colour, oblong in shape.

THE TAWNY OWL.

A HOLLOW in a tree, or the deserted nest of a Crow, serves
this nocturnal bird for a nest. The eggs are of an

160

FAMILIAR WILL BIRDS.

elliptical shape, numbering from three to five, and
quite white

are

THE HERRING GULL.

SEA cliffs and rocky islands round the coasts of England
and Wales- are the nesting-places of this bird, the materials
used being dried grass and ferns, loosely put together.
The eggs are three in number, of a stone colour, some-
times light olive-brown — but this rarely — spotted with
dark brown.

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Merry Girls of England. By L. T. MEADE. 33. 6d.

Beyond the Blue Mountains. By L. T. MEADE. Illustrated. 53.

The Cost of a Mistake. By SARAH PITT. Illustrated. New Edition. 2s. 6d.

The Peep of Day. Cassell's Illustrated Edition. 2s. 6d.

A Book of Merry Tales. By MAGGIE BROWNE, SHEILA, ISABEL WILSON, and

C. L. MAT£AUX. Illustrated. 35. 6d.
A Sunday Story-Book. By MAGGIE BROWNE, SAM BROWNE, and AUNT

ETHEL. Illustrated. 35. 6d.

A Bundle of Tales. By MAGGIE BROWNE, SAM BROWNE, & AUNT ETHEL. 35. 6d.
Story Poems for Young and Old. By E. DAVENPORT. 33. 6d.
Pleasant Work for Busy Fingers. By MAGGIE BROWNE. Illustrated. Cheap

Edition, as. 6d.

Magic at Home. By Prof. HOFFMAN. Fully Illustrated. A Series of easy
and startling Conjuring Tricks for Beginners. Cloth gilt, 35. 6d.

Schoolroom and Home Theatricals. By ARTHUR WAUGH. With Illustra-
tions by H. A. J. MILES. New Edition. ' Cloth, is. 6d.

Little Mother Bunch. By Mrs. MOLESWORTH. Illustrated. New Edition. 25. 6d.
Heroes of Every-Day Life. By LAURA LANE. With about 20 Full-page

Illustrations. 256 pages, crown 8vo, cloth, 25. 6d.

Ships, Sailors, and the Sea. By R. J. CORNEWALL-JONES. Illustrated

throughout, and containing a Coloured Plate of Naval Flags. Cheap Edition, as. 6d.
Gift Books for Young People. By Popular Authors. With Four Original
Illustrations in each. Cloth gilt, is. 6d. each.

The Boy Hunters of Kentucky. By

Edward S. Ellis.
Red Feather: a Tale of the American

Frontier. By Edward S. Ellis.
Fritters ; or, " It's a Long Lane that has

no Turning."
Trixy; or, "Those who Live in Glass

Houses shouldn't throw Stones."
The Two Hardcastles.
Seeking a City.
Bhoda's He ward.

Jack Marston's Anchor.

Frank's Life-Battle.

Major Monk's Motto; or, "Look Before

you Leap."
Tim Thomson's Trial; or, " All is not Gold

that Glitters."
Ursula's Stumbling-Block.
Ruth's Life- Work; or,"No Pains, no Gains."
Rags and Rainbows.
Uncle William's Charge.
Pretty Pink's Purpose.

"Golden Mottoes" Series, The. Each Book containing 208 pages, with tour
full-page Original Illustrations. Crown 8vo, cloth gilt, 25. each.

" Nil Desperandum." By the Rev. F. Lang-
bridge, M.A.

"Honour is my Guide." By Jeauie Hering
(Mrs. Adams-Acton).

" Bear and Forbear." By Sarah Pitt. " &*-** a Sur6 ^nd^' ^y Emily^Searchfield.

" Foremost if I Can." By Helen Atteridge.

"Cross and Crown" Series, The. With Four Illustrations in each Book. Crown
8vo, 256 pages, 25. 6d. each.

Heroes of the Indian Empire ; or, Stories of
Valour and Victory. By Ernest Foster.

Through Trial to Triumph; or, "The
Royal Way." By Madeline Bonavia Hunt.

In Letters of Flame : A Story of the
Waldenses. By C. L. Mate"aux.

Strong to Suffer : A Story of the Jews. By

E.

ng t
. Wy

By Fire and Sword : A Story of the Hugue-
nots. By Thomas Archer.

Adam Hepburn's Vow : A Tale of Kirk and
Covenant. By Annie S. Swan.

No. XIII. ; or, The Story of the Lost Vestal.
A Tale of Early Christian Days. By Emma
Marshall.

Freedom's Sword: A Story of the Days of
Wallace and Bruce. By Annie S. Swan.

Selections from Cassell <fe Company's Publications.

Albums for Children. Price 33. 6d. each.

The Album for Home, School, and Play. I My Own Album of Animals. Illustrated.
Set in bold type, and illustrated throughout | Picture Album of All Sorts. Illustrated.
The Chit- Chat Album. Illustrated.

"Wanted— a King" Series. Cheap Edition. Illustrated. 25. 6d. each.

G-reat-Q-randmamma. By Georgina M. Synge. I Wanted— a King ; or, How Merle set the
Fairy Tales in Other Lands. By Julia God- Nursery Khymes to Rights. By Maggie

dard. Browne.

Robin's Ride. By Ellinor Davenport Adams.

" Peeps Abroad " Library. Cheap Editions. Cloth gilt, 25. 6d. each.
Rambles Round London. By C. L.

Mateaux. Illustrated.

Around and About Old England. By C.
L. Mateaux. Illustrated.

Paws and Claws. By one of the Authors of
" Poems Written for a Child." Illustrated.

Decisive Events in History. By Thomas
Archer. With Original Illustrations.

The True Robinson Crusoes.

Peeps Abroad for Folks at Home. Illus-
trated throughout.

Wild Adventures in Wild Places. By Dr.
Gordon Stables, R.N. Illustrated.

Modern Explorers. By Thomas Frost. Illus-
trated. New and Cheaper Edition.

Early Explorers. By Thomas Frost

Home Chat with our Young Folks. Illus-
trated throughout.

Jungle, Peak, and Plain. Illustrated
throughout.

Three-and Sixpenny Books for Young People. With Original Illustrations.

Cloth gilt, 35. 6d. each.

t The White House at Inch Gow. By Sarah

Pitt.

+ Polly By L. T. Meade.
t The Palace Beautiful. By L. T. Meade.
"Follow my Leadei*."
For Fortune and Glory.
Lost among White Africans,
t A World of Girls. By L. T. Meade.

Told Out of School. By A. J. Daniels.
+ Red Rose and Tiger Lily. By L. T.

Meade.
The Romance of Invention. By JAMES

Burnley.

+ Bashful Fifteen. By L. T. MEADE.
The King's Command. A Story for Girls.

By Maggie Symington,
t A Sweet Girl Graduate. By L. T. Meade.

Books marked thus f can also be had in extra cloth gilt, gilt edges, 53. each.
Books by Edward S. Ellis. Illustrated. Cloth, 23. 6d. each.

The Phantom of the River.

Shod with Silence.

The Great Cattle Trail.

The Path in the Ravine.

The Hunters of the Ozark.

The Camp in the Moun-
tains.

Ned in the Woods. A Tale
of Early Days in the West.

Down the Mississippi.
The Last War Trail.
Ned on the River. A Tale

of Indian River Warfare.
Footprints in the Forest.
Up the Tapajos.
Ned in the Block House.

A Story of Pioneer Life in

Kentucky.

The Young Ranchers.
The Lost Trail.
Camp-Fire and Wigwam.
Lost in the Wilds.
Lost in Samoa. A Tale of

Adventure in the Navigator

Islands.
Tad; or, "Getting Even"

with Him.

CasselTs Picture Story Books. Each containing 60 pages. 6d. each.

Little Talks.
Bright Stars.
Nursery Joys.
Pet's Posy.
Tiny Tales.

Daisy's Story Book.

Dot's Story Book,

A Nest of Stories.

Good Night Stories.

Chats for Small Chatterers. |

Auntie's Stories.
Birdie's Story Book.
Little Chimes.
A Sheaf of Tales.
Dewdrop Stories.

Illustrated Books lor the Little Ones.

Illustrated, is. each ; or cloth gilt, is. 6d.

Bright Tales and Funny
Pictures.
Merry Little Tales.
Little Tales for Little
People.
Little People and Their
Pets.
Tales Told for Sunday.
Sunday Stories for Small
People.
Stories and Pictures for
Sunday.

Bible Pictures for Boys
and Girls.
Firelight Stories.
Sunlight and Shade.
Rub-a-dub Tales.
Fine Feathers and Fluffy
Fur.
Scrambles and Scrapes.
Tittle Tattle Tales.
Dumb Friends.
Indoors and Out.
Some Farm Friends.

Containing interesting Stories. All

Those Golden Sands.
Little Mothers and their

Children.
Our Pretty Pets.
Our Schoolday Hours.
Creatures Tame.
Creatures Wild.
Up and Down the Garden.
All Sorts of Adventures.
Our Sunday Stories.
Our Holiday Hours.
Wandering Ways.

Shilling Story Books. All Illustrated,. and containing Interesting Stories.

Seventeen Cats.
Bunty and the Boys.
The Heir of Elmdale.
The Mystery at Shoncliff

School.
Claimed at Last, and Roy's

Reward.
Thorns and Tangles.

The Cuckoo in the Robin's
John's Mistake. [Nest.
Diamonds in the Sand.
Surly Bob.
The History of Five Little

Pitchers.

The Giant's Cradle.
Shag and Doll.

Aunt Lucia's Locket.
The Magic Mirror.
The Cost of Revenge.
Clever Frank.
Among the Redskins.
The Ferryman of Brill.
Harry Maxwell.
A Banished Monarch.

Selections from Cassett <fe Company's Publications.

Eighteenpenny Story Books.

Rs

Wee Willie Winkie.
Ups and Downs of a Don-
key's Life.

Three Wee Ulster Lassies.
Up the Ladder.
Dick's Hero ; & other Stories.
The Chip Boy.

All Illustrated throughout.

Tom Morris's Error.

Worth more than Gold.

" Through Flood— Through

Fire."
The Girl with the Golden

Locks.
Stories of the Olden Time.

jles, Baggies, and the
jeimperor.

Roses from Thorns.
Faith's Father.
By Land and Sea.
The Young Berringtons.
Jeff and Leff.

Library of Wonders. Illustrated Gift-books for Boys. Cloth, is. 6d.

Wonderful Escapes. I Wonderful Balloon Ascents.

Wonders of Animal Instinct. | Wonders of Bodily Strength and Skill.

The "World in Pictures" Series. Illustrated throughout. Cheap Edition, is. 6d. each.

A Hamble Bound France.

All the Russias.

Chats about Germany.

Peeps into China.

The Land of Pyramids (Egypt).

The Eastern Wonderland (Japan).

glimpses of South America,
ound Africa.

The Land of Temples (India).
The Isles of the T "

Two-Shilling Story Books. All Illustrated.

Margaret's Enemy.
Stories of the Tower.
Mr. Burke's Nieces.
May Cunningham's Trial.
The Top of the Ladder:

How to Beach it.
Little Flotsam.

Madge and her Friends.
The Children of the Court.

The Four^CaTs of the Tip-

pertons.

Marion's Two Homes.
Little Folks' Sunday Book.

Two Fourpenny Bits.

Poor Nelly.

Tom Heriot.

Aunt Tabitha's Waifs.

In Mischief Again.

Through Peril to Fortune.

Peggy, and other Tales.

Half-Crown Story Books.

In Quest of G-old ; or, Under

the Whanga Falls.
On Board the "Esnteralda ; or,

Martin Leigh's Log.

Esther West.
For Queen and King.
Perils Afloat and Brigands
Ashore.

Working to Win.
At the South Pole.
Pictures of School Life and
Boyhood.

CasselTs Pictorial Scrap Book.

pages, 6d. each.

In Twenty-four Books, each containing 32

Books for the Little Ones. Fully Illustrated.

Rhymes for the Young Folk. By William
Allingham. Beautifully Illustrated, is. 6d.

The Sunday Scrap Book. With Several
Hundred Illustrations. Boards, 35. 6d. ; cloth,
gilt edges, 55.

CasselPs Robinson Crusoe.

Illustrations. Cloth, 35. 6d. ; gilt edges, 55.
e Old Fairy Tales. With Original lllus^
trations. Cloth, i

lllus-

CasselTs Swiss Family Robinson.

trated. Cloth, 3s. 6d. ; gilt edges, 55.

The New " Little Folks " Painting Book. Containing nearly 350 Outline Illustrations suitable for

Colouring, is.

The World's Workers. A Series of New and Original Volumes by Popular
Authors. With Portraits printed on a tint as Frontispiece, is. each.

Dr. Guthrie, Father Mathew, Elihu Bur-
ritt, Joseph Livesey.

Sir Henry Havelock and Colin Campbell
Lord Clyde.

Abraham Lincoln.

David Livingstone.

George Muller and Andrew Reed.

Richard Cobden.

Benjamin Franklin.

Handel.

John Cassell. By G. Holden Pike.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon. By G. Holden

Pike.

Dr. Arnold of Rugby. By Rose E. Selfe.
The Earl of Shaftesbury.
Sarah Robinson, Agnes weston, and Mrs.

Meredith.

Thomas A. Edison and Samuel F. B. Morse.
Mrs. Somerville and Mary Carpenter.
General Gordon.
Charles Dickens.
Florence Nightingale, Catherine Marsh,

Frances Ridley Havergal, Mrs. Ran-

yardC'L. N. R.").

Turner the Artist.

George and Robert Stephenson.

Sir Titus Salt and George Moore.

•»* The above Works can also be had 7 hrec in One Vol.,cloth, gilt edges, $

CASSELL «fc COMPANY, Limited, Ludgate Hill, London;
Pans & Melbourne,

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